The Last Lessonby Misty ShadowChaptersWhat Rises from BeneathShrouded in MysteryLearning the Eternal TruthWhat Rises from BeneathFriendship is magic… “Yeah right.” Somepony underground still doubted this truth, even after it had been made clear to them. “Had he not been there to help them, that would’ve been my victory for certain. I was clearly the stronger one, I only lost because I had to hold back. Yet...that is what bothers me. I wasn’t merely following orders, I was out to fulfill my own desire of proving myself as the strongest being in Equestria...yet in that moment, I felt...happy when I gave them a fair shot at beating me instead of killing them. Could it be...that their friendship has-hmmm?” The thoughts of this mysterious figure musing in the darkness were interrupted by the sound of a shifting in the ground above. “He’s calling me again?! So soon? For what?” “For both you and them to learn your final lesson…” a figure with a familiar voice answered ominously. Some time later… Sandbar, Yona, Silverstream, Ocellus, Smolder, and Gallus were sitting in Starlight Glimmer’s office at the School of Friendship, all of them giving their school’s headmaster a look of bemusement. “Heh heh heh heh…” Silverstream laughed nervously. “Sorry if I misheard something, but who is going to be our substitute teacher for today again?” “Discord!” Starlight exclaimed happily. “Who better to give you your last lesson before your final exam of the semester?” “You sure you don’t mean who better not to?” Gallus retorted sarcastically. “Have you forgotten that Discord’s the one who-” Smolder spoke before being cut off. “Oh, I know what happened last time!” Starlight responded, maintaining a strange level of enthusiasm for Discord’s return to the school in spite of the trouble he had previously caused them. “But you should know from your lessons that a big part of friendship is forgiveness!” “Yona get forgiveness.” Yona chimed in. “But Yona not like Discord.” “Yeah,” said a frustrated Ocellus, “it’s not just that incident we hold a grudge against him for, he also hasn’t apologized or even explained to us why he had to commit his more serious crime…” “I do empathize with your frustration over losing the Tree of Harmony…” Starlight replied. “But you must understand, Discord had nothing to do with it. It was obviously just King Sombra acting alone. I mean, really, Discord destroying the Tree of Harmony. How ridiculous is that?” A green light briefly glowed in Starlight’s eyes. Sandbar took note. “Yeah...sounds pretty out there…” Sandbar muttered facetiously, unconvinced and suspicious. The students later convened outside in the hall once the conversation was over, unsatisfied with their headmaster’s telling of events. “Yona smell something and it not Yona’s back hair.” Yona said. “Do you think Discord may have something to do with this?” Silverstream suggested. “As if he wouldn’t.” Smolder answered. “That creep always brings trouble with him wherever he goes. Call me horrible, but I’d honestly rather see Sombra’s ugly face again so that we could pound it in without getting in trouble.” “Now that you mention it…” Sandbar replied. “I noticed something weird about Headmare Starlight’s eyes...didn’t former Headmare Twilight once teach a lesson on how creatures possessed by King Sombra’s magic have their eyes glow all weird, green, and evil-like?” “I don’t know.” Gallus responded nonchalantly. “My eyes were probably all tired, red, and sleepy-like for that lesson.” Everyone else rolled their eyes. “First Discord, then Sombra…” Ocellus mused. “Say, you guys don’t think that maybe, just maybe...The Tree could have something to do with this?” “Huh?!” everyone else went in surprise. “What makes you say that?” Silverstream asked as everyone else turned their attention to Ocellus, astonished. “You’re not trying to suggest that the Tree of Harmony is evil, are you?” “No, no!” Ocellus denied. “I’m just hypothesizing. Let’s just say for sake of argument that Discord had the best intentions in what he did.” Everyone else collectively groaned. “Just bear with me.” Ocellus reassured. “The Tree told us that its spirit would’ve perished without our help. If Discord’s best intentions are to be assumed, and he was just testing Headmare Twilight and her friends, isn’t it possible that even if he did know that Sombra was going to destroy the Tree...he only allowed it to happen to test us too?” “Oh, now that’s rich.” Gallus jeered. “Discord, at his best, is selfish and stupid to the extreme. He doesn’t actually care or think deeply about his actions like that. He’s just an a-” “ATTENTION, EVERY CREATURE!” the familiar voice of Discord was abruptly heard blaring on the school intercom. “It’s time for class! Get there fast! Don’t be caught in the hall without a pass! Because I’m teaching your final lesson this semester and you better not be crass or give me any sass!” “You get the idea.” Gallus finished as the disgruntled students walked to their homeroom, failing to notice that a creeping shadow with familiar green, glowing eyes was stalking them from behind... Later, inside the homeroom where Discord was teaching… “And they all lived happily ever after, thanks to me!” he declared gleefully as he showed off a miniature model of Cozy Glow, Tirek, and Chrysalis encased in stone on his desk. “The end! Any questions?” A blue hippy pony with a mustache, a white shirt with a peace sign on it, and black hair styled in strings like Tree Hugger’s raised a hoof. “Yes?” “Isn’t stoning Cozy Glow, like, child abuse, man?” the hippy asked. “I know she tried to kill ponies and take over Equestria...again, but she’s still just a kid, bro.” Discord groaned as he changed into a black pastor’s robe and flipped through a black book. “Bah humbug, these bleeding hearts!” Discord bemoaned. “You can’t even stone kids these days for disrespecting their elders!” “I don’t even think ponies whose minds are still stuck in the Stone Age would want that…” Sandbar, who was sitting with his friends in the front row, whispered, getting them to chuckle. “But you can still publicly humiliate them without there being a fuss…” Discord abruptly broke up the group’s laugh by sliding onto their desks and clicking his fingers, magically teleporting Sandbar to a chair by the blackboard with a dunce cap on his head. “Pop quiz, Sandbar!” Discord exclaimed with a menacing smirk on his face, now wearing glasses and a white button-up shirt. “Who is Grogar?” “Um...you?” Sandbar answered with uncertainty. “Wrong!” Discord cried jeeringly, ready to rub it in. “The answer is the Father of Monsters. If you had paid attention, you would know that Grogar was a real figure I merely impersonated! Seriously, do I look like the father type to you?” “Come on, you know what I meant!” Sandbar complained. “This is stupid!” “Stupid is as stupid does…” Discord shifted Sandbar’s dunce cap back and forth slightly to taunt him even further, pushing Sandbar close to his limit as his eyes began to turn green… “Hoo hoo…” Discord snickered quietly to himself, taking notice. “Just one more question, Sandbar…” he said menacingly. “...Who killed the Tree of Harmony?” Sandbar angrily slammed his hooves down on the floor as he got off the chair. “YOU!” he yelled, pointing a foreleg at Discord. Discord winced in response as the rest of the class began to murmur amongst themselves. “Yona worried…” Yona said uncomfortably, feeling the most concerned out of Sandbar’s five friends who were staring at him nervously. “Yona feel evil in Sandbar…” “I know the answer would be “King Sombra” and I don’t care!” Sandbar continued to raise his voice. “You’re supposed to be one of the good guys, yet you brought him back and let him destroy someone we loved! That makes you worse than him, and you have the gall to give us a lecture about how you’re some noble hero who saved Equestria for our final lesson?! You’re nothing but a narcissistic lowlife! I wish you were dead!” “...!” Gallus scowled, sensing great darkness. Sandbar returned the scowl, noticing that all of his friends looked deeply upset with him. “Don’t you dare try to guilt me for saying what’s on your minds too!” he proclaimed. “I’m done sitting here taking abuse like a little bir-” “SANDBAR, GET OUT OF THERE!” Gallus abruptly cried as he flew toward Sandbar and grabbed him by the foreleg, pulling him away just before a dark crystal erupted from the ground below him. A black cloud of smoke poured out from the crystal, covering