It was another beautiful day in the Crystal Empire, the flawless crystalline structures of the many buildings belonging to the Crystal Ponies shining brightly in the light of the summer sun. The many citizens of this marvelous wonder of a city went about their daily lives as usual, some occasionally stopping to converse with their fellow neighbors while others merely smiled and greeted each other before moving on to carry out their business. At the far side of the city, a group of foals were preparing for a game of war, wielding short wooden swords and wearing poorly-crafted homemade 'armor.' There was one in particular who stood triumphantly atop a small boulder before them, looking down at his ragtag army with a playful glint in his eyes. His coat was a dull grey, and his mane was a sleek, shiny black. The two features that stood out the most were his red eyes and oddly-shaped horn. Along his body were pieces of makeshift armor and he wore a wooden helmet on his head, which he had used silver paint to make it look somewhat more realistic. His sword was a long stick with a long curve that served as his blade.
"My friends!" He shouted, his voice slightly high-pitched and with just a hint of bass. "Today, we fight in the name of our families! We fight to protect our homes, and for the Crystal Empire!" The foals cheered as their leader jumped down from his rock and took his place in front of them.
"I, Sombra of the Crystal Army, will lead you valiant warriors into battle." Sombra drew his sword with his magic, the colts behind him doing the same as he charged forward. "Follow me to victory!For the Crystal Empire!"
"For the Crystal Empire!" The army of young ponies followed closely behind Sombra as he galloped for the city gates. There were various scarecrows positioned along the clearing, each draped in red capes to signify them as the enemy. Sombra could imagine them being real, invaders from another land coming to take over, but he wouldn't let them. For he was Sombra, king of the Crystal Empire, and the greatest warrior of all time! He howled a high-pitched battle cry as he approached one of his enemies. Once he was close enough, he leaped at his opponent, swinging his sword and striking the scarecrow in the head. Straws of hay flew in all directions, the helmet atop its head falling to the ground as Sombra dashed away with a cloud of dust trailing behind him. His first enemy had been vanquished! Now it was time to defeat the rest of them. He looked around in search of his next opponent, only to find that there were none left; everypony else had an enemy to fight but him. At first, the young unicorn looked discouraged, but his attitude changed when he saw his next target.
"Ha! You cannot escape me!" Sombra charged at the pony-shaped figure, examining its every feature. Its coat was a dark shade of blue-ish grey, and its etheral mane resembled the night sky; flowing in a non-existent wind. Right as he was about to swing his weapon, the dummy turned to look at him, a fearful expression on its face. Wait, that's not a dummy! Sombra dug his hooves into the ground in an attempt to stop himself, but he merely started skidding straight towards the pony.
"Watch out!" It was a young fillies voice that came from the filly. But despite her warning, she was forced to stand as he collided with her, causing them to tumble in the dirt before colliding into a tree with a loud crash!. As the dust settled, Sombra stumbled back onto his hooves. He looked over himself to see that he had not sustained any injuries, but his armor was torn to shreds and his helmet had split in two, lying at his hooves. Sombra scowled. His father had made that helmet for him! He was about to turn around and yell at whoever was responsible for destroying his most precious item when he heard the soft sound of crying and whimpering. He looked down at the base of the tree to see that young filly had a large scrape on her left fore hoof, and scrapes and bruises covering her tiny form. His anger quickly died down, and it was replaced by an overwhelming feeling of guilt. He definitely did not mean to hurt her.
Sombra crouched down beside the small filly. "Oh no," he said. "I'm so, so sorry about that." The little filly looked up at him with tears in her eyes. At this angle, Sombra could see her wings... And her horn. She's an ALICORN. "Look, can I help you? I... Does it hurt?" She nodded.
"It... It hurts a lot..."
"I can make it stop hurting, okay? But you have to trust me." The filly looked thoughtful for a moment before she nodded, earning a sigh of relief from Sombra. He pointed his horn at her wound and his magic consumed her fore hoof. At first, she winced, but then she could see that the gash was starting to shrink. It grew smaller and smaller, until finally, it was gone; like it was never there. She stared at her hoof in awe, then a smile graced her features as she looked at him gratefully.
"Th-Thank you!" The filly wrapped her hooves around Sombra's neck, nuzzling his neck."Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
Sombra's face turned a shade of red as he looked down at her. "I... Um... Your welcome?" She giggled and let go of him, her eyes shining with joy.
"What's your name?"
"Me?" Sombra smirked and put a hoof up to his chest. "I am Sombra, greatest warrior in all the Crystal Empire!" Once he realized how silly he was acting, he put his hoof down and blushed, laughing nervously. "Well, according to my dad I am." The young alicorn giggled again.
"Well, Sombra," she began. "I am Luna, Princess of the Night! And, like you, that is what my mommy says I am."
Sombra chuckled and gave her a mock bow. "It is an honor to make your acquaintance, m'lady."
"What does that mean?"
He shrugged. "I have no idea." He gave her a sheepish smile. "So... Do you wanna' be friends?"
Luna gasped excitedly. "I would love to be friends with you!" She wrapped her hooves around his neck once more, and Sombra rolled his eyes, smiling.
Author's Note
And.... DONE!!! This is what I like to call: "Gimp Knee Writing." That means that this is something I just wrote while I was in the hospital. Good lord, the stress is OVER!
Anyways, please comment and slap that like button! This story was meant for the 2015 EverfreeNorthwest Pre-con Competition. I hope you enjoy this story that I conjured up last minute, and please leave ANY form of criticism.
Silver Chord
