Forgotten

After Twilight yelled her declaration of war across the arena, Sombra pawed at the ground and snorted viciously. He and the princess backed up a few paces, and then, with screams of bloody murder, they charged at each other. With a loud clash, their sharp horns connected for the first time. The parry was a vicious one, and their combined strength was such that it caused a minor earthquake. The ground shook under their hooves as they slashed and fought furiously. One fought for selfish greed, the other fought for her friends and fellow ponies.

Time after time, they connected with their horns and swiped angry hooves. Sombra's rage was an evil one, and Twilight's friends noticed that the same dark aura that surrounded him was beginning to reappear. Unfortunately, Sombra's dark magic had deluded everypony into thinking that he was their hero, so they did not notice the true darkness within him. In their sight, he was a champion fighting against a pony who dared to rise up against Queen Celestia.

On the other side of the parry, Twilight's rage was righteous, just, and true. Her friends noticed a glowing white aura surrounding her, and they felt the combined power of Cadance, Luna, and the regular Celestia. It was almost as if all four princesses were fighting in one unified stance. Twilight's horn left streaks across the sky as she butted heads with the evil overlord. Blood flowed from the wounds they inflicted on each other, and Twilight felt a little dizzy. So she called for her first timeout.

Both warriors went to opposing sides of the arena and Twilight sat amongst her friends. She was breathing heavily, and Fluttershy was using the small first aid kit they had purchased to bind up her wounds. She was in searing pain, but she determined in her heart to continue to the very end. She knew that Equestria itself depended on winning this fight, and she was not about to let everypony down. If she did die, she was going to go down in the knowledge that she had battled as hard as she could.

"Listen, Twilight," Applejack said, "you've gotta watch out for your left side. He's gainin' a huge advantage on you there!"

"You're a little weak on the turnaround," Rainbow Dash advised, "try swinging your head back around a little quicker."

"Is your crown alright?" Rarity asked honestly. This earned a glare from the other ponies. Twilight was sitting there bleeding and trying to stay in the fight, and Rarity was concerned about her contribution to the princess's attire.

"I think we've got more important things to worry about right now," Starlight said.

Twilight coughed and spoke in a voice that betrayed her own exhaustion. "Listen, everypony. This is the toughest opponent I've ever faced. I wish I could do it with you by my side, but sadly, I am contractually obligated to command you to stay here. But as your friend…I can't do this alone."

"You ain't alone, sugar cube," Applejack drawled, "we're all in your corner, fightin' right alongside you. We're more than friends, Twi. We're family, and if there's one thing I've learned from bein' an Apple, it's that family sticks together through everything. We'll weather this storm, get Equestria back to normal, and then we'll have one heck of a weddin' for you and Flame here!"

Twilight blushed heavily as she looked up at her special stallion. He beamed with pride as he bent down and gave her a kiss. "Good luck, my love," he said, "make all Equestria proud!" The couple shared a tender embrace before Twilight resumed her position on the battlefield.

"Oh…" Fluttershy said nervously, "I just hope that she doesn't lose! It would be just terrible! I mean, I don't think I could handle it if Twilight were to…be…"

The yellow pony couldn't take the thought of Twilight's potential death and broke down sobbing. She was quickly surrounded by her friends, who comforted her and reassured her that Twilight was going to win the fight. "Listen, Fluttershy," Flame said, "I know I've only known Twilight personally for a short while now, but I know she's a fighter. She's proven that time and time again, and she's not gonna allow herself to get killed." Fluttershy nodded as she wiped her tears away and they all turned back and watched the ensuing clash.

Sombra and Twilight were ferocious in their charges, even more so than they'd been before. Sombra's horn found its mark more than a few times, and Twilight howled in pain every time it did. She felt Fluttershy's small patch job come undone, and her blood stained the ground. But her own horn did its fair share of damage, as Sombra's coat became matted and entangled in both blood and fur.

They clashed once more, only this time, they dared to exchange words. Sombra cursed at Twilight, speaking down horrible things from Tartarus and telling her of his own spitting hatred for her. She confirmed the mutuality of the feeling, and told him that she would never have agreed to marry him. His anger seemed to burn even hotter at this remark. "FIRST LUNA, NOW YOU!" He screamed, "WHAT DOES SOMEPONY HAVE TO DO?!"

"Maybe try being friendly and kind instead of being cruel and vindictive!" Twilight angrily suggested.