the entire teacher’s area, and when it lifted, the whole class gasped as they saw that Discord had been turned to stone. “Alone forever…” these were the last words spoken in a familiar, sinister voice before another dark crystal erupted below Discord and broke the statue that he now was into pieces, pieces that destroyed the model of the three villains on his desk. A familiar shadow then appeared over the desk and manifested itself into King Sombra, who stood triumphant, laughing wickedly. “MWA HA HA HA HA HA!” Many students in the class shrieked and trembled in terror. Even Sandbar and his friends were aghast, especially Sandbar himself, as the dark despot gave him an evil glare. “The powers that be smile on you today, Sandbar…” Sombra taunted. “Your wish has been granted! Mwua ha ha ha ha ha!” Shrouded in MysteryKing Sombra continued to laugh evilly as the students continued to panic. “Still waiting on the part where you run away screaming?” Sombra scoffed. “Or would you rather submit to my power?” Sombra shot an evil glare from his eyes and the students ducked under their desks in response. Once they emerged, they began to flee towards the exit as a crowd while Sombra summoned hands from his shadows that could reach out and afflict their minds. “This has to be a bad dream!” one student screamed. “This has to be a bad high!” the hippy pony cried. “Such weak fools…” Sombra continued to deride them as he retracted his shadow hands. “Not even worth the effort...as for you brats…” Sombra turned to Sandbar, Silverstream, Ocellus, Yona, Smolder, and Gallus, who were all still staring uncomfortably at the vicious shadow lord and shaking with fear as they watched him smugly shift through Discord’s shattered remains with his front hoof. “I regret to inform you that I will be your substitute teacher for the day.” he gloated. “Why not just kill us?” Smolder asked in confusion. “Do you not want a chance to pound my face in?” Sombra mocked her, leading her to blush in embarrassment. “That’s right, I was watching you from the shadows, listening to everything you said in the hall. Your school was invaded from the start.” “So my hunch was right…” Sandbar thought as his mind harkened back to when he saw the suspicious green glow in Starlight’s eyes. “Speaking seriously…” Sombra continued. “Killing you while you’re so weak and powerless right now would reap no rewards for me. That would not be a satisfying revenge…” “Is it our teachers you’re after?” Ocellus surmised. “Then what are you doing coming after us?” “I already proved myself stronger than Twilight and her friends once.” Sombra explained. “The only reason they were able to defeat me twice is because of that accursed Tree of Harmony and that loathsome Lord of Chaos. Now that both of the masters pulling their strings are dead, all that’s left is to prove myself stronger than the ones who will carry on their will.” “Dead?” Gallus replied angrily. “What do you mean “dead”?! The Tree of Harmony is-MMPH!” Smolder quickly put a claw to Gallus’ beak. “No use in keeping secrets.” Sombra said. “I already know. The Spirit of the Tree supposedly still lives on as a haven for you...but how do you know for sure that’s true? After all, wasn’t the last time you saw the Tree when it sprouted that new form?” “No, it has to be true!” Silverstream exclaimed worriedly, trying to cling to hope as doubt began to pervade the minds of her and her companions. “We were told the Spirit would only perish if we didn’t care for the Tree! It could only have been for a good reason that it didn’t show up when Equestria was under attack!” “Right you are…” Sombra jeered with a menacing sneer on his face. “I myself can vouch for a reason that’s as good as any…” The students nervously backed away as Sombra then blasted a spell at the floor to make small pink, bright purple, and bright blue crystals appear, causing the students to gasp in terror. “Well, don’t these look familiar, mwa ha ha ha ha!” he said with a ghastly guffaw. “How...HOW IS IT THAT YOU HAVE THE TREE’S POWER?!” Sandbar bellowed. “See for yourself…” Sombra retorted ominously as he stood on two legs and waved a hoof across his stomach, revealing a sight the students almost couldn’t comprehend… “AAAAAGGGGGHHHHH! HELP US!” ...the spirits of Discord and the Tree of Harmony were inside of Sombra’s belly, crying in agony. “No…” a mortified Sandbar said in disbelief as he came closer to Sombra. “This has to be one of your tricks...this has to be an illusion…” “No…” a crestfallen Gallus thought. “That’s definitely the Tree of Harmony’s spirit in there...I can feel the darkness that’s washing over her…” “Yona see it…” Yona said in her mind. “...but Yona not believe it. Tree Yona know could not allow this to happen…Yona know this some kind of trick!” “This is insane!” Silverstream exclaimed in her mind. “There just has to be some reason for this, there has to!” “Discord has manifested himself as a ghost before…” Smolder thought. “But why bring Sombra back to kill him? It doesn’t make any sense...” “This can’t be one of Sombra’s illusions, or else we’d be trapped in a fearscape.” Ocellus surmised. “Those are the real souls of Discord and the Tree, but a piece to this puzzle is clearly missing…” “I know what you all want to believe.” Sombra remarked. “If you insist on clinging to the pretense that this is just an illusion, try reaching out and talking to them…” Sandbar gulped before asking… “Is...is it really you?” In response, a hoof of a sparkling Twilight, the Tree’s avatar, reached out to Sandbar. “Please...save us…” the Tree said. “Tree…” Sandbar replied, instinctively holding out his hoof. “What can I do?” “The Elements…” the Tree answered as a magic glow appeared between their hooves. “There is still...chaos…” “Wait!” Sandbar yelled as the Tree’s hoof slipped back into Sombra’s stomach. “What do you mean?!” “Sorry!” Sombra taunted. “Visiting hours are over!” “You son of a DOG!” Sandbar hollered furiously. “Give her BACK!” “What about Discord?” Sombra asked. “Keep Discord.” Smolder said bluntly before she got collectively nudged by Yona and Silverstream. “Just for a while!” “You’ll get them back if you can beat me at the game I’ve prepared.” Sombra explained. “Meet me at your treehouse in half an hour. And don’t even think of running to anypony for help or I’ll destroy the treehouse! Not that any magic of friendship would help you this time...no, rest assured, it is the power inside of me that shall triumph! Mwua ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!” Sombra turned into a cloud of smoke and left, leaving the concerned students to ponder alone. “Yona smell something worse than Dad’s back hair now…” Yona asserted her suspicions. “King Sombra is not at all nervous in repeating the exact same mistake he made before…” Smolder pointed out. “That scum has to have some other sort of ulterior agenda in letting us live free of his mind control besides what he told us…” “I didn’t even sense any dark magic coming from his horn when he showed us the inside of his stomach…” Gallus told them. “...the only thing I can’t rule out is him having some kind of accomplices aiding him with an illusion. I think he waved his hoof in front of his stomach as some sort of a signal…” “But Gallus, that’s ridiculous!” Silverstream exclaimed. “Discord and the Tree were the only ones in his stomach, and there’s no way they’d help him!” “This really is quite the conundrum…” Ocellus chimed in. “But difficult as it is to come up with a rational theory for what’s going on, I can’t shake this feeling in my gut that this is all part of some kind of test…” “And what does that change?!” Sandbar interjected, frustrated. “No speculation about this is going to change the fact that we have no hope! Fighting Sombra wouldn’t bring the Tree back even if we could beat him...the Tree’s dead! It’s over. We have nothing…” “Sandbar have us…” Yona said to comfort him, smiling as she took his hoof. “...Huh? Sandbar, what this?” “What the…” Sandbar replied as he looked at his hoof and saw that he was holding a gold-colored, circle-shaped pendant. “This must be what the Tree gave me!” Everyone gathered to look at the pendant Sandbar was holding to see that it held an emblem with six slots that were all holding miniature black crystals. Engraved on the emblem was a drawing of a draconequus. “They look just like the Elements of Harmony…” Silverstream said in awe. “Those look like Sombra’s black crystals…” Gallus pointed