The train pulls up to the beautiful Crystal Empire. A white alicorn who had soft blue hair with a pink strip running through both her main and tail, walk off the train. Her Green eyes look towards the Crystal castle. A familiar voice was heard from behind.
"Cherish, there you are. How was the train ride?" The voice came from an all Pink alicorn with purple and yellow strips running there her main and tail.
"Cadence." stated Cherish, as she opened her wings and ran towards the pink alicorn.
Cherish and Cadence both giggled and laughed together as they walked the halls of the Crystal castle.
"Thanks again for letting me stay her while I explore the winter waste." Cherish smiled.
"It's not a problem. What are you looking for out their anyway?" Cadence questioned.
Cherish took a deep breath. "Well, I'm looking to see if anything else woke up from my timeline. When the Crystal Empire's glow returned to Equestria and freed me from my Crystal Tomb, it could have awoken more then just me. There was a great war and many forms of powerful dark magic was used from all sides. My mother and Father taught me how to use and seal dark magic, so I just want to make sure nothing is out hiding in the snow. Only alicorn's can control and seal dark magic, I even know a spell to pull dark magic from living animals. It is a painful process but I hope to never have to use it again. "
"Wow, Well if you need any help, Please let me know. I will do whatever it takes to help keep my empire and Equestria safe." Cadence said as she opened the door to the guest room.
"Thank you Cadence, I will."
Cherish walked into the room, using her magic to close the curtains and plop on the bed. "Nothing beats a nap."
Next day-
Cherish was flying over the snow, her horn was glowing as she was scanning the ground to find anything that might be hiding. She thought to herself 'I should be grateful that nothing is here, but I still feel like something is hiding from me.' A small snow storm starts to pick up and white out everything in front of her eyes. She spots a small cave with her magic and lands inside. 'Well I guess I'm hiding here till the snow passes.'
''Ree-llleeaasseee mmmeeee'' A deep voice echoes from the back of the cave.
Cherish shined a light from her horn and carefully started to head towards the sound as it spoke again.
''Ree-llleeaasseee mmmeeee''
As Cherish reach the back of the cave she saw a red glow, almost stuck to the wall. She wrapped her magic around and pulled the light from the wall. "It's a horn." A black/red, slightly curved horn.
''Ree-llleeaasseee mmmeeee'' The voice spoke again.
"I'll pass.'' She said with a smirk as she laid on the ground and set the horn in front of her.
"You will release me." The voice proclaimed.
"Yeah, no." Cherish covered herself with her wings to help keep warm.
"How dare you defy me." The Voice was now angry in tone.
"Look, I don't know who you were but what ever is left of you is clouded by dark magic." Cherish opened her saddle bag and pulled out a small black bag; she then placed the horn in the bag and used her magic to place a spell on the bag. "When your mind is free from the blackness, I will consider releasing you, till that time you will stay with me in this bag. And don't try to talk to other ponies, the spell I used only allows me to hear you. To the rest of Equestria, your just a bag with a stick."
"I AM KING SOMBRA !!! YOU WILL RELESE ME AND I WILL PUNISH YOU FOR YOUR INSOLENCE!!"
"Yeah, your not anything but a horn, and sad day for you, I know how to deal with dark magic, for I am Cherish, Sister of Celestia and Luna, and I will do whatever it takes to keep Equestria and my family safe."
... Sombra grumbled at cherish statement.
Cherish placed the bag between her front legs and laid her head down. Her horn glowed as she drifted off to sleep.
The place was dark and a pair of Green eyes with purple like flames, and white fanged teeth appeared in front of cherish. She opened her wings and held her head high.
"Brave little alicorn thinks she can enter my mind." Sombra's ghostly voice spoke.
"This is not your mind shadow and I will find the stallion who's mind this truly belongs too." Cherish's horn lite up with a white light as it formed a dome of light around her.
"This is my mind now. That stallion you search for is lost in my shadow." The glowing eye's moved away from the light.
Cherish rolled her eyes and started to walk, searching the never ending shadow for any sign of, anything.
It felt like hours she heard a small wimpier. Her ears pointed up and she started to look around. He had to be near. Cherish summoned all her strength and stretched the light as far as she could push it, and off to her right was a small Gray colt, who was curled in a ball, shaking like he was frozen to the bone. His horn was black and straight and there was no cutie mark. Cherish almost started to cry at the sight. The horn she has is of a full grown stallion, but this. This shadow has beat him down till he felt like nothing, until he was so small, so hopeless, that he would never fight back. Cherish walked over the the little colt and laid down next to him, back to back, and laid her wing over him. The light receded and once again just domed around the 2 of them.
