Why am I cursed like this? I shouldn't have to suffer this way...
My mind is just so infested, to the point where I don't know who I am. The anger I have over the ponies who harmed me and took me away from what I lost still holds in my heart, and it drives me to agony. At least I can claim to be the ruler of a nation...
My mind felt completely infested, each day making it become a little bit more so.
I couldn’t tell what it was being infested with, however, being unable to figure out whether I as Alex or I as Sombra was the illegitimate one. I felt like a human. I felt like me. I knew I wasn’t supposed to be a pony and never was a pony before this, especially not Sombra, however, I couldn't help but feel the emotion I had for Radiant Hope start to build, as well as the anger I held at those of the Crystal Empire for wronging me. It frustrated and angered me to no end to have no idea who I was, hating the fact that I was cursed by these ponies with being this way.
I growled as I awoke, which I found myself doing more often, and couldn’t help but bare my teeth at the sight of Radiant Hope laying sleeping next to me. She was the one who made me feel the most conflicted. Even if she was my friend since childhood, I still couldn’t help but hate her and blame her for this. It wasn’t as bad as the hate I held for Cadance and Celestia and that witch Amore, but it was there, and it hurt because I knew I loved her. I couldn’t help the feeling that I loved her, and just that fact made the anger I held at her worse.
I quietly made my way out of bed, being careful to not wake Hope up as I moved up to the window, the sun still lowered, waiting for Luna to raise it. It was one of the things she wouldn’t give up, wouldn’t budge on at all. But I figured that was fair, seeing as she even gave in to letting me have the throne. Of course, I’m sure in her mind she saw me as her equal, or even her lesser. I knew the ponies of Equestria thought as much, seeing as most of them opted to visit Princess Luna in the Night Court over me, many adjusting their schedules just to avoid meeting with me. I knew, however, that eventually it would have to stop, ponies meeting Luna in the Night Court. These ponies would come to know me as their ruler. I would make them know. But for now, I allowed it. This was still a transition period, and I knew that they still needed time to get used to my rule. But eventually, they would know that I was their ruler.
It wasn’t long before I came upon the Princess of the Night, a long line of ponies standing in front of her, waiting to make their requests. They looked at me nervously as I entered, but not as fearfully as before, seeing as I no longer wore the red cape and armor I used to be known for, not to mention they’d seen me regularly over the last ten months, and they had their precious princess to protect them should I do something. Luna herself turned to me turned to look at me as well, giving me the same flat expression she always did, the same one she had when I first saw her in real life, before dismissing my subjects from the throne room, taking a few moments to let them vacate before speaking to me.
“I have said it before,” she started, “but your appearance has been getting subtly better every day.”
“That’s interesting,” I responded as I stepped over to her, “because I feel as though I’ve been unchanged for months now, if not worse.”
“Has your slumber remained dreamless?” she asked. “I’ve not had time to take a look at your sleep for a long while.”
“No, no dreams from me,” I sighed. “But I’m not concerned about that right now. The only thing I care about today is Cadance.”
“Today is that day, isn’t it? ”Princess Luna sighed along with me. “So much has happened at her hoof…”
“I’m ready to get it over with. I honestly want to do it right away, just wake her up and bring her before us if I can…”
“I as well,” she commented, “however it would be best for us if we stuck to the time we’ve previously scheduled for her, seven o’clock. It would give me time to rest for her appearance. Although you know I must ask if you’re certain it should be held publicly.”
“I am absolutely one hundred percent certain,” I answered quickly, my face contorting back into a scowl, my voice raising. “She needs to know that what she’s done to me is killing me. I want her to be ashamed of herself, with all of Equestria there to bear witness to her conviction. She will know the pain I’m subjected to because of her!”
“I understand, but please save that anger for her. I’m certain that you would like to have more citizens seeing you in the Day Court for their problems, and letting that harshness leak out will not help you. While on the subject, though, I must ask when you plan on searching for Princess Amo-”
“Never,” I interrupted. “I’m never gathering her pieces. She’s receiving what she deserves for making me suffer.”
She gave me a weird stare for a second, before commenting, “I truly think you’d benefit from forgiveness. You having forgiveness on them, I mean. I understand why you would not-”
“Don’t tell me you understand,” I told her darkly. “You don’t understand this at all.”
“I can see,” she started again, frowning as she corrected herself, “why you wouldn’t want to have forgiveness on them, but holding in all this rage is exactly what my sister did, as well as Cadance from the short conversation I had with her. I even explicitly told Celestia as much, but she opted to ignore my advice. Yes, it’s unfortunate what you’ve suffered, but you’re only making yourself unhappy by continuing to hold on to all that anger. I don’t need to ask you to trust me on what I say; you’ve already seen what that anger does when it takes hold of somepony.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I responded dismissively as I finally started to move past her to the seat of the throne.
“Please do,” she said as she herself started to walk on her way as well, yawning as she did so. “I only speak from experience when I say that holding anger in your heart will destroy you.”
“Good morning,” Radiant Hope called as she entered with a gentle smile an hour or two later, making her way up to me and nuzzling my nose. “You’re awake earlier than usual,” she commented as she sat down next to me.
“Yeah…” I trailed off, staring into the now largely empty throne room, only a few assistants and guards still inside now that the Day Court had started. It was both angering and depressing, and I found myself wishing there was something I could do besides waiting for ponies to get used to me and acknowledge my rule.
“It’s just the day I've been waiting on for a long time,” I sighed as I continued. “I would tell you how I’m feeling, but you already know exactly what I’m going to say.”
“It’s going to be okay, Alex,” she told me, using a hoof to rub my side as somepony entered. “It’ll get better, I promise.”
I considered what she said, letting her help with whatever the pony needed. It’ll get better. So far, it didn’t seem that way. I had both exactly what I wanted and nothing I wanted because of what I’d done to myself. I wanted to see those who wronged me suffer, and thus far, they had been suffering, two ponies effectively banished, a third about to go to trial for her transgressions. I wanted also to be at home with my family, away from this place, but from what I heard from Twilight Sparkle, that didn’t seem like a very likely possibility, considering home didn’t exist. It was difficult to ignore that, the fact that none of my experiences were real, the thought of that on my mind seemingly at all times.
I also thought about the way she spoke to me and said my name. Every time, it sounded like she was hesitating, wanting to replace it with Sombra. It didn’t help that part of the time I felt the urge to correct her when she called me Alex. I found myself not wanting this part of me to exist, absolutely hating the fact that this was done to me.
“Why did I do this to myself?” I asked silently as I stared dead ahead, looking at nothing in particular.
I heard Hope exhale a breath next to me, just now realizing that the pony who was here was already gone.
“What’s the matter?” I asked. “Where did they go?”
“Oh, they left already. They were just asking about the law talking about what royal funds can be used for.”
“Was something the matter with them? They didn’t upset you, did they?”
“No, it wasn't them,” she started. “I’m just… I’m just a bit sad is all. It’s nothing.”
“What are you upset about?” I asked her.
“I’m not upset exactly,” she explained. “I… I can feel your emotions dripping on to me. I know you’re still angry about what happened, and part of it is with me, and it makes me feel bad.”
“I’m not-”
“I can feel it, Sombra… err, Alex. I’m sorry.” She looked down at her hooves and started again, “I know that part of you loves me as much as I love you, and it makes me happy, but the other part, the Alex part of you… you hate me, and… and I don’t understand why.”
“I don’t hate you,” I explained. “I just- I don’t- part of why I’m like this is your fault. I know that if you would’ve just untied that string instead of letting me break it-”
“Alex-”
“-if you would have just untied it, I’m almost certain I wouldn’t be like this,” I told her. “Maybe it would mean that part of me would just stop existing, but being either completely myself or completely Sombra would be preferable to feeling like I’m almost alternating between them.”
“You know that’s not my fault,” she tried to say. “That’s why Cadance is going on trial today. Because of what she did. It's not my fault you're like this. I was just trying to help you.”
“It’s still a little bit your fault,” I said. “You have to admit that, right? And it doesn’t help when you…” I trailed off, debating whether or not to finish my sentence.
“What?”
“...it’s nothing. Never mind.”
I stared ahead again as we sat quietly for a few seconds before she broke in, “I love you, Sombra.”
“I love you too, Hope,” I answered automatically, unable to keep myself from smiling as I heard the happiness in her voice and saw the smile in her eyes. It was a nice moment, one that made me happy, at least until I realized what I was doing.
“You know I don’t like it when you do that,” I said frustratedly as I turned away from her.
“Maybe it’s because you love me,” she teased, my expression becoming harder because of it. There were another few moments of silence before she realized I was being serious when I told her I didn’t like it, and I heard her voice drop in disappointment as she apologized.
“I’m sorry, but it’s true,” I told her, still facing away from her. “It’s frustrating when you do it because I can’t help but say it back to you. I know I love you, but I also know that I absolutely hate you for this, and you telling me you love me doesn’t help me sort myself out. It makes it worse.”
“I’m sorry,” she apologized again as she leaned over to place her head on my shoulder. “I know you don’t like it, but I don’t like feeling like you hate me when it’s really… I just- I promise it’s not my fault you’re like this, and I promise I don’t like seeing you like this either. I like seeing you smile when you tell me you love me back.” She paused, then continued, “I don’t know if this makes you feel better, but I feel like your anger towards me is lessening every day. I feel like you’re getting better…”
“I feel like I’m losing myself…” I responded quietly, then stood up from my seat. “I’m going back to bed. Can you take care of all this while I’m gone?”
“Of course. It won’t be any trouble.”
“Good. Thank you. I’ll be back… whenever…” I told her as I trotted away.
“Before you go, Alex?” I turned back to watch her say brightly, “I love you.”
I bared my teeth and growled angrily at her as I went back to my room.
“Alex, wait!” she suddenly called urgently. I didn’t stop to see what she wanted, continuing to stomp right back to bed before she teleported in front of me.
“Alex, I- I’m sorry,” she told me, avoiding my eyes. “I don’t want to make you angry. I won’t tell you I love you any more if you don't want me to, since you don’t like it. I just- please promise me you’ll tell me you love me on your own one day. Please?”
“You know I can’t promise that, Hope.”
“If you do, you’ll tell me though, right? I mean, I know you do, Sombra does, but when you stop being angry with me, right? I don’t want you to see you like this all the time.”
“Hope-”
“I’m sorry,” she suddenly said, changing her mind. “Never mind. I don’t mean to pressure you. It’s just- it hurts because I know you do, or at least did before you went and… did this to yourself…”
“Trust me when I say it’s absolutely killing me,” I told her. “You know I absolutely love you, but this other inhabitant… it’s absolutely killing me, and it’s your fault and because of it, I can’t help but blame you and hate you, too.”
“Alex?” Hope said quietly next to me, putting a hoof in my mane. “I didn’t mean to wake you up, but there are some ponies here to see you… I would’ve told them to leave, but you’ve been asleep nearly all morning.”
“Mmrpf,” was all I managed to say groggily as I sat up, using my hooves to rub my eyes, yawning loudly. “What time is it? I didn’t think I’d be asleep so long…”
I watched her open her mouth to answer, however, she was interrupted by a pony calling out through the door in a gentle voice, “Alex? Are you there? I haven’t gotten to see you in a long time…”
“Fluttershy!” I automatically called to her eagerly, practically yelling as I quickly made my way out of bed to open the door, nuzzling her nose happily and placing my cheek against hers, hearing her giggle as I did so.
“Alex!” she responded back to me happily as I pulled her into a hug a moment later. “I’m sorry it’s been so long,” she apologized once I broke away from her, still smiling however. “I wanted to come and see you sooner, but I’ve just been so caught up at Twilight’s school. I hope you can forgive me.”
“It’s no trouble. I don’t want you to stop doing what’s important to you because of me,” I replied.
“How are you doing?” she asked me. “Are you feeling any better?”
“In some ways, yes, and in other ways, I feel like I’m getting worse… but I really don’t want to ruin your mood with that. You have such a nice smile, and I don’t want to see you lose that.”
I laughed a bit as she chuckled at what I said, then took a step away from her, my smile dropping as I greeted her companions. “Hello, Starlight,” I said politely to receive her awkward smile and wave. “Twilight,” I greeted the purple alicorn, more indifferently, she simply looking at the ground. My lack of a smile turned into a full on scowl at the other four, in particular, Applejack. I made sure to keep eye contact with her in particular as I intentionally said, “You three.”
“Don’t mind us,” Starlight spoke for them, nervously chuckling. “We’re just here to make sure everything goes… well. Or, as well as it can go, given the circumstances… but anyway! How are you? I mean, I ask cause I haven’t gotten to meet you in person and-”
“I’m doing well, thank you very much,” I interrupted. “Is there something in particular you were wanting? Because if it’s all the same to you, I haven’t seen Fluttershy in a long while, and would rather just enjoy her company for now.”
“Well, Twilight and I were actually thinking that you could have lunch with us and the girls and-”
“If it’s ‘us and the girls’ anything, it’s going to be a hard no from me,” I told her immediately. “As you’ve likely been told, I can’t say I particularly like those four, and would rather not interact with them if it’s not necessary.”
“Well, um,” Twilight started timidly, “we were just thinking we could discuss this whole… Cadance situation with you and-”
“What’s there to discuss?” I asked. “She’s going on trial for treason and crimes against pony kind. Anything that needs to be said will be said tonight.”
Starlight grimaced and Twilight flinched at that, the former starting, “What if it’s just you, Twilight and I? I know it’s really late and probably should’ve spoken with you sooner about this, but we really think it’s worth talking about. Plus, like I said, I haven’t actually gotten to meet you and wanna take the opportunity to get to know you.”
She smiled brightly when she finished, and I squinted back at her, considering for a second her offer before saying, “If you insist.” I really only took up her offer because I didn’t have anything against her in particular, as well as the fact that she was one of the characters I liked better when I watched the show.
“If you’d like to lead the way down to the dining hall? I’m sure you know where it’s at, Starlight… Hope? Fluttershy? Will either of you be joining us?”
“I’ll catch up later,” the former answered. “There are still ponies waiting on me to get back to the throne room.”
“Fluttershy?”
“I wouldn’t miss the opportunity,” she told me kindly, bringing a smile back to my face.
It wasn’t long before the four of us were sitting down, everypony settling into seats across from each other. I still had memories from the first time I was here, effectively as a prisoner, suffering under Celestia’s rage. But now, it was much more peaceful, Starlight and Fluttershy even wearing smiles as we sat and had our food brought to us. There was bright sunshine making its way through the windows, illuminating the room as we ate, and I couldn’t help but look outside to take it in, imagining that Celestia was watching us, watching me in particular.
“Is this what you wanted?” I silently asked her as though she could hear me. “For you and I to be in these positions? If you would have just helped me to begin with, then maybe…”
“So… you and Hope, huh?” Starlight started nonchalantly, chuckling a bit as she spoke. “I have to say, you two look like quite the pair to me. You gonna end up marrying her?”
I looked away from her and scowled, surprised by the question, blushing a bit from embarrassment. Of course, the answer was an undeniable yes. As well as absolutely not. I preferred to not think about it if I could help it, but just the fact that she ruled alongside me made the question always there at all times.
“It’s complicated,” I muttered, looking down at the table.
“Well, just from what I could see when I peeked in,” she continued, not reading the fact that I didn’t want to talk about it, “it looks like you two share the same bed, not to mention, don’t you two rule together? I bet she’s just waiting for you to ask her to be your wife.”
“I’m sure she is…” I trailed off, rolling my eyes, trying to make it clear that I didn’t want to talk to her about it, a tad shocked that she was talking to me as though I were any other pony and not the either scary ruler, frightening monster, or weird creature almost everyone else saw.
“Speaking of which, how is ruling Equestria?” Starlight continued as though talking to a friend. “Is it all it’s cracked up to be?”
“It’s just about what I’d expected,” I responded quickly, “and what I’m sure nopony else expected, seeing as all they’re all fearful of me. Not that I really expected anything else from them… I’m sure Twilight’s told you all about me already.”
“I’ll admit, she did,” Starlight confirmed, her smile dropping off into a look of sadness. “It sounds rough honestly… I wish there were something I could do to help you…”
“I can say I distinctly remember thinking about the fact that you could help me if you were there during my short imprisonment. I’m almost sure with as good as you are, you would’ve figured out the mess I created for myself in no time and none of us would be in the positions we are now.”
“Oh, I’m not so sure about that,” she replied bashfully. “Not that I wouldn’t have done what I could, but I think you’re overestimating me.”
“I don’t think I am,” I answered back, thinking about the fact that I watched her fight Twilight to a standstill in the TV show. “But that’s all in the past now. Nothing we can really do about it, honestly… I’ll just be a monsterish mess of a pony for the rest of my days…”
“You’re not a monsterish mess of a pony, you’re just…”
“I just feel as though I’ve both always been Sombra and always been Alex at all times, to the point where I can’t even tell Hope that I love her when I do, because it makes me hate her that much more.”
"Oh, I'm sorry," Fluttershy told me sympathetically. "That sounds terrible..."
“That… sounds like a split personality… am I right in saying that?” she asked. “That you’re dealing with two personalities?”
I finally looked back up at her and responded, “Yes, exactly that. Both parts of me are equally as dominant as each other.”
“I think I have a spell for something like that… or if not, maybe I could make one…” she said thoughtfully, looking up to the ceiling as she placed a hoof on her chin. “Although, if you and Sombra are both equals, neither of you would ever consent to having a spell like that used on you because neither one of you would want to be destroyed… I mean, even if it’s just one body, it sounds like they’re still two ponies in there from what I'm hearing.”
“Perhaps more like one and a half ponies, but you’re absolutely right,” I confirmed. “Neither part of me would ever let a spell like that be used on me… but if you’d look into it anyway, I’d greatly appreciate it. See what you could come up with, if anything?”
“I’ll certainly try,” she told me, leaving a moment of silence hanging in the air afterward as she frowned nervously. “But now, if it’s okay with you, Twilight and I would like to talk to you about this whole… Cadance business…”
“And what is it exactly you want to tell me about her?” I asked flatly, noticing Fluttershy looking at them with interest, curious about what they had to say.
“Well, Twilight and I just think… it’s just that… why don’t you do the talking, Twi?”
All three of our gazes turned to her as she swallowed anxiously, looking like she wanted to shrink away from the conversation.
“Well, I- we just think that… and we know it’s only a few hours away, but… we, I mean, Starlight and I, we think that it would be better if… you didn’t… have a trial for her…”
I stared at her, waiting for her to continue, and after a few moments of nothing being said, responded simply, “That’s not an option.”
“We’re not saying that she shouldn’t be punished,” Starlight broke in, “we just think that this whole trial thing is… unnecessary. I mean, you’re the ruler of Equestria for crying out loud! You could just hand out your judgment on her without one!”
“I could hand out judgment privately, I understand that, but I won’t. All of Equestria will know what she did and what she was planning during those days. I’ll make sure of it.”
“But is that really necessary?” the alicorn asked, chuckling nervously. “What’s- what’s the point of that? There’s none that I can see, honestly.”
I bit my lip and gave them a look, asking, “What isn’t the point? Tell me exactly why you think there shouldn’t be one.”
“It’s not anything, really. We’re just…”
“We’re concerned about... ponies' faith in the leaders of Equestria… and what will happen if all of this gets out… at its full extent… all those... details...”
“You both know that what happened is already out there, circulating through the public, correct?”
“Yeah but… what’s circulating through ponies circles are just rumors right now. Having ponies like Princess Luna and Twilight and Fluttershy going up to the stand and confirming those rumors won’t… be good for us, good for Equestria, in our opinion…”
“Not to mention, what happened with Princess Celestia…” Twilight added.
“Oh, it’s going out there,” I told them, an edge working its way into my voice. “Ponies will know, that much I can assure you. I’m not going to let them continue to believe that I-”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea…” Fluttershy quietly said.
“What?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt, but… I just… I think Twilight and Starlight… I don’t want to see my friends have to…”
“Fluttershy…” I spoke to her quietly, “you know those ponies out there are scared of me, right? They’re afraid of me. They think that I killed Celestia. It’s not fair to me to leave the truth untold. More than that, they deserve to know.”
“I know, I’m sorry. I just- I don’t want them to get in trouble. I don’t want ponies to… to hate them… to hate my friends. When they hear about what… what they were going to do when… when you...”
“If you don’t want that to happen, I won’t let that happen. As far as Luna told me, they were being manipulated by Celestia, who in turn was being manipulated by Cadance. We can even leave that part out entirely if you want.”
“Really? You won’t mind? Promise?”
“I promise. What I care about most is them knowing what Cadance did. Everything else is secondary to that for me.”
“Oh, thank you, Alex!” the pegasus told me happily, smiling as she used her cheek to rub mine. “You’re the greatest!” I smiled back for a moment, although made sure to notice the relief in Twilight’s eyes at what I said.
“Only for you, Fluttershy, I am,” I replied, thinking to myself, “I hope those five have the courtesy to thank you.”
Hope grumbled in annoyance as she watched Alex and Fluttershy walk off. She couldn’t understand what he saw in her. Well, actually, she could, at least a little bit, but not really. Sure, she saved him, and both Hope and Alex appreciated that, but… was there any reason to be so excessively happy whenever she was around? Hope didn’t think so. Not that she was jealous. She just didn’t like it was all, and might have wished the pegasus would come around even more scarcely than she already did, and found herself frowning whenever she was around.
Okay, maybe she was a little jealous.
But it wasn’t really Fluttershy per se. As far as Hope could tell, the yellow mare was already paired up with Discord in terms of partners. She just wished her own partner, at least, one part of her partner, wouldn’t be so… distant from her. She wished Alex… or, at least, the Alex part of Sombra, would be as happy to see her as he was to see Fluttershy. Or maybe didn’t just hate her. That was the worst part. It was all Sombra she figured to herself, so it was really Sombra hating her, which made it worse, and made her feel terrible. Not that he wasn’t getting better with time, but it was just going so slowly, and she almost knew that some part of him would hold it against her forever.
Why did he have to go and tear that string apart? Why did he have to do this to himself? Maybe if her magic were just a little bit stronger, she could have fixed him like she was supposed to…
No. This wasn’t her fault. It wasn’t Sombra’s fault, or Alex’s fault, and it certainly wasn’t Fluttershy’s fault. She knew whose fault it was, and that pony would get what was coming to them soon, in just a few hours. Hope had the perfect plan all lined up and ready to go. She and Sombra would’ve gotten to the same point they were at now, ruling Equestria with her plan, but that dumb princess had to just stroll in and ruin everything.
Hope grumbled again, frowning as she made her way back into the throne room, helping to answer ponies questions as she waited for her friend to come back. She debated whether she should take the issue up with him, but ultimately decided not to. She already spoke earlier that morning and didn’t really want to make him angry again with that discussion, at least not today. Besides, the two of them at least got to share a bed, so it wasn’t really that bad on her end, even if it did grate on her more than a little bit.
She took the opportunity to clear her mind before the evening, spending the next while waiting for Sombra by going through ponies requests and questions. There weren’t too many, just a couple of ponies entering the court every so often, but she still did find it nice to speak to them, and did sometimes get a few interesting comments from them afterwards.
“You know,” one pony said to her after she thanked them for coming to see her, “you’re much easier to speak to than Princess Celestia was. She could sometimes be a bit unrelenting…” They looked around nervously immediately after they said that, as though they said something wrong, and quickly added, “Not that she’s not a great princess, she is-”
“It’s okay, I understand,” the unicorn replied gently, happily. “I appreciate the compliment.”
“Actually, speaking of which, when will Princess Celestia be returning…?”
“I can’t say I have an answer to that,” Hope responded. “That might be a question you take up with Princess Luna, or Sombra when he returns, if you’re willing to wait a little while.”
“I- I see,” the pony answered, their ears lowering against their head as they cowered a bit, taking a step back away from her. “I don’t- it’s really not important enough to wait around for. I’ll just be heading out now…” With that, they quickly exited, leaving Hope all alone again.
It was mostly a lie that she told the pony. She knew the answer was probably never, at least not while she and Alex were living. Although she knew her friend toyed with the idea of bringing her back, she also knew he wouldn’t actually do it. At least, she didn’t think he actually would. She would be very surprised if he did, considering how he felt about her.
It was just as well too. From her perspective, or at least, from what she heard, the streets of Equestria were much better, with no new villains popping up or major crimes reported. Of course, she knew the bulk of that was simply due to the fact that both of her counterparts, and Sombra in particular, were seen as downright frightful to the point where ponies almost feared stepping out of line, but it was still nice to hear ponies occasionally talk about anyway. It made her smile and feel like she was actually doing something.
It was just a few minutes after the pony left when Alex returned, thankfully without Fluttershy, a look of concentration on his face as he seemed to be thinking something over.
“How was lunch with them?” Hope asked as he took the seat next to her. “You look like you’re thinking about something. What did they want to talk to you about?”
“Just Twilight looking out for herself and her friends,” he answered, staring ahead. “They don’t want me to mention their part in…” He trailed off, looking around for a few seconds before using a hoof to point at himself and continuing, “This. They want me to leave it out of the trial under the guise that ponies won’t have faith in the leaders of Equestria afterwards.”
“That’s funny,” she laughed. “I just had somepony tell me that I was better at ruling than Celestia was. Are you going to do what they asked?”
"I was going to just say no, but it was mostly Starlight asking, and Fluttershy also mentioned that she didn’t want to see them look bad to other ponies.”
“Ah, okay, that makes sense,” Hope responded calmly, inwardly rolling her eyes. “Was there anything else? Or did they only want to see you to ask about that?”
“They did ask about me and you, Starlight mentioning that we should get married… oh, I do have to actually ask you something. I’m having Starlight look into trying to do something about Sombra and I. How would you feel if I were able to get rid of one part of me completely? I told her I wouldn’t ever agree to something like that, but I want to hear what you think anyway.”
"I’m… not sure if it’s a good idea to go messing around your head. I mean, you already did that before, and look at you now. Messing around more is just going to make things worse, especially since I really do think you’re getting better. I mean, at this point, just trying to remove one personality would be almost impossible just because they’re so mixed, at least from what I can tell. You’d just be risking hurting yourself more…”
While she told him those things, in her heart, she wanted him to try it. She wanted Sombra back, her Sombra. Or, at least, she wanted Alex to love her like Sombra did. She didn’t like the fact that he was able to just so casually bring up Starlight mentioning them getting married like he didn’t even care, as though he were talking to an acquaintance. It made her feel awful, but she forced herself to hide it.
“That’s what I thought,” Alex told her, “but I asked her to check into it anyway, just to see if anything can be done… but that was it. The main bulk of the conversation was about Cadance.”
“Well, I can say that I’m glad that she’s getting what she deserves.”
“As can I,” the stallion agreed, “although I don’t want you to end up being surprised, so I’m going to tell you now that I’ll be pardoning her.”
“Wait, what?” she asked, completely confused, wearing a look of shock on her face before frowning and scowling. “Why are you pardoning her?” she asked, sounding a bit angry.
“Because I want her to be ashamed of herself. I want all of Equestria to know what she did so that it’s always what they think of when she’s out and about. I want her face to burn red with shame wherever she goes. I want her family and friends to never look at her the same because of what she did to me, and to them as well.”
Hope thought about the idea of that for a moment, replying, “I guess that’s a punishment… although if it were up to me, I’d keep her imprisoned in the castle, locked in the dungeon forever… but I’ll do whatever you want to do.”
“I appreciate that, Hope. Thank you.” He let out a yawn and stretched a bit, saying, “It’s almost two o’clock. Almost time for her judgement…” He got up from his seat again, telling her, “I’m going to start preparing for the trial. I’ll see you soon.”
Cadance looked absolutely furious as I watched her be led in by two guards. She had a magic blocking ring on her horn, a harness strapped to her wings, chains around her hooves, and a seething look on her face that I loved. I had to admit, I expected her to have her head hanging low as she entered with a few tears rolling down her face, but seeing her almost growling in anger was just as good I figured. Regardless, the effect I wanted to have on her was happening.
Luna, Hope, and I sat in the throne room in front of a very large gathering of ponies as she was led in, more than I had anticipated. From what I could see, it was mostly nobles and rich ponies from Canterlot among us, although there were some crystal ponies there, as well as a smattering of other creatures. Although most of the ponies there looked uncomfortable, the ponies from the Crystal Empire in particular seemed terrified because of me. Not that it was a surprise, but it did make me frown to see. I debated for a second whether I should try and do something about it, before deciding that those were thoughts for later. Right now, they were here for a trial, and a trial was what they would see.
Cadance didn’t say anything as she came in, taking her seat angrily as the crowd gazed at her and whispered to themselves. I found her glaring at the three of us, locking eyes with me in particular, and I made sure to stare back, my expression scowling and unchanging as I did so. It was a few seconds that we locked eyes before Luna spoke, the whispers ending as she did so.
“Princess Mi Amore Cadenza,” the blue alicorn spoke loudly, forcefully, “You are hereby being formally charged by the Nation of Equestria with treason, attempted murder, and crimes against ponykind. How will you plead?”
She coughed to clear her throat, angrily growling out, “Not guilty.” It was what I expected her to say, though we did plan for what we would do in case she opted to say she was guilty. There was a whole different list of questions planned exclusively for her had that been the case and it would've been the easier route to go down had she chosen that. However, it wasn't the case, and Luna continued as we had planned in this scenario.
“Then we will hear your testimony, as well as those of the ponies who’ve accused you and bore witness to your actions. Twilight Sparkle, if you’ll start us off, please?”
I watched Twilight frown and look down at her hooves as she stood up, making her way over to a makeshift stand that was set up just before. She occasionally glanced at Cadance as she did so, seeming like she wanted to be anywhere else but there right then.
“Ah, um, what- what do you- what do I say…?” she asked Princess Luna anxiously, still staring at Cadance nervously as she did so, a bit sad from what I could tell.
“We will start with the day in question, the day Sombra reappeared in the Crystal Empire,” she told her. “What were you doing in the Crystal Empire to begin with? Why were you there?”
“Well, um, she- she invited me there,” Twilight explained. “She told me that she wanted to see some unexplored parts of the castle with me, and to try and open Sombra’s study there.”
“And you were the first pony who saw him in there when it was opened, correct?”
“Um, yes, I- I did…”
"And was it you who opened it, or her?"
"It, um..." She took a breath, swallowed, then finished, "It was me."
I could tell Cadance could already see where this was going, and from what I saw, it looked like she wanted to interrupt. However, I knew she knew how that would look, and kept silent.
“Sombra,” Hope whispered as Luna and Twilight continued. I lowered my ear down to her, and she asked, “Do you think she should speak at all?”
“Yes, but why do you ask?”
“Well, what if she tries to tell lies? She could say something like you have all of us under your control or that you forced us against her, or that this was also your plan as well, and that’s why this is happening. She could make ponies not trust you.”
“They already don’t trust me,” I answered back, “so there’s nothing for me to lose. The way I see it, I’m making her look like a fool and gaining their trust as well. Besides, I have a couple of those in the crowd that’ll come up to speak as well. Now to mention the fact that I'm still looking for a way to get out what isn't said here to the public afterward.”
“Well… I really don’t think it’s a good idea to let her talk. I really think she could try and spin this against you, against us both. That’s just how I feel about it.”
“I understand, but I promise it won’t be an issue. They trust you, and Luna, and Shining Armor, and the Element Bearers, so as long as they back up what I’m saying, there shouldn’t be an issue.”
“Okay, if you say so,” she responded simply, sounding a bit unsure. “I’ll trust you…”
We both looked back at Cadance, still scowling as she stared directly at us, watching as we whispered before we all turned our attention back on what Princess Luna and Twilight were saying.
“I mean, sure she was upset, but… considering Sombra’s…” My ears perked up at that, and I automatically shot a look Twilight’s way, causing her to start fumbling over her words.
“I- ah, what- um, I mean- I, uh… I mean, considering the circumstances… or, I meant, the previous history we had during encounters with him, umm… it’s not… that weird that she would be… angry… I’m sorry…”
“But she was angry?” Luna asked.
“Umm, yes, more than…” She gave a look to the pink alicorn, then continued, “More than anypony else there was, but not more than Celestia was… if- if that means anything…”
“We understand Twilight,” the princess told her. “We do have one more question, however. Do you believe that Cadance would do something like this? That she is capable of the charges brought upon her?”
“Why is she asking that?” I whispered to Hope as I watched Twilight’s face become even more anxious as she shuffled her hooves and moved around a bit, turning nervously back to Cadance again.
“I don’t know,” Hope whispered back to me, now frowning like I was because of her question. “It’s not something she should be asking, unless she’s expecting Twilight to say yes.”
“You don’t think she would be trying to- wait, Twilight’s speaking.”
We watched her sigh, answering, “I- I don’t know. I really, really don’t want to believe that this all happened because of her…” I gave Luna a glare at Twilight’s answer for her question, resisting the urge to bare my teeth at her as I saw a tiny grin trying to creep onto Cadance’s face before the purple pony continued, “But even though I don’t want to believe she would do something like this… even though I don't want this to be true, I- I know it happened… I’m sorry Cadance…”
“What exactly were you doing?” I asked angrily as Luna, Hope, and I stepped outside in the sun, taking a brief recess after hearing from Twilight, Shining Armor, and some of the others. We were alone in the Royal Garden, the sun still in the middle of the sky, Luna preparing to lower it in a couple of hours after the trial had concluded.
“With what exactly?” she asked back calmly. “Who’s testimony are you referring to?”
“With Twilight! Why did you ask if she thought Cadance would do that? That’s obviously a terrible question to be asking!”
“I asked it to have Equestria see that, without a shadow of a doubt, Cadance is guilty of the charges brought against her. It was to show that our accusations against her are not baseless.”
“And what if she answered no?” I asked. “What if the pony who was expected to be Celestia’s heir, the pony who’s both an alicorn and an Element of Harmony doubted that she could do that? She’d be effectively saying she doesn’t even believe us. It’d be undermining our authority and straining whatever little bit of trust I’ve somehow managed to build up with these ponies. Why would you ever even consider risking our position? My position?”
“You forget that we’re already risking our positions by having this trial in the first place," she explained. "Ponies might already be assuming that we’re doing this out of maliciousness, which we are, based on what you’ve described to me. As well, we cannot ignore the fact that, despite our current statuses in Equestria, our subjects don’t hold us in particularly high regard already, seeing my past sins and yours as well.”
“Those aren’t my sins, those are Sombra’s,” I told her, resisting the urge to add in the fact that I thought most of the ponies I "wronged" deserved it anyway. “And that doesn’t make it okay to-”
“I understand,” she interrupted, turning away and starting to walk into another section of the garden, “but I assure you I understand what I’m dealing with. I’ve ruled Equestria alongside my sister for centuries before. Even if she were to have answered no, it would not have been ‘the end of the world’ as it were. Not that she would have, of course, seeing as I discussed with Twilight what her answer would be beforehoof.”
I stared at her for a second as she continued walking before I frowned, realizing I wasn’t exactly putting my faith in her like I should’ve been. To be fair, up to that point, almost nopony had earned my trust and I deserved to be suspicious of them, but I did have to give them at least a little bit of credit if I was going to get anywhere with anyone.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized, the tone leaving my voice. “You’re right. I should be placing more faith in you than I am. I didn’t mean to get angry.”
“It’s quite alright, Alex” she called back respectfully, coming back over to me. “As I’ve said before, I’ve ruled alongside my sister for hundreds of years before. I assure you, we’ve had our fair share of quarrels during that time, it is nothing new for me. I’ll be heading off for now though. I would like to enjoy the rest of the garden before we head back if I can. There is still a lot left to get to tonight.”
“I understand. I’ll see about being back inside in half an hour.”
With that, the two of us parted ways, Hope staying beside me as I walked in another direction.
“I’d still be leery of her,” she whispered quietly as we walked. “I know I’ve said this before, but I still don’t think there’s anypony we can trust besides each other. She could’ve easily used the answer Twilight gave as an opportunity to have you removed.”
“That’s not true,” I responded. “We can trust Fluttershy. Besides, why would she have us removed after we’ve been ruling for ten months already? We’re not really in a position to just pick who we want to have faith in, especially when, before this, there haven't been any issues to come up.”
“I know that, but you’ve been too trusting and forgiving before, Sombra,” she continued. “It hasn’t ended well when you’ve been like that, when you’ve been lenient, which, by the way, is another reason you shouldn’t pardon Cadance in my opinion.”
“With Cadance, I’m proving a point, and making her look like a fool,” I told her. “I should be at home with my family and friends, but am not because of her, and I want her to face the scorn of everypony because of her actions. Also, there is such a thing as being too harsh and too untrusting. What we’re doing, ruling over Equestria, isn’t just a two pony show.”
“I know,” she sighed, stepping a bit closer to me. “I’m just saying to be cautious is all, and maybe ask Twilight if Luna spoke to her before the trial about that question. I just don’t… I don’t want to see what happened to you before happen again. You already know how ruthless these ponies can be, and I don’t… want to see you get hurt…” She turned away once she finished, rubbing the back of one hoof with the other.
“I know,” I told her, subconsciously moving up to nuzzle her. “You're right. I know I need to be careful. There’s no way I’ll ever be able to forget the fact that their first reaction to anything I do is to kill me. I’ll be careful about these ponies' motives. I'll follow your advice, and I know you'll also be there to see if there's anything I'm overlooking.”
With that, we began to walk around the garden again, taking some time to enjoy the view. As we walked, I was able to feel the sun beating down on us, feeling a little bit more intense than usual as it did so.
“I wonder if this is just a coincidence or if it’s Celestia,” I silently thought, squinting as I looked towards the sky a bit. “I wonder if she can see us now… would she approve of what we’re doing today, or be furious that we’re making a fool of one of her apprentices? I mean, it is partially Cadance's fault about what happened to her...”
“Do you think I should ever bring her back?” I asked suddenly as I stopped walking, standing in place.
“What? Who?”
“There are moments when I think I should,” I continued as I stared upwards, avoiding looking at the sun directly, “and then there are other times where I convince myself that she should be banished for as long as we live.”
“Oh, her,” she responded, realizing who I was talking about. “You already know what I have to say about it.”
“I know. It doesn’t even make sense to bring her back so soon. She banished me and Luna for one thousand years each, and had Discord imprisoned in stone for just that long as well. It’s only fair that she gets that long as well. But still, I want her to apologize to me and realize that what she did was wrong. That’s how this show is supposed to be. One big happy ending, one where I don't have to doubt anypony's motives or wonder if they're going behind my back, or get unjust punishments for retaliating against their maliciousness against me. One where I don't have to just stand here and suffer because of what they did to me...”
“I wish it were one big happy ending, too…” she whispered back.
“Hopefully Starlight can at least do something to help me. This is absolutely killing me…” Hope didn’t answer, opting to stay silent as she looked to the sky, standing next to me as she did so. Honestly, with each passing day, I felt like I was losing myself more, starting to edge to the point where I was considering that maybe just having Starlight wipe my mind completely would be a good idea, if she were willing to.
“I guess we should head back in,” I said after a long while. “It’s been long enough. Let’s get back to dealing with that witch.”
“We will hear you now, Cadance, and give you this opportunity to explain yourself,” Luna announced once we’d gone through everypony’s accounts of what happened, one particular noble, Fancy Pants, making his way back to his spot as she spoke.
The pink alicorn stared silently forward for a long moment while Luna, Hope, and I kept our eyes on her, waiting to see what she had to say. I felt as though the crowd took a collective breath as they watched to see what would happen, Cadance herself giving us a scowl back as we watched her. I was very curious to see what she would come up with to try to defend herself, and eagerly awaited her counter against us.
“I… don’t have a counterargument against those claims,” she finally announced after a long period of silence. We stared at her, waiting for her to continue, but only watched as she continued to sit in silence, waiting for us.
“And yet?” I asked, finally speaking for the first time during the whole trial.
“And yet I still maintain my innocence against these charges,” she responded flatly, almost aggressively.
“On what basis?” Princess Luna asked.
“On the basis that I was consorting with King Sombra at the time,” she explained. “I was operating directly under the orders of King Sombra, and therefore, since he’s the ruler of Equestria, I cannot be guilty of any crime since I was following his orders.”
“Are you saying that Fluttershy is bearing false witness when she claims that you specifically said that this was your plan?”
“I can’t say whether she intentionally lied or if she was simply mistaken,” I watched Cadance lie, “but this isn’t a plan that I made or even one we both came up with. This was wholly King Sombra’s plan.”
I expected her to say something like that, and yet it still ground on me that she did. She was trying to say that because I was Sombra it was my fault that she did what she did, and was trying to tell lies while she said that. However, Luna and I had already discussed what she would say in that case.
“I see…” Luna trailed off, before continuing, “Regardless, whether or not this was Sombra’s plan, this pony who rules over Equestria is hardly the same pony at all who would have made such arrangements with you, similar to the Sombra you speak of in appearance only. However, you and I, along with every pony in this room, know that what you’re claiming is false. This was wholly and completely your plan, your intention being to banish Princess Celestia and remove myself and the Element Bearers from our positions to rule over Equestria yourself. Do you refute this?”
Cadance continued to scowl, not looking particularly nervous, but still seeming absolutely angry. She was being painted into a corner, and as she turned her head, she could see the ponies staring at her, waiting for her response.
“What’s going on here,” she started carefully, looking around at the common ponies in the room, “is you’re trying to make an example out of me. There’s no way for me to refute your claims because you three are already against me. You’ve already made up your minds that you’ll convict me, and you're planning to send me to Tartarus for who knows how long.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” I replied simply, but she continued.
“This was Sombra’s plan,” she said. “It was for him to end up in this position with you and her ruling with him. It makes sense really, seeing as you’re Nightmare Moon and he previously enslaved the Crystal Empire. You’ve taken control of Equestria and now nopony is standing in your way.”
“If that’s the case,” Luna asked, “then why have we not enslaved everypony? If this is the very Sombra who took over the Crystal Empire as you say, if I am the Nightmare Moon you claim that I am, then why has there not been any enslavement of ponies? Why does the sun still rise in the sky every day? Why would we hold a trial for you at all and let you speak if that were the case? It seems to us that you are trying to deflect your actions onto others, as well as create mistrust between the ponies of Equestria and their rulers.”
“Then why haven’t you brought Celestia back?” she asked, a slight air of superiority in her voice, sounding like she was challenging her. “If this is all my fault and you truly only have good intentions, why hasn’t Princess Celestia been brought back?”
“This is not about my sister,” Luna answered threateningly.
“Is it because you know she’d disapprove of you ruling Equestria and not either Twilight or I, her pupils?”
“We will not be discussing my-” Luna started as stood up, pointing her hoof at her before I interrupted.
“Celestia will be brought back to Equestria within one year’s time,” I announced automatically, “seeing as it was your actions that caused her to act out, and it was your intention for her to be banished so that you could rule Equestria alone.”
I couldn’t say exactly why I answered the way I did, but I did know that part of me didn’t like continuously deliberating between bringing her back and letting her stay away forever. I would force her to apologize to me at that time, and announcing it like this would make sure everypony was able to see her then. She would have nowhere to hide once that time came.
“Actually,” I added, “call it fourteen months. Make it exactly two years after your crimes started. We’ll determine an exact day for it to happen.”
“All of you are really going to let these three get away with this?” Cadance asked, now turning around to the ponies behind her, speaking to the nobles in Canterlot. “If they can step in and take control of Equestria, what’s stopping anypony else? I’m certain that they won’t bring Celestia back to rule, and even if they did, her position would be limited.”
“She was headed into retirement, as you recall, Cadance, when she made the very public announcement,” Luna told her. “She and I should both be enjoying retirement, however, because of your interference, she was unable to do that.”
“Then why isn’t Twilight ruling instead of you three? Wasn’t she meant to be her successor?”
“I- I can’t,” Twilight answered quietly, looking at her hooves. “I wouldn’t- I couldn’t handle the pressure. I almost… I… and I wouldn’t be able to be with my friends if I stayed in Canterlot…”
“Everypony here knows that’s not true,” she tried to say as she turned back to the crowd. “You all know she was told to say that. And now they’re going to send me to Tartarus to silence me. This trial is rigged against me. My judges are the same as my jury, and they’re already out to keep me away so they can stay in power. All of you that saw me here know I was only here to make sure that somepony was still in charge of Equestria, seeing as the rulers were incapacitated at that time. You all know that, and so do they.”
“Was there anything else you wanted to say?” Luna asked flatly, frowning as she did so.
“It won’t make a bit of difference,” she answered, “so no. All I can say is that everypony around me knows what I said, and knows that what you’re doing to me is unjust.”
“Well then, I am sure with your testimony, as well as those of the witnesses who spoke, our verdict shall be fairly obvious. Alex, will you do the honors?”
I didn’t waste any time, quickly telling her and the room, “Princess Mi Amore Candeza, we the rulers of Equestria find you guilty of all of the charges brought against you-”
“Of course you do,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“-however, I have decided that you’ll be pardoned of your crimes against me as well your husband under the condition that you formally acknowledge the crimes you’ve committed and apologize to me, Shining Armor, and the rest of Equestria for what you’ve done to us.”
The whole room was silent for what seemed like forever after my statement. I made sure to keep my gaze fixed on the pink alicorn the whole time, Luna and Hope staring at her along with me, the former only giving me a brief glance of uncertainty. Cadance returned our looks with one of her own, trying unsuccessfully to keep her face free of the shock I could tell she felt. The ponies behind her however didn’t attempt to hide their surprise, many of them leaving their mouths gaping open, along with Twilight Sparkle and her friends.
“Is this a trick?” the former princess finally asked after a very long moment, her voice cracking badly as she spoke.
“No trick,” I responded flatly, shaking my head. “Admit your guilt and apologize, and you’ll be formally pardoned. Or maybe, having your sentence commuted would be a better way to say it, seeing as there will be other conditions.”
Another long second passed as she continued to stare back at me, completely surprised and confused. I’m certain it was the last thing she or any pony else expected, and she started to fumble over her words because of it after the silence passed.
“I- no, I- I’m not- no. I’m not guilty. I stand by what I said. I am not guilty.”
“You absolutely are guilty, Cadance,” Luna chimed in, speaking with authority. “Everypony here can see it, and you have essentially already confessed with the words you spoke in defense of your actions. And now, even after your crimes, you are being offered leniency you do not deserve. It would be wise of you to accept it and admit your guilt.”
“So this is what the rulers of Equestria do?” she accused, attempting to point a hoof at us but being stopped by her chains. “Harass their subjects into saying they’re guilty when they’re not? Send them to Tartarus if they don't?”
“You’re not being forced or harassed into anything,” I replied coldly. “You have the option to decline what we’re offering, although you should know this isn’t an offer you’ll be allowed to sit on. As Luna said, you’re being offered leniency you don’t deserve, leniency that I’m sure even Celestia wouldn’t grant to you after what you’ve done.”
She put her scowl back on and growled at us, eventually baring her teeth as her hooves shook furiously. She clearly realized exactly what we were doing, what I was doing, and didn’t like it one bit. She looked at the ground after a little while and shook her mane to the side out of her face, trying to consider whether it would be better to be sent to Tartarus or to be free and humiliated in front of everypony even more than she already was. From her expression, it seemed like she was strongly considering the former.
“What are the conditions?” she asked through gritted teeth, now choosing to keep her eyes on her hooves.
I moved to answer, but as I opened my mouth to speak, Luna broke in, “Those will be made clear after you apologize for your actions.”
The answer looked like it made Cadance absolutely angry, her face almost twisted as she growled again, the crowd taking a step back, away from her. She looked like she wanted to stomp her hooves and break the podium she stood in front of in half, and I definitely enjoyed seeing her frustration.
