I Am Not Sombra

Chapters

(1-2) And They Don't Believe Me
(1-3) But Fear Has Never Failed Him
(1-4) And Now I'm In The Dungeon
(2-1) Receiving A Very Short Interrogation
(2-2) And Being Given A Very Convenient Explanation
(2-3) A Sudden Decision
(2-4) Princess Talks
(3-1) I Have A Conversation With Fluttershy
(3-2) Talking and Tea Parties
(3-3) Princess Luna Tells Me A Story
(3-4) And I Talk With Celestia (edited)
(4-1) Radiant Hope
(4-3) And Celestia Starts To Spiral
(4-4) As Daybreaker Appears
(5-1) A Little While After
(5-2) Future Plans
(5-3) Helping
(5-4) Lucky
(6-1) Discussions
(6-2) An Explanation
(6-3) I Become Untied
(6-4) And I Return
(7-1) Two Seconds
(7-2) Thinking Things Through
(7-3) Back Together
(7-4) Dreams
(8-1) An Incredibly Brief Battle
(8-2) A Return Once Again
(8-3) Princess Mi Amore Cadenza
(8-4) The Lie I Wish It Was
(1-1) But I Am In His Body
(4-2) I Take Part In A Meeting

(1-2) And They Don't Believe Me

“Shouldn't we try and restrain him?” Cadance asked.

“No,” Celestia answered. “Let’s just watch to see if he tries to make a move.”

The three stood watching me for a little while, waiting for the youngest princess and her friends to get to me. Luna looked at me with a neutral face, but the other two looked as though they wanted me to make a move so they could fight. Especially Celestia. Although she tried to put on the same neutral expression as her sister, I could tell she had some deep rooted hatred for me. It kept me silently frozen in place, fearful of what she might do if I even took a single step.

“This is ridiculous,” Cadance finally said angrily, speaking to the two sisters. “We’re just going to stand here watching him?”

“He has yet to make a move to flee or strike us,” Luna told her.

“Then shouldn't we take advantage of this moment? He’s probably waiting for a chance to escape.”

“If that is the case, don’t you believe he would have done so earlier? I have never known Sombra to sit passively.”

“So what? Do we just forget everything he’s ever done because he's acting weird and looks afraid of us once? You know what he did!”

“Yes, I do, but as I said before, I simply do not think that Sombra is a pony who would willingly surrender. Don’t you agree?”

“Or he knows what will happen if he doesn’t, and wants to get out of what he knows is coming with some cheap trick that other ponies have tried before.”

Other ponies claimed not to be themselves before? That was news to me, and probably wouldn't help my case, seeing as Cadance considered it a "cheap trick". This was getting worse by the second.

"I'm not tricking you," I tried to tell them timidly. "I know I look and sound like him, but I- I'm not him!"

Luna paused at that, and I watched as Cadance got visibly angrier. “I’m not suggesting he should not be punished," she told the pink mare. "I’m simply suggesting that we investigate his claim before handing a sentence out. Did we not investigate other ponies claims?”

That wasn't what I wanted to hear. It sounded like they were going to be punishing me regardless of whether or not I proved to them that I wasn't Sombra.

"He's not just some pony, or even some villain. What he did is unforgivable."

I didn't want to hear that either. I quickly tried to think of what Sombra could have done that was worse than Luna or Tirek or Chrysalis or Discord, but came up empty. I was tempted to ask, but felt like right then might not be the best moment.

“Enough, both of you,” Celestia broke in, a tone creeping into her voice. Even while she said that, she kept her eyes firmly placed on me. “As I said before, we will wait to see what the Elements of Harmony say. Until then, we will watch to see if he tries to flee or fight.”

The way she said it made it seem as though she wanted anything but to do that. She seemed like she wanted me to try and run so she could hurt me. I watched the show, and while Sombra was evil, I had no idea what he could have possibly done to make Celestia hate him more than Luna did, and even more than Cadance. Although she was supposed to be the most friendly pony in Equestria, she gave off an aura that made me shiver, one that made it seem like she wanted nothing more than to watch me suffer. It was a scary feeling to know my fate largely rested in her hooves.

There was obviously something I must have missed about the show. I knew Sombra enslaved the Crystal Empire, but didn’t Tirek steal ponies magic and try to rule Equestria? And yet, as far as I knew, I was the only pony in the whole show who was actively killed. Twice! There was something I’d done to make Celestia, who was supposed to be the friendliest pony in Equestria, radiate hate for me to the bone.

"This is ridiculous," Cadance said through gritted teeth as the three princesses stood ready to blast me at the first sign of me trying anything.

I couldn't immediately tell if it was a good thing or a bad thing, but just a few seconds later six more ponies and one dragon teleported into the room with us. Immediately I saw seven angry scowls at me, and quickly realized that this would be a bad thing.

I took another step back, afraid of what they might do. “Looks like ya weren’t kidding,” Applejack spoke. “It is him.”

“Well, we took care of him once, we can take care of him again!” Rainbow Dash said confidently.

“I know I look like Sombra,” I tried to tell them, “but I promise I’m not him.”

I received several more confused looks at that, but they only lasted a few seconds before turning back into scowls. “That’s ridiculous!” Twilight told us. “You expect us to believe that?”

Pinkie Pie squinted, starting, “For somepony who’s not Sombra, you sure do look a lot like him.”

“I know I look like him,” I tried to explain to them again, “but I’m not him!”

“Let’s just get this over with, Twilight,” Applejack said, dismissing me. “Ah ain’t got time ta deal with a lyin’ monster.”

“What!” I said, completely shocked by her reaction to my statement. “You’re supposed to be able to tell that I’m not lying!”

“Just cause a pony sounds truthful don’t mean that they’re bein’ truthful.”

Of course they didn’t believe me. I wouldn’t have believed me if I were them. This was probably the worst circumstance I could possibly find myself in.

“Alright girls,” Twilight said aloud. “We know what to do!”

“Please don’t do that!” I asked as I tried to take another step back, hitting a wall as the six got closer together. I knew what they were gearing up to do. “That’s gonna hurt me!”

“It’s no different than when you hurt the Crystal Empire. Besides, if you’re not Sombra, and you’re not evil, then the Elements won’t hurt you,” Twilight told me dismissively.

I wasn’t Sombra and I wasn’t evil, but I really didn’t want to test that theory out.

“Look!” I said, starting to lay down. “I surrender! I’m not resisting! Just don’t hurt me! I’m not Sombra!”

“Ready guys?” Twilight asked the group.

“Let’s do this!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

What was happening? I was supposed to be in the most friendly place in the universe! And yet, all of the ponies who were the leaders of Equestria and were supposed to represent friendship immediately wanted to kill me without a second thought!Even Luna, who said she might believe me, didn’t seem too concerned with what was about to happen to me.

I closed my eyes, put my hooves on my head, and tensed up, preparing for the worst, hoping that when this happened I would just wake up at my desk at work.

(1-3) But Fear Has Never Failed Him

“What are you doing, Fluttershy?” Rainbow Dash asked her in a frustrated tone. I cautiously opened my eyes to see the yellow pegasus staring directly at me with eyes that had a hint of doubt in them, mixed with a bit of concern.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she said quietly. “It’s just… Applejack said he sounded truthful, and he looks so scared.”

“And he should be!” Rarity told her. “After all that brute’s done, he should be afraid!”

"And Ah said he sounded truthful. He could just be good at lyin'. This is Sombra we're talkin' about."

"But what if he's not lying, Applejack? He doesn't look like he's trying to hurt us right now, and he did say he surrendered. What if he just wants a second chance? We did give Discord, Starlight, and Stygian second chances."

I didn't want a second chance because I wasn't Sombra, but right then didn't seem like the best time to start arguing that point.

"He enslaved ponies an' wiped their memories so they wouldn't be able ta tell us what he did. That's a little different than Discord turning rain ta chocolate milk."

“Well, I feel like we should give him a chance anyway,” Fluttershy told Applejack, although with a bit of nervousness in her voice.

“He’s an evil pony, Fluttershy,” Applejack told her, as though she wasn’t getting it.

"Besides," Rainbow Dash told her, "it's like Twilight said. If he's not Sombra, the Elements won't hurt him."

This was so screwed up. It was like I was on trial, except the trial was just straight execution, and if I didn’t die, then I’d be proven innocent.

"Okay, let me clarify," I broke in, still laying on the ground. "I am in his body, but I'm not him."

"Then tell us, exactly who are you?" Celestia suddenly asked.

I opened my mouth to start, but no words came out. I suddenly realized there was nothing I could tell them. They flat out wouldn't believe me if I said I was a human, and would find out I was lying if I told them I was a pony.

Still, I had to say something, and tried to word my statement as carefully as possible. "Um," I swallowed, "I'm some creature who I think was stuffed into this body. My mind I mean, or my soul. I think. I really don't know how this happened." She stared at me, her expression still unchanging, still seeming like she had nothing but hate for me and didn’t believe me in the slightest. I tried to continue. "I know it seems ridiculous-"

"Because it is ridiculous!" Cadance spat, interrupting me, an angry look in her face. That was roughly the reaction I expected from her, although I hoped for something different. "If you're really some creature who was put inside Sombra, the Elements wouldn't hurt you."

"I am not sure that’s true," Luna said calmly. Nine pairs of eyes turned her way, including mine. “Let’s suppose he is being truthful,” she started, she and Celestia keeping their eyes firmly on me. “If that is the case, then he is trapped inside somepony who is at least half umbrum. In that case, if the Elements were used on him, he would likely experience significant pain as the umbrum was ripped away. If, however, Sombra were completely an umbrum, he could quite possibly be simply destroyed. Of course, nothing might happen, which would wholeheartedly prove his truthfulness, but there is no way to guarantee that a truthful being trapped inside Sombra would survive, seeing as we’ve never had some creature like Sombra claim to be some creature else.”

What she said was something I expected Celestia to say, but I wasn’t complaining. It made the six look at me with enough doubt to have a chance at not possibly facing death.

“Of course, it’s quite possible that the Elements have already made their decision by giving Fluttershy, who represents Kindness, sympathy for him.”

“He could just as easily be tricking them, Luna,” Celestia told her flatly.

The way she said that made me shiver. I said it before, she gave me nothing but a feeling of absolute hate. She was acting towards me the way I expected Luna to act, or worse, like I had done something specific to her, and it was scary. No, terrifying. Terrifying because I didn’t know what I could have done to make her feel this way towards me. I felt lucky that she wasn’t the pony who found me down here.

“That is true, Celestia, and it could easily be my own past causing me to speak out. I do know that if I were to make the choice, I would give him a chance. But as I said, I will not stand in the way of your decision on how to handle him.”

I had a feeling she wanted me dead, and honestly thought that was what she was going to tell the six. But instead, I heard, “The decision belongs to Twilight and her friends.”

I let out a small sigh of relief at that, and relaxed a tiny bit. I wasn’t going to die, especially not after what Luna told them. I’ve seen this show before. This is the part where they realized that I wasn't lying

And then I saw the look of concentration on Twilight’s face. The look of her thinking the decision over. It was just about the last thing I wanted to see. How could she possibly be thinking her decision over? Especially when the options were between giving me a chance and me probably dying!

“Please don’t do this,” I said quietly, then said louder, “Don’t do this to me! I surrendered! I haven't even tried to hurt you!”

“I want to believe you, Sombra,” Twilight told me somberly, “but I know you’re lying. If it were any creature else, I would believe them. Chrysalis, Discord, even Tirek, I can see why they did the things they did. But you… you just have no justification for the way you are. You’re just a monster, who’s evil for evil’s sake, and the Elements proved it twice.” She then turned to the other five, telling them, “I say we do it, but only if we’re all in agreement.”

“Well, I say yes,” Rarity said.

“Absolutely!” Rainbow Dash said quickly.

“Just give me a chance! I haven’t even done anything!”

“Let’s rock and roll!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

“Applejack?” Twilight asked.

She looked at me, considering her decision. “You have to see that I’m being honest, Applejack!” I pleaded to her.

She closed her eyes and said, “Ah vote yes.”

“Fluttershy?”

I, along with the whole room, looked to her. She looked like she wanted to say no, but it seemed like she was going to say yes for them.

“Please don’t let them do this to me,” I whispered fearfully.

“Well?”

“I-” she started, then stopped, still deciding. She stayed quiet for several seconds longer, then finally said, “He just looks so scared.”

(1-4) And Now I'm In The Dungeon

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" I cried as Celestia kept her magic wrapped around my neck and roughly yanked me through her castle. "I'm walking as fast as I can!"

She stopped and turned to me, and gave me the same flat, hateful expression. It made my heart stop and my muscles tense up with fear. I had a feeling that if Luna weren't beside me, she would have torn me apart herself.

"Walk faster," she commanded me, and pressed her magic a bit more tightly around my neck. I made sure that, as I was being practically dragged along by her, I stayed as close to Luna as I could.

She quite clearly didn't like the idea of Fluttershy sticking up for me, and made quick work of ordering her and her friends away, proceeding to shackle me with her magic and teleport me to Canterlot from what I was pretty sure was the Crystal Empire. Although, she was at least kind-hearted enough to take me into her custody. While I could tell she had more hate, I didn't think Cadance would have had quite the self-control of Celestia.

It wasn't long before we made our way into the dungeon, which was where I expected to be taken. She stopped at the first cell we came to and roughly threw me in, causing me to nearly faceplant into the concrete.

"We will be back in two hours to interview you," she said to me. "If you try to escape, we will not hesitate to stop you. Consider yourself warned." With that, she quickly turned to walk away, her sister following behind her.

I took a quick look around to see that there was nothing in here. No bed, no sink, no windows. Just a stereotypical concrete cell. It even had bars like you'd see in a regular prison. Although, it clearly meant that she didn't think I was much of a threat, since Sombra could turn into shadows. Or, more likely, she wanted me to try and escape so she could fight me.

"Well, I guess it could be worse," I muttered sarcastically, tucking my legs under me and laying down on the cold, hard, concrete floor. "Now I just have to prove to a whole bunch of people who hate me and want me dead that I'm not Sombra."

I tried to think about what I could do, but came up empty. It was probably hopeless. They weren't going to believe me. If Applejack, who was supposed to represent Honesty, didn't believe me, there was no way anyone else would. It was a miracle enough Fluttershy gave me a chance. It would take several more miracles before I was able to leave this dungeon. And even then, I'd probably be hated by everyone seeing as I was still Sombra, or, at the very least, looked an awful lot like him. It probably wasn't going to ever change, and was useless to try and do anything about it.

Not that I wanted to do anything about it. I'd been here for… an hour now? Maybe? And in that short time, I already developed a severe fear for being here, and a significant hate for most of its rulers. I wasn’t feeling too excited about proving that I wasn’t Sombra to these ponies. I instead wanted to leave as quickly as possible, and tried to think about how to achieve that goal.

I knew I'd have to get out of this dungeon that I was recently put in at their will. I couldn't try and escape, not that I knew how. I might get lucky and get out in a few hours depending on how my "interview" went, but I wasn't going to count on that. I didn't think I was going to be convincing Celestia, and felt that even if I convinced Luna, she'd just side with whatever her sister decided. But that was okay because I knew it'd be only a matter of time before Fluttershy came by and demanded my release. She was guaranteed to. I doubted that she would stop them from trying to kill me only to have me stay in this dungeon forever. It might be a week, it might be a month, but I was confident that, now that I wasn't going to die, she would come by, and my release would be in the immediate future.

From there, the hard part was going to be convincing Twilight to try and find a way to send me back home. Actually, no. Not Twilight. Starlight. I would convince Starlight to help find a way for me to leave Equestria. She was at least as good as her princess counterpart, and probably wouldn’t immediately want to see me dead. I would get with Starlight to find a way to get me out of Equestria and get me back home. Maybe I’d even get lucky and just wake up at any moment, but that probably wasn’t going to happen. So I would be focusing on getting to Starlight and getting out of here. And then from there, once I was back home, I would resign myself to never thinking about this show again.

Of course, though, I was stuck in this dungeon for now, waiting for Celestia’s interrogation. Not that it mattered. I wouldn’t convince them. But that was okay. I already knew exactly what would happen. I would eventually leave and get myself back home. So for now, I tried to make myself comfortable laying on the concrete, waiting for Celestia’s return.

"Imagine how you would feel if you were that poor creature," Fluttershy told her friends. The six of them and Spike sat in the castle discussing what had just happened. It was a couple of hours after they left the Crystal Empire, after Fluttershy alone decided that he should be given a chance. It was a cause of tension among them, and at Twilight's suggestion, the group sat down to hear Fluttershy's reasoning.

"If I was trapped in some horrible monster, I would want somepony to believe me."

"We don't know if he's bein' honest, Fluttershy," Applejack started.

"You said yourself he sounded truthful. I think you don't want to believe him just because it's Sombra."

"That's exactly why! He could be trying to take over Equestria as we speak!"

"If he wanted to do that, then why didn't he try to escape?"

Applejack paused at that. "Ah don't know. Maybe he thought he might get outta bein' stopped if he surrendered."

"So it's okay to use the Elements against some creature who surrendered without ever attacking? Even after Luna said he would probably be hurt? What if that was you inside of Sombra, pleading not to be hurt?"

That made them all go silent. It was as though the gravity of what they were about to do was finally hitting them. They were about to potentially kill somepony who was begging for their life. “What we were about to do,” the princess said quietly, starting to breathe a bit faster, “is something Sombra would do.”

“I’m not sure even Sombra would stoop that low.”

Twilight started to breathe more deeply, concerned about the way she handled the situation. She was supposed to be the Princess of Friendship. She was supposed to give every creature a chance. "What in Equestria got into me?" She asked herself aloud. “What was I thinking?” she silently thought.

Fluttershy humphed at that, slowly starting to fly towards the door. "Where are you going?" The Princess of Friendship asked her.

"Home. Frankly, I'm ashamed of you all for what you were going to do to that poor creature."

“Celestia, I know how you must be feeling about him, but you cannot allow your judgment to be clouded by your feelings.”

Celestia stared ahead, the look she had on when she first saw Sombra still on her face. “My judgment was not clouded, Luna. I let the six decide his fate, did I not?”

Her sister sighed at that. She knew why she let them decide. She knew the outcome that they would have chosen. Or, at least, the outcome that would have been chosen had she herself not used her words to interfere.

“I understand how you feel,” she told her, “but if you wanted him killed, you should have voiced that opinion yourself. You cannot let your hate for him seep into the young princess and her companions and influence their decisions like was nearly done back there.”

“Did you not say you would go along with my decision? You’re just as complicit as I.”

“I had a doubt, and knew you would not let him be hurt at your own hooves in front of them. I do know you have an image to maintain.”

Celestia’s neutral expression turned into a scowl, her hate for Sombra building evermore. Of course, Luna was right. She was always right. She knew her better than anypony else. Just as well, she knew how much hate she held for Sombra and everything about him.

“I apologize,” she told her, hiding her anger and hate. “I’ll try and control myself.”

Luna could see her anger and hate plain as day.

(2-1) Receiving A Very Short Interrogation

My ears lifted automatically at the sound of hoofsteps coming towards my cell, and I lifted my head up to see Celestia coming my way. She kept the neutral expression on her face as she once again wrapped her magic around me like a shackle and led me out of the cell off to… somewhere. At least I wasn’t being yanked now like I was before, although I didn’t take that as a good thing. I could tell she was trying to keep her anger contained, doing her best to try and hide how she felt about me, but wasn’t doing a very good job at it. It actually felt like the more she tried to hide it, the more it grew. Outwardly, she was now doing nothing to express her hate for me, but I could still feel it radiating off of her. It was scarier now than it was before, and I almost wished for her to try and drag me so she could release some of what she felt. I didn’t want her to take it all out on me later.

We walked for what felt like an impossibly long time, through dozens of hallways and up and down numerous flights of stairs. She was either trying to get me lost or wear me out, though I was betting on the latter, because by the time we finally got to where we were going, I was starting to lose my breath. Evidently, Sombra didn’t keep himself in quite the shape he needed to be in. Then again, this was probably his body’s third day being active in the last thousand years.

The room we entered was small, a bit smaller than a small bedroom, and contained a table, three chairs, one of which was occupied by Luna, three walls, and nothing else. It was a bit different than what I was expecting, but then again, I guessed that they didn’t want to have to sit in the dungeon to interrogate me.

“Sit,” Celestia ordered me. I obediently listened, and stuck myself in the chair directly opposite of Luna. She herself sat down next to her sister, the two of them simply watching me as I sat, not saying anything. They might have been waiting for me to begin, but I wasn’t going to dare speak to them first, and patiently waited for them to start asking questions. I glanced at them occasionally, long enough to make it seem as though I wasn’t afraid of them, but not long enough to appear threatening.

This went on for a while, what felt like nearly a half hour, before the elder sister finally spoke. “Tell us who you are,” she told me, almost demanded me, in an even tone.

I opened my mouth, ready to just simply say 'I’m not Sombra', then stopped. That wasn’t going to be enough, and I knew that. Their follow up question would just be “And who exactly is that?”. Then I’d either have to tell them that I’m an alien from another dimension or lie and say I’m a pony whose soul is in Sombra’s body. Either way, this “interview” wasn’t going to go well.

I sighed and put my head on the table. “Why does it matter?” I asked. “You won’t believe me whether I lie or tell the truth.”

“And what exactly has given you that impression?”

I gave her a look that told her she knew exactly why, and stayed silent. She might have wanted me dead and been able to kill me at a moment's notice, but already I was getting fed up with her attitude towards me. Still, however, she stared silently back waiting for my answer, and I told her, "Because I can feel the hate you seem to have for me."

She sat silently for a little while longer, as if debating her response, then said, "If you're not Sombra as you claim to be, then there is no hate I have for you."

That was a lie, and I knew it was a lie. If that was true, then when I said my case back in the room they found me, she would have given me the benefit of the doubt. Instead, she immediately ordered Cadance to shoot at me without a second thought.

"Now, again," she instructed, "Tell us who you are."

My fear of her was slowly leaving, being replaced with anger. She was the ruler of Equestria! She was supposed to be the first one to have sympathy. But instead, all I was getting was seemingly irrational hate from her. "What could Sombra have possibly done to make you this upset with me?" I asked.

"I would advise you stay off the subject and state who you claim to be."

I lied. My fear wasn't disappearing. The way she said that made me feel like I was poking at something that should not be touched. But my anger for her was still there, and I reluctantly told her, "I'm some creature from somewhere far away who was stuffed inside this body."

“Elaborate.”

“Well… I don’t know what more I’m supposed to tell you. I’m some creature in Sombra’s body, who just wants to leave.”

“Tell us just what kind of creature you are.”

I sighed. I might as well be honest, not that they were going to believe me. “I’m a human being from outside of Equestria who wants to get out of Sombra’s body and leave. I don’t know magic, I have a regular job...,” I paused, watching her look at me, and continued, “I don’t know what else I’m supposed to say without sounding completely crazy to you.”

“Tell us how you became trapped inside of Sombra.”

"I- I don't know. One second I was working at my desk, the next, I was in that room."

"So you're telling us you are a displaced being?"

I thought about it for a moment, then answered, "Yes."

She considered what I said for a second, then responded, “You’re right. If you were to go into further detail, I would believe you less than I already do.” At least she was being honest. “Besides, assuming you are a “human being” who’s trapped in the body of the tyrant before me, we could never let you leave here.”

Luna and I both gave her a look, and I tensed up, another sudden well of fear coming over me. I didn't want to stay here for the rest of my life, and certainly had no plans on staying in the dungeon. However I pushed it down and tried to get myself relaxed again. She was likely trying to see if I would react to her words. Or maybe she just wanted to scare me. I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case. Either way, I was deciding right then that I wasn’t going to let her get to me.

“I guess friendship doesn’t matter anymore,” I muttered.

“What was that?” Celestia asked as she stood up, towering over me. She was clearly trying to intimidate me, and while it was working, it wasn’t nearly as effective as it would have been before.

“The Princess of Friendship and the ruler of Equestria both wanted to kill me even after I surrendered and tried to explain my situation. Even now, this "interview" is designed to intimidate me, seeing as you're dismissing me without trying to learn anything new about me. You haven't even asked me my name. It's not fair."

I kept my head on the table as I said all of this. I wanted her to see the injustice of the situation, but I didn't want to look threatening. What I did seemed to work, because a few seconds later, she sat back down and said, "Tell us your name."

I didn't appreciate being still being commanded what to do, but took the opportunity and answered, "Alex."

"Well, Alex, tell us where one must hail from to acquire such a name."

"Earth," I said simply.

"And where is this place you speak of?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but I do know it's nowhere near here."

"Tell me," she asked, "is there a nation called 'America' where you claim to hail from?"

I went wide eyes at that, completely shocked by the question. "How could you possibly know that?" I got out.

"Because we've heard this very story many times before, Sombra. You are not the first, nor will you be the last, to try and get out of your crimes with this ridiculousness. Now, are you ready to confess your identity?"

"I- why- how is this possible?" I stammered, every bit of fear I had when I first got here coming back to me. "How am I supposed to confess to something I haven't done?"

I felt her magic wrap around me for a third time, and heard her say, "This is a waste of time. You're going back to your cell."

"You know as well as I that you cannot keep him down there," Luna said.

Celestia stared ahead as she walked back from dropping her prisoner off, as though she couldn't hear her sister. Sombra was lying, and she knew it. He would be kept down there as long as she saw fit.

"You saw what I have seen. You know as well as I that he is truthful."

"Just as easily," the white alicorn started, "he could be using a spell to distort what we've seen in him. He does have a proficiency in dark magic, and has demonstrated the ability to easily manipulate others perceptions of reality in the past."

"That seems rather unlikely."

"Yet still a distinct possibility."

Celestia took several more steps forward before stopping and turning around. "Come along, Luna," she called.

Her sister stood where she was, casting a look of disapproval. "You cannot behave this way," she told her, the tiniest bit of anger working into her voice. "You cannot keep him down there based on something he did not do. If he did not admit guilt after that stunt you pulled, it's highly likely he's being truthful."

Celestia only gave her a look of annoyance before continuing on.

(2-2) And Being Given A Very Convenient Explanation

I didn’t know when I would see anyone else, but I didn’t expect it to be just an hour after I was put back in my cell.

I lay on the floor as I looked up to see Luna making her way over to me. “Are you here to execute me?” I asked, trying to sound sarcastic, though sure that my voice came off as afraid.

She opened the cell door, saying, "I am here to take you to one of the castle bedrooms.”

“Why?” I asked her.

“I thought you might be rather uncomfortable on the concrete floor.”

I wanted to ask her why she cared, seeing as she was going to let Celestia just do whatever she wanted to me, but I didn’t. I figured that, right then, it might be a bad idea to make one of the only ponies trying to stick up for me angry. Besides, she was offering me a bedroom instead of the floor of this dungeon.

“Fine,” I told her, still conveying in my tone how awful this whole situation was.

She wrapped her magic around me and led me out much like her sister did, although was much less forceful in how she handled me. I was actually a bit glad to be by her side, as, just like Celestia, the guards we passed seemed to hate me with a passion. However, unlike Celestia, they didn't seem to be able to do a very good job of hiding it. Also, much like last time I was led somewhere, we walked for quite a long time, and I had no idea where I was in relation to everywhere else. Their castle seemed much smaller in the show than it did now, and it felt like forever before we finally got to where Luna was taking me.

We entered into a simple looking bedroom, one that held only a small window that let sunlight come through, a small bed with one pillow, and a dresser. She closed the door behind us and released me, and I quickly flopped onto the bed. I felt exhausted, both physically from all the walking I seemed to be doing, and mentally from what I went through that day. I just wanted to fall asleep at that point, and hoped that it wouldn’t be too much to ask for to wake up back home, although it would be difficult to do so seeing as the sun was still out and I had no idea how I got here.

“What time is it?” I asked Luna, squinting out the window to see the sun shining directly through the window.

“Two hours after sunset,” she answered. “It seems my sister and I forgot our timekeeping duties.”

“Maybe she’s busy planning my execution,” I muttered.

“You will not be executed as long as I’m around.”

“You didn’t seem to think that before,” I told her skeptically. “Back there, you would have let her do it.”

“So I said, but do you truly think I would let that happen?”

I thought about my answer for a second, responding, “I think you’re telling me what I want to hear, so when it does happen, you look like the good guy.”

Princess Luna sighed at that, saying, “And I can understand how you would feel such a way.”

“Besides, even if you didn’t want me to die, if she orders it, then that’s it. I bet the only reason she hasn’t so far is because of Fluttershy.”

“I understand your thinking, but I can assure you that even if Fluttershy were not in the picture, I would not let that happen.”

“I don’t believe you,” I told her, turning away and feeling slightly bitter.

“Did I not protect you from Cadance? Did I not use my words to stop Fluttershy? Besides, this is a diarchy, not a monarchy. My rule is of equal hoof with my sister.”

“Did you tell that to the other people she killed?” I asked her.

“Such a thing has not happened,” she said simply, expressionlessly.

“Oh, so she just so happened to know about America,” I said sarcastically, “and told me she’s heard my case before just because she could.”

“She read your mind and saw your memories,” she told me calmly. “As did I. She told you she heard your story before to see if you would admit to being Sombra under pressure.”

“Then why did Cadance say that I was pulling some ‘cheap trick’?”

“Because other ponies have claimed to be possessed by yo- Sombra, and tried to use the excuse to avoid sentences. Most of the time, however, it was for minor crimes, such as vandalism or loitering. Your case is unique in that you are claiming to have possessed Sombra himself.”

I didn’t believe her. It sounded like an extremely convenient explanation to paint herself in a good light. I might have believed her if she told me these things before, but my perspective dramatically shifted over the past several hours. Besides that, the alternate scenario was even worse, too awful for me to stand.

I turned back to her, telling her, “So if I’m hearing you correctly, you’re saying that what I’m saying is true, Celestia knows it’s true, but wants to lock me up or kill me anyway.”

“That is correct.”

“Well, that’s just great!” I yelled. “I guess I already know how this story ends!”

“And how is that?” Luna asked me.

“Either I’m going to be locked up here forever, executed, or be forced into having the Elements of Harmony or the Crystal Heart used on me. And even if it came to that and I survived, she still would keep me locked up because she hates me for no reason!”

Luna went silent for a second, saying quietly, “She does not hate you for no reason.”

“Yes she does,” I shot back. “She does hate me for no reason. Either she was telling the truth about hearing stories like mine and will kill me for no reason, or she was lying and knows I’m not him. And I don’t care about whatever Sombra did to her because I’m. Not. Him!”

I was seething. I was less upset by the prospect of being trapped here forever and more upset with how I was being treated. Celestia used to be one of my favorite characters, and now she was at the absolute bottom of the list. They all were, besides Luna and Fluttershy, and even then, Luna was still iffy to me. If anyone else, anyone else, were in my position, they wouldn’t have been treated this way, and I hated it. I hated all of them.

“You shouldn’t hate them,” Luna told me, reading my mind. “While they did make a poor decision-”

“A decision that, from what you yourself said, could have killed me,” I interrupted.

“They were simply reacting to how Celestia and Cadance felt about you,” she finished.

“So Fluttershy is the only one with any sense of compassion. Got it,” I told her as I turned away from her again. “I’m glad Celestia and the princess of love have so much compassion.”

She sighed at that. “Right now, you are too upset to think critically, so I will be going. However, I can assure you that I will speak to both of them, all of them actually, about what they were planning and how it might have turned out.”

Yeah, I'm the one not thinking," I thought to myself. “Nothing like a stern ‘talking to’ to make them realize what they were going to do.”

“As well, until we can see how we are to deal with your unique situation, I will see to it that you are treated as a guest under my watch.”

“Sure, maybe under your watch,” I muttered.

“Until then Somb- Alex, see to it that you have a restful sleep. I have to leave to remind my sister to lower the sun.” I heard her start to walk away, then stopping. “I am putting a lot of trust in you. Much more than my sister has or likely will. You would be wise not to break it.”

With that, she left, closing the door behind her. I let out an exasperated sigh. Of course she had to add in that last little line. She didn’t trust me. Even after she claimed to have read my memories, she still thought I was lying. She just wanted to keep a better image of herself in my eyes when her sister tried to have me killed by using the Elements on me, just in case they didn’t work.

I found myself hoping that Fluttershy would show up sooner rather than later as I closed my eyes, sunbeams shining on my face as I went to sleep.

