The Jedi that had fought on Naboo had finally returned to Canterlot, where Celestia had informed the Council of the worrisome news.

"They have all three keys?" Skybreaker asked, as Celestia sat down in her chair. In her hand was the book that Flash and the others had obtained from the Cabraille System. Now fully translated thanks to Twilight's efforts.

"Yes," she replied. "And with them, the ability to open this gate we learned about. If we're right about it holding the spirit of a powerful Sith, then allowing them to free it will not be good."

Luna nodded. "The story talks about how powerful this Sith was. If it's allowed back into the Galaxy, it could send us into a new dark age. There's no telling what dark power this being could have. Or what it could teach the Sith to do."

Another master nodded. "We've barely been able to keep up with the Sith as they are now. If they acquire new abilities, it could make them unstoppable."

"So what do we do?" Another master asked. "it's not like we know where the Sith are taking the relic. We've been searching for them non-stop, but haven't found a single lead."

Luna turned to Skybreaker. "What of the tracer that Lightning Blitz placed on one of their Destroyers. Have we been able to track it down?"

"I'm afraid not," Skybreaker shook his head. "I admire the boys ingenuity, but Sector Security Tracers don't have an unlimited range. If we were in the same solar system as the tracer, we'd be able to pick it up. But if it's on the other side of the galaxy, we'd never be able to find it."

Celestia and Luna frowned, the other masters looking just as worried.

"At least we've been able to make a slight dent in their forces," Celestia stated. "It's clear their number of droids and changelings is dwindling. If they had more, they would have used them in the battle. And then there's Armalum."

"The droid?" Skybreaker asked, "what about him?"

"He was damaged in a fight between him and Flash Sentry. Flash managed to incapacitate him. He escaped, but hopefully the damage done will take him out of action for at least a little while." The Masters nodded, happy that that was the case. But it was still of little comfort with the Sith having all three keys.

"Is there anything else the book says?" Luna asked, "maybe some way to stop the ritual from happening without actually being there?"

Celestia put the book down and took out a tablet, which held the translations. "No. As far as we can tell, the only way to stop the ritual is to be there and take out the keys themselves." They frowned, as Celestia spotted something else. "However, it's possible the Sith won't be able to do the ritual right away."

"How come?" A master asked.

"According to the script, the spirit cannot be placed into just any body. It requires someone with an incredibly strong connection to The Force. Which means they can't just grab some random slave they have. They need something that can actually handle the vast amount of power the spirit holds."

"Someone like you?" Luna asked, remembering when Celestia had been captured. "Sombra said he was going to use you as a sacrifice, didn't he?"

"Yes," Celestia nodded. "I am the best candidate. But that doesn't make me the only candidate. There are others in the Order that could fall victim to the Sith." She frowned, clearly worried about what might happen to her Jedi.

"Maybe we shouldn't risk it," a master suggested. "I say we call all active Jedi back to the Temple. We have safety in numbers."

"We can't just abandon the rest of the Galaxy," Skybreaker stated. "If we hide away in the Temple, the Sith will use it as an excuse to attack and conquer dozens of planets. We can't let that happen."

"But can we risk the Sith capturing one of our Jedi?" Another master asked. "And what if they come here? We're barely recovering after what happened the last time the Sith attacked Canterlot. I don't think we can survive another siege."

Skybreaker turned to Celestia, "what do you think?"

Celestia sighed. "I think both arguments have merit. We risk the galaxy's safety if we hide, but we also risk one of our own being transformed into a monster if we allow them to remain out in the Galaxy." She thought for a moment and nodded. "Any Padawans currently on missions will be brought back to the Temple. If a Knight or Master wishes to return, we will let them. But if they choose to remain where they are and complete their duties, I will not stop them."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Luna asked.

"No. But I cannot force members of our Order to remain in harms way, if they wish to return to the safety of the Temple. Although, I believe very few Jedi will actually decide to return. Many of us vowed to protect this Galaxy, even if it cost us our lives. It'll take more than the Sith to scare us into hiding."

"Understood," Skybreaker nodded. "Now, maybe we should discuss some new info that was brought to light after the Naboo incident." He frowned at Celestia, who sighed knowing what he was talking about.

"You're referring to Solara and her relation to me."

"Indeed," another master nodded. "You may be the Grandmaster of the Order, but you should have told us about this when you discovered what she was. Since it's obvious you didn't actually birth her, we would have known she was up to something. We might have been able to apprehend her before she stole the relic key."

"I know," Celestia agreed. "But at the time, I wanted to try and understand who she was myself. Telling you all was likely the right call, but even masters like me make mistakes. Especially when they learn they had a daughter they never knew existed."

