> A Shadow Among Light
>  by Theforrealdeal
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was dark.

The floor was cold, hard, wanting nothing other than to give pain in any way it could. In this case, the only requital was a sore neck and back. 

That tends to happen, however, when you fall asleep on a hard floor.

His head was in a blur. It felt as if a dense fog had made its way into his mind, clouding his vision and disorienting his thoughts. He was laying on his side, legs outstretched across the floor. The young stallion inhaled deeply, then let out a long groan, bringing an unpleasant sound to the lifeless room he occupied.

After a few long minutes, the fog in his head started to clear and he soon realized he had no idea where he was. He cracked open an eye, trying to gather any information on his surroundings. Nothing. Without lifting his head, he tried rubbing his eye with a hoof. Again, nothing.

Any attempt to see was fruitless. The darkness would not allow it.

He was starting to worry. He went over a mental checklist to confirm he was okay, making sure he still had feeling in his body. 

Legs? Check. Hooves? Check. Tail? Check. Eyes? Check. Horn? Check. Ears? Check. Mouth? Check.

Satisfied, the young stallion decided to lift his head off the cold, unforgiving floor. He instantly regretted this decision however, as the pain from an extended period of inactivity flooded into his neck. His head fell back to the floor with a flop. Several consecutive and unsuccessful attempts later, aggravation found its way into his mind.

After a minute of mental preparation and with a frown printed across his face, the stallion forced himself to his hooves. His wobbling legs struggled to lift his body but eventually reached their goal and held him upright. He staggered in place for a moment; his balance hadn't quite returned yet. His body swayed from side to side as his hooves failed to cooperate. 

Eventually his hooves planted themselves on the floor and he stood firmly in place. Double checking to make sure his hooves were still under him, he promptly shook his head, clearing away the last of the cloudiness. He opened his eyes as wide as possible and looked about.

"What happened? Where the hay am I?" he thought to himself as he searched the unknown surroundings. 

He tried to think back to what could have happened. He thought hard yet no memory would come. Every time he felt close to a breakthrough, it suddenly vanished from his mind. 

As he tried to remember, the stallion realized something and asked himself in shock, "Who am I?" The thought hit him with the force of a hurricane. He started to panic.

"What's going on here? Why is this happening? Why can't I remember who I am?" Thoughts and questions were flying around his head like a swarm of angry bees. His heart rate increased as he became more worried. Every logical answer he tried to create caused several new questions to arise, all of which brought him to the same two questions.

"Who am I? Why am I here?"

Slowly, the stallion calmed himself enough to keep his thoughts straight. He hadn't reached an answer, but had decided to move on anyway. 

"I need to figure out where I am first. Maybe that will help me remember," he spoke quietly to himself, still scared by the fact that he didn't recognize himself.

It was still pitch dark but the harder he looked, the more he could make out the shadows of various things in the room. He looked down at the floor. It was smooth and cool to the touch and lacked any crevices to suggest tiling. "Must be some kind of stone," he thought, "if I could just get some light, I could probably tell what it is."

Slightly aggravated, the young stallion lifted his head up and began moving forward. The first step was slow and painful on his sore muscles. His legs felt heavy, which made each step short and tedious. Every step was an entirely new ordeal to overcome. It was as if he was carrying saddlebags full of bricks. Lead bricks.

After what seemed like hours, he reached the wall in front of him. Placing a hoof on the wall, he felt around for something, anything he could use to see. His hoof tapped something sticking out of the wall just below his eye level. The protrusion was pointed upward and away from the wall at an angle. The base of the rod felt like wood which connected to a box on the wall.

After further investigation, the young stallion noticed a grip at the end of the wooden rod. Gripping it firmly with a hoof, he yanked downward. The rod barely moved. He pulled harder, though nothing showed for the extra effort. The stallion moved forward, putting most of his body weight on the rod. He strained and pushed down with all the strength he could call upon. After several seconds, the rod finally shifted downward. The mechanism squealed as the rod swung down along with his body until it stopped with a satisfying clank. Breathing heavily, the young stallion stood back, proud of his accomplishment, and waited for something to happen.

Nothing happened.

He stared at the lever, his mouth hanging open. The lack of a result took him off guard. "Wha... why?" He tried to form words but couldn't. 

Even with all the problems he was facing, fate was determined to ensure that nothing was going to go his way. Not even a simple lever would accomplish anything for him. He continued to stare at the device as he tried to both calm himself and form a new plan.

The stallion’s confusion and agitation failed to let him notice a steady hum coming from above him. The humming came from an orb that was suspended in the middle of the ceiling. The sound steadily grew louder as magic flowed through the orb. The orb suddenly flashed a bright white light that illuminated the entire room.

Caught completely off guard, the young stallion instantly forgot his confusion as the harsh light bombarded his senses. The new pain made him quickly close his eyes and lower his head to the floor. The unrelenting glow of the light continued to make its way into his vision, forcing him to shield his blinded eyes behind his hooves. Tears dripped from his face as he tried to blink the pain away.

When he finally found the strength to open his eyes, he found that he was looking at his hooves. The fur over his hooves was a dark grey that matched the color of his coat. A few strands of his mane blocked his view. He moved the deep black hair from his face and looked at the ground.

The floor was a glossy shade of blue and had a reflective shine to it. This was not stone as he thought earlier, however. It was crystal. 

This was very intriguing to him as he had never been to a place that had crystal floors. Although, if he couldn't even recall his name, he probably wouldn't be able to remember going somewhere with crystal floors, he thought. Wherever this is, it must be a pretty fancy place.

He looked up from the floor and took his first look at the room that imprisoned him. Directly in front of him was the wall that held the lever. The wall itself was made of a similar crystal as the floor, but had a much lighter color to it, almost white even. Next to the lever, was a collection of wheels and nozzles protruding from the wall. Each had a label underneath that the young stallion didn't bother to read. He assumed they were there to control the building's plumbing system. Some pipes running in and out of the wall with various gauges on them further supported his theory.

The walls on both sides of him were full of shelves. Spare pipes and tools covered the wall to his left while the wall to his right held various cleaning supplies. An old feather duster sat next to a bottle of what looked like soap on one shelf. A mop and broom leaned in the corner of the room. "Must be some kind of janitor closet," he hypothesized.

Despite the fact that there was a wall of cleaning supplies next to him, most of the things in the room were dusty.  The small irony made the stallion think. He speculated why the cleaning room would be under a blanket of dust. Either the building was never in disrepair and nopony ever bothered to get the tools to fix it, or nopony has been here in a while and the place is deserted. He observed the pipes again. Everything seemed to be working and the gauges on the pipes showed they had pressure. "Well, it probably wouldn't be running if this place was deserted," he thought. "So why is everything covered in dust then?" Just another question to be added to his list of questions. 

All his questions bounced around in his head, growing restless in their search for answers. Every new thing he learned only presented more questions. He still didn't know where he was, who he was, and why he was here. Those three questions were like anvils placed on his spine, trying their best to bring him down. 

The thought of not knowing anything about himself made the weight of them all the more real. His mood began to sink under the pressure of the anvils as he thought.

No. He wasn't going to let these questions bring him down. He could figure this out. The stallion comforted himself. "I just need to take this one step at a time," he mentally encouraged himself. "First, I need to figure out where I am."

The stallion turned to the last wall he hadn't observed yet. The first thing he saw instantly revived his fallen mood. A door. Finally, an exit.

Upon walking up to it, the stallion noticed something, the door was rather small. His chin was a few inches higher than the top of the door. Now that he thought about it, the whole room seemed pretty small. The room was only about two lengths of himself long and equally as wide. The ceiling was well within his reach, he thought he might even touch his shoulders to it of he stood on his hind legs. 

"Why is everything so small?" he wondered. His thoughts would have to wait however, as he wanted to leave the small room as soon as possible. He didn't want to waste any more time contemplating his ideas and the room. He needed some progress.

He reached for the door handle, or rather he reached down for it, and grasped it in his hoof. The handle was cold to the touch and sent a cool sensation through his foreleg. He lowered his head to fit through the doorway and as slow as the sun rises, opened the door, peering out a little bit further as the it swung inch by inch.

What was beyond the door shocked the young unicorn. A grand hallway, decorated with everything one would expect only in a royal household, lay out before his eyes. The hallway was curved and followed the shape of the building. The ceiling was significantly higher than the one in his little room, held up by massive crystal pillars that lined the walls all the way down the hall. Along the wall opposite of him enormous windows in between each pillar allowed sunlight to illuminate the room.

The floor was made of the same blue crystal as the one in the small room. Only this floor seemed much shinier, as if it had been waxed and polished recently. He could see the reflections of the sun light reflect off the floor and project a brilliant color on the wall.

His mouth hung open as he looked, amazed at the grand hallway that lay out before him. He assumed that he must be in a mansion of some filthy rich pony. If not that, then it must be a palace or castle. The small room he had come from before seemed even smaller in comparison to the hallway. It was like comparing the size of a grape to that of a grapefruit.

He slowly stepped out of the doorway of the small closet, finally able to lift his head up.  Without bothering to close the door, he walked to the nearest window. Through the colossal window he observed a great panorama of a town. No, not a town, it was much too big to be a town. What the stallion saw was a magnificent city.

The city wrapped around his viewpoint in a circular fashion. Buildings and houses of various sizes stretched a mile or so in each direction. An organized grid of streets and walkways divided the city. Beyond the circular city were vast fields were large crystal formations protruded out of the ground at random. 

The city streets were completely empty. "Odd for a city this big. There should be dozens of ponies about." He looked down and realized something. He was very high up. The ground seemed well over a hundred feet below. Even the tallest buildings in the distance were significantly lower than where he was standing.

Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw movement on the ground. He double checked to confirm and saw, for the first time since he awoke, another pony. He blinked a couple times then checked again. It wasn't just one pony, there were three. From where he stood, they looked like miniature toy figurines that foals would play with.

They were almost directly below him and were walking towards a cluster of tents and stands. There were several more ponies over there, almost a dozen in that one spot. He looked closer and saw a group of ponies waiting around a stand that seemed to be making and selling some kind of hats. Not very far from the hat stand, a couple dozen ponies sat in some bleachers that surrounded a small, rectangular field.

Two ponies stood at each end of the field, each garbed in decorative armor that covered their heads and backs. Their armor wielded lances that attached to their sides. The stallion could only see their manes and tails from his point of view, he couldn't tell if they were mares or colts. The pony at the far end of the field had a pink mane and tail while the other had a rainbow colored tail and mane. 

The unicorn heard the soft and muffled sound of a horn blow come from outside. Almost immediately, the rainbow maned pony charged at the other, lance pointed directly at the opponent. The pink maned pony hesitated for a moment, then did the same. The two rushed towards each other, the rainbow maned pony galloping significantly faster than the other. Then a moment before impact, the pink maned pony stopped in place, but the other didn't even slow. The pink maned pony could only brace as the opponent's lance met its target.

The stallion could only wince and turn away from the window as the rainbow maned pony sent the pink maned pony flying through the air. The crowd cheered and the rainbow maned pony trotted about the field in victory.

Everyone seemed to be having a good time. Everyone but him. He was stuck in this monstrous tower trying to figure out who he was and what happened while everyone else was at that carnival enjoying themselves.

Looking down at his hooves, he sighed, turning away from the window. He slowly walked down the hall, his eyes never looking up from the floor. "I don't know what to do," he thought. "I don't know where to go. I'm all alone in this great hallway without a single clue of what's going on." His walking started to slow. "Why me? What did I ever do? Am I being punished for something?"

His walk slowed to a stop before he finally gave up and sat down right in the middle of the hallway. His head hung low as he sat there and thought. The crushing weight of the anvils returned to him. "How can I ever figure out what to do if I can't remember anything... let alone remember my own name?" He held tears back from running down his face. "Can't anypony, anything help me?"

Just as the gates holding back his tears were about to break, a small noise hit him, causing his ears to perk up. The sound awoke him from his miserable state of self pity and he lifted his head up, looking in the direction of where the sound came. It sounded like a door being opened.

He stood up and trotted towards the source of the sound, curiosity with a side of hope powering every step. As he made his way down the curved hallway, a feeling of excitement boiled inside him. "Maybe it's somepony that could help me!" he thought with hope. "Maybe they could tell me where I am, how I got here, and what to do!"

The young unicorn realized something. "I don't know why I'm here. I could have even been foalnapped and that could be my captor down there." The excitement and hope he felt earlier drained like a bathtub, making him stop in his tracks.  "Maybe it's a guard coming to check on me!" he thought. His heart started pounding within his chest, the dangers and fear of the unknown weighing down on him.

He darted out of the center of the hallway and pressed against the wall. He didn't know who, or what, was down the hall but he needed to find out. Nothing was making sense from the time he awoke in the room up to now. It was about time things started.

Hugging the wall, the young unicorn cautiously walked towards the source of the sound. He made sure to be as quiet as possible. Silent hoof-steps are a difficult task however when the floor is solid crystal. Nonetheless, the stallion did his best to keep his hooves quiet. 

As he slowly made his way down the curved hallway, an open door peeked its way into his line of sight. He stopped in place and watched, waiting for whatever it was that opened to door to reveal itself.

He stared at the door for what seemed like ages until a little ruckus came from the open doorway. Whatever was inside was moving things around. The stallion crouched low where he stood pressed against the wall, trying to keep a low profile. The open door blocked his view of whatever was happening inside. He sat there, motionless, not a single sound could be heard from him.

The noise stopped and for a moment; the hallway was absolutely silent. The unicorn's heart slowed, each beat was like the pounding of a drum. He worried his heartbeat could be heard by whoever was in the room. The silence was deafening. Each passing second of it threatened to drive the young stallion mad. Sweat formed around his forehead. His eyes never left the door; they hardly blinked. His ears were pointed directly at the door as well, trying to pick up any sound that might be coming from the room.

Out of nowhere, the heavy silence that lingered in the hall broke as the slow and steady clopping of hooves against the crystal floor came from the room. The stallion's body tensed, preparing for anything that stepped out of the room. He prepared for anything, but expected the worst, ready to sprint away if necessary. He pressed himself even closer to the wall and continued to stare. His gaze was that of a hawk in search of his prey.

A swirl of dark blue peeked its way from behind the open door. It stretched further into his view until he finally recognized it as a tail. The rest of the figure soon followed the tail out from behind the door. He scanned over the being carefully. It had a sandy white coat and a dark blue mane and tail that matched that of the open ocean. Its eyes were a light brown that were similar to the color of the mark on its flank which was a rolled up scroll with a golden seal.

The stallion let out a long breath he didn't realize he was been holding. He was so relieved to see not an angry guard or a horrible monster, but a pony, a crystal pony mare to be exact. The fear that clouded his mind cleared, relief left in its place. He was expecting nothing less than a monster coming to finish him off. He sighed and lifted his head.

The mare was pulling a small empty cart out of the room. Pulling it off to the side, the mare walked over to the door and closed it. She grabbed the cart and pushed it down the hall, away from where the stallion was still crouched against the wall. She gave no sign that indicated her knowledge of his presence.

The stallion stood up and slowly followed the mare, choosing to keep a good distance. "Maybe she can help me," he thought. "I just need to find out where I am after all."

His pace gradually increased as he tried to catch up to the mare. The sound of his hooves clacking against the hard floor became louder as his walk quickened. The mare paid no mind to the sound. She was too busy with her own thoughts and pushing the cart.

As he closed the distance between them, he began to notice something odd. Every moment he got closer, the mare seemed to get shorter and shorter. Soon, the stallion was only a few feet behind the mare and he towered over her. The mare was nearly a full head shorter than he was. She looked like an ordinary pony to him, why was she so much shorter than he was?

He pushed the thought aside and finally decided to speak. He opened his mouth to say something but stopped himself before any sound escaped. 

"What should I say? Should I tell her I don't remember anything?" he questioned himself. "Can I really trust this pony that I've never talked to or even seen before?" 

Despite his apprehension, the stallion gathered himself and prepared to speak, clearing his throat. 

"E-excuse me, ma'am?" he finally choked out. His voice stuttered through his nervousness. "I'm a little...lost, right now. C-could you tell me where I am?"

Without looking at him, the mare simply stated, "Why you're on the 124th floor of the southern tower, dear." She continued to push her cart down the hall. "There isn't much up here, you should really get back to the Crystal Fair! I'm only up here because the pony running the traditional basket stand needs more supplies."

The stallion only succeeded in expanding his confusion. "South tower of what? What's a Crystal fair?"

"Um... South tower where, exactly?" he questioned the mare. He felt like a lost foal. Well, he was certainly lost, but at least he wasn't a foal.

The mare giggled softly and replied, "The south tower of the Crystal Empire castle, silly! There's no other place in the empire with this many floors, let alone any other towers! Everypony knows that!"

"Oh... yeah," he faked a laugh. "...I knew that," he lied through his teeth. 

He now knew that he was in some castle in a place called the Crystal Empire. It wasn't much information to go on, but it was all he had so far. He was going to work with the little he had. What was this fair she mentioned earlier? Was it the same carnival he saw through the window?

He decided to ask. "So what's going on at the fair right now?

"Oh there's so much to do!" she exclaimed and began excitedly listing the various attractions the fair had to offer. "There's a petting zoo, a traditional hat stand, so much good food to eat, there was a jousting match, but I'm not sure if it's still going. Oh! I also heard there might be a face painting stand pretty soon!"

Her description of the fair, sounded a lot like what he saw earlier. The mare stopped in front of a seemingly random door. "Well I just need to grab a few things for that pony before I head back to the fair."

"Okay, well thank you for helping me out miss..." he trailed off, he didn't know the mare's name. 

"Oh, silly me, I've forgotten my manners!" she apologized with a quiet giggle. "My name is Gazette."

"Well thank you Miss Gazette. I guess I'll be on my way now."

"Oh it was nothing at all!" she assured him. "I'm glad to help a pony in need anywhe-"

Her statement was cut short as she turned around from her cart and saw the stallion standing before her. Gazette's mouth hung open while she took a good look at the thing a few feet away from her. She had to look up to see the red eyes staring back at her; her own eyes widened. Her ears laid flat against her head.

The stallion just stood there under the mare's gaze; he was starting to feel uncomfortable. Gazette was staring into his eyes with her mouth stopped halfway through a statement. He didn't know what to do, his discomfort only grew as time carried on. The air around them seemed to get warmer and he could feel sweat forming on his forehead. He tried to relieve the tension by offering an uneasy smile. 

The sandy white mare didn't move. 

"I-is there something wrong?" he asked, the awkward grin vanishing and left concern behind it.

No response. Not so much as a blink of an eye came from the frozen pony.

"Uhh... miss Gazette?" He lifted his hoof to take a step closer.

His sudden movement caused the mare to recoil. A terrified scream came from the mare as a response. The shrill sound surprised him and he reeled back. Her loud screech of death made his ears ring.

Before the unicorn could recover, Gazette spun around and sprinted away from him. As she ran, the stallion could hear her cry out between gasps, "It's HIM! It's HIM!" Her screams echoed through the hallway, he could still hear them despite the fact she was out of his sight. The echoes became softer as the mare got further away until he could no longer hear her.

The hallway was returned to its original, quiet state save the lone stallion that stood in the middle trying to comprehend what had happened. His mouth hung open slightly as he stared at the place where an earth pony mare was standing not thirty seconds ago. He was completely and thoroughly confused at the reaction the mare gave him. It came directly out of nowhere to him.

The stallion tried to think of what might have caused this. He thought about Gazette. She seemed like a nice pony when he talked to her, certainly not one who would flee in terror when she met someone. There must be a different reason then. He didn't notice anything that might suggest a mental handicap. She didn't scream before while she was talking to him without looking at him. It was only after the mare looked at him did she scream.

He thought about himself. He realized that he was the one that made her scream. What was it about him that frightened the mare? "Did I do something that would scare her?" he questioned himself. "Did I say something I shouldn't have?"

"What did I do?"

He continued to speculate his problem until the sound of hooves rapidly pounding on the floor reached his ears, distracting him from his thoughts. The sound was getting louder. 

He looked up and saw two ostensibly white stallions charging at him. One was a unicorn and the other was an earth pony. Both were clad with gold armor and helmets. He stared at the two as they advanced until one of them shouted, "There he is! Get him!" 

Realizing their intentions, he spun around and ran. He ran as fast as his hooves could take him. Fear and confusion filled his thoughts. A minute ago, ponies were running away; now they were chasing him.

As the stallion ran, he scanned the hall looking for a doorway or a corridor he could turn down. He spared a look behind him, the two guards were slowly advancing on him. Fear forced him to run faster. He didn't know what would happen if they caught him; he didn't want to find out either.

Up ahead of him, a large crystal bust of a unicorn sat against the wall in between windows. The stallion ignored the brilliant craftsponyship of the statue and how the sunlight passed through the transparent rock, shining rainbows on the floor. Instead, he focused his magic on the crystal, surrounding it in his dark aura. After he ran past it, he used his magic to force the statue over. The crystal fell and crashed on the floor, landing a few feet in front of the two guards.

Both guards skidded to a halt right before the fallen statue, lightly bumping into it. The stallion looked behind him and saw he wasn't being chased anymore. A smug grin grew on his face but it quickly disappeared when he saw the two guards jump over the statue and continue their chase. The small obstacle didn't stop the guards but it gave him a significant lead ahead of them and a little more time with it. He needed all the time he could get. 

The young stallion continued to gallop as fast as he could, exerting nearly all his energy into getting away from his pursuers. 

He needed to find an escape.

The end of the hall came into view and he saw a large wood door at the base. He rushed up to the door and pushed it open. Inside, a spiraling staircase ran both up and down. 

He looked up the stairs, then down. He didn't know which way to go. To get to the ground he needed to go down. However, there could be more guards coming up the stairs. If he went up, he wouldn't be able to get to the ground and leave this castle.

The stallion stepped through the doorway, ducking his head to clear the top, and climbed up a few stairs. Once he was out of the guard's view, he turned around and slid behind the open door. 

As he expected, the guards rushed through the open doorway and charged up the stairs, running right past him behind the wooden door.

He waited a few moments until the sound of the guards faded before moving out from behind the door and slowly walking down the stairs. As he descended, the stallion made sure to stay quiet, not wanting to alert any other guards that could be nearby.


The rest of his trip down the flight of stairs was uneventful. He eventually reached the bottom and stepped off the last stair. Two large doors stood in front of him, big enough to where he wouldn't have to lower his head to make it through. He looked at them and hoped it would lead to the outside, to freedom.

The young stallion reached for one of the handles and grasped it firmly in his hoof. The thought that more guards could be outside made him cautious. He paused, took a deep breath, then slowly pushed the door open. He opened it just enough to stick his head through.

Beyond the door was a large open courtyard. Two other towers identical to the one he was at stood equidistant from him. All three towers acted as pillars holding up a massive triangular dome that sheltered the courtyard. Above the dome was the main body of the castle.

The entire structure was monumental. The young unicorn stood in the doorway in awe of the impressive white castle that stood over him. The courtyard beneath was equally as massive. Crystal covered the ground and extended across the courtyard. 

The stallion looked at the center of the courtyard and saw a tall pillar covered with a purple sheet of fabric. About a dozen ponies gathered around the covered pillar, each trying to look at it. One pony, an orange mare with a blonde tail and mane topped with a stetson hat, was rushing from pony to pony trying to keep a perimeter around the pillar as they came to take a look.

A flood of frightened ponies came racing into the courtyard and surrounded the pillar. The stallion quickly closed the door to avoid being spotted. 

He turned away from the door and sighed, so much for leaving the castle unseen. If he tried to go outside, he would surely be seen. He didn't want to have ponies screaming at the sight of him again and calling guards to chase him down. One hot pursuit was enough for him.

On the other side of the room was a smaller door underneath the staircase. The unicorn had been so focused on leaving that he hadn't noticed it. He walked over and opened the door which revealed a small restroom. 

"I could hide in here until everypony leaves the courtyard I guess," he thought as he examined the room. There was a large mirror on the wall above a counter with a sink and faucet. Another door sat along the wall opposite the mirror. The symbol on the door suggested the facilities within. He didn't bother going in to confirm it. Instead, he walked over to the mirror and stood in front of it. 

Before him stood a very tall unicorn that stared back at him with ruby red eyes. He looked too old to be considered a colt, yet not quite old enough to be a stallion. A long, pitch-black mane laid over his head and neck. It was disheveled from what seemed like days without care. His tail was the same dark color as his mane and was similarly unkempt. His dark grey coat was surprisingly neat compared to his mane and tail, yet it was still a little messy in some places. The full moon adorned his flank with a single howling wolf silhouetted in front of it. The colors of his fur and hair blended so well, if it weren't for his deep red eyes, one might mistake him for a silhouette of a pony. 

Other than his sheer height, there was nothing about him that should have intimidated Gazette, at least, not to the point of screaming bloody murder and sending guards after him he thought. The stallion stared at the two red eyes staring back at him. The same question that bothered him before came to his mind, "Why?"

"Why did she run from me? What is wrong with me?"

Tears formed at the around the edges of his eyes as his questions taunted him. He was lost in a massive city full of ponies that wanted to get him for reasons he didn't understand. 

"Why did the guards chase me? Couldn't they at least talk to me first?"

He was scared, lost, confused, and worst of all, alone. There wasn't a single pony there to help him, they were only scared of him.

"Why were they so determined to get me? What did I do to deserve this?"

He wasn't sure if he would be able to make it out of the city since it was so big. It didn't help that he would stick out amongst the other ponies.

"I'm not a monster, I'm just a regular unicorn. Why was she so afraid of me?"

All his thoughts returned to one burning question that plagued his mind ever since he woke up. "Who... am I?"

The ground began to shake beneath his hooves. The stallion paid no mind, too deep in his thoughts to notice. A wave a white light flashed throughout the room. As it shined, the stallion shut his eyes. When the light passed over him and the shaking stopped, the stallion opened his eyes and looked back at himself in the mirror. 

