> Of Iron and Crystal
>  by King-Mac-13
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> A New Structure
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	“Get the lead out!” Around midnight, at an abandoned warehouse in Manehattan, ponies were moving large crates inside. “We don’t have time to mess around. The boss wants this stuff ready for resale by tomorrow!” A large, magenta earth-pony stallion with a golden-blonde mane stands by the gate, ordering the others around. He knew what the common workers didn’t and he was going to keep it that way. Those crates were filled to bursting with stolen gemstones, ready to be carted off and sold throughout Equestria. Nopony would figure them out until it was too late.

“Contra Band!” Another stallion ran up to the first. “We’ve got trouble!”

“What now?”

“I… I’m not sure how to explain it. Come on!”

The stallion ran off, followed by Contra Band. When they arrived, they found several ponies lying on the ground, unconscious.

Contra Band looked over the scene. “What the hell happened?”

The other stallion shrugged. “I don’t know. I found them like this. I tried to look them over… make sure they’re all still alive, right? Well, they’re all okay and I couldn’t find any sign of a fight. It doesn’t make any sense.”

“Wait a second,” Contra Band moved through the group, “This was the team carrying box 22. Where’s the crate?”

“I couldn’t find it.”

“Damn it! That had a serious score in it. Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!” Contra Band kicked one of the unconscious ponies in frustration. “They must have been jumped.”

“I told you before, they weren’t attacked. Until you kicked one, anyway…”

“You want to put that by me again?”

“No! Sir!”

“Don’t forget who’s in charge right now.”

“Alright… but, I have to ask, what was in that crate that was so important?”

“It was a gem we dug up from under Canterlot. It was the size of my head! It would have been priceless! To lose a score like that…”

“Wait… I thought all the stuff was… appropriated. You dug that one up?”

“Would have been the only one we could sell on site… Plenty of bits from those stuffy snobs… Damn it!”

“You said that already…”

“And I’ll say again if I want to! I’m pretty mad, after all!”

“Right… Anyway, we should go tell the boss about this.”

“Damn it… Alright… let’s get moving.”

\/

“Let me get this straight…”

Contra Band reported the incident to his boss, Ersatz Heart. She was a stern criminal with a reputation for brutality. The cyan coated, pink maned unicorn had a penitent for deception and negotiation in the criminal underground. She scared anypony that meets her, and those are her good days.

“…You lost my one of my crates. And what’s worse, you lost the only gem we could sell on the open market! That gem would have bought me the city if I wanted! And you lost it!”

“I didn’t lose anything! I left it in the care of team 22. They’re the ones that lost it!”

“Under your watch, Band. What they do is your responsibility. That’s how a chain of command works.”

“I plan to punish them appropriately.”

“That’s all I ask. I don’t want to read about it in the paper, understand?”

“Yes, ma’am. However…”

“Hmm?”

“Something doesn’t add up. There was no sign of a struggle. There weren’t even signs of an attack. No injuries, no drag marks for the crate, nothing. It’s like they all fell asleep and the crate just… disappeared.”

After a minute of silence, Ersatz Heart replied, “Is that it? Or do you have another irrelevant thing to tell me?”

“Uh… no, ma’am. That’s it.”

“Good. Dismissed.”

Contra Band bowed to his boss and left the room.

Ersatz looked out her window to the streets. “To lose such a payday… My reputation won’t be tarnished since we dug that one up from the ground, but a loss is a loss. I’m not taking this lying down. I will find the pricks that thought they could steal from me…”

“Boss!” Her thoughts were interrupted by a subordinate barging in.

“What do you want?”

“We’ve got company!”

“The police?”

“No, ma’am! Military!”

“What?!”

She rushed to her door and found the Equestrian military pouring into the compound. She fled back into her room and prepared her alibi. Having her subordinate tie her to her chair and place her in the middle of the room, she took the roll of the hostage. She was ready for them.

She could hear their armor clanking outside her door. After a second, her door swung open and two soldiers entered the room. “We found a hostage!”

Ersatz remained silent, playing the part of the scared civilian, unsure of what was happening. She couldn’t risk an arrest. Not if she wanted to control the criminal world of Manehattan.

One of the soldiers approached her, “Are you okay?”

“I… I’m fine. I don’t know why they took me… I’m nopony special.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll get you out of here!” One of the soldiers escorted her outside. She could have hit and run, making her escape, but that would attract unneeded attention and make things worse for her. For now, she’ll keep playing the game.

When she reached the outside, she was glad she didn’t try to run. The building was surrounded by Royal Guards. She was led to a table with a detailed map of the warehouse and seated nearby. From her new vantage point, she saw more guards then she had before, more than were stationed in Manehattan. Did her operation attract royal attention? Did one of those morons botch her orders of restraint and discretion? She didn’t have too much time to think it over when one of the officers trotted up.

He was a yellow-orange pegasus with a blue mane and blonde accents. He wasn’t dressed in the usual guards’ armor, instead he wore a black uniform with gold accents on his sleeve and gold cording on his shoulder. He carried himself with a level of confidence and power that told her he was in charge.

He trotted over to her, “Name?” His voice was calm, smooth, and denoted a calculated personality.

She had to keep up her ruse for now, “I… I’m sorry?”

“Your name. What is it?”

“Oh! Um… I’m Ersatz Heart.” She knew her name was safe since she never let anypony know it, not even the few ponies who saw her face on the job.

“Well, Miss Heart, you don’t need to worry anymore. Lieutenant Grey Hat will escort you home.”

A new pegasus arrived, dressed in Lunar Guard armor. He looked similar to the commanding officer, just with a brighter blue mane and a face that says ‘leave me alone.’ He saluted the commanding officer, “Lt. Grey Hat, reporting for duty, Commander.”

“Excellent. Take Miss Heart to C-14.”

Ersatz looked between the two in confusion. “What do you mean? I thought you were taking me home.”

Grey Hat looked down to Ersatz, “I am.”

The Commander continued, “Straight to your new home in the East Manehattan Penitentiary. You get three meals a day and access to exercise equipment. Granted, you’re going to have to share.”

Despite genuine confusion, Ersatz was positively livid but had to keep up her act, “What are you talking about? Why am I going to prison?”

“This warehouse has at least 82 counts of stolen property, all in gems, for one. You’ve covered your tracks well, but pony-error was going to catch you eventually. We know who you are, what you’ve ordered, and what you’ve done personally. You’ve broken a lot of laws, Miss Heart.”

“I know my rights!” She burst out, the act ruined, “You can’t hold me without substantial evidence. And I know you don’t have that. What’s more, I have a right to a trial. You can’t just cart me away to prison!”

“If this were any other force in the Guard, you’d be right.” The Commander placed a hoof under her jaw and forced eye-contact. “But we’re not ‘any other force.’ All these ponies are under my command, making this an operation of the Black Gold Guard.”

“The what?” She knew every branch of the Royal Guard, her job made it rather necessary, but she had never heard of a Black Gold Guard.

“It’s not really important for you now. Let’s just say, I have certain powers the common guard doesn’t. Take her away.”

“Yes, sir!” Grey Hat grabbed Ersatz and started to fly off, accompanied by the sound of her protests.

As she was dragged off, the Commander turned to an oncoming soldier, “Well?”

“We found all of the stolen gemstones, but something seems to be missing.”

“You just said it was all here. What do mean something’s missing?”

“We found all the stolen gems, like I said. But looking through the crates, one of them seems to be missing.”

“How can you tell?”

“If nothing else, Ersatz was organized. Each crate is numbered and stacked in a specific spot. Crate 22 seems to be missing.”

“Is there any indication as to its whereabouts?”

“No sir. It may have been taken in transit.”

“That’s unfortunate… for now, send a report to Princess Celestia. We’ve completed our objective and captured the enemy leader. Leave our mystery crate out until we find out what was inside. After you send the primary report, comb the city for any sign of the crate. We can’t be too careful.”

“Yes, Sir!” The soldier ran off, leaving the Commander alone.

“Commander Bastian!” Without a moment to rest, another soldier made his way to the command table.

“Sweet criminy… What is it now?”

“We found Crate 22!”

“What?!”

“It was found by the riverfront.”

“The contents?”

“Empty, sir. But we were able to find a manifest for the crate.”

“Just the one?”

“Yes, sir. It seems to be the only legitimately acquired item in the lot.”

“Item? Singular?”

“Yes, sir. According to the manifest, it was a gem approximately the size of a grown stallion’s head.”

“What kind of gem?”

“There was no identification yet. Apparently, it was light blue.”

“Sargent…”

“Yes, sir?”

“When Lieutenant Grey Hat returns, tell him to file his report with Princess Luna. He’ll likely forget to do so. I’m off to the Crystal Empire.”

“The Crystal Empire? Why would you…”

“You are never to ask me ‘why’ I do anything. Your job is follow my orders and protect Equestria. The only acceptable reason to question me is if I betray Equestria or my orders would harm civilians. I’m leaving for the Crystal Empire, that’s all you need to know, understand?”

“Y-yes, sir!”

“Good.” Bastian turned to leave. As he left the area, he looked out over the city. “I have a bad feeling about this…”

\/

File: EDF-3

Subject: Black Gold Guard

A special branch of the Equestrian military crated after Princess Twilight’s altercation with the monstrous Tirek. Events during the conflict had proven to the Equestrian Royalty that they needed a new command structure and a dedicated team for magical research for defense of the nation. Of late, there are seventeen officers and sixty enlisted. However, this is partially false. All but one of the officers are military research personnel (trained, but not experienced). All enlisted follow the orders of the Commander.

The Commander

The Black Gold Guard is led by a single officer dubbed, the Commander. Said Commander holds a rank comparable to the Captain of the Royal Guard. This was a decision born from the fact that the Captain lives in another country at the time of formalization of the BGG and cannot be expected to deal with emergency situations when needed. When the Captain is outside the city, command of the Royal Guard falls to the Commander of the BGG. The first Commander was a pegasus named Steel Bastian.

The Princesses

This is important! The only ponies the BGG answer to are the Princesses. What’s more, they are granted the discretion to disobey an order from any of the Princesses other than the ruling princesses (i.e. unless they sit on the throne and directly run the affairs of the nation of Equestria, their orders are just suggestions).

> Mustering the Forces
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	 It was rare for Shining Armor to have a moment of rest. Between leading the Crystal Guard and helping raise Flurry Heart, ‘rest’ was a word he was becoming unfamiliar with. But with Cadence taking Flurry Heart to Ponyville to visit Twilight, he finally got some down time. Granted, he would have loved to visit his little sister again, but the duties of the royalty weren’t going to take a break long enough for them both to do so. Thus, he remained in the Crystal Empire. Of course, a true Royal Guard never rests.

And he really wished they could… Sounds of the Crystal Guard shouting “Halt!” at the front door of the castle caught his attention. He quickly made his way to the doors as they opened to show a pegasus he didn’t recognize in a black and gold uniform. Though… he supposed he sort-of recognized him, since he shared a few similarities with one of the guards he was given from Canterlot to help with training and defense. The blue and blonde mane gave away that this was somepony else.

Shining Armor stood in the hall, confronting his ‘visitor.’ “Can I help you?”