“I…” Cadance started before growling again. “I hate you so much…”
“You hate me for offering you mercy? Mercy that wasn’t afforded to me? To Tirek? To Luna, or Discord, or Celestia, or Cozy Glow? You’re the only pony in all of Equestria who is being offered to go effectively unpunished for their actions, and all we’re asking for is that you apologize to us and admit to your crimes.”
I was definitely trying to spin the situation against her, making sure that the crowd knew that no pony before her had gotten such treatment, had gone without facing the consequences of their actions. I wanted to foster their resentment for her, the resentment I already had, and it seemed as though it were working, given the whispers I heard in the crowd. Either she would be resented by them, or look like a fool for not accepting my offer. Although, in bringing up Cozy Glow, I did make a mental note to do something about her soon. Having fillies placed in Tartarus was not something I enjoyed the thought of.
Cadance’s growling increased in volume until she finally screamed at us, “I’m sorry!” As she screamed, she wore an expression of hate and rage that was directed at us.
“What are you sorry for?” Hope asked, speaking the way a parent would talk to a toddler. “And please say exactly what it is, if you can.”
“Raaah!” the alicorn yelled, slamming her head into her podium, breathing heavily and letting her hooves stomp against the marble floor. I forced myself to suppress the urge to laugh and kept a straight expression in the face of her anger, although I greatly enjoyed watching her trying to stop herself from throwing a tantrum. I did briefly wonder if her rage could or would change her into a nightmare version of herself, but pushed that thought aside seeing as she seemed to remain the same physically.
The room watched and waited as she kept her head face down on the podium, breathing deeply and doing her best to calm herself down. After a few seconds of watching her breathe, she looked up and spoke again, once again moving her mane out of her face.
“I apologize to you, and Shining Armor, and all of Equestria for the crimes I’ve committed and the trouble I’ve caused,” she spat at us insincerely, hatefully.
Hope gave me an expression that asked if she was serious before she told Cadance, “Look Shining Armor in the eyes and tell him you’re sorry for trying to hurt him, and tell Twilight you’re sorry for trying to manipulate her into thinking it wasn’t you that hurt him.”
She turned to Shining’s direction, who was already staring at her expectantly with a frown on his face, and frowned back at him. The anger and rage she had melted away as the two locked eyes before she looked away again, almost seeming like she was actually ashamed of herself.
“I’m sorry, Shiny… err, Shining Armor,” she told him, lowering her voice a bit while still speaking loudly and clearly. “I apologize for trying to hurt you… for actually hurting you, and I hope you can forgive me. And the same goes for you, Twilight. I don’t know what came over me, and I hope you can forgive me.” She spoke with what sounded like actual sincerity in her voice, which I thought was interesting. Even more interesting was watching Shining turn his head away from her slightly when she was finished.
“It seems there’s a heart down there,” I thought to myself. “Or maybe she’s just trying to rebuild her relationships since she's not going to prison like she thought she would be. I wouldn’t be surprised if that were the case.”
“And now Alex,” Luna told her after a second of silence.
Just as quickly as her look of anger changed into shame, it changed back into anger as she turned to face me again.
“I’m sorry, Alex,” she told me, her voice dripping with sarcasm that was very obvious to everypony in the room. “I’m sorry for all of the trouble I’ve caused you, and I just hope you find it in your heart of hearts to forgive me since everything is just all my fault. Are you happy now?”
“I will be,” I told her flatly, “once you explicitly state that you are guilty of the crimes you’ve committed.”
“I’ve effectively already said that," she snapped at me, "since I’m being forced into apologizing to you of all ponies.”
“Effectively saying that isn’t good enough. We want to hear you tell us.”
Once again she growled at us, clenching her jaw as she bared her teeth again. I raised my eyebrow at her as I waited for her to say it. It wouldn’t be satisfied unless she actually spoke the words.
“Say it, Cadance,” I commanded her. “Say that you’re guilty.”
The look in her eyes was one that told me she wanted to tear me apart. The fur covering her cheeks was starting to turn red, she was so angry and humiliated. But still, I started back almost expressionless, only frowning slightly at her, the look in my eyes telling her that I was the one who held authority over her.
After another very long moment, she angrily spat in a harsh whisper, “I’m guilty of the crimes I’ve committed,” forcing the words through her clenched teeth.
“So what now?” Cadance grumbled once the crowd watching us was sent away. “You lead me back to the cell I’ve been staying in?”
“You’re room, while bland, was hardly a cell,” I told her, “not like the one I could’ve put you in, or the one your crimes should have you staying in now. But no. Now we go over what the conditions are to your being pardoned.”
“Of course,” she mumbled, rolling her eyes at me.
I frowned at her slight, but didn’t comment on it, continuing, “The very first is that you aren’t going to be leaving the castle without either myself, Radiant Hope, or Luna being present, unless I specifically give consent otherwise. If we see it, the assumption will be that you’re plotting against Equestria and your commuted sentence will be revoked. Do you understand?”
She scowled in response, saying, “Yes, cut me off from everypony to humiliate me more. Thank you, you’re so considerate and forgiving to me.”
“As if you don’t deserve what you’re getting,” I shot back. “Besides, even given what’s happened and what you’ve made of me, this castle is almost constantly filled with ponies for you to interact with. You can hold conversation with them if you’d like.”
“And I’ll be here for a little while, too, Cadance,” Twilight added, raising her hoof. “Plus, I come here all the time. I mean, if you… want me… umm... I’m sorry…” she trailed off awkwardly, looking away again.
“That actually leads us into our next condition,” Luna broke in. “It is one that I myself believed to be fitting for you. Twilight and Starlight will be here this summer to reeducate you in friendship, a skill you’ve clearly let slip by you recently, as well as when they have time available on weekends. You may think of them as your tutors and you, their pupil.” With that, Starlight waved a hoof at her and smiled warmly.
“Twi and I figured we might as well get started today, once this whole thing is over,” she said happily, almost oblivious to her seething expression. “We won’t be overbearing, but I’m sure there are a few things we can work on together. It might seem tough, but Twilight’s a great teacher. I mean, she helped me when I needed it, and just look at me now!” I could tell Cadance wanted to comment, but kept silent as she glared at the mare.
“The next condition,” I started again, “is that the magic absorbing ring you're wearing will remain on your horn until all three of us determine we can trust you to have it off.”
“So basically it’s never coming off,” she responded angrily. “And then what? I go crazy from the hornaches it’s sure to give me?”
“As I said, it’s a magic absorbing ring, not a magic blocking ring. No hornaches involved. You might seem to think I’m an idiot, but I assure you, I am not. Which, of course, brings us to our last condition, bearing in mind that this list will be expanded as we see fit. Shining Armor, if you would?”
He took a step away from the group of Twilight and her friends to stand in front of them, but not any farther, only enough to be easily visible as he floated a sheet of paper over to her, along with a pen.
“If you could sign this?” he said, a complete lack of emotion in his voice
“What- what is this?” she asked, looking down for a moment before looking back at him, the confusion and surprise obvious.
“It’s exactly what it says it is. It’s just telling you that Flurry is going to be in my sole custody and that the Crystal Empire’s crown will transfer to me alone.”
“You- you’re… you’re divorcing me?” she asked, completely shocked, looking back down as she quickly tried to scan through its contents.
“You’re surprised?” he asked, furrowing his brow a bit. “You tried to kill me and then lie about it, and had a hoof in provoking Princess Celestia into attacking my sister. I thought it would be completely obvious to you, seeing as you don’t love me and have a grudge against Twily.”
She stared at him with a slack-jawed expression. It looked like it was the last thing she expected to hear, her face showing her complete and utter shock at the news. Even Twilight only looked down at her hooves, likely expecting this to happen between them. Cadance kept the expression for a few moments before she clenched her teeth and turned back to me.
“This is your fault!” she spat angrily. “You can’t make my husband-”
“No, it’s not his fault. Somb- Alex came to me beforehoof and explained that he was planning to pardon you, and I told him that I wanted this to be a part of your conditions for your release.”
“Why?” she asked, almost seeming like she was pleading with him. “Why are you doing this? You know I still lo-”
“Don’t start with that,” he told her flatly, tiredly. “Do you really think I’m that big of an idiot? I didn’t become captain of the Royal Guard for nothing. You and I both know that you don’t love me, seeing as you tried to kill me. Or, at the very least, whatever grudge you have against Princess Celestia is more powerful than any love you hold for me.”
“I already told you, that was Sombra who attacked-”
“You really truly do think I’m just that big of an idiot, don't you?” he started angrily, before cutting himself off. “No,” he told her, closing his eyes for a second to regain his composure. “I’m not doing this. Just sign the paper, and then… don’t speak to me again, understand?”
Cadance bit her lip at that. I couldn’t tell if she was hurt, angry, thinking, or a combination of the three, but she didn’t take his pen, and just stood there for a long minute before finally speaking again.
“I don’t- I’m not giving up Flurry Heart completely. I still want to be able to see her. She’s my foal.”
“I’m not giving you any custody of her after what you’ve done,” he told her with authority, a few of Twilight’s friends cringing at that statement. “As far as I’m concerned, you don’t deserve to see her ever again. You know she could’ve been hurt in all of the mess you made?”
“How would she have been hurt?” Cadance countered, her voice getting louder. “Who would’ve hurt her? Nopony!”
“You don’t know that, and you can’t know that.”
“I do know that because nopony did!”
“She had to be left all alone for hours because of you! She could’ve hurt herself in that time!”
“I deserve to see her! I’m her mother!”
“A horrible mother who hurts her father!”
“Stop this now, both of you,” Luna interrupted, ending their argument. “Shining Armor, you will allow Cadance to see Flurry Heart at a rate that will be determined later, and Cadance, you will sign the paper, today, dissolving your union as he requests, understand?”
“I don’t deserve all of this,” the pink alicorn grumbled angrily, stomping her hoof as she huffed and flicked her mane out of her face.
“That went so much better than we could have ever expected, Alex,” Radiant Hope told me as she kissed me, the two of us back in our room, the sun now fully set below the horizon. “The look on her face was incredible! It was perfect!”
“I told you it would be good,” I responded, smiling back at her. “This is so much better than sending her to Tartarus. I’m giving her exactly what she deserves, and made sure everypony knows what happened.”
“Although, you know I have to ask if you really do plan on bringing Celestia back,” she continued. “And will you be putting her on trial as well?”
“It’s not a statement I can take back now, seeing as I said it publicly, but that won’t be for a while. Ponies might even forget about it once enough time has passed.” I let out a breath I’d been unconsciously holding in, saying, “She honestly deserves a thousand years, both of them actually, seeing as that’s the punishment Celestia was fond of handing out. One, a thousand years banished, and the other, a thousand years in Tartarus. But I’ll be letting them both off easy. Also, remind me later to do something about Cozy Glow. Why they sent a filly to Tartarus is entirely beyond me, and doesn’t sit well with me.”
“I can do that, but I’m not sure it’s a good idea to let her out, at least not so soon…”
“Why not?”
“Well,” Hope started, “I mean… just think about how it looks, especially for us two…” I raised an eyebrow at her, and she continued, “I mean… ponies already don’t like us, and like Cadance was saying, some ponies probably still look at us as terrifying villains, so if we start releasing-”
“They still look at me as a terrifying villain,” I corrected her. “I doubt they see Luna that way, and I know they don’t see you like that. The risk falls entirely on me.”
“I’ll be part of it, too, seeing as we're already a pair, especially if what happened gets out…” she told me, her voice getting quieter.
“If what gets out?”
“There’s still… a certain pony who’s imprisoned in the Crystal Empire who I lead to the Crystal Empire under the guise that I would let her take over Equestria and take revenge on Starlight Glimmer,” she whispered, looking around the bedroom as though someone might be listening in on her. “My excuse is extremely weak, and I know Luna and Cadance didn’t believe me. How Luna seemed to forget about it and how Cadance didn’t bring it up, I don’t know, but if we start releasing ponies from Tartarus, even if they’re fillies, they might remember that fact again.”
“I hardly think that’ll be an issue,” I told her. “I’m certain Luna didn’t forget, she’s just either forgiven you or decided to overlook it. And we’ve already proved to Equestria that Cadance isn’t a credible source of information.”
“I really, really don’t like the risk though…” she trailed off. “I’d really appreciate it if you could look out for me…”
I couldn’t help but turn away and grumble at that, huffing as I said, “Of course you want me to look out for you, even though I know you don’t look out for me.”
“What?” she got out, sounding completely confused, and a bit taken aback. “When have I not looked out for you, Alex?”
“Every day,” I told her bitterly, “when you tell me you love me or tell me if I just wait out my suffering it’ll get better. You act just like them, telling me I should just sit here and suffer and go crazy because I don’t know who I am! I’m losing myself, and you’re not doing anything even though you’re supposed to be my friend!” By the time I finished, I was turned back to her and yelling at her.
“What do you want me to do?” she yelled back. “I know you already blame me and hate me for hurting you once, and if I do anything else, you’ll just blame me and hate me more!”
“You could at least be looking-”
“Don’t you think I've tried?" she asked. "Don't you think if I could do something, I would? And even if there was something I could do, what do you expect me to do? Do you know how fast they’ll turn against us if I sent Alex away? If you think they won’t, you’re absolutely wrong. And if I send Sombra away, then I’ll lose the only friend I have forever. I’ve basically already lost you already...”
She closed her eyes once she was finished, clearly holding back her tears. Seeing her this way made my ears flatten against my head. Even as much as I blamed her for what happened, even as much as I couldn’t stand her for it, I couldn’t help the emotional connection I shared with her, which, of course, only made me more frustrated.
“I wish you would have just stayed there,” she continued, a few of her tears dripping onto the floor. “You told me you knew I would come, and yet you couldn’t just wait for me. I had the perfect plan, and all you had to do was stay in your room in the Crystal Empire and wait for me, and none of this would be happening and we’d both be ruling the Crystal Empire. It would’ve been perfect! You knew I was coming, and yet you couldn’t just... wait for me! And now you hate me because of that dumb mare… argh!” She stomped her hoof as she yelled, adding, “She deserves to be in Tartarus! Not roaming free to do whatever she wants! She deserves it because now you hate me because of what she did, and there’s nothing I can do!”
She shivered out a few more tears before using her hoof to wipe them away, sniffling as she did so. I hated seeing her like this, and couldn’t help but move up to her and press my cheek against hers, rubbing my coat into hers.
“I know, Hope,” I told her softly. “I absolutely hate this, too. It’s partly my fault for trusting her. And I know you know that even though this is killing me, even as much as I can’t stand you for this and can’t help but blame you, you know I absolutely adore you. The fact that I have you by my side as ruler of Equestria is proof enough. You know I love you with my whole heart, even if I don’t love you at all at the same time.”
“I know,” she sniffed out in a whisper, her voice cracking a bit. “I know you love me, but it doesn’t make me feel much better though knowing you hate me… You know I hate seeing you like this. I know you don’t want me to say this, but I love you, and I want you back, Sombra.”
I moved away from her again at that, frowning and turning my head.
“It absolutely tears me up inside, and it’s never going to change. I hope Starlight can come up with something, because I honestly feel like I might as well be dead. What's the point of going on like this? God, I hate this all so much…” I sighed, adding, "The only reason I haven't done anything is because if I do, then all of this would've been for nothing, and just the thought of that kills me more."
“I really honestly think if you just wait it out, you'll feel better,” she told me. "I really think you're getting better, honestly."
“Wait it out isn’t working,” I told her quickly. “This being I am, Alex, truly exists. Even if nothing I remember happening when I was a human was real, I still exist, and am still truly, wholly this person. I'm still a human. And I’m losing myself. Or, less losing myself and more… I don’t know. It’s so conflicting, and it absolutely kills me…”
“I’m sorry, Alex,” Hope apologized quietly as she looked down at her hooves.
“Oh, I miss my life and my family so much, every single day...”
Princess Cadance, or rather, just Cadance now, growled and huffed angrily as she watched Starlight and Twilight come into her room. She didn’t see why they had to do this today, why they had to do this at all. Actually, she did know. It was for Sombra, or, rather, as the stallion preferred, Alex, to embarrass her. Having those two come in to teach her about friendship. As if she were a foal and didn’t know anything. She knew about friendship, even if she had to admit that she hadn’t been acting very friendly lately. Not that many of them were acting friendly toward her.
The room they were in was the room she’d been staying in since that day, the one where all of her hard work went spiraling downward. It wasn’t a particularly awful room. In fact, most ponies would say it was quite lovely, with a nice, soft bed situated right next to the window overlooking the royal garden, and a large private bathroom attached to it. Coincidentally, perhaps intentionally, it was the room Alex was made to stay in during his first several days in the castle. However, Cadance continued to think of it as the prison she knew it was. She’d been locked in, the windows sealed shut and reinforced with magic, making escape impossible, her meals being sent to her by Luna herself to make sure that any opportunity she could have to try and leave was shut down. And although she was allowed to leave now to explore the castle, something Alex wasn't granted during his time staying there, it was still a prison, one that she was still staying in, even if Alex had told her she’d been pardoned.
Starlight, however, didn’t see it the way she did, quickly commenting on its niceness as she walked in, saying how she wished she had a room as nice as it in Twilight’s castle, earning her a glance from her alicorn counterpart that entered with her, and an eye roll along with a flick of her mane from Cadance herself.
“So what now?” she asked frustratedly. “Do we start with you two telling me I just need to forgive those ponies who’ve committed the same crimes as me and got away with it?”
“Well, let's not get into the politics of Equestria just yet,” Starlight laughed a bit nervously. “For now, let’s just focus on our first lesson: acceptance. It was my first lesson, and I’m sure it’ll be a great place for you to start, too.”
“Oh, I see. I’m supposed to accept all those things, accept that my husband- my now ex husband, has full custody over our daughter and accept that everypony in Equestria hates me now because of that little stunt those three decided to pull. I get it.”
“Uhhh… not quite that,” Starlight chuckled, getting more and more anxious. “Uh, um, Twilight, why don’t you start us off?”
“Oh, um, so, uhh…” Twilight trailed off nervously, feeling quite small in the face of her old foal sitter and friend. “Um… you should, um… I…”
Cadance sighed, her anger dissipating at seeing the mare who, in her eyes, was still a filly, saying to her, “Look, I get it. I already know what you’re going to say. You’re going to tell me that I need to accept that I messed up and try to move forward and mend fences, and then we’ll both pretend that I’m taking what you say to heart and changing when really, I won’t. I’m not going to accept this outcome, not that there’s anything I can do about it. You might as well just leave me alone and check off whatever checkboxes you're supposed to on the list I know you have.”
“I- I’m not- I didn’t-”
“It’s nothing personal to you, Twilight. I have absolutely nothing against you and don’t hold you responsible for anything. There are five ponies I blame for this, and I promise you’re not one of them, so don’t go thinking I hate you. It’s just that I know I won’t be changing my mind about any of this because I know I’m in the right. I know I’m being mistreated, and you won’t be able to change my mind.”
“I… I’m… I guess we’ll just go and try again later... if you... really feel like that...”
Cadance could see the sadness in Twilight’s eyes and truly felt bad. She could honestly say she didn’t mean to have Twilight feeling bad if she could help it. However, she knew that was just how things went. She was not going to change her mind no matter how many friendship lessons she was given, and that was a fact. Her former sister-in-law might as well have done something else instead of wasting her time. Even as much as she hated seeing the expression on her face, she figured it was better than sitting through whatever they had planned.
Starlight could see the same look on Twilight's face and hurriedly stepped in front of her before she could say anything else.
“What Twilight means is that we’ll go and try this lesson again later,” Starlight quickly announced. “I mean, what are we thinking, diving into all the icky stuff when we don’t even know each other?” With that, she held out her hoof and smiled widely, saying, “Hi, my name is Starlight Glimmer, and I’m a pony from Sire’s Hollow who’s studying friendship under Twilight Sparkle. What’s your name?”
Cadance let out a sigh at that and grumbled under her breath, rolling her eyes. This was going to be a long night.
The next two or three hours were spent with the three of them introducing themselves to each other, with Cadance trying her best to not doze off as Starlight seemingly talked on end. It was mostly her explaining her history and what she’d done while Cadance sat bored as she stared at her expressionlessly, occasionally commenting a simple ‘wow’ or an ‘I didn’t know that' every so often. Apparently, she’d been up to no good at one point, which the pink alicorn didn’t know about, although she largely lost the details as she sat thinking about how irritating and humiliating all of this was.
“Oh wow, look at the time,” Starlight said as she looked at the lone clock in the former princess’s room, finally finished telling her life's story. “We’ve been at this for quite a while. I hope I haven’t chatted you to death. Twilight and I will be back tomorrow for your next lesson. Might as well get the first few in a row off to get the train rolling, as they say!”
“I can’t wait,” the pink pony commented sarcastically, adding, “although I was wondering if I could talk to my sister alone?”
“Oh! Uh, sure!” Twilight got out, surprised by her request. “I mean, if that’s okay with you, Starlight.”
“I don’t have an issue with it,” Starlight responded. “I’ll just let you two be and head back to our room.”
“I’ll see you in a few minutes then,” Twilight smiled as she left, closing the door behind her. Cadance waited a few seconds to make sure she was completely gone before she started to speak again.
“Twilight, you know I’m sorry right?” she started after a few moments, catching her by surprise. “You know I really mean it when I say I have nothing against you, and still think of you as my friend, right?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah, of course! And I still think of you as my friend, too!”
“Then you’ll trust me when I say that this isn’t all my fault?”
“...what? Why are you-”
“I know what you're going to say, and yes, I do take responsibility and admit that part of it is my fault, but I’m not guilty like they say. They’re not treating me right.”
“Cadance, you know I can’t-”
“I know you can’t say I’m not or do anything about it, but you believe me, right Twilight?” She stared the purple mare in the eyes, and didn’t like the sad, disbelieving look she got back from her.
“How long have you known me, Twilight?” she asked desperately. “When have I ever done anything openly malicious? I’m not like that, and you know that. I’m not the evil mastermind they’re making me out to be."
“Nopony said you were evil-” Twilight tried to say before she was interrupted
“Yes, I went along with what he said, and yes, I was angry at Celestia for what she did to me, but I’m not how you’re all making me out to be. That was him, too. That was his plan, to set himself up to be ruler. I should’ve seen it beforehoof, but I didn’t, and now everypony hates me because of him. That whole trial was a stunt to deflect blame to me. You have to know that, right, Twilight?”
Twilight sighed sadly, not wanting to tell her sister, her now ex-sister, what she needed to hear.
“Cadance…” she trailed off, looking at her hooves for a moment before looking back up to her. “You know I can’t believe you right?”
“What?” she asked back with genuine confusion, as though Twilight were speaking to somepony else.
“You- you lied to me and hurt my brother. You have to know that I can’t trust what you’re telling me. And even if I could, what can I do? What’s done is done. There’s not…”
“Oh…” Cadance trailed off, not expecting that reaction from her. “Well… I guess you hate me, too.”
“That’s not true!” Twilight said defensively. “You’re still one of my best friends! But… I just… I want to help you get better, which is why I volunteered to help you with friendship. Alex was going to have Fluttershy help you with Starlight instead of me, but I volunteered because I care about you.”
“Yeah, well, as I said, I know I’m in the right, so I’m not going to change my mind. You’ll just be wasting your time.”
“I still want to try and help you. I believe in you, and know you can move past this. Besides, I know that everypony doesn’t hate you, even if it seems like that right now. Remember, Starlight was in the exact same position as you before, maybe even worse, and look at her now! She’s one of my best friends, too, and helping out students in my School of Friendship!”
“Whatever,” Cadance sighed as she turned away. “You can go now. If you see Flurry Heart, tell her mommy loves her very much despite whatever Shining Armor is saying about me to her.”
Twilight moved up to wrap her wing around her old foal sitter in a hug, telling her, “I believe in you Cadance. I know you can get better if you try, and before long, this will all be ancient history.”
“Oh, hey Twilight!” Starlight called as the mare entered their room. “How’d your talk with Cadance go?”
Twilight sighed, flopping onto her bed as she explained, “Not well. She wanted me to believe her when she said she wasn’t guilty.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. She told me that she was admitting what she did and told me how she knew it was wrong, and yet said she wasn’t guilty. Like, just… not guilty! I don’t know what we’re supposed to do about this or how to approach it!”
Starlight couldn’t help but chuckle at that as she said, “I remember feeling like that. When you first talked to me, I knew what I was doing wasn’t changing anything or helping me make friends, but I didn’t actually realize what I was doing was ‘wrong’ per se for… a little while…”
“That’s different because you didn’t know,” Twilight countered. “She’s saying that what she did was wrong, she knew it was wrong, and she just… doesn’t care! She thinks we should just ignore her because she won’t change her mind! And I don’t know what to do! She thinks that he’s doing all of this to humiliate her and make ponies hate her!”
“Twilight, calm down,” Starlight said as she got up to put a hoof on her friend's shoulder to stop her from starting to hyperventilate. “Even though I didn’t say it out loud, those first few weeks you were with me, I thought every single one of those things. I thought I did nothing wrong and that you were just doing this to humiliate me in front of everypony. It only seems scarier now because she’s saying her thoughts out loud rather than keeping them internalized like I did.”
“I know, I just…” she trailed off, catching her breath before continuing, “She’s my sister, and I’m really worried about her. It really feels like she doesn’t care. I don’t want everypony to hate her forever like she thinks they will.”
“I’m pretty sure everypony doesn’t hate her, and even if they do, they certainly won’t hate her forever. I mean, look at Discord, or Princess Luna, or heck, even Alex. Not everypony hates them and they were all in the same position as Cadance.” Starlight paused for a moment, then smiled, saying, “I’m sure she’ll be fine as long as she works at it. I believe in her, and so should you. She just needs time. I mean, look at me! She didn’t do half of what I did, and now I’m a counselor in the School of Friendship! And it’s all because of you. I’m sure we can get her to come around, especially with how close you two are.”
Twilight smiled back at her, telling her, “Thank you. Hearing that does make me feel better. Thank you Starlight.”
“No problem. Although, bringing up Alex, do you think using Cogeria would be a good spell to try and use on him? I know it should be combined with something, but I just can’t think of what… although I know it shouldn’t be Fiducia Compelus or Persuadere. I already learned that lesson.”
“A spell for what?” the alicorn asked, before catching herself. “Oh yeah. That. Ummm… I’m not sure that’s a great idea, using Cogeria. Although I do want to talk about that, too.”
“Well, I was thinking that Cogeria could be used to try and make it so that their mind is available for us to work with, but um, what did you want to talk about?”
“I was just wondering how you… plan on going about this is all.”
“What do you mean?”
“About this spell, I mean,” Twilight explained. “Just wanted to know what you were going to do. Are you going to let Sombra take control? Or dispel him entirely?”
“Oh, well, I’d let him make that decision,” Starlight answered simply, giving a small shrug. “But what do you think about combining it with a spell like Duciere or-”
“Wait, what? You’re gonna let him choose? Why? That’s not- why?”
“Well, at first, I was thinking what he was telling me about him and how he felt was a sign of two separate personalities, but then I wondered if actually we were dealing with two entirely separate conscious beings in one body. Well… probably conscious anyway, very close to it at least, just based on what he described.”
Twilight gave her a look like she didn’t know what she was talking about, letting the silence hang in the air for a minute before simply getting out, “What?”
“I was just thinking about it all day, just the what if, and how much sense it made to me. I mean, think about it. From what I understand, personalities don’t come with memories of things that didn’t happen, and they certainly don’t know that they’re a separate personality.”
“Okay, but where-”
“I talked to Princess Hope a few hours before the trial and asked her about it, and she mentioned that he was completely tied up on the inside. I think she described it as a wire? Or string? Or something like that. But anyway, she said that he asked her to untie it, and the string broke completely instead, and she tied it back later.”
“Yes, I know that, but what does-”
“And so from there I got to thinking: what does that string have to do with a personality spell? And then it hit me! What if that string wasn’t a spell, but his actual consciousness? What if-”
“Starlight, you’re a genius!” Twilight said enusiatically as she gasped, clapping her hooves together excitedly as she finally realized where she was going and jumped ahead of where Starlight was at in her story. “You’re saying he tied off part of his consciousness before he cast whatever spell he used so that way only a small part would be affected by his spell, and then once it was untied, he was going to undo whatever he did to himself on his own!”
“Exactly! But when he broke the string, it took the part of him that he was using the spell on and created it as a whole, entirely separate being! That’s why he’s conflicted with himself! Not because he has two personalities, but because he’s literally two ponies in the same body who are trying to control it at the same time! It explains everything! Why he wasn’t conflicted before, why a certain draconequus wasn’t able to do anything to him, everything!”
“That’s great Starlight! But what do we do about it?”
“Don’t you see, Twilight?” she explained. “We don’t need to find a way to send some creature away or change his personality or anything like that! All we need to do is find a spell that’ll place one of the consciousnesses in his body under stasis, use it, and that’s it! Everything will be fixed! Is this great?”
Twilight's smile dropped a bit as she waited a second before hesitantly answering, “It absolutely is, but I think we should talk about it with Princess Luna first.”
“What’s there to talk about?” Starlight asked. “We just find the spell, cast it, and that’s it. Easy as that.”
“Well… I guess you’re right… but I really think we should run it by Luna first and see exactly what she would want to do.”
“Is there something wrong?”
“No, it’s nothing. It’s all good. It’s just… it’s nothing. Everything is perfect. I’m just… I’m just a little bit concerned, but it’s nothing. I’m probably overthinking.”
“That’s okay, Twi. I understand. I just can’t believe he was able to manipulate his consciousness on his own like that, and to that extent… he must be one of the most powerful unicorns who ever lived, maybe even more powerful than Starswirl the Bearded! Just thinking about it makes my head spin! We’re gonna need to put this in library books.”
“Absolutely,” the purple pony agreed, continuing carefully, “Although, let’s make sure to not tell him, or anypony really, until we have a spell all picked out and developed. We want to make sure we don’t hurt anypony or get their hopes up.”
“Oh yeah, I understand. I mean, that is how this whole mess started anyway, right?” Starlight chuckled to herself, continuing, “I can’t believe this! I really do impress myself sometimes.”
“Are you sure this will work?” I asked as Starlight stood in front of me a few days after Cadance’s trial. “I’ve been told that other things will fix me before, and they’ve made me worse off.”
“Trust me,” she assured me. “This’ll work. I know my spells. Now, hold still for me, please,” she instructed as her horn lit up.
I felt my body tingle, and then the next thing I knew, I was standing alone in a familiar-looking room, one that was dark and currently only had one other pony in it.
“This probably won’t end well for me,” I thought fearfully, taking a good look at myself as Twilight Sparkle stood gawking at me.
I was a pony. A pony with a gray coat and black mane, who seemed to be wearing a red cape. One who was stuck in a room with statues that looked a lot like I now did. One who stood nervously in front of the Princess of Friendship, the very pony who defeated Sombra. The pony who I now was.
The princess took a step back, and quickly made her way out of the room, sounding like she was going up a set of stairs. “Cadance!” she yelled. “Call Celestia and Luna!”
“This is bad,” I thought. “This is really, really… wait, what is going on? I’ve been here before, haven’t I?” I turned my head to examine my surroundings as Twilight yelled frantically for her pink companion. “This is the moment it happened, isn’t it?” I thought aloud. “What did Starlight do?”
I heard a set of hoofsteps descending down to meet me as I continued to think to myself. What in Equestria did Starlight do? I’d expected many things, but certainly not this. Not that I was frightened or afraid like before. Now, I had my jaw clenched as I scowled at the stairs, waiting for what I knew was the cause of my problems to descend upon me. A few seconds later, right on cue, Princess Cadance was down in the room with me, an angry and hateful expression painted on her face. If looks could kill, she would have been dead right then and there from the one I was sending her way.
“Well, well, well,” Cadance spat angrily, seeming just a little bit taken aback by my expression. “Look who it is. You again.”
“I know exactly what you’re planning, you witch,” I shot back. “I know exactly what your goal is and what you’re using me for. Fix me this instant!”
“What… what are you going on about?” she asked, trying to keep the tone in her voice, but seeming clearly concerned, the look of nervousness in her eyes.
“You already know what this is about,” I growled lowly, taking a threatening step towards her, watching her take a step back in return. “I already know you’re planning on ruling over Equestria, and I want no part in it! Fix me now!”
“What- why is this happening now?” she asked, dropping the anger, clearly scared, her eyes wide in fear. “Why didn’t you cast the spell? Those three are going to be down here any minute!”
“Well, then I guess you’ll have just a minute to undo whatever you made me do to myself, about thirty seconds if I’m not mistaken. Otherwise, I plan on telling the three of them exactly what you’re planning on doing to Celestia.”
“How am I supposed to know what you did?” she asked me frantically. “Just release whatever spell you cast!”
“I don’t know how!” I yelled at her angrily. “If I did, I wouldn’t be in this position, would I?”
“Sweet Celesita, you’re so stupid!” she yelled at me. "I should've known better than to even try and work with you!" She tapped her hoof aggressively on the stone floor as she hung her head low, trying to think before saying, “Ubiquita cordova! That’s a spell I learned to undo short-term changes in ponies, but it has to be within a few minutes of casting the spell. Use that!”
“I don’t know what that spell is or how to cast it, which is why-”
“Let me write the characters down for you!” she told me quickly, using her magic to quickly find a pen and write in the book on the desk what letters I was supposed to be using. By the time she finished, I could hear more hoofsteps descending back down the stairs.
“Cast it now!” she demanded, whispering aggressively, and just as Celestia entered the room, I did.
“Alex?” someone, a woman, said. “Is that you?” She brushed her hand against his forehead and hair, and he slowly opened his eyes as a result.
“Mom…” he said quietly, his voice, his real voice, hoarse. He turned to see his father standing next to her, as well as a few of his close friends and coworkers, along with some nurses standing next to them. He turned back to his mom and could see the tears in her eyes.
“You were out for almost two months, honey. We were starting to think you’d never wake up.”
“I was starting to think I’d never wake up either, mom,” Alex told her, the tears springing into his eyes. “Oh, I feel awful.”
With that, he closed his eyes again as the woman continued to brush his hair and face and cheek with the back of her hand. It had been a long time since he felt his mother’s hand on his face, or anyone’s hand for that matter, and he almost found himself purring as the happy tears streamed down.
“Alex…” she whispered kindly, her hand feeling nice in his hair. "Oh, Alex..."
“Mmm…” he hummed at the feeling, enjoying the touch.
“Alex,” she said again, a bit louder, indicating that she wanted to be heard.
“Yeah?” he got out blissfully, happy to hear her voice once again.
“Alex, open your eyes please,” Radiant Hope told him as she placed her hoof in his mane. She could see the tears in his eyes and the way his body shivered, watching as he slowly opened his eyes before he cast her an angry glance.
“I’m sorry, you were crying in your sleep…” He sighed at that and curled back up next to her, letting the mare place her cheek on the back of his neck as she pet his fur.
“Why’d you have to wake me up and ruin my dream?” he whispered before drifting back off restlessly, hoping he could pick it up where he left off.
Far in the frozen north, just before the boreal forests turned into tundra, a bright yellow stallion stood at the base of Mount Everhoof. It was a place few ponies dared to go, what with the heavy mountain winds and the other dangerous creatures around it, and yet there he stood, the breeze flowing through his coal-black mane. He wasn’t looking at the mountain, however. He was staring at the sun, noticing that it wasn’t in the position it was supposed to be in. Or rather, the position it used to be in. It was common for it to be centered where it was now, but about a year ago, it pointed directly over the peak of the mountain, rather than sitting just to the right of it, half of its face being covered by the mountain's peak.
Of course, he knew the reason why. There had been a trial about it and everything. Celestia was gone. Banished, apparently. Which was a good thing, as it gave the stallion an opening to take control. He knew the three that were currently sitting on the throne, Sombra, Luna, and somepony named Radiant Hope, weren’t anywhere near as powerful as Celestia, and that none of them would stand a chance against him with the Grogar’s Bewitching Bell in his hooves. However, he still had to be smart. He couldn’t just rush in and attack them, even with the bell. He would only be struck down by Twilight Sparkle and her friends, the way it seemed to always go with everypony else who tried to take control. No, he had to convince them that he was using the bell to rid Equestria of evil, the evil, in this case, being Sombra and the pony who used to be Nightmare Moon. He had to convince them that he instead should be on the throne. Not a simple task, he knew that, but one that was apparently possible, as evidenced by Sombra’s, or rather, Alex’s sitting on the throne completely unopposed, as though there was no issue.
Perhaps he didn’t even have to convince the Elements of Harmony. If the public at least was on his side, then all he would need to do would be to take the three's magic and rule. An impossible task to do with Celestia in the way, but with her gone, it was feasible. He was sure there were already rumors out there about the three. All he would need to do would be to spread them and let them grow like wildfire, and then step in to take the place of the leaders of Equestria.
With that in mind, he made his careful way up to the top of the mountain, taking several hours to traverse and stopping once he got to the cave, which was blocked by a forcefield. Not too much of an issue normally, although he did think it was interesting that there were tracks in the snow right next to it. Clearly, though, they weren’t able to get inside, seeing as the other side was clear of any hoofprints.
He cast a spell, directing his magic at the forcefield separating him from the cave, and… watched as the magic was absorbed immediately. He raised an eyebrow and shot another beam, and once again saw it simply get absorbed into the forcefield. He frowned and picked his hoof up to touch it, sighing as he felt the hardness of it, letting another one out as he banged up against it to see how thin it was, noting that it was quick thick.
“A powerful force field between me and the bell,” he thought to himself. “No big deal. Probably. I could just get into the Canterlot Archives and find what spell was used… and then walk all the way back here and all the way back there again…”
He grumbled to himself. It wasn’t ideal, and would waste a tremendous amount of energy, energy he would need to put this plan into motion successfully. He wasn’t prepared for this, he had to admit, but there had to be a workaround…
After a few minutes of standing dumbly staring at the forcefield, he huffed angrily as he flicked his black mane out of his face and picked up his hooves to make the long trip to Canterlot.
“You are saying you’ve found a spell to help Alex become whole again?” Luna asked as Starlight and Twilight stood before her.
“Well, not a spell per se,” the former explained, “not yet anyway. Just an idea of what we should be doing. But I don’t think a spell is going to be too far off from here, maybe a few days or weeks, a couple of months at most.”
“I see… have you spoken with Alex about this development yet?”
“Well, no. Twilight said we should speak with you first to see what you would want to do.”
“Just to make sure we were going about this the right way," the purple pony added. "Starlight thinks we should let him choose what should happen to him.”
“I am not sure that’s a good idea.”
Starlight stared back at Luna with confusion plastered on her face. “You- you don’t?” she asked as she raised an eyebrow.
“I do not,” she confirmed and sighed. “While he does agree that he is suffering and that he does not want the confusion that comes with being tied to another entity, multiple times he has expressed the sentiment that he has no interest in being in Equestria at all. If he were given the choice, I believe there is more than a small chance that he would choose for Sombra to be dominant.”
“Well, if he doesn’t want to be here, then I think that should be-”
“No, Starlight,” Luna told her, a bit forcefully. “Sombra is evil. His past crimes cannot go unpunished. The only reason he’s allowed to rule now is because there’s an innocent victim trapped inside of him. It is of the same nature when I was consumed by the Nightmare, although to a much lesser degree.”
“Well… I mean… technically he was already punished for his past crimes… and all he really did this time was cast a spell on himself, and that’s not a crime, so…”
"Bear in mind, it took the combined efforts of both my sister and I to bring him down the first time, and each time we have faced him, we faced the edge of defeat. As well, he has reality-warping spells at his disposal, currently being kept in check by the presence of Alex. We cannot risk that by giving Alex the choice to let Sombra be free and dominant over him."
"Well, we can't make a decision on what somepony might do, can we?" Starlight asked. "And if Alex really doesn't want to be in Equestria, then I don't see how we can just leave him here to suffer, especially since I heard that before you guys were working on a way to-"
"Before we were under the assumption that he was brought here from another world, in which case, the only just thing to do would be to send him back. However, being created as a being of Equestria is an entirely different set of circumstances, one that will be handled accordingly with care."
"I really think that-"
“What I say is final, Starlight,” Luna told her. “You may develop a spell to help him, but it is specifically for the purpose of helping Alex become dominant in his body and perhaps killing off Sombra entirely. Even if he requests to be made dormant, tell him that Princess Luna is saying no, and that what he is requesting is effectively suicide, which we are not going to assist him with. But before that, please see if you can come up with something better. If there’s a way to separate the two of them altogether, that would be preferable.”
It was a few weeks of relative nothingness after Cadance’s trial had concluded that Alex sat on the throne, letting each day pass by without thought, actively working to keep nothing on his mind. He knew Starlight was working on something for him, she told him that she and Twilight were still looking into what could be done for him, and mentioned that she would try and get something written up for him within the next few months. It made him anxious, knowing that he had to wait until somepony else did something for him, and eventually his anxiousness got the best of him.
It was the middle of the day, and both he and Radiant Hope were listening to some noble explain why they needed a loan from the crown for whatever business they were starting up when he suddenly got the urge to do some poking around for personality spells for himself. While the pony was speaking, he got up, stretched his legs and yawned, and spoke to Hope.
“I’m going to be heading to the library,” he told her, interrupting the stallion. “To the archives actually. Make sure he’s taken care of please?”
“Sure,” she responded as she leaned up to nuzzle and kiss him. “Take as long as you need. I’ve got it here.”
With that, she watched him head off before turning back to the pony in front of her and giving him the loan he requested, sitting alone silently for a few minutes after that before the next pony came up to her. It was a bright yellow pony with a coal-black mane, one that was slicked back as though he combed it that way. He was a bit larger than most ponies for a unicorn, almost as large as Big McIntosh in Ponyville was, and had bright blue eyes, almost icy blue. Honestly, to Radiant Hope, he had the classic look of one of the villains of Equestria, the only difference between them and him being that his smile was nice and wide and genuine.
“Princess,” he started as he bowed low to the ground, his muzzle almost touching the floor.
“No need to do that,” Hope explained with a small chuckle. “How can I help you?” she asked.
“Oh, thank you princess!” he started enthusiastically. “I was just wondering if I could visit the Canterlot Archives? I’ve traveled all the way from Fillydelphia just to see them.”
“Fillydelphia?” the mare asked curiously. “Why so far?”
“Oh, it’s always been my dream to explore every library,” he told her, “and the Royal Library should be the best of all, I bet, especially the archives!”
“Hmmm…” Radiant Hope hummed thoughtfully.”I don’t see why you wouldn’t be able to, although we will have to get you an escort…”
“Drat,” the stallion thought to himself, keeping the smile on his face despite his frustration. “That’s going to make this more difficult, although I’m sure I could come up with an excuse to look up information about Mount Everhoof and the Bewitching Bell…”
“Can I ask what your name is, sir?” Hope started again as she floated over a quill and paper. “I’ll need to take down your information. And you said you’re from Fillydelphia?”
“Yes. My name is Brimstone,” he told her, causing her to look back up at him curiously. This time he did frown and looked at his hooves embarrassedly, continuing, “I know, it sounds like a villain's name, and you probably think I look the same way, too.”
“I thought no such thing,” Hope lied. “Although I do have to ask how you stumbled across that name.”
“Well, my coat is sulfur colored, and my parents' special talent was making fertilizer, which has the sulfur in it, so they thought, ‘hey, why not name him Brimstone?’”
“I see,” Hope commented as she went back to scratching in his details. “Well, I do have to admit, it’s quite the unique name, but unique names are always the most memorable, so that should make you feel better. Anyway, we can see if we can get you an escort to bring you into the archives within the next few weeks.”
“Wh-what?” he asked, taken aback and stepping backward in surprise. “A few weeks? I… I’m sorry, but I was… hoping I could see them today, if that’s okay…”
“Well, right now, we don’t have anypony available to escort you. Not that you’d intend to, but we always want to make sure that nopony is heading into the restricted sections of the library. You understand, right?”
“Oh, I see…” he said sadly, hanging his head low in an attempt to get her to feel sorry for him and allow him in sooner. “I understand. It’s just- I won’t be here in a few weeks to visit them, but I guess I can always try again next year…”
The mare didn’t take the bait, simply apologizing and asking, “Was there a date in particular you were wanting for next year?”
“Ah, no, any time you can give me would do fine,” Brimstone answered, containing the fury he had at her and himself over the fact that he would have to wait so long.
“Okay, then we’ll just put it for one year from today tentatively, and we’ll be sure to mail out documents for the exact day in a few months, along with who your escort will be,” she told him, quickly writing the information down. Once she was done, she asked, “Was there anything I could do for you, Brimstone?”
“No, that was it. Thank you, princess,” he told her, bowing again, giving a quick scowl to the floor while he had the opportunity.
“It’s no trouble,” she said kindly, giving him a gentle smile as he picked himself back up. “Be sure to enjoy Canterlot while you’re here, and if you ever need anything else, be sure to come back.”
“Thank you, princess,” he responded, smiling back at her and nodding his head low again before he left.
Once he was a safe distance away, he let out a quiet sigh of frustration and allowed himself to stomp his hooves in the grass in front of the castle. A whole year was what he was told. He didn’t want to wait a whole year. Just getting back to Mount Everhoof would take weeks as it stood, not to mention, convincing these ponies to be on his side. This was going to take ages already, and he absolutely did not want to wait a year before being allowed into the archives.
He stood there and considered his options. He could go back later to the Night Court and speak to Princess Luna… although she’d likely just say the same thing. He could also try and sneak into the archives. The way Twilight Sparkle described it in her book, it should be easy enough. But to be fair, she was the Element of Magic, so it should have been easy for her to do… well, anything. It probably wouldn’t be quite as easy for him as it was for her.
He took a breath and turned in the direction of the library, thinking over what should be done before he gasped at the sight of something. Or rather, somepony. He couldn’t believe that he was watching King Sombra off in the distance walking directly towards the library, blinking a few times to make sure he wasn’t seeing things.
“Hey! Hey, wait!” he yelled as though Alex could hear him, galloping after him for a few seconds before realizing what he was doing and teleporting over to him. The spot he landed in caused Alex to jump back in surprise as Brimstone bumped into him and fell to the ground.
“What are you doing?” Alex asked with a frown as he looked down at the unicorn. For some reason, Brimstone flinched, expecting him to yell and growl at him and turn him into dust. But no, he realized the stallion was only irritated about being bumped into. Still, even a simple look of irritation was a frightening thing to see on him, and it almost caused him to freeze in his place before he remembered that this was the pony he was up against. If he froze in fear now, he wouldn’t be able to get anything done, let alone rule over Equestria.
“I- I’m sorry,” he got out as he brushed himself off and shook his mane. “I didn’t mean to chase after you, but I- I saw you were heading off to the library and was wondering if you would grant me access to the Canterlot Archives?”
“That’s something to see Radiant Hope about,” Alex told him as he let out a sigh and wiped away his annoyance, remembering that he needed to gain the public’s trust. “I’m sure she could set you up with an escort to take you to archives. Have you spoken with her yet?”
“I have,” Brimstone admitted, “but she told me it would be a few weeks before I would get an escort.” Alex opened his mouth to tell him he would simply have to wait until then in that case, but the stallion was cut off with, “I saw you were heading into the library, and was wondering if you would be my escort, please? I'm not going to be in Canterlot in a few weeks, and would really like to see it while I'm here... please?”
