A Villain Gets A Second Chance

You lie awake in bed after a sleepless night of reliving your past and being plagued by new nightmares involving your future changeling children, which Luna found quite entertaining each time she came to dispel them. Feeling Twilight still lying against you with her front to yours, you pull out your book and try to finish studying the last few spells in it.

Managing to memorize the last few spells, you feel Twilight stretch her body and legs out, incidentally brushing her left hind thigh against your sheath and pressing her flat teats against your abdomen and put the book away before she spots it, saying, "Morning sleepyhead, time to get up and tame that jungle on your head."

Opening her eyes with a giggle, Twilight slips out of bed after giving you a brief good morning peck on the lips, saying, "I hope it isn't too crazy today..."

When you watch her enter the bathroom, you hear her exclaim in fright saying, "WHY DIDN'T YOU WARN ME THAT I LOOK LIKE A RAVING MANTICORE!"

You chuckle and call after her, saying, "I did say you had a jungle on your head, does that come close?"

Blowing a raspberry out the door at you, she says, "NOT EVEN CLOSE!" Pulling out her emergency beauty supplies, she starts running a comb through it, saying, "This will take me a few minutes to deal with, why don't you go let Princess Celestia know of your plans to return to Ponyville today?"

Rising from bed, you move to the edge of the bed and stand on the floor, saying, "Alright, will we be having breakfast here or on the train?"

As she starts on another tangle, she says, "We will be having breakfast with Princess Celestia if she is feeling up for it, if she doesn't, we will have breakfast on the train."

Nodding your head, you say, "I will make sure to find out how she feels this morning, I have something I need to return to her anyway."

Twilight hears you head out the door, and says, "Thank you!"

Making your way to the dining room where breakfast is served to the princesses, you enter the room to find Princess Celestia sitting at a table looking ready to tackle the day while Luna sits across from her with her head in a bucket. Walking up to the two princesses, you bow to them, saying, "Good morning, your majesties, you both look so radiant this morning."

Pulling her head out of the bucket long enough to scowl at you, Luna says, "I don't look or feel radiant at all, no thanks to my sister and you."

As she watches her sister return her head to the bucket, she groans at the slice of cake in front of her, saying, "Ugh, I hate how cake makes me gag in the morning."

Luna hears her pass the slice towards her and groans, saying, "At least you can keep your food down..." Turning her head to the kitchen door, she says, "Bring out a small plate of oyster crackers, please."

You can't help but sigh at their suffering and walk up to Luna first to give her a firm hug and a kiss on the cheek, saying, "I was wondering if either of you were feeling up for having breakfast with the girls?"

Both sisters groan at the mention of breakfast as you walk over to give Celestia a hug and a kiss on the lips, who takes the initiative to deepen the kiss and pull away, saying, "I hope that you or the girls won't be offended...but neither of us can stand the smell of fruit or juice."

Nodding your head in understanding, you say, "Very well then, I shall tell the girls that you are both suffering from morning sickness and are unavailable at this time."

When a pony brings out a small platter of oyster crackers, Luna attempts to eat one and expects to hurl into the bucket yet again. However, when it stays down, she sighs with relief saying, "At last I have found something that I can keep down."

Not sure of what to do, you then ask, "Is there anything that I can do for the both of you?"

As they both try to think of something, Luna shakes her head while Celestia smiles and says, "Yes, I was wondering how you were coming on studying that book we lent you. How close are you to finishing it?"

Smiling back at her, you pull the book out and set it on the table beside her as she steals an oyster cracker from her sister's plate, saying, "I just finished a few minutes ago and wanted to return it to one of you before I return to Ponyville with the girls."

Surprised at hearing the news, Luna stops eating and takes a drink of water to wash the crackers down, asking, "You're returning to Ponyville already?"

Sensing that her sister is on the verge of tears, Celestia says, "Thank you, I will expect you to visit us at least twice a week or we will send the guard after you."

You see Luna's face brighten up a little and nod in agreement, saying to them, "Of course I will visit twice a week, I won't let the beautiful alicorn mares carrying my children get lonely on my watch."

Luna watches you walk up to her, wondering what you are going to do when you suddenly move in for a kiss. Squeaking out in protest, she tries to squirm away from your lips saying, "Don't kiss me, I have barf breath!"

Celestia giggles at her sister's struggle, taking the chance to steal the rest of her oyster crackers while you succeed in kissing her deeply.

Huffing in embarrassment, she notices her oyster crackers are gone and scowls at her sister, then turns back to you, saying, "I will look forward to when you visit us again."

Nuzzling your nose against hers for a moment, you say, "So do I, Lulu." Raising your voice, you look at the kitchen door, saying, "Can one of you please bring a bowl of crackers out for the princesses so they don't steal each other's food?"

Both sister's look at each other and burst into light chuckles, as Luna says, "You're right...we would be doing that to each other the rest of the morning."

Celestia takes the book and uses a spell to return it to its place, saying, "We wish you a safe trip back to Ponyville."

As a couple of bowls of oyster crackers are set before Celestia and Luna, Luna smirks at you, saying, "Yes, and we also hope everything works out between you and Twilight."

Making your way towards the door with an irritated look on your face, you say, "Jeez, there are spies everywhere here."

A guard looks at you from the corner of his eye and nods almost imperceptibly to confirm that, thinking, 'And they're all mares too...'

When you return to your room, you see that Twilight is coming out of the bathroom with her mane and tail finally under control, saying, "I see you have everything under control now, did you have much trouble?"

Chuckling, she shakes her head, saying, "Not as much as I thought I would have. How did things go with the Princesses?"

Smiling at her, you say, "Everything was okay, however they both are suffering from morning sickness and are unavailable at this time. Shall we gather the others and head to the train station?"

After gathering the few things you have, you and Twilight gather the others before making your way to the train to Ponyville. As you sit with Twilight, she turns to you and asks, "So what kind of utility spells are you interested in learning? Cleaning? Organizing?!"

You spot her manic smile and chuckle, saying, "Not really, the kind I was looking for would be like teleporting yourself or others to other locations as I seen you do a few times."

