Battle of the Netherstallions

by Steel Wing

Rating: mature
Tags: Tragedy, Adventure, Dark
Length: 12774

The Crystal Empire must fight off the nightmarish monsters in a battle that will decide the fate of both it and Equestria.

There is an unknown truth, hidden from the knowledge of modern ponies.

One thousand years ago, before his imprisonment at the hooves of the Celestial Sisters, King Sombra was once a noble and just ruler of the Crystal Empire, revered for his formidability and leadership whenever it came to battling opposing nations, and his compassion for his subjects. However, when the Crystal Empire is at the height of its peaceful life under his reign, a new force threatens to destroy the sanctity of the Empire, as well as Equestria. King Sombra is now forced to pull all the stops, as well as use a dangerous, almost forbidden form of magic, if he wishes to succeed in stopping the horror that is the Netherstallions.

*Cover photo by Ziom05. Chapters will be few, but long. Contains one clop-scene. Very wordy*

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-02-03 06:30:01 UTC

Part I: Rise in the Night

Part I: Rise in the Night

Celestia's sun shone brilliantly over the capital of the Crystal Empire, hundreds of its inhabitants partaking in everyday luxuries such as strolling through streets, having picnics in the parks, and chatting amongst each other about their daily lives. The crystal ponies themselves were as radiant as their gleaming coats, sparkling in the sun's rays with every slight shift in movement, giving the streets a kaleidoscopic sheen all throughout the afternoon.

Shop owners sold away their wares at a steady pace, vendors sold delectable treats to the foals, and birds whose feathers were reminiscent of the crystal ponies' coats would occasionally swoop down and glide along the street, giving some adventure-seeking colts something to chase. The spirit of Crystapolis was, for lack of a more efficient term, heavenly.

And at the epicenter of the delicate-looking crystal city sat the Crystal Palace, towering in all of its majesty, visible to all within the three-sixty degree view of the palace and for miles beyond. The palace, like some of the structures down throughout in the city, was carved and sculpted from a single, enormous, crystalline structure from centuries prior that nopony could ever hope to figuring out where it came from. Consequently, the color shifted with every shift of an angular view; for example, if one were to look at the palace with an aligned head a mile away, one could make out a soft, sky blue hue to the crystalline towers, camouflaging the palace into the wide sky behind it. If that one were to shift his view by leaning his or her head to the right, the palace's hue would morph into a contrasting weak pink, and leaning their head in the other direction would turn the palace a peaceful, sea foam green. And, if one were to view the entire city from above, they'd see a web-like architecture to the landscape, the streets connecting to each other and all of them pulsing outward from the Crystal Palace for a radius of about twenty miles.

Despite being located far in the north, the climate within the Empire was moderated through a type of highly effective weather crystals that, if used properly, created any type of weather, from light, snowy showers to extravagantly clear skies and an unobstructed assault by the sun's life-warming rays. The crystal ponies much preferred the warmer temperatures, and so it was kept that way for the majority of the year, ceasing only when harvests had to be planted and grown, which required moderated rain. The denizens of Crystapolis couldn't afford to allow the natural northern weathers to buffer their precious food supply, which was why the weather crystals were always in use. Of course, their magical reserves weren't everlasting, but the capacity required to perform such a feat was minimal, so the inhabitants needn't fear of the weather crystals losing their potency anytime soon.

None of the peacefulness, none of the tranquility or the prosperity that existed within the Empire could exist, however, without a worthy leader to uphold them. Some believe that ruling over a domain of the Crystal Empire's caliber was easier than many rulers made it out to be. This is not the case, for the Crystal Empire is constantly, though not always openly, under threat of invasion by foreign nations seeking to ransack the happy nation and pillage it of its precious supply of magical crystals. As a result of the constant need for diligence, the armies of the Empire were always on the watch several miles outside of Crystapolis, outside of the citizens' view, but close enough to protect their homeland.

The National Crystal Army was a formidable war force, potentially bested only by Equestria's own military strength in the south. Their numbers rostered to hundreds, if not thousands of volunteering young stallions, willing to give their lives for the sake of the Empire's wellbeing. It is for this reason that the families of these stallions were always rewarded with a generous bonus to the pay of anypony working in that family. This, in turn, prompted more stallions to volunteer. Ever diligent and on the lookout for ambitious nations marching their armies to battle with the Empire's own forces of war fighting.

However, there has been minimal need for such caution for the past several years. The neighboring countries of the Gryphon Kingdom, the Minotaur League, even tribes from the continent of Zebrica have, in the past, attempted to invade the Crystal Empire, only to have their forces put effectively inert by the professionalism of the armies' and the Empire's king, King Sombra.

Since the very beginning of his reign over thirty-five years ago, Sombra was known as perhaps the noblest ruler; why, even before his ascension to the throne, he was considered an admirable prince to his father, King Jitterbuck. Sombra was revered, loved, and respected all across the Empire, and the co-ruling princesses from Equestria in the south viewed him likewise, and the two nations maintained a healthy relationship in consequence, often helping each other in times of economic, or even militaristic strife. Their borders with other nations were quite heavily guarded (one can never be too careful with power-seeking rulers appearing as of late), although the Crystal-Equestrial borders may as well have been nonexistent, as there was no military presence from either party, even if one were to seek it out.

All in all, the future appeared bright for the Crystal Empire.

*

* 1 *

*

The throne room of the Crystal Palace was filled with the uproarious laughter of a young filly, echoing throughout the intricately carved walls and ceilings and clashing together to make the overall sound that much more joyous. The young filly played at the foot of a large, crystal-carven throne, several dolls scattered cross the floor where the foal had tossed them around. One even landed a few yards away, the doll's green fabrics contrasting with the royal red carpet the stretched from the large doors at the opposite end of the room to the foot of the staircase leading up to the throne itself. The filly was currently teething on the scruff of the neck of a pony-shaped doll, her drool escaping adorably out of her mouth and soaking the doll's delicate fabrics.

A larger, dark gray-furred pony sat on the throne, smiling with rose-colored eyes at the heart-tugging sight of his youngest child playing, his coat only showing off the faintest traces of the sparkling trait crystal ponies were recognized for, while one hoof held his chin up on one arm of the throne while the other tousled with the medallion hanging safely and securely around his neck, occasionally clinking with the chain the held his red cape. The pale blue-colored unicorn filly looked up at the larger stallion with small, yet wide lavender eyes, a hexagonal gleam to them, though one of the bangs from her teal and periwinkle mane flopped down, covering her left eye and eliciting a wider smile from the stallion. The filly proceeded to get up on all fours and slowly tumble up the staircase towards the stallion, having only learned to walk the previous week. The stallion couldn't help but smile even more, even letting a small giggle escape him, and leaned forward with outstretched forehooves at the smaller unicorn.

The foal became determined to reach to the top. It seemed daunting, yes, but not impossible. To this young, new unicorn, everything seemed possible. Keeping the slobbered-on doll in her tiny mouth, the filly placed her forehooves separately on the first step and pulled upwards as hard as her underdeveloped strength could allow, until she could hook a rear leg onto that step, thus nearly securing her first ascension. Only, she had not predicted the shift in weight once she hooked a rear leg, and consequently, it sent her landing on her rump back where she started with a plop, eliciting a slight whimper from the foal. Though stalled, her resolve hadn't been extinguished completely yet. She looked back up at the stallion at the top of the stairs. He waved his hooves towards him, beckoning her to him.

