A thousand years ago I was King.
A thousand years ago I ruled this empire with an iron hoof. A thousand years ago I fought with them in this very throne room.
A thousand years ago I lost.
How many times have I played this out in my head over and over and over again? How many times have I seen it in my head, the battle of a lifetime. How many times did you beg me to stop this insane journey for power?
Luna, Celestia, my old old friends. Even in this icy prison I can still vividly recall what you said to me eons ago. How you begged me to stop, how you asked why I did this, it was all so clear to me even as I rose from the depths of that icy cavern to regain what once was mine.
I can still hear it even through the roar of the wind and the echo of voices off in the distance. I can still recall the joy, the elation I felt as our blades met and I fought you both in that throne room I ordered my subjects to make. I can still see the shock and fear in your eyes when I took the Crystal Empire with me as you sealed me away.
But even then I did not forget the joy I felt as we battled against each other.
And as I lay trapped in that prison for minutes to hours. Days to weeks, weeks to months and months to years never once did I forget the rush that came from our many battles. Never once did I regret my actions-- the destruction of neighboring cities. The wars I waged against Iron Castle and the minotaurs that inhabited Fortress Stronghold.
Never once did I regret forcing my subjects into a state of submission, to prevent them from coming into contact in the ways of war. And even though you begged me to stop Celestia I could not. For you see I envied you, and it was as strong as the fear that filled deep within your sister's heart; Luna in her restless nights.
I envied the alicorns. The power they had, the dominance they asserted with merely their presence, the limitless amounts of knowledge they held and the respect they received because our kind knew of what you did long before I was born. How you saved Equestria from Tartarus, and then how you had continued to save it once more from Discord. I envied it all, and that is why I sought to became like you.
I admit, my journey for power blinded me. I waged wars left and right. Brought down homes, destroyed the will of my people, crushed hopes and dreams and wielded fear as my strongest weapon. But it was worth it for the power.
For the taste to fight you once more I was willing to do anything, to feel that rush of fighting the Princesses of Equestria. I was willing to destroy the hopes of my own people to prove my own strength was just as good, just as great, just as worthy of every ounce and every shrivel of respect as the creatures of Equus give you that they would never give me.
So just as always when you asked me to stop, I said "No." When you asked me why I said "Because." And when I saw your students I thought to myself "another victory."
When we fought in front of Neptune Caverns and you, Luna asked me why I was doing this I replied "For power. To prove my worth" and to my amusement and sadness neither you nor Celestia understood what I meant. But it did not matter.
We fought.
We battled, again and again, and every time you came close to winning, I always used those tricks you called "despicable" or "underhanded". If holding hostages is despicable in means of war, then so be it. I am a tyrant. I am a king, but what true King is never a tyrant now and then in his lifetime?
History calls me a tyrant, and I accept the title with grace. Tyrants are strong, tyrants are powerful and this unicorn, this stallion who marries the Princess of Love that now faces me is not a king, but a prince. He is weak, pathetic, no where as powerful as Clover the Clever, or your other students Celestia. Nor as strong as Starswirl The Bearded or as quick thinking as you Luna, yet still you send your students in your stead.
Why Celestia? Why Luna? Do you fear me? Did our last battle before you sealed me away remind you of our fights. Our friendship that withered away as I grew wiser? Did my return from this icy prison awaken thoughts that you wished not to remember Luna? Did my presence, my shadow, does it remind you of your failed attempts, your mistakes, your regrets, your blunders? Does it awaken memories both you and the princess of the night wish to forget?
I'm sure it does. You were always afraid of being alone, weren't you Celestia?
I wonder if the Princess of Love to fears being betrayed. Maybe when your student has fallen into my trap and I have won back my kingdom I shall test that theory and see. Maybe she will show me a true battle, just like the ones we had centuries ago.
Maybe when I finally conquer and destroy all hope you placed in these students you dared to pit against me a true king willing to sacrifice everything and anything, even the very freedom of his subjects, maybe then we can fight once more. A final battle, one last time to decide once and for all who is the true ruler of Equestria.
