Crystal friendship

“Damn, damn, damn! Everytime I try to hit him, he turns into a shadow.” cursed Deeter in his thoughts. On top of that, he started to feel weak, from loss of blood, which was flowing out of his many wounds, caused by dark crystals.

“There isss something, what I have to admit.” hissed the one who used to be Snaky and gave to vice-captain curious look.

“You really are powerful my little cryssstal pony. I am sssuprised, that I didn´t notice you when I ruled the empire.”

“I don´t need praise from you.”

“What a troublesssome kid. Why don´t you jussst join me? If your loyality belongsss to Cryssstal Empire, then it would jussst make sssenssse, that you should ssserve to your king.”

“There are two things you are mistaken in. I am not a crystal pony, I was born in a small city near the empire. And the second one is simple. I am not loyal to the empire. I am loyal to Princess Cadence and prince Shining Armor. I remember the years in your slavery and horrors when I realized that we were sleeping for a thousand years.

Now with your curse broken my duty is to protect the royal family and make sure, that villain like you will never come back!”

“Hahaha. Being cryssstal pony doesn´t depend on your parentsss, or the place where you´ve been born in. It´s in your sssoul filly. It´sss quite interesssting, you remind me myssself, when I wasss young, more then thousssands yearsss ago. You, of courssse, can´t remember that, but you and I are very similar. The quessstion isss, how far are you willing to go, in order to fulfill your obligation?”

“There is nothing I wouldn´t do, in order to protect the empire!”

“Would you even kill your friend?”

When Sombra said it, all the shadows dissapeared and not knowing that Snaky´s eyes were green, not red, Deeter wouldn´t even guess that there was something wrong.

“What´s wrong Deeter?” asked the grey pony with his usual voice and slowly walked to the vice-captain.

“I thought that you would do anything for your beloved princess and here I am. One step before grasping the Crystal Heart and killing everypony you loved.” everything on him was just like illusionist. His calm movement and voice what never changed - when it made ponies smiles nor when it made the worst nightmare come true.

Deeter was still shocked by the change of his enemy, that he didn´t notice black crystal, that hit him in the back and forced him on knees.

When he looked up, his vision filled green eyes, completely identical with those Snaky´s.

“What a pity my friend. Here you are, defeated and for a friend, who acualy betrayed you long time ago.” grey unicorn widely smiled and enjoyed the terrified look on vice-captain´s face. Deeter shaked his head. That´s wasn´t Snaky, something like this wouldn´t ever make him smile. His enterainment came from tricking ponies, not from causing real harm, even if that came as a final product.

“What...do you mean?”

“Nothing complicated. When this filly realized that I am within his soul, he made a deal with me. I will teach him how to use dark magic, in exchange for Crystal Heart.”

“I don´t believe you! Why would Snaky needed such thing?”

“Heh, do you think that not being able to perform anything real with his magic didn´t irritate him?”

“What do I think? I think that I will ask him myself!”

Snaky´s eyes widely opened as the Crystal Heart suddenly appeared in front of him and hit him in the chest. From place, where the crystal touched him, glowed light blue magic.

“What did you...” grawled Sombra´s voice and painfuly grasped the shining place on his body.

“You were so focused on torturing me, that you didn´t notice, that I used my magic to slowly get the Heart close to me. I didn´t have enough joy and happiness to give it, but it still was enough for this spell.”

“Clever...plan. I wouldn´t...expect something like this....from you.” spoke once again Snaky´s voice and Deeter noticed that only one eye was red and that the other one changed it´s color back to normal.

“Snaky! Are you...?”

“No. Your spell, menaged to...give me some control over my body. But it isn´t enough. King Sombra is so powerful, that it will take just a minutes, before devouring my mind again.”

“What shall we do?”

“Well...I never liked long goodbyes, so just quickly. Thank you Deeter Spirit, the vice-captain of royal guard in Crystal Empire. It was pleasure meeting you.”