The grey-coated stallion opened his mouth again to say no, but sighed instead. He once again remembered that he was trying to earn the public’s favor and stifle their fears and nervousness about him, and becoming irritated and declining to help them when they asked certainly wouldn’t help to do that.
“Yes, I can,” he answered, sounding a bit like he didn’t want to and ignoring the urge to roll his eyes. “Come along.”
“Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!” Brimstone responded excitedly and wearing a genuine smile, happy to see his plans moving forward.
Except for a few guards standing in position every so often, the inside of the library was completely empty when we entered. Although the inside was set up less like a normal library. There were shelves of books stacked almost to the ceiling, which was quite high, however, there weren’t any places to sit down and read, or a receptionist to check things out to anyone. There was no taking things home to read later. Effectively, if you were in here, you were either just touring, or you knew what you were looking for.
“Stay at my side,” I instructed, making sure the guards around us could hear me, knowing there were things in here that other ponies might try to use to their advantage. “I don’t want to see you wandering off. Do you understand?”
“Uh-huh, yeah,” the stallion replied, seeming as though he was only half-listening to me. “This is so exciting! I don’t even know where we should go first!”
I sighed at his enthusiasm, an emotion that was already wearing on me, taking a step forward and saying, “Follow me.”
I could practically hear him smiling as we walked through the library, going slowly to both give him time to take in what he wanted and to try and find the books I was looking for. The place wasn’t organized very well, in general books being ordered not by subject, but by who developed what spell. It was a bit annoying to have to walk through, and the difficulty of finding anything useful in particular because of the setup was the main reason I didn’t come to the library more often.
“Ooh, Gusty the Great!” the pony behind me called out as we entered another wing of the library. “She’s my favorite pony! Do you think I could read some of her books?”
“Let me see what they’re about…” I commented as we slowly started to walk through, wanting to see what kinds of things she was famous for. A quick look around showed it was mostly about her feats, defeating villains and helping to oversee the formation of Equestria. It looked mostly like history books to me, so I didn’t see too much harm in it.
“If you can read and walk at the same time, go ahead,” I told him.
“Oh, thank you!” he practically yelled as he looked around for a second, taking a moment to decide before picking out a book. “Oh, her battle against Grogar! That’s a good one!”
The mention of Grogar did raise my suspicions a bit. That was the pony who healed me when I was still weak from the Crystal Heart’s power over me. I was almost certain that Grogar was secretly Discord, seeing as he told me he had ‘such a great plan’ for Twilight, and how Tirek and Cozy Glow were both imprisoned in Tartarus once again instead of being out and about, so I wasn’t too concerned about whether or not something was about to happen. However, it did set off a few alarm bells in my head, just from what he was wanting to read about, especially in the Royal Library of all places.
“I never asked this, what’s your name?”
“Oh, it’s Brimstone,” he responded, looking up from the book for a moment and blushing. “I know. It sounds like a terrifying villain’s name.”
“I will admit, it does a little bit,” I answered him truthfully. Not only that, but now that it was on my mind, he did have the look of a villain a little bit. A sulfur yellow coat and pitch-black hair with icy blue eyes; it honestly felt like the classic look of an evildoer now that I was thinking about it. I quickly tried to remember if I heard his name anywhere else, but couldn’t think of anywhere it might have been mentioned.
“Ponies tell me that all the time,” he explained, looking away for a second. “It gets really annoying, and, you know, sometimes it makes me feel like I should just be one to prove them right.”
“Well, you’re not one, correct?” I asked.
“No…” he trailed off, sounding like he was a bit unsure, which caused me to frown.
“Well, then it shouldn’t matter what other people think,” I told him seriously. “Look at me for example. You wouldn’t believe how many ponies saw me and immediately thought it would be a good idea to kill me just because I looked like a villain. And now here I am, the ruler of Equestria. It takes work, but you have to prove those people wrong.”
“Yes, but-”
“No buts,” I continued. “Prove them wrong. There’s a zebra in Ponyville who ponies thought was evil, too. If I'm remembering correctly, they wouldn't sell her anything when she came into town, and they all hid in their homes when they saw her. They thought she was a villain, and then she proved them wrong, and now they're her friends. That’s what you have to do. Be the pony you want to be, not the pony people think you are. That’s what I’m doing, and it’s what you should do as well.”
“I… okay, I can do that,” he responded, before quickly adding, “Not that I was planning on doing anything evil. I wasn’t.”
“I’m sure you weren’t, Brimstone. Now let’s keep going. I’m trying to find something in here, and I don’t want to waste all day looking. I probably will though, but… let’s go.”
“Be the pony I want to be…” Brimstone thought, not paying attention to what he was reading as he carried the book with him, trotting quickly behind Alex’s long stride. “Well, I want to be the ruler of Equestria. Not because I look like and have the name of a villain, but because that’s what I want. To rule over Equestria.”
That was what he wanted, and he knew that… right? Just because he sounded like a villain didn’t mean that wasn’t what he wanted. He was going to rule Equestria because that was what he wanted, not because how he looked and what his name was told him he needed to.
“It doesn’t matter anyway,” he thought as he trailed behind Alex. “It’s what I want and it's what’s going to happen, regardless of whether or not I look and sound like a villain. I’m not somepony who needs to be ‘reformed’ like he is. I’m just not… well, I am technically a villain, but… whatever. I need to read.”
Brimstone continued to read as they walked, the two not moving very fast through the library, not that he minded. The slow pace let him focus on the book better and kept him from bumping into shelves and things.
He read about the battle between Gusty the Great and Grogar, already knowing the part where she hid his bell at the top of Mount Everhoof and how she placed a curse so no pegasus could fly up it. He already knew how treacherous the journey was, having taken several hours to get to the top once he made his way to the base of the mountain. However, it was after this where the book detailed exactly the spell she used.
Gusty the Great developed a complex spell to keep Grogar’s bewitching bell securely out of his hooves. At its core, it is a forcefield, however, it’s made to resist magic and even absorb it, so that even the strength of a hundred unicorns wouldn’t cause a break to form in it. Because it’s made to resist and absorb magic, it prevents unicorns from teleporting inside of it. The only way inside would be deactivating the spell, using the series of steps detailed below.
Brimstone frowned as he looked down at the steps that were written, the frown becoming a scowl when he saw how many things there were to do.
“Characters that need to be cast in just the right way and held for just the right amount of time, words and phrases that need to be spoken, symbols that need to be written with perfect accuracy… this is going to take weeks to master, assuming I can even remember all of what I need to do. And I can’t force my way in because I certainly don’t have the strength of a hundred unicorns. I don't think anypony else would be willing to make the trip to the Frozen North to go up the mountain with me either… sweet Celestia, this is going to take forever to do. Maybe I should just give up…”
He paused at that thought. Should he give up? He clearly wasn’t cut out to be a villain if he was already contemplating quitting, despite what his name and appearance said about him. Maybe he should just give up and go back to making plant fertilizer with his parents, not that he was very good at that, or enjoyed it even. He let out a sigh of frustration at his thoughts because of these things, which caused the pony in front of him to respond.
“I know we’re going slowly,” Alex told him, not looking back at him, “but I am looking for something important. We’ll get through to the next section of the library eventually.”
“It’s not that,” the sulfur-coated pony couldn’t help but tell him. “Just thinking about what you told me earlier.”
“You’re not thinking of becoming a villain, are you? Because let me tell you, that absolutely won’t work out. Not here in Equestria.”
“I wasn’t thinking that,” Brimstone responded quickly. “But… if I was thinking that, how would you know it wouldn’t work out?”
“Because this is the land of magical talking ponies. Everything always works out. Good always defeats evil, and every mess that’s made is always fixed. There’s always a happy ending.” Alex let out a long sigh, continuing, “I’m just holding out for my happy ending… it seems like it’s taking a long time to come.”
“Weren’t you a villain before though?” Brimstone asked. “Didn’t you try to take over Equestria? Isn’t that why you’re on the throne now?”
“I was a villain, yes,” he answered, “and I did try to take over Equestria, specifically, the Crystal Empire. Three times I tried, and three times I failed, being ripped to pieces because of my actions more than once.”
“So what changed?”
Alex paused at that, still looking at the books around him to see if there was anything useful before picking one out. He flipped through it, quickly at first, then more slowly as he scanned the pages carefully, looking for something to latch onto.
“Let’s just say I’ve had a personality shift…” he trailed off, taking a deep breath as he read, starting to get the faint feeling of excitement at what was written. He found himself slowing his walk to a dead stop as he looked through the book before locking onto a couple of pages that made him gasp aloud at its contents.
“This… this just might be it, the happy ending I’ve been waiting for,” he thought to himself as he took in the words that were written. “How did I not think of this? How did nopony think of this?”
“So is it, um… is it better now? I mean, I know a lot of ponies don’t like you, but is it… better to be nice?”
Alex had stopped paying attention to him, his whole concentration focused on what he was reading. He felt himself becoming excited for the first time in a very, very long time. This wasn’t just some theory he was looking at, this was an actual spell that had the potential to fix his problems. He almost wanted to laugh at the absurdity of what he was looking at, laugh at the fact that nopony up until then had thought of using this spell.
“This could work. This could really work. Although it is risky business, very risky… but at this point, what do I have to lose? I’m not going to sit here suffering forever, that much is clear, especially now that I know this is an option. My future is guaranteed with this. It’s just a matter of when now, not if. This will end, that much is guaranteed.”
“Sombra?”
“Huh? Oh, I’m sorry, what were you saying?”
“Is it better being… well, being everypony’s protector and ruler now than it is being a conqueror?”
He let out a breath he realized he’d been holding in, and explained, “There are two types of people in the world: those who are evil for evil’s sake, and those who are evil because they’re given no other choice. While both might care for no one but themselves, the latter I would say is usually forced down their path because of the actions of others; the way they’re treated, their past experiences, things like that. Like I said, you should try and be the person you want to be, not the person people say you are, but it’s more than that. You also need someone to believe in you, to be on your side, because if no one believes in you, then what’s the point of trying to fit in?”
“Is that what happened to you?”
“In essence, yes, although there were other events surrounding that. But yes. Finding someone to believe in you can be what makes the difference between someone who’s good and someone’s who’s a villain, or in my case, between living and dying. You have to find hope, even if it’s in someone who was formerly your enemy, even if it's in someone you'd never expect, and even if it's only in one person. You have to find hope.
“Anyway, let’s get out of here. I have what I came here for. Put that book away so we can leave.”
“Find somepony to believe in me… I think I can do that… thank you. Not- not that I was planning on becoming a villain or anything like that.”
“I’m sure you weren’t. Although, if you’re still in Canterlot tomorrow, a friend of mine is coming up to visit. I’m sure you’d get along with her very well, and based on what you told me, you might have great interest in meeting her.”
“That’s fine. I have to leave tonight to get back home. But I’m really happy you let me visit the library. I’ve always wanted to see it! It looks just as great as I imagined, plus I got to talk to the ruler of Equestria!”
“If you say so, I understand. But if you change your mind or are feeling down about yourself, stop by the castle and we can work something out.”
With that, Alex roughly tore the page he was looking at out of the book and folded it up, looking at himself for a moment to find a place to put it before deciding to press it into his coat, obscuring it with his fur's length.
“I know if they see this, they’ll try and stop me. It would be just like them to tell me no, but I’m not going to let them. If they really think I’m going to stay like this forever, they’re absolutely wrong. I’ll wait a little while to see if Starlight comes up with something workable, but if it starts to look like years are going to go by without anything changing, I’m using this. This will end one way or another.”
I leaned in to give Radiant Hope more than a few kisses as I nuzzled her, feeling extremely happy, practically skipping back into the castle at what I had found. She kissed back happily, pulling me into a hug and rubbing her cheek against mine as she smiled into the empty room.
“Somepony’s happy,” she told me, almost giggling as she gave me one last little nuzzle. “Did you find anything useful?”
“I think I’m getting close to something,” I responded. “I really do. I don’t think this will last too much longer, maybe a few months at the longest. I really, truly think I’m that close.”
It was a little bit of a lie, me saying maybe. There was no maybe about it. This would end, of that I was sure, but I already told myself that no one would know just what I found, not even Radiant Hope. I wasn’t going to risk anything getting in between me and what I found, not even her.
“That’s very good!” she said enthusiastically as we broke apart, wearing a genuine smile. “It’s great to hear! Although I heard recently that Starlight was close to getting something together. She said she thinks there are two different consciousnesses inside you if I recall correctly.”
“It doesn’t feel that way, but I can see it. But I’m glad she’s close to something, too. That doubles our odds of fixing everything. Oh, I’m so excited!”
With that, I sat back down next to her, the room devoid of other ponies as it typically was. I closed my eyes as she took my hoof and placed it on top of hers, the feeling of relief just starting to wash over me at the thought that this would end. Even if Starlight came up with nothing, this would end. The only thing that was stopping me at that moment from using what I found was the fact that Starlight already said she was working on something, not to mention the risk involved with what I had. However, if too much time looked like it was going to pass, the risk would eventually be worth it.
“I do have a question,” Hope suddenly started, speaking quietly as her eyes glanced around the room, looking to see if anyone was listening. “Do you think Luna will keep us on the throne once this is all fixed? Because part of me thinks she’ll try to punish us, punish you.”
“She might, but I don’t think they’d go along with it, not Starlight and Twilight at least.”
“What if they did though? What if Starlight fixed you and then she tried to arrest us? Or worse, what if she tried to kill you entirely and keep…”
I gave her a sidelong glance at that idea, asking, “Do you know who I am? Those ponies killed me twice already, and yet here I am. Besides, even if I were killed, it’s not like I’d really care one way or the other… although I’m certain one part of me would find it a bit distasteful. And I don’t think Fluttershy would put up with arresting me. They’d all have hell to pay with her if I told them they hurt me. She will be here when they say they’re ready, I'm making sure of that.”
“What if she didn’t care though? What if Alex was gone entirely and she said, ‘well, he’s Sombra, so I don’t care’?”
“Well, then I’d have to fight them all myself and run away with you, won’t I?” I responded jokingly. “Don’t worry, it’ll all work out, I assure you. This is the land of magical talking ponies who get their power from friendship. Happy endings always come. It may take a while, but they do.”
I did try to convince myself that a happy ending would come, for me at least. I wasn’t sure about Sombra and Hope, but I figured that I truly didn’t care either way. They could do whatever they wanted to once I was gone. Although, ideally, I wanted to go back to my life, but that seemed like it was close to an impossibility at that point. However, I would take being rid of Sombra completely as a consolation gift. Or even being killed entirely. Both outcomes were honestly very close, the only real thing making me like the former being that I didn’t want all of this to be for nothing. At least if I were still here, ruling Equestria, then I could say that all of this, all of what happened to me, had some meaning. I did know though that I didn’t want to remain in the position I was in right then. I would choose death over that if those were the options.
“Although maybe I should ask Luna what she plans in case the options really are between this and death… No, I’m not asking. I couldn’t care less about what happens to me after I’m gone. I’m not going to keep living like this, and I won’t let myself get talked out of this, especially not by myself of all ponies. Besides, either way, I have plan b laying in my fur against my side.”
Radiant Hope liked seeing her friend happy, and it made her smile widely. It was a rare sight for her to see, actual genuine happiness from him, ever since she got her cutie mark. It was probably only a handful of times he was since it happened, but it was always worth it to see. It gave her a nice fuzzy feeling inside whenever she saw him smile just because he did it so rarely.
“And he actually kissed me right when he came in,” she thought to herself gleefully, sending a glance his way. “It was more than one kiss, too, and I didn’t even have to make the first move. He really is getting better, and he'll be better even if nothing changes. Oh, I love seeing him like this.”
“I love you, Sombra,” she told him happily she leaned over to nuzzle and kiss him again.
“I love you, too, Hope,” he answered back. “Oh, by the way, I don’t remember if I told you, but Fluttershy is coming by for tea tomorrow at lunchtime.”
Hope’s face scrunched up just a tiny bit hearing that, unnoticeable to Alex as she responded, “Is she? I didn’t realize two moons had passed by so quickly. Didn’t you just see her before the trial?”
“I did, but that was mostly me speaking to Starlight and Twilight. But I bring it up because I didn’t want you to be caught off guard by my absence. I think I’ll take the full day off actually, if it’s no trouble.”
She tried to keep herself from sighing internally. “It’s alright. There’s no reason to be jealous. There’s nothing even to be jealous of… except for the fact that he never looks at Fluttershy with disdain and hate like he does to me… They’re not even a couple and he clearly is more fond of her, at least Alex is anyway...”
“I have a question, Alex,” she suddenly got out before she could stop herself. “Is there… is there any way you can just… skip seeing her tomorrow? Just once, please?”
“Why? You’re not jealous of her are you, Hope?” he asked curiously. “I mean, you and I both know that she’s involved with Discord, and even if she wasn't, I wouldn't get involved with her because I don't see her that way.”
“I’m not jealous of her, I just… I don’t like the way you look at her…”
“How exactly do I look at her?”
“It’s- you look at her the same way you do me, but it’s… you don’t look at her like you think everything is her fault, and you just…" She couldn't help the sadness that came onto her face as she spoke, continuing, "You don’t know how bad that makes me feel, seeing you look at me that way.” Alex frowned at her words, and she couldn’t help but scream out loud.
“That one! That’s the look I just can’t stand! It’s not my fault that this happened! I know you think it is, and I know you blame me, but it’s not! It’s not! My! Fault!”
It was a very sudden outburst, both of their moods being ruined quickly because of it, Alex sighing as Radiant Hope frowned and put her head in her hooves. It was the same complaint she gave every time, and every time nothing changed. He still gave her that look, and she couldn't help but hate it.
Her jaw was clenched as her eyes were filled with tears, giving a sniffle as she continued, “You just don’t… you never listen to me! Ever since I got my cutie mark, it’s felt like you’ve been avoiding me and ignoring my advice, and it hurts. And it’s not fair. And I don’t know why you’ve been doing this to me, but I hate it…”
Alex looked at her for a few seconds as she closed her eyes before leaning over to put her head on his shoulder, the tears getting into his coat. He wrapped a hoof around her in a hug as she shivered, and held her for a long moment before speaking.
"I told you before that this would end soon, and I assure you, it will. I promise, this will end, and you won’t have to deal with this indecisiveness anymore. I don't know how this will end, I don't, but I assure you, this will end. I know this is killing you, too.”
“Yeah, but how’s it going to end?” she asked quietly through her tears. “With me losing my friend forever? The only friend I ever had?”
Alex sighed at that and told her, “I know I’m being irrational when I think to myself that it’s your fault. I know it’s not really your fault, it just feels that way. And even if it was your fault, ever since you’ve known me, you’ve done nothing but try to help me and be my friend. So even if I can’t say that I love you, I can offer to try and be your friend if you want.”
“That’d be nice,” she whispered to him sadly. “It’d be better than nothing, I guess… I love you Sombra.”
“I love you, too, Hope.”
They hugged each other for a long moment before finally letting go, Hope wiping her eyes as she apologized.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I don’t mean to get jealous, but I can’t help it.”
“You’re fine. I understand. But I am still going to see her tomorrow, just so you know, although I won’t take the whole day if you don’t want me to.”
“I know… but thanks for not leaving me alone all day tomorrow.”
There was a long period of silence as the two sat in the empty room before Alex said, “I met a pony named Brimstone who said he talked to you earlier. He asked to go into the Royal Library with me.”
“Did he tell you that I told him I’d put him down for a date a few weeks from today and that he needed an escort?”
“Yes, he did, and he asked to go in with me and have me be his escort when he saw me heading there, so I let him.”
“You know I- I did that because he’s probably an evildoer? I don’t know if you know this, but most of the time, ponies with evil sounding names and appearances turn out to be villains… no offense.”
“Yeah, well, I prefer not to judge ponies by their appearances like most other ponies do. I’m not in the business of accusing ponies of things they might have done just because of what they look and sound like, unlike those six who like to think of themselves as the protectors of Equestria. Although I will say I did have a great conversation with him about that, how he said sometimes he feels like he should just be a villain because nopony believes in him.”
“I’m not saying he’s definitely a villain or he’s definitely not. I’m just saying that ponies with evil sounding names are villains a lot of the time. I just want you to be watchful and wary is all.” Alex started to open his mouth to say something, but Hope cut in, “Please just listen to me. Please. Just listen to me this one time.”
The stallion paused for a moment as if considering it before he sighed and responded, “Okay. I’ll listen and be wary. I promise.”
Before I knew it, the day had turned into night and I found myself waking up the next morning, excited to see my friend, a certain yellow pegasus.
“It’s so nice to see you happy, Alex,” Hope told me, breaking away from snuggling me as she stood up and nuzzled me. “It really is. I haven’t seen you this happy since before the last Crystal Faire.”
“You don’t care that I’m happy to see Fluttershy?” I asked, a bit confused, but still smiling.
“Not if it means I get more kisses and nuzzles from you,” she replied, moving up to do just that. “I’m sorry for being jealous. I really do want to see you happy, and if spending time with Fluttershy does that…”
“Don’t worry, Hope, I’m not romantically attracted to Fluttershy or anything like that. She’s just a very good friend. You’re the only pony for me.”
“Awwww, really? Promise?”
“Absolutely,” I replied. “I wouldn’t be sleeping in the same bed as you if you weren’t. Now let’s get out there. There might be ponies already waiting for us.”
Sure enough, there were about five or six ponies waiting in the lobby near the throne room, seeming cautious but much less nervous about approaching us. That thought made me smile wider. I could only imagine that they were less nervous now because of the fact that I saw that other pony yesterday, and it made me happier to know that what I was doing was actually doing something to make these ponies less fearful of me. It made me less upset about the idea of being in Equestria, knowing that the perception most ponies had of me not only could be changed but was changing. For a brief moment, I almost hoped that Starlight would fix this herself in a way that kept me in Equestria instead of me having to use the spell I found just so I could keep ruling.
“Things are actually looking up,” I thought to myself. “I have an assurance that this problem will be fixed, and ponies have finally stopped hating me. Cadance’s trial went almost perfectly, I get to see Fluttershy, and Starlight is also actually helping to fix me. Things are looking absolutely amazing. No matter what happens, the future is bright.”
It was a quick few hours before the noon bell rang, signaling lunchtime. It was much busier than normal, with several ponies still standing in line, but they quickly scattered once they heard the bell. Hope and I quickly finished dealing with the pony before us before I spoke to her.
“She should be here at any moment, Fluttershy will be. We’re going to be in the dining hall this time, not too far away, and we shouldn’t be more than a few hours.”
“Okay, that’s not any longer than normal. I’ll be here as usual.”
“I appreciate it, Hope, just so you know. I appreciate you staying to help ponies while I'm away. I always do.” That brought a smile to her face, and she leaned over to rub her cheek against mine, right as Fluttershy was entering the castle. I bounded up at the sight of her and made my way over, wrapping my hooves around the yellow pegasus in a hug.
“Nice as always to see you, Fluttershy,” I told her almost giddily. “One of these days though, we should have lunch at your cottage.”
“We should, I agree,” she giggled. “We’re having tea in the dining hall today?”
“We are,” I replied, then turned to give Hope a wave of my hoof. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Have fun,” she told me before adding, “I love you!”
“I love you too, Hope,” I answered back before Fluttershy and I walked off.
“You seem happy, Alex,” Fluttershy told me as a chef brought us tea and sandwiches. “It’s very nice to see you smiling.”
“Oh, I always smile when I’m around you, Fluttershy,” I responded, “seeing as I’m forever in your debt.”
She giggled at that, continuing, “Oh, you're not in my debt, and I did notice that you do smile around me, but you seem… happier. You were smiling even before you saw me. It was nice to see.”
“I feel happier. Mostly since yesterday.”
“What happened yesterday?” she asked curiously.
“I found something that will guarantee I get the happy ending I’ve been waiting for, even if Starlight doesn’t come up with anything. Knowing that I have a way out is comforting because it means that I won’t have to deal with being Sombra forever.”
“A way out? What is it, a spell? What does it do?”
“Well, it is a spell, but I don’t really know what it’ll do once I use it, or more specifically, what’ll happen to me. I know what it will do, what it's supposed to do, even if I don't know what that means for me. However, I know that there’s a ninety-nine percent chance that this will fix me, even if Starlight can’t.”
“It won’t hurt you, will it?” Fluttershy asked, a bit concerned as she took a bite of her sandwich and a sip of her tea. “I wouldn’t want to see you worse off than before because of a spell.”
“I promise, it won’t hurt me,” I assured her. “I mean, the Crystal Heart and Cadance didn’t hurt me when they tried, so I doubt a spell would, and especially not this one, since that’s not what it’s designed to do.”
“Is it okay if I asked what it was?”
That request caused me to frown. “I’m sorry, Fluttershy. I can’t tell anypony what it is, not even you.” That made her frown, and she gave me sad, puppy dog eyes as a result.
“I’m sorry," I apologized, explaining why I couldn't. "I have to make sure that nopony tries to stop me or talk me out of using it. I don’t think you’d do that, but if you told somepony else, they might, and I absolutely positively am not taking that risk. I don't want to be talked out of it.”
“Oh… but, I’m your friend,” she told me sadly, putting a hoof on top of mine. “You can trust me. I wouldn't try to do anything, I promise.”
"I... well..."
Could I trust her? Was that even a question? Yes, of course I could. She’d proven that I could trust her from the first time that I met her. She didn’t know who I was, and yet even when no one else had my back, even as scared as she probably was of me, she stuck up for me anyway. I knew she deserved to know.
“Well, I can tell you, but you can’t tell anypony else. Not Twilight, not Luna, not a certain pony you also have tea parties with, nopony. Nopony else can know about this spell.”
“I won’t tell them, I promise,” she assured me.
“Even if you don’t like what it is? You still wouldn’t tell?”
“Even if I didn’t like what it was, I promise. I pinkie promise. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”
That was good enough for me, and I leaned over to whisper in her ear what the spell I had was, anxious that somepony else might be listening in. I didn’t want anypony to know about this at all.
As I told her what the spell was and how it would work, her expression hardened, becoming almost a scowl by the time I was finished explaining to her what I wanted to do.
“Well… I don’t like it…” I frowned at that, expecting her to say that I should just be patient and hope somepony else comes up with something. Because of that, I was caught off guard when she continued, “But if you think it’s best, and it doesn’t seem like there’s any other option… well… then I’ll be there. But please, please tell me if you think it’s going to come to using that. I don’t need to be Twilight Sparkle to know that it could unintentionally hurt you, let alone other ponies.”
“I know, and I will. You’ll be the first pony I tell if it comes to it, and I’m planning to make sure that it doesn’t end up hurting you in any way. If it looked like it was, I wouldn't cast it. But hopefully, it won’t. Hopefully, I won't need it at all. Starlight said she was close to something, so that’s what I’m waiting on for now.”
“Okay, that makes me a bit more relieved. Thank you, Alex. Thank you for trusting me with this, even though you know I don’t really like it. I’m glad you can trust me with this.”
I paused at that, taking a sip of tea before responding, “Thank you for believing in me, Fluttershy, and thank you for always being a good friend, even if I’ve been more than a little rough with you and other ponies at times.”
“It’s always a pleasure, Alex.”
That made me smile again, and I asked, “Now tell me, how have you been? And what about your friends?”
“Oh, I’ve been good, although Discord still seems grumpy that I have tea parties with you. He says it doesn’t make it as special when I have tea with him.”
“That sounds like him,” I chuckled. “He’ll feel better later, probably.”
“Hehe, I hope so. But anyway, Twilight told me that she’s stressed out dealing with Cadance.”
“Stressed out with working to reform her?” I asked.
“Yes. She says she doesn’t think she’s going to change, and says that she keeps talking about how she didn’t do anything wrong and trying to convince both her and Starlight of that.”
“Well, she already admitted to it, so… although I hope it’s going well. The point is for her to learn her lesson, and if she’s saying she’s not in the wrong, it’ll be difficult to get her to learn it.”
“Oh, I know. I talked to Starlight after that, and she told me that she thinks everything is going fine. She said that she used to be that way, too, when she first met Twilight, and that it’s only been a few weeks. You should give both of them time.”
I took a breath at that, frowning again at the thought of the pink alicorn. “She absolutely deserves this, I can’t say that enough… but you don’t think I’m being too hard on her do you?” The yellow pegasus gave me a confused look, and I continued, “I know it’s a weird thing to think, seeing as she absolutely positively deserves this, and honestly deserves to be in Tartarus right about now, but I also want to get it through to her that what she did was wrong. I want her to eventually come to me to apologize, or at least feel bad about what she did to me. I want her to be embarrassed, but I also want her to apologize… is that weird?”
“That’s not weird,” she assured me, “and it makes sense. She should be embarrassed by what she did to you, and should feel very ashamed of herself. What she did to you, and Celestia, and Shining Armor… she should apologize. I mean, she already did at the trial, but it should be a real apology.”
“That’s a long way off for her, unfortunately…”
“I trust Twilight and Starlight. If there are any two ponies I trust to reform somepony, it’s those two. Between them, I’m sure they can do it. I trust them.”
“Well, if you trust them, I’ll trust them. I hope I can see her apology before whatever’s going to happen to me happens. I hope everything works out and I get my happy ending...”
“I’m sure it will,” she told me, giving me a gentle smile as she took another sip of tea. “Even if it doesn’t seem like it now, things always work out for the better. I'm sure your happy ending will come.”
“I mean… can we really do that?” Starlight asked skeptically. “I know Princess Luna has ruled for a long time but… I’m not sure about this… I mean, he gave Cadance a trial, so at the very least he deserves one, too.”
“I… I don’t want to say you’re right but… but you might be. But this is Princess Luna we’re talking about. She’s been a rock in this whole mess. If there’s somepony we should be listening to…”
“I don’t know… I’m not comfortable with killing him, even if Princess Luna told me to. I mean, he’s already been punished for the crimes he committed before, and he… well, let’s face it, he hasn’t actually done anything so far this time. He deserves a second chance. Err, a fourth chance, I guess.”
Twilight frowned at that. Common sense told her that she should trust what Luna had to say. However, she’d trusted what her sister, Celestia, had to say, and that... well, that was a disaster, and nearly ruined her friendship with Fluttershy. And if Celestia herself wasn’t infallible, then who was? Certainly not Twilight's sister- well, not technically her sister anymore- Cadance, that much was clear. It was jealousy on both of their parts that caused their fates, that she knew, and she certainly didn’t want that to happen to herself.
She didn’t want it to happen to Luna either. She didn’t know why the princess thought it was a good idea to do… well, she could see why, sort of, but still. She didn’t want to see her go down the same path as two of the four princesses had gone down. It was a frightening prospect, the idea that she would be the only one left out of all the princesses if something happened to Luna. She wanted to talk to her more to make sure everything was alright with her.
“I know, Starlight, I know,” Twilight answered. “I’m just concerned is all. I don’t want Luna to end up like Celestia or Cadance. I… I don’t want to be all alone… handling all of this.”
“I’m sure Luna’s fine. She probably just needs to be reminded that Sombra hasn’t done anything wrong yet, and he gave Cadance a trial, too. I’m sure it’s nothing. Now help me work on this spell?”
“What do you think could be making her say that?” Twilight asked. “Do you think she blames Sombra for what happened to Celestia?”
“I think we should-”
“I mean, I can see how she would blame him, but she has to know that it’s not going to be good for her. Just look at what happened to Celestia and Cadance! She has to know it wouldn’t end well.”
“Twilight?”
“We could try to talk to her though,” Twilight continued, starting to pace back and forth. “We could explain what she’s doing and what happened to them. I’m sure she’ll listen. Yeah, she has to listen! Like I said, she’s been a rock since this whole thing started! She’ll listen to us!
“Twilight.”
“But what if she doesn’t?” Twilight asked aloud fearfully, mostly to herself. “What if she doesn’t listen, and turns back into Nightmare Moon because of it, like how Celestia turned into Daybreaker? What are we going to do? I’m pretty sure Cadance won’t help us because she hates-”
“Twilight, do you think you’re overreacting just a little bit?” Starlight asked.
“Overreacting?” she asked, turning to Starlight, who gave her a look. “Okay, maybe I’m overreacting a little bit," the mare admitted, "but we need to think about these things! What are we going to do if that happens? What if Luna turns into Nightmare Moon because of this?”
“I’m sure everything is going to be fine, Twilight,” her friend assured her. “She already knows how dangerous it is to let jealousy get to her. I mean, she was already banished to the moon for a thousand years once because of it. I’m sure she’ll be fine. Plus, we’re making progress on Cadance, and when Celestia comes back, she’ll have had time to think about everything that happened.”
“I… I guess you’re right. But I really want to talk to her, just in case.”
“We can talk to her if you want, that sounds like a good idea. But right now, I need your help with this spell. I want something that’s all-purpose. I still think it should be something involving Cogeria, but we’ll need to combine it with other stuff. Maybe something like Mente Opprimunt?”
“That might be a bit strong to be using on him. We don’t want to completely wipe him out… maybe something like Reducite? That might be better… should we kill Sombra?”
“I don’t think so,” Starlight told her. “I mean, like I said, he hasn’t done anything wrong yet. All he did was cast a spell on himself, and as far as I know, that’s not illegal. What about Profertis? I mean, we’ll need something to make sure we’re bringing the right pony forward, but that might be a good spell to use, maybe in conjunction with Reducite?”
“Maybe… and, I mean, what if Alex asks to have Sombra in his place? What do we do about that?”
“Then we put Sombra in his place, Twilight,” Starlight responded simply, reading her book of spells. “I mean, Alex didn’t want to be here in the first place. I think it’s only fair we give him what he wants, even if that means having him be the one who’s suppressed.”
“I… don’t like him making that request because… well, we can’t know if Sombra is making him say that. I mean, Sombra could say he wants to be brought forward when actually-”
“Twilight, didn’t you tell me how this whole time Alex wanted to be sent back to where he came from?”
“Yes, but-”
“Then why would that change now?” Starlight asked gently.
“Well, it might not, but we can’t ever be really sure because we're also dealing with Sombra,” she explained.
“I really think you’re overthinking this, Twi. Overthinking things isn’t going to help. We just have to trust that it’ll all work out.”
“I know, but… I just don’t want anything crazy to happen. Too many crazy things have happened already. I just want everything to work out, and I… I have to admit, I’m a bit afraid of just having Sombra out and about, even if it’s what Alex wants. I know Sombra doesn’t deserve to be killed again because he didn’t do anything wrong, but… I mean… I don’t know if we can… just let...”
“Well, the way I see it, Sombra doesn’t deserve to be killed because he didn’t do anything wrong yet. Yes, he had past crimes, but he already was punished for those past crimes. And even if he did deserve to be killed again, since Alex was brought into this without his consent, it should be his choice for what happens to him. Even if it means…”
“I- I don’t like that. I know it might be what he asks for but… I don’t know if we can do that… especially if we don’t know it’s really him asking for that.”
“Well, how about this? We can bring Sombra forward first with a timed spell, say, forty-eight hours, then Alex after that, then see which he likes better and respect his decision since he’ll be making it informed. Is that fair?”
“That… that seems fair, yes. That’s a good idea. I don’t like the idea of… but that’s fair. I hope though that he doesn’t choose...”
“I hope so, too, Twilight, but… anyway, help me with this spell?”
Brimstone stood once again at the top of the mountain, in front of the cave that contained Grogar’s Bewitching Bell, but this time, he was prepared.
Drawn in the snow in front of him was a series of symbols, the ones needed to take down the forcefield in front of him, written seven or eight times in a row just in case he hadn’t written them correctly. As well, there were a few candles out in the snow, ones he enchanted to withstand the wind of Gusty’s spell on the mountain. They were set up in the positions he needed them in, the spots required for him to take down the field in front of him. He inspected everything, going over it three or four times to make sure everything was nice and perfect, and once he was satisfied, he began to work his magic.
He took a breath and began to cast the spell, casting each character slowly to make sure he got it right, breathing deeply as he did so. At the same time as well, he spoke the words to the spell as he remembered them, making sure to speak loudly and clearly, pausing at the right times in the spell. It was quite a process to do, to both speak and focusing on casting the characters correctly, but somehow, he was able to manage it, and after the spell was complete, he watched as his candles went out and the forcefield dissipated.
“Ha! It actually worked!” he exclaimed happily, giving a little hop in the air. “I can’t believe it! Who needs to be liked when I’ll be able to conquer Equestria? This is amazing!” He smiled gleefully as his work, taking a moment to rest and breathe while he appreciated his work before strolling in.
It was dark inside, and a bit warmer than the rest of the snow covered mountain top, and seemed to be lit up with blue crystals that lined the walls. The path inside had the track marks of another pony, Gusty the Great herself Brimstone assumed, which he thought was exciting. He was walking the very same path the famed unicorn walked. Quite an amazing feeling it was, an accomplishment that he could brag to other ponies about.
“Wait, no. Stop that,” he told himself sternly. “You’re not here to tour the place. You’re here to grab the bell and take over Equestria. Nothing else matters. Nothing.”
He would show them. Call him a villain and he would be a villain. It was what everypony did anyway. Except for Sombra, or Alex, it seemed, but that didn’t matter. He would push him aside too, although maybe he’d let him be a delegate since he was nice to him. But everypony else? He would show all of them.
In no time at all, he found himself walking into the main room of the cave, which was decorated with paintings of other famous ponies and creatures he knew, like Grogar and Discord and Celestia and, interestingly enough, Twilight Sparkle. He didn’t know how or why the cave held these paintings, but he put it out of his mind after a few seconds of examination and turned his attention to what he came all the way to the top of Mount Everhoof twice for.
In front of him, on the top of what looked to be a dried fountain carved out of rock, was the bell he wanted. It was a strangely colored object, one that seemed about the same color as the stone around him. It was cracked in a few areas, but giving it a few shakes as he picked it up indicated that the bell still rang, which was good. That meant it would still do what he wanted it to.
He smiled widely as he held the thing in his hooves. He was just about halfway to his goal now with the bell's acquisition. It was only a matter of time before he succeeded completely. Although he did have a new concern now, which was that he didn’t exactly know how to use the bell. He knew what it was supposed to do and what it would look like when it was working. He knew it would light up when it was stealing a creature's magic, but he had no idea how to get it to do so, which was a problem. He could only guess where the instructions for how to use it were.
“Sweet Celestia, I have to go back to the library…” he muttered to himself as he gathered his candles and used a hoof to mark out the symbols he drew, marching down the mountain again, slightly frustrated, but at least now with the bell in his hooves.
“So that’s what we think should happen,” Starlight finished, explaining to Luna what she and Twilight discussed. “I’m not sure we’ll be able to completely separate them, but it should be fairly simple to get one of them to the forefront, at least from a technical standpoint.”
“Hmmmm… and you’re sure this is the best way?” Luna asked. “Can you be sure that Sombra himself won’t try anything if you do it this way?”
“Well, we can’t be one hundred percent sure, but that’s why we have it designed to run out on its own after seventy two hours. That way he can see how he feels about each one and decide what he wants.”
“And you’re certain there won’t be any issues with the spell?” the alicorn asked.
“Nope, there won’t be any issues. Twilight and I went over it a hundred times to be sure everything looked correct, and we designed more than one way to deactivate the spell on the fly should something weird happen. Everything’s planned out to perfection, at least on our end. Right, Twilight?”
“Uhh, right. Nothing, uh, nothing weird should happen,” the purple pony responded unconvincingly, only half paying attention, more worried about the blue alicorn's reaction.
Luna looked between the two of them for a few moments as though gauging their trustworthiness before asking, “How soon do you plan on having this done?”
“Well, in theory, we could do it right now, but I’m assuming he’ll want to have Fluttershy here in case anything goes wrong, so… I was thinking we could do it tomorrow afternoon? Unless you have something going on then, or that’s too early for you.”
“Tomorrow afternoon should be fine,” Luna answered. “Thank you for coming to me with this. I realize my methods might come off as a bit… brutish. As you know, if it were me, I would have sent Cadance to Tartarus and been done with it. However, it is still in my opinion that we rid ourselves of Sombra once and for all, even as unpopular an idea as it may be.”
I was wearing a wide grin after Starlight and Twilight left, excited for what would be happening tomorrow, but Radiant Hope was predictably more skeptical.
“I really, really want you to be careful, Alex,” she told me with concern. “I know it’s exciting that things are finally going to be better for you, but you have to make sure they aren’t going to secretly hurt you or something. You and I both know that they aren’t that far above doing that.”
“I know, but I have to trust somepony, and if it has to be anyone, it would be Starlight. Besides, Fluttershy will be there, too, and I know she won't let anything happen to me.”
She sighed at that, continuing, “But what if something goes wrong? What if something messes up like…” She trailed off, blushing and looking away, no doubt remembering what happened in the hospital room back in the Crystal Empire.
“I’m sure it’s going to be fine,” I assured her. “They’re not going in blind like we were. Starlight said she’s been working for weeks on this, since I asked her about it before the trial. I don’t think anything is going to go wrong, and even if something does, I have my own failsafe.”
“That’s the other thing: you said you have a way to fix this, but you don’t want to use it yet and don’t want to tell me what it is. Why don’t you just use that if you think it’ll work?”
“Because it’s very risky, and I can’t guarantee what the outcome will be for me if I use that. That’s why I want to go this route first to see what happens.”
“I- I just…” She frowned sadly as she told me, “I feel bad saying it, but… I really think you’re getting better. I… really think holding out is the best idea… I’m sorry, but I really think it is. I really, truly feel like you’re getting better, and this could hurt that.”
“I know you’re concerned about me, but this really does kill me,” I told her. “It might not look like it all the time, but even if I don’t show it, every single day it kills me. I hate feeling the way I do, and I need it to end.”
“But I…” she trailed off sadly. “I… whatever happens, I lose. I don’t want to lose my friend, and even if you choose… I really think they’ll turn against us. But even that wouldn’t be half as bad as losing you forever. I don’t want to lose my friend. I mean, you’re my friend, too, but… I don’t want to lose Sombra…” She gave a little sniffle as she said it, one that made me feel just the tiniest bit bad.
“I really think it’ll all work out,” I told her. “I really, truly believe so. I still haven’t decided what I want them to do, but if it’s me who goes, I’ll make sure Fluttershy knows that they should give Sombra a chance. Actually, I’m not even sure I’ll need to do that. I’m sure she’ll say that on her own. And if it’s Sombra... well, like I said, I’ll be your friend if you want me to be. I mean, it probably won’t be the love that you and Sombra have together, but it’ll be something.”
“A… a starting point maybe?” she asked hopefully, looking up at me for a moment before looking back at her hooves, shuffling them. “If…”
I gave a little chuckle at that. “Maybe. We’ll have to see how it goes and where my feelings lie after all of this, if I’m still around.”
She gave me a sad smile at that, which was better than seeing her frown, and said, “I love you, Sombra.”
“God, this is nerve-wracking,” I told Hope as we sat down for a late lunch of sandwiches and tea. “This is really going to happen. I’m going to get sick, I’m so anxious.”
“I feel the same way,” she agreed, “and it’s not even me that has to go through it. Well, mostly. I mean, it'll affect me a little bit, but you know what I mean.”
“Nerve-wracking,” I repeated, “but also exciting. This is really going to happen. I’ve been like this for what? Over a year? A year and a half? It’s not going home, but it should be so much better. I’m actually going to have a clear head for the first time in months. Oh, I can’t wait.”
It was just after three o’clock and the two of us shut down the royal court for the rest of the evening, as well as the day court tomorrow. I wanted to celebrate if the spell Starlight told me about worked. Or, conversely, if it didn’t work, lay depressed in bed all day tomorrow.
“Or use that spell I found,” I silently thought. “Maybe. It depends on what Starlight says and what the timeline for getting her spell to work would be. If she thinks it’s going to take months, I’ll just use it right away since Fluttershy will be here already. There wouldn’t be any point in waiting if that was the case. But I don’t think it’ll come to that. This will work. She’s the most talented pony in all of Equestria. If she can’t do anything, no one can.”
“I know you don’t want to hear it, Alex,” Radiant Hope told me as I took a bite of my sandwich, “and I know it’s going to come off as me just… wanting to keep Sombra around, but this is for both of you. I really, really truly think that both of you are getting better and that you don’t need to cast a spell on yourself. I know it’s not the happy ending either of us are waiting for but… it’s…” She looked up at me and gave me a sad look as she told me, “It’s the safest option to… keep you… from being hurt, and losing everything you- we worked for. I really think that. I’m sorry. I don't want to see you hurt.”
“You don’t need to be sorry,” I responded. “I understand. But I really do disagree. I need this. I can’t stand another moment of living life like this. This has to happen for me, or I’m going to go crazy and take it out on a whole bunch of ponies.”
I watched her sigh, saying, “If you think it’s best, I guess… I really hope this doesn’t turn out badly. I am worried about you. Both of you.”
I moved up to grab both of her hooves in mine with that, telling her, “I know, and I really do thank you for that… I don’t know if this makes you feel better, but… do you remember when I said that I can’t help but… but hate you for what happened in the hospital room?”
“...yes,” she whispered, looking me in the eyes for a moment before looking away, seeming like she wanted to cry.
“Well, I don’t think that’s the case anymore. I don’t think you love me, but I am starting to feel like you actually do care about me, on a friendship level I mean. Not just me, but also Alex, and it’s making me feel much better about you. I’m not in love with you by any stretch, but… I’d like to be your friend.”
She gave me a small smile, and I thought I saw a blush as well as she said, “Thank you. I really do try, because of the… weird situation that you’re in. That we’re in. Although I guess you’ve already kissed me though. Or, well, Sombra has, but I mean you also have, technically.”
That thought made me cringe, and my smile dropped because of it.
“Yeah, um… don’t expect a lot of that in the future. Kissing I mean. But we can… sleep in the same bed together still if you want, as long as we’re on separate sides. But kissing once he’s gone, if he’s gone, is going to be a no-go.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, her ears flattening in embarrassment.
“It’s okay.”
“Alex?” a voice called, Fluttershy’s, as she entered into the dining hall, as usual causing a wide smile to form on my face. “I’m glad I get to see you again so soon! How have you been?”
“I’ve been well,” I told her, moving up to give her a brief hug. “Very well. I’m excited for today, and I’m glad you’re here to see it, Fluttershy.”
“I’m glad to be here, Alex,” she smiled. “I asked Discord if he wanted to come and see you too, but apparently he’s still grumpy about how you’re, as he put it, ‘a being more chaotic than him’. And something about ruining something he had planned?”
“I don’t know about any plans, but it does sound like Discord,” I agreed. “But either way, I’m happy you’re here, Fluttershy. Care for some tea?”
“Always happy to see you,” she told me kindly. “And that’s fine. I just had tea with Discord. But um, I have to ask, where are Starlight, Twilight, and Princess Luna? I thought they were going to be here by now.”
“I’m not sure, but they said they would be here in a few minutes. It’s already after three right-”
“Here we are!” Starlight announced as the three ponies we were discussing strode into the room from a different entrance than the one Fluttershy took. “Sorry we took so long. Twilight and I just wanted to triple check the spell we were going to use. I hope that's okay."
"No trouble at all," Radiant Hope told them with a small smile.
“Well, there they are,” I said to the pegasus in front of me. “I guess we can get started now?”
“Right now is perfect!” Starlight said. “As long as everypony is ready, anyway. Are we missing somepony who should be here?”
“I don’t believe so,” Luna said. “Twilight Sparkle’s friends are not here, but I don’t think they will be necessary. Do you, Twilight?”