Old thoughts and memories exploded into his mind like a tornado ripping a house apart. They played across his mind as he remembered them.

His mouth dropped open, and he gasped.

"I remember..."

Visions of shackled ponies and a wasteland flashed across his eyes. A dark unicorn in iron armor and a red cape with a long curved red horn stood in his mind. A long toothy grin spread across the armored unicorn's face and it laughed viciously.

His eyes fell. His heart dropped through his chest. He felt sick to his stomach.

"...I remember everything...
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Umbra."

"Yes, that's it. That's my name."

All his old memories returned to him in an instant. All of his questions were answered at the same time. He recognized where he was, why he woke up in a closet, and what happened to him. But the most important thing he realized was who he was.

He was Umbra, the son of King Sombra. 

The son of the evil tyrant who enslaved the entire Crystal Empire. 

The son of darkness.

Everything about Umbra was in the image of Sombra. They shared the same black mane and tail. Their coats were identical. Even his eyes were the same dark red as Sombra's. 

There were a few minor differences between the two, however. For one, Umbra's horn was straight—unlike his father's whose horn curved upwards. Umbra's mane and tail also did not flow like black fire as Sombra's did. The most prominent difference between the two was the sheer size of Umbra. Sombra was a little bigger than the average stallion, but Umbra was more than a full head taller than Sombra. Doors that Sombra could comfortably fit through, Umbra had to duck to fit. 

Umbra stood there in front of the mirror, staring into his own reflection with new realization. He remembered why he was in the storage room. The memory played over like a film in his head. A horror film. 

Umbra remembered how he saw the suffering of the crystal ponies. They were tortured and Sombra, his father, was the source of their suffering. 

Umbra saw the evil in his father, how it controlled him and flowed through his eyes. He knew it was wrong and so he did what he had to. 

He ran away, or at least he was in the process of running away. Umbra remembered hiding in one of the storage closets. But that was it. The next thing he remembered was waking up with all his memories gone not too long ago.

Now though, his memories had returned and he understood.

He thought about how Gazette reacted when she saw him. He now understood why. When she turned around and looked at him, she didn't see him for who he was, she didn't see Umbra. She saw him for who he appeared to be. She only saw Sombra.

That is why she panicked and ran. That is why the guards were after him. She was afraid of Sombra. The guards were out to get Sombra.

It made much more sense that they would be afraid of Sombra rather than him. They had a good reason to be afraid. Sombra was evil. Umbra had witnessed firsthoof what his father was capable of doing. The crystal ponies had been victims of his father's evil power. They were smart to flee from his presence after what he had done to them. The guards were trying to prevent that evil from rising again.

The only problem was that Umbra was not Sombra. He could never do the same terrible deeds of his father. While Sombra had a heart of black, Umbra had recognized the evil for what it was: evil. 

Umbra stared hard into the mirror. "If she confused me with Sombra, everypony else might do the same," he thought. 

Thanks to Gazette, he knew he was in the great castle of the Crystal Empire, home of the crystal ponies. They knew all too well who Sombra was and what he looked like. Any crystal pony could easily recognize him as King Sombra at first glance. 

Umbra didn't know what would happen to him if he was caught. He didn't really want to find out.

He came to a conclusion, "I can't stay here."

The only possible way of him surviving would be to leave the Crystal Empire and go where he wouldn't be recognized. Getting caught in the empire would certainly mean doom for him. He needed to leave, to find a place where he could live without worrying about being confused with Sombra.

"What was it that returned my memories anyway?" Umbra thought to himself. His own question caught him off guard and he mentally paused. 

That was a good question. What had made him remember? 

Umbra thought back to the moment right before his memory returned. He was standing right here in this same spot trying to figure out why he was being chased. Then, a big white flash of light came from nowhere and his memory returned.

"It must have been something to do with that big flash!" he thought. What else could it have been? Nothing else happened. He didn't hit his head or anything similar that would jog his memory. Based off what little evidence he had, the only answer could be the big flash. 

"But where did the flash come from? What was it exactly?" Umbra pushed these questions aside, they would have to wait. He needed to focus on escaping the Crystal Empire right now. That was the most important thing at the moment.

Umbra had made up his mind. He was going to leave his home, where he had lived all his life and was born and raised, and run away… again.

With his decision made, Umbra gathered his thoughts and opened the door to the stairway. He ducked his head to fit through and walked into the room with the flight of stairs. Upon walking into the room, he noticed that everything looked slightly brighter than it was earlier. It was as if every shadow in the room had become lighter or gone entirely.

After a moment observing the room, he trotted over to the other large doorway, the one he knew led outside. He placed a hesitant hoof on the door and slowly pushed it open, hoping he was making the right decision. Umbra opened the door just enough to stick his head through. He noticed that outside also seemed much brighter than it was before the big flash. Similar to the change in the room, everything seemed to have given up its shade and traded it in for some brightness. All across the courtyard, the crystals twinkled and shined with the light of the sun.

Umbra carefully scanned the courtyard, making sure nopony would see him. Only a few crystal ponies were here and there, going about their own business. A large heart-shaped crystal was left in the center levitating between two pointed pillars that came from the ceiling and the ground. 

"Had that been there before?"

He shook the question out of his head, he needed to focus. Umbra continued to scan the area. Nopony was looking his way. This was his chance; it might be the only one he could get, so he took it. 

Umbra darted out of the door as fast as he could, not even bothering to close it behind him. He hopped down the stairs, and galloped behind the large tower he came out of. He paused to catch his breath; he was out of the courtyard. It was some progress at least. 

"Well that was easy enough. Can't get much worse than this I guess," he mentally congratulated himself for his small achievement. "Maybe sneaking out of here will be easier than I thought!" His optimism rose, blooming along with his self esteem. 

Then he looked out past the castle. Several buildings and houses lined the streets leading away from the castle. On the streets were dozens upon dozens of crystal ponies. Each going to and fro, going about their daily business. 

The Crystal Empire was like a hive of bees, nothing was staying still, constantly moving about in a seemingly random fashion that made sense to only themselves.

Umbra's confidence quickly faded as he saw more and more ponies. So much for an easy escape. Out of the frying pan and into the flames. He could almost hear fate laughing at him. There was no easy way for him to get out of the empire. He would definitely be spotted long before he got to the empire's border.

Umbra was not pleased with the cruel game fate had set up for him. Fate held most of the pieces and was throwing everything in, attempting to finish the game right there. It was Umbra's turn, he had nothing to work with and any move he made almost certainly lead to failure. He was behind enemy lines and all odds were against him.

Umbra sighed, he contemplated any and every move. 

Maybe he could wait for everypony to go back indoors at night and he could get out then? 

No, he couldn't stay in this spot until nightfall. Besides, he needed to leave now. 

Perhaps he could make a disguise and casually trot his way out of here. 

That wouldn't work, he had no supplies let alone any clothes. He didn't think anypony would fall for it anyway. 

Umbra groaned, this was going to be harder than he thought. He looked at the buildings in between him and his goal, escape. There were so many of them, spread about in their organized chaos. Then he saw it, a hole in the enemy's defenses, a narrow gap between the buildings: the alleyways. 

It was dark, narrow, and completely pony free. Realization dawned on him like a light switch being flipped. That was perfect. 

He could easily travel through the alleys where there was definitely a lot fewer ponies and if one came about, he could hide in the dark shadows where his dark coat and mane would blend in like camouflage. 

Every defense has its flaws. Umbra just discovered one and he was going to exploit it. 

Umbra's game with Fate wasn't over yet.

Looking both ways down the street in front of him, not for safety but to make sure nopony was watching, Umbra darted out from his hiding spot. It was a mad dash towards cover. If anypony saw him, he wouldn't make it far. It was a banzai charge, a suicide run. 

He made it across the street, the alleyway being just in front of him. Without a moment's hesitation, he galloped into the alley, stepping into the shadows of the surrounding buildings. It was much cooler without the direct heat from the sun. The sudden change in temperature caused his fur to stand on end, making him shiver in response. He didn't stop running though. 

The stallion ran deep into the alley before he finally stopped. He instantly looked behind him, seeing that nothing came into the alley, nothing was chasing him. Umbra exhaled loudly, relieved that he had made it to the safety of the alleyways.

He paused for a moment to catch his breath before walking at an easy pace through his newfound safety.

The alleys between the buildings provided Umbra with great cover. The buildings stood from one to three stories high on each side. Sunlight didn't reach the ground in most places. It was about a pony's length wide most of the way, allowing Umbra plenty of room to pass through. The alleys were surprisingly clean for such a big city. There were a few pieces of trash here and there along with the occasional bucket or empty crate. Still, Umbra did not see any sign of the crystal ponies as he passed through the alleys.

Now that he was out of the crystal ponies' sight he could relax a little. His thoughts began pestering him again. 

Umbra realized he had no plan. He didn't have a plan for anything. He didn't know what he would do if somepony saw him. He didn't know how he would get away from the empire. He didn't even know which direction to go let alone where to go

The lone stallion sighed as he walked. Every new thought was deteriorating his mood, eating away at his will to go on. The doubtful thoughts continued on and on. They were relentless on his spirit, full of ambiguity and reluctance.

Eventually, his negative thoughts disintegrated the mental supports that held his will. Umbra stopped right in the middle of an alleyway between buildings. He fell to his haunches, head hanging low, ears drooping.

He finally asked himself, "What am I doing? I can't do this. There's no way I'll even make it to the edge of the city. I've never even been outside the castle! What was I thinking?!" Umbra continued interrogating himself, his self-doubt taking over his thoughts. He couldn't find the strength in him to continue. He just sat there depressed. 

A single thought echoed in his mind, "I'm not going to make it."

A small ray of sunlight peeked over the roof of the building next to him, shining down over his head. Umbra felt the small patch of warmth on his head. It was comforting. He looked up from his hooves.

Umbra let the sun's light warm his fur and soothe his body. The doubtful thoughts slowly faded as the warmth of the sun calmed him down. 

Though the warmth was a small comfort, it was just enough to lift him to his hooves. It was enough to make him carry on. His self doubt remained however, always in the back of his mind, making his burden seem that much heavier. 

With his mind at ease, Umbra continued his trot through the dark alleys with a renewed vigor.

***

It wasn't long before the alleyways stopped and lead to an opening. Umbra could see rolling hills and vast fields out past the houses that hid him. He had reached the end of the empire.

The unicorn stared at the fields out before him. To any other pony, they would appear as mere empty grasslands with very little to offer. To Umbra however, the fields were a blessing, a path to escape the Crystal Empire.They were his ticket to freedom, to a new life. 

Now he just needed to get there. 

Umbra was ready to make another mad dash for the fields. He was literally going to run for the hills. 

He scanned his nearby surroundings, nopony was around. Umbra took a step back into the alley, distancing himself for a running start. He bent low to the ground, shifting his weight into a running stance.  

It was now or never.

"Okay… okay. Lets do this. On three…" he whispered to himself in preparation.

"One..."

"Two…" Something purple creeped into his vision.

"Thr-ep!" Umbra stumbled as he suddenly stopped himself from charging, his hoof slamming over his mouth to silence his counting. A lavender unicorn mare walked past the alleyway entrance. Had he not stopped himself the purple unicorn would have been tackled in his charge. He quickly scurried further back into the shadows of the alley to avoid being seen.

The unicorn mare had a dark blue mane and tail with violet and rose streaks running down the middle. As she walked, the mare glanced over a paper that she levitated near her head. What surprised Umbra was what the mare was carrying. 

Sitting on her back was a purple baby dragon. Green spines ran down his head and back. Its underbelly was a light yellow and looked much smoother than the purple and green scales that covered the rest of the dragon.

Umbra had never seen a dragon this close, let alone seen one at all. He remembered seeing a few illustrations in some books, but the dragons in those pictures were depicted as being huge and ferocious. The dragon in front of him looked like it couldn't even reach up to his chest. It also looked absolutely harmless, no foot-long fangs or pony-sized claws. Instead, it had two tiny teeth that showed from overbite and a pair of little claws the size of twigs. 

The dragons in his books were said to be capable of burning entire villages, demolishing full houses with a single swing of an arm, slicing through trees and rock with their claws like a hot knife through butter. He took another look at the purple dragon. Umbra wasn't betting on any houses being crushed any time soon. The purple dragon's claws looked like they might draw a little more blood than a papercut would. 

This puzzled Umbra, though he felt more curious than confused. Had the books been wrong? Or was this an entirely new species of miniature dragon? Certainly anypony with small common sense would own a creature that could potentially cause harm or worse to themselves or others, let alone bring that threat along with them. 

After the unicorn passed out of sight, Umbra took a step forward, ready to make his escape. Another pony stepped into view in front of him, forcing the stallion to move back again. This time, it was a pale-yellow pegasus with a long pink mane and tail. The yellow pegasus was walking beside a light gamboge earth pony with a large Stetson that sat on top her blonde mane. Another unicorn walked closely behind the two. She had a brilliant violet mane and tail that complemented her white coat. A light blue pegasus with a prismatic mane and tail hovered a few feet above the others as they walked. Trailing the company of mares was a light pink earth pony with a raspberry mane and tail. 

Instead of walking like the rest of the group, the pink mare performed something that lay between a hop and a full on jump with every step like a spring. She bounced high enough to reach eye level with the cyan pegasus, her poofy mane and tail bobbing up and down with each bounce.

A grand total of six mares stood in between him and freedom. 

Umbra watched the six mares as they finally cleared the opening of the alleyway after what felt like an eternity. He let out a long breath that he didn't know he was holding. "That's an odd group," he thought to himself. 

He peered around the corner of the building at the six mares as they walked away. Looking at them a second time made him notice something peculiar, none of those ponies were crystal ponies. Their coats didn't have the characteristic shine that the crystal ponies did, nor did their coats reflect the sunlight. Their manes and tails weren't translucent either. 

"What are six regular ponies doing in the crystal empire?" Umbra's curiosity took over, making him forget his original goal not thirty feet away from him. He crept around the corner and slowly followed the group, trying his best to stay low and out of sight. Umbra made sure to keep his distance, far enough to where he couldn't hear them but at least close enough to see where they were and where they were going. 

Staying out of the mares' sight should have been easy enough had they been the only ponies on the street to avoid. There weren't many other ponies here fortunately for him. The few that were outside did not notice him, Umbra made sure of that. Every time a mare or stallion came by, Umbra simply hid behind something or sneaked around. 

After a few long minutes of following the six out of place mares down the street, a large building came into view. The building was a navy blue that was similar to the crystals that surrounded it. The establishment was raised on a long platform that sat in front of a pair of metal tracks that ran in both directions. The building itself looked brand new. Umbra could make out a sign along the side: Crystal Empire Express. The pieces in his head fell into place and he finally recognized the structure as a train station. 

An idea hit him like a bird flying into a window. Why not take the train out of the empire? It would sure beat walking he supposed. It would also lead him to civilization outside the empire. His new idea was solving problems he hadn't even thought of, making him realize how bad his first plan was.

If he would have just walked out of the empire, he would have three major problems: he didn't know where to go, he wouldn't have shelter or protection, and he would be alone. The train would take him to someplace inhabited where he could find shelter, also eliminating the need to know where he was going. The more Umbra thought about it, the better the idea began to sound.

The anomalous group of mares approached the station and stepped onto the platform. Umbra watched as some of them took a seat on the nearby benches while the others stood. Umbra crept around behind the station and sat on the ground. He didn't know when the train would arrive but he was willing to wait. He kept repeating to himself that it would be worthwhile.

A sudden gust of wind blew through the street. It whipped over his body and blew his mane over his eyes. Umbra tried to shake the hair away but the wind would not allow it. He had to resort to a forehoof holding his mane back. As soon as he got the last strands of hair out of his face, he opened his eyes again, letting his vision return only to be blocked again as a newspaper slapped over his head. 

The young unicorn sighed and peeled the paper off his face. He looked at the newspaper and read the headline on the front page: King Sombra finally defeated. "Meh," Umbra shrugged and let the paper fall to the ground.

"Wait a sec…" His brain finally processed what he had read, quickly bringing the paper back up to his eyes. "King Sombra defeated?!" 

Umbra quickly read through the article. It told the story of how the six Elements of Harmony worked with Princess Mi Amore Cadenza to prevent the dark tyrant from re-enslaving the Crystal Empire. The article explained how the Element of Magic located the Crystal Heart within the castle and how it was used by the crystal ponies to vanquish Sombra.

Umbra's mouth hung open and he released his grip on the newspaper, letting the breeze carry it away. 

Sombra, his father, had been defeated. 

The headline repeated itself in his head over and over.

This new information answered some of the questions he had, but gave him mixed feelings at the same time. The article said that the crystal ponies joined together and used the Crystal Heart to defeat Sombra. 

He was glad that his father's evil reign was over for good. Umbra knew that the Crystal Empire was infinitely better off without Sombra. 

"It needed to happen," Umbra told himself. 

He was right, his father was evil and needed to be stopped, even if it had to be done like that. 

However this made him think. "If that's what the crystal ponies did to Sombra, what would they do to me?" Umbra wondered, starting to worry. 

Would they do the same to him? Would it be a less severe punishment, or a worse one? These new questions only made Umbra all the more anxious to leave the empire. 

A loud whistle sounded from behind him, shaking him away from his thoughts. Umbra looked around the corner of the building and saw the large cloud of steam coming closer and closer to him. The ground beneath his hooves began to shake lightly as the metal behemoth plowed onward. A high screech sounded as the train's brakes slowed the engine to a stop right in front of the station.

The doors to the coach opened and the six mares stood up and walked inside. Umbra knew he couldn't hide in such a small coach with all those ponies inside. Instead, the stallion looked at the caboose and saw a small balcony on the back. There. That is where he would go. Secluded, out of sight, perfect. 

Umbra's ears perked up as he heard the conductor shout, "All aboard!" The train lurched forward and started its departure. Umbra sprang to his hooves and charged after the train. The engine gradually accelerated as it got further from the station. 

Umbra was not going to let it get away from him though. This was his ticket to a new life. He sprinted with all his might after the steel monster. He caught up to the caboose and reached for the railing on the back. His hoof barely managed to get a grip on the thin metal rail. Umbra pulled himself forward and swung his body up and over the rail. He landed on his side in the back of the caboose with an ungraceful thud. 

Umbra didn't bother moving from his collapsed position on the floor. He just laid there panting, the muscles in his legs pulsing as blood flowed through them from his still racing heart. 

Eventually, Umbra caught his breath and he sat himself upright. He watched the Crystal Empire slowly shrink in the distance behind him. The only place he had ever known was now fading in the distance. He hoped it was for the better.

Umbra didn't know how long the ride would be, so he decided to get some well deserved rest. The young stallion laid his head down on the floor. It wasn't the most comfortable position, but it would have to do. The constant clacking of the train as it glided down the tracks would be his lullaby. 

The sun began to set, leaving the brilliant twilight in its place. The proud Crystal Empire was nothing other than a shrinking silhouette in the distance. The stallion's eyes slowly closed as they watched the tip of the crystal castle dip below the horizon and he drifted off to sleep.

When he opened his eyes, all he could see was darkness. He felt cold. Not the regular cold that a pony feels in the snow or wind. There was no physical sign of anything that would make him feel it, yet the sensation continued. The coldness creeped across his hide and ran through his spine. He could feel it in his bones, in his heart, feel it piercing through his very soul and threatening to consume him entirely. 

In the black void, a pair of eyes opened in front of him. Luminous scarlet irises were surrounded by an ominous green glow where white should have been. Purple flames flowed out of them and curled upward.

Umbra could feel his heart pounding on his chest as though it wanted to burst open. The cold started running through his veins as he stared into the red eyes before him. The cold was devouring him from within. 

The sudden urge to flee overcame him and he was quick to obey. He wanted to run and get as far away as possible, yet he could not. As he tried to lift his hooves to run, he found that he could not move. He couldn't move his legs, his back, his head, or even his eyes. He couldn't break away from the glare of the flaming red eyes in front of him. The cold wouldn't let him; it had engulfed his body and forced him to stay still, frozen his body stiff. All he could do was look into the pair of unblinking eyes that returned the stare.

A deep laugh echoed around Umbra. 

His heart sank and it slowed to a near stop. His eyes widened with disbelief. He recognized that voice.

The laughter stopped and was replaced with a low voice. The red eyes moved closer, revealing their shadowy owner that stepped into view. 

It spoke, "Hello son. It's been awhile hasn't it?"
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Umbra gasped for breath as if he was being drowned and leapt to his hooves. A steady clickity-clack sounded through his heavy panting. Umbra peeled his eyes open, the mid-morning sun shining brightly on him. A strong breeze blew his mane across his face. 

He was still on the train.

The landscape had changed completely from the Crystal Empire. The long open fields of the empire had been replaced by green hills and tall mountains in this new land. Instead of large crystal formations, there were vast forests scattered about. 

He sat back down and stared at his hooves. He took some deep breaths to try and slow his racing heart. 

It didn't work. 

His heart continued its rapid pounding on his chest as if it was trying to burst through altogether. 

Umbra shook his head. He was so sure he had seen his father. That dream was unlike anything he had ever experienced before, everything seemed so real. In all his other dreams, he had never been able to have such realistic feeling in his senses. 

Umbra could actually feel the intense cold, how it made him shiver to his core, how it froze him stiff. It wasn't just a physical sensation however. He could feel the cold biting at his heart, draining any emotion with it. The cold made him want to run and hide, but at the same time it prevented him from moving. It grew worse as he looked longer into his father's eyes. It was awful. Whatever that cold was, Umbra decided he never wanted to feel it again. 

Was it really a dream? It all seemed so real. The cold, the darkness, Sombra, everything felt like the real thing. Then again, what would it be if it wasn't a dream? He had woken up like it was a dream, even if this time was a little dramatic. 

Sombra was defeated by the crystal ponies, there was no way it could have really been him. 

Umbra decided to just leave it at that. He told himself that it was just a dream, a nightmare. Finding out that your father is an evil dictator would give anypony nightmares. The crystal ponies must have had it a thousand times worse though. They experienced the wrath of King Sombra firsthoof. They probably have nightmares all the time, maybe even post traumatic stress. 

It was a small comfort to him knowing that he wasn't the only pony with the same problem. He felt a little better. Still, it's a little different having nightmares about an evil tyrant than having nightmares about your father, the evil tyrant. 

His mind returned to the image of his father in the nightmare. It was burned into his memory. Sombra looked exactly as Umbra remembered.

That "coldness" that took over his body as he stared at his father. Umbra shivered at the thought. 

He lowered his head to his hooves and closed his eyes. "It was only a dream. It was only a dream," Umbra whispered to himself in an attempt to bring some desperately needed comfort. 

"It was only a dream. It was only a dream. It was only a dre–" 

VROOOO!

The loud whistle of the train startled him out of his trance and he leapt to his hooves in shock. Umbra looked about frantically to see what happened, his heart pounding once again. “What was that?!? What's going on?”

His question was answered in the form of another loud toot of the train whistle.  He peered around the corner of the caboose to see what was going on at the front of the train. Out past the locomotive, a small town grew larger in the distance. The train was heading straight for it. 

The stallion's first thoughts were that of many great warriors during the moment before battle, "Uh-oh."

He hadn't thought of what he would do when he reached civilization. What if they knew about the crystal empire and mistook him as King Sombra? Umbra didn't think of what the results could be, he didn't want to find out either. 

Panic formed in the back of his mind, he didn't know what to do. Those ponies would instantly figure him out, he thought. They'd surely lock him in an abandoned dungeon with no escape. 

No. Umbra got a hold on his thoughts and he held his self-composure. 

He wasn't going to let that happen. 

Umbra knew there would be many ponies around the station in the small town ahead. Once the train stopped there, he wouldn't have a chance of running or hiding without being seen. He needed to get off the train now. 

Umbra looked over the railing and down at the ground speeding past. There was only one way off the train. Umbra gulped. He had to jump. 

Umbra took a step back and hesitated for a moment. He lifted a hoof to start, only to let it fall back to the floor. He just stood there, staring out at the land rushing by. 

He wasn't sure he could do this. His body told him not to, but his mind said he needed to. 

The train wasn't moving very slow and the fact that he could easily shatter his legs didn't help. The sight of the ground and trees rushing by made the small deck of the caboose look all the more inviting. 

Umbra looked around the corner of the caboose a second time. The small town didn't look very small anymore. It was less than a mile away. He had to jump now or it would be too late. 

A look of desperate determination crossed his face and he planted his hooves firmly on the ground. As a sprinter prepares for a race, Umbra readied himself for the charge. The deck was only wide enough for a few quick steps before he would have to jump. He needed to make every step count so he could make it over the railing.

The stallion hesitated another moment before finally finding the strength inside him to move. His legs sprung into action and he darted forward. After a quick gallop, the stallion planted his back hooves on the deck and leapt as high as he could. 

Umbra's heart began racing as adrenaline fueled it onward. He was glad to see his front hooves clear the rail, followed by his back hooves. 

Time seemed to slow to a dormant crawl. He was floating through the air, nothing beneath his hooves to stand on. His heart thumped loudly and rapidly in his chest, running on only the purest adrenaline in his body. 

It felt amazing. 

"This is how being a pegasus must feel," he wondered enviously, a blazing grin plastered over his face. The feeling of weightlessness overcame him and he felt like he was flying. 

Then gravity became jealous and fought back with extreme prejudice. 

Umbra felt the weight slowly return to his body as he began to sink through the air. His eyes widened as the realization dawned on him that he was falling. The ground rushed towards him while he plummeted. Umbra swung and kicked his legs with all the grace of a cat in a bathtub. All he could do was close his eyes, pray, and brace for impact.

After what felt like an eternity, Umbra felt solid ground beneath his forehooves. Then under his rearhooves. 

