Pokémon and Ponies
#18-The Crystal Empire
The Realm where the rift resides...
Cold Colt and Emerald Aura were getting impatient.
"Ugh.. how long do we have to wait until we can do anything. I wanna get my revenge on Rainbow Dash already!" Cold Colt moaned.
"I just wanna mess around in Ponyville again," Emerald replied.
"Rift. Can't you just make an Alicorn and make everything much more difficult for them all?!"
"Where's the fun in that? An Alicorn early out of nowhere is boring. I need something much more entertaining."
"If I may rift. Currently, there's an ominous force around this location known as the Crystal Empire." Obsidian came in. "And that ominous force is an old ruler. King Sombra is his name. And he enslaved the crystal ponies for countless years until Celestia and Luna came in to stop him."
"Go on."
"Right now, he's just a force. No physical body.. but.."
"I could bring his entire body back. And perhaps, amplify his magic. Yes...We shall do that. I cannot wait to see how they solve this problem. I am already getting excited just from the thought of it.
Ponyville, Day.
Ash was helping with the creation of the Pokemon House at Fluttershy's cottage. With the assistance of Pokemon assigned by BigTime Ben, this'll be much faster. There were Machoke's and Conkeldurr's helping with the moving, various psychic types were helping with building walls.
"This is gonna be something big, huh Fluttershy?" Ash said, getting a good look at the nearly completed Pokemon House.
"Pika-Pikachu."
"Oh yes. I can't wait for it to be completed. I want all the Pokemon who normally can't find a home here in Equestria or anywhere exactly, to feel comfortable here if they have no place to go. I just hope I'm not giving too much attention to Pokemon so that my animal friends don't feel overshadowed."
"Nah. It's fine. A lot of people get hung up on one thing, that they sometimes forget about the other thing. But it doesn't last so no need to worry."
"You're right. Angel Bunny and the others won't have anything to worry about."
As the house was being made, Twilight had rushed over to Fluttershy's cottage, running out of breath almost.
"T-There you are.."
"Twilight? What's wrong?" Fluttershy asked the tired unicorn.
"Big trouble! Celestia! Crystal Empire! Sombra!" She was saying all of these words individually. Ash and Fluttershy looked at each other, confused.
"Twilight. Take a moment to breathe and tell us what's really going on." Fluttershy tried to calm her down.
"Okay... There's big trouble as we speak. Princess Celestia has ordered we head to the Crystal Empire.. to stop the previous tyrannical ruler. King Sombra! We have to go! There's no time!"
At Canterlot, Celestia was already insanely worried. She was thinking of the worst possible scenarios that could happen. Passion was also worried. She could feel this incoming danger as well. She stayed close to Celestia to feel safe, but this dark presence was still enough to send chills down anyone's spine.
"Sombra's fully revived.. what if Twilight and the others aren't capable of stopping him! I may have sent them to their doom!" She said, pacing back and forth. "No no. I have to put all my faith in them. I can count on them all to free the Crystal Empire and stop Sombra once and for all." Darkrai was overhearing this, learning about the Sombra situation. It wasn't any of his business to get involved, but after how Ash and the others saved him.. he wanted to help them at all costs. So the Pitch Black Pokemon sank into the ground, sneakily heading off to help them all.
What Twilight described the situation was nowhere near close to the horror that is actually happening. King Sombra had returned. But not as a black cloud of evil.. but as his full self. His body restored his magic.. all of it back to him. And to make it worse.. thanks to the rift. His magic prowess has been amplified to a level where the rift finds it plausible for entertainment.
Shining Armor and Cadence were sent to the Crystal Empire to guard it against Sombra.. however, they had not expected Sombra himself to fully show. With his heightened magic and his body in its prime.. he took over the Crystal Empire once more in 5 minutes flat. As for Cadence and Shining Armor, they were unfortunately defeated and forced to work with the enslaved ponies as well.
"To be honest. I don't really know how this is all happening? It feels like I was never defeated." Sombra said, feeling like he was young again. "Oh well. Doesn't matter. I've reclaimed my throne. Unfortunately for Celestia.. her and her sister's attempt to stop me did not last at all."
Outside, the snowy lands.. far away from the Crystal Empire, Twilight and the others were headed there.
"Are you sure this is where the empire is Twilight?!" Applejack asked as they could all feel the cold breeze of the snow get to them.
"100%. This is where the map said it leads to. But I don't see it anywhere!"
"We've been walking for a while now... My scarf can only absorb so much cold" Rarity said. They kept moving along, getting colder by the minute. Until...