The filly hadn't been in this world for too long—only a year old and she had yet to awaken her latent magical abilities—but she understood what certain gestures meant after seeing them preformed countless times, and she was able to ascertain what this gesture meant. He wanted her to come to him. But he was so high up, it seemed like it would take a long time to reach him. No matter, she'd reach him eventually. He didn't have another way off the throne, so he wasn't going anywhere. She returned to trying to get up the first step. Again placing her hooves on the step and again pulling her own lightweight self up enough to hook the rear leg, she made sure to shift her weight forward this time, instead of letting it stay with her oddly powerful, gravity-adhering rump. Her adjustment proved to be a success; she had made it up the first step! Now, none of these steps could deter her. This little filly was going to reach that bigger pony at the top of the stairs no matter what.

The stallion watched his daughter's every step carefully, watching her learn from her mistakes and correcting them as she climbed the crystal staircase up. To him, a full-grown stallion, it wasn't that tall—probably about ten feet vertically—but to this tiny little pony ascending it, the staircase may as well have been the entirety of the Crystal Palace. During the whole time the filly climbed, he never took his eyes off of her, giving her encouraging gestures whenever she'd look up at him. And every time she did, the stallion's heart would swell with pride and love, just like any father's would. When his first child had been born, he'd vowed to make his home safer for him. The same could be said for his second child, this filly that had just reached the halfway point along the staircase.

The filly looked up once more, her energy sapped with every step she ascended. It was more tiring than she had first thought, but she didn't have any plans to quite. The stallion grew bigger, so therefor closer to her. She was almost there! A fire in this filly's belly ignited, and she went to work on the next step.

And then the next.

And then the next.

And then the next.

Until finally...

"Gotcha'!" As soon as the tired unicorn pushed herself off the last step, the stallion scooped her up in his hooves eagerly and proceeded to give her blue tummy raspberries. The filly was renewed with energy immediately and started to giggle at the ticklish sensations this big stallion was giving her little belly, kicking her tiny legs in the air helplessly at the onslaught of raspberries. The doll fell out of her mouth, but she paid it no heed; she was too preoccupied by getting tickled by the big pony. After a while, the larger pony ceased his assault on his daughter's tummy and returned to his throne, keeping her on his lap. The last few remnants of energy and laughter faded from the filly's body, but after a moment, she realized something.

Something was missing. Her underdeveloped mind couldn't quite place it at first, but she noticed that something was different. The tiny gears in her head turned until finally, she realized: she dropped her doll. She looked around at her father's lap, but it was nowhere in sight. She then cast her gaze at the foot of the throne and, lo and behold, there it was! Right where she'd dropped it. Sitting alone, cold, and drooled-on on the top step of the staircase. She'd abandoned it when she reached the top. She started to get sad at the thought. How could she be so cruel to her toy like that? Leaving it there like unwanted trash. She grew even sadder at her supposed unjustified cruelty towards her toy. She started to whine and whimper, stretching her hooves out in front of her in a feeble effort to grab the discarded doll.

Her father watched her struggling on his lap to get back her doll. Feeling sorry for the innocent little foal, he decided to get it for her himself. His long, sharp horn began to glow in a dull silver aura, and the doll several feet away soon had its own silver aura enveloping it, and it started floating. The daughter stopped her whimpering attempts and witnessed something amazing. She'd never seen something actually levitate, even though her father would levitate her to her crib whenever she fell asleep after playing. Her small, lavender eyes followed the doll's aerial path over to right above her head within reaching distance. Her little hooves went up and tugged on a foreleg, feeling a slight warmth resonate from the surrounding aura of magic. The aura disappeared after a moment, and the doll fell into the mercy of the enthusiastic unicorn filly, her cries of glee once again bouncing around the room. She didn't know what exactly happened, but all she knew was that she had her doll back, and she'd never do such a horrid thing to it again in her young life.

Her father smiled when he sees her joyous reaction, and smiled even more so when the filly places the doll back into her mouth and curls up into a furry blue ball on his lap, utterly exhausted from the difficult journey up those stairs and worrying about her doll. He knew, of course, that that was more excitement than her little mind could handle, and he let her fall into adorable slumber on his lap, undisturbed.

Sombra sighed and leaned back in his throne, casting his gaze out to the whole room in front of the pair. They were the only two in it currently, and he wished for it to remain that way longer so he could spend more time with his precious daughter, Salgra. Whenever she was in the mood for playtime, the unicorn king would request that he and his daughter not be disturbed until otherwise said so by him only. Of course, there were two ponies exempt from that rule, he allowed, but they were not here for the time being. But, he knew, foals get tired much more easily than most grown ponies; therefor playtime was a finite luxury.

His hoof went absent-mindedly to the medallion still at his neck. The memories that came with that medallion were both joyful and genial... and painful. It hadn't been long since he started wearing the medallion all day, everyday; it was just after Salgra was born when he started to do so, but still, the emotional ties he held with this piece of jewelry were unbreakable. One half sun, the other half a full moon—or rather, half of a full moon, if that makes any sense. It was supposed to represent twilight, balance, and harmony of night and day, good and wicked.

Sombra sighed, his gruff tone making its way into the action, and closed his eyes for a time. The first few thoughts that came to his head were of his years as King of the Crystal Empire; such a title sounded almost ludicrous, and yet here he was, ruling for the better part of forty years a quite literally magical land filled with prosperous ponies and peaceful times. Sometimes, Sombra wondered how he managed to do it. To many, he was the spitting image of his father, King Jitterbuck. To Sombra, his father was a harsh stallion whenever he wasn't out in public, but Sombra, as did many, thought highly of deceased king still. Jitterbuck was, what one would call metaphorically, a coin. On one side, the public half, he was compassionate, ingenious, and noble, loved by his subjects. On the other, he was a hard, unrelenting father to his children, always pushing them beyond their limits if one of them were to succeed him as ruler of the Empire. Sombra's mother passed after he was born, leaving him as the fifth and final heir in line for the crystal throne. As a result of Jitterbuck's coarse disciplining during their childhood, Sombra was the last heir standing, literally. He proved to be the only one capable of surviving his father's discordant side. And when he finally passed away four decades ago, Sombra vowed to himself to treat his children with the same compassion Jitterbuck gave to his all subjects; he didn't want his children's deaths to be from him constantly and relentlessly pushing them. He nearly shivered at such a thought, and at several memories, as well.

Sombra's eyes must have been closed for longer than he perceived, because the next time he opened them, the sunlight had shifted drastically. Had he fallen asleep? And for how long? It was mid-afternoon when he closed his eyes, he knew that much, and judging from the elongated shadows stretching across the width of the throne room, he estimated, through countless hours of learning the sun's path as a colt, that it must be nearing five o'clock. He closed his eyes again, but this time stretched his neck to get the blood flowing to the brain again. He looked down; Salgra was still napping on his lap, her torso rising and falling evenly. Sombra furrowed his brow. He shouldn't have fallen asleep with Salgra still on his lap, her doll still trapped in her little mouth. The throne room was much too cold for her, and he feared her getting a sick.

