“Okay, Shining, relax. J-Just tell me what happened so we can-”
“So we can what!? Panic more!” Shining yelled as he continued running around his room, looking around every corner and space and knocking and flipping around everything from his bed to draws to tables to even under the carpet.
Meanwhile, Twilight was taking the news of his daughter missing more calmly than him. “Shining, I know you're stressed out about this, but-”
Shining interrupted her with a slightly concerning laugh. “Y-Yeah, stressed! I’m stressed out all right; stressed out about the fact that the only child I made is missing!”
Twilight flinched at his harsh tone. “Calm down, Shining. I’m sure we can find her, m-maybe we should go get Cadance so she can-”
Shining ran up to her sister. “NO! W-We can’t tell Cadance about this.”
Twilight backed up. “Why not? She needs to-”
“Twilly, it’s bad enough that I know, and if she knew what happened while I left her alone for a few minutes, she’d hurt me in places that should never be hurt!”
Twilight then thought of the obvious. “What were you even doing that made you leave her anyway?”
Shining stopped and looked back and forth innocently. “Uh...T-That’s not important! What is important is finding Flurry before-”
Three knocks coming from the bedroom door interrupted Shining. “Shining~ How’s everything?” He looked at it then at his sister, dragging his hoof across his lips to signify her to zip it.
“U-Uh, e-everythings fine, dear!” He called out, hoping she wouldn’t open the door.
Cadance then asked the inevitable. “How’s Flurry?”
Shining gulped. “U-Uh...s-she’s doing fine!” He looked at Twilight.. “Don’t say a word.” He whispered.
“Are you okay, Shining? You sound worried.” The doorknob started jiggling, making Shining silently gasp and run straight at the door, managing to stop it from opening all the way and only leave a crack small enough for Cadance to only see him.
“W-Worried?” He smiled as big as he could. “I’ve never felt better! Haha. M-Me taking care of her alone after everything that happened has really been great!”
Cadance crossed her arms. “Shining, I know when you’re lying to me.”
Shining’s eyes went wide. “Y-You do.”
Cadance used her magic to open the door more until she saw Twilight, who was lucky standing next to Shining and still blocking the sight of the room. “Twilight, how’s Flurry Heart?”
Twilight looked back and forth at Cadance and Shining, seeing a face waiting for an answer and another face pleading her to not give a right answer, in the end, she sighed and said, “She’s doing fine, just taking a nap. You can thank me for that.”
Cadance smiled while Shining felt like a tidal wave of calm washed over him. “See, this is why I sent Twilight here while I went out, I know you can’t take care of her alone, Shining.”
“Wha- Y-Yes I can!” Shining yelled, knowing that was an outright lie.
Cadance frowned. “Hon, look at yourself!” She pointed at his face. “Your hair's still messy, you haven’t shaved, and bags are still under your eyes. You look almost as bad as me after having her.” She put a hoof on his shoulder. “You just need some help is all.”
Shining sighed, knowing he’d need as much help as he could get. “Well, t-thank’s for sending her, s-she’ll be a big help in fi- T-Taking care of Flurry, r-right Twilly?”
“Yeah, sure.” Twilight looked away, not wanting to look him in the face right now.
Cadance turned around before looking back at Shining and clearing her throat. “Well, uh, I-I need to go run some more errands, I’ll be back soon.” She closed the door, Shining immediately breathing out a sigh of relief once he couldn’t hear her hoofsteps.
“Th-Thank’s Twilly.”
Twilight narrowed her eyes and walked up to him, poking him in the chest. “You’re lucky you’re my BBBFF, otherwise I’d tell her.”
“B-But it’s not my fault.” Shining repeated that statement in his head before shaking it away. “W-Well, not entirely. T-There’s no way she could disappear this fast...I-I…” He dragged his hoof across his face. “J-Just give me a minute.”
Shining held his chest and took many deep breaths while Twilight tried to think of something for him to calm down. “M-Maybe you just need some air, I’m sure you’ll, oh…” Twilight was about to open a window, only to find it was still open. “You opened it already.”