Understanding your idea of utility now, she smiles and says, "Ok, I can definitely teach you how to do that."

Just north of the banished Crystal Empire

Jaina forges ahead through the blizzard, using her magic to keep herself warm. Determined to get out of the snowy wasteland where the only food she can find are these strangely shaped berries that thrive in the cold weather, she pushes on without rest and reaches the bottom of the treacherous mountain range when she senses a massive amount of fowl magical aura to the east of her, saying, "I don't like the feel of whatever is east of me, so I will steer clear of it and keep moving south. I must get out of this place soon...just how did my prince manage to get out of this endless blizzard?"

As she struggles on through the blizzard through another day, she finally begins to see clear skies ahead of her and chuckles at the happy sight, saying tiredly, "Hah...I'm...almost out...of this place, must...keep going...for my prince."

When she finally makes it out of the snow-covered landscape ravaged by endless blizzards, she revels in the cloudless sky under a beautiful full moon for a few moments when she notices a faint glow coming from the other side of the hill.

Once she stands at the top of the hill utterly exhausted and wanting to take a nap, her eyes catch sight of a city several miles away and smiles at fortune smiling on her, saying, "Just a few...more miles, then I can...find a place to rest...and start my search."

Weeks go by as you finally learn how to teleport along with a few other spells that might make everyday life a bit easier, even learning how to cast Rarity's gem finding spell when you and the girls receive an urgent summons from Celestia.

On the train to Canterlot an hour later, Twilight is frantically going through everything she has learned, causing you to worry for her sanity if she continues like this. Opening your mouth to say something to her about it, you remember how she reacted to Spike saying something to her and decide a different approach, saying, "Twilight, there is no test that you cannot pass, but you need to maintain a calm mind and not fret about what you do not know."

Pausing a moment, she leans against your side and takes a deep, calming breath and sets the book she was going through down, saying, "I am so glad that you are around to keep me from getting myself worked up too much."

As you smile back at her, you say, "And I am glad to have you and the girls around to keep me in check."

While they wait for Twilight to arrive, Celestia looks up at the window, whispering, "I know that she will succeed at this task, and when she does...we'll know she's that much closer to being ready."

Luna turns to her sister and asks in a concerned whisper, "I hope you are right sister, but is it really wise to send Arthas with them? Surely you remember how many soldiers that were forever corrupted from the use of his dark magic?"

Sighing and turning to face her sister, Celestia feels guilty for what she plans to do and says,"I know that it is a big risk to have Arthas undertake, sister, but he needs to experience what Dark Magic is like. He can only grow stronger if he can learn to manage the impulses he gets from using his Dark Magic."

Still fearing for your sake, Luna sighs and says, "I still don't like how tall of a task you are going to put onto his shoulders, if he isn't strong enough to handle it...I fear for the fate of our world," Placing a hoof upon her abdomen, she finishes, and says, "And for the future of our foals."

Placing a hoof upon her own abdomen, Celestia looks up at the newest mural, saying, "So do I sister, so do I." Moments later, she hears some pony clearing their throat and looks over to see that her student has arrived, puts a smile on her face before turning to her sister and saying softly, "Please trust me with this, little sister."

Unconvinced that it is going to work, she sighs and nods her head hesitantly then heads towards the throne room doors, thinking, 'If we lose the father of our foals to the cruel task you have in mind for him, I will never forgive you.'

Once Celestia asks Twilight to help protect the Crystal Empire from Sombra, she bravely accepts the task and asks where to start, saying, "You will begin by joining Princess Cadance and Shining Armor in the Crystal Empire."

Happy to hear that her brother is there, she asks, "My brother is there?"

Making her way to the throne room doors with Twilight following beside her, she says, "He is indeed there. And your Ponyville friends will join you there as well."

Smiling even wider, Twilight prances and asks hopefully, "Even Arthas?"

As she nears the throne room doors, she says, "He will also be there, though he will have his own task to accomplish. I have every confidence that you will succeed, and when you do...I'll know you are ready for the next level of your studies."

Stopping beside her mentor, she notices Luna look down at her with a serious look, causing her confidence to wane and ask, "But what if I fail?"

Wanting to reassure her, Celestia shakes her head with a smile, saying, "I know you won't, you have never failed one of my tests yet so I am confident that you will pass this one."

Still lacking confidence in herself, she starts saying, "But what if I-" when she feels her mentor lay a hoof on her neck to calm her down, reassuring her that she won't fail.

When she starts to walk away, she stops her by saying, "But Twilight, it must be you and you alone in the end, who ultimately assists Princess Cadance and Shining Armor in doing what needs to be done to protect the empire. Do you understand?"

Putting on a brave face, she stands tall and nods, saying, "Mhm, I understand."

Just before finishing the conversation, she sends her on her way saying, "Then go, there is no time to lose. Please send Arthas here so I can give him his own task."

With Celestia pulling the doors closed, Twilight's head hangs at the important task given to her as she starts to make her way back to where you and Spike are.

When Twilight makes her way down the steps, you hear Spike comment about how fast it was, and ask her, "So how did it go?"

Not in the mood to say much, she looks up at you and says, "Celestia wishes to see you at once about an important matter."

Nodding your head, you make your way toward the stairs, saying, "Where are you going? That way I can catch up after she is done scolding me."

With a soft smile crossing her face, she looks at you, saying, "We will wait here until she's finished with you, then we will be on our way back to Ponyville."

Concerned about what is making her so down, you say, "Okay, I will be back here faster than Pinkie Pie can eat a four-tiered chocolate cake."

Walking through the castle doors, you trot towards the throne room and open the door abruptly, asking in a warning tone, "What is going on, what did you tell Twilight that has her so worried?"

Celestia frowns and closes the door, saying, "During your time in the Frozen North, did you ever hear anything about the Crystal Empire?"

Cocking your head, you then go through what you know and say, "I have heard Chilly and her sister tell me a little about it, saying that it was a powerful nation that suddenly disappeared one day."