Luna nodded. "I think we shouldn't push Celestia about this too much. What if you all learned you had a child you'd never known about? Would you be so eager to let people know?" None of the master replied. "Exactly. And now that Solara knows, we might have an advantage over her."

"What do you mean?" Skybreaker asked.

"According to Twilight, Solara had no idea she was Celestia's child. That's sure to throw anyone off. If she's dealing with this new knowledge, she might be off her game. And that means she'll be more likely to make a mistake the next time we run into her. And who knows, maybe learning the truth about who she is will make her turn away from the Dark Side. It's at least a possibility."

"Maybe," one master stated. "But what if it pushes her further into the dark? There's no telling what this kind of revelation could do to a person's psyche." They nodded, whilst Celestia frowned.

At this point, she was sure she knew who Solara's other parent was. And if that was true, there was no telling what he might do if he learned that she knew.

In another part of the Galaxy, Sombra was making his way through his dark castle until he arrived at an elevator.

The Sith Lord stepped into the elevator and rode it down into the depths of the caverns, located beneath his castle where everything would soon change. And when the elevator arrived, the doors opened to reveal Solara, Tirek and Chrysalis. The three stood to attention, as Sombra stepped out and began to walk down the corridor.

The other three followed, as Sombra spoke up. "What state is Doom Raizer in? And has Armalum completed his upgrades?"

"Master," Chrysalis replied, "Doom is still a long way from being ready to leave the bacta tank. If we rush the healing process, he won't be able to fight at one hundred percent. As annoying as it is, we must allow him to heal properly." Sombra growled, as Tirek spoke up.

"Armalum has yet to actually undergo his upgrades. He's still working on a design that the Jedi can't hope to defeat."

"Great," Sombra cried. "We're about to accomplish our greatest victory and those two aren't even here to see it." They arrived at a door, which Sombra opened with a wave of his hand. "No matter. They'll just have to miss it." He stepped through the doors and in the large cavernous room, the gate was waiting for them.

It was just like the gate that had been in the book the Jedi had. A stone archway, with three triangular holes in the top of it. It was made out of a strange dark blue rock, which had been forged into bricks that had been neatly stacked together.

Sombra stepped up to the archway, as the other three stepped aside and kept their distance. Sombra then took out the three relics, each with a differently coloured gem in the centre and edges that were either red, blue or yellow.

Solara chose this moment to speak up. "Master. Remember what the ancient text said. In order to activate the gate, the relics must be placed in the right way. Each corner must point to a corner of the same colour."

"Yes," Sombra nodded, "I remember. If I do it wrong, the gate will explode and possibly suck us all into the void." Chrysalis and Tirek frowned, both clearly worried about that.

Sombra took the first key and lifted it up to the highest triangle, placing it with the red corner pointing upwards. As soon as it was placed in the hole, the red gem in the centre glowed. Sombra then raised the blue gemmed key up and placed it in the bottom left hole with the yellow point at the top. This caused it to connect to the yellow corner on the first key, leaving the final yellow key to be raised with the blue corner pointing upwards.

Sombra pushed it into the last hole, connecting its top blue corner to the first key's blue corner. And the red corner also connected to the second key's red corner.

Sombra stepped back, as the keys began to glow brighter and brighter. And slowly, the light flowed down into the archway. The gaps between the bricks filled with light, completely illuminating the cavern. And once the entire archway was glowing, the light coming off the inside of the arch flowed out and began to swirl together.

Everyone watched in amazement. "I'll admit," Tirek stated. "I was a little suspicious if that thing would actually work."

"Looks like you were wrong," Chrysalis smiled as the portal began to form. "Through that tear in reality, is the world made entirely of nothingness. Where time does not floor and logic has no meaning. The perfect place to wait out eternity."

"And the greatest Sith ever born is waiting," Solara stated.

But before the portal could fully form, Sombra pulled the keys out of the arch and the light began to die down. Eventually, the portal faded away and the light disappeared. He then turned towards his servants. "Now that we know it works, we have to find a suitable sacrifice to offer."

"I thought we were going after Celestia?" Chrysalis asked, as Sombra stepped forward.

"Celestia is the most suitable candidate. And if possible, I will take her. But we can't hyper focus on just one target. There are other Force users, who are just as capable of being worthy of this honour. When we attack Canterlot, we won't have the luxury of attempting to only take Celestia."

"But who else could we target?" Tirek asked. "I'm guessing her sister, Luna, would also be a good candidate."

"Yes," Sombra nodded, "but there are others who are just as strong with The Force and easier to obtain. The first one that comes to mind, are those two I saw in my vision. Shining Armor and Flash Sentry. Having one of those as the sacrifice, might allow me to change the vision I saw of them in my throne room."