“No, I don’t think so,” she said. “This should be easy enough. Uh, Starlight, do you want to do the honors? I mean, it is your spell…”
“Wait, before that, I have to ask Princess Luna something,” I got out, turning to the alicorn as I remembered what Hope told me. “If I choose to let Sombra take over, will you go after me? I mean, would you let me keep ruling, or would you just depose me immediately?”
“That would be-”
“She wouldn’t depose you,” Starlight interrupted. “I mean, after all, you were technically kind of already punished for your past crimes, and you haven’t done anything so far, so I think-”
“That we will discuss it,” Luna interrupted, shooting Starlight a look. “And discussed it will be if that were to be his final choice.”
“Um, yeah. That. What she said,” the mare got out as she rubbed a hoof behind her head. “Anyway, uh, that’s not a choice you have to make right now. We’re just going to be doing a couple of tests first before we let you decide. You know, let you see how you feel about each of your options.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, we’ll send back both of you for a short time, say three days each, so you can see how you feel about being in each circumstance before you decide what you want to do. I believe it's called fronting? Both Alex and Sombra will get the chance to front for a little while. Anyway, after that, in one week, you can make an informed decision.”
“Okay, so what are we doing first then?” I asked. “Sending me back or Sombra?”
“We were going to leave that decision to you, not that it really matters which you choose right now anyway,” Twilight told me.
“Well…" I trailed off as I tried to decide. “What do you think, Hope? Fluttershy?”
“Oh, I don’t have an opinion,” the yellow pegasus answered. “I don’t want you to have to be pressured by me. You choose whatever you think is best.”
“What about you, Hope?”
“Well…” She rubbed a hoof behind the other and frowned again as she said, “You already know what I think… and… what I would want. I’ve told you what I thought was best…”
I considered her words for a moment, thinking them over before turning to Starlight and saying, “Well, I guess since we’re trying out both anyway, I’ll start by sending Alex back, if no one objects to that.”
“I certainly don’t,” she responded, “as long as you’re okay with it.”
“Yes, it’s fine,” I assured her. “As long as that spell isn’t going to kill me immediately, but even if it does, I wouldn’t be that mad.”
“Ah, yeah, it's not going to do that, um, even if that's what you wanted…” Starlight said, grimacing a bit before shaking her head and lighting up her horn. “Anyway, let’s get started. Stay still for me and close your eyes. This is going to tingle a bit.”
“I’ll trust that you’ll make sure nothing bad happens, Fluttershy,” I said as I did as Starlight requested, lifting my head a bit higher and closing my eyes.
“Absolutely, Alex. I’ll make sure.”
“Well, here we go!” Starlight exclaimed happily, which was the last thing I heard before everything went silent.
It was dark in my- our-head, although not completely. I could see myself, or at least, I thought I could. I couldn't tell if I was just imagining it. My body felt weightless, like a cloud, although it moved at my command. I almost thought I’d forget what it was like to have normal hands and feet after all this time, but it came naturally to me. It was like riding a bike, not something I could just forget about.
The area I was in was largely empty, except for two things. The first was a large screen. I didn’t know how to describe it, but monitor was the best word. It was a monitor that showed the real world- the real world in this case being Equestria. There was something standing in front of it, a pony, one that I could only guess to be Sombra himself. He was standing in front of what looked like a pair of binoculars, unmoving, his eyes firmly fixed into the device. I assumed he was using that to make this body laugh like it now seemed to be doing, and considered going over to inspect him before opting not to and turning to see what else there was.
The only other thing there of note was a small window that contained what looked to be my office building, the one I was in when this all happened. Taking a few steps closer showed me that it was paused at a normal-looking moment, with me sitting at my desk in what I assumed was the moment before I was brought here. It made me tear up at the sight of it, sad for what I had lost, sad for the fact that it wasn’t ever real to begin with. Touching the glass caused it to play, and I watched the normal scene play out for a few seconds before shifting to Twilight Sparkle gawking at me in what I knew was my appearance in Equestria.
“A window of memories…” I whispered to myself as I wiped my eyes. “Of course it was never real. Logically it doesn’t make sense for it to be real. Of course, I was always this pony. I hate this with my whole being…”
I sighed and looked down at my appendage for a few moments, unable to determine whether it was a hoof or a hand I was seeing. I gave it a few moments of consideration before I shook my head and went back to the window, wanting to see if there was any way I could control what memories I saw. However, I only had my attention back on it for a second before I heard Sombra’s voice.
Sombra opened his eyes and blinked a few times. It wasn’t like he was just now seeing the world for the first time, but he was, sort of. He felt… lighter. Lighter than air, like his head was finally clear. Well, not exactly, there was something else there, but this wasn’t something he was forced to share space with. This was something he could push back and ignore. Not that he had to. It seemed content to wander off on its own, leaving him be and giving him complete control over his own body for the first time in ages.
He smiled at the thought, then began to laugh, first a chuckle before growing into something loud and deep. It gave a few of the ponies around him pause, but made Fluttershy and Starlight smile happily. It wasn’t something that sounded evil, in fact, it sounded happy. Relieved was a better word. He was relieved to finally be himself again.
“Oh, thank you, Starlight!” he smiled happily. “You’ve actually done it! Alex is… well, he’s still here, but he’s not interfering with me anymore! I can’t believe you were able to do that! You’re almost as good a spellcaster as I am!”
“Oh, well, you know, I try sometimes,” the mare answered bashfully. “But he’s not gone forever. Like I said, you’ll get a few days, and then he’ll get a few days, and then he’ll, or, I guess you both, will make a decision on what should happen after that.”
"Of course, of course, I understand..."
“I’m sure I could sway his opinion,” Sombra thought to himself. “Make him see that he would be better served if he kept out of my way. And if he doesn’t agree, I can find a way to kill him off with the arsenal of spells I have.”
“You’re fucking ridiculous if you think I’ll just let you kill me off like that,” an unfamiliar voice told him, causing him to flinch slightly. The stallion was taken aback by the words, and turned behind him to see who it was, finding nopony there.
“If I want to die, it’ll be on my terms,” it told him. “Do you understand me? Do you really think I’ll just let you try and kill me off? And even if you were able to, do you really think Fluttershy and Starlight wouldn’t notice what happened? You’re an idiot if you think they wouldn’t.”
It took a minute for him to realize it was coming from inside his head, from Alex, and that realization caused him to smirk.
“On your terms?” Sombra asked, giving him a bit of a tone. “And how would you plan on stopping me? I’m the pony in control here. It wouldn’t be hard to act like you’re still in here and fool them. They’re not as smart as they make themselves out to be, you’ve seen that just as I have.”
“You really think that, don’t you,” Alex told him, an air of annoyance in his voice. “You really think I’ll just let you kill me. You really think this whole fucking mess you and Cadance have brought on me is just something you can shrug off, but it’s not. If I want to die, I’ll die, but it most certainly won’t be by your hooves.”
“I ask again,” Sombra questioned, “how would you plan on stopping me?” He didn’t get an answer right away, but after a few seconds, he felt something flick his ear, and then felt a few pokes in his side. He knew Alex was doing it, and was made nervous because of it, but tried to laugh it off.
“Is that it?” he asked. “You’re going to poke me to death? That’s what you’re going to do?”
“I can do more than that,” he replied. “I’m almost certain I can push you away and take control if I truly wanted to. And if you keep pushing me, I just might do it.”
“Oh, I’m sure you could,” the stallion replied sarcastically. “That’s a bluff if I ever saw one. You and I both know you can’t do anything.”
He could somehow feel Alex rolling his eyes at his sarcasm. “All you ponies are the same,” he said angrily. “All of you ponies really think you can get rid of me that easily, every single one of you. You all think you can just kill me without a second thought and be done with it. Well I’m never going away. Do you hear me? You’ve made up my mind for me. As long as this body is living, I will never ever go away.” He could feel Alex’s voice next to his ear as he suddenly yelled, “You’re just going to have to be stuck with me and deal with it!”
The stallion was about to snap at Alex when he felt something emanating from it… sadness? No, bitterness. Bitterness was what it was. Alex’s bitterness had somehow worked its way over to Sombra and made him feel bad. He pressed his ears against his head as a result.
“What’s going on, Sombra?” Starlight started to ask, but the stallion put his hoof up to silence her as he focused on the other being inhabiting his body.
“Be happy that you have Radiant Hope at least,” Alex told him. “I have nothing. Absolutely nothing. You at least have one pony who loves you with their whole heart. Everyone I loved is in my memories, memories that aren’t even real. And you don’t even know how bad it hurts.”
Alex sighed sadly, and continued, “All I want is to be happy, but that’s never going to happen because everything is against me. Not against us, against me. Everyone acts like they have some legitimate stake in what happens to me, but they don’t, because no matter what happens, I’m the one who has to suffer. It’s almost better to have you merged with me like we were a minute ago. At least then I don’t have to think about all of this. I could just shut up and rule and let you fall in love with Hope and let my pain at least be manageable, even if I hate my life. This is never going to be fixed. I’m never going to get my happy ending. You might get yours, but I won’t, and that’s a fact.”
“I’m sorry,” Sombra apologized quietly, speaking aloud as he did so, genuinely feeling bad for him and looking at his own hooves. “I didn’t mean for it to turn out like this.”
“Of course you didn’t,” Alex responded bitterly, “but it did, and now we’re here and I still hate it... Maybe once this little experiment is done, I should use that spell. What do I have to lose?”
“Please don’t do that…” he whispered, to the confusion of the ponies around him.
“Are you okay, Sombra?” Fluttershy asked with concern, Starlight taking a step closer to him.
“Why shouldn’t I?” Alex spat. “It’s not like anything will ever change for me. It’s going to suck forever, so I might as well just get it over with.
“Because I don’t want to lose Hope,” he told him, speaking in his head again. “I can’t lose Hope. That’s going to kill me. I know she means nothing to you, but she’s everything to me. I can’t lose Hope again. Please.”
“Whatever. It’ll probably just kill me anyway, and if I die trying, then this whole thing, my existence, was completely meaningless."
“I’m sorry,” Sombra apologized again. “I really, truly didn’t mean for this to happen to you.” He paused for a second before continuing, “I know I can’t make it up to you, but I could try. Was there anything you-”
“Do whatever you want,” Alex sighed, cutting him off. “Just let me have a break at least, please, for these next few days… ugh, I’m going to sleep.”
What followed was silence. No words, no presence, nothing. It was as though he went to sleep as he said he would, and Sombra couldn’t help but continue to feel bad for him as a result.
“Sombra?” Starlight asked, concerned. “Are you alright?”
“Yes, I’m fine,” he answered with a sigh. “Alex was telling me that he wants to rest for the next few days and is going to sleep.”
“What in Equestria have I created?” he asked himself. “What have I done?”
“Wait, you can hear Alex?” Starlight asked, both she and Twilight looking at him with interest. “Like, in your head?”
“What was he telling you?” the purple alicorn asked. “What were you apologizing for?”
“That’s none of your concern,” he told her with authority as he waved a hoof dismissively. “Although I do have to ask how you plan on having this spell end. Is it a gradual timed spell, or will you be undoing it yourself?”
Starlight gave Sombra a knowing grin at that, answering, “You know I can’t tell you that. We can’t have you trying anything funny, can we?”
The stallion scowled and bared his teeth at that, causing her smile to drop as Luna and Twilight took defensive stances. He took his own stance and scrunched his face further until he realized what he was doing. Radiant Hope put a hoof on his side and Fluttershy gave him a look as he stood straight up again.
“I’m sorry. I have to remember that nopony here is my enemy. Forgive me. It’s an adjustment I must make after months of operating that way.”
“Yes, it is,” Princess Luna agreed. “On the subject however, we must discuss your past crimes and what the appropriate retribution would be for them.”
“Ah, yes, appropriate retribution,” he repeated sarcastically, “as in the death sentence that was handed down upon me twice and delivered to me with neither trial nor testimony or even a willingness to hear my side explained.”
“The death sentence that was rightfully deserved after your crimes,” she countered. “Imprisonment of one princess in stone, the enslavement of the Crystal Empire, multiple counts of treason-”
“All of which I’ve paid for,” he interrupted, leaving out his thinking that they deserved it, knowing it wouldn't be good to tell them that now that he was fully in control of himself. “The crimes you accuse me of have been paid for with my death, more than once.”
“And so then it seems we come to this whole mess, which, while instigated by Cadance, was in part a result of your actions.”
“Don’t start with that with me,” he threatened. "This was not my fault. You and I both know that."
“Alex exists in part because of your actions,” she continued. “Even despite Cadance’s treason, this incident was set in motion because of your spell, and therefore you have responsibility as well."
“We were not the aggressor, Luna. We- I- was not the cause of this. That was those two witches disguised as princesses who brought this all on. This is not our fault.”
“What was your plan for Alex once you were finished with him then?” Luna asked. “What were you planning to do to him? Throw him away? Destroy him?”
“We’re the victim- I’m the victim- of Cadance and Celestia’s actions against me,” he said loudly, almost yelling. “As well as Amore, too, but that’s ancient history. All things being fair, I would say everypony got the justice that was delivered to them.” He paused for a second before continuing, “Actually, no, they got off comparatively easy, all things considered, seeing what my sentences were.”
“You’re in a position you’ve created for yourself. You’ve made yourself the victim of your own actions. While I will admit there was an element that Celestia and Amore played in your actions, the majority of the blame for where you are at falls upon yourself, and is rightfully deserved after your crimes.”
“My crimeswere because of- no, I won’t be explaining myself further right now. I’ve done it once, and for now, I’d like to enjoy my relief, especially when you’re so unforgiving to me. Somehow every creature else seems to be able to earn forgiveness for their actions besides me.”
“Perhaps there’s a reason for that, one that a bit of self reflection will help you see, Sombra,” Luna responded flatly.
He rolled his eyes at that, grumbling, “Of course, I need to self reflect. Not anypony else. It’s always me who’s forced to take the brunt of everypony else’s actions. Somehow, despite the fact that it never starts with me, it always seems to end with my death.”
“If everypony’s problems seem to end with your being delivered justice for your crimes, then once again, it might be time for self reflection in that case to see if you are the reason for such an occurrence.”
He growled at that and bared his teeth again before calming back down and setting off to his bedroom. He only made it three or four steps though before he stopped and turned around to face the alicorn once again.
“Luna?”
She didn’t respond, but she did look up to meet his gaze for a second before he looked to the floor at his hooves.
“Thank you,” he told her a bit more softly, causing a look of confusion to make its way onto her face from the unexpected words. “For protecting us from Celestia, I mean. It was appreciated, by both of us. Even if the original goal was to trick you… I still thank you for the compassion you had.” He then looked up again, turning to the yellow pony and giving her a wide smile. “And you, too, Fluttershy. Especially you. I do consider you a friend, the same way Alex does, maybe the second I’ve ever had, even if I was unnecessarily cruel to you during the few moments that Alex was away.”
“It’s no trouble at all, Sombra,” Fluttershy responded kindly. “I forgive you.”
“Starlight, thank you for giving me this moment,” he continued, getting a smile from her before he turned to Hope. “And you,” he said as he leaned down to truly nuzzle her and kiss her for the first time in over a thousand years, “I love you with my whole heart, and thank you for always being there for me, even when everything seemed hopeless.”
“Awwww, I love you, too, Sombra,” she told him happily as she leaned into him. “I know it’s still early, but um… since I finally have you to myself… maybe we should go back to our bedroom?”
He blushed at that, and it got a few giggles from some of the ponies in the room, Luna herself even cracking a small smile. It was a nice moment despite the previous conversation, the tension that had built up between them dissipating.
I figured out how to operate the window I was looking through to view whatever memories I wanted to see. It was a strange experience to say the least, and I learned a few things operating it.
The first was that before the moment I turned into a pony, I could go back to any specific day and see all the little details that I forgot about. What shirt I wore, what conversations people were having around me, what other people were eating at restaurants, things like that. However, when I scrolled up to and after I became a pony, it was much more generalized, only showing specific moments rather than everything, and only the things I needed to know. It gave me the impression that everything before that was a guided story, one that was only intended to be built up to a specific point before I came here. It was quite impressive, and I found that I was even able to replay things like when I watched movies or read books or listened to music. How Sombra, or rather, how Sombra and I, were able to do something like this and not have our brain completely overloaded with information, I didn’t know. It was quite the feat in my opinion.
However, despite the appeal using this window offered, it wasn’t something I cared about doing. It only made me sadder, watching the life that ran away from me play out, and I could feel a few tears dripping down because of it. It didn't feel fair to me, and made me upset.
“I lost everything,” I thought to myself, somehow understanding that saying so out loud would cause Sombra to hear me and interrupt whatever he was doing. “I lost everything and everyone, and all I can do is play over what happened, all because of those dumb ponies. And they all hated me for no reason, and wanted me dead. Even Celestia, who was my favorite, who was supposed to be the kindest being in the world, hated me for existing…”
I let myself cry for a little while, going through random parts of my life and trying to pretend that I was still there before getting fed up and walking away. I felt tired, extremely tired, and just wanted to go to sleep. Another quick look around showed an empty, simple looking bed in a lonely corner of the room, and so I walked over and fell asleep, resting my mind for the first time in ages as just a couple of more tears dripped down.
“Hmm... well, I’d say that went fairly well,” Starlight decided as the ponies left in the room watched Sombra give Fluttershy a brief hug before walking away with Radiant Hope, the yellow pegasus heading on her own way not long after as well. “I mean, it could’ve been a little bit better, but still, it was very good I think. What do you say, Princess Luna?”
“Yes, it went decently I can say,” the alicorn answered, staring ahead blankly for a second before turning to her and continuing, “However, I must say that I do have an issue with you speaking for me.”
“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “It was just-”
“There is no ‘just’,” Luna broke in. “It is not up to you to determine what shall happen to him, and it’s especially dangerous to make promises to him that might not be fulfilled.”
“Well, he hasn’t done anything wrong yet, and he even said we’re not his enemies. So I don’t see why-”
“It is not your job to see, Starlight,” Luna interrupted. “That is our job, and we will see to it that justice is delivered fairly, whatever that justice may be.”
“Well… I just don’t think it’s right to punish him again now, and I don’t agree with it." Luna gave her a look, and Starlight nervously continued, "I’m sorry, but I don’t, especially since he hasn’t done anything yet.”
“Well… maybe we should have a roundtable?” Twilight suggested. “I mean, we could have a dinner sometime and talk about it, all the things that happened and, um… decide from there... what should happen… because of it… I’m sorry.”
“No need to apologize, Twilight. It is a good idea. As well, you are still an alicorn, and therefore, a princess. Your say does matter. I was actually meaning to ask you if you ever planned on resuming what my sister had in store for you, even if it was a reduced role. Our night court will always have available space for you if you wish to get into ruling as was planned before.”
“Oh, well, no,” she answered. “I can’t. I just- I wouldn’t be able to do it. I can’t tell somepony that they… um, yeah…” She paused for a moment before adding, “Besides, that’s just going to make Prin- I mean, Cadance, more upset. I don’t want to get her angrier than she already is. I mean, that’s what caused this whole thing in the first place, right? I don’t want to rile her up more.”
“Speaking of which, I think we’re starting to make a little bit of progress with her,” Starlight added. “I mean, she’s still angry, but she’s at least starting to admit a little bit of what she did was wrong, so it’s something. I think we’re starting to break through to her.”
“That’s very good, I do appreciate hearing that about my niece. Although I still say if it were my decision, she would be locked in Tartarus. Although, perhaps it’s best that it is not my decision for that reason.”
Maybe she was wrong.
The doubt of her being in the right was starting to creep into Cadance’s mind. Maybe she really truly was in the wrong, even despite what Shining Armor, Luna, and Celestia had done to her. And Sombra. He was also certainly a part of this, that was a fact. Maybe not Alex, but it couldn’t be denied what Sombra did. He went along with her plan, so he was to blame as well. They were treating her unfairly, that she knew. But even still, despite what she knew, the doubt creeped in, and she began to wonder if Starlight and Twilight had a point in what they were telling her. Maybe, just maybe, they were right when they said she was wrong, right when they said she had to move past this.
She thought these things while she walked the castle halls, making her way to the kitchen for dinner with Starlight and Twilight, and perhaps Alex and Hope. She certainly wished not to see those two though. It was always awkward, considering she only spoke to them when it was absolutely necessary for her to do so. As well, it annoyed her to see them without any consequences. It wasn't fair.
Of course, though, once she hoped not to see them, they came upon her in the hallway, heading to their bedroom she assumed and kissing each other deeply like they always seemed to be doing. It made her nauseous to see so often, practically every time they were around her, and she made even more of an effort to steer clear of them because of it. She huffed and rolled her eyes as she moved past them, doing her best to try and get through without making eye contact.
But eye contact she made, and she practically jumped when she saw it. Normally, when she saw the stallion's eyes, they were hate filled, full of anger at her for what Alex perceived she had done to him. However, these eyes were indifferent when they saw her, looking at her like she was no more than a nuisance. Alex had never looked at her that way. He always had contempt, and always showed it in his eyes, which could only mean one thing.
The pony looking at her was Sombra.
She didn’t say anything, continuing on her way, trying to contain her now boiling blood as she made her way into the dining hall and sat alone at the large table, ignoring the conversation that Luna, Starlight, and Twilight were having. It didn’t matter what they were saying, Cadance already knew who it was about based on what she saw, and knew that because he wasn’t in custody like she was, she was completely, firmly in the right. That was a fact now. She was in the right, and nothing they said, nothing they said, would change that. The hypocrisy they showed in not doing anything to him proved that.
She had her jaw clenched as she stared ahead at nothing, knowing that she had to do something, and hating that the ring on her horn prevented her from doing so. This wasn’t fair. Nothing that had happened to her was fair at all. She was being punished when she didn’t deserve it. It wasn’t fair.
“Oh, hey Cadance!” Twilight greeted once she saw her, trying her hardest to pretend to be oblivious of her brooding expression. "We’re not ready for supper yet, but we should be in a couple of hours. How are you doing?” All Twilight got from her in response was a glare and a growl, one that caused her to take a slightly fearful step back.
“Not good, huh?” Starlight commented as she made her way up to the alicorn as well, trying to sound lighthearted. “You look angry. Was there anything you wanted to talk-”
“No! I don’t!” she yelled, flapping her wings angrily as she stood back up and stomped off on her own. She didn't want to speak to them and had nothing to say to them anyway. None of this was fair, that she knew, and she was going to show them.
“Don’t follow me,” Cadance threatened angrily as she stomped back to her room. “I don’t want to talk to you.”
“Cadance, just tell us what the problem is!” Starlight pleaded as she ignored the alicorn and continued to follow. “Talking it out will make you feel better!”
“You know what the problem is!” she yelled as she quickly entered her room and slammed her door, using her body to hold it shut. Not that doing so did much. Both Twilight and Starlight teleported into her room a few seconds later, much to the anger of the pink pony.
“What’s wrong, Cadance?” Twilight asked as the mare bared her teeth, much like Sombra did a minute ago. “You can talk to us. Tell us what’s wrong.”
“Why don’t you go ask Sombra what’s wrong,” she spat at them, taking a threatening step towards her. “I know you brought him back, and yet he’s allowed to walk free when we all know he was just as much a part of this as I was. You just got rid of Alex and then didn’t even punish Sombra for what he did.”
“Cadance, Alex is still there-” Starlight tried to say before she was interrupted.
“Don’t lie to me!” she yelled, taking another step as she ruffled her wings. “I know how Alex looks at me, and I know for a fact that wasn’t Alex! Don’t you lie to me, cause I can see right through it!”
“Alex is still there, Cadance,” Twilight explained. “He’s just resting. They're both still there, but right now Sombra is... I think the proper word is fronting? He's fronting for the two of them right now. In a few days, Alex will be back. We’re just seeing what the best option would be.”
“Oh, I’m sure, the best option. And that’s why you brought Sombra back and did nothing to him. Because that’s clearly the best option.”
“We mean the best option for Alex specifically,” Starlight told her. “We want to have him choose what happens to him, and the only way he can make an informed decision is if he sees what it's like to both be in full control and have Sombra in full control, so we-”
“And Sombra gets off with nothing?” Cadance asked aggressively. “That’s what I meant when I said it’s not fair! You’re treating me so unfairly even though I didn’t do anything wrong! And even if I did, he’s getting off scot-free! Nothing is happening to him!”
“We were just talking with Princess Luna about that,” Twilight told her. “We’re going to sit down and have a discussion about what should happen. I honestly think we should have him apologize to the Crystal Empire, but-”
“Oh, sure, have a dinner and make him apologize,” Cadance rolled her eyes. “Why would you put him on trial? He’s just the nicest pony of all time. He would never do anything to hurt you, even though I was only doing what he told me to do.”
“Cadance, we both know-” Starlight started before Twilight put a hoof on her chest to silence her, knowing what she was about to say.
“Cadance, please,” the purple pony said. “Alex is still in there. We haven’t done anything to Sombra right now because we care about Alex and don’t want to see him punished for something he didn’t do.”
“Oh yeah, so just let Sombra be free to do whatever he wants. He doesn’t get consequences because he has Alex backing him up. Isn’t that convenient? How do you know that Alex is even real?”
“Cadance, if he’s not real, how did you notice the difference?” Starlight said. “You’re getting worked up and it’s making you not see clearly-”
“Oh, I see clearly. I see that you two are against me just like everypony else is, and want to try to lie to me and deceive me! You both are taking his side over mine when you know he was just as much in the wrong as I was! That’s what you were talking to Luna about, wasn’t it?”
“We’re not taking anypony’s side, Cadance,” Twilight told her desperately. “We were talking to see what we can do about Sombra and some of the things he’s done, and we decided we would have a dinner soon to discuss it. I can see if you can come to the dinner with us if you want to-”
“No! I already know you don’t care! I don’t want to hear what you have to say. Just go.”
“Cadance, please!”
“GO!” she yelled, jumping at them and causing them to flinch, watching as they teleported away a second later. Then she flopped into bed and screamed at the top of her lungs, holding her mane in her hooves. It wasn’t fair at all and she knew it. She wasn’t in the wrong, they were in the wrong, and she would show it to them. Somehow. How, she didn’t know, but she would find a way. She would get them to see that what they were doing was wrong.
“Well… this set us back with her for sure…” Twilight trailed off. “I really thought we were getting through to her, and now…”
“Hey, chin up, Twilight,” Starlight said. “We can get through this. If any mare can get this fixed, it's you. It’s just… going to be a little more difficult than we thought.”
“Can I? I mean, how do I even start? This whole thing is just such a mess! Luna and Cadance want to see him punished, and you and I clearly know that he hasn’t really done anything to warrant being punished. And even if he has, there’s still Alex to deal with, and I don’t know how to go about this at all! It’s stressing me out!”
“Take a breath, Twilight,” Starlight instructed. “Freaking out isn’t going to do anything. What do you think we should do first?”
“We should- we should…” she got out before closing her eyes and doing as she was told. She inhaled deeply, calming herself down before continuing, “We should probably talk to Sombra beforehoof, and see what he has to say. About how he’s going to handle himself and whatnot since he’s finally free… at least for now anyway.”
“Good idea. We can do that right now if you want, since his and Hope’s room is nearby. I would go over now before supper with Cadance later.”
The two did just that, teleporting over to the couple’s door and knocking firmly, being met with a swift response.
“Go away!” the stallion called from inside the room, not opening the door.
“We wanted to talk to you, Sombra. We have a couple of questions.”
“The two of us are busy!” he responded, more forcefully, not sounding as though he got any closer to the door.
“It’ll just take a minute, we promise,” Starlight said. “Please, Sombra?
There was a grunt and several seconds delay before the door opened, the dark-coated unicorn looking rather annoyed that the two were bothering him as he gave a simple, “What?”
“We just wanted to talk to you about some things before we missed you. You know… uh, trial stuff, and about Alex and such.”
He squinted at them in response, letting the silence hang in the air for a moment before telling them, “This can wait until later,” firmly shutting the door in their faces.
“Well… that could’ve gone better, I think,” Twilight commented. “What do we do now?”
“It might have just been a bad time,” Starlight replied. “I mean, he did just get out, and probably wants to spend some time with Hope, so… maybe tomorrow morning? We can talk to him then.”
“I don’t know. This actually might not be a good idea. I don’t want Princess Luna to get angry with us. We might as well just wait until we all sit down together.”
“If you think that’s a good idea. Do you want to try talking to Cadance again?”
“Maybe not right now… I know we should give her some space for now. I don’t think she’s in the mood to be talked to.” Twilight sighed and continued, “Ugh. This is just a whole big mess. It seems like it’ll never end.”
“I get that. I mean, there’s not some big villain to go after with this, and Equestria’s not in mortal danger, which is a great thing, but… in some ways, it would be easier if it was. But we can only do our best, and trust that everything’s going to work out.”
“I guess…”
“Come on, Twilight, cheer up,” Starlight told her, putting a hoof on her shoulder. “We helped separate Alex and Sombra, kind of, and we’re helping to give him what he wants. It might be hard, but it’s getting better.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” Twilight agreed, already feeling better because of her. “Things are getting better. Even if it seems like a step backward with what happened with Cadance, we’re still taking two steps forward. Thanks, Starlight.”
“Don’t mention it. For now, why don’t we try to talk to Luna to see what she wants to do?”
The next day, Sombra and Hope were waking up late in the day to the sound of knocking at their door. Sunlight was streaming through their window, and just opening their eyes, they could tell it was past noon.
“Ugh… were we supposed to open the court today?” Hope asked as she blinked herself awake.
“I can’t remember,” Sombra yawned. “I believe Alex and I put in for it to be closed today, but I’m not sure. Princess Luna might be here to tell us off because of it… where’s my cape at? And my armor?”
“Your cape and armor? You haven’t worn those things in months. They’ve probably been thrown away by now.”
“Well, I can’t go out without those things. I’m not going to walk around without armor or clothing like a peasant. Alex has kept me from being dressed as the ruler I’m meant to be.”
“Hehe, I’m sure you’ll be fine, what with how handsome and powerful you are. Although you do want to brush your coat. It’s a matted mess.”
“Certainly through no fault of my own,” Sombra retorted, rolling his eyes but giving an amused smile as he quickly nuzzled her.
“Speaking of which though, I have to ask… did Alex, um… you know… is he still asleep?”
Sombra closed his eyes for a moment before answering, “Yes, he’s still asleep. He’s been asleep since Starlight Glimmer cast that spell. It’s a bit of a weird feeling, knowing that somepony else is there in my head, too.”
“It’s been that way for almost two years though, Sombra.”
“Yes, but before one of us was completely suppressed, or else we were gelled together into one being, which was how it was for most of our time. However, now it feels like somepony distinct is there, a separate mind sharing space with me, and it’s a strange feeling. It also feels incredibly sad, which is something I don’t particularly care for. I feel like it might rub off on me if it keeps up.”
“Well, what’s it-”
Hope was interrupted by more knocking, which caused Sombra to grunt as he answered it, coming face to face with Twilight and Starlight again.
“Hello, Alex!” Starlight greeted happily. “Er, I mean Sombra. I hope I didn’t catch you two just waking up.”
“Actually, you did, but it’s fine, I assure you.”
“Are you sure? We can come back later if you want.”
“You’re already here, aren’t you? We might as well get this over with. I have a feeling I know what you’re here for anyway. But first, do you know where my cape and armor are?”
“Um, I don’t know,” Twilight answered. “You might ask Fluttershy or Princess Luna about those things. I haven’t seen you with them on since… well, since we first saw you in the Crystal Empire. But, um, we wanted to talk to you about Alex, if that’s okay.”
“What specifically were you looking to talk about?”
“Oh, well we have a whole bunch of questions!” Starlight broke in excitedly. “But actually, before that, Twilight here had something important to tell you!”
“I do?” The alicorn tilted her head in confusion before remembering, “Oh yeah! We wanted to invite you to dinner tonight. It was gonna be you, Radiant Hope, Starlight and I, and Princess Luna. Oh, and Cadance if she wants to come, and Fluttershy if you want her there.”
The stallion considered it for a moment before replying, “You use the word invite, but I have the suspicion that I don’t have a choice in the matter. I don’t believe you’d let me say no to your invitation.”
“I mean, I guess you technically have a choice, but we’d really like it if you were there…”
“We promise you that it won’t be bad,” Starlight assured him. “You can understand why we're having it. I mean, after all, you are Sombra, but…”
“But we’d really like to have you there,” Twilight finished. “We just want to discuss some things, if that’s okay. Please? It' won't' be bad, I promise.”
Sombra sighed and reluctantly answered, “Fine. As long as Fluttershy’s there. I feel like I know what it’ll be about, so I want her there.”
“That shouldn’t be an issue. It’s not for a few hours, so either Starlight or I should be able to teleport to Ponyville to grab her quickly.”
“But now with that out of the way, what’s it like having another creature inside your head?” Starlight asked enthusiastically. “Would you say Alex is a tulpa? I’m very curious to know. Oh! Maybe you could ask Alex to front for you for a little while! We can see how he likes it so far and talk to him! We can cast the spell for you to get it to happen if you need us to.”
“It’s not a great experience, I don’t know what a tulpa is, I’m not sure he’d want you to do that since he’s still asleep, and no thank you, I don’t want a spell used on me.”
“What does being asleep mean? Can he hear us right now? What does sleeping entail?”
“It means he’s asleep. If there was a bed in my mind to sleep on, he’d be on it. And no, I don’t believe he can hear us, although I’m sure if he were awake he’d be able to. I don’t think he’d particularly like to be awake right now though. He told me before he just wants to sleep for now.”
“Very interesting, very interesting,” Starlight commented as she floated over a piece of paper to write on. “And you were talking to him yesterday, right? You can talk to him in your head, and he can talk to you?”
“Yes, that’s correct. It sounds as though somepony's speaking in my ear when he talks, and I can speak back just through my thoughts.”
“That sounds great! Do you think we could talk to him right now?” Starlight asked. “I know you said he’s sleeping, but I want to see how he’s feeling with the arrangement you two have so far.”
“I can try, but as I said, I don’t think he’d particularly like it.”
“Please? You can tell him it was us if he’s upset.”
Sombra rolled his eyes again, responding, “Let me see.”
I felt a hoof touching me and shaking me awake. I growled and turned over, doing my best to ignore them, but I realized I wasn’t going to be able to when they spoke.
“Huh, you really think you’re a strange otherworldly creature, don’t you?” Sombra half spoke, half asked. “Because you certainly look like one.”
I groggily opened my eyes to look at my limbs, seeing only the dark fur growing from the legs and hooves of the pony I was.
“I’m still this dumb pony,” I responded. “I never was a human, so of course I look like this.
“Hmmm, maybe it was an illusion, because it faded once you looked at yourself. For a moment, you didn’t look like a pony.”
“Whatever. What are you doing waking me up? It definitely hasn’t been three days yet.” Honestly, it only felt like an hour or two since I went to sleep. It felt like I had been woken up in the middle of the night, and I wanted to get back to sleeping.
“Those two ponies said they wanted to talk to you,” he told me, pausing before continuing, “Actually, they said they wanted a dinner with you tonight. They said Luna and Fluttershy would be there.”
“I don’t want to go to dinner,” I told him. “They’re going to have to have dinner without me.”
“Well, that’s something you can tell them when you speak to them,” he responded, flopping onto the bed casually as he pushed me to my hooves. “I’ll be here while you do.”
I huffed in annoyance and rolled my eyes as I took control of our body, noticing Starlight and Twilight staring at me in anticipation.
“Yes?” I asked, clearly conveying my disapproval at being summoned. “What do you want?”
“Wait, is that- are you out right now, Alex?” Starlight asked, taking a step forward. “Is that you?”
“The one and only, unfortunately. Why do you want to talk to me?”
“Oh, we just wanted to know right now how comfortable you are with the arrangement you’re in.”
“You’re asking if- how long has it been? It couldn’t have been three days yet at all.”
“Oh, it hasn’t. It’s been about a day so far.”
“Then why are you asking me now? Also, no, I don’t plan on being available for dinner. You’re going to have to settle for having Sombra there.”
“We weren’t planning on having you there,” Twilight replied. “I mean, no offense, but it was going to be a dinner and discussion about Sombra. I mean, you could be there for part of it if you want, but- wait, did Sombra tell you that you were going to be there? Because we told him it would be for him."
“Of course, it's for him," I sighed. "Of course you didn’t plan on having me there. Of course, he tried to trick me, because Sombra’s a liar.” I rolled my eyes at his pathetically weak attempt, continuing, “Anyway, what did you want to ask me about?”
“Oh! We just wanted to ask you about how you’re feeling, you know, being Sombra’s tulpa and all right now. We just wanna see how you’re feeling so far, being a day in.”
“Why? You can- ugh, can’t this wait until later? I just want to go back to sleep right now. And I don’t know what a tulpa is.”
“That just means that you’re a pony he created, basically anyway,” Twilight answered. “We’ve been doing our research, and I have to say, you-”
“Okay, well," I interrupted, "as much as I appreciate it and as interesting as this is, being out here is making me feel like I’ve been woken up in the middle of the night. Can I go back to sleep, please? I’ll tell you how I feel once this experiment is over, okay?”
“Well… okay. We’ll talk to you then, if that’s no trouble.”
“Thank you,” I replied, closing my eyes and heading back off. I watched as Sombra took control again and grumbled about how I ratted him out before laying in bed again and falling back to sleep.
“I can’t believe you tried to lie, Sombra,” Starlight frowned with disapproval. “Tried to get Alex to take your place at dinner. That’s so low of you.”
“What can I say?” he replied. “I really don’t want to go. I feel like I already know what’s going to happen.” They opened their mouths to ask what he thought, but he broke in before they could ask, “You guys are going to try and punish me even though I haven’t done anything wrong. Well, at least not lately. And the ponies I have wronged in the past deserved it, I can assure you that much.”
“Well, tonight’s dinner would be an excellent time to explain yourself then,” Starlight replied. “Besides, Twilight and I are on your side and are trying to advocate for you. That job becomes harder though when you try to get out of it or lie to other ponies, especially the pony that's the cause of this whole mess in the first place..." She trailed off and quickly tried to backtrack after she realized what she said.
"I mean, not that it's Alex's fault! It's not! I mean, there is a mess because of him, but it's not because of him. It's not his fault. You know what I mean. I'm sorry. Alex, if you can hear me right now, I'm sorry.”
"He can't hear you right now because he's already back to sleep, but I'm sure he appreciates it."
"But yes, you need to go to that dinner," Twilight told him. "Backing out of it isn't really going to look well for you, especially since... well, we'll talk about it more once dinner time comes."
Sombra grumbled to himself, annoyed at the situation and by their logic. It probably wasn’t something he could get out of, and they did say they were on his side. And even if they weren’t, Hope and Fluttershy would be. Although he had to admit, he didn’t care much for Cadance being there.
“Fine,” he finally said after a long while. “I’ll go, and I apologize for trying to get Alex to take my place. But let it be known that I don’t agree with this. Especially not Cadance being there. This whole situation is her fault anyway. I know Alex and Fluttershy will agree with me on that."
“So what’s the point of this dinner?” Sombra asked casually as seven ponies sat in relative silence. It seemed as though they were sitting clearly divided, with Hope and Fluttershy on either side of the stallion, Cadance sitting closer to Princess Luna, and Twilight and Starlight sitting in the middle, separating the two groups from each other. Hardly a word had been spoken up to that point, the ponies in the room mostly focused on eating their meals.
“We’ve been sitting here for ages not speaking to each other,” Sombra continued. “Why don’t we say what we came to say instead of wasting this moment? After all, you all invited me here, not the other way around.”
“Very well,” Luna started bluntly. “We’re gathered here to discuss the crimes you have committed against Equestria, as well as the Crystal Empire, and how to properly deal with them.”
“Ah, yes, the crimes I’ve committed because of those that were committed against me,” Sombra rolled his eyes. Cadance rolled her own eyes as well as he continued, “Even if I were in the wrong, it was crimes I was punished for already, more harshly than anypony else got for their crimes, crimes which were much worse than my own, might I add.”
“Crimes which included killing a princess, Princess Amore, who was a personal friend of mine,” Luna countered, with a bit of an edge in her voice.
“For which I was sentenced to a thousand years in an icy grave, which was only committed because she admitted to attempting to kill me first while I was a foal. And then for retaliating against my unjust sentence, I was blown apart twice. Completely ripped to shreds. No other creature in Equestria has had even close to the experience I’ve had.”
Luna opened her mouth to interject, but before she could, Sombra quickly added, “Not to mention, I didn’t even kill Princess Amore. She certainly deserved it though. It would be justifiable if I did, but I'm not like you ponies.”
The statement caused the rest of the room to remain silent for a minute as the lone stallion placed his chin on the table tiredly. Everypony else there knew the story by this point, even Fluttershy, and most of them seemed surprised by the revelation. Luna herself seemed the most in shock, her mouth hanging open dumbly as she stared at the stallion uncomprehendingly. Even Cadance looked up at him with a bit of surprise and interest. The only pony who didn’t seem fazed by the revelation was Hope, who opted to stare down at her plate of food.
“Are… are you certain?” the blue alicorn asked, sounding a bit desperate. “You did not kill her? Are you sure?”
“I’m positive she’s not dead,” he confirmed flatly, his chin still on the table. “I made sure not to kill her because I don’t believe in killing ponies, unlike you lot.”
“Then tell us where she’s at,” Cadance spoke up. “If she’s truly alive, you should know where she is. Prove it to us. And either way, it doesn’t absolve you of what you did, since what happened to Celestia is your fault.”
“That’s a weird thing to say, especially coming from the pony who committed treason,” Sombra shot back. “I’m not even sure why you’re here after what you’ve done. You don’t deserve it, especially since you’re the reason I have to deal with Alex in the first place.”
“Where is she, Sombra?” Luna asked. “If you know where she’s at, you have to tell us. We can absolve you of everything else if you tell us where she’s at.”
“Yes, absolve me, of course. And if I don’t tell you, you’ll punish me unjustly once again, even after sitting in an icy grave and being ripped apart more than once. And I assume Amore will get off without any punishment?”
“Just as you’re about to do?” Cadence accused.
“Just as you’ve gotten?” Sombra barked. “After committing treason, and attempting to kill me and your husband? Your own husband? You should be in Tartarus for your crimes, and be grateful that you even have the ability to sit before us now.”
“Crimes that were committed at your command.”
“Yes, continue to lie instead of telling the truth. Lie because you’ve gotten off easier than anypony in Equestria when we all know if it was me doing what you were doing, I’d have been ripped apart for a third time.”
“It was you doing it, and yet you get to be the ruler of Equestria whereas I’m forced into divorcing my husband and humiliating myself in front of all of Canterlot! And yet I’ve gotten off easily?”
“Can we please get back to the matter we were discussing?” Luna interrupted. “Where is Princess Amore? If she’s still living, you have to tell us where she is.”
“And then what, she attempts to kill me again? No thank you. She deserves the fate she’s received.”
“Sombra, this isn’t-”
“No! I won’t tell you! She doesn’t deserve to come back after what she did to me! That’s final!”
“I mean, you can’t really leave Amore… where is Amore?” Starlight asked. “I mean, what did you do to her? Can you tell us that at least?”
“I turned her into stone,” he answered coldly. “Then shattered her pieces and spread them across the world.”
The room once again went silent again at that, a few ponies drawing a breath before Cadance spoke up again.
“And I assume you don’t know where her pieces are, do you? Which is basically the same as her being dead. And yet you still want to get out of punishment but have me punished for something I didn’t do.”
“Of course I know where her pieces are. I’m not a fool, and I don’t kill ponies as you ponies do. But besides that, what are you even doing here? You don’t deserve to be here. I know for a fact if Alex saw you, he would throw a fit at your presence.”
“Oh, sure, bring up Alex. What a convenient excuse you have to throw me out, to escape retribution for what you did.”
“You did this to me, don’t you get that twisted,” Sombra threatened, leaning closer to her and starting to bare his teeth. “This was your fault. This was your plan. Because of you, I have to deal with having some creature else sharing headspace with me.”
“Oh, boo hoo, having somepony sharing your head when you get to be the ruler of Equestria. Maybe you should’ve thought about that before you cast that spell on yourself.”
“Can you guys please stop?” Twilight asked, putting her hooves out to separate them as they started to growl at each other. “We’re not here to talk about Alex. Can we get back to Princess Amore please?”
There was a moment of pause before Sombra relented and went back to putting his chin on the table, rolling his eyes as he said, “There’s no reason for her to be here other than to appease her, and that’s the last thing she needs. She already has quite the god complex, and doesn’t need to have it built up more.”
“Oh sure, I have a god complex. This is coming from the pony who wants to justify killing a princess.”
“Whatever! We’re not talking about that anymore! Fluttershy! What do you think we should do? About Princess Amore I mean?”
“Hmmm… well… I don’t know…” she said thoughtfully, putting a hoof to her chin. “Ummm… well… can I ask if, um, all of that is really true, Sombra? Her… trying to hurt you?”
“Of course it is,” he told her, a bit of annoyance in his voice. “I might be many things, but a liar is not one of them. As well, she didn’t try to hurt me, she did hurt me. Hope can attest to you that she spent every single Crystal Faire locked in a hospital room with me, and will tell you that Amore was the cause of it. Or, at the very least, did nothing to help ease my suffering.”
“But it wasn’t her, was it?” Starlight asked. “I mean, it was the Crystal Heart hurting you right? Because-”
“It was her,” the stallion suddenly snapped, Starlight jumping back a bit in surprise. “She knew it was hurting me and did nothing! She told me as much the last time I saw her! She could have placed me in somepony else’s care, but she didn’t, even as she knew I was being hurt! Hope can tell you that during the last Faire, I was nearly killed, and would have been had she not saved me.
“I did…” Hope whispered. “I remember it. He was almost killed by the Crystal Heart, and… well, it was Amore’s fault. Sombra’s right.”
“Um, well… if that’s true, then… well, I think she should apologize to you. But I’m sure she has a good reason. But we won’t know unless you tell us where she’s at. I mean…”
Sombra growled at that, looking down at his plate as he adressed the room, “She deserves the fate I’ve given to her. Letting me suffer ever since I was a foal… it’s unacceptable.” He lifted his gaze afterward to look into each pony’s eyes, stopping on Luna’s and frowning in contempt at her look.
“You knew didn’t you…” he growled lowly, baring his teeth again. “You knew that was happening to me and did nothing. Didn’t you?”
“I did know, yes, but not until all was said and done, once Hope described to us how you were being hurt during the Crystal Faire. Had we known about such before, we would have put a stop to it.”
“So then you do agree that what Prin- what Amore did was wrong, yes?”
“I do, however, that is still not a reason to keep her in the state she’s in. However, knowing that she is still alive makes your other crimes… easier to deal with.”
“Crimes for which were in defense of myself, after my being punished unjustly, which you’ve just admitted to.”
“No, I only said that Amore was in the wrong. Lashing out at Amore, while perhaps understandable-”
“Perhaps?” Sombra asked loudly, almost yelling as he stood to his hooves. “In what sort of Equestria is a pony unable to defend themselves from unjust harm? Or is it specifically I who’s not allowed to? Help me to understand in what way defending myself from harm is only perhaps understandable?”
“Sombra, please!” Hope told him, grabbing his hoof with her magic to his surprise. “You have to calm down. Getting angry is only going to make things worse, even if you are in the right. You have to show these ponies you’re better than they are. Please.”
He scowled at her and huffed in response, but didn’t bare his teeth as he thought her words over. He let her move closer to her and lean into him, feeling his coat being rubbed by her magic in her attempt to make him calmer.
“Please just listen to me this once? You haven’t listened to me once, and really wish you would.”