It took a while before Twilight realized that the sun hadn’t set yet. She was tired, but certainly wasn’t going to be falling asleep with the sun still in the sky. Celestia must have just forgotten about it, given the day's events.

Or maybe she was fighting with Sombra.

Princess Celestia assured them that she and Luna could handle him, and Sombra himself said he surrendered, but the sun in the sky said otherwise. She was clearly having trouble containing him, and couldn't lower the sun as a result. As she stared at the light in the sky, she began to think that she should quickly gather up her friends and making her way over to Canterlot to help her put a stop to Sombra. She was on the verge of doing so when slowly, very slowly, the sun began to set.

She laughed slightly at herself for getting worked up. Obviously Celestia and Luna could handle him. Sombra versus the two sisters wouldn't be a fair fight. If he was smart, he wouldn't have dared to test the two in battle together. But, foolish and power-hungry as he was, he had, and was now defeated, leaving all right in the wide world of Equestria.

Or maybe she was just as distracted as Twilight and forgot to lower the sun, and Sombra truly had surrendered.

He wouldn't just surrender, would he? Sombra would never consider surrendering. He was too prideful for that. It seemed more his style to attack when he received the chance. To be sneaky and wait for a particular moment to strike. Yes, that must have been his plan. To lie about who he was so that he could be spared and try to take over Equestria entirely.

Or he was being honest when he said he wasn't Sombra.

The Princess of Friendship put her thoughts towards the former king, thinking about the way she and her friends handled the situation. They were prepared to use the Elements of Harmony on him, which might very well have hurt him. But she was justified wasn’t she? After all, Sombra had hurt a lot of ponies during his reign, as well as the two former times he came back. In particular, he tried to hurt her brother, her sister in law, and her niece. That wasn't something that Twilight would be forgiving him for anytime soon. Besides, it wasn’t like he wasn’t going to get what was coming to him. Even if he did surrender, what he did couldn’t just go unpunished. Besides, even in the slight possibility that he wasn’t Sombra, the Elements of Harmony wouldn’t have hurt him. That was why she was going to do what she did.

But then Luna said they might hurt him anyway, and she made the same decision.

If it were any creature else, she would have immediately given them a chance. She knew that. She wouldn’t dare risk hurting some creature who might have done no wrong. And yet, when it came to him, she made what she knew was the wrong decision. Tirek, Chrysalis, Cozy Glow, any of them she would have listened to. But when it came to him, she made the wrong decision, and knew that she did. And it made her afraid.

She began to shake. Celestia and Luna were about to retire. She couldn’t afford to make a wrong decision. Had it not been for Fluttershy, however, the scene might have ended quite differently, and no second thought might have been given to her actions. Celestia put the decision in her hooves, and she made the wrong decision, saved only by her friend. Every creature deserved a second chance and the benefit of the doubt. Even Sombra, even after the things he did. And yet, she chose a decision that might have ended in denying him that.

The princess started to cry.

Author's Note

Most have you have probably noticed the new cover to this story. This beautiful piece of art was gifted to me by Mix Up. They are accepting commissions, and you can find their work here.

(2-3) A Sudden Decision

Twilight was up early the next morning, just before dawn, making her way over to Princess Celestia’s castle. She had bags under her eyes from lack of sleep, staying up the whole night thinking about just what she was about to do the previous day. There was no way she could get around it. She screwed up. More than screwed up. She might have killed somepony who might not have deserved it. She almost guiltily hoped he would be trying to escape now, just to have confirmation that she truly made the right decision. Actually, no. Even if Sombra were taking over Canterlot as she walked, it still wouldn’t have made her decision right. He would still have deserved a chance to prove his claim true.

She spent the night thinking, trying to figure out how to handle what she was about to do to the stallion, but came up empty. There was not much she could do, except perhaps apologize. However, she wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t forgive her. Or any of her friends for that matter, save for Fluttershy. She wouldn't be surprised if Fluttershy didn't forgive her.

But she wasn’t walking towards Canterlot to apologize quite yet. She would try and do that later, after she thought about what she wanted to say to him. Right now, she was going to meet the princess to discuss her future. She had originally wanted to send a letter to her, but felt it would be better to say what she needed to tell her in person.

Before long, she was walking up to the castle where the two sisters lived, watching as one slowly raised the sun and the other slowly lowered the moon. The Princess of Friendship watched them silently for a little while, before the white alicorn greeted her.

“Good morning, Twilight Sparkle,” she told her, keeping her focus on the sun. “I can sense you’re feeling tired. I apologize for forgetting to lower the sun last night.”

“I am,” the purple mare told her, rubbing her eyes with a hoof, "but that's not the reason why."

“Is it about what happened yesterday in the Crystal Empire?”

She sighed. “Yes,” she admitted. “I actually wanted to talk to you about that.”

“What is it?” Celestia asked, turning toward her former student, having just finished her sunrise.

"Um, how is he doing?" she asked her tentatively, finding herself still hoping he was trying to do something.

Celestia gave her a calm expression. "He is currently securely under our guard in the castle."

"Has he tried to escape?"

She paused at that, debating how much to tell Twilight, then answered, "He hasn't yet tried to make a move, and is continuing to say he isn't himself."

"Oh..."

"Is something wrong?" she asked her quizzically.

"No," her student said quickly. "Of course not. It's good that he hasn't tried anything, right?"

"Yes, it is," she said in faux agreement. "Was that all you came here to ask?"

"Um," Twilight started, slightly nervous, "I actually came to tell you..."

"Yes?" she asked curiously, tilting her head slightly.

The purple princess sighed. “Well,” she started, “I don’t think I want to be the ruler of Equestria anymore.”

Celestia gave her a confused look. “Why do you say that?” she asked, concerned.

“Well, you put the choice about what to do with Sombra in my hooves, and I screwed it up. I made a choice that might have killed some creature just looking for a second chance. Or even worse, some creature who might have done nothing at all.”

Twilight could see the concern her former teacher had for her, but none of the hate she held for the pony staying in her castle. Regardless of whether or not the creature in her castle was Sombra or not, at the very least, he was making her look like a bitter fool in front of her sister, and hurting her former student’s psyche. If he was Sombra, however, he was lying to her and taking advantage of her, even after he…

“Twilight,” the alicorn tried to tell her as she watched her student start to cry, “everypony makes mistakes-”

“This wasn’t just some mistake! I nearly let some creature die for what might have been no reason! Even if that still is Sombra, even if he is still evil, I should have listened to him! He was so afraid of me!”

Celestia looked at Twilight sadly, giving her a moment to calm down. Once she did, she told her, “I know it was a tough choice, and I will admit, I would have made the same choice as you. However, that is why you have your friends to help guide you, just as I do my sister. Nopony can rule alone. Not even I was able to when my sister was gone. I don’t rule alone, and neither shall you.”

The princess thought about that. What she said might have been true. Celestia had Luna. Cadance had her brother, Shining Armor. And she would have her friends. No one pony could possibly make every decision, which was why you needed others to help you, just like Fluttershy did for her. But still…

“There will be other difficult decisions, but your friends will always be there to help you and guide you. Just as they will always be able to count on you, you’ll always be able to count on them to help you when you’re faced with a difficult decision.”

Celestia gave her a smile as Twilight thought about what she was told. Everything her former teacher told her was true. Her friends would always be there to help her. No matter how badly she messed up, her friends would always see to it that no innocent creature saw harm.

“I understand,” Twilight said.

“I’m glad,” Celestia beamed.

“But I still wouldn’t like to be ruler anymore.”

Celestia’s smile quickly turned into a frown at that. “Oh,” she said sadly, wrapping a hoof around Twilight. “I’m sorry he’s made you feel that way.”

Luna looked on, having finished lowering the moon, casting an expression of disdain and frustration at both what her sister was telling the princess and what she had done to her.

(2-4) Princess Talks

“Celestia,” the blue alicorn spoke after Twilight Sparkle left, “listen to me.”

Luna faced her sister, but her sister kept her back to her. Celestia very much knew what she was going to be told, and knew she would hate what she heard from her. Still, calmly, she asked, “What is it?”

“You have gone far enough with this,” Luna said forcefully. “I have let you get away with how you’ve treated him thus far, but I will not let you manipulate and infect the young princess.”

“I’ve done nothing of the sort,” Celestia lied. “As of this moment, we have to assume he was using some spell to paint us a very clever lie.”

“You know that is not the case,” Luna said, her expression becoming hard. “However, even if it were the case, it is completely unacceptable for you to try and breed hate in her heart.”

“The same hate and mistrust that you let fester between her and her friends when you intervened in their decision in the Crystal Empire?”

“You know full well,” her sister started in a low voice, “what decision they would have made had you and Cadance not radiated bloodlust.”

“Such a decision is unknowable,” she said dismissively, “and would have been fully their own regardless. I remember expressly saying that the decision was theirs.”

“As I said, you know full well what decision they would have made.”

“Even if I was influencing them, I do remember you saying you would allow whatever I chose to happen. Was that a lie?”. It took all of Celestia’s being not to say what she truly wanted to. Even seething as she was, what she wanted to say would have been entirely too hurtful to her sister.

"You know well enough that I was giving a show of unity," Luna told her, almost angry.

"How can we show unity when you try and contradict the things I say?"

“Celestia, I am hereby commanding you to stop this ridiculousness. Your actions are hurting Twilight, as well as her friends, and changing the way things are meant to be. The next time I see you working to manipulate her thinking, I will not give you the grace of speaking to you privately.”

Celestia for the first time got visibly angry. It wasn’t her that was causing these things, it was him. He was the problem. He was clearly tricking them, and trying to cause division between her and her sister, as well as between Twilight and her friends, so that he might take power. More than that, he was making her look like a fool, making her seem unreasonable. He was a problem, and he had to be dealt with as quickly as possible, whether or not he told the truth.

“No, Celestia,” her sister told her, reading her thoughts. “Thus far, he has done nothing but take the appearance of an enemy and beg for his life. At this moment, the problem is you.”

Luna’s words burned her deeply, and she marched up to her until they were nearly on top of each other, using her height to look down at her. “He. Killed. My. FRIEND!” she bellowed so loudly that all of Canterlot heard it, staring Luna right in the eye.

Not intimidated and not breaking away from her gaze, Luna, just as forceful as her sister, though not quite as loud, said, “She was my friend as well. Still yet, however, this creature has done nothing, and you cannot let this irrational hate for him fester within you and cloud your judgment. As well, you certainly will not cloud Twilight Sparkle’s judgment, as I will use any means necessary to prevent that from happening.”

Luna spoke from experience. She knew what happened when she let her hate fester, and did not want some creature who had done no wrong to suffer at her sister's hooves, whether it was the young princess or the one who claimed not to be Sombra. More than that, she wanted to prevent Celestia from suffering the same fate that befell her so long ago. However, she did become a bit concerned when she saw flecks of yellow, orange, and red make their way into her sister’s normally green, blue, and purple hair.

“Celestia,” Luna started again, in a much softer tone, “you have to control yourself. For his sake, for Twilight’s sake, and for your sake, you must control yourself.”

Rather than take her sister's words to heart, Celestia instead walked away in ever-growing anger, now mixed with slight paranoia.

“Princess Celestia,” Twilight asked, “can I ask what it was Sombra did to upset you so much?”

It was only a couple of hours later that the Princess of Friendship found herself in her private company. She had turned to head back to Ponyville, but once she got to the town, headed back to ask her new question, finding Celestia walking the city and greeting its citizens. She had originally planned to visit her brother and his wife that day, but now came to Celestia to see what exactly the monster had done to the three other princesses to upset them so much. Besides, she wasn’t ready to go back to the Crystal Empire quite yet.

“Well,” she told her matter of factly, “not only has he tried to take over Equestria and enslaved countless ponies, he also killed the princess who ruled the Crystal Empire before Cadance.”

Twilight’s eyes went wide at that. “He killed a princess?”

“Yes.”

“What happened?” she asked, then quickly added, “If you’re willing to tell me, of course.”

“There isn’t much to tell. He wanted to enslave the Crystal Empire, and the Crystal Heart stood in his way. When he tried to steal it, Princess Amore confronted him, and he killed her.” The mare sighed, adding, “She was a personal friend of mine.”

“Oh.” Twilight said quietly. “I’m sorry. But, why would he do that? He’s never killed anypony before…”

“Because he’s evil, Twilight. He’ll use any means necessary to get what he wants.”

“That wasn’t manipulation,” she thought. “I’m simply giving her the answers she seeks.”

The young princess paused at that, then asked, “You don’t think he’s really Sombra, do you?”

Celestia sighed. “I do not know,” she lied. “We are working to find out whether or not that is the case. However, regardless, I feel as though he’s driven a wedge between me and my sister, and I hope the same wedge hasn’t formed between you and your friends.”

Twilight was confused by that. Did she mean that he was doing that, or that their reactions to him were driving wedges between them? She was sure she meant the latter, but was still concerned about the phrasing. However, before she could ask about it, the princess said, “If it’s no problem, I’d really rather get off of the subject.”

“Of course,” Twilight said respectfully. “I’m sorry for taking up so much of your time.”

“It truly isn’t a problem,” Celestia told her kindly, watching as her former student trotted away. She was grateful Luna wasn’t there at that moment, otherwise there might have been a mess.

(3-1) I Have A Conversation With Fluttershy

I woke up with a start at the sound of Celestia. I couldn’t quite make out what she said, but I was sure it was directed at me. However, while I was still a bit fearful, I was more annoyed, and rolled my eyes. I was already completely fed up with her attitude towards me.

I yawned and stretched my legs, looking myself over again. It felt more surreal today than it did yesterday, seeing this body move at my command. Yesterday felt entirely real, but this morning was feeling more like a dream. I was laying on a bed in Celestia's castle, inhabiting Sombra's body. That kind of thing didn't happen to people.

Wait. That was true. This kind of thing didn't just happen out of the blue for no reason. I suddenly got the feeling that I was put here for a reason, like this was intentionally done to me. The idea of that made me shudder. There was a short list of people who could have done something like this, and even then, there was only one truly reasonable option for my predicament.

I quickly shook that horrible thought out of my head and got down to business. The first thing was to take off this armor and cape. I might have been in Sombra's body, but he was clearly hated here, and I wanted to disassociate myself from him as much as I could. How I looked was likely a small factor in the grand scheme of things, but a factor nonetheless, and I was going to use everything in my power to get myself out of this situation.

Stripping myself, I found that Sombra’s body, despite his heavier coat, was thin and unfit. Not to the point of starvation or needing medical attention, but it definitely didn’t look healthy, and explained my quick exhaustion yesterday just from walking. It almost looked like this body was completely different from the one I saw a few minutes before. I guessed that he rarely stopped to eat since all of his time was focused on conquering the Crystal Empire. I was actually a bit grateful for how his body looked without his cape and armor. I felt like it gave me a more sympathetic look, which I thought would be to my advantage.

The second thing was to talk to either Fluttershy or Luna again. I wanted them to get me out of here as quickly as possible, and they needed to talk to other ponies to do that. Fluttershy could act as a communication line for me to her friends, or at least help me plan on how to approach them, and Luna could tell me what Sombra specifically did to make Celestia hate him so much. However, at the moment, that was entirely out of my control, and I was forced to wait in this room for someone to come to me.

With nothing else to do while I waited for something to happen to me, I stared out the window. I was on the first floor, and had an excellent view of ponies walking around the castle and taking pictures. A few of them pointed to the window I looked out of and gave me looks that were a mix of curiosity and concern, seemingly whispering to themselves. I assumed they were debating on whether or not I was the pony I looked like, which was just about the best reaction I could have reasonably hoped for. Evidently, my appearance without clothing was just different enough for them to doubt whether or not I was truly him. That would be helpful if I was stuck here long term, which I would be if Celestia had her way.

It wasn’t very long before I caught sight of Fluttershy making her way up to the castle, much sooner than I had expected from her. Still, I wasn’t about to complain, and several minutes later, she was entering the room, being led by Princess Luna.

Even after potentially saving me the previous day, she looked slightly afraid of me, which wasn’t a surprise. She took a hesitant step towards me as Luna left, and I did everything in my power to look nonthreatening, going back to laying on the bed.

“Oh, um, hi,” she said timidly, cautiously making her way into the room. “I’m very sorry about the way my friends treated you.”

“Well, I’m glad you’re not like them,” I told her simply.

“May I ask what your name is? I mean, if that’s okay with you, sir. Unless you’re a ma’am. I’m sorry.”

“I’m a boy. And my name is Alex.”

“Oh, well, it’s very lovely to meet you, Alex. I’m sorry you have to be trapped in such an awful monster.”

I was glad she told me that, glad that at least she believed me. “I feel sorry for me, too, especially since everyone outside of you hates me and wants me dead.”

“I’m sure my friends feel bad about what happened yesterday now, and you’re not locked up in some dungeon somewhere, so it can’t be that bad…”

I gave her a look, asking, “You do realize that Celestia knows I’m not him and probably still wants to kill me, right?”

She returned my question with a surprised expression. “Well, um, not to say that you’re lying, but, um, that doesn’t seem like the princess at all.”

“It didn’t seem like Twilight to want to kill me either, but she tried to,” I pressed.

“I have no idea what got into her,” she apologized, “and she does feel really bad about it now.”

“Well, from what Luna told me, they were reacting to how Celestia and Cadance felt.”

She paused at that and stared at me for a second, taking in what I said “I mean, I didn’t feel like Princess Celestia felt that way, but… did Princess Luna really say that?”

"Yes. Apparently, she read my mind and still doesn't believe me."

"Really?"

“You can ask Luna if you’d like,” I offered.

“Well, I’ll definitely have to soon.”

There was a long pause after that, and I asked her, “Why did you believe me when the others didn’t?”

“Well, you said you weren’t him, and you looked so afraid of us, and I just thought that I couldn’t hurt some creature who might be innocent. Besides, even if you were Sombra, you didn’t try to hurt us, and might have been asking for a second chance in your own way.”

“I kind of wish Twilight and the others took that view.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“But I do need their help,” I continued. “I need them to help get me out of here and back to my home."

"Oh, well, um, I can definitely talk to Princess Celestia and Luna about that if you’d like me to.”

I gave a frustrated sigh at that. Of course she was going to ask Celestia first. Which basically meant that I would be staying here forever. “I already told you that Celestia hates me and wants me dead.”

“Oh, I’m sure you’re overreacting,” Fluttershy told me kindly. “She’s one of the kindest ponies I know, and I’m sure she’ll let us help you.”

“Okay, let’s pretend that she doesn’t let you help me. Then what?”

She bit her lip, thinking. “Well, I’m sure that won’t be an issue, but if it was, well…”

“I might as well get used to being here then,” I huffed.

“Oh, it won’t be so bad,” she tried to tell me. “I know you think everypony will hate you forever, but I’m sure Discord and Starlight felt the same way.”

“Okay, but the problem isn't that they hate me, it's that I don’t want to be here.”

“I’m sure Celestia won’t have any issue with us helping you, Alex.”

I rolled my eyes, silently hoping she’d be able to convince her. “I guess I’ll just have to trust you on that, since there's nothing else I can do.”

"I'm sorry," she told me. "I promise I'll do whatever I can to help you. But, um, I have to go for now. It's almost time for my animals to get their meals. But I'll definitely see if I can come back to talk to you and Celestia tomorrow, okay?"

(3-2) Talking and Tea Parties

"Fluttershy," Luna started as the yellow pegasus made her way out of the castle.

She jumped at her voice, surprised by her presence. "Oh! Hello Princess Luna."

"It seems you have finished with him already, no?" she asked curiously.

"I have to get back to my animals soon, and meet up with a friend, but I told him I'd come back tomorrow."

"Well then, we shall see you tomorrow, Fluttershy," she said as she started to walk past her.

Fluttershy stood still for a second, debating something that Sombra, Alex, told her. He didn't seem like he was lying when he said it, telling her so straightforwardly that it seemed like a matter of fact.

"Um, excuse me, Princess Luna?" she called.

"Yes?" Luna questioned, turning around and facing the mare.

"Um, can I ask you a question about you and Celestia? If that's okay with you, I mean."

"Proceed."

"Well, Alex told me that Celestia knows he's not Sombra but doesn't care and hates him anyway, and that she was secretly trying to make my friends and I use the Elements on him." She paused for a second, and Luna stared at her, waiting for her to continue. "Um, that's not true is it?" she asked.

"Yes," the princess said without hesitation. "Both of those things are true."

Fluttershy tensed at that, looking surprised. "Why would she want to do that?"

"My sister's judgment is clouded by her hate for Sombra, and pain for what she has lost. Sombra killed somepony very dear to her, and is letting that influence her decisions."

"Oh my," Fluttershy whispered, taking in what the princess told her. If Sombra did that, there was no way Celestia was ever going to let her help him, even if that creature wasn't Sombra. But still…

"If she knows Alex isn't Sombra, then why does she still hate him?"

"As I said, she is letting her judgment become clouded, and I fear she is starting to seep into paranoia. As well, there is likely another layer we do not know of that is making her react this way."

"Oh, that's just awful! How are we supposed to help them if she hates him?"

Luna noted the way she said "them", referring to both Alex and Celestia. It seemed just like the Element of Kindness to want to try and help them both. But in Luna's opinion, her sister didn't need help. What she needed was a hard hoof to the head. As the ruler of Equestria, she should have been acting better.

"Many ponies seem to forget that, while I am younger than my sister, I am not her lesser. Helping that creature shall not be an issue."

"Oh, that's great news."

"However, with that being said, both what he and I have told you shall not be heard by Celestia. If she inquires about what was said, simply say you were told not to discuss it, and advise her to speak to me."

"Oh, um, okay."

"As well, if you could call Discord for me, it would be much appreciated."

"Okay, but I won't be able to stay here with him. I really have to get back to my animals now-"

"Did I hear somepony say my name?" he asked, looking around for a moment, and catching the two standing there. "Oh, it was just my dear, sweet, Fluttershy," he continued, putting on a smile for her.

She laughed lightly at that. "Good morning to you, too, Discord. Luna wanted me to call you. I have to leave though, but I'll see you soon."

"We're still on for tea, right?"

"I wouldn't miss it."

"Well then, I'll see you soon, my dear."

Luna rolled her eyes as she heard Fluttershy call goodbye to him as she walked away. They had more important matters in front of them.

"Goodbye, Fluttershy!" he called. He then turned towards the blue mare. "My, my, Luna, you look quite tired," the draconequus said, pretending to be concerned. "I do believe staying up all night has been quite unhealthy for you."

"Tell me exactly why you have brought that creature here," Luna ordered, getting straight to the point.

"And exactly what creature is that?" Discord asked curiously. "Oh, wait! You mean the one who appeared in the Crystal Empire out of the blue yesterday evening, don't you? Well, I can safely say that, despite the fun I would have had doing so, I have nothing to do with his being here."

"Discord, as Princess of Equestria, I am hereby-"

"Yes, yes, you're commanding me to be truthful," he interrupted, twirling his hand for emphasis. "However, as much as I would love to claim responsibility for every act of chaos in Equestria, sadly, that creature's being here is not my doing."

"Are you suggesting that Sombra is more powerful than you and I?"

"Absolutely not! Frankly, I'm appalled that you would even consider that! Besides that, Fluttershy would be quite upset if I put some creature in his position. No, it is merely random chance that this circumstance has befallen him."

There was a silence as Luna stared at him for several seconds. "You know," Discord continued, "some might say that gazing into one's mind to see if they're lying is terribly unbecoming. I'm honestly offended."

"You cannot send him back because he's not from this world, can you?"

"Bingo! You won the prize! And before you answer tonight's bonus question: No! I can't change him back to his original form! And even if I could, where would the fun in that be?"

He had a wide, goofy smile on his face, which contrasted against Luna's frown. "Prove it to me," she commanded.

His smile dropped at that. "You know, you should really see a counselor for the trust issues you seem to have. This mind-reading business is truly uncalled for. You should consider yourself lucky that I even let you see what a god like me thinks about once."

"Who would even want to see your mind?" she huffed, not even needing to read his mind to see his truthfulness, realizing just how difficult the days ahead would be. "It is much too chaotic in there."

"I am the spirit of Chaos, after all," he said with a chuckle. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a very important tea party this afternoon I have to prepare for."

"Fluttershy, do remove your downcast expression." Discord told the yellow mare. "You're ruining my mood."

"I'm sorry," she apologized, setting her cup of tea down. "I just can't stop thinking about that poor creature now. I just feel so bad for him."

"Of course you do," he told her. "You're thinking more about it than you are your friend."

"I'm sorry. I really am trying to enjoy the tea. But he just seemed like he was already giving up."

"Who cares? Luna and Celestia will deal with him. Besides, I can't say that I particularly like him as well. Despite what most might think, I can't stand to see chaos exist that I didn't cause."

Fluttershy silently sat, drinking her tea for a little while, then asked, "You don't think she really hates him, do you?"

"Well, of course, she hates him. She has been known to be overly emotional in the past. I mean, she imprisoned me for over a thousand years for much less than Sombra's done."

"What are we going to do, Discord?"

"We?" he asked, putting a had on his chest. "I don't remember myself becoming involved in whatever Celestia and Luna are doing, and I certainly don't have any particular interest in whatever that creature is."

"Discord, please!"

"Besides, it's not of this world. Even if I wanted to, I wouldn't be able to do anything.”

“You can’t do anything?”

“I know it's shocking, but there are limits to even my ability."

"Why can't you do something?"

"His being's origin cuts off abruptly. I can't send some creature back to someplace if I can't locate where they came from. As well, it seems all tied up in that body. Trying to change him would likely be very painful, and still might not do anything. Honestly, I wouldn't have thought of something more chaotic myself."

“What if we try to convince Celestia to help him?” the yellow mare asked. "She, Luna, and Twilight are bound to think of something. And even if they can't, they can help us help him get settled here."

“I’d really rather not waste my time, Fluttershy. I have more important matters to attend to, like seeing how enjoyable it would be to replace all of Equestria's socks with ones that don't match."

Fluttershy gave him a scowl at that. “Well, I guess I’ll have to cancel our tea parties while I help him myself.”

“Fluttershy, there’s really no need for that.”

“Humph,” she let out, turning her head away.

“Fine," he sighed reluctantly. "I'll start by telling you to first convince those other five ponies who aren't nearly as good of companions for you as I to help. Celestia has been known to be quite unreasonable at times.”

(3-3) Princess Luna Tells Me A Story

I had nothing to do but stare out the window of this bedroom until, around late afternoon, my solitude was interrupted again, this time by Princess Luna quickly making her way in with a tray of hot food.

“I apologize,” she told me, looking like she had just woken up. “I meant only to sleep for a few hours. I truly did not mean to forget about you.”

"It's fine," I told her, rolling my eyes as she set the tray down on the dresser. "It's my fault anyway, even though spawning here into this body was completely out of my control."

"Trust me when I say," she started, "that we will be looking into your problem beginning tonight."

"If Celestia lets you," I muttered. "Even Fluttershy, who's supposed to be on my side, thought it would be a good idea to go to her before trying to help me."

"I have already spoken to Fluttershy about the matter. As well, as I've told her, ponies seem to forget that Equestria is a diarchy. However, I would appreciate it if you kept the things I have told you alone private."

"I can't do that," I told her quickly and honestly. She raised an eyebrow at that, and I continued. "If what you tell me gives me a better chance of leaving here by telling someone else, then I'm going to tell them."

She thought about my response for a second, then decided, "It is an understandable reaction… very well. For now, though, I will let you eat in peace before your food gets cold."

"Wait," I started before she could turn to leave. "Tell me why Celestia and Cadance hate me so much."

"For Cadance, it is the simple subjugation that Sombra brought under the crystal ponies. He forced them into slavery to dig up the umbrum, and then made the empire vanish for a thousand years. As well, he sought to hurt her immediate family, including her daughter. However, I am certain that once she learns the truth about you, that hate will dissipate."

"And Celestia?" I asked.

"That one is a bit of a story."

"I have time," I told her. "It's not like there's much else for me to do."

"As you wish. Just know that this is likely only part of the story of her hate. As well, much of what you will be told was relayed by Sombra's childhood friend, Radiant Hope."

I quickly tried to think of if I heard that name before in the series, but came up empty. So I hopped away from the window and back onto the bed, making myself comfortable to listen to what she had to say.

“The story begins with Princess Amore, who was a deep friend to Celestia. My sister had known her since childhood, and she became the princess of the Crystal Empire before even Celestia and I became the rulers of Equestria. She was her best friend, and there were few ponies Celestia cared more for than her.

“Before she became princess, however, the Crystal Empire was ruled over by umbrum, shadow ponies, who burned the homes and crushed the hopes of the crystal ponies. However, Princess Amore used the Crystal Heart to drive them away and lock them in a prison underground, the entrance to their cage being in the Frozen North. A short while after this, her crystal guards found Sombra in the wasteland, and brought him back to the Crystal Empire. Despite knowing what he was, Princess Amore took him in with an open heart, sure that he had the potential to change his destiny. He was taken in and knew few words, but he did find a friend in a certain mare. From what she told, she and him were best friends, and she was his only friend.

“She and him had an intense desire to see the Crystal Faire. The mare described it to him as the most magical and beautiful event in all of the world, and the Crystal Heart as the most beautiful object in the Crystal Empire, and the two made plans to watch the event. One day, however, before the Faire, they went to see the Crystal Heart. It is said that, when one looks at its reflection, they are able to see their destiny. While the mare saw herself as a princess in her reflection, Sombra, however, according to Princess Amore, saw himself as a shadow pony. She described him as afraid of what he saw, and told him that he had the power to change his destiny. Despite this, however, he and Radiant hope set out to see the Crystal Faire.

“However, Sombra was an umbrum, and every year, during the Crystal Faire, the Crystal Heart burned him, making him writhe in pain, until one year, he began to break apart and die because of it. However, the mare saved him, getting her cutie mark in the process, and shortly after that, Celestia and I offered to tutor her. However, hearing the news, Sombra ran away and stole the Crystal Heart. He was likely filled with hate and fear for it because of how much pain it caused him, as well as the prospect of him being alone without his friend and becoming the shadow pony he saw in his reflection.

“Princess Amore confronted him, offering him a chance to return the Crystal Heart, revealing in the process that she knew of the pain it caused him. Filled with rage, he attacked her and turned her to stone. The mare watched the scene unfold, and Sombra, telling her his plan to rule the Crystal Empire, offered her to rule by his side. However, she declined, and offered to him to save her, and even to run away before she told Celestia and I of his actions. Despite this, after declaring to the mare that he was a monster and would enslave the Crystal Empire for what they had done, he killed Princess Amore. As well, before we imprisoned him in ice, he placed a curse on the Crystal Empire, causing it to vanish.”

With that, the blue mare finished her story. I had to admit, that story was a bit… scary. Knowing that Sombra killed Celestia’s friend put me on edge once again. It was a bit more understandable why just the sight of me made her seeth. But still…

“It seems like there’s something missing,” I commented. “If all of that’s true, then Celestia shouldn’t hate me because she can see that I’m not him. Even if Sombra did those things, how I look shouldn’t have that much bearing on how she feels. Actually, knowing her, she should have sympathy for me, and maybe even Sombra.”

Luna sighed. “As I said before,” she told me, “that was likely only part of the story. I do have a theory as to what else is causing her to act in this way, but I will not be discussing rumors about my sister. In any case, your food is getting cold, and you should eat. Sombra’s body does not look healthy.”

(3-4) And I Talk With Celestia (edited)

How can I explain away something I haven’t done?

If you can’t just hear me now, you’ll never trust anyone.

With all the crazy doubts you have, I’m truthful even still.

But if I can’t change your mind, then no one will.

Those words played in my head as I waited for Celestia to appear. I knew I needed to be proactive. I wasn't just going to keep sitting here waiting for something to happen. I needed to convince Celestia myself that her hate for me was irrational and she should help me. Fluttershy and Luna weren’t going to do it. Even if they tried to help me without Celestia, I didn’t think she’d let them get very far. Or, at the very least, she'd try to delay their progress. I knew that. I needed to take my fate here into my own hands.

Shortly before she left, I asked Luna to speak with her, and Celestia produced herself a little while later. She wore the same expression as always, and stood at the entrance of the bedroom, waiting for me to speak.

I took a breath. “I know you hate Sombra, and I know why, too. I feel bad about what he did, and I'm sorry about that. But I want to know why you hate me when you know I’m not him.”

