What A Shadow Fears

What A Shadow Fears

Digital_Hex

Chapter One

        The cold, bitter wind that tore across the frigid wastelands of the western Crystal Mountains bit at the unicorn with a numbing nip. He shivered as he pulled himself up from the snow, blinking as he looked around.

        White. All he could see was white.

        “Where...” he murmured, the bass in his voice deep and even.

        “Where am I?”

        The wind seemed to respond by slamming against him, pushing him down a shallow hill. He tumbled side-over-side, his strength all but gone as he rolled along.

        His adventure stopped as he sank into the cold snow, the freezing feeling around him sapping his feeble strength from his flesh upon contact. Around him, snow fell heavily, visibility poor past about thirty paces.

        His mind was but a blank canvas, void of memory or conscience. He could not remember how he got there, nor anything else for that matter. Thus, there was nothing to flash before his eyes as the settling sense of deep-tissue frost bite settled in.

        Even without a memory, the familiar sense of loneliness sank into his heart. He didn't have to remember a thing to recognize the feeling as one he had much experience with.

        His eyes slowly fluttered closed. He could hear his blood pumping through his ears, slowing down as his heart calmed down.

“Is this how I die?” he asked himself.

        He let his eyes close fully, a thin shimmer of tears freezing between them, holding them shut.

        “Hey!”

        He tore his eyes open, stinging at the pain. What was that voice, was it another pony?

        He could see a fuzzy shape at the edge of his vision, far away. He almost recognized the voice as-

        A sharp pain shot through his head as he felt himself slip away from consciousness.

        No, there was no way she could find him... He couldn't even remember her name...

        …

…

…

“SOMBERRR!”

        ___

Two hours later, in the Crystal Empire...

        “How is his condition?” Prince Shining Armour, Captain of the Crystal Guard asked as he trotted briskly down the hallway. He was flanked on either side by two of his most trusted guards, Sharp Arrow and Flash Sentry.

        Before him, a palace runner practically chased ahead of them, desperate not to be trampled in his majesty's haste.

        “He has suffered sever frost-bite beneath his coat, deep into his hide. He is on many supports at the moment, and his chances of recovery... are slim.”

        “But they exist?” Armour asked without missing a beat. The runner gulped hard.

        “Yes, my prince.”

        At last, they arrived at the entrance of the medical ward. Many guards were posted, but many of them were trying to sneak a peak inside of the ward. One such guard caught notice of the Captain and immediately snapped to attention. The other guards followed suit, saluting their commanding officer.

        “As you were,” Shining Armour commanded before turning back to the runner.

        “And drop the prince. It's just Shining Armour, or Captain if you must. Okay?”

        With that, Shining Armour charged into the medical wing, making a beeline right for one of the only two beds occupied. However, he quickly slowed down, taking in the sight of both beds before him.

        On one bed lay the formerly-defeated King Sombra, unconscious and hooked up to a variety of life-assistance devices studded and taped to him. He was the one he'd been informed was found.

        But next to the bed was another, occupied. Five of the mares he recognized as the Elements of Harmony were huddled around it, his sister's friends. He unconsciously felt a twinge of relief when he saw his sister amongst those standing. But... was one of their number in the bed?

        All thoughts of Sombra disappeared as he headed directly for the Elements. Twilight Sparkle, a young lavender alicorn and the Captain's little sister, saw him and bolted for him.

        “Shiny! There you are!” she cried as she crashed into him, squeezing him tightly. He embraced his sister briefly before politely separating himself from her. There would be time to catch up with her later.

        “What happened here?” he asked. The alicorn went into a fully professional mode immediately.

        “Princess Celestia sent for us elements to search for an artifact she believed to be in the Crystal Mountains, an artifact she felt had grown in power. We looked for it when we were caught in an avalanche! I teleported myself and Applejack away, while Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy managed to fly away. Pinkie Pie somehow got away as usual, but...”

        Shining Armour saw the mare on the bed, wrapped in many blankets. Her normally pristine white coat was a sickly shade of blue and blotched with a bone white, evidence of extensive bruising and frostbite. A number of IV lines slipped beneath the fabric, pumping her full of vital fluids. Her horn had a dark scorch mark along the edge.

