The Darkest Hour

Twilight stared at the figures of her older brother and sister-in-law. Her unfocused, hazy gaze became fixated on the two royalties that stood in front of her. She knew that they were dead. She knew that they were being possessed somehow by King Sombra. Even with all of this knowledge, she refused to accept. She refused to accept they were gone now. She refused to believe Sombra would stoop to such low levels. However, he had stooped to said levels. He knew that there still a bit of light and innocence in her heart that would have caused her to not attack her dear loved ones. Sombra used this to his advantage. He manipulated their bodies through the unrealistically strong Dark Magic he had developed in his years of isolation. Even if his magic was controlling their limbs, they retained all of their strength whether it be physical or magical.

Even in this dazed state where Twilight couldn't control her body, her subconscious still recognized the two ponies that she had spent her childhood with. The magical chains that nearly penetrated her siblings began to slowly retract. The only sound that was heard were the distorted rattles of the chains. They slowly moved back to Twilight's sides and retreated back into her body as she took another step backwards, both in fear and confusion. Twilight tried to make eye-contact with her brother, but his gaze was towards the ground with his unruly hair covering his face. The same expression was also placed upon the Princess of Love. Twilight extended her right arm in front of her and a desperate look overcame her face. It were as if she were trying to reach and grab something distant.

"Shining... Cadance..." she muttered quietly. Her hand began to grab at the air before returning back to her body as she had her palm rest against her heart. There was a deep pain that emitted from her chest. She suddenly felt sick to her stomach as if she were going to vomit at a moments notice. There was this feeling of nausea around her as her legs began to shake ever-so-slightly. The images of the two in front of her began to slowly blur.

Twilight lifted her left hand up to her face. She touched right under her left eye. There was a liquid substance that covered her fingertips. She was crying. Twilight quickly shook her head and wiped her tears away, then refocused her gaze at King Sombra. However, the two figures in front of her had vanished. Her eyes widened and her mouth gaped wide. The sudden impact of fist against flesh began very apparent to her the moment she felt Shining's knuckles collide with her stomach. His fist dug into her abdomen three inches before Twilight was propelled backwards. She didn't have the comfort of landing against an obstacle. Cadance had grabbed Twilight's right arm in mid-flight and slammed her onto the pavement. The ground shook and cracked from the impact. All Twilight could do was let out a struggled and loud groan. Then she scream as the sounds of brittle bones snapping filled the air. Cadance swiftly broke Twilight's right arm and let the loose limb fall to the ground.

The chains erupted from Twilight's backside once more, but were snatched by Shining. The acidic affect did nothing to the hand that grasped a firm hold on the chains. Twilight had unconsciously refrained from using the burning properties. The chains snapped easily and dispersed into the void. She attempted to get onto her knees, but the moment her body left the ground, a harsh foot was planted on her back and forced her back down. She looked up to King Sombra standing over her with a smirk on his face. Everything seemed to turn dark around them in Twilight's eyes. She saw Sombra towering over her and her siblings were idly standing behind the malicious king. She could only see their silhouettes and white glowing eyes. They seemed to penetrate her body and stare directly into her soul. Never had she seen such angered expressions that they now wore. She was terrified.

Twilight knew that her life was at an end. Her inner self lost control of Twilight's body. Her eyes became re-focused and she regained control of her body. Twilight knew what was happening. Even thought she had no control beforehand, she could still see and hear everything that had happened. Twilight's eyes closed and she chose to accept her fate. There was nothing that she could do to prevent this. Nothing. Twilight succumbed to the darkness that followed.

Twilight awoke with a sudden jolt. She was surrounded by the darkness that she had grown accustomed to. The body of her subconscious rested on her right side. However, unlike before, the corrupted Twilight that rested next to her seemed normal. Her neck wasn't mangled and her body slowly rose from the intake of air and slowly fell from the exhale. Twilight hesitantly reached out to touch the darkened figure that laid next to her, but suddenly stopped. The body rose from its laying position and turned to face Twilight. There was no grin and smirk or even a hint of anger on the figure's face. The only expression she gave off was one of sorrow and overwhelming sadness. Tears slide down her left cheek. Twilight took note that the corrupt subconscious of her was crying only out of her left eye. Even with the knowledge of what was going to happen to her physical body, she became intrigued by this. Twilight edged closer to her darker self until their bodies were only inches away. The corrupt Twilight made no efforts of moving away as she just stared at the ground.

"I'm so sorry..." she muttered softly to Twilight.

Twilight shook her head and spoke in a quiet, calm voice, "It's completely fine. I'm not angry at you, so don't be so gloomy over what you did, okay? I mean, we are the same person after all, right?" Twilight couldn't help but giggle softly.

The corrupted subconscious looked up at Twilight in surprise. She had thought that her own body would be angry at her, reject her for what she had done. She took over her owner by forcing her out and taking control. She had placed these nightmares on her owners own mind to drive her insane. Even though all of these were thrown at Twilight, she didn't deter whatsoever. Twilight held strong to her mental state and even drove out the corruption inside of her.

Twilight smiled softly at the subconscious version of herself and placed her right hand on the figures shoulder. There was warmth that flooded throughout the subconscious Twilight's body. She was suddenly overcome with an emotion that she hadn't felt since her body was that of a foals: Happiness. She felt content with this feeling as her eyes slowly closed. She rested against her owner as Twilight gently stroked her mane.

