It had been 3 months since Sombra had left. In that time, Luna had grown almost to the same height as her brother, standing just a few inches under him. Her mane had turned starry blue, her coat closer resembling the night sky in color, a deep blue that gave her an exotic look. It got to the point that stallions were asking for permission to court her from her elder brother, who tried nudging Luna to marry or at least date these possible suitors. She of course indulged a few of them, receiving many gifts of flowers, chocolates and jewels, but she turned them all down after the second date.

Apollo was of course less than pleased, but he let his little sister explore other stallions, maybe one of them would catch the lunar mare's interest, but he wouldn't push it. The sun god, in the meantime, had gotten with a few stallions and mares himself, many offering their heart and loyalty but none captured his fancy and often resulted in more than a few heartaches.

As he was sipping his tea one morning, he received a letter marked with a special sigil. Upon seeing it, he immediately opened and read it before getting off of his soft cushion in front of the fireplace and made his way to his sister's bedroom to listen. She was still asleep, good. He headed to the balcony and took off, gliding with the gentle breeze of sunrise, the sun welcoming him with a warm radiance as he softly smiled.

Good morning to you too, Sol. I'll talk with you soon, I have some business to attend to. The sun seemed to shine a little brighter, a beam of light following him along as he glided to the Crystal Empire and angled himself towards the train station.

It was too soon, far too soon for him to return, he had hoped he had more time to persuade his sister… A grin on his face, he landed on the receiving platform and smiled warmly at the passersby, some bowing in respect as they passed him. He had to keep himself composed as he walked up to the ticket booth, ducking a little bit to greet the Ticketmaster.

“Good morning, would it be alright if I had the schedule for the next arriving train? I'm expecting someone.” After getting over their initial shock, they gave him one with a beaming smile and a tilt of the hat, him smiling and winking before turning away. I love being a prince. He glanced towards the rising sun, it was just past 10 o'clock and after checking the train list, he went a little pale in the face. The next train was supposed to arrive soon, very soon.

He didn't have a lot of time.

Back at the castle, Luna was waking up a little bit, having heard her brother by her doors before hearing her leave. She decided she would try to follow her sibling but Nightmare told her otherwise. Whatever Apollo was doing was her business, so they should stay out of it; recalling how Apollo reacted to her journal when they were younger. Deciding to agree with her sister, Luna went to get ready for the day, giggling to herself at the inside joke; She was nocturnal after all, hardly ever being up any sooner than nightfall, and resulted in her being a little grouchy.

After having a quick breakfast, banana smoothie with chopped and grilled chicken, she took off from her balcony and headed to the badlands, home of the dragons. Dragons often got a bad reputation; breathing fire, eating gems and meat, stubbornness and the noise often made them less than ideal friendship candidates, but Luna grew up with them. She had several scars to show off how she had done hand to hand combat with them, all in good fun of course, nightmare loved the dragons too.

There was at one point a meeting between her and the dragon lord at the time, offering his only son as a prize for completing a string of challenges and Luna passed all of them with flying colors, but turned down the dragon prince because she was still too young to marry. The dragon lord was less than pleased, but accepted the fact. Soon forgetting about the whole thing and welcomed her back into the clan with open arms.

As she landed in the center of the active volcano, she looked for any sign of the clan. It had been a few years since she had visited and Nightmare was itching to spar with someone who wouldn't go down in one punch or give up too easily because of her status; here, she could do and say as she pleased with little to no consequence. She could let her hair down as some would say, walking around as her wings shifted to a more comfortable place on her sides.

Seven months prior, somewhere to the far east

Sombra was thrown back, skidding with a groan of pain. Definitely a broken rib now along with the concussion forming in the back of his head but he was determined not to lose this fight. The onlookers were watching him, judging him harshly as he was brought down again and again as a test of his physical strength. A ring was placed on his horn to keep him from using his magic, adding to the challenge while he dodged and parried with quickness but he was slowing down; the last few weeks of grueling work and brutal exercises was affecting his movements.

“You must be quicker, king of ice. Faster, more ferocious like a tiger.” The tribe's leader was watching from up in the stands, the area cleared out except for a few other warriors, clansmen and chieftains. This was part of his advanced training, General Heartstop was standing to the side with a barely contained smirk. Sombra ducked under a spear, sweat dripping off of him as his muscles burned, bruises more and more visible with every new whack of the spears, made of light wood that was as strong as steel. He hoped it would be over soon.