He was about to levitate her onto his back and carry her to her crib in her room when the giant doors at the end of the room groaned open. Sombra looked up, and smiled once he saw whom it was. Trotting leisurely down the red carpet, two ponies approached side-by-side to the throne, the door closing once again behind them. One of them was a stallion, tall and muscular, like Sombra himself, although his shining coat was a more ruby hue, and his mane flowed down to his withers in a single golden braid, not in any way matching Sombra's matching dark gray coat and mane and lacking a horn, and his eyes a piercing, steely silver. His cutie mark was of a silver scepter. He trotted in slow, confident strides, his head held high, though not too high as to display any arrogance. The other pony was more tame in frame; a mare, this one, her coat bore the hue of an ethereally-sparkling lotus, her voluminous, peach-colored mane cascading out of her head like a puffy waterfall, complemented by a pair of amethyst irises in her observant eyes that adorned her slim face. Her slender hips, which adorned a red, crystalline heart for a cutie mark, swayed with every step, and Sombra's eyes couldn't help but follow their frame every now and then as she approached with the bigger stallion to her left.

The unicorn king gently levitated the sleeping filly onto his back once he stood from the throne and began descending the flight of stairs, his long, signature red cape being dragged down behind him, the foal unconsciously rubbing her ear with a hoof. The two ponies greeted him just in front of the staircase with smiles on both of their faces. Then, both bowed down, bending one foreleg and bowing their heads in respect for their king. After a second, Sombra spoke,

"You may rise." His voice was deep, yet not aggressive, and resonated all around the room. The two ponies rose, and practically all formalities ceased.

"It is good to see you, Father," said the ruby stallion in a not-as-deep voice as he embraced Sombra in a loving hug. Sombra responded in kind.

"And you as well, Prince Tongo, my son," he replied. After a moment, he ended the hug and turned to the mare. "And Amethyst Crest, a pleasure to see you again."

"Please, Your Majesty," Amethyst teased, flashing the king a coy smile, "the pleasure is all mine."

Sombra gave a lopsided, lecherous smile. "No, it isn't." Before the crystal mare could reply, Sombra planted an irresistible kiss on her lips, effectively silencing her, not that she minded. Amethyst moaned into the kiss slightly, her hoof coming up and rubbing little circles into Sombra's dense shoulder as their tongues did battle between their locked lips. After a few moments, they parted, looking into each other's eyes before Sombra continued,

"I was spending time with Salgra earlier, but the poor dear fell asleep before very long. Could you take her to her chambers, Amethyst? And perhaps feed her, as well? I'm sure she'll be wanting some more of your milk before her next nap."

Amethyst gave a terse nod, a smile growing on her face. "Consider it done, my love. Besides, you know how much I love to care for that little filly," she said, adding a genuine giggle at the end. "As if she were my own."

Amethyst may not have been Salgra's birth mother, but the crystal mare cared for her as if she were her real mother. In truth, Amethyst played the dual roles of wet nurse to Salgra, and concubine to Sombra, and sometimes, even to Tongo. She originally played the latter role solely, however, when Sombra's wife passed shortly after giving birth to the little blue unicorn, Amethyst was the first to step up and offer her service as a motherly-caretaker for the newborn foal. Sombra agreed, reasoning that his daughter should be taken care of by somepony he knew and he, as well as the rest of his family, including his son, was rather close to. He would have married her, although, the tradition that royalty could not marry servants or workers, a category that Amethyst fell into as concubine, of the royal lineage held fast in Sombra's conscience, thanks to his father. She did not mind, though, for she had grown to love Salgra intensely as the past year went by as her caretaker, and Salgra had developed an attachment as well, only allowing herself to be handled by her father, brother, or by Amethyst, and throwing a tantrum when one of the servants dared to try and just pick her up, levitation or not. Meanwhile, Amethyst had acquired the mutual love of both Sombra and Tongo, and it only made her place in the Crystal Palace much more... noble.

Sombra smiled, and delicately floated his sleeping daughter off his back and onto Amethyst's. The older mare smiled warmly at the adorable filly, who started to suck the end of her hoof. She turned her head back to Sombra. "Tongo was just telling me about some news he received from one of the forts on our way here."

"Is that so?" Sombra asked, swiveling to his son.

The young prince nodded. "It is, but it can wait until dinner. There is, however, a more pressing matter I wish to address with you, Father. In private." Tongo glanced hesitantly at Amethyst, who responded with another small smile.

"Say no more, my prince, I shall just escort the princess to her chambers. Boys," Amethyst concluded, giving a final bow to Sombra and turning away, winking at Tongo, who'd told her about that "pressing matter" on their way to the throne room as well.

Good luck, she wished him silently.

The ruby stallion gave her an appreciative smile, then turned his eyes back to his father. As he did so, Amethyst quickly flicked her tail up, allowing a split-second glance of her flower to Sombra. An invitation for later in the night, he knew, as he swiped that almost nonexistent glance at her beckoning sex. Somra had to quickly return his gace back to his son's before he could see what he was looking at. When the two mares left the throne room, Tongo snatched the opportunity to confess something that had been weighing heavily on his mind.

"Father..." Tongo had prepared for this for several weeks now, but he found himself tumbling over his own words in front of his father. He'd had a speech memorized for this occasion, but now, it left him, replaced with a case of stage fright. What was wrong with him? Why had he just frozen up even after all the practice in front of the mirror, all the confidence he'd spent building up to tell his father the something he'd wanted to say for a long time just flushed away? Tongo bit his lip and glanced down at his hooves in slight shame of what he'd wanted to say to his father.

"Tongo," Sombra said softly, bringing the young prince's gaze back to him, "speak your mind. You needn't worry of anything I might say or do; you are a full grown prince, and thus, have the right to speak yourself openly to me." He placed a heavy hoof on his son's shoulder. "Tell me, what is it that ails you?"

The prince swallowed, grateful for the encouragement, then straightened himself to full height as he spoke with refined confidence, "I wish to leave the Empire, Father."

Sombra retracted his hoof and raised a surprised eyebrow. This was not at all what he'd been expecting. Rather, he'd thought that his soon had maybe found a worthy suitor, or even taken his own hetaera. But leave the Crystal Empire, his home? It was, quite frankly, unthinkable to Sombra. "Leave?"

"That is correct, Father," Tongo replied sternly. "I've been pondering it for a long time now, and I've decided it would be in my best interest to travel and see the world for what it really is, not just what the Empire has portrayed for the duration of your reign. Do not consider this as abandoning my home, Father. I would never dream of doing something so vile; no, I only wish to do what you did when you were of my age. Do you remember when you told me of how you traveled the world when you were only Prince of the Empire?"

Sombra was flabbergasted. It was true, he indeed left the Empire himself for a time, and yes, he did recall the time to Tongo on several occasions. He'd learned much during his journeys abroad, and when he returned upon the circumstances of the death of his father, Jitterbuck, Sombra's travels had surprisingly profound effects on his leadership skills as the new King of the Crystal Empire. Had he stayed, he doubted whether or not the Empire would be the same for it; whether or not he would have been the same. And now his son, age twenty five, around the time Sombra began his travels, was telling him of his intentions to do the same. He could not blame his son for wanting to do so; in fact, the one to blame would technically be himself for retelling the amazing things he'd seen, quite possibly propagating the idea to his son's young mind. He was not angry, nor entirely untroubled by the concept, but he knew he could not stop his son, even if he wanted to. He was fully gown, not a colt prince, but a stallion, nearly worthy of the title of King. Deep down inside, Sombra was actually, truly proud of his son. But, he decided to toy with the younger stallion a bit.

"I see..." Sombra murmured, casting his gaze off to the side, trying to seem blatantly troubled by the idea.

Tongo let off the faintest trace of worry cross his rugged face. He cleared his throat to continue, hoping that if he went on, he'd warm his father up to the idea. "I'm telling you this because, as my father, you have the right to know my intentions, as a prince. Something that you denied your father of when you decided to leave." Again, true. "I only wish to became as enlightened a ruler as you have become from your travels—"

"Say no more, my son," Sombra interrupted. "You have my blessing to do as you wish..."