“I believe you can, Captain Shining Armor. I am Commander Steel Bastian. I need to take a few of the guards under your command for a mission. First, Warrant Officer Flash Sentry.”

“Hold on! I understand you need them for a mission, but I’ll need to know what the mission is before I can commit troops.”

“That is sensitive information I must discuss only with those on the mission. Can’t have wondering ears for this…” He turned his head toward the two guards at the door, listening to their conversation.

“Okay… If that’s the case, we may still have a problem. I can’t give you troops without orders from Canterlot.”

“I am the orders from Canterlot, Captain.”

“Pardon?”

“You’ve been away for too long. The Royals decided they preferred to have somepony on duty to command the guard in Canterlot while you’re here in the Empire. So, with you away, I’m in charge of the guard. Which makes me your superior. So, those guards…”

Shining Armor sighed in defeat. He couldn’t fault the logic of a back-up Captain now that he lived in the Crystal Empire. “Alright… Other than Sentry, who else do you need?”

“Just one more. I had a list…” He pulled out a small piece of paper from his uniform pocket. “Oh! And look at that. Welcome aboard Captain.”

“What?!”

“Did I stutter?”

“You can’t take me away from the Empire!”

“Oh? And why is that? Are you unable to serve?”

“Of course not!”

“Then what’s the issue?”

“Cadence is away and nopony else would be here to command the Empire.”

“Not to sound rude, but that’s not my problem. I don’t need you to move out immediately, so use some of this time to get the Empire’s affairs in order. I expect you and Warrant Officer Sentry at the Train Station at 14:00. Bring your armor, some bits, and any material you deem absolutely necessary. See you then, Captain.” Commander Steel Bastian left and had the guards close the doors and let the Captain think.

Shining Armor was left alone. He needed time to process what he had experienced. When he finally pulled himself back together, he looked up at the clock, 11:45. He had time to get things together and gather his armor.

\/

Bastian made his way through the streets, stopping after a few blocks. “It’s rather rude to skulk around, not to mention unbecoming of a Royal Guard.

Flash Sentry approached from an alleyway. “And you should at least call ahead. It’s the least you could have done.”

“Dearest brother, you know I have a good reason for coming here short notice.”

“I’m guessing a mission.”

“Correct. I’ll go over the details when your team assembles at 14:00.”

“Alright… So, who is on the team?”

“Captain Shining Armor, our brother Grey Hat, and one more under my orders.”

“Why the mystery on the last pony?”

“He’s the kind of pony you need to see to believe. For now, finish your patrol and prepare for deployment.”

“Understood.”

\/

14:00. Shining Armor was punctual for his assignment, as always. Though a part (okay, all of him) of him wished he didn’t have to go on this mission. He left a note behind for Cadence, explaining the situation as he understood it, but it still felt wrong to leave without really being able to warn her. As he arrived, he found himself in the company of four other ponies. There was Flash Sentry digging through his pack, doing a triple check before they left. The ponies to his right looked rather similar to Flash and Bastian, just with a brighter blue mane and lunar armor. There was, of course, Commander Bastian. The last pony was dressed in full plate armor, his face was covered.

Shining trotted over to Bastian and nodded toward the mystery pony, “Who’s that?”

“Your fourth member. More on that later. Right now, we need to discuss your mission.” The three ponies without the masked armor gathered around Bastian. “At 01:13 last night, the Equestrian Royal Guard arrested Ersatz Heart, a criminal running a gem smuggling operation in Manehattan. One of the crates contained a crystal roughly the size of a grown stallion’s head.”

Flash gave an impressed whistle.

After rolling his eyes, Bastian continued, “The point is, a gem that size is not natural in Equestria. I also have reason to suspect that the gem may be of a similar material to the Crystal Heart. We cannot allow something like that to fall into malicious hooves. Your mission to track the mystery gem down and bring it back to Canterlot. Is that understood?”

The trio listening saluted, “Yes, sir!”

“How you go about the mission is up to you. However, you will not receive any more supplies or personnel from the guard. If my hunch is correct, we must be ready to defend ourselves. You are all I can spare while still assembling a capable team.”

“Speaking of,” Shining chimed in, “Are you going to tell us why mister heavy armor isn’t listening to the orders?”

“The corporal will follow your direct orders on this mission. What I tell him will be irrelevant. By the way,” Bastian held out a small pendant to Shining Armor, “You’ll need this.”

“What is it?”

“Insurance. Put it on before we continue.”

Shining put the pendent over his head and it hung around his shoulders loosely. After a moment, the chain shrank and made the pendent a tighter fit around his neck.

“Good.” Bastian trotted over to the Corporal and signaled the others to back up. “you might want a healthy berth for this.” Once the others were far enough away, he tapped the helmet three times and flew back to the group. “Wake up, Corporal!”

The full-armor pony began to stir and looked around. He remained silent, only letting out a small groan.

Shining Armor raised an eyebrow, “He was asleep?”

The mystery pony froze upon hearing Shining Armor and turned toward him. “You…”

“Um…”

The Corporal charged Shining Armor. When he got close, however, the pendent Shining was given began to glow and he was pushed back. The force knocked away his helmet. Now it was Shining Armor’s turn to freeze at what he saw. The Corporal was a grey unicorn with a black mane; nothing too incredible so far. His eyes were a deep red filled with hate. The magic might not be flowing from them as they had, but they were unmistakable. This Corporal… was King Sombra.

Shining Armor was in shock for about a minute before anger took over. He used his magic and dragged Bastian toward him by the collar. “What the hell is this?!”

“Your Corporal and he has a name, you know.”

“Why is he here?! Last I checked, that megalomaniacal mad-stallion was dead!”

“I’m right here.” Sombra replied with seemingly uncharacteristic dry annoyance instead of his over the top anger. “And this was far from my idea, little prince. Also, ‘megalomaniacal’? What, do you have a word a day calendar or something?”

Shining pointed a hoof at Sombra, “I’ll get to you in second.” He returned his attention to Bastion, “Now explain!”

Bastian took a deep breath before replying, his voice as calm as ever despite the angry prince at his throat. “Alright then. But first, I’ll kindly ask you to release my collar.” Once he was released from the Captain’s magic, he cleared his throat. “It’s simple, we were informed by one Grimoire Maleficarum that those who wield Dark magic can cheat death and return from a fatal defeat if they are powerful enough. He stated that, while unlikely, Sombra could have had enough power at his defeat to do just that. If there was even a fraction of a percent of a chance that he could have returned, the Black Gold Guard decided it would be on our terms.”

Sombra growled at them, but didn’t make a move of attack.

“See? He can’t fight back because we hold the chains now. The once proud King Sombra is now the pet of the BGG. Isn’t that right, Corporal Sombra?”

“I hate you.”

“I know. Good news is, I’m not your commanding officer for the mission. He is,” Bastian pointed a hoof to Shining Armor.”

Said Captain was shocked, to say the least. “Wait, what?”

“You are the highest rank, the most experienced, and the most likely to be able to rein in Sombra should it become necessary. So long as you wear that pendent, he must follow your orders.”

“That doesn’t make this any less insane!”

“Please, Captain, ‘insanity’ is hardly the term for this. Sombra, could you educate the Captain.”

Sombra grumbled before speaking, “Insanity is repeating an action expecting a different result.”

“Right. So, hardly insane. In the end, however, it doesn’t matter. You have your orders, you have your team. You will do your job. Good luck soldiers.” Bastian trotted off and caught the next train to Canterlot.

After a moment of silence, Sombra spoke up, “Well, Captain… What’s our first move.”

Shining Armor wasn’t sure about any of this, but he had a job to do. “Okay… I’d suggest combing the scene for any clues first. But I get the feeling we won’t find anything…”

Flash watched for the next train, “What makes you say that?”

“Because our mission is to track that gem down. If they had a clue, they wouldn’t need us.”

Sombra nodded, “He’s not wrong.”

“As for where to start, I’m not total sure… A gem the size of a pony’s head is hard to hide and, if it is the same as the Crystal Heart, it would be impossible to sell. And, if the Commander did his job, the gem was blacklisted for jewelers. Other than those points, there’s nowhere to really start.”

“I suggest a start in Ponyville.” The group turned toward Sombra.

“um…” Flash chimed, “Any particular reason?”

“If I’m not mistaken, the Captain’s sister and her friends live in Ponyville. What’s more, I can sense that there’s powerful Dark magic in the town.”

“You can tell all of that from here?”

“I may be your military’s ‘pet’ now, but I am still Sombra. Do not doubt my power. As I was saying, they may be able to help us figure out who would steal a large gem and for what purpose? Twilight, I think it was, may be able to track a magic signature if the gem does turn out to be like the Heart. Beyond that, the Dark magic wielder should be able to help us.”

“So, Ponyville?”

Shining Armor sighed. He didn’t like dragging Twilight and her friends into this if he could help it. But, he had to admit, they were very experienced at saving Equestria. “I guess it’s a start…”

> Gathering Intelligence
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The team grabbed the next train for Ponyville, but it would take a few hours before they arrived. They kept Sombra in his full armor with visor down so as to not incite a panic. Shining Armor decided to use this time to get the team acquainted with one another to ensure they worked well together. It was… difficult. He was able to learn that Flash Sentry, Grey Hat, and Steel Bastian were triplets. There was that…

“Wait…” Sombra spoke up for the first time since they got on the train. “The three of you are nothing alike…”

Grey Hat cracked his neck before replying, “yeah… Flash is mister pep, I don’t like dealing with others, and Bastian is…” He waved his hoof as if trying to find an answer.

Flash offered a few options, “Unyielding? Efficiency dependent? Genuinely Scary?”

“I was going to say unnervingly terrifying, but those work.”

Now they truly had Sombra’s attention. “Terrifying? Really? He hardly seems it.”

“He can control you, can’t he?”

“That’s hardly out of fear…”

“Not the point. Aside from that, he’s pretty scary. He always sounds so calm, no matter what he’s doing.”

Flashed nodded in agreement with Grey, “He’s always got that half smile on his face. He could be positively livid, and he’d still be smiling.”

“It doesn’t help that he’s also basically the most powerful stallion in Canterlot, now. He has the resources to make your life a living hell. Make you wish you were dead…”

After a solid five minutes of silence, Flash tried to diffuse the mood by changing topics. “Well… enough about Bastian. Let’s talk about something else.”

“Oh?” Sombra smiled, “Are the little ones scared of their brother?”

Grey shook his head, “We’re the older of the three.”

“What?”

“Flash is the oldest, then me, then Bastian.”

“Seriously? You don’t act like the oldest.”

Flash scratched the back of his head nervously, “Yeah… I get that a lot.”

“Flash. Grey.” Shining Armor grabbed the ponies’ attentions, “Since we’re trying to find something that may very well be in transit, we can’t be too careful. Check the train for any signs of the package.” As the two left, he turned to Sombra. “What’s your game?”

“I’m certain I don’t know what you mean, Captain.”

“Don’t start. King Sombra wouldn’t give a flying feather about any other pony’s story, much less care enough to ask follow up questions. So, I repeat: what’s the game, Sombra?”

“There’s no game, Captain.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

“Tell me… have we ever actually met?”