One stick to his back sent him to the ground, panting from the exhaustion, his whole body quivering as if struck with cold. “I… I’m done… No more, please… I can’t…” His breathing was ragged, every fiber of his being screaming in agony as he rolled onto his back. “I yield… no more today…” the warriors moved away, putting poles and spears away as he lay there defeated. Everything is on fire… I'm getting stronger, but at what cost…?

The chief came up and helped him stand, holding him steady as healers came over to help fix his more serious injuries. “You are improving, but you can't progress any further until you remove the blocks inside your mind.” He emphasized by touching his staff to Sombra's forehead. “Once you clear those away, you will improve greatly. For now, salves and rest. I will have my daughter bring you food.” Healers wrapped his sides with a cooling salve to help his ribs, limping to his hut as he bade the others a good night, carefully laying down on his mat.

Straw and pelts never felt so comfortable in his life.

Chief Otis had given him a small hut, yet comfortably warm at night time, a small fire to one side kept the temperature above freezing. Coming to a warmer environment than he was used to was taxing and hard to acclimate his body to, passing out from heat exhaustion in his first few days. It also didn't help that the tribe was partially nomadic, moving where the water was most plentiful, which meant sharing it with the large predators and wild game as well.

He stretched out a little, hissing in pain. “Damn rib…” he checked the bandage as a knock came. “Enter.” He looked up and blushed a little bit as the chief's daughter, Zeva, came in with a warm smile and a tray of food on her back. She was a little shorter than him, maybe a head shorter but she was built strong like him. Her mane was done in a mohawk that was braided down one side, her stripes lending to her more exotic nature and mysteriousness as she set the tray down.

“I hope my father didn't break your appetite.” She made her way over and laid down next to him to check on his wounds, touching his tender muscles gently as she was able to. “A few bruises, minor cuts and abrasions… That broken rib will make training harder for you if it doesn't puncture your lung first…” He was lost in her voice, soothing and comforting while she examined him. He was not infatuated with her, but she was a delight to be around, often sharing stories or sitting with her at meals around the bonfires.

She was training to become a shaman, a healer that would travel the land to spread the zebras' knowledge of potions and healing salves. They could make concoctions that healed anything from a chipped tooth to a broken leg, some even claiming to have the ability to bring ponies back from the dead, but that was touching on forbidden magic. He jumped a little bit, wincing from the pain as she watched him.

“Ow…” She had brushed her hoof along his side and touched the sore spot above his ribs along his back. She gave an apologetic look as he laid his head down, eyes closing as she worked a sweet smelling salve into his fur.

“Sombra… How could you be unmarried?”

He blinked at the question. “Who says I'm not?” He lifted his head to watch her face, a bit of an amused smile on her lips. “Are you zebras always this forward?” He tucked his tail around himself as she moved to apply more of the sweet stuff to his back legs.

“Why hide behind a lie when the truth is better to hear, no matter how harsh it may be?” She paused to side eye him, his face turning a visible red color as he looked away. She adjusted herself to lay beside him, resting her head on his back carefully. He relaxed again as he let his head lay back on the soft mat, his mind now racing. Is she flirting with me…? No… Maybe? Ugh, mares are so complicated… He looked to the window, the moon waning in the sky as he sighed a little bit.

It had been 3 months since he left the borders of the edge of equestria, his heart longing for the softness of his girlfriend, missing the way she would kiss his forehead while he slept at night before going to night court. He missed the long conversations about nothing as they would lay together and admire a new constellation she made or complain about their duties. He missed how she always managed to make time for him even on his bad days, she would sit and sip tea as he ranted about this or that, never once judging him for how he felt about his duties.

“You miss her, don't you? Your friend.” He nodded as she nuzzled between his shoulder blades, tensing up a little before relaxing at the stimulation. “I sometimes hear you talk about her… She means a lot to you, doesn't she…?” He nodded a little bit before lifting his head up and rested it on her back, letting himself relax.

“... I hope one day that my grandchildren's grandchildren can spread the knowledge of potions, roaming lands I have only heard about from your stories, king of snow and ice…” She nuzzled into his neck as he looked at her with a gentle smile. The thought of them becoming friends, growing older and wiser together, maybe he could… he tossed the thought from his mind. What was he thinking? He had only known this mare for less than 3 months, besides, he had a girl waiting for him to return…

“That sounds like a wonderful thought, Zeva.” He nuzzled her cheek affectionately, tenderly like he had done for Luna when she was tired and falling asleep. “I hope we stay friends… Hey, how about this. I promise to come visit when my training is over and maybe you could come see the Crystal Empire one day.” She started to nod off against him, soon falling asleep as he brought a pelt over and wrapped it around them both carefully before resting his head down himself.