For a second, Umbra thought he had landed the jump. That is, until he felt his weight pitch forward and his body with it. His legs, however, did not move; they only swung beneath him as his body continued forward. 

On a collision course with the ground, Umbra's face held a look of pure terror. He watched as the ground crept closer and closer to his head. It was as if time had slowed itself and wanted to see the impending crash unfold. 

The ground kept getting closer until finally, he made contact, a loud smack echoing through the meadow as the two collided. 

With his head pressed to the ground, Umbra skidded a few feet before the ground lost its grip on his face and he tumbled forward. 

The ground wasn't finished with him, though. Umbra rolled several feet, hitting nearly every last rock before coming to a complete stop with the generous help of a tree, a small cloud of dust and dirt following him. 

For a moment, everything was silent. Nothing moved or made a sound. The peaceful silence did not last long, however, as the young stallion jumped to his hooves and shouted.

"Whoa!"

He tried to stand straight but fell to his left. The stallion stumbled back and forth as he tried to keep his balance. His vision was a blur and there was a loud ringing left in his ears. Yet, the unicorn grinned. 

The unicorn chuckled loudly to himself. He held the same grin that a drunk pony would have before attempting a backflip to impress his friends. 

That grin vanished as soon as the adrenaline wore off and the pain settled in. First, he felt the burning sting from all the little cuts and scrapes across his body. Then, the soreness of the bumps and bruises of various sizes. His spine ached, his muscles were tense and stiff. One of his ears felt like it was on fire. 

All he could do was groan as a welcome to the pain. His nose drained blood that ran into his mouth and over his tongue. The red liquid left an unpleasant iron taste in his mouth and he spat it out. He wiped the blood from his nose with a hoof, only to wince in pain as his bruised hoof met his face. Umbra felt the burning of a large gash that ran across his flank. He felt the warm blood run down his leg, staining his dark coat all the way. 

The stallion's mane was in a disheveled heap with a nice even layer of dirt in it. His coat was also littered with dirt and grass that stuck to him as he tried to shake it off. 

Overall he was, for lack of a better term, a complete mess. 

"Note to self, no more jumping out of trains."

Umbra shook his head, much to his neck's dismay, to clear his vision. The stallion looked around as he hadn't really observed his surroundings until now. All around him were green open fields that stretched for miles in every direction. Clusters of trees peppered the land, similar to the tree he had crashed into. Out in the distance, Umbra could see a tall mountain range over the horizon. Along the side of the tallest mountain, a large palace, dug into the face of the mountain that stood out against the rest of the scenery. 

Umbra looked over at the town less than a mile away from him. It would have been dwarfed by the Crystal Empire, he noted. None of the buildings were any higher than three or four stories. The houses were comfortably spread out with considerable distance between them. The town sat next to a dense forest that seemed completely out of place. 

This would be his new home. It had to be since it was the only place he could go. He didn't know how, but he would have to make it work. 

Umbra looked all about the new landscape. He thought it looked nice at least. It was much different from the Crystal Empire. He actually liked this landscape a little bit more.

He looked back to the town. Umbra knew he couldn't simply walk into the town. He didn't know if the residents knew about King Sombra or not. Umbra would have to observe and find out. If they didn't, well, great. If they did, there would be no chance of living there. His hope sided with the former; his fate depended on it. 

He decided to find or make some shelter in the thick woods next to the town and go on from there.

A drop of blood ran into his mouth. First he needed to clean himself off. 

***

After a dreadfully long and painful walk that seemed to carry on for hours, Umbra finally reached the edge of the forest. He stood just outside the thick woods, gazing into it. The forest was dense with plant life that grew without restraint. Barely any sunlight reached the ground through the thick canopy of leaves and branches which left the dirt fairly uncovered. 

Umbra had never been in a forest, yet something about this place felt… off. He couldn't quite place it, but he could definitely feel something that told him it wasn't a good place to be. 

"Maybe the townsfolk feel the same thing."

The unicorn shook his head at the thought.

"It's probably nothing. I'm just being paranoid."

The stinging pain from all his cuts made him push past the apprehension, and move forward. Umbra pushed past an overgrown bush and entered the thicket. He had to duck his head under some of the lower branches and vines to get through. 

It became much darker almost immediately, as if somepony had drawn the curtains in a room. It took the stallion a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dramatic change in light. Even when they did, there wasn't much to see. Only large trees that spun in odd shapes and forms with small vine plants that littered the ground. No birds sang above in the trees nor could any wildlife be seen through the dense foliage. 

It wasn't a very pretty place, he thought.

***

After a few hours of aimless wandering, Umbra came across a river that flowed directly through the forest. The river was probably a half dozen pony lengths wide or so, but Umbra could not see where it ended or began. The water moved fairly quick downstream, fast enough where Umbra was sure he would be swept away if he stepped in too deep. The water itself was almost crystal clear and very clean. 

This would be a good spot to wash all the dirt out of his wounds. 

Umbra stepped into the flowing water deep enough to where the water lapped at his belly. The water was ice cold and sent chills through his body. Although it stung his cuts, the cool water felt refreshing on his body after the long walk. 

He began scrubbing the various gashes across his body and let the frigid water carry the dirt and grime away. Umbra washed the dried blood out of his coat as well. He threw the cold water over his back to catch some of the dirt from his tumble out of the train, shivering as the freezing water ran over him. He wet his black mane and tail and straightened them out; his mane drooped limply over his face.

Satisfied with his cleaning job, Umbra stepped out of the river and stood on dry land. He shook himself a couple times, trying to get most of the water off.

With his mane out of his face, Umbra stepped over to a nearby puddle to get a view of himself.

When he saw his reflection, he found out why his ear had been burning before. Where the tip of his left ear should be was instead a long V-shaped gash. He was shocked to see part of his ear missing in action. He knew it wouldn't grow back. 

Umbra sighed in defeat, accepting the new scar. He was disappointed about the wound but it was better than breaking a leg or losing an eye altogether, he supposed. 

Now that he was cleaned off, Umbra decided to head towards the town. He wasn't quite sure what he would do once he got there, but he went anyway. 

A large opening in the forest caught his eye. Umbra walked over to it and found that it belonged to a wide path that led to the river. He began walking down the path in the direction that steered away from the river. It certainly beat fighting against the thick plant life of the forest. 

***

The walk was much smoother now that he was along a path. It wasn't long before the path opened up and he caught sight of civilization. Well, sort of.

Just outside the path he could make out a small cottage surrounded by trees and plant life. The roof looked as if it were made out of branches and leaves. The whole cottage seemed to be built right into the small hill it sat on. A gentle stream flowed past and followed underneath a small bridge in front of the house. 

There seemed to be more nature than house, Umbra thought. But if somepony lived there, he guessed it counted as civilization. 

Not very far past the small cottage, Umbra could faintly make out other buildings of the town through the trees.

Still standing on the path in the woods, Umbra turned and walked parallel to the edge of the forest. He was trying to see as much of the town as he could without leaving the safety of the forest. The dense foliage hid him from anypony that might be looking in. His dark coat and black mane also kept him camouflaged in the shadows of the forest. 

Since his eyes were locked onto the town as he walked, Umbra didn't notice the plank of wood sticking out as he tripped over it. Learning from his jump off the train, he caught himself instead of letting his face hit the ground. 

Umbra looked down at what he had caught his hoof on. A plank of wood stuck out and hung just high enough to reach up to his leg. What really surprised him was what the plank belonged to. 

A small wooden caravan sat next to him. It had certainly seen better days. 

Bits and pieces of wood were spread all about the ground. The entire wagon had been flipped on its side, the door facing the sky. Three of the wheels were missing and the fourth was broken into half of what it should have been. A large hole on the bottom side where the wood was torn out revealed the inside. All around the hole were sets of deep gashes raked across the wood. The cuts came in sets of four. They looked awfully like claw marks. 

“What happened here?” Umbra's imagination exploded with ideas and scenarios of what could have happened. Maybe it was just an old wagon that broke down and was abandoned? "Who would just leave something in the forest, especially this close to town?" he thought. “Or perhaps it was a merchant cart that was attacked by a wild beast? That would explain the claw marks on the bottom, but wouldn't the rest of the wagon be in worse shape?”

Umbra cautiously stepped closer to the wreck and peeked through the hole. Surprisingly, the interior was in decent condition. Nothing seemed to be broken, no cracks along the walls, no debris littering the place. The only thing noticeable was the amount of dust covering the interior. Dust clung to the walls, the floor, the ceiling, everywhere. It flew through the air, in small clouds, as the door disturbed it, making him sneeze. 

Umbra looked at the sky, the sun had begun to set. It had been a long day. If jumping off a train hadn't taken its toll, all the walking and wandering through the dense forest certainly did. 

He knew he couldn't just sleep out in the middle of the forest. He needed protection. 

Umbra looked back to the caravan. "This would actually make a pretty nice shelter," he thought. It wasn't much but it was something. 

He decided to flip the carriage upright. Walking to the opposite side, Umbra grabbed the bottom of the wood and lifted up. With a bit of effort, Umbra was able to hoist the wagon right-side up. 

Without the wheels, or the base for that matter, holding it up, the caravan was much shorter than it should have been. 

The caravan was tall enough to fit any other pony comfortably inside. Umbra was no ordinary pony, however. The wagon barely reached up to his eyes. 

There was a small door on the far side of the carriage. Umbra used his magic to gently swing the door open. Flipping the wagon must have disturbed the dust because when the door opened, a large cloud of dust and dirt came flying out. The debris cloud settled and coated Umbra in a layer of brown powder. He shook the fine particles off, sneezing a second time. 

Ducking under the door frame, Umbra stepped inside. Long padded benches aligned the walls on either side of him. The large hole was now pressed to the ground, revealing a small patch of dirt. On the opposite wall from the door, a small circular window let a ray of sunlight in that shined on something stuck in the floor. 

Umbra hadn't noticed it before when he first looked inside. There stuck in the wooden floor was a large dagger. It had a pearly white ivory handle and a polished steel blade which reflected the sunlight across the floor. The blade was stuck in the floor pretty deep.

The white dagger only brought more questions to Umbra's mind. "Why is there a knife in the floor?" he thought. Maybe it had something to do with why the wagon was abandoned in the first place. Maybe the caravan was attacked by bandits and this was left behind. 

A long yawn escaped his mouth. "It's getting late, I should get some rest."

Umbra stepped over the white dagger and closed the door behind him. After brushing one of the padded benches off, he proceeded to gracefully collapse on the bench. 

"I can check out the town tomorrow." 

He laid his head down. His eyes rested on the dagger in the floor. He continued to stare at it until he finally drifted off to sleep. 

***

Something prodded him in the side. 

He opened his eyes and looked at his side. There was nothing there. Umbra looked up from his body. He wasn't in the wooden caravan, he was back at the crystal castle, or at least what resembled the crystal castle. The colors were either reversed or changed altogether, blacks and reds replaced the normal whites and blues. 

Umbra gasped and leaped to his hooves. He was standing on a large circular balcony. A golden railing lined the edge that connected to the crystal floor. 

Umbra stepped up to the railing and looked at his surroundings. The heavens glowed with a never ending twilight. Dark clouds stretched across the sky. Umbra could hear claps of thunder in the distance though no lightning followed. 

Below, the ground was covered with a thick black fog that swirled and danced in a nonexistent wind. The fog extended beyond the horizon. Umbra wasn't even sure there was a ground beneath the dark mist. 

"Do you like it?" a deep voice asked next to him. 

Umbra gasped a second time and whipped his head around. There sitting next to him, staring out into the distance was his father, Sombra. 

Umbra jumped and took a few steps back. Sombra all the while didn't move and only continued to stare. His father wasn't dressed as he normally was. Sombra didn't have his red cape or any of his metal armor on him. He almost looked like a regular pony. 

Almost. 

Umbra noticed that his father's red curved horn was missing its tip, a cracked, flat stump in its place. 

"It certainly has been a long time." Sombra said with an expressionless face. He motioned with a slow flick of his head, "Come, sit."

Umbra didn't move. He was in complete shock, his mouth hanging open. Here was a pony that was supposed to be dead, an evil pony defeated for his crimes, sitting in front of him. Now motioning to take a seat next to him. 

Umbra didn't know if he should be glad that he was seeing his father again or deathly afraid of the evil monster in front of him. 

Sombra turned his head and looked him in the eye. "Do not be afraid Umbra. I wish only to speak to you." he spoke calmly. 

Umbra looked into his father's eyes. He noticed they didn't have that ominous green glow or the purple flames that he remembered. All he could see in his father's eyes was sincerity. 

Umbra closed his mouth and complied, slowly walking to his father's side and sitting down. Umbra was still taller than his father like he remembered. His head still reached several inches above Sombra's.

"Where are we?" Umbra asked.

"This is my oblivion. This is where I will stay until I am forgotten."

They sat there for what seemed like an eternity; silent, motionless, each waiting for the other to make a move. 

Umbra finally gave in. "What happened that day?" he blurted out. 

Sombra chuckled softly to himself. "You are going to have to be more specific than that."

"You know exactly what day I'm talking about." Umbra replied with an edge to his voice. 

"Ah yes, that  day. The day you ran away from me." Sombra confirmed. 

"Well, after you fled, my empire was attacked. The very incarnations of day and night invaded my castle and came after me. We had a great battle. My power held strong against the day and the night. But alas, their combined power proved stronger than my own and I lost the fight."

Umbra sat there listening intently to his father's story. He wanted answers and now he was finally getting them. 

It was about time, he thought. 

Sombra continued, "I knew I couldn't let my empire fall to them so I used the last of my magic to put a curse upon my empire. Although I did not want to, I knew it was necessary. I did what I had to in order to save my empire. I made it vanish into thin air.

"The night and day were not happy about this. I prevented them from asserting their rule upon my empire, and they punished me for it..."

Sombra paused, holding back his anger from bursting. His face visibly showed the internal struggle through a fierce scowl. 

"They turned me to shadow and imprisoned me in the ice sheets of the north," he said through gritted teeth. 

Sombra took some deep breaths before continuing, "A few days ago, my curse wore off and the empire returned. Even from my frozen prison, I could feel its return so I escaped and came back.

"The night and day had beat me to it though. They had sent their minions into my empire and by the time I got in, they were ready. They used the power of that...that damned crystal heart to finally defeat me." 

Sombra finished his story and looked at Umbra who could only stare back. Umbra still did not know what to think. He knew his father was evil, yet after hearing his fathers perspective, Umbra felt a little sorry for him. Sombra's story made everything seem much different. Did he really deserve it?

Umbra still had some questions left to confirm however. 

"So my memory loss when I first woke up was part of your curse?" Umbra asked.

Sombra looked away and nodded in response.

"And that big flash that brought my memory back...that was-"

His father cut him off, "Yes, that was the power of the crystal heart as it sent me into oblivion." 

"So what now then?" Umbra asked sincerely. "You've already been defeated, what was the point in bringing me here?"

"My existence in this world may be over but my legacy remains." Sombra turned his head and looked his son in the eye. His voice was loud and powerful. "You, my son, must take this upon yourself and continue it on. You are the heir to my throne. It is your duty to reconquer the Crystal Empire in my name and rule as I did."

Umbra stared back in shock as his father's words sunk in.

"You were born to rule the Crystal Empire, Umbra. That is what you are destined to do."

Umbra stood up and took a step back in shock. "No...I-I can't!" 

Sombra stood up as well. "You must."

"Why? Why do you even want me to do that? What's in it for you?"

"Once you understand how this oblivion works you will understand. All souls, even mine, will remain here with a small connection to your world as long as they are remembered by those among the living. So long as I am remembered, it is as if a part of me still exists in the living world and I will never truly be gone."

"So what happens when you're finally forgotten? After there is nopony left with the scars you left behind," Umbra asked almost sympathetically. His father made a good argument to the point where Umbra nearly felt bad for him. Sombra's suffering in this place did not change the fact however, that he was still an evil dictator. Umbra knew that. 

"That is what I do not know. What comes next is what I can assume is complete death. That is why I need you to live on with my legacy. The memories of me will not last forever. It is the one thing I truly fear. This death is inevitable, but with your help, I can at least prolong it."

"I saw how you ruled. You were evil! You used fear and hatred to enslave the crystal ponies! I can't do that!" Umbra said getting desperate. 

"You cannot run away from your destiny Umbra."

"I already have! I hopped on a train and left the empire!"

Sombra arched an eyebrow. "Oh? And what were you planning on doing?"

"I-I was going to start a new life away from the Crystal Empire, among different ponies," Umbra stuttered out. 

"Ha! You cannot live amongst the ponies! Do you see your cutie mark?"

Umbra glanced at the wolf howling at the full moon on his flank. 

"That is the mark of the lone wolf. You cannot live with the other ponies, you are destined to be an outcast, alone!"

Umbra continued to fight his losing battle. "I-I sure can try though!"

"And what do you think will happen when those ponies find out who you really are?" Sombra asked in amusement. 

"I-uh, I-" Umbra tried to speak but was cut short by his father. 

"Do you know how long I was imprisoned Umbra?" Sombra asked. 

Not waiting for a reply, he answered himself. "A thousand years I was kept in the ice." Sombra's voice became loud and bitter. "A thousand years I was tortured without the empire, MY empire! A thousand years I had nothing but my thoughts to keep me company, all of them full of rage."

Sombra took a step closer to Umbra. He was nearly yelling at this point. "They turned me into shadow and that was back then. The second time, they shattered my body into a thousand pieces!"

Purple flames began rolling out of Sombra's eyes that glowed green. Umbra felt the coldness returning to his body, making him shrink away from his father's gaze. 

"They did that to me, they will do nothing less to you!"

Umbra tried to back away from Sombra but the railing prevented him. All he could do was retreat as close to the floor as he could while Sombra advanced on him. 

Sombra noticed his son shrinking away from him. A devious grin spread across his face. 

"If you will not do as I ask, I have no choice other than to force you to comply. Though my power is weak in my current state, I will put everything into your torture. It will not be a physical torture but rather, a torture of the mind."

Umbra's eyes widened at the mention of "torture". 

"Until you agree, your dreams will be tormented without restraint by fear. What you feel now, this 'coldness', is only a fraction of what you will be tortured by. Enjoy this little bit of sleep while you can, for it will not come again without fear plaguing it."

Sombra laughed loudly as the floor beneath Umbra dissolved into nothing and Umbra fell into the black void. 

Although he plummeted away from him, Umbra could still feel Sombra whisper in his ear. 

"You will learn my ways, and suffering will be your teacher."

The echoes of Sombra's evil laugh followed him as he fell. 

> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Umbra jolted awake, his head shooting up from the bench. As he jerked upwards, his head slammed into the low roof above him, sending pain down his neck and shaking his vision. A round bump formed and throbbed at the point of impact. He rubbed the new injury on his temple with a hoof. His chest rapidly pulsed as both his heart and his lungs frantically raced each other. 

Sombra's laughter still echoed clearly in his ears. The tall unicorn searched his surroundings, blinking quickly to adjust his vision. The cramped wooden room of the caravan gave reassurance that he was not still dreaming.

Relief washed over him like a rogue ocean wave. It forced a heavy sigh out of the stallion while at the same time assuaging him to sit back down. Knowing he was safe from Sombra made him relax. 

He thought back to the dream—back to what his father had commanded of him. Sombra wanted him to walk in his hoof-prints and enslave the Crystal Empire as he had done before.

Umbra knew that it was impossible, though. He had seen how Sombra ruled his empire; he witnessed the atrocities Sombra committed upon the innocent crystal ponies. Sombra wasn't a ruler. He was a dictator, evil. Umbra knew that. He did not want to become the same. He was incapable of doing those things. The very thought of him ruling over the crystal ponies as Sombra had, as a bloodthirsty tyrant, sent shivers down his spine. 

Umbra took an oath to himself. He vowed to never follow in the hoofsteps of his father. He would do everything in his power to ensure he never became as Sombra. He would hold to this oath for as long as he lived.

Sombra's words rang in his head, taunting him as they echoed. "They imprisoned me for a thousand years, they will do the same to you!"

A thousand years imprisonment didn't sound very fun. If he was to prevent that from happening, he needed to make sure nopony ever found out who he was. So long as his identity stayed hidden, he would be able to make a life here. A normal life, away from the evil Sombra wanted for him. 

"They must never know who I am."

With a new purpose, Umbra stood up and walked outside. He was ready to start the day, ready to start building the foundation for his new life. 

He looked up at the sky. The moon shone brightly amongst dozens of stars that illuminated the forest. Umbra hadn't realized how little he actually slept. 

He stood outside the doorway, pondering what he should do. His thoughts were interrupted by the loud grumbling of his stomach. He lifted a hoof to his belly and realized he had not eaten anything for an entire day. Technically, he hadn't eaten in a thousand years since Sombra cast his curse. 

He was starting to feel it.

The stallion decided that it was about time he got some food. He couldn't buy any food from any local markets. He didn't have any money. "They wouldn't even be open this early," he thought. Umbra looked through the dense foliage around him, a thought crossing his mind that there could be food within the green depths.

***

The sun's rays poked through the dense forest canopy, scattering its light across the ground. A light breeze blew through the trees and shook the branches above. The light was only visible in small patches leaving a serene darkness about. The sound of birdsong could be heard above the rattling of leaves in the wind, though no birds could be seen. 

A lone unicorn walked through the foliage. He did not notice the ominous beauty of the dark woods, nor did he care. All his thoughts were focused on locating some food. He had been searching the forest for a couple of hours already, but had yet to find anything. Not a single wild berry or fruit could be found in the forest. 

He was becoming aggravated. 

Though discouraged, Umbra continued his search. His hate of the forest increased as his stomach continued to growl. 

After a what felt like decades, the young stallion ended up at the forest's edge. The town was fairly visible through the trees, a row of houses sat before him. He stood at the edge of the forest and stared at the town, watching its inhabitants from a safe distance where he wouldn't be seen.  

Umbra could see a few ponies here and there, going about their own business. Two foals ran about chasing each other while a mare tended to her garden. A pegasus with hooves and saddlebags full of goods flew low above the ground. A small box fell out of one of the bags and a passerby picked it up and returned it to the pegasus. They both shared thanks and continued on with their lives.

He sat down as thoughts from seeing those ponies live and interact filled his head. He thought of how only one pony knew about him. Only one pony knew he existed, and that pony was dead. 

The residents of that town knew each other, and more importantly, were known by other ponies. They were real, they existed in each others minds. Umbra however, was not known by anyone. He knew of them, but they didn't know of him. 

Umbra's mind wandered deep into thought. "If nopony knows about me, am I real?" The question burned in his mind. "Do I not exist, or am I just an invisible pony, living transparent to the lives of everyone else?"

Umbra laid his head on his hooves. "If I go missing, nopony would even know. Then again, how could I go missing if I wasn't even there in the first place?"

He looked back to the ponies in the town. "I see them; they exist to me. But they don't see me; they have never seen or even heard of me. Does that mean I don't exist to them?"

He thought about himself and everything he had been through. Sneaking around the Crystal Empire, jumping off the train, finding the broken caravan in the woods, all those things were real and they had happened to him. 

He knew that.

"I exist to myself. I know what I've done and its all been real to me. I know I'm real, even if its only to myself."

He thought of how nice it must be to live in a house and not have to worry about where to get food. Having friendly neighbors that are willing to help at a moment’s notice. Knowing someone that knows you back. Being real to someone else. Having someone know you exist. 

Umbra sighed and looked at his hooves. "Someday I'll be known," he thought to himself. "Someday."

The ground beneath his hooves began to lightly tremble. The shaking was soft, but it was enough to distract him from his thoughts. 

Umbra lifted his head and looked back to the town. Everypony he saw before had vanished. He looked at the buildings. All the doors were shut as well as the shutters on the windows.

Curiosity, as it always had in the past, got the best of him. The unicorn left the safety of the thicket and cautiously walked towards the town. With every step closer, he scanned each house, watching the windows and doors, making sure he would remain unseen. 

The stallion neared the row of houses where he had seen the ponies earlier. He stood outside the alleyway between two buildings. The ground still rumbled softly beneath his hooves.

Umbra stepped into the shadow of the alley and walked through. He walked to the end and slowly poked his head around the corner. The entire street was empty. All the windows and doors were shut on every building. He stepped out into the street, looking for any sign of life.

Nothing. Not a single pony walked down the street. It was as if a storm warning was issued and everypony had taken shelter. 

Umbra walked down the street, observing the town as he went. The town was deathly quiet, too quiet. Not even the birds were singing. The ominous silence was making him nervous. 

"Where is everypony?" he thought anxiously. He had seen ponies earlier, they must have gone into hiding. What were they afraid of? 

Umbra began scanning the town for any unknown danger. He watched the roofs, around corners, he even checked behind his back several times. It was like walking through a ghost town, a very well kept ghost town. 

As he walked through the streets of the town, Umbra came across a set of tables in front of a restaurant. One of the tables in particular caught his eye, a single pink earth pony was seated at it. She sat low to the ground with her head resting sideways on the table. One of her forehooves swung back and forth limply across the ground, tracing a circular path in the dirt. Her ears drooped over her head that faced away from the stallion. Compared to her bright colors, the pink pony looked awfully gloomy. The only indication of life was a heavy sigh that came from the mare. 

Something about her seemed familiar to him. He wasn't entirely sure but it felt as if he had seen her before. He got closer to the pony and took a better look at her. Still, nothing about her brought any memories back to him. 

Umbra stopped next to the pink mare. She didn't even bat an ear at his presence. He wasn't entirely sure the depressed pony knew he was there. 

Although he had never met this pony, Umbra felt bad for her. Seeing somepony so sad have him an awful feeling. He couldn't leave her like this. She was also the only pony he had seen yet so he had to say something. 