“I didn’t open the-” Shining froze and slowly turned to the open window, now knowing exactly what happened. “No...i-it all makes sense now…”
“What makes sense?”
Shining ran up to the window and looked outside. “Twilight! I know who filly napped her!”
“Filly napped?” Twilight shook her head, fearing for Shining’s sanity. “Listen, big brother, I doubt someone took your daughter, I mean, who would be stupid enough to take a captain's child.”
Shining’s eyes traveled all across the city from the window. “Someone who’s looking for revenge after what me, you, and Cadance did.”
“What?”
Shining turned to her. “Think! Who’s the one monster out there that would want her? Flurry Heart was made by the princess of love and by a pony who...well, was easy to control…”
Twilight gasped, Now understanding what he meant. “Y-You don’t mean...”
Shining nodded slowly. “Oh, I do mean...That monster, Queen Chrysalis, took her and I’m gonna find her, no matter how long it will take!” Shining turned and started to run out the window, but Twilight grabbed his tail with her magic before he could jump.
“We don’t even have a clue where she is, though.” Twilight pointed out. “And need I remind you that you don’t have wings, Shining.”
“She has to be close!” Shining pulled his tail away. “And when I find that queen, I’m gonna make her wish she never even touched my child!”
Twilight was still sceptical about finding her. “Where would we look first?”
Shining pointed to the door. “All around the empire, then the next town, then the forest, then the caves, then the-”
“Shining, slow down.” Twilight rested her hoof on his back. “We will find your daughter. We just need to take it one step at a time, okay?” She then raised an eye and smiled. “And when we do, we’ll make her pay.”
Despite his mind telling him to run out at full speed, he sat down and sighed, knowing she was right. “Okay...we’ll go slow.” He looked out the window. “But I can only imagine what evil, horrible, vile, despicable things she’s doing right now…”
Author's Note
I have a habit of hiding links in my story.
No matter how unpopular they might be.
“Do you have it in green.”
The mare behind the stand groaned once the customer asked her that...for the tenth time. “Mam...for the last time: no, we don’t.”
“But you don’t understand.” The mare, who was currently wearing a black and green dress, said in urgency. “I need fabric in that color. My children won’t-”
“And you need to understand that green isn’t a color that sells well. Why would you even want to make clothes in green?
The mare huffed. “I’ll have you know that black and green go very well together, along with dark blue...very dark blue.”
The seller crossed her front legs. “Yeah, you keep telling yourself that, lady.”
The mare scoffed. “M-Maybe I will, a-and maybe I’ll find someli- somepony else to help me instead of ignorant ones like you!”
“Yeah, good luck with that.”
The mare groaned and walked away from the counter, knowing this would be difficult. “Why is it that all these ponies have no sense in fashion in this place.” She thought before realizing there was only one place to look left. “I guess it’s another trip to that stupid town.” She dragged her hoof across her face, a brief moment of green flashed through her blue eyes, hating that she had to be like this while out in public “Why is it that that stupid mare and her five friends always has to be involved in helping my children.”
The disguised queen sighed and started making her way to the train. “First it’s with getting into this accursed town, then she goes off and takes on some big beast while I have to lock down my place and wait for her to take care of that, then she almost gives me a heart attack after the scouts tell me about her messing with time.” She sighed one more time, thankful she told her children to stop telling her any more news that involved that mare. “I swear, the day I meet that mare and any of her friends again is the day I-”
“THERE SHE IS!”
Chrysalis’s ears stood up once she heard that voice. “W-Wait, t-that can’t b-” She then felt the force of a train hit her and made her fall into an alleyway, almost giving her flashbacks as to what happened over a year ago. She was about to stand up if it wasn’t for another more familiar voice calling out.
“SHINING!? What the hay are you doing!?”
Chrysalis craned her head up to see a white stallion hanging over head with a purple mare coming up behind him. “I-It has to be her.” He said. “N-No pony would wear something like-”
The purple mare used her magic to throw him off her, replacing his position with herself. “M-Mam, I-I'm so sorry about that.” She extended her hoof. “M-My brother is just very stressed out right now and, well, seeing you in that colored dress made him a little...mad.”
