Chapters Nightmare Moon beat her wings and gave loud menacing laugh. She shot a bolt of energy at Celestia and laughed again as the white Alicorn screamed before falling to the ground. Her brilliant, reptilian, sapphire blue eyes opened in a flash. Her short, smooth, pure black fur provided the perfect background to make her blue eyes almost scary. Her soft, long, black feathers on her large wings captured the air perfectly to keep her aloft.
Suddenly, the tip of her horn glowed a deep, inky black, going completely unnoticed by Nightmare Moon. A large, inky black drop if dark magic formed on the tip of her horn and fell. The pure, concentrated dark magic shot towards the ground turning and flipping through the air. Upon contact with the ground, there was a brilliant flash of light that caught Nightmare's attention, as well as Celestia's, who had risen back up. The two Alicorns looked at each other before turning to the huge pillar of pure, dark energy towering high above them. The pillar of light began to collapse in on itself. There was an incredible burst of complete and ultimate power that over whelmed the two mares and even sucked the dark power out of Nightmare Moon, transforming her back into Princess Luna.
A pool of ink-like liquid formed below the two sisters. The center of the pool started to glow, pulsing like a heartbeat. A form started to rise from the pool. At the same time the amount of liquid shrank. A pure black stallion formed from the inky substance. He looked like any other stallion other than his horn and his mane. His long, black horn was curved and serrated on the top. As well as that, his horn faded into a blood red. His mane looked like ink, flowing down and drops coming off it and hitting the ground, creating bursts of smoke and sparks.
The two sisters looked at each other and flew down, landing beside the stallion. He looked up, his eyes glowing ruby red surrounded by green. His eyes narrowed and his lips peeled back to reveal bright, shiny white fangs like a dog's teeth. His horn became encased in bubbling, purple and green magic.
The sisters backed away from the evil being that was clearly not a pony. Suddenly, shadows from all around them sprang to life and took the form of shadow ponies. An evil grin spread across the stallion's face as his shadowy minions rushed towards the grounded mares. Luna gave a shrill scream and froze, her mind going blank with fear. A sudden blast of blinding, white hot light disintegrated the shadow ponies and blasted away the stallion's dark power, leaving him like a normal stallion. He looked up at the princess's and felt a wave of pure, undiluted rage. Purple smoke began to pour from his eyes and he spoke.
"I'll have my revenge, your Highness'. And remember this: You will not see me or hear me. I will have taken over another pony and forced that pony to submit to my will. And you will regret this day. I swear it, I SWEAR IT. !" The stallion disintegrated into shadow and disappeared. Luna stared at her older sister, whose horn was still encased in a shimmering, bright gold aura. Luna sent her sister a terrified look.
"Sister, this is not good."
A stallion stepped out of the library, turning to thank the librarian. His bright, ruby red eyes glowed against his pale gray fur. A smile spread across his lips and he headed home, levitating a bag of books in his bright, red aura. The young unicorn trotted through the sparkling, crystal streets of his home. Sombra lived in the Crystal Empire with his little brother, Moss. The tiny, five year old colt had come to live with his older brother when their parents died. Sombra turned down into an ally. A faint whispering caught his attention, scaring him. Sombra turned to see a strange stallion, pure black with a curved horn that faded into red. The strange unicorn's mane and tail looked as though it is was made of ink. Small drops fell off his mane and hit the ground, creating small jets of smoke.
The stallion's lips peeled back to reveal sharp fangs. There was a slight red tint on the sharp teeth, indicating that he'd been eating something with blood. A shiver ran down Sombra's spine at the sight of the blood. A forked tongue poked out from between the stallion's teeth and flicked over his lips. Sombra backed away from the strange pony, fear pumping through his body. An aura of purple and green encased the stallion's horn and his eyes turned green and red with purple smoke flowing out of the corners of his eyes. He kept backing Sombra into a corner, grinning. Sombra felt cold crystal on his flanks and instantly knew. He was trapped.
The stallion's grin widened and he came ever closer. Sombra felt frozen with fear as the strange stallion stopped mere inches away.
"I am the Shadow King. And you, my friend, are going to be my servant." A beam of dark magic shot out of his horn and hit Sombra's horn, encasing it in dark magic. Sombra's eyes shot wide open as his fur began to darken and his horn began to curve. Sombra felt immense pain rush through his forehead and jaws as sharp fangs sprouted from his jawbone. The strange stallion had begun to fade and as the transformation finished, a bolt of light shot into the air as a huge, cracking boom sounded. A piercing scream ripped out of Sombra's throat. The stallion collapsed, trembling, onto the cold crystal of the ally. His eyes opened a crack, allowing trails of purple smoke to flow out of the corners of his eyes. His ink black mane spread out over the road.
