Dream's Fading Shadow

Shattered Reflections

"Don’t be naive" he said abruptly, advancing toward her.

"What other reason could there be except to torment you?" he exclaimed, startling Twilight.

Twilight took a step back, her eyes wide with shock.

“Did you really think that... How ridiculous!” he said with a menacing tone.

His demeanor was intimidating, as if he was trying to scare her away, to push her out of his presence. But something felt off; Twilight would have believed him if she hadn’t seen the flicker of pain in his eyes.

“So, why do you look so pained?” she asked softly, lifting his helmet and placing it against his cheek. “Don’t I mean anything to you?”

This move took the unicorn by surprise. He quickly pulled away, his heart aching.

“You’re mistaken... All of this is wrong! Don’t you understand?” he shouted in frustration, retreating further away. “I don’t care about you!” he insisted.

“Don’t you get it? I’ve seen through you from the start. I wanted to torment you, to shatter your sanity, your kindness, your compassion, your hope in the goodness of others. All of it is so... foolish.” His tone grew dark and threatening.

He began to circle her, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“But you’re right about one thing. You mean nothing to me—nothing at all!”

“I know that’s not true. Why are you saying these things?” Twilight shouted, her voice cracking with pain and disbelief, but unable to accept his cruel words.

“Get out of here!” he roared with fury.

King Sombra’s frustration grew with Twilight’s denial. He stepped closer, looming over her.

“Poor Twilight, did you really think there was something more?”

He let out a bitter laugh, his eyes cold and mocking.

He closed the distance even further, engulfing her in his oppressive presence.

“I don’t care about you. I never have, and I never will. You’re nothing to me but a pawn to be used for my own ends.”

Twilight felt her heart shatter into a thousand pieces. The sting of his words was unbearable. She felt on the brink of tears, but her sadness quickly transformed into an urgent need to escape. Without a backward glance, she turned and fled.

As she ran, she couldn’t help but glance back one last time at King Sombra.

Despite his threatening demeanor, his face wore an expression even more painful and heart-wrenching than her own.

She was on the verge of tears, but she had managed to distance herself. Yet her sorrow was interrupted when she felt something fall onto her back.

“What...?” She looked at the black, misshapen thing that had fallen.

Then she looked up to see where it had come from.

Her eyes widened in surprise as the dark sky shattered, just like the sides and the ground.

“The dream is fracturing...” she murmured to herself. Wait, did he say all those things to drive her away quickly? But if he did that, then the...

“Oh no,” she realized, and ran back towards where he was.

The dream world fragmented around her, crumbling before her horrified eyes. His voice echoed in her ears, but his words were incoherent.

Only one thought was clear in her mind: she had to reach him before it was too late.

She ran desperately toward where he had been, feeling the fragments of the dream slipping between her hooves.

He saw her return and panicked.

“Why are you still here?!” he shouted, his anger and near desperation palpable. “If you stay, then...”

“Then what will happen to you?” she interrupted him.

King Sombra was taken aback by her words. He looked away, clenching his jaw.

“It doesn’t matter. You can’t stay, you mustn’t. Didn’t I tell you? I don’t care about...”

He kept speaking until Twilight’s scream cut him off.

“Enough with the lies! Obviously, it isn’t true! Do you think I’m that foolish?” she said, her frustration palpable.

She sighed heavily and continued, “What will happen to you? Can’t we stop this?”

King Sombra, already defeated by Twilight’s confrontation, sank to the ground.

“That doesn’t... matter anymore. I’m no longer what I was. After being attacked by the Crystal Heart, my physical form was damaged...” he said, looking at Twilight.

He added, “I used my power to preserve part of my soul, but... it’s just fragments, and... I don’t have much time left.”

Twilight looked at him in desperation and confusion.

“Don’t have time? What do you mean?” she shouted, moving closer to him, pleading for an answer.

“It’s just as I said... I don’t have time, you’ve seen it,” he said, gesturing to the fragmented environment around them.

“It’s dangerous for you to stay here and...”

“This can’t be! You should have told me something; you’ve been watching me for almost two weeks!” Twilight couldn’t believe it, didn’t want to believe it. This couldn’t be happening!

“Twilight, I... I’m just a fragment. A small fragment of what I used to be. What you see is merely a distortion of my body caused by my power. Many of my fragments sought to torment you in their own way. I’m shattered into thousands of pieces...” he added.

Twilight couldn’t grasp it, didn’t want to understand, her mind was a whirlwind of confusion. Then she remembered:

“I had dreams about you. Not the creature, but you. Many times. Does that mean that was also you? Was it not just a dream, But your fragments of your soul?” she asked.

King Sombra looked at her and then lowered his head. He didn’t want to admit it.

“Yes... that was also me, or rather, another fragment of mine,” he admitted, his head bowed.

“Are you disappointed? By that part of me? The part that sometimes wants to imprison you and dominate you...” he said, rising and moving closer to her, meeting her gaze.

“The part that wants to keep you here to be destroyed with me... does that part frighten you?”

Anyone else would have been terrified by such words, but not Twilight. Not now, not at this moment. Not when he, despite speaking with a firm and demanding tone, had nervousness in his eyes, anxiously waiting for some reaction from her that, in some way, was endearing.

Twilight remained silent, and it made him even more nervous. He wanted to retract his words, but this fragment of his being had more pride than the others. So he continued, with nothing left to lose.

“I knew it. Are you disappointed that I’m like this? I want to cherish you, and in contrast, I want to dominate you, even force you to do things you don’t want to, force you to stay with me. If not, then... even so, I don’t...”

He was interrupted when he felt the softness and warmth of lips meeting his in an unexpected kiss.

The kiss was sudden, filled with frustration, sadness, and desperation. Twilight’s lips met his with a palpable urgency. For a moment, time seemed to stop, and only the contact of their mouths, the soft exchange of breaths, and the frantic beating of their hearts existed. It didn’t matter if the sky was falling; this moment was unique, solely for them.

After a prolonged moment of confusion, their lips parted, leaving only a small space between them.

“Seriously? Why does every fragment of yours talk so much?” Twilight said.

Sombra noticed a faint blush on Twilight’s cheeks and felt warmth rise to his own.

He quickly averted his gaze.

“Oh, well...” the unicorn stammered.

The tension in the air was palpable, and neither knew how to break the silence. Twilight set aside the embarrassment of the moment and sighed heavily.

“Alright, let’s hurry up,” she said, turning to walk in the opposite direction of the unicorn.

King Sombra was bewildered by her words, following her almost reflexively before reacting.

“What are you talking about? I already told you to leave, now. I...” he began, but Twilight turned abruptly, annoyed.

Twilight, having walked a few meters away, came back to stand in front of him.

“What are you talking about? Do you think I’m going to leave you here after you tormented me all this time? No, no. You owe me compensation for all the time I lost,” she said, angered, not allowing for any rebuttals.

Sombra stood stunned, confused. What was this stubborn pony up to? He didn’t know, but that was what he liked most about her: her personified obstinacy.

He smiled faintly, turning his gaze with a hint of sadness. He knew that, in the end, nothing would change, but he wanted to spend a few more minutes with her before it was over.

“Ok...” he finally said, yielding to the pony’s will.

to be continued.