Tongo's spirit skyrocketed, a jovial grin spreading across his features. "Thank you, Father! Thank you so—"

"...If what you wish is to renounce your rightful claim to the crown."

Tongo blinked. "What?"

The corner of Sombra's mouth nearly cracked, almost destroying the act he was putting on for his son. He disciplined himself to maintain his growing rebellious need to giggle. "If you leave," he continued, "then your place in line will be taken by your younger sister." He looked up out of the corner of his eye, pursing his dark lips. "I'm sure Salgra will make a more than capable Crystal Queen in your stead. I can tell already she has her mother's charm and personable traits."

Tongo was practically panicking at this point, his eyes wide with incomprehension, but managed to keep the panic from reaching his voice. "R-Renounce my place in line? B-But, you never said that you had to give up your place in line when you left."

"True," Sombra agreed casually, casting his gaze to the other side of him, "but my circumstances were different back then."

"How so?" Tongo pressed.

Sombra flicked his tail to one side, barely managing to keep himself from smiling, only succeeding to do so by talking. "Oh, well, being that I was the last of my siblings to remain alive after my father's cruelties granted me immunity from automatic abdication. Simply put," Sombra started to slowly trot to one side of the throne room as he spoke, towards the nearest window that towered from ceiling to floor, "my place in line for the crystal crown couldn't be removed because there was nopony else to give it to. My mother had long but passed, and my father, from what I could gather, had no intentions to remarry or conceive with one of his own doxies. Thus, I was concreted. Not even when I left without any warning or notification could my father remove my rightful claim to the throne." He reached the window and gazed up, making sure his face was turned away from a gawking Tongo as his mouth curved uncontrollably upwards. "You, my son, however, do not possess such conditions at your disposal." He had no idea how his grin failed to register in his voice. "I still have Salgra, and I'm sure that she will make a fine ruler. You could've been a greater one, I believe, but you now choose to venture out into the world." He turned his head back to the ruby stallion with a blank expression he had barely been able to muster on his face. "Speaking of which, when are you leaving again? I'd like to prepare a speech to my subjects announcing your abdication and Salgra as my eventual successor as soon as possible." He paused, wondering what else to say. Then it hit him like a whip. "'Tis a royal protocol."

Tongo was mortified now. He came into this room wanting to tell his father of his desire to travel and explore the world, hoping his father would be more understanding, and here he was telling him that he'd have to give up his birthright. His mind was racing a million miles an hour, trying to process if this were true or not. He couldn't come up with an answer.

"Why did I not know of this beforehoof?" Tongo shouted indignantly. "Mister Granite never informed me of this so-called protocol when he was tutoring me in such matters."

The unicorn king brought a hoof up to his chin, turning his gaze slightly upward. "Didn't he? How odd." He shrugged, and turned back around and started for his throne. "I do hope he will remember to mention it when Salgra starts her sessions with him. Hopefully, there will not be a need to, but it pays to be cautious."

Sombra's son now had trouble standing up straight. He couldn't believe this was happening. He'd dreamed his entire life of inheriting the throne and leading then Crystal Empire into further tranquility just as his father did. He didn't want to give all that up, but he still desired to roam the world for a time, to gather knowledge and experience wisdom from foreign lands that could hold secrets not heard by common ponies in years, perhaps decades, or even centuries! The very concept was almost enough to convince him to renounce his claim. Maybe he could find a compromise. Yes, a compromise, or, perhaps even a loophole, hidden in this paranormal protocol.

He started to speak as Sombra reach the bottom of the flight of stairs, "F-Father, if I may suggest?" Sombra stopped before he reached the third step and look back at his son. "I do not see a need to announce something so sudden to your faithful subjects. I mean, w-wouldn't they be particularly alarmed to hear their prince has renounced his claim out of the blue?"

Sombra seemingly pondered this for a few moments. He brought up a good point. During his father's rule decades ago, he knew the ponies of the Empire were quite distressed when he left, seemingly leaving the Empire without a rightful heir. He wondered how they would react if and when Tongo left. Deciding to add one final part to his act, Sombra simply shrugged and continued up the stairs until he reached his throne.

That was is. Tongo had lost. He wanted to journey across the world—oh, how badly he wanted to travel this world—but he wanted to be ruler more. His head and ears drooped, and he turned around to trot out of the throne room.

"Very well, Father," he mumbled to the floor. "I shall not leave the Empire."

Sombra smiled, satisfied that his son had bought his act. Just before the young stallion reached the doors on the opposite end, he called, "Prince Tongo." The other royal stopped and turned his head around, a forlorn look in his gray eyes. "You are just as gullible now as you were when I told you you'd be banished from the Empire after you broke your mother's vase when you were ten."

Tongo's head came back up, his sorrowful look replaced with confusion. "Gullible? What are you—" Realization snapped when he saw his father's ear-to-ear grin across the room. The young prince's eyes grew wide with outrage and indignity. He'd been had! By his own father! Again! "Oh, you old snake!" He swiveled back around as Sombra let loose a deep waterfall of pent-up laughter that echoed freely back and forth along the crystalline walls. "I am leaving on the morrow!" Tongo added finally, exiting past the creaked open throne doors, leaving his father to his merriment.

Once the doors had closed, the ruby stallion leaned back against the doors and, after a moment of letting it sink in, started to snicker at his own foolishness as well, his irritation switched with mirth. He stood up and finally noticed the two guards standing at post on either side of the large door looking at him, rather baffled at what the commotion was. The pair were wearing the standard armor sets for their ranks: light silver helmets that covered their whole heads except their faces with a mohawk of crystals that stood out along the middle top of the helmets, and similarly colored torso pieces that protected their beefy chests and shoulders. Made of high-quality metals, but enchanted to look as if they were made from crystals, the armor pieces shifted in color like the Crystal Palace itself. The enchantments also disguised the guards to have similar bodies and physical characteristics; gray coats and manes and tails, silver irises, and level heights.

"Is everything well in there, Your Highness?" One of them asked.

Tongo let another light chuckle escape him as he answered, "I-Indeed, Private. All is fine with my father. The king was just..." He looked back through the door, listening to the fainting traces of Sombra's resonant laughs. He shook his head and started down one end of the long corridor. "My father was just being himself. As you were, Private."

The guard nodded. "Yes sir." They both resumed their stoic stances.

*

* 1 *

*

The Crystal Palace's dining hall shared the crystalline design and textures of the throne room, however, it was noticeably more demure in size, and, quite frankly, had more furniture. The ceiling was half as high as the throne room's, and a large, obsidian table—with intricate patterns carved into the sides that one would have to trace their hooves along them in order to discover where they are—stretched for about twenty feet along the length of the room, effectively taking up half the available floor space. A set of twenty-two obsidian chairs sat around the edge of the table with the last two positioned at either end. Three windows, each bordered with thick, crimson curtains, were positioned on the other side of where the door was so that a view of Crystapolis' eastern portion was clear for anypony to see. A portrait of the past king, King Jitterbuck, rested on the wall above a fireplace that remained off for the most part. Jitterbuck shared several physical traits with his youngest son, however, what set them apart was Jitterbuck's lime eyes and his starkly white beard on his wide chin. Sombra himself had no wish to grow a beard (he feared it would make him look older than he was).