“What? You…”

“Other than on the battlefield, Captain. Have we exchanged words? Have you stopped by for afternoon tea? Have we ever just sat down and spoke to one another as civilized ponies?”

Shining Armor wasn’t sure what he was hearing. This was King Sombra? The same power crazed stallion that enslaved the Crystal Empire a thousand years ago? There was no way that could be true.

“Surprising, isn’t it?”

“What?”

“That I can be reasonable. In many ways, I am still a king. As such, I am refined and retain my sophistication. But, if I may confide, I was never one for the formalities of my station.”

“You… are not what I was expecting.”

“Few will look past my deeds, Captain. And I don’t expect them to. I made my choices in my lifetime and they shall be my legacy.”

“But…”

“Hmm?”

“You have a second chance… don’t you?”

“To have a second chance, I must first have the choice to take it. I am bound by magic to follow military orders from all officers of a higher rank. I have had no say in my life since my return, and that likely won’t change any time soon.”

As their conversation ended, Flash and Grey Hat returned to the train car. “We’ve searched top to bottom. No sign of the gemstone. We’ve also informed the train’s staff of the situation should the gem be brought on board after we leave.”

Shining Armor turned to the duo, “Excellent work. We’ll be arriving in a few minutes.”

\/

The team arrived in Ponyville around 17:20. Shining Armor knew that he would have just missed Cadence, since she was scheduled to return to the Crystal Empire by 19:00. After a quick stretch to offset being stuck in a mobile metal crate for nearly three and a half hours, they made for the castle. On the way, more than a few ponies turned to watch the guards. Some seemed a little nervous. Shining Armor couldn’t blame them. Four Royal Guards wearing three different types of armor (four if you count Shining’s Captain armor) walking through town would usually mean something rather serious had happened.

Once they reached the castle doors, Shining raised his hoof to knock on the door only to have it open and smack him in the face. The other guards shared a small chuckle before gathering themselves after Shining turned with a quick glare. The cause of the pain to the Captain’s face were a duo of ponies. One was a pink unicorn with a purple and turquois mane (who Shining Armor recognized as Starlight Glimmer) and a sky-blue unicorn with a pale blue mane (Trixie: who he learned about from letters from Twilight). To their credit, once they realize they just hit somepony with the rather large castle door they made a point to make sure he was okay.

Shining waved away their concerns, playing up the strong guard angle. This wasn’t the first time somepony accidently hit him with a door, after all. “So, if I may ask, is Twilight here? We need to speak with her.”

“Oh…” Starlight smiled nervously, “Sorry. You actually just missed her.”

“Okay. When can we expect her back?”

“I… don’t know. She was called away by the map. So… she won’t be back until her mission is complete. And there isn’t really a schedule for that.”

“Well…” Sombra looked to the top of the castle, “That’s unfortunate.”

“So, why the full armor?” Trixie asked. “It’s not like it’s that dangerous around here.”

“I don’t tell you not to wear your stupid hat, Trixie. Don’t question my lifestyle.”

“How dare you insult the Great and Powerful Trixie’s wardrobe!”

“Wait.” Flash cut into the conversation. “You know her?”

“Obviously, he’s heard of the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

Sombra shook his head, “Nope. I don’t waste my time with subpar illusionists.”

Now Trixie was mad. “You want to put that by the Great and Powerful Trixie again?!”

“Gladly. You are subpar, your third person speech gimmick is grating, and it’s clear you have a deep seeded jealousy of Twilight.”

“Oh? And just who are you to say something like that? Huh?! Are you a performance critic? A psychologist? Do you have the credentials to judge the Great and Powerful…”

She was cut off when Sombra raised his visor, showing his face. Though few saw him during the events of his Empire’s return, his visage was still well known in Equestria. He knew he was still feared by the living, and this performer was no exception. “Boo!”

Trixie nearly flew twenty feet into the air seeing the Crystal Tyrant’s face. Starlight backed away, but remained grounded, “How… how is he… what’s going on?”

Shining Armor stepped in to defuse the situation. “Corporal… please.” After Sombra returned his visor to its resting state, Shining turned to Starlight and the Great and Terrified Trixie (who has since returned to the ground). “I apologize for the Corporal. He has this habit of using his appearance to scare ponies.”

“Well… the resemblance is uncanny.”

“I get that a lot.” Sombra chimed.

“Anyway…” Shining Armor placed a hoof on Sombra’s shoulder, guiding him away from the two mares, “Since Twilight isn’t here, we need to be moving. Isn’t that right, Corporal?”

“Aye, aye Captain.”

As they left, Shining waved back, keeping the fasade until they were out of site. Once they had the chance, he turned to Sombra, “Are you crazy?!”

“Perhaps. But can you blame me for having a little fun.”

“And what if your ‘fun’ started a panic?!”

“Unlikely. Ponies would want to rationalize what they have seen first. They panic only when they are forced to accept the irrational.”

“That’s…” Shining Armor shook his head, “Never mind. Where is this Dark magic wielder you mentioned?”

Sombra closed his eyes and remained still for a second before turning to the northern part of town. “That way.”

The four guards made their way to the northern edge of town. There, they found a cottage not unlike the others. However, while feeling integrated into the scheme of the town, it still felt strangely isolated from the others. There was no fence, no wall, not even a simple hedge to separate the cottage from the others. The atmosphere just felt… off.

“This is the place.” Sombra waved to the cottage.

Shining Armor knocked on the door of the cottage. “Excuse me! We’re with the Royal Guard. We’d like to speak with you.”

The door opened slowly to reveal a grey unicorn with a deep red mane and purple eyes. He yawned before speaking, “How can I help you?”

Sombra pushed forward, “We’re in the middle of an investigation and you’re going to help us.”

Shining was about to try to diffuse Sombra’s attitude and try a different approach, but the red maned unicorn spoke before he had the chance. “Is that right?”

“If you know what’s good for you…”

The civilian unicorn smiled, “Do tell.”

“If you decide to hinder our progress, I will personally see to your torture. When I’m done, and I have what I want, you’ll be left in the gutters of Canterlot unable to stand on your own four hooves. You’ll wake in a cold sweat for the rest of your life as nightmares become reality.”

Shining stepped between the ponies, ready to chastise Sombra for taking things too far. Catching him off guard, was the civilian unicorn’s next words, “Don’t threaten me with a good time, Sombra.” The two Dark magic unicorns bumped hooves and shared a laugh, leaving the other three aghast and confused.

“Hold it!” Shining was finally able to get a word in, “What the hell just happened?!”

“Captain Shining Armor!” The civilian placed a hoof on his chest feigning insult, “Language…”

Shining Armor had to take a few deep breaths before he was calm enough to continue. “Civilian, if you would be so kind as to explain a few things.”

“I have a name, you know.”

“No. I don’t. You never told us and we never learned it.”

“Oh… Right then. Grimoire Maleficarum: Dark Mage. Now, what can I help you to understand?”

“First, how did you know the Corporal’s identity?”

“The guy lets off so much magic, I could tell who he was from the train station. Each pony’s magic is different, like a hoof-print. Next question?”

“What was with that exchange?”

Grimoire shrugged, “Eh… I just wanted to have a little fun. So did he. I just ran with it.”

“Alright… last question. Sombra wasn’t exactly wrong when he said we may need your assistance. We are on a mission to find a rather large, possibly magical gemstone that may or may not be the same material as the Crystal Heart. We wanted to know if you had any way to track the magical energy if it has one. We just need a general area; somewhere to start looking.”

“Hmm… I think I can help. Of course, that is predicated on the idea that your target is the same material as the Crystal Heart. If not, it would be a little more difficult.”

“If it’s compensation you need, payment for materials shouldn’t be an issue.”

“No need. I have enough bits, trust me. It comes down to what’s possible. But that’s a story for another day. I get the feeling this is a ‘needs to be found yesterday’ kind of thing. So, let’s get moving. Follow me.”

The group moved to the field behind Grimoire’s cottage. Grimoire took a series of leaves out of his saddlebag and used his magic to set them all alight. He warped the burning ingredients together and the smoke began to glow faintly. It spread and formed a map of Equestria. Grimoire then took out a small root and ground it up before taking the powder in his hoof. He blew on the powder and sent it into the smoke map. The area around the Crystal Empire began to glow followed by another spot to the west of the map.

Grimoire smiled. “Would you look at that… There you are, Captain. Two Crystal Heart signatures. One in the Empire and one in…” He cross-referenced the smoke with a paper map, “Oh…”

“What? What’s the issue?”

“Umm… your source seems to originate from the area around the town of… Broken Hoof…”

“Broken Hoof? I’ve never heard of it.”

“I doubt you would have. Broken Hoof is like a hive for scumbags and mercenaries. It’s older than Equestria and has been the source of many a political headache over the years. I don’t know why it would be there, but I pray for your safe return.”

“What,” Sombra raised a brow, “you’re not coming with us?”

“Hell no! I’m not going anywhere near that place again. Good luck ye mad minds! I’m not going anywhere.” He teleported away before they could ask again.

Flash sighed, “That doesn’t bode well…”
> Split Up and Look for Clues
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dawn of the First Day:

After two days of mostly silent travel, the guards had arrived at the Valley of the Dawnbringer (according to Grey Hat, the valley was named after a powerful king from the era before Equestria). Those two days of travel felt like two weeks to Shining Armor. The group barely spoke to one another besides little conversations to check in or orders from Shining. Shining Armor was able to learn a few things in that time, though. He learned that Grey Hat was a seriously smart pony. He could break down the walls a pony put up, crack their facades, and mine for the data they needed. Maybe there’s be a word for that, but Shining couldn’t think of one. Other than that, nothing too impressive from anypony else.

As they approached Broken Hoof, they found a small town, nearly indistinguishable from any other in Equestria. The main difference being the large prison on the northern edge of the town. The prison towered over the small hamlet and seemed truly out of place: the high brick walls, the rusting barbed wire atop the walls, the crumbling watchtowers… It was unlike anything Shining Armor had seen. He was used to the modern rehabilitation centers that dot Equestria; which look like normal buildings. After all, crime in Equestria was rare and often not very serious. There were some that had to be held in penitentiaries, but they were still rather mundane in appearance. This almost seemed like a small fortress; but rather than keeping others out, it keeps the prisoners in.

Shining took in a deep breath. “Okay. Here’s the plan,” The group huddled around the Captain for their orders, “We’ll split into two teams. Sombra and I will check the countryside for any signs of the gem. Flash and Grey, you two will go into town and ask around to see if anypony knows anything. Be discreet, though. If Grimoire was right, this place isn’t exactly home to the kindest of ponies.”

Flash nodded, “Got it!”

“Alright. We’ll meet back here at sundown to discuss our findings. Move out!”

\/

07:30. Flash and Grey made their way to the town, discussing plans for their search. Okay… maybe not ‘discussing.’ It was more like Flash giving a possible plan and Grey responding with ‘sure.’ The two approached the town gates and found a group of five ponies waiting at the entrance. They were comprised of two unicorns, a pegasus, and a pair of earth ponies; all of whom were covered in a variety of scars. The group turned toward Flash and Grey with a set of sadistic smiles.

“Well, what have we ‘ere?” The pegasus cracked his neck and moved toward the guards. “Little ponies from Equestria? Did your little princess send you? Cause you should know, you got no power here.”