A tremor racked his body as the clopping of hooves reached his ears. Sombra got to his hooves and saw his little brother, along with some others, coming towards him, worry etched on their faces. Moss approached his trembling older brother, despite the urgings from the others to stay away from his brother. Sombra looked up at his brother, breathing heavily. Moss was beginning to get scared and started to back away from his older brother. Sombra started to growl at his brother, ignoring the other ponies. Moss began to tremble as his brother continued to advance.
Sombra's horn became encased in bubbling dark magic as he glared at his brother. A dark, shadowy mist surrounded the dark gray stallion. The mist began to swirl, continually getting faster until, with a huge BOOM , the mist swirled over the gathered ponies, killing all of them. Sombra grinned and heard a voice in his head.
"You are destined to rule the Crystal Empire. You are a the Shadow King." Sombra grinned and whipped his head back, laughing. Moss, who was the only one survived the misty blast, lay in a trembling ball inn front of his brother. Sombra looked down at the tiny colt in front of him and grinned. His fangs seemed to grow right in front of Moss. The tiny green colt froze as his brother lunged. Sombra buried his fangs in the tiny colt's back. Moss squealed as blood welled up and flowed down his back and sides. Sombra let go and let out a laugh as his little brother died at his hooves. The world would suffer for ignoring him. The world would suffer for the creation of a monster.
Afterwards, Sombra took over the Empire, only to be defeated by the princess'. When he was blasted by the Elements of Friendship and Harmony, he screamed out words that struck fear into their hearts.
" I WILL RETURN, CELESTIA! I SWEAR IT!"
Return of the Crystal Empire: Part 1
Cloud trotted down the hall, looking forward to completing his rounds so he could go home to his wife and one year old filly. A sudden rush of hooves caught his attention. Cloud looked up to see his friend, Sky, racing towards him, looking scared. Cloud ran towards Sky and called out to him.
"Sky! Hey, stop!" Sky skidded to a stop and looked over at his friend, his expression one of pure horror. Cloud walked over to his friend and spread a wing around Sky's shoulders, his worried blue eyes flicking around nervously. Sky was trembling under Cloud's wing, his own green eyes darting this way and that. Cloud sighed and coaxed his friend to sit down.
"Sky what's wrong? Your never this worked up." Sky shuddered and turned to his friend, complete and utter fear imprinted on his face. Finally, he spoke.
Cloud's hooves pounded on the pristine, marble floors, his chest heaving. Once Sky had told him the problem, that the Crystal Empire had returned along with... him , he'd abandoned his friend and shot down the hall, looking for Princess Celestia. Cloud spread his wings and beat them to get a speed boost. The pure white pegasus continued to barrel down the hallway, almost missing the gigantic, golden doors as he shot past them. Cloud slowed and turned, running back to the doors. He slammed a hoof against the doors, causing them to whip open and crash against the walls. Cloud raced towards the large, marble throne, where Celestia sat.
"News from Northern Equestria, uh, your Highness." The princess sent her secretary away and looked up at Cloud. A familiar jolt of electricity ran down his spine. Ever since he'd been recruited into Celestia's royal guard, he'd harbored a secret crush on the white Alicorn.
"Yes?" Even her soft voice sparked something in him. Cloud shook it off and got back to the topic he's come in here for.
"I just wanted to tell you that... it has returned. Shock washed over her face and she turned to Ray, the guard that stood beside her throne.
"Find Princess Cadence and Shining Armor." Cloud ran after Ray as the stallion shot away. The last thing he heard before he left the throne room was Celestia saying, "My dear Twilight, you must come to Canterlot at once."
"My dear Twilight, you must come to Canterlot at once. I have an assignment for you of the utmost importance. I want to give you a test. If you pass, you will be greatly rewarded. Please, try to make it here as soon as possible.
Your mentor,
Princess Celestia
Twilight trembled as she read and reread the letter. The princess wanted to give her a TEST! Twilight shot downstairs to grab study material, yanking Spike out of his bed with her magic. The baby dragon yelped as he was yanked from his bed, his eyes widening. Twilight barreled down the steps, her panic blinding her. Unable to stop as she reached the bottom of the steps, Twilight smashed into the wall, sending Spike hurtling out the door. Spike rolled to a stop in front of the girls.
"Spike. Are ya okay, Sugercube?" Spike looked up at Applejack and nodded. The girls looked up and saw Twilight shooting back and forth in front of the door. Rainbow and Applejack looked at each other and groaned. Applejack led the group towards the library, carrying Spike on her back. Once they got inside, Spike hopped off Applejack and ran to help Twilight.