As the day would go by, the dining hall remained vacant, except breakfast in the early morning, as well as for the occasional servant who'd stroll through it hoping to get into the kitchen (where the good stuff was) or a confused messenger with a letter for his king. The mornings provided a substantial amount of sunlight, but when dinner came along, several light crystals were activated, giving the room more than enough light to last supper. But as the twilight approached each day, it would quickly fill with bustling servants trying to set up the dinnerware for Their Highnesses, as they would always eat together. Today was no different.

King Sombra and Prince Tongo were both seated at the black table, the unicorn king sitting with his back to the unlit fireplace at one end of the table while his son ate his celery soup to his left. The night air that filled the skeletal inside of the palace was warm, so there was no need for the fireplace to be in use. Sombra had a bowl of the same soup in front of him, though, in a larger container. They'd arrived several minutes prior and, after Sombra apologized for teasing his son so profusely as he did, they went on to have dinner, after the servants had brought them two chalices accompanied by a pitcher filled with wine, whilst discussing the news the prince had received earlier from one of the forts that dotted the perimeter of the Crystal Empire.

Sombra swallowed down a spoonful of the delicious concoction as he listened to his son relay the message he'd received.

"Fort Jadace in the far northern border sent me a report of odd sightings popping up around that area," Tongo relayed professionally, "as well as several disturbing noises during the late nighttime hours. Almost like roars." He grabbed a thick chunk of bread off the platter that sat in the center of the table and dipped it in the soup. "The incidents have reportedly been occurring over the past several weeks, but they've been too far and few in between to know what exactly was being spotted or heard." He tossed the soaked bread chunk in his mouth.

King Sombra nodded, and listened intently, remaining silent as his son resumed. "It could just be the strange wildlife that reside a little ways north beyond the fort, though. Being that nopony has ever explored the regions beyond Jadace due to the harsher weathers in that direction, it could very well be the indigenous wildlife scavenging for food. Though why they are this close to our northern border now all of a sudden is beyond me."

"I see," Sombra murmered, sipping down a generous amount of his wine from the fragile-looking crystal chalice. " Indeed, if it is just the indigenous wildlife, then there shouldn't be anything to worry about. So, no other forts have reported these strange occurrences?"

"Are you referring to Fort Diaus and Fort Bryx?" The ruby stallion shook his head. "Not from what I've heard, no, Father. But if they have, perhaps they were planning on investigating it themselves before notifying you."

The dark stallion nodded again. "Well then, I must agree with you, my son. If it's only the strange wildlife, then there is no plausible cause for alarm." Sombra smiled at him, and drank from his chalice, the bitter fluid mixing deliciously with the celery soup that remained on his tastebuds.

The ruby prince nodded and smiled back, though halfheartedly. His brow furrowed as a thought occurred to him. "Father, why haven't there ever been any expeditions farther north past Fort Jadace? Surely our weather crystals would suffice to ease the torrential weathers that plague the northern regions of the Empire."

The stallion's father paused before swallowing another spoonful of soup. He settled the spoon back on the edge of his bowl and contemplated the answer. "Well, there are several factors to consider, my son." He looked at Tongo, who nodded for him to continue. Sombra decided to take that last gulp of soup before going on. "Firstly, the far north is quite perilous, as you well know. The reason the Crystal Empire is located just north of Equestria, but well below the Arctic Circle is because of the more moderate weather conditions. Our weather crystals can, indeed, manipulate the weather around a given area depending on the quantity of said crystals available, but they cannot conquer already troubling weathers, such as those that exist north of the Empire. Secondly, weather crystals are not portable, meaning explorers cannot carry some bundles of them around to make the weather suit their needs; in order for them to operate correctly, they must be collected in a central area, and in massive quantities. Thirdly, the main reason we are situated in these regions is because the Crystal Palace itself is carved from a massive weather crystal. When settlers seeking independence from the Equestrians several centuries ago left that nation, they located a massive hunk of crystal. They discovered that, if magic were channeled into it, it could change the weather itself more efficiently than any pegasus in Equestria. Finally, whatever lies north of the Empire is just barren tundra where several strange species can somehow call home. I very much doubt there's anything of any use for ponykind out there." Sombra resumed eating his generous helping of celery soup.

Tongo nodded, satisfied with that answer, and took a swig of his wine. "Intriguing. Still, one can't help but wonder what bizarre beasts inhabit that land. Or, even more so, what secrets it could possibly contain..." He looked down at his wine-purple reflection in his chalice, a blank expression on his robust face. Sombra caught a glance of this, and his eyebrow arched.

"I hope you do not plan on starting your world-wide venture to the north, my son," Sombra remarked, snapping his son out of his trance. "That would be suicide."

"And," Tongo began, "what if I am?"

"I would strongly disagree with that," his father answered sternly. "Verily."

"Verily? Oh, quite thy jesting, Father," Tongo scoffed. "Thou know that I'm no fool to venture into the perilous north without the proper preparations. Thou needn't worry." The prince brought another spoonful to his lips.

Sombra suppressed the urge to face-hoof. He had no idea why his son occasionally fell into these archaic methods of speaking. He'd done this for as long as he could talk as a foal. It was something, Sombra noted, he tended to share with the Princess of the Moon, Princess Luna of Equestria, whenever the lunar regent would pay a visit to the Empire. Although, Princess Luna spoke like that all that time... and only she spoke that way, unlike her elder sister, High Princess Celestia. Regardless, for now, he needed to dissuade his son of his latest entry of stupid ideas.

"Prince Tongo, I strongly suggest that you begin your travels somewhere else," Sombra said, his tone growing more authoritative. "Venturing north is quite literally pointless. You will find nothing except blistering winds and freezing temperatures that could turn you to ice in seconds."

His son looked back at him sternly. "How do you know that, Father?" The question caught the elder stallion by surprise. "How can you possibly know what is or isn't within the far north. You have never even been there, nor anypony else, for that matter, from what you tell me." His features softened slightly. "I could be the first pony in history to discover whatever treasures or ancient secrets have been hidden away through timeless centuries."

The prince saw his father hesitate, and he knew now was the time to strike the nail on the head. Promptly standing up, not allowing his father to even rebuttal him in any way, Tongo turned around towards the door and started to leisurely trot his exit.

Sombra made to stop him, but he was at a loss. He knew, despite his title, he could not order his full-grown son what to do. The unicorn king simply laid back into his seat, crestfallen. Going up north past the Empire's borders was suicide, he knew, but it's not like he could order his armies to stand in the way of his own son. Wait. Maybe he could... No. That would simply alienate the prince even more from him. He didn't want that at all. Perhaps, though, there was a special type of crystal that could protect him that the crystal miners had yet to discover in the mines far below Crystapolis. A crystal that could, possibly, create a portable source of heat and light. Yes, he was sure that that would prepare Tongo for such a venture. If he could not stop his son, he would surely help him.

However, Sombra's flowing brainstorm was interrupted when the prince spoke up again.

"I hope, for your sake, Father," he said as a reached the door, "that this showed you where I received my gullibility from." And with that, Tongo left the dining hall.

Sombra remained still, staring where his son had exited out the door, the gears turning in his head as what his son just said finally clicked in his head.

He'd been had! By his son!

The king's eyes widened, but his shocked demeanor crumbled into a fit of chuckles as the irony of the situation sinked in finally. Oh, how he was proud of his son indeed. Sombra shook his head, his dark mane swinging loosely and freely at his withers, and resumed the last portion of his meal in solitude.

Indeed, like father, like son.