Shocked at you knowing that much, she then fills you in on further details. It takes her a couple minutes to share what happened to it before finally saying, "I have given a test to Twilight, asking her to find a way to assist Princess Cadence and Shining Armor in protecting the Empire from Sombra's return. What I don't want them to know, is that when he was banished...he took an army of corrupted soldiers with him. The task that I wish for you to accomplish, is dealing with that threat before the soldiers or Sombra reclaim his hold over the Empire. My sister and I do not want the kingdom to fall under his tyrannical rule again, so will you please serve as the front line and keep Sombra, and his army of shadow soldiers at bay while Twilight works on accomplishing her own task?"

The heaviness of the task presented to you is apparent as you hang your head in deep thought over having to battle an evil king that took both princesses to imprison, taking you a few moments to prepare your mind for the challenge that lies ahead. With no choice but to accept, you then nod your head, saying, "I shall accept the task presented to me, Your Majesty, I will put my all into giving her the time needed to achieve victory."

Just before you have a chance to leave, Luna looks at you with a pleading look in her eyes as a tear slips down her cheek, saying, "Good luck out there, Arthas."

Bowing to the two princesses, you then turn and make your way out of the throne room hastily. Your mind reels at having such a big opportunity presented to you to redeem yourself so early, bringing a smile to your face as you think, 'I will either succeed in my task or die giving her the time to fulfill her task...'

As you arrive outside, you hear Twilight start singing a song and follow her down the path. After a brief pause, the two of you walk through the city when she resumes singing and picks up a teapot and pours somepony a cup of tea. The song continues on as she then recites the square root of a high number, causing you to be mildly amused at how vast her intelligence is.

Eventually arriving at the station after following her around town aimlessly, you watch as the others gather on the platform with Applejack being the first one to greet her. As you hear the others ask her questions about the test, you remain silent as she tells them where you all are going.

After heading to Ponyville to pack for the trip, you sit with Twilight and spend the entire trip staring out the window, quietly asking yourself if you are ready for this opportunity. Once the train pulls to a stop at the station, you are the last to get out and see Spike struggling to carry Rarity's bags.

Spike slips on some ice, causing all the bags to fall with one of them bursting open and allowing some of the scarves within to blow away in the blizzard, getting up again and giving chase to them saying, "Hey, come here!"

You narrow your eyes in the blowing snow as Spike chases after Rarity's garments, watching as Shining Armor approaches from the blizzard, removing his shades and scarf from his muzzle to hug Twilight. Hearing him suggesting they get moving and then warning them about things being out here that they don't want to run into after dark, you see Fluttershy gulp nervously and ask, "What kind of things?"

Shining Armor looks out in the distance for anything remotely dangerous and glances back, saying, "Let's just say that the empire isn't the only thing that came back."

As you watch him start walking, you look at the girls and say, "Let's not hang around then, Twilight, follow your brother and lead us while I guard the rear."

While she nods and follows her brother through the blowing snow, she hears her brother speak and look back over her shoulder at her, saying, "Something keeps trying to get it, but we haven't been able to get a good look at it. Though we think that it might be the unicorn king that originally cursed the place."

Drawn into another memory, you keep walking as you find yourself standing on the frozen waters of Icecrown's Northeastern lake. Walking forward with purpose in a heavy robe to protect you from the deadly chill of Icecrown, you walk out onto the frozen lake and stand in the center of it where Sapphiron told him Sindragosa fell. Drawing Frostmourne from its scabbard, you swiftly raise it into the air and hold it parallel to the ground and concentrate on gathering the fallen dragon's soul into the sword.

As her soul is drawn into Frostmourne, you turn your attention to the powerful soul you just collected and ask her through your helm's ability to commune and control the dead, 'I learned of your fall and desire to resurrect you, so serve me well, Sindragosa.'

Choosing to bind herself to yours, she bows her head as her rage boils within her, answering from within the sword, 'I will gladly serve you, my king. All I ask is to unleash my hatred upon those that abandoned me. Many of my flight fell battling Deathwing, they will be great additions to your might.'

As you take your sword in both hands, you turn the blade down and thrust it into the ice. Returning her soul to her skeletal form, you resurrect her and say, "Now rise again, Sindragosa, and lead me to more of your fallen kin." Suddenly pulled from your memory, you hear a long predatory howl in the distance and look around to see something shadowy gather behind you, making you turn to the girl's saying, "We need to get to the empire...MOVE!"

Shining Armor sees his sister and the girls start running towards the barrier a distance ahead, looking around to find Spike carrying Rarity's luggage while looking up at the shadow monster. Picking Spike up with his magic, he turns around and runs toward the barrier, saying, "This way, Blizzard!"

Knowing that it is the time to run, you follow him and the girls. As Spike runs ahead of the girls, he starts to slow down when Twilight lowers her head and tosses him onto her back, shouting, "Go! Go!"

Spotting a light in the distance and hear Shining Armor say that you're almost there when he suddenly stops and turns around to face the monster. Sliding to a stop yourself, you watch as he bravely attacks the monster with magical beams that the shadow monster dodges easily.

When the monster charges at the captain, you watch him raise a protective barrier that remains intact for a few seconds before cracking. As you watch shadow start to flood into the barrier, black crystals sprout all over his horn.

The sight spurs you into action as you grab Shining Armor with your magic and toss him out of the monster's reach, shouting, "GO!"

He shakes the dizziness from his mind and looks around to find you holding him back with a barrage of sunbeams, and says, "This way Blizzard!"

Not intending on remaining within the barrier long, you follow him through and stop just inside of it as Twilight rushes toward her brother, saying worriedly, "Oh no, brother, your horn!"

As he tries and fails to use his magic, he shakes his head with a frown, saying, "Let's get to the castle, Cadance is waiting for us."

You look back and watch as the barrier holds against the monster's shadowy attacks, then face forward to continue following the girls.

Once the empire is in view, you hear Pinkie say, "Sparklerific!"

Joining them on the hill, you stop and look at the city carved out of crystal, saying, "Impressive, you and your sister were telling the truth Chilly, it really is quite the sight."

Coming out for a bit, she giggles and flits about your head, saying, "Of course we were, Windigoes never lie."

As you walk towards the crystal city, you watch Rarity trot up to various things and marvel at everything. One strange thing you notice though, is that you don't see any one outside, saying under your breath, "I can understand why they don't want to be outside..."