I know I didn't do a very good job, but I tried to sound apologetic. I was a little sympathetic to her, but I mostly wanted her to know that she was being completely unreasonable to me.

“And why do such things matter to you?” she asked immediately.

I looked at her for a second, confused, then answered, “Um, because you wanted to kill me? I know you're upset with me, but I don’t want you to turn into Daybreaker and try to kill me yourself.”

“Then you should rest assured that I will not let some creature like Sombra turn me into a monster.”

“Okay, but…” I started, then stopped. I wasn’t going to go down the route I wanted to. I needed to stay on track and convince her to help me. “I mean, if you hate me so much, then you should want to help me so that I can get out of your hair. I mean, if you don’t want me here, and I don’t want to be here, then this problem should solve itself.”

“And what happens when we send you away and Sombra returns?”

“Then kill him! I don’t care! Do whatever you want! Just don’t make me stay here!”

She stared at me for a little while, taking in what I told her, and I added, “You don’t even have to do it for me. You could just do it to maintain whatever image you want to keep.”

“Are you threatening me?” she asked.

“Um, no,” I said quickly, trying to clarify what I meant. “But I don’t think Luna would appreciate it very much if you didn’t help me.”

“Are you suggesting that I’m shallow? Because if so, you should understand that if I did hate you as much as you say I do, then what you’re saying is very dangerous for you.”

“I- I just- I want you to help me! If you hate me that much, you should want to help me! You’re not supposed to be doing this!”

“And from what you say, you’re not supposed to be Sombra. It seems like we’ve both gotten our parts mixed up.”

I huffed at that and turned my head away from her, starting to feel hopeless. “Fine. Whatever. I’ll just wait for Luna and Fluttershy to help me. If you’ll let them.”

There was a long silence as I lay on the bed, waiting for Celestia to leave. However, she stood there, and I could feel her eyes staring at me, as though she was thinking. “When you came here,” Celestia suddenly asked me, “was there any gap in your consciousness?”

“What?” I asked back, confused, as I turned around to face her again. Her neutral expression was gone and was replaced with a scowl.

“Was there any gap in your consciousness when you arrived here?” she asked again, more forcefully this time.

“Um, no? What do you mean?”

“From one second to the next,” she told me slowly, as if speaking to a child, a frustrated tone in her voice, “was there anything that happened in between you being in your body and you becoming Sombra?”

“No. It was instantaneous, faster than a blink.”

“And what is it you were doing immediately prior to this?”

“Nothing! I was sitting at my desk!”

“Did you feel anything different before this happened?”

“No.”

“Is there any magic in the place you came from?”

“No.”

She scowled at me harder. “Do you understand how unbelievable your situation is? For everything you claim to be true, Sombra has to have found magic more powerful than anything we’ve ever known, in which case, we would not be able to let you leave.”

“If that’s true,” I countered, hating the way this conversation was going, “then why wouldn’t he have just enslaved the Crystal Empire again?”

“The answer is that he would have, which indicates only one other scenario.”

"And that is...?"

“That you’re lying. A much more reasonable explanation is that you are using your magic to make us see what you want us to see.”

“But Luna told me that Dis-”

“Despite Discord’s high opinion of himself, he is not as all-powerful as he claims to be. And even if he was, it still does not explain-”

“STOP!” I screamed, interrupting her. She looked at me like it was the last thing she expected from me, but I was fed up. I didn’t want to keep going around in circles with her. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do to convince you that I’m me, but either tell me that you’ll help me or that you won’t. I don’t want to wait around here forever thinking about how much you hate me, and I don’t want to waste time trying to get ponies to convince you to help me if it’s not going to matter.”

She thought that what he told her seemed honest, almost desperate.

“You’re being unreasonable, Celestia,” the alicorn princess thought, staring at the black-coated stallion.

She huffed silently at that. She wasn’t being unreasonable. It might have seemed that way because of Luna and Discord’s belief in him, but just because things seemed a certain way didn’t make such things true. While both of them could find the truth in many things, she herself had always been more knowledgeable with these kinds of things.

“That’s true, but as your sister told you, you’re letting your judgment become clouded. At the rate things are going, it’s only a matter of time before they all gang up on you. Do you not remember the fire that began to appear in your hair this morning? Are you trying to turn yourself into Daybreaker?”

She wasn’t going to become Daybreaker. She had too much self control for that. And even if she did, it would be Sombra’s fault for bringing himself here. It would actually work out quite well for him. Appearing out of the blue, tainting their minds so that she could turn into Daybreaker, and then, with her gone, he could rule over Equestria. The way things were going would turn out excellently for him.

“Let's presume that things are headed down that path. Is it not your duty to prevent such things from happening?”

The easiest way to do that would be to take Sombra out of the picture.

“How demented are you? How much sight have you lost? There is a quick solution to this. Publicly apologize, send him away, start a speech about how every creature needs friendship, and be done with it.”

And what if she didn’t want to do that?

“Then keep spiraling and lose everything.”

Celestia growled to herself at that. She didn’t want to help him. She couldn’t even bear to look at him. All she saw was her Sombra. Her Sombra, who became a villain because of this Sombra’s villainy.

“And what does that creature have to do with that? He has done nothing except cooperate with your requests. Moreover, he doesn’t want to be here, and you don’t want him here. As he told you, this problem should solve itself.”

And what happens when he isn’t Sombra? Does that demon come back into his body? The last time she saw him, he nearly conquered Equestria.

“Stop this right now. You’re the most important and looked up to pony in Equestria. If he is Sombra, he’ll reveal himself. If not, you’ll never have to deal with him again.”

Celestia stayed silent at that thought.

“Stop being irrational and direct your hate to something constructive. If you truly believe that creature is making a mess of things, then you should do everything in your power to send him away. If Sombra reappears after this creature is gone, then blast him with all your might.”

“Fine,” Celestia said to Alex after a very long while. “I will see what I can do, if only to get you out of my mane and to prevent you from disturbing the image I’ve worked to maintain. You've caused quite enough trouble for me as it is, and I now have to go through the trouble of repairing it.”

“Thank you!” Alex got out, exasperated, leaving out the fact that it was trouble she started for herself.

"However, once you're gone, if Sombra reappears, he will feel the full force of my rage."

"I don't even care because I'm not him."

“You should be ecstatic,” Celestia told her sister flatly as the two lowered the celestial bodies. “I’ve decided to help that creature.”

Princess Luna rolled her eyes at that. “Yes, I guess you could say that I am satisfied that you’ve decided to stop being so emotional and hateful towards some creature who has done nothing to you.

The white alicorn eyed her sister suspiciously. “Let me ask: why are you so quick to take his side?” she asked her seriously.

“Because I know that if I were not, you would strike that creature down without hesitation.”

She watched as Luna gave her a quick glance, then turned her attention back to the moon. She put her own attention back on the sun’s lowering, and began to think about the situation.

That being was not Sombra. She knew that. And yet, she couldn’t help the immense hatred she felt for him. If not that creature, then that body at least was responsible for the ponies she lost in her life. Even now, she knew that just the sight of it was clouding her thinking, which, in turn, was slowly causing her sister to turn against her, and would push away other ponies from her. Slowly, she could feel herself starting to crack.

It, of course, began with the death of Princess Amore. When Radiant Hope announced that Sombra had killed her, she herself felt as though she’d been physically stabbed. She was a very close friend, and had known her since childhood, and it was a tough blow to hear that she’d been lost. Not only her, though, but the entire Crystal Empire, which, as a result, caused Radiant Hope to decline her tutelage and abandon her destiny.

It might not have been so bad if she hadn’t lost the Sombra she loved to evil in the mirror world. Not just lost, but lost specifically because of this world’s Sombra’s evilness. Had he not been, then her Sombra might still be with her. But he had been, and what happened during her time in the mirror world was unchangeable now.

And now he was back, seemingly taunting her, causing more mischief as he made it so that Luna stood against her, as well as making another former student abandon being princess. And then, after that, to claim no wrongdoing… it burned her badly. It made her hate grow to think about.

“Calm down,” she told herself as she set the sun. “This is a very easy situation to fix. He’s not being malicious. He hasn’t tried to attack or make a move. He’s just…”

Infuriating was the word. She thought he was infuriating, but knew she had to put those feelings to bed. Anger, hate, and pain were awful emotions, dangerous emotions, to hold in. Too many times she saw what it did to other ponies, and knew that, as ruler of Equestria, she couldn’t allow herself to be consumed by them. She would control herself. She would control herself.

Author's Note

That "poem" to start off with was from the song "If I Can't Change You're Mind".

(4-1) Radiant Hope

Queen Chrysalis, the former ruler of the changelings, was alone in a forest at the base of a large mountain. She was making her way to retrieve a certain bell, a task given to her by Grogar, so that they could defeat the adversaries they had in the rulers of Equestria. However, she talked to herself as she made her way, letting the empty forest know that she would have her revenge on Starlight Glimmer.

"Do you hear me, Starlight?" she spoke, hoping the unicorn could. "You'll rue the day you took my throne from me! I will destroy you! Just you wait until I see you again!"

"Wouldn't you like to destroy her sooner?" a quiet voice spoke behind the queen.

The queen stopped in her tracks. "If you know what's good for you," she told it, "you'll leave now while you can."

"You could have your kingdom back by this time tomorrow and enact your revenge on this 'Starlight' if you so chose," the voice, a female's, continued.

Chrysalis paused at that, debating on whether or not to entertain the voice behind her. Finally, a turn of her head, she asked, "How so?"

What she saw behind her was a pony. Or, at least, that's what it looked like. She couldn't quite tell because it was covered head to hoof in some ragged brown cloak, seemingly seeking to hide its identity. As well, the voice that spoke from under it was soft, lacking the malice that even Cozy Glow had.

"You only need to help me take the Crystal Heart and bring Sombra back."

Chrysalis scoffed at that, realizing that whoever she was speaking to was delusional. "That fool Sombra is dead. The Elements of Harmony saw to that."

"He's not dead. In fact, I know where he's hiding."

"Even if that's true, he still lost to those six because of his arrogance, and I don't plan on the same outcome happening to me."

"He lost because of a fluke," the hooded pony told the queen, having heard about his battle. "He went out of his way to try and destroy the Elements. What exactly do you think he could have done differently?"

Chrysalis didn't have an answer for that, but remained skeptical of the strange voice. "If he would have worked with us, he wouldn't be in whatever state he's in now."

"Even if you all would have been working together at the time, the exact same outcome would have happened. But I know a way we can win with just you and Sombra."

"No, thank you," she told the voice, turning back around to continue on her way. "I already have an excellent plan for how to take back what's mine."

"You'll really put your trust into Tirek and a filly? Even after I offered you your kingdom back tomorrow?"

The queen paused at that.

Shining Armor was alone in preparing for the Crystal Faire that evening. Normally, he would have the help of his wife, his sister, and her friends in preparing for the most important day of the year, however, today, the group had been called by Princess Celestia to Canterlot for an important meeting, leaving him alone to prepare. If what his wife told him was true, it was about Sombra, which, in turn, would make the job in preparing for the Faire more important. Still, he was confident he could get it done. Besides, they had promised that they’d be back for the actual event.

It was actually much easier to prepare for than most would have expected, albeit much longer with only one pony there. He simply went through checking on his subjects, making sure they were setting up their stands that would contain food and games for the Faire, occasionally helping out if there was anything they needed. Shining Armor almost thought his job was enjoyable, if a bit boring. It seemed most of the ponies already knew exactly how to set up, and Shining Armor was hardly needed for anything. He almost wished there was more he could do.

As though he had wished for it, his evening became much more exciting when he heard a mare scream.

"It's Chrysalis!" a purple coated mare yelled while running away, causing multiple other ponies to copy her. "Everypony get to your homes!" Shining Armor, however, galloped towards the scene without a second thought. After what she had done to him, there was no creature he hated more than the former queen of the changelings, and had wanted badly to take her out himself. He quickly caught sight of her, the queen having a smug smile pasted on her face, and didn't even give her a chance to speak before letting out a blast of magic at her.

"Chrysalis..." he spat through gritted teeth after the blast.

"You've always been so brutish, Shiny," Chrysalis told him, trying to rile him up as she used her own magic to stop herself from getting hit. "What would Cadance think of all that anger you have?"

Another blast of magic came her way, this one more powerful, which she expertly dodged. The former queen took a quick glance around, noticing all of the crystal ponies had gone into their homes. This was going perfectly, exactly as the mare said it would. That pony she spoke to yesterday explained that she had to lose against the prince. More importantly, she needed to distract him for a few seconds, maybe a minute at the most, so the Crystal Heart could be taken and Sombra couldn't be stopped. After that, the rulers of Equestria would come rushing over at the prince's request and be turned to stone by the shadow pony.

The queen took the time to enjoy the moment, changing into Princess Cadance. "Why are you trying to hurt me? I thought you loved me, Shiny!"

"Gaah!" Shining Armor yelled, closing his eyes and shooting off a third blast. The queen laughed at that, easily dodging him once again. She hadn't even attacked yet, but still knew he was no match for her. His want to hurt her as badly as he did clouded his judgment and made his movements extremely predictable. However, as much as she enjoyed tormenting him and as much as she wanted to continue the game, she knew she had to get on with the plan. Still, she decided to get one last dig in.

"I wonder, how do you feel knowing that Flurry Heart will be my slave?"

That comment set Shining Armor over the edge. Chrysalis watched as he let off another predictable blast, this one stronger than the previous ones, and let herself get hit by it, taking care to soften the blow. However, while she was down, she hadn't expected to be hit a second time, and then a third.

"I will not let you hurt my family again!" the stallion screamed as he stood over her, the rage burning inside of him, looking like he wanted to tear her apart.

Despite the pain of the last two blows she received, the queen still put on a smug smile. "Haven't you noticed something missing?" she asked him.

Radiant Hope quietly made her way through the castle to the throne room, carrying the Crystal Heart with her. It only took a few seconds to steal, and nopony was there to watch her do it, seeing as they were all hiding in their homes at her suggestion. She also had the good fortune of Princess Celestia choosing now to call Princess Cadance away. It would buy her a bit more time in helping Sombra prepare for what to do.

Quickly, after casting the former king’s spell, she made her way down to his study. She didn’t know what to expect, but wasn’t shocked to see spiderwebs and dust atop statues of himself in the place he hid. Despite these things, the room was relatively quaint and simple looking, looking almost pretty despite the dust as sunlight shone down the stairs.

After taking just a moment to appreciate the room, she spoke aloud. “You can come out,” she said. “I know you’re here. There’s no need to hide from me Sombra.”

She went back to being silent again for a moment, waiting for his answer, receiving silence. She expected this much, however. It had been quite a while since he’d heard her voice.

“Fine. You may not recognize my voice, but you won’t have forgotten my face.” She pulled the hood of her cloak off of her head, revealing her purple coat and light bluish grey hair. “Look at me, Sombra,” she continued. “Do you recognize me? What’s my name?”

More silence came. No creature beside Radiant Hope was in the room. It had been empty ever since the princesses left with what they found.

“Sombra?” she called out, looking around, expecting him to appear. “You don’t have to hide from me. I won’t hurt you. I’m here to help you.” She looked around again, not seeing any movement from him, and started to become worried. He was here. She knew he was here. Where else would he be?

“Sombra?” she asked again. “Where are you?”

No creature answered.

(4-3) And Celestia Starts To Spiral

Radiant Hope was expecting Sombra to be there. He had to be there. He was supposed to be there. There was no way he wasn't there. Yet the room remained silent, empty of life except for herself.

Maybe he'd truly been brought down. As strong as he was, being hit with the Elements of Harmony might have done him in. Surviving the Crystal Heart was a feat in and of itself. The shadow ponies told her about how it was used against them and burned them to be near. Knowing that, the Elements might have completely eradicated him. He might simply be no longer among the living…

The mare quickly shook that thought out of her head. Sombra wasn't dead. He was too tenacious for that, and would never accept such an outcome. He was still around somewhere, lurking, waiting for his opportunity. However, he wasn't here, and that was an issue. Chrysalis would be imprisoned, and Radiant Hope would have to come up with a new plan to free the shadow ponies once she found her friend. For right now, however, all she could do is retreat.

She made her way back up the stairs and out of the castle to see Queen Chrysalis being interrogated by the prince and princess of the Crystal Empire, with princess Luna watching silently. They seemed to be asking her about where the Heart was, as though she'd tell them. Even if she wanted to, she couldn't. She didn't know what Radiant Hope looked like. Notably, however, Princess Celestia was absent from the scene, and it took only a few seconds for Radiant Hope to make the connection between her absence and Sombra's disappearance.

Somehow, inexplicably, they'd gotten to him before she had. Even more inexplicably, the stallion had convinced them not to use the Crystal Heart or the Elements of Harmony on him, otherwise, Celestia would have been there. He was clearly in their custody, and finding him would no longer be an issue. Although, freeing him might be, seeing as he was likely rotting in the dungeon of their castle.

That was, if there would be anything left of him to free. She saw Celestia's rage over a thousand years ago when she told the ruler of what her friend had done to Princess Amore. Any foothold he might have created for himself with the princess might be wiped away by the Crystal Heart's absence. Not to mention, the former queen of the changelings would no doubt tell of her plan to work with the tyrant. Those two things combined would likely cause the dual rulers to strike him down without a second thought. Radiant Hope couldn't let that happen, and had to do something to prevent it.

"Chrysalis," Cadance said with a stern look, "tell us where the Heart is, and we'll make your sentence lighter than what it should be."

She laughed at that. "Really?" she asked. "You'll lighten my sentence? In a few minutes, you'll all be on the other side of this cage, begging me-"

"The Crystal Heart!" a mare suddenly yelled from the shadows, bringing four pairs of eyes to the place where the Heart was supposed to be. Sure enough, the light blue crystal was positioned right where it was supposed to be, despite being missing a few seconds ago. The four stared at it as though it was the last thing they expected to see, trying to understand what it was doing there. Luna was the first to regain her composure.

"Prince Shining Armor, please inform Princess Celestia that the Crystal Heart has been located and is secure."

The stallion quickly teleported away, leaving the two remaining rulers there as they turned their attention to Chrysalis. The former queen had a look of rage on her face.

“That mare betrayed me!” she spat. “I should have known better than to trust some pony, especially one who didn’t want to be seen!”

“And exactly what mare is that?” Cadance asked.

“The one who screamed, obviously,” she answered bitterly, not caring about the plan they had. “She told me that she, Sombra, and I would be able to overthrow you so long as the Crystal Heart was out of the picture. However, that was clearly a lie.”

Cadance furrowed her eyebrows in a frown. “Luna…” she started.

"Cadance," Luna warned, "whatever you are thinking, put it out of your head. I have enough to deal with in my sister already. I will not allow you to act in the same way."

“We need to bring it up,” she pressed. "It has to be discussed."

“And it will be discussed, but not in front of my sister. Her hatred for that creature is already immense, and I will not allow you to fuel her irrationality.”

She humphed at that. “Then I guess I’ll stay here with Chrysalis, because if I go back, it’s getting brought up.”

“Wait, hold on,” Chrysalis interrupted. “Sombra’s already back?”

I watched as Discord, with sunglasses on his face, looked up from a book he was pretending to read. “Hmm,” he commented. “It seems to have gotten very tense in here. I believe I’ll be seeing myself out.” With a snap of his fingers, he disappeared, leaving me completely alone.

I could feel the stares of the whole room on me, and tensed up. It felt like I was back in the room they found me in, when I was waiting for them to decide whether I should live or die. I thought I moved past this, but was now back in almost the exact same situation as before. It seemed like the whole universe was just out to get me.

“I understand how this looks,” I started, “but before we start accusing me of things I didn’t do-”

“Silence!” Celestia announced, using her Canterlot voice. “We are tired of hearing your lies. We have given you a chance, and you have proven yourself a villain.”

“Okay, hold on!” I interrupted. I was not about to let this spiral out of control like it did last time, and wanted to take right now to try and prove myself innocent. “How could I possibly have anything to do with the Crystal Heart being missing? I’ve been in your castle the last five days, and from what I understand, the thing just went missing. So unless you think that I disappeared right in front of you, I. Didn’t Do it!” By the time I finished, I was yelling at her. I was so done with her and how irrational she was being, and was starting to hate her the way she hated me.

“This is clearly something you planned,” she continued. “It is not a coincidence that you come back and the Crystal Heart goes missing at the same time, especially in the week leading up to the Crystal Faire. But even in spite of that, I will still leave your fate in the Princess of Friendship’s hooves.”

“Are you? Or are you going to lie and try and get them to kill me like last time?”

The princess's face darkened, and I saw specks of gold start to appear in her hair. "I would watch very carefully-"

“Princess Celestia,” Shining Armor announced, once again interrupting us as he teleported into the room. “We’ve found the Crystal Heart.”

Celestia didn’t look away from me. She stayed fixated, her rage only growing, baring her teeth at me, the whites of her pupils starting to become discolored and parts of her hair turning red and orange. I stared back at her with a determined look of my own, repressing my extreme fright at the sight of her. She was going to turn into Daybreaker at any second and take her rage out on me. The moment lasted for a long while, the room staying silent, before she finally closed her eyes, seeming to gain control of herself.

“I don't know what kind of game you think you’re playing,” she told me, an edge starting to creep into her voice, “but this has gone far enough, and I’m done with it.” She then looked to her former student, saying, “Twilight, please do what needs to be done.”

I was extremely glad to see the Princess of Friendship hesitate. “Um,” she started nervously, “maybe we should wait? I mean, the Crystal Heart is back in its place…”

Celestia frowned at her, and I watched her shrink back. “That was not a suggestion, Twilight Sparkle. I am telling you to use the Elements on him.”

“Um, can’t we just-”

“I understand how you feel about the situation," she cut off, "but as the future ruler of Equestria, you must get used to doing what’s difficult. If you wish, you may place the blame for what happens to him on me. You may all do so, if it makes you more comfortable.”

“No,” Fluttershy spoke quietly. She might as well have yelled it though, because all of the eyes in the room turned towards her. I was honestly a bit surprised that she would openly tell Celestia no, but happy nonetheless.

“I’m sorry,” she started timidly, “but I don’t think Alex really deserves the treatment he’s been receiving. Luna and Discord both said he’s not lying, and I think I believe them. Um, and if he is Sombra… well… he hasn’t actually done anything to hurt us since he’s been here. And, well, the Crystal Heart isn’t lost anymore, so… we'd be hurting an innocent creature by using the elements.”

“Fluttershy,” the princess told her seriously, “it’s not a coincidence that the moment we discuss punishment, the Crystal Heart turns back up. He clearly has a plan that we’re playing into.”

“Um, well, I don’t mean to be rude, and, um, I know how you feel about him, but… don't you think you might be just a little bit emotional? Maybe? I’m sorry.”

“This is not something that is up for discussion,” she told the mare. “I am ordering you to do this.”

She paused at that for a moment, then responded, “I’m sorry. I still won’t do it, and neither should they.”

“Do we not all know that Sombra is a master of deception?” Celestia suddenly asked the whole group. “Sombra is obviously deceiving Fluttershy at this very moment, trying to weasel his way out of what he’s done, and is working his way into Twilight Sparkle's mind as well. Any doubts you may have about this creature being Sombra are clearly his attempt to-”

“Princess Celestia,” someone’s voice suddenly boomed. “Stop. That. This. INSTANT!”

I watched as Princess Luna appeared before us. She stared down her sister, Celestia's expression changing from shock at her arrival and order to rage, wearing a look that said she wanted to tear her apart.

(4-4) As Daybreaker Appears

I watched as the group looked at the two sisters, frightened by their anger at each other. I, however, while nervous of the white alicorn, was grateful for the blue one’s appearance. Her being there meant that I should have been safe from Celestia.

I watched as the two stared at each other for an eternity, seemingly waiting for the other to make a move. While Luna looked angry at her sister, Celestia looked absolutely enraged, and had her teeth bared at her. I didn't know what was going through her mind, but it was likely unpleasant.

“You did this, didn’t you?” she whispered, her teeth still clenched. Then she started to yell. ”You brought him here so you could watch me suffer! Because you’re still angry that I banished you!”

Princess Luna looked at her, her angry look being replaced with confusion. “What?” she asked, then shook her head and spoke again. “Celestia, you are being irrational. If you would simply-”

“You’re trying to turn them against me!” she interrupted. “To humiliate me! Because you’re still bitter about what I had to do to you!”

I couldn’t fathom the hypocrisy of her statement. She had tried to get me killed twice thus far because of her bitterness over something I didn’t do. However, before either Luna or I could comment on that fact, Twilight spoke up.

“Princess, we’re not-”

“Silence!" she barked, quickly turning towards the Princess of Friendship. "I gave you an order that you failed to carry out because of this creature, because you’re too blind to see that he’s manipulating you!”

“Celestia,” Luna spoke, bringing her sister’s attention back to her. “You must calm down and let go of the hate you have,” she said slowly, as though speaking to a child. “This will not end well if you continue down the path you are on.”

“Are you threatening me?” the princess spat.

“I am simply asking you to be rational, and to let go of whatever anger you have for either Sombra or this creature,” she told her calmly. “Anger has caused me to suffer, and it will cause you to suffer as well.”

I watched as Celestia began to breathe deeply, taking in the words Luna told her. I hated the fact that I was still sitting next to her in her rage, and hoped that she would finally see how unreasonable she was being to me. That hope faded when she turned to face me, parts of her hair once again starting to turn into fire.

“You!” she seethed, an awful aura surrounding her. “You are the reason for this! You took away the pony I cared the most about, and then killed the friend I held most dear! And now your return has humiliated me in front of my subjects!”

I should’ve expected what she said, but for some reason, I didn’t. I couldn’t believe she was accusing me of humiliating her, and that she was still blaming me for whatever Sombra did to hurt her. With that, all of my anger reached a boiling point.

“You humiliated yourself!” I told her without thinking. “You said I was trying to steal the Crystal Heart when I was being watched by you from the moment I got here, and then, when it was found, you tried to say I put it back as part of some plan to trick you! Do you understand how ridiculous that is?”

“There you go again!” she screamed. “You’re trying to turn everypony against me when they should be against you! Even if you’re not him, he’s probably hiding inside of you, waiting to see me fall so he can take power!”

“I’m not doing anything! I just want to leave! You’re turning them against you. And even if I was, outside of Luna and Fluttershy, the most they’ve done is not kill me at your orders! If you would just help me, I might have already left by now!”

“The one I love is gone because of you! My friend was killed by you! The two most important ponies in my life are gone, and now you’re trying to take more from me with your lies!”

“I! AM! NOT! SOMBRA!” I roared. “I don’t care what happened to you, you don’t get to blame me for things I didn’t do just because I look like someone else!”

“YOU DID DO THOSE THINGS! DON’T TELL ME THAT YOU DIDN’T DO THEM! YOU DID!”

“NO I DIDN’T! SO GROW UP AND GET OVER IT!”

The last thing I saw before Celestia blasted me was her changing into Daybreaker.

Luna used her magic to stop the second blast that her sister, Daybreaker, directed at a now unconscious Alex, who had been flung across the room.

"Shining Armor," Luna said with a voice that was both calm and forceful as she avoided a shot to herself by Daybreaker, “please bring that creature to safety.”

"NO YOU DON'T!” she shouted, aiming her blast for the former member of her guard.

“Princess Celestia, stop!” the Princess of Friendship got out, protecting her brother from her with just a moment to spare. “Please calm down! You’re going to hurt somepony!”

“You’re all against me! Even after everything he’s done, you’re sympathizing with that monster! You’ve chosen him over me!”

“We haven’t chosen anypony! You’re just-”

“Don’t lie to me! And don't tell me I'm being irrational! I know you think I’m being unreasonable, even though you’ve no idea what I’ve been through because of him!”

Suddenly, there was movement to her right, and Daybreaker turned to see Shining Armor putting Alex on his back. She shot at him with rage, but the prince teleported away before they could be hit.

“RAAAHHH!” she screamed, closing her eyes and shooting at the ceiling, pieces of it falling to the flood. “You and Sombra are plotting to take my throne, aren’t you?" she bellowed, her words directed at her sister. "Admit it! You hate me for what I had to do to you!”

“Twilight,” Luna called, flying up and shooting at Daybreaker, “Celestia is getting out of control. Something must be done.”

Both the princess and Daybreaker knew exactly what that meant. Luna wanted the Elements to be used on her sister. However, the former stood frozen, staring at the latter as she screamed and shot at her student.

Cadance was startled to see her husband teleporting into the Crystal Empire, especially with a certain dark-coated stallion on her back.

“What are you doing?” she asked him harshly. “Why is he here? Chrysalis just told us-”

“You have to get back there!” he interrupted. “Celestia’s going crazy! She tried to hurt me twice, and I think Twilight might be in danger!”

She paused for a second, taking in what he said. She believed much of what Celestia said, especially given what Chrysalis had told her, and wanted to see Alex gone as soon as possible. However, she hadn't expected the princess to dive off the deep end, and especially didn't think she'd attack her former students. Still, she quickly put on a determined look. “I’ll be right there,” she told him, quickly teleporting back to Canterlot to see Daybreaker shooting at her sister-in-law. In a nick of time, she cast a forcefield around the Princess of Friendship and her friends, protecting them from Daybreaker's fury.

“You’re against me as well, aren’t you Cadance?” she seethed. “You sympathize with him, just like they do!”

“I couldn’t care less about what happens to that creature,” she responded, stamping a hoof, “and actually agree with you about him. But attacking my husband and his sister is where I draw the line. This has gone far enough!”

“NONE OF YOU UNDERSTAND!” Daybreaker screamed in fury, sending out a blast that was strong enough to break down portions of the walls of the castle. Cadance once again used her magic to protect Twilight and her friends, and then began her own attack against the fiery queen, Luna being at her side.

The Princess of the Night looked down at Twilight, hoping to see her gathering herself and her friends and preparing to use the Elements. Instead, what she got was stunned silence at the scene from the group. The Elements were not going to be used, and Celestia would not be returning to her previous form. At least, not right now, or in the near future.

“Princess Cadance,” Luna called, dodging a blow from Daybreaker and sending off a blast of her own, “Twilight and her friends are in no position to help us at the moment. Without the Elements of Harmony’s use, Celestia will not be returning to us.”

“Okay, so what do we do about that?”

“DON’T YOU DARE TRY TO ATTACK ME!" Daybreaker screamed. "I WILL BANISH YOU ALL FOR WHAT YOU'RE DOING! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW I'VE SUFFERED!"

“Her being here will risk not only us, but everypony in Equestria. As powerful as I am, I cannot do what needs to be done alone. I will need your help in sending her away. Do you understand what I am suggesting to you?”

“Yes, I understand,” Cadance answered with determination, gathering her strength

(5-1) A Little While After

“What was I thinking?” a white alicorn asked herself, after taking the time to let herself cool from her rage.

She wasn’t one to let her judgment become so clouded. In fact, many ponies regarded her as the voice of reason during confusing and troubling times. And she often was. Her ability to keep calm under pressure was a skill she admired about herself.

And yet, somehow, that creature, no, Sombra, had made her unhinged to the point of violence. Violence against her own friends. It was unlike her, and she felt ashamed of what she had done, embarrassed by how she lost control of herself. She had fought to keep herself under control, tried to keep herself from becoming Daybreaker, but she couldn’t help herself. Because of him.

Even worse was that they seemed to not care. Her own sister seemed to not care. Sure, she spoke of what she was feeling, telling her she understood, but only when telling her that she was being unreasonable, or to get over it. As if such things were easy to get over. Just his sight was a painful reminder of what she lost at his hooves. Yes, she knew she should have asked to discuss it, but then again, she shouldn’t have to ask. They could clearly see that that creature was bothering her.

She wondered if that was how Luna felt when she became Nightmare Moon. So undue by the sight of her that she couldn’t help but snap, just like she did. Trying and failing to keep control of herself. Both of them snapping because they felt like the other didn’t care. Well, that, and Celestia had to listen to that creature tell her that he didn’t care, and that she should just get over what he did to her. She couldn't bear to hear it.

She wondered how long she would be gone. Likely for a thousand years at least, or maybe just the rest of her life. She felt like she deserved it. Regardless of what that creature had done to her, as Princess Cadance told her, attacking other ponies was unacceptable. It didn’t matter how much it hurt to see the one who murdered her friend, the one who both looked like and taken the one she loved. What she did was unacceptable. She knew though that she’d eventually be allowed to return to Equestria. She just hoped that, when she did, her friends would find it in their heart to forgive her. She would try to forgive herself for how she snapped.