“What she did is unforgivable. You can’t just let her get away with it. Just because these ponies think it's okay to-”
“I’m not saying you have to forgive her. In fact, I’ll be the first to confront her if you want. What she did to you, to us, it wasn’t right, not one bit, but…”
“But?”
The unicorn didn’t answer, choosing instead to lock eyes with him. The look she gave him told him all he needed to know. Her eyes said that he had to concede, that if he didn’t, they would be on the outs with these ponies, more than they already were. That their position was a fragile one, and Luna was already looking for any reason to remove them from power, and that they shouldn’t give her one if they could help it, even if it was painful.
"We're better than these ponies," her eyes said. "It will be painful, but we have to be better than them. Please just listen to me..."
“Only because you were meant to be a princess, Hope…” he silently replied.
“Fine,” Sombra finally relented, not turning around, the hate for what he was about to agree to dripping into his voice. “I’ll tell you where her pieces are, but I will not go after them, nor will I be putting her back together. She doesn’t deserve that much from me after what she’s done.”
“We can work with that if you tell us where she’s at!” Twilight responded. “I can get my friends and we can find her pieces in no time!”
“I’ll make sure to tell you after this foolish dinner party is over,” the stallion rolled his eyes, doing all he could not to growl angrily again. “Was there anything else you lot wanted from me?”
Starlight and Twilight looked to the blue alicorn, who looked satisfied enough, before the latter said, “I… think that’s all. Wait, actually, no. Um, when do you plan on bringing Celestia back?”
“I wasn’t the one who sent her away,” he told them simply, sending a look to Princess Luna and Cadance. “Besides, that would be something to take up with Alex. I don’t particularly care for her, but I know that Alex absolutely despises her, deep to his core, even more than he does Cadance.”
“Oh. Well, um… I, um, I guess that’s all. There’s nothing else.”
“Well then, if you’ll excuse us-”
“Wait, that’s it?” Cadance asked angrily in protest, hitting a hoof on the table. “He gets off scot-free even after everything he’s done?”
“Perhaps then you’d like to suffer in an icy grave for a thousand years, or be completely ripped apart as I was than accept your measly punishment. Am I hearing you correctly?”
“Sombra, please let it go,” Luna told him. "There's nothing more to do here," she said, causing him to grunt in annoyance as he started off again. Then she turned to Cadance and said, “You know you’ve gotten more than you deserve with your punishment, so-”
“No, I haven't! I don’t deserve this, and you know it! Celestia would agree with me if she were here!”
“My sister is not here because of your actions, Cadance,” Luna reminded her, a bit angrily.
“She’s not here because of his actions!” she spat. “And you don’t want to believe me about it! No, not even that, you just don't care even though you know the truth! You’d rather let him humiliate me than listen to me and agree with me! You’re going to let him get away with the crimes he’s committed and yet punish me for the same thing! It’s not fair, and you know it!”
“You use the word ‘fair’ a lot, and yet you seem to forget how unfair it was to Twilight Sparkle to do what you did, hurting her confidence and depriving her of her destiny because of your actions.”
“I, uh… I’d rather not get involved in this, please…”
“And yet you seem to turn a blind eye to him doing the exact same thing,” Cadance argued. “He was in on it and you know it! Who was the one who created Alex in the first place? Who was the one who cast the spell and turned you into stone? You certainly can’t say that it was me.”
“Those things were done at your discretion. You and I both know that.”
“So then you admit that he’s also at fault, correct?”
“I’m not having this discussion with you, Cadance. After what you did to my dear sister, the way you made her behave, you deserve to be in Tartarus. Be glad that Sombra allowed you to get off as lightly as you have.”
Sombra had his eyes closed as Twilight stood over him, doing everything in his power to not growl or snarl. He wanted to show some semblance of self-control in front of the alicorn as he tried to remember where his enemy’s pieces were.
“Most of them,” he told her as she stood waiting expectantly, quill in her magic, “are in the frozen north, near the Crystal Empire. I believe there are nine within the vicinity of the city, with one being buried directly under the city at this point. There’s one near Neighagra Falls, one in Galloping Gorge, one near Saddle Arabia in the desert, one in the Smokey Mountains, and one in the jungle on the southern end of the continent.”
“Okay, so that makes… fourteen in total? Or fifteen?”
“Fourteen. There are fourteen pieces of her. That, I'm sure.”
“How do you remember all of this, Sombra?” Hope asked. “That was all so long ago… over a thousand years by now.”
“You forget, Hope, I spent a thousand years under ice. From my perspective, it’s only been months since it happened, since she revealed how much pain she caused me.”
“Well, regardless,” Twilight started as she looked over her notes to make sure everything was written down correctly, “you’re a good pony for doing this, even despite, um… what happened between you two… although with where you say her pieces are, this could take a few weeks… but still. I can tell you don’t like it, but you’re doing a good thing.”
“It’s certainly more than she deserves, I can say that much,” he replied simply. “Was there anything else you were looking to know?”
“Ummm… no. This should be good enough, I think. Thank you, Sombra… oh I’m so excited! I have so many questions to ask her! I wonder what she’s like or what she’ll be thinking?”
“Hopefully about her hypocrisy,” the stallion commented. “Telling me I had to turn away from darkness when she made me this way and placed the darkness in my heart. I’ll bet she’ll be wishing Hope didn’t save me that day in the hospital.”
“What do I do?” Cadance thought to herself as she strode around her room, trying her best to keep herself from growling. “What can I do to show these ponies that they’re in the wrong?”
She wanted to prove it to them. She wanted them to know that she wasn’t at fault. This wasn’t her fault. Sure, she might have come up with the plan, but it was still Sombra’s doing. Without Sombra, it wouldn’t have even been possible to attempt. Just because she took action didn’t take blame away from him. This wasn’t her fault. This was his.
“But what do I do about it?” she muttered to herself as she paced, gazing up to the ring around her horn. It kept her from both performing magic and flying. Worse, it was a mark of shame. Everypony who saw her noticed it, she knew that, and looked down on her because of it. And there was nothing she could do about it. She couldn’t take it off herself; it required magic to get off. So she was stuck unless she could convince somepony else to take it off for her, which was never going to happen.
She clenched her jaw and ground her teeth. This was all his fault. All he had to do was create a personality. That was it. They’d both be in their perfect positions had he done so, but he hadn’t. Maybe it was on purpose, seeing as he got all the rewards and she got nothing. Maybe he’d pulled one over on her. Just the thought of that made her furious.
“What am I going to do?” she asked herself again before stopping to stand in place. “Go to the Royal Library? There might be a spell there that can show me how to take this ring off, but… will they even let me go there? Actually, no, I don’t care what they say. They said I could go anywhere in the castle, and the Royal Library and Canterlot Archives are on castle grounds. That’s my excuse if they ask what I'm doing there.”
“You’re not letting me in?” Cadance asked, frustration in her voice as she was stopped by a trio of guards who stood in the library, directly in front of the entrance to the archives. “Don’t you know who I am?” As she said it, she took a threatening step forward, looking down at them with a scowl.
“We do know who you are, Prin- err, Cadance,” one of them told her as they stood their ground, albeit nervously. “But Princess Luna informed us not to let you in here. I’m sorry.”
“Why?” she demanded, stomping a hoof. “What was her reasoning for not letting me in? Because Alex told me I could visit anywhere in the castle, and this is on castle grounds, therefore-”
“We- we understand, Princess, but-”
“If you understand, then move!”
“We- we- we… we can’t do that. Princess Luna said-”
“I don’t care what Princess Luna told you. I’m telling you to move!” As she said it, she spread her wings threateningly, taking another step forward and making them shrink back.
“We… no. We can’t do that. We- we know your s-status in Equestria, but... but Princess Luna specifically told us not to let you in. If you want to come in, you have to take it up with her.” As they said it, the group got more confident, and by the end, they were all three looking back up at her with authority.
“Oh, just you wait until I get back to Luna,” Cadance growled. “I’ll make sure she has your heads for wasting my time.”
“If she tells us differently,” one of them said, “we’ll be the first to apologize to you. Until then though, we can’t let you back there.”
The pink alicorn glared at them before pushing her mane out of her face, giving a huff, and stomping off. She knew going to Luna would just be a waste of time. She wasn’t going to do anything. Why would she? She thought she deserved the brunt of the punishment. She was against her just like everypony else. She’d have to figure out how to get past them on her own. On her own without her wings or magic to help her, against ponies that she knew wouldn’t budge for her.
She paced back and forth, trying to think up a plan on the spot when she was interrupted.
“Princess Cadance?” somepony, a yellow unicorn with a coal-black mane, called as they entered. “What are you doing here?”
“Princess… he called me princess… he might be useful to me… but I need to get him alone and away from the guards so they don’t hear us.”
“I was just browsing the library,” she replied, trying to hide any annoyance she had and already starting to move farther away, eyeing the guards watching her carefully. “Seeing what there is to read. It’s a nice day, so I figured why shouldn’t I go out and take a look around the castle?”
“Ah, I see. Well, it’s always nice to meet a member of royalty. My name’s Brimstone, by the way. Say…” Brimstone trailed off, getting an idea of his own as he glanced at the ring on her horn before continuing, “What if we browsed some of the books in the back? I mean, if you’ll let me. I’d really love to get to know you more! I’m kind of a history buff.”
The alicorn followed him to the section he was talking about, a lonely corner of the large library, before she started, “What do you want? I know you want something from me. I saw you looking at this wretched ring.”
“I… want to take it off for you,” Brimstone replied quietly, a bit uneasy. “I know you can’t stand it, so, um…”
“You will?” Cadance asked, slightly surprised but smiling nonetheless. “You’ll take it off?”
“I would... But um, before I do that, I would need you to do something for me. Err, I mean, I can’t right this second because I need to get stuff in order first, but… you’d eventually have to do something for me. I mean, once the time came.”
She frowned a bit at that, not liking the idea of relying on somepony else and being in their debt, but moved past it for now as she asked, “What exactly would I be doing?”
“Well… umm… without getting too specific, you would be…” he trailed off, but used his head to motion to a window that held a view of the castle.
“I can do that, but I’d need you to take this ring off right now, or at least go into the archives to get me something that shows me how to take it off myself.”
“I- I don’t think I can do that. I don’t know if they’ll let me back into the archives yet, and I can’t take it off for you right now because I know you’ll just… do whatever you want and then abandon me. And I- I don’t want that to happen.”
“I wouldn’t-”
“I think you would. I really do. I heard about, uh... what happened... between you and the current rulers. So um… because of that, it’s better to wait… but I don’t see why you can’t just get Princess Luna or Alex to take it off for you?”
“Ugh, of course, you’re one of those ponies,” Cadance grumbled, rolling her eyes. “Of course you don't trust me. You might even be trying to set me up, and I'd think so if you weren't so idiotically forward. And besides, they're obviously not going to do that. If they were, it’d be off by now, which is why you need to-”
“Hold on, that’s not what I mean,” the unicorn interrupted. “I mean, if you play nice for a few months and say you’re sorry, then I don’t see why they won’t just take it off themselves. I mean, I spoke to Sombra… er, Alex, and he seems like a genuinely nice pony to me. I don’t see why he wouldn’t if you played nice, or at least pretended to.”
“Hey! You’re right! And then I wouldn’t need your help, would I?” Cadance realized, smiling smugly now at the thought. “I wouldn’t have to rely on you!”
“Uhhhh… wait,” Brimstone tried to backtrack. “I mean… I- I can take it off for you sooner than that. I mean, I have my own plan that we can-”
“No, thank you! Now I don’t need you at all! That’s a much better plan than what I was thinking!”
“Wait, we can still-”
“Nope! I don’t care! I have a plan now and I don’t need you, and I don’t want to need you. I’m not going to rely on you like I did him. That was my mistake before, and I’m not making it again. I’m keeping my own destiny in my own hooves.”
“But it'll be easier my way. I have Grog-”
“I don’t care!” she called, already starting to trot away and out of the library. “Don't follow me either! I don’t want to hear it, and I don't need you blowing this for me!”
“Well… darn,” Brimstone said aloud to himself, a bit surprised at the sudden turn of events as he watched Cadance march away with her head held high. “I might have let my mouth run a little bit too much. Um...”
The bright yellow pony looked around trying to decide what to do before shrugging his shoulders and heading right up to the entrance to the archives.
"Ah, um, I was wondering if I could head in?" the unicorn asked innocently, tilting his head a bit.
"Do you have an escort or a written pass?" one of the guards asked suspiciously. "Because we just saw you talking to-"
"It's okay," another guard interrupted, holding a hoof up to silence him. "I remember him. He was here a few weeks ago with Somb- I mean, Alex. You can head in."
The next time I woke up, the room I was in looked like it was melting away. The bed I was in was physically melting apart and sinking into the floor, as well as everything else around me. It wasn’t scary, feeling like something that was supposed to happen, and before long, the same thing started to happen to me, my hooves and body breaking apart and joining the rest of what was around me. As I melted, I felt the room getting smaller, forcing itself upon me, to the view of the large screen that held the outside world. It was a little bit claustrophobic, but eventually, I was out in the world again and controlling the limbs to our body.
I was sitting at a table in the dining hall with Radiant Hope who was telling me about something, something I didn’t pay particular attention to. I looked around for a moment before closing my eyes to try to get back to sleeping, but found myself unable to. As well, I felt heavier, like there was more weight on my shoulders from a heavier load.
“Sombra?” I asked aloud, not caring about how I looked to the mare next to me. “Where are you?” Immediately after I asked, I rolled my eyes, realizing what was going on.
“Oh yeah, I am Sombra. I remember now,” I said, unable to do more than sigh in annoyance and put my chin on my hoof.
“Alex?” Hope asked suddenly, looking at me confused. “Is that you?”
“The one and only,” I responded flatly before stretching out my hooves to yawn. “I guess it’s been three days already? I wish I hadn’t woken myself up in the middle of it, but it was a nice reprieve.”
“So you’re back now then?” she asked, looking disappointed, which annoyed me a little bit. “Where’s Sombra?”
“It’s how it was before,” I told her. “I’m both at the same time again, which is… I don’t know. But the feeling of… internal conflict is back again.”
“I’m sorry…” she responded sympathetically, petting my hoof. “Maybe you could talk to Starlight again?”
“That’s probably what I’ll have to do, since I’d rather not see you like this. I know Alex doesn’t like you, but… ugh, I don’t know. It’s only been a minute, but it feels like this is the way I’m supposed to be, tied to Sombra like this instead of being on my own and sharing a body with him. Well, not excatly 'the way it's supposed to be', but it still feels like a natural connection.”
“But you just said-”
“I know, and it’s true, and it’s absolutely horrible. I hate every second of it, let me tell you that. But it also keeps me from being alone. I don’t know. I’ll need to do more experimentation. But at least like this, I don’t think about myself as much, as much as I hate it. I’ll have to get with Starlight and see how fronting the whole time is, and I’ll- well, I as Sombra I mean- will take a back seat this time. I don’t know how much each of us will front though, but Alex will take the majority. I want to see how it feels. I don’t think sleeping my life away inside my head is a viable option though.”
“No, I don’t think it is,” Hope chuckled. “But, um, I know you said you don’t want to be alone, but like I told you before, I’ll be your friend, so you won’t be alone. I mean, I’d still like to see Sombra though, cause he’s my best friend, but I’ll be your friend whenever you're out, Alex. You seem like a nice pony to me. Plus, Fluttershy is your friend, so you have her, too. That's two ponies.”
“Thank you, Hope, I do appreciate that. It makes me feel better…” I trailed off and sighed, continuing, “I just don’t want this all to have been for no reason.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t want to have cast that spell on myself for nothing, and I don’t want my creation to have been for nothing. I just- I want there to be some sort of meaning for why this happened to me, for why I did this to myself.”
“Well, you’re here now, so that has meaning. You’re the Ruler of Equestria, you’re mending fences with other ponies. That all gives it meaning, doesn’t it?”
“Yes, but… ugh, never mind. I’m just feeling bad about myself…”
“And thinking over my options,” I silently added. “I can’t tell if anything’s changing yet, but I do still have that spell in my back pocket if need be, but… ugh. I’d really rather not use that. That’s too risky, and I really can’t stand the thought of my life being completely meaningless. That’s even worse than it not being real. At least right now there’s a point to what happened, but… ugh. I can’t stand this at all.”
“Give it some time, please Alex… Sombra?” Hope told me, as though reading my mind. “Just give it some time. I know you’re feeling bad about yourself, but like I’ve said before, you’ve been looking better, especially, um… these- these last few days…” As she said it, she blushed, and I half smiled and half cringed in disgust as the thought came to mind.
“Uh, yeah… anyway, where’s Starlight?” I asked, changing the subject. “I do want to see what it’s like if I’m in front by myself for the whole time.”
“Are you ready, Alex?” Starlight asked as I stood in front of her, this time only Hope and I being in her presence. “I can get started whenever you want me to.”
“I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,” I responded, “but if you want to, this time you can keep the spell going for longer. Say a week, maybe?”
“I can do that, no problem at all! Just hold still for me.”
I did as she requested, standing stock still and closing my eyes once again. I didn’t feel anything happening, but just a few seconds later she was telling me that she was done. I opened my eyes again and looked around, expecting something to change, but seeing and feeling nothing more than myself become lighter again.
“Is that it?” I asked. “Did you do it?”
“Of course, she did it,” Sombra whispered in my ear, making me flinch and turn around before remembering he was now in our head. “That’s why you feel lighter again, although you don’t seem to feel as much joy from it as I do.”
“No, I don’t,” I responded aloud, “and I… I don’t know why. This… it doesn’t feel correct.”
“I can fix you back if you want me to, Alex,” Starlight broke in. “It’s no trouble. Just say the word.”
“It just doesn’t feel right because you’ve been asleep for so long,” Sombra said. He didn’t sound callous or angry or like he was trying to persuade me. It sounded like he was speaking genuinely, sincerely, which was a bit weird and was different from how I imagined.
“Just give it time,” he told me. “This feels better for us… well, at least for me, anyway. Being like this feels like the way it should be. Naturally, I’d like to be separated from you entirely, but seeing as that isn’t an option-”
“I don’t know,” I interrupted, speaking in my head as I frowned. “I feel… I feel angry and bitter and sad, and it’s just so much more intense right now. I feel like I want to scream and put my hoof right through Cadance’s face… and yours, cause this is your fault, too.”
“Yes, it is, and I’m sorry for that. I will admit this mess we’re in is partially my fault, but I assure you, aside from complete separation, this is the best solution to both of our problems.”
“Is it for me, or is it for you? This benefits you much more than it does me, because you’ve committed crimes, crimes they can’t punish you for if you’re stuck with me. And like this, you’d have complete freedom to do what you want without having to deal with what you’ve done.”
“That would be true, but I’ve already told that trio of alicorns where that witch of a princess Amore’s pieces are in exchange for being pardoned for my retaliation to their crimes. I don’t gain from this any more than you.”
“I…” I paused at that thought, sitting on my haunches on the floor and closing my eyes so I could stand face to face with Sombra. He didn’t quite have the evil look he had in the show, instead wearing an almost soft expression, like a concerned friend. It was honestly strange to see, but it did make me feel better.
“I don’t know,” I told him. “This doesn’t feel right. It just… it’s making me angry to think about.”
“How can this possibly not be right?” he asked. “We’re both better off this way. We both have freedom this way. How can it not be right?”
“Because I- ugh! I can’t describe it correctly, but… being like this… it just makes me as frustrated and angry as I was the whole time when I thought that my life was real. Being on my own pisses me off because it just reminds me of everything that I went through since I've been in Equestria. When I’m combined with you, it’s so much easier to ignore because you take up half of my personality. Even given the issues that brings, mainly with Hope, it still feels better being like that, as strange as it is to say.”
“Except for the unease, and the feeling that we’re losing ourselves- that’s the feelings we get when we’re stuck together. As hard as it is to admit, I know that you’re the more dominant of the two of us at this point, if only slightly. Because of that, I have to struggle to assert myself and make sure that I don’t lose myself completely. It’s not a good feeling, and it makes me nervous because of how much you assert yourself when we're like that. It makes me feel like I’m slipping away, like I'm on the edge of losing myself. I know you've felt it, too, seeing as we've expressed as much to Hope before. That's why we were looking for that spell to begin with.”
“Yeah, well… that’s coming from the pony who did this to me anyway, so…”
“Give this a chance. At least just give this a chance. Being separated from you is vastly superior to staying combined as one being.”
“I feel like it won’t matter either way,” I told him, starting to feel depressed, “so what’s the point? I might as well just use that spell right now, as much as I don’t like the idea of going that route…”
“Just give it a chance. I assure you, this is better for both of us. You’re writing it off without seeing how much better for you this will be for you, for both of us. You know, your negative attitude brings us down? I can feel the depression you emanate. Your essence is strong, almost overwhelmingly so, and it rubs itself off on me.”
“Oh yeah, because I have so many reasons to be happy. Not to mention, part of that negativity stems from you. Just as much as you take from me, you give back.”
“Just give it a chance. That’s all I ask. Give it a chance.”
I sighed and rolled my eyes, simply answering, “Okay, I’ll give it a chance. I’m not sure why you’re even trying to convince me of this, but whatever. I’ll see how it feels. I wasn’t planning on doing anything anyway.”
“It’s not like you deserve it, though,” I silently thought to myself before heading back out into the world.
“Where is Fluttershy?” I asked as Hope and I walked around the castle a bit. “I just realized she wasn’t there with Starlight, and neither was Twilight for that matter.”
“Oh, she and her are out looking for Princ- err, Amore’s pieces, remember? You… well, Sombra, told them where they were, and now they’re going to reassemble them. It might have been when Sombra was in charge of your body.”
“While I was sleeping. That makes sense. It’s still annoying though, because I wanted to talk to her.”
“What about?”
“Just… talk,” I told her. “She’s my friend. I just wanted to hang out with her and talk about whatever came to mind. I told Sombra I would give fronting for a while a try, and I figured talking to her would be a good way to spend some of my time.”
“Oh, well… like I said, I’ll be your friend. You can talk to me if you want… like, do you remember that time that guy came to the court saying Equestria’s wealth should be evenly distributed to all of Canterlot? What was his name?”
“Shallow Point, I think, and yeah, I remember that,” I told her, smiling a little bit at the thought.
“He was completely ridiculous. He didn’t even want to give it to all of Equestria, just Canterlot. And he expected us to grant his request. Like, what were we going to do? Say yes? Either way, it would’ve been a no.”
“And then he stormed off ranting about how Celestia would’ve done it if she were still in charge. That was the highlight of my week, honestly. Heh…” I chuckled a bit before sighing sadly, continuing, “I don’t know. I’m not really in the mood for joking. Especially with memories. It just reminds me of everything I lost… I’m probably depressing you.”
“You’re fine, and I understand. Although I think I remember Fluttershy saying something about that. Do you?”
“No…?”
“It was when we were in the statue garden?” Hope continued. “She said that even if your experiences weren’t real, they still kind of are. That you were still whatever creature you were before, even if you weren’t before… I’m probably not saying what she said correctly at all.”
“I do remember that, but it’s easier to think that to myself when I’m stuck together with Sombra. On my own, being out and about on my own with him doing whatever he’s doing in our head, it’s harder to get in that mindset. I just miss it all, and it hurts more that it’s not real...”
We had stopped walking by that point, Hope looking at me sympathetically for a moment before starting, “Well, what was it like?”
“What do you mean? What was what like?”
“Your life, I mean,” she continued. “I don’t think you ever talked about it with anypony, and certainly not me. What was it like? Where you were from and such?”
“What’s the point of talking about it? It’s not like it’s real anyway…”
“It’s real to you, right? And you miss it, so… I’m curious about what it was like…”
“Well, I mean, Earth is like Equestria, mostly. There are restaurants and stores and schools and stuff, except there’s also roads and internet and cars, too. It’s… it would take a while to describe it all. Basically, it’s Equestria, except better and with more technology, but also no magic.”
“That sounds weird. So, like, what does everyone do for jobs? The same thing?”
“Kind of, but there are also other jobs like working in factories or I guess my job working in a call center and answering people’s questions. Basically, anything you can think of, there’s a job for it or someone will pay for it.”
“That’s interesting… you said you missed your family. What were they like?”
I realized what she was doing, but decided to talk about it anyway. There wasn’t much else to do, and I missed them, so I figured letting someone else know what they were like wouldn’t do any harm. Besides, it wasn’t like anyone else ever asked to talk about them before, and I wanted to tell someone about them and remember them. I figured it might help me feel better for a little while anyway.’
Radiant Hope wasn’t trying to manipulate Alex.
Well, she was, but not really. She genuinely did want him to feel better about being in Equestria, but not entirely for the right reason. She couldn’t bear the thought of seeing him and Sombra tied together as one consciousness for the rest of her life. Being in the same body was bad enough, this would just be over the top, and she wanted to do what she could to prevent it.
“And Alex is my friend,” she thought to herself as she listened to him talk about the ponies, well, people as he called them, that were his friends before. “Even if it didn’t benefit me, I'd still do it. It’s nice to see him feel better because he’s my friend, not just because of Sombra. That should be what matters most.”
Even as she tried to make it so, she knew it wasn’t what mattered most to her, and felt guilty because of it. Still though, she pushed that thought aside. She was doing a good thing making him feel better, even if her reasons weren’t exactly the best, and did like seeing him smile as a result. She was going to be his friend like she said, and that was that; there was no reason to feel guilty about the reasons why they talked if it benefited him too. Plus, she did honestly enjoy hearing about where he came from. It was very interesting.
Before the two realized it, they were sitting in their room, on their bed, Hope smiling politely as Alex laughed and joked about funny memories he had about being a child on Earth. The mare could say she genuinely liked seeing him like this, not having seen Alex specifically look happy in the whole time she knew him.
“Ah, this- this is nice,” he finally told her after a long while, looking out the window to see that the sun was actually being lowered by Luna right then. “This makes me feel so much better, reliving what I used to have. It hurts, but it’s nice. No one here has asked about it at all, and it feels nice that you did… even if I know the reason why.” She blushed at that, starting to apologize to him, but he stopped her, continuing, “I know you’re doing it because you don’t want to deal with me sharing Sombra’s… let’s say consciousness… but it’s still nice anyway, and I appreciate it. It makes me feel better, even if it’s not for the right reasons."
“That’s not all true,” Hope protested. “I won’t lie, that’s part of it, but I also do like seeing you feel better.”
“Do you really?”
“Of course. I said I wanted to be your friend. And you know I saw how sad you were since… well, since you’ve been here. Since I met you. I really do want you to feel better. Partially because of… well, Sombra, but also because I do want to be your friend. Plus, I actually am interested to hear about the place you said you’re from.”
He let what she said roll around in his head before telling her, “Thank you. I do appreciate it. I- I still know you’re doing this more for Sombra, but I still do appreciate it. It’s nice to talk about, because like I said, no one has asked me much about it yet, not since Celestia, and even she didn't delve that deeply into it. She just wanted me to admit to something I didn't do. No one’s really cared to ask genuinely, not even Fluttershy. So… thank you.”
She smiled kindly at him, saying, “It’s no trouble, and like I said, I’m talking to you because I’m your friend, too. Anyway, it’s well past time for dinner. Let’s go get something to eat.”
“Sombra..." she thought to herself as the two walked to the kitchen, "I don’t want to lose you… Alex, please don’t make a bad decision. Please don’t make me lose my friend. Staying how you were for the last year isn’t going to be helpful for you. It hurts to see either of you like that. Please don’t make a stupid decision.”
“...so from there,” Twilight explained to the pink alicorn in front of her, “I cast a spell on the doll, and it caused the town to- well, actually, let’s just say, it was a mess. It wasn’t easy trying to get that fixed, and even harder given out all of those apologies.”
“That’s crazy,” Cadance said flatly, doing the best she could to not roll her eyes as she listened to a story she heard before, making a half hearted attempt to appear interested.
The two and Starlight were there for Cadance’s weekly friendship lesson, Twilight teleporting in from Galloping Gorge where she was looking for Amore’s pieces with her friends to take part. Cadance tried to convince her that they could skip it, with even Starlight telling her that she could handle it by herself this week, but to no avail. Twilight’s response was that Cadance’s reformation was too important, and that it was no trouble teleporting to Canterlot and back to see her, even if it was a hassle. As well, her friends signed off on it, deciding as well that friendship lessons for the pink mare were vital and that they shouldn’t be passed on.
“But the lesson I learned,” the mare continued, “was that I shouldn’t overreact, even if a situation seems just plain awful. It’s always better to talk to somepony about your problems and get help from them than to take matters into your own hooves.”
“Wow. I think I get it.” Most ponies would’ve been able to pick up that she really didn’t care, but Starlight and Twilight seemed oblivious to the social cues she was sending their way. At the very least, they were intentionally ignoring them. But it made sense to Cadance, she guessed. They were probably afraid to confront her about it, not that she cared one way or the other. She just wanted this ‘friendship lesson’ to be over with already.
“I can say I’ve had a few situations like that,” Starlight laughed lightly, “but I wouldn’t want to bore you with those stories. You look like you’ve had about enough of that already for the day. How about we start to wrap up by asking you if you have any stories like that you’d want to tell us?”
“Nope,” she answered quickly, flicking her mane out of her face with a brief shake of her head. “None that I can think of; Sorry.”
“Haha, that’s what you always say,” Starlight continued. “I’m sure you can think of something. Somepony as old as you must have a dozen stories, and Twilight and I would love it if you shared.”
She put a hoof to her chin, making a show of mulling over her memories for a moment before saying again, “Nothing. I can’t think of anything. Oh well.”
“Well, how about what happened between you and Princess Celestia?” Starlight asked, Twilight still smiling but looking at her friend nervously. “Would you say that’s in some ways similar to what happened between Twilight and her teacher?”
“Play along,” Cadance told herself, closing her eyes to take a breath to avoid getting riled up. “Just play along. Before you know it, you’ll have this ring off and then that’ll be it. You just have to play along until then.”
“Huh, I guess it is,” she replied, trying to convey in her voice that it was the first time she considered that. “I never thought of it that way.”
“Exactly!” Twilight jumped in enthusiastically, happy to see what she thought was finally progress being made. “Even if things aren’t going your way, it’s best to always talk to a friend about it, instead of keeping it bottled up. That’s how bad things start to happen. I can’t tell you how many times my friends and I have had a small issue become something big because we kept our feelings bottled up. It’s not healthy to do.”
“Heh, I… think I can speak from my own experience that Twilight is right. Keeping your feelings bottled up isn’t good.”
“Wow, I guess you’re right,” Cadance pretended to agree, watching as they just missed the point of her reasons. She specifically told Celestia that she was being treated unfairly, more than once at that. She made well sure her concerns were known, except Celestia didn’t seem to particularly care about that, so she took matters into her own hooves. But she couldn’t say that, so instead, she left it at that, finishing, “I never thought of it that way.”
“That’s okay. Not everypony-”
“Actually, Twilight, we’re going to have to end this early. I’m afraid we have a bit of a scheduling conflict right now. It's about time for me to go see Alex and Hope.”
“Huh? Oh! Sorry, Cadance. She’s right. Besides, I do have to teleport back to Galloping Gorge now. I told my friends I’d only be an hour, and it’s been almost three. We’ll have to discuss more next time.”
"I can't wait," the mare replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
“So… how are you feeling Alex?” Starlight asked me, moving with what looked like a pep in her step. “Have you decided what you want to do? Not that you have to right now. It’s fine if you need more time.”
“I… I don’t know. I know that Sombra wants to have us like this and… I don’t know. I almost want to say I want to go back to how we were before.”
“How could you possibly want that?!” the stallion I spoke of suddenly yelled in our head, loudly and clearly enough that I had to remind myself that Starlight couldn’t hear him. “What is wrong with you? You’re acting completely foolish!”
“It’s just… I’ve been stuck like this so long, it feels like this is how I’m supposed to be,” I said aloud, wanting both Starlight and Sombra to hear what I said. “I’m probably being completely crazy, but it’s just how I feel.”
“It’s okay. You can take your time to think it over if you need to,” Starlight assured me, a calm smile on her face.
“How can you possibly feel that way?” Sombra asked. “I don’t understand it at all! You can’t do this to yourself, to me!”
“I mean, it might be hurting myself- well, part of me anyway- if I do get fused with Sombra again, but it’s his and Cadance’s fault that I’m like this, so…”
“So I don’t see how you can possibly pull the ‘you can’t do this to me’ card on me,” I finished in my head. “I could say the very same thing to you, but it won’t change anything for me.”
“Please…” the stallion practically begged. “Don’t do this to me. Or even if not for me, don’t do this to Hope. She doesn’t deserve this. At least keep us like this for her.”
I sighed, telling both of them, “As much as I don’t want to, I guess I’ll stay like this to appease everyone.”
“You- you don’t have to do that if you don’t want to, Alex,” Starlight tried to tell me, frowning now. “I know Sombra's in there trying to tell you what to do, I’ll do whatever you think is best for you. You don’t have to look out for anypony else.”
“It’s fine. I’ll stay like this. But if I change my mind I’ll tell you, alright?”
“Alright, but… you really don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” she said.
“I know, I get that,” I told her, saying in my head for only Sombra to hear, “But it’s not like I had much of a choice it seems, not that I ever did. All you ponies do is string me along like a puppet, but it is what it is.”
With that, I turned to leave, but before I could take a step, a question came to mind.
“Hey, you don’t have any sort of counseling service, do you, since I’m staying like this?” I asked. "I feel like it's something I need at this point."
“All of the other pieces were where Sombra said they would be, so I don’t see why this one would be any different. Hold on…”
Quickly, the alicorn lit up her horn and sent a beam of magic stretching outwards for quite a distance in the Smokey Mountains. It was a kind of radar she could use to detect if anything magical was within range, and after pausing for a moment, concluded that nothing out of the ordinary was near the group, much to her annoyance.
“Where could her last piece be?” the mare asked, half to herself. “It doesn’t make sense for it to not be here! All her other pieces were where he said they’d be.”
“Maybe he misremembered?” Rarity suggested.
“I doubt that. Like I said, everything else was where he said it was, so I doubt he’d just misremember one of them. This is so annoying!”
“Maybe somepony was climbing here and saw it and took it back to their home because of how pretty they thought it looked and passed it down to their great great great great great grandfoals and then some super sneaky robber came in and stole it for-”
“Okay, Pinkie, I doubt that’s what happened,” Twilight interrupted. “Fluttershy, Rainbow, will you two fly up with me and try to see if you can spot it? I know it's a long shot, but...”
“Not a problem,” they both said at the same time, quickly raising their wings and taking off with the alicorn, high above the mountains to see if they could see anything abnormal.
“Nothing out of the ordinary over here,” Rainbow called as she looked over one section of the sky.
“I don’t see anything either… Fluttershy? Have you found anything?”
“Nothing… um… actually, what’s that over there?” She used a hoof to point in the direction of a river running down the side of one of the mountains, something shiny flickering in the sunlight along it.
“I don’t know, but it looks worth investigating,” Twilight decided, turning around to call out, “Follow me girls! We’re going to one of the rivers farther away! We think we see it!”
It wasn’t a long time before all six were standing on the water’s edge, the river flowing at their hooves. It turned out what the group spotted was indeed a piece of Amore, one that was resting beneath the water, deep down. How deep it was, they couldn’t tell, but judging by how dark the water was, they had to guess at least a few dozen feet, possibly more.
“That… looks like it’s going to be trouble trying to get… let me think…”
“I don’t see how you think that,” Rainbow replied. “I could probably swim down there in a second and grab it.”
“As amazing as you are Rainbow, I’m not sure you can. Give me a minute to try to think of a spell I could use though.”
“Haha, that sounds like a challenge, and you know I’m not one to turn down a good challenge!” As she said it, she stretched her wings and started taking deep breaths to prepare her lungs to dive into the water.
“That definitely wasn’t a challenge. Just give me a minute to- hey!” Before she could finish, her friend was jumping in and quickly swimming down, disappearing from view.
“Ugh, why does she have to be like this? If she would’ve given me a minute, I could’ve found a spell! She could drown or get decompression sickness if she’s not careful!”
“Oh, I hope she’ll be alright,” Fluttershy anxiously said as the group quickly watched her disappear, the only evidence that she was still down there being the shining piece of Amore getting covered up by the size of her body.
The group stood staring at the river for a minute, then two, then three, the five on the ground getting more worried with each passing second.
“Oh, why does Rainbow Dash have to be such an idiot sometimes?” Twilight asked, her voice on the edge of panic as she started to light up her horn. “We have to go down there and look for her!”
Just as she said it, the pegasus flew up and out of the water, flopping on the grass next to them and taking deep loud breaths, holding the glowing piece of Amore in her hooves, the stone in perfect condition despite the elements it faced after a thousand years.
“I… I… ah… I got… the piece…” Rainbow Dash gasped out, setting it down next to her as she lay on her back, closing her eyes. "It was... very deep down... but I got it... ah..."
“Why do you always have to act so crazy, Rainbow? You’re gonna hurt yourself one of these days, you know that? And then you’ll… what’s that?”
Suddenly, to everypony’s surprise, the pieces of Amore they had collected began to glow and reassemble themselves. It was unexpected, even for Twilight, and within just a moment, the pieces of stone that were the princess became a solid stone statue, one that stood tall above everypony, nearly as tall as Princess Celestia was. She had her wings outstretched and an expression that looked shocked where she stood, one that was unnerving to the six ponies before her.
“You… you said she was still conscious in there before, right Twilight?” Rarity asked nervously. “Can she- can she see us now? And hear us, too?”
She didn’t answer immediately and had to shake her head to refocus herself. “Well,” she answered, “if she can’t, she'll be able to in just a moment.” With that, the mare lit up her horn to change her back, using a spell she spent the last week practicing for this moment.
Princess Amore blinked, her eyes adjusting to the sunlight for the first time in over a millennium.
“Where… where am I?” the mare asked as she looked around the gorge she was in, confused. “Who are you ponies?” She looked the group over as she spoke before her eyes settled on the alicorn among them, whose horn was still lit up.
“You’re not Radiant Hope are you?” she asked the purple pony as she took a small step forward, unsteady on her hooves after such a long time. “You don’t look like her, but you’re an alicorn and yet still young enough to be under the tutelage of Princess Celestia, so I can only wonder.”
“Oh, no, I’m not her,” the mare explained. “Although I am… err, was, under Princess Celestia’s tutelage. My name is Twilight Sparkle! And these are all my friends, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Fluttershy!”
“I see… where exactly are we? I can tell this isn’t the Crystal Empire. How much time has passed?”
“Right now, we're in Galloping Gorge, but it might be better if we got you back to Canterlot. Having a conversation there might be better, plus I’m sure you’re tired and hungry from spending so long encased in stone.”
“Yes, that sounds like a good idea,” she agreed. “Although I can't say exactly how long I was inside that stone statue. Please lead the way if you would do so kindly.”
Twilight didn’t waste any time, quickly lighting up her horn again and getting the seven of them to Canterlot in the castle, feeling a little bit drained from teleporting so many ponies.
“If nopony cares,” Rainbow Dash said before anypony could make a move, still wet from diving in the river “I’m gonna go dry off and take a nap. I’ll see you guys later.”
“That’s Rainbow for you,” Twilight commented with a light laugh. “Diving to the bottom of a river one moment and taking a nap the next.” With that, she turned back to the princess and said, “Anyway, this is the castle in Canterlot. I hope it’s okay that we came here.”
“It looks exactly the same as when I visited it a few weeks ago… except, where are Princess Celestia and Luna?”
“That’s… a tricky subject that I think would be best to sit down for,” Twilight admitted to her.
“I see. It must not be good news then. In that case, before we do, I have one more question.”
“Yes?”
“How long has it been?”
Twilight frowned uncomfortably at that question and rubbed a hoof behind her head. “Well, um, it’s- it’s um…” she stuttered, trailing off as Amore tilted her head. There was a moment that passed before the alicorn sighed and answered, “It’s been… over a thousand years.”
Sombra and Hope were laying in their bed just before noon, pressed together as they read, when their door suddenly opened and a pony entered their room.
“I wish I didn’t- oh, there are ponies in here,” Rainbow Dash muttered as she took a step in before stopping to turn around and head back out. “Sorry Hope, Sombra.”
“Is that- Rainbow Dash?” the stallion asked, confused. “What are you doing barging in here? Why are you all wet?”
“Ugh. River. Dove down in it. Now I’m wet and tired. Need a nap.”
“Wait, what were you diving into a river for?” Hope asked.
“To get that pony, Princess… Smores? Or Armor? I can’t remember her name, but she’s really tall for somepony who’s not an alicorn. Like, almost as tall as Princess Celestia was. It’s crazy.”
The two of them were expecting to hear about her return eventually, but both of them still flinched when they heard the news, Sombra especially, who almost seemed to start to cower in fear, pressing his back up against the wall, not that Rainbow Dash noticed.
“She’s… is- is she here right now?” Sombra asked nervously, his ears flattening as he pulled part of the blanket he was under up to him. “In the castle?”
“Yeah. We just got her, which is why I was in the river. You don’t have an open bedroom, do you? Like, one with a bathroom and some towels? My coat’s gonna get matted if I don’t take care of this and cause all sorts of problems. Aerodynamic mostly. You know how it is.”
“Y-yes,” the crystal pony responded. “There's- there are rooms all throughout this hall you can stay in if you want. I don’t believe there’s anypony occupying them right now, so…”
“Got it, thanks,” the pegasus said cooly, quickly making her way out to take the nap she wanted. Once the door closed behind her, Hope let out a long worried sigh as she turned to her friend.
“Sombra, I know what you're thinking, and I'm telling you that we’re going to be fine. This doesn’t… this- this doesn’t mean anything. We were expecting this to happen. We’re not gonna-”
“Oh, Faust, she’s going to distort what happened to those Elements,” Sombra told Hope worriedly. “She’s going to say I attacked her without cause, and they’ll believe her, because that’s how they are. Oh, I just know it!”
In all her time knowing him, Radiant Hope had never seen her friend this anxious. After everything that happened, it seemed this was what was getting to him. He looked genuinely afraid, like he would start shaking at any moment. The sight of him like this got to her and made her start to feel afraid as well.
“I… that’s. … that’s not going to happen, I promise you that,” Hope assured him. “She won’t do that.”
“Yes she will! Those ponies haven't believed me about one thing that's happened! Why would this be any different? That's probably why they wanted to reassemble her, so they can-"
“Sombra," the mare interrupted, placing a hoof on his shoulder. "You’re getting worked up before anything’s happened. We need to just take it one step at a time. Everything's going to be fine. I need you to trust me.”
“One step at a time? What would the first step even be? What are we-”
“You are going to stay here while I go out there to talk to her, okay?” the mare instructed. “I’ll go talk to her and make sure she’s being truthful, okay? Please stay here and calm down while I do that. I’ll make sure that everything is alright, okay?”
Princess Amore and five of the six ponies who freed her were sitting at a table in the large dining room a little while later, a few other ponies showing up to serve them food, mainly tea and sandwiches. Amore was silent as she was led through the castle she remembered, noting that while the ponies were different, the layout and artwork was largely the same after a thousand years. It gave her a sense of comfort as she sat down for her first meal in what felt like several hours but was in reality a millennium.
“You must have so many questions,” Twilight Sparkle started as she sat opposite her at the head of the table, “but if it’s okay, I’d like to start with a few questions of my own.”
“It’s absolutely no trouble" she assured her. "Go right- Hope? Is that you? Radiant Hope?”
“Princess Amore?” the mare called as she turned to lay eyes on her, doing her best to seem more surprised and less nervous than she actually was. “Is that really you, princess?” she asked, feigning ignorance. “That can’t truly be you, can it?”
“It truly is,” she answered. “It’s nice to see you again. It seemed as though you headed for Canterlot as the princesses asked you. Have you taken their place then? I see you’re not an alicorn, but then again, neither am I.”
“I am, but what are you doing here after all these years? I didn’t know if I’d ever see you again.”
“Why am I pretending to act surprised?” Hope asked herself. “I only need to make sure she tells the truth. Although it’d probably be easier to get her to admit the truth if she lies by acting surprised to see her. Make her think that Sombra's innocence... or rather, justification, something I came up with myself, but that I’m still on her side. Would that even work? Hmmm…”
“I told you my friends and I would find her pieces,” Twilight explained. “Although I understand what a shock it must be to see somepony who you haven’t seen in such a long time.”
“Yes, it’s…” She didn’t know what it was. She couldn’t say exciting or happy, but it wasn't exactly awful. Perhaps confusing was the best word? Or maybe conflicting. Conflicting because she did truly believe what her friend told her. She didn’t see why he would lie to her. In fact, she knew about Amore and what was truly going on well before Sombra actually told her, given her time spent with the shadow ponies. She pieced together what was going on with them, although she didn’t fully realize it until he told her what happened. But now seeing her in the flesh…
Amore hadn’t even said anything to her and yet she wanted to believe she had only the best intentions in mind. It made absolutely no sense, and yet it was the feeling she got from her. Hope knew she would have to be careful in speaking with the princess- no, pony- because of that. She would try her best to make sure Amore didn’t spin this in her own favor somehow.
“I know how you feel, Hope,” Amore responded kindly with a smile. “It must have been so long if what this mare, Twilight Sparkle, tells me is true. We’ll have much time to catch up. But it’s better to get everypony’s questions out of the way first. You had things to ask me, correct?”
“Yes I did! Um…” Twilight looked down at the notes she wrote before looking back up and asking, “The first question I have is, while it’s been a thousand years, how long does it feel like it’s been to you?”
“How long? From my perspective, as far as I can gather, it’s only been a few minutes. I remember hearing a scream from Hope, and then a second later, you all speaking around me. How could a thousand years have passed?”
“Hmmm, that’s a good question…” Twilight hummed to herself, writing something down before continuing, “You’ll have to give me some time to work out what’s going on there. As far as I know, when you were trapped in stone, you should have been able to feel every day that passed, so the fact that you only felt a few minutes is strange. But can I ask what you remember before you heard my friends and I a little while ago?”
Hope stood farther away from the group but close enough to hear the conversation as Amore said, “I remember being frozen into stone as I was speaking to somepony I used to know, and remember seeing you, Hope, come up to them and panic as you tried to help me.”
That was good, Hope figured. Not good that Sombra was obviously implicated, but good that she was being vouched for by Amore. That would give her more sway in defending her friend should it come to that.
“Do you remember that, Hope?” the princess asked. “It certainly looks like you do. Anyway, from there, there was a blast of magic from the stallion, and then… well, a second later, I was standing in your presence and now I’m sitting here. Actually, before we continue, I must ask, Hope, do you know where he is? If this mare is truthful in time’s passage, then you’ve survived over a millennium, remarkably. Do you know what’s happened to him? Is he still around?”
Hope wasn’t prepared for the question, and gave herself away with just her facial expression. That, combined with the awkward glances Twilight and her friends gave to each other, gave Amore more information than could be said in words.
“I see,” she said simply as she stood up, being told everything she needed to know without them speaking. “So he’s here in the castle then. If you all could direct me his way, it’d be much appreciated. I have some words I’d like to say to him.”
“I, umm… I’m not entirely sure that would be a good idea…” Hope tried to say nervously. “I’m not sure Sombra would want to see you.”
“I see,” Princess Amore replied thoughtfully. “Well, if it’s all the same, I’d like to see him anyway. What I have to say is important. It’s something that needs to be said.”
Radiant Hope was uncomfortable with the prospect of her visiting her friend, and wanted anything but to bring them together. However, before she could come up with a better excuse, Twilight interrupted her.