And before Deeter could even react, a sharp black crystal came out of ground and pierced Snaky´s neck. Grey unicorn coughed lots of blood and few times tried to take a breath, but eventualy his lifeless body just slipped and stayed stabbed on the crystal.

“No!” white pony rushed to his dead friend and quickly got him down from the spike. He tried to listen to his heartbeat, but there was nothing. No sound, just decreasing temperature. No life.

“You bassstardsss!” Deeter quickly raised his head and saw that one of the shadows in the room was more dark then others and had shape of pony.

“You...”

King Sombra in his full glory raised from the darkness and with hatred in his red eyes looked on two ponies in front of him.

“Damn trickssster. He sssurely hoped that I will die with him, but I menaged to leave him just in time. Unfortunately that meansss that I wasssn´t able to fully devour all hisss magic but...”

Dark unicorn widely smiled, just as cruely as when he was transformed into Snaky.

“...that will not be a problem.”

Slowly trotted to Deeter and while still walking, an black sword, made of crystal created next to him.

“It´sss time to end thisss.”

The weapon pointed at hurt unicorn and prepared to strike, but didn´t because King Somra was too suprised by what happened in front of his eyes. Dead body of Snaky and Deeter himself, suddenly shattered like two crystal, thrown on a hard rock.

The next thing what suprised him was crazy laught, which filled the whole room. It wasn´t sound caused by insanity, as he would expect, but by pure entertainment and good mood.

Sombra turned around to face the source and saw the pony, who was just few seconds ago, lying on the floor with pierced neck.

“You believed me! You really believed me that I would want to have anything to do with your pathetic dark magic!” shouted Snaky almost hysterically, inbetween bursts of laughter.

“I don´t need something as useless as black crystals and shadows, when I have my illusions and thinking that I would help to such disgrace of my powers, what needs to enchant doors by nightmares in order for them to work, that was just crazy!”

After that followed another burst of laught. Deeter, who was completly confused and wasn´t sure at all what was real, and what not, could just stand there and watch.

“How did you do that?” asked Sombra and seemingly wasn´t far from attacking the pony who mocked him.

“In that very second, when I trapped Chrysalis into illusion. I have the possibility to once per week trap anypony in my close range, without needing the eye, or any different contact with him. I simply made you think that I was going to kill myself, just so you left my body. Now, when you are out, it will be no problem to kill you.”

“You think? Aren´t you forgetting sssomething? Your friend is exhousted and you alone can´t hurt me.”

“You didn´t realize it, did you? Try to look closely.”

Whole body of the grey unicorn was embraced by light blue magic and above him was floating Crystal Heart. All the blue magic, created by unicorn´s happiness was being absorbed from Snaky by the relic, which alone shined like a star.

“This was my greatest trick I am so happy!” but even though he sounded tough, the illusionist was barely standing straight. Not only that he used up all his magic, but now he was also source for the Crystal Heart.

“Deeter! Now there is no time to be confused! The Crystal Heart belongs to crystal ponies. I am nothing more then mere liar, take it!”

Grey unicorn threw the heart towards his friend and he grabbed it with magic. Immediately the heart started to change shape, until it had appearance of beatiful sword, with hilt decorated by small sized relic.

When vice-captain touched it, his mane and fur crystalized and magic began to flow through his veins.

“You caused way too much suffering King. It´s time for you to pay for your crimes.”

Deeter charged the dark unicorn and stabbed the sword right into place, where he should have heart. The weapon pulsated as it had to fight it´s own battle with the shadows, until a wave of warm blue magic made King Sombra, ruller of the Crystal Empire thousands years ago, to perish into the wind, blowing into the room through hole, created by death of Chrysalis.

“We won. Snaky we won!”

Vice-captain threw the sword on the ground and rushed to help his friend back on his hooves.

“Hehe, but it was fun, wasn´ t it?” whispered Snaky.

“Not for me you idiot. But I guess, I should´ve count on it, you and Applejack gave me the clues but I wasn´t able to put them together.”

“Clues?”

