An Odd Pairby Eventide100ChaptersUm . . . hello.Just trying to get along (but they can't)A few months later . . .Um . . . hello.The sense of magic flowed in mean Twilight Sparkle's veins as her warm pink magic was signaled upon her horn. She shot it forward towards the coming green-colored magic of the changeling queen, Chrysalis. there two shots collided trying their hardest to bring force onto the other. Twilight, however, turned out to be successful as her pink beam neared its way to the tip of Chrysalis's twisted horn. Sweat started to fall down the queen's face. Fortunately to Crysalis's relief, the beam didn't reach her in time but instead faded as clone Twilight's thoughts were distracted by a white tendril as it wrapped around the alicorn and pulled her towards the Tree of Harmony. Twilight frantically looked at the other clones who seemed to have met the same fate. Suddenly something inside her began to burn. Slightly being aware of what might become of her, her horn sparked up as she shined a powerful and bright pink light. In an instant, her vision flashed, and less than a second later she pulled away from the grip of the tendril completely vanishing from where she was making it seem as if she hadn't been there at all. In another instant flash, she appeared again. Looking around slightly she figured she was in the cover of some trees. Up ahead in the clearing, she not only spotted Chrysalis but also transpired the gruesome fate of the other 5 servants of Chrysalis. Sooner they had become nothing more than logs. Twilight watched as Chrysalis took a few steps forward and muttered something she didn't quite get. Afterward, the queen only said something about getting her revenge on someone she didn't know of before flying off with a huff. Twilight only stared bluntly but noted to herself to never dare get near the Tree of Harmony ever again if she chose to live. It had been a few days since the last creation of Chrysalis, Twilight Sparkle was able to escape from her almost hell that she was almost pulled into. Much to her relief. During her time period since and now she decided to travel, after figuring just how much she thirsted after knowledge and how much she wanted to learn about this world that she was living in. During her travels, she had learned . . . quite a lot of things. Such as, the fact that she and the other 5 mares who we're apparently demolished at the moment had counterparts. Counterparts that she taught we're downright stupid. She also learned that this land called Equestria (as she also learned) had 2 alicorn rulers who were sisters. One ruled day and the other ruled night but to whom she thought were just as dumb as the other 6 counterpart mares she found. And plus they were way too big. Sooner though after some time the Twilight clone made her way to the north of Equestria where she found this castle made of crystals. Curious about the strange castle that to her appeared out of the blu, she decided to secretly explore it as night fell. The castle was known as the Crystal Empire and it was ruled by . . . well another alicorn, though this one wasn't as huge as the other 2 that ruled the entire nation. This one also lacked the strange mane-moving thingy. Also, she was married. To this white-colored stallion with a mane of several blue hues. AND they had a baby. An alicorn baby. Who looked freaky. Twilight didn't stay there for long though, as the bright crystals and bright, BRIGHT but strange-looking crystal-y ponies were causing a disturbance. However, she did manage to rob a black cloak and deep purple-ish, blue-ish scarf from a nearby market for "in-case matters" before escaping the freaky place. Continuing her travel she wandered deeper into the north. After some time the temperature dropped, snow blew wildly around her. She stopped in track slightly to pull on the cloak and scarf that she. . . robbed. Not that she cared. As she trotted through the tundra "mean" Twilight spotted something amongst the huge piles of snow. Curiosity immediately picked at her nerves. Slowly she made her way to it. As she neared it she figured that . . . it was a unicorn horn . . . a strange one. The horn was the color of blood, but it blended to a dark grey at the base. It was also curved and smooth with a tip sharpened enough to rip right through her fur. Slowly she moved to take a closer look at the interesting-looking unicorn horn. Twilight then raised a hoof and first shifted her eyes from left to right before reaching it forward to touch the object. Only an instant second later with even the slightest touch, the horn . . . began to glow. Dangerously glow. Raw but dark and powerful magical energy sparked from it as it rose from the ground. With each second the magical energy grew more and more powerful. A shadow then emerged. Slowly it grew in size and took the form of a pony, a stallion. And from the look of it, the stallion was pretty tall and twice the size of the mare. The red horn then hovered upon the stallion's forehead. His mane also grew out, majestically flowing at the back of his head and down his neck. The shadow around then faded to reveal the stallion's true look. He had dark grey fur. His mane and tail naturally black and flowing like shadows, though, it looked magnificent. His cold blood-red eyes gave home a draconic feature on his otherwise handsome face. Also, he had sharp teeth, which looked deadly. The stallion was adorned with silver armor-clad on his hooves and chest. Along with an onyx helm, which protected most of his face. A silver and red circlet crown rested above his brows. There was also a red, white-trimmed fur cape covering his back and flank. "Ughhh what is this?" the stallion muttered. Taking a moment to observe himself silently before shifting his attention over to the lavender alicorn who stared back with a stoic look "um . . . hello". Something inside the stallion's head suddenly snapped as he continuously gazed upon the oddly familiar purple mare. Then a minute later it all became clear as flashbacks of his painful recent defeat ignited his memory. The pony successfully used dark magic to pass through all of his traps. Find the Crystal Heart. Caused his defeat. As the true realization hit him the sclera of his eyes turned green with rage. His red irises burning with madness. Purple mist flaring from both sides. Twilight on the other hoof simply stared until horror crept in her veins as the unicorn threw a massive dark beam, straight in her direction. She frantically reached for her magic but was unfortunately too late. The gigantic blast struck her, painfully. An instant later while dark magical energy was all around her she was forcefully thrown on her knees. Her head slammed against the ground. Though it wasn't too long before the dark magic finally faded, bringing Twilight to see clearly once more. Though she still was in a bit of haze. The purple mare realized that she was still laying on the ground. Her tummy started to feel a bit numb from being on the frozen snow for too long. She lifted her gaze to meet the icy stare of the grey stallion who was towering menacingly above her. Anger and annoyance immediately snapped to her as she returned this unknown stallion's glare with one of her own. "Hey! Can you at least let me explain?!" she growled as she hauled herself up. "You have no need of any explaining, I know who you are" the unicorn hissed with venom in his voice. "What! You're mistaken I'm not the one you think!" The mare yelled back. "NONSENSE!" The stallion roared with fury as he readied his horn to launch another blast. This time the alicorn was prepared with her own magic. She swiftly called upon a sphere-like shield around her. Once again their sorceries were de-activated after they were done. "Jeez, you really need to know how to control yourself instead of throwing a tantrum as if your a foal" Twilight mocked. "Well, I'm not about to let you overthrow me once more. Just as you had very recently " the dark unicorn snarled. The purple mare just rolled her eyes. "Ugggghhh, that's exactly what I'm trying to have you understand that I'm not that mare". "Would I fall for any of your lies?" he hissed. Twilight was about to be caught in another whirlwind of dark magic but fortunately, she managed to teleport out of the way. She appeared again in mid-air. Before she could hit the ground she flapped her alicorn wings to keep herself in the air. Twilight's horn began to glow brightly as she used telekinesis to freeze the unicorn in his spot. "RELEASE ME, YOU WENCH!" he roared. "No! I won't until I'm finished telling you what I have to" she retorted. As much as the unknown stallion tried he failed to release himself from the alicorn's magical but powerful grip. The clone Twilight cleared her throat "good" she said before flying down in front of the much bigger grey random pony. He on the other hoof remained silent, though, he was still furious. "So," said Twilight as she began. "Now, ya, I get that I'm basically the exact same thing you had seen with someone else". "Of course you were" the stallion mumbled "though, you lacked the wings as far as I remember". Now that was something that caught the mare's attention but likewise, she carried on with her tale. "However, though I may look and sound like her I'm still not her. You see in this land called 'Equestria' there are definitely many villains but one of them known as Queen Crysalis was the cause of me. Basically what she was doing was attempting to get revenge on the ponies that defeated her so this odd plan formed in her. In disguise, as she has the ability to change she took pictures of the other Twilight and her 5 friends along with a piece of hair from their manes. And then with those and the use of magic she created me and the clone version of the other mare's. Though you don't see them here because of a reason that I'll get to really soon". She paused to let the information sink in slightly, as well as giving the still unknown stallion some time to make sense of everything. Though, it seemed as if he didn't even need that much time as he muttered to himself "well, I bet that is what happens when someone goes crazy" referring to the queen. Twilight just huffed before carrying on. "So ya she creates us but were not exactly like the original Twilight and her friends, in fact, we were their opposites. While they represented harmony, we represented disharmony. Anyways, once she finished her work with bringing us to life she demanded to us that her goal was to find the elements of harmony which were hidden somewhere in the forest we were in. And while the other clones were busy being idiots I walked up to Chrysalis and asked her why she simply didn't get her revenge when she was in disguise and clearly