out. “That drawing looks just like Discord…” Smolder remarked. Putting all that information together, Sandbar had something dawn on him… “These must be the Elements of Chaos…” Sandbar proclaimed his realization. “If the Tree created the Elements of Harmony, then Discord and the Tree must have created the Elements of Chaos together so that we could stand a fighting chance against Sombra!” “Regret being such a Debbie Downer now?” Gallus teased. “Come on!” Smolder exclaimed. “Let’s go show ol’ hornface what for!” As Sandbar, Gallus, and Smolder began to walk away together though, the other three stayed behind. “Wait!” Yona cried, leading the trio to turn around. “This not seem off to you?” “Yeah…” Silverstream concurred. “We’re supposed to exemplify the magic of friendship, and it can’t just be me thinking that “Elements of Chaos” doesn’t sound very friendly…” “Not just that…” Ocellus intervened. “But wasn’t a big part of Discord’s plan showing our mentors that they didn’t need the Elements of Harmony? Why in the world would he give us our own Elements?” “Better question.” Smolder responded. “Who cares? Why not use what’s been given to us?” “What’s our other option?” Gallus asked. “Stare at the ceiling, twiddling our hooves and claws while the last remnant of the Tree dies?” “The Tree entrusted us with these Elements…” Sandbar asserted as he gave his other three friends a stern look. “Whatever the Tree wills, we must follow. Otherwise, you may as well just stay behind.” The three scowled as they saw a green glow in Sandbar’s eyes. “Hmph.” Yona went in frustration as she and the others begrudgingly started following Sandbar and the rest. “Yona follow friendship. Sandbar Yona know not just do what Sandbar told. Yona only want to follow Sandbar if Sandbar stand up for friendship...” Yona thought that to herself as she and the group went to face King Sombra, who was happily blasting the ground with dark crystals outside of the Treehouse of Harmony in waiting. “They won’t win me over…” Sombra confidently mused to himself. “They’re nothing like Twilight and her comrades, and even they only left a dent. The seed of darkness within me will never be one of light…” Sombra smirked widely as he looked at his reflection in one of the bigger dark crystals and saw the Tree’s avatar of Twilight… “...for I am the darkness the light of the Tree needs…” Learning the Eternal TruthSandbar, who was now wearing the pendant the Tree gave him, and his friends arrived at the Treehouse of Harmony where King Sombra awaited them, eerily smiling with glee. “So you’re sincere in fighting me alone.” he laudibly remarked. “I commend your fighting spirit.” “...?!” Gallus was taken aback, feeling no malice or insincerity in Sombra’s words. He did, however, sense great hostility inside Sandbar, who grimaced and growled at Sombra. “Oh, I’m honored…” he told him facetiously. “...NOT!” Sombra laughed as he saw Sandbar’s eyes turn green. “That’s how you return a compliment?” he joked. “I’d like to see how you return an insult now.” “Your words mean nothing to me!” Sandbar yelled as purple haze began to flow from his eyes and the elements on the pendant began to glow. “I don’t even care whether or not they’re true! You’re just a worthless piece of garbage meant to be thrown away, a stain on the world who could never amount to anything!” Smolder clenched her hand into a fist upon hearing that, recalling how looked down upon her unruly dragon culture was. “So enough talk!” Sandbar cried as the elements left their slots, one each magically floating to Sandbar’s friends. “Everyone, take an element and focus your power so that we can finish this trash off once and for all!” However, as each element moved to attach itself to each one of his scowling friends’ chests, it was rejected and repelled by a magic crackling of pink lightning. “Huh?” Sandbar said in astonishment. “But why…?” “BECAUSE WE’RE NOT GOING TO SAVE THE DAY WITH YOU LIKE THIS!” Sandbar’s friends all collectively cried. “IS THIS WHAT YOU THINK THE TREE WOULD WANT?! FOR US TO WIN AGAINST EVIL BUT LOSE OURSELVES TO HATRED?!” “What...no...this...can’t be…” Sandbar stuttered in disbelief, his mind ravaged by confusion. “The Tree wanted-GGGAAAHHH!” Sandbar let out a cry as he began to float in the air, his green eyes exuding purple haze now turning white, as the elements his friends’ hearts rejected now gravitated towards him, forming a circle around him. Sandbar’s friends fearfully moved away from him. “Woah…” Sombra thought, honestly impressed by the great power he sensed. “How is this happening?!” Gallus yelled, worried by the growing power he could sense as well. “We rejected their hate-filled magic!” “Such a lust for revenge can’t be overwhelmed by one measly stand against evil.” Sombra explained with a devious smirk on his face. “And naive goody-goodies like you just can’t seem to figure it out no matter how many times you are shown the power of darkness...HATRED IS MAGIC! You can destroy me as many times as you like, but I’ll always return just as I am. Unlike your beloved Tree, which will forever be forced to change and decay! MWA HUA HUA HUA HUA!” Sandbar’s friends gasped as they realized that this power would not only destroy Sombra...but the Treehouse of Harmony behind him. “NO!” Sandbar’s friends screamed as they saw the elements charging up. “SANDBAR, STOP!” “I..I...I CAN’T!” Sandbar shrieked as he realized that the immense power surging within him and the elements was evil. “NNNNNOOOOO!” From Sandbar’s pendant, a giant beam of dark, chaotic magic was fired, razing everything in front of it and disrupting the soil. The blast ended when it hit the Treehouse of Harmony, causing the gigantic structure to disintegrate and become nothing but smoldering ash. Sandbar’s eyes returned to normal as he slumped to the ground, his pendant falling and shattering, the Elements of Chaos around him cracking and crumbling to pieces before they hit the ground as well. Immediately, Sandbar lifted his head up, the horror of what he had just done keeping him awake despite feeling drained. “What have I done…?” Sandbar naturally asked as he saw the destruction he had caused. “You...defeated Sombra, at least!” Silverstream exclaimed sheepishly. “...” Gallus immediately sensed that something wasn’t right as Sandbar began to lament. “WHAT DOES IT MATTER?!” he bellowed tearfully. “I DESTROYED THE VERY THING WE WERE FIGHTING FOR! I’M NOTHING NOW! I’M A LOSER! I’M TRA-” “SANDBAR, MOVE!” Gallus yelled as he instantly flew towards his weeping friend and pushed him out of the way of a circle of dark crystals that were ready to erupt from the ground and trap him. With Gallus now trapped in Sandbar’s place, a cloud of dark smoke rose from the crystals and materialized as King Sombra. “MWA HA HA HA HA!” he laughed evilly, as always. “You thought you beat me? Well, I’m afraid not! Though you deserve credit for such a magnificent display of true power, you forgot that I have much more open space here than I did when I was defeated at the castle! I hold the advantage over any outdoor terrain, being able to hide deep underground and avoid any powerful blast you may throw at me! In short, I’m invincible! AH HA HA HA HA!” “CURSE YOU!” Smolder yelled as her friends went to comfort Sandbar. “Why are you doing this?!” “To prove that my way is right, not yours.” Sombra answered cockily. “Just renounce this foolish creed of “friendship” and you will never have to worry about me again. You can start by dropping the act, ceasing to pretend that you care about that miserable excuse for a stallion you trusted as your leader.” “NEVER!” Smolder cried as she went over to her friends before they all looked over from Sandbar to Sombra with a stern glare. “You may as well kill us all right now, because we’d die before selling out our friend! Your darkness will never win over our hearts!” “...?!” Sandbar, Sombra, and Gallus were all taken aback by those words, as each of them had a shocking revelation. “You guys…” Sandbar said in astonishment, his self-loathing and doubt abating. “I completely screwed everything up, and you’re still protecting me? Why?” “They seek no excuse to turn on each other…” Sombra thought in disbelief, feeling a familiar feeling inside. “They honestly value the lives of others more than their own...but that’s not hatred...that’s...UGH!” “Something’s not right with Sombra…” Gallus wondered to himself, sensing the feeling inside Sombra. “I’ve had a weird feeling