In the distance I can see it. The Crystal Empire is not too far away and despite the snowstorm that beats and hits my shadow form I ignore it and push on. I smile and laugh as I watch these students you sent after me, as they flee. They must know of my stories. The stories that are no doubt mere myths, but now that they have seen me. Now that they know I exist they flee back to the kingdom.
My kingdom. My subjects.
They wait for me. They need me. I must return to them quickly. I must reclaim my throne so that we once more may do battle, perhaps your students can join in? Maybe the Princess of Love will survive as an appetizer before I have the main course? Luna what do you think?
I have not been around long, but from what I hear, you succumbed to your anger. For what the cause is despite the legends, I do not know, but surely you wouldn't mind if I harmed your sister's students?... Apologies, I should be talking to the one you call Nightmare Moon.
And Princess Celestia, the princess who holds the power to challenge me, but refuses her title as Queen. When your sister was gone why did you not take up the title Queen Celestia? Was it because you feared you would become like me? No longer a watcher and protector of the ponies you love so much but another tyrant as I was, as I am.
Did you fear your would be like the other Kings and Queens I had helped defeat and conquer in the past. Princess Gala, King Ordeus, Prince Castlestone , Princess Xelia and all the others that sought power and had some cause or desire for power that you simply deemed bordering on tyrannical.
I suppose that is another fear I should hope to use when we do battle.
The Crystal Empire is in front of me. I loom over it, I watch over it like a shadow watches your back. My subjects have no noticed I am here. I must commend you Celestia, you have trained this generation well. Let's hope after a thousand years of patience I will not be disappointed when we cross.
Seconds pass, minutes pass and the snowstorm rages on. The only thing I feel now is this growing desire to try my hand on your new toys princess of the sun. I wish to try my blade and see just what this student you have so much faith in to vanquish me will do, I wish to-
The shield around the empire falters. A grin forms upon the shadows face. My time is near.
The shield falters and I see my chance. I take it, but am stopped when a pain shoots through my horn. A piece is cut off and falls to the soil.
No matter, I can use this. The princess of love restores her shield around my kingdom and my subjects but it is only a matter of time. I can feel it. I can tell, she grows weak.
Time continues and Sombra waits patiently for his chance. A chance at another battle. A thousand years has passed since he has last had one. Since he has last waged war, and he cannot wait. A feeling rushes through me and I can sense someone has breached my defenses and is near the crystal heart.
A smirk forms on the shadows face once more as his broken horn glows and his eyes radiate a deathly green light from the embers of his irises. The trap activates and the unicorn, Twilight Sparkle, is trapped.
The princess of love weakens and as she does, my presence is noticed.
"Look at them" I muse mentally as I watch my subjects flee. "They know their king has returned." I laugh loudly as I watch my subjects from eons ago greet me with fear in their eyes. I must say, I've missed it. I've missed them.
The shield is gone and with it my massive shadow charges through. As I do so I watch as my subjects flee in terror, and every inch I grow closer to the princess of love I can feel it. That rush, that excitement. My reason for coming back. A battle. One will not be enough. I must have a challenge, one that pushes me as hard as I was when I fought the sisters that rule this world, I must have a fight that will be remembered for eons, years to come.
I have waited a thousand years, patiently, confined in an icy prison, forever alone. Forever trapped and finally I am free. I do not desire warmth, I do not desire friendship, I desire a battle. One that will remind me of my reason for power. The reason I sought to become like you, Luna and Celestia. The reason that I desired to fight you over and over again, so that our game. Our fun will never end.
I return to my true form, no longer a shadow and watch chaos ensue. In the distance I see him. A whelp carrying the crystal heart, the one thing aside from the elements that would spell my undoing. I must have it. I must get it--
But what's this? the unicorn pauses as he sees the Princess of Love being comforted by her husband, the weak prince no doubt.
A look of displeasure crosses Sombra's face. This is what they challenge me with? An alicorn too tired to hold a spell for more than a few days? Oh Celestia, how far have you fallen while I was locked away and Discord turned to stone? How far has Luna weakened since her return?