right with them. She only made up a dumb excuse about having her changeling army being defeated . . . " she was suddenly interrupted with the stallions bark of laughter. "Seriously, you say that she was so week that her entire army was defeated?" he mocked. Eventually, his laughter died down. Twilight couldn't help but sneer back in agreement. Twilight then continued her tale. "Anyways, after she finished giving us her orders we began to look for the elements that she was speaking of. Well, eventually it seemed like while we were looking 2 of the other clones wandered off. Honestly, Chrysalis only thought that we'd do whatever she would command us to but really we wouldn't. None of us did. The other clones weren't much use though since they were just being jerks. I on the other hoof was making plans of my own to first use the other doppelgangers to my biding. And then I would betray Chrysalis, and then once everything is done the way I want it too I would take Equestria for myself" Twilight finished with a wicked grin. The black unicorn beside her lifted an armored hoof to tap his chin thoughtfully. "Clever" he muttered under his breath. "After I and Chrysalis realized that 2 of our troops were gone Chrysalis was quite furious. So then I told her that how about she goes on to continue finding the elements with the remaining clones while I can bring back the others. And fortunately for me, Chrysalis let me go after going me her 'so-called' permission. Unfortunately, it seemed as if our counterparts were also in the same woods so for a while we ended up getting mixed with them. Sometime later and after I spotted the location for the Elements of Harmony we got reunited. Chrysalis was angrier than ever but I managed to cool that anger after telling her that I knew where the elements were". "So then I led them all to the elements. Once I confirmed that the 5 mares and I are alone I whisper to them to follow my lead. I took them to the elements, but of course, the others with me were still going to be stupid as ever. 2 of them started to play a catfight, the others were useless. I tried to settle them by telling them that we needed to get the elements in time to betray Chrysalis". "And well, what do you know, Chrysalis heard me. And she was not pleased. Much to my delight". "After protesting about being the one to create us she blasted a light of her magic to me. I reacted in time as I channeled my own magic. For one second we fought but I managed to overpower her, surprisingly. I was nearly about to win when suddenly I was pulled towards the tree behind me. Before anything was about to happen to me I teleported away in time. I re-appeared again but a few distances away from the view displayed. The other clones were getting absorbed by the power of the elements. And sooner they became logs". Twilight stopped for a minute. She turned to the armored unicorn for any reaction but he simply stood there. Not bothered at all by the gruesome fate of the doppelgangers that witnessed it. The stallion simply made a silent gesture for her to carry on. Which she did. "After that happened Chrysalis who was still there trotted forward and just said some curse words before flying off somewhere. I made a mental note to myself to never get near the tree again. Eventually, I wanted to learn more about the world I'm now going to live in so I decided to travel. Throughout my travels, I learned many things. One thing I learned was that this land called Equestria was ruled over by 2 alicorn sisters. One is the ruler of daytime and can raise the sun. The other is the ruler of nighttime and can raise the moon and stars. I didn't like them though. They're weird and plus there way too big". The stallion next to her chuckled at her remark about 2 of his most hated enemies. The alicorn stared at him with a raised eyebrow but then carried on. "Something else I learned was of course that I and the other demolished 5 clones had counterparts. I didn't like them too. They were just as strange as the alicorn sisters". "As I traveled more I came to Equestria's northern part. The first thing I saw here was a castle made of crystals". The stallion stared. "I paid it a slight visit once night fell. At the base of the castle, I saw this object which was a light blue heart made of crystal". The stallion wrinkled his snout in disgust at the reminder of the object that so recently destroyed him. "I snuck around inside the castle. I figured that it was ruled over by yet another alicorn. She wasn't as big as the sisters. Neither did she have those strange long flowing manes. She was married to this white stallion and had a child. To me, they all including the crystal-y ponies are creepy and were becoming a disturbance". The stallion's disgust grew even bigger at the even more horrible reminder of the royal couple but then he burst out laughing at what the mare just said about the family and crystal ponies. Although, there was a smidge bit of surprise when he found out that they had a child. His laughter soon waned as he re-collected his composure. Twilight finally had the opportunity to continue. "I only stayed a little longer there to rob this scarf and cloak that I have on from there. You know, for 'just in case' matters like now. Anyways, after my visit to that 'out of the blu' castle was over I came here and found your horn, saw you, fought you, tell you a story, and ya". She finished her tale and looked to the grey colt. "I hope you believe me, I didn't make this up". He pondered for a minute, thinking deeply about his final decision of risking believing her or not. He then went back to how she narrated her story. How she literally insulted the 2 sisters, along with the royal couple of the Crystal Empire. When the form of her that he last witnessed she's basically Equestria's hero and she no doubt would never dare betray Equestria. Nor would she ever insult the 2 sisters. And besides this one of her was not only an alicorn but also had a slightly different color scheme. And plus he liked her. She seemed just as cunning and ruthless as him. She was also gifted with great brilliance and cleverness. At last, he made his final decision. "Fine I believe you," he said turning to her. "Oh good, cause I wasn't preferring another duel," she responded. "By the way, this question has been lingering in my head for a while so now I can ask". "What?" the unicorn asked. "What is your name" she questioned. "My name, well, Sombra. King Sombra. Though the 'king' part isn't as needed since I'm not exactly ruling anything," Sombra said smoothly while bowing his head and placing one hoof on his chest. "Sombra" Twilight repeated, "well nice to meet you I guess". Sombra nodded "indeed, and shall I ask for yours?". Twilight huffed and placed her own hoof over her chest before giving a reply. "Twilight Sparkle". Sombra smiled "hmm Twilight Sparkle, I approve, though the sparkle part is what messes it slightly" he added with a hint of annoyance. Twilight shot him an acidic glare, "do you have a problem with that?". "I said slightly" Sombra calmly responded with a smirk. She rolled her eyes "whatever" "How about we change up your name a little" the overthrown king suggested. "Excuse me" "You know, since you are not typically the other you, but rather a darker form of her". "Yes, and?" "So we can change your name a little". "Perhaps, what do you think would be suitable?". "I'd say something like 'Midnight' would be fitting". "You know what, I actually like that name. Midnight. Midnight Sparkle". "Yes, it is certainly a whole lot better". Twilight smiled at her newly accepted name. "So you'll be calling me Midnight from now on?". "For the time being, yes. And also for the scenario of you by some point running into yourself" Sombra chuckled at the thought of the 2 meeting each other. Midnight just threw him another glare. The 2 stood in silence after that. Sombra's deep voice eventually broke the quiet. "I was wondering, throughout the time in which you'd still be traveling can I accompany you along the way?", Sombra asked. Midnight stared at him stoically before asking "why?" "Well I'll tell you honestly, my power has waned since I last had it because of my recent defeat," Sombra told her. Midnight was mildly interested but said it anyways "you got defeated?". "Well yes, I have been, 2 times to be specific". "What happened?" "You see as you've mentioned about Equestria's threats, I happen to be one of them. In the past, I had conquered you know that castle made of crystals you had seen?". Midnight nodded. "Yes, that and to be specific it's called the Crystal Empire and I've taken over its rulership in the past. The 2 sisters that you've seen and heard off were the ones that stood up against me. They and I had first a bit of a battle before they used the Elements of Harmony that you spoke of to banish me into icy oblivion for 1000 years. And then comes my second defeat. Once I returned after the 1000 years that I was banished for I appeared as a shadow as I didn't exactly have enough power to take on my true self yet. I was in rage though and sought to get to the Crystal Empire as soon as possible. I was blocked much to my annoyance. By this blue shield cast upon the Empire by its current ruler you had seen. Still, just because I was outside of the shield didn't mean that I wasn't aware of everything. Of course the first thing I saw after the royal couple was a group of 6 mares accompanied by a young dragon and the pink alicorns husband. Something else I was aware of was that someone managed to wield dark magic and open the vault I had placed in the heart of the castle. And dark magic was the only thing needed to access it. Calling upon my power I created a mirror image of myself to track this dark magic wielder. I managed to spot her. This young unicorn mare. Very similar to you but just a slightly different color scheme. Though I suppose by now she'd too be an alicorn somehow judging by the story you had told me and as your counterpart. And yes I saw her and her lizard friend. She went down that long stairway I created down the unlocked vault. Once approaching the very base she faced my precious door of fear that I also created. So did her dragon. In time she faced that illusion as well and opened the door once more to reveal an even longer staircase than before. Though this one wasn't dark and black like the other. After she, at last, went up to the tower of the Crystal Empire, there was where she spotted that accursed Crystal Heart she was searching for. The naive mare made her move to get it but was unable to as she was trapped in a trap that I placed there. She did manage to knock out the heart from getting trapped as well at least. Her attempting to get out were mere