"Ohhhh, where are all my quills?" Twilight was clearly panicking. She ran over to a shelf, and levitated her quills. The feathers fired like arrows through the air. Spike leapt up and caught the quills in a cloth bag. Twilight shot over to the bookshelves Yelling, "I need the Magical Compendiums Volumes 1-36. WHERE IS IT!?" Twilight started launching books off the shelf until she found a truly massive book. A large grin spread across Twilight's face and she pulled the gargantuan book off the shelf. She levitated the book over Spike, who reached up. Before being squashed by the huge book. Spike managed to stand up for a split second before falling back down under the intense weight of the book.
"Flashcards. I should make some flashcards. Spike, I'm going to need you to quiz me on everything I've ever learned. Ever." Spike looked at the two piles of cards in his claws as Twilight complained about how it wasn't enough cards. He put the piles down then said something he would quickly regret.
"Twilight, calm down, it's just a test."
"Just a test?" Twilight ran over to Spike and shouted, "JUST A TEST! Princess Celestia wants to give me some sort of exam and your telling me to calm down because it's just a TEST!" Spike tensed then grabbed pillows and a helmet and strapped them to his body before whimpering, " Um, yes?" Twilight's horn began to fizz.
" Ah think she's handelin' this pretty well. Figurin'" Twilight gave a frustrated shout as a dust outline of the tree flew into the air. The girls as well as a singed Spike stared at Twilight, (glared, in the case of Spike). Twilight grinned sheepishly and laughed. Spike rubbed off the ash on his face and chest.
"Maybe we should just go to Canterlot." Twilight grinned and nodded.
Twilight pushed open the huge, golden doors and cleared her throat, getting the attention of the two princess'. Celestia whispered something to Luna and the blue Alicorn nodded and left, glancing at Twilight as she walked out. Celestia turned to Twilight as the lavender unicorn walked towards her.
"I brought my own quills and plenty of paper to show my work." A scroll fell out of her saddlebags and unrolled down to the princess. Twilight's eyes widened.
"Sorry, SORRY!" Celestia rolled the scroll up and levitated Twilight's bag over to herself.
"This is a different kind of test. The Crystal Empire has returned." Twilight's eyes widened and she levitated some books over to herself.
"The Crystal Empire? I'm sorry, I thought I studied. Oh, I don't think there's anything in any of my books that would..."
"There wouldn't be." Twilight looked up in shock as Celestia continued. "Few remember it ever existed at all. Even my knowledge of the empire is limited. But what I do know is that it contains a powerful magic." Celestia set a crystal on the marble floor and hit it with a burst of magic, creating a miniature city with ponies trotting around. A castle formed in the middle of the city.
"One thousand years ago, King Sombra, a unicorn whose heart was black as night, took over the Crystal Empire. He ruled without mercy for ten years. However, he was ultimately overthrown, turned to shadow and banished to the ice of the arctic north."
"If the Empire is filled with hope and love," Celestia shot a beam of flowing magic at the crystal that was now levitating in her magic. "those things are reflected across all of Equestria. If hatred and fear take hold." Celestia's eyes turned green while her horn became coated in bubbling purple and green magic. A blast of magic hit the levitating crystal. A black shadow spread over the floor towards Twilight. A pure black crystal grew out of the floor. Two more shadows spread, making two more crystals. Twilight looked at the crystals, her eyes filled with fear. Celestia's eyes then glowed white, her magic destroying the dark crystals.
"Which is why i need your help finding a way to protect it."
"You want me to help protect an entire empire?"
"It is, as I said, a different kind of test. But one I'm certain you will pass."
Return of the Crystal Empire: Part 2
Previously on ' The Shadow King'
"Which is why i need your help finding a way to protect it."
"You want me to help protect an entire empire?"
"It is, as I said, a different kind of test. But one I'm certain you will pass."
Twilight looked up at Celestia and nodded.
"Where to I begin?" Celestia smiled.
"By going to meet Princess Cadence and Shining Armor in the Crystal Empire." Twilight smiled and followed the white Alicorn as Celestia headed towards the door.
"My brother is there?" Celestia nodded while saying, "He is. And your pony friends while meet you there as well." The two mares left the throne room and noticed Princess Luna standing outside the door. Twilight shrunk under the blue mare's intense gaze. Suddenly, an intense feeling of uncertainty swept through the lavender mare. She turned to Celestia, her eyes filled with fear.
"But, what if I fail?"
"You won't." Twilight looked down, her mind still roiling with uncertainty.
"But, what if..." Celestia placed a white hoof on Twilight's shoulder, getting her attention, and smiled.