But not him. She wouldn’t apologize to him, not now or ever. There was no way his being here was an accident. She knew that, understanding that, at the very least, if he did not bring himself here, somepony else had, and she wouldn’t be forgiving them for it. Somepony, perhaps Sombra himself, had set her up to watch her fall, and it burned her up inside to know that somepony wanted her to suffer. She would find them and make them pay. And if she ever saw Sombra himself again, she would make sure to turn him into dust for the pain and shame he caused her.

My body was aching as I started to wake up. My head was pounding, and it felt like I fell down a flight of stairs as I lay in bed. A bed. I was hoping it was my own, and kept my eyes closed, just in case I didn’t like what I saw.

“Please,” I thought, “let that all have been a dream because I hit my head before going to sleep.”

I waited in darkness for just a second longer, building up the courage to see where I was, then cracked an eye open to see the Princess of Love staring down at me.

“Of course, I’m still here,” I muttered, and closed my eyes again, wanting to go back to sleep.

“Stay awake,” she instructed sternly. “I have questions for you.”

“Of course you do,” I sighed, opening my eyes again. “I don’t see why it matters though. You’re not going to believe me, and I know you hate me just as much as Celestia does. I wouldn't be surprised if you hurt me, too.”

“Then consider this your chance to be believed,” she told me. "If you happen to convince me, I'll be the first to apologize for doubting you."

“No thank you. Fluttershy and Luna are already on my side, and those two can get Twilight or someone else to help me. I don’t really care if you believe me or not.”

“Princess Luna was the one who told me to question you, so maybe you’re not as believed as you think. Especially after Chrysalis told us that you were going to help her take over Equestria.”

Hearing that was a mild surprise, but I couldn’t muster up anything more than that. It was just another thing on top of everything else. “Then just kill me,” I sighed, shutting my eyes again and painfully turning over. “I don’t really care at this point. The whole universe is out to get me anyway.”

Radiant Hope surveyed the scene, listening to seven ponies try to piece together what had just happened in Canterlot.

“For now,” Princess Luna told the group, “I will remain in charge of Equestria until my sister returns or Twilight takes up the throne.”

“Um, how long is she going to be gone?” Twilight Sparkle asked worriedly, still concerned for her former mentor, still firm in her position of not wanting to be the ruler anymore.

“I do not know. At the very least, she will wait until this situation is resolved. Although, knowing my sister, she has likely already gotten control of herself and seen what she has done wrong.”

Radiant Hope didn’t like hearing that. Apparently, Celestia had gotten to Sombra and hurt him. Even more worryingly, he evidently caused Celestia to change into Daybreaker. Although, she did take consolation that her friend was still living, seeing as Luna wanted to wait until after “this situation” to bring Celestia back to Equestria. It was also good that she showed some concern for her friend, not wanting Celestia to hurt him again.

“For now, though, I would like you all to focus on the task at hand. Especially you, Twilight Sparkle. I have faith in your ability to find a way to send that creature back to where he came from.”

That creature? That was an interesting way to describe him. She would have assumed that the princess was just being spiteful, but she didn’t have any malice in her voice. It was quite strange, and Radiant Hope thought over what it might mean.

Actually, there wasn't really anything to think over, there being only one possibility for what she meant. Sombra was able to convince them that he wasn’t himself and should be spared. How he did so, she had no idea, but it was quite remarkable. Even more remarkable was the fact that they trusted him enough to bring him to the Crystal Empire, even if it was under their watch. She assumed so anyway. If Celestia was gone, she doubted that they would have left him in Canterlot by himself.

This was actually better than she expected. Now, at least, she wouldn’t have to search Canterlot for him since he was likely in the Crystal Empire. As well, it seemed that he gained some trust with the ruler of Equestria. Although, it was likely going to be quite difficult to be alone with him long enough to come up with a new plan on how to proceed. As well, she would have much rather have Chrysalis working with them than for them to have to do things on their own. But still, Radiant Hope believed that she could work with the scenario that was presented to her.

“For now, however, I will be heading back to Canterlot to begin rebuilding the castle, as well as to explain what has happened to Celestia. I will be returning tomorrow, and I would like you six to see how much you can find out before then.”

The crystal pony sighed to herself. Of course, Luna was leaving. She just had to go and make it more difficult for her when she and Sombra were ready to take the princess by surprise.

(5-2) Future Plans

Celestia was gone. The fact was just starting to sink in for Twilight that Celestia was gone. The princess, who was the picture of perfection, the alicorn who ruled over Equestria and had a large hoof in raising her into the mare she was now, had completely snapped, and was now banished off to… somewhere. Twilight didn't know, but that wasn't the point. The point was that her teacher had gotten to that point.

Twilight could've stopped it. She could have stopped her from becoming Daybreaker, or from being banished after turning into Daybreaker. But she didn't. She froze up, and forced Luna and Cadance's hoof. Forced them to fight Daybreaker on their own. Not that it was much of a fight. Despite her rage, she was largely unable to stop the alicorn tandem. A spell was cast, and a princess was banished. For how long, Celestia only knew. Or, in this case, Luna and Cadance only knew. And it was because Twilight didn't act. Had she, Celestia almost certainly would've still been with them.

"Twi? Are ya okay?" Applejack asked as the six sat around a small table in Princess Cadance's castle.

She wasn't okay. The Princess of Friendship had never been more terrified in her whole life. Not by Celestia's rage, but by what it meant for her. Celestia and Luna both had evil counterparts they could change into. Who was to say she didn't have one as well? What was to stop her from becoming a monster and trying to hurt her friends? If Celestia, of all ponies, could lose control of herself, then Twilight certainly could. Maybe it was only a matter of time before it happened…

"Twilight?"

The princess gently put her head on the table. She felt like she couldn't do anything right over the past several days. First, she tried to have that creature hurt even after Luna said it might kill him. Then she did next to nothing to try and help him after she was instructed to. Maybe if she had, he'd have been gone and Celestia's rage wouldn't have burned. And even as it did, she did nothing to stop that either, simply standing and watching. She disappointed both Celestia and Luna with her telling them she didn't want to be the ruler of Equestria, her apology to that creature was just pathetic… and she couldn't even remember its name! She just felt so horrible.

Twilight sniffed back tears, then sniffed again. She was awful, and she hated it. Before she knew it, she was a mess of tears, being hugged by her friends as she cried.

“I’m a horrible person!” Twilight got out before anypony could ask her what was wrong. “Everything that’s happened is because I’m an awful princess!”

“Twilight, you’re not-”

“Yes I am!” she interrupted. “I was going to kill him, and Celestia’s gone because I didn’t try to help him, and I just stood there and watched while Celestia and Luna did everything!”

“It was all of our faults, Twilight,” Applejack tried to tell her. “We all could have done more.”

“But it’s my job to do it!” she argued. “I’m supposed to be a princess, but I’ve just been a horrible person…”

The other five went quiet after that for a little while, trying to think of something to say to counter that. Finally, Applejack said, “It’s actually my fault the most. If Ah would have just said he was bein' honest ta begin with when Ah knew he was instead of convincing myself he was lyin', none of this mess would've happened in the first place.”

“Applejack…”

“But,” she continued, “while we've messed things up a lot, instead of looking back at the mistakes we’ve made, we could take the opportunity to try an' fix them.”

“Yeah, try,” Twilight answered bitterly.

“Or, we can jus' sit here an' feel sorry for ourselves when somepony might need our help.”

Twilight sighed and wiped away her tears. “You’re right,” she said. “You’re right. I’m sorry. We have to do something. You're right. I just… I have no idea where to start.”

There was a brief silence for a little while after that, before somepony else spoke up. “Well,” Fluttershy offered, “we could start by listening to what he has to say, and believing him.”

“We could also do some investigating of the Crystal Empire,” Rarity suggested, thinking of the investigator, Shadow Spade, from her favorite book series. “I mean, he was here when you found him, right, Twilight? We could check out the scene and see if we can find any clues.”

“That’s a good idea!” Twilight started, brightening a bit. “There also might be a library here that we can use to find more information! We can split up! Fluttershy and Applejack can visit him, Rarity and Pinkie Pie can check out the castle, and me and Rainbow Dash can find a library to read from!”

“Why do I have to go to the library with you?”

“I think it’s a great plan,” Fluttershy told her with a smile. “If we put our heads together, we’ll have that creature back in his home in no time.”

Princess Cadance stood over Sombra, watching as he slept. She watched him, and watched him, and watched him some more. She stared him with a serious expression, as though expecting him to wake up at any moment and try to escape. He instead breathed slowly and deeply, staying in a slightly uncomfortable sleep.

Radiant Hope stood outside the hospital and watched Cadance watch him through the window, becoming frustrated the longer it went on. “You’re the princess!” she thought, growling to herself. “Don’t you have other things to do? Or somepony else you can send over to watch him?” Still, the princess kept watching, perhaps knowing that Radiant Hope was there and trying to make her angry.

The crystal pony stood near the window, watching and waiting unseen, thinking about the best way to approach the situation before her. Very first, once she made it to him, she’d have to get him to safety so she could heal him. He, right then, didn’t look like he was in any condition to take another hit from somepony. She was sure she could teleport them somewhere, but wasn’t sure on how far away, or how much stamina he would have right now. Not only that, but they’d be looking for him, which would put a wrinkle in any surprise attack they would try and plan. Sombra was strong, but even if he was able to stop Luna and Cadance, Twilight, Shining Armor, and the rest would know he was coming and overwhelm them. That was why she wanted to do this today, when they would’ve had the element of surprise on their side.

She would also have to find some creature else to help them. She could try to sneak into the dungeon of the castle to recruit Chrysalis again, but that was too much of a risk, and she might just decline anyway. She really didn’t like the idea of working with Tirek, who would likely just steal her magic without a second thought, and couldn’t think of anyone else who would be strong enough to help the two of them. It wasn’t an ideal solution to have just the two of them going up against the group that consisted of the main protectors of Equestria.

She growled to herself again. If he would have just stayed put…

She tried to think of this from another angle. Sombra was trusted right now, at least, more than he normally was. They might have still had surprise on their side. If she could heal him, he could take out Princess Cadance and one of the elements, and then they would only have to worry about Shining Armor, who would be easy to take down, and Princess Luna, who would be more of a challenge, but still doable. Of course, however, the problem then would be getting to him. She couldn’t do so now. Her voice would give her away as the one who shouted about Chrysalis and the Crystal Heart, and it would look suspicious if some random crystal pony went to visit him when she was supposed to be terrified of him. That might have been why Cadance herself was watching him. Because none of the guards would. Heck, the doctor wasn't even a crystal pony. Knowing her, she probably wouldn’t let a single moment go by when he wasn’t being watched. All Radiant Hope needed was for him to be alone for a few minutes, but those few minutes didn't seem like they would become available for quite a while.

The mare huffed and sat down, still watching Cadance, who was practically glaring at him. This was going take forever.

(5-3) Helping

"Alex?" a mare whispered to me, her voice interrupting my sleep. "I don't mean to disturb you, but if it's no trouble, could you wake up for me?"

If it were any other voice, I probably would have ignored it. However, hearing that it was Fluttershy, I decided to give her the courtesy of opening my eyes. She hovered slightly above the ground on the side I was facing, which was good because I wasn’t in the mood to turn over. She gave me a sad look, and I saw Applejack standing behind her, rubbing one of her hooves against the back of her leg uncomfortably. “Good,” I thought. “You should be uncomfortable.”

“Oh, you look awful!” Fluttershy commented, seeming like she wanted to cry at the sight of me.

“I feel awful,” I responded simply. Then, directed towards Applejack, I asked, “What are you doing here?”

“Ah, well…”

“She wants to say she’s sorry for not believing you before,” Fluttershy explained.

“Well, I don’t want to hear it,” I said flatly, watching her wince. “She can apologize by getting me out of here. Until then, I won’t forgive her, or the rest of them either.”

“I understand,” she told me politely. “But that’s also why she and I came. We want to see if there’s anything you can tell us to get you home.”

“And she’s here to make sure I’m being honest right?” I asked. “As if I would lie?”

“She’s here because Twilight split us up into groups.”

“Oh. So it’s Twilight that doesn’t trust me,” I sighed. “Whatever. I don’t care. I’ll tell you whatever you want, even though she'd probably rather do anything else.”

“I promise,” Fluttershy assured me, “that I’ll make sure Twilight does everything she can to get you out of here. She actually gave us a bunch of questions to ask you. But only if you want to answer them, though.”

“Better late than never she helps, I guess," I mumbled. The two gave me an uncomfortable look for a silent moment, before I broke it, saying, "Ask away.”

"Well, she wanted to know if you felt or saw anything strange just before you got here."

"Nope. It looked and felt like I blinked. There was no lapse between me being at work and me being here."

"Did you do anything strange just before it happened?"

I thought for a second, trying to remember if there was anything out of the ordinary. After a few seconds, I responded, "Nothing that I can think of."

"When you got here, what happened."

"You all came in and decided it would be fun to try to kill me," I thought bitterly. I might have said it had it not been Fluttershy asking the questions. However, seeing as it was, I decided to try and be helpful.

"Twilight was there, and she called for Cadance to get Celestia and Luna."

"Okay, um, was she there before you got there, or after?"

"After…. you think it was someone else who brought me here?" I asked.

"Well, um, Twilight thinks it's a possibility. She's actually searching for spells that somepony might have used to bring you here. But, um, she also wanted to know if you felt any different so far."

I was angry and more depressed lately, but other than that…

"Not really,” I answered, and waited a few seconds to be asked something else. “Any more questions?”

“No, that was everything she told us to ask.”

“I have something to say,” Applejack spoke up.

“I already told you that I don’t want to hear it,” I told her. She opened her mouth to try and continue, but I interrupted her. “I don’t want to hear it, I don’t forgive you, you should feel bad, and I’m placing all of the blame on you specifically. If you would have said I was being honest in the first place when you knew I was, I’m pretty sure this would have all played out differently.”

The two stared silently at me, Applejack with a look of pain and shame, and Fluttershy with a slight grimace. “I don’t care if she’s hurt!” I said defensively, raising my voice before they could say anything. “I don’t care! It’s frustrating knowing that it took Celestia becoming Daybreaker for them to realize that maybe they should try and help me! And all I can do is lay around and wait for something to happen! So yes, she should feel bad!”

“Alex-”

“No! I don’t care! If you want to stop helping me because of that, fine! I don’t care! I can’t do anything for myself, and I’m not going to wait around for months for something to happen anyway! Whether you’re able to find a solution or not, I’m not going to suffer through this for more than a few weeks because I can’t stand it here!”

I was huffing by the time I finished my little rant. Fluttershy gave me an expression that was a mix of sympathy and concern, and reached her hoof out to put on my shoulder. “Don’t touch me.” I told her before she could put her hoof on me.

She stopped herself, saying, “I promise, we’ll do everything we can to get you out of here.”

“Pinkie Pie! Come quickly!” Rarity called, as she stood at a small podium reading a book. The pink mare hopped over to where she was, looking at what her white counterpart saw. “Look at this! It’s a diary that Sombra kept!”

“Cooooool! Does he talk about how he and Celestia are secretly best friends and how they're pulling the most amazing prank of all time on everypony?"

"Um, no. But he does mention having a friend in somepony named Radiant Hope, and it has me rather intrigued. It says here that he wanted her to be with him when he tried to take control of the Crystal Empire, and that she wanted him to try and run before Celestia and Luna came."

"And you think she secretly tried to resurrect him, but somehow messed up and made everything all wonky, and now she's gone because she realized that she couldn't do it and is looking for a better way to bring Sombra back so they can take over Equestria while finding true love with each other, don't you?"

"Well, not quite that exactly, darling," Rarity told her. "Although I do think that Twilight would be very interested in reading this."

“I hope you guys did better than Rainbow Dash and I are doing,” Twilight said, looking up from a book on teleportation as the group gathered in the Crystal Library. “We haven’t found anything useful yet… although somepony could be opening a book up.”

“Hey, I’m helping!” she protested. “I’ve been flying back and forth getting the books you asked for, haven't I?”

“Not really. But in any case, have you all found anything? Fluttershy? Applejack?”

“Um, well,” she stared quietly, “Alex said that when he got here, the first thing he saw was you, and that he didn’t feel or do anything strange before he got here. He also said that it was instintaneous, as if he blinked, and that you were the first pony he saw.”

“That’s good, that’s a lot to go off of.”

“He… is also frustrated, and would really, really like it if we were able to get him home as quickly as possible. He's getting, um... fed up with waiting.”

“I'll make a note of that,” Twilight said dismissively. “Rarity and Pinkie Pie?”

“Pinkie and I found a diary Sombra left before Celestia and Luna banished him,” Rarity spoke up, giving the book to the princess. “In particular, you might want to skip towards the end, when he talks about a mare named Radiant Hope, who seems to me to almost empathize with him.”

She took a minute to read through what Sombra wrote with a look of concentration on her face. “This… this is great!" the mare told Rarity excitedly. "This is really helpful! And with what Fluttershy told us, we should be able to come up with something soon!”

The yellow pegasus let out a tiny sigh at that news. “What are we going to do?”

“Well, from what you told us, it seems much more likely that… um, Alex was brought here by somepony else. And, judging by this diary, and assuming Discord is being honest about not being involved, the two best options we have are Sombra and Radiant Hope.”

“And since it will be fairly difficult for us to get in touch with Sombra at this point, you think we should look for Radiant Hope, don’t you?” Rarity finished for her.

“I’d say that’d be a great place to start, especially since she got her cutie mark after helping Sombra recover before. She’d probably know more about what to do in this kind of situation, and might be able to help us if we can find her.”:

“But if he wrote that diary before Celestia banished ‘em for a thousand years, then there’s no way she’d be around today. And if she was, she could be anywhere! It could take forever to try and find the gal.”

“Not really,” Twilight explained. “If she brought him back in the first place, then she’s probably been following us and keeping an eye on him, and is bound to be somewhere in the Crystal Empire. I don’t think she’d just run off to somewhere else. Not only that, but the heart was stolen today, and since it couldn’t have been Chrysalis, and Tirek and Cozy Glow are in Tartarus, and Som- Alex was with us, that leaves her as the only reasonable explanation. I mean, who else would steal it and then put it back? I think she was trying to help Sombra, and then realized that he might get hurt if it were missing."

“Okay, let’s say we do find her.” Applejack said. “What then?”

“I don’t know. But I think finding her would be a great first step.”

(5-4) Lucky

"Well, this was remarkably easy," Twilight Sparkle told her friends as she pointed to a purple crystal pony. "There she is, watching him and Cadance."

"Well, of course she's going to be watching them," Rarity said as the group stood a few dozen yards away from her. "We've already discussed that she'd be sympathetic to him. She's likely looking for an opportunity to get to him, and maybe run off with him."

"I knew he was lying!"

"Stop it, Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy told her, a bit angry. "Just because she's here doesn't mean Alex is lying. It might be that she brought him here on accident, or maybe even just a coincidence."

"Let's go talk to her and find out!" Pinkie Pie said excitedly. However, before she could make her way over, Twilight stopped her.

"No," she instructed. "You all tell Cadance that we found her. I'll talk to her alone."

Radiant Hope knew that she had to be proactive. Waiting for a chance to get to Sombra alone wasn’t turning out to be a good strategy.

She had to think. What could she do? Not steal the Crystal Heart again. At least, not yet, not with Cadance once again standing directly over him, pausing only to let two other mares talk to him. With the look she had, she wouldn’t hesitate to kill him if it went missing, or try to at least. She was certain he’d survive, but she didn’t want to have to find him all over again.

While she knew that sitting here was a bad idea, she also knew she couldn’t just walk up to him… could she? Well, maybe. But for that, she’d have to explain who she was and why she wanted to see him, which was a bad plan. Was it? She thought about it, and the more she thought, the more it seemed like an okay plan at the least. After all, she was a student of Celestia’s and Luna’s at one point, and was going to become Princess of the Crystal Empire before her friend caused it to disappear. If she could explain that to them, there’d be no doubt they’d let her see him.

Of course, there was still the problem of getting him out of the Crystal Empire. Even if she was able to see him, she doubted that Cadance or Shining Armor would let down their guard for even a moment. She wouldn’t be able to just take off with him as soon as she saw him, but she was sure that over the course of a few weeks, a moment would present itself. Either way, that was a problem for later. For now, she just needed to get to him, and asking to see him seemed like the best plan at the moment.

The only thing stopping Hope from enacting that plan was the fact that they heard her voice. Twice, in fact. While she knew the chances of them realizing it was her that called out were small, they were still large enough that she didn’t feel entirely comfortable with showing up out of the blue. At least, not without an excuse.

Maybe she could be honest… somewhat. Say that she was trying to bring Sombra back to reform him and he escaped… or not. That was a bad idea. They’d probably just assume that they were working together to take over Equestria, which wouldn’t be ideal. There wasn’t really any other good excuse for her to be there. She was his best friend, and the Crystal Heart went missing that very day. It didn’t take much thinking to put two and two together. If she were just some random pony, it wouldn’t be a problem, but given who she was, they’d be very suspicious. She didn’t think she could get off saying, “that wasn’t me” if they recognized her.

She sighed. It was a conundrum she was in, with no good way forward. He could have just stayed put, but that didn't happen, and now she had to think about what to do from here. She was starting to consider simply risking her voice being recognized when her thinking was interrupted by a voice behind her.

"Radiant Hope?" a mare called. "Is that you?"

She tensed up for a second hearing that, then quickly relaxed, remembering where she was. Ponies obviously knew her and would recognize her. The Crystal Empire might have vanished for a thousand years, but to them, it only felt like a few days.

"Yes, it's me," she called without turning around. She wasn't that concerned if some random pony saw her. All they knew was that she was training under Celestia and Luna, and would possibly become a princess. More importantly, they didn't know that her friend, Sombra, was here.

“My name is Twilight Sparkle,” the mare said, stepping closer to her. “Is it okay if I talked to you?”

Twilight Sparkle? That name sounded familiar, in a vague way, like she heard it before in passing. She was probably an acquaintance she used to have

“Sure,” she said, turning around. “What is-”

Radiant Hope froze when she saw the purple alicorn standing there. A princess. It was the last pony she expected to see, and knew she'd only talk to her if she was suspicious of her, that suspicion being worsened since she'd been caught watching Sombra. She almost started to run away from her. Almost. But she controlled herself, and pushed that urge down. This particular princess wasn't there when Hope took the Heart. There was no reason to run. Running would just confirm whatever they were thinking about her.

"What is it?" she asked, keeping the nervousness she felt out of her voice.

“Well,” Twilight started, trying to tread carefully, “I was just wondering why you were watching him…” The mare she spoke to remained silent, furrowing her brow, and Twilight continued. “I also wanted to know if you… tried to bring Sombra here."

Hope took note of that word, tried. Her friend had somehow been able to convince them he wasn’t himself, and had done a very good job of it as well. They still doubted him, which is why they sought her out. They likely reasoned that, since Sombra couldn’t tell them anything, they’d try to find her and question her. However, she didn’t know what exactly he’d told them, and needed to know what that was. She had to try to direct the conversation her way.

“That’s not Sombra?” she asked, sounding confused. “Who is he?”

“Um. From what we can tell, that’s some creature named… Alex who’s trapped inside of Sombra’s body.”

That was interesting. She knew this princess was new, due to the fact that Hope didn't know her, but she must have been extremely new to just out and out tell her that. More interesting was the tactic Sombra used, pretending to be somepony else. It was a very difficult excuse to use, seeing as the princesses would quickly be able to tell he was lying. But with how strong he was and his mastery over manipulating minds, she was certain he could make it work.

“Where did you find him?” she asked curiously.

“Um, he was in the castle, in his study when we found him. I was the first one there.”

That wasn’t a surprise. She was expecting him to be there when she was there, which was why she stole the Crystal Heart to begin with. She also expected him to be weaker than he currently was, but obviously that wasn’t the case seeing as he turned up early.

“What happened when you found him?” she asked.

“Well, I went to get Princess Cadance…” Twilight started, trailing off, realizing that Radiant Hope was taking control of the conversation and trying to get information out of her. While she may have been seeking out her help, she didn’t want to reveal too much. She was still wary of her, and it seemed like she intentionally didn’t answer whether or not she brought him here. She would definitely need to keep watch over her and how she interacted with him. Luckily, Cadance, and more than likely Luna as well, would be there with them.

“Ah, I was wondering,” she started again, changing the subject, “since you have a cutie mark in healing, would you be able to help us out with him?”

Hope couldn't believe what she heard, and how unbelievably lucky she was.That was exactly what she wanted to hear. Now, she wouldn’t have to try and convince them to see him, or try to sneak in to talk to him. She could just walk right in and see him. They’d probably still be watching over him, but she could figure that part out later.

"Help out how?"

"As I said, we think some creature else is trapped inside of Sombra's body, and everypony else said they can't help him, so we were wondering if there was anything you could do."

“Well, I can definitely see what I can do,” she said, trying to keep herself from smiling.

(6-1) Discussions

Radiant Hope wasn’t surprised to see Princess Luna waiting for her at the door to the room Sombra was in. As new as the other Princess, Twilight Sparkle, was, she didn’t expect her to just let her hang around Sombra alone. She'd want somepony to be there to make sure she didn't try anything with him. Which made sense. The very first question the purple pony asked her was if she brought Sombra here. You didn't typically seek out help from people you didn't trust.

“Princess Luna,” Hope greeted politely, Twilight beside her, both of them lowering her heads respectfully in a small bow.

“No need for that,” the alicorn said. “It is quite lovely to see you again, Radiant Hope. Although I must say, it is rather upsetting that it must be under these troubling circumstances.”

These circumstances. She was talking about her and Sombra being here, especially at the same time. She probably thought that she brought him here. Actually, she knew she thought that, otherwise, she wouldn’t have bothered to come here.

“Twilight Sparkle has informed me that you would try to help this creature,” Luna told her. “Is that true?”

Hope knew that Luna was trying to distract her in an attempt to make it so she didn’t notice that she was trying to read her mind. However, she was prepared for this, and knew a spell that she could use that would keep her from seeing the truth of why she was here. It was a variant of a spell of Sombra’s, and made it so that Luna only saw what Hope had wanted her to see. However, the trick was to make it so that it wasn’t obvious that she was using it, both in her actions and in her memories. Luna was one of the ponies there when she returned the Crystal Heart, so she had to let that be revealed that she took the Crystal Heart. Otherwise, she didn’t think she’d be allowed in at all. But she’d use her thoughts to tell her that she tried to take it to reform him, which she was sure that Luna would forgive.

“Yes,” Hope answered. “I’ll definitely try to see what I can do.”

“That is wonderful news,” Luna said in a monotone voice. “Although, if it does you no trouble, I would like to ask you several questions.”

“It’s fine. I understand,” she told her. “I was Sombra’s best friend, and I’m back in the Crystal Empire at the same time he came back. I understand how it looks.”

“We appreciate your understanding. Now, if I may, Twilight has mentioned seeing you watching him when she found you. May I inquire as to why?”

She decided to keep her story simple. “I saw him arrive in the Crystal Empire, and was waiting for a chance to speak with him.”

She tried to avoid lying to the princess. Hope knew that the blue alicorn could typically tell when somepony was lying, so she didn't want to lie. She decided that she would just keep her story vague and believable.

“I was actually looking for him, and was lucky enough to find him here in the Crystal Empire,” she offered, pretending to cooperate.

“And why exactly was it you were looking for him?” she asked.

“Because he’s my friend,” Hope responded without hesitation, “and I wanted to see him again.”

“An understandable sentiment. Although I must ask if it was you who announced the Crystal Heart’s return.”

“Ah… yes,” she admitted. She already knew that Luna knew she said it, otherwise, she wouldn’t have asked her.

“Can you tell us why it was recovered so quickly? Could it be because you were responsible for its loss?”

And now, the tricky part, explaining why she took the Crystal Heart without technically lying. “Well, yes,” she answered, “but that was because I didn’t want him to be hurt by it.”

“I see…” the princess trailed off. “And why was it you returned it?”

Radiant Hope was silent for a second, thinking of what to say before responding. “I don’t see how that’s important,” she said calmly.

She mentally kicked herself at the response. It was bad, and she knew it implicated her, but it was the best she could come up with on the fly without lying. Although, as bad as it was, it would’ve been worse to lie. She knew the princess would see through it immediately.

The alicorn stared at Hope for several seconds, before deciding how to proceed. “Well, I supposed since it was returned, you can be forgiven, so long as it’s not done again. As well, I expect to see you apologize to the prince and princess of the Crystal Empire for your behavior.”

“I understand,” she responded. “I will do no such thing again. I thank you for your compassion,”

“It does me no trouble. Give me just a moment to gather them. Twilight, would you wait here with her?”

“Oh, of course,” she said as Luna went into the room Alex was in.

“Don’t smile,” Hope told herself silently.

“Is it really her?” Cadance asked both curiously and suspiciously.

“Yes, it is,” Luna told her. “As well, she had admitted to stealing the Crystal Heart, as Twilight and her friends suspected."

Cadance’s expression darkened. She stayed silent as she turned towards the creature before her, scowling angrily at him.

“I will not tell you again,” Luna started sternly, catching her look, “to put whatever you are thinking out of your head. If you cannot do that, then I would advise you to leave.”

The Princess of Love closed her eyes and took a breath. “You’re right,” she said. “I’m sorry. I’ll keep control of myself.”

“I have no doubt that you will. However, regardless, this inherent hatred you have is not something a princess of love should possess. When this problem is fixed, I’d recommend that you reflect privately on why it is you feel this way, and see to it that it is no longer an issue.”

Cadance blushed at that, embarrassed, and simply said, “I’m sorry.”

“Now, as I was saying previously, the mare, Radiant Hope, has admitted to taking the Crystal Heart earlier.”

“Which is suspicious.”

“Cadance,” Luna said flatly.

“It is,” she insisted. “We can’t ignore the fact that the one thing that would hurt him was stolen. We also can’t ignore that Chrysalis said that she was working with Sombra. Not that she was planning to work with him, that she was working with him. More importantly, she specifically said that “that mare” betrayed her. She was obviously talking about her. And we can’t question him because all he wants to do is...” She turned her head around and looked at a sleeping Alex. “That,” she finished, pointing a hoof at him and portraying her annoyance in her voice. “The point is, we can’t let them see each other.”

Her blue counterpart also looked at Alex. “You must admit, he does look rather peaceful while he sleeps,” she told her.

Cadance scowled at that. “Princess Luna, this is serious.”

The Princess of the Moon sighed. “I understand. What you have said is all true. However, we cannot be sure of her ultimate motive. As I tried to read her thoughts, they became more blurry the farther I went down, quicker than they would for more ponies. It might be a blocking spell that she’s not proficient in, or it might just be a coincidence. She also did not reveal why she returned it, which may serve some larger purpose for the two of them. Although, in either case, we do have one important fact on our side.”

“And what’s that exactly?”

She once again looked at the sleeping pony. “This creature is not Sombra, so any impure motives she might have with him would fail. Now, if it is no trouble, please retrieve Shining Armor so that she may apologize to you and him.”

(6-2) An Explanation

I felt myself growl slightly as someone’s hoof touched me.

“Unless that’s Fluttershy’s hoof,” I demanded, keeping my eyes closed, “get it off of me.”

“I am sorry,” a voice said to me, quickly retreating their appendage. “I did not believe that it would bother you.”

“Ah, Luna,” I thought as I quickly turned over. Then, speaking aloud, I told her, “I guess it’s okay for you to put your hoof on me, but no one else. Especially not Cadance. I swear I can feel her glaring at me while I sleep.”

“We will make sure to speak with her about that. Although, with luck, it will not be a problem you will deal with much longer.”

“I doubt that,” I told her, “unless they’re planning on using the Crystal Heart to kill me. Not that I would care at this point. I doubt they’re even trying to help. And if they are, whatever they’re planning probably won’t work since the universe hates me.”

I saw her frown at that, giving me a sad look because of the bitterness in my words. “I assure you, we are working on a solution. In fact, Twilight Sparkle has acquainted me with a mare who has remarkable abilities in healing. We think she may be able to help you out of this situation, and told us that she will try her best to send you on your way.”