To Flash’s credit, he remained calm and professional. “Sir, please. We’re just here to ask some questions in the town.”

“You want in to town? Well, we’re the toll office. The cost is all your valuables. Bits, armor, jewelry, all of it.”

“Sir, I implore you to reconsider. We can pay bits for a reasonable amount.”

“You heard me! Pay up or take your Canter-plot elsewhere.”

Grey let out a small chuckle, “Canter-plot? Really? Is that the best you have?”

“Grey…” Flash let out a slight sigh as he turned back to the thug, “Sir, we are just doing our job. We kindly ask that you step aside.”

“Make me, little pony.” The thug pushed Flash backward.

Flash remained as calm as when he arrived. “Sir, I must ask you to cease aggressive acts or I will be forced to retaliate.”

“Ha! That’s hilarious! You Equestrians are too weak from your peaceful laziness. You think you can fight me? I’ve seen things that would make you piss yourself in fear and make you wake up in a cold sweat every night remembering it. So, you’ll forgive me if I don’t believe you can fight back!”

The thug swung his front hoof but found nothing but air. Flash had dipped to the side, using his motion to land his own strike against the thug. The thug reared back and fell to the ground. Flash returned his hoof to the ground and turned to the thug’s associates. “Would this suffice for passage?”

The four thugs started to charge Flash with furious cries.

“Thought not…” Flash sighed and dropped to a fighting stance. As the earth ponies approached, they were quickly knocked aside by the pegasus guard. Flash dove beneath the two earth ponies and used his wings to send them spinning in separate directions. Said earth ponies landed head first into the dirt. This left only the two unicorns. The unicorns reared back and fired a tandem blast toward Flash. Flash just smiled and took the hit. As the dust settled, he cracked his heck, no worse for the ware. “Are we done now?”

The unicorns started to back away. “How… How did you just tank that?! We’re trained fighters and that blast was strong enough to shatter stone!”

Grey Hat had flown over the unicorns and landed behind them, “Equestrian armor is designed to defend against offensive magics. It offers some protection against beams, blasts, explosions, and so on. But Flash’s talent is anti-magic combat. You two won’t stand a chance.”

“I call bull! Enchanted armor I can take, but I refuse to believe that a pegasus could tank that blow without so much as a scratch! It’s not possible!”

“Sorry to break it to you, but ‘not possible’ doesn’t exist to the Royal Guard.”

“That’s not how it works!”

“Flash, if you would…”

Flash struck the back of both unicorn’s heads and knocked them unconscious.

“Thank you.”

“Really?”

“What?”

“‘Not possible doesn’t exist’? A bit over dramatic, don’t you think?”

“It’s true, isn’t it?”

“Well… yeah.”

“Then I don’t see a problem. Anyway, let’s get moving. I don’t want to stay here any longer than we have to.”

As the two entered the town, they were met with a… lively populace. Sounds of small fights, arguments, and the occasional broken window filled the streets. One of the more interesting aspects was the diversity of the population. Ponies, griffons, hippogriffs, smaller dragons, yaks… all living in the same town. To Flash, it was both impressive and scary. Impressive do to the diversity, scary because a knife almost took off his left wing.

Grey had a small smirk on his face, “I like this place.”

“You would…” After a moment of walking, Flash turned slightly to Grey, “Well…?”

“Fifty creatures passed. All are warriors in some fashion. Based on the dirt on their hooves or claws, many have recently returned. Some have not left the town for more than a month. The rest are various intervals between. None show signs of crystal magic.”

“That doesn’t help…”

“If it’s help you need,” a mysterious pony approached them in the street, “then you should meet with Sooth Sayer.”

“Who? Where did…” When Flash and Grey turned to see the pony, he was gone. Flash looked around for a moment before turning back to his brother, “What’s the plan?”

“Find this Sooth Sayer…”

“You sure?”

“As much as I can be… Let’s go.”

After searching the town, avoiding as many fights as possible, and gathering all the information they could on the way; they reached a medium sized, blue and yellow tent. This was where Sooth Sayer was said to live…

Flash looked over to Grey, “So, do you believe what they’re saying?”

“About Sooth Sayer being able to see the future?”

“Among other things.”

“My time in the Lunar Guard has taught me that there are strange magics in this world. It’s not unheard of that somepony could see the future. The Crystal Heart is said to show the destiny of the viewer.”

“That’s… unnerving.”

“Then don’t look.”

“Let’s get this over with.”

As they entered, they found a young, bored, light blue unicorn stallion with a dark blue mane. He was sitting opposite the entrance at a small table Once he noticed he had patrons, he perked up. “Greetings! Welcome to my tent!”

“You’re… Sooth Sayer?”

The pony’s smile faded. “Oh… You’re looking for…” He sighed in defeat. “Right… Grandma! You got company!”

An older, turquoise unicorn mare stepped out from the back corner of the tent. “No need to shout! I’m blind, not deaf.” The mare took the seat her grandson had occupied until that moment. “Go get some supplies from the store. We need more milk.”

“Fine.” The young unicorn left in a minor huff.

“Apologies. The boy wants to break into the business, but rarely gets the chance. I am Sooth Sayer. How can I help you?”

“We heard you could see the future, and we thought you might be able to help us.”

“Indeed. I can see the future. But I must warn you, to tell the future is to change its course. Are you certain you wish to know what has yet to peak on your horizon?”

“Ma’am, we’re not here for ourselves. We’re on business. We just need to know if you have any information about a crystal similar in composition to the Crystal Heart of the Crystal Empire.”

“Oh? This is certainly unorthodox. I’ll see what I can do.” She places a crystal ball on the table and lays one hoof on the sphere. She closed her eyes and focused on the crystal before her. As her own magic began to light, the ball began to glow faintly. After a moment, the glow subsided and she turned her attention back to the guards. “It seems your crystal rests on stardust in the hooves of one who twists the hearts of ponies.”

After a moment of silence, Grey spoke up, “Could you be… a little more specific?”

“I suppose I could. But that may alter the course of time against your best interests.”

“In other words, you’re not talking about this anymore.”

“Perceptive. I do run a business here. Be thankful you got a free reading. If you’re done, please leave my tent.”

\/

As Flash and Grey searched the town, Shining Armor and Sombra looked around the surrounding fields. The sun had reached its peak in the sky, but the two still had no leads. It wasn’t really that surprising to the Captain. He counted on the search being quiet. What he hadn’t counted on was the terrain. The area was a cascade of hills and rocks. While not unbearable for a trained guard like Shining Armor, it was definitely a nuisance. If Sombra had any complaints, he had yet to make them vocal. As far as Shining Armor knew, the former king wasn’t trained in endurance or for tough travel.

As they made their way to the nearby valley, Sombra stopped abruptly. “This…”

Shining Armor turned to Sombra, “Something wrong?”

“This place. It feels… unnatural.”

“You sure? Seems fine to me.”

“It wouldn’t. This is Dark magic…”

“How can you tell?”

“That’s a joke, right?”

“Okay… Not the point. Could it have something to do with the Crystal?”

“It means we had best find it fast, before it has a chance to activate.”

“Dare I ask why?”

“Dark magic is meant to last. If it’s been here without activating, that means it’s existed in this area for a long time. Likely longer than the settlement. That lack of activation also leads me to believe that it’s a seal rather than a triggered spell. It is likely best to keep the seal as is.”

“Wouldn’t anything sealed by Dark magic only be a good thing?”

“Not always. After all, the Umbrum were sealed by Dark magic as well.”

“Umbrum?”

“An ancient race of shadow ponies. They were said to have terrorized the Crystal Empire in ancient times. They were held back by the Crystal Heart and sealed away beyond the snow. They were said to have been monsters that only cared for power and fear.”

“I’m getting a ‘personal experience’ vibe here…”

“Is that right?”

“Care to elaborate?”

“Not really.”

“You want to walk in silence for hours on end?”

“I may just prefer it.”

As the sun started to sink on the horizon, Shining Armor and Sombra returned to the camp. They found Flash and Grey waiting for them. As they approached, Flash turned his head toward them, “Find anything?”

“No,” Shining Armor sighed. “You?”

“Nothing terribly concrete. We asked most of the ponies in town, but they didn’t have any leads.”

Grey yawned before continuing, groggily, “Until the fortune teller…”

Shining raised an eyebrow, “You went to a fortune teller?”

Flash gave a nervous smile, “Any possible leads, right? Anyway, she said that the crystal, and I quote, ‘Rests on stardust in the hooves of one who twists the hearts of ponies.’”

“That’s it?”

“Like I said, nothing concrete.”

“It might be more than you think.” The group turned to Sombra as he spoke, “‘Resting on stardust’ narrows our search. Grey Hat stated that this valley was called the Valley of the Dawnbringer. Correct me if I’m wrong, but the sun is a star.”

“We already knew it was in the valley.”

“Yes, but now we know it isn’t in the town. We just have to search the valley around it. It’s a start at least.”

“Alright.” Shining Armor watched as the moon rose into the sky. “We’ll search the valley tomorrow at dawn. Get some sleep.”

“Yes, Sir!”

> A Little Talk
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Shining Armor yawned as he woke. He was always one for waking up earlier than most ponies. The sun had yet to rise in the sky, but to Shining Armor this might as well have been the brightest of mornings. He smiled as he stretched. Unlike his sister, who’s only ever up this early if she never went to bed, Shining Armor found this time of the day invigorating. Up before the sun, his fellow guards, his wife… the list goes on. Shining was told he got it from his father.

On any other day, Shining would take this time to polish his armor maybe get an early bite to tide him over. Today? There was one issue. Flash and Grey were both asleep, neither on guard… and Sombra was nowhere in sight. This was worrying. He rushed over to the sleeping form of Flash, where he smacked the sleeping pegasus across the back of his head.

Flash shot up and groggily looked toward Shining. “What? Did something happen?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be on watch?”

“Sombra said he couldn’t sleep, so he’d take over.”

“And what makes you certain that he won’t run off?”

“Because he thinks that the pendant will hurt him if he steps out of line.”

Anypony else would accept that as it was. However, trained guard Shining Armor caught something rather important in that statement. “Thinks?”

“Yeah…” Flash was clearly still out of it, occasionally swaying in tiredness. “The pendant doesn’t do anything…”

“What?!”

“It’s a trick Bastian used to keep Sombra in line.”

“But… at the train station…”

“He had an assistant on the train. Cast a shock spell when Sombra attacked…”

“And what if he attacked me on the mission?”

“That’s why I’m here!” Flash rose up and placed a hoof to his chest. “Anti-Magic combat specialist, Flash… Sentry.” He then collapsed back onto his sleeping bag and was out cold again.

Shining Armor wasn’t certain about the logic. He knew Flash was fast, he had seen the pegasus catch a career racing pony without issue. The anti-magic part confused him a little. For now, he had to focus. He used a tracking spell he learned in the guard to find Sombra. Oddly, he wasn’t far. Shining Armor found the former king atop a small hill nearby. He was looking out over the valley. Shining walked up and sat next to him. “I’m guessing we’re still in ear shot of the camp.”

Sombra nodded. “Yep…”

“Then you heard Flash?”