Chrysalis’s sighed and stood up on her own, knowing this day would come. “Well, I’m sure he has every right to be mad, though, truth be told, I should be feeling the same way.”
Both ponies looked at her. “What?”
Chrysalis’s face went deapan as she closed her eyes. “Guess I might as well spill it, seeing as how I don’t really have much to lose anymore.” She opened her eyes wide enough for Shining and Twilight to see them, gasping in surprise at the now green, catlight pupils that were staring at them.
“Cha- C-Chr...CHRYSALIS!!” Twilight yelled in shock and horror.
Shining smiled. "I was right!"
Chrysalis pointed outside. “Why not yell it out to everypony.” Shining charged at her again, only for Chrysalis to step to the left and make him dodge her, face planting right into a trashcan. “Wow, impressive, stupid and clumsy.”
While Shining tried to get out of the trash, Twilight looked at the mare in front of her, unable to believe that she just found one of her most evil villains so quickly. “T-This can’t be possible, h-how can...w-what are the odds!?”
Chrysalis shrugged, not caring about the situation and more about the errands she had to do. “I don’t know, but I do know that this would happen eventually, I just didn’t expect it to take this long for you ponies to notice.”
Shining got out of the trash and glared at her, the lid on his head. “Maybe if you didn’t take my daughter, we wouldn’t have found out about you!”
“Daughter? Since when did you have a child.” Chrysalis then noticed Twilight’s new look. “And...uh, since when did your sister get wings?”
Twilight looked at her wings, then back at Chrysalis. “Don’t try to change the subject! We know you took her!”
Chrysalis glared at her, feeling a bit offended. “I didn’t take anything.”
Shining gritted his teeth. “Then how is it that we managed to find you on the day she was pony napped!?”
Chrysalis shrugged. “Bad timing? I’m quite surprised you didn’t find me sooner. Do you know how long I’ve been wondering around your city? Staying in the background and hearing about your escapades? Going shopping to help destress after a long day of ruling?”
“What? Like, a week?” Shining asked, standing next to Twilight and blocking the exit.
“A month?” Twilight yelled, taking the lid off of Shining’s head with a smack of her hoof.
“Try over a year.” Chrysalis waited for them to sink that in. “Yes, I’ve been undercover for that long while my children lick their wounds at home, all four hundred and eighty three of them.”
“Fa-Four hundred children?” Shining didn’t even realize how many changelings were attacking that day. “H-How do you survive living with-”
“It’s called being a good mother who knows how to take care, rule over, and overall, be sane enough to handle them.” She then looked over Shining, seeing the state he was in. “And, from the looks of it, it seems you can barely handle one.”
“HEY!”
“You only have that many children?” Twilight asked, knowing there were far more than that during the attack.
“I’m only talking about the one’s who are still injured. believe it or not, that blast of yours broke many...many children, from concussions, to broken bones and limbs that are still healing, to even PTSD. They’re still suffering.”
The last thing Shining wanted to feel from her was pity. “What? Are you going to say that me and Cadance are to blame for that?”
Chrysalis almost laughed. “Oh no, absolutely not, in fact, if I didn’t admit to myself that it was my planning that cause that outcome, I’d say your winged sister is a pony I’d blame more than any of you. Her and her stupid suspicions.”
“Hey!” Twilight yelled.
Shining had to ask. “So, all your children are like that?”
Chrysalis shook her head, feeling that she might as well tell them about her entire situation if it meant speeding up and ending this conversation. “There are still others that are doing fine, many caretakers stayed behind to help them, one was lucky enough to catch a branch when he fell, a few others seemed to have come back after being lost, from that one little bug who stayed as a student and attended a wedding, to even that one changeling who refuses to take that stupid hardhat off, and, in case you don’t know, we’re still missing some.”
Twilight knew that was just another way of saying they’re disguised. “You mean they’re undercover in our society so you can get love from us?”