failures. Finally, she told her dragon who was still there to do the job of returning the heart to the crystal princess for her. The dragon then did what she was put to do. Meanwhile, while she was there the shield spell that the wretched pink alicorn placed eventually faded as her magic grew weeker, allowing me to proceed through. I then spotted the dragon descending from one of the black crystals I grew out carrying the crystal heart. I lunged towards him in an attempt to murder him and get the heart. Luck wasn't at my side though. The dragon did trip and fall, and I did have my perfect opportunity but. . . the pink alicorn shot by before I could get to him. And just like that she placed the heart in its proper spot and accesses its magic. The crystal ponies were safe. The empire was safe. And I was broken and destroyed" Sombra spat out the last words of his defeat. His companion stared at him through a stone-like gaze. "Well, that was interesting," she said bluntly. Sombra fixed her by throwing spears at her with a stare. She didn't react. Secretly Sombra couldn't help but admit to himself that a tiny crush inside him started to bloom. Yes, he had a small crush on her. He just couldn't help it. He liked her, and her attitude. And also she looked pretty to him. "Anyways, so yes you know of my defeats now and I am still weak so I don't think I'll be able to conquer the Crystal Empire. I'd be a fool to make any attempt. So you can now answer my earlier question. Can I keep you company while your traveling? We can travel together. And plus I have lived for 1000 years and I have had a great interest in books and studying. And I have loads of knowledge. After all, you did mention that your traveling for that exact thing". Midnight thought about that for a while. Finally, she made up her mind . . . only for the sake of more knowledge. "Fine, you can come with me. Besides having some company with me doesn't sound bad". Author's Note Ya so, this is certainly my very first story on this site. And since this is my first time my story will have some errors so feel free to notify me of them in the comments. Anyways, about the story itself. Yes, this is a story that will be featuring Sombra X Mean Twilight Sparkle. If we bring up the mean 6 in all I honestly thought that Twilight had to be my favorite. She truly was the true villain material while the others were just being jerks. And about King Sombra well he's my most favorite villain. I love him okay. And originally as much as I love normal Twi and him as a ship as well (yes I am quite a fan of Twibra) I really thought I'd love the dynamics between Sombra and mean Twilight. I hope you like it and criticism is welcome. More will come soon. Just trying to get along (but they can't)Pale orange light lit the cavern walls, the warmth held strong against the freezing tundra from outside. In the cavern were only 2 ponies. Chrysalis's last creation, Midnight, and the overthrown conquerer of the Crystal Empire, Sombra. Midnight focused her magic on her horn, an aura of black and small green and purple bubble-like things flared with electrical sparks. Beads of sweat continuously dripped down from her forehead. After like 3 days since she met Sombra he offered to teach her about the type of magic he often used, dark magic. Midnight couldn't help but have her curiosity perked at the thought. So not long after his offer did she give him her agreement. Midnight was actually surprised about Sombra's methods of teaching. He was brilliant, like REALLY brilliant, with excellent teachings. Every word he said she understood. Every gesture he made she understood. Also, he had loads of knowledge, and Midnight . . . took this to an advantage of getting more knowledge. HOWEVER, despite his overly AMAZING methods of teaching he still could be very annoying at other times. Then again . . . villains would hardly get along, because if they were negative with the goody-two-shoes ponies why wouldn't they be negative with each other. Midnight desperately tried to muster all the energy to the best she could possibly do into the cracking, dark, magical aura that surrounded her horn. All the while gathering the remains of her physical non-magical energy in her muscles to keep herself in her sort-off crouched stans she was in. Oh boy, it sure was some work. The 'king' just sat on the other side of the fire merely watching her. She SERIOUSLY wanted to scowl at him for making her go through such stress while he just sat his flank down. Even though she herself agreed to it. Eventually, her energy gave out, the magical aura on her horn that she was DESPERATELY attempting on cracked and fizzled away with a BIG spark. Having the last of her energy giving out she slumped helplessly on her haunches. Then she just sat panting and huffing for her breath. Sombra chuckled. Midnight shot him a stare of venom. "Well, that was a fail" she seethed. Sombra sighed. "you seem to be missing my main point regarding dark magic, Midnight Sparkle." "Oh, what exactly am I missing 'most knowledgeable teacher'" Midnight growled. "I am quite knowledgeable aren't I" the unicorn retorted back smugly, Midnight rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Anyways, I remember telling you like I can't recall about how many times that dark magic is fuelled by negative emotions which is exactly what your missing, misses grumpy" Sombra finished with a smirk. Midnight scowled at the ridiculous nickname "call me that again and I'll make you regret it" she warned. The dark unicorn just laughed. "Anyways, I'm not going to try again even if you corrected me I'm WAY too worn out." Midnight complained, her brows still crossed. Sombra stared with amusement at her lack of strong determination "fine, suit yourself." "WHAT!? I'm tired out of my wits" she shot back. "I see" he replied calmly. Midnight's eyes lingered upon the armored stallion for some time. As she stared she wondered about who Sombra is. What the cost was of him to be what he is today, where he is today. He was too once a colt, born from parents. He grew up, learned things, made mistakes, and rose from each, stronger than before. "Who are you" Midnight questioned, expressionless. Sombra looked up to match her lifeless gaze, "when you say 'who I am' I hope you are not referring to my past story because I won't be sharing". "Why?" "Do you care?" "No." "So then why ask?" "Nevermind." After that silence remained still throughout the caverns, say for the roaring sound of the snowstorm outside. Sombra shifted his position to place himself in a laid-down posture, with his tummy facing down and his forelegs crossed just beside his chest. He then positioned his head atop his forelegs and closed his eyes. "Do you consider yourself a princess just as your counterpart?" he said, his deep and raspy voice shattering the silence. Midnight didn't wince but said, "Nah I find it too cheesy". Sombra chuckled, eyes still closed "hmm I suppose your right, it is quite cheesy as you put it". Midnight huffed, quiet once more took control. "I suggest for you to get rest for indeed you'll need it to begin tomorrow," the black unicorn said quietly. Midnight fixed him with a glare "as in you'd care about my health". "Perhaps, you would be right I really don't. I was just merely giving a suggestion however since you rudely reconsidered it then by all means". "Why are you so cool with everything like all the time?". He gave a hearty laugh at that "well my dear, what's better than to not start a problem that we'll end up regretting? Besides, when you get to your 'arguing' mode I'm basically teasing". "Ya, you sure like to tease a lot right?" "With someone as blunt as you, yes". "And what do you mean by blunt?" "Blunt as in not fitting in this world properly". "I really don't". "Same meaning". "WHATEVER!" "Oh and take a look at that. Who seems to be losing her temper already". "Shut up!" "And then she starts to curse, wonderful" "SHUT UP!" "And then her anger goes through the roof". "Your starting to get under my skin". "That was basically what I was doing". "WHAT!" "You won't believe how much fun I'm having right now doing so. Specifically with you". "Go buck yourself". "And how do I do that exactly?" "You . . . OH WHAT-EVER!" "Hahahahaha" "SHUT UP" this time Midnight stood up and spread open her wings, all the while huffing with anger in her veins. Sombra remained in his spot all calm and cool. And then Midnight settled because she had an idea. "Oh and what about when you and I first met. Where was that chill at that time?" Midnight asked with a wicked grin. "Well, I for one think that if you were at my spot and got blown to bits you would be angry as well". Midnight's smile instantly vanished. In its place was a frown of rage. However, the smile soon returned once more. "Hehe, but who was that 'all powerful' tyrant that got defeated by a little unicorn and her baby dragon?" This time Sombra immediately hauled himself in a standing position, his eyes burning with rage as clear as day. Midnight smiled gleefully at the sight. "Say that again and I'll have you eat those words" he spat. "Hahaha you hardly stood against a baby dragon so what could you possibly do to me?" she mocked. "YOU were hardly even a threat to Equestria" he snapped. "I at least was a threat. A REAL threat." "I managed to trick a changeling queen and was nearly about to win" she shot back. "You didn't even have your chance at winning." Sombra suddenly settled his nerves as his lips turned from their enraged snarl to a vicious smile. "Then again it's still good to know that I'm real. . . when you are nothing more than a mere clone of someone". Reality immediately came crashing down on Midnight as the painful truth hit her like a metal whip. Her composure came to her, a stoic look masking her true emotions within. "You're right . . . I am". She said slowly. She then moved to seat herself on her haunches. Her motionless gaze still plastered on. The sight hurt Sombra to his core, cause once again he still had his crush on her. He did inwardly deeply regret what he said but outwardly he remained silent. "I think it's better to get some rest now like you said 'there is a tomorrow to wait for'" Midnight said in a monotone-like voice. "I . . . believe you are . . correct. . . we should" he stuttered in his reply. The 2 ponies then settled and nodded off to their dreams. Sleeping on until the sun rose the next morning to begin the day. A few months later . . ."Come now Midnight. Surely you could do better than that." Sombra said. He had found some way to transport himself and his only companion to a place much further away from the Crystal Empire by the use of a shadowform spell summoned by dark magic. He was fully aware of the fact that if