Twilight didn't have a clue what just happened. She was practicing her teleportation spell. Making it more accurate in much longer distances. However, she had ended up in a delirious state and rather cold. She noticed in the distance, the castle of the crystal empire. The town around it was much smaller than she remembered it being.
Twilight flew towards the empire. She headed towards the castle, but when she was halfway to it, she noticed who she assumed was Cadence on the balcony. As she neared closer, she realised they didn't look like cadence. They were still pink, but the mane was off. It faded from pink to purple and had many more curls in it. Twilight noticed that they had blue accessories and they were just a unicorn.
At that moment twilight realised that that princess wasn't Cadence. That was princess Amore. Twilight had somehow managed to go back in time over 1000 years. And in a sudden panic, Twilight turned herself invisible. Worried if she were seen or heard she could alter history.
Mildly intrigued, Twilight glided down to the streets. She settled on a roof, looking down at the streets. She was interested to see how the empire operated so long ago, but it wasn't as beautiful as she expected it to be.
What took most of her attention were the carriages. Different carriages. Some personal other businesses. They weren't pulled by fellow workers though. Large black ponies were tied in sized-up harness. Twilight noticed they were all unicorns, horns severed almost at the skin, to low to ever grow back. She clasped her hooves round her mouth as she stifled a cry.
Those unicorns were treated horridly. They were driven with bridles that tied their chins into there necks. Chains wrapped around their neck and legs. The skin seemed to be doused in something that made it tender and tear from the touch of the chains. They held their heads low from the weight on there necks. When the carriage was boarded and ready to go, the crystal that drove them whip them hard, there necks and heads pulled straight up as they pull the carriage.
Twilight observed that all of the carriages seemed to head one way. Towards a Colosseum in the distance. She saw different carriages. Some had one or two pulling, and others walking alongside. Those that walked alongside, not only were in chains but were covered head to hoof in scars. Some were still open wounds, bleeding shimmering silver. Twilight had never seen silver blood before. Or heard of it.
She saw Amore again. On a carriage, two pulling, four tailing. Twilight followed her. Out of the small empire, down a makeshift rode, up a hill and arriving at the colosseum. Then, the crowd of carriages split into two. Many went into a parking area for what seemed to be guests. They didn't have any of the black unicorns tailing the carriages. The crystals entered the Colosseum, taking seats in the many rows. They others, along with Amore, went to the side. The pullers were left in the parking, while those tailing were unhooked and lead inside.
She heard a horn, what ever event was happening was starting soon. Twilight, although concerned, flew up to the roof. And watched.
There was a usual speech to start of an event. What twilight picked up was that it happened every four years and this event was called "the beating". It sent a chill down twilights spine. She believed she already knew where this was going.
The next horn sounded out. One of the unicorns was pulled into the centre of the arena. In chains and rearing and bucking. It was pulled taught into place. Twilight could barely watch as the poor thing was beaten and whipped and shot and stoned until it bled. Pulled into twisted positions as its silver blood dribbled down. On larger cuts, where arrows were pulled out, it sprayed. Shining in the suns light. A cheer and roar form the crowd as they watched it be beaten. There fur turning shiny and crystally in the process. Twilight, meanwhile, was peering through her wings. How could they be so sick? So disregarding of these lives.
The unicorn fell to the ground. Its body had given up. The crystal that were abusing them kicked at it. they pointed at something on its body. Then dragged the limp body across the floor. The crowd sighed and moaned in disappointment. Twilight had seen enough. She left the roof of the colosseum. But she couldn't escape he torture.
The limp body was dragged outside. It was barely breathing from what twilight could see in the air. They dragged it to a pit. Twilight hovered wearily over it, fearing to look into it. as she did, they unchained the body and kicked it down. She watched it land on a mass of black.
Twilight lowered down, closer to the bottom of the pit. She could make out bodies. All of the same unicorns. Discarded in a pit. There were roses growing out of them. they had silver stems and black petals. These petals were tipped with colours. Some red other blue. Yellow and white. All colours but green. The fresh body, still lightly breathing, had silver buds growing out of them. as they bled to death and slowly took their last breath, the silver bud bloomed into a black rose tipped with gold.
And then Twilight heard an uproar of screams. She turned back to the Colosseum to see screaming crystals and many of the unicorns breaking through the walls. As the civilians were rushing twilight heard many screaming over the commotion. She couldn't discern most of the shouts and screams. But two words were most common. "slaves" and "umbrum". Those black unicorns were umbrum. They were slaves for entertainment.
The heard made there way home, were weapons and safety lie. Many run down, throats torn out by jaws of sharp teeth. Amore was blasting down umbrum after umbrum with her magic. She raced ahead towards the crystal heart, which seemed oddly inactive. As Amore approached she spun it around in her magic, she entered the castle avoiding the conflict.
Twilight watched with wide eyes as both crystal and umbrum were slain in the chaos. From the bottom of houses came more umbrum, foals in tail. The females, twilight realised, were breed like farm animals. Desirable traits passed on to make money in the beatings. One mare caught twilights eye. Wings were chained by her side. She couldn't fly to take her foal to safety. Instead, she led it to the boarders. Twilight followed the other alicorn. Twilight struggled to follow as the mare seemed to sprint at the speed of trains, the foal miraculously kept up.
At the border, the mare stopped, and turned to her foal. She undid the chains that were wrapped around its small body.
"run into the mountains. They won't find you there, I love you" she pulled it into a hug as she pushed it forward, the foal ran towards the mountains. Fear drove it away from its mother. So did the instinct to survive.
"I love you Sombra" the mare softly said to the fleeing foal. That foal, if Twilight was correct, was Sombra. Her mind spun with questions. She watched the chaos around her. Sombra mother running of to fight. Other umbrum killed and black roses blooming. Many crystals overpowered by their slaves.
A blinding light shone through the castle windows. Amore burst through the doors on the balcony, she shot her magic through the glowing heart. The bright light stunning everyone. A blast of magic flooded the empire, it teared the umbrum apart and turned them into smoke. It pulled them deep underground. Banished. The peace settled in. The heart put back in place. Ponies looked at the dead bodies of loved ones around them. The grief came in soon.
Twilight turned back toward were she saw little Sombra run. She flew over the path he took. Under a large willow tree, she saw him. Staring back at the place he was bred.
Twilight saw Sombra in a new way. His hatred towards the empire and its ponies. Why he chose slavery. Just made sense now. It was potentially all he knew as a foal. twilight didn't really blame him now. Granted he will never be fully justified. But it was revenge. One twilight realised, could defiantly bee seen as karma.
Twilight wanted to see more. But she couldn't. She had to go home. So, she tried to remember the spell that got her here on accident. She did and as the magic swirled around her, she took one last look at Sombra. now curled up in the roots of the tree. And that world vanished.
The black roses were burned into her brain. Growing out of dead and dying umbrum. she remembered something. Every year, ponies would travel to the outskirts of the empire. To pick black roses. The roses that grew from the dead.
She appeared in her room. sitting on the soft carpet. Still stunned and terrified and confused. She felt Spikes arms clamp around her leg. Before he could speak. She asked, fear still lingering in her voice.
"when's the next train to the crystal empire?"