“Hard not to…”

Shining and Sombra sat in silence for a few minutes, just looking out over the valley.

It was Sombra who broke the silence, “Do you believe in destiny, Captain?”

Shining turned toward Sombra, confused. “Where is this coming from?”

“Do you believe in destiny? Yes or no.”

Shining could see he wasn’t going to get an answer without giving one first. “That’s not easy to answer, Corporal.”

Sombra turned toward the Captain with an eyebrow raised. “Care to explain, Captain?”

“Part of me wants to believe in the romantic destiny. That Cadence and I were destined for each other. That we were meant to take the throne in Crystal Empire and live happily. That, no matter what, we can always defeat whatever evil threatens Equestria.”

When the Captain fell silent, Sombra tried to prompt him back into thought, “And the other part?”

Shining Armor sighed, “The other part of me wants to believe I’ve earned what I have. That it was my actions and reactions that mattered. That I became what I am now because of who I was. That I made the right choices…”

Sombra turned away and looked back out over the valley. “I suppose I can understand that. Go do whatever it is you do this early. I’ll keep watch.”

“I actually have a question for you.”

“And if I don’t feel like sharing?”

“Call it an exchange of information. I answered your question, so you answer mine.”

“Fine. I can answer a question. But I reserve the right to decide what to answer.”

“That’s fine. As long as I get an answer.”

“Ask away.”

Shining Armor took a deep breath. He knew he wouldn’t get his first answer, but it was worth a shot. “Why did you ask me about destiny? It’s clear you aren’t interested in my life. So, why ask?”

The silence that followed told the Captain he wasn’t getting an answer. He was wrong. “Fate is cruel, Captain.” Sombra closed his eyes and started to shake slightly. “When you see what you would become… it’s a sobering experience. You go through your life thinking you could be anything. Then you see exactly what fate has in store.”

“You looked into the Crystal Heart, I’m guessing.”

Sombra’s face and voice were calm, the melancholy calm of resignation to fate. “Yes. From a young age, I knew I would become a monster. I hoped it was wrong. I hoped I could prevent it. But as I saw destinies play out, I abandoned that foolish hope. I became what I was meant to.”

There was another silent pause before Shining Armor replied. “What are you now?”

“What?”

“You said you became a monster. Do you still believe that?”

“I do.”

“Then why still be here? Why sit there and talk to me? You found out the pendant doesn’t keep you here or protect me. So, why just sit there? If you are a monster, why not attack me or go after Bastian? Whatever you were doesn’t matter now. It’s what you choose to be that does.”

“Quite the speech Captain… You should consider politics.”

“Almost did. Now, those two should be waking up soon. Let’s get ready to move.”

“Captain…”

Shining turned back toward Sombra.

“I feel… I must confide in you about something.”

“Okay.” Shining sat back down. “What’s on your mind.”

“Are you aware, Captain, that even monsters can have nightmares?”

“I never said they didn’t. So, why bring it up?”

“Because I feel we may be seeing one of those nightmares soon.”

“What makes you say that?”

“My magic is turning against me, meaning that the Crystal is nearby. However, unlike with the Crystal Heart, I feel no pain. Whatever’s out there, it gives me a chill down my spine.”

“That’s reassuring…” Shining just smiled and looked out over the landscape. “Doesn’t matter. We’ll deal with anything that comes our way.”

“I suppose that’s all we can do…”

\/

The guards had searched the valley top to bottom, twelve hours straight. And they found… nothing. Now, they were trotting back to their camp.

“Oh, come on!” Flash was not too happy, having been on the flight team covering most of the valley. “Nothing?! I thought it was supposed to be here!”

Sombra’s voice was calm, but clearly peeved. “Your oracle wasn’t exactly specific.”

Shining Armor took a deep breath. He looked out over the valley. After so long that day, they found nothing. He looked back out over the valley. Something was bugging him about it all. “Grey!”

“Sir…” Grey Hat half-heartedly saluted.

“Why was this place called the Valley of the Dawnbringer?”

“It was named after an ancient king…”

“Not who is it named after. Why was it named after him?”

“Scholars disagree about the exact reason, but common consensus is that he’s buried somewhere nearby.”

“Does anypony know where?”

“Not… really. Why?”

“That Sooth Sayer said that the crystal was ‘resting on stardust.’ It’s possible it’s near the grave site.”

“I can see the logic.” Grey closed his eyes and thought a moment. He pulled out a small map. “Most maps place it… here.”

Shining Armor looked at the area and pinpointed the site. “Well… This should be fun.”

Flash and Sombra turned back to the others. Flash looked over Grey’s shoulders. “What will?”

“The site is just north of Broken Hoof, i.e. the prison.”

“Lovely…” Grey’s voice oozed sarcasm.

“To be fair, we didn’t search the prison.” Flash interjected. “Then we search the prison in the morning?”

“No. We need to search the area now. Let’s move!”

“Yes, sir!”

> Resting on Stardust
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The group approached the prison complex. Etched into the side of the wall was a five-pointed star atop a crystal of some kind, a number of other undiscernible imagines, and the phrase [If I ever see this place again, it’ll be too soon.] But what really caught the group’s attention was the sign above the doorway: [Welcome to Stardust Prison].

“How did we miss that?” Flash looked over the sign, flabbergasted.

Though, Shining Armor had to remain pragmatic in the situation. “Doesn’t matter. Now, for orders… Grey!”

“Yo…”

“I’ll ignore the tone for now and chalk it up to tiredness… While the rest of us search, I need you to find the archives for the prison. We need as much information as possible.”

“Got it!” Grey rushed inside the prison. Shining learned on the way here that Grey is motivated by the search for information.

“Flash and I will search the prison the old fashion way. Sombra!”

The Corporal turned his head toward the Captain. “Yes?”

“Use your shadow form and sweep the prison. Look into anything that seems suspicious and use your lack of form to your advantage.”

After a moment, the Corporal slowly shifted into a shadowy mist. “Understood…” The cloud entered the prison, into the shadows.

“Are you sure about that, Captain?” Flash asked as they entered the complex’s walls. “Sombra might run off or attack us.”

“If we want to give Sombra a second chance, he needs the opportunity to make that choice. Now, come on. We have a prison to search.”

“If you say so, Captain…”

“You search the upper floors, I’ll search down here.”

“Okay. I get the Sombra needing the chance thing, but separating in a place like this is just begging for an attack.”

“We’ve already split up, Flash,” Shining gave his subordinate a challenging smile, “Or are you scared?”

“I’m not scared of some run down prison! Let’s do this!” Flash flew in without any further argument. Shining Armor rolled his eyes and entered the prison after him.

\/

Grey found his way to the warden’s office and started his search through the files. He found a map of the prison showing the layout and 27 numbered locations. He then found a set of keys on the desk, each numbered corresponding to those on the map. However, numbers 2 and 6 missing. He looked back to the map to figure out which places these were. 2 was labelled [Storage] and 6 was [Solitary Confinement]. He noted this and continued his search. Beyond a few prisoner statistics, there wasn’t much that could help him. He made a mental note of each file and left the office to continue.

He entered the next room and found the archive. He was like a little foal in a candy store. That said, his face never showed it. He wasn’t one for outbursts of emotion. He’ll smile, sure; but nothing too big. He dug into the files for anything that might help. There was a myriad of files with various labels: [Personnel Files], [Account Book], and a curious book labeled [Crystal War Era]. He looked around before placing the war file in his saddlebag, justifying it with a ‘no one is using it’ argument. He continued his search unabated.

\/

Sombra floated through the prison, searching beneath rubble and in tight spaces from the shadows. He felt the crystal affecting his magic. It didn’t hurt like the Crystal Heart at the festival, but it was still there. Then he felt something different. A noise coming from somewhere in the prison. He would say it sounded painful, but he actually felt the pain. Being in his shadow form, his ears were, more or less, integrated into the smoke; making the whole ‘hearing’ thing more like ‘feeling’. It’s kind of hard to explain unless you experience it.

He moved to the shadows to avoid a direct conflict. He was still weaker than he would have liked thanks to the crystal. He couldn’t see whatever it was, but he felt the pain run through him. This was a new feeling for him. Not the pain, but a fear for life. He knew fear of his destiny, of what he was, of the possibility that he was the only monster among the Umbra. But this? This was new. He didn’t dare look at what was causing this.

Once the pain passed, he was able to reform himself. Now able to track the sounds, he heard heavy hoof steps off in the distance. He returned to his shadow form and moved to track down the others.

\/

He stopped when he found something labelled [The Prisoner from Tartarus]. He wasn’t sure why, but he felt he had to open and read this file. Inside he found a letter, written by the warden.

[I hope that thing never wakes up.]

Off to a great start…

[It would be best for everypony to just put that damn thing down. It just sounds… pained. Its breathing (if you could call it that) actually hurts to hear. If it were my call, I’d put the thing out of its misery. But, it’s not my call. Higher-ups from the surrounding kingdoms are adamant about returning it to Tartarus. They fail to take into account that it is too powerful for us to control. They created an enchantment to keep that thing in the storage area and a secondary barrier at the walls once the prison is finally shut down. It’ll be a decent guard once this place is closed, keep any dumbasses from sneaking around… Still, I fear for anypony that gets in its way.]

The hell? Grey Hat took note of the letter and left the archive to find the others.

\/

Shining Armor trotted through the prison’s lower level. He passed what appeared to be an infirmary and was approaching the mess hall. Inside, he found a decaying and dust covered room showing no signs of rushed exit.

“Well, at least I know nopony’s been here recently.” He thought out loud. “Now… where should…” He wasn’t able to finish his statement before everything suddenly went black.

He came to in a strange room. He groggily looked around to find himself bound to floor by chains and an inhibitor around his horn stopping his magic. He started to panic, trying to make sense of it all. That’s when he saw a sight he never wanted to again.

“Hello Shining Armor.” An enticing voice fueled in trickery, Chrysalis, “Did you miss me?”

He tried to speak, but his voice was held back at the shock of the sight before him. This was not the regal Queen of Changelings. This was a thin, hallow shell of what once was. Her ‘mane’ was a disheveled mess (more so than before), the holes in her hooves seemed to have expanded, her body showing clear signs of lack of sustenance.

“What’s wrong, Captain? Cat got your tongue?”

He finally got ahold of himself, “No. Just a little surprised to see a stick bug here.”

Chrysalis’ face showed no anger, but some level of annoyance. “I see you still like to act cute from time to time.”

“Bitch, I’m adorable.”

“Ooh! Adding some teeth to your words. That’s new.”

“Different conversation partners lead to different speech patterns. I figured you of all ponies would know that.”

“I am well aware.”

“Awesome. So, if that’s done, how about you either tell me what’s going on and why you have me chained to the floor or let me out so I can bring you in for assault of an officer and unlawful imprisonment.”

“As enticing as your options sound, I think it best not to pick B. I should just let you stay here to rot in this cell, but I’m not that cruel.”

“Could have fooled me…”

“Memory serves, I did on our wedding day.”

“Never let those words pass your lips in that order again! You were never part of the marriage! You were a twisted, deceiving witch!”

“You flatter me, Captain. Really… But I think we have more pressing matters to discuss.” She trotted behind her captive, who could only manage a 90 degree turn due to the chains.