they had been somewhere near the empire they could end up being spotted by a crystal pony, and Sombra here wasn't prepared for crazy things. Best be saved for when the proper time comes. Midnight stood with her limbs parted with a bit of a distance. A concentration look painted on her features, her magic called upon her horn. A powerful and huge dark magic signature aura flaring. Sweat poured down her face, her wings sprang open, her mane blowing wildly. Gathering her energy and putting as much force as she could muster in her channeled electrical-like dark magical energy. Dark thoughts played like a series of screenplays in her mind. She thought of the changeling queen she so dearly hated. The horrible memories of the Tree of Harmony absorbing the other servants she once knew. Madness, hate, fear, sorrow, sadness, misery, tragedy, pain, blood, and death. All those negative emotions were flooding her thoughts. Eventually, Sombra's voice rang out. "Release." He commanded. Midnight did just that. She gave out a loud exhale of her breath and let loose a blast of darkness, shooting it against the snow-covered ground. Just as she did a wall of firm onyx crystals magically sprang out from it. And then she let loose one last time. This time for the channeled magic rushing through her veins and onto her horn entirely. With an instant spark, it vanished. She slumped almost less than a second later. She was still sweating. Then she just remained there, silently breathing rapidly to catch her breath. She shifted her gaze over to her instructor, expecting her result. Sombra was smiling. Not wickedly, warmly. Which to Midnight was something she grew to prefer more than a 'not-so-nice' one. "Wonderful, your performance was excellent" Sombra complimented his student. "I'm rather impressed, to be honest. Considering the fact that in so little time you've already accomplished much." Midnight just stared bluntly but then couldn't help but crack a tiny smile at the compliment. Sombra's heart basically melted at the display, to see someone as stoic as her for once in an eternity smiling like that. Even if it was small, it was certainly a sight incredibly rare to see. Over the time passed Sombra's feelings towards Midnight grew a lot. At some point, it reached a point where he started to feel nervous whenever in her presence. In Midnight's case as the months passed or nearly an entire year she began to slowly be more comfortable with having Sombra around. And maybe even develop a teeny-tiny bit of a crush. Sombra's eyes moved to linger upon the darkening winter horizon in the distance, along with the notice of the temperature dropping. The air around became frigid. The wind blew Sombra's mane wildly. The pitch-black hair also got dotted with a ton of white snow. However, despite the air getting colder and colder, the unicorn remained unbothered. Midnight on the other hoof was bothered. VERY bothered. Sombra looked back at her as she sneezed 2 times. He could see her breath as clear as the full moon on a clear night. Also, she was shivering badly, even if she had on her winter stuff. Sombra felt sympathetic while looking on. He then smiled as he channeled a normal unicorn aura. Its bright red color brightened the area around it. With its use, he levitated off the crimson fur cape on his back. Slowly moving it he placed it gently on Midnight's black cloak that she already had on. Midnight for the first time winced as a double layer of warmth suddenly spread across her form. Her eyes were briefly fixed on the red cape before turning to the dethroned king. It only seemed like her stoic mask was still there but Sombra for the first time ever actually saw a mixture of surprise and grief as his blood-colored eyes looked deeply into Midnight's amethyst ones. "Please, don't fall in grief. I gave this to you to my own accord. You are freezing, you have the need of it more than I." He assured her. Midnight's gaze was sad but the lifelessness was there as well. She didn't say anything except for a sorrow-filled silent nod. Her still shuddering hooves moved upwards slowly to clutch the crimson cape a little tighter. Sombra stepped closer and gripped one of her hooves with his own for comfort and reassurance. A rosy blush bloomed slowly on the faces of both ponies. Their eyes still looked at one another. Sombra gently tugged at her frozen hoof to pull her up to stand. She followed his movements soundlessly and stood. She winced again when he wrapped a foreleg around the base of her neck to pull her close, he whispered words of comfort and the fact that he was just trying to keep her warm in her ear. "W-why?" She asks in a near-silent whisper. "Because I care," he says into her ear. The mare continued to shudder nonstop. Sombra understood that she needed to get warm. And to his thoughts, a cave wasn't enough. He wanted to give her more. An idea then emerged. He moved a little while keeping his hoof around the alicorns neck. Soon, he found himself standing next to her. His horn glowed red and then became the familiar hue of dark magic. It grew in size after each second. A minute later it grew powerful enough for him to shoot some miles distant from them. With his magic still signaled from the ground several meters away a castle-like fortress rose up. No sooner later did it fully form itself. It was made from Sombra's usual dark crystals. Finally, the creation finished. "Come," Sombra said. He moved his attention to a still shivering Midnight. Despite what he said she remained in her spot. Her cheeks become red from the bitter cold. "Come" Sombra repeated, once more gently tugging at her leg. "I c-can't m-move" she stuttered. "I f-feel n-numb." The unicorn thought about this for a minute. Midnight was so cold that she couldn't even move properly. Then again, it wasn't her fault and Sombra was more than ready to help. So then he transforms into a shadow and surprises her when he circles around her and covers her in a black void. once her entire form was surrounded in a shadow he lifted up and then zoomed off to the castle. Midnight couldn't see anything but black. She didn't even feel cold any longer. Sombra's warm darkness around her protected her from the blizzard. However, it all felt like it lasted for one second as no sooner the void faded. Midnight found herself on something soft and squishy. When she looked up she saw a black ceiling. Finally, she figured that she was on a bed. Her winter garments were nowhere to be seen, even Sombra's red cape. Eventually, she looked up to see the very stallion that brought her here placing her removed clothes on a hook. The cape he gave her was once more placed on his back where it belonged. Midnight's attention was triggered as a heavy warm blanket was placed on her. She looked up to find Sombra standing by the bedside, giving her a kind smile. "Thank you for this," Midnight said her voice pitched low. "Anything for you," he responded. He moved again towards the fireplace. His interesting horn lit up a crimson light. A small flame started to flare from the wood placed within the fireplace. Sooner later, it rose and became bigger. When he was done he came towards the bedside again. He then seated himself beside it but remained silent. The quiet lingered in the room. Midnight was the first to destroy it. "How did you manage to create all this on your own?" Sombra chuckled softly. "Manifestation can create more than you can imagine my dear, and about the 'on my own' part it simply means that I have spent years training myself to come to a point where I could accomplish big things without any need of too much effort." "Oh well, you're gonna have to teach me someday," the alicorn said with a smirk. "For indeed I will" Sombra smoothly replied while joining her smirk with his own. After another moment of silence, the unicorn king questioned his companion. "Midnight I was wondering something for some time now but I just couldn't understand when to ask, now seems to the best time." "What?" "Have you ever thought of giving romance a try?" Midnight didn't respond right away. A blush rose on her cheeks. Sombra had never seen anything more adorable. "W-what do you mean." She asked with uncharacteristic nervousness. "I meant as in finding a partner, a lover," he said as he raised a hoof to point at himself, a big grin on his face. "U-um b-but were villai-" Midnight actually squeaked and fell silent as both of Sombra's hooves gripped hers. "Midnight," he said with a firm tone. "Do you honestly believe that just because we are villains we don't have the right to find love as well?" Midnight didn't respond to that. All she did was shake her head. "We do, don't we," he carried on. His hooves still holding Midnight's hooves with a strong but gentle grip. She then protested "o-okay we do b-but I'm just not so certain yet." "Why is that," the dark unicorn asked softly. "B-because this is all j-just so new to me, I've never really experienced it before so I just need some time. N-not that I'm saying I don't like you." She finished quickly while glancing to the side. "I understand," Sombra said in a reassuring tone. "And I'll be honest even I'm inexperienced with it, just as you are. This feeling is new to me as well but I know how to handle it at the very least. However, if you say you're not ready just yet I respect that. Take your time Midnight, come once you feel like you have adapted the confidence to. Once you are ready. Just keep in mind that a monster can love too." Sombra, at last, released his grip on her hooves. He stood up and turned to leave. "I'll now leave you so you can get some rest. I shall see you tomorrow alright." "Okay," was her answer. Sombra gave her one last smile before trotting out the room and shutting the door behind with a soft click. Midnight laid there for a while, Sombra's words echoed in her thoughts. A monster can love too. Midnight cringed at the words but couldn't help but admit at how right he was, they can. When he had given her his offer at romance she really, really wanted to so badly lung at him and hug him tightly and say yes repeatedly, but she just at the same time couldn't. Not when she felt this anxious with all of it. She was at least thankful that Sombra gave her some time to think about it. She recalled him saying that he was also inexperienced with it. How could a stallion as handsome as him never have a lover she wondered. She was unfortunately too tired to think through all of it. Maybe tomorrow she could buy the time to sort it out but now wasn't the time. She then turned on her right side and closed her eyes. Author's Note Hi uh . . . after a while. Sorry for the long wait, been busy with life. Anyways here you are. Hope you like it. I believe there's only 1 chapter left. I'll try my best to not be so late with posting it.