Life here wasn't so bad.

Nightmare laughed, having downed another mug of ale as another dragon forfeits, his face red with the alcohol getting to him. "Well, that didn't last long, did it?" She balanced the mug on her nose as others laughed or slapped backs. Her return to the clan was a bit rocky, but soon they welcomed her with good food, merriment and ale.

Dragon ale was some of the strongest, most delicious ale that money could buy or steal if you were brave enough. Or stupid enough that is. She held up a tankard made of carved wood to ask for a refill, her cheeks a soft pink color against her black coat. A night like this was needed; cooped up in the castle doing boring meetings with boring people and doing boring duties was, well, boring. She smiled at the sweet smelling drink, the foam dripping down the side lazily as she sipped it slowly, the warmth hitting her belly and warming her body.

Apollo would kill her if she knew where she was right now at this time of night but she didn't care. Apollo Could shove where her precious sun didn't shine for all she cared. As she drank the cold liquid, she looked around the cave with merriment and joy, all sorts of dragons partying and having a good time.

This is what the night had to offer, good food, good friends… How many had she had? 5? 7?

She set her mug down and stood up, the room spinning as she gripped the table with a groan. Some tried to offer her more drink or food that made her mouth water, but she looked to the cave entrance and winced. It was a few hours before sunrise, she had been out all night partying and was in for an earful from her older brother no doubt, but first she had to get back home…

She landed on her balcony with a bit of a wobble but managed to keep upright. She hoped that no one saw her and that she could sneak into bed to lay down for a few winks, sleep off the headache that was already coming. She shook her head, bad idea, the balcony swaying underneath her and she hugged the railing with a groan.

“Where have you been?” A light flicked on, hurting her eyes as she looked to the fireplace, a blur of white sitting there before her eyes adjusted to see Apollo laying there with Luna’s paperwork she was supposed to get done. Nightmare stood a little straighter and attempted to walk to the bed without tripping; maybe if she just focused on the bed and nothing else, she would seem tired and not drunk.

“Out. Since when do you stay up this late?” She tripped over her own shoes, falling to the floor, her royal rump in the air with her wings sitting at odd angles and her crown crooked. She couldn't stop the giggling from escaping her, nor did she have the energy to care as Apollo picked her up in his too bright gold magic and brought her to the bathroom, setting her down at the toilet, hugging the porcelain with a grateful sigh.

“You reek of alcohol.” Apollo said as he sat down beside the dark mare, rubbing her back soothingly. “I promise not to be upset if you tell me where you were.” Night thought for a few moments before puking into the bowl, groaning with a bit of protest as her brother helped as best he could; if she told him where she was, she would have to deal with the clan being upset with her. If she told him a lie, she wouldn't remember in the morning what she had said…

“You’re a terrible liar…” Night slurred, half mumbling her words. The alabaster colt watched his young sister for a moment before resting his head back against the sink. She was right, he had a terrible poker face when it came to his sisters, never could keep himself from lying to them especially in recent years. A rift was dividing the co-rulers, one he hoped to negate before it got too big but first he had to keep Night from drowning in her own puke.

“C’mon, up. Let's get you cleaned up for bed.” He tried moving the dark mare with protests and shooing motions from his sibling. “Come on, Night, up. I will push you into that shower if it-”

“You’re not mom, leave me alone…” Neither moved or said anything for a long moment, sitting in uncomfortable silence. It had been many, many years since their parents disappeared without a trace after they had matured into teenagers all that time ago, neither one wanted to acknowledge the fact that other than each other, all other alicorns were unheard of or some bastard race all their own.

“You’re right… I'm sorry…” Apollo watched as Night got up from the floor and stumbled a little to the shower, leaning on the wall as the solar stallion helped to clean her fur, gently rubbing his sister's leathery wings. It was still strange to see how different she was to Luna, even though they shared a body, it was night and day almost literally. When she first met Nightmare, he was afraid of her; the dragon eyes, bat wings and the darker physique was… startling to say the least. His mother would scold him for berating on his sister and their shared body, telling him that he needed to be loving and supportive.

No matter how different she was, she was still his baby sister.