Umbra opened his mouth to speak but quickly closed it. "What should I say? I've never spoken to anyone but my father before!" His mind raced as it tried to find something to say. 

When he finally spoke up, his voice was soft and he stumbled on his words. "Um...is everything...alright?"

The pink mare's ear perked up when she heard him though she didn't move. She sighed again and spoke up. 

"No, nothing is alright. I know I've messed up before but this is definitely the worst!" she said while gesturing a hoof towards everything around her. Umbra followed her hoof and looked around, not seeing anything particularly wrong. He was about to ask what but the mare continued.

"How am I going to live this down? Everyone in Ponyville is gonna hate me, not to mention my friends!" The pony sniffled and started whimpering. "I'm such a bad pony."

Umbra felt his own mood drop and he frowned sympathetically. He couldn't just leave this poor mare like this. He needed to say something. 

"I-I'm not quite sure what your problem is," he spoke up. "But I know that your mistakes don't really make you who you are right?" 

The pink pony ended her crying with a sniff and listened. Umbra took it as a sign to continue. 

"Only you can decide who you are, not your mistakes. I'm sure that your friends can forgive you for whatever you've done, so long as you forgive yourself too." He patted her shoulder gently with a hoof. 

Without lifting her head from the table, she looked up at him, blue eyes glistening as she stared. A small but warm smile rested on her face. Umbra could see tear stains on her face and the redness in her eyes that confirmed she was crying, yet no more tears fell.

With her head still on the table, the pink mare finally spoke up. "Thank you. That...that actually helped," she said with sincerity in her voice. He returned the smile she gave him. 

Suddenly the mare's eyes narrowed and her smile slowly faded. She stared intensely at him, Umbra's own smile slowly vanished. Her hard gaze was unsettling to him. He didn't know what to do. He just stood there awkwardly under the gaze of her blue eyes. 

After an uncomfortably long moment, she spoke up. "Have I seen you before?" she questioned skeptically. 

"Um...n-no." Umbra's heart started racing. Did she know about Sombra? His whole plan of living here could fall apart right here.

The earth pony hummed in thought. Umbra was ready to make a mad dash for the forest if he had to. 

Her eyes reopened fully again and she spoke in a high yet deflated voice. "I guess we haven't met then!" 

Umbra sighed in relief. That was too close. 

"I'm Pinkie Pie...well at least I think I'm Pinkie Pie. Could be any one of us really." she stopped for a moment in thought before continuing. "Anyway, are you new in town?"

Umbra was confused about what she had meant by 'could be any one of us'. He tried thinking about it but realized he had been asked a question. 

"Oh, um yeah I'm new here. My name is Umbra."

"Well welcome to Ponyville, Umbra! Normally I would celebrate this occasion with one of my 'Welcome to Ponyville' parties but I'm a little busy with my uh..."me-problem" right now," she said, adding emphasis with two raised hooves. Pinkie offered a small chuckle that sounded empty and forced before sighing again. However, she quickly recovered and asked, "Anyway, where're you from?"

Umbra drew a blank. He had no idea how to answer that, he hadn't thought of a good cover-up story yet. He couldn't tell her he was from the empire, so he said the first thing that came to mind. 

"Uh-um, I came in from... uh that way," he deadpanned, pointing in the direction of the forest. 

Pinkie followed the direction of his hoof. 

"You came through the Everfree forest?" she asked sounding quite surprised.

"Um, y-yeah," he offered a sheepish grin. 

Umbra's stomach grumbled loudly, interrupting the conversation and making his cheeks warm with embarrassment. It also reminded him of why he left his shelter in the first place. 

"Well I need to get going. It was nice meeting you Pinkie Pie." 

Pinkie looked up at him. "Okay. I'm sorry nopony else is out here to meet you. That's kinda my fault too. I know you'll make plenty of friends here. I'll get back to you on that welcome party, as soon as I or the real Pinkie get outta this mess!"

Umbra waved goodbye and continued his walk down the street. He could hear Pinkie talking to herself. Something about whether or not she was Pinkie Pie. Her voice trailed away as the distance between him and her expanded. 

While it had been the first time he introduced himself to someone, Umbra thought it went pretty well. It was a little odd at first but it eventually played out. Pinkie Pie seemed like a nice pony. 

He realized he was now known by a resident of the town. Umbra was no longer an invisible pony. It was official, somepony other than Sombra knew he existed. He existed to Pinkie Pie. She knew about him and he knew about her and because of that, Umbra was real. It felt pretty good to him. 

Umbra was glad he stopped by the mare. Not only did he feel good about helping her, he also learned something. He now knew that this town was called Ponyville and the forest was called the Everfree forest. The more he knew, the better off he was. His introduction with Pinkie Pie also gave him a new confidence of himself. 

He walked through the still deserted streets of Ponyville, taking in the sights it possessed. The small town was much different from the Crystal Empire. Even though he had only been outside the castle once, Umbra thought he preferred the town over the city. 

It was the little details of the town that Umbra liked. He liked how everything was spread out, plenty of open space between buildings, plenty of room to breathe. Walking on grass and dirt felt much better than crystal and rock. Above the houses and buildings he could see hills and mountains in the distance. The Crystal Empire had none of these things. 

Umbra rounded a corner in the road and started heading back towards the forest. A small noise shattered the peaceful silence of the empty town, making Umbra's ears stand up. The noise sounded quite a lot like a pony's voice.

He stopped in the middle of the road to listen. The noise gradually became clearer and louder until Umbra could make out a single word.

"Fun?" Umbra said out loud. It definitely was a pony's voice and it was repeating the word over and over again. 

He looked all around him, trying to locate the source of the sound. It felt like the voice was coming from all around him, yet he saw nothing to confirm that. The voice just repeated, "Fun! Fun! Fun!" over and over again with no set pattern to it. It was as if a whole parade of ponies was shouting all at different times. 

It was maddening.

Umbra was at the point of panicking when the ground began to shake again only this time, much more violently than before. 

The voice became much louder behind Umbra, making him instinctively spin around to locate the sound. Umbra's eyes grew wide with fear. 

Down the street, a small army of hyperactive pink mares charged forward. Some ran on the ground while others bounced and hopped through the street, each of them shouting and giggling all the while. They were coming right towards him. 

Umbra's mind kicked into gear and he finally turned and ran. He darted behind the closest building, just as the flood of pink ponies rushed past.

Umbra had to cover his ears. the sound was deafening. He sank to the ground as it shook and rumbled beneath him. It was like the town was being demolished by a pink storm. 

Umbra could only hold to the ground and hope it blew over soon. He felt helpless as the ground shook from the several dozen sets of hooves pounding on it.  

Just as it started, the pink storm slowly faded into the distance of the town. Umbra uncovered his ears and stood up. His hooves still shook and his ears still rang as painful reminders. 

He walked out from behind the building. Umbra could still see some of the pink mares running down the street in the distance. 

"I think that's enough Ponyville for today," he said to himself in a shaky voice.

***

It was a short trip back to the forest. Umbra didn't want to have any more surprises so he moved quickly. Once he reached the edge of the forest, it wasn't long before he found the broken caravan. 

Umbra was exhausted. He had been up and walking the whole day. He never found any food in the forest and was too distracted in the town to get some. He was running on empty. 

Umbra opened the little door and ducked his head to get inside. He paused halfway through the door. The white dagger in the floor stared at him, Umbra stared back. The longer he stared at the blade, the more uneasy he felt. 

The unicorn shook his head and finally walked inside, stepping over the dagger. He closed the door behind him, making sure it was shut tight. 

Without much thought, Umbra laid down on his makeshift bench-bed. His stomach ached and grumbled as he laid there. Umbra could only groan in response. 

He let the lack of energy overcome him. It slowly forced his mind to accept the much needed rest that sleep generously offered. Umbra's eyes fell as consciousness left him and he went to sleep. 

***

A large iron door stood in front of him, illuminated by two torches on either side that burned with red fire. The door was covered in dirt and stained with dark spots. A thick wooden brace that ran across prevented the door from opening. 

Umbra looked around him. He was standing in a small stone room with barely enough room to fit him. The stone was absolutely seamless on every corner of the room. Umbra's shadow stood behind him on the wall, the only thing in the room besides Umbra himself.

With no other place to go, Umbra slid the brace away and pulled the iron door open. The hinges screeched as metal scraped against metal. 

The room outside was completely dark. Umbra grabbed one of the torches with his magic and hovered it in the doorframe. The red light revealed a metal fence-like floor that extended into the darkness. 

Umbra levitated the torch close to him and stepped through the door. His hooves made loud clanking sounds on the metal floor. The sounds echoed around him in the darkness. It was the only sound he could hear above the silence. 

All he could do was press forward into the darkness and hope it would lead somewhere. The darkness surrounded him. What the darkness concealed, Umbra did not know. He worried about what could be lurking in the shadows. Yet despite himself, the stallion carried on.

The red light of the torch illuminated a figure in the darkness ahead. The figure appeared as pony sitting on their haunches with their back facing him. Umbra stepped closer, shining the light over the figure and revealed its details. 

The figure was indeed a pony. Its mane and tail both had the same curled mess of deep raspberry color. The pony's coat was a very pale shade of pink. Ears were drooped by the sides of its head that looked in the opposite direction of Umbra. The light wasn't bright enough to make out the cutie mark, yet the other features of the pony brought a familiar name to mind.

"P-pinkie?" Umbra quietly asked. He waited for a response. The pony didn't move.

"Pinkie Pie?" he asked a bit louder. This time, the pony's ears perked up at his question. After a moment, the pink pony replied in a whisper. 

"Do you hate me?" Umbra recognized the voice as Pinkie's. However, the question was so quiet that he could not understand it. 

"I-I'm sorry?" he started.

Pinkie's head slowly spun around to his direction. The rest of her body stayed in place as her head moved farther than any pony's head should. Loud cracks and pops sounded from her neck as it turned all the way around. Each crack made Umbra's stomach churn. Her head stopped with a muffled snap and she faced him. 

Umbra felt sick as he watched and heard the mare's head move a full 180 degrees. When the light revealed Pinkie's face, Umbra gasped in shock.

Two deep black holes remained where her bright blue eyes should have been. Red drained from the empty holes, dripping from her chin onto her back. The red stained her coat as it hit.

"Do you hate me?" she repeated. This time her voice was louder and shaky as if she was terrified. A heavy frown was painted across her face that showed her fear.

Umbra reeled back as he saw Pinkie's mutilated face. The two black holes stared at him, waiting for an answer. 

His mouth hung open as he tried to fill it with words. He couldn't look away from the deep holes in her head. He didn't know what to say to her. All he did was stare in shock.

Pinkie stood up, her head never moved from Umbra. Her body spun the same as her head until it faced him as well. 

Umbra could see red staining her hooves and chest. Her pink fur was almost completely covered in the dark red liquid that drained from her eyes. Her hooves still dripped with the red lifeblood. Umbra noticed a small fork by her hooves. It shined with the same red liquid that covered her hooves. 

She took a step forward and asked another question, "Am I a bad pony?" Red continued draining from the holes on her face.

Pinkie took another step closer to him. Umbra took a step of his own, only he moved backwards.

Pinkie began walking towards Umbra, asking him the same questions over and over. 

"Do you hate me? Am I a bad pony? Do you hate me?"

Umbra could only walk backwards and keep his distance from the appalling creature advancing on him. His heart thumped loudly in his chest as the atrocity got closer.

His rear bumped into something that brought him to a stop. Umbra spared a glance behind him to see what it was. A large wooden structure towered over him, blocking his path. He looked at the massive obstruction closer. He thought it looked like the broken caravan in the woods.

Pinkie's voice sounded right in his ear. "Do you hate me?"

Umbra whipped his head around to see her head not inches away from his own. He noticed that she now had a horn on her forehead with a black mane and a dark grey coat. Two gaping black holes still stood in place of eyes and red continued flowing down her cheeks.

Umbra's eyes widened as he realized he was looking at his own mutilated face. 

> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Umbra awoke with a gasp. His breathing was heavy and he was covered in sweat. Umbra's heart pounded in his chest.

Waking up like this was becoming a recurring thing.

Sombra's words echoed in his head, "Your dreams will be tormented without restraint by fear."

No doubt his dream was Sombra's work. Umbra remembered what he saw in his dream. Pinkie Pie snapping her head all the way around. The empty holes in her head that drained blood down her face. Her stained red hooves that suggested she clawed her own eyes out. In the end it turned out to be him without eyes.

The memory sent shivers down Umbra's back, goosebumps forming along his legs. He felt sick to his stomach as he remembered the sounds of her neck cracking and snapping.

The unicorn shivered and shook his head. He didn't want to think about it any longer.

Umbra looked out his small window. The forest was dark and misty. Above the thick forest canopy, Umbra could see stars shining against the night sky. The full moon illuminated what it could and sent shadows across the forest floor.

Umbra sighed. It was the middle of the night. He had only been asleep for a couple of hours.

He didn't want to go back to sleep though. Sombra certainly wasn't lying when he said he would fill Umbra's dreams with fear.

Umbra hated admitting it to himself, but he knew he was afraid of what might be in his next dream. His last dream wasn't too bad but that didn't mean they would all be like that.

He looked at the white knife in the floor. It stared back at him. An unusual feeling came over him as they stared at each other.

Umbra shook the thought away and stepped outside, sitting just outside his little shelter. He looked out into the forest. He noticed how calm everything seemed. The only noise was that of the tree branches swaying in the breeze. The forest floor danced with the shadows of the branches and the glow of the moon.

Everything was so peaceful.

The forest itself was very dark. Umbra couldn't see very far past the trees around him. He thought about what was beyond the darkness. Predators, monsters, other ponies: the darkness could be concealing anything.

That didn't bother him though. He didn't care that a monster could possibly be watching him, waiting for the right moment to strike. He didn't have the energy to care anymore. 

Umbra found a peace of mind in the quiet forest, a sort of serenity that came from his surroundings. The glistening stars overhead, the abundance of life around him, the peaceful silence, everything made him calm.

Being alone in the dark forest made him content. It gave him time to think. Time to reflect on himself and what he was doing.

Without anypony around, he felt as if he didn't have to hide who he was. It was like a mask. A mask that hid who he really was and showed what would be accepted.

Every time he met somepony, they wouldn't be meeting him, they would meet his mask. The mask would tell what they wanted to hear, what would be acceptable to them.

Yet what was underneath that mask didn't change. No matter what his mask showed, he wouldn't change underneath. Underneath, he was still Umbra.

He wondered how long the mask would last. How long it would be until his mask cracked and fell. How long until they could see through it. When they saw what was underneath was the very reason he needed the mask.

Umbra needed it because what the mask concealed wasn't acceptable. Umbra, son of Sombra the evil dictator and king of shadows, wasn't acceptable.

He knew that, and he knew that if he was discovered beneath his mask, he would meet the same fate as his father.

Umbra sighed. "Nopony must ever know who I really am," he told himself.

He would wear his mask to keep it that way.

It was for the best.

At least, that's what he told himself.

Time slowly marched forward, and Umbra spent most of it enjoying the undisturbed tranquility of the forest, losing himself in the wonders it had to offer. He watched as the shadows danced on the forest floor with every sway of the trees in the wind. He marveled at the number of stars visible in the beautiful night sky.

Ultimately he was alone, though it did not bother him. He was perfectly content on his own with only the world to keep him company.

For several hours, he sat outside his shelter and thought quietly to himself, enjoying the peace of the forest. A sharp pain in his belly shook him from his trance; he still hadn't eaten anything. Umbra knew he wouldn't make it much longer without food. He had searched the forest and found nothing. This time, he would go scrounge around Ponyville. He stood up and started for the town, hoping the Pinkie storm was over.

***

Umbra's quick search turned into mad forage. He found nothing around the buildings along the edge of Ponyville. While he needed to find some food, he still needed to remain out of sight and that meant he had to stay around the edges of the town.

After another hour of futile searching, Umbra noticed several organized rows of trees behind a white fence that ran alongside the town. The rows stretched several acres across rolling hills and fields. Upon closer inspection of the trees, Umbra saw tiny buds in the branches. If these trees are budding, maybe some of them might already have fruit.

The thought convinced him to hop over the fence into the orchard. He looked through the tree branches as he walked for any sign of fruit. He searched tree after tree and found nothing. He was so focused on the trees that he didn't notice the first rays of sunshine appear in the sky.

After what seemed like an hour of staring at empty trees, Umbra finally found what he was looking for.  A single apple hung in the tree before him. Even in the darkness, Umbra could clearly make out its distinct ruby color against the green leaves on the tree.

He stared at the red fruit that hung a couple feet above his head. A great wave of joy and relief came over him now that he had finally found some food. It had been four days since he last ate; his desperation had finally come to an end.

The first thing his mind told him to do was to grab the apple and eat it right away. Umbra was quick to comply, standing on his back legs and reaching for the fruit. A thought popped into his head as he tried to grab his prize.

"This orchard must be owned by somepony. Wouldn't that make this stealing?"

Umbra's hoof paused in the air, he fell back to all four hooves. His conscience had a point. The orchard was fenced in, it probably does belong to someone. Taking the apple would be stealing.

Umbra sighed. He knew theft was wrong and he would feel guilty about it. Given the circumstances however, Umbra thought it was justifiable. He was on the edge of starvation, he needed that apple.

He stood on his hind legs and reached for the apple a second time. It was just a few inches away.

"Just a bit more..."

He reached as far as he could, his hoof brushing the bottom of the apple.

"HEY! What do ya think yer doin?!"

Umbra gasped, losing his balance and collapsing to the ground as the voice cried out to him. He looked up and saw the dark outline of a pony in the distance. The figure was hunched over and slow as it walked towards him. Its voice hoarse and aged as it yelled.

Only one thought crossed his mind.

Run.

Umbra jumped to his hooves and ran as fast as he could away from the pony. Over his shoulder, he could still hear its shouting.

"Don't let me ever catch you back here again, ya good fer nuthin' varmint!"

Umbra made a beeline for the fence, not once looking back. He hopped over it and ran straight into the town. As he ran down one of the streets, another pony came into view.

Skidding to a halt, Umbra looked for any other place to go. He spotted an alleyway between two buildings just across the street.  A stack of empty crates lined one of the walls. Perfect. Umbra darted into the alley and collapsed behind the crates.

The stallion lay on the ground with his heart thumping loudly in his chest. He panted and felt the pain in his stomach slowly return, only this time it was much worse. It was unbearable. Umbra found himself writhing on the ground as the agony continued. It felt like somepony had kicked his gut in. 

His heart rate and breathing soon returned to normal but the pain remained. All he could do was clench his belly as it ached and throbbed.

After what seemed like an eternity, the pain faded away, leaving a sore and defeated unicorn slowly breathing on the ground.

Umbra sat up in the alleyway, his spirit broken. He knew his body wouldn't be able to bear another episode like that. If it happened again, it would probably kill him.

The stallion looked up at the sky. The stars and the moon had retired and left room for the early morning rays of the sun to fill their place. The clouds glowed orange with the sunrise as did the sky itself.

Umbra looked back towards the ground and two light green orbs filled his vision. His ears were assaulted by a deafeningly high pitched voice.

"Hey mister! What'cha doin back here?"

Umbra screamed and jumped to his hooves. One of his legs bumped into the bottom crate, sending the stack tumbling on top of him.

Underneath the pile of crates, Umbra heard another voice speak up as well. This voice had a similar high pitched tone but was heavily accented.

"Sweetie Belle! What'd ya do this time?"

"It wasn't me."

"We heard a scream, did you sneak attack someone?" a third voice excitedly asked.

"Uh, kinda, I guess," the first replied.

The box over his head shuffled a bit before lifting away, shedding light over him. The new light revealed three young ponies standing around his exposed head. Each foal wore a hooded black suit that left only their eyes uncovered. Umbra could however see a small white horn sticking out of one of the hoods and a pair of orange wings protruding from another suit.

The one closest to him removed her hood, unveiling a pale white unicorn filly with a swirled, purple and pink mane.

"Sorry sir, I didn't mean to scare you like that," the white filly spoke in a guilt filled voice. Umbra could tell by the expression on her face and the look in her green eyes that she was sincerely sorry.

"It's alright. I think I might have overreacted a little bit," he replied with a small grin. Umbra thought he could hear one of the other foals muttering something about his scream being heard from across the town.

The other two removed their hoods, both of them were fillies as well. One of them was a pale yellow with light orange eyes and a red mane. The other had a shaggy purple mane with matching purple eyes and orange fur.

"Ah don't think Ah've seen ya 'round Ponyville before," the yellow filly stated.

"Yeah, I don't recognize you at all," the orange pegasus added.

The little unicorn's face lit up and she gasped. "Are you from the Crystal Empire? Rarity told me all about it and-"

"No!" Umbra loudly cut her off, making the three fillies flinch.

"I mean... I'm uh... not from around here." he added in a much softer voice and a sheepish grin.

The three foals looked at each other before the unicorn spoke up again.

"Oookay...anyway, my name is Sweetie Belle and this is Applebloom and Scootaloo," she said pointing to the other two who waved at the mention of their names.

"Let's help him out," Applebloom directed.

Umbra himself had forgotten he was still buried underneath a pile of crates. The three fillies each shifted some boxes away, making room for him to stand. As they worked, Sweetie Belle asked him, "So, what's your name mister?"

Realizing he still hadn't told them his name, he quickly informed them. "Oh, it's Umbra."

He stood up and stepped out of the mess. They stared up at the unicorn that towered above them with awe in their eyes.

"Wow, you're really tall, Umbra," Scootaloo said while tilting her head all the way back.

"You might even be taller than Big Mac!" Applebloom added.

"I know! We should introduce him!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed, beaming all the while. "We could also show him around town while we're at it!"

Umbra's heart sank. The last thing he wanted to do was meet any more ponies. He didn't feel at all ready to introduce himself to the rest of the town. He also didn't know if anypony else knew about Sombra.

"That's a great idea Sweetie Belle!" Applebloom agreed.

"Maybe we can get our cutie marks as tour guides!" the little orange pegasus added.

The three fillies got together and yelled in unison.

"CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS TOUR GUIDES YAY!!!"

Umbra cringed at the deafening battle cry, his ears flat against his head. Before he could regain his senses and before he could object, Umbra found himself being dragged into the street.

The three fillies pulled and pushed him down the street. He didn't offer very much resistance; he didn't have the energy to do so. All he could do was submit and walk with them. 

The quartet passed several ponies in the streets. To his surprise, none of them were at all surprised seeing three young girls in black costumes leading a tall stallion through the town. The biggest reaction they got was a soft chuckle from an empathetic pony. 

The group passed out of the town and ran along the edge of the Everfree forest. A small cottage built into the side of a hill came into view. Umbra remembered seeing it when he first entered the forest. Last time the modest house was dormant and inert. As they approached it, nothing about the place seemed inactive. There were animals everywhere. Creatures and fowls of all shapes, sizes and kinds loitered about the small cottage. Umbra wondered how anypony could live with all the chaos.

Umbra looked ahead of the group where they were headed. The fillies were taking him towards a short bridge that transversed a gentle stream. On the bridge ahead, Umbra spotted a pale yellow pegasus mare with a long light pink mane. She sat calmly across the bridge with a forehoof dangling off close to the water, letting the breeze swing it back and forth. 

Umbra realized the three fillies were headed right for the pegasus. 

"Oh no..." He didn't want to meet anypony. He had plenty of excuses to use but the real reason was he didn't know how to socialize with other ponies, let alone a mare.

Umbra opened his mouth to protest but was cut off by Applebloom. "Hey there Fluttershy!"

Umbra sighed to himself, there was no escape now.

"What're you doing?" Scootaloo asked as they approached her. 

"Oh, hello girls," the gentle voiced mare said without looking away from the stream. "I've just been enjoying this beautiful day."

"Sounds boring," Scootaloo stated flatly. Fluttershy only chuckled and smiled warmly at her.

"And how have you three been today?"

This time, Sweetie Belle was the one to answer. "We've been doing great! We even made a new friend today!"

Umbra didn't know what to do, he didn't even know if he had been noticed yet. His only thoughts were to remain quiet and let the situation handle itself.

"Really? Who is it?"

"Well, why doesn't he-" Applebloom and Scootaloo started pushing Umbra, much to his surprise, towards the yellow pegasus. "-introduce himself?"

"He?" confused by the filly's words, Fluttershy stood up and faced the group. Umbra put on his best fake smile as the mare turned around. Upon seeing the grey unicorn towering over her, Fluttershy gasped and shrank under his awkward gaze, seeming to forget the three fillies entirely. Umbra was almost twice her size and it seemed she felt a little intimidated. 

Scootaloo elbowed Umbra in his gut, prompting him to speak. "Go on!" she whispered loudly. "Tell her your name!"

Umbra looked back at the timid mare who acted as if she could hide completely behind her long pink mane. The extended silence made him uncomfortable so he finally gave in and spoke. 

"Uh, hi...I-I'm Umbra," he sputtered out, his voice cracking as he spoke. His words only made the mare shrink further behind her mane.

"Um...hi," her voice was barely audible above the peaceful reticence in the clearing. She never made eye contact with him as she spoke in a near whisper. 

A long silence followed leaving Umbra awkwardly staring at the mare who only poked at the ground with a hoof. He didn't really want to be in this situation and it seemed like she didn't either. 

"Maybe I can get out of this." Scootaloo jabbed him a second time in the ribs making him wince. "Oh right, them."

"Uh, nice to meet you?" Umbra tried again. 

Her only response was an indistinguishable mumble. The only looks she would give were a few side glances through the pink mane that covered her face. 

Another long and awkward silence filled the air. 

The three fillies all sat off to the side of the confrontation, each looking back and forth from pony to pony, hoping for something to happen. They glanced at each other, silently agreeing that this was a bad idea. Impatience boiled and rose until finally spilling over. 