Um . . . hello.The sense of magic flowed in mean Twilight Sparkle's veins as her warm pink magic was signaled upon her horn. She shot it forward towards the coming green-colored magic of the changeling queen, Chrysalis. there two shots collided trying their hardest to bring force onto the other. Twilight, however, turned out to be successful as her pink beam neared its way to the tip of Chrysalis's twisted horn. Sweat started to fall down the queen's face. Fortunately to Crysalis's relief, the beam didn't reach her in time but instead faded as clone Twilight's thoughts were distracted by a white tendril as it wrapped around the alicorn and pulled her towards the Tree of Harmony. Twilight frantically looked at the other clones who seemed to have met the same fate. Suddenly something inside her began to burn. Slightly being aware of what might become of her, her horn sparked up as she shined a powerful and bright pink light. In an instant, her vision flashed, and less than a second later she pulled away from the grip of the tendril completely vanishing from where she was making it seem as if she hadn't been there at all. In another instant flash, she appeared again. Looking around slightly she figured she was in the cover of some trees. Up ahead in the clearing, she not only spotted Chrysalis but also transpired the gruesome fate of the other 5 servants of Chrysalis. Sooner they had become nothing more than logs. Twilight watched as Chrysalis took a few steps forward and muttered something she didn't quite get. Afterward, the queen only said something about getting her revenge on someone she didn't know of before flying off with a huff. Twilight only stared bluntly but noted to herself to never dare get near the Tree of Harmony ever again if she chose to live. It had been a few days since the last creation of Chrysalis, Twilight Sparkle was able to escape from her almost hell that she was almost pulled into. Much to her relief. During her time period since and now she decided to travel, after figuring just how much she thirsted after knowledge and how much she wanted to learn about this world that she was living in. During her travels, she had learned . . . quite a lot of things. Such as, the fact that she and the other 5 mares who we're apparently demolished at the moment had counterparts. Counterparts that she taught we're downright stupid. She also learned that this land called Equestria (as she also learned) had 2 alicorn rulers who were sisters. One ruled day and the other ruled night but to whom she thought were just as dumb as the other 6 counterpart mares she found. And plus they were way too big. Sooner though after some time the Twilight clone made her way to the north of Equestria where she found this castle made of crystals. Curious about the strange castle that to her appeared out of the blu, she decided to secretly explore it as night fell. The castle was known as the Crystal Empire and it was ruled by . . . well another alicorn, though this one wasn't as huge as the other 2 that ruled the entire nation. This one also lacked the strange mane-moving thingy. Also, she was married. To this white-colored stallion with a mane of several blue hues. AND they had a baby. An alicorn baby. Who looked freaky. Twilight didn't stay there for long though, as the bright crystals and bright, BRIGHT but strange-looking crystal-y ponies were causing a disturbance. However, she did manage to rob a black cloak and deep purple-ish, blue-ish scarf from a nearby market for "in-case matters" before escaping the freaky place. Continuing her travel she wandered deeper into the north. After some time the temperature dropped, snow blew wildly around her. She stopped in track slightly to pull on the cloak and scarf that she. . . robbed. Not that she cared. As she trotted through the tundra "mean" Twilight spotted something amongst the huge piles of snow. Curiosity immediately picked at her nerves. Slowly she made her way to it. As she neared it she figured that . . . it was a unicorn horn . . . a strange one. The horn was the color of blood, but it blended to a dark grey at the base. It was also curved and smooth with a tip sharpened enough to rip right through her fur. Slowly she moved to take a closer look at the interesting-looking unicorn horn. Twilight then raised a hoof and first shifted her eyes from left to right before reaching it forward to touch the object. Only an instant second later with even the slightest touch, the horn . . . began to glow. Dangerously glow. Raw but dark and powerful magical energy sparked from it as it rose from the ground. With each second the magical energy grew more and more powerful. A shadow then emerged. Slowly it grew in size and took the form of a pony, a stallion. And from the look of it, the stallion was pretty tall and twice the size of the mare. The red horn then hovered upon the stallion's forehead. His mane also grew out, majestically flowing at the back of his head and down his neck. The shadow around then faded to reveal the stallion's true look. He had dark grey fur. His mane and tail naturally black and flowing like shadows, though, it looked magnificent. His cold blood-red eyes gave home a draconic feature on his otherwise handsome face. Also, he had sharp teeth, which looked deadly. The stallion was adorned with silver armor-clad on his hooves and chest. Along with an onyx helm, which protected most of his face. A silver and red circlet crown rested above his brows. There was also a red, white-trimmed fur cape covering his back and flank. "Ughhh what is this?" the stallion muttered. Taking a moment to observe himself silently before shifting his attention over to the lavender alicorn who stared back with a stoic look "um . . . hello". Something inside the stallion's head suddenly snapped as he continuously gazed upon the oddly familiar purple mare. Then a minute later it all became clear as flashbacks of his painful recent defeat ignited his memory. The pony successfully used dark magic to pass through all of his traps. Find the Crystal Heart. Caused his defeat. As the true realization hit him the sclera of his eyes turned green with rage. His red irises burning with madness. Purple mist flaring from both sides. Twilight on the other hoof simply stared until horror crept in her veins as the unicorn threw a massive dark beam, straight in her direction. She frantically reached for her magic but was unfortunately too late. The gigantic blast struck her, painfully. An instant later while dark magical energy was all around her she was forcefully thrown on her knees. Her head slammed against the ground. Though it wasn't too long before the dark magic finally faded, bringing Twilight to see clearly once more. Though she still was in a bit of haze. The purple mare realized that she was still laying on the ground. Her tummy started to feel a bit numb from being on the frozen snow for too long. She lifted her gaze to meet the icy stare of the grey stallion who was towering menacingly above her. Anger and annoyance immediately snapped to her as she returned this unknown stallion's glare with one of her own. "Hey! Can you at least let me explain?!" she growled as she hauled herself up. "You have no need of any explaining, I know who you are" the unicorn hissed with venom in his voice. "What! You're mistaken I'm not the one you think!" The mare yelled back. "NONSENSE!" The stallion roared with fury as he readied his horn to launch another blast. This time the alicorn was prepared with her own magic. She swiftly called upon a sphere-like shield around her. Once again their sorceries were de-activated after they were done. "Jeez, you really need to know how to control yourself instead of throwing a tantrum as if your a foal" Twilight mocked. "Well, I'm not about to let you overthrow me once more. Just as you had very recently " the dark unicorn snarled. The purple mare just rolled her eyes. "Ugggghhh, that's exactly what I'm trying to have you understand that I'm not that mare". "Would I fall for any of your lies?" he hissed. Twilight was about to be caught in another whirlwind of dark magic but fortunately, she managed to teleport out of the way. She appeared again in mid-air. Before she could hit the ground she flapped her alicorn wings to keep herself in the air. Twilight's horn began to glow brightly as she used telekinesis to freeze the unicorn in his spot. "RELEASE ME, YOU WENCH!" he roared. "No! I won't until I'm finished telling you what I have to" she retorted. As much as the unknown stallion tried he failed to release himself from the alicorn's magical but powerful grip. The clone Twilight cleared her throat "good" she said before flying down in front of the much bigger grey random pony. He on the other hoof remained silent, though, he was still furious. "So," said Twilight as she began. "Now, ya, I get that I'm basically the exact same thing you had seen with someone else". "Of course you were" the stallion mumbled "though, you lacked the wings as far as I remember". Now that was something that caught the mare's attention but likewise, she carried on with her tale. "However, though I may look and sound like her I'm still not her. You see in this land called 'Equestria' there are definitely many villains but one of them known as Queen Crysalis was the cause of me. Basically what she was doing was attempting to get revenge on the ponies that defeated her so this odd plan formed in her. In disguise, as she has the ability to change she took pictures of the other Twilight and her 5 friends along with a piece of hair from their manes. And then with those and the use of magic she created me and the clone version of the other mare's. Though you don't see them here because of a reason that I'll get to really soon". She paused to let the information sink in slightly, as well as giving the still unknown stallion some time to make sense of everything. Though, it seemed as if he didn't even need that much time as he muttered to himself "well, I bet that is what happens when someone goes crazy" referring to the queen. Twilight just huffed before carrying on. "So ya she creates us but were not exactly like the original Twilight and her friends, in fact, we were their opposites. While they represented harmony, we represented disharmony. Anyways, once she finished her work with bringing us to life she demanded to us that her goal was to find the elements of harmony which were hidden somewhere in the forest we were in. And while the other clones were busy being idiots I walked up to Chrysalis and asked her why she simply didn't get her revenge when she was in disguise and clearly right with them. She only made up a dumb excuse about