Chrysalis put her hoof to her forehead and closed her eyes, getting a headache from their lack of knowledge when it came to changelings. “Sparkle, you don’t understand anything about us, do you?”
Twilight gritted her teeth. “I know enough that you’re evil creatures that want to take over Equestria!”
“And you’ll probably do it again, too!” Shining said. “And your first step is taking my filly!”
Chrysalis groaned, hoping ponies wouldn’t hold such a grudge over them. “Look, I’ve learned from my lesson; pony napping princesses is something that only leads to disaster, so, no. I didn’t take your stupid filly, and even if I did, I doubt I’d be able to do anything with it.”
“What are you talking about?” Shining said. “She’s the daughter of the princess of love. Don’t you think you would use her?”
Chrysalis’s face went deadpan. “Just because she’s an offspring from a pony whose element is love doesn’t mean she’s the same, for all I know, that filly doesn’t have any type of power. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to find fifty more gifts for my subjects, birthdays wait for no ling.” She pushed both ponies out of the way with her magic and walked out of the alleyway.
Knowing what she said was an outright lie, Shining ran in front of her and said. “But she is powerful, she’s an alicorn and she does have powerful magic, more than you know, that’s for sure!”
Chrysalis only raised an eye at this, thankful that she was at home for the past few days instead of being at the town after one of her children told her about some form of disaster happening. “How interesting, you must be so proud of yourself.” She stepped to the side and continued walking, leaving Shining with a dropped jaw. “Have a nice life, Shining Moron.”
Twilight walked up to Shining as Chrysalis walked further away. “Should we...go after her or-”
“There’s no time!” Shining shouted. “We need to keep looking...w-what other villain could’ve taken her? Y-Ya gotta help me think, Twilly.”
Twilight tapped her chin. “The only other villain I can think of is, uh, actually...he’s not really a villain anymore...well, to some extent.”
Shining’s eyes widened. “Y-You don’t mean...”
Twilight nodded. “Let’s get to the train, last I heard, he was with Shy learning about...plants?”
Author's Note
Well, of course they were gonna find her this quickly.
The plot demands them to find all the villains who would be responsible for touchin' da chiaaald throughout this whole story!
Same with how the plot demands the Ed's to always fail in their scams.
The realistic souvenir.
“How much longer till the train comes?”
“Sir, just be patient, ten minutes isn’t that long of a wait.”
“To me, it is!” Shining stepped closer to the jr. conductor. “I don’t think you know who your talking too right now.”
The pony narrowed his eyes. “Oh, I do know. You launched off an entire swarm of bro- er, changelings into the air and now you’re a prince to this place.”
Shining went face to face with him. “I have the power to get you fired! You know that!?”
Twilight’s jaw dropped, hoping she heard that wrong. “Shining!”
Shining then realized what he said and stepped back. “I’m sorry Twilight, but do you know just how stressed out I am?”
“Why are you stressed out anyway?” The pony asked.
“It doesn’t concern you, just tell me how much longer we need to wait!”
“Sir, It’s gonna be at least a ten minute wait, you can wait that long, right?” He smiled, but Shining didn’t do the same, making the jr. conductor bite his lip and look away, feeling very uncomfortable with the looks this stallion was giving him. “Well, you could always head to the souvenir shop to pass the time.” He suggested, hoping it would make Shining go away.
Shining stomped the ground. “I don’t care about-”
“Maybe that’s exactly what we need right now.” Twilight said, wanting Shining to stop yelling. “I’m sure it has lots of things to look at.”
The pony nodded. “Yeah, there’s souvenirs, candy, trinkets, snowglobes, name plates that apparently don’t have the name Carl...” He ended in a slight tone of annoyance
Twilight smiled while Shining groaned. “That sounds interesting! How about we take a look, Shining!” With no response, Twilight sighed and pulled him closer. “Listen, Shining, can we just find something to take your mind off of this?”
“I’d rather have my mind fully on this, Twilly! My daughter is in the claws, hooves, paws, or...w-whatever they’re using to hold her, and the last thing I want to do is to stop thinking about it!”
“What about your daughter?” Shining and Twilight looked back at the pony, his head cocked to the side.