Sitting on a small chair was a light blue gemstone about the size of a grown stallion’s head. Inside, Shining could swear he saw a small object. It was hard to see within the crystal, but still visible within.

“Do you know what this is?”

“I have the feeling you’re going to tell me.”

She smiled to herself. “Good to hear, Captain. It’s best you don’t know. All you need to know is that it’s almost complete. Just a little more energy…”

“Let me guess, you plan to take it from me?”

“No. I have plans for you, but not that.” She lifted the gem and moved toward the door. Before she left, she gagged the Captain and pulled the unicorn to the ground with the chains. “Enjoy your stay, Shining. You’re not going anywhere just yet.”

Shining Armor was alone and unable to move. He knew whatever Chrysalis was planning, it wasn’t good. He was scared for the ponies nearby and terrified that she might bypass them and attack his family. He has to get out! He has to stop her!

\/

Flash had landed back on the ground and looked around. He noticed Grey Hat and trotted over to him. “Hey! Anything helpful?”

“Maybe. A few things to look over later… There was a map and two missing keys to Solitary and Storage. Anything on your end?”

“Nothing up top. I was going to report to the Captain, but I can’t find him…”

“Hmm… Any sign of our Corporal?”

“Nope.”

“This could be a problem. We should…”

He was cut off when a smoky cloud dragged them both beneath a pile of rubble. The two prepared for a fight but found Sombra. The former king was looking out a hole in the rubble close to the ground.

“Sombra! What the hell?”

“Shush!” Sombra silenced both brothers with his hooves and looked back outside.

Curious, the two joined him. The area was quiet. For a moment… Something started to echo in the halls. What could they call it? A dry groan? A guttural breath? Whatever it was, it sounded painful and was painful to hear. The two guards wanted to leave the rubble and see if, whoever it was, was okay. They were stopped when a massive hoof fell in front of their faces on the other side of the rubble. It had to be twice the size of a normal hoof and covered in scars. A strange purple miasma secreted from the wounds on the leg. The front hoof lifted and was soon replaced by the back. The trio remained behind the rubble for a good five minutes in silence at what they had seen. Sombra returned his helmet to his head and closed the face plate to hide his face.

“Uh…” The three jumped a bit at the sudden voice behind them, turning quickly. They were met with the face of Shining Armor. “Dare I ask?”

> Revelations
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Despite the creature’s exit, Sombra kept his helmet down. He wasn’t about to show anymore weakness to the little prince. After his adrenaline subsided, he was glad he didn’t. His training in Dark magic helped him notice the magic surrounding the Captain. Not a hypnosis… this was a cloak of sorts. This wasn’t the Captain. He turned toward the others to find Grey with a similar look of suspicion. Flash, on the other hoof, hadn’t noticed.

The ‘Captain’ trotted toward the group, “Well?”

Flash answered the question without hesitation, “Sir! After reviewing our findings, we’ve discovered signs of an unknown entity in the prison. We’re not alone here, sir.”

“That could be a problem… Alright. Sweep the area again. We’ll work in teams of two.” The ‘Captain’ pointed a hoof toward Flash, “You’re with me. We’ll search the west area. You two take the East.”

As the ‘Captain’ spoke, Grey’s face changed. His suspicion became confusion, but he saluted none the less. “Understood.”

As Flash the and ‘Captain’ trotted off, Sombra leaned toward Grey, “Something’s wrong. That’s not the Captain.”

“I’m not so sure about that…”

“I thought you were the professional observer. You had to notice the differences.”

“I did. But they all seemed… natural for the Captain. Like it is him, but not.”

“Do you have any idea how…” Sombra stopped before finishing his thought. A look of realization on his face.

“What is it?”

“In the office, did you find a map?”

“Yes.”

“What’s west of this location?”

Grey thought back to the map. “The mess hall, recreation center, yard exit, solitary confinement…”

“There! Let’s move! Keep low and quiet.”

“Hey! Wait!” As Grey chased the Corporal, he had to mine for answers. “Care to explain what’s going on?”

“Whoever that is, they wanted us to head away from something.”

“No duh! Get to the point!”

“I’m not done! If that’s not the Captain, he’s either dead or being held somewhere nearby. The solitary cells would be the best place to stash a prisoner in a prison that you don’t want to be found.”

“Okay… going to be honest, Sombra… you surprise me.”

“How so?”

“I’d heard about your exploits from your ‘return.’ From what I understood, you weren’t anywhere near this intelligent. Shouting out ‘crysstals~” and the like.”

“For now, I’ll take that as a compliment.” He motioned to move down the hallway.

As they entered they entered the hallway, Grey began to observe everything he could. They were surrounded by iron doors, some of which were rusted and broken. The tiles on the floor were relatively unscathed compared to the floors in the prison proper. Still dirty and cracked, but better than the rest of the complex. A few doors showed signs of use. In front of one of the doors, the tile showed signs of traversal (a hoof mark). “There.”

Sombra opened the door using magic to find the Captain chained to the floor. He broke the chains and released the Captain from the spell prevention device on his horn. “There we go.”

The Captain gathered himself and tested his magic, which now worked properly. “Where’s Flash?”

Grey used his wing to help until he was sure Shining Armor could stand on his own, “With your imposter.”

“Then he’s in danger.”

“Flash is a great fighter. I doubt he’s in that much danger.”

“It’s Chrysalis.”

“Oh… that’s bad.”

“Who?” The two turned to Sombra who now had an open face plate on his helmet.

“Chrysalis, former queen of the Changelings. Ousted by a team of four. She swore revenge and has nothing left to lose, making her more dangerous than ever.”

Shining Armor added, “She also has the target.”

“Lovely…”

“We need to get to Flash before something happens. Sombra, go ahead and find Flash. Chrysalis may strike soon, so hurry. Grey will stay with me so you can tell who is who.”

“Got it.” Sombra became a shadow and slinked off into the darkness.

Grey sighed at the situation. “So, we have to deal with a deposed changeling queen, and there’s that big… thing. Whatever it is.”

Shining Armor turned to Grey, “What thing?”

\/

Flash and the fake Captain trotted through the hallways just above the others. So far, all was quiet. Flash was aware something was off, but wasn’t going to make a move yet. He didn’t have Grey’s instant, almost unreasonably accurate powers of deduction, but even he could see something was amiss. The thing that was amiss, however, eluded him. Was the Captain effected by stress? Lack of sleep? Impatience to return to his wife and daughter? All possible and kept him from seeing the ruse for what it was.

Chrysalis, still in the guise of the Captain, trotted slightly behind Flash and smiled to herself. They were far enough away from those other two that she could strike without issue. But her magic isn’t as powerful due to her hunger, and he may attract unwanted attention if she isn’t quick and careful. She had to avoid screams in this place… the echoes are ridiculous.

After some time, she decided to make her move. She was interrupted by an unnerving sound. It sounded like… breathing? But it hurt to hear. Like someone trying to breathe through a straw filled with milkshake… Something like that. As the sound got closer, a shiver went up her spine. She couldn’t help but turn toward the sound, and she immediately regretted it.

The… thing, standing at the end of the hallway was a broken beast. Its breath was a purple miasma, which matched the vapors emanating from the open wounds spread across its body. Its jaw seemed broken and its coat was matted in dirt and filth. Its eyes were pools of black and its teeth were like razors. A broken horn protruded from its head. The creature seemed to ooze death and decay. Its gaze focused squarely on the ‘Captain.’

Chrysalis leaned toward Flash, “What the hell is that thing?”

“Don’t know.”

The creature started slowly trotting for three steps before breaking out into a mad sprint toward Chrysalis. The disguised queen dodged out of the way, but the creature turned back toward her and charged again.

Chrysalis dodged again and landed next to Flash, “What’s his problem?”

“Don’t know.” Flash got ready for the fight, “But he seems to like you.”

“Is this really the time?!”

The creature roared and charged the false Captain again, narrowly missing its mark. The momentum of this charge sent it flying into the wall, cracking the stone work.

The creature was ignoring Flash, giving him enough time to notice the ‘Captain’ didn’t follow his comment with ‘Doesn’t he know I’m married’ like he always did. The Captain always tries to show off in combat situations with an attitude. It’s not necessarily a show-no-weakness kind of thing. It’s more like… he thinks that a quipping, semi-smug soldier is some kind of ideal. Considering his comic collection, it’s a little understandable. This wasn’t like the Captain.

Fortunately for the disguised Chrysalis, Flash didn’t have the time to confront her as a bolt of red magic flew through the hall. The creature’s focus changed to the bolt, allowing Chrysalis to escape to the rafters and drop her disguise. If that thing was after Shining Armor, she didn’t want to take that face. She watched as the fully armored pony from before made his way to Flash.

“Hey, you alright?” The armored pony moved beside Flash.

“Fine.” Flash looked around for the ‘Captain’, but he was gone. “Guessing the Captain from before was a fake…”

“Yep.”

“Lovely.” Flash motioned toward the creature. “Any idea what that is?”

After a moment, the Corporal responded, “Nope.”

“Great. That’s not good.”

The real Captain and Grey Hat rounded the corner. Shining Armor slid on his hooves to a stop and looked on in horror. “What’s that thing doing here?!”

“You know this thing?”

Sombra dropped into a fighting stance and started to prepare his magic. As his magic started to flare, the creature turned its attention toward him.

“Stop!” Shining Armor rushed over and broke Sombra’s focus and the magic dissipated. “That thing tracks magic.”

“Pardon?” Flash looked over toward the creature; and, sure enough, it seemed like it had lost its target. “Wha…?”

Shining Armor picked up a pebble with his hoof and threw it, ricocheting off the wall and hitting the back of the creature. It quickly turned around and walked off toward the direction it was hit.

Once it was gone, Flash, Grey, and Sombra circled the Captain. Flash was the first to ask, “Okay… What was that thing?”

Shining Armor cleared his throat before answering, “It’s called a Nuckelavee. My sister and I learned about it when we were young.  It’s a powerful creature said to have been the cause of famines and spreading some serious diseases.”

“Seriously?”

“According to the old theories, this thing was bad, but not evil. In reality, it’s mindless. It seeks out magic for an unknown reason. Whatever the reason, it persists in its onslaught until the magic disappears, one way or the other.” He emphasized this point by crushing a broken, wooden beam that had likely fallen from the rafters above long before the present.

“Yikes… So, then what do we do about it?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing? Seriously?”

“There’s nothing we can do. The only way the Nuckelavee was driven away, according to the old accounts, was with the combined might of five extra-ordinarily powerful unicorns. Of which, we have one.”

“Uh… I don’t mean to nitpick the issue, but we have two. Don’t we? Still not enough, but…”

“While I can make decent shields, I’d hardly call myself extra-ordinary in the power department.”

Flash turned took a moment to unpack the statement and turned toward Sombra. “Oh…”

“Yeah. Which still leaves us with four missing powers and no way to fight back against that thing.”

“Then what do we do?”

Sombra finally spoke up, “We leave it alone.”

“Pardon?”

“The prison is surrounded by Dark magic. It’s the same as I was feeling earlier.”

“So, the spell is keeping it in here?”

“It seems.”