When you arrive at the castle, you hear Rainbow tease Rarity about it being just another old castle and chuckle when she rises to the bait and starts to have a conniption. With a smirk, you look the castle over and shrug, saying, "Too shiny and bright for my tastes."

Curious, Rarity turns to you and asks, "And what did your castle look like?"

As you follow them inside, you say, "Bigger, much darker, and as imposing as I could make it."

Arriving at the throne room, you see an exhausted Cadance sitting upon the throne maintaining a magical aura when Twilight approaches Cadance happily who meets and do the strangest greeting ever. Cocking your head at the sight, you say, "Am I the only one here who finds that a little disturbing?"

Hearing that, Cadance and Twilight finish the greeting and burst out laughing, saying in unison with the others, "Yep!"

Still maintaining the barrier, she smiles at Twilight when a pang of magic exhaustion hits her. Wincing in pain as her magic flickers, she forces herself to keep going, saying, "Someday we should get together when the fate of Equestria isn't hanging in the balance."

As you hear Twilight ask Cadance if she is okay, you see Shining Armor walk up and stand beside her, telling how she has been spreading love and light with her magic. Hearing how her love and light seeming to be the only thing protecting the empire, never sleeping or hardly eating over the past couple of days, you learn that Shining Armor's magic has been blocked by King Sombra.

When Cadance tries to tell Shining Armor she's fine, he tells everyone that she isn't fine and can't hold her spell forever. As you listen to them talk, you hear how he has been patrolling the arctic for trouble and say, "I will take your place in the arctic as the cold doesn't bother me, after all, I was tasked to keep the trouble at bay."

Not giving them a chance to stop you, you channel your magic to teleport to the barrier, saying, "My vigil has begun, good luck to you all in your search for a solution."

Unable to catch what Rarity said, she hears her brother say that they have to believe one of the crystal ponies knows how to protect the empire without Cadance's magic. As her mind tries to cope with how you just took off without kissing her, she tries to get back to her task at hand and says, "A research paper!"

When you stand by the barrier, you say, "Since Shining Armor's magic was countered, I wonder how well mine will fare."

Steeling your resolve to fight a stronger foe, you walk towards the barrier and see that King Sombra stopped attacking for now. When you exit the barrier, you use your magic to enhance your sight and wait for any sign of the king's return.

A half-minute passes when you hear the howl, watching as a towering shadow gathers in front of you. When you see a pair of glowing green eyes with red irises emitting purple smoke, you huff and prepare to cast your sunbeam barrage, buying a little time by starting a conversation, saying, "You must be the unicorn king responsible for the Crystal Empire's banishment."

Moving his head forward, Sombra smirks pridefully, saying, "Yesss...and you will soon become one of my subjects." He then charges towards you saying, "BOW TO ME NOW AND I WILL SHOW YOU MERCY!"

Shaking your head, you refuse, saying, "I will never submit to evil again! Be purged, you vile tyrant!" and cast your barrage all around him.

King Sombra howls with pain and pulls back, regrouping in a new spot to your left and tries to rush you again.

Quickly calling forth a barrier of sunlight, you feel him slam against the barrier and recoil in pain with another howl. When he surrounds you, you hold onto the barrier you have not had the chance to try out yet.

As he swirls around your barrier, he attacks it in various places to find a weak point. Several minutes pass when he strikes at the barrier to your left, grinning when he watches sweat drip down your neck and starts to attack it more frequently.

Silently cursing at not having the time to get used to the drain this barrier has on your magic, you push yourself harder to maintain it while each strike against the barrier gets stronger with every attempt.

You feel yourself starting to lose ground as you are pushed around by the attacks, looking around to find tiny fractures forming in the barrier. Sighing internally at knowing this barrier won't hold much longer, you realize that you are going to have to resort to using your Dark Magic soon to resume fighting back.

Seeing the strain maintaining the barrier has on you, he notices more cracks in a certain area above you and increases his attacks tenfold. Striking at your barrier at random four times per second, he focuses one to two of those attacks on that weak point above you.

Not sure how long you have been maintaining the fight, you breathe heavily as sweat runs down your face in rivulets when you hear your shield break. Unable to channel your dark magic fast enough, you feel Sombra's shadow engulf you and attempt to dominate your mind.

Images of your past deeds flash before your eyes at random as you feel tendrils of his magic penetrate the darkest reaches of your mind, seeing an image appear with you standing next to the corpse of a mother cradling her dead child in her arms while transforming Sylvanas into a banshee. The image stays for only a fraction of a second, but seems like it lasts for a long minute before changing to another scene frozen before your eyes.

Sombra focuses on dominating your mind, unable to see what memories you have and chuckles with glee as you shout out in agony. Sending his voice into your mind, he whispers in a dark, alluring tone, "Submit to me and obey my will, you will make a marvelous addition to my army."

You find yourself standing before the Frozen Throne with Frostmourne in your hand and the imprisoned Lich King, Ner'zhul, in front of you as you hear a disembodied voice whisper into your ear again, saying, "Take up arms under my command and together, we shall rule over all of Equestria."

Drawing back the sword in slow motion, you fight harder against his magic invading your mind. As your anger rises within you, you battle to change the event taking place before your very eyes and try with all your might to stop your swing.

As your sword gets closer to striking the ice, you begin to cry out as you apply even more strength into halting your sword. Squinting your eyes shut as you put your entire self into stopping the event's progression, you begin to scream no in a low tone.

Cadance struggles to keep awake as she senses somepony experiencing a great deal of despair, looking around to feel where it is strongest and discovers that it is coming from you, saying in a sorrowful tone, "If only there was something I could do...please stay strong while Twilight searches for a way to help."

Twilight opens the doors and walks in triumphantly, saying, "I found something!"

Shining Armor watches his sister with an interested look, asking, "What did you find, Twily?"

Spike opens the book for her and holds it up while Twilight reads from it, saying, "Let me read what I've found for you, it's called a Crystal Faire."