about him from the beginning, but I haven’t been able to put my finger on what exactly has been up with him…” Looking at his reflection in the crystal cage, Gallus saw his reflection change to the Tree’s avatar of Twilight winking at him, and gasped when he finally learned the answer. “...until now...HHHYYYAAAHHH!” The truth that Gallus could now see ignited the latent power within him, and a force of light energy burst from his heart, destroying Sombra’s crystal cage. Everyone flinched in shock. “G-G-Gallus...?” Gallus turned to them, his eyes glowing with light, and said… “I get it now. This power to sense the darkness on another level is something I must have picked up from my rigorous, cold, lonely upbringing...but I never realized that I also had the power to sense the light on another level until now thanks to you guys…” Gallus then smirked before he pointed his finger at a nervous Sombra. “And that includes you.” he finished. “Preposterous!” Sombra exclaimed, trying to mask his worries. “All I did was try to hurt you!” “Yet you failed…” Gallus confidently retorted. “Because your heart wasn’t in it. Let’s recap the events, shall we? You didn’t kill us or mind control us, let us know where our mentors were, gave us a chance at a fair fight, honored your word in not destroying the treehouse, and honestly commended us for our fighting spirit...because you’re rotten to the core? I don’t think so. You don’t want to admit it because you know it means you’ve lost...you now have a heart...with a love for light!” “...” Sandbar went as he got up, these words being his final push. The look on Sombra’s face contorted into one of sheer terror. “That’s not true...I WON’T ACCEPT IT!” he bellowed, charging up dark magic in his horn as he began to sweat. “I’LL SHOW YOU HOW MALEVOLENT I AM!” “TRY THAT ON ME!” Sandbar called out to Sombra, getting his attention. “I get it now too! Strength doesn’t come from following orders blindly as you seek an excuse to unleash your hate! It comes from faith, faith you can only find when you honestly love a strong bond with strong friends! When you watch them stand up for what’s right, you want to do the same, no matter what the stakes! It’s because my friends loved me even after I messed up that I’m not afraid to die!” “Sandbar…” Yona said with admiration, blushing. “THEN JUST DIE, BRAT!” Sombra roared as he blasted Sandbar in the chest, only for the blast to be repelled. “Is that all you got?” Sandbar taunted. “Because we’re not jacking around anymore, playtime is over…” Sandbar and his friends began to gather around in a circle, with Sombra at the center. “What are you fools doing?” Sombra questioned. “I told you, it’s no use! I have advantage over this area and can hide underground!” “You can’t hide from your heart.” Gallus smiled as he reminded him. “And you know what your heart is telling you…” Ocellus chimed in cheerily. “But you won’t admit the truth until it bursts forth from you…” Sandbar smirked as he hinted at Sombra’s impending defeat. All of the students’ eyes turned white with bright light as a similar force of light energy that erupted from Gallus’ heart began to erupt from Sombra’s heart. The dark ruler looked upon himself as he began to fall to ash, mortified as he felt this familiar feeling surge through him stronger than ever, and let out one final cry as he accepted his ultimate fate… “FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC!!!!!” His body disintegrated completely, leaving behind only a small, black object that fell to the ground. The students’ eyes returned to normal, and before long, they began to cheer. “We did it!” Silverstream exclaimed happily. “We beat him for real this time! And we did it the right way too!” “Guys, look!” Ocellus cried, interrupting the celebration by pointing to the black object that fell. Everyone went over to examine the object to discover… “A seed?” Sandbar asked. “What do we do with it?” “We could eat it.” Gallus answered playfully, garnering bemused glares from his peers. “I’m just teasing. Get it, bird seed?” “Wait…” Sandbar said, picking up the seed, remembering what Sombra said about going underground and always coming back. “You don’t think that…” “That’s far enough.” A familiar voice came from behind, leading the students to look back in surprise to see Discord, in his ordinary form, standing by the avatar of the Tree of Harmony. “Oh yeah, defeating Sombra must have freed you guys!” Silverstream exclaimed happily. “We’re so glad you’re back!” However, the air became filled with tension as Discord and the Tree did not return Silverstream’s enthusiasm. Both of them looked bitter and cross as Discord continued to tell Sandbar… “Hand it over.” “Discord...you...do know what this is, right?” Sandbar asked about the seed nervously. “Yes.” Discord answered bluntly. “It’s the key to Sombra’s immortality, the very seed I created him from.” “...?!” the students were taken aback, feeling both shocked and angry. “So it was you…” “I hold no grudge against Discord for what he did.” the Tree interjected. “Nor do I hate Sombra...but he must be destroyed for good. Listen to Discord and surrender the seed.” “But…” Sandbar objected meekly. “What if Sombra can change? You must know how he was defeated this time, we finally got him to accept the truth of friendship in his heart!” “You dare to resist me?!” Discord yelled, magically donning his journalist’s outfit. “Is this the word you want me to spread to the school? That you sympathized with the enemy, choosing an evil autocrat over your teacher? That’s how you want to remember your last lesson this term?! Pathetic! Why sacrifice everything for that piece of trash?!” Discord’s words reminded Sandbar of who he was before his friends stood up for him. In this moment, he was able to find another fire within his heart that gave him the courage to stand up to Discord and say… “BECAUSE NO ONE IS TRASH! It doesn’t matter whether it’s out of spite or apathy, you don’t defeat evil through destruction! You overwhelm evil with good!” “Preach, brother!” Smolder complimented as she and the others stood by Sandbar. “Like we’re afraid of some hack reporter!” “Truth will always overwhelm lies in the end.” Gallus interjected. “Do whatever you please, because we’d much rather be lied about than give into the demands of a jerk like you!” “We won’t let you destroy Sombra!” they all proclaimed. “We’re going to make him good!” The Tree stared at the group of friends, astonished, as Discord began to fume. “Such sass…” he berated. “So crass...this is why all of you…” “...PASS!” Discord exclaimed happily, his face abruptly beaming and his outfit having vanished. “...What?” the puzzled students replied. “What do you mean?” “You passed the test.” Discord answered jubilantly. “This was the real last lesson. The Tree and I set everything up to see if you were truly worthy of being passed your mentors’ torch.” “So you both let Sombra kill you?!” they cried. “That’s crazy!” “It was an essential sacrifice to teach both you and him the most important lesson of all.” the Tree explained happily. “You even surprised me in how you passed with flying colors.” “How can that be when we still don’t understand what we learned?” the students asked, still confused. “The first friendship lesson I learned came with my defeat.” Discord replied, smiling with the Tree as he looked up to the sky. “Friendship isn’t easy, but it’s definitely worth fighting for. Of course I didn’t get it at the time, and now, I’ve taught it to you through example.” “Oh…” the students went, beginning to understand. “You’ve always had a strong light within you.” Discord continued. “You’ve always known that those who follow the light will be revered as great...and now you know that those who stand up for the light no matter what, even learning to love the darkness that inevitably challenges them...will be revered as far greater than that!” The students all grinned widely, filled with admiration. “That...that is really cool…” Sandbar said, almost moved to tears of joy as he glanced at the seed. “I know in my heart now what we need to do…” Soon after the students learned their last lesson, both the Treehouse of Harmony and the original Tree of Harmony came back. The students frequently visit both of them, always wishing to pay respects to both parts of the Tree for their teachings...the Spirit of the Tree and King Sombra, whom they could now see in the Tree’s reflection. And they always hear his heart say… “I thank all of you for saving my soul.”