"Oh for the love of Celestia!" Scootaloo yelled in agitation. The sudden eruption from the filly caused both Umbra and Fluttershy to flinch and look at her. Quick as a flash, the young pegasus darted over to Fluttershy and stood next to her. 

"Umbra, this is Fluttershy-" she darted to Umbra's side. "-Fluttershy, this is Umbra. Now that everyone's been introduced, lets go!" 

Scootaloo began pushing Umbra towards the town. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom shrugged and waved their goodbyes to Fluttershy. They followed the large unicorn being pushed by the small, enraged pegasus back into the town. The yellow mare was left alone, still trying to comprehend what had just happened. 

Umbra sighed. He was a little disappointed that he couldn't talk with the mare but at the same time glad that he got to leave that awkward situation. This socializing stuff was tough. It left him feeling not at all better than he felt before if not worse. Being alone was much easier and a lot less distressing. 

"Maybe my father was right. Maybe I can't live amongst these ponies." he thought discouraged. 

Umbra kept his eyes on the ground at his hooves as he was taken through the town. He lost interest in the pedestrians that might have been staring at him as well as wherever he was being dragged. He just wanted to go leave, to be alone. 

***

A large cylindrical building came into view as the group rounded a corner. Large glass windows ran around the building on each floor. The pointed top had to be at least five stories high. 

The group approached the front doors where a light brown mare stood looking over a clipboard. She wore glasses and a white collar around her neck that gave her an intelligent appearance. The mare's reading was interrupted by Applebloom. 

"Howdy mayor!" she shouted across the courtyard. 

The grey maned earth pony looked up from her papers and searched for whoever summoned her. As she caught sight of the three fillies bouncing toward her, a warm smile spread along her face. 

"Well hello, children," she spoke with a gentle yet strong voice, the voice of someone who knows how to lead. "What brings you here today?"

"We're giving our new friend a tour of Ponyville! He just moved here!" Sweetie Belle excitedly said as Umbra walked up behind them. The mayor looked up at him. He was afraid the same thing would happen as it did with Fluttershy. The mare opened her mouth to speak and Umbra braced himself for whatever would happen next. 

"Oh! You're new in town?" 

Umbra nodded without a word. 

"Well sir, welcome to Ponyville! I'm sure you will find things here quite well." Her sincere smile made Umbra really feel welcome. For the first time, he felt comfortable around another pony. 

"I'm the mayor of this fine town and you're at Town Hall!"

"Hey, I was gonna tell him that!" Scootaloo piped in with disappointment. 

The mayor giggled and apologized to the frustrated pegasus before continuing. "So what's your name, sir?"

"U-Umbra," he said, still a bit nervous. 

"Well Umbra, I hope you enjoy your stay in our wonderful town!" She turned back to the three fillies, "I have some business I need to take care of, why don't you three show Umbra around the marketplace?"

The three fillies nodded in agreement and started leading Umbra away before the mayor called out to them again. 

"Oh, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle! I was meaning to ask if Applejack and Rarity had returned yet."

"Yeah, they got back a few days ago from some place called the Crystal Empire!" Sweetie Belle informed her. 

Umbra's ears perked up at the sound of that name. He listened intently though he tried hiding it to keep from looking suspicious. 

"The Crystal Empire? I've never heard of it. I hope the trip was safe. Have the others returned as well?"

"Yeah they all got back a couple days ago. Mah sis told me all 'bout it! They helped save the city from an evil dic-tate-er er something like that." Applebloom informed the mayor as well as the eavesdropping unicorn. 

"Really?" the mare asked surprised. 

"Rarity said his name was uh, Sombrero, I think," Sweetie Belle added while scratching her chin in thought. 

"That's not it! Rainbow Dash told me it was Sombra," Scootaloo corrected. 

"Yeah that was it!" Sweetie agreed. 

"Sounds interesting! Maybe I can get an interview with some of them for the paper," the mayor suggested. "Would you happen to know where any of them are?"

"Um yeah, Applejack is at the farm," Applebloom told her. 

"Rarity is in her boutique!" Sweetie Belle piped in. 

"I think Rainbow had to go to Cloudsdale for an emergency," Scootaloo informed. "But we know Fluttershy is relaxing outside her cottage!"

The four continued their conversation as Umbra's eyes widened. "Fluttershy was in the Empire and helped defeat Sombra?" Realization hit him like a punch to the gut. He thought she had seemed familiar. Now he knew why. He had seen her along with the other five odd ponies in the Empire. "They all got on the train which must've taken them...here." 

Another punch to his gut. 

There were six ponies in Ponyville that had been to the Crystal Empire. Six ponies that had possibly seen Sombra. If they had seen Sombra, they could easily mistake Umbra for him. To Umbra that meant there were six ponies he needed to avoid at all costs. 

"Who are they though?"

Umbra remembered all the names the fillies had mentioned. Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy. That was only four. What about the other two? He would have to ask whenever he got the chance. 

He thought about his introduction to Fluttershy. "Did she think I was Sombra?" She never reacted like other ponies would if they saw Sombra. She didn't give any hints toward that either. Was there a possibility that she never really saw Sombra? "If she was in the Crystal Empire while Sombra was there, how did she not see him?" Umbra would never know. 

"Oh, I'm sure it'll be the best story since the changeling invasion, maybe even the story of the century!" the mayor exclaimed before turning to Umbra, shaking him from his thoughts. "It was nice to meet you, Umbra. I hope you enjoy your stay!"

"Oh... Yeah um, thanks," he said with a forced grin. His mind was more focused on trying to find out the last two ponies he needed to avoid. 

"Take care now the four of you!" 

She waved to the group before picking up her clipboard and resuming her business. The trio of fillies dragged Umbra down another street. Town Hall disappeared from sight as they ventured further into the town. 

Umbra thought about how he would find out who else went to the Crystal Empire. He decided to ask the three girls. 

"Uh, out of curiosity, who else went to the Crystal Empire?" he asked cautiously. 

Applebloom was the first to answer. "Well ah know Twilight and Spike went with 'em."

"Don't forget Pinkie!" Sweetie Belle added. 

"Oh yeah, and Pinkie."

Umbra's heart sank. "D-did you say Pinkie? As in, Pinkie Pie?" He hoped they meant someone else. 

"Uh yeah, Pinkie Pie," Applebloom answered sounding a bit confused. 

"Oh..." He was afraid of that. Pinkie Pie as well as the other six had been in the Crystal Empire while Sombra was defeated. Not only that, but they helped defeat him as well. 

That explained why Pinkie asked if she had seen him before. For some lucky reason however, she didn't confuse him for Sombra. It was the same with Fluttershy. If they were both there, why did they not see Sombra in him?

Whatever reason it was, he needed to stay away from each of the ponies they had named. He wouldn't be able to live in Ponyville if any of them saw him. 

Even the first pony Umbra met in the town, the first real friend he ever had, needed to be avoided. It was for his own good that he needed to stay away from Pinkie. He wasn't very happy about that. 

"Hey look who it is!" Applebloom shouted, shaking Umbra from his thoughts. She pointed a hoof towards a pony across the street.

Several gold rings ran around her neck and a foreleg. Two large golden earrings dangled from her ears as well. The choice of jewelry wasn't the most peculiar thing about the pony however. Her coat alternated between black and white in the form of stripes that covered her body. Umbra could not tell if she was white with black stripes or black with white stripes. Either way, he had never seen a pony like this. 

The three fillies ran after the strange pony. All except Sweetie Belle who was held back by Umbra. 

"Hey!" she yelled. "Let go of me!"

"Sorry, but before you go and introduce me to that pony, I just wanna know something," Umbra spoke in a hushed voice. Sweetie Belle looked up at him and nodded understandingly. "What kind of pony is she? I've never seen anypony like her."

"Oh!" she giggled. "You've never seen a pony like her because she isn't a pony! She's a zebra!"

"A what?"

"She's really nice to everyone. She's the only zebra in Ponyville."

Umbra thought about her being the only zebra here. "She's the only one different. Kinda like me. I'm a bit different from the rest of the town. I wonder how the town reacted when she first got here."

Sweetie Belle started tugging at his hoof. "C'mon! You should meet her!"

Umbra sighed and let the little unicorn pull him over to where the other fillies had gone. Scootaloo and Applebloom were already speaking to the zebra by the time they got there. She looked up at Umbra as he approached. 

"These fillies tell me of a new pony with quite a large physique. I assume you are whom of which they speak?" 

Umbra's mouth dropped as he's heard the zebra talk. Her unique vernacular left him at a loss for words. Even her voice had a strong foreign accent that he had never heard before. 

"I'm sure you've heard this question anew," the zebra began. "Tell me, who exactly are you?"

"I-I'm Umbra," the large introvert said with a trembling voice. 

"Well Umbra, welcome to Ponyville! You are going to love it here, I'm sure you will."

Umbra smiled, he could tell the zebra was being sincere. He wasn't sure why, but it felt good to be talking to somepony. 

"Thanks. Everyone I've met has told me I'd like it here. I think I might believe them now," he said truthfully. 

"I apologize, I've forgotten to introduce myself. My name is-"

"Zecora!" a loud voice out of nowhere interrupted the zebra. A voice Umbra knew, one that he was hoping to avoid. 

"Hi Pinkie Pie!" Sweetie Belle greeted. 

"Hey everypony! What's going on?" Pinkie trotted up to the group. 

Umbra was getting worried. He hoped she wouldn't see Sombra. Even though nothing happened the day before, he was still apprehensive. 

"Have ya met our new friend, Umbra?" Applebloom asked. 

"I sure have!" She giggled, turning to Umbra and winking. "I see you're already making friends. I told you you would!"

"Ha ha y-yeah," the stallion chuckled nervously. 

Pinkie scooted next to Zecora and wrapped a hoof around her shoulder. "Well Zecora is the nicest zebra in all of Equestria."

"Didn't you say she was an evil enchantress?" Scootaloo asked flatly.

"That was before we knew who she was and it was wrong of everypony to make assumptions about her from her appearance."

Umbra's ears perked up at that that. What she just said was the whole reason he left the Crystal Empire in the first place. He looked like Sombra so he was treated as such. 

However, if everyone knew who he really was, would they still treat him like Sombra? Maybe if he told them everything instead of hiding it they would understand. If they didn't though, he would be cast out at the least. He wasn't sure if he could risk it. 

Maybe Zecora went through the same problem. He needed to find out how she handled it. 

"I must get going, I still have some materials I need to obtain. It was very nice to make your acquaintance Umbra, we should meet again," Zecora said with a bow. 

Umbra returned the gesture with a warm grin. Pinkie stepped in and spoke. "Yeah, I gotta get going too. The mayor asked to speak with me!"

"Alright. It was good to meet you, Zecora. And good to see you Pinkie."

The group exchanged their goodbyes and each went their own way. Before she left however, Pinkie threw her arms around Umbra and pulled him into a tight hug, taking him off guard. She whispered into his ear as she held him, "Thank you for yesterday, Umbra. I won't forget what you said to me."

Pinkie Pie released the shocked unicorn and smiled warmly at him. "Bye everypony!" she exclaimed as she bounced off towards Town Hall. 

Umbra watched her hop away. A pleasant feeling grew in his chest. He felt as if he really helped the pink mare, as if she really cared about him, something he had never felt before. "Is that what having a friend is really like?" A grin spread across his face. "Maybe being around these ponies isn't all that bad."

The three fillies began pushing Umbra again. "C'mon Umbra. We still have a lot of the town to tour!"

"Alright. What was that hug about?"

***

The sun hung directly overhead, beating its rays down upon the residents of Ponyville. Three fillies happily led a new and peculiar unicorn through the streets. They took him to nearly every landmark and informed him, in as much detail as they could, what each place was. Sugarcube Corner, Ponyville Hospital, Golden Oaks Library, the train station, nothing was left out.

All Umbra could do was follow the fillies as they walked through the town. Luckily for him, there weren't very many ponies around and those that were paid him little to no attention.

He was dreadfully tired. Walking through the entire town was murder on his already sore legs. The three fillies seemed to be overflowing with energy. Throughout the entire tour, not once did they slow down. Umbra was worried they might run him into the ground.

After walking through the town park, the group ended up in the marketplace. The fillies abruptly stopped in the center of perimeter of stands. Umbra watched as they searched about them, scanning the perimeter, looking for some particular pony. He didn't know who they were searching for but he looked around anyway.

Umbra noticed the multitude of ponies around him, all of them going about their own business. None of them seemed to care or even notice him in the market. To them, he was just another individual in the crowd. Not a potential threat that they should be afraid of as the crystal ponies believed.

He looked down at the three fillies still searching the marketplace. None of the other ponies around were at all troubled by their presence. They were treating him the same exact way. They treated him like a normal pony, even if that meant they just ignored him.

For the first time, Umbra actually felt safe in the town, around other ponies. He felt like a normal pony. A new confidence began to grow inside him. Maybe he could actually be a normal pony. It might be easier than he thought.

"There he is!" one of the fillies chirped, breaking Umbra from his thoughts.

The three fillies shot off towards the market stalls, Umbra scurried after them. They were approaching a small cart that was being towed by a large, crimson stallion. What really caught his eye however, was the merchandise in the wagon. Several buckets sat in the cart, each of them full of bright red apples.

"Hi Mac!" Applebloom announced as they neared the wagon. The stallion looked up at the sound of his name being called. His facial expression never changed. Even when he saw the four ponies approaching, he wore the same stoic expression. 

Umbra stood behind the three fillies, trying his best to stay unnoticed. He couldn't take his eyes away from the apples not ten feet away from him. 

"What're y’all doin up so early?" the red earth pony asked the trio of fillies. He looked at the black suits they sported. "And what the hay are ya wearin?"

Applebloom was the first to speak up. "Well, we got up to do some early mornin crusading and these are our ninja costumes!"

"We were gonna get our cutie marks as ninja assassins!" Scootaloo added while pulling her hood up and striking a kung-fu pose.

Mac hummed in acknowledgment and said with a smirk. "Ah hope y'all didn't assassinate anypony, did ya?"

"No, but we did meet somepony new!" Sweetie Belle excitedly told him. 

"Oh right! Mac, this is our new friend Umbra!" Applebloom said while pointing to the grey unicorn behind her. 

"Eh-what? Huh?" The sound of his name brought Umbra back to his senses. He noticed the four pairs of eyes staring at him. 

"...Umbra, this is Big Mac. Big Mac, Umbra." Applebloom introduced the two stallions, gesturing at the both of them. 

"Howdy," Mac said, taking a few steps forward and reaching out a hoof. "Macintosh Apple, pleasure to meet ya."

Umbra took a hesitant step forward as well. Their hooves met and they shook, Mac's grip significantly stronger than his own. The small grin on the red stallion's face looked kind and sincere. Umbra answered it with one of his own. 

"Umbra's new in town and we were giving him a tour of the town!" Sweetie Belle interrupted in her overly energetic voice. "We also wanted to see if he was as big as you, Mac."

"Oh yeah! Umbra, come stand over here," Applebloom commanded as she and Scootaloo pushed him over to Mac's side. "Now both of ya, stand up straight!"

Umbra complied with the yellow filly's demands. The three crusaders looked over the two stallions, silently comparing and contrasting them. After a minute of inspection, Scootaloo finally spoke up. 

"Well, to me it looks like Umbra is a bit taller but Mac is definitely thicker."

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle both nodded in agreement. Umbra had a few inches on Mac, however, Umbra was all around much thinner. Mac had big, powerful muscles in his legs along with a healthy roundness to his barrel. Umbra on the other hoof, had long slender legs and an especially skinny belly. 

"Is that right?" Macintosh said while looking at the rising sun. "Ain't it 'bout time y'all got ready fer school?"

All three of the fillies eyes widened simultaneously as they realized the time. Without a word, the trio bolted off leaving a cloud of dust in their wake. Macintosh chuckled to himself as he watched them disappear out of sight.

"Ah apologize fer any trouble those fillies caused ya," Mac told Umbra knowingly as he turned back to his wagon. "They gotta lot of heart but tend ta get a bit carried away."

"Oh, it wasn't that bad. The tour was uh... very informative," Umbra said, feigning a smile. The earth pony didn't seem to be convinced by his act. Instead, he gave Umbra a flat look. Umbra could only look away and awkwardly chuckle in response. "Heh heh...yeah."

Mac rolled his eyes and returned to his cart. As he begun unloading the cart, Mac tried to conceal his glances at the new pony. He noticed the several cuts along his legs and back. Mac also took note of the gash in his ear. He wondered what could have happened to cause those scars. Mac felt bad for him and thought he could use a friend. 

"Hey Umbra, would ya mind helpin me set up these here buckets?"

The unicorn agreed and moved the buckets where ever he was told. As he picked up each container with his mouth, the sweet scent of apple filled his nostrils. The pleasant aroma made his mouth water and his stomach growl. Embarrassed, Umbra tried to hide the noise by pretending nothing was happening. 

Macintosh however, noticed the loud grumbling of the working unicorn. After the two had finished unloading the apples, Mac offered his thanks. "Thanks fer the help. Would ya like a few apples?"

Umbra's mind objected.

"I shouldn't. I tried stealing from his orchard not too long ago. Helping him out should just be an apology for earlier. I can find another way to get food."

"Sure I'd love some!" Umbra declared as his conscience facehoofed itself. 

Mac grabbed three apples from the buckets and tossed them over to him. Umbra looked at the red fruit at his hooves; his heart exploded with joy. Without hesitation, he dove into the much needed food. The aching pain of hunger left his body as he ate. 

"Oh sweet mother of all that is everything, that's so much better."

Mac watched as the new stallion ate with all the grace of a rabid bear. 

"So," Mac began. "Where'd ya say you were from?" 

Umbra paused and with a mouth half full of apple answered, "I uh... I didn't." He continued devouring his food. 

The red stallion shrugged, "Fair enough. Well what brings ya to Ponyville? It's not like there's very much of anything 'round here. Ya got family here?"

Still eating, Umbra shook his head. 

"Looking fer work?" 

Another shake of his head answered the question. 

"There's gotta be a reason fer ya then, what is it?" Macintosh pressed. 

Umbra gratefully swallowed the last of the three apples, leaving nothing but the stems behind. "Well I guess I'm just looking for a better life," he answered honestly, not able to look the farm pony in his eyes. As he spoke, images of Sombra and the suffering crystal ponies flashed across his mind, making him shudder. "I-I'd really rather not talk about it."

Mac nodded. "Ah understand, ya don't have to talk bout it if ya don't want. Besides, it's all in the past and nopony will care bout that."

"I wish that was true..."

"Come on now, what could possibly be that bad?"

An idea came to Umbra's mind. "I could do it. I could tell him right here. Tell him who I really am. Take off the mask." Umbra looked the farmer in the eye. Mac's face showed concern and a want to help, inviting him to share his story, inviting him to share his burden so that it might lighten the weight. 

"He said nopony would care. He could help me. I don't need to do this alone. All I have to do is tell him. Take off the mask..."

Umbra sighed and spoke up. "You're right. It doesn't matter."

Mac placed a sympathetic hoof on his shoulder. "Don't worry Umbra, there are good ponies here. You'll have no problem at all making a life for yerself. "

Umbra thanked the stallion for his support. He was disappointed that he couldn't bring himself to tell Mac. "Maybe next time." 

The marketplace around him suddenly became dark. Both ponies looked up at the sky and noticed thick storm clouds rolling in front of the sun. The area continued to darken as more black clouds filled the sky. 

"Don't seem like the weather ponies are doin their job," Mac said as a few drops of rain fell around them. "Ah guess I better pack up before it starts comin down."

Mac began returning the buckets of apples to the cart, Umbra decided to help him. All the other ponies around did the same with their own stands and carts. The usually calm farmer's market became a beehive of activity with ponies rushing about, trying to avoid the rain.

As they packed, Macintosh asked him a question. "What've ya been doin' lately?"

Umbra had to think about that. He really hadn't done much at all, at least not in Ponyville. "I...I've pretty much just wandered around town and the Everfree."

Mac paused and stared at him in disbelief. "You've been going in the Everfree forest?" Umbra awkwardly returned the glance and nodded. "Ya know a carriage was attacked by some timberwolves by the forest just last week."

Umbra was shocked but tried to hide it. "Really?"

"Eyup. Ah heard nopony got hurt but the 'wolves trashed the wagon and threw it in the forest."

The new information hit Umbra hard, he was starting to rethink staying in the Everfree. It explained why his makeshift home was there in the first place as well as the scratches and marks. The bottom line was that it wasn't safe in the forest and it wouldn't be smart to go back. He would have to find somewhere else. 

A loud clap of thunder shook the grey stallion from his thoughts. He looked at Mac who still wore his indifferent look. 

"Ah guess we better get going," he said as he locked the cart to his harness. 

The two big ponies trotted their way out of the market and through the town, the rain continuously falling harder all the while. Eventually they arrived at Sweet Apple Acres and marched down the muddy road to the barn. Umbra opened the door for Mac to pull the cart through before closing it behind him. 

Macintosh lit a torch near the door that gave the dark barn some light. 

Umbra sat next to a stack of hay as Macintosh pulled the cart to its place in the barn. The long walk through the rain and mud was tough. A wave of fatigue washed over Umbra as he sat there. The day had been long and tiresome, leaving his body weary and sore. His eyes became heavy and his body lost its poise. His head slowly drooped as consciousness finally left him. 

***

Macintosh unhitched his harness from the cart. He looked over the buckets of apples, checked the wheels, and made sure the cart was secure. The storm had left the cart dripping wet and covered the wheels in mud. After a quick cleaning, the cart was returned to its original state. 

Satisfied with his work, Mac smiled at the cleaning job he did. He remembered that he wasn't alone however. Mac turned from the cart and found his guest lying on a stack of hay. His eyes were shut while a loud snore escaped his empty mouth. The unicorn's legs were draped over the side of the hay, completely motionless.

Mac chuckled at the sight of Umbra fast asleep. The new pony was one of the skinniest unicorns Mac had seen, no wonder he's so tired. Macintosh decided to let the pony sleep, he could wake him when the storm ends. Until then, he still had some chores left to do in the barn.

***

Every few minutes or in between chores, Mac would come to check on Umbra who would occasionally stir in his slumber. The sound of rain hitting the roof let him know that the storm continued outside. 

A misty gust of wind blew through the barn as the door opened and a pony walked inside. From his work, Mac heard the door close and the sound of hoofsteps on the ground.

"Howdy, Mac!" the new arrival called out in the unmistakable voice he knew all too well.

"Afternoon, Applejack," Macintosh turned to see his sister trotting in the barn. He offered a genuine smile which she returned. Applejack looked over at the dozing pony in the corner. 

"Who's that?" she asked as the sleeping unicorn began to violently shake. The pony's breathing quickened and he rolled back and forth on the hay stack. 

"Uh...is he alright?"

> Chapter 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Umbra walked down the road from Sweet Apple Acres. The storm had let up but left dark clouds all over the night sky. Only the crescent moon could be seen amidst the black sky.  He was grateful Big Mac had let him stay in the barn to wait out the rain, but he knew he couldn't stay forever. It was time to move on. 

The unicorn looked at Ponyville. Like the night sky, it was completely dark, leaving only the silhouettes of the buildings visible. There were no lights in any of the houses or in the streets. 

Umbra walked through the empty streets guided by the light of the moon alone. The town was completely silent except for the sound of his hoovesteps that echoed like a heartbeat. He searched all around him as he walked. There was no sign of anypony at all in the town. 

The street opened up into a large clearing. Several carts and stands were set up in a circular perimeter ahead of him. He recognized the area as the Ponyville farmers market. Umbra looked past one of the stands towards the center of the circle and saw a small flickering light. 

Looking closer, Umbra saw the light to be a candlestick jutting out of the ground. A little flame burned at its top, swaying gently in the light breeze. The flame itself was only slightly bigger than that of a match. Still, the small light illuminated a most of the marketplace. It also revealed the dark outline of a pony sitting behind the candle. 

The pony wore a hood that covered all but his mouth in shadow. He sat close to the candle, his head nearly inches away from the flame. His entire body trembled and shivered violently. It looked like he was whispering into the fire which danced under his breath, almost as if he was trying to talk it back to life. Though his mouth moved, Umbra could hear no sound. Overall, the pony looked completely miserable. 

Umbra walked closer to the lone pony sitting out in the open. From what he could see, the other stallion had grey fur and a white tail. Umbra still could not see his face under the hood. Umbra listened closely and heard nothing but mumbling coming from the shaking pony. 

"He probably got caught out in the storm" Umbra thought to himself. "He looks thoroughly miserable."

Umbra stared at the indignant pony for a moment. He felt bad for him. It was the same feeling he had when he saw Pinkie Pie the first time. He felt he needed to do something, anything. He remembered the kindness Macintosh had shown him,  how much it meant to him despite how meager it was. 

"Um...hello?" Umbra spoke cautiously. 

The other stallion jumped back in surprise and shouted. As he moved back, the hood fell off his head and a white mask fell to the ground. The stallion's face was the same grey as his fur and his eyes were the color of grass. 

"H-h-h-ello," the frightened pony struggled to say, his body still shivering. His face wore a mixed expression of fear and sadness. 

"Do you know where the rest of the town went?" 

The green eyed stallion only shook his head in response. He sat back down next to the candle after he calmed himself a little bit. Umbra decided to sit down as well, he walked near the little flame and sat opposite the other pony. They both sat there and stared into the yellow flame. 

"You look cold," Umbra said after a moment. 

"N-no, not really cold," he said, shaking his head. "T-t-terrified."

"Terrified? Of what?"

The trembling stallion only shook his head and said nothing more. Umbra didn't want to press the topic so he remained silent and continued staring at the candle. 

After another moment of silence, the shivering stallion spoke up. "Y-you're not like the r-r-rest of them." 

"Well, I guess you could say that." Umbra softy agreed. 