Cadence was staring out into the icy waste. ’That snow storm has been going on all day.’ She thought to herself. ‘I hope Cherish is safe.’
In a small cave a Cherish was still asleep and her horn was still glowing. She was still in the Sombra’s mind, with her wing wrapped around the small filly Sombra, and her warm light still protecting them from the darkness.
‘’Why do you continue to sit with that weak little thing. He is nothing and this is MY mind now. You will never save him.’’ The shadow Sombra voice spoke all around the small light dome.
“I will sit here as long as I need to.’’ Cherish spoke with a firmness in her voice. “And when he is ready, I will teach the real Sombra how to put a shadow like you in your place.’’
“What do you know of me.’’ The shadow Sombra growled. “I am power and strength and with out me, he would be nothing. He needs me and you, little alicorn, know nothing of what I am.’’
Cherish started to laugh, an in doing so it made the little filly stop shaking and look up at her.
“You are not strength but a poison. If I had been around when Sombra first summons your darkness, I would have pulled you from his horn like a poison. “ Cherish Look at the little filly. “But you have been poisoned for so long now that it is apart of who you are. Only you can control it.”
The small filly spoke in a quite little voice. “I don’t have the power to stop him.” He laid back down. “He is right you might as well leave me.”
Cherish faced the filly Sombra and wrapped her front legs and wings around him, hugging him. “The truth is you do have the power.” She whispered. “And he is afraid you will use it.”
Filly Sombra Grew a little in size once he heard her words.
Several hours past in Sombra’s mind. The filly no longer shaking, but feeling somewhat safe in Cherish’s warm light that she had kept around him.
“Why?” The little filly ask looking into the dark. “Why help me, why bother? This was my fault and this is now my prison for the crimes I have committed.”
Cherish took a deep breath and looked off into the darkness. “Because I know what it’s like to lose yourself in the darkness, to think this is the kind of power you need to achieve your goals. The truth is Sombra, you made a bad judgment call and paid the price, but no one should suffer.”
Cherish stood up and looked at Sombra. “Are you ready to learn?”
Sombra took a deep breath and nodded his head. Cherish just smiled.
“First thing is first, You have to grow up. Become who you truly are and not as this shadow see’s you. Then you will be able to use the spell to control him.”
“But, I don’t understand. How can I grow up when I don’t know who I am. “ The Filly sat down. “I don’t even remember how I got like this.” His head now facing the ground.
Cherish used her wing to lift his chin. “That doesn’t matter. Memories are not what you need, You need to feel tall, you need to feel in control. The shadow makes you feel small and weak, it wants to control you. Just close your eyes and feel the warmth of my light that is around us, feel for the magic inside your heart. You have seen the shadow, but he is the one who stole your body. Picture your self tall and the shadow as small. You can control this world easier then that shadow can.”
Sombra stood up, closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He then peeked, but nothing has changed. “I … I can’t … I CAN’T!!!” Sombra laid on the ground, he felt defeated before he even really tried.
Cherish stood over Sombra. “You only can’t if you don’t try, and trying involves more then just standing tall. I will not happen over night but you have to try to tell yourself ‘I’m better then a shadow, I’m stronger then a shadow, This is my mind.’ You have to believe it inside and out and you will find that you will start to grow a little at a time.”
“So, I’m not getting big now. Will you stay till I can get big?” Sombra asked looking up at Cherish.
“I will be near but I can’t stay here. But you can talk to me anytime you need.” Cherish Smiles
Cherish horn lite up and both Sombra and Cherish Right eyes Glowed. Sombra rubbed his eyes and looked at Cherish.
“What was that?” Sombra asked.
“It was a spell that linked our vision, so when you close your eyes you can see what I see. This will help you see the world that you missed out on. Plus, when I’m not here, you don’t have to feel alone.”
“You make it sound like your leaving now.” Sombra’s ear laid back, sadden by this thought.
“I am nearly waking up, but you will always be near me Sombra.”
Cherish gave Sombra one last hug as he and her light faded away. Once she was gone Sombra feared the dark would surround him again but was surprised that a small layer of light was still around him.
‘Somber.’ Cherish voice echoed near him. ‘My light will stay with you, it from the spell I cast, so don’t be afraid.’
Somber smiled, knowing for the first time, he was no longer alone in the dark.