“... Do you miss her?” Night muttered tiredly into his neck. Apollo had to resist the urge to touch the mark of a certain chaotic being, covered up by his necklace so it wasn't so visible, a silvery scar from her bite mark. How many years now? 3, maybe 400 years since that day? Some nights he woke up in a cold sweat, or he could hardly sleep because of the guilt that plagued his mind, telling him that what he did was wrong. What they did was wrong, imprisoning him for what, trying to help, to fix things? She didn't deserve to be turned to stone like that, the elements…

“No… I don't miss her…” he watched the fire as it crackled, softly popping from the slightly damp log. He put on a brave face before, he’d do it again… For the sake of his kingdom.

“Not even a little bit? You loved her, didn't you?”

“Night…”

“How can you say that, as if it was a matter of duty what we did, something that was needed… I miss her too, she was a good friend.”

“Nightmare…”

“You can't just sit there and pretend that everything is fine, you loved her. What we did, don't you feel a little bad? I-”

“Of course I miss her… There isn't a day that goes by that I don't. What we… What I…” He swallowed the ache in his chest, his heart beating loud in his ears as he laid there as still as he could before taking a shaky breath. Eris, the goddess of chaos was his first friend, his first best mate through thick and thin and was eventually his… He closed his eyes, thinking back to that night, the smell of the fresh cut roses, the struggle he had opening a bottle of wine… the way she looked in the moonlight…

He shifted, using his wings to move his sister off of him before grabbing a blanket to cover her, heading to the door.

“I should go… I have court in the morning…”

“Brother, i-”

The door shut behind him, cutting off whatever Nightmare was about to say, tears steaming off of his cheeks as he made his way to his room. How dare she bring her up, how dare she tell him what he should feel. Just because she’s head over heels for some guy… He tried not to slam the door, his guards didn't need to be afraid, but he went to the balcony with tears streaming down his face with steam rising from his cheeks. Why did it have to hurt this much, the pain of losing someone so close to him? He had a right to feel however he wanted, he sacrificed so much for them, so much he had missed out on so that they would be safe and now…

His eyes narrowed to the crystal empire. It was his fault. He started it all, the rebellious nature, the late nights playing catch up with his sisters paperwork, the drunk alicorn sleeping in her sisters bedroom all of it. If he just got rid of him…

The tears stopped, a smile forming on his perfect face. Oh yes, if he got rid of him, his sister would listen again, she would be happier for it. The smile grew to a wolfish grin, a glint of malice in his eyes as he watched the aurora in the clouds, a wicked idea forming as he went to his desk, sitting down to write a letter.

General Heartstop woke up with a stretch, the straw and pelts under him were rather nice to wake up on. The sun shone through and greeted him, his charcoal coat welcoming the warmth with a smile as he got up. He fixed himself up, looking in the mirror to adjust his hair as his dark blue eyes adjusted to the light. He turned to look at himself, smiling as he picked up a silver necklace with the symbol of the sun, the solar stallions cutie mark perfectly replicated to show where his loyalties lie.

He remembered the day he gave him this necklace, a task for his most majestic radiance. He wanted him to keep an eye on the new ruler, at least at first that's what it was, soon turning into him becoming a general to persuade the regent of the crystal empire to whatever he needed.

He put on the necklace and cast a spell to make it turn invisible but still felt the weight on his chest, a constant reminder that he was watching him.

He made his way outside, the sun warming him as he looked around the village, nodding in greeting to passersby, he went to the training area. Sombra rose before sunrise and insisted on training before it got hot out. Heartstop on the other hoof rose with the sun and went to bed with it, a scowl on his face. No respect for the one who made all this possible, selfish brat. Entering the area, he couldn't help the smile on his face as the ‘king’ was knocked on his ass again and again while he watched, concern creeping into his mind.

If Sombra kept this up, they would head back in a month or so, much sooner than what Lord Apollo had in mind for the king. He had to make up more and more things to tell the chief to keep Sombra here for longer, first telling him that he needed to get stronger, then it was telling the chief that maybe expand his knowledge of other things. He even convinced the war lord that Sombra was unwed, a king needed a queen after all.

After the fourth time knocked over, Heartstop stepped in. “Alright, that's enough. You’re overworking yourself; that rib won't heal if you keep breaking it.” He touched Sombra's side with his hoof, the monarch wincing in pain. “See? Have you even eaten yet or did you wake up too early this morning to enjoy a meal for once, your majesty.” He really could care less, but Apollo was counting on him. “C’mon, let's get you patched up and some food in your belly.”