Shining looked back and forth. “Um...l-like I said, nothing you need to worry about.”
“Oh...okay then.” The pony awkwardly started backing up before walking away, not wanting to deal with the crazy stallion. As for Shining, he sighed and grumbled to himself as he started walking to the nearby store, Twilight close behind.
Shining swung the door open, a bell sounding the seconds he did. He looked around the store, knowing nothing would stop him from thinking about Flurry heart. Twilight noticed his expression and nudged him. “It’ll be okay, Shining.”
“It’s not gonna-”
“AH! Prince and princess!” Both ponies turned to the counter, seeing a smiling brown stallion in glasses. “What an honor to have you visit!”
Shining turned away while Twilight smiled nervously. “Oh, w-we’re just, having a look around while we wait for the train.”
The pony continued smiling. “I was actually hoping you’d come here one day, for you see, I have an item I’m sure you’ll love!”
Shining continued having his back turned to him, looking at the many trinkets to remind ponies of their stay at the empire. “If it involves a snow globe, you can forget it.”
The pony behind the counter shook his head. “Oh no, this is far more than that, it’s something to remind you of your victory.”
“Victory?” Shining looked at Twilight to see if she knew what he was talking about, only for Twilight to do the same. “Uh...victory in what?”
“In saving the Crystal Kingdom of course, you remember .right?“ He chuckled. “I know I do, nopony can forget how far you threw your wife, you have quite the arm.”
“Um...thanks?” He laughed nervously. “I-I guess you could say I learned from the b-”
“Wait.” Twilight started thinking. “What do you have anyway?”
“See for yourself.” He craned his head toward a door. “It’s in the back, I’ve been trying to sell it, but apparently no one wants to buy something that reminds them of...well, you’ll see.”
Twilight felt concerned, not only due to the fact it was behind a closed door, but that the pony had waited this long for him to sell it. “Uh...why behind a door?”
“Safety reasons.” He said, still smiling.
“Well, okay then.” Twilight nudged Shining. “Come on, Shining, let’s go see what he has for you. It might cheer you up”
“The only thing that’s gonna cheer me up is finding-”
“We’ll be right back!” Twilight yelled as she started walking, pulling Shining along the way. “Shining, please, you need to be optimistic about this.”
Shining glared at her. “Kinda hard to when I lost one of the few things I’ve ever loved in this world.”
Twilight gave him another tug, wanting him to look at the gift together. “We. Will. Find. Her! We just need to stay calm and stay determined, can you please do that for me?”
Shining was about to make another angry remark, but the face she was giving him made him look away and say, “Fine...let’s see what he’s got.”
Twilight smiled and grabbed the door handle with her magic.. “Shining, I’m sure this will-” She then hit the door and backed up. “Ow...w-what the?” She tried turning it again with her magic, but there was still no results. “W-why isn’t it…”
“Ya gotta turn it the old fashion way!” The shopkeeper yelled. “Like I said, safety reasons.”
“A door you can’t open with your magic?” Now Twilight was very concerned. “Why would he need a-”
Shining didn’t seem to care as he grabbed the handle with his hoof. “Can we just get this over with?” He flung it open and stepped inside. “I just wanna get this out of the way and...a-and…”
The brother and sister gasped once they saw what was in front of them. It was an object they remembered all too well, something that could bring fear to any of the crystal ponies who looked at it. Both of their eyes trailed over what was standing on the column before them, with nothing but shelves filled with books and candles lit around it. After a long moment of silence, Twilight shut the door behind them and spoke.
“I-Is that...Sombra’s horn?”
“I-It sure looks like it...How in the hay did he get his hooves on something like this?”
“Maybe he made it?”
Both ponies stared intently at the object before them, the horn pulsated with red light while a cape similar to Sombra’s was laid underneath. “If he made it, he’s got some good craftsponyship.”
“So, this is the gift.” Twilight continued staring. “Wonder how he got it to glow like that.”