“That sounds like the lamest solution ever, like one you’d come up with if you didn’t care and were being lazy.” I paused for a moment, trying to keep myself from yelling at her, then continued. “Why can’t Discord do something?”

“As Fluttershy said he explained it, you are too chaotic, and he cannot locate where you came from.”

“I’m too chaotic for a god of chaos?” I pressed. “That sounds like an excuse.”

“I will agree with you, but I doubt he would be one to lie to Fluttershy.”

I had to agree with her on that, although it just made me more angry. “So you, Discord, and Celestia I guess… if you three can’t do anything, what makes Twilight think some random pony will be able to do anything? What is she thinking?”

“Perhaps you should meet her before passing judgment. She will be here in a few minutes. Her name is Radiant Hope.”

I humphed at that. “She probably won’t be able to do anything.”

“Well, we shall find out in just a little while.”

Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor stood in front of Radiant Hope, who pretended to look uncomfortable in their presence.

“You must be Radiant Hope,” the Princess of Love started. “I must say, it is… interesting to meet you in person.”

“You are very bad at hiding your emotions,” Hope thought. She could very easily tell that Cadance was angry at her, her princely counterpart being not much better at hiding his anger. Although, she did have to be fair considering they both had a good reason to be angry at her.

“Princess Luna said you wanted to see us?” she continued.

She sighed at that, having to say sorry to them, but knew it was only a formality. She pretended to be ashamed, staring with a bow, “I would like to apologize for stealing the Crystal Heart and causing the Crystal Empire worry. My actions were wrong, and I hope that you’ll be able to forgive me for what I’ve done.” Hope figured it was a suitable enough apology, but wasn’t surprised when they both frowned as she looked back up at them, still bowing.

“Yes, well…” Shining Armor started, trailing off.

“While Shining Armor and I do appreciate the apology, I’m going to be blunt in this question,” Princess Cadance started. “Did you bring Sombra back here?”

Radiant Hope stood up from bending over. “No…” she trailed off, as though she didn’t understand why they were asking her. Not that she really did, even though she knew they were going to ask. She didn’t bring her friend back, but even if she did, she would never admit to doing so if she didn’t have to. It was fairly ridiculous to even ask the question as though she would say ‘yes’.

“I also need to ask if you were working with Chrysalis to take the heart.”

That was an unexpected question. She wasn’t expecting to be asked about her involvement with Chrysalis. However, now that she mentioned it, she should have thought about it. Actually, it made perfect sense, seeing as she admitted to taking the Crystal Heart, and Chrysalis was there at the time. It actually didn’t take that long to put together. And now, she had to explain herself to them.

“Yes,” she said, still bowing but looking up at them, “but only to use her as a distraction, not to conquer the Crystal Empire.” She watched the two of them scowl at that, and continued, trying to find a way to spin this in a different direction. “Like I told Princess Luna, I was looking for Sombra, and didn’t want him to be hurt by the Crystal Heart, and needed Chrysalis as a distraction to take it. I told her that once we took it, Sombra would help us take over Equestria. That’s why I told her not to attack anypony, because I wanted her to be locked up, and knew that you, Prince Shining Armor, would be able to bring her to justice.”

That was largely untrue, what Hope said. However, she felt like it was just true enough for them to believe her. Not only that, but it stroked their ego, her saying that they were more powerful than Chrysalis, when the changeling could have turned them to dust if she so chose. Still, she pressed on, trying to convince them.

“I only wanted to see my friend again,” she said, trying to win their sympathy. "and wanted to use the Crystal Heart to help reform him. I’m truly sorry about what I’ve done.”

Hope knew that if the prince and princess were smart, they’d ask about the holes in her story, namely why she enlisted Chrysalis’s help before Sombra entered the Crystal Empire, or how the Crystal Heart would help reform the villain when it would just hurt him to be near it. If they were smart, they would deny her access to Sombra and try to restrain her. Instead, the questions didn’t cross their minds while they processed what she said.

“Do you understand what could have happened if I hadn’t stopped Chrysalis?” Shining Armor asked.

“Yes, I do, and I only hope that you can forgive me for what I’ve done.”

The two gave her a hard stare before looking at Twilight, who was still standing behind Hope. “What do you think?” Shining Armor asked his sister.

Twilight considered it for a moment, and answered, “She seems genuinely sorry, although with what happened because of it…” She trailed off, referring to Princess Celestia. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence from her while she thought about her former teacher before she continued. “But she couldn’t have known about that. I would forgive her for taking it. Besides, she said she’ll try and help us.”

Radiant Hope looked back up at the rulers of the Crystal Empire, putting on pleading eyes for them, while thinking, “None of you are really that smart, are you?”

“Very well,” the Princess of Love told her. “We’ll forgive your actions this time. We’ll let you see your friend now. But I wouldn’t try anything if I were you.”

She thanked them, pretending to be grateful.

(6-3) I Become Untied

Radiant Hope's eyes widened in surprise at Sombra’s sight. Or, at least, his body’s sight. It took her no time at all to realize that, whoever this was, this wasn’t her friend, and it made her tense up in panic. No, terror. What had happened to Sombra? She was certain he was tricking them, that he was still there and he just fooled them, but clearly she was wrong because he wasn’t here. What had they done to him? What had he done to himself?

She took a step back away from… that thing that was inhabiting her friend, once again feeling the urge to run away, this time much stronger than before. She felt her legs shake, the room feeling like it was closing in on her. This had to be a set up. There was no other explanation for why Sombra wasn’t here. They were setting her up for something. It took everything in Hope’s power to not turn and gallop away as fast as she could.

“Is everything alright?” Cadance asked suspiciously while Alex rolled his eyes at the crystal pony in front of him.

“Y-yes,” she stammered out, swallowing nervously, demanding herself not to flee. "I just- I- I didn't expect this." She then looked to the place where her friend was supposed to be, asking, “So you- you’re… trapped inside of Sombra?”

“Yes,” Alex answered flatly.

“Okay…” Hope trailed off, carefully walking up to him. She moved slowly, as though he were a dangerous predator, and then cautiously began to look him over. She felt the four rulers present watching her as she examined what should have been her friend. It didn’t help her fear that she was being set up, but she put that thought out of her head. It didn't make sense. She couldn’t have been set up since they likely didn’t even know she was still around until she showed up in the Crystal Empire. Although it did make more sense why they were so eager to let her see him. She kept a wary eye on them while she examined this… thing in front of her.

She could clearly tell it was Sombra’s body. She’d been around him for years and knew her friend well. She wouldn’t mistake it. As well, she could clearly tell it wasn’t him in his body. It was a feeling she had. She didn’t know how she could tell, she just could. It might have been the aura this creature gave off, but it was concerning to know. What her friend had done, she had no idea. Although, she tried to have faith that Sombra knew what he was doing and had a plan. She hadn’t known him to do things without thinking them through first. He had to have something in mind, that she knew, and she tried to take solace in that fact.

She began to use her magic to examine him. “Well, I can say you’re definitely not him,” she announced after a few minutes, trying to portray calmness. “It looks like you’re all tangled up in there.”

“That is precisely what Fluttershy claims Discord told her," Luna commented.

Hope looked back at the princess with a surprised face. “Discord wasn’t able to do anything?”

“That is correct, At least, so he claims.”

She turned her attention back to Alex. “Well… I can certainly see what I can do…” she told the room, unsure of herself. “Do we know where he came from?”

“He’s not from Equestria. He’s from another world entirely. Neither Discord nor my sister and I were able to locate exactly where from. Fluttershy has told us that Discord sees his origin as being cut off abruptly.”

She once again looked at him, a little more confident in herself. As powerful as her friend was, he wasn’t that powerful. Bringing a being from some other world to inhabit his body was more than likely out of Sombra's range of capabilities. It might not even have been possible at all for anypony to do. It was an utterly ridiculous concept. The only thing going against such a ludicrous theory was the fact that this… being, it wasn’t him.

Maybe. Maybe he was still in there, with some kind of spell manipulating how Sombra's being acts and what he remembers. It might just be that he intentionally changed his own being into something completely different, but it was still him. It was a stretch, but no more of a stretch than being some creature else from another world. Besides, it would explain why Luna said his origin cuts off abruptly and why she felt like he was all tangled up inside himself. Not to mention, Sombra was a master of manipulation and mind control. It would be difficult, but doable to do this to himself and convince everypony else otherwise. She thought she might have had an idea for what to try first.

“When you appeared, what was the first thing you saw?” the mare, Radiant Hope, asked me curiously. She had a face that seemed like she had an idea, and, as far as I could tell, seemed to be thinking about what she could do to help me, which gave me a little bit of confidence. It was more than most other ponies were able to offer up to that point

“Uh, Twilight,” I answered simply.

She put on a harder thinking face, and asked another question. “Was there any delay in between… wherever you came from and you arriving here?”

That was about the fourth time I was asked that question, but I tried to keep myself from rolling my eyes. “No. There wasn’t a delay. It was faster than a blink.”

“That's… interesting. I… I think I might be able to do something.”

“Wait, really?” I asked excitedly, starting to get my hopes up. “You’re really going to be able to do something?”

“I think so,” she told me before she turned around to the other ponies in the room. “But I need you all to promise that you won’t hurt Sombra if he comes back.”

“Of course,” I thought. “I should’ve expected this. Why would I ever get my hopes up?” I wasn't surprised that there would be stipulations to helping me. It had been one thing after another up to that point, and I knew it wasn't going to change then.

Still, I waited for the members of royalty’s answer, watching as they glanced at each other. Finally, Cadance said, “We can’t promise that.”

I rolled my eyes hard. Of course, she wasn't able to. I expected that from her. I knew by now that the Princess of Love wasn't very loving.

“Well,” the crystal pony said simply, “I can’t do anything if it means that you might hurt my friend.”

That line caught me off guard. “Wait,” I asked, shocked, “Sombra’s your friend?” Then quickly, my shock became anger, realizing why she was asking for Sombra's safety should he return. “Did you do this to me?”

Radiant Hope looked at me, confused. “No? I wouldn’t do something like that to you.”

“How do I know you didn't?” I demanded. “You just appear out of nowhere and say you can fix me? And you’re Sombra’s friend? Did you put me here to make him look like he reformed? They were planning to kill me twenty times over!”

“I promise,” she told me sympathetically, “I didn’t do this to you. I wouldn’t do anything like this to anypony, especially not if it meant they were going to be hurt, and double especially not at the expense of my friend.”

I stared into her eyes. It seemed like she was telling the truth, and more importantly, unlike most of the other ponies I’d encountered thus far, she was trying to help me. “I’m sorry,” I told her, calming myself down, trying to stop myself from being worked up. “It’s just- I’ve been very stressed out lately. I want you to try and help me.”

“I understand,” she told me, then to the room in general, said, “I just need a promise that Sombra won’t be hurt if he returns.”

I looked at Princess Luna with pleading eyes, watching as she looked up at the ceiling, considering what the mare had asked for. “I can say,” she decided, “that as long as Sombra does not attempt to flee or harm anypony, no harmful action shall be taken against him.”

“Thank you,” the crystal pony said gratefully, picking me up. “Now let me see what I can do.”

Healing ponies was natural for Radiant Hope. It came with her cutie mark. It was almost intuition, how she automatically knew where to go with her magic to help ponies. It was no different with Alex, quickly finding the twisted up area of his being and getting to work. Although, it was quite a mess, and she didn’t think she’d ever seen anything this bad. Still, she tried her best to start doing… something. Untangling him. Luckily, what to do came naturally as she started untying the twisted up area inside her friend.

“Ah… you’re hurting me,” Alex got out, closing his eyes.

“I’m sorry,” Radiant Hope said, continuing to work on him. She could feel him start to become untied. “It’s going to hurt while I do this.”

It was less difficult than she was expecting, and she moved her eyes along an invisible string that she could almost see, quickly working to untie him. While she worked, she could sense the ponies behind her, namely Cadance and Shining Armor, tense up as she worked, as if preparing to attack the moment they appeared, despite what they had promised. This caused her to slow down a bit to put some of her focus on the royalty in the room. She made a mental note to prepare to defend him if they turned out to be lying to her, and to get to the Crystal Heart as quickly as possible if need be.

The pain I was feeling seemed like it was getting worse. I didn’t know what she was trying to do, but it was making my whole body ache worse than it already was.

“Is anything even happening?” I complained after some time while the rest of the room kept their eyes on us. “I don’t want to be in pain if it’s for nothing.”

“I’m sure we’re getting somewhere,” she told me, as I watched, and almost felt, her continue to do… something. Something with me specifically, as opposed to this body. It almost felt like I was… coming apart, in some weird way. I tried to take it as a good sign as I kept feeling the pain become steadily worse. “Like I said, you’re all tangled up in Sombra’s body. I’m trying to get you untangled to start with, so I can see what I should do next.”

That didn’t really make that much sense to me, but I thought I could feel her doing something besides making my body hurt, and decided to trust her. Not that there were that many other options available to me.

Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain, right at the center of my being, and saw the mare’s eyes narrow. I assumed she did something again, because I felt the sharp pain again, and saw her put a scowl on her face.

“Ah- what- ah! What is it?” I asked between bursts of pain.

“It’s… it’s a knot inside of you,” she told me, then grunted right before I felt another stab. “It won’t come untied.”

“What does that- ow! What does that mean? Ah!”

“Well, it means I can’t get you completely untangled,” she told me.

“Okay, so? Does that mean you can’t do… whatever you were going to do next?”

“Well,” she explained, “I was going to have you untied and then see if anything about you changed from there, but since I can’t… ummmm…” I felt more stabs of pain as she tried to untie some knot inside me that I couldn’t see or feel. “Do you think you could try, Princess Luna?” Radiant Hope asked the alicorn.

“I would try, but I cannot see the tangles you and Discord say are inside of him.”

“Well, it’s not really something you can see exactly… uh, try feeling it with your magic,” she told her.

Luna came up to me, and I felt her magic encompass me as she examined my body for several minutes, before declaring, “I cannot feel what you are describing.”

She put on a thinking face, still staring at me, before asking, “Do you think you could untie the knot?”

I waited a few seconds for somebody to answer her before I realized who she was talking to. “Me?” I asked her back, confused. “How am I supposed to do that?”

"Uh, well… can’t you feel what I’ve been doing?”

“Not really,” I answered. “Other than pain. I think I can feel something happening, I just can’t feel what is happening.”

“Umm… let me try something," she said, concentrating on me again. "Can you feel that?”

“No? I don’t feel you doing anything.”

“I’m running my magic against the thing I’m untying,” she explained. “You can’t feel anything at all?”

“No.”

She stared at the ground for a second, then looked back up at me. “Let me try something else.”

“Oh! That’s cold!” Alex let out, jumping back slightly, startled by the sudden feeling inside of himself.

“You can feel that?” Radiant Hope asked him.

“Yes!”

“Okay, good. So right here-” she told him, making the area she wanted to highlight cold, sending another gasp shiver through him, “-this is where the knot is. Do you think you could try to untie it?”

“I don’t know! I don’t even know how I would try!”

“Well, try using your magic to feel it.”

“I don’t know how to use magic. I don’t even know if I can.”

Radiant Hope stared at what was supposed to be her friend uncomprehendingly. She had a very tough time believing that he couldn’t use magic. Sombra had the ability to use magic, therefore, this creature also had the ability. She wasn't going to belive that he couldn't do it. Or maybe, she didn’t want to believe that he couldn’t use magic. If he couldn’t, she’d be largely confined here while she either tried to untie it herself or taught him how to use magic so he could try. If Luna couldn’t feel what she was feeling, she was sure that Cadance and that other princess wouldn’t be able to. And from what she’d heard, Discord couldn’t do anything to help, or, at the very least, didn’t want to do anything to help.

On a slightly more positive note, she knew that whether he could do magic or not might quickly serve to prove whether Sombra did this to himself or not, and determine whether she should just give up on the whole plan. If he could use magic, and use it easily, it would effectively confirm that this was just a personality issue, and that Sombra was still in there. More importantly, it would largely prove that he had a plan. If this… thing really was from another world, he wouldn’t be able to use magic easily because he wouldn't have learned how to do it. If that was the case, she'd likely just give up on the whole thing and… she didn’t know. Go back to the crystal?

She sighed, and tried to explain to Alex what to do. “Just, umm… concentrate on the knot and… imagine being able to touch it. Like you have an extra appendage you’re able to use to feel it.”

I had no idea how to do what she was asking, but I tried to anyway. Surprisingly, it was much easier than I expected, almost effortless. Before I knew it, I was touching the “knot” she was talking about.

“I found it,” I told her.

“Good,” she said, putting on a smile that seemed genuine. “Now I want you to try and untie it.”

I didn’t really know what I was doing, but I tried. I assumed I was doing something, since every time I made a pulling motion, I felt a stab of pain, although I was uncertain. The room watched me as I winced in pain over and over again, waiting for something to happen. I tried over and over again for several minutes to get it untied, but didn’t know how.

“I can’t do this!” I finally said, starting to get frustrated and letting go of the invisible knot. “I don’t know what I’m doing! If I did, I would’ve done this earlier!”

“Well, uh, with the tangles, I’ve been slipping my magic inside the tied parts a bit and loosening them that way. Except you can probably tell that this knot is really tight. Because of that, I’m not able to loosen it since my magic isn’t strong enough. I figured your- or, Sombra’s- magic would be strong enough to get inside and loosen it at least.”

I thought I understood what she was getting out. The way she was describing it made it seem like it was a shoelace knot, and my magic was a fingernail trying to make its way in and loosen it. I tried working on the knot again with that in mind, once again putting myself in pain, trying my best to do what she said. I once again started wincing at the stabbing pain, more pronounced now that I was doing it the way she was trying to, but nothing was happening. I tried to stay focused on the task, but the pain I was putting myself in was bringing frustration with it. It peaked when I eventually realized that I might have been doing this for nothing. The mare, Radiant Hope, said that this was the first thing she would try, meaning that the knot might become untied and I would still be here, having hurt myself for nothing.

I tried one more time to loosen the knot the way Radiant Hope told me, and when the stab of pain came again, I screamed in frustration, accidentally pulling the knot at tightly as I could in reflex, so tight that the imaginary string it was on broke.

(6-4) And I Return

I felt a nerve in my neck pinch. Then, absolute agony engulfed my entire being. It was just for a few moments, threatening to make me blackout, before the agony concentrated on my head. It was a pounding pain, like someone was hitting it with a hammer over and over again. I instinctively placed my hands on my head, making the nerve in my neck pinch further, and carefully lay it down on the desk in front of me.

“Oh, my head…” I moaned, then angrily asked, “Why did you make me do that? Nothing even happ-”

I suddenly stopped talking, lifting my head to take a slow look around me. It was the same old East Building of the office I worked in. It was no different now that it was before, the people in it sitting in the same desks they always sat in, filing paperwork and taking calls and whatnot. It wasn’t that interesting of a scene.

I stared wide eyed at what was around me, taking in the view with disbelieving eyes. After how bad the last week or so of my life had been, I didn’t think I’d actually be here again. I was fully prepared to stay in Equestria for the rest of my life, however short it would have been. It certainly wasn’t going to be years, that much was certain. I was going to make sure it wasn't. And I was right about that. I just didn’t expect that mare, Radiant Hope, to be able to do anything.

I wondered what Celestia, Cadance, and Applejack thought now that I’d proved them wrong. And then I decided that I didn’t care since I’d never have to see them again because I wasn’t Sombra!

I started to laugh. It was a laugh that started off as a chuckle but quickly morphed into something manic. I was filled with relief, anger, happiness, and complete disbelief all at the same time. I had no idea what happened or what I did, or who was in Sombra’s body now and what they were dealing with, but I didn’t care because I wasn’t there!

“Fuck you!” I announced while laughing, directing my words at Celestia, at all of the ponies who doubted me and wanted me dead. “Fuck! You! I told you I wasn’t lying! Ha! Ha-ow. Ow, ow, ow…”

My head was pounding, and I could feel the nerve in my neck pinching harder, but I kept laughing in relief, until my laughter turned into tears. I was crying out of relief, now that there was no longer any pressure on me and I didn't have to constantly feel hate radiate off of those two princesses, Celestia and Cadance. That was the worst week of my whole life, ever. I was never going to watch that terrible TV show that showed those awful creatures ever again.

“Ah, ow, ow, ow…” I moaned, getting out of my chair and laying on the floor as curious and surprised people around me got up to check on me. “Oh, my head and neck are hurting so bad…” I said, laughing a little before stopping because of the pain. “Oh, I am so happy,” I got out, feeling the nerve pinch even harder against my neck before I passed out.

“How are you feeling?” Doctor Marks asked me.

“I am so terrified,” I told him truthfully, my voice shaking slightly as I rubbed at the pinched nerve on my neck.

I met with him once before after the incident, since my work offered to pay for twelve free therapy sessions after my outburst. The first time I just talked about how relieved I was and explained what happened to me, along with things about my normal life and family. It wasn’t really productive, but it was free, so I didn’t care. Besides, I really wanted to tell someone about what happened to me.

And then, the day before the second session, a thought occurred to me.

“Can you tell me what you’re afraid of?” he asked.

“I’m afraid of going back,” I told him, still rubbing the spot on my neck. “I nearly gave myself a panic attack yesterday just thinking about it.”

“Why do you think you’ll experience what you did again?” he asked.

I made note of that word, experienced. He didn’t believe me. I knew he thought I was delusional. To be fair, though, maybe I was. The hospital I went to when I passed out said I was dehydrated, and that that could cause hallucinations. I was kind of hoping it was a hallucination, too. I didn't want it to have been real, and would rather have just believed I went crazy for a few minutes. I didn’t really have any evidence to say I wasn’t crazy. None except for this awful feeling pinched nerve.

“Because it happened before, and I don’t know why! What if it happens again? I don’t want to deal with all of that again!”

Doctor Marks looked into my eyes, thinking of how to respond. After a moment though, he answered. “Well, your hospital said you were dehydrated, which is what caused the hallucination, but let’s assume for a second it wasn’t because of dehydration, okay?”

“Okay…”

“You said you were sucked into this world for an unknown reason, correct?”

“I have ideas for why or how, but none that I’d be able to prevent from happening again.”

“Okay, but you said you knew how to get out, didn’t you? You said there were strings inside of you that were tied up and you had to untangle yourself.”

“Well, I mostly did nothing, but yes.”

“I want you to imagine those strings as your grasp on the real world. The more worked up and stressed out you get, the more those ‘strings’ become tangled, and the more you’ll lose your grasp on reality.”

“You think I have anxiety issues and hallucinated, and that’s what happened to me?” I asked skeptically.

He took a breath and answered, “I do. I think you were stressed out from the work you do, and had an anxiety or panic attack, and that, coupled with dehydration, is what set off your 'transportation' to this 'world'. The threats of death you faced in this world could be viewed as how you feel your life might fall apart if you don't keep pushing yourself.”

I didn’t believe him, but it was a theory. I didn't feel as though my life would fall apart before, but it might have been some unconscious feeling inside me. It made sense, and was much better than just saying it was all real and that I could go back at any moment. I wanted to believe him, and would have taken anything over the knowledge that it was real. “So what do I do?”

“Well, whenever you start to feel stressed, you have to remember to take a breath and gather yourself. You can't bottle it up and let it fester. If you were older, it could have been a heart attack you had then. You can’t let it continue to grow without taking a moment to calm down. When it starts to bubble up, take a moment to breathe and count to ten. Give yourself time to relax.”

I gave him a look that was a mix between a scowl and worry. That didn't sound like that good of a plan to me. “Is there anything else I can do?”

“Well, I can prescribe you anxiety medication if you think you need it,” he offered.

“Yes, please,” I answered, then let out a startled cry as a wave of pain washed over my body for a moment.

"How often does that happen?" Doctor Marks asked, concerned.

I took a couple of breaths before answering. "So far, a few times a day," I told him, closing my eyes and rubbing my neck.

"Let me also write you something for that, to take as needed."

A pinched nerve in his neck, and then absolute agony as he let out a scream. That fool completely broke the string rather than loosen and untie it like he should have. He hoped that being got to suffer for doing that, at least momentarily, for breaking the string and putting himself in agony. Sombra quickly caught the broken piece inside of him before it could float away. He would tie it back on later, but not right now. Right now, he was in a great deal of pain, almost the worst imaginable.

“Nothing happened!” he shouted angrily to the room, pretending to still be Alex. "I'm still here!"

(7-1) Two Seconds

It took Sombra exactly two seconds to take in the situation and decide what to do.

The first half a second, he gauged the room around him. He didn’t particularly like what he saw, although he decided that it could have been worse. Staring at him was Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, Prince Shining Armor, and Princess Twilight Sparkle. Notably absent was Princess Celestia, but that wasn’t that large of a surprise. Celestia was very predictable, which he counted on and used to his advantage. That other being had likely denied accusations of what he’d done and drove her to insanity, which Sombra expected to happen. She was always quite an emotional princess. He knew she hated him almost as much as he hated her, and was glad for her absence. With her being gone, half the battle had already been won.

In the next half a second, he held eye contact with Luna, and realized that the second half of the battle still had to be fought. Her eyes showed that she already knew he was faking when he said that nothing happened. He wouldn’t be able to get away with convincing her that he still wasn’t who he said he was, and it limited his options for what to do next greatly. But that wasn't to his detriment. It simply solidified what he had wanted to do anyway

In the following second, he met Radiant Hope’s gaze. They had known each other for years, and knew each other well at that, so it only took a second of eye contact for the two to say everything they needed to say. In that eye contact, they briefly told each other of the danger of staying here, and made a quick plan about what they should do and how to proceed.

And then, after those two seconds were over, Sombra acted.

Luna was speaking truthfully in her promise of not hurting him unless he attacked or tried to escape, and because of that, she was just a hair too late in defending herself from Sombra. She could see what spell he was casting, and was a moment away from stopping it when he turned her into stone. It was a spell he alone knew, which was why he used it. He knew it wasn't something they'd be able to easily undo. The next moment, he fell out of the bed and onto the floor in agony, the pain coming from his use of the spell and what that fool had done. It turned out to be lucky for him though, because the instant later, Princess Cadance violently shot the space he’d been laying in, taking out the bed and the wall behind it, some pieces of rubble hitting the ponies in the room.

“Hope!” he yelled, but she already knew what he was asking. The moment before Cadance and Shining Armor’s next shot could hit him, the two teleported away.

The Princess of Love wore an angry look, growling for a few seconds before stamping a hoof hard to the ground and letting out a scream of rage.

“ARRRGGGHH! I KNEW IT!" she got out. "LUNA'S SUCH AN IDIOT!"

Twilight frowned at what Cadance had said, not liking that she was speaking badly of the blue alicorn. However, instead of commenting on this, she simply whispered, "It looks like Princess Celestia might have been right all along…"

"Of course she was right! She's always right! She's Celestia! And now Sombra's escaped and Luna got herself turned into stone because she didn't listen to her sister!" The Princess of Love growled lowly for a few seconds, then let out another scream.

"Cadance, calm down!" Shining Armor told his wife. "What are we going to do?"

She closed her eyes and took several breaths to gather herself somewhat. "A plan," she thought. "A plan is what we need. You're in charge now and it's likely all of Equestria is counting on you to think of something. We need a plan..." She thought of what to do for a few seconds before speaking again. "Shining!" she snapped, her husband jumping back in surprise as she turned towards him. "Get to the Crystal Heart now and make sure it's still there. If it is, guard it. If not, put the Crystal Empire on lockdown, and make sure to guard Chrysalis's cell."

"On it," he responded, and quickly teleported away.

“Twilight,” Cadance snapped, “I need you to gather your friends and get back here as quickly as possible. There’s a high likelihood that they already took the Crystal Heart, and it might be up to you and your friends to stop him.”

"Okay! Um, what are you going to do?” the Princess of Friendship asked.

“I don’t know yet, but I think I have an idea. I need to get to Canterlot.”

(7-2) Thinking Things Through

"Why did Candace hate me so much?" I asked aloud, half to Doctor Marks and half to myself.

"She's the one you said was the Princess of Love, correct?" he asked.

"Yeah. The Princess of Love. It doesn't make any sense."

I was sitting in his office for the second time, once again discussing with him what happened. I was following his directions and staying relaxed, as well as taking the medication he prescribed. He told me this week he wanted to go over the specifics of what had happened to me.

"Didn't you say they all hated you?" he questioned curiously. "Is there any reason you're focusing on her in particular?"

"I don't know. And also, they didn't all hate me," I explained. "Only most of them. And honestly, it wasn't even hate coming from the Element Bearers. It was more like… baseless anger and mistrust. The only two I felt outright hated me were Cadance and Celestia."

“You said last week that you’d try to find out why. Can I assume that since you’re only asking about the one… pony, that you’ve figured out the reason for why the other felt the way they did?”

I appreciated him speaking like it wasn’t a hallucination, even though I knew he thought it was. “I did some researching on Celestia-”

“That’s the Sun Princess, the one who turned into fire, correct?”

“Yeah. I was looking into her to see why she hated me so much, and honestly, from what I learned, I kind of feel bad for her.”

“Can you tell me what exactly happened?”

“Well, from what I learned, there was a mirror world that had a different Sombra that Celestia loved. Evidently, things there were out of wack, so the Sombra there had to become evil to match the Sombra in the normal Equestria. So I’m fairly certain she blames him for losing the love of her life. And combine that with Princess Amore dying, I can pretty clearly see how she went crazy. It makes me feel bad now that I told her to just get over it...”

"Hmmm… that's interesting," he commented, writing what I told him down. "Of course, that doesn't explain why that other one hated you."

"Well, I don't know why she hated me," I told him. "You're supposed to be the therapist. Can't you figure out why?"

"Well, let's see if we can't find that answer. You said she was the Queen of Love-"

"Princess," I corrected, "and she wasn't acting like it to me."

"You told me before that you hated her. Could that be the reason she hated you?"

"Well, while I never particularly liked her, I didn't actually hate any of them until they thought it was okay to kill me, which, from what I was told, came about because of the hate she and Celestia radiated. They had a heavy hand in their thinking."

"Hoof," he suddenly said.

I looked at him funnily. "What?" I asked, confused.

"Well," he started, "if they were horses like you said, the phrase would be 'heavy hoof'."

I gave him a glare for several moments while he sat silently, looking uncomfortable, before apologizing. "I'm sorry," he told me. "Um, do you remember when you noticed her hating you?"

I thought for a few seconds before answering. "It was from the second she saw me. She hated me on sight."

“Could it possibly have been because you were a villain in this world?”

“Maybe, but… actually, I don’t know, I’m not sure. I don’t think she would’ve had the same reaction to Tirek or Cozy Glow. Honestly, the only person I’d expect her to be this angry at is Chrysalis.”

“Who’s Chrysalis?” Doctor Marks asked me.

“Someone who locked her up in a dungeon and made her husband fall in love with her,” I explained. “But that's not important. The point is I don’t think it was because I was a bad guy. Granted, I did try to take over the Crystal Empire and endangered her family.”

"You did?"

"Errr, Sombra did. I'm sorry. But anyway, I don't think it was enough justification. I didn't get the same feeling she gave me from her husband."

“Hmmm… that’s interesting… And you didn't find anything striking about her while you were researching?"

"I can't say I did."

He went quiet for a few moments, then suggested, "Perhaps she was faking?"

That was certainly a suggestion, one that caught me off guard. It wasn't a scenario I would've thought of on my own. "Why would she fake hating me?”

“I wouldn’t know why. I only suggest it because you can’t find a reason for her hate.”

“So, you think she hates me just because?”

“Well, not exactly, and as I said, I’m only guessing. But let me ask you about that pony, the one who controls the sun. You said she got so mad that she turned into flames. Is she normally like that? Does that happen a lot?”

“I can’t say it does. She doesn't normally go insane.”

“And you said it was her and Cadance's emotions fueling how everyone else reacted to you?”

“That’s what Luna told me… wait, are you saying that Cadance hate was intensifying Celestia’s hate?”

“I… think it’s a possibility, given how you’ve described how Celestia typically acts.”

“So, not only was she making Celestia angry, you think she was doing it on purpose? Why?”

“I wouldn’t know why. Maybe she had a plan she was trying to enact?”