        “Rarity found him instead.”

        He felt a rage grow in him. How dare the beast return only to hurt a friend of his sisters!

        Shining Armour spun on his hoof, stomping towards the charcoal unicorn. Twilight didn't let him get very far, appearing before him with a swift teleportation spell.

        “Wait!” she yelled, causing the Captain to take heed. His sister was a Princess of Equestria after all, and she did have command over his actions.

        “When we found him, he was in his current condition. Rarity was, well... like that. I thought he was still evil so I tried to recreate the magic generated from the Crystal Heart.”

        Shining Armour nodded, gesturing for her to continue. Surely she had a point to be made if she were halting him as such.

        “But when the energy hit him... it just passed through him! There was no evil in him!”

        Shining Armour cocked an eyebrow. “So what does that mean? Maybe he found a way to trick the heart! He managed to cheat death, it seems.”

        Twilight shook her head. “No, I'm sure of it. Whatever possessed him to turn into the Sombra we know... is gone. Completely.”

        Shining glanced back at Sombra, his memory triggering images in his mind. The creature terrorizing his Empire, the pain it put his wife through as she tried to repel the dark beast.

        He clenched his eyes shut as he looked away with a sigh. The unicorn on the bed across from him...

        It was the same unicorn, no doubt. Same coat, same mane, but...

        His horn was no longer a thick, repulsive spear of darkness and anger that Shining recalled it to be. Instead, it looked like an average unicorn horn. Nor was he surrounded by an aura of darkness and shadows.

        For all intents and purposes, Sombra was just another unicorn, much like Twilight was suggesting. But... why couldn't Shining bring himself to believe it?

        “You're certain he is... cleansed?”

        Twilight looked at Sombra with a detached glaze over her eyes.

        “I won't know until he wakes up and I can speak with him directly, but... I hope so. I really do.”

        o0o0o

“Captain Somber, the shadow just broke through the last barricade! We can't keep it away for much longer!”

Somber Heart nodded at his Lieutenant as he looked out across his Empire. It was surrounded on all fronts by a thick, ominous shadow. He swore he could see thousand sharp eyes peering out from the darkness, leering after the young captain.

On the other side of the throne room, a runner burst into the hall, a scared look in his eyes.

“A message from the princesses!” he declared, racing up to the Captain. Somber nodded as he took the scroll from the runner.

“Thank you for your service in our hours of darkness,” he said with an honest smile. The runner responded with a smile of his own, nervous due to the situation before racing away. He had many other tasks to do that day, after all.

Somber opened the scroll. He read it briefly before smirking, tossing it aside.

“Sergeant Red Sun, I can't sit idly any longer. We must meet this beast head-first.”

Somber's First Sergeant, a fiery red pegasus with a butter yellow mane, nodded with a sinister smirk. Combat was his field of expertise, and if Somber himself was joining him on the front line...

“We end this now?” Red Sun asked, his black eyes blinking in excitement.

Somber nodded.

“Aye.”

Somber used his magic to pull a spear from behind him, holding it at the low and ready position as he surrounded himself and Red Sun with a field of his magic.

He saw a shimmering before him as he disappeared, a mare that was standing in the throne room with him.

Her coat was a pale gray, but with such a luster that it left him breathless, her mane a rich purple. Her crystalline form accentuated her perfectly.

He couldn't hear her as he blinked away, but he knew what she was saying with the sad, coy smile on her face.

“Be safe.”

o0o0o

        With a deep breath, Somber Heart felt himself return to consciousness. It had not been the first time in his life he'd waken so calmly from a dream, and he had no doubt it would not be his last.

        His eyes slowly cracked open, though he immediately regretted it.

        He was cast on his back, strung about with a number of wraps and cables attached to him. The bright lanterns in the room clawed at his eyes even as he closed them, searing pinpricks of light in his mind.

        Somber hissed, trying to move his hooves to his face only to find them pinned to the mat he found himself on. He growled, trying each of his hooves to find them pinned in the same manner.