What Rises from BeneathFriendship is magic… “Yeah right.” Somepony underground still doubted this truth, even after it had been made clear to them. “Had he not been there to help them, that would’ve been my victory for certain. I was clearly the stronger one, I only lost because I had to hold back. Yet...that is what bothers me. I wasn’t merely following orders, I was out to fulfill my own desire of proving myself as the strongest being in Equestria...yet in that moment, I felt...happy when I gave them a fair shot at beating me instead of killing them. Could it be...that their friendship has-hmmm?” The thoughts of this mysterious figure musing in the darkness were interrupted by the sound of a shifting in the ground above. “He’s calling me again?! So soon? For what?” “For both you and them to learn your final lesson…” a figure with a familiar voice answered ominously. Some time later… Sandbar, Yona, Silverstream, Ocellus, Smolder, and Gallus were sitting in Starlight Glimmer’s office at the School of Friendship, all of them giving their school’s headmaster a look of bemusement. “Heh heh heh heh…” Silverstream laughed nervously. “Sorry if I misheard something, but who is going to be our substitute teacher for today again?” “Discord!” Starlight exclaimed happily. “Who better to give you your last lesson before your final exam of the semester?” “You sure you don’t mean who better not to?” Gallus retorted sarcastically. “Have you forgotten that Discord’s the one who-” Smolder spoke before being cut off. “Oh, I know what happened last time!” Starlight responded, maintaining a strange level of enthusiasm for Discord’s return to the school in spite of the trouble he had previously caused them. “But you should know from your lessons that a big part of friendship is forgiveness!” “Yona get forgiveness.” Yona chimed in. “But Yona not like Discord.” “Yeah,” said a frustrated Ocellus, “it’s not just that incident we hold a grudge against him for, he also hasn’t apologized or even explained to us why he had to commit his more serious crime…” “I do empathize with your frustration over losing the Tree of Harmony…” Starlight replied. “But you must understand, Discord had nothing to do with it. It was obviously just King Sombra acting alone. I mean, really, Discord destroying the Tree of Harmony. How ridiculous is that?” A green light briefly glowed in Starlight’s eyes. Sandbar took note. “Yeah...sounds pretty out there…” Sandbar muttered facetiously, unconvinced and suspicious. The students later convened outside in the hall once the conversation was over, unsatisfied with their headmaster’s telling of events. “Yona smell something and it not Yona’s back hair.” Yona said. “Do you think Discord may have something to do with this?” Silverstream suggested. “As if he wouldn’t.” Smolder answered. “That creep always brings trouble with him wherever he goes. Call me horrible, but I’d honestly rather see Sombra’s ugly face again so that we could pound it in without getting in trouble.” “Now that you mention it…” Sandbar replied. “I noticed something weird about Headmare Starlight’s eyes...didn’t former Headmare Twilight once teach a lesson on how creatures possessed by King Sombra’s magic have their eyes glow all weird, green, and evil-like?” “I don’t know.” Gallus responded nonchalantly. “My eyes were probably all tired, red, and sleepy-like for that lesson.” Everyone else rolled their eyes. “First Discord, then Sombra…” Ocellus mused. “Say, you guys don’t think that maybe, just maybe...The Tree could have something to do with this?” “Huh?!” everyone else went in surprise. “What makes you say that?” Silverstream asked as everyone else turned their attention to Ocellus, astonished. “You’re not trying to suggest that the Tree of Harmony is evil, are you?” “No, no!” Ocellus denied. “I’m just hypothesizing. Let’s just say for sake of argument that Discord had the best intentions in what he did.” Everyone else collectively groaned. “Just bear with me.” Ocellus reassured. “The Tree told us that its spirit would’ve perished without our help. If Discord’s best intentions are to be assumed, and he was just testing Headmare Twilight and her friends, isn’t it possible that even if he did know that Sombra was going to destroy the Tree...he only allowed it to happen to test us too?” “Oh, now that’s rich.” Gallus jeered. “Discord, at his best, is selfish and stupid to the extreme. He doesn’t actually care or think deeply about his actions like that. He’s just an a-” “ATTENTION, EVERY CREATURE!” the familiar voice of Discord was abruptly heard blaring on the school intercom. “It’s time for class! Get there fast! Don’t be caught in the hall without a pass! Because I’m teaching your final lesson this semester and you better not be crass or give me any sass!” “You get the idea.” Gallus finished as the disgruntled students walked to their homeroom, failing to notice that a creeping shadow with familiar green, glowing eyes was stalking them from behind... Later, inside the homeroom where Discord was teaching… “And they all lived happily ever after, thanks to me!” he declared gleefully as he showed off a miniature model of Cozy Glow, Tirek, and Chrysalis encased in stone on his desk. “The end! Any questions?” A blue hippy pony with a mustache, a white shirt with a peace sign on it, and black hair styled in strings like Tree Hugger’s raised a hoof. “Yes?” “Isn’t stoning Cozy Glow, like, child abuse, man?” the hippy asked. “I know she tried to kill ponies and take over Equestria...again, but she’s still just a kid, bro.” Discord groaned as he changed into a black pastor’s robe and flipped through a black book. “Bah humbug, these bleeding hearts!” Discord bemoaned. “You can’t even stone kids these days for disrespecting their elders!” “I don’t even think ponies whose minds are still stuck in the Stone Age would want that…” Sandbar, who was sitting with his friends in the front row, whispered, getting them to chuckle. “But you can still publicly humiliate them without there being a fuss…” Discord abruptly broke up the group’s laugh by sliding onto their desks and clicking his fingers, magically teleporting Sandbar to a chair by the blackboard with a dunce cap on his head. “Pop quiz, Sandbar!” Discord exclaimed with a menacing smirk on his face, now wearing glasses and a white button-up shirt. “Who is Grogar?” “Um...you?” Sandbar answered with uncertainty. “Wrong!” Discord cried jeeringly, ready to rub it in. “The answer is the Father of Monsters. If you had paid attention, you would know that Grogar was a real figure I merely impersonated! Seriously, do I look like the father type to you?” “Come on, you know what I meant!” Sandbar complained. “This is stupid!” “Stupid is as stupid does…” Discord shifted Sandbar’s dunce cap back and forth slightly to taunt him even further, pushing Sandbar close to his limit as his eyes began to turn green… “Hoo hoo…” Discord snickered quietly to himself, taking notice. “Just one more question, Sandbar…” he said menacingly. “...Who killed the Tree of Harmony?” Sandbar angrily slammed his hooves down on the floor as he got off the chair. “YOU!” he yelled, pointing a foreleg at Discord. Discord winced in response as the rest of the class began to murmur amongst themselves. “Yona worried…” Yona said uncomfortably, feeling the most concerned out of Sandbar’s five friends who were staring at him nervously. “Yona feel evil in Sandbar…” “I know the answer would be “King Sombra” and I don’t care!” Sandbar continued to raise his voice. “You’re supposed to be one of the good guys, yet you brought him back and let him destroy someone we loved! That makes you worse than him, and you have the gall to give us a lecture about how you’re some noble hero who saved Equestria for our final lesson?! You’re nothing but a narcissistic lowlife! I wish you were dead!” “...!” Gallus scowled, sensing great darkness. Sandbar returned the scowl, noticing that all of his friends looked deeply upset with him. “Don’t you dare try to guilt me for saying what’s on your minds too!” he proclaimed. “I’m done sitting here taking abuse like a little bir-” “SANDBAR, GET OUT OF THERE!” Gallus abruptly cried as he flew toward Sandbar and grabbed him by the foreleg, pulling him away just before a dark crystal erupted from the ground below him. A black cloud of smoke poured out from the crystal, covering the entire teacher’s area, and when it lifted, the whole class gasped as they saw that Discord had been turned to stone. “Alone forever…” these were the last words spoken in a familiar, sinister voice before another dark crystal erupted below Discord and broke the statue that he now was into pieces, pieces that destroyed the model of the three villains on his desk. A familiar shadow then appeared over the desk and manifested itself into King Sombra, who stood triumphant, laughing wickedly. “MWA HA HA HA HA HA!” Many students in the class shrieked and trembled in terror. Even Sandbar and his friends were aghast, especially Sandbar himself, as the dark despot gave him an evil glare. “The powers that be smile on you today, Sandbar…” Sombra taunted. “Your wish has been granted! Mwua ha ha ha ha ha!”