“I don’t think that would be an issue… but maybe we should be in the room with you?” the mare suggested. “I mean… it really didn’t seem like he liked you. I don’t think something will happen, but I also don’t want an argument to break out. I mean, you understand, right?”
“Completely understandable,” Amore agreed. “It didn’t seem like he was particularly pleased seeing me the last time we met, seeing how that ended. But as I said, what I have to say must be said.”
"I... don't see why we can't-" Twilight started before she was interrupted.
“But I want to talk to him first,” Hope blurted out quickly. “I mean, alone, if that’s okay. I just want to make sure he’s prepared to see you after so long, Prin- I mean, Amore. Please?”
“It would make no difference to me,” she said simply. “Go right ahead.”
I was flipping through memories in the window when I heard my name called.
I’d grown adept at tuning out conversations Sombra had unless I heard my name come up, a skill that was useful to me as I spent many hours doing what largely amounted to watching my memories play out like a movie. Luckily for me, there was what amounted to almost a third of a lifetime to go through, so I had what had to be thousands upon thousands of hours to sift through, with seemingly all the time in the world to go through them.
However, I looked up when my name was called, noticing it was Radiant Hope who wanted me. She looked nervous about something, and just that fact made me nervous. A second later, I was startled by Sombra suddenly popping in front of me without warning.
“Alex!” he started in a nervous voice. “I need you to go out there for me, right now! I can’t be out there while she’s here!”
“Okay, hold on. Who is “she” and why?” I asked. “I don’t want you to throw me into an argument with somepony because you don’t want to talk to them, like when you told me Twilight and Starlight wanted to talk to me before.”
Even as I told him that, I could tell he looked panicked. He was more unhinged than either of us had ever been, and it only served to make me more concerned.
“What’s going on?” I asked. “Why do you look so afraid?”
“It’s Amore!” he told me, practically yelling. “She’s back here, and she wants to see me!”
“...okay? So what?” I asked, completely confused. “That name sounds a little familiar, but not really. I don’t know who she is.”
“She’s that witch who made my childhood an unpleasant one with her cruelty! Of course, she’ll never admit to that! No doubt, she’s here to tell Twilight Sparkle and her friends how I imprisoned her and tried to steal the Crystal Heart, even though I was only defending myself! But of course, they won’t see it that way! It’s because of who I am and who she is!”
“Oh, the pony you turned into stone, I remember that. I thought you said they were pardoning you in return for freeing her. I don’t think Twilight’s the type to just-”
“That doesn’t matter!” he pressed, pacing back and forth, clearly anxious. “I know they’ll go back on what they promised! That’s who they are! It’s who they’ve always been! It's a cruel bunch of ponies they are.”
“Well, you got that part right,” I agreed, “but what does that have anything to do with me?” I asked.
He turned back to me with what looked like desperation in his eyes and started, “I need you to go out there for me! I need you to convince them that my actions were justified!”
That, what he was asking, made me angry. In the back of my head, I knew he would only bother me for something like that, something he wanted me to solve for him. I scowled at him, but he didn’t seem to notice because of his panicking.
“They’ll listen to you, I know that! I just need you to do this one thing for me and-”
“And what one thing have you done for me?” I asked angrily. “What one thing have I been given this entire time I’ve been here, huh?”
“I’ve done-”
“Because it seems like I’ve been doing a lot for everypony else and getting absolutely nothing in return. I’m being used for the goals of everyone else from what I see.”
“I’ve provided things in return!” he tried to tell me. “I- we were pressed together for over a year because of you! Is that nothing?”
“Yes, it is nothing,” I shot back. “You didn’t willingly do that. I know for a fact that if you could’ve, you would’ve killed me off the first chance you got. So you can go out there yourself. I don’t really know who Amore is other than you turned her into stone, but that’s not my problem because I honestly don’t care what she does to us.”
“Please!” he begged. “I’ll do whatever you want! Just go out there this one time for me!” It was something I’d never seen him do, not once, and it caught me off guard. Still, I wasn’t ready to give in to him just yet.
“Like what?” I asked expectantly, wondering what he could offer me.
“I- I’ll- I know you said you wanted to be combined together with me, so I’ll get that Starlight pony to have that done! N-not forever, but part of the time? Like… a few days every few weeks? Or more?”
“It’s gonna be ‘or more’, I promise you that,” I told him.
“Fine! We can talk about this later! Just go out there for me, please!” he begged, finally getting behind me and using his head to push me forward. “I can’t be out there when she sees me! She's in the castle right now!”
I reluctantly settled for the fact that we would talk about what would happen between us later, telling him, “Fine, but if you go back on this deal, I will make sure you pay for it.” I didn’t exactly know how I would carry out such a threat, but it was one I fully meant to uphold if he lied to me.
“Whatever!” he said as he pushed me forward. “Get out there! Please!”
With that, I went out, blinking against the bright sunlight streaming into our room. I could see Radiant Hope staring at me expectantly. It was a sight that caused me to scowl harder than I already was. I knew it was her idea to bring me out here just from the look on her face.
“Well?” I said, making sure she knew just how frustrated I was by this whole thing. “Let’s get this over with, I guess.”
She turned to the door and opened her mouth to say something, but the group of ponies I somehow knew were standing outside heard me and let themselves in. It was Twilight Sparkle and her friends minus Starlight and Rainbow Dash, and included a very tall unicorn that I could only assume was the one and only Amore that Sombra was so worried about.
She didn’t seem how I expected. From what Sombra was saying, I expected her to look angry or bitter. Instead though, she seemed curious, staring back at me like I was a strange creature, and walking around to examine me. I turned my head to follow her gaze, the whole room staying silent as she scanned me, looking for what, I didn’t know. I decided as she did that for once I would be the one to break the silence.
“So you’re Amore, huh?” I said casually as she continued to look me over.
“Yes I am,” she replied without missing a beat. “I’m the Princess of the Crystal Empire. Do you not remember me, Sombra?”
“I can’t say I really do, other than from a comic book,” I told her. “But to be fair, I’m not Sombra. Although he clearly seemed to remember you, seeing how afraid he was to meet you.”
Radiant Hope cringed at what I said, clearly not wanting me to say that, not that I cared. Amore, however, chuckled, seemingly amused by the idea.
“Afraid of me?” Amore asked. “I’m not sure I’ve ever heard of such a thing from anypony. I try my best to be as approachable as possible to my subjects. But I must ask: If you’re not Sombra, who are you?”
“My name is Alex, and I… I don’t know what I am. But I do know I’m not Sombra, that much is clear. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to emphasize that point in my life. I’m not him.”
“Quite strange for somepony who’s not the stallion I know to look and sound just like him, don’t you think?” she asked, clearly disbelieving.
“I mean, technically I am him,” I answered, “but not really. However, that’s a story that would take months to tell you. The very short version is that he was afraid of you and begged me to come out here to talk to you in his place.”
“I see…” she said thoughtfully. “Well, if you could give him a message, I’d like to apologize to him for what happened between us.”
Sombra was watching the scene from the safety of his and Alex’s head, and found his jaw hanging down in shock at Amore’s words. It was the very last thing he was expecting, and he took a step closer to the screen that showed her to see what more he had to say.
“I’m a bit confused,” Alex started. “What are you apologizing for? I only know the general story that Luna gave me forever ago and what I read about you. Remind me what happened between you two?”
“That is quite the story, I must admit, with a lot of… shall we say, mistreatment. I believe that's the best word to use, unfortunate as it is. Although, while I’m sure he might think I was being malicious, I would like him to know that wasn’t my intention.”
“Yes it was!” Sombra yelled at Alex as he watched the scene. “She was malicious! Tell her that she was!”
“He says to tell you that you were malicious,” Alex told the mare. “Actually, I remember that when he and I shared one mind, he hated you, more than anyone else. I’m still partial to Cadance and Celestia, Celestia especially. Although from what I understand, you’re a part of why this happened to me, too, although more indirect, so I’ll give you a pass.”
“And what exactly are you, if I may ask?” Amore inquired curiously.
“As I said, that’s a long story that doesn’t have a clear answer, practically a novel at this point. But here I am anyway, standing before you because Sombra’s too much of a coward to face you directly.”
"I'm not a coward! If you knew how she treated me, knew how she was..."
“I see. Well, if you could give him the message, please, I’d like to offer my sincere apology. When I spoke to you before, I shouldn’t have tried to excuse my actions. The way I went about having you raised was… not correct. I should’ve seen that, but I didn’t. Well, by the time Hope told me you were running away from the Empire into the snow, I realized, but by then, it was far too late to fix my mistakes.”
“No! She’s lying!” Sombra yelled. “It took her that long to see what she was doing was hurting me? I don’t believe her! She’s making excuses to justify her actions! Just like I said she would!”
“Then why don’t you tell her that yourself?” Alex asked aloud. “What do you need me out here for? You can just tell her you don’t believe her without me.”
“You need to be out there to protect me! If I go out there, they’ll have no reason to keep me safe! I just know it!”
“Ugh, whatever. He said you’re making excuses,” Alex told her.
“I’m not trying to excuse my actions, and I don’t mean for it to come off that way. I’m only trying to explain what I was thinking so you understand. I have no expectation of forgiveness from you. I only want you to hear what I was thinking, and know that I wasn’t trying to be malicious.”
“You were hurting me and you admitted you knew you were hurting me! How can that be anything but malicious? You knew it was wrong and did it anyway!”
“If you want to tell her that, just tell her,” Alex said aloud. “What do you need me for? Just go out there yourself!” With that, Alex forced Sombra out into the world again, who immediately changed from a growling angry expression to a fearful one.
“Don’t hurt me,” he said lowly as he backed away some until he bumped into the bed. “I know you want to do that to me. Don’t you hurt me. I will fight back if you do.”
“I’m so sorry I’ve made you terrified of me, Sombra,” Amore told him, keeping a respectful distance. “While it was my intention to have what happened when you were a foal happen in a way, I wasn’t trying to be malicious. I hope you can see that-”
“I can't!” he yelled, causing all in the room except for Amore to jump. “How can you possibly say you weren’t being malicious? How can you possibly be so misguided as to think it was okay? I was a foal! And yet you thought…”
He trailed off, getting nervous again as Amore and the room kept their eyes on him. He looked around anxiously before trying to take another fearful step back.
“I know you all want to believe her, but she is malicious! I’m telling you that she is! She let that Crystal Heart burn me every day when I was a foal for no reason! I- I can’t stay out here…”
“Don’t you- god damnit,” Alex frowned, looking down at his hooves for a moment as he was forced into the world in his counterpart’s wake before turning his attention back to Amore. “Just hurry up and tell him what you want to say so we can be done with this, please. He can hear us anyway, so it’s not like it’s on deaf ears.”
“Well then…” she trailed off, blinking a bit before starting, “Sombra? Do you remember that time, when you were a foal?” Amore asked, chuckling a little bit as she continued, “By the princess, you’re still a foal now, you and Radiant Hope both. You've hardly grown into adults by my eyes. But do you remember when you saw your reflection in the Crystal Heart so long ago? I asked you what you saw, and you told me you saw a shadow? I saw that very same thing in your reflection. A monster. A villain who was intent on conquering the Crystal Empire and destroying everything around him. I should’ve known that wouldn’t be what you would become, but I let that reflection cloud my judgment.”
Sombra stood at the screen that showed the outside world, forcing himself to watch and hanging onto her words, wondering where this was going.
“I thought the Crystal Heart’s power would purge you of whatever darkness you had in you and keep you away from the destiny it foretold. I knew you were hurting, but I thought my actions were keeping you away from that path that was told in the Heart’s reflection. I should have seen though that what I was doing was setting you on that path. No, rather, that you were never on that path to begin with, at least, not until my actions were introduced.
“I don’t know what it is that happened since I was trapped in the statue you put me in, but I can see how much I’ve hurt you, and for that, I can only apologize. I wish I had figured out what I was doing sooner, but that’s not to take blame away from what I’ve done. I’m sorry.”
Amore was looking right at him when she finished, seemingly almost through Alex and at Sombra, and it made him blink in surprise. As he did, he noticed the tears he had and shut his eyes tightly, growling with anger.
“No. She doesn’t get to apologize to me. I…” He had to use his hooves to wipe away his tears, which Alex found to be dripping out in real life.
“You’re making him cry, you know that?” Alex told her. “His sadness is making me sad. I don’t think he wants to hear your apology.”
“I understand. I only wanted to explain to him my reasoning, and let him know that I truly was sorry…”
“I don’t care!” Sombra yelled as he stayed in the safety of his and Alex’s head. “I don’t want to hear your apology! You’re just trying to make excuses for your actions! Just go away! Leave me alone!”
“Do you remember the last thing I said to you?” Amore asked after a second when Alex remained silent, listening to Sombra. “That you had the potential to be better? Well, I was a bit incorrect in saying that. You didn’t have the potential to be better because you always were better. I should have seen that sooner than I did, before it caused a thousand years to pass in the blink of an eye.”
“Make her go away…” Sombra begged, his head turned away from the screen. “Please, Alex. Just make her leave me alone...”
“I think you should just leave him alone, honestly, if you really are sorry,” Alex said, having a bit of sympathy for the tear-filled pony in his head. “He doesn’t want to hear anything else from you.”
“I understand,” she replied simply. “I’ll leave you alone now.”
It had been more than a few months since our conversation with Amore, and just like she said she would, she left us alone. I only saw her a few times around the castle since then but didn’t speak to her. From what I heard she got the update from Twilight on the state of Equestria today before hearing about how the Crystal Empire disappeared for a thousand years. I didn’t think she told her that it was Sombra’s fault for its disappearance seeing as I wasn’t confronted again by her, and a few weeks later, I was told she went back to the Crystal Empire to greet her subjects. The way I understood it, she would be going back there to live in the castle and talk to the ponies she knew, but wouldn’t serve in any governing capacity. That would still be held by Shining Armor, which I appreciated. I didn’t know much about her, other than what I heard from her mouth, Luna’s story, and Sombra’s emotions, but I couldn’t say I trusted her. I wished though that I could keep an eye on her here in the castle, although I could tell Sombra wanted her gone, and so wasn’t too upset about it. I figured it would be for the best anyway, seeing how thick the air got whenever those two simply passed by each other.
A few days after she left, I had Starlight put the two of us back together. I have to say, I was instantly relieved once we were, although I could tell that the Sombra part of me was frustrated. Still, I liked it, and was happy about the deal we made. We decided it would be month to month. I would get a month to be combined with him and he would get a month to be alone in the world and do what he wished, minus a few days. I knew he didn’t like it, I could feel so when we were back together, but being back together, even if it was on again and off again, made me feel better. I would’ve let him have the whole month that we weren’t together to himself, but I did need to see a therapist about this situation, and used my time for just that.
One day, while we were combined together, Starlight and Twilight came up to me with smiling, happy faces, clearly unable to wait to tell me something. I noticed Cadance was trailing behind them cautiously, her head hung low, and I prepared myself for what I knew was about to happen.
“Alex!” Starlight started happily. “I know it hasn’t been that long since we’ve started working with Cadance on her rehabilitation, but Twilight and I wanted to tell you that lately it’s been going exceptionally well! We’ve been working with her every day, both Twilight and I even giving up time at the School of Friendship to see her, and, well, I think you should take over for us, Cadance!”
The pink alicorn walked up to me gingerly, keeping her eyes fixed on the ground as she did so. I noticed she was wearing her royal regalia as she did so, which I found interesting, but didn’t comment on it, keeping my expression flat as she finally glanced up at me with what looked like shame and embarrassment.
“I… I came here to…” she trailed off, looking back down at the floor and sighing. “I came to apologize to you,” she told me. “I- I know I did so before, but you already know I was being… well, basically, what I wanted to do was give you a proper apology. I’m sorry for what happened. I’m sorry that I hurt you the way I did, and I’m sorry for trying to hurt you again once we were here in the castle however long ago it was. I… I was wrong, and… I don’t know what else to say but I’m sorry for it. I know I can’t make it up to you, but...”
“Wow, it seems that Sombra and I are getting apologized to a lot lately,” I commented, avoiding the urge to roll my eyes given the situation. “Was this their idea or something you decided to do on your own?” I asked.
“I- I will admit they brought it to my attention how disingenuous I sounded- I was- during my apology at court, but it was my idea to come back and apologize to you properly this time.” I raised an eyebrow in Twilight’s direction, and she nodded to confirm that it was indeed the truth.
“Well, I greatly appreciate it,” I responded, looking to see if there was any semblance of hatred or malice in her eyes and finding none. “Was that it? Is there anything else?”
“I, um… I don’t want this to seem like it was the only reason I was apologizing to you, but… umm…”
“Yes?”
“I- I wanted to know, if it’s acceptable, if I could get this ring taken off my horn, and if I could get my position in the Crystal Empire back in any capacity.”
I sighed at that. Of course, she wanted something from me. Not that I was surprised, but I was disappointed. I would have felt much better about taking her ring off had she not asked about it. Still, I decided that I would go with the opinions of those I put in charge of her.
“We can discuss ruling positions in a limited capacity for you later on, but certainly not in the Crystal Empire. I know for a fact Shining Armor doesn’t want to see you. But about your ring… what do you two think?” I asked, looking at the two mares with her. “Do you think she’s rehabilitated enough to warrant having her ring taken off?”
“Absolutely!” Starlight answered immediately. “Without a doubt! It’s been a lot of work, but I think we can trust her to have her ring off. Of course, we’ll still be having lessons with her, but a little trust in her should be good for her, right Twilight?”
I could see Twilight debating in her head what to say, staying silent for a long moment and Cadance giving her pleading puppy dog eyes before finally answering, “Yes, I trust her. I think we should take her ring off. She deserves a little freedom for coming so far. I'll take responsibility if she acts up. And if she doesn't behave herself, I'll put it right back on her. But I do trust her.”
“Okay then. I trust you two. Go ahead and take it off of her.” Then I turned to Cadance and told her, “I’m trusting you to not try and pull a fast one on us and hurt me again.”
“Don’t worry,” she assured me, giving a wide smile and cheery voice, clearly happy about the situation. “I wouldn’t do anything like that. I promise.”
"Come on!" Brimstone tried to convince the stallion and mare he was talking to. "You have to admit that it's at least a little bit suspicious, right? I mean, Celestia disappeared, and now Sombra, King of the Shadows, is ruler in her place! You're not the least bit concerned about that?"
"I will admit, we are a bit concerned," the mare said, "at least, we were at first. However, the two of us simply don't care enough about it to want a change in the way things are now."
"In fact," the stallion told him, "Princess Hope approved a loan for our business that Celestia herself wouldn't approve. Why would we want a change back to the way things were before if we benefit from the way things are now?"
"Honestly," the mare started, "it's in your best interest not to say such things, especially here of all places. That could be considered treasonous behavior in her and Alex's eyes."
"I understand…" Brimstones sighed, hanging his head low. "Sorry for bothering you."
It was about the response he expected, about the response he'd been getting when he asked ponies in the city. He just couldn't understand what he was doing wrong, why they couldn't see things his way. Sure, it'd been nearly two years since Princess Celestia was deposed, but he thought they'd still have a crippling fear of King Sombra, even now.
"Ugh, I should probably just give up…" he muttered to himself as the two walked away, leaving him standing alone in the courtyard to the castle. "Being a villain is so hard. I can see why Sombra gave up on it."
As he said it, he turned to the castle and thought about what he could do. Go in and rush them, and then… what? Then either one of them would stop him in his tracks and throw him in Tartarus, or, based on the responses he got from those in Canterlot, half the country would protest his rule. Not really an ideal scenario in either case, and it seemed the plan he wanted to enact was extremely flawed.
It was probably best to give up on it once and for all and go back to his family's business of using sulfur to make fertilizer. He might have had a villainous sounding name, but he just wasn't cut out for the lifestyle that was associated with it. It was clearly much too difficult.
As he thought these things, he faced the castle, and noticed somepony, Cadance, heading down the steps on the path to the main part of the city. As she did so, he quickly noticed that her ring was removed from her horn. As well, the second she reached the ground, she raised her wings and soared through the air, stretching out and going up to the clouds before diving back down and soaring out past the castle, heading off to somewhere else in Canterlot. Brimstone quickly took the moment to hide behind one of the few statues around to watch her until she left, considering what this meant.
He didn’t think his idea about her waiting for them to take her ring off after she pretended to be good, a comment that he really only made in passing, would actually work, but somehow it had. He wanted to laugh at their foolishness, but he didn’t because he knew Cadance was probably an obstacle to his goals. He tried to determine how to work around it. Maybe he could use Grogar’s bell on her to take her magic… and then what? He’d still have several other ponies to take down and then a thousand ponies who were satisfied with the current rulers against him. Being a villain was just too hard…
But what about being a hero? Being a hero would be easy, much easier than being a villain. He already knew that the alicorn was planning an attack. All he had to do was tell Alex about it, and presto! He would be a hero in their eyes! Easy peasy!
Or even better, he could take advantage of the situation! If he approached Cadance again to work with her, he could follow her around and save the day for everypony right when she tried to attack! Then, he’d really be hailed as a hero! And then from that angle, it'd be much easier to wiggle his way into power! It was a perfect plan!
With that in mind, he quickly ran off, towards the direction that the alicorn flew in to find her again.
“I’m telling you, she’s just going to try and work against us,” I told both Starlight and Twilight the second Cadance left our sight, running off ecstatically somewhere the second her ring came off. “I’ll put a million bits on it. I don’t trust her in the slightest.”
“I’m sure she’s trustworthy,” Twilight told me, “but just in case, I can put a protection spell on you. I’ve been working on this one for a while now, although it still takes up a lot of magic to do. Also, while you have it on, you won’t be able to use your own magic and it'll put you at a slight disadvantage while she uses her own magic. At least, until she wears herself out, not that she’s going to do anything. Like I said, I trust her completely. But I can use it on you if you want?”
“Yes, that would be greatly preferred,” I answered. “How long will it last?”
“As long as you want it to. Like I said, you won’t be able to use any magic, except casting a release spell to release the protection. But in theory, if you never release it, it’ll last the rest of your life. There are flaws in it right now, like only being able to be used on unicorns and alicorns, but if we could find a way to get it to work on earth ponies and pegasi… well, it might limit their natural passive magic, which wouldn’t be great. This spell still has flaws that need to be ironed out before we can put it into public use.”
“It sounds like it,” I responded casually. “You get to work ironing out those flaws. It would be great to have something like that in our archives. But first, use the spell on me. You may trust her, but I don’t, and somepony will need to defend the castle when she ends up going against us.”
“Sure thing, but I’m telling you, she really has changed. She told me so, and I believe her.”
Cadance spread her wings and soared through the sky for the first time in forever. She closed her eyes as she did so, taking in the cold rush of wind in her feathers, the warm sunlight on her mane and back, and the smell of the clouds as she flew. Over a year and a half had passed since she was able to fly, being confined to just a single room for nearly a full year and then having her magic on lockdown for months after that. It was nice to have her magic back, freeing in more ways than one. Flying through the skies after so long made her feel like nothing in the world could go wrong and that everything in Equestria was in perfect harmony.
Unfortunately, the feeling didn’t last for too long. It didn’t take her more than a few minutes to remember that Sombra was the one to keep her confined and for her anger to come rushing back, so quickly in fact that she nearly crashed into a few buildings thinking about it. This whole predicament was his fault, although even that being the case, she couldn’t really say she hated Alex, if Alex truly existed. He did have pity on her and took her ring off, not to mention, he didn’t throw her into Tartarus like he could have. He was certainly better than what she could say Sombra was, and seemed like a fair enough ruler. But regardless of his ruling tendencies, she deserved the throne, and the throne was what she would get.
The combination of her flight speed and her lack of wing use over the previous months forced her to land earlier than she would have liked, settling herself onto the grass in front of one of the restaurants in Canterlot after several minutes. She breathed heavily from her exertion but smiled regardless, happy that she was once again able to fly where she pleased when she pleased, out of the watchful eye of those in the castle. Yes, she was still angry at Sombra, but more excited that the dumb yellow pony’s plan, Broomstick if she remembered correctly, actually worked. She was especially happy that it worked so quickly, and she was able to get the better of Sombra and Hope so easily, with minimal work, even if it was just a small victory on her part.
She gave a satisfied exhale as she flicked her mane, looking around her to see where she stopped. As she did, she noticed that the ponies around her were largely silent, doing nothing more than whispering amongst themselves as their eyes fell on her. She briefly wondered why they were staring, but after a moment, remembered the trial she was put through some months ago, and how it was meant to shame her. She realized that it also had the effect of attempting to deter her from taking action against Sombra, since nopony in Canterlot would give her the time of day if she did successfully enact her revenge.
“Don’t worry about that,” the mare told herself. “Don’t worry about these ponies. You can’t let their looks stop you. If you do, then they win, which can’t happen. Just act normal for now and come up with a plan. You can work on getting their trust after you’ve secured the throne again. You just need to-”
Suddenly, without warning, she was bumped into by the stallion she was just thinking of, the bright yellow one who told her what to do. She scowled and was one second away from yelling at him when she remembered the looks she was getting and backed off.
“What do you think you’re doing here… Broomfield?” she started, doing her very best to keep her voice under control. “Did you follow me here?”
“It’s Brimstone,” he replied, “and I did, but that was because I wanted to talk to you about… things. Things maybe regarding your horn?”
She wanted to immediately tell him no because she knew what he was going to ask. He was going to ask to join her and tell her that everything would be better if she had his help, that they could share the rulership of Equestria if they worked together, because taking on all of them alone was a nearly impossible task. Of course, what he didn’t know was that she had already done it, or rather, nearly done it, once before. The only thing that stopped her from taking the throne was that, at the very last second, Alex showed up to take control. Somepony who wasn’t even supposed to exist, who was only intended to be a temporary personality of Sombra, went in and stole her throne. Everything was so perfect, and then it all collapsed in on itself because of that one thing.
“And what would that be, mister… what was your name?” she said calmly, doing her best to sound pleasantly happy.
“Brimstone," the stallion told her again, "and it might be best to talk in private?”
She opened her mouth to speak but by the time she did, he was already heading off somewhere else, turning around for just a second to indicate that she should follow him, which she did, much to her own annoyance and frustration.
Eventually, the two ended up in a back alley in a different part of the city, one with very few ponies. It looked a bit run down, for Canterlot’s standards at least, and she could understand why nopony would want to be here. It was a lonely spot, free of any notable buildings except for a few homes and a dumpster near them. It wasn’t an ideal spot for anypony else to stop in, which made it the perfect spot to talk in secret.
“I didn’t think you’d get that ring off your horn so soon,” Brimstone said, smiling at the observation as he jumped straight into the conversation. “I thought it’d be more like years, and you did it in weeks! It’s great to see you flying through the skies again.”
“I’m not sure why it would be great for you,” the former princess countered, all business. “I already told you that I don’t need you, and if you try to get in my way or-”
“I already told you that I want to help you though!” the stallion interrupted. “I know you think you don't need me, but there’s no way you can take them on alone! I mean, didn’t you try to do that before? And that’s how you ended up with a ring on your horn? Next time, unless you’re certain you’ll win, they’ll turn you into stone or throw you into Tartarus! Do you really want to chance that?”
“I don’t, which is why I’m going to take my time and plan out my movements and- why am I even telling you this? Get out of my way or I will hurt you, I’m warning you now!”
“I’m telling you that I have a good plan!” he argued. “Besides, I talked to everypony and they’re all saying the same thing, which is that they don’t want anypony else as their ruler, not even Princess Celestia! You’d be hard pressed to find a way to convince these ponies on your own, so-”
“Then I’ll force them to listen! If they think I won’t, I will, and that means you too! Now get out of my way!”
“I’m telling you it’s a bad idea, plus, how do you plan on even going about it? Whatever idea you have, I’m straight up telling you mine is better!”
“Oh yeah? And what do you have to offer that I can’t already do myself?”
“I’m sure you don’t have Grogar’s bewitching bell, do you?” he answered immediately, the alicorn’s eyes going wide in shock. “Yeah, I thought not, because it’s in my possession.”
“Are you serious? You have it right now?” she asked, completely surprised by his claim before an idea came into her head. “Show it to me!”
It was now Cadance’s turn to follow Brimstone as he lead her to the outskirts of Canterlot near the base of the mountain that stood behind it. It wasn’t the size of Mount Everhoof, but it did tower quite distinctly above the surrounding terrain. Cadance blinked as she realized it was right in front of them, knowing where this trip was going.
“Please don’t tell me we’re going to have to go up there…” she trailed. “I don’t have the magic or wing strength for that right now. I just got out of those chains they wrapped around me.”
“I mean, we can walk,” Brimstone offered. “You have four perfectly capable hooves. Besides, it’s how I got up here the first time to hide the bell.”
“Can’t you teleport us up to where we need to be?” she asked as she took in the mountainside. “I mean, you are a unicorn after all. Prove to me that you’re strong enough to help me by teleporting us up to the top.”
“Come on, you’re not gonna be that lazy, will you?” Brimstone pushed her. “You’re gonna let a little mountain hike stop you from conquering Equestria?”
“I- well- I just haven’t been as active lately. I told you, I’ve been cooped up in that castle for months on end and haven’t worked myself out yet. It’ll be weeks or maybe months before I’m in tip-top shape. Just teleport us up there, okay?”
“Ugh, fine,” Brimstone conceded, rolling his eyes before casting the spell. He wasn’t as magically built up as the rulers of Equestria, and so was only able to get about a fourth of the way to the cave on the mountainside where the bell was hidden.
“Sorry, I don’t have enough magic to take us both all the way to the top,” he announced to her. “But luckily we landed on the trail this time. I almost died trying to hide it last time when I ended up on the cliff face. But uh, yeah, we’re gonna have to walk. Sorry, but you're gonna have to use your legs.”
“Of course, you can’t even get us both there,” the alicorn complained, kicking a rock and rolling her eyes as she walked behind him. “You’re lucky I even choose to work with you.”
“Oh yeah, I’m lucky,” he rolled his eyes as they walked. Well, he had to admit, he was a little bit lucky that he was working with her. He had an effectively foolproof way to get in good and grab a position of power. Just make a plan with Cadance and then, when all seemed lost, come in and save the day. No hassle in the slightest, everything should go smoothly.
They walked silently for a while, Cadance mostly grumbling to herself as they did so, the trail spiraling around the mountain until they were about a third of the way up. Once they got to that point, a narrow section of the trail branched off into the mountain, creating a small pass and, eventually, a cave.
“This way!” Brimstone called, jogging ahead into the darkness. “It’s in here, follow me!”
“You better not jump me,” Cadance warned. “I may not be up to speed magic wise, but I’m still an alicorn, so watch out.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m not gonna do that,” he said, silently thinking to himself that he could take her on. “Anyway, here it is!” As he said it, he levitated the bell up for her to see, lighting up his horn as he did so so she could get a good view.
Cadance’s heart pounded as she stared at it in his magic, asking, “How does it work? Do you know how to use it?”
“Yes I do, and it’s simple really,” he explained. “You just place your magic into it like this…” he told her, demonstrating. “And then you hit it on this side, and…” He did just that and watched as Cadance was drained of her magic. She didn’t look very much different, although a little more tired with bags under her eyes now and slumped down more.
“Huh, I thought it would’ve taken your magic and you’d be on the ground and not able to do anything.”
“I’m sure I would but you forget I had a ring on my horn that stole my magic from me for months on end. I’m used to it by now, and don’t have very much magic built up as it is.”
“Ah, well, anyway, to return magic to yourself or whoever you want, you just do the same thing, except in reverse.” With that, he rang the bell and placed his magic back into it, returning the magic he took back to Cadance. “See?” he said. “Easy peasy. And between the two of us, this’ll be effortless.”
“It seems so,” she replied absentmindedly, focusing on what she was about to do. “Hey, can I see that bell for a second?”
“Sure, you can test it out, too, if you want,” he offered, floating it over to her. “Just make sure you- whoa!”
All of a sudden, she was using it to steal his magic, and when she was done a second later, quickly turned around to walk away, storing his magic in the bell for later.
“Haha, that’s a good one,” the stallion laughed nervously as he felt his legs going weak and fell down to the ground. “But I do actually need my magic to help you. Can you give it back now that you tested it out?”
“Here’s a little lesson in trickery,” Cadance smiled smugly. “Don’t show your secret weapon to someone who said that they didn’t want to work with you before, idiot.”
“...what?”
“Did you seriously think I’d work with you?” the alicorn asked. “I don’t even know you, and you really thought I would trust you? You have extremely foolish ideals if that’s the case. But that’s just how the politics of it all goes.”
“But I just gave you Grogar’s-”
“And you’re an idiot for it,” she interrupted. “That’s your fault. But you did help me. A few months to recharge should be more like a few weeks now because of you, so thanks.” With that, not another word was spoken as Cadance trotted away, Brimstone only able to blink at her shrinking figure in the distance as he processed what happened.
“Well…” he thought to himself, “I guess that just leaves telling Sombra about this as my only plan…”
“You don’t think Cadance would actually try something, right, Twilight?” Starlight asked. “I mean, sure she has a history of it, but… that was the whole point of our friendship lessons.”
“Well I certainly hope not, but… I guess it can’t be completely out of the question, but I really don’t think-”
“She would,” a mare’s voice, Luna, suddenly interrupted, causing Twilight and Starlight to jump. They turned towards her as she continued, “If you have not noticed, the royal family is quite a vengeful one, with the lone exception of you, Twilight Sparkle. You know of my history and have seen my sister with your own eyes. Thinking that Cadance won’t seek revenge would be a foolish thing to do.”
“But we-”
“I understand,” the princess continued, knowing what the two were going to say. “However, I must say I have to agree with Alex on this matter. I do think she’s plotting something, and it would be best to assume the worst.”
“But we went through helping her realize she was wrong, Princess,” Starlight told her. “I mean, she was the one who offered to apologize to him. We didn’t put her up to it. Doesn’t that say something?”
“It does indeed say something, however, what it says can be open to interpretation. What might look well meaning on her part by you might appear ill intended by I.”
“Well we can’t just tell her we think that, especially since it might not be true,” Twilight argued. “Everypony deserves a second chance. Just because it looks weird doesn’t mean it is.”
“And I am not suggesting that she doesn’t, personal feelings for her and what she's done to my sister aside. I’m only saying to please be weary. Just hearing from Alex, it seems like he’s being appropriately skeptical of her, as will I, and as I suggest you two do.”
“And what if we’re wrong?” Starlight asked. “That would completely break whatever trust she has in us and make her upset if she found out. It just seems too risky to be paranoid.”
“Nor am I suggesting such. I’m only saying to please be cautious and weary as you would of anypony. It would be quite foolish to not be so. If a situation arises where she is offended by our actions, then all that will be needed from us is an explanation and an apology. I do believe that would be acceptable given the circumstances, do you not?”
“Well, I guess, but… it just seems like she’s going to be more upset if we hawk around her. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“I’m only saying be weary,” Princess Luna explained with a sigh. “Just be cautious. That is all I’m telling you.”
“Black hole sun, won’t you come and wash away the rain…” I said aloud a couple of days later as I sat with Hope in the throne room. “It’s getting close to the time when I said I would bring back the black hole sun, isn't it.”
“Huh?” she asked, not really paying attention to what I was saying. “What are you talking about?”
“Ah, nothing, it’s just an old song that came to mind.” I sighed and continued, “What do you think about bringing back Celestia soon? I remember saying during Cadance’s trial that I would after a year or so, and that time is coming up.”
“I wouldn’t, honestly,” Hope responded automatically. “I’m not sure Canterlot would care one way or the other, and they’re the most important ponies in Equestria. So even if other ponies don’t like it… I mean, if Canterlot doesn’t care, why would we? “
“That’s true, but I don’t want to be dishonest, because you and I both know a certain pony is going to parade around talking about it endlessly if I am. Ugh…”
“I mean, why does what she says matter?” the mare asked. “It’s not like she has any leverage in this, or the royal status to back up anything she says.”
“But she does have influence,” I told her. “Just her being an alicorn gives her influence, and that’s something that can’t be ignored. Besides, how does it reflect on me if I say one thing and do another? Badly, I think.”
“Well, I mean, you can do it if you want, but don’t be surprised when it goes poorly, because I can’t see her being happy. Although you’ll have to have someone else do it. Seeing a familiar face, like Twilight or Princess Luna should help her. Or actually, bring Prin- I mean, Amore. I’m certain she would forgive you in an instant if she saw her.”
“Now there’s a thought… although it might be best left for when Sombra and I are separated again. I can already feel the intensity brewing inside of me at just her name.”
“I think you should,” somepony suddenly called behind us. We turned around to see that it was Cadance, strutting around the castle happily, all smiles and her wings outstretched, the same expression she'd been wearing for the last few days.
“And why would that be, if I can ask?” I humored her.
“Because no one wants her around,” she replied quickly, confidently. “Believe me, I’ve heard it just by listening around the castle, if you can believe it. Even if she wanted her seat back, she couldn’t grab it because the ponies in Canterlot would just depose her. There’s no good reason not to bring her back.”
“I see,” I said flatly, looking at her for only a second longer before facing forward again. “I do appreciate your consideration and opinion, thank you.”
I could practically hear her rolling her eyes behind me as she started off before I interrupted, asking, “Cadance?” I turned back around, meeting her annoyed gaze as I told her, “Thank you.”
“Huh? For what?” she asked.
“Thank you for not attacking me immediately,” I explained. “I understand how much… rage you must hold for me, and I appreciate you not taking it out on me. Thank you. It goes a long way towards trusting you.”
“Oh. You’re welcome, I guess,” she said, sounding confused before walking away again. As she did, I sighed to myself and closed my eyes, wondering what exactly she was trying to do and what her plan was.
“What is she up to?” I asked myself silently. “I hope that little thank you dissuades her from trying whatever she’s planning to.”
It was much easier to sort through my and Sombra’s thoughts when we were together, I realized, and we did just this while debating Celestia.
“I know I don’t want her back, really, if I can help it,” I thought to myself as I lay in bed next to a sleeping Radiant Hope. “The problem is that I already said I would bring her back. That’s an issue. Of course, both Hope and Cadance alike said that she likely wouldn’t be able to retake the throne because of our popularity, but still. I know Luna is likely aching for her sister, and I don’t want to look like a liar…”
It was an annoying situation that I created for myself, although I knew what the right thing to do was. It was to do as I said and bring Celestia back, having Amore nearby so that she wouldn’t go crazy, not that having her there was guaranteed to work. Besides, just the thought of Amore being nearby got my, or, at least, Sombra’s, emotions riled up. I could feel how much hate was held for her, and had to take a deep breath to keep us calm. Although I got the same way when I thought about Celestia for too long. It was absolutely unfair how I was treated and hurt to think about, even knowing Cadance’s part in her actions. So much of me wanted me to bring her back just so she could apologize to me, but I wasn’t sure that was going to happen. Still, it would probably be beneficial to have her here, so I decided I would talk it over with Luna.
“I’m getting up right now, Hope,” I said aloud as I stretched and yawned. “You can stay in bed if you want. I’m going to go speak to Luna.” She mumbled something unintelligible and rolled over, and with that, I left.
I got to Luna’s room after a few minutes to see Cadance in there with her, the two of them apparently discussing something. Luna looked annoyed and Cadance expressionless as they turned to me when I entered.
“It is a good thing you’re here, Alex,” Luna said. “We were just discussing you and the situation with my sister.”
“It’s good you’re talking about her, because I came here to ask about that specifically,” I responded before sending a look over to the other alicorn. “Although it would be better if it were just us,” I told Luna, still looking in Cadance’s direction, tilting my head a bit to indicate that she should leave.
“It’s fine,” she smiled. “I already said all I wanted to say. You two can have at it.” With that, she quickly teleported out of the room, catching me off guard for a second before I remembered that I took her ring off.
“I assume she told you that we should bring Celestia back, right?” I asked, not really needing to though. “Because that’s what she told me, and it has me worried.”
“She did tell me that very same thing,” Luna told me. “I would love to see my dear sister again, however, you are right in that it is concerning that she feels that way. Do you believe there’s any way we could change her opinion? I personally feel very skeptical that she’s truly reformed.”
“So do I, but I’ve been trying to do little things, like thanking her for not attacking and such, and she does look much happier, but…” I sighed, saying, “Looks can be, and are, deceiving.”
"Yes, that's what I've learned in my many years of ruling. She seems happier, but to me, even speaking to her, her tone seems like one that's bitter towards us."
“You can say that again… I hate having to act defensive and suspicious of ponies like this. We can’t provoke her, but if she attacks first, we’ll have to react to what she’s doing. It’s an awful position to be in.” I closed my eyes for a second, taking a deep breath before starting again, “But I wanted to talk about Celestia. Would it be a good idea for me to be there? Or should I wait in the background? I already know that you, Amore, and Hope should be there to talk to her. I’m just worried about me.”
“Well, I do believe as long as Princess Amore is there, as well as I, there shouldn’t be an issue. But it might be in our best interest to keep you away. I don’t think it would be wise to let my sister be around Cadance for quite a while, and I certainly don’t want her being alone during the time that she’s back. It would be best if you kept watch over her.”
“When do you think it should happen?” I asked. “We still have a few weeks before the one-year anniversary of her trial. I was thinking then, like I said, or the day after.”
“I say the sooner the better in my opinion,” Luna told me. “It might be my wanting to see my sister again that’s clouding my judgment, but I do think we should do it quickly. There’s no harm if she’s not planning anything, but if she is, it’s better to catch her off guard while we can. I would say this week would be a perfect time if you are willing.”
“Are you sure about that?” I asked. “I mean, I’ll trust your opinion if you’re sure. I just don't want to walk into something we're not prepared for and have it end like last time.”
“I am. We could-”
“Um, Alex?” Radiant Hope suddenly interrupted, suddenly appearing in the room, looking like she just woke up. “I think we have a little bit of a situation. There’s a stallion that wants to speak to you.”
“What happened to you?” I asked the stallion in front of me, Brimstone if I remembered correctly. “What are you doing here? Why do you look so awful?”
“I…” he trailed off, huffing, practically gasping for air. “I came here… to tell you… is… is there somewhere more private to talk to you?”
I scowled at him at that idea, not liking the sound of it, but not wanting to let what he had to say go unheard. I looked to Hope to use her magic since I couldn't, and let her cast a spell over just the stallion and I, teleporting the two of us to Luna's room. Once we were there, I stood silently in front of him, waiting to hear what he had to say.
“I…” he started after a few seconds, closing his eyes and laying down on the ground in front of us. “I want you… to know that…” He paused for a moment to gather his breath before continuing, “Cadance is planning something…”
“How do you know of this?” Luna asked immediately, getting the words out before I could. “What have you and she been doing that you would know?”
“It’s… it’s a long story… but she… has Grogar’s bell… and she’s gonna use it.”
“I’ll be off to get her,” the alicorn said immediately, the worry in her eyes clear and not wanting to waste time. “You stay here, Alex.” With that, she extended her wings and flew out of the room, leaving me alone to question him.
“Where did she get Grogar’s bell?” I asked seriously, looking down at him, his eyes still closed.
“I… I was just…” he started before opening his eyes again and looking away shamefully. “I… gave it to her…”
It took all my self control to not go off on him, using a hoof to rub my forehead as I asked, “What happened that landed you in a situation where you were in a position to give it to her?”
“I… I might have… offered to help her with… trying to overthrow Canterlot…” He glanced back up at me and could clearly see the angry expression I had on my face, because he quickly added, “But I wasn’t going to actually work with her! I- I was just trying to figure out what she was planning!”
“Then how did you get the bell?” I growled. “Why did you get it? I know it wasn’t anywhere around Canterlot, and I don’t see how it could- wait! Is this still about your stupid name?”
“I- I mean… it’s…”
“Your name doesn’t mean anything! It’s just a name! Brimstone means as much to me as Alex probably does to you! You don’t- argh! God!”
I put my hooves in my face to take a breath. I realized now I should’ve done more at the time than just talk to him when I met him in the library, but it really didn’t seem like something that mattered. Becoming a villain because your name sounded villainous was the most insane logic I’d ever heard, so much so that I completely brushed it off.
“Where is she now?” I asked. “Or actually, what is she planning?”
“I don’t know! I know she- she stole my magic, and then-”
“How are you still able to talk right now then?” I asked. “If she stole your magic, you wouldn’t be able to move right now.”
“I wasn’t. I was on top of the mountain behind the castle for two days trying to get back down, and I-”
“This happened two days ago?” I asked, getting more and more upset. I had to close my eyes to breathe. It was a bad spot to be in, Cadance probably having had enough time to make a good plan and steal an unknown number of ponies' magic. But it was still okay. I had Twilight’s protection spell on me, assuming that it would work as she intended it. Not to mention, if the worst came to pass, I had that spell I got from the archives in my back pocket. The situation was bad, but there were still options. Not any good options, but options none the less.
“Maybe I should just get it over with and use that spell,” I thought to myself. “I mean, it’s heading in that direction. At this point, the chances of me using it are much greater than the chances of me not using it…”
No, that wasn’t a good idea. It was risky business using it, and not even guaranteed to work. If the worst happened, then I would, but thus far, the worst hadn’t happened, even if it was getting to that point. Using that spell would more than likely make all the time I spent here worthless, and I really didn’t like the idea of using it unless it was absolutely necessary.
“What is she planning?” I asked again, this time stopping to hear what he had to say, waiting for his answer as I stared down at him.
“I… I don’t know. I didn’t get that far into the conversation.” I glared down at him, remaining silent in my attempt to intimidate him, and he continued, “I really don’t know! I asked if she wanted help in trying to take over Canterlot, and showed her the bell, then she stole it and-”
“How did you know that she was going to plan something?” I interrupted. “How long have you been trying to work with her?”
“I- I mean… it wasn’t that long. I talked to her once but she didn’t want anything to do with me, but-”
“And you didn’t tell me until now? After she betrayed you? How do I know that you weren’t planning to work with her all along?”
“I mean, I was before, but like, I changed my mind along the way, and was planning to lead her to you so you could-”
“Why didn’t you tell me once you changed your mind?” I asked loudly, stomping a hoof in anger. “We could’ve had this taken care of if you did, but you didn’t tell me. How long have you known?”
“I didn’t tell you before because I’m very stupid, and not that smart, and thought being a villain would be easy, but it’s not. And you can lock me up in Tartarus for it later, since this is all my fault, but I’m sorry. And, um… I… might have known for weeks...”
“You are absolutely- argh! I’ll deal with you later. But you’re coming with me to help me since this is partly your fault.”
We couldn’t do anything though as Luna teleported back in front of us again, her face full of worry.
“Twilight!” Alex suddenly yelled as he burst into the room she liked to stay in during her time in Canterlot. She jumped out of her bed with a start and her book flew across the room when he appeared, just about having a heart attack at the scare.
“Where is Cadance?” he asked desperately, catching her off guard.
“I- I don’t know,” she answered quickly, blinking at him in confusion. “Why do you-”
“Follow me,” he commanded as he quickly ran back out. Twilight took a breath and got up quickly to follow him, deciding not to ask questions until they stopped again. The two of them ran through the castle before she realized he was leading them to the room that Starlight had been staying in lately with Trixie. She looked up from her own book as they entered and Alex asked her the same question.
The pink mare shook her head quickly, asking, “Why? Did something happen? I can’t imagine that she would try something so quickly, or at all, really. We made so much progress with her!”
“She has-” the stallion started before being interrupted by the heavy breathing of another stallion slowly entering the room.
“I… ugh… sorry… I’m not as… fit as you both…”
“Who is that?” Starlight and Twilight asked completely confused, the latter continuing, “What’s going on?”