“AJ said that I should be careful, because you don´t understand feelings of other´s and so you don´t care for emotional pain. And you alone told me that tricking is your way of entertaining, I should´ve expected that you will have some kind of plan.”

“Don´t be too hard on yourself, I never planned on giving you any clues, because when you spoil the point of the joke, then it stops being funny.”

Suddenly, a sound of clapping hooves came out of hall, leading to the royal bedroom. Soon, into the room entered Twilight, with worried face. Seemingly she was running the whole way and searching for them.

“Are you guys alright? We saw those lights, then all the changlings suddenly dissapeared and even the flames were extinguished!”

“Yes, we won. And what about you girls? Did you find princess and prince?”

“Yes, but we need you there. Cadence is in the last month of pregnancy and she is going to give birth right now!”

“What? That´s nonsense! It´s not even two weeks since the empire was attacked and back then she looked absolutely normal!”

“Eeeh. There is something what I forgot to tell you.” spoke Snaky behind him with “oh sh*t voice”.

“What?”

“The reason why I was in the Crystal Empire in the first place.”

* * * * * *

“So let me get this straight.” began Deeter, when Snaky finished explaining, during their way to royal hospital.

“Princess Cadence was pregnat for a long time now, but wasn´t sure how will prince Shining Amor react and also she wasn´t sure how to tell him about it, so she called you, to hide her pregnancy by illusion, until she would decide what to say?”

“That is correct, it´s long story how did we two met, but one day I will maybe tell it to you, since it´s hilarious.”

“I never had less trust into world in my entire life. All because I met you.”

“Thanks.”

Snaky was about to say something else, but Twilight was faster, when she stopped in front of a door with red cross on it.

“Guys, wait here, since all crystal ponies were taken away by changlings it´s on us to take care of the birth. Don´t worry, Applejack has some experience with it, but I have to ask Cadence, if she´s alright with you being there.

Purple alicorn slightly opened the door and talked with somepony on the other side. They both were very quiet, so two unicorns outside, didn´t hear them.

“Sorry, but you have to stay outside. One reason is that the husband should be the only stallion present on the birth and also Cadence doesn´t want you to see her in her state. Don´t worry, it´s nothing too bad, they weren´t in prison long enough to be exhousted or wounded. It´s just...girly thing. Get it?”

“Of course.” answered her Deeter and they both stayed in the hall, as Twilight told them.

“Aren´t you curious?” asked Snaky after a while.

“Of course I am and not only that, I am also incredibly happy for those two.”

“Well, don´t you want to take a look? Some of my magic is already back.”

“No, they forbidded us to do so.”

“Oh come on, just on a minute.”

Vice-captain declined again, but Snaky was persistent, until he actualy persuaded his friend.

“Fine, it´s nothing too hard, I will just make doors to look like closed and us invisible.”

Grey unicorn´s horn shortly shined and both ponies entered the room, where were all former element´s of harmony, Shining Amor, Spike and Princess Cadence.

The birth was already almost over and Applejack was just pulling out the rest of small pink baby.

“I can create anything in my illusions, but this is magic far beyond anyponies possibilities. How amazing.” whispered grey pony to his friend. He didn´t had to worry about others hearing him, since for ponies under effect of his spell, there was just an empty space, where those two were standing.

After a while Applejack was done and handed the baby, wrapped in a blanket to it´s mother.

Snaky all of that watched with wide smile, which dissapeared, when he got hit into head.

“Don´t you even think about doing some kind of prank.” threatened him very serious Deeter who was completly blown away, by what was heppening in front of him.

“Yea, yea. I know.”

Snaky walked few steps closer, so he could get a better look on newborn pony and didn´t even realized that he was standing next to Applejack, until he noticed her tired smile.

“You are not going to fool me again, Snaky.”even though she couldn´t know he was there, she turned around and kissed him on lips. His view has been blocked by her beatiful green eyes, so similar to his and it was his first kiss too, so he got completly lost in it.

He didn´t even realize that the illusion, by which he hid himself and Deeter, was lifted, in that second, when he returned the kiss to Applejack.