*

* 1 *

*

The late evening had already arrived, and King Sombra was making his way back to his chambers on the higher levels of the Crystal Palace. After dinner, he'd had to attend the weekly court to discuss how the Empire was operating, both in its domestic and foreign affairs. And after three, excruciating hours of having to drone on and on and on about the economic state of the Empire or its wavering ties with the nations abroad, save for Equestria, Sombra craved for a chance to unwind.

For the duration of his reign, he had no idea why these courts needed to be held weekly. Why not monthly, or perhaps bimonthly? Surely nothing too extraordinary happens within the Empire too often, so why must he hear of this every single week? Sombra pondered this multiple times as he trudged back to his large, comfy bed, but he always came to the same conclusion: that it'd just cause longer court sessions. His skin beneath his dark fur crawled at the thought. Oh, how he hated court.

His mind went back to the present. His eyes were growing heavy from boredom due to the court session, and exhaustion from the day's various comical happenings. There was nopony around, save for a few guards standing at spaced intervals down the lengths of the palace's expansive corridors, standing stoically at attention as always. Sombra admired them about that, but he also sometimes wondered how these stallions could possibly stand still for so long as they did. That guard training that the Guard Captain instilled must be quite effective, Sombra thought.

After another five minutes of trotting through the palace, the king had finally made it back to his bedroom. The rather large doors groaned open at his shove, and the first thing Sombra spotted was his luxurious bed. It was king-sized—appropriately so—and covered with a thick woven midnight blue comforter that suffocated a thinner blanket just beneath it. At the four corners of the bed stood four, tall, crystal bedposts. The bed seemed to beckon him towards it. He smiled at the thought of crawling under the comforter starting at the foot and making his way to the three pillows that lay at attention against the crystal headboard. He nearly did so, but stopped only when he remembered that he needed to bathe first. Of course, he wanted to get into his bed, but definitely not unwashed. Such a thing was... uncouth!

The dark king sighed, shook his head, and turned left towards his bathroom door. His bedroom, like every room in the Crystal Palace, come to think of it, was carved from crystal, and only then did any foreign-designed features such as wooden furniture or windows were added. Including his bed, there sat a wooden table surrounded by four chairs at one corner of the room and a dresser at the opposite side of the room with a mirror wide enough for self-examinations hanging above it. That mirror had belonged to his late wife.

Opening the wooden door with his telekinesis, the bathroom itself was, without a doubt, luxurious. Far on the other side of the room lay a large, golden bathtub with emeralds and sapphires patterned in intervals rimmed around the whole of the circumference. It was easily big enough to fit Sombra... as well as his private escorts. The walls were quite high, much higher than his bedroom's, and the glass ceiling allowed for an entrancing view of the moon whenever the unicorn king bathed. A rack of red, cotton towels hung right next to the steps leading to the tub, enough for multiple visitors, even. Right next to the door stood a stand to place any clothing items before one entered. Sombra magicked himself free of his cloak by unlatching one end of it at the collar, then neatly folded it and placed it on the stand. He left his medallion on, though; he never took it off.

Slipping out of his silver horseshoes, the king trot to the tub, and upon reaching it, noticed steam coming out from the surface of the water already inside it. The old stallion smiled; his servants always new when he would bathe, and so prepared the bath without any instruction. This just went to show how well loved and respected Sombra was in the Crystal Empire.

Going up the four steps, the king punctured a dark foreleg through the water's surface, testing the temperature. Perfect. He slipped in fully into the waters now, creating several waves as he worked his way to the opposite curve to lean back against, giving him a full view of the room before him. Sombra sighed with content; his eyes closed to let his sense of touch guide him. Through the skin of his eyelids, Sombra determined that the moon was just high enough to peek through the skylight and shower him with its silvery-blue luminescence. After several minutes, the stallion looked to his right, and on an adjacent table was a bottle of oil and a scraper next to it. Grabbing the two in a gray aura, Sombra brought them to him and sat up straight, exposing his upper body to his stomach to the colder air in the bathroom. He uncorked the bottle top and angled it to pour down his barrel chest, moving his medallion out of the way first. The non-viscid, golden liquid sloshed down onto his fur. Stopping it before too much got on him, Sombra placed the bottle back on the table and massaged to oil into his fur and into the skin beneath with his forehooves, making sure to spread it to his forelegs and reaching back to his withers and neck. Then, with the scraper, he dug the flat end into his coat and dragged it down his figure. This technique allowed the oil to pick all the filth and otherwise undesired invaders accumulated throughout the day out from the fur towards the topmost layers, which allowed the use of scrapers to remove the filth, thus leaving the coat with a healthy shine. Sombra repeated this until he had completely done his whole body from mane to hind legs.

His ear flicked off to the side. He heard a sound coming from the other room—a door closing, followed by delicate clopping hooves. After a moment of processing who it could possibly be, an eager grin broke out on Sombra's face. He knew what awaited him in the bedroom. The king, after stepping out of the bathtub, looked down at his body and smirked. A shame, he thought, he'd just cleaned himself. Now he was going to get himself all filthy again. A second passed, and Sombra shrugged, figuring it was going to be worth it. Levitating a towel towards him, he dried off most of the moisture from his coat, rubbing swiftly, but evenly around all his nooks and crannies, and returned the towel to the rack.

Leaving the bedroom, with his extravagant cloak and horseshoes behind as well, Sombra reentered the bedroom. The difference in air temperatures was distinctly noticeable. But that was the last thing on his mind.

"Has His Majesty finished his cleansing?" asked a sultry, seductive voice. "Because I fear that he will be getting quite dirty in the time to come."

The one the voice was addressing turned his head to the bed, and on it laid the petite, yet alluring figure of Amethyst Crest. She lay sprawled out at full length across the bed's width, her forehooves crossed with a "come hither" gleam in those periwinkle eyes of hers. The moonlight cascading through a window on the far side of the room accentuated her luscious curves, highlighting her light pink coat against the bed.

Sombra gave a lopsided, and somewhat lecherous smile, slowly trotting forward and around the bed. "Indeed, I'm done with the bathes for now." His voice had a hint of confident sarcasm to it. "And, I can safely assume that Salgra is fed and asleep?"

The voluptuous mare nodded. "She was an absolute peach, Your Highness. I didn't have any trouble with her at all." Amethyst let off a sweet, humming sound. "She's so adorable when she sleeps, it takes all my restraint not to just eat her up like a piece of cake." She giggled a little at the end.

"I am glad to hear it," Sombra replied. He reached the side of the bed where Amethyst's rear legs were stretched out, though her eyes were turned to him, and his to hers, neither of their gazes leaving the other.

Amethyst couldn't hold back an eager grin. She'd waited more than she had cared to for this (the previous time occurring quite a while ago), and now, she could finally be alone with her king. Her sex grew warmer and wetter with every passing second. Her tail swayed this way and that across her flank, sending her scent to her lover. The aromas reached his nostrils, and a slight chill traveled down his dark, sturdy back, lusty desire taking over all of Sombra's senses.

Without another word, the dark stallion hiked onto the bed, over Amethyst. She smiled once more in response, and turned over on her back so that she could be face-to-face with her lover while they were together. Sombra lowered his head, his medallion hanging precariously and without any notice from the two lovers, and planted a passionate kiss on Amethyst's soft, sugary lips, the mare responding by throwing her forelegs around the stallion's thick neck. They moaned into each other's hot mouths, their tongues doing battle as their desires grew and grew until they could not restrain them any longer.

