From the Shadows

*BUUURP* *Fwish*

Princess Twilight Sparkle's ears perked up at the familiar sound of incoming mail. She turned from her studies, shutting her book and placing her quill in its ink well as she waited on her assistant to bring her the most recent letter from her mentor, Princess Celestia.

The pitter patter of scaly feet danced in from the hallway, and the unicorn left her comfortable seat at her desk to receive her scribe, as well as her closest friend.

The door swung open suddenly, and surprisingly violently, revealing a squat, plump young purple dragon clutching a bound scroll.

"It's from the princess," explained the drake cheerfully as he held out the rolled parchment, embroidered with the royal seal, "I promise I didn't read it this time."

Twilight smiled warmly at the reptile, who returned the expression.

"Thank you Spike," she said cordially, and unfurled the letter in telekinetic grips.

She levitated the note in front of her eyes, and began intently reading the message it contained.

Dear Twilight,

I do not mean to worry you, but there is something you must know. My sister and I have detected a dark presence in Equestria, as well as in the Crystal Empire. The troublesome part of it is this; the evil cannot be attributed to a single source. Rather, it has taken root in the hearts of ponies throughout the kingdoms. Things like fear, greed and hatred have been becoming more common; they cannot be allowed to grow any further. For this, I need your help.

I am coming to visit you later tonight under the cover of darkness. Please gather the other bearers of the elements of harmony in the fields outside of Ponyville; bring nopony else. It would be better to keep this as secretive as possible until we can determine the best course of action.

There is something I need you to do for me, so that together, we can expel the seeds of darkness before they take root, saving the kingdoms in the process. I will be bringing something for you, something I cannot risk naming in this letter for risk of conspiracy. I need you to use that which I bring to help all ponies throughout the world. I will further explain upon our meeting.

Until later tonight,

Your mentor and friend,

Princess Celestia

The alicorn gasped as she finished the letter. Why was the princess acting so strangely? 'Under the cover of darkness'? 'Risk of conspiracy'? 'Bring nopony else'?

Her shock prompted a nervous recoil from Spike. She casually played off her initial reaction, not fooling the dragon in the least due to her awful poker face, but tried to tell him everything was indeed okay.

"What is it?" asked the dragon nervously, knowing full well that something was indeed amiss.

"Well, there's been a small problem, and the princess wants us to help her fix it," Twilight explained, earnestly explaining everything she knew to be true up to this point.

Celestia's letter had been unusually vague, more a notification than an actual letter.

"Alright, well, what do you need me to do to help?"

Twilight struggled internally to come up with a way of telling Spike that he couldn't help, that Celestia only asked for the bearers of the elements, and it seemed from the urgent, secretive letter that the bearers were all that were allowed to be present.

Eventually, she came up with a way to avoid the truth.

"I need you to look after the library while I'm out. It should only be for a little bit, but if you want to make yourself some treats while I'm gone, go ahead."

Genius; nothing intrigued the dragon more than one of his gemstone cakes.

"Ok," Spike agreed, and he was off to the kitchen without another second's hesitation.

Likewise, Twilight trotted downstairs and out the door of her massive tree of a home, briskly going off to gather her friends for the impending arrival of the Princess.

****************

"Why do we have to meet her in the dark?"

The cyan Pegasus was barely visible against the night sky as she hovered above the rest of her friends, making sure they all knew the extent of her discontent at being outside in the cold, dark night for a still unexplained reason while she wanted to be sleeping.

"How is she even supposed to find us if she can't see us?"

"Good point Rainbow," agreed Twilight, sparking a glow from the tip of her horn.

The six bearers had congregated in the town's rural outskirts, as Celestia had instructed, and were now waiting on the princess's impending arrival beneath the pale face of Luna's full moon. The light from Twilight's horn cast a dull glow on the small plot of land they occupied, barely hindering the darkness of the night.

"I just hope everything's alright," said Rarity, genuine worry in her tone, "The princess has never quite requested anything like this of us before."

"It's probably nothin' sugar cube," drawled Applejack, casually reclining in the damp grass as she waited contentedly, "Ah'm sure she just didn't wanna cause a ruckus in town by showin' up in broad daylight."

"I-I don't know," started Fluttershy, her normally quiet voice sounding more normal now that they were in the most silent hours of the day, "From what Twilight said, i-it didn't sound like nothing."