having her changeling army being defeated . . . " she was suddenly interrupted with the stallions bark of laughter. "Seriously, you say that she was so week that her entire army was defeated?" he mocked. Eventually, his laughter died down. Twilight couldn't help but sneer back in agreement. Twilight then continued her tale. "Anyways, after she finished giving us her orders we began to look for the elements that she was speaking of. Well, eventually it seemed like while we were looking 2 of the other clones wandered off. Honestly, Chrysalis only thought that we'd do whatever she would command us to but really we wouldn't. None of us did. The other clones weren't much use though since they were just being jerks. I on the other hoof was making plans of my own to first use the other doppelgangers to my biding. And then I would betray Chrysalis, and then once everything is done the way I want it too I would take Equestria for myself" Twilight finished with a wicked grin. The black unicorn beside her lifted an armored hoof to tap his chin thoughtfully. "Clever" he muttered under his breath. "After I and Chrysalis realized that 2 of our troops were gone Chrysalis was quite furious. So then I told her that how about she goes on to continue finding the elements with the remaining clones while I can bring back the others. And fortunately for me, Chrysalis let me go after going me her 'so-called' permission. Unfortunately, it seemed as if our counterparts were also in the same woods so for a while we ended up getting mixed with them. Sometime later and after I spotted the location for the Elements of Harmony we got reunited. Chrysalis was angrier than ever but I managed to cool that anger after telling her that I knew where the elements were". "So then I led them all to the elements. Once I confirmed that the 5 mares and I are alone I whisper to them to follow my lead. I took them to the elements, but of course, the others with me were still going to be stupid as ever. 2 of them started to play a catfight, the others were useless. I tried to settle them by telling them that we needed to get the elements in time to betray Chrysalis". "And well, what do you know, Chrysalis heard me. And she was not pleased. Much to my delight". "After protesting about being the one to create us she blasted a light of her magic to me. I reacted in time as I channeled my own magic. For one second we fought but I managed to overpower her, surprisingly. I was nearly about to win when suddenly I was pulled towards the tree behind me. Before anything was about to happen to me I teleported away in time. I re-appeared again but a few distances away from the view displayed. The other clones were getting absorbed by the power of the elements. And sooner they became logs". Twilight stopped for a minute. She turned to the armored unicorn for any reaction but he simply stood there. Not bothered at all by the gruesome fate of the doppelgangers that witnessed it. The stallion simply made a silent gesture for her to carry on. Which she did. "After that happened Chrysalis who was still there trotted forward and just said some curse words before flying off somewhere. I made a mental note to myself to never get near the tree again. Eventually, I wanted to learn more about the world I'm now going to live in so I decided to travel. Throughout my travels, I learned many things. One thing I learned was that this land called Equestria was ruled over by 2 alicorn sisters. One is the ruler of daytime and can raise the sun. The other is the ruler of nighttime and can raise the moon and stars. I didn't like them though. They're weird and plus there way too big". The stallion next to her chuckled at her remark about 2 of his most hated enemies. The alicorn stared at him with a raised eyebrow but then carried on. "Something else I learned was of course that I and the other demolished 5 clones had counterparts. I didn't like them too. They were just as strange as the alicorn sisters". "As I traveled more I came to Equestria's northern part. The first thing I saw here was a castle made of crystals". The stallion stared. "I paid it a slight visit once night fell. At the base of the castle, I saw this object which was a light blue heart made of crystal". The stallion wrinkled his snout in disgust at the reminder of the object that so recently destroyed him. "I snuck around inside the castle. I figured that it was ruled over by yet another alicorn. She wasn't as big as the sisters. Neither did she have those strange long flowing manes. She was married to this white stallion and had a child. To me, they all including the crystal-y ponies are creepy and were becoming a disturbance". The stallion's disgust grew even bigger at the even more horrible reminder of the royal couple but then he burst out laughing at what the mare just said about the family and crystal ponies. Although, there was a smidge bit of surprise when he found out that they had a child. His laughter soon waned as he re-collected his composure. Twilight finally had the opportunity to continue. "I only stayed a little longer there to rob this scarf and cloak that I have on from there. You know, for 'just in case' matters like now. Anyways, after my visit to that 'out of the blu' castle was over I came here and found your horn, saw you, fought you, tell you a story, and ya". She finished her tale and looked to the grey colt. "I hope you believe me, I didn't make this up". He pondered for a minute, thinking deeply about his final decision of risking believing her or not. He then went back to how she narrated her story. How she literally insulted the 2 sisters, along with the royal couple of the Crystal Empire. When the form of her that he last witnessed she's basically Equestria's hero and she no doubt would never dare betray Equestria. Nor would she ever insult the 2 sisters. And besides this one of her was not only an alicorn but also had a slightly different color scheme. And plus he liked her. She seemed just as cunning and ruthless as him. She was also gifted with great brilliance and cleverness. At last, he made his final decision. "Fine I believe you," he said turning to her. "Oh good, cause I wasn't preferring another duel," she responded. "By the way, this question has been lingering in my head for a while so now I can ask". "What?" the unicorn asked. "What is your name" she questioned. "My name, well, Sombra. King Sombra. Though the 'king' part isn't as needed since I'm not exactly ruling anything," Sombra said smoothly while bowing his head and placing one hoof on his chest. "Sombra" Twilight repeated, "well nice to meet you I guess". Sombra nodded "indeed, and shall I ask for yours?". Twilight huffed and placed her own hoof over her chest before giving a reply. "Twilight Sparkle". Sombra smiled "hmm Twilight Sparkle, I approve, though the sparkle part is what messes it slightly" he added with a hint of annoyance. Twilight shot him an acidic glare, "do you have a problem with that?". "I said slightly" Sombra calmly responded with a smirk. She rolled her eyes "whatever" "How about we change up your name a little" the overthrown king suggested. "Excuse me" "You know, since you are not typically the other you, but rather a darker form of her". "Yes, and?" "So we can change your name a little". "Perhaps, what do you think would be suitable?". "I'd say something like 'Midnight' would be fitting". "You know what, I actually like that name. Midnight. Midnight Sparkle". "Yes, it is certainly a whole lot better". Twilight smiled at her newly accepted name. "So you'll be calling me Midnight from now on?". "For the time being, yes. And also for the scenario of you by some point running into yourself" Sombra chuckled at the thought of the 2 meeting each other. Midnight just threw him another glare. The 2 stood in silence after that. Sombra's deep voice eventually broke the quiet. "I was wondering, throughout the time in which you'd still be traveling can I accompany you along the way?", Sombra asked. Midnight stared at him stoically before asking "why?" "Well I'll tell you honestly, my power has waned since I last had it because of my recent defeat," Sombra told her. Midnight was mildly interested but said it anyways "you got defeated?". "Well yes, I have been, 2 times to be specific". "What happened?" "You see as you've mentioned about Equestria's threats, I happen to be one of them. In the past, I had conquered you know that castle made of crystals you had seen?". Midnight nodded. "Yes, that and to be specific it's called the Crystal Empire and I've taken over its rulership in the past. The 2 sisters that you've seen and heard off were the ones that stood up against me. They and I had first a bit of a battle before they used the Elements of Harmony that you spoke of to banish me into icy oblivion for 1000 years. And then comes my second defeat. Once I returned after the 1000 years that I was banished for I appeared as a shadow as I didn't exactly have enough power to take on my true self yet. I was in rage though and sought to get to the Crystal Empire as soon as possible. I was blocked much to my annoyance. By this blue shield cast upon the Empire by its current ruler you had seen. Still, just because I was outside of the shield didn't mean that I wasn't aware of everything. Of course the first thing I saw after the royal couple was a group of 6 mares accompanied by a young dragon and the pink alicorns husband. Something else I was aware of was that someone managed to wield dark magic and open the vault I had placed in the heart of the castle. And dark magic was the only thing needed to access it. Calling upon my power I created a mirror image of myself to track this dark magic wielder. I managed to spot her. This young unicorn mare. Very similar to you but just a slightly different color scheme. Though I suppose by now she'd too be an alicorn somehow judging by the story you had told me and as your counterpart. And yes I saw her and her lizard friend. She went down that long stairway I created down the unlocked vault. Once approaching the very base she faced my precious door of fear that I also created. So did her dragon. In time she faced that illusion as well and opened the door once more to reveal an even longer staircase than before. Though this one wasn't dark and black like the other. After she, at last, went up to the tower of the Crystal Empire, there was where she spotted that accursed Crystal Heart she was searching for. The naive mare made her move to get it but was unable to as she was trapped in a trap that I placed there. She did manage to knock out the heart from getting trapped as well at least. Her attempting to get out were mere failures. Finally, she told her dragon who was still there