Shrouded in MysteryKing Sombra continued to laugh evilly as the students continued to panic. “Still waiting on the part where you run away screaming?” Sombra scoffed. “Or would you rather submit to my power?” Sombra shot an evil glare from his eyes and the students ducked under their desks in response. Once they emerged, they began to flee towards the exit as a crowd while Sombra summoned hands from his shadows that could reach out and afflict their minds. “This has to be a bad dream!” one student screamed. “This has to be a bad high!” the hippy pony cried. “Such weak fools…” Sombra continued to deride them as he retracted his shadow hands. “Not even worth the effort...as for you brats…” Sombra turned to Sandbar, Silverstream, Ocellus, Yona, Smolder, and Gallus, who were all still staring uncomfortably at the vicious shadow lord and shaking with fear as they watched him smugly shift through Discord’s shattered remains with his front hoof. “I regret to inform you that I will be your substitute teacher for the day.” he gloated. “Why not just kill us?” Smolder asked in confusion. “Do you not want a chance to pound my face in?” Sombra mocked her, leading her to blush in embarrassment. “That’s right, I was watching you from the shadows, listening to everything you said in the hall. Your school was invaded from the start.” “So my hunch was right…” Sandbar thought as his mind harkened back to when he saw the suspicious green glow in Starlight’s eyes. “Speaking seriously…” Sombra continued. “Killing you while you’re so weak and powerless right now would reap no rewards for me. That would not be a satisfying revenge…” “Is it our teachers you’re after?” Ocellus surmised. “Then what are you doing coming after us?” “I already proved myself stronger than Twilight and her friends once.” Sombra explained. “The only reason they were able to defeat me twice is because of that accursed Tree of Harmony and that loathsome Lord of Chaos. Now that both of the masters pulling their strings are dead, all that’s left is to prove myself stronger than the ones who will carry on their will.” “Dead?” Gallus replied angrily. “What do you mean “dead”?! The Tree of Harmony is-MMPH!” Smolder quickly put a claw to Gallus’ beak. “No use in keeping secrets.” Sombra said. “I already know. The Spirit of the Tree supposedly still lives on as a haven for you...but how do you know for sure that’s true? After all, wasn’t the last time you saw the Tree when it sprouted that new form?” “No, it has to be true!” Silverstream exclaimed worriedly, trying to cling to hope as doubt began to pervade the minds of her and her companions. “We were told the Spirit would only perish if we didn’t care for the Tree! It could only have been for a good reason that it didn’t show up when Equestria was under attack!” “Right you are…” Sombra jeered with a menacing sneer on his face. “I myself can vouch for a reason that’s as good as any…” The students nervously backed away as Sombra then blasted a spell at the floor to make small pink, bright purple, and bright blue crystals appear, causing the students to gasp in terror. “Well, don’t these look familiar, mwa ha ha ha ha!” he said with a ghastly guffaw. “How...HOW IS IT THAT YOU HAVE THE TREE’S POWER?!” Sandbar bellowed. “See for yourself…” Sombra retorted ominously as he stood on two legs and waved a hoof across his stomach, revealing a sight the students almost couldn’t comprehend… “AAAAAGGGGGHHHHH! HELP US!” ...the spirits of Discord and the Tree of Harmony were inside of Sombra’s belly, crying in agony. “No…” a mortified Sandbar said in disbelief as he came closer to Sombra. “This has to be one of your tricks...this has to be an illusion…” “No…” a crestfallen Gallus thought. “That’s definitely the Tree of Harmony’s spirit in there...I can feel the darkness that’s washing over her…” “Yona see it…” Yona said in her mind. “...but Yona not believe it. Tree Yona know could not allow this to happen…Yona know this some kind of trick!” “This is insane!” Silverstream exclaimed in her mind. “There just has to be some reason for this, there has to!” “Discord has manifested himself as a ghost before…” Smolder thought. “But why bring Sombra back to kill him? It doesn’t make any sense...” “This can’t be one of Sombra’s illusions, or else we’d be trapped in a fearscape.” Ocellus surmised. “Those are the real souls of Discord and the Tree, but a piece to this puzzle is clearly missing…” “I know what you all want to believe.” Sombra remarked. “If you insist on clinging to the pretense that this is just an illusion, try reaching out and talking to them…” Sandbar gulped before asking… “Is...is it really you?” In response, a hoof of a sparkling Twilight, the Tree’s avatar, reached out to Sandbar. “Please...save us…” the Tree said. “Tree…” Sandbar replied, instinctively holding out his hoof. “What can I do?” “The Elements…” the Tree answered as a magic glow appeared between their hooves. “There is still...chaos…” “Wait!” Sandbar yelled as the Tree’s hoof slipped back into Sombra’s stomach. “What do you mean?!” “Sorry!” Sombra taunted. “Visiting hours are over!” “You son of a DOG!” Sandbar hollered furiously. “Give her BACK!” “What about Discord?” Sombra asked. “Keep Discord.” Smolder said bluntly before she got collectively nudged by Yona and Silverstream. “Just for a while!” “You’ll get them back if you can beat me at the game I’ve prepared.” Sombra explained. “Meet me at your treehouse in half an hour. And don’t even think of running to anypony for help or I’ll destroy the treehouse! Not that any magic of friendship would help you this time...no, rest assured, it is the power inside of me that shall triumph! Mwua ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!” Sombra turned into a cloud of smoke and left, leaving the concerned students to ponder alone. “Yona smell something worse than Dad’s back hair now…” Yona asserted her suspicions. “King Sombra is not at all nervous in repeating the exact same mistake he made before…” Smolder pointed out. “That scum has to have some other sort of ulterior agenda in letting us live free of his mind control besides what he told us…” “I didn’t even sense any dark magic coming from his horn when he showed us the inside of his stomach…” Gallus told them. “...the only thing I can’t rule out is him having some kind of accomplices aiding him with an illusion. I think he waved his hoof in front of his stomach as some sort of a signal…” “But Gallus, that’s ridiculous!” Silverstream exclaimed. “Discord and the Tree were the only ones in his stomach, and there’s no way they’d help him!” “This really is quite the conundrum…” Ocellus chimed in. “But difficult as it is to come up with a rational theory for what’s going on, I can’t shake this feeling in my gut that this is all part of some kind of test…” “And what does that change?!” Sandbar interjected, frustrated. “No speculation about this is going to change the fact that we have no hope! Fighting Sombra wouldn’t bring the Tree back even if we could beat him...the Tree’s dead! It’s over. We have nothing…” “Sandbar have us…” Yona said to comfort him, smiling as she took his hoof. “...Huh? Sandbar, what this?” “What the…” Sandbar replied as he looked at his hoof and saw that he was holding a gold-colored, circle-shaped pendant. “This must be what the Tree gave me!” Everyone gathered to look at the pendant Sandbar was holding to see that it held an emblem with six slots that were all holding miniature black crystals. Engraved on the emblem was a drawing of a draconequus. “They look just like the Elements of Harmony…” Silverstream said in awe. “Those look like Sombra’s black crystals…” Gallus pointed out. “That drawing looks just like Discord…” Smolder