Darke Life

I sat outside of Shadow Coat's little shack, and with a sigh took out my pen-knife, carving shapes into the ground as I waited.

Amber had been inside for at least half an hour, trying to recover from the portal incident. The colts, Shadow Coat and Crimson Mane, had been thoroughly worried when Amber hyperventilated out of nowhere. She wheezed and coughed, then suddenly her scars and wounds healed over with some sort of blackened crystals. I was sent outside while Shadow Coat investigated it. Amber told them she was fine before jumping off the table and shattering the crystals on the floor.

~

"Amber, you're not fine." Crimson Mane said to her as he helped her up with his wing.

She shook her head again. "You don't understand. Sombra... King Sombra was beating me... he told me how worthless I was, a disgrace to his..." She raised her head, eyes watering, then shook the tears away.

"Disgrace to his what?" I asked. Amber turned to me.

"You're supposed to be outside." Shadow Coat said.

"Ehh. Boring out there, all there is to do is look at stars, and well, since "stars" are the reason I'm here, they've lost their charm." Crimson Mane chuckled.

"Ain't that the truth." Amber looked up.

"I don't recall you ever being in this conversation." She spat at Crimson Mane.

"Uh, I was just..."

"I want to go home."

"Amber, you can't-" Shadow Coat interjected.

"I could take her." I brought in.

"Not the home you've seen, my pathetic dwelling in the Everfree. MY home, in the Crystal Empire."

"Crystal Empire?" The colts and I all looked at each other confused.

"King Sombra is currently in rule. He's killed Cadence and Shining Armor, Twilight's brother. He's ruling over the crystal ponies as slaves. Now will you allow me to leave or not?" Her eyes glowed that sky blue again.

"Why do you want to go to the Crystal Empire? If everypony's a slave, then-"

"No. I cannot be enslaved. I'm going to..." She stood up, taking a deep breath as the crystals over her wounds disintegrated into her flesh. "I'm going to stand up to my father."

~

"Father?"

"How do you know your dad's in the Crystal Empire? And where is that anyway?"

"I just told you. He's King Sombra."

"Your dad is King Sombra?!" My jaw fell open. "He's killing rulers and enslaving the others?! And you're his daughter?"

Amber nodded. "Okay. Sit down, guys. There's a.... there are a few things maybe I should tell you about me. Things I've hidden."

~

"A long time ago.... well, not that long really.... since I'm not much of a grown mare yet. A long time ago, King Sombra ruled over the Crystal Empire. He was a power-hungry unicorn with black magic, black as his heart. He enslaved the entire pony population of the Crystal Empire and ruled over them for many years. The poor crystal ponies were broken under his rule. Sombra used spells to counter the crystal unicorns' magic so they couldn't overpower him, and he kept a large crystal dome around the Empire so no ponies, especially Pegasi, could escape. But for those Pegasi who would try nonetheless, he broke their wings, or put a curse on them so they could not fly more than a foot off the ground.

"Well, this was a very pathetic existence for the ponies, especially those who were to serve the King himself. He had slaves kept as chefs, bodyguards-"

"Hold on." Crimson Mane interrupted. "Bodyguards? If he was such a tyrant who would want to guard him?"

"Nopony." She retorted. "He cast black magic on their minds. Anyhoof, he kept them as chefs, bodyguards, and even some would write letters for him. His favorite was a young filly by the name of Heart Lollipop, or just Heart Pop. To, hum..." She giggled nervously here, "To put it simply, she made his heart pop, as well as a couple other internal and... external organs."

"So she gave him a boner?" I laughed.

Amber glared at me, then sighed. "Yes. A "boner." And he loved her, so, so very much. He would often invite her to his chambers late at night to get to know her better. She wasn't afraid of him as others were. She knew he was alone on his throne and wanted company, therefore she wouldn't mind coming to his palace late at night to get to know him as well. And their love grew, so much that they wished to be together.

"But Heart Pop was afraid. She had so many friends in the Empire, they didn't know about her affairs with Sombra. So she requested that he kill them.... quickly and silently.

"He respected her wishes, and he killed them in the middle of the night. She was finally happy without the burning and scolding opinions of those ponies. And that night they met in his chambers as they always did. He called her his lovely secretary, and she called him her King."

~

"My Queen," Sombra spoke to his love, "How I wish to make you my Queen. We could rule together, over this great Empire, with our own brood."

"But my King, the subjects would be outraged. They might bring their spirits up so powerfully they could finally revolt, and break your curses." Heart Pop looked away, and Sombra gently brushed her mane behind her ear.

"But my love, I will cast another spell on them. They will never do to us that which we do not wish for them to. We could control them," His hoof curled up, around her ear as he brought her muzzle to his for a slow kiss, "Forever."

"But I am not as immortal as you, Sombra." Sombra's lip curled as he acknowledged this fact. "I cannot be, not with the most powerful of magic.... unless you harnessed Celestia herself's powers."

Sombra spat, jumping from the bed and trotting to the window to watch over his enslaved Empire. "I cannot fight an Alicorn my dear. I have regarded this with all of my thoughts, finding a way to defeat her, but I cannot." He sighed and turned to look at Heart Pop. "But I promise you, we shall rule over this land until you lie on your death bed. And we shall rule together." He brought himself close to her, softly rubbing his muzzle against her chest, up her neck in a loving embrace.