Amethyst's heart quickened its pace, and her body grew hotter with partial carnal, partial intimate desire. By this point, she could hardly contain herself she was so full of lust. Small rivers were now flowing freely from between her hind legs. But, for the sake of Sombra's ego, she needed him to be the dominant one. Now that's not to say she couldn't be the one leading; she simply chose to not to this time.

Soon, Amethyst broke the kiss. "Forgive me, my lord, but I cannot wait any longer." As emphasis, the crystal mare spread her hind legs out, giving Sombra an unobstructed view of her nethers. "Now," she almost commanded.

Taken slightly aback by her forwardness, the king realized that this was expected from such a mare as Amethyst. His phallus unsheathed itself grew with every passing second while they were kissing, so by this point, the pink mare's actions gave Sombra conviction to proceed to what he was going to do next. Lowering his hip to hers, and feeling the increasing heat radiating from Amethyst's flower the closer her got, the king pressed his tip against her moist lips, eliciting a moan of teased pleasure from Amethyst. Her eyes grew half-lidded as Sombra pressed himself further into her wet, euphoric tightness, until finally, he hilted his full, dark length, and his crotch met hers. Amethyst moaned even louder now, angling her head backwards and exhaling into the clear air. A joyous smile spread across the crystal mare's face; her king was fully inside of her, and she couldn't be happier about it.

Sombra grunted, his face scrunching up with effort, as his hips began a piston-like movement in and out of the wailing Amethyst, causing the both of them to bounce slightly on the puffy bed. Her inner heat was extraordinary, her insides clenching around his thrusting length. The mare's eyes were effortlessly closed at this point, all four of her legs wrapping around Sombra's body, bringing him lower and closer onto her, her hips gyrating by themselves into the base of his crotch. The heat around the two lovers expanded, and spread out into the room, making anypony who dared to enter immediately feel the arousing increase in temperature.

The pair's bodies began to sweat profusely, which leaked onto the bed's fabrics. That wasn't the only thing leaking onto the bed, either. Down south, Sombra's smooth, practiced motions had caused Amethyst to start releases more and more of her juices, creating a river that fell onto the bed. Neither of them took any heed, however. They were much too busy at the moment.

As time went on, Amethyst grew louder in her unadulterated cries of ecstasy, Sombra in his arduous grunting, not caring if a guard passing by outside the door happened to hear them. Her pleasure-addled mind only cared about the one on top of her. Amethyst squeezed herself tighter than ever around Sombra's inserted rod, as well as accelerate her gyrating hips, making it much more difficult for the stallion to thrust. However, this did little to deter him, for his pace only boosted, and, Amethyst noted, became harder in response. She liked that. No, she loved that.

"Y-Yes!" Amethyst cried, several beads of moisture dripping off her forehead, down the side of her head and soaking her mane. "M-More!"

The king leaned his head back down and kissed her again, their breaths being exchanged with every one of his rigorous thrusts. Then, all of a sudden, Sombra pulled back and ceased his motions. The mare below him gave an astonished look on her tired face, but before she could ask how dare he stop, Sombra lifted her up by his forehooves and turned her around so that she now faced the headboard. Looking back from the corner of her eye, Amethyst's mood quickly shifted from baffled sexual frustration to eager excitement as her lover mounted her from behind, his robust and dark body dominating hers. Leaning his upper body just above her moist back, the king turned her head around with a hoof to give her another kiss. The awkward angle, while a tad uncomfortable for the receiving mare, only served to make this moment more pleasurable. The crystal mare moaned once more as Sombra resumed his thrusting.

The sound of slapping could be heard now with every pumping motion into her sensual, full rump. To Amethyst, this position, while less intimate, was infinitely more erotic. With every thrust, she could feel his tip grinding past her clamping inner walls and poking at her g-spot. Amethyst let her head drop into the pillows, panting hot breaths that condensed onto the silky fabrics, giving herself fully to her lord and king. Both of their manes were matted against their necks and shoulders with damp adhesion.

Sombra, on his part, was beginning to strain himself in order to please his mistress. Age had done a number on him, admittedly, but he wasn't about to let it show in his performance. Leaning himself down further onto Amethyst, he only stopped when his huffing barrel chest was pressed up completely against the mare's back, eliciting a small gasp of slight but not unwelcome surprise from her, and allowing one to experience the other's intense sexual heat. From Amethyst's perspective, she could feel her lover's pounding heart through his chest, not that she couldn't already feel it elsewhere, but it never hurt to have some clarification from the source.

Sombra wrapped a foreleg around the mare's middle and hugged her closer to the point where their sweat came out of their pores already mixed with the other's. As the lovers' fronts were being pressed downwards, their hindquarters, on the other hoof, were well into the air. Amethyst's juices were splattering out of her by this point, but the majority was cascading down her slender legs, drenching the bed even more with musky aromas.

Time became nonexistent in that bedroom. Any external perception of it was swept away once they had begun their nighttime courtship. The combination of primal lust and practiced expertise on the part of both ponies had rid them of any conscious thought, leaving only the desire for pleasure. If asked, neither could correctly guess how long they'd spent romping on that bed. The guards standing outside in the corridor, however, could.

Finally, after an inexplicable amount of time had passed, they were nearing their peaks. They'd completed several positions by now, but had returned to the erotic mounted stance. Their bodies were utterly and completely drenched by this point, and the heat they emitted could be felt simply by entering the room. The buildup had taken quite a while to reach, but neither of them were complaining. They would have gladly taken longer.

"S-Sombra..." Amethyst moaned into the pillows, "I-I am nearing...!" Her forehooves gripped the sheets to her sides, her breath quickening. Her heart felt as though it would explode from her chest at any moment.

Without missing a beat, Sombra grunted, "Turn around..." Even though it came out as a command to her, he was the one that flipped the spent mare onto her backside. Amethyst released a deep exhale as she was forcibly flipped, but resumed her minuscule gyrations once her eyes had found Sombra's. The mare's forelegs extended outward and pulled the stallion towards her for a final passionate make out, to which Sombra accepted without question. Hooking her rear legs over his pelvis, they continued uninterrupted for another minute or two (time was still murky) until their inevitable climax arrived.

The first to climax was the dark stallion, grunting vigorously as he thrust his entire length inside, his core and pelvic muscles undulated with such great intensity, and released his seed from his flared tip into Amethyst's garden, the searing liquid sending the pink mare over the edge a split-second after her lover. Her cry of orgasm must have reverberated throughout the whole Crystal Palace. (Several of the newer guards outside the bedroom could hear this, and redness overcame the grayness of their coats on their faces. The more veteran guards, however, were admittedly used to this, and paid it no heed.) Her inner walls clenched down on Sombra's member with no intention of letting go as a final torrent of orgasmic juices flooded out of her system, soaking more of the bed, as well as Sombra's scrotum. Electricity shot through both of their conjoined bodies for about a minute until they were both left panting out hot breaths, Sombra collapsing on top of the more petite crystal pony. Their hearts pounded against one another.

Amethyst lifted a hoof to caress his shoulder and withers, planting several small kisses along the left side of his face and down his neck. The king responded by bringing his head back up and planting another kiss on his lover's supple lips. She moaned again, however, the romping had left her utterly exhausted, and so she could not find the strength to stay awake any longer. Slowly, her head fell back onto the pillows and her eyes closed, and at once fell asleep, without another word. A tiny, satisfied smile still held on her face though.