to do the job of returning the heart to the crystal princess for her. The dragon then did what she was put to do. Meanwhile, while she was there the shield spell that the wretched pink alicorn placed eventually faded as her magic grew weeker, allowing me to proceed through. I then spotted the dragon descending from one of the black crystals I grew out carrying the crystal heart. I lunged towards him in an attempt to murder him and get the heart. Luck wasn't at my side though. The dragon did trip and fall, and I did have my perfect opportunity but. . . the pink alicorn shot by before I could get to him. And just like that she placed the heart in its proper spot and accesses its magic. The crystal ponies were safe. The empire was safe. And I was broken and destroyed" Sombra spat out the last words of his defeat. His companion stared at him through a stone-like gaze. "Well, that was interesting," she said bluntly. Sombra fixed her by throwing spears at her with a stare. She didn't react. Secretly Sombra couldn't help but admit to himself that a tiny crush inside him started to bloom. Yes, he had a small crush on her. He just couldn't help it. He liked her, and her attitude. And also she looked pretty to him. "Anyways, so yes you know of my defeats now and I am still weak so I don't think I'll be able to conquer the Crystal Empire. I'd be a fool to make any attempt. So you can now answer my earlier question. Can I keep you company while your traveling? We can travel together. And plus I have lived for 1000 years and I have had a great interest in books and studying. And I have loads of knowledge. After all, you did mention that your traveling for that exact thing". Midnight thought about that for a while. Finally, she made up her mind . . . only for the sake of more knowledge. "Fine, you can come with me. Besides having some company with me doesn't sound bad". Author's Note Ya so, this is certainly my very first story on this site. And since this is my first time my story will have some errors so feel free to notify me of them in the comments. Anyways, about the story itself. Yes, this is a story that will be featuring Sombra X Mean Twilight Sparkle. If we bring up the mean 6 in all I honestly thought that Twilight had to be my favorite. She truly was the true villain material while the others were just being jerks. And about King Sombra well he's my most favorite villain. I love him okay. And originally as much as I love normal Twi and him as a ship as well (yes I am quite a fan of Twibra) I really thought I'd love the dynamics between Sombra and mean Twilight. I hope you like it and criticism is welcome. More will come soon.
Just trying to get along (but they can't)Pale orange light lit the cavern walls, the warmth held strong against the freezing tundra from outside. In the cavern were only 2 ponies. Chrysalis's last creation, Midnight, and the overthrown conquerer of the Crystal Empire, Sombra. Midnight focused her magic on her horn, an aura of black and small green and purple bubble-like things flared with electrical sparks. Beads of sweat continuously dripped down from her forehead. After like 3 days since she met Sombra he offered to teach her about the type of magic he often used, dark magic. Midnight couldn't help but have her curiosity perked at the thought. So not long after his offer did she give him her agreement. Midnight was actually surprised about Sombra's methods of teaching. He was brilliant, like REALLY brilliant, with excellent teachings. Every word he said she understood. Every gesture he made she understood. Also, he had loads of knowledge, and Midnight . . . took this to an advantage of getting more knowledge. HOWEVER, despite his overly AMAZING methods of teaching he still could be very annoying at other times. Then again . . . villains would hardly get along, because if they were negative with the goody-two-shoes ponies why wouldn't they be negative with each other. Midnight desperately tried to muster all the energy to the best she could possibly do into the cracking, dark, magical aura that surrounded her horn. All the while gathering the remains of her physical non-magical energy in her muscles to keep herself in her sort-off crouched stans she was in. Oh boy, it sure was some work. The 'king' just sat on the other side of the fire merely watching her. She SERIOUSLY wanted to scowl at him for making her go through such stress while he just sat his flank down. Even though she herself agreed to it. Eventually, her energy gave out, the magical aura on her horn that she was DESPERATELY attempting on cracked and fizzled away with a BIG spark. Having the last of her energy giving out she slumped helplessly on her haunches. Then she just sat panting and huffing for her breath. Sombra chuckled. Midnight shot him a stare of venom. "Well, that was a fail" she seethed. Sombra sighed. "you seem to be missing my main point regarding dark magic, Midnight Sparkle." "Oh, what exactly am I missing 'most knowledgeable teacher'" Midnight growled. "I am quite knowledgeable aren't I" the unicorn retorted back smugly, Midnight rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Anyways, I remember telling you like I can't recall about how many times that dark magic is fuelled by negative emotions which is exactly what your missing, misses grumpy" Sombra finished with a smirk. Midnight scowled at the ridiculous nickname "call me that again and I'll make you regret it" she warned. The dark unicorn just laughed. "Anyways, I'm not going to try again even if you corrected me I'm WAY too worn out." Midnight complained, her brows still crossed. Sombra stared with amusement at her lack of strong determination "fine, suit yourself." "WHAT!? I'm tired out of my wits" she shot back. "I see" he replied calmly. Midnight's eyes lingered upon the armored stallion for some time. As she stared she wondered about who Sombra is. What the cost was of him to be what he is today, where he is today. He was too once a colt, born from parents. He grew up, learned things, made mistakes, and rose from each, stronger than before. "Who are you" Midnight questioned, expressionless. Sombra looked up to match her lifeless gaze, "when you say 'who I am' I hope you are not referring to my past story because I won't be sharing". "Why?" "Do you care?" "No." "So then why ask?" "Nevermind." After that silence remained still throughout the caverns, say for the roaring sound of the snowstorm outside. Sombra shifted his position to place himself in a laid-down posture, with his tummy facing down and his forelegs crossed just beside his chest. He then positioned his head atop his forelegs and closed his eyes. "Do you consider yourself a princess just as your counterpart?" he said, his deep and raspy voice shattering the silence. Midnight didn't wince but said, "Nah I find it too cheesy". Sombra chuckled, eyes still closed "hmm I suppose your right, it is quite cheesy as you put it". Midnight huffed, quiet once more took control. "I suggest for you to get rest for indeed you'll need it to begin tomorrow," the black unicorn said quietly. Midnight fixed him with a glare "as in you'd care about my health". "Perhaps, you would be right I really don't. I was just merely giving a suggestion however since you rudely reconsidered it then by all means". "Why are you so cool with everything like all the time?". He gave a hearty laugh at that "well my dear, what's better than to not start a problem that we'll end up regretting? Besides, when you get to your 'arguing' mode I'm basically teasing". "Ya, you sure like to tease a lot right?" "With someone as blunt as you, yes". "And what do you mean by blunt?" "Blunt as in not fitting in this world properly". "I really don't". "Same meaning". "WHATEVER!" "Oh and take a look at that. Who seems to be losing her temper already". "Shut up!" "And then she starts to curse, wonderful" "SHUT UP!" "And then her anger goes through the roof". "Your starting to get under my skin". "That was basically what I was doing". "WHAT!" "You won't believe how much fun I'm having right now doing so. Specifically with you". "Go buck yourself". "And how do I do that exactly?" "You . . . OH WHAT-EVER!" "Hahahahaha" "SHUT UP" this time Midnight stood up and spread open her wings, all the while huffing with anger in her veins. Sombra remained in his spot all calm and cool. And then Midnight settled because she had an idea. "Oh and what about when you and I first met. Where was that chill at that time?" Midnight asked with a wicked grin. "Well, I for one think that if you were at my spot and got blown to bits you would be angry as well". Midnight's smile instantly vanished. In its place was a frown of rage. However, the smile soon returned once more. "Hehe, but who was that 'all powerful' tyrant that got defeated by a little unicorn and her baby dragon?" This time Sombra immediately hauled himself in a standing position, his eyes burning with rage as clear as day. Midnight smiled gleefully at the sight. "Say that again and I'll have you eat those words" he spat. "Hahaha you hardly stood against a baby dragon so what could you possibly do to me?" she mocked. "YOU were hardly even a threat to Equestria" he snapped. "I at least was a threat. A REAL threat." "I managed to trick a changeling queen and was nearly about to win" she shot back. "You didn't even have your chance at winning." Sombra suddenly settled his nerves as his lips turned from their enraged snarl to a vicious smile. "Then again it's still good to know that I'm real. . . when you are nothing more than a mere clone of someone". Reality immediately came crashing down on Midnight as the painful truth hit her like a metal whip. Her composure came to her, a stoic look masking her true emotions within. "You're right . . . I am". She said slowly. She then moved to seat herself on her haunches. Her motionless gaze still plastered on. The sight hurt Sombra to his core, cause once again he still had his crush on her. He did inwardly deeply regret what he said but outwardly he remained silent. "I think it's better to get some rest now like you said 'there is a tomorrow to wait for'" Midnight said in a monotone-like voice. "I . . . believe you are . . correct. . . we should" he stuttered in his reply. The 2 ponies then settled and nodded off to their dreams. Sleeping on until the sun rose the next morning to begin the day.