They went to the food tent, a hot breakfast already waiting for them. After they each grabbed some food, Sombra, after Heartstop insisted, went to get patched up while the general sat down to eat. His mind was racing as to what he could tell Sombra or the chief why they needed to stay longer when a letter popped up in front of him, immediately recognizing the symbol stamped on the red wax seal.

He opened it carefully, taking in the lavender and vanilla scent of the Lord before reading quickly.

Dear General Heart

I know it has been a while since you and I have spoken, no doubt missing our talks by the fire, but I ask for your assistance once more. King Sombra must become stronger by any means necessary, more training, magic, potions, something to keep him there until winter has come and gone here. I fear that if he is to come back now, he won't be well equipped enough to handle my sister, she has grown not only in size but power as well. I am afraid that if he does not grow himself, his heart will be broken, and I would rather not deal with a vengeful king if I can help it.

Love is a very powerful thing and a mare scorned is one thing, but a stallion who loses his love? That is a force to be reckoned with. Keep him there, keep him busy, I will see you once the spring thaw is over.

Yours, Apollo.

He kissed the letter with a wide smile on his face, beaming with pride. His Lord has given him another task, a new assignment to follow and he would not fail. He read it slower, drinking in the words as if he said them directly. He quickly put the letter away as Sombra came up, rebandaged and a tray of food in his magic.

“What was that? A letter?” The king sat beside the black stallion and started eating, eyeing the nervous stallion. “You alright? You’re sweating…” Heartstop nodded and turned to his food, suddenly becoming very hungry and wolfing it down, Sombra raising a brow at him but shrugged it off. Some generals were weird.

After downing a mug of water, Heartstop took a breath, coughing a little. “Mm… Yeah, yeah it was a letter from…” Think, think… “My mother. She’s excited for my sister, she’s having a baby girl. I'm gonna be an uncle.” He grinned a little too wide, hoping that his strange behavior justified the fabricated lie. He made a mental note to write to his mother and his sister to send off to show that it was indeed just his family keeping tabs on him. Hoping that the king bought it, he excused himself and got up, taking the food tray with him as he quickly left before Sombra could ask anything else; he wished for the fourth time that week that he was a better liar. His brother, the poor bastard, was a better liar, so much so that he was the first one in the family to actually get away with stealing from the crown and paid dearly for it.

He rushed back to his hut, shutting the door quickly before taking a deep, shaky breath. He had to get his breathing under control, he had to, he couldn't afford to pass out now. He stood there shakily with a hoof over his heart, touching the silver pendent and taking solace in the fact that he had someone to keep him grounded, sane even. Without his guidance… he shuddered at the thought.

A month had come and gone, but Sombra was now content with his new strength, his power had increased since living with the zebras and he was ready to head home. Heartstop made his way to Sombra's hut, knocking once before entering as he looked around the room, the king had already packed his things and was ready to head back.

“I almost have everything put back the way it was, what about you? Ready to head back to the Empire?” The stallion smiled at the shorter general, who watched the king closely.

“Are you sure you want to head back so soon? I know 4 months must be a long time since seeing your girlfriend, but still… There’s nothing else they could show you, or teach you?” He was shifting in place now, uncomfortable with the power shift in the room, Sombra's aura pressing against his like a physical presence as he averted his gaze. He knew something like this would happen, but he didn't think the king would actually succeed like this. If he had known what all this training would do, he wouldn't have suggested it in the first place, he might have gone so far as to tell Sombra that he should have just gone to the frozen mountains in search of a monk or something and hoped he died along the way.

“Zeva says I can tell the difference between plants with just a smell, I can lift three times my own body weight with one arm and my magic is strong enough on its own even without training. I think I can protect Luna now.” He put his hair back in a bun and looked at the short stallion. Heartstop was now backed into a corner; it was true that Sombra was now more powerful than when they arrived but now he ran the risk of disappointing the solar goddess, his pillar, his-

“Excuse me, gentlemen, but we require your assistance.” The chief entered the hut with a neutral face. “We have run out of water and need to dig a new well. I know you have plans to return before the end of the next moon cycle, but since the two of you possess magic…” he glanced at Sombra first, the stronger of the two, something Heartstop noticed and had to keep from scowling at the old stallion.

“Of course, with both of us helping it should only take a few hours instead of a week.” The king smiled warmly, following him outside as Heart stood there in disbelief. Maybe this was what he needed, to take a break from manipulation and just do some physical labor for once.

Author's Note

Let me know how this chapter feels, having some issues with continuing the stories, but other than that, ejoy chapter two!