"Relax silly," urged Pinkie Pie, still as exuberant as she always was, even though the clock tower had already struck midnight, "I know why she's coming out here. She just wants to come and visit her six most favoritest ponies ever!"

Pinkie looked back and forth to each of her friends, seeking approval of her theory, but before she fully realized the extent of their justified bewilderment, the sound of wing-beats surpassed the crickets' chirping in volume, and the six looked up to see a sky-borne chariot silhouetted against the moon.

The vehicle was drawn by a group of four pegasi, and was flanked by eight more, four on either side. Behind the chariot, Celestia, the chariot's sole passenger, levitated some kind of a ball, and curiosities peaked as they realized the sphere was what she was bringing to them.

The chariot set down gently in the grass, freshly adorned in its vesture of dew, and came to a gentle stop. The Princess of the Sun set the sphere, a sort of magical barrier, down in the field, and stepped off of the chariot gracefully.

"What is it?" asked Twilight, eying the ball meticulously as Rainbow Dash moved in for a closer look.

"Twilight, before I tell you, you must understand...".

The unicorn trailed off, coming closer to the ball to find out about it herself through the employment of qualitative data. The glow from her horn weakly illuminated the contents of the enchanted vessel, and she and Rainbow Dash began scratching their heads at trying to figure out what the ball contained while the others stayed back nervously.

Within the transparent encasing was... something. Definitely something; not nothing, but not quite a definite form either.

Whatever it was, it was dark; it appeared to be some sort of cloud, an all black one at that. It was concentrated in the lower section of the spherical container, and occupied about the same volume as a pony might.

"Is it some sort of a dense gas?" asked Twilight, but that theory was refuted quickly.

The mass, whatever it was, began moving as if it were sentient. It moved along the perimeter of the sphere, clinging to the vessel's walls as it circumnavigated its equator. It only stopped moving when Rainbow Dash pressed her snout against the outer wall of the cell.

It sank to the bottom of the ball, and from there, oriented itself into a shape like a mountain, wide at the base and narrow on top.

"Whoooa," whispered Rainbow Dash as she watched all the more intently, causing the other four to peer in for a closer look.

"Princess, what is it?" asked Twilight.

Celestia looked to her student, an almost concerned look on her face. The violet alicorn began to grow worried, but her friends were only interested in the strange... thing, inside the spherical vessel.

Rainbow Dash, as if it were a fish tank, tapped on the container, causing something within to happen.

Slowly, small, dark, opaque crystals sprouted on the interior of the cell, and the entity within seemed to grow wider.

The black shadow suddenly sprouted a pair of eyes, their slit pupils dilating within crimson irises as they came into existence, causing all around the sphere to shriek and jump backwards.

The guards gripped their spears tightly at the sound of feminine terror, and after the mares recovered from the initial shock, still panting, they turned to the princess.

"What the hay is that thing?" shouted Applejack, readjusting her hat after it was knocked askew by her sudden retreat from the translucent ball.

The princess didn't say anything, only looking to the mares consolingly, as if she was trying to tell them it would all be fine in the future, meaning things were bad now.

Instead of receiving a verbal answer explaining the identity of the prisoner within the ball, they received a physical one. The entity began twisting around itself rapidly, bending its formless mass into a shape; the shape of a pony.

The newly formed equine stood, confined within Celestia's prison, and devilishly, smiled at those gawking beyond the walls of the container.

"Sombra?!" the six yelled in unison, looking in disbelief back and forth between the unsure expression of Celestia to the fiendish grin on Sombra's face as he watched their disbelief unfurl in utter silence; the former king did not say a word.

He only stared at them with those evil, fearsome eyes; he did not break eye contact as his intimidating glare prodded at the spirits of those that met his gaze.

"Girls," the princess started to say quietly, but her maternal tone was drowned in the frantic shouts of those she was addressing.

"It's definitely Sombra, but why is he back from banishment?!" a sophisticated accent yelled from amidst the intermingling questions.

"W-why i-is he b-back? D-did the g-glacier he was in m-melt?" stammered Fluttershy.

"Why the hay would it've melted? It's a glacier! Somepony brought him back!" came a drawling voice, more firm than the others.

"Who would do that?! Why would anypony want a meanie like him around?!" a high pitched and animated voice asked, coming from the place Pinkie Pie had formerly occupied before she began to dart around the sphere in a blur.