Shining Armor looked around, “Let’s get moving. We need to find that crystal and get out of here fast. Plus-side, Chrysalis can’t hide from us with that thing around. Best to remain together just in case, though.”

With that, the group left the area to continue their search.

As they left, the former Changeling Queen dropped down from the rafters. “That is a problem… But I’ll find a way… Make no mistake my little prince.”

> That's not good...
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chrysalis made her way back to her hidden gemstone. On the way, she made sure to avoid the guards’ patrol and the Nuckelavee, as it was apparently called. Surely such a powerful creature would be a great asset to her plan. If she could recruit the beast… No. Her magic would just anger the Nuckelavee. Instead… perhaps it would be advantageous to allow the Nuckelavee to get a little more breathing room… She smiled to herself as she finalized her plan in her mind. Her smile faded when she found the Nuckelavee staring at the stone.

“How did…?”

The creature’s breath surrounded the stone, leaving a thin layer of purple on the blue gem. It struck the gem with its hoof. Chrysalis knew there was a weak magic signature within the gemstone, but she hoped it was weak enough to stay hidden from magic scanning spells. As it turns out, this creature could still find it. What caught her attention, however, was that it wasn’t attacking the stone. Perhaps it was possible to control this creature after all…

\/

“You realize this is insane, right?” Grey made his position on their situation well known.

Shining Armor, to his credit, stayed calm. “She’s weakened after she lost her hive. We can stop her.”

“Can we?”

“Without her full power, we can beat her.”

“With two of us sidelined as long as that Nucka… thing is still out there?!”

“Nuckelavee. And there are ways around it. If we find her without it around, we can use the time before it tracks us to bring her in.”

“Do you really believe that?!”

“Do we have reason to doubt him?” Flash tried to act as a voice of reason.

Sombra was just walking along in silence.

Shining Armor looked around, still vigilant as he spoke, “Then do tell, Grey, do you have a better plan?”

“Not my job.”

“Then shut up and let me do mine.”

“Um… Captain?” The group turned to Sombra. “If I may, I think we might be able to use the creature to our advantage.”

“How so?”

“When I found saw the creature, I was in my shadow form. It looked toward me but didn’t attack. I think it might react to certain levels of magical power. If we keep our magic weak, we could work around it.”

“Good to know.” Shining Armor was keeping his mind sharp and his eyes open, despite the night growing longer and darker. “Now, let’s find Chrysalis while we still have an advantage.”

\/

Off in the distance, Chrysalis was attempting to create her own advantage. She tried to use smaller amounts of magic to create a suggestable state in the creature. If she succeeds, she could create an opening for a more powerful, all-encompassing brainwashing, placing the creature squarely under her control. The issue is that she can’t seem to get the suggestion to set. Try as she might, it just won’t stick.

“Gah! This is getting ridiculous! Why won’t this work?!”

The Nuckelavee started to walk around the area whist remaining close to the gemstone. It’s breathing never stopped sounding painful to the former queen. She also noticed that the purple miasma was actually killing off any plant life that tried to grow in the prison. It would be a valuable pawn, but she can’t get into its head and seal the deal. It wasn’t actually mindless, that much she could tell. But there was something in there that was keeping her out. Her frustration was growing, but she knew she had to stay somewhat silent. Her angry outbursts would echo through the halls and give away her position. In any other circumstance, she wouldn’t care. She was more than powerful enough to take down any number of lowly ponies on a normal day. But her hunger has drained her of much of her powers. If Chrysalis was going to stand a chance for the moment, she would need subordinates like the Nuckelavee.

That said, Chrysalis was no fool. She knew that if she couldn’t tame the creature soon, she would have to make her exit and get some distance before the guards-ponies figured out she was gone. Part of the problem, however, was that her plan hinged on that crystal, which the creature was circling. She knew that the crystal was the same material as the Chrystal Heart. If she could repurpose its magic effects, she could feed off the love it gathers until she’s strong enough to finally take down those Equestrian whelps, like Twilight Sparkle and Starlight Glimmer. Just the thought of those insufferable ponies filled Chrysalis with inconsolable hatred.

The creature’s roar pulled her out of her revenge fantasies. She looked toward it and found it reacting to the gemstone. It was pulsing with magic and the crown symbol in the middle was more pronounced than before.

“What in the world?” She was trying to make sense of what was happening. The gem was reacting to something. Was there a source of love nearby? After a moment to survey her senses, there was no sign of a large source of love. So, what was causing this?

The creature looked on toward the gem, deciding to stomp on the magical stone. The gem’s glowing was dimming before it erupted in a pool of blinding light. It was unlike anything Chrysalis had seen before. When the light faded, the Nuckelavee recoiled and trotted off, away from the gem. Chrysalis looked from the retreating monster and the gem. She had felt the power of love before. She had seen the Crystal Heart in action. This? This was something else. Even when being defeated by love or the power of the Heart, you felt warm and safe. This? She felt burned. Like the fires of the sun had licked her in a single flash of power. Chrysalis had taken the gem, thinking it could bring her power. If that’s what this thing actually did, she was done. That thing would be nothing but trouble to a love-draining changling.

Now her hate was self-directed. How could she mess this up so badly?! “Damn it! Damn it all!”

The gem started to glow again.

Chrysalis froze and looked toward it, “Nope.” She made haste to get to the exit.

\/

Shining Armor. Flash Sentry. Grey Hat. Sombra. The four walked through the prison keeping an eye and ear out for the former queen of the changelings. She couldn’t approach/attack them with her powers as long as they stayed together. Their search, as it turned out, didn’t last long.

Chrysalis ran in from of them toward the exit hall. Sombra used his shadow form to get in front of her and prevent her escape. The former queen stepped back and was soon surrounded.

“Going somewhere Chrysalis?” Shining Armor was more than happy about this arrangement. A completed mission and a captured fugitive equals excellent day for the guard.

As for Chrysalis, she just smiled. “As a matter of fact, I was planning on leaving.”

“Oh, you’ll be leaving, alright. In cuffs and straight to an Equestrian royal prison.”

“You’ll forgive me if I refuse the offer. Besides, if you chase me down, you leave the gem in the hooves of the… Nuckelavee, I believe you called it.”

“Wait, what?”

“Oh… and I’d get to it quickly if I were you.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s starting to show signs of magical bursts. And they’re only getting stronger. How much longer until it erupts and destroys the town? You could split up, but I’ll have an opening to escape. I have enough magic left that it will take all four of you to hold me.”

Shining Armor knew she could be bluffing. He knew she could be lying to get away. But… he was also aware that she knew he couldn’t take the chance. He wanted nothing more than to bring her in. His duty took precedent in the situation. “Where is it?”

“Hold on, you can’t…” Flash was silenced by his brother.

Chrysalis let out a quick laugh at the ponies before answering, “Upper floor, C-Block. Last I saw it, that Nuckelavee was hanging around. Best move quickly before it agitates the gem any further.”

Shining Armor narrowed his eyes at the Changeling, “You can run, but you won’t stay hidden in Equestria anymore… You know that, don’t you?”

“We’ll see little prince.”

Shining turned his back and slammed his hoof on the floor. “Get to the gem! We can’t risk a magical detonation.”

The guards growled, but ran off into the prison toward the C-Block. Chrysalis used this opportunity to make her escape. As she flew off, she knew her magic was beginning to fail her. Her bluff allowed her to escape, now she had to use this momentum to refuel her magic and prepare a new revenge plan.

As she escaped, Shining Armor and the guards approached the C-Block and ascended the staircase, or flew up in the case of the pegasi, to find the stone resting on the floor. It was giving off a feint glow and a warmth that filled the area. However, just as Chrysalis had felt, this was not a kind warmth similar to the Crystal Heart. This was a heat that seemed to burn the very air around them. Shining wanted to keep distance for a moment. He turned to Grey, “Any idea what the issue is with it?”

Grey stayed silent a moment before answering, “Well… if she was bluffing, she didn’t realize she wasn’t wrong. That thing is giving off magic energy and if that crack forming is any indication, it’s full to bursting.”

“That’s a problem. How much energy can be stored in a crystal?”

“It doesn’t matter.” The group turned to Sombra, “This isn’t like normal gems fueled by magic. It’s fueled by emotions it’s fed. Those emotions have no way to leave and spread out like the Heart does. As a result, it’s set to blow in a literal emotional outburst.”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“If it had been fueled by love or other ‘positive’ emotions, it would just result in the local populace having a better day than they were. However, this is not one of those emotions. This is all too familiar… hate. If this gets out, it will fuel anger and resentment throughout the area.”

“So… unless we get this thing out of here ASAP, it’ll send the town into a mad frenzy?”

“More like a bloodlust. Chrysalis has been feeding this thing such unbridled hatred long enough to turn anypony into a rage-fueled monster.”

“That’s not good.”

“It gets worse,” Flash chimed in, “When we first arrived to search the city, Grey and I had to deal with a few thugs. We were fine, but they would be a problem for anypony that isn’t trained like we are. And they were just a bunch of thugs.”

“He’s right,” Grey continued, “This is a town of mercenaries, all of which are trained and of various forms. If they rose up to attack Equestria, our forces will definitely be taxed if not overrun.”

“Alright, let’s get this thing out of here…”

A pained yell interrupted the guards. They turned to find the large, broken beast back in the hallway. It’s eyes now a glowing red.
> Broken
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shining Armor took a step back as the creature approached. “Okay. We’ll have to keep the magic to a minimum. Flash, Grey, one of you will have to fly that thing out of here.”

“Got it.” Flash flapped his wings and lifted himself off the ground.

The moment he did so, the Nuckelavee charged forward and slammed him back down onto the ground with its hoof on his wing. As the pinned pegasus tried to escape, the Nuckelavee looked down and let out a loud roar. The purple miasma coated Flash who started to gag from the effects. An attack from Sombra moved the creature long enough for Grey to pull Flash out from under its hooves. Sombra stood in his armor and kept the creature’s attention for as long as he could.

As Grey put Flash down, he noticed that Flash was shaking. He placed a hoof on Flash’s forehead. “Oh crap… Captain! Keep away from its breath! It’s some kind of poison!”

Shining Armor looked back to the grounded Flash and swore to himself, “Sombra! How long until that gem blows?!”

Sombra side-stepped a heavy hoof from the Nuckelavee that would have cracked his skull. He glanced at the skull, but couldn’t focus for long. “I’m kind of busy to check!”

“Grey!”

Before the Captain could continue, Grey chimed in, “Two cracks. Both relatively small. No connection.”

Sombra ducked away from a kick as he calculated the gem’s count down. “Two to three hours without disturbances!”

Shining Armor quickly made his choice, “Alright, tactical retreat! We need to get Flash out of here so we can deal with the poison. Stay on the ground and no magic! Move!” Shining picked Flash up and carried the downed guard on his back.

The group put their hooves on the ground and ran off into the halls. They ducked through the debris, making their way to the prison’s infirmary. Shining Armor placed Flash on the sturdiest bed they could find and set about with first aid for poisoning. Grey paced back and forth in fear for his brother’s life. Sombra sat watching the door, in case the creature came after them.

After a few minutes had passed, Shining backed away from the bed and turned to Grey. “Okay…”

Grey interrupted him, “What kind of poison did it use? Did you gather a sample? Can we produce an antidote?”