"A-And with our children...?" She blushed, grabbing his head softly and bringing it to hers for another kiss.

"But of course." And he slowly pressed himself against her, bringing her down onto the bed for the night's opportunities.

~

"Amber... did you really have to go into detail there?"

"I'm not bucking finished!" She reached out and back-hoofed Shadow Coat.

~

"So they did the big deed, so to speak. And while Heart Pop carried her young in her womb, she held inside herself an evil offspring. And the evil in fact, radiated into her head and often made her sick or dizzy. King Sombra felt sorry for her and retired her early from her duties as his secretary. For the months of her pregnancy she lie in a throne next to his, so sick she could hardly move. And it only got worse the nearer she was to having Sombra's child."

"Was she pregnant with you?" I asked.

"No. My brother, Darke Soul. Once he was born, and at least a few years old, Sombra approached Heart Pop at her desk again. He spoke of having a second offspring, a daughter, for her to love and cherish as he cherished his son Soul. But she was very afraid of the headaches and sickness that his offspring brought her. He coaxed her into it with his black magic, and once more they returned to his chambers.

"But something was wrong with this fetus. It had no activity in the womb, no kicking or moving as other fetuses would. Heart Pop lost hope, believing she would not have an alive second baby. So King Sombra cast another spell on the child. It would be alive, he hoped, but even after the spell, the fetus has no movements. He too, lost hope. So on the night of Heart Pop's giving birth, he nestled her close to his muzzle and planted a firm kiss on her belly. Heart Pop rubbed his head, feeling tears run down her face as she expected a dead baby.

"Then the womb moved. The fetus kicked, a strong apple-buck kick, against Sombra's lips. He drew away, and he looked at his wife. They became overjoyed, until the worse began to happen. More kicking. The pain was unbearable for Heart Pop, and she grit her teeth on her own hoof."

~

"No, my love, you can overcome this." Sombra nuzzled her softly on her cheek, and she spat.

"I don't believe I-" and the womb sprung open. Blood flew everywhere as the young mare's belly burst open. Her inner organs were smashed, and her eyes rolled back in her sockets. King Sombra's beautiful Queen.... was dead.

And out crawled a small little unicorn coated in her mother's blood. She had a pure white coat and a mane the same color. Her eyes were sky blue as her mother's, blinking open as she looked around. The spell that had brought her to life had taken the life of another. She lowered her back hooves, no longer needing to buck her way out. She wobbled to the floor, her small hooves click-clacking as she wobbled to Sombra.

"Daddy." She raised her hooves and smiled at him. But he glared down at his child. She had taken his love from him, and Sombra much would've preferred her as a stillborn. He looked at her short scruffy mane and tail, coated in his love's blood and gore, and to her horn. It hadn't hardened yet, as unicorn horns were soft at birth and hardened with age. With hatred in his heart, he brought his hooves up... and snapped off her horn.

~

Amber looked down at the floor. "Five days later, he had snuck into Ponyville and left the filly on the front step of an orphanarium. He left a note saying her name was Darke Amber, and with a final glance to the baby lying in a basket, her mane stained blood-red from her gory entrance to the world, he vanished into smoke."

~

I looked up at her. "So.... you killed your mother when you were born."

"Yes." She whispered. "And I was abandoned for what I'd done."

Shadow Coat and Crimson Mane looked kind of sick at this point.

"Ohh, don't worry you two." She managed a weak chuckle, then sighed. "I'm still not done with my story."

~

Amber sat on the porch of her home, rocking a hoof back and forth to play some sort of mini-soccer game with a pebble.

"Amber!" Her father's name called. "Bring me my lighter, you worthless foal!" Amber sighed and stood up, quickly trotting to the kitchen. She reached into the top drawer and pulled out a lighter, then brought it to the backyard, to her father who was in the hammock with a cigar, as always.

She'd known this miserable existence for nearly five years. Her family treated her differently, as if she wasn't even one of them. Which, she supposed, she wasn't. Amber looked nothing like either of her parents, and mysterious white crystals grew out of her mane and tail. She wasn't a pegasus like the rest of her family, although she had a small broken stub on her forehead that resembled a unicorn horn. It was small though, and since she was afraid of being laughed at for it, she hid it; she never questioned the blood-colored crystals of it though. And in many showers, the crystals would diminish, or break and fall out of her mane or horn. And sometimes, if she washed her mane really well, some of the red coloring she couldn't understand would wash out and down the drain, but never would all of it come out completely. So she would disregard it, and think back to all those ponies at school who called her a freak for her sudden flashbacks, spells of dizziness, and wobbly legs.... and ability to sneak about with no notice from others. She felt her stealth as a good thing though.... not some freak ability.

Amber reached up and lit her father's cigar. When she was finished, she smiled up at him, expecting some sort of praise like he gave her sister Patches, or her brothers Torch, White Summers, or Black Snow. But he glared down at her, much like Sombra did. Amber felt deja vu. She knew she'd gotten that look somewhere before.... from a grey unicorn with a black mane, but she couldn't recognize him.

