The sun glinted off the rushing water of the river, sending bright flashes as the drops splashed among the rocks. In between the precarious stones, which shone like gems, the water was deep and black. The small dark unicorn colt peered into the swirling waters from a safe distance away, his muscles stiff and his heart beating fast.
“C’mon, scaredy!” An earth pony colt with a red coat taunted from across the river, his hocks wet from his recent leaps across the rocks. “Jump!” Sombra grit his teeth harder at Gem Cherry’s words. The red colt always thought he was so tough. Sombra had only followed him and his friends because they said they knew where the best crystal berries grew.
“Scaredy blank flank!” a brown earth pony filly called. Golden Seed had just gotten her cutie mark, and the small image of a bundle of wheat was hard to see from across the river. “Why don’t you use your wimpy magic? Don’t you want the berries?”
“I will!” The small dark unicorn colt stomped his hoof on the bank of the river, sending the other young ponies on the other side into fits of giggles. A pink filly, her translucent crystal mane shining in the sun and an image of a musical note on her flank, nearly fell over with laughter.
“Look, little Sombra’s mad!” Twist shouted, and the others began laughing harder.
“Shut up!” He bared his teeth, concentrating. His magic swirled from somewhere deep inside him, his horn glowing, but the spell sputtered, sparks falling into the rushing water below. Sombra took a step back, a shiver paralyzing him.
“Forget him,” Gem Cherry said with a snort and a toss of his mane. “Let’s go. He’s a freak, and he can’t jump the river. We’ll be here all day if we wait.”
“Wait!” Sombra shouted, trying to sound powerful and strong, like his parents said the Queen was. “Wait for me!”
The other colt rolled his eyes, looking over his shoulder. “Jump, then.”
He’d show them. He wasn’t a freak. He was a unicorn, the only unicorn born into the Crystal Empire. He was special. It didn’t matter if he couldn’t grow any food. He had magic, they didn’t. He didn’t need to grow food. He was better!
He backed up, hind legs tensing, sweat dripping down his forehead as the familiar cold chill went down his spine. The water rushed, the slippery rocks shining in the sun, and his heart and stomach twisted with fear. But this time, he ignored it.
He charged, head low, aiming for the first rock.
The cold chill went through him again, his muscles tightening at the last moment his legs left the ground in a half hearted leap. His heart hit his throat.
He was so afraid.
Cold water enveloped him, rushing over his coat and flowing into his mouth and nostrils. The fear took over, and he kicked frantically, his hooves striking against the stone he was supposed to have landed on, bubbles churning and blinding him completely. His lungs burned, red and black tinging the edges of his vision, his heart beating hard and driving him to suck in a breath.
Something grabbed him, teeth clamped on his neck, and he was dragged out of the water just as he took a breath.
“You really are pathetic,” the pink filly said as she dumped him on the bank. She took a step back, her eyes narrowed in disdain. Behind her, Gem Cherry and Golden Seed were writhing on the grass in laughter.
“It was a two step leap!” Gem Cherry said between guffaws. “How lame do you have to be?!”
Sombra ducked his head, slowly gaining his feet. His legs shook under him.
“Don’t you even swim?” Golden Seed said. “Or are you too weak even for that?” She took a step forward, bumping him with her shoulder and sending back into a sodden heap on the grass. It just made Gem Cherry laugh harder.
“C’mon, guys,” Twist said, flicking her sparkling tail. “Let’s just go.”
“Bye, Somby,” Gem Cherry said with another snort. “Or should I say Soggy?”
Sombra made it back to his feet as the three began to walk away, and he stared after them. His eyes narrowed, anger and frustration roiling in his chest.
He wasn’t weak. He wasn’t pathetic. He was a unicorn! The only unicorn! He was special!
When he looked back at the river, though, his blood ran cold. He had to get back across, and they had abandoned him.
The cold and chill galloped through him as he stared at the water, and the memories of the other foal’s words made it worse. He was frightened, and alone. Ahead of him, the three other ponies laughed and bumped each other, secure in their friendship. Twist looked back over her shoulder, smirking.
The memory of the cold and dark water grew stronger, tying into the anxiety that locked his muscles. Sombra focused on it, focusing it onto his horn, and called his magic without even trying.
An aura of cold and dark spread around him, his heart leaping at the rush of power. The fear left him, all at once, leaving only strength in its wake.
Ahead of him, the pink filly’s eyes widened, and she stopped walking. The other two turned.
Sombra stared, and flared his magic higher.
The filly’s legs shook, and she sank to the ground, staring straight ahead. Her pupils were wide and black. Next to her, the other two stopped as though they had been struck in the head, their gazes going distant. Gem Cherry dropped to the grass, writhing again, but he wasn’t laughing this time.
“I can’t breathe!” the colt shouted.
“Mom, where are you!?” Golden Seed shouted. “I can’t see you! Wait! Wait for me!” her plaintive cries echoed.
Sombra stood straighter, his horn glowing as black as his coat. He narrowed his eyes. He knew exactly what they felt. He could make them feel it. He concentrated, his horn growing blacker. His magic answered his call like it never had before.
“H-help me,” Twist whispered, her body shaking and her voice barely audible.
Sombra just watched. They felt his fear. The fear of death, of abandonment, of being weak and different.
Sombra smiled, teeth glinting. He suddenly felt better.
When they were afraid, he didn’t have to be.
Author's Note
I expanded this slightly from a drabble for the Authors helping Authors group. Now it's a flashfic. Maybe one day I'll expand it even further, who knows?
