Equestria Underground-Book I: Hope Is Magic

A red aura encapsulated the tree branch, causing it to rattle and rotate on the ground. Come on, come on! Focus! Sweat poured down Sombra’s in immense concentration. Grogar watched from a few feet away, just as concerned about the prince’s magical prowess as he was. The young stallion had been something of a prodigy growing up, having performed his first teleportation at age three and effortlessly employed telekinesis just a year and a half prior. Now he was struggling to lift a single branch and it incensed Sombra to no end.

“Your Highness, give yourself a rest. You’re tired.”

Sombra, however, ignored him, his face scrunching up as he poured more energy into the aura. The red glow intensified, crackling wildly around the branch while little sparks fizzed and popped around Sombra’s horn. Grogar became extremely worried at the sight of wisps of smoke pouring out of the unicorn’s horn. Those were all signs of magical exertion, a point where a unicorn has surpassed their limits and is struggling to call upon tapped-out reserves of magic. If left unchecked, it could lead to weakness, temporary paralysis or even a coma.

“Sombra, please stop at once!”

“Not...yet…” Sombra groaned, little orbs of red energy exploding around his heavily smoking horn. “Not...until I...lift this…-” A burst of red energy exploded around Sombra’s horn, the shockwave sending him rolling across the ground and smacking him into a tree trunk. He toppled over onto his side, his eyes closed and his body limp from the double impact.

“My prince!” Grogar wasted no time in galloping over to his fallen ruler’s side, scooping his head up and placing a hoof over his chest. “He’s still alive…” He muttered thankfully, feeling the telltale beating of Sombra’s heart and the steady rise and fall of his chest.

Sharply gasping, Sombra’s eyes shot open as he sucked in air. “G-grogar?”

“Sombra, thank the gods you’re alive. What were you thinking?”

The unicorn weakly rolled out of Grogar’s forelegs and plopped ungraciously to the ground. Grogar made a move to help him but Sombra held up a shaking hoof. After two minutes, he steadily rose on wobbling limbs and swayed from side to side before finding his bearing.

“I’m trying...to prepare myself,” Sombra said between breathes. “If I’m going to kill Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon, I have to be at my strongest. The only thing is that my damn magic is on the fritz!” He yelled, stomping hard enough at the ground to leave a fairly deep indentation.

“Maybe it’s because you are on the fritz, my king.” Grogar informed him.

Sombra glared at him. “What do you mean by that?”

“Magic is connected to your emotions, Sire. It’s why when you are happy you can lift the world but if you are angry well….”Groger gestures to Sombra’s latest attempt.

Looking between Grogar and the singed tree branch, Sombra sighed and looked down shamefully. “So what am I supposed to do? All I feel is...rage. I just want to see Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon broken, like their victims.”

“I think it’s because you have had no way of venting your frustrations like back at the kingdom, where you could summon a maid to your quarters.” Gorgar said, fully aware of the young king's nocturnal activities. “And besides, there may still be survivors out there and they will need you to have a cool head. Otherwise, you are no better than the sisters you wish to slay.”

Sombra took in his friend’s words, reminded by how many times they served him growing up and had yet to fail him. Putting space between them, he aimed at a nearby boulder and concentrated. His horn glowed red as he poured all of his magic into it, closing his eyes and seeing the boulder in his mind’s eye. Images of burning buildings and screaming crystal ponies flashed through his mind. Purple smoke poured from his closed eyelids, his red aura morphing into one that was black and unstable. Opening his eyes, he fired an energy blast at the boulder, blowing the top off of it and showering the surrounding area in rock shards.

“That felt...good,” he murmured contently, his voice taking on a resonating bass. That was until a slap in the back of the head shook him out of it. “What was that for?” The worried look on Grogar’s face was enough to scare the king. As if waking up from a trance, he stared confusingly at the boulder and realized the devastation that he had unleashed. “What...what was that? What did I do?”

“Dark magic. You gave into your dark emotions. Damn it.” Grogar stomped his hoof for emphasis. “You give into it and you will be no better than those you wish to destroy.”

“I’ll be okay, right? This was a one-time slip-up. It’ll be alright?”

“As long as you calm down and don’t give into the rage again, you should be fine.” Grogar pulled Sombra in for a hug and gently patted his back.

Sombra thought carefully on Grogar’s words. “Has anypony ever used dark magic for good? I mean, there had to have been somepony who was able to resist it.”

“Only three come to mind.” Grogar started drawing two cutie marks in the snow. ”The original was Starswirl the Bearded, then Clover the Clever, and lastly me but it was a horrible experience and while I accept that part of my past, I’m certainly not proud of it.”

“Wow, I can’t imagine something making you take up dark magic,” Sombra admitted truthfully, always seeing the ram as some paragon of goodness. “What happened?”

“That wasn’t the first time the Sisters tried taking the empire.” Grogar stated cryptically, the weight of his experience in his words.

Inhaling softly, Sombra closed his eyes and focused, a corona of red energy pulsating around his horn. A mix of joy and sorrow touched his heart as an influx of memories flowed into his head. His parents showing him around the empire, the three of them laughing as their carriage hit several bumps. Witnessing some foals playing in the crystal square as merchants and crafts-ponies were hard at work. A nearby stick shook gently and with great difficulty, he was able to lift it into the air. A smile spread on Sombra’s face as the stick rose above his eyeline.

“Well now, would you look at that.” The stick then clattered to the ground and Sombra’s ears folded backward as he let out a heavy sigh. “Easy come, easy go.”

Releasing Sombra from the hug, Grogar chuckled. “Give it time, Sire. Now if I remember correctly, the next town where we can eat is just past the horizon so I suggest you rest your magic because we still have a long way to go.”

Sombra nodded and they resumed their journey. “Forgive me, Grogar but I’m not too terribly familiar with the layout of Equestria. What town would this be exactly?”

“It’s a town called Hoofsville and it is a trading town given its position between Equestria and the former empire.”

“Well, as long as it accepts bits and respects a traveler’s privacy, then I think we have nothing to worry about,” Sombra added, trying to remain as positive as his friend. At least, I hope so. Given our luck, it might turn out to be a settlement of backwoods cannibals or something.

Groger nodded and helped his weakened friend as they started walking to Hoofsville and the sooner they reach it, the better. They were getting desperate for supplies and food was particularly scarce, with the last thing they ate was some acorns they found in a tree stump. Needless to say, it wasn’t a very filling meal.