"Celestia, is this the problem you needed us to fix?" asked Twilight, turning to her mentor.

"Just tell us who brought Sombra back, and we'll kick their rumps!" exclaimed Dash, confidently puffing her chest out, trying to arrogantly impose her power in the presence of two demi-gods.

"STOP!" bellowed Celestia, employing the deafening royal Canterlot voice to silence the panicking mares all around her.

They came to a sudden halt, silencing their rambling mouths and paying immediate attention to their ruler as her wings returned from their flared stance to their comfortable, resting position at her sides.

The Mare of the Sun closed her eyes, recomposed herself, and reverted her voice to its usual, gentle tone, remembering that she was not supposed to be susceptible to anxiety.

"Girls," the alabaster alicorn said softly, "I am the one that brought Sombra back."

Shock contorted the mares' faces, but when the ruler turned her coral eyes to the improvised cell, she found a glaring grin on the prisoner's face.

Celestia further explained, progressing methodically as she carefully chose her words.

"You must understand something mentioned in my letter; fear and hatred are the roots of dark magic. Like I 've mentioned, these things have come into Equestria, and infiltrated the hearts of its citizens. We cannot let it stay."

"We get that, but what does Sombra have to do with any of this?" asked Rainbow Dash, rising above the ground and silhouetting herself against the stars.

"Sombra is one of the last remaining beings in the world who knows dark magic, and certainly the best of those that remain."

Celestia turned a hasty glance to the sphere again, seeing the smug smile on Sombra's face had been replaced with a sort of scowl.

"Girls," began the princess again, "I need you six to reform him as you did Discord."

"He's nothing like Discord!" yelled Rarity, striking the ground with her hoof in justified anxiety, "Discord was more or less mischievous. He's pure evil! How can we reform something like him!"

She pointed to the cell's contents, but Sombra only smiled, seeming to relish in her contempt for him; almost too much.

"And even if we tried to reform him, if he decided not to comply, there would be nothing keeping him from harming us. We were only safe when we encountered him in the Crystal Empire because Shining Armor's and Cadence's protective spells kept him outside the border. Those spells are useless now; he's already inside the border!" yelled Twilight, angry more out of fear than actual frustration.

Sombra sat back on his flanks, and his smirking stare turned back and forth as the equines beyond his confines debated over him.

"The only thing we have for protection against him is the elements of harmony, but with those it's all or nothin'. If we have to use 'em on him, he'll be long gone once the dust clears," said Applejack, a very worried look occupying her normally bright eyes.

Suddenly, a new voice sounded off from behind the group, somewhere beyond Twilight's horn's range of light.

"That's why I'm here."

The mares turned, and saw a shadow trotting towards them leisurely. The entity entered the light, revealing itself as Shining Armor; he looked tired, but his droopy eyes lit up when Twilight rushed to hug him.

"Hey Twiley," he crooned, wrapping a forelimb around his sister, who was squeezing his ribcage in a fit of happiness to see her brother once again.

"Why are you so late?" she asked as anxiety, love and joy came bubbling forth.

"I took the train," he said almost jokingly, and Twilight released him from her vice-like grip.

"Prince Shining Armor along with these eight guards will provide security for you while you undertake this task," explained Celestia as she levitated a box out of her chariot, "But in case you need them, here."

The wooden chest unsealed itself in Celestia's telekinetic grip, and revealed six sparkling pieces of jewelry; the elements of harmony.

"Take them, but I urge you to use them as a last resort only. Whether we trust him or not, Sombra is our best chance at cleansing Equestria; using the elements would destroy that chance. I would stay as well, but my sister and I must search the kingdom to try and find the source of the dark magic, and see if we can extinguish it. In the meantime, see if he can be rehabilitated; we will need his help should we be unable to eradicate the dark magic from Equestria and the Crystal Empire. Just try and see if progress can be made with him; that will be your goal for now."

The mares nodded as they each adorned their elements, clasping them around their necks, except in the case of Twilight's crown, which rested on her brow.

"I know you will not fail me, my little ponies," serenaded the princess as she began to step back up to her chariot, but she froze when she heard a new contribution to the conversation.

Laughter, but not from Pinkie Pie.