"I guess this is end for us, huh? I'm glad we got to make amends and get on an understanding ground." Twilight spoke with a gentleness in her voice that calmed down her subconscious. The subconscious Twilight that rested against her nodded softly and let out a quiet sigh. She wanted to spend more time with her physical self, but there was little chance of that happening now that King Sombra had pinned her down. The darkness around them began to slowly fade away. The coldness began to migrate away and was being replaced by a gentle warmth. Twilight rested against the regrown silver-leafed tree while holding her subconscious in her arms. The ground flooded with color. They both sat on the soft, vivid green grass as they watched flowers sprout and bloom all over them. Patches of daisies, tulips, and other assortment of flowers grew around the pair. The sky turned into a bright blue with a little amount of clouds to block out the blazing sun. They both sat under the shade of the tree and waited for their end.

However, the end that befell them was something they hadn't expect to happen.

Just as King Sombra swung his sword down to impale the mare on the ground, he stopped. An overwhelming feeling of anxiety flooded through his systems. The feeling was so intense and powerful that it had forced him to stagger backwards. He viciously swung his head back and forth, left and right, up and down. Shining Armor stood in front of Sombra while Princess Cadance moved to his back. Their own will was being denied as they were forced to protect their new master from this new source of danger. The bright afternoon suddenly became dark. The intensity of the darkness that fell onto him wasn't natural. There was nothing natural about this new development.  After all, it made King Sombra feel as though there were a blade that was tightly pressed against his neck and was ready to slit his throat in two at a moments notice.

Sombra looked down at his feet from the lack of ground against his sole. His foot slammed onto the cracked ground before he even realized Twilight had vanished from under him. Sombra couldn't see it, but he could feel the presence of death. His body tensed as he swung his sword upwards towards his left to parry the oncoming strike. His instincts were sharp enough to warn him of the unseen danger as his sword had narrowly redirected an oncoming blade.

He barely dodged and weaved through three more strikes. Sombra couldn't see anything and relied purely on his battle-honed instincts to sense and avoid these strikes.

"You two! Search for whoever is attacking me! Now!" he roared at Shining and Cadance. Swiftly, the two royalties began to dash around King Sombra and striking at the darkness in hopes of finding the offender. However, their efforts ended up fruitless as they were striking at only air. After several moments passed with their efforts in vain, they stopped from exhaustion. King Sombra's eyes darted left and right as he tried to anticipate the next strike. Nothing was thrown towards him for several seconds. His body eventually eased with the onslaught of attacks finally coming to an end.

However, the ever-so-present presence of fear still lingered through the air. Suddenly, the area around him began to get engulfed in a thick, dark mist. He simply ignored this new development, but froze when his eyes locked upon the silhouettes of two others standing in front of him just a few feet away. One was clad in a orange-yellow armor. It shone brightly and pierced through the darkness that was around them. The other figure, however, was the source of his fear. She wore black-purple armor that seemed to radiate off a dangerous and threatening presence, even more-so than the figure next to her. The Princess of the Sun and Princess of the Moon were both standing in front of King Sombra. Their expressions were that of pure hatred and anger. He saw that the Princess of the Sun, Celestia, was carrying Twilight in her arms. Sombra took one step forward. One moment he was safe, the next, Luna was at his throat. She wielded a large scythe and the blade was as sharp as can be. The littlest contact between Sombra's neck and Luna's weapon was enough to draw blood. He dared not to move or else his head would be taken.

Both Shining and Cadance dashed forward to try and assist King Sombra, but were abruptly stopped from the glare Luna casted upon them. Even though they were puppets being controlled from the shadows, they still had emotions. They simply stood still, frozen in fear. Sombra began to breath heavily. His chest rose and fell more rapidly than usual. He knew his life was at the mercy of the Princess of the Moon. He could feel the raw emotions that emitted from her scythe and the desires to end his life. However, she didn't. It was more of that she couldn't. Sombra, knowing that Luna would have killed him within seconds, used his left hand to restrain her body from moving any further. She grunted from the unexpected resistance. It took her seconds to realize what was keeping her still, as she realized that Sombra's magic was the cause. However, she realized moments too late as Shining and Cadance towered over Luna. They both raised their fists and swung down in unison. The former King and Queen intended to crush Luna's skull with their fists. Celestia couldn't simply stand and watch this atrocity of the dead. With the glow of her horn, she casted forward a blinding light. Both Shining and Cadance recoiled from the sudden intrusion. Their vision couldn't adjust to the sudden light that shone so they were forced to shield their eyes. This had stopped their attack on Luna and she had managed to cut off the shadows that restrained her movements. She kicked herself off the ground to return to her sister's side.

Sombra glared at the two of them. He was clearly outmatched considering his power was still in the process of returning to him. It was coming at an excruciatingly painful rate and he knew that his body would drop before all of it returned. Sombra knew there was only one thing he could do. He gritted his teeth and veins popped out from his temples. His decision came with great frustration. Sombra had never retreated in his life, but he knew that it was the only option at this point.

Sombra pointed his finger at Luna and Celestia and spoke calmy and confidently, "One day, the both of you shall drop by my hands. When you both are gone, I will finish off that purple mare's bloodline and make her apart of my army. I shall rule Equestria whether you agree to it or not." Sombra striked at the air in front of him with his left hand. Suddenly, Sombra, Shining Armor, and Cadance vanished. Luna released the spell that she placed in the area. The light began to return as the mist slowly faded away. The serious and angered expressions of the two changed quickly into one of concern. Celestia looked down at Twilight and held onto her tightly. Luna rushed to examine the purple mare in her sister's arms.

Twilight had bruises and cuts all over her body. They both sensed that her magic was nearly depleted. However, one thing concerned them more than anything - Was she still mentally stable? They knew how bad Twilight was when she began to unravel. At first hand experiences, they both encountered her wicked subconscious taking over and controlling her body. Celestia kissed Twilight's forehead and let out a ragged breath.

"Twilight... You poor thing.." she spoke softly before turning to Luna. "Luna, we're going back home. Also..." her face suddenly turned serious and her entire tone changed into something that complemented her position as the ruler of Equestria, "...we're going to war."