"Or it could lead to that vision," Chrysalis pointed out.

"True. And if all else fails, there's the girl Celestia is training. According to the reports, her abilities with The Force have the potential to outstretch Celestia herself. What's her name again"

Solara, who had been silent during this conversation, finally spoke up. "Twilight Sparkle."

"Yes, her. If Celestia cannot be obtained, she should be the next target." Hearing this, Solara frowned. "But for now, we must focus on getting our forces back up to full power. Our droids and Changeling forces are growing slim. If we're to successfully invade Canterlot again, then we must attack with everything we have." He arrived at the elevator and stepped into it. "Is that clear?"

"Yes, master." They nodded, as the doors to the elevator closed.

Once he was gone, Chrysalis frowned. "He wants me to breed more of my subjects, just so he can send them off to die. How am I supposed to repopulate my race, when they keep getting sent of suicide missions?"

"Consider them causalities of creating a better future for your race," Tirek stated. "Once we've conquered the Galaxy, you'll be able to make as many of them as you want. All your subject's hard work, will be rewarded with a planet you can call home that isn't a complete wasteland."

Chrysalis sighed, "I suppose. But how much longer will that be? Whatever this spirit is, it better give me the power the save my race from extinction." Tirek nodded, as they entered the elevator after Sombra.

Tirek then noticed Solara, who had been oddly quiet for a while. "What's up with you? You've been off since we got back from Naboo."

"I'm fine," she told him. "Just...thinking about stuff." Chrysalis and Tirek wondered what she was thinking about, but couldn't waste time wondering about it. Instead, they headed off as soon as the elevator arrived at their intended floor.

Once they were gone, Solara looked around before heading towards one of the castle's most restricted areas. Sombra's quarters.

Back on Canterlot, the Padawans were working on several projects that they hoped would help the next time they were in a battle.

In one of the workshops, Flash and Twilight were completing the repairs to Springer's damaged body. Spike was also there, watching them work and helping Flash as he was cutting a piece of metal. Twilight was working on replacing all the damaged circuits, using ones that were actually meant for Springer. The droid was hooked up to a machine that was keeping him running, whilst Twilight completely repaired the damage.

"There. How's that feel?"

"Great," Springer sighed. "Way better. Flash's patch up was good, but nothing beats parts that were designed for your model."

"Good to hear," Flash moved over with the new metal casing. "I'm just glad we were able to keep your core consciousness from being deleted."

"Why?" Spike asked, tiling his head as Flash attached the casing. "What would have happened if his core consciousness was deleted? Couldn't you just reprogram him?"

Flash gave him a look. "That would be like if I ripped your soul out and replaced it with another one. Your body might work again, but it wouldn't be you."

"He's right," Twilight nodded. "All beings, whether they're organic or robotic, are truly made up of the memories that they experience. If we lost all our memories, we'd become a completely different person." She was suddenly reminded of Solara and how she had 'apparently' lost her memories when they first met. Twilight couldn't help but wonder what Solara would be like, if she hadn't regained her memories as soon as she did.

"There's an old story Grand Hoof used to tell me," Flash explained. "About a spaceship that left a planet and remained in space for many decades. Over time, more and more parts of the ship had to be repaired or replaced. So much so that when they eventually return to the planet, there isn't a single piece of the original ship left."

Twilight nodded. "I remember that story. And the question that came with it. Is it still the same ship that left the planet, if there are no original pieces left?"

"What's the answer?" Springer asked, as Flash completely locked the casing in place.

"There is no official answer," Flash explained. "It's one of those questions that's supposed to make you think." He patted Springer on the head. "And it's probably not the best analogy for Springer. After all, he's not just a ship. He's a conscious being with memories that make him who he is. If I wanted to, I could take out the hard drive containing those memories and put them into a combat droid. It'd still be Springer, just in a more combat ready form."

"But let's not do that," Springer replied. "I like my current body. Although, now I'm thinking it could do with a shield generator upgrade." They laughed at this, as Springer looked around. "That wasn't a joke."

In another part of the Temple's science room, Shining was there with Cadance and a few others.

"Alright," Cadance tapped several buttons on a machine. "I think this should work. The metallurgical analysis is showing this particular compound should prevent the energy from escaping it." The machine began to beep, as it began to print some kind of metal object. A box.

They all watched, as the small metal container formed. And after a minute or so of this, the object was complete.

As the machine began to power down, Shining picked up the box and opened a small opening in the side. "Get the rock." Cadance nodded and moved over to pick up the Anti-Force stone that prevented Force Wielders from using the power.