"I-I'm different too."

The stallion's comment made Umbra look up at him. 

"The r-rest of the town, there's n-no way to fit in with them when you're d-d-different. They know when you're d-different, and they d-don't like it. They c-came for me, t-they will come f-f-for you too." 

A short snap from out in marketplace interrupted the white tailed pony. The two stallions turned their heads towards the source of the sound. Standing next to an empty cart was a white mare. She looked much like a mannequin as she had no mane or tail. The mare faced the two with an expressionless face that lacked eyes, making her look even less lifelike. The sight of the pony sent chills down Umbra's spine. 

The stallion next to him stopped shaking. He sat absolutely still with his mouth hanging open, staring wide eyed at the ghostly mare in the distance. Umbra could see something in the mare's hooves though he couldn't quite tell what it was however. 

Another sound, this time behind him. 

Umbra whipped his head around. A second white pony stood in front of an overturned wagon. Like the mare, this pony had patches of skin where the eyes should have been. It also had no tail or mane. However, this pony looked more like a stallion than a mare. 

The white stallion also held something in his hooves that Umbra could clearly see. A polished white handle was gripped in his hooves. The handle connected to a long metal blade that reflected the light of the candle into his eyes. 

As soon as he saw the white dagger, Umbra's first thought was to run. When he turned around to retreat, two more corpselike ponies appeared in front of him, both similar to the other two around the perimeter. 

Umbra started frantically looking all around him, while the other stallion only stared at the first mare. Every time Umbra looked somewhere, more pale and deathlike ponies would appear. There were stallions, mares, and even colts and fillies all around the two horrified stallions. None of them had eyes, manes, or tails. All of them had a long white dagger gripped in their hooves. 

More and more appeared until they were completely surrounded. Dozens upon dozens of white ponies formed a perimeter around them. Umbra's heart pounded in his chest. He desperately searched for an escape but found none. 

The crowd of ponies all took a step forward. The ground shook as their hooves pounded upon it. 

They each took another step. Then another. The circle was becoming smaller. Each step was like the beating of a drum, pounding at the same slow rate of his heart. Between each step the white ponies would mumble together, "Not one of us."

Umbra looked at the grey stallion sitting next to him. His head slowly turned to meet Umbra's gaze. The drum pounded on. "Not one of us. Not one of us." Their blades glimmered with the candlelight, reflecting light across the ground. 

Umbra looked into the stallions eyes and saw nothing but fear. The other stallion could only look back at him, begging for salvation. Umbra recognized the look written on the pony's face. It was a look of desperation and helplessness. He had felt those same feelings before. He was feeling them now as well. 

"Not one of us. Not one of us." The crowd pounded onward

Panic found its way into his body and settled in his mind. The unicorn started rushing about, desperate for an escape. In his panic, Umbra's leg hit the candlestick sending it over to the ground. The flame vanished into the air as it met the dirt. All that was left was complete darkness.

Everything was black, even the crescent moon had vanished behind a dark cloud. No sound could be heard save Umbra's own unsteady breathing and the rapid pounding of his heart. He looked all around him, trying to see even the faintest light. 

Nothing. 

Umbra slowly shrank to the ground, making himself as small as possible. His heartbeat thumped in his ears and echoed all around him. He remained absolutely still. He didn't know what was in the darkness, if the eyeless ponies were still encircling him, if the almost petrified stallion sat next to him. All he could do was hold himself tight to the ground, keep still, and wait. 

After what felt like an hour of staring into the darkness, Umbra's heart began to slow. His heart rate gradually descended to a steady rate. Each beat echoed louder and louder in the void.

Another loud stomp shook the ground. 

"Not one of us."

Umbra's heart sank in his stomach. The sound of a hundred hooves on the ground continued, making the ground tremble beneath him. Each stomp was deafening, rattling his bones and making him cringe.

"Not one of us. Not one of us."

Umbra began shaking like the grey stallion did.

"Not one of us. Not one of us."

He bit down on his lip to prevent his screams from escaping. Umbra braced himself for the next stomp. 

Nothing happened. The black void became silent. 

Umbra trembled on the ground while trying to keep still. He searched around looking for any sign of life. 

A earsplitting scream erupted from the darkness, making Umbra cringe and cover his ears. The sound of dozens of blades meeting flesh followed, silencing the cry.

"Not one of us."  

Umbra cowered like a scared foal on the ground. He didn't know what to do. He was surrounded by monsters that had just killed a pony. His heart ran in his chest, unable to stop. 

The clouds in front of the moon drifted away letting the moonlight illuminate his surroundings. Umbra saw nothing but the dozens of white ponies standing tall over him, staring down at him with their eyeless faces. In unison they raised their blades above their heads. Umbra could only watch with eyes as big as plates as the crowd bore down on him. The blades glowed in the dim moonlight, some dripped crimson liquid to the ground. 

"Not one of us."

The knives dropped, flashing in the moonlight as they fell. Umbra tried to scream but couldn't as over a dozen blades pierced into his flesh. 

"Umbra! Hey, wake up!" a thunderous voice shouted in his ear. 

The unicorn felt himself being violently shaken into consciousness. He gasped loudly and opened his eyes. Macintosh's face came into view directly in front of him. His hooves firmly gripped Umbra's head as they shook him. 

Umbra broke away from Mac's grip and he heavily panted. He failed to notice the other pair of eyes watching him, he was too busy gasping for breath and trying to return to reality. 

"You alright?" Mac asked him with concern on his face. "It looked like you were having a seizure there."

"No...no, I'm...fine." Umbra forced out between breaths. "It was just a bad dream."

A new voice Umbra hadn't heard before spoke up. "Must've been some dream."

Umbra looked up towards the unknown pony. An orange mare with a Stetson hat sat across from him. He couldn't make out the details of her due to the lack of light. 

"Umbra, this is mah sister, Applejack," Macintosh introduced. "Applejack, this is mah new pal, Umbra. He's new in town."

"That name." Realization dawned on him like the rising sun. "She was one of the mares in the Crystal Empire." He needed to get away from her now. 

"Well howdy!" she said to him while stepping closer and holding out a hoof. 

"Too late."

"Ah'm Applejack! A pleasure to meet ya!"

"Um, thanks." Umbra tried his best to stay in the shadows of the barn. Hopefully, it would be enough to prevent the mare from recognizing him. 

He extended his hoof to meet hers. His whole leg, shoulder and all, suddenly shook violently as Applejack took hold of it. The mare's strength was unmistakably clear to him. When she released her grip, Umbra could still feel it shaking as if she had never let go. A pulsing soreness replaced the vibrant feeling as it faded. 

Umbra tried to make himself smile but ended up with a strained and crooked grin. Macintosh and Applejack didn't seem to notice thankfully. "I've got to get out of this."

"Have ya tried our famous Sweet Apple Acres apples yet?" the orange mare questioned. 

"Uh, yeah. M-Macintosh gave me some earlier after I helped him out," Umbra said while a hoof tapped uncontrollably on the ground. 

"Oh, well, what'd ya think?"

"They were uh...great?"

"That's good to hear!" 

A long silence entered the barn. Applejack smiled at Umbra who was trying his best to hide himself, awkwardly fidgeting under her eyes. Macintosh all the while raked the loose hay on the ground into a pile. Umbra silently begged him for some assistance, something to get him out of there. Mac didn't notice a thing. 

"Well Ah gotta head down to town hall. The mayor wants an interview or something." Applejack said, breaking the silence. "Hopefully Rainbow can clean up this storm quickly."

The orange earth pony trotted over to the barn door. She opened the door revealing the afternoon sky completely covered in dark clouds. It was as if the sun had already set. The ground was wet and muddy from the rain that had stopped falling. 

"At least it stopped rainin’."

Applejack happily trotted out of the barn, closing the door behind her. She left Umbra alone with Big Mac, somepony he could trust. 

A heavy sigh escaped Umbra's lips. The threat of being compromised had left. He was safe at last, or at least he thought he was. He didn't know exactly what the mare saw. All he could do was hope she didn't recognize him as Sombra. 

"I'm gonna check on the house, make sure there ain't any damage from the storm," Mac broke the silence. "You're welcome to stay as long as you like."

Umbra pondered the offer, he could wait for the storm to clear up but that would come with the possibility of running into Applejack again. 

"Thanks, but I should probably get going."

The large earth pony nodded and turned to walk out of the back door. Pausing in the doorway, he looked back at Umbra saying, "Oh if ya run into Granny, ya might want to be careful. She's been mighty cranky today."

"Uh, okay. Thanks again," Umbra replied. "Who's Granny?" Macintosh nodded a second time and stepped outside, closing the door behind him. 

As the door shut, Umbra let out a sigh of relief. Finally he was alone again. He didn't feel like he had to hide who he was when he was alone. He could finally take off his mask. 

It was difficult trying to put on a convincing act whenever he met somepony. He didn't enjoy lying to everyone, not to mention the risk of saying something wrong. The weight of his mask became all the more apparent with every new pony he met. He wasn't sure he could keep it up forever. 

Umbra reflected on his last dream, remembering the fear he felt. The swarm of ghostlike ponies, how they made him jump each time they took a step. The sound of the blades slicing through flesh, how it made him cringe and feel sick to his stomach. That last shock of being surrounded right before their blades plunged into him. 

He remembered the grey pony who was killed in front of him. Umbra still felt sorry for him even though he was just a dream. He wished he could've done something though there was nothing to be done. He had felt the same sickening feeling of helplessness before. 

Only this time, Umbra didn't have to watch the pony die. 

This dream was different from the last. He didn't realize he fell asleep this time. His exhaustion just took over and forced him into sleep. It didn't help that he had minimal rest and nearly no food to help him stay awake. It was becoming increasingly difficult to do just that, stay awake. He didn’t know how he was supposed to do that when he could slip so suddenly like he did. It made Sombra’s nightmares seem all the more frightening to him. He didn’t know how much longer he could handle them. He didn’t know how much longer he could carry the weight on his own. His mask was slipping.

He could worry about it later though. Right now, all he wanted to do was leave, to be alone.

Umbra stood up and walked up to the barn door. As he reached to push it open, the door suddenly swung away from him, making him lose his balance and stumble forward. Umbra stumbled directly into a green, elderly mare that stood outside. A stack of books fell to the ground as he bumped into the earth pony. After nearly knocking her over, Umbra quickly took a few steps backwards and apologized. The old pony looked up at him crossly. 

"Who in tarnation 'er you?" 

"I-I'm Umbra. I just um...moved here...i-i-in town I mean," he lied with a small, fake grin. 

She narrowed her eyes at him, "Well Umbra, you sure ain't makin a good first impression runnin into ponies and what-not." She looked at the pile of books at her hooves. "Doggone ya even made me drop my books!"

"Oh I'm sorry. Here let me get that for you." Umbra levitated the books back to the old mare. 

"Hm...how's-about we make a deal?" she suggested. "If you can return these to the library, I'll forgive you fer what ya did."

"Uh-"

"Great! Off with you then! Wouldn't want these to be overdue now!" she cut him off, not giving him any chance to object. She shoved the books into his hooves and pushed him out the door. He turned around to say something only to have the barn door slam shut in front of him. 

"Wasn't it just an accident though?" Umbra thought. It would give him an excuse to leave. The old pony, didn't give him much of a choice anyway. Thinking about it a little more, he realized he was actually thankful for the old mare. She gave him something to do, something to keep him active, something to keep his mind off of his problems.

***

The sky had gone from a dark black to a light grey, from storm clouds to a thin overcast. With mud on his hooves and a stack of books on his back, Umbra walked through the streets of Ponyville, content as if he really belonged there. Not worrying about where he was, the other ponies in the streets or what they thought of him. He felt normal. 

"Just down this street and to the right"

However long and painful, the tour that the young fillies had given him earlier proved useful. He knew where most of the significant landmarks were and how to get to them. He reminded himself to thank the three whenever he next saw them. 

The dark unicorn rounded the corner. A large round oak tree sat in the clearing ahead of him, multiple windows visible within the leaves. A chimney and balcony also protruding from the tree's branches. Golden Oaks library, if he remembered correctly from the tour. 

The top half of the door was open, lowering his head, Umbra peered inside. From what he could see, there wasn't anypony inside. 

He slowly pushed the door open which creaked as it moved. After clearing the low door frame, Umbra raised his head and looked about the library. The circular walls were lined with shelves, each stuffed with nearly every manor of book. A round table sat in the middle of the room, a large bust as its decoration. 

The library itself seemed a little small for the size of the town to him. He wondered if it ever got busy. 

"Good afternoon." Umbra jumped and searched for the voice. 

A purple unicorn sat on the ground along the wall. With her back to him, she had her head buried in a large book on a stand. Surrounded in a lavender aura, a feather levitated next to her head, scribbling notes on a paper next to the book. Umbra watched as her head rapidly switched from book to paper, paper to book, then back again. 

Without turning to look at him she said, "Sorry I'm a little busy right now. Are you returning a book?"

"How'd she know?" Umbra pushed the thought aside and answered with a hum.. 

"Okay, you can just leave it on the table. I'll take care of it." Again, the mare spoke into her book as she talked to him. It seemed a bit rude but he didn't mind, he had met enough ponies today. 

Umbra quietly stepped over to the table. He levitated each book one by one onto the table. Before setting it down however, he scanned over each book, looking at the cover and title. 

The first book was a simple children's book for beginning readers. It was full of short, simple words and pictures at every other page. He hoped it was for Applebloom's and not for Granny Smith's use. 

The next was an informational book, Pineapple Farming: for DUMMIES. It made sense that a farmer may want to expand their crop, but tropical fruit? Umbra didn't think the apple farmers would be able to pull it off in this climate, even if the fruit had "apple" in the name. 

Umbra levitated the last book off his back and moved it in front of him. Without a Home, was the title written by an author he had never heard of. The cover showed a beautiful, lush forest full of trees and wild vegetation. In the distance, a single earth pony could be seen walking through, its head hung low. 

Both curious and intrigued, Umbra flipped the book over to the synopsis. He read the summary in his head.

"Despair, isolation, and loneliness are all that he has ever known. Unable to deal with the horrible wrongdoings of his family's past, solus roams about the uninhabited lands of Equestria alone. In his travels, the stallion finds a small town with a seemingly friendly residency. Will Eduardo be able to live among the new ponies or will his past prevent him from fitting in? Only through-"

"Hey Twilight!" a loud and young voice shouted from the open door at the top of the staircase, disrupting his thoughts. 

"Twilight?" The name sounded familiar. 

"Do you want these copies of the encyclopedia of magic-neurobiology to the right or the left of the second volume of thermonuclear astrophysics?"

Where had he heard that name before?

"That shelf is ordered by the date of published release! You know that magic-neurobiology was only pioneered after the first Equestrian Revolution!"

"So...to the left?" 

"Yes, Spike!"

At the mention of the name Spike, the pieces of the puzzle fell into place, realization overcame Umbra like a landslide of mud. He knew he needed to leave. 

He placed the last book on the table. "Uh, thank you," he said to Twilight who still had her book to her face. 

"No problem. Come ba-" Twilight paused mid-sentence. She had lived in Ponyville long enough to recognize most of the ponies voices. However, she never heard that voice before. The unicorn peeled away from her paper and looked behind her. Only an open door was left from the stranger. 

She arched an eyebrow and walked to the door. Looking outside, she saw there was nopony in sight. 

"Is everything alright?" Spike asked from the top of the stairs. 

Twilight sighed. "It was nothing. Did you remember to get my copy of the first edition of Quantum Mechanics?"

A loud groan signaled he had not. 

***

Umbra hurried away from the library, cantering his way down the streets. 

"That was too close," he thought. Had he known that one of the elements of harmony lived at the library, he would have never agreed to take the books there. He had already risked enough by talking to Applejack in the dark let alone introducing himself to two others. It was by luck alone that Fluttershy and Pinkie didn't recognize him while only a darkened room prevented Applejack from getting a good view. He only hoped Twilight hadn't seen him. 

Umbra decided to turn down an alleyway, hoping to hide himself in the shadows. It was dark between the buildings. Dark enough where Umbra didn't see the garbage can toppled over on the ground. Without warning, his front legs tripped over the can, sending him forward until his head smashed into the ground. 

***

The once grey sky had returned to the dark black as it had before, only this time it wasn't from the storm. The brilliant showcase of stars, almost like a painting, hung overhead. They swayed and swirled across the sky, brightening his path and calming his mood. 

Musing at the surreal image above, Umbra continued his walk. The stallion managed his way through the center of Ponyville and found himself at a large circular fountain which sat in the middle of a clearing. The only sound was that of the water gently pouring through the white statue. 

Umbra walked to the edge of the water and looked in. He could see the sky reflecting off the water, the various coins within the pool looked like shining stars in the sky. His own reflection appeared at the water's surface and he stared at it. Two red eyes stared back at him. They were accompanied by a long grey horn and a long gash in one of the two ears. 

It looked drained, beaten. His face worn, eyes heavy, bearing memories, scars that few had ever experienced. The stress they had gone through was written upon every bruise, every bag under his eyes. He knew it wasn't over. He knew it wouldn't end. Only when his true identity is revealed would the burden be eased. But the lifting of one would just lead to the imposing of another. 

"Would it really be that bad?" 

He thought about the many ponies he met throughout the day. None of them seemed to mind who he was. Even though he was lying, they all treated him with kindness and hospitality. 

"Would they do the same if they knew I was Sombra's son?" 

As he stared at his wavy reflection, Umbra noticed a dark outline next to his head. Ice cold breath ran down the back of his neck. It sent shivers down his spine, each breath making his muscles tense. Something was standing behind him. 

Umbras heart began thumping heavily in his chest. He quickly spun around to see what it was. 

Nothing. Only an empty park stood behind him. 

He could still feel where the cold breath ran down his neck. There had to have been somepony behind him. He scanned the park a second time. Nothing moved, even the leaves on the trees remained still. 

Unsure of what to think, Umbra turned back to the fountain. A tall, dark unicorn stood at the other end of the pool. This unicorn had wings. Wings and a mane that contained the heavens. 

She looked at him, dead in the eye, her eyes narrowed. In a loud and forceful voice, she spoke.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve met.”

> Chapter 7
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two stood at opposite ends of the fountain, each staring back at the other. 

Umbra's mouth hung open. The unicorn was just as tall as he was, her wings making her seem larger. All she did was stare at him with an expressionless face, silently examining him, tilting her head, then blinking. 

Both frightened and confused, Umbra didn’t know what to do. Should he answer this mysterious newcomer whom he was pretty sure he had seen before, or remain silent? "Was that who was standing behind me?"

After a prolonged moment of silence, the mare spoke up, her harsh tone and loud voice making him shrink back. “You are in no position to be defiant here, Sombra!” 

Her statement rattled through his head. “Sombra?”  Realization overcame him as a memory flashed across his mind. Obscure images of a high balcony with Sombra staring up at the sky. Two figures, one light and one dark, flying towards them. “It can’t be!”

Instinct kicked in, taking over his mind and forcing his body to obey. Umbra spun in place and bolted towards a nearby alley. His heart pounded in his ears as he ran from the mare. As he neared the two buildings, the sprinting unicorn spared a glance behind him. He noticed that there was no one behind the fountain where he stood a moment before. Umbra returned his glance ahead of him. The blue mare stood directly in front of him, wings outstretched, blocking his path.

Planting his hooves in the ground, Umbra attempted to stop himself before crashing into the intimidating pony. Instead, Umbra lost his balance and found himself stumbling to the ground, hitting his head on the unforgiving earth. 

When his vision returned, two hooves appeared in front of his face. Looking up at their owner, Umbra’s heart sank.

“You cannot run away.” 

He backed into a wall away from the unicorn towering over him. The blue mare took a step closer. Umbra tensed himself and prepared for the worst.

“How are you here? You were vanquished in the Crystal Empire.”

Umbra could not look her in the eyes. He kept silent.

“YOU KNOW WHO I AM, DO NOT TEST MY PATIENCE, SOMBRA!” she roared. 

“I-I-I’m not Sombra…” Umbra managed to squeak out barely audible.

“SPEAK LOUDER!” her deafening shout rattled his mind and sent panic through his body.  

“I’m not Sombra!” he responded involuntarily. 

A puzzled look crossed her face. “W-what?” she said in a much softer voice.

“I-I’m not S-Sombra,” Umbra repeated almost in tears.

The tall mare took a step back, pausing to absorb what she had been told. Umbra all the while shivered up against the wall. After an overly extended moment, the blue unicorn spoke again. 

"If you are not Sombra, who...are you?" 

He didn't know what to say, all the words he tried to form slipped from him. "My...I-"

"Why did you attempt to flee?" she cut him off. 

"W-well I uh-"

"Where did you come from? Why have I never seen you before?"

"Um...I ca-"

"Well come on then, stand and speak!"

Umbra sighed. It was useless to lie to her. She already knew about Sombra, she was there from the beginning. He rose to his unsteady hooves. Though her voice had lost its deafening edge, Umbra couldn't help but feel intimidated. Standing up, he was just barely above her eye level. It gave him a slight boost in confidence. 

He took a deep breath, swallowed his pride, then began his confession. 

"I came from the Crystal Empire." Her eyebrow arched as he said that. Still, the mare listened intently as Umbra continued. "I ran because I've seen you before. You were there on that day-” Umbra noticed her eyes darting back and forth from his eyes to something directly behind him. He lost his focus and trailed off as he swung his head around to see what had been stealing her attention.

Around the corner of the building, at the fountain where they once were, stood an immense figure of what looked to be a pony. Squinting his eyes, Umbra saw that the pony’s neck had a kink almost like that of a garden hose and something long and thin hung out of its mouth. The details of the figure were obscured by the night sky. Umbra blinked and rubbed his eyes. The pony had disappeared.

Umbra stared at the empty courtyard, at the trickling fountain. He was sure somepony had been standing there not a moment before. The blue unicorn cleared her throat, causing him to jump. “You were saying?” she said as her hoof beckoned in the air.

“Sorry,” he apologized, forgetting the strange vision he had witnessed just earlier. He continued his speech while at the same time trying to keep a good eye on both her and his surroundings. “You were there on that day. I saw you and another pony flying towards my father right before he…” Her expressionless face suddenly changed to heavy worry. Her eyes opened wide staring above his head. Her mouth opened in a slight gasp. She took a step back. The sudden change her appearance unnerved Umbra. Something was wrong.

His back tensed as another freezing breath ran down his neck. Goosebumps formed along his legs and his spine began to shiver. Umbra looked to the tall blue pony with pleading eyes, begging for help. She looked just as terrified as he did. He didn’t think she would help.

Umbra slowly turned his head. A jagged blade reflected his petrified face in front of him. Its owner stared at him with a single cloudy, bloodshot eye. The entire right half of the massive pony’s head was either unrecognizably mangled or completely gone altogether. Patches of skin were missing all over the body. Like he had seen before, its extended neck bent at an unnatural angle to the right. Its back was straight and cracked when moved. There was no tail nor was there a mane. Bright, pointed teeth held the blade and grinned at Umbra, eager to meet him.

Umbra looked back at the blue mare, his entire body shaking. Her eyes glowed white and she started to fade. 

"Run," she said before disappearing. 

Something between a piercing shriek and an evil laugh sounded above as the terrible creature leaned it's broken neck over him. Like a startled cat, Umbra darted away from the monster, out of the alley and into the street. 

Just behind him, he could hear the sound of hooves scraping on the ground. The flash of the blade in his eye. He was being chased. 

Through teeth clenched on the knife, Umbra heard the monster breathing behind him. It was deep and angry. All it wanted was to end him. It was getting closer too. 

Umbra ran as fast as he could. His heart raced. He felt the creature's frozen breath on his back. It was right behind him. The knife wasn't aimed for his back however. The knife wanted Umbra's throat. Umbra had to do something quick or else the blade would get its wish. 

Up ahead in the road, a little red wagon sat off to the side. Umbra ran straight for it. 

The ends of his mane brushed against the razor sharp tip of the knife. Umbra's horn glowed with his aura. He leaped above the wagon as his magic lifted it up behind him. 

He heard the monster's long leg crash into the wagon, sending it and the knife tumbling downward which caught Umbra's side and tore into him. Umbra winced at the burning pain but ran on. 

Glancing behind as he ran, Umbra saw that the creature had a new rage in its bloodshot eye. The blade dripped with Umbra's own blood. He saw that it wanted more. 

Umbra also saw that the monster now ran with a limp. It was much slower than he was. Umbra decided he could use this to his advantage. He could run then hide. 

The stallion sprinted onward, his chest heaving, blood trickling down his leg. He ran until the limping monster around the corner of a building and into another alley. Umbra darted into a dark corner behind a dumpster. 

Umbra pressed himself into his corner, trying to make himself as small as possible. He strained his chest and took deep breaths to try and slow his heart down which pumped blood through the gash in his side. 

The pain made him want to scream. It made him want to groan in agony. Instead, he clamped his teeth down on his lip and whimpered to himself. A single tear rolled down his cheek. He had to keep silent. That monster could be anywhere. He stayed huddled in his hiding place and kept quiet, letting his wound burn and throb. 

Around the corner of the dumpster, Umbra heard the sound of hooves skidding across the ground then halting. Umbra's heart stopped. He held his breath, trying to stay as quiet as possible. 

A set of hooves slowly clopped their way down the alley. They were getting closer. 

A metal blade scratched across the side of the building Umbra sat against. The sound made his entire body tremble. 

Onward it scraped, inching closer and closer, getting louder all the while.

It scraped against the dumpster. The new sound rang in his ears. The pounding if his heart was louder still. 

It crept near his head, sending shivers through his mane. Then it stopped. 

There was silence. Only his heartbeat remained in the dark alley. 

Everything was silent. 

Umbra slowly peered around the corner, his head shaking almost violently. 

Nothing but an empty alley. 