The blade is inches away from the ice as you scream no again, fighting back with all you have left and feel your hand twitch slightly. Knowing you felt something change, you fight back with renewed effort as you shout no again. As you open your eyes, you see the blade slowly come to a stop a fraction of an inch from the ice, shouting, "NO!" As a new feeling wells up within you, you tear the sword away from the ice yelling, "MY WILL IS MY OWN!"

A wave of yellow light coming from within you destroys Sombra's tendrils into you and sends his shadows flying away from you, screaming in pain from the blast.

Your anger peaks as your hope remains strong, letting you stand up taller and straighter as you start to call upon the dark magic slumbering within you. Channeling it into your eyes and holding onto it, you then call into the distance, saying, "Come forth, cowardly king and fight me!"

Gathering his shadowy form again, he howls in anger and replies, "I will make you pay for your insolence!" Then begins to summon his army of loyal soldiers, watching as a thousand of them emerge from beneath the ice. He then gives them the command to attack, bellowing, "DEFEAT AND SEIZE THAT FOOL!"

You watch as his soldiers charge toward you, drawing Spellmourne and saying, "The only fool here...is you!" Channeling your dark magic into your sword, you thrust it into the ground and send out your black lightning attack to inflict pain, saying, "FEEL THE PAIN YOU CAUSE WITH YOUR RULE!"

Your channeled attack hits the large group of armored shadow soldiers, causing them to writhe and scream out in pain. Wasting no time to let them recover, you call forth a rain of blue fireballs upon the soldiers.

While watching his group being decimated, Sombra summons a larger group having three thousand soldiers, bellowing, "GET HIM!"

You see the new group approaching and send forth a wave of icy spears that spring up out of the ground for a few seconds before returning to it, watching as it races forth and takes out a third of the soldiers. With your sword held in your dark magic, you charge forth toward the remaining soldiers.

Sombra watches in shock at how strong you are and summons a third of his remaining forces, sending the group of six thousand soldiers after you with an angry roar, saying, "Bring him to his knees!"

As you use your dark magic to call forth a raging whirlwind of blue fire, you watch as numerous soldiers are frozen solid and then take the opportunity to send forth your lightning attack again. Down on one knee, you watch as your lightning hits the frozen soldiers, causing them to burst apart. Ice, blood, limbs, and armor scatter in every direction while some blood splashes against your pure white coat, with some leaving a streak along your face and across your eye, though you manage to blink at just the right time to avoid getting blood in your eye. Unimpressed with his army, you call forth your rain of blue fire down all around you, shouting above the explosions, "Is this the best you can do, tyrant?!"

Seething with rage, he bellows, "I WILL MAKE YOU PAY FOR YOUR ARROGANCE AND TAKE GREAT DELIGHT IN TORTURING YOU!"

Following Twilight to the balcony, Cadance looks down at the gathered crystal ponies when she senses a disturbing amount of dark magic outside. While she continues to maintain the barrier, she begins to worry for your safety, thinking, 'Keep fighting, Blister, we need more time still...'

As Twilight is interrupted by Pinkie Pie blowing the flugelhorn again, she looks back at her with a slight frown, wordlessly asking 'seriously?'. When her friend puts the horn away with a nervous giggle, she apologizes and lets her continue. Finally able to continue announcing the Crystal Faire, she calls out loudly, "Hear ye, hear ye! Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor do cordially invite you to attend the Crystal Faire."

As Cadance's magic flickers again, she and twilight get a glimpse of blue fire raining from the clouds as Twilight gasps at the sight. A whimper of worry escapes her as she fights against her desire to run to you, thinking, 'Please stay strong a little longer...we are almost there.'

As you send forth a wave of blue fire, it sets hundreds of soldiers on fire and causes them to cry out in agony at not being able to put them out.

Agitated with your resistance, he then smirks and says, "I tried to be merciful, but you leave me no choice. Now you will face ALL of my soldiers, now die!"

With a smirk, you look up at him, saying, "I've done that already, so no thanks. The only ones that shall die and be set free are your soldiers!" Calling forth a larger barrage of blue fire balls, you then thrust your sword up into the air and summon a raging blizzard.

While the blizzard rages around you, it causes the shadows to lose track of you and wander around in search of where you are. Dashing through the blizzard silently, you swing your sword to and fro to strike soldiers down from close range.

Hearing the pained cries of his soldiers within the raging blizzard, a sizzling sound catches his attention, making him turn his head to see the barrier collapsing. Seeing his chance to reclaim the Crystal Empire's power for his own again, he surrounds the vulnerable with shadow and moves to retake the throne when the barrier starts to surround the empire once again. Darting forth to get inside the barrier before it closes, he almost makes it when the tip of his horn is cut off by the barriers edge, causing him to shout in pain.

Annoyed with how pathetic his power is, you call forth another freezing whirlwind which freezes every soldier within two hundred yards of you and send out a large ring of blue fire. Watching the frozen soldiers catch fire and burn to death, you sigh, saying, "If this is what you consider power, then I am greatly disappointed with how weak you are."

Scowling at being insulted, he roars angrily and shouts, "I haven't even begun to show you the depths of my power!"

Not believing him, you shake your head and say, "Don't even bother with your empty promises, allow me to show you what I am truly capable of!" and sigh, thinking, 'I am going to regret this in the morning...'

Versa watches curiously from her dimension with a raised eyebrow, saying, "Oh, are you finally going to use your special talent and earn your Cutie Mark?"

She changes the view to watch from above as you slam your sword into the ground, channeling a great deal of dark magic through it to send out a massive wave of blue fire around you that travels much farther than before. Watching the wave grow taller than a tree, she sees it instantly kill thousands of Sombra's soldiers, saying with a soft smile, "How kind of you to go so easy on them before resorting to your trump cards. I will look forward to spending some time with you one day, whenever I am finished adjusting my avatar to my liking that is."

Sombra watches his soldiers fall like dominoes and growls saying, "Just you wait. When I reclaim my throne, I am going to show you how terrifying I can be!"

Not giving him a chance to try attacking you, you sense the ancient remains of a dragon below you, chuckling darkly and pull your sword out of the ground, saying, "I am going to do the very same thing right now..." Closing your eyes and calling forth all of the dark magic you can, you hold your sword out before you while channeling it all into your sword until it glows and emits indigo flames, saying in a low tone, "Oh mighty ancient warrior of fire, scale, and magic, I call upon thee to join me in battle once more."