And yet again I can't help but smile as I think that this merely means I will have my hoof at battling you and your sister once more. A crystal emerges from the ground and swiftly carries me forward, the wind in turn plays with my mane, as another crystal knocks down the whelp holding the thing of my undoing. Quickly I move towards it.
There it is.
That rush.
The adrenaline, this feeling. It is bliss.
I lick my lips as I see the fear, the delicious terror in the young whelps eyes as he falls towards me. I can feel it, taste it. The time to put an end to this shrewd charade, this pathetic attempt by my old friends to defeat me at an end.
This is it. This is what I have waited for. A thousand years of silence. A thousand years of patience, and my kingdom will be mine again. Centuries passed and the world forgot about Sombra, forgot about his actions, his power, the way he moved with confidence and how his mere presence let alone his name struck fear, worry, doubt and concern into all that opposed him.
And a thousand years later I am so close. I will have my battle with those alicorns if it is the last thing I do. Neither the princess of love nor this whelp will stop me and I will finally-
Time stops. "What happened?" I wonder as my crystal comes to a halt. The dragon was inches from me. All I needed to do was grasp him with my magic and the Crystal Heart would be mine, but he is gone. What is happening? What is-
I look down, feet from me the princess of love glares at me. In her magic the Crystal Heart.
No I quickly move to counter her, but it is too late. She activates it, brilliant light blinds me and suddenly my shadowy form is turned to flesh once more. No I think, It cannot end this way. I have waited a thousand years. A THOUSAND YEARS, to fight Princess Celestia and Luna once more. To revel in our game, to laugh as you fell before me. To see the disdain in both your eyes, to hear your voices ask me once more --
"Sombra please, stop" Celestia's voice from the past says in my head.
"This is your final chance" Luna speaks sternly but I only laugh in reply.
Suddenly my body burns I can feel it. My death. It approaches, my subjects watch on with fear, wondering what is happening but the princess of love glares at me with confidence while the young whelp clutches her foreleg tightly in his claws.
Then all of a sudden I am back. I am back in the Crystal Empire from a thousand years ago. Staring at both Princess Celestia and Luna who approach my shadowy form with the elements of Harmony. They both glare at me. Giving me the same look the princess of love holds in her eyes; confidence.
The pain is clear. My time is up. Our game will have to end here Celestia, Luna. I waited a thousand years to fight you one more time. To defeat you. Crush you, watch you beg for mercy and then take everything you ever cared about away. So that I could show you the real way to rule, to put an end to this game of ours however wasn't meant to be done by you. But by another and a dragon.
Light emanates from my body as I look down at my hooves. The pain intensifies and my time is almost up. It is sad to say that I will never hear your voices again my old friends, my old playmates of this wonderful game.
The wars I waged, the brilliant games of chess we played with my wits against yours, the pain, the loss, all of it. I will never forget the fun, maybe I will return, maybe I will not, but after a thousand years I never imagined it would be another that would defeat me, only you.
Luna, Celestia, my old friends, my playmates. After a thousand years I have waited for a challenge, and though it was not the challenge I expected I must say.
I must put an end to our game.
The light erupts, I no longer feel pain, the rush I once felt when we first did battle, is gone. I hear cheering, but cannot tell if they are from my subjects or my enemies.
Who would have thought that after a thousand years, I, King Sombra, The greatest Tyrant to ever live would lose to children?
Maybe in another time I can put an end to this game on my own terms. Maybe in another life I can see to it that things work out differently, maybe if I return I can finally have that battle I’ve waited so long for.
But for now I must say:
"Princess Celestia. Princess Luna, congratulations. You put an end to our game."
Author's Note
Sombra has always been one of my favorite villains right next to Discord. And the fact that he rarely has any dialogue going for him in the show, the way he laughed as he approached the castle and how he constantly smiled and grinned menacingly when the others saw him all got me thinking about how he is a megalomaniac.
So I decided to do a little story with all of this in mind, and relate it to how he and the princesses were both rulers that wanted something to happen while they were in power. And then this story came to existence.
Hope you enjoy, and if you liked this leave a like.