“Calm down, Lieutenant!” After he had room to speak, the Captain continued, “We can’t produce an antidote.”

“Why do you sound so calm!?!”

“Because it’s not poison!”

After a moment of silence, Grey spoke again, “What? Then… what else could it be?”

“That’s the part that’s baffling. Kind of interesting, actually… It confirms the old stories.”

“Get to the point, Captain!”

“He has a nasty cold.”

“… You can’t be serious.” 

“Likely a strain specific to the Nuckelavee, but… yeah.”

Sombra took time away from his observing to join the conversation, “It’s breath must be some kind of miasma, spreading its version of the disease.”

“That makes the most sense.”

Flash coughed and sat up, his face flushed thanks to his fever, “So… we can’t use magic, can’t reason with it, and now we can’t fly or get close without getting sick?”

“That seems to be the gist of it, yes.”

“Great…” Flash fell backward onto the bed. “This bed sucks…”

“That’s the best bed in the ward.”

“That’s concerning…” Flash soon fell asleep on the bed.

Grey stayed next to Flash’s side. Despite his occasionally apathetic nature, Grey cared about his family. He had to be sure Flash was alright.

Shining Armor walked over to search the drawers for anything useful. After a while, he closed the final drawer with no significant finds. “No surprise there… This place must be hundreds of years old.”

“One thousand six hundred and thirty-five, actually.” Sombra chimed in.

“That’s pretty specific…”

He points to a crystal formation in the corner, “It’s an artificial crystal. The wear and tear on the surface gives away its age.”

“That’s… kind of impressive that you can tell just from that.”

“Crystal magic is my specialty.” Sombra stood up and stretched a bit, keeping his eyes and ears out for the Nuckelavee. “I should hope I could recognize something so obvious.”

“Sure…” Shining paused a moment before an idea came up, “Do you think you could create a crystal that could the Nuckelavee?”

“In the time it would take to create a crystal strong enough, the creature would floor all of us several times over.”

“There goes that plan…” Shining turned to walk away.

“Although…”

Shining turned back to the Corporal, “What?”

“I’ve been observing the spell on the prison. I think I might be able to cause an internal feedback.”

“Meaning?”

“I could, in theory, cause the magic holding the creature in to collapse in on itself, burning out the magic within.”

“You can do that?”

“Yep. It would mean nopony would be able to use their magic or fly for a while, but it can be done. It would break the grasp on the Nuckelavee and drain the gem without it exploding.”

“How long will it take?”

“Not long, but I’ll need help and it will require some magic use.”

“Then we’ll need a way to distract the Nuckelavee…”

“If I may,” Grey had walked up to the two and inserted himself into the conversation, “I know how we can distract that thing.”

\/

The Nuckelavee’s steps echoed through the halls. Each stomp disturbing the ground and killing any plant life left in its way. Suddenly, something caught its attention, a weak signature of magic. Its instincts were to attack the magic. It wanted to charge the magic, but it didn’t get the chance. The magic slammed into its side, causing it to stagger. The magic was like the other from before, weak but focused. The magic hung there a moment, floating in the air. That’s when it screamed out. The Nuckelavee couldn’t understand it, but it understood anger.

\/

Grey landed another strong blow into the Nuckelavee’s side, making sure to avoid its breath and hooves. Grey used his training to maximize what damage he was dealing to the beast, but it hardly seemed fazed. Grey smiled to himself. That was perfectly fine. He would keep hitting that thing harder. He would make it suffer for putting Flash in the infirmary. He wanted this to last.

\/

Shining and Sombra snuck their way toward the warden’s office. When they arrived, they quickly and quietly moved inside to begin the process. Sombra lit up his horn with a weak amount of magic to test if the Nuckelavee was still distracted. Once he was certain they were being ignored, Sombra turned his attention to the magic around the prison.

“Okay, let’s get started.” Sombra closed his eyes and started to pool his magic.

Shining followed suit, readying his own magic. “Let me know when…”

After a minute, Sombra let his magic loose onto the floor. It pulsed outward and started to mix itself with the magic seal around the prison. When it had mixed completely, he motioned toward Shining, “Now.”

Shining Armor used his magic to strike the ground and force the magic process to break apart. With the magic forced apart, it caused the seal to become unstable. “Is that it?”

“More or less… It just needs an agitator. One big shock to force the magic seal to break up and collapse.”

“Okay then, any reason we’re waiting on this?”

“We need to gather the others. If this doesn’t work, there’s a real possibility that the magic will cause the prison to collapse as well.”

“That would have been nice to know ahead of time.” Shining didn’t want to yell and risk the Nuckelavee.

“Perhaps. For now, we need to move.”

“Right…”

Shining and Sombra turned to run back to the infirmary.

\/

Grey landed back on the ground, his breath heavy. He had spent his time trying to hurt the Nuckelavee. Despite everything, the beast seemed unfazed by all his assaults. “Damn it…” His anger welled up again and he charged the beast again, this time to be met by the Nuckelavee’s tail slamming him onto the ground. His breathing was becoming difficult as the creature’s miasma found its way into his lungs. When he tried to stand, he fell into a coughing fit. “Crap…”

The Nuckelavee seemed to lose sight of Grey now that he was grounded. It turned and started to walk back toward the infirmary.

“Oh no you don’t…” Grey forced himself to stand and spread his wings, deliberately preparing to fly while not taking off. This turned the Nuckelavee around to face the magical source. “That’s right… We’re not done here yet…”

Before the Nuckelavee could charge, a weight lowered Grey’s wings. Flash had been placed on his back by Shining Armor, “Actually, you are done here. We need to get somewhere safer before setting off the feedback.” Grey growled a bit, but Shining brought him back to his senses, “I know you’re angry, but the gem will burst and make things worse if we don’t move now.”

Grey sighed and used what strength he had left to follow his Captain. Looking back, he saw the Nuckelavee looking around, searching for the magic that had disappeared. He clenched his teeth and followed the Captain away from the scene.

The group eventually found an area where the ceiling had collapsed in already, granting them a safe zone in the worse-case scenario. Shining turned to his team, “Okay, once the feedback starts, we won’t be able to fly or use our magic. That will keep the Nuckelavee away long enough for us all to escape.”

Flash groaned for a moment and lifted his head, “Not quite…”

Shining paused and turned to Flash, who was still on Grey’s back, “What do you mean?”

“Sombra’s body… is being held together by the magical equivalent to duct tape… If the pulse goes off and he’s inside, he’ll split apart again.”

Sombra was quick to reply, “That fever must be getting to him…”

Shining didn’t buy it, “Corporal…”

“It may be best to get this over with now.”

“Corporal!”

“Sir, we don’t have time to…”

“Sombra!” Once Shining was certain that the former king remained silent, he continued, “What Flash just said, is it true?”

After a moment of silence, he answered, “Most likely. I’m not certain of the exact magical formula, but that would make the most sense. This is the part where you try to talk me out of it, right?”

Shining took a deep breath before replying, “Is there another way to stop the gem?”

“Nothing with what time we have left.”

“Damn… Alright, Grey, escort Flash and Sombra out of the prison. I should be able to set off the feedback.”

He was interrupted by a low growl. The Nuckelavee walked down the nearby hall. It made no indication that it had seen them. But there was no relief for the group because the Nuckelavee was rolling a familiar light blue, crystalline object.

Sombra spoke quietly, “We don’t have time. We need to end this now.” He lowered his stance and got ready to cast the spell extremely quickly.

Grey readjusted Flash for their comfort, “Didn’t think you were the type to be willing sacrifice yourself…”

“Sacrifice? Making a lot of assumptions here.”

“But… isn’t that what you’re doing?”

“To sacrifice would be to give something up for the sake of others. Which ‘others’ would I be sacrificing for? The princesses that sealed me in ice for a thousand years? The ponies back in Canterlot who think they have the right to summon me from the dead for their gains? Hardly… If anything, I despise them all. They think just because they brought me back that they can control me. I remember enough that I am just a project and tool for their use. I want nothing more than to stick it to them for that. So, I wouldn’t call this a sacrifice.” His magic started to flare up, getting the Nuckelavee’s attention. Sombra reared back and slammed the ground, sending his magic through the floor an into the magic barrio around them. “I’m doing this, OUT OF SPITE MOTHER F**KER!”

A bright flash of light filled the room and everything went silent. As the group started to get their bearings again, the silence became a high-pitched tone. Once they could see and hear again, they noticed the Nuckelavee looking around in confusion. After a while, it walked off, hitting a wall in the process.

Shining looked around for a head count. Grey had dropped Flash in the confusion; though once he figured out what happened, he quickly got Flash up off the floor. Shining turned to look for Sombra, only to find empty armor.

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The guard returned to their campsite that night. To say they enjoyed a night’s sleep would be dishonest. As Equestria was always peaceful, this was the Guard’s first death. Shining knew every guard willing to give their lives for the good of Equestria, it was hard to miss being part of the oath, but it would never be easy. What made it worse was that this death would never be recognized. Sombra would forever be remembered as a tyrant from the Crystal Empire, despite the fact that he had just saved Equestria. Granted, his sacrifice was fueled by hostile emotions to spite the Black Gold Guard, possibly the entire Royal Guard by extension. As Celestia raised the sun into the sky, he finished repacking the supplies for travel. He looked to what was left of the camp at the empty armor and cracked gem sitting to the side. Flash, who was finally able to walk around on his own, finished packing away his own supplies and hoisted them onto his back. Meanwhile, Grey had already prepared to leave and was sticking close to his brother in case he relapsed.

Shining Armor took a deep breath and placed the supplies, armor, and gem onto his back. Being the strongest of the three, he really didn’t have much of a choice for the distribution of supplies. Now, they just had to return to Canterlot and file their report. After that, Shining was going to make a b-line for the Crystal Empire to return to his family. When his thoughts fell upon his home, he couldn’t help but think back to an old question.

Do you believe in destiny?

Now, Shining had his answer. Destiny is what we make it. Was it destiny for you to save those you despise? That was just a side effect of your anger. Was it destiny that you didn’t survive? I bet you could have lived just to spite somepony. It’s nothing more than a word we use when we feel powerless. You felt powerless as a foal looking into the Crystal Heart so you fell back into the idea of destiny. Now, you decided to fight back. Shining Armor took a deep breath. “Alright, you two. Let’s get moving.”

Flash spoke up, “Uh… sir. What are we going to do about Sombra?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I know he wasn’t the best pony, but he did just sacrifice himself to save Equestria. Doesn’t he get a medal for that?”

Grey turned his head away from Flash, “Unlikely…”

Shining cleared his throat before answering, “As far as Equestria is concerned, Sombra died in the Crystal Empire a tyrant and an enemy to ponykind. His actions here will be forgotten by all but us.”

Grey returned his gaze toward Shining, “We’ll still need to explain the situation to Bastian.”

“Commander Steel Bastian will understand. If he doesn’t, then he can explain how he thought it was a good idea to bring one of the most dangerous tyrants in history back from the dead to the princesses.”

The group set out for Canterlot, leaving behind one of the artificial crystals from the prison as a marker to the forgotten soldier who was lost during their mission.