Braveheart: The Untold Stories Episode 19: Brutal Tenacity
I woke up with a cold feeling and a headache. I groaned and sat up, holding my head to get rid of the migraine. As I looked around, I appeared to be inside a black crystal dungeon cell. I tried to cast a spell to unlock the door, but the spell merely reflected off the black crystal.
“Damn,” I muttered. I tried to blast the door off the hinges with a magic blast, but that didn’t work either. The black smoke flowed into the room, in front of the door. It materialized into the stallion silhouette, then faded into a pony. The stallion had a dark grey coat, a red robe with white lining, and a flowing black mane. His retinas were green with bright red pupils, and his teeth had fangs in the front. He wore a silver crown and his horn was the one from the stand in the cave. I recognized him instantly, because I had read about him in Twilight’s library.
“Sombra,” I hissed.
“Nice to know somepony else knows about me,” Sombra said in a deep voice.
“Were you the voice in my head, telling me my fate was sealed?” I demanded. Sombra chuckled.
“You definitely didn’t need a detective to figure that out,” Sombra mocked. Furious, I blasted a powerful spell at the door, but it merely exploded on the bars. Sombra didn’t even flinch. I breathed heavily in rage.
“Only a fool would lash out in rage,” Sombra growled. I calmed down a little, but stayed firm.
“What do you want with me?” I asked, sitting down against a crystal wall.
“Information,” Sombra said. “Where are Princess Celestia and Princess Luna?” I gave a small laugh.
“Wouldn’t you like to know,” I smirked. I heard Sombra growl. My smile faded and turned to a serious frown. I narrowed my eyes and looked Sombra dead in his.
“Well?” Sombra urged, impatiently.
“They’re dead,” I simply said. “They died in a fire that burned down Canterlot Castle.” Sombra’s hard glare softened in surprise. He turned around to take this in. I could hear him muttering and swearing. I quietly stood up, ready to try and break out of the cell. I raised up my Terminator hoof and waited for the opportune moment. Sombra kept his back turned for a good while, giving me time to calculate the direction and force of the door. I wanted to hit Sombra hard, so I could escape. When Sombra was standing with his side facing me, I swung. The door dislodged from the hinges, and went flying towards Sombra. The door struck Sombra hard, sending him sprawling back. The door landed on him, pinning him to the floor. I bolted from the cell and out of the jail room. I ran up carved crystal stairs and into a hall of black crystal, similar to the former Canterlot Castle’s stained glass hall. I sprinted for the exit, but the black smoke slammed in front of me, blocking my way. Sombra rematerialized as did a large black scythe. The blade shimmered as Sombra barred his teeth.
“You dare to escape?” he growled. “I have no need for you now, but I will not let you leave alive.”
“Try me,” I dared. I extended the hidden blade from my Terminator hoof and prepared to fight. “Let’s go, you bastard,” I hissed. Sombra reacted quickly and lunged at me. The scythe came down, but I blocked it with my mechanical leg. The clang rang out, shattering loose crystals in the hall. I slid underneath the scythe and jumped back up, clubbing Sombra in the jaw. I spread my wings and hovered in the air, clearly pissing off Sombra. His horn crackled and black crystals rose up from the ground quickly. I rolled in the air to avoid the attack, and another pillar of crystal came flying. I flew through the hall, avoiding Sombra’s attacks while bombing him with magic blasts. Fed up with my act, Sombra morphed into black smoke and rocketed up to me. The smoke engulfed me, clouding my vision.
When I could see, I was in front of my house. Confused, I stepped inside and looked around. Sunset Shimmer was asleep on the couch, and the Purple Pony was approaching her. I tried to yell, but I couldn’t speak. The Purple Pony drew his knife, and I ran up, tackling him.
I was suddenly back in Sombra’s Crystal Hall, and I was on top of Sombra. I brought down my hidden blade, impaling Sombra in the chest. I stood up and stepped back. Sombra struggled to stand, but when he did, he used his magic to heal the wound. I ran at Sombra again, and threw him against a crystal pillar. The pillar cracked, and the ceiling caved in. I put up a magic shield, and the rubble bounced off. When the dust had settled, black crystal, rock, and snow were piled up, making an opening to the surface of the Frozen North. I dissipated the shield and walked to where Sombra was sticking out. His chest, front hooves, and head were visible, and he was bleeding badly. His horn had been broken off, buried somewhere in the rubble. Sombra opened his eyes, clinging to his last bit of life. His eyes glowed green and the purple smoke emitted from them.
“Your life ends here Sombra,” I growled. I extended my hidden blade and drove it into Sombra’s throat. A green mist suddenly flew from Sombra’s eyes and made their way into my eyes and mouth. I coughed, yanking out the hidden blade. My vision suddenly went really blurry, and the green tint returned, but stronger.
“Surrender your will,” Sombra’s voice hissed inside my head.
“Never!” I said, struggling to keep control.
“You can’t fight it,” Sombra said.
“I can and I will, damn it!” I said, gripping my head. The tip of my horn faded to a bright red, and purple smoke emanated from my eyes. My teeth grew fangs, and I started losing focus.
“You can’t fight my power,” Sombra said. The purple smoke intensified, and the green tint strengthened.
“No,” I cried. “No. No! NO!!” I gave a final cry of agony before going limp. I hit the ground and gave some deep breaths. I stood back up, thoughts of murder and destruction going through my head. I gave an evil grin and laughed, my voice in a deep echo. I took flight out of the sinkhole and toward the crystal empire, hell bent on wiping it from existence.