The breath that had been long held in his chest was released. His lungs bathed  in the new oxygen. Umbra panted and slouched over to the ground. 

Umbras back tensed as breath blew across it. He gasped and spun around in an instant. 

"Hey Umbra! Whatcha doin?"

Umbra groaned and looked to the ground. "Hi, Applebloom," he said with apathy. 

The yellow filly looked at his side. "Are you okay?" she asked as she leaned over to get a better view. 

Umbra looked at his wound. It was covered in dirt and still dripped red. The pain was immense. 

"I think I'll be alri-" his sentence stopped as he looked above Applebloom. Just above her head, the shine of the jagged blade glowed with the moonlight. A set of large, pointed teeth smiled at Umbra while a single bloodshot eye looked directly at him. 

Umbra's heart stopped. 

The wicked smile spread. More teeth than any pony should have grinned at him in malevolence. 

Umbra knew what the monster would do. 

The blade flashed and it dropped. Right for the filly's neck. 

Something stirred inside Umbra, it gave him power. Faster than he ever thought possible, Umbra leapt to his hooves and dove for the filly. He reached towards Applebloom and pushed her out of the way.

The blade was hungry for blood. The blade would get its keep. 

Umbra collapsed on the ground. The feeling had left from his legs. They became heavy as if they were filled with lead. His neck wouldn't move. His vision narrowed. 

The world around him started to spin. He tried to say something but no breath came. 

The last thing he saw was a tall blue unicorn with a sad expression standing behind a silent and tearful filly. 

***

Umbra jerked awake, springing to his hooves. The lone unicorn kicked at the ground, shouting at the sky. He swung and thrashed at an innocent garbage can. The back of his neck throbbed where the knife had been. The agony made him swing about, crashing into nearly everything in the alley. 

He wanted it to stop. Not just the dreadful pain in his neck, everything. He didn't want ponies constantly chasing after him. He didn't want to have to hide himself every time he saw someone. He didn't want to have to be afraid of what horrors might haunt his dreams every time he fell asleep. He wanted it all to end.

The weight of his burdens was too much to bear. 

In the midst of his rage, he heard laughter. It was deep, slow, and familiar in its sound. 

Umbra stopped and looked about him, trying to locate the source. Just as sudden as it began, the laughter stopped, leaving a confused stallion spinning in place. 

Umbra stood there for a moment, his rage nearly forgotten, trying to comprehend what just happened. Along the street outside the alley, a group of ponies walked past. Umbra looked out at them. They laughed and chatting amongst themselves as they walked down the street. All of them having a good time. 

Umbra envied their joy. How they walked as if they had nothing to worry about. 

"What if they're just hiding it?" 

He wondered if they all wore masks like he did. He wondered if they were hiding their worries and troubles. If they were hiding who they are. Did they wear the same mask?

Another group walked past, distracting him from his thoughts. 

"Where is everypony going?"

The lone stallion stepped outside the dark alley. The morning sun shone flooded over him, warming his coat and stinging his eyes. He hadn't realized it was morning. 

As he walked out into the crowded street, his leg caught a single page of the day's newspaper. He brushed it aside, not noticing the peculiar headline: CRYSTAL EMPIRE SAVED FROM EVIL DICTATOR and the picture of a shadowy armored unicorn. 

Umbra followed the flow of the town. He tried his best to stay along the outside of the crowd but he soon found himself in the middle of the street, completely surrounded by ponies. Even though he was nearly a foot taller than everyone else, the unicorn couldn't help but feel claustrophobic. 

He looked all around him. So many ponies. All of them seemingly content with themselves. Each knowing one another and enjoying the company it brought them. 

None of them acknowledging his presence, not even noticing he was there among them. 

While he liked the fact that he wasn't the center of attention, being amongst the crowd made him feel different. It made him wish he knew someone there. He longed for someone to talk to. Someone he could trust to know his identity. Someone to share his problems with. Someone to help carry the load. 

His head slumped low and his eyes fixed on the ground. It was there, in the middle of the crowd, surrounded by ponies, Umbra felt more alone than he ever had. He had to hide it though. So he fastened his mask and walked on. 

Just another weight on his shoulders. 

The crowd thinned out and began to line the edges of a street. Umbra still not knowing what was going on, followed along with the rest of the town and picked an empty spot along the street. He stood there looking up and down the lines of ponies, trying to see if he could get any idea what was happening. 

Just down the street, Umbra heard ponies cheering. He looked that direction and saw several large decorated carts rolling down the road. They were all made to look like different foods. A giant head of lettuce made its way past him. Umbra watched as floats of all shapes and sizes slowly made their way down the street. Suddenly from his right, a large golden apple came racing down the road. Three familiar fillies went chasing after it. 

He wasn't all that surprised. 

Through the excited cheers of the crowd, Umbra started thinking about Ponyville.

The weight he carried every time he took a step in Ponyville was taking its toll. He could feel himself weakening, his spirit deteriorating. He didn't know much longer he could last. 

"You know how to end your suffering."

Umbra gasped, it was Sombra's voice. He looked frantically around him. Nobody else had heard it. 

Umbra nervously stepped away from the crowd of ponies at the parade and started walking towards the park. He needed some space. 

***

The park was nearly empty to Umbra's relief. The parade was to thank for that, though there were still a few ponies here and there, having a relaxing walk or sharing a moment with someone close. 

Umbra walked alone. He glanced at a pony sitting in an awkward position on a bench. The mint green unicorn read the day's newspaper. She too was alone. 

The stallion slowed to a stop. Though she looked content, Umbra wondered if she felt alone as he did. Was she wearing a mask? He thought about going over to talk to her. 

"Would it really be so hard?" he thought as he stared at her. "Would it make a difference if I gave her some company?" 

Umbra took a step toward the bench but stopped in his tracks. A biege earth pony with a swirled mane approached the mare and greeted her. He watched as the unicorn looked up from her newspaper and smiled at the newcomer who joined her up on the bench. The newspaper slumped to the ground, exposing a picture of a dark armored unicorn. 

Umbra sighed and walked away, staring at the ground at his hooves. The weight didn't let up. 

"Give in, Umbra."

He grit his teeth.

"You don't belong there. Give in."

Umbra's heart began pounding. His pace increased. 

"All your pain can stop here."

He tried to run away. 

"Accept your destiny, Umbra."

Umbra ran through the park, past several ponies, not caring where he went. He wanted to get away from it, from everything. He wanted it all to stop. He ran until the cramps in his stomach forced him to stop. He stopped just outside the Everfree forest. 

He sat in the middle of the road, wincing from the deep pain in his stomach. Breathing heavily through clenched teeth, Umbra hung on the edge of sanity. His head pressed to the ground. 

He remembered what Sombra said. The allure of an end to his pain was starting to sound more and more enticing. It was an easy way out, a way to remove the weight. 

"Would it really take it all away?"

From his moment of self pity, the sound of hooves in the dirt filled his ears. Suddenly becoming self conscious, Umbra stood up and looked around. A familiar face trotted towards him from the depths of the Everfree. 

"Ah, my new friend from Ponyville anew," Zecora spoke to him. "What a coincidence it is, I was told to come find you."

"Friend?"

"Y-you were told to find me?"

"Indeed I was, to take you someplace. But not until sundown, there is no reason to haste." Umbra stared at the zebra in confusion. "In the meantime, I have some errands to run. So it seems that you will just have to come."

"Um...what?" he said as she started walking towards the town. It seemed he didn't have a choice. Umbra caught up to the zebra and matched her pace. The two walked in silence as they entered the town. 

***

The time passed slowly as Umbra followed Zecora went she went to various shops and stalls around the town. The pair didn't talk much save a bit of idle chat. Umbra didn't mind however, the company of someone he knew was enough for him. He enjoyed the comfort it brought. He didn't know if she knew how much it meant to him. He didn't feel as alone anymore. The weight didn't feel as heavy. 

The sun had begun its descent and was now almost below the mountains on the horizon. Zecora decided it was time to take him to his surprise. She led him down a street with her bags full of the goods she had bought. 

Umbra became anxious. "So, where are we going?"

"Don't worry, it will all be fine. You will find out in time."

Umbra didn't like the answer but he kept to himself. He followed the zebra through the streets, glad he had someone he could call 'friend'. 

A thought popped into his head. "Maybe I could tell her." He considered the thought as he walked. Would confessing to the zebra lift the weight off his shoulders?
***

Umbra looked at the interesting building before them. A sign hung next to the door with an image if a cupcake. The building itself looked as if it was baked in an oven then decorated with all manner of sweets. If he didn't know any better, he might have tried to steal a bite. It reminded him of an old fairy tale he read as a foal. He looked at Zecora. He hoped they weren't walking into a witch's house. 

That would be ridiculous though. 

Zecora stopped at the entrance to the strange building and stepped to the side, gesturing for him to go first. Umbra walked up to the door, brushing past a discarded page of the day's newspaper with the title CRYSTAL EMPIRE SAVED FROM EVIL DICTATOR. He stepped forward and reached for the handle. He looked back at her, a hesitant look on his face. She responded with a silent nod towards the door. 

The unicorn sighed, then pushed it open. 

Umbra stepped in the room. It was dark, feeling similar to the room he woke up in a few days ago in the Crystal Empire. Only this time, the sweet scent of vanilla and frosting filled his nostrils instead of the musky air of the closet. The delightful aroma made his stomach growl and ache. 

Suddenly the lights flashed on, forcing him to shut his eyes. His ears cringed as the cries of dozens of ponies filled the air. He blinked his eyes open. The entire room had been elaborately decorated including a sign that ran across the ceiling with sentence in bright letters, "Welcome to Ponyville, Umbra!" The room was full of ponies, most of which he didn't recognize, though he did see a few familiar faces. Big Mac waved to him from a table and the mint green unicorn from the park stood off next to a group of ponies he didn't know. All of them had their eyes on him. 

His smile grew when he saw the long table towards the back of the room. It was the one thing on his mind, food. 

Pinkie Pie bounced from out of the mass of ponies. She landed in front of him, her face beaming. She opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a shout from somepony behind her. 

"It's King Sombra!" A brown unicorn yelled with one hoof pointed towards Umbra. Levitating next to his head was the day's newspaper.

Umbra's heart sank when he heard that name, it froze him where he stood. Many gasps escaped the open mouths of the ponies in the room. They whispered amongst themselves as they backed away from him. 

Umbra looked about the room. The eyes of everypony were still on him only now, they were full of fear. He looked at Pinkie as she took a step back. He looked at her shocked and heartbroken face. Her expression didn't show fear. It showed betrayal. 

Five ponies stepped forward from the crowd. Umbra's heart dropped to the floor. Twilight eyed him then gasped. "It is Sombra!"

"'T Ain't impossible!" 

Umbra's heart started racing. His mask shattered. 

"We can't let him enslave us like the crystal ponies! Let's get him!"

The crowd inside Sugarcube Corner was ready to attack. 

He was nowhere to be found. 

> Chapter 8
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Umbra burst out the door of the bakery. He stopped in the middle of the street. Ponies all around him were staring, pointing their hooves and shouting. Some fled inside buildings. Others picked up rocks, bricks, fruit, anything they could get their hooves on to defend their town from the evil dictator intruding upon their home. 

Umbra looked all around him. He was surrounded by angry ponies. His ears rang with the shrieks of the once peaceful town. His heart pounded in his chest. Adrenaline pumped through his veins. A single thought ran through his head. 

Run. 

A rock struck the side of his head. It blurred his thoughts and sent him stumbling to the ground. His head rang with the pain as he tried to regain his bearings.

More projectiles fell. Most of them hit the dirt around him but a few lucky shots scored their target. Umbra scrambled to his hooves. The crowd inched nearer to him. 

He bolted down the street, various objects peppering him as he ran. 

Behind him, a few brave stallions decided to make chase and were trailing him by just a few yards. 

His bruised body moved, much to the rejection of his exhausted legs, through the streets with fear fueling his every step. Ponies jumped out of his way as he rushed through the busy town. The town in which he believed he could hide from his past and who he was. The town that now chased him through its streets in an attempt to eradicate him.

He spared a look behind him, more ponies were now after him. They were gaining on him. They would be upon him in a matter of seconds, Umbra knew he couldn't outrun them much longer. He needed to get away now. He needed somewhere to hide.

One place came to mind. The place that hardly any pony would dare go willingly. 

The Everfree Forest. 

Umbra rounded the corner of a building. He put every last bit of his strength into this disparate run. One final effort for his freedom. 

Every step was full of power. He could feel the breath of the stallion behind him. His spirit grew as he neared the dark, musky atmosphere of the forest. 

Umbra dug into the ground beneath his hooves. 

The forest was just ahead. 

He just needed one last push. 

Just as his hooves hit the soft dirt, the stallion behind him lunged forward. Powerful hooves clamped around his side. The extra weight threatened to slow or even take him down altogether. 

Umbra pressed as hard as he could, trying desperately to shake the pony off. Finally, Umbra felt the grip on his sides give. The pony slid off his back. One of his hooves scraped against Umbra's side, tearing open the old wound across his flank from the train jump.  

The citizens of Ponyville ended their chase and turned back for the town. 

Umbra limped his way deeper into the forest, a trail of blood following him as he went. 


***


Pinkie followed her five friends into the library. Her eyes stayed fixed on the ground as she walked into the room. Even as she maneuvered around the various piles of books and the table in the center, her eyes never left the ground. She stood toward the back and leaned against a bookshelf. Her thoughts swarmed through her head like a colony of angry bees. Some of them spoke of denial, others spoke of the frightening reaction of the town. Most of them however simply asked why. 

Is he really Sombra? Is he really not my friend?

The pink earth pony looked at her friends. If she hadn't known better, she'd have thought Discord had everyone under his spell. Twilight frantically ran up the stairs to grab Spike. Rarity cooed Fluttershy in an attempt to calm the shivering pegasus down. Applejack sat next to the center table and argued loudly with Rainbow Dash as she flew about the room. Their shouts bounced around the room and with the combination of Fluttershy's whimpering, it felt like the very roots of the tree shook with displeasure. 

Twilight burst through the door at the top of the stairs. She ran down them, Spike followed groggily behind with scroll and quill in hand. The rest of the mares became silent except for Fluttershy who continued to cry on the floor. 

"Spike, send a letter to the princess!" Twilight barked as she ran into the room. 

"About what?" he asked in a yawn. 

"I just told you!" she angrily yelled. "King Sombra has returned and is in Ponyville!"

The news shocked the sleepy dragon awake. "What?! It's only been a few days! How did that happen?"

"Yeah, didn't Cadence obliterate the guy?" Rainbow added. 

"Ah saw it myself."

"The crystal ponies used the crystal heart to vanquish the brute didn't they?" 

"I don't know!" Twilight stomped. The mares cringed at the sudden shout. Pinkie thought she could see a twitch in Twilight's eyes. "The fact is that Sombra has returned and is in Ponyville. What we really need to worry about, is how we are going to deal with him." The stressed unicorn looked at each of her friends. "Does anyone have any idea how to stop him?"

None of them said a word, they each looked around them, expecting the other to say say something first. For an extended moment they stood in thought until Rainbow Dash broke the silence with a groan. 

"How are we supposed to know how to get rid of this guy if the crystal heart didn't even work?" she blurted out, aggravated. 

"Maybe the elements will be different?" Applejack offered. 

"How do we know that's gonna work?" Rainbow rebutted.

"Well ah don't see you comin up with any ideas Rainbow!"

"Is there any way we could bring the crystal heart here?" Spike added. 

"Whole lot of good that did," Rainbow stated flatly earning herself a glare from Applejack. 

"She's got a point Spike," Twilight told him. "The crystal heart obviously didn't work."

Rarity stepped in. "Isn't it worth a try though?"

"I don't think the crystal ponies would be very happy if we removed it from their castle."

"Um, do we-" Fluttershy tried to add, her voice almost a whisper. 

"We would also have to get all the crystal ponies here to power it," Twilight continued. 

"I-I think-"

"Even if we could get everything here, it would take a really long time. Time that we just don't have right now!"

"Do we even know where he is right now?" Fluttershy said above her friend. 

The arguing ponies became silent as the realization hit them. Fluttershy shrank back to the ground in embarrassment. "Oh, I'm sorry..."

She had a good point. None of them knew where the resurrected dictator had gone. They saw how the town chased the fiend but lost sight of him as he fled through the streets. Instead of giving chase, the six decided to regroup at the library. Here they stood, trying to decide how they would finish the returned king once and for all. 

"Well, has anyone seen him since we got back from the Crystal Empire?" Twilight asked her friends. 

"He crashed in the barn yesterday during the storm," Applejack confessed with regret. 

Rainbow gawked. "You just let Sombra stay there?"

"Ah didn't know who it was, it was too dark to see anythin!" Applejack replied in defense. "What happened to that nice sunny day we were supposed to have, Mrs. Weathermare?"

"Hey, it's not my fault the weather factory had a malfunction!"

"Girls! Now is not the time for this!" Twilight interrupted. "Have you seen him Rarity?"

The fashionista brought a hoof to her chin and hummed in thought for a moment before speaking. "No, I haven't. But I did hear Sweetie saying something about making a new friend yesterday with the other fillies."

"Th-they introduced him to me yesterday," Fluttershy said as she stood up, a bit calmer than before. "I didn't recognize him. I was too...shy."

"Maybe they have an idea then?" Spike deduced.

Pinkie listened to her friends as they tried to form a plan to capture this pony. The pony who she had become friends with. She remembered how he had comforted her, when no one else had, when she really needed it. When she thought of Sombra, she pictured a burly, evil monster that wants nothing other than to bring grief to all around him, not a skinny, unkempt stallion nearly as timid as Fluttershy. 

Every time she saw him, he never did anything to make her think he would ever hurt someone, let alone an entire empire. She thought the same about Queen Chrysalis when she was disguised as princess Cadence. 

Could Sombra be lying about being the Umbra she knew?

Even if he was Sombra, Pinkie knew there was something different about him. Sombra or not, she needed to find him. She needed to find out if she had lost a friend. The heartache grew more painful at the thought.

She needed to know.

"What about you, Pinkie?" 

Twilight's question shook Pinkie from her thoughts. "Huh? Wha-?"

"Ya have been awfully quiet lately, sugarcube," Applejack asked with a concerned look. 

"Is everything alright dear?" Rarity added.

Pinkie looked at each of her friends, all of which returned the look. "I-I'm fine. I just uh...think I left an oven on back at Sugarcube Corner!" she finished with a sheepish grin. 

Her friends stared at her, speechless. Pinkie continued to smile, hoping they would buy it. Finally Twilight broke the silence as she said with an eyebrow arched, "Well you might want to go check on that. You can go ahead, we'll wait for you to get back."

Pinkie bounced to her hooves masking her real worries. "Thanks er...sorry! I'll be back in a jiffy!"

The pink pony trotted out of the library. As soon as the door closed behind her, Pinkie let out a sigh of relief. She took a deep breath then set out into the town. 

She had a job to do. 


***




Pinkie stood at the edge of the Everfree forest. She remembered when she first met him. He had said something about coming into town through the forest. There was a chance he could be hiding there. She had talked to several ponies that had chased him out of Ponyville. One of them was nice enough to even show her where they had lost him. 

Now she stood there alone, a firefly lantern hanging from her mouth. The Everfree didn't look any less intimidating under the light of the moon than the light of day. The shadows were deeper, larger even. They formed figures, played with one's mind. The forest felt alive. Alive, and wild. It had a power and soul of its own. It was unnerving to be in its presence. 

Pinkie shined her light at the ground. Drops of crimson formed a trail from where she stood. She cringed thinking about the pain he must be in. Pushing the thought aside, Pinkie gathered her wits and entered the dark forest. 


***




The dark grey unicorn stumbled into the broken down wagon. He could barely stand up. The door burst open as he tumbled through it. He collapsed on the floor without even making it all the way through the door. 

His side burned with the sting of dirt in his wound. He breathed heavily from exhaustion. The long sprint did a number on his already weary legs. He lay on his side, the pain of his prolonged hunger flooding over him. It flowed through his body like the venom of a snake, throbbing and burning as it pulsed in his veins. His physical torment only weakened the state of his mind. 

As soon as his mask was lifted, the weight wasn't lifted with it; the weight only came crashing down on him. He knew how out of place he was in Ponyville. He knew he was different. He always worried how the town would react when the mask came off, when his real face was revealed. When it actually happened, it left him beaten, bruised, and defeated.

He had felt lonely before. Being away from the few ponies he called friends made him feel that way. Now though, he didn't have any friends. Every pony that knew of his existence hated him. They wanted him gone. 

Now, he was truly alone. 

In his agony, he head a voice, the voice of his father. "You don't have to suffer, Umbra."

"Just give in."

A single tear ran down his cheek. It dropped to the ground. His eyes opened to a dagger next to his head. The jagged blade with the white ivory handle. Umbra could see his face reflected in the broad side of the blade. His real face, a miserable and scared silhouette of a stallion, stared back at him. 

The blade's pearl white handle spoke to him. It offered a way out, a way he hadn't thought of before. It promised a quick end to his pain and an escape from Sombra. 

He had a decision. 

He could simply wait to be captured by the town and be destroyed like Sombra was. 

He could submit to the destiny of his father, continue his empire, live in malice and loneliness. 

Or he could accept the seduction of the blade. 

He stared into the weary red eyes reflecting in the glow of the blade. 

All his pain could be taken away. 

"Give in, my son."

Tear after tear fell to the floor.


***


The wind blew lightly through the dense forest, strong enough to make the treetops sway but not enough to make the pink earth pony shiver. The moonlight danced across the ground as it pierced the shifting canopy above. The Everfree was eerily silent. It was as if something was amiss, as if it knew of the situation a hand. 

Pinkie wasn't concerned about the darkness around her or the deafening silence of the forest. Her focus was set on followed the trail of blood that weaved around trees in a seemingly random manner. The drops of crimson illuminated under the glare of the lantern she carried in her mouth. She moved quickly through the trees but at the same time kept her hooves quiet. 

The foliage opened up into a clearing. Broken wood was scattered all about the ground. In the middle of the wreckage sat a shabby carriage with an open door. The sight of it brought a sickening feeling to Pinkie's gut. A trace of blood had been smeared across the door and ran downwards toward the ground, pointing to two grey hooves and a dark black tail in the entrance. 

She set lantern on the ground and approached the carriage. Her mind flooded with worry. The body inside seemed barely alive. If it wasn’t for the slow rise and fall of its stomach, she would have thought he was dead. Something next to his head reflected the light of the moon. 

She stopped just outside the door, eyeing the bleeding gash in his side. In a quiet and gentle voice she called out to him. 

"Umbra?"

His heart sank in sorrow as he heard his name in the familiar voice. The broken unicorn hardly moved at her presence. 

"How...how did you find me?" he asked with an exhausted voice. 

Pinkie couldn't help but feel sorry for the stallion. She took a step closer, he flinched at her sudden action. 

"Why did you come here?"

"I don't think you're really Sombra," she said sincerely. 

Umbra's ear perked up. "I'm not!" he asserted, looking up at her from his prone position.

"I believe you," Pinkie stepped close enough to see his face. "That's why I think you should come back to Ponyville.” Another step closer. 

“We can help you."

"You saw how everypony acted when they found out who I was," Umbra said, shivering at the thought. "I can't go back!"

"I saw how everypony acted around Sombra. They treated Umbra just fine."

"How would they treat Umbra if they knew he was the son of Sombra?"

Pinkie's mouth hung open. She had thought there was some connection between him and Sombra. She never thought he would actually be Sombra's son. 

"I can't change who my father is. How can I go on when everypony hates me for who I am?"

Umbra's eyes strayed back to the shining object next to his head. Pinkie truly felt sorry for him. He was placed in a terrible position without a choice of his own. She understood why he tried to hide who he was. He had a good reason to. She would probably have done the same in his position. 

Pinkie remembered when she first met him. It wasn't much different from the current situation, only this time, Umbra was the one in need of help. She remembered how he had helped her with a simple expression. 

"Umbra?" she said to him. "A good friend told me not too long ago that your mistakes don't really make who you are."

The unicorn's heart softened as he listened to Pinkie repeat what he said to her when they first met. His eyes became watery. 

"Only you can decide who you are, not your mistakes."

Umbra lifted his head and looked at his friend, tears running down his face. 


***




"What does the letter say, Spike?" Twilight asked the baby dragon as he skimmed through the newly received letter. 

After a moment of mumbling the letter to himself, Spike announced to the group, "The princesses are on their way!"

A few relieved sighs sounded off in the library as the news reached them.

"Perhaps they'll know how to deal with Sombra," Applejack suggested.

"Well, it doesn't really matter if we don't have Pinkie here!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "What the hay could be taking her so long?"

Moments after she finished her statement, the door slowly swung open. Everyone in the room turned at the sound. Pinkie stood in the doorway looking at each of her friends, a small grin on her face.

"Pinkie! Goodness, what kept you so long?" Rarity asked.

Without a word, she took a step through the door and stood off to the side. The entire room gasped. Fluttershy squealed and took cover behind Applejack, Spike latched onto Twilight's leg. All their eyes locked on the dictator that was ducking his head through the door. 

The ponies shook away their shock and became defensive. Rainbow Dash landed hard in front of the dark unicorn, causing him to take an uneasy step back. With eyes that burned with rage, Rainbow was ready to put him in the ground if she had to for her friends. Though Umbra stood much taller than her, the pegasus held her ground with a fire burning in her eyes, ready to pounce. 

"If you so much as blink, you'll be wishing you were sleeping in a manticore's den!" she yelled defiantly. 

Pinkie jumped in front of the heated pegasus, waving her hooves in the air. "Stop! He's not Sombra!"

A wave of confusion washed over the room. Rainbow passed a glance at Pinkie, still holding her defensive stance. 