As Versa watches you intently, she watches your soul start to swirl, asking in a concerned tone, "What is going on with your soul now?"

Once your soul begins to slowly separate, she acts quickly and tries to hold your soul together, saying, "Oh no you don't!"

Her attempt to hold your soul together fails as her spell bursts apart, causing her eyes to widen with worry, asking in a pleading tone, "Please don't fall apart just yet, Arthas, you have come so far."

As tears well up in her eyes, she sees another orb take shape from what separated from your soul and blinks away her tears, asking, "What the...who are you?"

With your request made, you turn your fully charged Spellmourne toward the ground before saying, "Now ARISE!"

An invisible blast races outward in a circle, clearing the ground of snow and killing the soldiers that were closing in around you. Drawing your drained sword from the ground, you hold it at your side and watch while the frozen ground cracks and breaks apart.

Sombra's shadow flickers in shock when he watches a massive skeletal claw push out of the ground and reach forth to pull the rest of the body from the soil. His eyes widen with fear as he notices that the bones emerging from the ground are made of living crystal, saying in a soft tone, "It's not possible..." and turns his eyes to you fearfully, asking in a fearful shout, "Who and what kind of monster are you!?"

You watch the crystal dragon pull itself out of the ground, then shake the dirt from its bones and hear it speak in a feminine voice, saying, "Ugh, I feel so dirty..."

As she recovers from her confused and disoriented state, her memories begin to return from her. When her memories begin falling into place, she then cocks her head saying, "Wait a minute, I died after being mortally wounded..."

As you watch the dragon's body regain its organs and flesh, it completely regenerates by the time she cranes her head around to look her azure crystalline body over. Shocked at the raised dragon regenerating itself, you think, 'How am I capable of doing this?'

Confused beyond words at the fact that she is breathing once again, she uses one of her claws to see if she is imagining or dreaming this. Gasping at feeling pain from each point pressing into her body, she returns her claw to the ground and looks around her, asking, "How am I alive after having died?" Wanting answers, she narrows her eyes and calls out, "Who is responsible for this!?" When she doesn't hear a reply, she then stomps her claw threateningly, shouting, "I DEMAND YOU SHOW YOURSELVES AT ONCE!"

Hearing her angry tone, you breathe nervously and then clear your voice, saying, "I am responsible, ancient dragon. I pray that you can forgive me for my audacity."

Spinning her head around at the sound of your voice, she looks down at the ground and sees that the voice belongs to you, a strange, talking unicorn. Raising her eyebrow questioningly, she uses a little magic to discreetly examine your body's magic, discovering that you are currently using a dark form of pure magic, saying, "Am I some kind of experiment of yours? Did you twist your own pure magic in order to return me to life in spite of life's natural order?!" Wanting her irritation to be known, she breathes in a deep, rumbling breath and huffs out a cloud of smoke, saying in a warning tone, "Answer me."

Shaking your head and bowing to her respectfully, you say, "No, not at all ancient one. The magic I used to raise you is quite different from the magic that I normally use, but the reason I dared to raise you is to prove how strong I am to my weak opponent and get them to stop fighting."

Growling in her throat unhappily, she then huffs out a cloud of smoke towards you, saying, "How noble of you, but you still disrespect the natural order in raising me. I do not recognize the snowy land around me, has Azeroth changed so much since my death? How much time has passed since the War of the Ancients?"

Confused and shocked at hearing her mention Azeroth by name, you say, "Forgive me ancient one, but you are not on Azeroth anymore. The world you are in now is called Equus, and it has been roughly ten thousand years since it ended in the well of eternity imploding on itself and causing the sundering which split the single continent into smaller ones. I would tell you more, ancient one, but I am presently standing on a battlefield. What was your name during your time on Azeroth?"

Understanding with a heavy sigh, she nods her head, saying, "My name was or is Sindragosa, what was your name, little one?"

A cold sweat passes over you as you gulp nervously at how she might react to learning who you truly are and say, "Uhm...I was called Arthas Menethil in my time on Azeroth, does that name sound familiar to you at all?"

Something sounds familiar about the name to her as she repeats it curiously, saying, "I feel that I have heard it before, but from where..."

Giving her another clue to clear her confusion, you then lift your sword in the air with the blade toward the ground, asking, "Does this sword's refresh your memory at all?"

Turning her gaze back down to you, Sindragosa focuses on your sword, causing her to focus harder on the details which causes an image to flash before her eyes, saying, "A little, I saw a man wielding it where I fell." Looking back at you expectantly, she then asks, "What do you know of this man, little one?"

Not wanting to run away from your part in her life after death, you sigh and hang your head, saying, "Too much, ancient one...you see..." then use your ability to shift your form back to what you originally looked like, saying, "I am the one responsible for what happened to you after your death...Sindragosa."

The rest of her memories return to her in a flood along with her feelings at seeing you, the one who raised her not once...but twice. As her memories sort themselves out, she lowers her head a little and her throat rumbles angrily when she breathes in. Raising her head briefly, she thrusts it down towards you and roars out angrily, "ARTHAS, YOU BASTARD!!!" Just barely stopping herself from breathing fire at you, she keeps her jaws firmly closed while baring her teeth and exhaling fire through her nose.

Remaining still and silent the entire time, Sombra lets out a soft sigh of relief at not having to fight the dragon and turns to see the barrier start to fade and flicker. Taking the opportunity to slip away towards the barrier, he chuckles in a low tone, saying, "Yes...my crystals."

With Sindragosa's hot breath blowing against you, you sigh and sheath your sword, saying, "I know that you must want me dead after raising not only you, but many of your kin as well, but I ask you for mercy. I am not worthy of it, I know, I beg of you to let me show you my memories before passing judgement upon me."

Making herself comfortable on the ground, she lowers her lips while still maintaining an intense scowl, saying, "Very well, but be quick. I am barely restraining myself at knowing how I was raised and treated by you."