Shining closed his eyes and crossed his arms. “Well, the last thing I need is to see something that reminds me of another monster in my life.” Shining’s eyes then went wide. “Hey...you don’t think…” He turned to Twilight, hoping she would know what he was talking about.
Twilight did, but ended up laughing. “Come on, Shining, like his horn would actually be the only thing to survive, I mean, sure it looks...really looks like the real thing, but I doubt it is.” Shining wasn’t convinced. He stood closer to the glowing object, wondering if something would happen if he was close enough. Twilight rolled her eyes at the sight. “It’s just a horn, m-maybe we should look at something else and go tell him that it’s a...thoughtful gift, but-”
“Just give me a sec.” Shining didn’t listen as he brought his face inches to the horn, still waiting for a sign. He lifted his hoof and tapped it, still getting no results. “Huh, I guess you’re right, Twilly. it is just-”
“CAN YOU NOT!”
Twilight and Shining (mostly Shining) screamed as a ghostly figure with glowing green eyes started emerging from the horn, before long, a body started forming from the dark matter, followed by a set of front legs. A head soon formed around the eyes while the rest of the see through spirit remained connected to the horn. A few moments of silence passed before the ghost spoke. “Can’t a spirit rest for king’s sake!”
“S-Sa..Saa...SOMBRA!?”
Sombra threw his see through arms in the air. “Of course it’s me! Who else do you think I am?” He craned his head to Twilight. “And how long have you had those wings?”
Twilight looked at her wings while Shining pointed at him. “S-So that is your horn!”
The spirit felt rather offended. “Of course it’s my horn, who else would this thing belongs to?”
“B-But what’s it doing here!?” Twilight asked.
Sombra dragged his hoof across his face. “Trust me, you don’t wanna know the journeys I’ve been on while stuck in this horn. I’ve been through tons of stores, been thrown away in many trash bins, been sold by many shady ponies and enchanters, and now I’m just...just…” The ghostly Sombra pointed at his horn, a price tag doned on top. “Just a stupid souvenir locked in a magic proof room that’s being sold for a bit-fifty!”
“That’s not a bad price.” Shining said with a smile, making Sombra lash out as far as he could at him, his see through face inches away from Shining’s.
“If I was whole right now, I’d do to you what you did to me!” He crossed his arms and looked away. “And here I thought ponies like you wouldn’t do things like this.”
“Do things like what?” Twilight was confused. “Good always triumphs over-”
“I’m talking about killing me!”
Both Shining and Twilight gasped. “Ka-Killing!?” They yelled.
Sombra pointed at them. “YES! Killing! You killed me! Not destroyed, not defeated, not imprisoned, not casted away. Killed. K-I-Double L-E-D.”
Both physical ponies looked at each other. “W-We don’t kill.” Twilight said. “T-That’s just...that’s not right!”
Sombra rolled his eyes. “Oh yeah, you definitely didn’t kill me, I mean, it’s not like being a ghost trapped in a horn that came off my dead body is considered being dead.”
Twilight still couldn't believe what she was hearing. “B-But how did your horn make it out of that blast, you were blown to pieces!”
Sombra nodded. “Yeah. I was...my horn fell miles out, some pieces of my arm, leg, and body are still three miles that away.” He pointed to his left. “And the most important part of my body fell in a cave and got stuck in some weird slimy substance...and I swear I can feel the hooves of that accursed hole filled mare...using it.” He shivered
Twilight tilted her head. “What body part are you-”
Shining coughed. “I’m guessing your horn is the only thing keeping you stable?”
Sombra nodded. “I’m surprised you didn’t hunt all the pieces of me down, surely you know my spirit has the ability to morph from the smallest pieces of my body...unfortunately, that blast of yours took away almost all my magic, and now the only part that I can have all my senses is this thing. The shear fact I’m talking to you right now while maintaining this form is a miracle, to be honest.”
Twilight started fidgeting. “Well, w-we just thought you weren’t much of a threat ever since we defe-”
“Killed…” Sombra corrected coldly. “You ponies must be masters at rubbing salt in the wound if you just came here to make me admit my death.”
