Little Lyra and You

Chapter 11: Accepting our Roles

Lyra snapped awake with the same wooden box resting on her chest as before.

'Im getting really tired of waking up like this.' She thought to herself. Her head pounded from where Zecora had slammed her stick, or cane, or whatever it was against her head. But despite the pain she made herself sit up, slowly bit surely and moved the box from her chest to her lap. It beckoned to her, calling for her to open it, but she could tell that it was filled with something very important, the reason why she was back in Equestria.

Her hoof traced the brass lettering on the front that read, "Property of Lyra Heartstrings." She slipped her hoof up under the lip of the box and flipped it open. Inside were several photos of a black crystal resting on a deep purple pillow in a glass box. Lyra set those aside and picked up the note at the bottom of the box next to the gun she had shot the changeling with.

It was a thin, yellowing paper. It felt old in her hooves but everything else in the box looked pristine. She squinted her eyes to read the small writing,

Dear Lyra,

I'm sorry it has come to this, I really am, but prophecy is prophecy. It was written by star swirl the bearded, a brilliant profit that obsessed over my bloodline for ages but that's a different story, that if I was not able to reclaim my horn that I would have to send the mint retriever to fetch it for me. Inured over those scrolls for the longest time until I was banished and locked away In the ground of my kingdom. But whenever I was resurrected, and destroyed again, a little piece of me was splattered away from the rest of my, bits. That little bit of me is all that ties me to the physical world, all that's keeping me alive. Im just a shadow now, but if I can manage to get that bit of me back then I can pull my self back into this world and love again. But the only problem is it's being held under maximum security in the crystal palace, that's where you come in my dear.

With your specific skill set you fit the bill perfectly my little courier. It's a quick snatch and grab from heavily guarded palace, your slice if cake. And don't worry, star swirl foresaw all of this. Including your success, so that's not something to worry about, just do your job and I'll give you what you want, on your case, your little colt friend.

Enclosed in this box is top of the line equipment from the time that you're living in. On the top is the information but there is a false bottom that would deter thievery or keep you out of jail if you were caught by the authorities. Just pull the string that runs up the right side of the box and take the equipment that is in it.

I wish you the best of luck my little courier,

-Sombra

Lyra out the letter back in the box and pushed it to the far side of the bed, as far away from her as she could get it. She hugged her legs other chest and wrapped her tail around her hooves, doing her best to make herself as small as possible. She didn't know what was worse about the situation; whether it be she had been sent back to Equestria by the tyrant of the ages or that she had bee sent here to steal something from one of the most secured places in Equestria to bring back said tyrant of the ages.

"Looks like you've got yourself Into one hell of a mess." A voice said behind her. Lyra's head snapped around to look in the direction of the speaker. Next to her, leaning on a bookshelf, was a tall chestnut brown Pegasus with sparkling green eyes that flickered in the candlelight of the room. He had some kind of metal contraption wrapped around his wrist that went almost to his knee.

"W-who are you?" Lyra asked scared by the sudden presence of a strange stallion, a Pegasus no less, appearing when she though she was alone.

"If I told you my name you wouldn't recognize it, but you'll recognize Michael's." The Pegasus said. Lyra's ears perked up at the mention of Michael's name.

"H-how do you know him." Lyra asked, she was beyond scared at this point, she was downright terrified by this Pegasus now.

"You could say we share a common bond. A brotherhood per say, though we've never met, I know he's a good stallion." The Pegasus said. He fiddled with the mechanism on his arm while the muscles in his back under his wings rippled with anticipation, of what she didn't know.

"H-how do you know that. How do you know anything about me and how do I know you're not here to kill me." Lyra asked frantically she reached for the box again, but slowly shifting her body as she went to hide the movement of her hoof as she moved.

"Because Luna never picks bad stallions or mares to join her ranks." He said she now noticed that she wasn't only seeing fur and feathers from the Pegasus but there were also very dark blue feathers poking up every few feathers though aside from the others they were rigid and stiff looking rather than the limp, normal ones.

Suddenly Lyra flipped open the box and pulled the gun out and lined it up with the stallion's head, prepared to blow it off. But the stallion didn't want to get killed today. He longed at her and slammed into her with full force.her head slammed against the wall causing her vision to go dim for a second and her to cry out in pain. He,pressed his fore hoof against her neck and held her down. He flicked his other hoof, the one with the contraption, and a long blade shot out of the end.

"I was given specific orders to bring you back alive, but if you try to kill me again I might just get away with it." The Pegasus said. Lyra dropped the gun to the ground with a clatter.  The Pegasus flicked his wrist again and the blade retracted. He leaned back, taking his weight off Lyra. He folded his wings and went back to his leaning position against the wall.

"Now, the sooner you tell me how to save your colt friend the sooner I can get back to my wife and foal." He said with a forced grin.