A few months later . . ."Come now Midnight. Surely you could do better than that." Sombra said. He had found some way to transport himself and his only companion to a place much further away from the Crystal Empire by the use of a shadowform spell summoned by dark magic. He was fully aware of the fact that if they had been somewhere near the empire they could end up being spotted by a crystal pony, and Sombra here wasn't prepared for crazy things. Best be saved for when the proper time comes. Midnight stood with her limbs parted with a bit of a distance. A concentration look painted on her features, her magic called upon her horn. A powerful and huge dark magic signature aura flaring. Sweat poured down her face, her wings sprang open, her mane blowing wildly. Gathering her energy and putting as much force as she could muster in her channeled electrical-like dark magical energy. Dark thoughts played like a series of screenplays in her mind. She thought of the changeling queen she so dearly hated. The horrible memories of the Tree of Harmony absorbing the other servants she once knew. Madness, hate, fear, sorrow, sadness, misery, tragedy, pain, blood, and death. All those negative emotions were flooding her thoughts. Eventually, Sombra's voice rang out. "Release." He commanded. Midnight did just that. She gave out a loud exhale of her breath and let loose a blast of darkness, shooting it against the snow-covered ground. Just as she did a wall of firm onyx crystals magically sprang out from it. And then she let loose one last time. This time for the channeled magic rushing through her veins and onto her horn entirely. With an instant spark, it vanished. She slumped almost less than a second later. She was still sweating. Then she just remained there, silently breathing rapidly to catch her breath. She shifted her gaze over to her instructor, expecting her result. Sombra was smiling. Not wickedly, warmly. Which to Midnight was something she grew to prefer more than a 'not-so-nice' one. "Wonderful, your performance was excellent" Sombra complimented his student. "I'm rather impressed, to be honest. Considering the fact that in so little time you've already accomplished much." Midnight just stared bluntly but then couldn't help but crack a tiny smile at the compliment. Sombra's heart basically melted at the display, to see someone as stoic as her for once in an eternity smiling like that. Even if it was small, it was certainly a sight incredibly rare to see. Over the time passed Sombra's feelings towards Midnight grew a lot. At some point, it reached a point where he started to feel nervous whenever in her presence. In Midnight's case as the months passed or nearly an entire year she began to slowly be more comfortable with having Sombra around. And maybe even develop a teeny-tiny bit of a crush. Sombra's eyes moved to linger upon the darkening winter horizon in the distance, along with the notice of the temperature dropping. The air around became frigid. The wind blew Sombra's mane wildly. The pitch-black hair also got dotted with a ton of white snow. However, despite the air getting colder and colder, the unicorn remained unbothered. Midnight on the other hoof was bothered. VERY bothered. Sombra looked back at her as she sneezed 2 times. He could see her breath as clear as the full moon on a clear night. Also, she was shivering badly, even if she had on her winter stuff. Sombra felt sympathetic while looking on. He then smiled as he channeled a normal unicorn aura. Its bright red color brightened the area around it. With its use, he levitated off the crimson fur cape on his back. Slowly moving it he placed it gently on Midnight's black cloak that she already had on. Midnight for the first time winced as a double layer of warmth suddenly spread across her form. Her eyes were briefly fixed on the red cape before turning to the dethroned king. It only seemed like her stoic mask was still there but Sombra for the first time ever actually saw a mixture of surprise and grief as his blood-colored eyes looked deeply into Midnight's amethyst ones. "Please, don't fall in grief. I gave this to you to my own accord. You are freezing, you have the need of it more than I." He assured her. Midnight's gaze was sad but the lifelessness was there as well. She didn't say anything except for a sorrow-filled silent nod. Her still shuddering hooves moved upwards slowly to clutch the crimson cape a little tighter. Sombra stepped closer and gripped one of her hooves with his own for comfort and reassurance. A rosy blush bloomed slowly on the faces of both ponies. Their eyes still looked at one another. Sombra gently tugged at her frozen hoof to pull her up to stand. She followed his movements soundlessly and stood. She winced again when he wrapped a foreleg around the base of her neck to pull her close, he whispered words of comfort and the fact that he was just trying to keep her warm in her ear. "W-why?" She asks in a near-silent whisper. "Because I care," he says into her ear. The mare continued to shudder nonstop. Sombra understood that she needed to get warm. And to his thoughts, a cave wasn't enough. He wanted to give her more. An idea then emerged. He moved a little while keeping his hoof around the alicorns neck. Soon, he found himself standing next to her. His horn glowed red and then became the familiar hue of dark magic. It grew in size after each second. A minute later it grew powerful enough for him to shoot some miles distant from them. With his magic still signaled from the ground several meters away a castle-like fortress rose up. No sooner later did it fully form itself. It was made from Sombra's usual dark crystals. Finally, the creation finished. "Come," Sombra said. He moved his attention to a still shivering Midnight. Despite what he said she remained in her spot. Her cheeks become red from the bitter cold. "Come" Sombra repeated, once more gently tugging at her leg. "I c-can't m-move" she stuttered. "I f-feel n-numb." The unicorn thought about this for a minute. Midnight was so cold that she couldn't even move properly. Then again, it wasn't her fault and Sombra was more than ready to help. So then he transforms into a shadow and surprises her when he circles around her and covers her in a black void. once her entire form was surrounded in a shadow he lifted up and then zoomed off to the castle. Midnight couldn't see anything but black. She didn't even feel cold any longer. Sombra's warm darkness around her protected her from the blizzard. However, it all felt like it lasted for one second as no sooner the void faded. Midnight found herself on something soft and squishy. When she looked up she saw a black ceiling. Finally, she figured that she was on a bed. Her winter garments were nowhere to be seen, even Sombra's red cape. Eventually, she looked up to see the very stallion that brought her here placing her removed clothes on a hook. The cape he gave her was once more placed on his back where it belonged. Midnight's attention was triggered as a heavy warm blanket was placed on her. She looked up to find Sombra standing by the bedside, giving her a kind smile. "Thank you for this," Midnight said her voice pitched low. "Anything for you," he responded. He moved again towards the fireplace. His interesting horn lit up a crimson light. A small flame started to flare from the wood placed within the fireplace. Sooner later, it rose and became bigger. When he was done he came towards the bedside again. He then seated himself beside it but remained silent. The quiet lingered in the room. Midnight was the first to destroy it. "How did you manage to create all this on your own?" Sombra chuckled softly. "Manifestation can create more than you can imagine my dear, and about the 'on my own' part it simply means that I have spent years training myself to come to a point where I could accomplish big things without any need of too much effort." "Oh well, you're gonna have to teach me someday," the alicorn said with a smirk. "For indeed I will" Sombra smoothly replied while joining her smirk with his own. After another moment of silence, the unicorn king questioned his companion. "Midnight I was wondering something for some time now but I just couldn't understand when to ask, now seems to the best time." "What?" "Have you ever thought of giving romance a try?" Midnight didn't respond right away. A blush rose on her cheeks. Sombra had never seen anything more adorable. "W-what do you mean." She asked with uncharacteristic nervousness. "I meant as in finding a partner, a lover," he said as he raised a hoof to point at himself, a big grin on his face. "U-um b-but were villai-" Midnight actually squeaked and fell silent as both of Sombra's hooves gripped hers. "Midnight," he said with a firm tone. "Do you honestly believe that just because we are villains we don't have the right to find love as well?" Midnight didn't respond to that. All she did was shake her head. "We do, don't we," he carried on. His hooves still holding Midnight's hooves with a strong but gentle grip. She then protested "o-okay we do b-but I'm just not so certain yet." "Why is that," the dark unicorn asked softly. "B-because this is all j-just so new to me, I've never really experienced it before so I just need some time. N-not that I'm saying I don't like you." She finished quickly while glancing to the side. "I understand," Sombra said in a reassuring tone. "And I'll be honest even I'm inexperienced with it, just as you are. This feeling is new to me as well but I know how to handle it at the very least. However, if you say you're not ready just yet I respect that. Take your time Midnight, come once you feel like you have adapted the confidence to. Once you are ready. Just keep in mind that a monster can love too." Sombra, at last, released his grip on her hooves. He stood up and turned to leave. "I'll now leave you so you can get some rest. I shall see you tomorrow alright." "Okay," was her answer. Sombra gave her one last smile before trotting out the room and shutting the door behind with a soft click. Midnight laid there for a while, Sombra's words echoed in her thoughts. A monster can love too. Midnight cringed at the words but couldn't help but admit at how right he was, they can. When he had given her his offer at romance she really, really wanted to so badly lung at him and hug him tightly and say yes repeatedly, but she just at the same time couldn't. Not when she felt this anxious with all of it. She was at least thankful that Sombra gave her some time to think about it. She recalled him saying that he was also inexperienced with it. How could a stallion as handsome as him never have a lover she wondered. She was unfortunately too tired to think through all of it. Maybe tomorrow she could buy the time to sort it out but now wasn't the time. She then turned on her right side and closed her eyes. Author's Note Hi uh . . . after a while. Sorry for the long wait, been busy with life. Anyways here you are. Hope you like it. I believe there's only 1 chapter left. I'll try my best to not be so late with posting it.