"No, you know what?! You're beneath me!" Sombra said coldly as their horns ground against each other, "you don't deserve somepony like me! Luna was the only one worthy of my greatness!"

"Is that was this entire thing is about?! You're still upset over losing her?! Goodnight, that was over a thousand years ago! Get over it, Sombra! Maybe it was your own arrogance that drove her away!"

"NO!" Sombra said as Twilight swore she saw tears beginning to form in his eyes, "it wasn't…it was that WITCH CELESTIA! That's why I need this Equestria to exist, so I can kill her!"

"What good would that do?!" Twilight desperately yelled as she tried to reason with the confused unicorn, "how does killing Celestia get you any closer to Luna?! What's more, Luna's dead!"

"I know Luna's dead, you brat! Who do you think pulled the strings?! Who do you think possessed Celestia and caused her to kill her own sister?! I slaughtered Luna for what she did to me, and now I have nothing! I have nopony! I AM NOPONY!"

She saw tears rolling down his face as his one ultimate regret in life was revealed. His jilted love for a beautiful princess had caused him to try so many times to enslave Equestria. Now that his mission was accomplished, he had killed the very reason he existed, and he had just come to that realization. He had been blinded for so long by the eternal rage of discarded love that he had lost himself completely.

"Sombra, listen to me," Twilight said soothingly, "there's nothing you could ever do that would drive away a true friend."

"Friend? I told you, I killed friendship! It's dead and gone!"

"No, it's not! Friendship is alive and well! Just look over there at my friends, who have all come back from your limbo in order to be here today! You might set friendship back, but you can never destroy it!"

"How…how on Earth could you even think of forgiving me after what I've done?!"

"If you would just try true friendship, you'd understand! Forgiveness is what friends do!"

Sombra looked deep into Twilight's eyes, and she mentally begged him to revert to being the friendly pony he was before Luna had crushed his heart. She had read all about him in the history books in the Crystal Empire, and she knew what a benevolent stallion he had been. Now she hoped he could tap into that reserve of kindness she knew he still had and return as the regular Sombra.

"The choice is yours," she said, "but I used to be friendless. I was miserable, just like you. Thankfully, Celestia knocked some sense into me, and now I'm happier than I've ever been. Please, Sombra…give it a chance."

To her horror, she saw his anger grow once again. "I gave it a chance once, and it left me cold, broken, and practically dead. No, Twilight, my plans will go through…and they all start with THIS!"

With that, he moved his horn south and ran Twilight through. It was so sharp, that it pierced through her armor and right into her heart. The death was instantaneous, and she fell over backwards in defeat. The crowd roared their approval as Sombra paraded himself around his fallen foe.

Twilight's friends looked on in shock and heart rending grief. The Princess of Friendship, whose kind and loving ways had always guided ponies back together, had been torn apart. A pool of blood surrounded her, and her crown had been smashed. They quickly ran in and surrounded her, embracing each other and trying to be as supportive as they could. But their tears were many, and soon each one of them cried out in terrifying agony.

Flame Mane's was the worst, and he wept bitterly over the corpse of his beloved. But his heart was different from Sombra's. He held no hatred for the pony who had taken away the mare who had loved him. All the same, his heart physically ached as he bent down and nosed her beautiful face. He shut his eyes as the tears poured out like two waterfalls. His friends surrounded him with their love as they all embraced each other as one.

Suddenly, something magical happened. A giant rainbow shot from inside their circle and covered the land. It stretched from Manehattan to Fillydelphia, from Trottingham to Canterlot, and everywhere in between. It settled on ponies who used to be friends, reviving their companionship and causing Equestria to return to the happy place it once was. Against all odds, the truest of friendships had saved everything once again.

It was a bittersweet moment for the seven ponies surrounding the body of their fallen friend. "Equestria's back to normal," Dash choked out, "so…why do I feel so terrible?"

"The answer's starin' you right in your muzzle, Rainbow Dash," Applejack said as she wiped her own tears away, "even with the rebirth of our land, Twilight's still gone, and I'm bettin' Luna is as well."

"On the bright side, Sombra's gone as well," Rarity pointed out as she nodded to a burnt spot on the ground in front of them. Sombra had vanished into thin air once again, and Equestria was safe from his cruelty. The seven didn't know whether to be joyous at this, or to go somewhere and do nothing but weep for the rest of their lives. Their worst nightmare had come true. Twilight Sparkle was dead.