“Cadance has Grogar’s bewitching bell,” Alex said immediately, receiving gasps from both mares in the room.
“What! How in the world did she manage that?” Starlight asked, Twilight’s mouth hanging open silently. “What in the world happened?”
“This stallion happened,” Alex replied with deep frustration in his voice as he looked down at him. Brimstone shrank back as the eyes of the room fell on him, and he looked at his hooves shamefully.
“I… I’m not as smart as I think I am,” he replied quietly, blushing in embarrassment. “I’m sorry.”
“What did you do?” Starlight asked as she got out of her bed to make her way up to him.
“I, um… I… may have given Cadance the bewitching bell... “ He could see Starlight scowl immediately at that and quickly added, “But- but I wasn’t trying to! I just wanted to, you know…”
“This isn’t good,” Starlight decided. “We need to find her and contain her. If she starts using that thing, we won’t have any semblance of a chance against her. We need to find her now. I thought she was over this already!”
“Do you have any idea where she would be at? Is there a chance she’s somewhere nearby?”
“Well, does she know that we know yet?” Starlight asked. “Cause if not, we could try and wait for her to come back. If she does, then it’s probably best if we started defense planning now. Either way, having us all together and being here would be the best idea."
Starlight was already in strategy mode, which Alex appreciated seeing. He turned to Twilight to ask her for a comment, but watched instead as her head was hung low, her tears dripping onto the floor.
“Hey, it’s not your fault that she’s acting like this,” the stallion tried to tell her sympathetically so she would focus on the task at hand. “It’s my fault really for even taking the ring off of her.”
“Why do they all act like this though?” the alicorn asked desperately as she looked up at him. “All three of them acted like this, and… it’s just… I don’t know why!”
“I can’t say why either,” the stallion lied, really wanting to say that the power and status of being alicorn made them think they could act however they wanted to.
“It hurts…” she said tearfully, bending her head down again. “They all talked about friendship and helped me learn about it but they all act like this. Is that gonna happen to me, too? I don’t want to be like them…”
“I’m sure you’ll be different,” Alex responded kindly, stepping up to put a hoof on her shoulder. “I can already see a difference between now and when I first met you, so even if you thought you were going to be them, you have the capacity to change. But we have to put that aside for now and find Cadance, okay? You’re too helpful to us to be able to be distracted right now. We need you.”
“I… I’m sorry. Just… I need a minute…” she told him, closing her eyes tightly. Alex gave her exactly that, giving her time to wipe her eyes with her hooves before politely saying, “We need you Twilight.”
“I know, I know,” she assured him, closing her eyes to take a breath to calm herself down. “Okay. Let me think. She has Grogar’s bell. I don’t think she’d go to the Crystal Empire because that’s where Flurry Heart is. I can’t see her going to Ponyville either, so that would mean she’s somewhere around Canterlot. Ummmm….”
“She talked to me about wanting to bring back Celestia,” Alex commented. “You don’t think she’s trying to do that now, do you?”
“I… maybe? That would make sense, but… I don’t think Prin- I mean, Celestia is somepony who would succumb to her, even with Grogar’s bell.”
“Do you think she’s out stealing other ponies' magic?” the stallion asked. “If I were in her position, that’s what I would do.”
“Well that depends on if she knows we know,” Starlight explained. “I mean, if I were in her position, and I thought we didn’t know, I would try and steal the magic of someone powerful.”
“Who else is there?” Alex asked. “We have Luna and I here, and you two here, and Amore is in the Crystal Empire, but how much magic can she have after missing the last mellenium? I cannot see how it could be anyone but Cele-”
Suddenly, Twilight eyes went wide, and before anypony could ask her what she was thinking, she teleported away.
“Fluttershy, can I talk to you?” Cadance asked as she went up to her. She caught the look she gave her and internally scowled, but forced herself to keep a downcast expression.
“I just wanted to apologize to you for what happened,” she said. “I… I’ve come to realize that my actions were… inappropriate, to say the least.”
“Yes, to say the least,” the yellow pegasus agreed, not ready to just forgive her quite yet.
Cadance sighed and continued, “I’m sorry. I hope you can forgive me. If not, I understand why.” She forced herself to make eye contact with her and not look around the room, waiting for a certain creature’s appearance.
“Well… I appreciate the apology Cadance,” Fluttershy responded, “but it’s going to take me time before I forgive you. I’m just not ready for that yet.”
“Come on, come on, come on,” the alicorn thought to herself impatiently. “Where in Equestria is he? I can't wait on this.”
“I do hope one day you can,” she said, trying to keep the conversation going. “I know it’s what I deserve, but it does hurt to not be forgiven…”
“And it should,” Discord said, suddenly appearing beside his friend, much to Cadance’s relief and joy. “After all, you interfered with plans I had, too, and yet you never gave me-”
Cadance cut him off suddenly as she reached for the bell and stole his magic, leaving him stunned and wide eyed. To her own surprise though, Twilight appeared behind her a second later.
Cadance braced herself for a magical attack, but to her surprise, she didn’t receive one, instead being tackled by the mare, slamming her into the ground. Her main thought was to protect the bell, and teleported it away before Twilight could try to grab it. As she did, Twilight made sure she was firmly pinned under her, glaring angrily at her, probably as angry as she’d looked in her whole life.
“Do you really not care at all?” Twilight yelled, the hurt very clear in her voice. “Do you really not care about what happens to you after this? Or how it looks when I vouch for you or try to paint your actions in a better light? Or how much it hurts to be lied to again?”
Cadance tried to teleport away, but before she could, Twilight attached her magic to her, being pulled wherever she went.
“You’re supposed to be my sister!” she continued, the two standing now in a large, green field under the sun. “Do you know how much I’ve been wavering and wanting to believe in you only for you to pull this again?”
“Stay out of it, Twilight,” Cadance threatened as she sent her an angry look of her own. “This isn’t about you.”
“Why do you care so much?” the mare asked, now looking more sad. “Being a ruler doesn’t mean anything! If you would’ve asked me before this whole mess got started, I would’ve given it to you! You know I never even wanted it!”
“You shouldn’t- argh!” Cadance closed her eyes and took a breath before opening them again and saying, “I shouldn’t have to ask for what was promised to me! I shouldn’t be pushed aside when she finds the next new pony she wants to tutor! Shining Armor shouldn’t choose being choosing you over his wife and the mother to his foal!”
She was seething, her eyes filled with hate and anger. It was a look that made Twilight want to flinch back, but she stood her ground, taking a step forward and furrowing her brow again.
“You have to let it go,” Twilight said forcefully. “You can’t hold on to this. It doesn’t matter.”
“I can’t,” she said flatly. “I can’t let it go. I’ve been working my whole life for this only for it to be yanked away from me. I’m not giving up on what should be mine.”
“What about Flurry Heart?” the purple alicorn asked. “What is she going to think hearing about you if you fail? What about me? We’re supposed to be sisters! Doesn’t that matter to you at all?”
“It’s not about you, Twilight,” Cadance said lowly, grinding her teeth. “Nothing you did started this, and nothing you can do will stop this. But if you try to get in the way, you will get hurt. This is your one warning.”
“You don’t have to do this. You can still end this. There are other ways to-” Twilight tried to continue, but was cut off. She suddenly had a blast of magic sent her way, one that she had to create a forcefield to deflect. A second later, Cadance started to disappear, Twilight attaching herself to her spell at the last moment.
“Can’t let her get away,” she thought. “She has Grogar’s Bewitching Bell. I can’t get caught up in that either. If she steals my magic, it’s over. I have to stay on the attack until Sombra and Starlight and Princess Luna get here. How naive can I possibly be?”
The second the two of them reappeared, Twilight sent an attack of her own, although it didn’t do much more than push her as Cadance deflected it.
“Stop following me!” the pink pony yelled angrily, sending out another blast of magic. It was a single, concentrated beam, one that she let continue on for more than a few seconds. It wasn’t something difficult to defend against, but after several seconds of it’s continuation, Twilight realized what she was doing. She did her best to cast her protection spell so she could run up and tackle her again, realizing she was pushing her farther away so she wouldn’t be able to follow her. Before she could make it to her though, she was already gone, leaving the mare standing alone.
She only took a second to catch her breath before making her way back to Alex and Starlight, who were in the middle of a conversation and explained to them what happened.
“I tried to stop her, but it’s hard having to play defensive like that when she has the bell.”
“This is bad…” Alex trailed off before turning to Brimstone. “Is there any way to counteract that bell?” he asked.
“I- I don’t know. I only wanted to see about how to get it to work. I didn’t think all of this would happen, honestly.”
“Of course you didn’t,” the stallion rolled his eyes. “Where do you think she’s gonna go?”
“I don’t know, but Twilight, like I was telling Alex, we need to get the city locked down. We can’t have her stealing ponies magic like Tirek did. If it gets to that, it’s gonna be bad. Maybe we can let you hold our magic like you said you did with the other alicorns against him, but other than that, I don’t know.”
“I’m not going to let it get that far,” Alex thought to himself. “If it gets to that point, I’m just going to use the spell. It will not get to that point.”
“I think you should get started on that, Starlight,” Twilight instructed. “What is Princess Luna doing?”
“I don’t know, but hopefully something,” Alex told her. “She’s still around here somewhere.”
“Well, I’ll go get my friends so we can use the Elements of Harmony and you can-”
“Actually, no. I want her to do that. You and I are going to the archives to see what we can do about that bell. I have a feeling Cadance is going to show up there very soon.” He paused for a moment before adding, "When she does show up, I don't want you to try to talk to her. We don't have time for all of that."
"I know, I understand. I won't let her get away again."
A few seconds later, Twilight and I were standing in the Royal Library, at the edge of the archives. There were a few guards standing stationary, glancing our way for a second before going back to attention, clearly not worried about anything.
“Looks like she hasn’t gotten here yet,” Twilight noted. “Are you sure this is where she’ll be?”
“Yes, I’m positive. I would be very surprised if she didn’t come here. Either way though, we need information on that bell. If we can stop it, that would be the best. If we can’t, then at least you and I can stand a chance against her and surprise her.”
“Do you still have that protection spell over you?” she asked. “If she attacks, you get in front of me and protect me. I hate asking you to deflect blows for me, but if-”
“I know,” I interrupted. “I understand, and I will. Let’s go see what we can do about that bell while we can though.”
With that, the two of us headed inside, carefully scanning the shelves to look for anything about Grogar or the Bewitching Bell. I tried to remember if Brimstone mentioned anyone in particular when we were here however long ago, but no one immediately came to mind.
“We might also want to check for information on Gusty the Great,” Twilight mentioned. I was happy that she was here, knowing that she was smart and studious enough to come up with something. “Although it looks obvious that these books were rummaged through. We might also need more security for the archives. The fact that this happened is unbelievable.”
“It was probably my fault,” I explained. “Brimstone was with me when he originally came here. I apparently have a problem with being much too trusting to all of these ponies.”
“That’s not what I mean,” she explained, picking up a book that looked vaguely familiar to me. “This one was put in upside down and has a page torn out of it, see?” She opened it fully to make her point. “Spells are being stolen from the archives. We can’t let that happen.”
“Oh, that?” I started, remembering what I did. “That was me. I was in here with Brimstone when I found that spell and tore it out.”
“What were you tearing out?” she asked as she looked down to read it, scowling at the idea. “Also, you really should be treating books with more respect, especially ones like…”
She trailed off as she read, her face changing to a look of shock. I avoided looking at her as she did, not wanting to make it seem like it was a big deal, although we both knew it was. I went back to looking for information on the bell as she started speaking again.
“Is… is that- do you know what this spell was supposed to be?” she asked seriously, sounding a bit in awe.
“I do,” I responded calmly, still not looking at her as I scanned the shelves.
“You can’t use this!” she said loudly, almost yelling. “This isn’t something you can just- did you use this before?”
“I didn’t,” I replied, rolling my eyes. “And this is why I didn’t tell anypony. I knew the second someone found out, they’d be all over me.”
“And they should! Time travel isn’t something you should mess with, believe me! It’s supposed to be here in the archives for a reason! There are so many things that can go wrong-”
“I know, that’s why I haven’t used it, Twilight,” I said frustratedly. “I know how dangerous it is, which is why I haven’t done anything with it yet. I’m not as stupid as you all make me out to be.”
“I’m not saying that, but what do you think you’re going to do if you use that?” she asked. “I don’t think going back in time to talk to Cadance would do anything, so I can’t see-”
“Let me just have an ounce of hope in my life, Twilight, okay?” I snapped. “There is nothing for me to look forward to, do you understand that? Just having it in my possession, even if I probably won’t do anything, it lets me have a little bit of hope in my largely hopeless life. Can I just have this one thing, please?”
She took a breath to respond, but didn’t say anything. Instead, she went back to looking through the books, as did I, seeing if there was anything useful. We examined silently for a few minutes before she spoke up.
“I wouldn’t use any sort of time travel spell,” she told me quietly. “Just based on who you are, I’m worried that doing something like that would turn out horribly for you. I can’t imagine anything that could change how things are now, and even if you could, it might hurt you more than you know.”
“I know, Twilight,” I responded with a tone in my voice. “I’m not an idiot. But in my opinion, if it comes to that, it comes to that. I’m not going to just use it willy nilly though, nor have I. The fact that this is all happening is proof enough of that. Anyway, do you think this book could be useful?”
“I know, I’m just worried about what could happen. I’ve had a couple of experiences with time travel, and neither of them went well, trust me on that.”
“Twilight. This book. Do you think there’s something in it?”
“Huh? Oh, let me see.” She walked over to read through it quickly and frowned. “This isn’t anything. This just talks about how Gusty the Great hid the bell from Grogar. That’s not that useful.”
“Look at the story though,” I said. “She hid it from him. Do you think that means there’s nothing we can do but try to take it from her?”
“I don’t like the idea of that, but if she comes before we can find something else, we can go with that plan. It’s as good as anything else. But let’s- let’s hope that’s not the only thing we can do. I'm not sure that would end well.”
Twilight and I stayed hidden in the archives as we heard Cadance entering the library. We had already told the guards to let her in without issue, and now stood tensed up and ready to go as she came in.
I only gave Twilight a look as we watched the alicorn, my companion having a spell on both of us that would keep us invisible as long as we didn’t move. She stood in the center of the library, the bell nowhere in sight as far as we could see. That was good, for now anyway. It would make it easier to take her down, I thought, although knowing where it was at would be good, too.
“Be ready,” I whispered, barely audible as we stared, not that it mattered, since as long as we didn’t move, she wouldn’t hear us either. She was mostly just standing around casually, which I thought was strange, looking around as if expecting something. It was confusing to watch, and I saw Twilight stick her eyebrow up out of the corner of my eye.
“What is she doing?” she whispered to me. “Is she waiting for something?”
I didn’t answer. I didn’t know. I could only assume she was waiting for us to appear. I couldn’t imagine what could be holding her up from heading into the archives.
“You said you had a feeling she was going to be here,” Twilight whispered, keeping her eyes ahead on her. “What do you think is the reason?”
“I think she’s here to bring back Celestia,” I answered simply. I could practically hear her eyes going wide open as she held back a gasp.
“We need to go get Princess Luna and Princess Amore,” Twilight responded, barely keeping her voice in a calm whisper. “We can’t let her anywhere near her.”
“No, we need to stay here and not let her get access to that spell,” I told her. “As long as she can’t bring her back, there’s no issue. Once she walks in for the spell, we need to get on top of her and stop her.”
“Do you think she’s going to try to take Princess Celestia’s magic?”
“I would put a million dollars on it. That’s why she’s so eager to have her back. Steal her magic, and with Discord out of the picture, she’s probably more powerful than any single pony is.”
“Oh, this is bad,” Twilight said anxiously, looking like she wanted to move in place but forcing herself still. “We can’t let that happen. If worst comes to worst, I have my friends, and we can use the Elements of Harmony on her.”
“If worst comes to worst, I’m using that time travel spell,” I whispered back. “But it won’t come to that because-”
Before I could finish, I heard a voice speak, one that made me hold my breath and practically become paralyzed in fear. It was one that I knew absolutely hated me because of a certain pink alicorn’s edging. It was one I almost expected to never hear again, and one that made me audibly gasp in surprise at the owner came into view. I was very lucky to have Twilight both make me invisible and protected from danger because of who entered.
“Are you certain they’ll be here?” Celestia asked as she strode in behind her slightly smaller pink counterpart, scowling as she asked it. She looked exactly the same as when I met her however many months ago, without the flickers of flames in her hair like she had when I last saw her.
“I can’t imagine why Sombra would ever consider coming here, although I can see Twilight Sparkle heading here for a spell or two.”
“He’ll be here, trust me,” she assured her. “He’s a lot smarter than everypony else makes him out to be.” I would’ve smiled at that remark had I not been terrified of the pony she was talking to.
“How is this happening?” I asked Twilight through clenched teeth as I stood as stock-still as possible, worried that the two would somehow be able to see through the spell. “There shouldn’t be any way she knows how to do that! Do you think she was here earlier and saw it then?”
“I don’t know!” she responded. “I don’t think she- wait! She helped Luna banish her when Celestia became Daybreaker! I remember that! She probably knew the same spell to bring her back already.”
“What! Luna said she sent her sister away! If I would’ve known that I wouldn't have let-”
“Do you think they’re here now?” Celestia asked aloud, interrupting our conversation. “I can’t tell, but I can almost sense their presence.”
“They’re smart, but I don’t think they’re that smart,” Cadance replied. “I bet they’ll be here any second though.”
“My Twilight is not a fool,” she continued. “She knows a great many spells, more than I do. It wouldn’t surprise me if she had something to be lying in wait under our noses. That she let herself get tricked by Sombra is still quite puzzling to me.” She sighed, pausing for a moment before continuing, “If I see him again, he’d best be prepared to receive the full brunt of my anger. This is his fault.”
I knew she was referring to me, as Alex specifically. She was saying that my doing exactly nothing was what caused all of this, and it made me sick to my stomach. It felt like we were back to the first few days of this madness when she said that.
“We need to get Princess Amore from the Crystal Empire now,” Twilight told me. “That way she won’t-”
“No! Don’t leave me here alone! We can’t let those two do whatever they want, and I can’t be here alone with her! She’s going to kill me if you leave!”
That much I was certain of. If Twilight left me here alone, with or without the protection spell, I would end up dead. I knew that for a fact.
“It’s going to be two minutes,” she assured me. “Less than two minutes. All I need to do is get there, explain what’s going on, and get back here. Easy peasy.”
“No, not easy peasy, Twilight! Luna said it would be two minutes the last time I was alone with her, and I almost died! I don’t want to be alone with her!”
“Getting Princess Amore is the best way we can make sure nothing happens,” Twilight explained. “It’s going to take 2 minutes total, if that."
"Please don't-"
"Even if I’m here with you, if she finds you, it won’t end well, okay? There's no way the two of us have the power to stand up to both of them. We have to get Princess Amore here right now. I’ll be right back.” I wanted to argue, but before I could, Twilight teleported away in a flash to get her.
“Did you feel that?” Celestia asked, an ear turning in my direction. I held a breath as she said, “It was magic. I know he’s here, somewhere.”
“Twilight, please come back quick,” I thought fearfully as I remained motionless. “Don’t leave me alone with that witch.”
In a second, Twilight was in the Crystal Empire, right in the room of the castle that she knew her older brother would be in.
“Shining!” she yelled as she popped in, causing the stallion to jump. “Where is Princess Amore staying?” she asked.
“Uh, she’s in the guest houses near the castle garden,” he answered, confused. “There’s nopony else in them. But why-”
She didn’t wait for him to finish, quickly teleporting to where she told him to go. She couldn’t waste time. She promised two minutes or less, but wanted to show up again in less than thirty seconds. Grab the princess, teleport back, hope Alex was still there. Thirty seconds, and no more.
There weren’t many homes in the guest houses Shining Armor directed her to, only about ten or so. It took about twenty five seconds total to go through all the houses, teleporting in, shouting for the unicorn, and when she didn’t appear a few seconds later, moving on to the next. It was not long at all before she was checking the last house and finding nopony there.
Now she went through more carefully, this time taking a little bit longer in each house. She didn’t stop to search each room, but she did stay long enough to shout her name again and do a once through very quickly. Once again, she got to the last home and found nothing, and became very anxious about what she should do next.
“Come on, come on, come on,” she thought frustratedly, knowing she couldn’t take too much time. “Where is she?” She clenched her jaw and tapped her hoof in frustration as she looked around, trying to figure out where she was. She was quickly approaching the two minute mark, and hated the idea of going even a second over. It was already a bad idea leaving him alone, and taking time to search around for Amore would be even worse. She would just have to hope that she and Alex would be enough to face Celestia and Cadance while Starlight got her friends gathered together, a plan she was not confident in at all.
“Get Shining Armor, get back to Sombra,” she said aloud to herself, knowing her two minutes was up. “Can’t waste any more time.” With that, she lit up her horn again to grab her brother and head back to the Archives.
I felt like Jack hiding from the giant in Jack and the Beanstalk as Celestia approached. I closed my eyes tight and clenched my jaw as she passed through into the archives, wondering what I would do. I couldn’t use magic, at least not without breaking my protection spell, and I didn’t really think she would listen to reason. I racked my brain to try and come up with something while I waited for Twilight.
Cadance passed by closer to me than Celestia did, nearly bumping into me. “I know he’s here,” she said. “I just can’t tell where.”
“Sombra!” the white alicorn called “Alex! Whoever you claim to be! Come out and face me! Do not be a coward!”
Yeah, right, like I was going to surrender and be killed by her. Although it did put a memory in my head. I was calling back the scene with Doctor Marks from however long ago. Whether or not he was real, it was decent advice that he gave me about what I should do, even if I was reluctant to take it both then and now.
“I’m not sure apologizing would curb her anger, but maybe…”
Right now, I could only hold out hope that Twilight would get back here with Princess Amore. She was complaining about that before, so that should put her at peace at least. I had no idea what to do until then though.
“Show yourself!” she shouted angrily. “Be a stallion and bring forth yourself!”
I took a breath and drowned my fear. It would be better if I showed myself now than if she found me. I had a plan, a protection spell in case that failed, and a way out if it came to it. I knew I wanted Fluttershy with me if I had to use that spell, but if worst came to worse, then this was just gonna have to be it. It would take no more than two or three seconds to cast if need be. Better to try something than to wait for her to get fed up and start sending attacks at random.
“Princess Celestia,” I called as I took a step out to reveal myself. I made sure to use the title ‘princess’ even though I didn’t consider her one after all these months. I wanted to limit any reason for her to attack me, which was something that was going to be very hard to do.
She turned to me with a twisted face, practically growling at the sight of me. It was all I could do to not shrink back in fear at the sight of her. I kept my face neutral, not wanting to portray fear or anger or anything else.
“Oh, this is such a bad idea,” I couldn't help but think as I took a brave step forward, going through the characters I would need to cast for that time travel spell in my head should I need it.
“You know,” she growled lowly, baring her teeth and bending down a bit like a cat stalking its prey, “I told myself that the second I saw you, I’d show you my full force. And now-”
“I’m sorry, Princess Celestia,” I interrupted, not wanting to let her build up her ferocity more than it already was. "I apologize for what I've done to you." She blinked in genuine surprise for a moment before going back to frowning angrily at me.
“Do not play with me, Sombra,” she threatened as she stalked closer. “If you play with me, you will regret it.” She was giving me a chance to speak and not immediately attacking, which I took as a good sign. I knew I needed to make the most of this opportunity.
“I’m sorry for hurting you and blowing past you when you were clearly in pain,” I told her. “I should have listened to you and not pressed the way I did when I met you, and I shouldn’t have told you to just get over it when I last saw you. It wasn’t right, and I’m sorry.”
I didn’t know how sorry I actually was. At the very least I could say I was… slightly sympathetic. I could understand her position, especially with Cadance’s involvement, even if I wasn’t very sorry.
I made sure to keep the pink alicorn in the corner of my eye, expecting her to be moving, but luckily, she wasn’t. She was caught up in what I was saying, too, which was good. I hoped there might be a way I could resolve everything right here with just words. Maybe bring up something about how she was upset with Celestia brushing her aside. Not that I would let them get away with their actions. They needed to know that what they did was wrong, and I wanted to make sure they did, but as long as they weren't trying to kill me right now, I would take it.
“You’re lying to me,” Celestia said, her voice still very angry but not quite as ferocious as before. “I do not want to hear your lies! What you did to my friend-”
“Amore is alive,” I interrupted, getting her to gasp. This was a good spot to have her in. I just needed to wait for Twilight and all would be resolved. Well, not really, but it was one thing at a time.
“Twilight found her pieces and is bringing her here right now,” I continued. “She said she would only be about two-”
“Do not lie to me!” she said, yelling again now. “I do not want to listen to your lies! You think you can play with my emotions like this? Like you did before?”
“I’m telling you she’s alive,” I responded, trying to keep fear out of my voice. “Twilight’s going to get her right now. She’s going to be here with her in two minutes, I promise.” She looked ready to argue, and so I quickly said, “I need you to just please trust me when I say I’m telling the truth. She’s going to be here.”
She looked like she wanted to do anything but, glaring angrily at me before glancing at Cadance. I knew she was contemplating trusting me, and I could only hope she would.
“I will give you until she arrives, but I swear if you lie to me again, you will regret it.”
“Thank you,” I responded gratefully. “I promise that-”
As I was saying it, Twilight returned, bringing with her Shining Armor. Amore was nowhere to be seen, and Celestia’s eye twitched.
I blinked at Twilight for a second, seeing that she brought her brother but not seeing Amore, my expression quickly changing to something between anger and fear.
“Where is she?” I asked loudly, almost yelling. “You said you were going to get her, not your brother! Go get her now!”
“Alex, I-”
“Go now!” I demanded, giving her a look that told her I didn’t want her to waste time. A second later, she disappeared, leaving Shining Armor and I standing in front of Celestia and Cadance. I looked to the stallion to see his expression was just as angry as Celestia’s, if not more so. He was staring dead at Cadance, his eyes locked into hers. Before he could say anything though, Celestia spoke, using a voice that practically shook the room we were in.
“I am tired of your lies, Sombra!” the alicorn bellowed. “I will not keep playing games with you!”
“Celestia, please! Just give Twilight-” I couldn’t get out more than that before she fired at me, closing her eyes and unleashing what had to be the sum force of the magic inside of her, directing the beam at me. I closed my eyes and braced myself, but l was only pushed to the other end of the room, into a bookcase. It hurt a bit, but didn't feel as bad as it could have been. I felt glad that the protection spell was still on me, and could only imagine what that might have done had it not been.
“Why do you play with my emotions like this?” she asked angrily, the sound of hurt almost making it into her voice. “After all that you’ve done, you still continue to-”
“Stop, Celestia,” I said, doing my best to not yell. Getting into a shouting match was just going to make it that much harder to try and reason with her, if I even had a chance at all.
“Twilight is going to get Princess Amore right now,” I said, looking into her hate filled eyes. “Give her a few minutes and-”
“He’s lying to you, Princess!” Cadance interrupted, pointing a hoof at me. “Don’t believe a word he says! All he’s trying to do is trick you, because he wants to see you hurting! He gets enjoyment from it!”
The accusation was so ridiculous, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes and shake my head at it. “All I’ve wanted since I got here was for you to listen to me,” I told her. “If you care about Amore, you’ll give Twilight time to come back with her. I’m sure it’ll be no more than five minutes. I’m not sure why she didn’t grab her when she was bringing her brother, but-”
“You know he’s trying to manipulate you, Princess!” Cadance interrupted again. “That’s what he does! He’s been doing it this whole time! Just look at what he did to Twilight!”
She looked between me and Cadance, as if debating who she should trust. I’m certain she would’ve picked the pink alicorn had Shining Armor not stepped in.
“Princess Celestia,” he started, sounding tired. “Cadance… my wife- my ex wife- she’s lying to you,” he said. The alicorn looked like she flinched back at his words. “Everything you accuse Alex of being is what she is,” he said flatly, pointing an accusing hoof at the mare. “She’s a witch, honestly.”
“Shiny?” she asked, making me tilt my head in confusion. “What are you saying? What’s gotten into you?”
Of course, she was acting. That’s what she did best, it seemed. I wondered why she didn’t star in a broadway musical with how much she liked to act. She was clearly good at it and had a passion.
“How could you say those things?” she asked as I rolled my eyes at her fakeness. “Do you really want to compare me to Sombra? How could you do this?”
“Stop lying, Cadance!” he yelled angrily, taking a step closer to her. “Why do you care so much about this?” he asked. “It shouldn’t matter! And yet you’re throwing everything away for what? Why? You had a husband and daughter and a kingdom and now what?”
“What are you talking about, Shining?” she asked, trying to feign exasperation. “Has Sombra taken over your mind? What’s gotten into you?”
“Everything she’s accusing him of, Princess,” Shining Armor told her bitterly, “that is what she is. Everything has spun so out of control with Alex because of her.”
“He’s taken over Equestria, Princess!” she argued. “Everypony knows so, and he has it so that nopony disagrees! I wonder if he’s used some sort of mind control on everypony with how closely they listen.”
“If I had mind control, then why wouldn’t I use it on you, Cadance?” I asked. “Why is it that everypony seems fit to kill me at the first chance they get? How come when I explain myself time and time again, even right now, no one seems to want to believe me about anything?”
“It was you that sent Celestia away, Cadance,” Shining Armor said. “You did that after you edged her on. You let her hate fester and then, when it was convenient, abandoned her. How do you explain that?”
“I don’t know what’s gotten into them, Princess,” Cadance tried to say, although by now, Celestia was looking between the two of us, her hateful expression changed to something less so. It was a good sign, and something I could tell was making the pink alicorn worried.
“What’s more likely?” Shining asked. “That everypony else is lying, or that she’s lying? She's been the common denominator in all of this, and I wish you would see that.”
Celestia looked around the room doubtfully, seemingly considering what we were saying. Everypony was silent for a few seconds, and if I had to guess, I would have said she was leaning toward our side of the situation. However, after a moment, Cadance spoke up again, scowling in frustration and anger.
“I’m not going to let his influence get to you, Princess,” she said as she lit up her horn, aiming right for me. “I’m putting an end to this right now.”
With that, she hurled her magic my way, a beam that looked even more powerful than Celestia’s was. As she did though, Princess Luna, along with Twilight and Amore and all of her friends, stepped in front of me to protect me.
“There we go,” Cadance thought to herself, finally satisfied that everyone was here. “Everypony’s finally in the same place. That makes this a lot easier.”
Twilight could see the look in her eyes too, remembering that she still had the bell and that Discord was out of commission. She realized that Cadance might have been trying to set it up this way, so that she could steal the magic of the whole room at once. It would be a good plan if that’s what she intended, and she didn’t know how she would be able to counter it.
She could see her former sister in law already moving her hooves and lighting up her horn, the rest of the room distracted by Celestia and Amore. Suddenly, the bell was materializing in her grasp and the alicorn was smiling smugly, broadcasting to Twilight exactly what she was about to do.
“Need to protect myself,” she thought frantically as she lit up her own horn to cast the protection spell over herself. She didn’t know what she was going to do, but she at least wanted to be standing if all hell broke loose.
“Alex!” she yelled a second after she was finished with her spell, moving toward the pink alicorn. “Cadance! She’s-”
Before she could say more, Cadance was using her bell to steal the magic of her royal counterparts, her bell quickly eating up the magic of Celestia, Luna, and Amore in quick succession, the last of them only having time to send one blast her way, which the bell only ate up. The three quickly collapsed to the ground, Cadance effectively removing three of her toughest opponents in a few seconds.
She wasn’t without enemies though, Rainbow Dash and Applejack both tackling her from behind. It took all her concentration to keep her grasp on the bell, fighting back physically against the two mares. The second she could overpower them, she knew she would have to take their magic, too.
“What do I do? What do I do?” the only alicorn left standing asked herself as she watched her friends struggle against the mare. “This is getting more out of control with each second. I have to do something. Can’t use magic right now, so…” She looked around at the room, watching her friends fight for a second before glancing to Alex. He was watching Cadance, too, and already had his horn lit up, interestingly enough. She couldn’t help but be confused by the sight, wondering why it was. If he had his protection spell and Cadance had the bell, it wouldn’t make any sense to cast magic at all, unless…
“Fluttershy,” he said flatly, looking at the yellow pegasus, Twilight watching them catch each others eyes. “Get over here,” he instructed. He took a step forward to meet her, the pegasus already lifting up her wings to glide over, seemingly knowing what to expect. It took Twilight all of one second to figure out what was happening, and even given how things stood right now, she didn’t like it one bit.
The two were right next to each other when Twilight started to move, Alex clearly ready to disappear with the mare in a moment. Before he could though, the alicorn was pushing him down to the ground, away from Fluttershy.
“Alex!” she yelled as he looked at her with complete shock. “You ca-”
“-a’nt use… that…” The mare trailed off as she looked around, her surroundings having suddenly changed. She was standing in the Crystal Empire, in Sombra’s secret room, a place she’d only been in about twice before, if that. She breathed heavily and closed her eyes at the fact that they were in the past right now. She had too much experience with time travel to know that no matter the situation, it was always a bad idea.
“God damnit, Twilight!” Alex yelled angrily, getting back up as he looked at her with rage. “One thing! Why can’t I have just one single thing, Twilight? One thing is all I ask for and yet you ponies seem to want to make my life a living hell in every single way possible! I hate every single one of you!”
“Why are you doing this?” she yelled back. “I told you before that you can’t mess with time like this! It’s not good! There’s no way it will ever end well! We need to go back before something happens and we screw things up!”
“No, I’m not going back. We’re already here, and I’m fixing this if I can. I’m completely done with all of this. Now where am I?” he asked as he looked around. “Sombra! Get out here right now!”
They waited around in silence for a minute, Twilight looking around nervously, expecting the shadow pony to appear. Alex called out again after a minute of nothing happening, and another minute passed silently without any creature making an appearance.
“We need to fix this now,” he said, trying to make an appeal. “For Hope, and for myself. The course we’re on will not work, I’m telling you that right now because Cadance is a witch.” He sighed for a second after no response and said, “I hope I took us to the right spot. I cast the spell quickly. Either that, or I just don’t want to show myself to me. I would expect that from me.”
“Where were you aiming for?” Twilight asked. “If you don’t have the exact time, as in down to the minute, you’re gonna end up at the wrong time.”
“Well I was nowhere near down to the minute. I only used my memories and estimated roughly two years ago. I assume that means it would’ve put us in the past of exactly two years ago today, which is a bit of an issue.”
“This is why you shouldn’t mess with spells you don’t know, Alex, especially ones like time travel! Oh, this is so bad…”
“The only reason it’s bad is because Fluttershy’s not here,” he responded angrily. “I could've had the chance to say goodbye to her properly, but no. You just had to jump in front of her, and now she won’t even remember who I am when this is all over, will she? This is what I said about not being able to have even one thing go right.
“But I don’t care about that right now. Cadance is raging, and I’m going to put a stop to it. At the very least for Fluttershy, because she deserves it. With Celestia and Amore and Princess Luna out of the picture, there’s no way anypony will be able to stand up to her. It’s just too out of control to handle directly.”
“I’m sure we can think of something though,” Twilight offered worriedly. “If we put our heads together, we can come up with something. Using time travel is the very, very last thing we should be doing. It’s so far down the list that it isn’t even on it, that’s how dangerous it is. There is never a reason to be using time travel.”
“Welp, I already cast the spell, so it’s too late now. It’s not like I can just undo it, or rather, I won’t.”
“We can think of something else though, Alex!” she begged. “There has to be another way to confront the situation we’re in!”
“Oh yeah?” he asked as he looked her in the eye. “And what other way would that be, might I ask?”
“I- I… I don’t know, but-”
“Then this is what we’re going to do,” he said with finality as he turned to leave the room.
“We really shouldn’t be doing this, Alex,” Twilight told him seriously, nervously. “Messing with time is risky business, and I’m not gonna-”
“I don’t care,” he said as he casually went up the stairs into the main floor of the Crystal Castle. “If you want to help me, help. If you don’t, stay here. I’m finding Cadance. All of this has got to stop.”
Cautiously, I opened the door that lead into the main part of the Crystal Castle, and thankfully saw it was empty of all ponies. It was good, because I didn’t want to cause a scene. I only wanted to get Cadance alone, and the less people there were to interfere with that, the better.
“Where is she?” I asked as I looked around the large empty room, Twilight following behind me carefully. “Is there any reason she wouldn’t be in the castle?”
“We really shouldn’t be doing this,” the mare whispered. “This is so very bad. You don’t know what interfering with the past can do. You might think you’re only changing something small, but-”
“Twilight, I know,” I interrupted. “I know what I’m doing. Now show me where Cadance is. I don’t want to waste time here.”
“I- mmmm…” she frowned, clearly not comfortable with helping me. “Well, I- I can show you where her room is, I guess…”
I followed Twilight as she led me through the castle, keeping my eyes peeled. The mare walked ahead of me, stopping when she saw guards and finding a different way we could take to get where we needed to go, until before long, we were standing outside of what I was told was Cadance’s and Shining Armor’s room.
“I can hear them talking inside,” she said. “I don’t know what it’s about, but they sound angry. Are you sure this is what we should be doing?”
“I’m already completely decided on it,” I told her, giving her a look. “Now you go in first so that way they don’t try and kill me right off the bat. Actually, put that protection spell on me again before we head inside.”
She sighed and obliged me before knocking on the door, I standing directly next to her a bit of a ways away. I could hear one of them grunt as they opened the door, Shining Armor looking at his sister with a mixture of tiredness and annoyance. He opened his mouth to speak before he spotted me, his eyes going wide as he gasped.
“Can you go get your wife for us?” I asked, giving a casual wave of a hoof as I did. “Or can we just go inside the room to talk to her?”
“Cadance!” he yelled quickly, not moving, almost looking like a statue. “I-it’s- King Sombra is back!”
I had to roll my eyes. “God, this is gonna be fucking annoying,” I said before turning to Twilight. “We need to get the past version of you, too, and then we’ll all meet up with Princess Celestia.”
“What do we need her for? Err, me? You know what I mean. Why?”
“Because I want us all to be on the same page before we go back,” I explained. “I don’t want any loose ends. I want this trip to mean something. Do you know where-”
“K-king Sombra!” the pink alicorn suddenly yelled, interrupting. Her expression at seeing me now was different than the first time she saw me. Then she looked intensely angry, and I could feel the hate radiating off of her. Here, she looked genuinely terrified, and I could feel the fear coming off of her. It wasn’t great, but it was so much better than the former. Fear was easier to change than hate was.
“Shining!” she instructed. “You go get the Crystal Heart! I’ll stay here and hold him down! Twilight, you go get Princess Celestia and bring her here!
“On it!" the stallion said, instantly teleporting away.
“The Crystal Heart certainly wouldn’t be good near you, would it?” Twilight commented. “You need to stay away from it if you can. I don’t know if my protection spell will protect against that.”
“Eh, I don’t think it’ll work because I’m not evil. It didn’t work when she threw it at me in the Canterlot Castle either because I wasn’t evil then either. Anyway, we have one of them. Let’s go get the other two.”
“Do you think we should go get Shining Armor, too, though?” Twilight asked. “I know you have that protection spell on you, but things would be easier if-”
“I don’t care about Shining Armor,” I told her. “He’s not important to this. We only need three ponies in the same room to get what we want done. Now lets-”
“Twilight!” the alicorn demanded. “Why are you talking to him like you’re his best friend? Tell me what’s happening!”
“I- that’s a long, long, long story,” she said. “So long, you could write a novel and a half out of it. You’re just going to have to come with us and trust me that it’s very much in everypony’s best interest.”
“I- what- you- how… are you under Sombra’s control right now, Twilight?” she asked. “We have to get you out from under his control right now! I know you’re in there, Twilight! Just hold on! We’ll fix you!”
“This is about you, Cadance,” Twilight told her, “and how you’re going to-”
“Don’t tell her why!” I interrupted loudly. “She’ll know why once we get there, but not yet when she’s just going to decline if we tell her what the problem is.”
“What? Why? If she’s going to know anyway-”
“Because I think that she’s just the kind of petty pony that she won’t come for the reason we need to go. I can see her just outright denying that she has a problem when she does, and we need to fix it. The less violent we can make this situation, the better.”
“Where would you take us? To a dungeon somewhere? How are you trying to fix me? What's going on?” she asked.
“We’re going to have a talk with somepony important, and that’s it. We’re going to put everything out on the table and fix this mess once and for all.” With that I looked to Twilight and said, “Let’s get out of here and get your past self next.”
A second later, she lit up her horn and teleported us to Ponyville.
A second later, we were in Ponyville, in Twilight’s castle. I didn’t know why, but it felt weird to think that after so many months in Equestria, I’d never been to Ponyville. It was supposed to be a part of the Equestrian experience to go to Ponyville, but somehow I never went there, not even once. To be fair though, the whole time I’d been distracted with other more important things.
We were teleported into what looked to be an office inside the castle, Twilight frowning as she didn’t see herself.
“Well, if I’m not here, we’re going to have to ask around,” she said, looking around the room, probably to see if she could tell where she left off to. “Normally I’d keep a list of what I was doing for the day on my desk, but I remember trying to get away from doing that around the time my friends and I started the School of Friendship… this is going to be a little bit difficult.”
"What’s going on, Twilight?” Cadance asked as the purple pony looked around. “Tell me! If there’s something going on that I can help with-”
“You can help by not asking about it,” I told her, interrupting her. “You’re going to find out in a few minutes, okay? Just stop asking about it.”
“Twilight?” she asked again anyway, making the mare turn towards her. “We’re sisters. Can you really not trust me with what’s going on?” She looked right into her eyes as she said it, and I thought I saw Twilight wavering.
“I… we can trust you,” she said, “but with this, it’s best you don’t know until we- it’s best you don’t know yet. I’m sorry. With everything that’s happened, even though I don’t agree with Alex’s way of going about this, it’s best if you just don’t know. It’s only going to be a few minutes of waiting before we tell you, okay?”
“At least tell me what he meant when he said you need to find the past version of you. You didn’t time travel, did you? What happens in the future that you and Sombra need to come back here?”
“We did time travel,” she said. “I didn’t want to, but since we’re already here, we might as well see this whole thing through.”
“As for the future,” I said, “we’re going to tell you once everypony we need is in one place, because I know you, and I know that you’re just the kind of pony to deny what’s going on, which is what we don’t want.”
“What? This isn’t about me, is it?” she asked. “What did I do?”
“That’s the part we’re not going to say until we get everypony together. Now let’s find this world’s Twilight so we can get this whole mess fixed.”
Cadance continued to try and ask what was going on, but Twilight and I effectively stopped answering her questions and remained silent, to the point where she finally took the hint and stopped asking. She followed us silently as we searched for Twilight’s past version of herself, staring around the castle before moving into Ponyville proper. I was forced to mostly stay in the shadows at first, although when ponies saw me, they didn’t have much of a reaction. I assumed it was because I just looked too different from what Sombra traditionally looked like. My coat and mane grew out quite a bit over the last however many months I’d been here, and I had it styled differently than I used to have it during my first few months here. You could still tell it was me if you knew what I looked like, but not so much that I was instantly recognizable. I assumed it was part of the reason why Cadance was going along with helping us.
We went from business to business looking and came across nothing. Twilight made sure to keep the fact that she was from the past to herself as we went around, which was good. As well, a few of her friends gave me looks like they could almost tell who I was, but not quite. Regardless, they didn’t comment about me.
“Where would she be?” the purple mare asked as she tapped a hoof, the three of us standing in front of Sugarcube Corner. “I- maybe we should just get to Princess Celestia now and have her tell the past version of me what we talked about later?”
“We have time to find her,” I said. “It’s no trouble. The clock we’re working against isn’t that short. Although if too much time passes, we’ll just have to get over there. Luckily though, we’re not at that point yet.”
“How much time do we have in the past?” she asked. “The time I used that spell, it only gave me about a minute to say something.”
“Probably three or four hours,” I explained. “It hasn’t even been half an hour yet. We have plenty of time. Although maybe you’re right in that we should just get going… but I’d like to check around for a little while longer.”
“Check around for who?” somepony, Pinkie Pie, suddenly asked, appearing seemingly out of nowhere like she seemed to do. “Oh! Are you having a hide and seek competition? I know every hiding spot in Ponyville! I wanna play!”
“Do you know where I last was, Pinkie?” Twilight asked as the mare hopped up and down like a rabbit. “Did I tell you what I was going to do today? Where am I supposed to be right now?”
“Oh! Oh! Oh!” she cheered. “I know! I know! You said you were going to meet with Princess Celestia for tea! And I suggested you make pickle and hot sauce and peanut butter sandwiches, and you said you thought that was the most disgusting thing you’ve ever heard of, and I said-”
“That’s enough, Pinkie Pie,” I told her. “Twilight, take us there.”
She didn’t wait, immediately lighting up her horn and placing the three of us in Celestia’s throne room. I couldn’t help but close my eyes for a second, as though it would protect me from who I was about to see, but when I opened them, I saw that it was empty. It turned out she wasn’t there, which made sense. Of course the two wouldn’t sit in the throne room and have tea.
“I assume she and you would be in Celestia’s room?” I said. “Take us there.”
Once again, she took us there immediately, this time though, opting to walk rather than teleport. It was only a second though before we made it to where she was; her room was in the first hallway from the throne room.
“Are you sure this is the best idea?” Twilight whispered seriously before we entered, the two of us able to hear both Celestia and the past version of herself talking. “She had a fit when she saw you last time. I know you have a protection spell, but are you sure this is the best idea?”
“No, but it’s the last one I have, otherwise I wouldn't have used this spell. Besides, she was brought to that point by Cadance. As long as she acts appropriately, there shouldn’t be any issue.” As I said it, I remembered the few interactions I had with her. She didn’t try to attack me, except when she was prompted to by Cadance. She did absolutely despise me, but I was making progress with her before she was pushed over the edge. I felt confident that right now, she’d be okay, even if she hated me, as long as Cadance didn't screw that up.
“I brought her to what point?” the pink alicorn asked, sounding a bit nervous. “Tell me what’s going on!”
“You’ll learn in a few seconds,” I responded casually as we three opened the door and stepped into the room, hoping this would be the end of it all.
Twilight’s teacup, or rather, the teacup that belonged to the past version of her, dropped and shattered to the floor at the sight of us. She stepped close to the white alicorn next to her, looking shocked by the sudden turn of events. She glanced at her teacher, then back to the three of us, eyeing herself in particular. She seemed to dislike what was happening.
Celestia’s face was just as neutral as the day I first saw it, clean of everything except the surprise in her eyes. She almost seemed to have no idea what she was looking at until her eyes fell on me. When they did, that surprise was quickly replaced with hate.
“Not this again,” I thought to myself. “We’re not going down this road a second time.”
“You need to talk to Cadance about all this hate and contempt she holds,” I started before anypony could say anything. “It needs to be fixed before it spirals completely out of control. Twilight, here, is a testament to what will happen.”
She looked to Twilight and blinked, as though she was seeing the mare for the first time. Then she actually frowned, Twilight shrinking back a bit with the look she received.
“You didn’t time travel, did you?” Celestia asked seriously, the other version of her almost pressing her body into the princess as if to protect herself. “I’ve spoken to you before about time travel,” she said angrily. “You should know by now that-”
“I didn’t time travel, Princess!” she interrupted, pointing a hoof at me. “Alex did, but he did it for a good reason. We want to-”
“Oh, so it was you, Sombra,” she interrupted accusingly, staring right at me. Her neutral expression gave way to just plain dislike edging on hate, and it made me frown in return. She opened her mouth to say more, but I stopped her before she could. I didn’t want to start down this road again.