I considered it for a second, then answered, “No, I don’t believe that. I mean, maybe she was fueling Celestia’s anger, but I don’t think she had some other plan. I’m pretty sure she’s too dumb to even try to make a plan in the first place. And even if she was smart enough, which is a big if, she would need a reason to have a plan. I’m not sure how turning Celestia into Daybreaker would help or benefit her in the slightest.”

“So can you tell me what you think?”

“I don’t know. Maybe she’s just a naturally angry and hateful pony. From the way she acted, it wouldn’t surprise me.”

“Ah knew he was lying!” Applejack spat angrily “Ah told y’all right from the beginning he was lying!”

“Applejack-” Twilight tried to say.

“Of course that brute was lying!” Rarity commented. “He’s nothing but a monster!”

“Rarity-” the purple alicorn got out.

“I mean, he was probably trying to make her turn into Daybreaker so he wouldn’t have to deal with her,” Rainbow Dash interjected. “He was probably stringing all of us along like puppets.”

“Rainbow Dash-”

“I think it’d be pretty fun to be a puppet! We could put on a big puppet show!”

“Pinkie, now’s not-”

“Ah mean, he made fools outta us. We shoulda known-”

“EVERYPONY, STOP!”

Ten eyes turned Fluttershy’s way, surprised by her yelling. “I’m sorry for yelling everypony, but I just can’t bear to hear you all talk about that creature that way.”

“There was no creature, darling! You heard what Twilight said: he was likely planning it from the very beginning! For heaven's sakes, he attacked Princess Luna and ran away!”

“Yes, I did say that he was probably planning this from the start," Twilight explained, "however, like I was trying to tell you all, that doesn’t mean that somepony else wasn’t trapped inside his body before. Both those things can be true at once.”

“But Twilight, darling, you have to admit-”

“No, Rarity. Luna said that he wasn’t Sombra, at least before, and I’m going to believe her. Besides, we should’ve expected this to happen, seeing as we were trying to free whoever it was trapped in there. Why do you think we had the meeting with Princess Celestia in the first place, or tried to get Radiant Hope to help us?”

“Either way, it looks like we should’ve kept him in there, especially since Princess Luna is stone now because of him.”

“No, Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy countered. “Even if it meant Luna getting turned into stone, we couldn’t let that poor creature be stuck in there. That would just be awful.”

Rainbow Dash sighed at that. “I guess you’re right, Fluttershy.” Fluttershy gave her a smile, happy that she agreed, and listened as she continued, “I guess that means now we have to stop Sombra.”

“How’re we s’posed to tell if it’s actually Sombra this time?” Applejack asked, exasperated. “He could easily start pretending’ again.”

“That’s a good question,” Fluttershy said thoughtfully. “What would we do if he says he’s not himself again?”

“Well…” the Princess of Friendship trailed off, “unfortunately, we aren’t going to be able to trust him. We’ll have to assume he’s lying. We can try talking to him, but if he looks like he’s going to be aggressive…” She turned to look Fluttershy in the eyes, saying, “we can’t hold back.”

Fluttershy looked at the ground and sighed, answering quietly, “I understand.”

"But only if he's aggressive," she thought silently.

(7-3) Back Together

Sombra lay on the ground in his old study writhing in pain, feeling like he was being stabbed over and over again. It was the most horrible pain he’d ever been in, and was thanks to that fool. It didn't help to add in the burning he was getting from the Crystal Heart’s proximity to him. If he could, he would simply destroy it, but the agony he was in prevented it. Still, despite the burning it caused, it was better that it was here near him rather than it being in Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor’s hooves.

As he lay on the ground, waiting for Hope to return, his agony lessened into something just below overwhelming. It was still quite painful, and he could feel a nerve in his neck starting to pinch, but those things would be healed soon enough when he reattached the string that fool broke off. Although, he wondered if Radiant Hope could heal him. It was her special talent, after all, her receiving her cutie mark when she healed him before. Although why she couldn’t just untie that string herself and spare him this pain was beyond him.

He briefly tried to remember what his plan was and what had happened. He knew part of it had to do with subduing Luna and driving Celestia to insanity, but he couldn't remember exactly why. Not that he didn't know what his goal was. Taking over the Crystal Empire was obvious. He just couldn't remember why he chose to play the waiting game and had that fool occupy him when he could've just attacked directly. But it was trivial to try and ponder. He was here now, and he was edging on victory.

Except for his pain. The pain he was in was brutal. But it was worth it since it brought him so close to victory. He’d thought victory was in his grasp before, but this time he was sure of it. He only needed to get Discord and one of the Element Bearers out of the way before it could be completely assured.

No, not completely assured. There was still Cadance. Sombra still had to deal with her. At least, he imagined he’d have to. There was no reason he wouldn’t have to. However, he somehow felt like he wouldn’t need to, and he didn’t know why. But he would concern himself with that later. For now, he put the thought out of his head while he watched Radiant Hope return, his pain lowering at her sight.

“Where were you?” he asked his friend, standing up from laying on the ground, using a hoof to rub where the nerve was pinched.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I wanted to see if I could try and get Chrysalis out of the cell she’s being held in, but it’s being guarded by Shining Armor.”

He humphed at that. “I wouldn’t want to work with that insect anyway. Not that we need that cretin. There isn’t that much else standing in our way. My plan worked.”

“Your plan, if you can call it that, was risky. What would you think might’ve happened if I hadn’t come to free you from… that thing?”

“That wouldn’t happen, you not coming,” Sombra said matter-of-factly. “I knew you would come.”

“How would you know that?”

“Because you’re my friend.”

She gave him a weird stare at that, slightly dubious and slightly annoyed, and he returned it with a genuine smile. “Well,” she told him, a tiny bit frustrated, “If you would have just waited a little bit longer, I had a perfect plan for how to free the umbrum and-”

“Wait,” Sombra interrupted, his smile returning to his usual scowl. “Why would I ever free the umbrum?” he asked her.

This time, Hope’s expression was incredulous. “Why would you not?” she asked her friend, surprised. “They’re counting on you to free them from their prison!”

“Well, as long as I’m living, they’ll stay in their prison.”

“You have to free them! You’re supposed to be their-”

“I know where you’re going, Hope,” he interrupted again, “and I’m going to stop you. They’re monsters. The umbrum are all monsters like me.” He growled, continuing, “Even if they weren’t, I wouldn’t care. They’re just as much to blame for how I suffered as Princess Amore and those wretched crystal ponies.”

"Wait, they cause you to be hurt by the Crystal Heart?" Radiant Hope asked.

"They had a heavy hoof in my suffering, yes."

She went quiet at that as the two stared at each other. “So we’re not freeing the umbrum,” she whispered. “We’re just… what?”

“I'm being the monster I was destined to be,” he told her without hesitation, anger in his voice. “I’m taking control of this kingdom and crushing these ponies under my hooves.” He then left the anger out of his voice as he continued, “Or perhaps you can be the princess you were destined to be.”

Radiant Hope knew that her ‘destiny’ was out of her reach at his point. It’d been a thousand years, even if it only felt like months to the two of them. More importantly, what had become of the current situation they were in was already too far into motion for them to stop. Besides, they were on the verge of winning, having already taken care of Luna and Celestia being deposed. She might as well follow through and finish what they started. Then they’d rule over Equestria and Sombra would be happy like he used to be. She might not be an actual ‘princess’, but it would be worth giving up to have her friend back.

“So what’s the rest of the plan?” she asked with a sigh. “We’re not getting Chrysalis?”

“No,” he answered. “We don’t need her. We just need to turn one of those six into stone, as well as… that other pony.”

“That other pony? Cadance?”

“I’m not saying their name because… mmmh.”

She raised an eyebrow before realizing who he was talking about. “Oh, that pony. Okay. When are we going to deal with Cadance and Shining Armor?”

“I don’t know. We might not have to. I’m not sure.” Before she could ask, he continued. “It’s just a feeling, and like I said, we might not have to. At least not Cadance. That other pony is Twilight Sparkle’s brother, and I don’t believe he’ll take very kindly to us turning her into- AH! AHH AH!”

Sombra fell back to the floor and writhed in pain once again. Radiant Hope quickly rushed to her friend’s side. “Are you okay?” she asked, concerned.

“No, I’m not okay!” he yelled. “Why did you let that fool tear it apart?”

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I got most of it untied, but my magic wasn’t strong enough to work its way into the last knot… Do you still have the piece that was torn off?”

He huffed at that. “Yes,” he grumbled, standing up again. “I’ll tie it back on later. Right now, I want to end this.”

"You want to go out right now?" she asked.

"It's better now than never, I suppose."

“Before we do this, can I ask you some things? I’m curious about a few things.”

“What?” he asked frustratedly, keeping himself from snapping at her.

“When you were… away, they said a creature from another world was inhabiting your body in your place. That’s not true, is it?”

She asked the question in a way that made it seem like she knew and she was just confirming it with him. Sombra sighed, saying, “No, it’s not. If another world existed, I’d take you with me and wouldn’t bother with this one.”

“So, that… Alex, he wasn’t real?”

“No more real than a dream. He was the product of a spell I created. It was no different than if I was sleepwalking. It was easy to believe what that thing told them because he wasn’t real. I’m surprised that… a certain pony hadn’t caught on to it.”

“Trust me,” Hope told him, “they’re not nearly as smart as you think they are, or as they think they are.”

The two of them shared a laugh at that. Despite the pain Sombra was in from that fool and the Crystal Heart, he thought it was a nice moment. For a moment, he felt as though they were foals again playing the grass near the school they used to go to. It felt like only a few months ago Sombra inadvertently helped Radiant Hope get her cutie mark and they had their whole lives ahead of them. And now they were here, his plan for revenge against the Crystal Empire and the rulers of Equestria in motion.

“Are you ready?” Hope asked.

“This should be quite easy,” he responded confidently.

“Oh, I’m getting a bout of really bad anxiety,” I told Doctor Marks, my hand starting to shake.

“What is it?” he asked me curiously.

“Oh, it’s- it’s just- I- what if I go back?” I asked. “I know I asked before, but I don’t know what I would do if I went back. I don’t want to go back.”

“You’re fine,” he told me. “I understand how certain things can seem and feel real, but you have to ground yourself and remember what really is. Take deep breaths. Count to ten. Find something you know is real and focus on that. If you start to feel like reality is slipping away, do those things.”

“Okay,” I said, taking a deep breath. “Okay. I can try that.”

(7-4) Dreams

“Last night I had a dream that I was him again,” I told Doctor Marks when I visited him again.

“Can you describe for me what happened in it?”

“I was in the room I was originally in when I first got there, and that mare, Radiant Hope, was there, too. We were talking about me, me me, and how I caused Sombra pain by breaking that knot. We talked about how I, or, he knew she was coming because they were friends. We talked about how I planned this happening to me, how I didn’t exist, and how we- ah!”

“You’re neck?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes,” I answered as I rubbed the pinched nerve.

“Is that getting any better?”

“I don’t know,” I told him honestly. “It doesn't feel like it, but it might be. The sensation is always there, it just flares up every now and then. I went to the doctor and got an Xray and an MRI a few days ago, and they said they didn't see anything wrong with me.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he told me sympathetically. “I do hope it gets better. But back to the topic at hand. As you were saying?”

“We laughed at how we thought the princesses were stupid, and made a plan about how we would get rid of them. And then I woke up.”

He was silent for a few seconds, and then started to speak. “There’s a lot there to unpack. Let’s start with the obvious first. How do you know this one was a dream and last time wasn’t just a dream?”

“Well, it was like I was him, but I was also able to see myself being him,” I told him. “It honestly felt like I was seeing myself from both a first and third-person perspective. Like, I was him, but him as him, instead of inhabiting his body like I was before. Plus, I couldn’t tell exactly when the dream started. I know exactly what was happening the moment before I actually went there a few weeks ago.”

“Okay, can you tell me what you, or, what he was feeling in the dream?”

“He was a little angry, mostly at me, but a tiny bit at Radiant Hope, too, for letting me break that knot. He was mostly happy to be around her, though. It felt like they’ve known each other for years, and I think I got the feeling he was in love with her.”

“That’s interesting.”

“I guess. I mean, what I read about them backs it up. Uh... he was also confident that he could stop the six of them and Discord, and was kind of arrogant about it- Oh! And just like me, he felt weird about Cadance.”

“Weird about her?”

“Yeah. It was like, he knew that he should attack her in theory, but didn’t know if he actually had to. So, um, you might be right when you suggested that she was trying to plan something.”

“Do you have any idea what?”

“Not a clue. I mean, she has a family, she’s the ruler of an entire kingdom, and is the Princess of Love. If she did have a plan, I don’t know what it would be or what her motive for it would be. Or why Sombra wouldn’t know what it was, especially if he was involved in it. But, to be fair, it felt like he only had a general grasp on what happened while I was there.”

“Speaking of plans, I am curious about the plan that Sombra and… Radiant Hope is it? I’m curious about what plans they held.”

“From what I understand, they decided that all they need to do was take care of one of the mane six-”

“Mane six?”

“That’s Twilight and her friends. They decided that all they had to do is take care of one of them to keep the Elements of Harmony from being used, and then take Discord out of the picture to claim victory.”

“Discord is the chaos one?”

“Yes. At first, they were considering trying to get the Elements of Harmony used on Discord by somehow deflecting the blast their way, but then decided that it was too risky and might not work anyway.”

“Why wouldn’t it work? You told me before that you thought that those elements might hurt or kill you.”

“Because, even though Discord can cause chaos, and is the God of Chaos, he’s not chaotic like I was. It’s like, he has an order to his chaos, I guess? But, um, after that they decided they would try and take him by surprise, seeing as he’s the most powerful being in Equestria. He’s effectively a Deus ex machina.” I sighed, then added slightly bitterly, “Except in my case. Apparently, he couldn’t do anything about me.

“But anyway,” I continued, “they decided that their best bet would be to try and take him by surprise. I guess their plan is to turn one of them into stone, have another one say Discord’s name, and then turn him into stone, too.”

“Do you think such a plan would work?”

“I mean, I guess it could work. They don’t really have any other options other than to attack him head on, which I’m sure would fail. I mean, he could literally snap his fingers and send the two of them to Tartarus, hence the reason he's Deus ex machina.”

“Ah, okay. In any case, let’s move on. What about when he said you were a figment of his imagination?"

"I'm not concerned about that. I know for a fact I'm real." I paused for a second, then muttered, "I kind of wish he was right, though."

"Why do you wish that?"

"Because he'll be caught off guard when I'm not a figment of his imagination," I said sadly.

There was a brief silence before the therapist asked his next question. "How are you feeling?”

“Depressed,” I said immediately.

“Depressed? Can you tell me why?”

“Cause I’m going to go back. I know for a fact that I am.” Doctor Marks stared at me, waiting for my explanation, and I continued. “They were talking about tying back that string that I broke, and I have a feeling that as soon as they do, I’m gonna be pushed back in his body. With my luck, it’ll be just as Discord is sending him to Tartarus, or Twilight is shooting to kill him.” I sighed and continued, “I guess I could get lucky and have time to snap the string again, but there’s nothing stopping them from repairing it again. So why bother?”

“You’re not thinking of killing yourself are you, Alex?”

Another sigh came from me. “No, but if I go back, I won’t stop them from killing me.”

“Now, if I was Sombra, where would I be hiding?” Twilight thought aloud.

“He’s probably far away from here by now!” Rainbow Dash said, sounding frustrated. “Ugh, we’ll probably have to search all of Equestria for him!”

“I’m not so sure about that, dear,” Rarity told her. “I don’t believe he would turn Princess Luna to stone as Twilight said and then abandon the Crystal Empire. He’d likely try and hide somewhere nearby.”

“Maybe we could split up and look for him!” Pinkie Pie offered. “It could be like a really high stakes game of Hide and Go Seek!”

“That might be a good idea…” Twilight trailed off thoughtfully. "Not the 'Hide and Go Seek' part, but the splitting up part."

Sombra and Hope were a bit of a distance away, listening to the conversation. They were hidden from the view of the Princess of Friendship and her companions, and didn’t have to worry about being seen by any of the other ponies in the Crystal Empire, seeing as they were still hiding in their homes. The only thing the two had to worry about was the stallion containing his laughter.

“You were right,” he said quietly, stifling back his laugh. “They aren’t as smart as they think they are.”

“I honestly wonder what goes on in their heads,” Hope responded, a tiny smile starting to form. “Why would they ever consider trusting me to help them? And now they’re talking about splitting up?”

“They clearly don’t realize they’re stronger together,” he chuckled. "Splitting up would crush any inkling of a chance they might have against us.”

As he said this, Applejack spoke out against the plan. “What in tarnation are y’all going on about?” she asked, a scowl on her face. “We obviously stand a better chance against him when we’re together. Why would we go an’ ruin that by splitting up? What would we even do when we found him if we were all apart?”

“She does have a point, Twilight,” Rarity said. “Splitting up would do us no good if we couldn’t contain the brute when we found him.”

“Hump. I guess they’re not complete imbeciles…” Sombra muttered. He then turned to his friend and instructed, “Hope. I need you to be hidden, far enough away to stay out of any crossfire there might be, but close enough to help me if I need it.”

“Are you going in now?” she asked him.

“Yes,” was his firm response. “I want to end this.”

(8-1) An Incredibly Brief Battle

“Hmmmmm…” Doctor Marks pondered thoughtfully. “You could try apologizing…”

I stared back at him, completely confused. “Apologize?” I asked. “For what? What would that even do?”

“I’m sorry. Let me back up,” he said. “You told me that Celestia is angry at you, correct?”

“Yeah, cause Sombra killed a princess and caused an alternate universe Sombra to turn evil.”

“Okay, let’s ignore the first part of that. I don’t think we’ll be able to do anything about that. We’ll just focus on the second part of that. Explain to me again exactly why this… second Sombra turned evil.”

“From what I understand, their realities were somehow connected, and they were... out of balance I guess? I guess they’re supposed to mirror each other, and one version of Sombra being good and the other one being bad was messing that up. So to bring back balance, that Sombra, the one in the other universe, had to become evil like this Sombra… I haven’t looked too far into it, but that’s the basic gist of it. At least, from what I’ve seen.”

“Okay, so if they’re supposed to mirror each other, then if you went back, which, mind you, is still an if at this point, then apologizing should make Celestia happy.”

“How?” I asked, a bit annoyed. “I wasn’t him to begin with. I told her I wasn’t him. That should’ve made her happy right then and there, even in spite of Cadance.”

“Okay, but let’s look at it from her perspective. Someone who looks and sounds exactly like the person who hurt her suddenly appears and tells her that, not only is he not the person she thinks he is, but that he doesn’t have any involvement in the things the other person did to hurt her and that she should just get over it. Not to mention the fact that she has someone else next to her feeding into her hate and edging her on. How long do you think it would take her to snap?”

“Probably not that long, but that shouldn't matter because she knows I’m not him. She should have been happy, but she decided to be irrational for no good reason. Well, I mean, she kind of had a good reason, but still.”

“You’re right. She should have been rational, but often that’s difficult to do when you’re being fueled by emotion.” Doctor Marks paused, then continued, “But that’s why you should try to apologize.”

“How would apologizing to her change anything?” I asked skeptically.

“That’s where we get back to that second Sombra, the one in the… other universe. If they’re supposed to mirror each other, then you apologizing should make that other Sombra good again. At least, based on what you’re telling me.”

“I guess, but that assumes that I am Sombra, and Celestia knows for a fact that I’m not.”

“Yes, you’ve said that she knows you’re not him, but we’ve also established that she’s being fueled by her emotion. If her emotion is telling her that you’re Sombra, then it’s likely that you apologizing should help cool those emotions.”

“Or she could think I’m lying and just kill me there…”

“That’s true, but that’s why you’re going to want to specifically highlight the fact that she should forgive you for that other Sombra, so that he can stop being evil.”

“I’m still fairly confident she’d just kill me, especially since there’s not really any way to verify if my apology did anything. I’m pretty sure I read that she destroyed her only way of getting there.”

“You’re right that she might just end up killing you, but if you’re just planning on letting them kill you as soon as you get there, you might as well try and apologize to her first.”

“I mean, I guess… but shouldn’t you be telling me that this isn’t real and that this is all in my head anyway?”

He only smiled at me in response.

Twilight Sparkle and Sombra cried out simultaneously, with several other gasps of surprise being heard a moment afterward. Twilight’s was a cry of surprise, one that lasted only half a second before it was cut off abruptly as she turned into stone. Sombra’s, however, was one of pain, He clenched his teeth and had to fight to stay standing the moment after he shot the Princess of Friendship.

“Twilight!” Rarity called out, running up to where she stood. The mare, however, didn't answer her friend, able only to stand silently as her friend ran up to her. Her mouth was still open and a look of surprise and fear was still on her face and her stone statue stood motionless.

“I’ll stop him!” Rainbow Dash yelled as she suddenly shot forward and hit him square on his nose, breaking it and sending him staggering backward a few steps. However, she wasn’t able to land more than one punch on him before Sombra grit his teeth and shot his spell at the pegasus. He laughed in spite of his pain as her stone figure fell to the ground, enjoying how incredibly easy a time he was having in defeating his enemies. Granted, he expected this to be easy, but this was turning out to be effortless. How he wasn’t able to defeat them the previous two times was beyond him. He figured it was simple luck favoring them that gave them their previous victories.

The next instant, three more ponies tried to charge at him, but their efforts were futile. Sombra honestly thought it was pathetic, idiotic even, that they thought they would be able to do something. They hadn’t even given him the opportunity to offer them the chance to surrender. He didn’t pay much mind to it, however, deciding instead to turn them into stone as he used a hoof to rub his hurting nose and tried to ignore the painful pinched nerve in his neck.

The stallion casually walked past the five mares now encased in stone and looked down at the one remaining with a cruel smile. “What about you?” he asked, enjoying the look of fear in the pegasus's eyes. “Don’t you want to try and attack? Don’t you want to join your friends as stone statues?”

“A-Alex…?” the yellow mare asked, her voice trembling as she cowered away. "W-w-what are you doing?"

Sombra’s smile got wider at that, letting it show his fangs. “It looks like Alex isn’t here anymore,” he told her with a vicious tone. “It seems like you- AH! Ah ah ah!”

The surge of pain that went through him was the worst one yet, and he suddenly found himself falling to the ground. This one was different from the others, though. It felt like a wave of electricity was rolling through his body, one that seemed to go on for an impossibly long time as he wriggled around on the ground. He felt the pain concentrating on his neck as he screamed out again.

“Hope! Help me!” he called with both anger and desperation as he heard Fluttershy call for someone.

“I’m coming!” she called back, appearing seemingly out of nowhere to run up to him. However, as she knelt down by his side, Discord was appearing before them.

“Tsk tsk tsk. It seems as though everyone’s favorite pony has returned,” he told them. “Or should I say, everyone’s least favorite pony, seeing as almost all of them hate you.”

“Ah! Fix the string, Hope! Hurry!”

“I am! I’m going as fast as I can!”

“You know, Sombra, you caused quite a bit of trouble lately,” Discord said, sounding almost bored. “You turned princesses into stone, made Celestia angry, made Twilight give up on being the ruler of Equestria…”

“AH! That hurts!” Sombra said through gritted teeth as he writhed in pain, tiny tear droplets starting to form.

“You need to stop moving so I can put it back together!” Radiant Hope instructed.

“Not that I really cared about those things,” the draconequus continued. “But then you started to interfere with my fun. I had such a great plan for helping build Twilight’s confidence… and then you appeared and brought that thing here. Oh, how chaotic he was. It gave me goosebumps." He paused, and, with a shiver, added, "It was truly awful."

“I’m almost done, Sombra!”

“Hurry!” he said desperately, hoping she could take away the pain before Discord did something. All he needed was a half a second lead on him to cast his spell and turn him into stone.

“And now I have to save the day as usual,” Discord said with a roll of his eyes. “Bah humbug.”

Just as he finished speaking, Radiant Hope finished tying back the string Alex had ripped apart. A fraction of a second later, Discord snapped his fingers.

(8-2) A Return Once Again

I watched as Discord snapped his fingers. Instinct took over, and I automatically shot at him an instant later as his eyes went wide in complete and utter shock. I knew he thought something would happen to me. He was expecting something to happen to me. I didn’t know what he wanted to make happen, but clearly what he wanted to happen didn’t happen, and he was turned into stone a second later because of it.

The first thing I noticed was that there wasn’t a pinched nerve in my neck anymore. I honestly didn’t realize just how bad it was hurting me until right then, but now that it was gone, the relief was immense. However, if given the option, I would have chosen the pinched nerve if it meant I wasn’t back in Equestria at that moment.

I don’t know why, but I was expecting to be depressed. Instead though, I felt intensely angry. Rage would be the way to describe it. I was absolutely enraged at everything, and found myself grinding my teeth in frustration at being back there.

“Is it better now, Sombra?” I heard the mare next to me, Radiant Hope, ask with concern in her voice.

I felt my coat bristle at her voice. She was the one who tied that string back together after she caused me to tear it apart. It was her fault I was here right now, and her fault that I was in pain before.

“You!” I barked as I quickly turned towards her, causing her to jump back. “You did this to me! You brought me back here!”

“Somb-”

“NO!” I interrupted, baring my teeth. “No! This is your fault! You did this to me!”

I stamped my hooves in frustration and ground my teeth harder. I felt like I wanted to throw a tantrum and destroy everything around me. I was absolutely hating everything about this, and started to scream because of it.

“DAMN IT! WHY DID YOU BRING ME BACK HERE! FUCK!” I dropped to the ground and closed my eyes, leaving myself open to anyone who wanted to take a shot at me.

“Just go ahead and kill me!” I said to whatever ponies were around me. “I don’t care! Just kill me and let me die!”

It took a few moments for Radiant Hope to collect herself. She didn’t know what she expected when she tied Sombra’s string back together. Actually, that wasn’t true. She knew exactly what she expected. She thought that her friend would be pain free and able to beat Discord. Not that he wasn’t. Clearly both of those things had happened. It was just that… she wasn’t expecting this. She didn’t expect that creature to return.

“I’m not sure why I didn’t though,” the mare thought to herself as he looked at him. “It should have been obvious that was what would happen. If breaking the string sent him away, then tying it back would obviously bring him back.”

Alex sighed, keeping his eyes closed. “Just kill me,” he said with an air of finality. “You’ve all wanted to do it ever since I got here anyway. Just get it over with.”

“What are you talking about, Sombra?” Radiant Hope asked, confused. “We’ve already won. There’s nothing left for us to do.” She paused for a second as the stallion turned his head to look at her. “I mean, there’s still Cadance and Shining Armor, as well as a few others,” she added, “but there’s basically nothing left.”

“So let me get this straight,” the stallion spat at her, clenching his jaw as he gave her a hateful look. “You already had everyone defeated, and you decided to bring me back here anyway?”

“What are you-”

“Alex?” a small voice interrupted.

Both Alex and Hope turned to see a sniffling yellow pegasus cowering in fear next to the statues that were her friends. Her blue eyes, despite the tears in them, were the tiniest bit hopeful as she looked at the stallion.

“Is that you?” she asked timidly.

The stallion exhaled and closed his eyes. “Yes, it is,” he answered, the frustration evident in his voice. “It shouldn’t be, but it is.”

“Is that- is that really you?” she asked tearfully.

The stallion nodded his head, and immediately watched Fluttershy’s expression change. He could see a sense of relief in her eyes and on her face, the pegasus now wearing a look of hopefulness, almost… happiness? Joy?He couldn’t exactly tell, and he had no idea why she would be happy for his return. Regardless, though, it did nothing to soothe his anger.

“Oh, Alex, it was horrible!” she got out. “Sombra came back, and Twilight said he turned Princess Luna into stone, and then…” She looked around at her motionless friends and sniffed. “You have to do something… Please say you can do something…”

He didn't know. He had absolutely no idea how to use magic at all. Then again, Hope had been able to give to teach him a tiny bit the last time he was in this body, and he had turned Discord into stone on instinct alone.

“Yes, I can do something,” he told her, “but I won’t.”

“...what?” she asked him, slightly confused.

“I won’t do anything!” he yelled. “They all deserve this after the way they treated me! They were planning to kill me without a second thought!"

"But- but… they're- they're my…"

"They’re what? You’re friends? Because those friends of yours are heartless monsters with no compassion for a pony who did absolutely nothing but comply with everything they said!”

“But… but without them and Luna, the sun won’t set, and then-”

“I HOPE EQUESTRIA BURNS!” Alex screamed. “I hope it burns! I hope this world ends in a fiery death! It’s what Celestia deserves after the way she treated me! Taking her rage for Sombra out on me! Letting that witch Amore burn me day after day, year after year! It’s what she deserves! It’s what they all deserve for the way they treated me! None of you believed in me!”

The stallion huffed as he faced the yellow pegasus, sending an intense look her way. He was seething, hating the fact that he was back in Equestria, and while he knew it wasn’t fair of him, he was taking his anger out on the mare in front of him. She seemed almost hurt by his yelling at her, and looked down at her hooves because of it.

“I believed you…” Fluttershy whispered meekly, almost inaudible.

Alex deflated, all of his anger seemingly leaving him. In spite of how in the right he felt, how much he thought they deserved the fate they received, he couldn’t ignore that fact.

“Yes,” he sighed quietly. “You did.”

Radiant Hope silently watched the exchange between them. She was now fully realizing exactly what was happening. The knot in the string was keeping part of him suppressed, and the string being torn apart was keeping the other part of him at bay. Now that the string was fully untied and fixed, it seemed as though both parts of him were now operating together. It explained both why he knew about Princess Amore’s treatment of Sombra and why he was acting the way he was currently. How Sombra managed to create and cast such an advanced spell was beyond her. Then again, this was Sombra, after all. Of course, guessed that it was still possible that Alex was a creature from another world and not just a personality of Sombra like she was suspecting, but at the moment, she highly doubted that.

Fluttershy stared at Alex with sad eyes, silently pleading for him to try and do something. The stallion stared back for a moment, trying to decide what he should do, before closing his eyes.

“Somb-” Hope started, before she was interrupted.

“Stop,” he told her forcefully, eyes still closed. “Let me think.”

He was back and forth on whether or not he should free them or let them stay encased in stone. He thought back to every memory he had since he first came as he tried to decide, before suddenly remembering something Luna told him.

“No, Fluttershy,” he said, opening his eyes to stare into hers. “I’m sorry, but not yet. I need to see if Luna lied to me.”

(8-3) Princess Mi Amore Cadenza

“The Crystal Empire is in King Sombra’s hands, and Princess Celestia and Luna are gone,” Princess Cadance announced to a room full of Canterlot nobility.

Several ponies fainted dead away, and many more gasped in shock, their jaws falling to the floor. Their princess, their perfect, immortal princess of the sun… was gone? They couldn’t believe it. They heard she was dealing with something of high importance and might not be seen again for quite a while, however, they weren’t expecting this. They weren’t expecting to hear that Sombra had returned, and certainly didn’t think that he could possibly win against their beloved princess…

“I urge you all to stay calm,” Cadance spoke with authority before they could ask questions and start to panic. “The bearers of the Elements of Harmony are currently working to stop him and bring back the princesses. As well, in the unlikely event the Elements are brought down, I have reason to believe that he will not be looking to conquer the whole of Equestria, and should be satisfied with the Crystal Empire.”

“Why would they lose?” somepony asked worriedly, barely able to keep himself calm. “Why wouldn’t he try and take over all of Equestria?”

“Unfortunately, I can’t disclose the answers to those questions,” the alicorn responded. “However, I ask you all once again to stay calm and rest assured that all is not lost. In the unlikely event that we do see him try to take over Canterlot and Equestria, we have preparations in place to assure his defeat and secure ourselves.”

Princess Cadance sat on Celestia’s large throne in the now empty room, staring blankly at both everything and nothing. It was almost surreal to her that she was here right now, and she was still processing everything that happened.

Celestia was gone. Luna was gone. She was almost certain that Twilight and her friends were gone, although she had yet to confirm that. She knew her husband, Shining Armor, didn’t stand a chance against Chrysalis, and with as cocky as the draconequus was, she was certain that the combination of Sombra and Radiant Hope would be enough to take down even Discord. If events played out the way she expected they would, she would be the sole ruler of Equestria, her daughter, Flurry Heart, being the sole heir.