As her head comes closer to yours, you sigh with a brief sigh of relief, saying, "It would take a while to tell you what happened with words, would you permit me to use a spell to share my memories with you to save time?"

Sindragosa narrows her eyes at you and nods, saying, "If that means less time looking at you, very well. But be warned, if I sense any attempt to control or alter my mind, I will roast you and the shadow creatures nearby."

Blinking in surprise at hearing her notice him, he leaves his soldiers milling about and waiting for orders. As he watches his shadow transform nearby crystals and increase its domain, the barrier fades even more as his horn regenerates and laughs evilly at being able to reclaim the empire sometime soon.

As Rainbow lands behind Fluttershy, she puts her head under her and lifts her rear up while making her move forward on two hooves, saying, "Come on, Knight Fluttershy, it's jousting time."

Pushed along by Rainbow, she worriedly asks, "Huh? But I'm with foal, I can't joust, I might miscarry."

Remembering that, she sets her down and sighs, saying, "I know that, but there is nopony else I can ask. Pinkie Pie is busy entertaining the crystal ponies, Applejack is standing guard over the crystal heart, Rarity is busy making things at the arts and crafts station, and Twilight is busy searching. If it makes you feel any better, we both will be wearing suits of armor and I will be aiming to hit only your chestplate.

Still scared, she then says, "Uhm I still don't feel safe doing that Rainbow, sorry."

Looking around to see if anypony is around, she lowers her voice and says, "I need your help to keep the ponies distracted so they don't notice the failing barrier. How about this, when I strike your breastplate, you use your wings to fly backwards and into a big pile of hay I will set up? Can you please help me distract the ponies so that we can save the day again?"

Sighing, she takes a breath and lets it out to calm herself, briefly nodding her head, saying, "Alright, but do try not to hit me at full speed."

Jumping for joy, she hovers in the air and says, "Let's go put on a show!"

As Sindragosa watches the memories of the later years of your life, she still feels a raging desire towards ripping you to pieces. When you arrive at the time of your rule as Lich King, she watches your demise through your eyes until getting to the end of your final moments on Azeroth. Wondering how you came to be here, she asks, "I see...but how was it you came to be here?"

With a sigh, you lower your voice and say, "I can't share details with you, but let's just say that my soul was about to disappear forever when it was saved and given another chance."

Going over what she heard at the end, she sighs and keeps her rage at bay saying, "Seeing your memories did nothing to sway my desire to tear you into tiny pieces. What is keeping you here?"

Shifting back into a unicorn, you understand what she is really asking and sigh, saying, "When my soul returned to me as I was dying, I was relieved at hearing my father tell me it was over. However, when I was brought back, I just wanted to disappear due to the guilt weighing on my soul. I was dropped in a snowy wasteland and forbidden to take my own life or let myself die, promised punishment if I broke the rules. The real reason I'm not hiding is that I desire to redeem myself for what I've done. If it isn't too much to ask, I would prefer you to call me Blistering Blizzard. Putting that aside, what judgement do you pass on me?"

Taking a moment to think, she holds her rage at bay, still feeling nothing but disdain towards you due to how similar your life was with Neltharion's. Not wanting to look at you, Sindragosa takes a deep breath and snorts out a burst of flames through her nose, saying, "In spite of my raging desire to kill you in the most painful way possible, I shall spare you for just one reason alone, which is your desire to redeem yourself. In the event that you fail and return to your evil ways, I will hunt you down and rip you apart piece by piece. Do I make myself clear, Blistering Blizzard?"

Bowing your head to her, you then say with relief, "Thank you for your graciousness, mighty Sindragosa."

Rising to her claws, she prepares to take off and glares down at you, saying, "I hope you suffer greatly while chasing redemption..."

When you watch her spread her wings and fly away, you let out a breath you forgot you were holding and look around to see where Sombra went. Seeing him near the barrier, you then call upon your dark magic and call out to Sombra, "Where do you think you are going, weak coward?"

Sombra twists his head around to glare at you and then bellows, "KILL THAT WORTHLESS STALLION!"

As you hear his soldiers begin charging toward you, they shout battle cries for their king. Turning your head back to the soldiers, you resume using your deadly skills to wreak death and destruction upon those that won't stop fighting.

While you begin to tire from using your dark magic so much, you ease up on using the spells that have a large area of effect and focus more on killing ponies with your sword instead while frequently calling forth a blizzard to make it easier to take them out.

Sombra continues transforming the buildings within the Empire as he watches as his soldiers keep you busy with a smile on his face, turning back towards the failing barrier and anxiously waiting for it to finally fall. When he gets a signal from his hidden trap, he growls angrily and channels magic into his horn to activate it. As it activates and traps the pony inside, he laughs evilly, saying into her mind, "Foolish pony, you actually thought I would leave my treasure unguarded?"

As you continue to slay his soldiers, you see the barrier dissipate and fall, saying with a huff, "I cannot let him get past me, I must do whatever it takes to buy the girls time...whatever the cost." Calling forth another rain of blue fire, you then quickly send out a wave of black lightning to keep them from dodging the falling orbs of death.

Looking around to see that only a few thousand remain, you feel the effects of mana exhaustion worsen as you charge at another group and send out a freezing blast to freeze them in place before sending forth a wave of blue fire.

Unable to use your dark magic anymore, you finish off the last few dozen soldiers with your sword and make your way towards the crystal castle as Sombra's dark clouds surround the empire. Needing to make a decisive strike to bring the fight to an end, you keep walking down the path of black crystals when you spot a mare run headfirst into a black crystal.

Watching as she cowers before him, you see that he is still mostly comprised of shadow and continue to wait for your chance. When Spike says he has the Crystal Heart, you turn towards a growling King Sombra as he says, "That is mine!" then dives into the ground.

As Sombra travels through the ground to get close enough to the Crystal Heart to manifest his body, he fails to notice that he is being chased.

While you chase Sombra's trail across the ground, you have to weave around crystals he pushes up from the ground as you glance up to check on Spike's progress. Seeing the young dragon making his way down to the ground, you notice a shadow zig zag on the ground ahead of you when a crystal suddenly shoots up out of the ground at an angle and grows longer.

