Author's Note

Hello,
This is a warning that in this chapter I'm gonna put the artwork that made me add the Gore Tag in the story. So you may continue at your own discretion.

And yeah this is one of those chapters I originally wrote back in 2017, I just edited it a bit.

P.D. In this chapter I used a few verses from here "Fall of an Empire" from Royal Canterlot Symphonic Metal Orchestra so credits to them for being incredibly amazing people.

Chapter IV: As the candles cry in pain

His throat was dry.

A rotten smell reeked the air, reaching his nose and making his eyes sting.

He blinked a few times, and noticed that he couldn't see anything. Had he...gone blind? No! It couldn't be! Surely, this was also part of the process... With his left hand, he clutched the desk in an attempt to regain composure. But it was to no avail as his whole body trembled and ached. A poisonous vapor pricked his torso like it was made up of a hundred needles. Every part of himself was burning. Or at least that's how he felt. It was proving futile to imagine a cool sensation on his skin. He was still trying, though.

“Ice, Snow, Wind, Ice, Snow, Wind”. He repeated the words to himself without success. Nevertheless, those words began to bring images of that night to his mind, and despite having chapped lips, he began to smile.

Luna had stolen his breath like never before. He remembered how his princess had suddenly spread both of her powerful wings, and then, took flight at full speed, becoming in seconds a shooting star.

The strong wind created by her launch had caused him to fall backwards. His head had hit the floor but he hadn’t lost consciousness, and now, he couldn’t thank God enough for it.

The thing is... Immortality is a very rare gift in this world, and even more rare is to have the opportunity to see some of the winged-blessed soar through the skies.

He would never be able to describe how enchanting she was as she illuminated the night sky. While escaping.

When Sombra had finally realized what was happening, he had immediately mounted his fastest crystal wolf, and had begun to chase after her.

Their conversation was not over! THEY WERE NOT OVER!

King Sombra had followed Luna all night, however, when dawn broke, her light had vanished on the horizon. The snow that fell heavily around him hadn’t helped.

He had been left behind.

Sombra kept that last moment in his mind, but he could not feel coldness as he wanted. Only pain.

The smell of putrid flesh began to intensify. He really wanted to vomit. “Stop, Sombra!” he commanded to himself. He needed to be strong. Sombra knew very well he was dealing with powerful forces and he will have to pay in some way. He wasn’t naive. It just didn’t matter. During his life, he had tasted power, he had lived his youth, he had gained fame and respect from others, and he could assure anyone, that all of those things were meaningless without someone to share them.

Furthermore, he was certain Luna felt the same. The difference between them was that there wasn't any escape for her. It was up to him to- He felt a sudden tug of pain in his back, as if there was someone stabbing him with a sword, just that it was from his entrails to the outside. He muffled a scream. Was this normal? The process wasn't going terribly wrong, right? He didn't have anyone to ask. Sombra tried to shake his head. It was essential to get rid of those thoughts If he wanted to ascend, he couldn't do this halfway.

And he will ascend. That was definitive.

He remembered the last look she had given to him. He had tried to make her understand that their relationship could work, even with his mortality. It was simply too soon to give up. Her eyes had wavered with doubt. He saw it. And a second later… her turquoise eyes had been filled with tears. It was as if Luna had to carry the weight of the world alone, and he knew that was truly the case. Under Princess Celestia's influence, Luna was living a solitary life, and now her sister had convinced her that pushing him away was for the best. But he will not abandon her.

His blood began to boil, and he couldn’t tell if it was caused by the transformation spell… or by his own rage. He couldn’t believe the nerve of Princess Celestia. He had already found ridiculous her half-baked excuses for keeping Luna from participating in the political affairs of Equestria. It was a way “to lessen her little sister burdens”? A way to “protect” her?

At the time, when he had first learnt about Princess Celestia’s reasons behind her behavior, he had found her shortsighted. But as the transformation was taking place in himself, he was gaining a new clarity in his mind.

He now understood the truth.

That sugar-coated smile Princess Celestia wore at all times was only a mask to hide her greed. Her sins.

Undermining her sister like that, raising her supposedly co-regent since childhood to ignore the affairs of their kingdom, destroying Luna’s hopes, casting a shadow so great her little sister will never find the will to rebel. And why did she separate them, anyway? TO PREVENT A BROKEN HEART? He shook his head with violence. How ridiculous! It was more likely to prevent that their union made Luna more powerful than her.

He laughed out loud, ignoring the way the vapor pierced his throat as a knife.

“Oh, sweet Celestia, you’re so vicious for treating your own sister like this,” he whispered in a tender voice. “So corrupt and degenerate, but don’t worry I have a solution to that problem.”

Fire was scorching every last bit of his flesh. This time he didn’t muffled his screams.

He decided to embrace it all.

…

"As the candles cry in pain,
Their echoes carry softly.
Shadows fall before his name,
As light bows down before him.
One by one their embers wane,
They dim while his grows brighter.
Feed the fire, the violet flame.
The flame that burns eternal.”

…

A new magic, different from his own and all magic he had encountered before, pumped through his veins. He felt vigorous, and he recognized that he was now omnipotent. But had his eyes been truly affected? His golden bracelets, his most prized possession along with the rest of his armor, looked as if they were nothing more than ordinary objects. In fact, they didn’t even look gold anymore. He still didn’t know what type of sacrifice he had paid to transform himself, yet, the sacrifice couldn’t be just his armor being void of crystal magic. With how he felt right now… he would never need its defensive magic again. Moreover, it wasn’t as if it had been destroyed, so his sentiments attached to it, and the sentiments of his people, were still spared.

Suddenly, he caught sight of a giant shadow in the corner of his eye. He began to turn his head slowly. Could it be… Princess Celestia? Was she breathing in his neck in this instant? Waiting for a chance to kill him and end it all? When Sombra managed to decipher the form of the shadow, he immediately turned his face and tried to take a glance at his own back. In disbelieve, he stretched his neck to have a better look.

A wing. A pair of wings.

They were dark as his own skin and covered with blood as if they belong to a newborn.

“YEEES! I DID IT!” A shout of triumph echoed in the dark room.

The last proof of his change was there. He was free from any limitations now! Finally, they could love each other without anything in the way!

“It isn’t enough!” Someone shouted interrupting his train of thoughts. Sombra frowned as he clearly heard another voice chanting: “More! You need more!!”

He noticed the voices in his head for the first time.

While he had been analyzing the spell effects, he had been ignoring them subconsciously. But paying closer attention, he realized that most of the voices were screaming in his head like they were in tremendous pain. As if their invisible bodies were being dismembered. Or on fire.

He chuckled. "Oh, I guess... this means I will never be alone again."

In the back of his mind, he knew he should at least be a bit bothered by the voices. But he just couldn't bring himself to worry about them. It felt so... natural. King Sombra decided to ignore them for the meantime. After all, there were more important things to do. His body turned to face the only window in the room.

It was time for a visit.

As the Shadow King rushed to his destination, getting intoxicated with the new sights and the bright prospects of the future, any desire to find out the prize he had truly paid, forever disappeared from his mind.