Sure, she could try and take steps to defeat Sombra. She could check the archives for a spell to bring Celestia back from her banishment and defeat the stallion if she liked, but why would she do that? Celestia was out of her mind with rage, and that wasn’t something she particularly felt like dealing with. Besides, the former princess only brought it on herself. The immortal Princess of the Sun, the same one who had ruled Equestria for hundreds of generations, had gone completely insane just from interacting with one stallion. It was quite remarkable, the way she was able to let her emotions be affected and her judgment become clouded by him. To be fair though, Cadance had intentionally edged her on, expecting her darker side to come out. And it worked.

“This is my throne,” the Princess of Love, no, the Princess of Equestria, whispered to herself. “This is my throne.”

She still couldn’t believe what Celestia had done to her, or, what was planning on doing to her. She fully expected to see Twilight Sparkle take up a position of power, and could honestly say that she was happy to see it, too. She was the filly she helped guide over the years, and almost took some pride in the fact that she was moving up in the world. At least, until Celestia had announced that she would rule Equestria instead of her. It felt like a kick in the gut to her, after all she’d accomplished, after all she’d been through, to be relegated to the background by somepony who just became an alicorn. Somepony who was practically still a filly. Sure, she’d done a lot to help Equestria, but she wasn’t ready to lead Equestria. Twilight herself even admitted so, on several occasions. And yet, Celestia wouldn’t relent. She chose Twilight over the pony she raised.

And then Shining Armor had the nerve to say he agreed with her, to say that Twilight deserved to rule Equestria over his wife. Over his daughter! She made sure to raise that specific point with him, and yet he wouldn’t back down. “My little sister has worked hard and deserves to be ruler of Equestria,” he told her. He was saying that she deserved to lose out, that Flurry Heart deserved to lose out. They deserved to lose to somepony who didn’t even want it! That after all she'd been through, she still deserved to lose.

“This is my throne,” she told herself again with conviction. "This. Is. My. Throne."

Eventually, somehow, she found herself holding her sleeping daughter while walking slowly back and forth through Celestia’s bedroom. No, her bedroom. She walked back and forth across her bedroom holding her foal as the filly started to stir.

"Daddy?" Flurry Heart asked as she opened her tired eyes and briefly looked around.

"Daddy's not here right now, sweetie," Cadance answered in a soothing sort of voice. "Daddy might not be coming back. But you don't need to worry about that. You just go back to sleep now."

"Daddy..." the foal sniffed out sadly as she closed her eyes again.

“It's going to be okay,” she whispered as she set her daughter back down. "Mommy did this all for you."

She really had done it, and quite successfully in fact. Making a pact with Sombra, fueling Celestia’s anger and hatred and pushing her to her emotional limit, creating a spell that Starswirl the Bearded would’ve been proud of… she really had outdone herself. For a little while, she was sure that Luna would discover what she was doing, but somehow, to her great fortune, she hadn’t. It was perfect. She had created a no lose situation for herself. If Twilight managed to defeat Sombra, she was certain she wouldn’t mind her ruling Equestria, and could explain that she was here making sure Canterlot was secure while she was doing that. If Discord defeated him and brought Luna back, she knew she'd be able to convince her to give her a position of power, and could simply wait for her to retire like she was planning on doing. If Sombra won, which was the most likely scenario to her, she knew he would be more obsessed with enacting revenge on the Crystal Empire than he would be in controlling Equestria. More importantly than that, Sombra wasn’t an alicorn. One day, he would grow old and die and that would be the end of him. By that time, Flurry Heart would be more than capable of running the Crystal Empire. And then, in however many thousand years, when she herselfwas ready to retire, she would leave running the whole of Equestria with her. It would be a storybook ending for Cadance, for both of them. With these things in mind, she made a mental note to announce that she and Sombra had come to "an agreement" about how he wouldn't try and take over Equestria. She knew many wouldn't like it, but would accept the outcome. She was an alicorn after all, as well as the Ruler of Equestria.

“Mommy did this all for you,” she whispered again, lying to her little filly.

"I swear if she lied to me, no one will be happy..." Alex growled.

(8-4) The Lie I Wish It Was

This was it.

Cadance paced back and forth in the throne room of the Crystal Empire. This was it. The next few moments would determine what her future was, as well as the future of all of Equestria. It was exciting, as well as a little bit scary. She was fairly certain that things would work out the way she expected, but this could all go unbelievably, horribly wrong. If Sombra didn’t do what she wanted, she’d fail. If Celestia didn’t turn into Daybreaker, she’d fail. If Luna thought she was suspicious and read her mind, she’d fail. And failing wouldn’t end well. She was certain Celestia wouldn’t have forgiveness on her should she fail. She wasn’t the forgiving type, unless, of course, it served herself. This was the same princess who saw fit to send a little filly to Tartarus. Celestia likely didn’t know what the word “forgiveness” meant.

But she had faith in herself and what she would be able to do. She helped bring down Sombra once before, and reintegrated the Crystal Empire into a world that was a thousand years ahead of it, among other things. Sure, the Crystal Empire was more like a city-state, but it certainly wasn’t nothing. And yet Celestia wouldn’t even give her a chance. She wouldn’t be ruler because Celestia found it better to give Equestria to somepony who didn’t even want it! She wouldn’t even give her a chance…

Cadance found herself thinking of that more often lately. It was apparent that the minute Twilight became an alicorn, Celestia gave her the spotlight the way she didn’t do for Cadance. And it wasn’t silent about it. She made sure Celestia knew it. She let Celestia know how she felt like she was being forgotten about, how she wasn’t being given the opportunities that Twilight was given. Of course, she’d always be told, “Focus on running the Crystal Empire. It may seem unimportant now and may seem to you like you’re being forgotten, but you’ll find that in the end, it was worth it.” As frustrated as it made her, she let those words soothe her frustrations.

And then Celestia slapped her in the face, and it pushed her over the edge. ‘I’m giving it to Twilight’ she said. ‘She’s more than proven herself capable of running Equestria’ she said. Even after the mare made it clear she wasn’t ready and didn’t want it. And even if both of those things were true, Cadance herself brought it to her aunt's attention that she wasn’t being given the same chance to help as her purple counterpart.

But no matter anymore. She was giving herself the opportunity. She didn’t know what game her aunt was playing with her, but she was done playing it. She was going to take matters into her own hooves. There would be other ponies who faced consequences as a result even though they weren’t at fault, Twilight Sparkle especially, but she would try her best to prevent that as much as she could. She simply needed Celestia and Luna out of the way, as well as Shining Armor. After that, she would get what she deserved.

Quickly, Princess Cadance cast the spell she knew and marched down into Sombra’s study, where only she knew the stallion was hiding.

“Come on out, Sombra,” she announced as loud as she dared. “I know you’re here. I’ve no interest in hurting you.”

Silence is what she got. Not a peep. She rolled her eyes and sighed, continuing, “As crazy as it seems, I have a proposition for you.” She waited a second for an answer, and when she received none, pressed on. “I know you want to rule the Crystal Empire, and I’m offering you the chance to do that.”

Slowly, a purple and black smoke that was Sombra arose, seemingly out of nowhere. “The Crystal Empire?” the smoke growled. “And how am I supposed to do that? It’ll be months before I recover enough strength to simply leave this room! And even still, there are those wretched Element Bearers as well as Celestia and Luna and Discord… it’s almost futile to even try, even if I weren’t in my current state.”

“It might seem that way, but I’ve come up with a plan that will ensure you’re the ruler of the Crystal Empire.”

“It’s impossible,” he scoffed. “The second those six see me, they’ll blast me on site. Nothing you or I do will be able to stop that blast from destroying me again.”

“Then we just need to create a situation where they don’t want to hit you.”

The cloud that was the shadow pony squinted his eyes. “And how exactly would we do that?” he asked suspiciously.

“Here’s what’s going to happen,” she explained. “Twilight will be here in a few minutes after I send a message for her to come. I’m going to cast a spell to restore you, and then, when you see her, you’re going to cast a spell on yourself to create an alternate personality. I’m sure you're powerful enough to do something like that fairly easily. It’ll need to be complex enough to have a detailed backstory, that way, when Luna tries to read your mind, she won’t be suspicious and won't think that you're lying.”

“It might work on those fools,” Sombra countered, “but I’m certain that witch of a princess named Celestia will see right through it.”

“That’s just what we want to happen. We want there to be a situation where it’s you versus her and you’re on the innocent side. I’m going to play the part of pushing her as close to the edge as possible by fueling her anger until she turns into her nightmare form. With how badly her hate for you flows, it shouldn’t be that difficult to do.”

“And then once she’s changed, the Element Bearers will banish her,” he finished, with a tiny smile. “Very clever. It’s almost guaranteed to work. However, that trick won’t work with the others.”

“That’s where that other personality comes in,” Cadance told him. “You’re going to need to make it claim to be another pony. Actually, no. Make it claim to be from another world entirely. Another pony can be found and questioned, and that’s what we don’t want. If you make your personality say it’s a creature from another world, they’ll be forced to try and find a way to send it back to where it came from. And since it won’t exist, they’ll simply destroy the personality, and you’ll be in the perfect position to attack.”

“Hmmmm… it should be easy enough, especially since they’ll be unprepared. How will we deal with Discord though?”

“That’s for you to figure out,” she answered. “I don’t plan on fighting at all. I’m giving you enough of a head start to succeed. I’m fairly certain you can come up with something.”

The shadow pony frowned, and responded, “Very well. Although you know I must ask what you’re seeking out of this. What are you expecting to receive in the end?”

“I plan on becoming the ruler of Equestria,” the alicorn responded quickly.

“And what exactly is stopping me from declining your offer and conquering Equestria myself?” he responded without missing a beat. “After all, I expect Radiant Hope to be here soon to fight with me like you said you won’t do.”

“And as you said,” she told him with a frown, “the Elements of Harmony will tear you down just as quickly as they did before. This is the best way to give us both what we want and secure both of our futures.”

“There seems to be a lot more risk in this for me than you,” he told her skeptically. “If things go wrong for you, you can simply claim ignorance and be believed unlike I.” Before she could respond to that though, he continued, “But I’ll accept this partnership. Restore me so I can cast the spell.”

Cadance’s horn lit up, the mare speaking as it did so. “If you try to attack me when I do this, Twilight and her friends will know.”

He gave a sly smile. “It seems you don’t trust me, even as I place my faith in you. Perhaps you fear me, even as you propose this deal?”

She growled at him silently as she closed her eyes to concentrate on what she was doing. It only took a few moments to cast her spell, and she reopened her eyes when she finished, jumping back in surprise at her proximity to the now ponified umbrum.

“Ah, so you do fear me. That’s certainly interesting, although unsurprising. I should be feared.”

“I’m not afraid of you. If I were, I wouldn’t even consider doing this. You startled me is all.”

There were several moments of silence that passed as the two stood facing each other. “Well? What are you waiting for?” he asked. “Call Twilight Sparkle so I can do what needs to be done.”

She continued to scowl at him as she said, “Remember to wait until she sees you to do it. This won’t work otherwise.”

“I understand that. Now go,” he commanded. With another scowl and a roll of her eyes, she left. As she did so, he thought to himself, “You’re very lucky I’m not interested in conquering Equestria. I only wish to see those who’ve wronged me crushed beneath my hooves.” He let out a small sigh, and silently whispered, “I’ll make sure you become the princess you were destined to be, Hope, and make sure those who’ve hurt us suffer. You’ll be the one to free me, of that I’m sure, and then we’ll crush our enemies… Although I wonder, will just an alternate personality be enough to fool them? Especially Discord… Hmmmmmm...”

“Luna lied to you?” Fluttershy asked me, the confusion evident on her face. “What did she lie about?”

I had to take a breath and clench my jaw to keep from snapping at her as I spoke. “Celestia told me,” I growled, “that my story wasn’t the first time she’s heard it. She very strongly suggested that other humans had appeared in Equestria before me, and that more would appear after me. When I confronted Luna about it, she told me that Celestia was lying to psyche me out as a tactic to get the truth out of me. I want to see if Luna was covering up for her.”

“I’m not- I don’t think that’s very likely, Sombra,” Hope told me. I turned to face her quickly, my jaw still clenched, and she continued, “You said earlier that it was your plan for this to happen… Well, not this specifically, but for everything up to… umm…”

She didn’t finish, but she didn’t have to. I knew where she was going, and I hated it. I dreamed earlier about it being Sombra’s plan for me to appear and for Celestia to lose control because of me, and it almost certainly wasn’t a coincidence. Effectively, she was suggesting that I was a personality that he created. Or, more accurately, a personality that I created.

“I’m not ready to accept that,” I said with finality. “I want proof that she didn’t lie to me, and the only place we can get proof of that is in the Canterlot Sculpture Garden.”

“Why… what?” Radiant Hope got out, completely confused. She hadn’t heard of a sculpture garden since she was last in Canterlot a thousand years ago.

“What are you going to do there?” Fluttershy asked.

“I’m going to see if those are really sculptures, or if they’re ponies that Celestia turned to stone for claiming to be humans, too.” I got confused expressions from both of them, so I explained, “Discord was turned into stone and placed in that sculpture garden, so it’s highly likely that the rest of those “sculptures” are real ponies, too.”

There were a few seconds of silence before Fluttershy spoke. “Do you really think Celestia would do something like that?” she asked timidly.

“Of course she would,” I answered. “She went completely crazy and attacked me just from seeing me, probably because she thinks she’s a god. I wouldn’t put it past her.”

“Well, uh, like I said,” Hope started, “I don’t think that’s very likely… I’m pretty sure she was just trying to trick you into saying you were Sombra…”

“I guess we’ll find out when we reach Canterlot.”

“Can you teleport us there?” the stallion asked Hope.

“No, not all the way to Canterlot,” the mare answered. “I can do short hops, but I’ll run out of energy before we get even halfway there. Can’t you do it?”

“No,” he answered as though it was the most obvious thing in Equestria. “I don’t know how to do magic.”

Radiant Hope had a very hard time believing that. She watched him turn Discord into stone after she tied back the string, not to mention teaching him to break it to begin with. He certainly could do it. However, she decided not to bring this up, opting instead to humor him. As well, she wanted to take the opportunity to give him a small test.

“Okay, I’ll write down the characters you’ll need to read to cast it,” she said, already using her magic to scratch them out in a patch of dirt next to them. “Just focus on the things or ponies you want to teleport being in the place you want them to teleport to, and then cast the spell. It should be as easy as that for you.”

“Okay…” Alex trailed off in response before going silent to examine what she’d written. They looked like random symbols with no meaning to him, but somehow he found his horn lighting up and the spell being cast as he read them. The next thing he knew, the three of them were standing at the edge of the entrance to the sculpture garden, which was exactly where he wanted them to be.

“That was much easier than I expected it to be,” Alex admitted. “I thought that would take forever to learn.”

“Well, you’ve always had a knack for magic,” she said, then gave him a bright smile. He couldn’t help but return it with one of his own, but quickly frowned again a second later once he realized what he was doing.

“I know what you’re thinking,” he told her, “and you’re wrong. I’m not Sombra. I know I’m not Sombra. I know that.”

“I’m not trying to make you upset,” she responded, taking a step closer to him, “it’s just that I’m almost certain that you’re… you. It doesn’t make sense to say you’re a creature from another world.”

“Why? Everyone else believes me now except for you and Celestia, and maybe Cadance.”

“I’m not saying that you’re lying. I know that you believe it. It’s just that… well… How can you even know who they are if you’re from another world?”

“Because in my universe, this is a fictional television show,” he explained. Even as he said it though, he knew just how unbelievable it sounded to her.

“None of this is supposed to be real,” he continued. “This is a children’s... story, written and produced by people almost solely to sell toys. I know who everyone is because I’ve seen this happen on TV where I’m from.”

“I’m not trying to be mean, but do you know how unbelievably convenient that would be if you were from another world?” she asked. “I mean, honestly, that seems almost impossible.” She watched him growl at her words, the stallion huffing and turning away from her, and took another step towards him so that their coats were brushing against each other.

“I’m sorry,” she told him. “I’m just worried about you. You know I love you, right Sombra?”

Alex sighed. “I know, Hope and I love you, too. It’s just that I know that I-” He stopped suddenly mid-sentence and clenched his jaw in frustration as he realized what was just spoken.

"What?" the mare asked innocently.

“I didn’t mean to say that,” he growled out. “Don’t…”

“Um, I’m sorry to interrupt,” Fluttershy suddenly said. “I really don't mean to, but I think we’re scaring the other ponies by standing here.”

Both of them turned to look around, and sure enough, several ponies were standing frozen in fear, with a couple of others whispering to each other, seemingly debating whether or not to run. It caused the stallion to frown and sigh again.

“Alright,” Alex announced. “Let’s get this over with.”

I was not a personality. I knew that. I knew that. I lived my whole life as a human being, and couldn’t remember anything else. Sure, I knew about My Little Pony, but that wasn’t a coincidence. I watched the show. It made sense. Besides, I had experiences that shaped who I was, like sneaking out of school and hospital stays and awful breakups and growing up with amazing parents. I was not a personality. If I was, then I was the most detailed personality ever created.

Of course, it didn’t explain why I told Radiant Hope I loved her when I didn’t, or why I was only able to go home for a few weeks before being sent back here, but at that moment I chose to ignore those things. The evidence proving my claims true was in this garden.

As the three of us walked through the entrance, one pony had the courage to stutter out a question to me.

“A-a-are y-you K-k-king S-sombra?”

I closed my eyes and let out a deep breath, answering, “No, I’m not. A lot of ponies seem to think so, but I’m not him.”

“I- I- I heard th-that he was g-going to t-try and t-t-take over Canterlot…” another pony stammered out. “And n-n-n-now you’re-”

“No, I’m not!” I snapped. “I don’t care about taking over Canterlot because I’m not Sombra!”

I watched them tense up fearfully, and it took Fluttershy putting her hoof on my shoulder to realize I had my teeth bared at them in a snarl.

“Maybe we should keep going, Alex.”

Once again, I closed my eyes and let out a deep breath. “Yes,” I told her. “Let’s keep going.”

We continued into the garden, more frightened ponies moving out of our way as we did so, and stopped at the first statue we came across. It was a stallion, a bit larger than most, wearing a neutral expression. The statue didn’t seem to have an expression of fear, none of the statues I could immediately see did, but it didn’t change how suspicious it was that these statues existed in the first place.

“You don’t really think Celestia and Luna turned ponies into statues do you, Alex?”

I didn’t know what to think. As much as I hated Celestia, I almost wanted her to be telling the truth when she told me other humans came here before me. If I had to choose between me being just a personality of Sombra and me being a human in his body, I would choose the latter, even if it meant that I was lied to by Luna. While it wouldn't make me any less angry that she lied, it would at least give me a sliver of a chance to get back home.

“If they did, I’m never ever bringing Luna back, or Twilight for that matter. There’s no way Luna wouldn’t have known about this, and Twilight would almost certainly side with her, or say that Celestia had a good reason to do so.”

Fluttershy didn’t say anything else and she and Radiant Hope waited in anticipation for me to cast the spell that should free whatever pony was encased in the stone. I knew I knew how to do it, although I wasn’t sure how. But I put that thought out of my head as I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.

“Please let this work,” I thought silently as I cast the spell.

I waited a few more seconds before cautiously opening my eyes again, once again taking in the statue we stopped in front of. It looked exactly the same as it did a few seconds before, remaining unchanged even in spite of my spell.

“Um… did you… not do it right?” Fluttershy asked me quietly.

I stayed silent, but we all knew the answer. I did the spell correctly, that I knew, even if I didn’t exactly know how I was able to cast it. The problem was that there was nothing for the spell to do, as we were looking at a normal statue, not a pony turned into one. Luna didn't lie when she said Celestia was bluffing about there being other humans.

I was Sombra.

"Are you okay, Alex?" the yellow mare behind me asked in a whisper.

“I guess,” I answered listlessly after a few seconds, sinking to the ground and closing my eyes again. “I only learned that I don’t actually exist and that I’m a personality of Sombra, so I could be doing better.”

“Well, um, if it makes you feel better,” Hope got out, “technically you are Sombra, so, uh, it would be a personality that you created…”

I knew what she was trying to say, but I sighed at her words anyway. “Why do I even try?” I mumbled, turning my head and letting my cheek touch the crystal on the ground that was the road. Of course, I was Sombra. It made the most sense. I mean, really, how likely was it that I was not only transported to another universe, but to one that I already knew everything about? That would have to be one heck of a coincidence.

I kept my eyes closed as the three of us stayed silent for a while. I couldn’t remember ever being Sombra before… this happened, but it almost felt subconscious, like when I automatically told Hope I loved her. I didn’t actually feel any love for her, or at least, I didn’t think I did, but who knew? I’d just found out that everything I knew was wrong, so I could’ve been wrong about that, too.

After several minutes, I opened my eyes again and spoke. “So what now?” I asked sarcastically. “Do I try and take over the Crystal Empire or something?”

“Well, um… what do you want to do?” Hope responded.

“I want to not be here, but that’s not an option, is it?”

“Alex…” I heard Fluttershy whisper sadly.

“Maybe I should try and bring Celestia back and beg her for forgiveness like that therapist said,” I continued. “Or better yet, maybe I should bring her back and let her kill me.”

“Please don't say things like that, Sombra,” Hope told me. “I really don’t like it when you say things like that.”

“I really don’t care at this point. I know you care about me, but I wish I would’ve just been killed by Celestia and Cadance when I first came here. My whole life is a lie, and I’m never going to see my friends and family again because apparently they didn’t exist in the first place.”

Radiant Hope went silent, the sad look like she was about to cry staying on her face, and I hit my head against the ground. “God. Damn. It. All. Why did you have to tie that string back together, Hope? I’d rather be in pain than have to deal with this… thing.”

“I’m sorry, Sombra,” she apologized and moved to lay down next to me. I knew it wasn’t her fault. It was my own stupid fault for thinking this was a good idea to begin with. Why did I have to do this to myself?

“God, I hate myself,” I mumbled as I started to close my eyes again. However, before I could, Fluttershy interrupted me.

“I know you might not want to hear this, Alex, but, um, there’s not really anything saying you’re not a human.” I moved to protest, but she put her hoof up to continue.

“I know I’m not as good as Twilight when it comes to these things… and I know I can’t know what you’re going through and what I say will sound cliche, but… um, well… I think you are who you say you are. I mean, even if it didn’t actually happen, uh… well, if you had those experiences, and remember them, then whether or not you’re actually Sombra shouldn’t matter. I mean, if you say you’re a human, then you’re a human to me, Alex.”

As cheesy as it sounded, it actually did make me feel a little bit better. However, in this case, feeling better only meant giving me the energy to be angry and scream.

“Why is this happening to me?” I yelled suddenly, causing Hope to jump. “Why would I do this to myself? What was the point of this?”

“Well, um, you told me earlier that you wanted to-”

“I know I wanted to take over the Crystal Empire!” I yelled, interrupting Hope. “I know this was my plan and I know this is what I wanted, but why did I do it this way? I’m sure there were plenty of ways for me to conquer the Crystal Empire, and yet I chose this way?”

The two mares stayed silent while I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. “Let me think,” I said out loud, mostly to myself. “I know the point was to be in this position, with everyone who was against me defeated, but how did I come to the conclusion that this was the way to do it? It doesn’t seem like the kind of thing I would’ve thought of on my own, let alone even attempted.”

“Well, um, do you remember anything, Alex?” Fluttershy asked. “About, um, being… umm…”

“No, not really. I can remember my life, but everything about… Sombra if from the perspective of an outsider. As in, I know what happened to me, but only because I watched the show or read about it online. I don’t remember ever physically being myself… err, Sombra.”

“Well, if it’s any help,” Hope jumped in, “I do remember you saying something about we might not have to worry about Cadance… Maybe it was her?”

“Well I certainly doubt that,” I answered. “She hated me almost as much as Celestia did, and was the one fueling…”

I trailed off into silence as I thought, and what I thought was not good. Everything that happened, everything that led up to this moment, was starting to click for me. I was realizing exactly what was going on and how it got me to this point, and I didn’t like it.

“Where is Cadance right now?” I suddenly asked.

A couple of minutes later, the three of them were back in the Crystal Empire, where it was still deathly quiet. Alex was breathing heavily as they stood in front of six stone statues.

“Teleporting… takes… a lot of… energy…” he said in between breaths. “How do the princesses… do it so easily?”

“Well, they’re alicorns,” Radiant Hope responded, “and also, they don’t usually teleport from the Crystal Empire to Canterlot and back, so…”

“Whatever. Let’s just… find Cadance and try and talk to her… see if she can fix this.” He paused, silently adding, “Or maybe take my anger out on her.”

“Wait, Alex,” Fluttershy interrupted timidly. “Maybe we should talk to Twilight and, um… see what she has to say? I mean, if that’s okay with you.”

He rolled his eyes at that. “I already know what she’ll say. Probably something like, ‘Oh, my sister-in-law would never do something like that.’ Even though that’s how all these princesses acted so far.”

“How they acted? What?”

“They all act in their own self-interest,” he explained bitterly. “Amore cared more about herself than about how I was being burned and killed by the Crystal Heart, Celestia cared about herself more than about believing in me when I tried to tell her that I wasn’t Sombra, and Cadance cares more about herself than about letting me say a human. Or maybe not existing. Or whatever. You get the point.”

“Twilight’s-”

“Not like that,” the stallion interrupted. “I’m sure she’s not, which is why she let Starlight Glimmer go completely unpunished but sent a filly to Tartarus. She’s probably no older than ten, and she didn’t even try and reform her! And what about what Celestia and Luna did to me?”

“What Celestia and Luna- are you talking about when they banished you?” Fluttershy asked.

“Yes, they banished me after I got rightfully upset that Amore was intentionally hurting me and didn’t even care! They banished somepony who’s practically still a foal!”

“A foal?”

“Yes, a foal! I might be a thousand years old now, but from my perspective, Radiant Hope only got her cutie mark a few months ago, and we’re just about the same age. They intentionally tried to kill someone who’s practically still a foal, who didn’t remember being Sombra, who didn’t even know they were Sombra, and they were going to do it without a second thought!”

“Well, um- maybe, um- maybe you could try and apologize?” Fluttershy offered, not really knowing what to say. “I know it’s not that good of an idea to you, but, um, since you both-”

“NO! I will never, never, never ever apologize! I don’t care if I am Sombra! I will not apologize after everything they’ve done to me when I’ve done nothing! Now where is Cadance?”

“Stop right there, Sombra!” a stallion suddenly called out. The group turned to see an angry looking Shining Armor carrying the Crystal Heart in his magic. However, his angry look quickly dropped when he saw Hope and Fluttershy standing on either side of the stallion, who wore an absolutely intense expression.

“What. Do you. Want,” he spat as his stare pierced through the prince like glass.

Shining Armor stood in stunned silence for a second before finally responding, “I- by order of the Crystal Empire, I hereby demand that you stand down and surrender.”

“Fine. I surrender. Again. Where is Cadance?”

“Then lay down so I can restrain you,” the prince continued, trying to speak with authority.

“No. Where is Cadance?” Alex asked again.

“If you’re truly surrendering,” Shining Armor started again, ignoring him, “then I have to ask that you-”

“Look. I’m trying to stay calm since you didn’t have anything to do with this, but you’re testing my already very thin patience. I need to know where Cadance is.”

“I- why do you need to know?” he asked, trying to keep the confusion out of his voice.

Alex growled, and said, “I just want to talk to her. I’m sure she has the answers to some questions I have. Now where is she?”

“Well, I can’t-”

“TELL ME WHERE SHE IS RIGHT NOW!” the stallion screamed, causing everypony around him to jump as he took a threatening step forward. Before he could do anything else though, Fluttershy put a hoof on his shoulder.

“I know you’re upset, Alex,” she whispered, “but I don’t think yelling is the best way to go. I’m sure if you explain the situation calmly, he’ll tell us where she is.”

“Fine! I’m calm!” he yelled, before taking a breath. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, starting again in a lower voice, “I’m calm.” He then turned to look at Shining Armor and asked, “Can you please tell me where Cadance is? I need to know because I’m almost certain that she’s the one who turned me into Sombra.”

The prince squinted at him in skepticism. “My wife turned you into- wait, are you saying you’re that creature again now?”

He growled again as he answered, “I have a name, and it’s Alex.”

“How do I know you’re not lying again?” Shining questioned. “You were tricking Celestia to make her mad, and then turned Luna into stone once you had the chance!”

“I wasn’t lying the first time, which should be fairly obvious by this point seeing as I put up with you all wanting to kill me for days! The fact that I’m even talking to you now should be proof enough that I’m not him!”

“You could still be trying to trick me,” he insisted. “You could be forcing Fluttershy to go with you as part of the plan to trick me.”

“What would the trick even be? You are so- no, I’m not dealing with this.” He turned to his companions and said, “You win, Fluttershy. We’ll get Twilight and ask her where she is.”

“No you won’t!” Shining Armor yelled, quickly teleporting in front of them. “I won’t let you hurt my sister or her friends!”

“Why would I-”

“Alex, please calm down,” Fluttershy told him before directing her attention to the prince. “I promise Alex would never do anything to hurt Twilight or my friends. We just really need to know where Princess Cadance is so we can see if she can help him.”

“Well… I don't know...,” he said, sounding extremely annoyed by the idea as he stared at the stallion. He thought about it for a second, staring at both Alex's angry expression and Fluttershy's innocent pleading one, before answering, “Fine. But you have to stay with me at all times. And if you even think about trying to hurt her, I’ll pummel you into the ground!”

“Whatever,” Alex responded, rolling his eyes. “Just take us to her already.”

I’m sure the last thing Princess Cadance expected to see was her husband teleporting into the castle in Canterlot with me standing right next to him. I saw a look of shock on her face for a second as she immediately tensed up, seeming like her heart was about to jump out of her chest. It almost certainly confirmed what I suspected

“I swear if you hurt her-” Shining Armor started, “it will not end well for you.”

I managed to ignore him, my gaze completely fixed on the pink alicorn. I was certain my current condition was a result of her interference, and wanted to call her out for it right then and there. However, I found myself avoiding that and clenched my teeth as I growled low and spoke slowly.

“Cadance, I need to speak with you in private.”

“No, you don’t,” Shining spoke. “You can talk to her right here where I can make sure you won’t try anything. You’re lucky you haven’t been thrown in jail yet.”

“Yes, I’m so lucky,” I retorted bitterly. “I’m so lucky that everypony except for one, maybe two, wanted to kill me, and that all the rulers of Equestria are only out for themselves!” By the time I finished, I was yelling, and Shining Armor looked like he wanted to fight. However, Cadance held up a hoof to stop him.

“Shining, it’s fine.” she started with a sigh. “Him talking to talk is better than him wanting to fight.” She then turned to me and said, “Tell me, will I be speaking to Sombra, or will I be speaking to that other creature?”

“Fine,” I thought. “If she wants to be that way, we can do this in public.”

“I have a name,” I growled, “and it’s Alex. Now let me ask, who am I speaking to: the Princess of Love, or the Ruler of Equestria?”

“What?” she asked. “What are you going on about?” As she spoke, I saw in her eyes… something. A reaction. It might have been a flicker of fear, but it could have just as easily been confusion. Still, though, it was something to go on, and I started speaking again.

“You know exactly what I’m going on about!” I continued. “It was you that made me this way, because all of you alicorns only care about yourselves!”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about how you were the one fueling Celestia’s rage against me!” I yelled as I started to step towards her. “You were the one that gave me an opening to turn Luna into stone, and then scurried off to Canterlot so there wouldn’t be anypony standing against me! You were the one who made me this way! You took me away from my life!”

Despite her pretending to be confused, Cadance was inwardly frustrated, as well as a bit afraid. She had everything planned out so perfectly, and yet here was Sombra, or Alex as he claimed to be, openly spilling the details of what they planned together. It was absolutely not what she expected, and certainly wasn’t ideal, and it made her insanely irritated and frustrated. All the stallion had to do was create a personality, and that was it. And yet, somehow he managed to screw that up, because she was in this position.

She debated how she should respond to this. There were really only two options. Well, three, but confessing was absolutely out of the question. Of the two left, the first was denial, but that had its own risks, mainly being that she didn’t know how much Fluttershy had been convinced by him, and if she had, how much Twilight would believe the yellow mare over her. Not only that, but she’d have Luna to contend with, as well as potentially Discord. The second was simply acknowledging what she’d done and trying to convince Alex to see her way, which would ultimately involve her taking care of her husband, and was a very risky gamble in her opinion. She didn’t know how much he knew about magic, and knew that if he knew even a little bit, with how powerful Sombra was, he could take her down in an instant. Or, if he wanted to, he could just grab Twilight Sparkle, and then it would be all over for her. This was just about the very worst position she could be in.