The two moved towards one another and Cadance placed the rock inside the metal box, with Shining quickly closing it up.

They placed the box down and waited, everyone wondering if their plan would work. And then, Shining raised his hand and tried to lift a spanner next to the box. And whilst it wiggled for a moment or two, it didn't do anything else.

"So much for that," Shining sighed before moving over to the box.

"I don't get it," Cadance returned to the machine. "That compound should be able to block the rock's power. We should be able to use The Force with it contained."

"Maybe it's not the compound?" One of the Jedi suggested. "Maybe it's the design of the box. If something can open, it's not very airtight. Especially something small like that. There must be a slight opening in the box, which the energy is leaking out of."

Shining frowned, as he rolled the box in his hand. "Maybe he's right." He opened it up and allowed the rock to fall out. "But we need to find a way to transport this without losing our abilities. It could be the difference between life and death the next time we face one of the Sith."

The Jedi nodded, as they began working on a suitable containment device for the rock. One that could block the stone's power, whilst also being easy to open when needs be.

Back at the Sith castle, Sombra made his way through the castle until he arrived at a section of the place that nobody but him was allowed in.

As he arrived at the door, he pressed his hand against a scanner and the door opened. He stepped into a large room that was almost entirely pitch black, the Sith stepping into the centre of the room before kneeling. As he did, lights began to glow in the walls and begin to project something.

That something was a humanoid figure, sitting upon a throne wearing a large hood that hid his face. from out of his hood, two larger horns were sticking out. "Master."

"Speak," the figure replied.

"The gate is ready. We only need a worthy sacrifice to give to the spirit. We're preparing our forces to attack Canterlot and attempt to capture Celestia. If not her, then we will acquire another from the Jedi order."

"Why do you waste time with such things?" The figure inquired. "Do you not have worthy sacrifices currently under your command?" Sombra seemed confused by this before his eyes went wide.

"You wish me to sacrifice one of our minions?"

"Did they not swear fealty to us? To our goals. They swore to follow our every command. Why else do you think I allowed us to break the Sith's Rule of Two."

"Master. Tirek, Solara and Chrysalis have proven themselves capable and have many uses. To get rid of them now would be a waste."

"Have they been able to accomplish all their missions? Chrysalis promised an unstoppable army, but her insects are constantly being defeated. Tirek was supposed to be our main battle commander, yet he has yet to conquer a single world. And Solara...you told me yourself that she failed in obtaining the second key. Retrieving it and her cost us most of our forces. She may have obtained the final key, but I sense her loyalties are not completely with us."

"What?" Sombra asked. "Solara is loyal to us."

"Are you sure of that? She spent a lot of time around those Jedi. Around her mother. Are you certain her time with them has not caused her to see the Galaxy in a new light?"

Sombra frowned. "I trained that girl from birth to be a loyal Sith. No matter how long she spends around Celestia and the rest of those Jedi, she will not betray us."

"And if she does? What are you willing to risk, to ensure the secrets she holds do not fall into the Jedi's hands? You created her to be a tool. If that tool fails, then it must be thrown away. Or made into an even better tool." Sombra said nothing, as the figure's form began to flicker. "Be careful who you put your faith into. If you are too casual with who you trust, you will live to regret it." With that, the hologram vanished and Sombra was left kneeling there.

He eventually got up and left the room, frowning as he listened to the figure's words. But as he did, his gauntlet suddenly beeped.

He opened it up and discovered someone had tripped the silent alarm in his quarters. And when he activated the camera in the room, his eyes went wide. "Solara."

The young Sith stepped into Sombra room, being careful of setting off any trap he might have hidden there.

She looked around, trying to find something that might help her. "Come on," she moved over to his desk and searched for something. "Hairbrush. Cup. Anything. Just give me what I need and fast." She searched the room as fast as she could, looking for anything that might hold Sombra's DNA.

She opened a closet that had multiple copies of Sombra's clothes, hoping one of them had a hair on them.

"Anything?" She searched each and every one of them. But there was nothing. She then moved over to the bed, hoping he had left something there. But there wasn't a spec of dust on it anywhere. "Ahhhh!"

She knew she couldn't stay much longer. She needed to find something and fast.

Then, she spotted a room leading to Sombra's bathroom. She really didn't want to go in there, but she didn't have a choice. It was her only option. She stepped inside and found the place was just like any other bathroom. She had expected it to be all black, but it wasn't.

The only things in the room that were black were his towels and a toothbrush. And when she stared at it, she thought for a moment before picking it up. "So gross." She raised her gauntlet and scanned the toothbrush, hoping to find what she was looking for. And sure enough, there was a DNA trace on the brush. "Bean pot."