        He opened his eyes angrily, shifting his head around even as the blinding light blotted his vision momentarily. As the initial pain subsided, he saw he was in the medical wing of the Crystal palace, a room he recognized very quickly. Slowly he began recalling many painful memories from this very same room.

        And very quickly, he felt his head grow light as he fell back against the mat, gasping weakly. He hurt all over, a dull thud pressing against him from every direction.

        “Hey everypony, he's awake!”

        He was vaguely aware of many ponies rushing towards him, surrounding his form with a wall of bodies. He looked around painfully, the light still sharp and bright against his eyes. He didn't recognize any of them.

        “Alright now, give him some air,” he heard a commanding voice order. Immediately, the ponies backed away, and he saw the owner of the voice.

        He was a broad unicorn, built a bit more top-heavy than Somber himself but still quite intimidating in appearance. His white coat was clean and well groomed, and his thick blue mane was cast back in a traditional guard style. He wore the first tier of guard attire, a thing golden chest sling with a knife scabbard attached.

        The unicorn approached him slowly, looking him up and down. Somber felt himself glaring at the pony unconsciously, curious. Why was he suddenly so angry at this pony?

        “King Sombra?”

        A moment of silence hung between the two before Somber blinked.

        “I'm sorry, but... are you talking to me?”

        The guard nodded. Somber gulped slightly as he felt himself grin rather nervously.

        “Uh, Captain Somber Heart, actually. Celestia help us if I were ever made king of anything,” he chuckled weakly. “And... you are?”

        Shining Armour cast Somber a rather curious look, as though he were sizing him up.

        “Prince Shining Armour, Captain of the Crystal Empire Guard.”

        Somber felt himself laugh involuntarily. Before he even had time to think of what he was doing, he flicked his magic without so much as a twinge of effort. Immediately, every instrument attached to him flew away. The wrap itself undid itself as he rose from the mat, standing tall.

        “Surely you are mistaken, prince. I am the current Captain of the Crystal Empi- Hrrrg!”

        Somber suddenly dropped to a knee, coughing up a thick stream of dark blood. A nurse rushed over, but Somber waved her away with a hoof. His horn lit up briefly before a red energy cast about him. As it disappeared, he ceased his coughing and stood. He was rather shaky, but he wore a look of confidence.

        “I am Somber Heart, eleventh Captain of the Crystal Empire Guard. Now tell me, prince, why you fill my seat.”

        Shining Armour raised a lip, baring his teeth to Somber. The ponies around them looked on in surprise at how quickly things were escalating.

        “You are the unicorn formally known as King Sombra, a criminal to the Empire and Equestria.”

        Somber froze, not even noticing as Shining Armour drew his knife from it's sheath.

        “K-King? Criminal?”

        He fell to his haunches. His shoulders burned in exhaustion as his head swam.

        “What... what happened?”

        Shining saw the state that Somber was in before glancing at his sister. She locked eyes with him and nodded, her horn lighting up.

        Somber's form glowed with a faint purple aura, but dissipated quickly. Twilight looked back at Shining Armour with a pleased grin, shaking her head side to side. Armour let out a tense breath. That relieved him, Sombra was indeed gone from the Captain.

        “Well, Captain, it seems we have much to talk about.”

        Somber looked up to see Shining Armour offering him a hoof. Confused, Somber accepted the offer, letting the current Captain pull him to his hooves.

        “Much has changed in your absence, but I assure you that everypony here will help you along. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna will be excited to learn of your... return.”

        Somber shook his head, the appendage feeling far too light.

        “Return? Where was I?”

        A cough from beside him caught his attention. He looked to his left, and almost dropped dead at the sight.

        Her coat was as white as he recalled, even without the crystal shimmer. Her mane was far more stylized than he remembered, a rich purple. Her lustrous blue eyes were as beautiful as ever, and he felt his heart ache at her sight. It had been far too long.

        “Sapphire?” he practically breathed.

        The mare, however, cocked an eyebrow. Somber felt his heart clench in fear.

        “Sapphire? I am terribly sorry to say I am unfamiliar with that name. I am Rarity, dear.”

        As Somber's heart split in two, his vision went black as he collapsed to the floor, just as unconscious as he had been not ten minutes prior.