“I hate you so much right now, Sombra,” she thought. “You had one job and you absolutely failed. This is all your fault…”

She opted to start with the slightly safer option, mustering up anger and concern into her voice. “Anypony standing against- what did you do to Twilight? Tell me where she is right now!”

“Admit you did this to me! I know you did this! This didn’t just happen out of the blue!”

“Alex, please calm down,” Radiant Hope whispered, touching his side with her hoof as the prince and princess took aggressive stances.

“No! I won’t calm down! If you didn’t, then why would you be in Canterlot hiding instead of in the Crystal Empire protecting your precious sister-in-law and your husband?”

Shining Armor’s ear flicked at that, and Cadance caught it. She knew he was starting to doubt her, and before long was going to piece together what she had done. She had to do something, and without thinking, sent out an attack. It was the very last thing he expected, and just a second later, he was sprawled unconscious across the floor, Fluttershy quickly rushing over to his aid. Cadance ignored this however and marched over to Alex, sticking her nose in his face and causing him to wince in pain as she seethed.

“Why are you doing this to me?” she demanded. “Why are you telling everypony about what we planned?”

“So you admit it! You did do this to me!”

“You did this to yourself, idiot!” she spat back. “You were the one who created that personality, and yet somehow couldn’t find a way to keep it suppressed! I could’ve cast it better had I done it myself!”

“I am not a personality, and this was your plan! I could’ve waited for Hope to come revive me, but no! You went and tore me away from my life and made my existence here absolutely miserable! This is your fault because you’re just like every other ruler I’ve ever seen! I! HATE! EQUESTRIA!”

Cadance was going to yell a response back at him, but stopped herself when she noticed how he looked. He was angry to the point of tears, and she watched a few drip onto the castle floor as he held his head down and closed his eyes.

“I’m cursed with this awful existence, once that pits everything against me,” he said more quietly, the anger in his voice morphing into despair. “There will never be any justice, because I get punished for retaliating against those who hurt me. And then the one time my life wasn’t completely miserable after everything I’ve suffered, it was ripped away from me. I’ll never ever win.”

By that point, Radiant Hope was nuzzling his cheek as he kept his eyes closed and sighed, disheartened. Cadance watched the two of them, figuring out how best to get him back on her side. She had an idea that Fluttershy would be the only pony really standing in her way, and knew that if she hurt her, his fury would be unleashed. That wasn’t something she wanted to contend with, especially since both personalities seemed to be mixed together, so she still couldn’t be sure exactly what he was capable of.

“Well, you’ve won now,” she started, trying to appeal to him. “You have the Crystal Empire at your hooves, and those who’ve wronged you are now all out of the way, no longer an issue.”

“And yet, somehow, I’m still in Equestria, negotiating with you of all ponies for some reason.”

Her expression hardened again as she started, “I only came up with the plan. This was something you did to yourself. The fact that you’re like this is because you did this to yourself.”

“You. Did. This. To. Me,” he asserted. “You were the one who came to me with this nonsense. I should be at my desk working, or at home talking online, or eating out with friends, or literally anything else, but I’m stuck here in Equestria. Because. Of. You.”

"Alex," she said, being careful to use the name he preferred, "right now you're in a perfect position to take over the Crystal Empire and do with it what you wish. By going down this route, you'll be throwing it all away, and then your being in Equestria will have been entirely pointless."

The stallion opened his mouth to respond, but stopped, considering what she told him. What the alicorn said seemed true enough, and having there be a point for everything being ripped away from him seemed like it was a tiny bit better than having no reason for this having happened to him. However, these thoughts were interrupted when he looked at Fluttershy.

She didn’t say anything as she still knelt by Shining Armor’s side, but she didn’t need to. The look she gave him told him everything, although that everything could be adequately summed up in just one question: what about her? What about her friends and what she wanted? Silently, she told him that even though nopony else believed in him, she believed in him, and that he should put his faith in her that it would all be okay, even if it didn’t seem that way now. Although unpleasant, it could be thought of as a friendship lesson, one that said that, despite what was done to him, he needed to have the ability to forgive, if only for those who’d done no wrong to him.

“Alex, please,” Fluttershy said quietly. “Don’t do this. Please?”

As badly as he wanted to crush these ponies beneath his hooves, the yellow mare who had the faith to believe in him was the only thing stopping him. It effectively left one option, which was, despite his hate, to free Twilight and her friends, because that’s what Fluttershy would want.

Alex sighed as he turned to Hope and asked, “What do you think?”

“Whatever you want is fine with me,” she answered quickly. “I’ll be happy with whatever you choose.”

“I’ll be happy with whatever you choose,” he repeated in his head. “That’s not true, and I know that. Your destiny was to be a princess, and now you never will be because I was brought here by that witch Cadance, because all these alicorns are only out for themselves… You’d certainly be better than everypony who ruled before you...”

Every single one of the rulers of Equestria only cared about themselves. Amore showed it personally to him for years, Celestia showed it by changing into Daybreaker at the idea that he was telling the truth and, from what Luna said, using her influence to try and get Twilight to hate him too. Luna showed it by turning into Nightmare Moon years ago over the simple fact that ponies slept through the night and not the day, and Cadance was showing it now by subverting her family to rule over Equestria. The only one who hadn’t done so thus far was Twilight, but just based on past history, he was almost certain that if she got the chance, she would follow the same path. It made him extremely angry, and he decided right then that something had to change.

“You were supposed to be a princess, Hope,” he thought as he stared into Cadance’s eyes and told her, “I want to rule over Equestria.”

Cadance was in stunned silence at his request for a second, before managing to simply answer, “No.”

“I won’t be arguing with you,” he continued, “and you’re lucky I haven’t turned you into stone yet for what you’ve done to me.”

“I won’t-” she started threateningly, taking a step forward before being interrupted.

“If you won’t let me, then fight me. If you’re not willing, then just shut up and give in.” He then called out to Fluttershy, saying, “I need you to come with me. I don’t think Twilight will trust me alone.” To Hope, he said, “Can you stay here and make sure that she doesn’t try anything? I’ll be back in about a minute.”

Much less than one minute had passed when I returned. It took all of fifteen seconds to grab the statues that were Twilight and her friends, teleport to the hospital and grab Luna as well, and bring them all back to the castle in Canterlot. The whole thing had me feeling exhausted, and by the time me, Fluttershy, and the statues got back, Cadance had already disappeared.

“She left about a half-second after you left,” Radiant Hope explained. “I’m almost certain she’s in the Crystal Empire trying to find you to convince you to change your mind… or maybe to fight you. She seems really mad.”

“Well I certainly don’t care how she feels,” I responded tiredly. “She can be mad. It’s what she deserves for cursing me with this existence. Celestia got what she deserved, Amore got what she deserved, and now I’ll make sure that Cadance gets what she deserves, too.”

“What are you going to do, Alex?” Fluttershy asked cautiously. “You won’t hurt her, will you?”

“Nope. I won’t attack her unless she attacks me, and I don’t plan on sending her to Tartarus, either. I have something in mind.”

“Oh, I can’t believe Cadance would do something like this…”

“Well, believe it,” I told her as I faced the statues. “That’s what all those princesses do.”

With that thought, I closed my eyes and cast the spell to release Twilight from her stone prison. She gasped loudly and looked into my eyes, seeming confused as she tried to register who I was. After a second though she figured it out.

“...Alex?” she trailed off. Then she looked behind me and saw her brother, gasping again as she rushed up to him.

“Shining Armor!” she yelled as she knelt down next to him. “What happened to him, Fluttershy?” Then she turned to me and demanded, “What did you do to him?”

“Alex didn’t do anything!” Fluttershy got out, quickly getting in front of her as if to protect me. “That was Princess Cadance!”

“What? Cadance wouldn’t do something like this!”

I rolled my eyes, thinking about how I told her that Twilight would say exactly that before saying, “Shining Armor will tell you himself. Hope, can you help him out?”

She trotted over to him wordlessly and began to work, taking just a minute to bring him back to consciousness. With a groan he opened his eyes, instantly making eye contact with me, then turning his gaze to his sister.

“Hey, Twily,” he got out weakly. “Funny seeing you here.”

“Who did this to you, Shining?” she asked quietly as she continued to kneel beside him.

“I…” he trailed off, looking up towards the ceiling as if trying to remember. “I think I might be misremembering, because for some reason, I remember Sombra saying something about how Cadance turned him into Sombra, and then her shooting at me…”

Twilight went completely wide-eyed at that. “There- there must be some mistake,” she got out. “That must be Chrysalis impersonating her, or Discord playing a prank, or something! Cadance would never do that!”

“Yeah, it’s probably Chrysalis,” the prince agreed, before remembering, “No, wait, she’s imprisoned in the Crystal Empire, so it can’t be her…”

“And Discord is encased in stone right now, Twilight,” Fluttershy added, “so it isn’t him either. That leaves only Princess Cadance.”

“That can’t be possible! There must be something else going on, because I’m sure that-”

“Twilight! Look out!” Cadance suddenly yelled as we heard the pop of her teleporting back into the room. In her magic, I saw that she had the Crystal Heart, and immediately gasped in fear and flinched as she threw it at me. I shut my eyes as my muscles tensed up, ready to experience that awful burning that I’d come to know. However, to my extreme surprise, I heard a thud as it hit the ground in front of me, and opened my eyes to see it laying harmlessly on the floor.

The entire room was silent, everypony’s eyes trained on the piece of rock that was the Crystal Heart, watching it intently as though it would do something. However, it continued to lay motionlessly on the ground, unmoving. It should’ve done something. They all knew that, especially Alex, who felt its burns for years in the Crystal Empire. However, the burns didn’t come, much to his shock and curiosity. He carefully reached out a hoof to touch it as the room stayed watching him, and still felt nothing. Cautiously, he picked it up and looked at the reflection in it, being told once before that it showed a pony’s destiny in its reflection. What he saw though was simply his own reflection staring back at him. He couldn’t make out whether what he was seeing was a human or a pony, but he was sure it was himself he was looking at. Apparently, the Crystal Heart thought this was his destiny. It thought it was his destiny to be forced away from everything he ever knew, his destiny to suffer under the cruelty of these rulers of Equestria, his destiny to be wanted dead by all of the ponies around him…

“You tried to kill me…” the stallion growled lowly, his grip on the Heart tightening as he continued to stare into it. It took all the self-control he could muster to keep from throwing it to the ground and letting it shatter to pieces right there.

“How could you?” Fluttershy protested angrily. “How could you do that to him? How could you hurt Shining Armor like that, Twilight’s brother and your husband? How could you do those things?”

“What are you talking about, Fluttershy?” Cadance started, feigning innocence. “You watched Sombra do this! We should be attacking him right now! What’s gotten into you?” Then she turned to her sister-in-law and asked, “You believe me, right Twilight?”

“What?” she got out, taken by surprise. “I- of course I do! I believe you!”

“I told you she would say that,” Alex commented darkly. “I told you she would say exactly that. Her precious mentors couldn’t possibly be capable of doing such things. Even after everything that's happened up to this point, she still doesn’t believe me.”

“Maybe- maybe somepony should explain exactly what we’re-” Twilight got out before being interrupted by Cadance.

“We don’t have time for that!” she claimed. “The Crystal Heart clearly didn’t work on him! We need to plan out a strategy to defeat him!”

“Yes, work out a plan to defeat me,” he started sarcastically, angrily. “I’ve proved that I’m such a threat by freeing Twilight from being a statue.”

“You were the one that turned her into a statue to begin with!” she pressed. “Even if you’re not Sombra now, you could turn back into him again, just like what happened before!”

“So you’re acknowledging that you know I’m not him but you want to kill me anyway, is that correct?”

“I- no! You’re twisting what I’m saying!” She then turned to Twilight and said, “We have to do something right now! We can’t wait!”

“I- I can’t just attack somepony who might be telling-”

“You were the one who said that you needed to defeat me, just after throwing the Crystal Heart at me, knowing it would burn me,” Alex interrupted. “You’re saying that you don’t care with your actions, because you’re just like the rest of them.”

“Well, what do you expect when you tell us that you plan on ruling Equestria?” she accused. “Any other reaction from me would be ridiculous!”

“Then why did you hurt Shining Armor?” Fluttershy asked. “What did he have to do with-”

“EVERYPONY, STOP!” the Princess of Friendship suddenly yelled, causing all in the room to jump back in surprise. She waited a second, then said, “I don’t know what’s going on right now, but I do know that my brother is hurt. Now, before we do anything, we need to figure out who’s telling the truth and who’s lying.”

“We already know who’s telling the truth, Twilight!” Fluttershy told her exasperated. “I watched Cadance hit him! Don’t you trust me?”

“I… of course I do, Fluttershy. But I also trust Cadance, too, which is why we need to be extra sure that-”

“Why don’t we just have Princess Luna decide?” Radiant Hope suddenly suggested after being quiet the whole time. “I mean, all she’d have to do is look into Cadance’s mind, and then she would know she’s lying.”

The pink alicorn tensed up at that idea. Freeing Luna would prove that she was lying. Even if she cast a spell to alter her memories, all she would have to do is read another pony’s mind and that would be it. All of her hard work was crumbling right in front of her. She’d come so close, and yet it hadn’t mattered. She needed to do something, anything, before she lost control completely…

“Sombra! Look out!” Radiant Hope yelled just as Cadance shot another attack, this one aimed directly at Alex as he was facing away from her to free Luna. He turned around to see it coming, but he didn’t have time to move out of the way or stop her attack. He felt it hit him, but was surprised when it didn’t hurt him. It felt to him like nothing more than being lightly pushed. He looked up at the princess who sent the attack his way, and couldn’t help but genuinely laugh at her shocked and scared expression, that laughter turning into anger before long.

“Twice!” he yelled at her. “You tried to kill me twice! And yet you’re still trying to claim that you’re innocent! How long are you going to believe this witch, Twilight?” With that, the pony quickly turned around and freed Luna, yelling at her as he did so, “She did this to me!”

“So I’ve heard, Alex,” the Princess of the Night responded without missing a beat, listening to the conversation while she was encased in stone. “And so it would seem judging by her actions as well,” she added.

“I- no!” she stuttered out. “I’m not- this isn’t- what is happening here? You’re really going to believe him over me?

“I do not need to believe anypony. I can already see four minds here incriminating you, your own having a spell cast on it to avoid my eyes. How rather curious, is it not?” Cadance realized what was about to happen, but before she could stop it, Luna had her magic tied around her, keeping her in place.

“I might be able to look past you trying to take the crown,” she said, suddenly angry, “but what you’ve done to this creature and what you’ve turned my dear sister into is unforgivable!”

“I- I didn’t- he was in on it, too! Sombra was just as much a part of this as I was!”

“So it’s true?” Twilight asked softly. “You really did hurt Shining Armor? But why?”

“Because of you!” she spat. “Because Celestia thought it was okay to give away a kingdom to somepony who didn’t have any experience and didn’t even want to be ruler of it! But I didn’t do this alone! He helped me!”

“Yes, I suppose you could say that Sombra did indeed help in your cause,” she said as she strode towards her. “However, as far as I can tell, the pony who freed me is named Alex, and had nothing to do with this scheme you plotted against us.” She paused for a second, adding, “I’m awfully disappointed in you.”

“But he-”

“Silence!” she commanded. “You will stand before Equestria and explain yourself formally when you are charged with your crimes! Until then, you will remain in custody in this very castle! Be glad I’ve shown mercy to you and not sent you straight to Tartarus.”

With that, she lit up her horn and teleported both herself and Cadance to… somewhere. Nopony knew where, but they didn’t have time to think about it as she reappeared before them just a second later.

“Now Alex,” she started once again, “please explain to me what you meant when you said earlier that you wished to rule Equestria.”

It had been ten months since I was forced out of my life and sent to Equestria, and yet it only just started to feel like these ponies I now ruled over were starting to accept that I wasn’t the monster I appeared to be. The Day Court hardly had any visitors, although a few were starting to trickle in shakily after realizing that I was indeed the Ruler of Equestria. Still, though, most opted to appear in the Night Court in front of Radiant Hope and, occasionally, Luna. While it was frustrating to see, I kept myself calm by reminding myself that they’d eventually get used to me and come in to see me. But not right now. Right now, to them, I was at best an interim ruler while they waited for their precious Princesses to return.

“Princesses, hmmmm….” I thought as I sat in the empty room, having only had one or two ponies appear to see me up to that point in the day. “I wonder what Princess Cadance will think of tomorrow’s hearing against her…”

I imagined her head hanging low in shame throughout the trial, unable to look at her former husband and sister-in-law, having not seen her daughter in months. I already knew exactly what would happen. She’d tear up when she was found guilty, and then be surprised when I told her that I was pardoning her. Not that she wasn’t going to be punished for cursing me this way. This was her punishment. Being free, yet knowing that the relationships she broke would never be repaired, especially the ones with the people who used to love her, especially considering the reason. It was what she deserved, in my opinion, and I would give it to her. I was going to make her suffer like I was suffering.

The other princess I thought about was that witch who used to raise the sun every morning. She was the one who didn’t believe in me, who let her anger over my sight cloud her judgment, who caused this whole situation by not picking the pony she presumably was preparing for the role of Princess of Equestria and instead handing it over to somepony who didn’t want it. The one who watched me burn for years, and then punished me for lashing out against it.

She was still banished, that I knew, but I considered bringing her back. I thought about what the therapist said, and remembered him mentioning something about apologizing and how it should be done. Although I believed him to be wrong about who should do the apologizing. If I ever brought her back from where she was, which was a big if, it would be so that she could apologize for everything she did to me, rather than whatever she claimed I’d done to her. Between her and her niece, the two of them had gifted me with the most awful existence imaginable. Both of them brought their fates on themselves by their own actions against me. They were getting what they deserved.

I wondered what Amore was thinking right then as her pieces lay scattered across Equestria. I wondered if she was thinking about the influence her actions had over Equestria still, even a thousand years later. Did she think this is how it would end up, with her friend banished partially at my hoof and me taking the throne? I didn’t think so, but it was how it played out.

“Why am I cursed this way?” I asked myself. “I wonder what my friends and family are thinking, seeing as I just dropped out of existence almost a year ago… I wonder if they even still exist, or if their existence ended when I was forced away from my life and into this cursed world... I wonder what my parents would say about me ruling Equestria...”

"Alex?" Radiant Hope called out, making her way over to me, seeing my brooding expression. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, I'm fine," I answered politely, silently adding, "I'm as great as I'll ever be."

Author's Note

Aaaaaaand that's it! That's the whole story! I thank you all for sticking with me throughout this... experience, and do hope you enjoyed it! If you did like it, maybe consider considering to possibly maybe buy me a coffee. If you hated it... I'm sorry?

Also, oh hey! It's an I Am not Sombra book that you can buy here!

All in all, I really truly thank you all for reading. I really do appreciate it. Thank you!

(1-1) But I Am In His Body

“This probably won’t end well for me,” I thought fearfully, taking a good look at myself as Twilight Sparkle stood gawking at me.

I was a pony. A pony with a gray coat and black mane, who seemed to be wearing a red cape. One who was stuck in a room with statues that looked a lot like me. One who stood nervously in front of the Princess of Friendship, the very pony who defeated Sombra. The pony who I now was.

The princess took a step back, and quickly made her way out of the room, sounding like she was going up a set of stairs. “Cadance!” she yelled. “Call Celestia and Luna!”

“This is bad,” I thought. “This is really, really bad.” I did not want to be Sombra. I wanted anything but. They killed him twice! I didn’t think they’d have any reservations about making it a third time. They might even use the old saying “the third time’s the charm”. I did not want it to be the charm. I did not want to be killed.

I heard a set of hoofsteps descending down to meet me. “I have to get out of here,” I thought frantically. Not that I knew how. I had no idea where I would go. Even if I did, it would only have been a matter of time before one of the princesses found me. So I stayed frozen where I was, seeing that it was my only real option. A few seconds later, Princess Cadance was down in the room with me, an angry and hateful expression painted on her face. If looks could kill, I’d have been dead right then and there.

“Well, well, well,” Cadance spat, “look who it is. You again.”

I took a step backward away from her. She looked like she wanted to end me herself, and I didn’t think the princesses would be troubled if she did so. “Please don’t hurt me,” I got out, a quiver in my voice.

She had the slightest bit of confusion on her face, like she wasn’t expecting that from me. That was good. That meant she might hold off killing me for a second at least.

“And why shouldn’t I?” she asked me through clenched teeth.

I stood staring at her, and I could feel myself becoming panicked, my breathing becoming faster. How did I end up in this situation? Not fifteen seconds ago, I was sitting at my desk, working. And now I was in Sombra’s body, standing terrified in front of a princess who I was sure wanted to kill me. One who could do so at any second.

“Well?” she asked, standing and waiting for my response.

I swallowed, starting, “I know how this looks, but I’m not Sombra.”

She took another step forward, and I took another step back. “Then who was it that enslaved the Crystal Empire and destroyed the Tree of Harmony?” she asked angrily. "Who was it that let the Crystal Empire vanish for a thousand years?"

“I- I know how this looks,” I told her again nervously, “but I’m not him. I don’t know how I ended up in his-”

Before I could finish, the other three princesses teleported into the room next to Cadance.

“What is he doing back here?” Celestia asked, seeming even more angry than Cadance, but somehow keeping a level voice.

“He claims he’s not Sombra,” Cadance explained.

“And he expects us to believe him?”

“Well if he’s not, he sure does look like him.”

“He does seem quite fearful of us.”

“And he should be.”

“What are we going to do with him?”

This was very bad. They didn’t believe me. Not that it was surprising. I wouldn’t have believed me if I were them. I almost didn’t believe that I was Sombra, either. I almost wanted to say that I’d just dozed off at work and was having a weird dream. A really weird dream that felt as real as possible.

“Twilight,” Celestia spoke, “go gather your friends. The three of us will hold him here.”

“I’m on it!” she told her seriously, running back up the stairs.

I felt myself tense up, my breathing becoming even faster. I was going to die. I was going to die. I knew there was nothing I was going to be able to do to convince them that I wasn’t Sombra. They weren’t going to hear it, and instead opt to gather the Mane Six and kill me without a second thought.

“Well,” Celestia asked, almost sarcastically, “since you’re not Sombra, tell us, what’s your next move?”

I knew what that was. My next move was to try and wake up. I had to assume that this was a dream. People didn't just randomly turn into ponies. They watched as I raised my leg and gently bit myself just above my hoof. When nothing happened, I bit a little bit harder. Then much harder. So hard that I bled. Nothing came of it except three slightly confused looks.

“What are you doing?” Luna asked.

"Trying to wake myself up," I told her in a shaky voice, seeing that I wasn't waking up.

She looked to her sister for an explanation. “It might be some sort of spell involving dark magic,” Celestia told her. “I’ve heard of some that require blood to activate.”

“Well, let’s make sure he doesn’t try to use anything,” Cadance said, taking another step forward, her horn lighting up.

“I’m not Sombra!” I told them desperately. “Please believe me! Give me a chance to prove it!” I knew I had to convince them right then that I wasn’t Sombra, or at least put enough doubt in their minds so they wouldn’t hurt me.

I watched as she positioned her back hooves a bit farther behind her, taking aim at me to hurt me. I couldn’t blame her. Sombra had enslaved thousands of ponies and tried to take over the Crystal Empire three times. The only problem was that I wasn’t him.

“Please!” I begged them. “Don’t do this!”

“Can I?” Cadance asked Celestia.

“Go ahead,” she told her, emotionless.

I watched as a beam of magic came flying towards me. “AH! I SURRENDER!” I screamed, closing my eyes and flinching, putting a hoof up to protect me in a moment of complete panic.

I expected pain to come the next moment, but nothing happened. I kept my eyes closed a few seconds longer, waiting for something to happen, then carefully opened them, both silently thankful and confused to see a forcefield protecting me.

“What’s the meaning of this, Luna?” Celestia asked in an even tone, keeping her eyes on me.

“He has given me an inkling of doubt.”

“He’s obviously lying to us,” Cadance told her, “trying to use the opportunity to take over the Crystal Empire again.”

“Maybe so,” she continued, “But I have never thought of Sombra as the type to surrender so quickly. Have you ever seen him give up without a fight?”

“He's trying to trick us. He saw what happened the last two times, and will obviously do anything to take what he thinks is his.”

“And I believe such. Still yet, he’s given me a sliver of doubt, and I cannot in good conscious allow him to be slain just yet.”

“He was killed twice! He should already have been slain! This time, I’m going to make sure it’s for good!”

“I cannot recommend you do that.”

“So what? Because he's making you doubt yourself we should forgive him? We should let him roam free?”

"I'm not suggesting that. I simply think we should investigate his claim. I've seen such things as he suggests happen before to other ponies."

"What do you think Celestia?"

I watched Princess Luna look to her sister, who stared at me expressionlessly. “It is up to you, Celestia. If you truly believe it should be done, I will not stop her again.”

Celestia looked like she wanted to say yes. Although her face was expressionless, I could tell she wanted me dead, and wanted to give the order. She seemed like she didn’t believe me in the slightest. The only thing causing her to falter was Luna.

I breathed hard, my muscles still tense as I waited for her answer. I was desperately hoping that she would hold off, but it seemed like she was edging towards the go-ahead.

After what felt like years, Celestia finally spoke. “Let's wait for the Elements of Harmony to see what they have to say.”

Author's Note

This story is just a random idea that popped into my head after reading some Sombra comics.

Yes, this is another HiE story. I'm sorry. It's just what I like to read and write about.

(4-2) I Take Part In A Meeting

The next few days were both dull and agonizing. Except for the one other time Fluttershy visited me, explaining that she'd spoken with Discord and her friends about me, and when Luna brought me food in the evening and morning, all there was to do was stare out the window and pace back and forth. It made me anxious knowing that there was nothing I could do but wait for Luna or Fluttershy, that my fate was largely out of my control.

I occasionally tried using Sombra’s magic to do something, but was unsuccessful, and didn’t bother asking the princess how to use it. I didn’t think she would help, and wasn’t planning on staying here that long anyway. Besides, I already knew what Celestia would think of my trying, and was trying to keep her reasons for wanting to hurt me to a minimum.

Eventually, though, after days of lying around and waiting for something to happen, I got another visit from Celestia herself. I quickly sat up from where I was sitting as she entered, waiting expectantly for what she was going to tell me. However, she remained silent, opting instead to wrap her magic around me and tug me in the direction she wanted me to go in. I was tempted to ask where we were headed, but opted to follow silently, figuring I’d find out soon enough.

Before I knew it, I was in the large dining hall of the castle that I recognized from the show, seeing it filled with the same ponies who first saw me, all sitting silently, the only new face to the group being Discord. The white-coated princess directed me to a seat at the head of the table, and took a seat next to me.

“Now,” she started, gathering everyone’s attention, “I would just like to start off by offering my sincerest apologies to you all. The way I’ve acted previously was uncalled for, and I would like to take the time to say how truly sorry I am to make you all feel the way you’ve felt because of me. As the co-ruler of Equestria, I should have acted better.” She then turned to me, and changed her expression from a sad one to one that was hard, making sure I knew full well just how much of an act she was putting up. “And most of all,” she said, keeping her apologetic tone despite the look she gave, “I’d like to apologize to you, Alex, for acting so irrationally earlier. I hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”

She was lying, but I wasn’t going to call her out on it. I needed her help, or to at least let them help me, and calling her out in front of everybody would be the worst possible thing I could do. Besides, I didn’t really care that much. Eventually, I’d be gone and wouldn’t care about how much of a liar she was. Although, I did notice Luna, the only other pony who could see her look, sending a look of her own Celestia’s way. However, before she could say anything, Twilight interjected.

“Um, I- I’d like to apologize to you, too,” she told me nervously, which was something I wasn’t expecting. “Um, what we did- I mean, what I did, or… wanted to do… um…” She seemed like she couldn't find the words to say to me.

“It’s fine,” I told her, not wanting to go through the Princess of Friendship’s apology and hear her tell some lesson she learned from this. “I won’t care once you find a way for me to leave.”

“On that note,” Luna started, “has anypony found a solution to this problem? I, myself, cannot say that I’ve had any success in my search for an answer.”

“We could always use the Elements or the Crystal Heart on him,” Cadance muttered, rolling her eyes. In response, she received a glare from Luna, Fluttershy, and I. She quickly apologized, and said, “I haven’t found anything.”

“You probably haven’t been looking,” I thought silently.

“What about you, Discord?” the yellow mare asked. “Have you found something you can do?”

“Sadly, no. As much as I hate the chaos he’s been causing, there’s nothing I’d be able to do about him. I know. It's shocking to me as well. On a side note, have you really changed your mind about ruling over Equestria because of this creature, Twilight?” There were several gasps at that, and I, myself, was surprised at that news. “Oh," he said, covering his mouth with a paw in fake surprise. "That was meant to be a secret, wasn’t it? I’m dreadfully sorry.”

“You’re not gonna be princess of Equestria, Twilight?” Applejack asked her friend, completely shocked. “Why in tarnation not?”.

“Well, I- I just… don’t want to have to make those kinds of choices,” she told them, looking upset. “Especially after what I almost did.”

“Twilight, we talked about this. We all had a hoof in the decision.”

“But I should’ve been better,” she responded, looking like she wanted to cry. "I could have hurt him."

Yes. She should have been better. I was just as angry at her right then as she was upset. Still, I saw an opportunity to use this to my advantage. “Don’t stop because of me,” I told her. All of the eyes in the room looked my way, and I continued. “As much as I hate what you were going to do, don’t let that stop you from ruling Equestria. The fact that you can recognize your mistakes means that you’ll be an excellent ruler.”

The main goal of what I said was to take away any doubt the six might have still had about me not being Sombra, seeing as Sombra would never tell her something like that. The second goal was to subconsciously put doubt in their minds about a certain alicorn princess, just in case she decided to become unreasonable again.

The Princess of Friendship sniffed at that, simply saying, “Okay.”

“Let us get back to the purpose of this meeting,” Luna told us. “Has nopony found any solution yet to this creature’s being here?” All she received from the group was stares, and I rolled my eyes. I honestly didn't think most of them, save a certain yellow mare, were trying that hard to help me. “Well, from this moment forward, I want you all to work diligently on this creature's problem.”

“What if there’s no way to get me back?” I asked her. “I mean, if Discord can’t do anything, then I think it’ll take a long time to find a way.”

“I thought of that, too,” Fluttershy agreed. “What if it takes too long?”

“In that case, he will just have to get used to being here,” Celestia broke in.

That wasn’t what I wanted to hear, especially not from Celestia. “Uh, I’d rather not have to get used to everybody hating me.”

“Oh, it won’t be so bad,” Fluttershy told me. “We’ll make sure everypony knows you’re not the horrible monster you look like.”

“That’s all well and good, but I don’t want to be here. I have my own life, and I really don’t want to give that up.”

“Oh, don’t worry Alex,” she continued. “That's just in case we can't find something soon. We’ll do everything we can to get you back home. Right guys?” She and I looked to her friends, and I watched them as they nodded, a couple of them hesitant. They weren't going to be trying as hard as they could've from what I was seeing. Sill, she turned back to me with a positive look on her face. “See? We’re going to help you, and knowing Twilight, it won’t be too long that you have to wait.”

I sighed, putting my chin on the table. “I guess I’ll have to trust you on that.”

“We will all do our part, Alex,” Luna told me, then turned. “Twilight, once we are done here, I would like you to start lo-”

“CADANCE!” Shining Armor screamed, suddenly teleporting into the room, making everyone jump. “Chrysalis is back! And she took the Crystal Heart!”

I immediately felt multiple pairs of eyes look directly at me, as though they were expecting this. "I'll be right there," I heard Cadance say.

"I will be going with you as well," Luna told her, standing up from her spot at the table.

"Hold on!" I shouted at her. "I don't want to be left alone here with them!"

"I understand your concern," she told me quickly, "but for the time being, nothing shall happen to you, lest they feel my wrath. I will only be a minute."

I tensed up at that. That was a horrible idea. I didn't want to be left alone with her sister. However, before I could protest, the three had already teleported away, leaving me with Celestia and six ponies I knew she could convince into doing whatever she wanted.