remarked. Putting all that information together, Sandbar had something dawn on him… “These must be the Elements of Chaos…” Sandbar proclaimed his realization. “If the Tree created the Elements of Harmony, then Discord and the Tree must have created the Elements of Chaos together so that we could stand a fighting chance against Sombra!” “Regret being such a Debbie Downer now?” Gallus teased. “Come on!” Smolder exclaimed. “Let’s go show ol’ hornface what for!” As Sandbar, Gallus, and Smolder began to walk away together though, the other three stayed behind. “Wait!” Yona cried, leading the trio to turn around. “This not seem off to you?” “Yeah…” Silverstream concurred. “We’re supposed to exemplify the magic of friendship, and it can’t just be me thinking that “Elements of Chaos” doesn’t sound very friendly…” “Not just that…” Ocellus intervened. “But wasn’t a big part of Discord’s plan showing our mentors that they didn’t need the Elements of Harmony? Why in the world would he give us our own Elements?” “Better question.” Smolder responded. “Who cares? Why not use what’s been given to us?” “What’s our other option?” Gallus asked. “Stare at the ceiling, twiddling our hooves and claws while the last remnant of the Tree dies?” “The Tree entrusted us with these Elements…” Sandbar asserted as he gave his other three friends a stern look. “Whatever the Tree wills, we must follow. Otherwise, you may as well just stay behind.” The three scowled as they saw a green glow in Sandbar’s eyes. “Hmph.” Yona went in frustration as she and the others begrudgingly started following Sandbar and the rest. “Yona follow friendship. Sandbar Yona know not just do what Sandbar told. Yona only want to follow Sandbar if Sandbar stand up for friendship...” Yona thought that to herself as she and the group went to face King Sombra, who was happily blasting the ground with dark crystals outside of the Treehouse of Harmony in waiting. “They won’t win me over…” Sombra confidently mused to himself. “They’re nothing like Twilight and her comrades, and even they only left a dent. The seed of darkness within me will never be one of light…” Sombra smirked widely as he looked at his reflection in one of the bigger dark crystals and saw the Tree’s avatar of Twilight… “...for I am the darkness the light of the Tree needs…”
Learning the Eternal TruthSandbar, who was now wearing the pendant the Tree gave him, and his friends arrived at the Treehouse of Harmony where King Sombra awaited them, eerily smiling with glee. “So you’re sincere in fighting me alone.” he laudibly remarked. “I commend your fighting spirit.” “...?!” Gallus was taken aback, feeling no malice or insincerity in Sombra’s words. He did, however, sense great hostility inside Sandbar, who grimaced and growled at Sombra. “Oh, I’m honored…” he told him facetiously. “...NOT!” Sombra laughed as he saw Sandbar’s eyes turn green. “That’s how you return a compliment?” he joked. “I’d like to see how you return an insult now.” “Your words mean nothing to me!” Sandbar yelled as purple haze began to flow from his eyes and the elements on the pendant began to glow. “I don’t even care whether or not they’re true! You’re just a worthless piece of garbage meant to be thrown away, a stain on the world who could never amount to anything!” Smolder clenched her hand into a fist upon hearing that, recalling how looked down upon her unruly dragon culture was. “So enough talk!” Sandbar cried as the elements left their slots, one each magically floating to Sandbar’s friends. “Everyone, take an element and focus your power so that we can finish this trash off once and for all!” However, as each element moved to attach itself to each one of his scowling friends’ chests, it was rejected and repelled by a magic crackling of pink lightning. “Huh?” Sandbar said in astonishment. “But why…?” “BECAUSE WE’RE NOT GOING TO SAVE THE DAY WITH YOU LIKE THIS!” Sandbar’s friends all collectively cried. “IS THIS WHAT YOU THINK THE TREE WOULD WANT?! FOR US TO WIN AGAINST EVIL BUT LOSE OURSELVES TO HATRED?!” “What...no...this...can’t be…” Sandbar stuttered in disbelief, his mind ravaged by confusion. “The Tree wanted-GGGAAAHHH!” Sandbar let out a cry as he began to float in the air, his green eyes exuding purple haze now turning white, as the elements his friends’ hearts rejected now gravitated towards him, forming a circle around him. Sandbar’s friends fearfully moved away from him. “Woah…” Sombra thought, honestly impressed by the great power he sensed. “How is this happening?!” Gallus yelled, worried by the growing power he could sense as well. “We rejected their hate-filled magic!” “Such a lust for revenge can’t be overwhelmed by one measly stand against evil.” Sombra explained with a devious smirk on his face. “And naive goody-goodies like you just can’t seem to figure it out no matter how many times you are shown the power of darkness...HATRED IS MAGIC! You can destroy me as many times as you like, but I’ll always return just as I am. Unlike your beloved Tree, which will forever be forced to change and decay! MWA HUA HUA HUA HUA!” Sandbar’s friends gasped as they realized that this power would not only destroy Sombra...but the Treehouse of Harmony behind him. “NO!” Sandbar’s friends screamed as they saw the elements charging up. “SANDBAR, STOP!” “I..I...I CAN’T!” Sandbar shrieked as he realized that the immense power surging within him and the elements was evil. “NNNNNOOOOO!” From Sandbar’s pendant, a giant beam of dark, chaotic magic was fired, razing everything in front of it and disrupting the soil. The blast ended when it hit the Treehouse of Harmony, causing the gigantic structure to disintegrate and become nothing but smoldering ash. Sandbar’s eyes returned to normal as he slumped to the ground, his pendant falling and shattering, the Elements of Chaos around him cracking and crumbling to pieces before they hit the ground as well. Immediately, Sandbar lifted his head up, the horror of what he had just done keeping him awake despite feeling drained. “What have I done…?” Sandbar naturally asked as he saw the destruction he had caused. “You...defeated Sombra, at least!” Silverstream exclaimed sheepishly. “...” Gallus immediately sensed that something wasn’t right as Sandbar began to lament. “WHAT DOES IT MATTER?!” he bellowed tearfully. “I DESTROYED THE VERY THING WE WERE FIGHTING FOR! I’M NOTHING NOW! I’M A LOSER! I’M TRA-” “SANDBAR, MOVE!” Gallus yelled as he instantly flew towards his weeping friend and pushed him out of the way of a circle of dark crystals that were ready to erupt from the ground and trap him. With Gallus now trapped in Sandbar’s place, a cloud of dark smoke rose from the crystals and materialized as King Sombra. “MWA HA HA HA HA!” he laughed evilly, as always. “You thought you beat me? Well, I’m afraid not! Though you deserve credit for such a magnificent display of true power, you forgot that I have much more open space here than I did when I was defeated at the castle! I hold the advantage over any outdoor terrain, being able to hide deep underground and avoid any powerful blast you may throw at me! In short, I’m invincible! AH HA HA HA HA!” “CURSE YOU!” Smolder yelled as her friends went to comfort Sandbar. “Why are you doing this?!” “To prove that my way is right, not yours.” Sombra answered cockily. “Just renounce this foolish creed of “friendship” and you will never have to worry about me again. You can start by dropping the act, ceasing to pretend that you care about that miserable excuse for a stallion you trusted as your leader.” “NEVER!” Smolder cried as she went over to her friends before they all looked over from Sandbar to Sombra with a stern glare. “You may as well kill us all right now, because we’d die before selling out our friend! Your darkness will never win over our hearts!” “...?!” Sandbar, Sombra, and Gallus were all taken aback by those words, as each of them had a shocking revelation. “You guys…” Sandbar said in astonishment, his self-loathing and doubt abating. “I completely screwed everything up, and you’re still protecting me? Why?” “They seek no excuse to turn on each other…” Sombra thought in disbelief, feeling a familiar feeling inside. “They honestly value the lives of others more than their own...but that’s not hatred...that’s...UGH!” “Something’s not right with Sombra…” Gallus wondered to himself, sensing the feeling inside Sombra. “I’ve had a weird feeling about him from the beginning, but I haven’t been