Fluttershy knew that if Sombra was going to pardoned on account of his decorruption, then the four royals needed to know the extent of his trauma. That meant telling them of his crippling fear of lightning.

"Um, Princess? Although I don't know what he went through during the first two years but right after I got there he went to the rooms. Where those machines were. Sometimes he would be in there for the whole day. You could hear him screaming almost at the entrance. Now he's terrified of lightning." Celestia tilted her head and glanced at her fellow royals. Shining looked intrigued yet apprehensive while her sister and niece looked curious yet worried. She herself was concerned. Fluttershy sighed and started her story from a few weeks after they were brought home.
Fluttershy shook her fur and ruffled her wings, despite the heavy downpour. When Rainbow warned her about the storm, she didn't think it would be this strong.

BOOM!!

She screamed as a bolt hit the ground and sent out an almighty boom. The sky lit up in a flash of silver. She whimpered as another bolt came down, filling the air with energy and making the clouds crackle. She'd been on her way to visit Sombra when the storm started.

"OH NO!! Sombra!!" Fluttershy bolted, her wet mane sticking to her fur. Panic made her heart race. He'd told her about what they'd done to him and about the terror he felt. With what she'd heard, she knew he'd be afraid of lightning. She sped up, tears rolling down her cheeks. Soon, the hospital appeared and she sped up even more and burst in.

"Where's Sombra!?" Redheart looked up in shock at her quiet shout. Fluttershy slid to a stop in front of the desk. The white nurse sighed and walked around the desk.

"Fluttershy, I know you care about him but at the moment he's not allowed visitors. He's a little freaked right now, with the thunder and lightning." Fluttershy pinned her ears back as another nurse came in, his mane scorched.

"Redheart, we need another sedative. He knocked the other one away and it broke." She nodded and leaned down, grabbing a filled needle. Toran grabbed it and turned, heading back down the hall. Fluttershy pricked her ears and tried to follow him, only to have Redheart stop her.

"I said he's not allowed visitors right now. The lightning is scaring him and he's dangerous right now." A hoof pressed against her shoulders, making her turn. Twilight was staring at her, a gentle smile on her face. The others were sitting a short ways away. Rarity was drawing in her sketchbook while Rainbow and Applejack were playing cards. Pinkie was doing something in a folder.

"Listen, they wouldn't let us in either. Come sit down and you can..." There was a loud boom from the back of the building, right where Sombra's room was. Toran came scrambling out a few seconds later. His face, neck, chest and forelegs were scorched black. He coughed out a small cloud of smoke.

"We can't get near him, right now. He's insane." Twilight looked at Fluttershy and sighed.

"Nurse Redheart, why don't you let Fluttershy try. She knows Sombra better than any of us and I think that gives her a better chance of calming him down." Redheart looked nervous but at Toran's hopeful look, she relented.

"Fine." Fluttershy wasted no time in racing down the hallway. The two nurses followed after her, trying not to loose the speeding mare. Soon, she reached his room and glanced inside. The floor, walls and ceiling were scorched black while his bedsheets were smoking. Sombra was curled in a ball on the floor. His eyes will wide as he lay there, whimpering in fear. Another flash from outside, followed by one of the loudest boom yet, made him shriek and whip his head around towards the window. Fluttershy tilted her head and walked towards him. The sound of her hooves made him jump and whip his head back around. His eyes were wild with fear and his horn was sparking. Fluttershy knelt down in front of him, shushing him. Sombra skittered back slightly, despite her gentle voice and calm aura.

"Shh. It's okay Sombra, you're safe. Nothing's going to hurt you." He shook his head and whimpered, recoiling from her in fright. Another boom went off and his horn glowed, a small explosion going off. Fluttershy pinned her ears back as he did so. In a flash, she wrapped her hooves around his neck, feeling his whole body quaking. She nuzzled him and held him close while gently rubbing his back. Sombra jumped again as another clap of thunder was heard. Sombra whimpered as she held him. She knew that if he got to scared, she would be in danger.

"Sombra, listen to me. Your fine. The lightning isn't going to hurt you. Your inside, safe and I'm right here with you. I won't let you get hurt." His wild eyes locked with hers and he slowly calmed as her words sank into his mind. She could feel his fear in his tension. However, she wasn't trying to rid him of his fear entirely, as she knew that was impossible. She was trying to reduce it, so he wasn't this bad for every storm.

"You'll be okay, Sombra. I swear that you'll be safe as long as I'm here."
As she finished her story, she was met with four identical expressions of shock, concern and, above all, unwavering trust in both her and her friend. Even her friends were surprised, as she hadn't told them the whole story. Celestia sighed and looked at her sister. Luna nodded and the two stood, followed by Shining and Cadence. However, before she could speak, Shining spoke her planned words.

"On behalf of my fellow rulers, I grant my trust in Sombra and my willingness to start anew." Fluttershy's eyes filled with tears and her face split in a wide, beaming smile. This was what she had been hoping for. However, they still needed to do some damage control. While the equestrians had heard of his deeds, they trusted her and her friends implicitly. They would be willing to grant him that same trust as long as they all vouched. It was the Crystal Ponies that would need some work, with them having been directly wronged by him.

"Um, Shining Armour, Princess Cadence? When are we going to commence reintroduction with the Empire? We need to do that if he's ever going to travel with us. The ponies here will trust him as long as we all vouch, but your ponies..." The shy mare trailed off, leaving the sentence and her fear hanging in the air. The two looked at each other, surprise flaring in their eyes. They hadn't even thought of that.

"That's going to be tough, Flutters. Are you sure that's a good idea?" Fluttershy met her prismatic friend's eyes and nodded.

"Absolutely. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to check on Sombra."

Author's Note

The next chapter will be split into three parts, with the first being him dealing with his own trauma a bit before we head to the empire during the last third. After that, they're going to be there for the last two halves. Whose excited for the Empire bit? I know I am.