When Spike trips and starts to fall to the ground, you are torn between trying to save Spike or stopping Sombra from going after the heart. Making the decision, you sigh and begin making your way up the crystal, saying, "Sorry Spike, someone else will have to help you as I cannot allow Sombra to reach the heart..."

As you hop your way up the crystal, you see your big chance to stop him as he forces himself to materialize at the top of the crystal. With the crystal still growing and getting closer to Spike, you reach a point where you can catch Sombra. Leaping toward Sombra with Spellmourne drawn back, you drive it through the left side of his body and grab him around the neck, shouting, "YOUR REIGN IS OVER SOMBRA!"

The pain is slow to register as he watches the heart drift further out of his reach, when it and the baby dragon vanish from before his eyes, shouting, "NOOOO!!!"

Cadance soars through the sky with the crystal heart in her magic and Spike on her back, banking around to return to the base of the castle when she spots you and Sombra falling towards the ground with your sword through his side. Sorrow passes through her briefly at seeing how blood staining your beautiful white coat and golden blonde mane, thinking, 'He will need a lot of help to get past whatever has happened outside the barrier.'

You and Sombra hit the ground hard with you landing on top of him as you feel a few bones break, wincing when you rise to your hooves and back off of him. Knowing that he is going to die soon, you feel it appropriate to shift into your human form and start the process.

Ponies gasp as they watch you transform into a two-legged creature wearing dark, ominous armor and murmur amongst themselves about who and what you are.

As you kneel beside Sombra on a broken leg, you see him cough up some blood before prying open his eyes and attempt to look up at you.

Feeling you move a limb under his head, he takes a shaky breath of air before wheezing out, "Is the nightmare...finally over?"

Using your other hand despite its broken forearm, you pull off your helm and set it down beside you and look into his eyes, saying with a regretful tone, "At long last, No king lives forever, I know that better than most."

Smiling up at you in spite of the pain, he chuckles weakly, saying, "I'm sure you have, but don't let yourself be misguided by the whispers."

Curious, you ask, "What whispers do you mean?"

He starts to chuckle again, but is cut off when blood comes out and wheezes, "I'm sure that you hear them whenever you use your powerful dark magic, but thankfully...the whispers have finally stopped for me." Taking his last breath, he lets it out, saying, "I hope I get to meet my family on the other side."

As his body goes still, you move your free hand up to his face and shut his eyes, saying, "I pray you find peace on the other side."

When you lay his body down, you watch as the tip of his horn falls off and starts flopping around. Surprised to see something this strange, you hastily shift back into a unicorn and create a thick glass specimen jar to capture it.

The creature then sprouts crab-like legs and stands upright before attempting to scurry off when its escape is cut off by a thick wall of glass in front of it, turning around to leap at its newest target.

Quickly putting a lid on the container before it does anything, you cast a seal around it to keep it contained before it can escape. Wondering where to store it, you cast your spacial storage spell that Twilight taught you and put the specimen inside before closing it, wondering aloud, "Just what in the world is going on?"

A shimmer catches your eye and turn your head to look at it, watching with a soft smile as the crystal ponies' coats change to crystal and see the Heart underneath the castle hovering in the air on its own, saying with a sad sigh, "I fulfilled your task Flankestia, though it will exact a heavy toll upon me."

You watch as the streets beside you begin to glow brightly while the ponies around you hold their heads down to the ground, with the light then receeding into the heart and sending it spinning before sending out a wave of light blue magic that races outwards. Looking around, you see the black crystals are blown away as you hear a chiming sound come from Sombra's body. Turning to see what is happening to it, you notice glowing light blue cracks appear all over his body, asking softly, "He deserves a burial, don't destroy his body."

The cracks continue to cover him as charred pieces of his skin start to break off and float away, revealing a crystal coat underneath being a charcoal grey and notice his cutie mark is a silver crown beside a magical scepter.

While more of his body underneath is revealed, you look at the young colt before you with a sad smile then sigh with relief, saying, "I hope that you will be remembered for the pony that you were and not who you became." Your attention is then drawn skyward as you hear a loud burst and see streaks of color shoot up from the castle's peak and spread out above it, saying, "With that display, I do believe that the day has been saved."

Wanting to get away, you shift into your human form and pick up Sombra's body before returning your helm to your head and rise to your armored feet. Ignoring the shooting pain in your broken leg and forearm, you start walking towards the outskirts of the city to find the graveyard to bury him.

As you pass behind a building, you start to cross the road ahead when you hear a frightened gasp to your right. Turning your head, you see a light blue earth pony having a bright pink mane and tail with a pair of deep blue eyes looking up at you fearfully. Seeing her hoof frozen in midair, you gently ask her, "Excuse me miss, but where might I find your cemetery?"

Looking at the colt's body in your arm, she takes a half-step back saying, "Th-that's King Sombra!"

Nodding your head, you say, "It is, but he is king no longer. He deserves a proper burial, where can I find your cemetery?"

Calming herself down in spite of her fright at the bloody appearance of your armor, she sighs and says, "Why did you kill him? The Crystal Heart would have driven him away."

Hanging your head at hearing that, you say, "I wish I would have known that earlier, but I couldn't let him take posession of the Crystal Heart."

With a sigh, she then turns around, saying, "I will show you where it is, but you will have to do the digging."

You follow her down the street and say, "Very well, I have a lot more graves to dig for the soldiers outside I couldn't save."

Stopping in her tracks as she looks up at you with a shocked gasp, she says, "You defeated his army and recovered their bodies!?"

You pause and look down at her, nodding your head with a sigh, saying, "I did, though it wasn't easy and I will be suffering from what I had to do." Looking away for a moment you feel the guilt over killing them grow heavier and turn back to her, saying, "I don't mean to be rude, but can you please take me to the cemetery? I don't know how much longer I can go before collapsing from exhaustion."

Nodding her head, she then goes back to leading you to the cemetery, saying, "After I lead you there, I will go find others that have lost family members and tell them the news. Can you lead us to where their remains are so that we can find those we lost?"

Responding with another nod, you say, "I will do that so that you all can mourn their loss."