"What are you talking about Pinkie?" Rainbow glared at her. 

"Give him a chance to talk. He's not going to hurt anyone." Pinkie pleaded with her friend. Her sincere tone made the pegasus relax into submission. She backed away from Umbra but held the same glare at him, the glare that urged him to make a move. Go ahead, try it. I dare you.

Pinkie offered a warm smile to Umbra, gesturing for him to make his way into the room. Hesitant, Umbra stepped forward. He looked at each of the six pairs of eyes looking right back at him, watching his every move. He noticed how a few of them winced at the various gashes across his body. Their expressions showed more curiosity than fear, it comforted him a little. The stallion took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak. 

"I-"

"Who are you?"

"Where did ya come from?"

"Why are you here?"

“You sure you’re not Sombra?”

“Was Sombra really that tall?”

Before he could make out a word, Umbra was bombarded with a plethora of questions. Although the tension in the room had dropped significantly, their voices still had a harsh bite in everything they said. 

Pinkie stepped in and silenced her friends. Umbra nodded to her in thanks. He told them his story. 


***


A thousand years ago, Sombra decided it was time to teach his son how to rule. Up until then, Sombra kept his only son a secret. Umbra was sheltered from the Empire, hidden in the castle. He never went outside, he never even went near a window as Sombra had removed or blocked any that would be around him. Ever since he was born, Umbra stayed in his secluded area of the castle. He was not allowed to leave or go to other towers. Everything he knew came from what his father told him. Questioning it came with consequences. He knew his father was a king, but of what, he never knew, he wasn't allowed to ask.

He was in his isolated room when it happened, laying on his bed reading one of the few books Sombra approved of. A small candle on a dresser next to the bed provided dim but adequate reading light. The door creaked open and Umbra’s father stepped in, disturbing the peace and quiet of the room. Umbra looked up from the pages he was reading and stared at the newcomer. 

"Umbra, son. We need to talk," Sombra said as he made a gesture, beckoning him towards the door. His voice was low and quiet, no trace of emotion in his words. He was wearing the same outfit he always had. Silver armor around his neck along with silver shoes. A black helmet covered part of his head, blending perfectly with his mane, blurring where hair and head met. A thick red cape draped over his back with white fabric lining the edges. 

Without much thought, Umbra complied with his father's demands. He stood up from his bed and walked over to where his father stood at the door. Sombra turned without saying anything, and stepped out into the hall. Umbra followed closely behind his father as they walked through the castle. To any other pony, the two might as well have been twins. 

Umbra quickened his pace until he walked beside his father. He glanced at Sombra to his side. He wore a stern expression as if an internal conflict raged on in his head, his eyes fixed on the ground in front of him. Umbra thought he could see a faint green glow in Sombra's eyes. "Had that always been there?" Instead of asking, Umbra kept his mouth shut like he was supposed to.

Sombra led him to a tall wood door at the end of the hall. The door that was always locked. The door that Umbra was never allowed to go through. 

His father looked at the ground, deep in thought in his search to find the right words to say. After an extended moment of silence, the king sighed and spoke up, "You, my son, are the heir to my rein,  which I fear is coming close to an end," Sombra wore a grave expression, one of a pony that knew more than it should. "This is why I have brought you here today. It is time I teach you how to rule."

Umbra's ears perked up at those last words he heard. Excitement flowed through his body which he tried to hide but failed as a large childish grin grew on his face.

Umbra could only stand there and listen as his father spoke. He was glad enough to spend even this little time with his father. The times he got to speak with his father were too far and few between. Though those few times were brief, Umbra enjoyed them as much as he could. There was nopony else in his isolated section of the castle and nopony ever came through, only his father. It was nice to listen to a voice that wasn't his, even if he didn't get to talk back to it. Umbra looked down at his shorter father and listened intently, not knowing what to expect yet hoping whatever it was would last. 

"Umbra, do you know what being king gives you?" Sombra asked, his voice deep and quiet. Without waiting for a reply, he answered himself, "It gives you great power. The power that comes from the subordinates under your rule. Power to do as you please, power to control your subjects.

"This power however, does not come automatically," Sombra continued, speaking a little louder. "It needs to be taken. Either by the choice of the subjects to give you this power-” His voice suddenly changed. Umbra thought he was a different pony altogether. “-or by force." 

His voice grew louder and stronger as he continued speaking. "The best method of taking power from the subjects, the method I have used long since before you were born, is through fear and hatred." 

Sombra's eyes began glowing a bright green, a small flame of purple flowed out of them. A sinister expression stretched across his face. Sombra unlocked the door with his magic and swung it open. The door opened up to a circular balcony that overlooked the empire. The two unicorns stepped through the doorway and stood next to the railing that surrounded the balcony. 

Dark stormclouds hung overhead, yet no rain fell. The clouds looked like black ash that covered the sky, no ray of sunlight could penetrate the thick dark barrier. Beneath the clouds, the sky was a red-orange shade that looked as if wildfire raged around the horizon.

Umbra looked down at the base of the castle. What he saw would forever disturb him. The entire population of crystal ponies lay out before him. 

Every last one of them in chains.

Every pony, stallions and mares, young and old, was in shackles. They all wore collars around their necks that chained them to each other. Shackles around their hooves prevented any attempt of escape. 

Some were pulling carts stuffed with various crystals while others dug in the ground in search of more crystals. A large group of ponies were tied to an enormous solid crystal block the size of the average family house. All of them struggled and worked as hard as they could to pull the giant slab of rock. The crystals were dragged off to large factories along the edges of the empire. The tall smokestacks sent black clouds through the air, like miniature volcanoes erupting in the distance. Not even the sun was strong enough to break thriugh the black smoke that filled the clouds.

The crystal ponies worked in groups of twelve, all bonded together by iron chains. Each pony was performing some form of difficult labor along the side of the other eleven ponies he or she was chained to. Their labor was only half as bad as the condition of the ponies themselves. 

While most of the ponies were unhealthily skinny, many looked as if they were walking skeletons. Every bone in their bodies were visible through their skin which was the only thing keeping their bodies from falling apart. Full rib cages were exposed. Their faces were sunken in, they looked like bare skulls with eyes still in them. Individual vertebrae of their spines were visible. Their legs were nothing more than twigs with hooves at the ends. Each step they took was shaky and slow. The chains around their necks looked as if they could break the atrophied ponies in half, yet they carried on.

One pony in particular caught his attention. It was a teal earth pony mare that was shackled with a large group of other ponies to one of the giant crystal blocks. She was one of the skinniest he'd seen. While the other ponies looked similar to walking skeletons, this mare was a walking skeleton. There was almost nothing around the bones of her legs to hold her body up, the fact that she continued to walk boggled him. Every movement was slow and shaky, her hooves hardly left the ground when they did move. 

Her pace slowed and she fell behind the other ponies dragging the massive crystal. Suddenly, her forehoof caught a small stone in the ground. The mare fell forward and met the ground with a harrowing smack. 

Umbra winced at the sight of the feeble mare colliding with the ground. Any other pony would have been fine with the little tumble, but in her condition, a simple hoof shake looked like it could seriously injure the pony. 

He watched the mare lift a hoof to stand herself up. It stopped, shook a little, then crashed back to the ground. The mare was too weak to move. She lay there on her side with her head against the ground. The half closed, blinking eyes and slow, heavy breathing were the only sign of life in the collapsed heap on the ground. 

One of the stallions pulling the giant crystal noticed the mare on the ground. He rushed over to her limp form and kneeled beside her. The stallion nudged and spoke to the mare, urging her to stand. The mare didn't move. She could only look at the stallion through tear filled eyes. 

Umbra could see their mouths moving, but could not tell what they said. Umbra's face lit up with concern. "Is that mare going to be okay, father?" Umbra asked, looking at Sombra next to him.

A wide grin that Umbra had never seen before spread across Sombra's face as his eyes narrowed. The purple fire flowing out of his green eyes became larger. "Oh don't worry Umbra. She will be-" Sombra's  sinister grin grew  "-taken care of." Sombra replied, he started to laugh.

Umbra saw the dark magical aura gather around his father's curved horn. He followed his eyes to see where Sombra was staring: right at the collapsed mare.

He watched as several black crystals quickly rose out of the ground around the mare. The stallion trying to get her to stand jumped back in surprise and took several steps away from the mare. The mare however, only closed her eyes and sighed, submitting to her weakness and accepting her fate. 

Her entire body jerked as four thin black crystals shot out of the ground beneath her and penetrated her side. The crystals impaled deep in her body until they protruded out the other side. They stuck up in the air, crimson liquid dripped from their tips. 

She did not scream. All she did was stare with wide open eyes directly at Umbra. Their eyes met, and would not move from each other. Umbra's own eyes filled with tears. He watched with his mouth hanging open as the life drained from the teal mare's eyes. 

She began coughing, little drops of dark red came out of her mouth with every heave. Her breaths became quick and short, almost like fast hyperventilating. Her eyes never left his.

The mare gave a big cough and heaved up a large gob of the red lifeblood. The coughing stopped. The rise and fall of her chest with each breath ceased. Her body went limp. A smile grew on her face as she welcomed the release of her pain.

Warm tears flowed down Umbra's cheeks. His heart dropped right out of his chest and continued to fall through the bottomless pit of darkness. He felt his stomach twist itself into a tight knot.

The teal mare's lifeless eyes were still staring at him. They never moved from him and they never will. They didn't even close. They just stared at him. Blood still trickled out of her mouth.

Umbra felt his legs struggling to keep him standing. They shook with the sick feeling he had in his stomach, he felt like he would vomit. Tears ran down his face and dropped from his chin, splashing on the crystal floor at his hooves.

He had just witnessed the death of another pony. Not the death. Ponies don't just collapse from atrophy and get impaled by crystals that randomly grow out of the ground. 

This was murder. 

There was a reason the crystal ponies had been enslaved. There had to be somepony or something starving them, working them to the bone until they dropped dead. 

But who? 

Who could be so cruel? 

So evil? 

Who would be so malign as to disregard the value of life to the point where that life becomes as disposable as a dirty napkin?

Umbra's questions were answered in the form of a malicious laughter. Laughter that was coming from behind him.

Umbra turned around to see his father, the source of the evil laugh. Even through closed eyes, the purple flame that flowed out of them stretched out, curling upward several feet. Sombra seemed twice as big as Umbra, despite the fact that Umbra was taller than him. Umbra felt something that he had never felt before. Something that the sight of the teal mare's death and the discovery of his father being the perpetrator made him feel. 

Fear.

With tears still draining from his eyes and a mouth gaped open, Umbra could only stare at his father before him. A helpless infant in the presence of a monster. The monster appeared to the child at first in the image of a watchful guardian, a tender caretaker, a loving father. That illusion soon vanished and the truth came crashing down upon the infant like the waves of a hurricane. Had the infant been smarter, made his own choices, he may have been able to prepare for the impact and survive. He might have even been able to see through the monster's illusion and prevent this. Nevertheless, the weight of truth fell upon his shoulders. He didn't know if he could bear it. The monster had him in his clutches. Could there be an escape if he was already caught in the trap?

Sombra's laughing stopped and he glared at Umbra who shrank away from his stare. "You see son? That is how you gain power!" Sombra's voice was loud and deep. He took a step towards Umbra. "Fear! Fear is what brings power! They can't make decisions for themselves if they're too afraid to do otherwise"

With each expression, Sombra advanced a step closer, pressing Umbra against the rail of the balcony. "Fear brings order! Fear makes ponies forget about others and worry about themselves! Fear will make ponies comply in order to save themselves. Fear drives ponies into doing your whim! Fear brings control!"

Umbra was backed into the corner of the balcony. He was crouched low, trying to get further away from his father who was now only a nose length away. Sombra lowered his head down to Umbra's level. His red eyes piercing through Umbra's very soul, a wicked smile painted across his face.

Umbra was cornered by his own father. He looked for an escape. There was none. He couldn't possibly get past Sombra who was much stronger both physically and magically. Even f he could get past him, he would just get caught by Sombra's dark magic.

Umbra was ready to give up. 

There was no other option, like his father had said, other than to comply. 

He was about to announce defeat when a brilliant white light spread across the sky behind his father. 

The light nearly blinded him as well as all the crystal ponies on the ground, forcing them to cover and shut their eyes. The entire empire became deathly silent. When the light dimmed, only enough to let them squint their eyes open, everypony including Sombra looked at the source. 

At the center of the light, Umbra could barely make out the silhouettes of two unicorns in the sky. These unicorns had wings. One of them was a bright white while the other a dark blue. Umbra broke away from his wonder and awe to notice that Sombra's attention had been removed from him.

His father was completely focused on the two winged unicorns or horned pegasi rather than him. Umbra heard his father whisper to himself, his voice barely audible even through the silence, "I am ready." 

Umbra seized this opportunity by scrambling past his father and running through the open door. Sombra didn't even move.


***


"So I ran away. I was going to leave the empire altogether but the castle itself started to shake violently. Next thing I remember was waking up in a closet just a few days ago." 

The ponies in the room listened quietly to his story. They all sat with their jaws open in disbelief. As if a switch had been flipped, their attitudes had changed completely. Everyone, including Pinkie, couldn't look at him the same. None of them knew what to say to this complete stranger that stood before them. None of them had any idea such atrocities could have ever happened. 

None of them noticed when the library door opened and two alicorns stepped inside. 

“I knew the guy was mean, but I had no idea he was that cruel,” Applejack said. The rest of the six nodded in their agreement.

"What I still don't understand is why I couldn't remember anything when I woke up." Umbra said to the group. 

A voice behind him spoke up to answer his question, freezing him in place. "That was probably the effect of Sombra's curse."

"That voice..."

"How?"

Everyone in the room turned their heads to the new voice. Umbra saw how the six mares and the dragon bowed at the new arrivals. Umbra hesitantly looked behind him, praying that he wasn't in another nightmare. 

As soon as he saw them, the memory of Sombra on the balcony filled his head. He recognized the strange blue mare from his dream. She gave a small nod to him as he looked at her. The other, which seemed like the polar opposite of the blue mare, he only recognized from his memory with Sombra. 

The larger of the two spoke to him. “Do not be afraid, son of Sombra. I am Princess Celestia. And this, my sister, Princess Luna." 

"She's a princess?"

They both nodded to him as their names were said. She spoke with voice that showed authority but at the same time was almost calming. 

"We received a letter from Twilight about Sombra being in Ponyville so we came as quick as we could," Luna told him. "We are glad to see that it is not true."

"Um...thanks?" Umbra said with uneasiness plaguing his voice. 

"I'd like to know, what is your name?" Celestia asked. 

"My name is Umbra," he said with a bit of hesitation. He couldn't help but be intimidated by the presence of the royal ponies, the immense power they had. The fact that he was the very reason they were there didn't help. 

Twilight stepped forward. "You never said why you left the Crystal Empire."

"The same reason I ran earlier. The crystal ponies saw me as Sombra. There was no way I would get by there."

"So you came to Ponyville to find a better life," Applejack added. Umbra nodded his answer to her. "Lotta help we showed ya," she said shamefully. The rest of them looked at the ground, unable to meet eyes with him. 

"Umbra," Celestia began, her tone heavy with seriousness. "Do you understand why your father had to be stopped? Why we had no other choice other than to ultimately destroy him?" 

The weight of her words hit him like sack of mixing cement. He hadn't really thought about it, he was actually talking with the ponies who had first banished then technically killed his father. While he was pretty sure they wouldn’t harm him, it was still humbling to be in their presence. He knew they could do the same to him if they had to.

Umbra nodded at her question. 

"Well, that's a relief," Spike interjected. "Wouldn't want a whole 'you killed my father, prepare to die' thing going on." The ponies in the room glanced at him. "What? I'm just saying..."

Celestia put her hoof on his shoulder. He flinched at the touch but quickly calmed himself. "It was for the best, I’m glad you understand. We still don’t completely understand the curse he put on the empire and the effects it had on the crystal ponies." Umbra blinked in surprise. "If there is anything you know, anything at all, please tell us so we can help.”

Umbra looked at his hooves in thought. He didn't know the crystal ponies had been cursed as well. He wondered if they had nightmares like he did.

“Actually, the night I left the empire, he appeared to me in a dream and he-” Umbra struggled with his speech as the memories of his nightmares returned to him. “-he cursed my dreams so they would be filled with fear. Ever since, I’ve been having terrible nightmares every time I fall asleep.”

“That’s interesting,” Twilight said, looking at the princesses. “Why would he do that?”

“Well from what he told me, as long as his memory remains in this world, he is never completely...gone. Because of that, he wanted me to rebuild his empire under his name.” He looked at each of the ponies in the room, the turmoil visibly written on his face as the memories of the enslaved crystal ponies replayed in his mind. “I just...I just couldn’t.”

The six mares and the two princesses looked at the shaking unicorn. Before they had looked at him with a combination of fear and anger but now, all they saw was a disturbed young stallion who had been psychologically  tortured for far too long. Now they only looked at him with sympathy and pity.

“I think I might know someone that can help you with that,” Luna said with a wink. Umbra didn’t quite pick up on the hint.

“Well as long as there aren’t any more emergencies, it is time Luna and I returned to Canterlot,” Celestia said to the group. “It is almost time to raise the sun.” Luna nodded in agreement.

The princesses said their goodbyes and walked out of the library. The door gently closed shut behind them, leaving Umbra alone with the six mares that not too long ago were planning to capture him, it kind of felt like they did. 

After a long moment's pause, Twilight spoke up. "We're all terribly sorry, Umbra. Is there anything we could do for you?"

His stomach grumbled loudly. 

"Could I maybe get something to eat?"
> Chapter 9
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Umbra walked along the dirt path on the outskirts of Ponyville. The sun had begun its descent. It had been a long day.

 After a hearty meal at Sugarcube Corner, the very place from which he was chased out of the town, he was taken to the town hall. The six had escorted him, making sure none of the town saw him and those that did were made aware of the situation at hand. The sun was still rising with the power of the princess who had banished his father more than a thousand years ago. 

After consulting with the mayor, it was decided that the town be called together for a meeting. Umbra’s identity was revealed in front of the entire town. The crowd was full of mixed reactions. A few were indifferent to the news while some were still shocked to hear that this pony, the son of the King of Shadows, was going to live among them. As the crowd dispersed, Umbra saw many ponies glaring daggers at him. It was unnerving. He didn't understand why. 

After the meeting, the six mares and offered him a house in the middle if the town. Umbra turned it down. It seemed that the town, or at least some of its residents, were against having him around. He thought it would be better if he stayed just a little outside the town. They told him that the town would be more accepting of him, he just needed to give it some time. Still, Umbra insisted against it. While he didn’t doubt that the ponies would warm up to him with time, there was no need to rush it. He thought the slower, the better in this case.

Pinkie decided to walk him to his home. Umbra wasn’t certain why but she insisted. He didn’t object. They walked in silence most of the way. Umbra didn’t mind the quiet. He simply enjoyed the feeling of someone walking beside him, the company of someone he was absolutely certain he could call friend.

The two reached the familiar area along the edge of the Everfree forest. Between two trees, a small path had recently been stamped out. Umbra was about to give his thanks to the mare when he felt two hooves wrapping themselves around his neck in a close but gentle squeeze. The warmth of her embrace calmed his mind and softened his heart. 

He returned the hug.

Umbra held on until tears formed at the corners of his eyes. 

“Thank you, Pinkie,” he said, his voice almost a whisper.

Pinkie pulled away from her friend. She offered a tender smile, silently letting him know that everything would be okay.

She said her goodbye and walked back towards Ponyville. Umbra watched her go. He knew that she was his friend and he was hers. It meant all the world to him.

He walked into the forest along the path which lead to a small clearing just beyond the treeline. During the time since he had reached Ponyville and despite the events from the night before, Umbra had become attached to this area. It was somewhere he could actually call “home”. Earlier that day with a little help from the six and a few volunteers from the town, mostly ponies he had met before, the wrecked wagon was cleaned up and rebuilt into something he could actually stand up in.

Umbra marveled at the kindness the six ponies had displayed and wondered why they would go through so much trouble to help him. He wondered if they helped him because they pitied him or because they were his friends. Besides Pinkie Pie, he wasn’t sure if they even considered him a friend. He was willing to think of them as friends. Did they think the same?

The weight that was crushing him before had been lifted. The mask he wore just yesterday was gone; he didn’t have to hide himself anymore. He had almost forgotten what life was like without the mask. It was almost as if he was meeting himself all over again. 

However, revealing himself to the town came with its own unique weight. He felt how the weight was there and like before, was doing its best to break him. After confessing who he was, Umbra realized that the weight would always be there. He learned though that he didn’t have to carry the weight alone. That’s what friends are there for. Pinkie Pie, Macintosh, Zecora, even the three fillies, each of them made his burden feel all the more lighter. Umbra knew that assimilating with the town would be full of adversity. It certainly wouldn’t happen in a day but rather the process would be tedious and exhausting. Knowing that his friends were there for him gave him the strength to go on. He was eternally grateful for that simple truth.

Hanging on the wall next to his bed, the white dagger showed his reflection. He was given the opportunity to get rid of the knife. He decided to keep it. It served as a reminder of the easy way out, what could have been done. When he looked into the blade and saw his reflection, it reminded him of who he was and where he had come from. 

It worked as a pretty good mirror too. 

Umbra collapsed on his new bed, after such a long day, his legs were sore and fatigued. He made a mental note to get in better shape.

His eyes became heavy. He knew what was waiting for him as soon as he fell asleep. This time however, he was not afraid. This time, he was ready. 


***


The sky was exactly as he remembered it. The heavens glowed with a never ending twilight. Dark clouds lingered up above. The only difference was the addition of lightning which illuminated the sky at random intervals. 

This time however, Umbra found himself standing at the base of the castle. Black fog surrounded the small clearing he stood in. 

Sombra stepped out of the black mist. He stopped a few yards away from Umbra, keeping the distance far. The green flame flowed from the blood red eyes on his expressionless face. Umbra thought the flames looked bigger than he remembered. Other than that though, his father looked exactly the same as always.

Lightning cracked overhead. The two just stood there with the long distance between them, each waiting for the other to speak. Umbra was ready to face his father, he just wasn't sure how to begin. The only sound that could be heard was that of the booming thunder in the distance. Finally after an extended moment, Sombra broke the silence.

"So let me guess," he said with sarcasm dripping from each word. "You've come to join me."

Umbra looked at him flatly. His heart beat with anticipation, ready to speak its mind. "I'm here to tell you that you were wrong."

Sombra's eyebrow arched at the statement yet he remained quiet. Umbra took it as a cue to continue.

"You told me that I would be rejected because of who I was and for a while, I believed you. I thought for sure that the ponies would hate me because I have this connection to you. I was right too! When the town found out who I was, I was chased out." A small smirk appeared on Sombra's face which he quickly hid and continued listening intently as his son spoke. "What I learned though, is that the past doesn't make who I am. The ponies can look beyond those things because of that. It's what I choose to be now that really matters.

"You also told me that my destiny is to continue your empire," Umbra said as his confidence grew. Sombra's expression became stern. "That is probably the biggest lie in life. There is no point in anyone's life where we lose control of what is happening to us. My life is not controlled by destiny. I am free to decide what I will do and what my life is about. My cutie mark shows that too.

"I don't think it means that I'm an outcast. I think it shows my independence, how I can decide who I am, what my destiny is."

Sombra stood speechless at what his son had told him. His bitter expression showed he was not amused. 

"You know, those nightmares you've been having can get worse," he said threateningly. The green flames grew more intense as he spoke. "You honestly haven't seen anything yet."

"Your nightmare curse isn't all that impressive, Sombra." Sombra's expression changed in an instant as Princess Luna stepped out of the mist behind Umbra. She walked forward until she stood at Umbra's side. Glancing to him next to her, Luna continued. "I've found a small loophole in its structure. It'd be a bit tricky, but it certainly can and will be counteracted." A smirk spread across her face. "Honestly, I expected more from King Sombra."

 Suddenly, a small grin appeared on his face. An amused chuckle escaped his mouth. Umbra and Luna looked at each other in confusion. 

"Very well then," he said dismissively. "You have already served your purpose to me."

Both ponies stared at the dark unicorn dumbfounded. 

"You were supposed to keep my memory alive thus keeping me connected to the world of the living."

He laughed a second time. 

"You've presented yourself as my son to not only an entire town but to the rulers of Equestria as well." Sombra applauded him. "Well done, Umbra. Well done."

The two were at a loss of words. Neither of them expected a reaction like this from the evil King Sombra who continued to laugh in front of them. 

"As my memory grows, so does my power," Sombra suddenly stopped laughing and his expression became grave. "I will return someday. There will be no mercy when I come. Until then, live your life Umbra. Live it and pray you don't live to see the day I return."

Sombra finished with an evil laugh. The world around them swirled until all became dark. 


***


Umbra sat up in his bed. It was easily the most peaceful way he had woken up since he left the Crystal Empire. 

He thought back to what Sombra had said. Umbra wasn't quite site what his father's intentions were or how he would accomplish them. He shook his head. It didn't matter, he didn't think I could happen. 

A smile spread across his face. 

He had done it. 

He had really done it. 

He had finally confronted his father. He was finally free from the weight that promised to crush him, free from the mask that changed who he was for everyone he met. He no longer had to live in fear of the ponies around him. 

Umbra opened his front door. 

He looked at the path beyond his doorstep. 

It was the path to his new life. 

It called for his hooves to tread. 

Like a deep and rolling river, he knew it would sweep him far away. 

No one could ever know where it would lead, all he could do is take it wherever it runs, never looking back. 

Hill by hill, mile by mile, to the farthest shore beyond the sun, he would take it no matter how far. 

Just beyond the far horizon, lie a waiting world unknown. 

Like the dawn its beauty beckoned with a wonder all its own.

The road goes ever, ever on.