She quickly recorded the DNA before putting the brush back and getting the heck out of there. She looked around, making sure she didn't leave anything out of place. And once she was sure, she left and ran towards the nearest lab.

Back on Canterlot, Flash and Springer had left the workshop with Spike right behind them.

Twilight was still there, trying to keep her mind preoccupied so it didn't drift back to Solara and how close she had come to possibly bringing her over to their side. She was looking through the designs they had made for the latest droids, the stingray and whale droids appearing in front of her as a hologram.

Despite the possibility of never seeing them again, she wanted to know as much about them as possible. "Ahh," she moved her fingers through the holograms and made them spin. "These schematics are useless!" It didn't help that they were made through observations.

As she deactivated the holograms, Celestia stepped into the workshop. "Oh, there you are." She moved over and sat beside her, "problem."

"Just trying to keep my mind busy. When I'm alone with my thoughts, they just keep going back to that moment in the temple." Celestia frowned. "I know it wasn't my fault. And you said to not focus on the past. But I can't help it."

"That's fine. You don't have to follow every order I give you like a machine. You're a living being. Sometimes we can't control our thoughts and feelings." Twilight nodded. "And I'm sure it's not just what happened that's got you thinking about it." Twilight nodded again. "So, what is it?"

Twilight thought for a moment, as she tried to figure out what was bothering her. And slowly, she realised what it was. "How...how long will it be before I'm ready to take on the trials?"

Celestia looked shocked by this question. "The trials to become a knight?" Twilight nodded. "Twilight. You've come a long way. But the trials aren't something you can just do when you think you're ready. If you're not, they can destroy you."

"I know," Twilight sighed. "I just...am I ready?"

Celestia shook her head, "no. You still have a lot to learn before you're ready. Many of your friends do. You've all done some amazing things, especially since this war started. But many of you still have much growing to do before you're ready to try and become knights."

Twilight sighed, "I understand."

"Why are you asking?" Twilight frowned, clearly not sure how to explain it. "Twilight..."

"If...if Solara does turn away from the Dark Side. If she does choose to become a Jedi. She'll need a master. And...and if you're still training me, you can't train her." Celestia stared at Twilight in amazement, clearly not having expected that statement. "It should be you. After everything Sombra's probably put her through, she'll need the greatest teacher to help her overcome it. And that's you."

"Maybe," Celestia nodded. "However, I think she'll be a long way off from becoming an actual Padawan. Before then, she'll need to learn what it means to be human. Taught what it means to love and care for others."

"Isn't that something a mother should do?" Twilight asked.

"Exactly," Celestia nodded. "A mother. Not a master. If Solara does turn from the Dark Side, I'll be there to help her through it. And I'm sure Luna will be just as eager to help her niece." Twilight smiled, trying to imagine Luna acting like an aunt to Solara. "And it's not just family she'll need to overcome her dark past. It's friends. Friends like you, who have done so much in order to help her."

Twilight smiled. "I...I want to be her friend. I know she's done a lot of bad things, but I still want her to become my friend."

"Exactly. And hopefully, the rest of your friends will be open to helping her as well. But it's going to take a long time for her to overcome what's happened to her. And by the time she's ready to truly train as a Jedi, you might actually be ready to be a Knight. Who knows, you might end up becoming her master." The two laughed at this, as Celestia gave a curt sigh. "But then again, Solara may not wish to become a Jedi at all."

"What?" Twilight looked at her in shock, "why wouldn't she want to be a Jedi?"

"She spent her entire life being forced by Sombra to be a monstrous killing machine. If we made her train to be a Jedi, how would that make us any different? We may take children in to be trained from a young age, but we always give them the option to leave whenever they want. Solara has the same right to choose her future as anyone else does. And with everything that's happened, it's possible she wouldn't want to be a Jedi."

"Huh. I hadn't thought about it like that." Twilight nodded. "You're right. Solara deserves to decide what kind of life she wants. But if she did turn away from the Dark Side, wouldn't that put a target on her back?"

"Yes," Celestia nodded, "she would need to be protected until Sombra and the others are dealt with. But once the Sith are dealt with, she'll be able to live her life as she wants it."

Twilight smiled, "I hope she does choose to join us. I know I'm probably being naive, but I know there's a chance she'll see what she needs to do."

"Yes," Celestia nodded. "But until she chooses to join us, we have to still treat her like an opponent. We fight her, but continue to convince her to join us. And hopefully, she'll one day realise what the right path is for her."

Solara had arrived at the lab and when she checked inside, she found the place was completely deserted.

Nodding, she moved over to one of the computers and connected her gauntlet to it. As the DNA data transferred into the computer, Solara pulled out one of her own hairs and placed it into the computer's scanner. "Analyse sample," she typed as the scanner got to work.