“You need to talk to your niece about her position in Equestria,” I said. “The future is such a mess because of your decision to pick Twilight over Cadance to rule Equestria when you retire. I don’t care if you deny her or give it to her, but you have to-”
“How do you know about that?” Celestia ask, now looking very frustrated. She glared right at me as the present Twilight flinched at her words. The past Twilight gasped loudly, and Cadance had her mouth hung open in utter shock, seemingly in disbelief.
“How far in the future are you two from where you have access to that information?” she pressed. “This shouldn’t be something-”
“Why?” Cadance suddenly demanded. “I- you- what? Why?” She stomped a hoof as she said it. “What has Twilight done to deserve getting it over me?” She sounded incredibly hurt by the revelation, and her expression looked that way, too. I couldn’t say I cared much though, so long as this all was resolved.
“Why?” Cadance continued, staring directly at Celestia, seemingly about to cry. “How is that fair at all? After all I've done, you're just going to... why?”
“That’s- that’s too much responsibility, princess!” the past version of Twilight now broke in. “I can’t handle that! That’s just- I can’t do it! Cadance is much better suited to running Equestria than I am. If you do retire, you should let her rule.”
That was good to hear, but I heard it before. Even in the present time, they were both in agreement about that fact. Celestia, however, seemed like she would be having none of it.
“Well right now is neither the time nor place to discuss such matters,” Celestia tried to say, “so I’d suggest-”
“Yes it is!” I suddenly said, sharpness in my voice. “Right now is exactly the time and place to get this all settled. That was the whole point of coming back here, so settle it now! I don’t care how, just do it!”
“It’s fine, pick Twilight over me,” Cadance said, her voice indicating that it clearly wasn’t fine. “I can see how little I mean to you. Thanks for letting me learn from Sombra of all ponies.” With that, she flipped her mane out of her face and strode out of the room to another part of the castle.
There were a few seconds after she left that no one said anything, the tension in the room building. Celestia gave me a death glare as the past version of Twilight said, “Is that true? Are you- you’re not really going to make me take your place, are you? Because that’s not something I can possibly do. It’s too much pressure.”
“We’ll discuss it later, Twilight,” Celestia said, looking my way the whole time. “Now is not the time, especially with Sombra in the room. It would not surprise me if he were setting up the past to rule the future. He is quite cunning in that way, and might see it as his only option.”
“Well, my name is Alex, and that is what happens if things keep going the way they are,” I told her. “That’s not a future I particularly care to see either, as it turns out, so you need to work it out now because it’s just completely ridiculous how much things have spiraled because of you three. Cadance in particular.”
“I’ll go get Cadance and talk to her,” my Twilight suggested. “You stay here with Celestia while I grab her. I’m sure Cadance will-”
“No, you stay here with Celestia, Twilight,” I told her with authority. “I’ll go after Cadance. I know how the first two times I was alone with her went, and I’m not interested in playing with my life for a third time, thank you very much.”
With that, I stepped out and hurried after the problem in all of this.
“Twilight,” Celestia started as she stared at her, an upset looking expression on her face. “Explain to me the meaning of all of this.”
“It’s a lot to tell you, Celestia,” Twilight told her. “I told Cadance that it was a novel and a half, and it really is. It could take hours to go through it all.”
“Start by answering me this then: why have you not been referring to me as princess?”
“I’m sorry, princess,” Twilight told her. “In the future though, you’re not the princess. You… you turned into Daybreaker because of Alex and Cadance. Well, not really Alex, but you were angry at Sombra because of Princess Amore, and Cadance-”
“I would not turn into Daybreaker,” the princess interrupted her. “I have too much self control for that. I’ve confronted the demons that might possess me and have made sure I never fall down that path.”
“You will, Princess,” Twilight said, almost with a sigh of disappointment. “You will because you hate Sombra that much and Cadance will edge you on that hate. I was there when it happened. You went into a frenzy and began attacking us.”
There was surprise in Celestia’s eyes, but not on her face. Instead she only asked, “How would such a future be prevented?”
“That’s what we need Cadance in here for,” Twilight sighed. “She’s extremely upset about the fact that you chose me over her, and… well, right now, in the present, she’s on the verge of conquering Equestria because of it. She found Grogar’s bewitching bell and is in the process of stealing everypony’s magic. That’s why we came here… err, why Alex came here. I told him it wasn’t a good idea, but he insisted, and honestly, given the situation, it might be the only thing we can do.”
Celestia looked away and furrowed her brow, the past version of Twilight watching the present version intently.
“Were you not able to use the Elements of Harmony on her?”
“With how quickly Cadance was moving, I don’t think we would’ve done anything in time,” Twilight answered. “I think Alex wanted to try using friendship here and now to fix the future. As much as I know messing with the past is wrong and as against it as I am, it’s probably the best way at this point, unfortunately.”
“And how do we know you’re not in cohorts with King Sombra?” Celestia asked suspiciously, the past version of Twilight taking another step closer to her teacher. “You must understand how ludicrous it sounds to hear about my niece turning to evil because of bitterness over who receives control of Equestria. I’ve raised her to be above such things.”
“You can trust us because he told me where Princess Amore’s pieces are, and is willing to give them to you if you just talk to Cadance about this,” Twilight said firmly, making Celestia gasp and almost fall on her back. She waited a second before continuing, “He’s really suffering, and wants nothing more than to have this end. I don’t know what doing all of this will mean for him, but at the very least, it’ll make things better and hopefully keep my sister in law from going down a path I’d hate to see her on.”
“Stop following me!” Cadance yelled as she marched down one of the hallways, clearly trying to get away from me. “I don’t want to talk to you!”
Even as she said it, she didn’t bother lighting up her horn and teleporting away, which I took as a good sign. I quickly galloped up to her and walked at her side, doing my best to keep pace with her.
“You need to talk to Celestia,” I said. “It won’t end well for you or her or anypony if you keep going on like this, trust me on that.”
“I don’t care!” she said angrily as she walked. “I don’t care about anything, since she clearly doesn’t care about me.”
“That’s why you need to talk to her,” I said. “Equestria won’t come to you if you don’t talk to her. Let out your frustration and have her see what you want. Even if you don’t get it-”
“I deserve it!” she yelled, stopping in place and turning to me, nearly bumping into me. “She told me she had something planned for me after ruling the Crystal Empire, and she’s just gonna give it away to somepony who doesn’t even have any experience ruling? Who just said she doesn’t even want it?”
“Don’t you think that’s something you should tell her about?” I asked. “That seems like the kind of thing you should bring up to her.”
“It’s the kind of thing she should realize herself,” she responded bitterly, turning away again. It sounded like there were tears in her voice as she said, “I can’t understand how she doesn’t see she’s just pushing me aside. No, actually she does see and just doesn’t care. I told her before she was pushing me aside, and she just doesn’t care.”
“I understand,” I responded, “but do you think being angry and bitter and not saying anything will help you? Because all that’s going to do is build up your hate until it starts to spiral out of control, and that’s something we can’t have.”
“I wouldn’t fall apart like you’re saying,” she said. “That not something-”
“I’m sure Celestia’s saying the same thing right now as Twilight tells her how she turned into Daybreaker because of you, but she’s wrong, too. You’re both just those kinds of ponies.”
She paused for a moment in surprise at that, still turned away, but resumed a second later. “I’m not that kind of pony,” she said firmly, shaking her mane. “I wouldn’t ever do something like that, no matter how angry or upset I became. You don’t know me.”
“I don’t have to know you to know that you would do that. I know it because I was there, watching my life just completely fall apart at both your and Celestia’s hooves.” I heard her take a breath to speak, but before she could, continued, “I watched you attack your husband, attack me, lie to Twilight, and steal Celestia’s magic, among numerous other things. You say you’re not that kind of pony, but you absolutely are, and I’m affected by your actions.”
“Oh wow, King Sombra can’t rule Equestria because of me?” she said sarcastically, me practically able to hear her eye roll. “I should talk to Celestia so you can rule? You’re only out for yourself.”
“I lost everything,” I said flatly. I waited a few seconds for her to turn back around before I continued, “I lost everything that ever mattered to me because of this game you all play. My friends, family, my whole life, my whole universe- all of it was taken away from me because of the actions of you and Celestia. Because of your bitterness and Celestia’s emotionalness. I’m telling you right now that I would not be here in the past had it not been for you, and I absolutely loathe you for that. Even being back here, I’m sure the best I can hope for is to fade out of existence, which would still be better than the things you’ve given to me.”
“I wouldn’t-” she started, but I held up a hoof to interrupt her.
“Everything has been taken away from me, and you’re here complaining that you can’t rule a country, so get your sorry flank to Celestia right now and talk it out like an adult, or I’ll kill you to prevent the nightmare that’s unfolded upon me from happening.”
It turned out those words had an effect on Cadance, because suddenly, she was paralyzed, staring right at me, apparently waiting for me to continue. I was glad for it, even if I expected her to react a bit differently, more harshly namely.
“Don’t just stand there,” I told her. “Let’s get going back to Celestia.” I turned around and took a few steps toward where we should be going, but stopped when I realized she wasn’t following me.
“Who… who are you?” she asked, whatever shock she had still in her voice. “Not even King Sombra would say something like that! What happened to you?”
“So much,” I responded simply, tiredly, “and you and her are at the center of it all. Now let’s go and talk to her and resolve whatever dumb issue you have about not ruling Equestria so I can just… probably at best, fade out of existence."
“What do you mean ‘fade out of existence’?” she asked. “Tell me what’s going on! You’re not saying you’re gonna die if I don't talk to her, are you?”
“I’m saying I probably will after this, but that was what was always going to happen, wasn’t it? Honestly, it was really all leading up to this, although I guess this is slightly better than the other options.”
“I- you- even if you’re King Sombra, you can’t just-”
“Please don’t start with me about morality and what I should or shouldn’t do,” I interrupted. "Every single pony I know, probably with the exception of Fluttershy… oh, no, Princess Luna, too. Besides those two, every pony was dead set on killing me without a second thought. In fact, you all have killed me twice before Alex came into existence. You were just telling Shining Armor that he needed to get the Crystal Heart, full well intent on killing me without even speaking to me, at just the sight of me. As far as I understand, none of you ponies have morals. At least, you and Celestia don’t. The others might have something inside of them, Twilight especially.”
“You… what happened in the future?” she asked. “You’re not making any sense! How did everything go so wrong that you’re trying to act like the good guy?”
“I already told you what happened. Now come on. I am absolutely serious when I say that I will kill you if you don’t talk to her. This is not a mess I’m keen on dealing with for very much longer, regardless of what happens to me.”
I turned around again and walked back to Celestia’s room, this time not bothering to stop, knowing Cadance would follow me soon enough. Sure enough, she was right behind me by the time the two of us were walking back into the room. Celestia was talking softly to the present Twilight about something, who was still standing in the same spot, wearing a look that said she might be coming around.
“Will you truly be bringing back Princess Amore, Sombra?” Celestia asked, eyes wide and hopeful, a little bit wet as she stared at me. “Is that possible?”
“Sure,” I shrugged, “but before that, you and Cadance have to talk this Equestria business out. I want it settled right now, and I don’t care how.”
I could see out of the corner of my eye Cadance go back to frowning as Celestia’s shock faltered into almost frowning. “I- I am not keen on Cadance ruling Equestria. I do believe that Twilight Sparkle is more fit for the throne than she is.”
“Why?” Cadance asked, once again sounding upset, almost exasperated. “I’ve been taking care of the Crystal Empire for years now! What makes her more ready than me?”
“I believe you act more with your emotions than you do with logic at times,” she said honestly, the barest hint of shame entering her expression.
I almost laughed out loud at that. They both acted like that, Celestia even more so than her. They were exactly the same in how they acted, almost like they were mother and daughter. I would’ve believed they were so if not for remembering that she called Celestia ‘aunty’.
“That’s not to say you don’t do good work in Equestria, it just means that Twilight is more suited to-”
“If you're talking about right now, of course I'm upset! I specifically told you that you were leaving me out!” she argued, stomping a hoof in anger. “I said that you weren’t giving me the same chance to prove myself as you were Twilight!”
“I have-”
“No you haven’t! What about fighting King Sombra? Or thinking of the plan to hide our magic inside Twilight when Tirek showed up? Or actually running a country? Do those things not matter?”
“The way you’re acting right now is proof enough that Twilight is better suited to running Equestria than you are, Cadance,” Celestia said calmly. “Please just be satisfied with what you have. You know I have big things planned for you, my niece.”
“No you don’t!” she yelled back. “You don’t! You said that before and now you’re just giving Equestria to somepony who doesn’t even want it? How can you say something like that when you’re just going back on what you told me? You promise me when I was a foal that Equestria would be mine!”
I took a seat on a chair near the back of the room, wanting to rest for what would probably be quite a long conversation. I truly could not care less how it turned out, so long as it was finished. Both Celestia and Cadance glanced to me as I sat down, but continued their conversation, Celestia’s voice staying level, and Cadance’s getting more and more angry.
Twilight walked up to me, quietly asking, “Are you sure this is gonna work? This might just make things worse, you know.”
“I think it will,” I said. “Cadance insisted to me she would never do what she did in the present, which is a good sign. I just hope she actually means that and isn't just saying that for our sake.”
She frowned sadly as she paused for a moment before asking, “Are you sure this is what you want? You and I both know there’s a high likelihood this won’t end well for you.”
I sighed at that. “No, not at all,” I responded quietly. “But you take what you can get, and unfortunately, this is the very best I can have. Hell, I remember my very first thought entering Equestria being that this wouldn’t end well for me. Really, was there any other way this could end?”
“You know,” the past version of Twilight called from far away, coming up to us nervously, “messing with time travel is the very worst thing anypony could possibly do, either for themselves or anypony else. The kinds of trouble it could cause-”
“We both fully understand exactly what we’re getting into,” I interrupted her. “I’ve had months to think about what this could do to me, and decided that whatever happens is better than the options I have.”
Cadance and Celestia were now both fully distracted, the latter’s expression getting more cold as she listened to her niece. Cadance wasn’t yelling anymore, but still had anger in her voice, a seriousness that I hoped meant the two were getting somewhere.
“If this means I fade out of existence, then… at this point, I’m willing to accept that,” I continued carefully. “I don’t think anything would happen to Sombra, but I’d be surprised if nothing happened to me. Actually, I’d probably be upset if nothing happened, because this is all so…” I sighed heavily, letting the thought hang in the air.
The present Twilight only looked at her hooves for a second before glancing at the past version of her. Her past self had her mouth hung open wide, jaw practically on the floor at what she heard. I only stared back at her, waiting to hear exactly what I expected her to say.
“You- are you going to commit suicide?” she asked, gasping in shock. “You can’t do that! How could you even consider something like that? What happened in the future to get you to that point?”
“Is it really suicide if Alex only lives in my head?” I asked. “If I’m just supposed to be an imaginary creature or a personality or something? I honestly can’t see how it could be.”
“But you-”
“I’ve thought a lot about this,” I continued. “Whether or not I exist, I expect to retain Alex’s memories and personality and things. I’ll be… I don’t know, blocking myself off from my creation? But because I’m here right now, I get to keep those experiences and memories I have, and since I’m just a personality, since I existed at some point in the past from Sombra’s perspective, there’s no reason he won’t keep those things. I’m just fixing a personality problem is all.”
I knew it was more than that. I knew I might be killing myself off if I did this, but I was prepared for it, and was at peace with it. It would’ve been better had Fluttershy been here with me like she said she would be, but it was just the way everything in my life seemed to go.
“It won’t be going that way much longer,” I couldn’t help but think. “This is really going to be it.”
“You’re not lying are you?” Twilight asked, sounding a bit anxious. “It sounds like what you’re saying makes sense, but I don’t know enough about psychology to be able to say for certain that-”
“The long story made short is that I cast a spell on myself because of Cadance, and now I need to fix that mistake, as well as a few others at the same time by going back to this moment.”
The past version of Twilight looked at the present version of herself, who sighed and gave a nod of confirmation. “I don’t agree with what he’s doing, but Alex is right. That’s why we need to be right here, right now.”
“But this won’t-”
“Even if it does,” Twilight interrupted, raising a hoof, her face looking a bit pained. “Even if it does,” she started again, “I… if that’s what he wants to do, that’s his choice. He’s been right about most everything since he’s been here, and hasn’t lied one single time. If he thinks this is best and it’s what he wants… well, then it’s just how it’s going to happen.”
I was glad to hear it, and gave Twilight a look that told her I appreciated what she said. It didn’t seem to resolve the doubt the past version of her had, but eased it up a bit from the look she had. Not to mention, Twilight herself, the present version. I almost felt proud for how far she'd come since this had all started. Whatever trusting, naive mare existed before, it wasn't in front of me. She was still just as kind, but much more thoughtful now, and far less trusting of a pony's intentions, whether that was a good thing or bad thing. She was much better now than she was before.
With that thought, I glanced up at Cadance again, seeing her trying to interject a few times and Celestia shooting her down. She was still sitting on the bed as Cadance stood in front of her, the latter only looking like she was getting more and more angry and riled up while the former seemed cool as ever. I remembered seeing the same look on the pink alicorn's face when we were having her trial, and could never forget seeing Celestia wear the look when she began to change into Daybreaker.
“Get ready, Twilight,” I said quietly, but she didn’t need me to tell her. She could see the look herself, and already had her horn lit up, seeming like she was gathering her magic for whatever was about to happen.
"This might be a bit more difficult than we thought it would be," I continued casually as Cadance closed her eyes and lit up her own horn.
Before anything could happen, Celestia spoke with authority in her voice.
“Cadance,” she said, refocusing all of the alicorn’s attention on her. Her horn was still lit up, but her expression was a little less intense now. “Calm yourself this instant.”
Calm, cool, collected. Celestia said it with certainty that she would listen to her commands, and listen she did. Cadance’s horn automatically went dark as she stared back at the princess, almost shocked.
“What in the world’s gotten into me?” she asked herself, taking a step back from the alicorn. “Sombra can’t be right about the future, can he?” She was almost ashamed of herself, folding her ears against her head, but the intensity of her anger over the situation hadn’t lessened.
“I understand that you’re upset,” Celestia told her niece, “but violence is not the solution to your anger.”
“I… I’m sorry, I just…” Her hoof was still grinding against the floor, her jaw still clenched in frustration. It was almost unbelievable how upset she was. Yes, it was something big to be upset about, but it didn’t justify what she was about to do.
“Sombra said this was what the future held for me, but I- I don’t know what’s come over me.”
“Take a breath,” the princess instructed. “You’re going to wear your right hoof thin with anger like that.”
“Don’t talk to me like that!” she suddenly yelled, unable to help herself. “Don't treat me like I'm a foal! Faust! I don’t know why this is getting to me so bad, but… argh! I hate this!”
“This is why we’re back here,” Alex commented. “I don’t know what’s wrong with you, but you always act exactly this way. You need therapy or something to fix yourself.”
“Actually, we tried to have you do friendship lessons,” the present version of Twilight added, “but those didn’t work. You faked them and then stole Grogar’s bell and… well… the present is not good right now. You stole Celestia’s and Luna’s magic.”
“Which is why we came back here,” Alex finished. “There are no other options. This both starts and ends with you two.”
“I…” Cadance was about to say she wouldn’t do that, but she remembered what was about to be done just a few seconds ago. She looked down at her hooves, and could see one was still grinding against the floor, almost starting to wear down. She had to force herself to stop and her jaw to unclench, but she could still feel her blood boiling.
“You know I wouldn’t intentionally do that, don’t you?” she asked, sounding desperate. “I wouldn’t do that, but… Faust, it feels like my blood is boiling! Why would you just tell me no like that when I’ve been waiting my whole life for this? What was the point of becoming an alicorn if I can’t rule?”
“I do think you would do that, Cadance,” Celestia told her, ignoring her question. “We just witnessed what you were about to do a minute ago. I understand that you’re upset, but-”
“Stop talking to me like that! There has to be something else going on!” she asserted. “I mean, isn’t it weird that Sombra is here right as that happens? He has to be using a spell or something to control my emotions! This has to be one of his plans!”
“If that’s the case,” Alex started, “then why would Twilight and I be back here in the first place? We’re here to make sure you don’t fall down the road you’re about to walk down, not to push you on it.”
She clenched her jaw again and began grinding her hoof, stopping once she realized what she was doing. She almost felt like she was spiraling, and had to force herself to keep calm. There was no way what Alex said was true. It couldn’t be. But of course, there was no way she could argue against them. Heck, Celestia was upset that Sombra… or, Alex, revealed that she was already planning to give Equestria to Twilight. It proved that what he was saying was true.
“What’s happening to me?” she asked in a whisper. “What’s gotten into me?”
“I don’t know,” Alex said, “but it’s better to acknowledge there’s a problem now than it is to let all of Equestria be destroyed because of your anger… and you, too, Celestia,” he continued, turning towards the white alicorn. “You’re no angel yourself. You have the exact same problem. Even Princess Amore agreed that the way you and her handled things was wrong. She’ll tell you that straight up.”
“I do not-”
“Don’t say that,” he interrupted. “Twilight will tell you that you have a problem, just like Cadance does.”
“It’s true,” Twilight sighed sadly. “You really did turn into Daybreaker, as hard as it is to say. And I think we can all agree that saying there’s nothing wrong with you won’t help you at all.”
“So then what do we do?” Celestia asked, sounding a bit impatient. “And where is Amore? I was promised to see her again.”
“Twilight will give you where she's at, but first, you need to promise to talk to the past version of her about friendship. And Starlight Glimmer, too. You both have a thing or two to learn about it. And trust me when I say I’ll know if you don’t.”
“I… I shall, if you insist, and so shall she,” Celestia said, sending a look Cadance’s way. It was obvious to Alex that Celestia was mostly telling him what he wanted to hear, but he figured it would be good enough. Cadance’s acknowledgement was more important that her’s.
“I still want to know why not me, though,” Cadance grumbled, still extremely upset. "I don't see why you would just cut me off after building me up for so long and promising me something greater than the Crystal Empire."
“I think your actions today, the nerve of you to light up your horn in attack, shows that you’re incapable of-”
“I’d love to have your help,” the past version of Twilight suddenly broke in, everypony turning their heads toward her. Her sister in law once again had a surprised look on her face, like it was the last thing she expected to hear.
“I mean, you’d been ruling the Crystal Empire for years now,” the purple pony continued carefully, “so that means you must have a lot of experience, right? I bet if we worked together, we’d do an amazing job.”
“Wh… what?” Cadance asked, confused, like it was the last thing she expected to hear. Celestia clearly didn’t expect it either, because she tilted her head in equal confusion as she watched her student speak.
“You would do that? Even after… all of this?”
“Mhm,” Twilight nodded, wearing a smile now. “That’s what sisters are for. I mean, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna rule together, so I don’t see why we can’t. Besides, I wouldn’t have the first clue as to what I’m doing. I’m not sure I’d be able to do it without you.”
Alex and the present version of Twilight watched in almost surprise as Cadance smiled. She actually smiled, a genuine one at that, for the first time since… well, Twilight couldn’t remember. Alex had never seen it to begin with, not in real life. It was almost uncanny to witness.
“That… that sounds like it would be nice,” Cadance commented, almost sounding happy. She glanced at Celestia, who now took her turn to look at her hooves in embarrassment, almost shame, as her ears flattened. “If you’d let me, that would be nice.”
“But you have to let her help you, too,” the present Twilight suddenly interrupted, both of them turning to her now. “I don’t want to see our relationship break because of whatever you’re going through or whatever anger you have. You have to let her help you. And you, too, Celestia.” Celestia’s ears perked up at that as the mare finished, “You both need ponies to help you work on your emotions. It… it was awful to watch both of you fall down so far.”
“Okay, let’s step out so I can talk to you alone, Twilight,” Alex suddenly said, using his magic to start to pull her with him.
“What about Princess Amore?” Celstia asked, almost desperate. “You promised you would-”
“She’ll give you that in a second. I have to talk to her alone for a minute.”
Alex quickly pulled her out of the room, Twilight able to see the wetness in his eyes as they stepped into the hallway and shut the bedroom door. She was just about to ask what was wrong before he told her.
“I still blame her,” he said simply. “I still blame her for all of this. It’s such a bitter ending to see them acting happy while I have to settle for nothing!” His voice started flat, but he was yelling by the end of it.
He took a breath to collect himself as he continued, “I don’t care if this is the past version of herself, what she did was wrong, and she should have some sort of consequence for her actions. But of course, all of this ending hinges on a happy ending for everypony else but me.”
He sighed again, and there was a long moment before Twilight said, “If it means anything, I’m sorry about how I acted when we first met. I’m sure if I would’ve stepped in and been less trusting of them and more trusting of you, this would’ve gone differently.”
“Yeah… if only, if only the woodpecker sighs,” he responded simply. “I wish a lot of things were different. But… god, I’m just so tired of it all.”
“Another thing, if it’s worth something to you, Alex,” she started again. “I think of you as a friend. And I know Fluttershy definitely does, too. I even talked to Radiant Hope a few times. She actually told me she was kind of fond of you, even if you and Sombra were in a difficult situation.”
“Yeah, I guess that’s worth something,” he agreed. Then he smiled and chuckled to himself, saying, “And I mean, I met Twilight Sparkle of all ponies. That’s supposed to be every brony’s dream, and I did that. That’s something, too, I guess.”
Twilight laughed along with him, even if she didn’t fully understand what he was saying. Then she reached out to wrap a tight hoof around him, pulling him in for a brief hug.
“Are you sure this is what you want to do?” she asked. “This… this is a permanent solution. I understand if this is what you want to do, but are you sure?”
“I don’t think it matters anymore whether or not I want it,” he answered. “What’s done is done, now. Can’t take it back, can I?” He paused for a moment before lighting up his horn. “I do want to talk to someone though,” he said. “It’ll just take a few seconds, maybe a minute at most. Can you tell Celestia where Amore’s pieces are in that time?”
“Yeah, that shouldn't be any trouble, but who is it?”
Alex didn’t answer, quickly disappearing before anything else could be said.
Fluttershy was tending to her animals when he appeared out of nowhere.
She nearly fell over at the sight of him, cowering in fear as he stalked closer. He looked… wait, what was she seeing? In front of her was clearly King Sombra, but it was almost like she was looking like a relative of his. His coat was long and shaggy, and he had a tired look in his eyes. They looked almost sad, like he was done with everything and wanted nothing more than to lay down and fall asleep. It was a strange sight to see, and it gave her the courage to try and speak.
“S-sombra?” she squeaked out fearfully, standing back up, less afraid now, but still nervous.
“Fluttershy,” he replied. “I know you don’t know who I am, but I want you to know that you are absolutely everything that everypony should strive to be.”
That was the last thing she expected to hear. Sure, she tried her best to be kind sometimes, but everything that everypony should be? And coming from King Sombra of all ponies?
“You’re wonderful and kind and amazing, and I would not be here thanking you today if you weren’t. You’re everything good a pony should be, and it’s absolutely wonderful. I wish everypony was like you, but unfortunately, they’re not.”
“Who… who are you?” she asked, stepping closer to him. He looked like he was about to start crying, but she watched him force himself to continue.
“It’s so unfair how it all turned out, but even still, I’m glad to say that I knew you in spite of it all, and that you were my friend. And you…” Now he got choked up as he finished, “I’ll still think of you if there’s anything out there left for me after this.”
The yellow mare was never one to leave a crying pony hanging, and even though it was King Sombra of all ponies, she reached out to hug him tightly. She didn’t say anything, didn’t ask him what was wrong, only held up for as long as he thought was necessary, which turned out to be more than a moment.
“Even now,” he said as he embraced her, “when you don’t know who I am and only recognize me as the villain King Sombra, you’re still unbearably kind. The Element of Kindness fits you so perfectly. It’s unreal.”
She still didn’t say anything, hugging him until the time came to finally let him go.
“Thank you for all of this,” he said. “I don’t know what I would do without you. This would be a better moment if you remembered me, but even though you don’t, you being you, you’re still just as kind as always. Thank you for having faith in me when you met me.”
“You’re welcome,” she said politely, smiling kindly. She wanted to ask what this was about, but wasn’t one to interrupt somepony in their moment, even King Sombra. She figured he would tell her when he was ready.
He didn’t though, instead lighting up his horn, deciding that this was as good an ending as he was going to get.
“This is goodbye now,” he said as he lit up his horn to bring Twilight and Sombra back to the present, leaving himself… where? He didn’t know.
Out of all the things I expected to happen, the very last on the list was me opening my eyes in Equestria again.
I had to blink the confusion away as I took in my surroundings. We- Twilight and I- were once again in the Archives of the Royal Library, completely alone except for a few guards. Twilight turned to me and stared at me with wide eyes like I was the last thing she expected to see. I didn’t blame her though. I was the last thing I expected to see, too.
“What am I still doing here?” I asked, mostly to myself. “I should’ve… I don’t know. Faded out of existence? There’s no way I should still be here. Did they not resolve their issues?”
“I don’t know,” Twilight responded, just as confused, maybe a hint of worry in her voice. “I gave Celestia the coordinates to Princess Amore’s pieces, and Cadance… well, she seemed like she was coming around by the time you undid the spell. Maybe something happened between then and now?”
“That has to be the case, because I shouldn’t be here,” I said with certainty. Even as I said it, I felt weird. Not different physically or mentally. I was still both Sombra and myself at the same time, and still had my longer, shaggier looking coat after almost two years of complete nonsense. Emotionally though, I felt… different, and I couldn’t really say how. Maybe less angry and upset? More satisfied? I couldn’t quite describe the feeling, but it was a nicer one than I normally had.
“Let’s get to looking to see what happened,” I suggested. “Get us to the castle?”
Twilight didn’t argue, quickly lighting up her horn and taking us to the castle. It looked just as normal as ever, although eerily empty of many ponies. There were more guards and things, which I figured was something. And this feeling…
“Do you feel different, Twilight?” I asked. “I feel different,” I said, “and I don’t know what it is.”
“Yes, I do… but I don’t know what it is either,” she told me. “I don’t know… I still remember everything that happened and why we went into the past, but…”
“But we also have fragments of something else,” I finished for her. “And I’m not sure how I feel about it.”
Granted, the fragments weren’t bad. In fact, they were kind of nice, mostly happy things, but of what I couldn’t really remember. I still remembered though Cadance’s trial, and Celestia’s anger, and the near death at the hands of these ponies at the start of my existence, but those things felt less real somehow. Just a few minutes ago, I was thinking about them, but now they almost seemed more like bad dreams than anything else. It was something both real and unreal at the same time, and it was almost disorienting.
“Did something like this happen when you time traveled?” I asked, looking around the empty throne room. “And where would they all be? Am I still the ruler somehow? What happened?”
“Nothing like this happened with me either time,” Twilight explained. “But then again, basically nothing changed the first time and we made sure that nothing changed the second time. The times things did, I was too much in a rush to have time to think about it.”
I sighed at that and closed my eyes to examine myself. I still felt like me, that much was clear. I was still around, though I didn’t know how. There was no good reason for me to be here. And yet, here I was, wondering why. The second we went into the past to tell Cadance to deal with her emotions, that should’ve prevented this from happening. So was Cadance still behind all this? Was she still planning something?
This time, I lit up my horn, wordlessly taking the two of us to where I knew Cadance’s room was. Even despite my still being here, I was surprised to see her here, too. She was smiling brightly when we came in, talking to Shining Armor about something. She turned to see us pop in, and continued to smile as she waved at us, at me in particular. She looked at me like we were good friends.
“Hi, Alex,” she said. “Hey, Twilight. Back from the archives already?”
I could still feel the fact that I was upset with her, that much didn’t change. But it wasn’t the absolute hate and bitterness I had before, which was weird to me. I once again got the feeling that a lot of what I remembered about her was just a dream. I still remembered her greeting me in my secret room in the Crystal Empire though. That still felt real, even if everything after was up in the air.
“What happened?” I asked her, no edge in my voice at all, which surprised me somehow. “Why am I still here?” I asked. “I shouldn’t exist here at all. Twilight and I should’ve fixed all of this.”
I couldn’t say I was angry though as much as I was disappointed. Not even that really. Maybe hurt? That was probably the closest word to what I was feeling, but even that didn’t feel right to say.
Cadance looked down at her hooves, giving away the fact that she was the reason I was here right now. “I- you told me when I had Sombra use that spell that you didn’t want to be here, but I didn’t know that. I honestly thought you were only doing it because of who you said I would become in the future, so I… well, I wanted to have you come back so I could-”
“How did you know to go to Sombra to get that done?” I interrupted. “There was no way you could’ve known on your own, was there?”
“Celestia asked Twilight how you could be from the future and what was going on with you, and she told me about… about what I was going to do…” She looked away shamefully before continuing, “And I just wanted to tell you that I’m sorry. I’m sorry for what I did to you, and I had to bring you back to tell you that.”
“But why?” I asked. Not bitterly, not disappointed, not angry. I only had a simple want to know in my voice. I almost felt like I sounded like a little kid asking when his bedtime was.
“Well, before Twilight left, she was telling me something about what would happen to you, and- and as selfish as it is, I couldn’t bring myself to let that happen to you. I couldn't… I couldn’t be responsible for killing somepony… I’m sorry.”
I had to cringe at that thought. I wouldn’t call it suicide since I was just a personality or tulpa of somepony else, but that really was what it would’ve been. It was what I wanted since it was the best I could hope for to happen, but this feeling, this weird feeling I had… it was nice, better than anything I’d felt in my two years thus far being here. I almost wanted to thank her for doing this, and felt like I had before. I stopped myself though. I wanted to see how this would play out with everypony before I got into all of that.
“But I also wanted to say thank you,” she continued, nearly taking me by surprise with her words. “I have to thank you for getting me straight. My mindset back then was not okay. I mean, it’s… it’s still not great, but I’m not where I was before, and I have to thank you for that. I don’t know what I would be doing right now without you… well, I do, apparently, because you told me.”
“You’re welcome,” I couldn’t help but respond shyly, smiling a little bit for a second before looking away. “It still hurts that you did this to me though…”
“I know, and nothing I do will ever take that back, and I know it’s not ever going to be enough, but I’m sorry for all of this. I hope though that I can be better than whatever pony you knew that looked like me, that you both knew,” she said, looking to Twilight to apologize to her, too.
“I forgive you,” Twilight said to her, giving her a sad smile. “I do hope we can move past this though,” she added, sending a look my way, seeing what I had to say.
I wanted to say I was bitter and angry at her, but couldn’t muster up any of those feelings. The most I could do was say I was sad and disappointed, but even that wasn’t very much. I felt… happier maybe? Regretful, but not so much that it was making me depressed like before. The best way to describe it was ‘normal’, which was something I couldn’t say I ever really felt before since I got here.
I wanted to ask what she did to get me back here, but I found myself already remembering the scene somehow. She came into my study in the Crystal Empire, promising that I would inherit the country, and then I was following her instructions and casting the spell on myself. Then Twilight was in front of me and I was existing, and she called Cadance into the room, still the same as before. However, when Cadance came in, she was on her knees apologizing to me and explaining the situation, one I didn’t believe at the time. Somehow, even now, I was almost starting to not believe it, except I remembered just a second ago talking to Celestia about all of this, and seeing Cadance steal Celestia’s and Luna’s magic just an hour ago.
“This is disorienting, Twilight,” I mumbled, having to sit down.
“You’re telling me that,” she replied, doing the same thing. “I’ve never experienced anything like this. I feel like my memories are conflicting.”
“Exactly the same for me… where’s Hope?” I asked. “Is she still here?”
“Huh? Oh, no, she’s in the Crystal Empire with Princess Amore, remember?”
I did remember. That was where I lived while she ruled. I mostly stayed out of sight while I tried to repair relationships there. But that didn’t make sense because I lived here, where I ruled over Equestria alongside her. But I didn’t because Twilight and Cadance and Shining took care of that in Celestia’s retirement. But Celestia was banished, and…
“This is going to take some time to work through,” I told her. Then, something occurred to me and I suddenly closed my eyes, making sure I could still remember it.
I thought back to my life on Earth, and I sighed in relief, happy that even though I was taken away from that place, the memories were still fresh and clear. Even being here when I didn’t expect to be, I at least could say I was still myself. That was the most important thing to me. If I wasn’t me, then this would be the very worst possible, but as of now, it seemed like this might have been shaping up to be better than I expected, even if this wasn’t what I wanted to happen.
“You know, Celestia said she wanted to have tea with Shining Armor and I today,” Cadance said. “Did you both want to come with us?”
Even with my different memories inserting themselves into my mind, I was still extremely reluctant to see her. Even if things were different, I wouldn’t expect her to be any less emotional than she was before. I was still worried even now that I would walk in there and she would take out her anger and frustration on me.
But then I was thinking about all the times I had tea with her, when she was kind to me and smiling at me and I was telling her that she was my favorite pony in the whole show. She’d been nothing but nice to me ever since I’d gotten here. What did I have to be afraid of?
“I… yes,” I decided. “I’ll go and see her. But I want you there to protect me, Twilight, in case things turn sour.”
“I’ll be there, but… I can’t believe I was about to ask why you would want that. I somehow almost forgot what happened.”
“It’s all seeming like it was just a bad dream to me,” I said. “But let's go now while we can. I want to get back to the Crystal Empire to spend time with Hope later. And I want to write this all down, too, so I don't forget it.” Even if it all was seeming like a bad dream, there was no way I wanted to forget any of this. I wasn't going to let this be lost to history, even if things felt better than they were before.
“Oh, hello Alex!” Celestia called cheerily as Cadance, Shining, Twilight and I all teleported into her room. The first three were smiling, but Twilight and I both held back. I couldn’t help but be wary of her, and kept my distance from her, watching her carefully, making sure she didn’t attack. At the same time, I felt the urge to smile come upon me, almost like I was meeting an old friend. It was a strange sensation.
“It’s been a bit since we’ve had tea together,” she said, Cadance and Shining Armor already moving to sit down, I following behind Twilight, making sure I stayed close to her. “Black tea is your favorite, correct?” she asked me. “If we had coffee, I’d offer you a cup of that, without cream of course. I always forget that you only take sugar in it.”
“Um, sure, I’ll take that,” I decided. I’d never had black tea, but I guessed it was as good a time as any to test the validity of our time travel. If I liked it, then it meant that Celestia and Cadance both really had changed. I didn’t want to just listen to my memories, as foggy and conflicting as they seemed to be. The tea would be the test, I decided.
“You look nervous, Alex,” the white alicorn started, raising an eyebrow as she took a sip of tea. “Is something the matter?”
“Um, the two of them just… they just got back from the archives…” Cadance said, seeming a bit ashamed. Her ears flattened against her head as she said it.
Celestia, too, had some shame in her eyes, but didn’t show much more than that in her expression. “I apologize for the perception you still have of me,” she started quietly. I almost began to counter, expecting that to be all she was going to say before she continued, “I also apologize for the actions that I would have taken had you not intervened. I like to believe I would have never fallen so far. However, seeing the look on both your face and Twilight’s, I’m sad to say that what you told me years ago is true. I’d like to repair our relationship, however, if you believe it’s possible to do.”
I couldn’t help but smile at that. Of all ponies, the Princess of Equestria was asking me to repair our friendship. It was almost comical, given all that had happened. This was something straight out of a story book, it seemed. Except it was real life somehow.
“Well how can I possibly decline that?” I asked. “You’re Princess Celestia after all. How can I say no to you?” She smiled at that, too, and I sighed and closed my eyes. “I forgive you,” I told her, “but it’s going to be a lot of work for me to… be in the mindset that you’re not who I remember seeing.”
Not that witch who hated me with her whole being, who turned into Daybreaker because she hated me so much. But I thought I could try, anyway. I felt lighter right now, like things were better somehow, even if my memories were kind of scattered, even if I knew how these ponies were. Right now, though, it felt like I hopped into a bad iteration of Equestria, and I was just now seeing the right one for the very first time. There might be a tiny little bit of something to be had here, I guessed. It might be worth it to see what this place was like rather than fade out of existence like I wanted to.
We made small talk, the five of us talking about whatever came to mind. Our day, what everyone had been up to, the kinds of ponies we met recently, the bad food at restaurants we ate. It was absolutely wonderful and normal and surreal and casual all at the same time. If you told me when I got here that this would've been happening, I wouldn't have believed you, it was so crazy to me.
“This is so strange. It’s so normal and unreal at the same time. There’s no way this can be real life. Celestia and Cadance aren’t the kind of ponies to be kind like this. And yet…”
And yet it seemed like I’d known these two for years, like they were almost good friends. It was strange, but there was also a sense of rightness and normalcy, like this was the way it was supposed to be because it was the way it had always been. I guessed I would take it, but it would be weird trying to get used to it after everything.
“Anyway,” I started again, “you said you had some black tea for me to drink? I was told it was my favorite.”
Celestia giggled at that and poured me a cup, sending it my way. I took a small sip of it and smiled. It was the best tea I ever tasted.
All of what happened between us couldn’t be chalked up to a bad dream, and never would be, not after all that happened, but it sure did feel like one. Maybe this was the part where I woke up and saw the real Equestria. After all, the tea tasted amazing, and surely the tea wouldn't lie to me, would it? It was my favorite, after all.
For the first time in ages, I’m updating this log of events I’ve written down since my creation.
Princess Luna has casted a spell to help me recall memories more accurately and completely, and with that, I’ve been able to create the history of what happened since my creation. As well, in discussion with both her and Princess Celestia, Sombra and I have learned how to properly control who’s fronting, and how to ‘co-front’ so that we both share the same space at the same time. I do still prefer this for day to day activities, since it simplifies the need we have for each of our respective duties, and surprisingly, Sombra does as well. No spell is required anymore for this to take place. It can be done at will. Normally, we only switch out when one of us is resting or doing something private. Otherwise, we’re one being.
Hope seems not to be on the greatest of terms with me– the main reason being that she dislikes my renewed existence on Princess Cadance’s part. She tries not to show it, and is friendly with me, but I can see it, especially when I’m the sole fronter. It’s not so much hatred, but annoyance, annoyance that’s clearly from the fact that she wishes to have our whole body to herself rather than Sombra and I sharing time. He doesn’t seem to mind it, but she certainly does.
Which leads into the second reason she’s not on great terms with me. She dislikes my romantic interest in Fluttershy. Again, she doesn’t say so, and tries not to show it, but whenever the mare comes over, she shoots what would be murderous glances at her if looks could kill. She’s very clearly jealous, although her jealousy has tapered off more so these days, much lower now than in the beginning. It’s not unlike the jealousy she had in the past that wasn’t.
Sombra sees no issue with my interest, just as I have no issue with his being with Radiant Hope. We’ve both come to an understanding that during the time we spend with these ponies, the other should stop fronting and rest. It is quite awkward, but we’ve been getting used to it. Fluttershy understands as well, and says that she sees no issues so long as neither we nor Radiant Hope do, and Radiant Hope goes along with it because of her intense love for her friend. With the way she looks at him, I can tell that she would do anything for him, and seems to completely forget about the rest of the world whenever he’s around, and certainly of our situation. She’s warmed up to me more in the last year however.
I expected Discord to show more anger in my interest in Fluttershy, however, it seemed that the two truly had a purely platonic relationship. His only complaint so far has been that he doesn’t want me to have tea parties with her, lest I ruin the sanctity and specialness of theirs. Not that we’re very far into romantic involvement with each other. In fact, he acted as though he was her guardian, telling me that I needed to treat her right the second he learned I was interested in her. It certainly made me laugh.
I’m unsure if I would call Sombra my friend, but he’s certainly not bad, not that I ever particularly thought so, outside of being in his body. He’s quite like a roommate, except the room is his head. Our head. My head. Even now, it’s still settling on me that this is truly a body of my own, that I’m not a human being like I used to think. I still have those memories, and still long for that life, but perhaps that’s okay. It makes me who I am somehow, as opposed to nothing. And right now, with a pony like Fluttershy being beside me, existence is very much what I would choose.
A pony like Fluttershy is why I don't blame Cadance for her choice in bringing me back. I’ve had a long discussion with her, one where I explained to her expressly why she was wrong in doing so, but I don’t hate her for the choice. I don’t believe I ever have since I got back from the archives. A brighter Equestria makes up for that, especially one that treats me kindly as it does now. Even now, it’s still difficult to get used to, and occasionally somepony will tell me something that conflicts with a memory I have of the other past, but it passes. It’s not great by a long stretch– I would still rather be a human– but maybe it can be okay, so long as Cadance understands why she was wrong for doing this.
Another pony who had a long conversation with Cadance was Twilight. I think it’s safe to say that she, like I, is still a little messed up from the two years we experienced in that alternate past, because she quickly stepped down from her position ruling alongside Cadance and Shining Armor in Celestia’s retirement after leaving the archives with me. From what I heard, the two of them had a long discussion about friendship and sisterhood and what it means to be princess and harboring jealousy and numerous other things. She gave a version of her memories of the past that she wrote to Cadance to read, and told me that she sobbed at what she read, particularly when she got to the part where she tried to hurt her husband. I can imagine that the mare won’t be pulling any other stunts in the future.
Both Twilight and I agreed that nopony else living should have access to it, outside of Celestia and Luna. The former declined to read it, explaining that she already heard the story from her years ago, and the latter didn’t need to, since she helped both Twilight and I access those memories, and thus had full knowledge of all that happened. We did decide though that it should be preserved, with access being allowed at such a time when everypony involved was either deceased or retired. Until then, it would remain on lockdown in our personal possessions, where nopony else could have access. I even declined giving Fluttershy access, as did Sombra with Radiant Hope and Twilight with Shining Armor. We were strict about who could read it.
Twilight, as much as she had grown between the first time I met her and when we went into the archives, seemed to grow even more between then and now. The pony who once doubted herself and worried about making wrong decisions and was nervous speaking her mind was no longer. She seemed older, wiser, and somehow completely different from who she was when I first met her. She said the same about me, and about Sombra as well. Certainly about Cadance and Celestia. I can safely say I agree with her.
Our relationship has gotten a lot closer since we left the archives, considering only the three of us had actually experienced what was before. She comes over to talk to Sombra and I all the time, almost as much as Fluttershy does. It’s always nice, although it's not common that we speak of the past. Mostly it’s about other things, like what we’ve been doing lately and what our relationships with other ponies are like. Somehow the bond of we all being there actually created a real friendship between us, one that’s genuine. It’s one I appreciate.
It still hurts though. It hurts to think about what could have been. It hurts to think about my family, and how much I dearly miss them, and how I wish I had any other life besides this. But it’s also nice. It’s nice to hear Princess Cadance singing to the birds, or Twilight go on about a new book she read, or being able to cozy up with Fluttershy while she talks about her animals. It makes it seem like it all had a purpose, like the pain was meant to make these little moments that much better. Even right now, Sombra is telling me about how he agrees. After sinking into depression for so long, it feels nice to be uplifted and have normal relationships in Equestria. Perhaps it was not a land that everyone wanted to be in, seeing as my human life never existed, but a land that I wanted to be in before I came into existence. A land of friendship and ponies.
It feels like I’ve stepped out of the shadows of what was before, and into the light. My eyes are still adjusting to it, the light hurting them at first glance as my pupils dilate, and I know I’ll always long for the time before the shadows, but in the light is the kindness of butterflies that fly under the shining sun.