A small smile crept onto Sombra's face as well. He knew he'd done a good job tonight. Then again, when didn't he? Thinking back to previous times he'd spent with the mare he loved, Sombra realized that this time was considerably longer than any other. He pondered about this, but deduced that it was because he'd used his magic to stimulate the both of them, which shortened the time spent making love. Then he thought about how much he enjoyed tonight's adventure, and concluded that he would refrain from using magic... for the most part. The dark king kissed Amethyst's forehead lightly, and settled himself right next to her. But before he drifted off into sleep to join her, his gaze swiveled back to the window behind him.

The full moon, along with several stars, shone with nighttime brilliance into the room. Sombra didn't think as he looked at the scenery outside; he only smiled, but his hoof once again went absentmindedly to fondling his medallion, which had also grown slightly damp from the sweaty romping. The unicorn king lay there for an additional ten minutes watching the moon, not a single thought crossing his mind. A tired sigh escaped his lips, and Sombra used his magic to shut the curtains bordering either side of the large window. Now that the room's atmosphere had become more better suited for sleep, now much darker without the moon's luminescence, Sombra turned around, facing the slumbering Amethyst, and, resting his head onto the pillow next to hers, slept.

*

* 1 *

*

A howling, snow-saturated wind soared across the low valley where Fort Jadace was situated, the humongous stone stronghold braving the blistering cold climates day in and day out. The staggering size was a testament to the strength and the feats the Crystal Empire is willing to go through in order to protect itself.

While the entrance faced the southern wall, the main attention of the fort’s soldiers lay in the northern direction. The fort possessed two sets of impregnable walls; the outer walls stretched about fifty feet high and two hundred feet across on all sides, which was where most of the patrolling guards were sent to scope out the bleak-looking tundra; the inner walls twice as high, yet half as long; and both were several feet thick. A pony going full gallop within ten seconds could cross the distance between the two walls. The box shape allowed for four guard towers to be placed at the four corners of the outer walls, each as high as a full-grown dragon. At the very center of the fort, protected by the inner walls, resided the main building; four stories total, with empty space on the first floor, the training hall, mess hall, and armory on the second floor, guard quarters on the third, and the lieutenant’s quarters on the top level. A hollow stone dome sat atop the entire structure.

Being the northernmost fort in the Empire, the soldier count was among the lowest since almost nothing came from the north. However, the soldiers there were treated to a number of luxuries, such as insulated insides thanks to a special type of crystal, pyrelite, that lined the interior walls. However, the soldiers on patrol could not be afforded such fortune. But they didn’t mind though, they were willing to do anything to keep their beloved Empire and King Sombra safe.

Among these soldiers was Onyx Sheen, the newest recruit sent to the formidable northern fort. He was making his rounds as usual during his shift. Like every soldier, he wore the enchanted standard armor set. His usual coat of light orange, and burgundy mane and tail colors were replaced by the illusionary guard gray.

He was rather young—only two years younger than the average age for a soldier in the Imperial Army—but he was more than willing to devote his youthful existence to his home. Onyx was regarded as a rather brash recruit among the more veteran guards stationed at Fort Jadace, but that could usually be sorted out with a shift of watch duty outside… in the numbing winds… with only his armor and—if he were lucky—a scarf to trap his body heat. On the outside, he didn’t mind it that much.

Lately, however, he’d had considerable trepidation whenever he was assigned to stand out in that atmosphere for three hours at a time. It wasn’t the fact that he could freeze over at any moment; it wasn’t the fact that he was effectively blind to the outside world just as much as the other unfortunate recruits were. Nor was it that he feared that if he shirked his duties, he’d be stuck doing the same thing for an additional three hours.

It was the roars that would pierce the howling winds at night and the glowing green orbs that would appear, peeking through white sheen of snow blowing in the frigid northern air.

The lieutenant running Jadace had sent a special report to the Crystal Palace detailing the inexplicable occurrences—for what reason, none were completely sure. Perhaps it was to keep His Majesty, King Sombra, in the loop of the happenings in and outside the Empire. In which case, it was a completely sound decision.

Onyx, however, failed to see the point of doing that. He wondered what they would do if these reports of odd sightings would reach throne. He reasoned that it must simply be the strange wildlife residing north of the fort. One of his comrades-in-arms, when he told him of his thoughts on the matter, merely retorted why the occurrences only started to happen in recent weeks and not in the years before in Fort Jadace’s long time of standing in the north.

To that, Onyx had no clean-cut answer. After a while, he realized that dwelling on such a matter would only serve to intimidate him.

So here he stood, standing at his post at the absolute northernmost point of the fort—and consequently, the most northern point in the Crystal Empire. He kept his eyes idle on one side of his vision for about five seconds, squinting as much as possible to see clearly through the vision specs distributed to all guards on duty in the outside environment, then would swivel them to the opposite side. This allowed him to catch as much as his eyes could see through the blowing winds and snow. While his eyes scanned, his conscious thought went around to how the rest of his body was doing. The fur that wasn’t protected by armor pieces was pretty much frozen, the joints in his long, muscular legs were frozen, and his ability to turn his head to one side—which was why he was only moving his eyes—was negated, as his neck was frozen solid. The chill of the outer winds battles against his inner flame, driven by his conviction to protect the Empire.

He’d hoped that he wouldn’t be the one this time to spot any mysterious green orbs floating through the snow, or hear a blood-curdling screech pierce the night. His inability to move would only serve to terrify him more should something so ghastly occur during his shift. Onyx’s skin crawled at the thought, which actually helped to thaw out some of his fur.

Onyx remained there for nearly three hours, and when he was about to breath a grateful air at the moment his shift would end and his replacement would come by, patting him on the back and saying that he could go back inside the quarters to warm up, he heard it.

The blood-curdling roar, the kind that haunted a filly’s nightmares, the kind that Onyx had hoped oh so dearly that he wouldn’t hear tonight again, echoed ominously across the low valley. His ears, snapping off the frost that’d gathered on their furry linings, perked up like a whip at attention at the sound while his blood only ran cold. This time, he was sure he’d been frozen solid.

What was even more terrorizing about this night’s roar was that it wasn’t the lone roar several other guards had reported hearing over the course of the past few weeks. No, this roar was accompanied by an entire chorus of roars just like it. How Onyx knew it was more than one creature causing the roars this time, he did not know exactly.

Onyx began to panic. What should he do? His shift was over, but his replacement hadn’t shown up. He looked to his left, but there was nopony in sight. Then he looked to his right. Nopony there either; just snow-saturated winds. Onyx cursed under his breath—at least he thought he did. The guard stallion turned his attention back to his front. The roars never stopped. Why weren’t they stopping? According to the reports, they only lasted approximately ten seconds, give or take.

This one lasted for minutes.

Onyx began to shake where he stood. He wasn’t prepared for this, and he knew that. Neither he, nor any other guard around knew what to make of this frightening situation. Just what was he supposed to do?

Before any omnipotent force could answer his internal question, Onyx saw something that nearly made him lose his mind. Out into the distance, where the roars must have been originating, a sea of green orbs faded into view through the white veil of the snowy winds. Onyx looked left and right slowly, but he could see no end to the see of faint green.

The guard’s limbs wouldn’t allow him to move or run away. They forced him to witness what would happen next. Before he new what was happening, the wall of green orbs began to increase in size. After the gears that weren’t frozen with terror turned in his head for a second, Onyx realized that the green orbs were actually eyes, and that they belonged to creatures.

His eyes widened. His breath escaped him when he realized the full brunt of the situation. The creatures came into view through the thick veil of snow. They were equine-shaped, surely, but they were not ponies. No, these creatures, whatever they were, had only one goal, and Onyx realized too late what it was.

They were attacking the Crystal Empire.

End of Part I: Rise in the Night