After a few seconds, the scan and transfer were complete.

Solara took a deep breath and continued typing. "Compare both samples and determine genetic compatibility." She waited, as the computer began to do its things. As it did, she wondered about what would happen when the results came in.

"If I really am his daughter, will that change anything? If he wanted me to know, he would have told me already." She frowned, wondering why he didn't tell her. "Why go through all that trouble, just to keep it a secret? If I am his daughter, should I tell him I know?" Before she could start asking about what if she wasn't his daughter, the results came in.

Solara stared at the screen and as she read it, her eyes widened.

"DNA match. Genetic relation between samples is that of parent and child." She forgot how to breathe for a moment, as she stared at the results again and again. And as she did, the computer brought up another window. "Would you like to see all files relating to DNA sample two?" Checking, she found that her sample was sample two. "There are files on me?"

She thought for a moment, then nodded as she hit yes.

Several files appeared on the screen, Solara finding they were all dated back years ago. Most before she should have even been born. She checked the first file and found it was titled 'Project Solaris one.' "Solaris?" She opened it and when she did, she found images that shocked her.

It was some kind of tube. One she recognised as a chamber designed to grow clones inside and keep them alive until they were ready to leave. And inside the tube was a baby of some kind.

Its skin was gray in colour and it had blue hair, similar to the shade Celestia had. The baby appeared male, though it was hard to tell since its lower half was covered in a metal diaper with wires sticking out of it.

Next to the images were several paragraphs of text Solara felt she would get a headache reading through. But at the bottom, she spotted something that made her frown. "Midi-chlorian levels too low to be considered eligible. Solaris One. failure. Subject to be shut down and disposed of." She had a bad feeling about that and moved onto the next file, which was titled 'Solaris Two.'

When she opened it, she found another clone tank image with a baby inside. This one's skin was closer to Celestia's and had black and pink hair. The many paragraphs appeared beside the image again and at the bottom, she saw the same words as before.

"Midi-chlorian levels too low to be considered eligible. Solaris Two, failure. Subject to be shut down and disposed of."

Solara moved to the next file, this one being titled 'Solara One.' When she opened it, she found another clone tank image. The baby within this one was obviously female, being a reddish pink colour with green hair. The same paragraphs appeared which ended in the same sentences Solara had read before.

And so it went on, Solara looking through the many files and finding different babies that were named Solaris or Solara. Each one had a different number above them. Solaris Five, Solara three. Solaris Eight and so on.

Then, she found the very last file. Solara Twelve. And when she opened it, she was shown an image of an orange skinned baby with red and yellow hair. More paragraphs were beside the baby, but the last line was different from others. "Midi-chlorian levels exceeded designated requirements. Solara Twelve, success. Will continue to monitor and determine if subject is capable of further refinement."

As Solara stared at the image, which was the closest thing to a baby photo she might ever have, she felt her stomach beginning to churn.

Her mind was racing, as she thought about everything that she had just discovered. "What am I?"

"You are my apprentice." Solara gasped and turned to see Sombra, the Sith Lord stepping out of the shadows. Solara looked terrified, as he moved over to the computer and saw what she had seen. "So, you've uncovered the truth." He turned to her, "how long have you known?"

Solara frowned, "Twilight Sparkle told me on Naboo. Celestia discovered the truth during my time with them." She frowned, clearly wanting to know more. "So it's true? You really are...my father?"

"In a biological sense, I am. And Celestia is your mother."

"And what about all those other children?" She gestured to the computer. "Were they...like me?"

"Indeed," Sombra nodded. "Your older brothers and sisters. Created from the combination of mine and Celestia's DNA. Grown within a cloning tank and designed to be perfectly healthy in every way."

"What happened to them?"

Sombra sighed. "The cloning process had one small flaw. I don't know if it was an error with the technology, or The Force just didn't want to be a part of them. But they all lacked a strong connection to it. They never would have been able to become a Jedi or a Sith."

Solara couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You killed them? Just because they couldn't use The Force?"

"I am a Sith Lord," Sombra stated in a matter of fact tone. "To have a child who couldn't follow in my footsteps would be an embarrassment." He looked back at the computer. "Besides, It's not like I actually killed them. All I did was shut off their life support system. If they weren't strong enough to survive without it, they deserved to die."

"And after they were...what did you do to them?"

"I gave them a dignified funeral. Cremation in the castle's furnace." Solara's eyes widened again, as she imagined all those poor children's fates. Her siblings, thrown into a furnace just to keep the castle warm.

"How could you?" She let escape, Sombra turning to frown at her for saying it. But Sunset didn't stop. "They were your children. Didn't you feel anything for them?"