"You won't. But Twilight." Twilight turned to face the princess', waiting as Celestia continued. " It must be you and you alone who ultimately assists Princess Cadence and Shining Armor in doing what needs to be done to protect the Empire. Do you understand?" Twilight nodded and her uncertainty was replaced with confidence.
"Then go. There's not a moment to waste." The doors to the throne room slammed shut. Twilight's confidence faded as she turned and left. As she trotted down the halls, the only sound she could hear was the clopping of her hooves on the marble tiles. The castle doors loomed up in front of her and became cloaked in a deep green aura. Twilight stepped thought the large doors as they swung open, nodding in thanks to the two guards on ether side of the doorway.
Spike was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs. He jumped up and started asking what score Twilight got. She just remained silent as the baby dragon kept talking. Suddenly he stopped talking as a horrifying thought struck him.
"Huh, Twilight. Did you... fail?" Twilight looked up, sorrow printed on her face.
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"Um.. prepared for what exactly?"
"Twilight." Twilight looked up and saw her friends running over to her. A gentle smile stretched across her face.
"How'd it go?" Twilight opened her mouth to answer Applejack but was interrupted by a pink face filling her vision. Pinkie backed up and pulled out her party cannon.
"Are we going to celebrate your awesomeness with Princess Celestia?" The cannon fired and Pinkie leapt up with the confetti spray but fell back down as Twilight said no.
"We're going to the Crystal Empire." Twilight smiled as the girls began to act all confused. She began explaining the test that Celestia had assigned to her and within the next few minutes they were on the train on their way to the Crystal Empire'
The train door slide open, revealing a raging blizzard. The girls were instantly assaulted by a feeling of extreme cold. Rarity mocked her friends about the amount of scarves she brought, Spike saying that he hadn't said a word about Rarity's scarf choices. After which he dropped the suitcase of scarves, said case breaking open and scarves blowing away in the wind. Spike ran after the scarves as a shape appeared in the blizzard.
"Twilight!" Twilight squinted into the storm and suddenly recognized the stallion.
"Shining Armor?" The white stallion lowered his scarf and levitated his goggles on top of his head. A smile spread across his face at the sight of his sister and her friends. His bright blue eyes filled with joy when he saw the six of them.
"Twily, you made it." He walked up to the group and pulled his little sister into a hug. But as he pulled back, his eyes seemed troubled.
"We should get moving. There are things out here we really don't want to run into after dark." Fluttershy looked at Rainbow Dash and gulped before asking, "What kind of things?" Shining Armor cast a slightly scared look at the girls.
"Let's just say that the empire isn't the only thing that's returned. I'll tell you on the way." The girls followed Shining Armor into the blizzard, making sure to stay close to the white stallion.
"Something keeps trying to get in! We think it's the unicorn king that originally cursed the place!" Twilight's face twisted with confusion at this remark.
"But Celestia said I was being sent to protect the Crystal Empire? If King Sombra can't get in then it must already be protected..." Twilight was about to continue when a howl cut her off. The whole group froze. Fluttershy trembled before she asked the question that was on everypony's minds.
"Huh... that's one of the things, isn't it?" Shining Armor turned to the girls and yelled, "we have to go. NOW!" A black cloud rose up behind the girls. Spike's eyes widened as his face contorted with fear. The top of the cloud had green and red eyes with purple smoke flowing out of the eyes. The girls turned and bolted, Twilight urging them to hurry. Shining Armor looked over the girls and saw that they were getting tired. With out a distraction, the cloud of smoke that was King Sombra would surely catch them. Having no other choice, Shining Armor skidded to a stop and faced the monster. His horn fizzed and a pale purple beam shot out of his horn towards the cloud. Sombra's eyes widened and he ducked the shot before flying down towards Shining Armor.
Sombra's magic wove around Shining armor's horn and made a magic barrier out of dark crystals. Shining Armor screamed as he felt searing pain cut through his horn and forehead. Sombra laughed as Shining Armor's cape and hood burned off. The dark cloud threw Shining Armor towards the force field and laughed once more.
Shining Armor slid to a stop inside the force field in front of Twilight and her friends. Twilight looked over at him and horror filled her eyes.
"Oh no. Shining Armor, your HORN." Shining tried to channel magic into his horn but only felt a sharp pain in his forehead as the crystals blocked his power. His expression turned to one of worry as he and the girls got to their hooves and headed towards the city. Even the emerald green grass sparkled like jewels. The girls started to chat as they continued walking. Pinkie was the first to see the sparkling city and brought their attention to it by exclaiming, "SPARKLERIFIFC!"