Shining was getting sick of listening to him. “Hey, talking to you isn’t what I expected to do here, today.”
“Then what made you come to me? Huh!? Was it boredom? Revenge? Or just so you could ridicule me at the fact that I’ve been stooped so low in life?”
Shining stood higher. “For your info, we’re looking for somepony.”
Sombra managed to form a smile. “Ah, so your daughter has been ponynapped, I’m not too surprised to hear that, actually.”
Shining was shocked to hear that. “W-What makes you think I’m talking about- wait, h-how do you even know about her?”
Sombra raised a ghostly eye at him. “Do you know how long I’ve been on this column? I’ve been listening to the news of ponies behind that door and, for the entire time, have ponies ridicule my horn for looking fake whenever that four eyed pony wanted to sell me! It’s not fake!” He screamed.
Twilight had to ask. “How many stories?”
The dark parts of his form narrowed over his eyes. “A lot...most of them coming from you.”
“Me?” Twilight pointed at herself. “Why me?”
“I’ve heard all about you, Sparkle, the challenges you faced, the foes you defeated before and after me, the journey’s you’ve walked, the...friends you made, I’m just another speed bump in the road of Twilight Sparkle’s life, aren’t I? AREN’T I!?”
Twilight and Shining looked at each other in awkwardness. “Geeze, Sombra.” Twilight said. “Calm down.”
“Calm down? CALM DOWN!?” Sombra pointed at his horn again. “This is all I have left, Sparkle, this is the only thing keeping me in this world, and throughout the course of a year, I’ve heard nothing but news about some mare and her friends defeating a monster, or somepony finding long lost towns, and even listen to an idiotic stallion and his wife make a child that has more power than I could even comprehend!”
Shining’s jaw dropped. “So you would take her!?”
“Oh, believe me, if I wasn’t stuck here, I would take your daughter after what you did and use her power for my own plans.” Sombra sighed and let his arms dangle in the air. “You know, I wasn’t always like this, some power mad stallion bent on ruling Equestria, I was just another pony, had a good life, a nice marefriend, a nice scarf too...then that stupid crystal had to get in the way...same with that stupid doppelganger...making me stay underwater for-”
“I don’t care about your life story, Sombra!” Shining yelled, wanting answers. “Did you take my daughter or not!?”
Sombra extended his arm across the small room. “Does it look like she’s around here?”
“Just answer the question before I shove your horn right up-”
“ALL ABOARD!”
Shining and Twilight’s ears went in the air, hearing that the train had arrived. “I’m guessing you’re taking the train to look for her?” Sombra asked.
Shining glared at him. “We’ll deal with you later.”
“Sure you will…” Sombra said sarcastically as he started fading back into his horn. “Wake me up when ya find your stupid filly so I can at least dream about catching her.”
Shining gritted his teeth as he made his way to the door, hitting it by trying to use his magic to open it. Sombra snickered while Twilight opened it for him by hoof. “Come on, Shining, let’s leave this monster by himself.”
“I heard it all before, Sparkle. Gonna take a lot more than that to hurt my feelings...oh wait, I can’t feel anymore.” He laughed loudly before toning down and sighing, returning his entire form inside his horn.
Twilight shut the door and made her way back outside, Shining close behind. The still smiling shopkeeper waved. “So,” He said. “Do you wanna buy-”
“Not interested.” Both ponies said as the left the store, leaving the pony to himself again. His smile went away as he slumped his head on the counter.
“Well, I guess I that gypsy was right, no one’s ever gonna buy that stupid fake horn…” He sat back down as a loud scream came from the other room, he didn’t seem to hear it once he pulled up a book and started reading
Meanwhile, Shining and Twilight stepped on the train and took a seat. Shining slumped on the table, fearing that they may never find his daughter. Twilight noticed this and frowned. “Shining…”
“I know, I know. ‘We’ll find her.’” He repeated, sitting back up. “I just wish it would happen already…”
As the two continued talking, a mare in a green and black dress a few rows down noticed them and buried her face in a newspaper, groaning in annoyance. “Can’t leave me alone for ten minutes now…”