"No, not really. Once I discovered they had no ability with The Force, all my interest in them disappeared."

"What about me?" She asked. "If I hadn't been strong with The Force, would you have let me die? Used me to fuel your furnace?"

Sombra didn't even hesitate to answer. "Of course. And honestly, you would have been one of my very last attempts with this. Every time I created one, I ended up with less and less of the DNA sample I got from Celestia. I probably would have been able to make two or three more before I ran out. But then you were shown to be very strong with The Force."

Solara felt like throwing up, as she thought about what her fate could have been if she hadn't been Force Sensitive.

"I don't see what you're complaining about," Sombra stated. "You were the one that survived. That's what matters. Why do you care so much about a bunch of useless children that never even lived?"

"They're my family!" Solara cried. "All my life, I wondered why my family abandoned me! And now, I know they didn't! They were stolen from me, because you decided they didn't deserve to live! You went through all that hard work to make them, only to throw them away like they were nothing."

"They were nothing," Sombra stated. "None of them had the power I was after. If I had let them live, what good would it have done me? I would have had to feed them. Clothes them. Wasted resources on them. And for what?"

"I don't know," Solara stated. "And that's the point. We don't know what they could have grown up to be. They might not have had The Force, but what if one of them had grown up to be an amazing battle commander. Someone who could have outwitted the Jedi and won us countless battles. One could have grown up and discovered a way to improve the cloning process. Help Chrysalis cure the plague that's afflicting the changelings and improve their fighting capability. One could have grown up to design a better version of our battle droids, or created a new type of fighter that could have flown circles around the Jedi."

"I doubt that," Sombra stated.

"But you don't know!" Sunset cried, "because you just threw them away. All because they weren't able to wield The Force." She didn't know why, but she was feeling angry. Angry about the family who had died just so she could live. Angry about the truth of what she was being kept from her. And angry because of what could and probably should have happened to her if she hadn't been Force Sensitive.

Sombra frowned, "watch your tone. Don't forget. I am your father. And I am the one who raised you. Trained you. Made you into the person you are."

"You didn't raise me," Solara stated. "You had a bunch of droids look after me and all you ever taught me was to be an angry bloodthirsty Sith. You didn't train me. You threw me into one life or death situation after another and just told me to survive it." She growled. "You did make me. Make me into a monster. Made me into your slave, threatening to kill me if I failed."

Sombra watched her carefully and as she spoke, her hand slowly moved towards her Lightsaber. "Think about what you're about to do, Solara."

"That's not my name," Solara stated. "I refuse to share the name with all my dead sisters. I'm not just another clone you decided to make in hopes of having a Force Sensitive child." She looked him right in the eye and Sombra saw the rage in her face. "I am...SUNSET SHIMMER!" With that, she pulled her Lightsaber off her belt and prepared to ignite it.

But before she could, Sombra unleashed a bolt of lightning from his hand.

The lightning flew across the room and slammed into Sunset, making her scream as she was thrown backwards and dropped her Lightsaber.

She slammed into another computer and rolled around, crashing into the ground as the computer smashed into the floor with her. She moaned, as red sparks flowed around her body. She tried to push herself up, but Sombra was quick to zap her again.

"AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHH!" Her body screamed in agony, as Sombra electrocuted her with everything her had. At the same time, he summoned her Lightsaber to his hand. And after a minute or so of electrocuting her, her stopped and she was unable to lift herself up.

Sombra stared down at his daughter, sighing at the act of betrayal. "I guess this just proves I raised you to be an excellent Sith. But I have no intention of being overthrown yet."

Sunset panted, as she looked up and glared at her father. "Then end it. Kill me already."

"No," Sombra shook his head, "I have other plans for you." Sunset looked confused, as several changelings suddenly walked into the room. "I didn't want to do this, but you left me no choice. You will be the sacrifice." Sunset gasped, as the changelings quickly tired her hands behind her back and pulled her to her feet.

She tried to fight back, but couldn't. Sombra watched, as his daughter was pulled out of the room and sent to the dungeons. When they were ready, they would bring her to the gate.

Back in Canterlot, the sun was beginning to set and those in The Temple were beginning to go to sleep.

The Temple Guards were still awake and patrolling the Temple, as the Jedi prepared for bed. And this included Twilight, who yawned as she changed into her sleeping attire. She sat on her bed and thought about what she and Celestia had spoken about.

Letting out another sigh, she laid down and tried to get some sleep.

She cleared her head, allowing her to slowly drift off into dream land. And as she did, she found herself in a black void. She simply floated there, almost enjoying the vast emptiness of the void. The silence would normally drive someone insane, but Twilight felt it was quite calming.