able to put my finger on what exactly has been up with him…” Looking at his reflection in the crystal cage, Gallus saw his reflection change to the Tree’s avatar of Twilight winking at him, and gasped when he finally learned the answer. “...until now...HHHYYYAAAHHH!” The truth that Gallus could now see ignited the latent power within him, and a force of light energy burst from his heart, destroying Sombra’s crystal cage. Everyone flinched in shock. “G-G-Gallus...?” Gallus turned to them, his eyes glowing with light, and said… “I get it now. This power to sense the darkness on another level is something I must have picked up from my rigorous, cold, lonely upbringing...but I never realized that I also had the power to sense the light on another level until now thanks to you guys…” Gallus then smirked before he pointed his finger at a nervous Sombra. “And that includes you.” he finished. “Preposterous!” Sombra exclaimed, trying to mask his worries. “All I did was try to hurt you!” “Yet you failed…” Gallus confidently retorted. “Because your heart wasn’t in it. Let’s recap the events, shall we? You didn’t kill us or mind control us, let us know where our mentors were, gave us a chance at a fair fight, honored your word in not destroying the treehouse, and honestly commended us for our fighting spirit...because you’re rotten to the core? I don’t think so. You don’t want to admit it because you know it means you’ve lost...you now have a heart...with a love for light!” “...” Sandbar went as he got up, these words being his final push. The look on Sombra’s face contorted into one of sheer terror. “That’s not true...I WON’T ACCEPT IT!” he bellowed, charging up dark magic in his horn as he began to sweat. “I’LL SHOW YOU HOW MALEVOLENT I AM!” “TRY THAT ON ME!” Sandbar called out to Sombra, getting his attention. “I get it now too! Strength doesn’t come from following orders blindly as you seek an excuse to unleash your hate! It comes from faith, faith you can only find when you honestly love a strong bond with strong friends! When you watch them stand up for what’s right, you want to do the same, no matter what the stakes! It’s because my friends loved me even after I messed up that I’m not afraid to die!” “Sandbar…” Yona said with admiration, blushing. “THEN JUST DIE, BRAT!” Sombra roared as he blasted Sandbar in the chest, only for the blast to be repelled. “Is that all you got?” Sandbar taunted. “Because we’re not jacking around anymore, playtime is over…” Sandbar and his friends began to gather around in a circle, with Sombra at the center. “What are you fools doing?” Sombra questioned. “I told you, it’s no use! I have advantage over this area and can hide underground!” “You can’t hide from your heart.” Gallus smiled as he reminded him. “And you know what your heart is telling you…” Ocellus chimed in cheerily. “But you won’t admit the truth until it bursts forth from you…” Sandbar smirked as he hinted at Sombra’s impending defeat. All of the students’ eyes turned white with bright light as a similar force of light energy that erupted from Gallus’ heart began to erupt from Sombra’s heart. The dark ruler looked upon himself as he began to fall to ash, mortified as he felt this familiar feeling surge through him stronger than ever, and let out one final cry as he accepted his ultimate fate… “FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC!!!!!” His body disintegrated completely, leaving behind only a small, black object that fell to the ground. The students’ eyes returned to normal, and before long, they began to cheer. “We did it!” Silverstream exclaimed happily. “We beat him for real this time! And we did it the right way too!” “Guys, look!” Ocellus cried, interrupting the celebration by pointing to the black object that fell. Everyone went over to examine the object to discover… “A seed?” Sandbar asked. “What do we do with it?” “We could eat it.” Gallus answered playfully, garnering bemused glares from his peers. “I’m just teasing. Get it, bird seed?” “Wait…” Sandbar said, picking up the seed, remembering what Sombra said about going underground and always coming back. “You don’t think that…” “That’s far enough.” A familiar voice came from behind, leading the students to look back in surprise to see Discord, in his ordinary form, standing by the avatar of the Tree of Harmony. “Oh yeah, defeating Sombra must have freed you guys!” Silverstream exclaimed happily. “We’re so glad you’re back!” However, the air became filled with tension as Discord and the Tree did not return Silverstream’s enthusiasm. Both of them looked bitter and cross as Discord continued to tell Sandbar… “Hand it over.” “Discord...you...do know what this is, right?” Sandbar asked about the seed nervously. “Yes.” Discord answered bluntly. “It’s the key to Sombra’s immortality, the very seed I created him from.” “...?!” the students were taken aback, feeling both shocked and angry. “So it was you…” “I hold no grudge against Discord for what he did.” the Tree interjected. “Nor do I hate Sombra...but he must be destroyed for good. Listen to Discord and surrender the seed.” “But…” Sandbar objected meekly. “What if Sombra can change? You must know how he was defeated this time, we finally got him to accept the truth of friendship in his heart!” “You dare to resist me?!” Discord yelled, magically donning his journalist’s outfit. “Is this the word you want me to spread to the school? That you sympathized with the enemy, choosing an evil autocrat over your teacher? That’s how you want to remember your last lesson this term?! Pathetic! Why sacrifice everything for that piece of trash?!” Discord’s words reminded Sandbar of who he was before his friends stood up for him. In this moment, he was able to find another fire within his heart that gave him the courage to stand up to Discord and say… “BECAUSE NO ONE IS TRASH! It doesn’t matter whether it’s out of spite or apathy, you don’t defeat evil through destruction! You overwhelm evil with good!” “Preach, brother!” Smolder complimented as she and the others stood by Sandbar. “Like we’re afraid of some hack reporter!” “Truth will always overwhelm lies in the end.” Gallus interjected. “Do whatever you please, because we’d much rather be lied about than give into the demands of a jerk like you!” “We won’t let you destroy Sombra!” they all proclaimed. “We’re going to make him good!” The Tree stared at the group of friends, astonished, as Discord began to fume. “Such sass…” he berated. “So crass...this is why all of you…” “...PASS!” Discord exclaimed happily, his face abruptly beaming and his outfit having vanished. “...What?” the puzzled students replied. “What do you mean?” “You passed the test.” Discord answered jubilantly. “This was the real last lesson. The Tree and I set everything up to see if you were truly worthy of being passed your mentors’ torch.” “So you both let Sombra kill you?!” they cried. “That’s crazy!” “It was an essential sacrifice to teach both you and him the most important lesson of all.” the Tree explained happily. “You even surprised me in how you passed with flying colors.” “How can that be when we still don’t understand what we learned?” the students asked, still confused. “The first friendship lesson I learned came with my defeat.” Discord replied, smiling with the Tree as he looked up to the sky. “Friendship isn’t easy, but it’s definitely worth fighting for. Of course I didn’t get it at the time, and now, I’ve taught it to you through example.” “Oh…” the students went, beginning to understand. “You’ve always had a strong light within you.” Discord continued. “You’ve always known that those who follow the light will be revered as great...and now you know that those who stand up for the light no matter what, even learning to love the darkness that inevitably challenges them...will be revered as far greater than that!” The students all grinned widely, filled with admiration. “That...that is really cool…” Sandbar said, almost moved to tears of joy as he glanced at the seed. “I know in my heart now what we need to do…” Soon after the students learned their last lesson, both the Treehouse of Harmony and the original Tree of Harmony came back. The students frequently visit both of them, always wishing to pay respects to both parts of the Tree for their teachings...the Spirit of the Tree and King Sombra, whom they could now see in the Tree’s reflection. And they always hear his heart say… “I thank all of you for saving my soul.”