A slow, growling, low, ominous laugh, and the alicorn's head snapped to the force field sphere. Sombra, still seated and his head bowed, was quietly chuckling to himself, his blood red eyes sealed behind charcoal eyelids.

All present took a cautious step back from the sphere, with the exception of Shining Armor and Celestia, who stood their ground as the imprisoned stallion rose to his hooves and approached the perimeter of his round cell. His head was still bowed, and his eyes remained closed, but his wide, armored chest faced the princess from the opposite side of the curvaceous, translucent barrier.

Tension built as he continued laughing to himself, the guttural sound growing louder each second, until he drew in a deep breath, and slowly raised his eyes to meet the princess's.

Sombra, for the first time in a long time, spoke.

"This is your plan, Celestia? Leaving me with a congregation of empowered foals and a few guards, hoping my nature can be altered to help you, the one who banished me to that forsaken wasteland for centuries?! You, that which I despise above all things!?"

His voice was low, strong and clear, and he spoke with a thick accent, rolling his r's and extending his vowels, prolonging each syllable as he carefully annunciated each word. Though his eyes were vengeful, his mouth was drawn up in a glistening, toothy smile.

"Surely, you are more a fool than I took you for if you truly believe these mortals can contain me."

Celestia's chariot hovered off of the ground, and her horn began to glow weakly. The chariot levitated, and the force field keeping Sombra contained vanished, sparkling down into the wet grass as it dissipated. More crystals sprouted at the king's feet, inconspicuously growing up from the ground his hooves occupied.

"You are the fool, Sombra, for believing that they can't," the regal said coldly, and then, her gilded vessel was off, soaring through the darkened skies in the direction they had come from.

Before Celestia was more than a few dozen feet into the air, Shining Armor cast a spell on Sombra.

Glowing, transparent shackles, materialized from unicorn will power and magic, formed around the dark stallion's ankles, binding him as a prisoner for transport.

The former king's horn began to glow as a savage snarl emitted from his throat, but when he caught the glint off of Twilight's crown and remembered the elements' presence, the red radiance died down.

Shining Armor, a completely different stallion from the one that had lovingly greeted his sister earlier, barked an order.

"To Golden Oaks."

The armored stallions surrounded Sombra, their lances extended at him, forming a perimeter of blades around him, to which he responded with a glaring red eye and another beastly growl.

"Wait, Shining, why are we taking him home?"

"Where else do you want to take him?" answered the prince, "We can't keep him out here, and there isn't exactly another place he could go. We have a responsibility to keep him under control; it makes sense to keep him in the same place we're staying."

"So what does that mean?" asked Rainbow Dash, turning her self-assured glare back from a stare-down with Sombra back to the others.

"It means the library is about to be a little crowded, but for the rest of you, go on home for the night, but try and sleep lightly in case something happens," explained Shining as he neared Sombra confidently.

"Alright, now move," he barked, and a guard prodded Sombra's flank when he did not start walking immediately, but the spear passed through his flank harmlessly.

The guard looked at his spear tip as he pulled it back, and the place where Sombra had been pierced sealed itself as wispy flesh filled the hole.

"Don't get overzealous Jax," rumbled the largest stallion of the group as he eyed his comrade.

Sombra gauged the stallion, committing him to memory; a white Pegasus, orange mane, amber eyes, a plain shield as a cutie mark. Then, he walked off amidst the group of guards, paying careful attention to acute details about each of his chauffeurs, crystals sprouting in his hoof steps.

Behind the procession, the mares followed at a short distance.

"Umm, Twilight," began Fluttershy, quietly fluttering to her friend's side, "Is Shining Armor okay? He seems different."

"He's just in business mode right now," she explained, "He'll be better as soon as he calms down a bit."

"I doubt he'll calm down dear," said Rarity, worry in her voice, "He's in charge of keeping Ponyville safe, and Sombra is its newest resident. I don't think any of us will be staying calm for the next few days, especially without the princess around to keep an eye on things."

That was the other troublesome part; Twilight realized that, though the problems could have been easily attributed to Sombra, he couldn't be the source. He had been exiled from the kingdoms, meaning that something possibly more powerful and more evil than the king was out there, becoming more powerful with each hateful act its darkness inspired. Now, they relied on Sombra to rid them of what he lived on; but, there wasn't a villain the bearers had faced yet that couldn't be turned by the magic of friendship. Then again, how can the essence of evil be befriended?