However, the silence was soon broken by a quiet voice. "Twilight." The girl's eyes widened, as she looked around. "Twilight." She couldn't quite locate the voice, as it seemed to be coming from every direction. "Twilight, please help me." Twilight focused all her attention on the voice and slowly, she began to narrow down where it was coming from. And she was able to recognise the voice's owner.

"Solara?" She narrowed down the voice's location and turned towards it. "Are you there? What's going on?"

"Twilight. Please help me!" Slowly, an orange flame suddenly appeared. Twilight's eyes widened, as she floated towards it.

"Solara! Is that you?"

"Don't use that name!" The flames flickered, as it grew larger and larger. "I hate that name." Twilight was surprised to hear this, as the flame kept flickering and eventually started to take a humanoid form. "Please, help me."

"Help you?" Twilight watched the flames transform into the girl's physical form, her hair turning red with yellow specks . Her eyes shined gold, with a look of fear within them. "What's going on?"

"It's Sombra. He found out I knew he was my father."

"So he is your father," Twilight nodded. "So what? Did he not want to pay you an allowance?"

"He's going to kill me." Twilight's eyes widened. "Please. You have to save me. He's going to sacrifice me to the gate. Please. I'm begging you. Help me!"

"How the heck am I even seeing you right now?" Twilight wanted to say this was just a dream, but it felt too real to be a dream. Whatever was happening, she was really talking to Sunset.

"I'm in a cell," she explained. "Sombra zapped me and now I'm locked up. I couldn't do anything to escape physically, so I'm trying to contact you through The Force. I guess whatever happened last time left a connection between us. Please, Twilight. I know I've done horrible things and you have no reason to trust me. But please, help me."

Twilight frowned. Celestia had said to treat her like an enemy until they could be sure. But the sound of her voice was telling Twilight she was being serious. Could she afford to trust her? "Alright. But where are you?" Solara, or Sunset, closed her eyes and Twilight suddenly found the dark void around her beginning to change.

She realised Sunset was trying to make an image appear in the void.

Twilight kept her mind clear, so she didn't accidentally affect whatever Sunset was trying to create. And then, in a bright flash of light, a planet appeared in front of her. Canterlot.

She was about to ask what was going on, only for the image to suddenly warp as they were thrown through space. Twilight gasped, as she felt the world around them swirling as if they were in hyperspace. She had no idea what the heck was happening, but she allowed herself to buckle up and enjoy the ride.

And after a while, the image stopped stretching and came back into focus. When it did, she was greeted to the sight of another planet. Once made of black rock and oceans that looked like they were filled with poisonous chemicals.

Twilight stared at the planet in question, as she realised she was now staring at the planet where the Sith were located.

Solara groaned as the image disappeared. "That's where Sombra's holding me. The gate is under a castle. Please. I don't know how long I'll have before he does it."

"He's going to use you to hold the evil Sith Spirit? The one who created the gate and discovered how to live forever, by stealing the bodies of other Force users."

"How do you know all of that?"

"We have our ways," Twilight frowned. "So the keys really were for opening the gate. And now you're going to be the sacrifice?" Sunset nodded. "Alright. I promise. We'll save you. But you're gonna need to give me more info. Where is-" She didn't get to finish, as the vision around them suddenly began to shake. "What's happening?"

"NO!" Sunset cried, "they've realised what I was doing. Please. Hurry!" Twilight tried to grab her, but the pair was pulled away from one another.

Twilight used all her focus to try and keep the connection between them, but she couldn't and she was soon pulled out of her vision. "SUNSET!" She screamed, as the dream suddenly shattered and Twilight found herself waking up with a start.

She sat up and looked around, seeing she was back in her room.

The memories of the dream flowed through her mind. Twilight clutched her head, a slight headache forming as she remembered everything that had happened. "Sunset," she whispered. "I have to save her." But the question was, how. "Why didn't she tell me which system she's in?" She tried to remember if there was any clue where Sunset might be. But the image she had given Twilight wasn't helping at all.

She got out of bed and walked towards a window. And as she did, she suddenly felt something. A pull. As if an invisible rope was tied around her waist and pulling her.

She followed the sensation and it pulled her up, towards the sky. "Could it be?" Twilight remembered how hard she and Sunset had tried to keep the connection between them. Could The Force be keeping them connected? "I have to tell Celestia." Twilight didn't know if this was a smart idea or not, but she had to try. Sunset was in danger and if they didn't act, she would be lost and the Sith would have their new super monster.

Author's Note

Well that was dark. So Sunset wasn't the first clone. What's that saying about an omelette? Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to what's coming up next time.