"What are you standing there for?! Get the hell away from me!" And he struck her. Amber's hoof let go of the lighter, still lit somehow, and they both watched in horror as it struck their tiny cottage.

Tiny, wooden cottage.

"You dumb little foal! Look what you've done!" And her father jumped from his hammock and ran into the house to get his wife, children, and valuables.

"Dad! What happened?!" Torch yelled out, pushing the family's safe out the door.

"Amber lit the house!" White Summers yelled out. "Snow, get the bookcase!"

"White, that doesn't matter right now!" Their mother yelled from the kitchen. "Torch got the safe! White, get the- AIEEEEEE!" Suddenly Amber saw clearly. Her mother had been lit on fire, as had her father. Torch's wings were caught in the doorway, and burning wood fell down and crushed him. White had fallen under the bookshelf he'd loved so much, and Black Snow, the only other Earth pony in the family, was being burned alive as well. Patches though, Amber's sister, was flying above the house with a large bundle of blankets and a bag of canned foods. She tossed it down to the front yard and yelled to Amber.

"Little sis! I don't think any of them are going to make it! We need to get out of here before we die too!" And she flew back into the house to get the bandages and medical supplies, in case she could save her family. But Amber didn't move. She sat in the hammock and watched the house burn, tears running down her face even though she was smiling. Her family was dying. She didn't care. Now they felt all the pain she'd felt, only amplified. They knew how it was to be broken and not saved, watching as others smiled at their misfortune. And she let out a small chuckle.

A giggle, almost. Then a bigger one. A snicker, then more. Amber hd burst into a fit of insane laughter right before their eyes, rocking the hammock back and forth. "Look who's..." Her eyes were turning dark, the blue of her eyes turning to the same blood red of her mane. "Look who's in pain now! Hehehe.... heehee hahahahahahaaa!" But now sitting at a distance was no longer amusing. She had to get close to feel their pain for herself. She slowly jumped down from the hammock and peered into the still burning shell of her house. An ember struck her, and she flinched. But then it didn't matter. She smiled her creepy, delusional smile and trotted even further into the house, ignoring the fire that was cooking her flesh as she finally came close to her father. She bent down, holding his blazing head with one hoof and whispered,

"Look who can't take the heat."

She dropped his head and quickly galloped toward an opening in the wall in which she could escape. There was no way she would become part of this bonfire. But Amber tripped over a long wooden plank, and slammed into another small fire that seemed to be eating the house. She cried out in agony, her flesh cooking and mane burning as well. But she didn't care. She jumped out of the fire and outside, rolling on the grass to put out the fire that wanted to kill her.

~

Patches fell out of the hole in the house that Amber exited from. She had ragged, bloody stumps coming from her sides where her wings had been, and Amber gasped. She quickly came over to her sister, wrapping her back with bandages. When Patches opened her eyes, she gasped.

"Amber, you..."

"I didn't mean to kill them." She lied.

"Your coat is burnt.... and your mane too.... oh! And your eyes!" She suddenly stood up and backed away from what seemed now like a monster.

Amber looked to the smoldering house, then stepped closer, staring at the little embers that still flicked and danced about in the wood.

One ember jumped out and burnt her flank. "Owch!" But it continued to stay there instead of going out. Then it moved, in some sort of strange pattern, leaving a large black dot of burnt flesh on her flank with some sort of spiral going around it.

Patches and Amber both stared in horror. Then another ember flicked out and continued the same pattern on the other side of her flank. When they diminished, Amber turned to see what had been clearly etched onto her flank as a permanent cutie mark:

A fire.

~

"So that's what it is." I spoke out, staring at her cutie mark.

"Yes. And.... I've killed a lot more since then. That's why I hide away. But now, I'm going to use this... killing urge, to end my father. I won't let him continue his killing rage so long as I have one too. I'm going to the Crystal Empire to fight him."

"Amber, you can't. I get why you'd want to fight for that cause, freeing slaves and all, but I won't stand for you murdering anyone."

"Anypony." Crimson Mane corrected.

"Anyway, I think the main problem here is getting me out of Equestria. I need to get home soon, and if you are going to kill your dad, that's great, GOOD FOR YOU, but I'd like to not be around for that."

"Then leave!" She jumped up and glared at me. "I've just exposed my entire life, the only reason I exist, and you want to leave?! Then leave already!"

"Reason you exist?" I turned back to glance at her.

"I wasn't created to have friends! I was created to be in the Crystal Empire! To kill!" Suddenly she grabbed a crystal out of her mane. It was hard and black, with jagged points on each end. "Put this into the portal's equation, Shadow Coat! Liquefy the crystal and mix it in with the portal substance, and he can go back home. Just get him away from me." She sighed and threw the crystal onto the desk, turning to trot up the stairs.

"Amber, wait!" Crimson Mane turned to me and tsktsk-ed. "Just leave bro." Then he flew up the stairs after Amber.

Long chapter. Took about two and a half hours to type. Ohh, and yay! For my birthday present, I get to go to the mall and get a Pinkie Pie plush! Can't wait!