"I don't tell you anything anything, until I know who you are." Lyra said pausing for breath and rubbing her throat. The Pegasus pursed his lips as if deciding whether or not to tell her the truth.

"My name is Joe Allen, currently serving as general of the followers of the night. A group consisting of the morally best ponies and people of the generation." He said all in one breath. "Now, if we could get get started that would be wonderful."

Luna and yourself both snap awake in the same wooden chairs with only one difference, the leather strap that was formerly around your neck was gone.

"Rise and shine friends!" The voice in the shadows said. The food on the table had disappeared for whatever reason as well as several sections of it so now Luna and yourself were just a few feet away from each other with a map laid put in from of both of you.

The old parchment had several statues of red and blue flags placed all over it, some of which were occupied by two flags at once as if the whole thing was a giant board game. You loo kip and study Luna's face intently for some sort of sign of how bad their current situation was but all he saw was her studying the map intently.

"What is this Sombra?" Luna asked finally looking up from the map and affixing her gaze on a spot in the shadows behind you.

"Why, it's a map of the territories of Equestria along with the placement and victories of out two armies. I took the liberty of making my flags the red ones and yours the blue ones." The shadow said.

"Our armies?" Lina asked raising an eyebrow.

"Oh I love how you try to be so innocent, try to act like you don't know what's going on. Even if you've been issuing orders from the shadows I know what's really happening. You were raising an army and I chose to raise my own." Sombra said. You feel something brush against your cheek and move away in surprise. The touch sends a cold sense of dread through your body that makes you shiver.

"That's why you're here my friend. You were meant to be one of her soldiers, but I doubt she told you that." Sombra said running his cold hoof over your shoulders. You stared at Luna fir a second looking for a sign that Sombra was lying, but you couldn't find anything but fear. The kind of fear that comes when someone uncovers a lie you've kept hidden for a while.

"Michael, he's lying to you. Why would I want to start a war with a shadow." Luna said quickly, losing her courage. Michael tore his eyes away from her and looked into the shadows behind you.

"Why are you telling me this?" You ask the shadows.

"Because I have a proposition for you, a deal to make." Sombra said. You incline your head to snow you're listening.

"Michael, he's lying, it's what he does!" Luna said. A pair of glowing green eyes appear in the darkness and shift to look at Luna. A black streak flies across the table and wraps itself around her mouth, effectively shutting her up. Her eyes were filled with fear, but at this point you didn't care.

"I can offer you two things. In exchange for one." He said. His snake like body moved through the shadows unseen except for the newly appeared glowing eyes that were more than a little unsettling.

"Your terms?" You ask. Luna tries to say something but her mouth is still clamped shut ad she is totally incapable of speaking.

"I can give you these powers," he said. Several black figures fly out of the space behind you and begin to dance around on the table in from of you before evaporating and forming on to the shape of a hand and slapping Luna. You chuckle slightly and the hand disappears. "And a leadership position I'm my new army." He said. You think the offers over in your head for a moment. The new powers AND a leadership position in the new world order.

"And what's in it for you?" You ask finding themes dancing around next to Luna.

"All you have to do is bring me the blood of one of your fellow ponies." Sombra said as if it was nothing. Your eyes snap open at that.

"No way in hell I'd kill an innocent pony!" You shout at him. The glowing eyes turn from green to a dark shade of red but soon return to their original color.

"How about I sweeten the pot." He says. Next to Luna's head a image appears of Lyra chained to a wall. She cried out in pain as a giant sword picks itself up and presses itself against her chest just over where her heart would be. A thin trickle of blood runs down her chest. "You say yes or I kill her and then I kill you.

"Please Michael, do as he says!" Lyra cries out in pain again as the sword twists.

"Stop!" You shout, tears coming to your eyes.

"Not until you agree to my terms." Sombra said as the sword continues to slowly drill into her chest.

"Stop now or I swear, I will kill you." You say as you tug at the chains on your wrists.

"You say yes or she does, plain and simple." Sombra says. Lyra was sobbing now and the trickle of blood on her chest had quickened.

"Michael, don't you say yes. That's not Lyra, he's tricking you." Luna said as the black thing around her jaws snapped. You look from her to Lyra to the sword to the pair of eyes floating around in the darkness, desperate for an answer as to what you should do.

"Fine," you say finally, letting your head sag in defeat.

"I'm sorry, what was that." Sombra says, slinking closer to you.

"I'll do it, I'll take your powers, I'll be in your army," you pause for a second and catch your breath. "I'll kill a pony if that's what I have to do, just please let her go." You plead. Sombra chuckles and the image of Lyra disappears.

The chains on your wrists pop off and dissolve into the ground. And the dread you feel is replaced by a burning in your right foreleg. You look down to see it glowing with long markings going up the length of your leg and ending just at the joint with a depiction of a spider, a shark and what looks like some sort of bird, flamingo sort of thing.

"Now, you go kill me a pony." Sombra says. And with a flash of light, you disappear from the room.