"This is hopeless! We don't even have any signs to where it is!" Rainbow Dash complained.
"Is it that huge ominous black cloud with a red sky looming over it over at the north distance?" Pinkie Pie pointed out as she was referring to the other side, where things looked unnerving.
"Pika.."
"Oh yeah. That's it." Twilight replied.
"That's the Crystal Empire? It doesn't look very pleasing actually.." Fluttershy was getting nervous just from the sight of it.
"I know girls. But Princess Celestia requested we solve this. Shining Armor and Cadence are in there so we have to go."
Emerald Aura and Cold Colt were hiding behind a snowy rock, eavesdropping.
"So once they get in there it's game over right..?" Cold Colt whispered.
"Yeah. Sombra's gonna wipe the floor with me. Or at least enslave them. I don't know really." Emerald replied.
"I still want my revenge though."
"Save it. This is gonna be excellent.."
The Crystal Empire. Ruled by the devious King Sombra.
He knew other ponies were coming. His amplified magic could sense it. So he waited for these ponies to show up.
"Getting closer to the empire, are they? Probably sent by Celestia to try and stop me once more. Shame she couldn't come by herself or with her annoying little sister. Revenge would've been so much sweeter."
"You won't get away with this Sombra. Twily and the others will stop you without any problems." Shining Armor said as he was chained up along with Cadence.
"Feh. To be honest, I would believe that considering I was defeated many years ago. However, for some reason.. it feels like I can take on anything. I don't know what happened but my magic has been greatly heightened. I am now able to perform spells that I originally never had. How wonderful. So this precious Twily of yours and her friends won't even be able to push me back."
"Maybe. But Ash and Pikachu are still there for you to deal with?" Cadence rebuttal.
"Who?"
"That's right. You just came back so you have no idea what happened to our world in a few weeks. Just you wait. Once you see those two, you'll be overwhelmed in no time."
"I highly doubt that dear. Now enough chit chat. They're here."
Arriving at the front of Empire, they were met with ponies who were chained up and walking in single file. Sombra had made this place comfortable for him quickly.
"This is horrible. What kind of low down vermin would do this?" Applejack said.
"The same vermin who ruled this empire a long time ago. And now he's ruler again." Twilight retorted. Just then, they were all met by ponies wearing armour that resembled that of Sombra. King Sombra had already geared up some ponies to reinvigorate his army.
"We have company.." Rainbow Dash said as many guards were surrounding them all.
"Pikachu.."
"These are all Crystal Ponies who are under Sombra's influence and rule. They're not in their right mind." Twilight said.
"Well, how do we get to Sombra if they're in the way?" Fluttershy asked her. The purple unicorn began thinking whilst they were surrounded.
"I'll stay.!" Ash declared.
"What?" They all said in unison.
"I can be the distraction and help these Crystal Ponies break free. You all focus on getting to Sombra and finding a way to stop him."
"Ash do you not hear yourself? Sombra's a different kind of unicorn from what Celestia told me. We'll need all the help we can get! And are you sure you can handle yourself outside with all of this?!"
"Of course I can. No doubt about it."
"Pika!"
"Now I'll clear the path for you. Get going okay? Pikachu! Thunderbolt!" Pikachu cleared a path by firing a thunderbolt on the ground, sending the armoured ponies away from the Mane 6 and Spike.
"Alright. Good luck Ash!" Twilight said as they all ran towards the main castle, where Sombra was. Cold Colt and Emerald peeked out, seeing this happen.
"Oh wow. They're already going to the final boss? Usually, they gotta go through a lot of stuff to reach the main event."
"They are gonna go through a lot of stuff Cold Colt. Sombra's already got something planned."
As the group were inside the castle, they were met with crystal platforms that rose from the floor, stopping their movements.
"What in tarnation is this?!" The platforms kept rising and multiplying. Eventually, they formed into the worst possible thing. Stairs.
"All those stairs?!" Pinkie Pie yelled.
"No biggie. We'll just fly over them easy peasy. Come on." Rainbow Dash had picked up Applejack and Rarity whilst Fluttershy got Twilight and Pinkie Pie whilst Spike was on Twilight's back. "See? Like some crystal stairs are gonna-" Rainbow Dash was interrupted by a sudden crystal which crashed into her wings. She screamed in pain as she fell to the ground, dropping AJ and Rarity as well.
"Rainbow Dash!" The other 4 said. From atop the crystal stairs, Sombra had shown himself, deciding to come out. They all looked up at the Unicorn King. Already feeling his wicked presence from this distance.
"That's him, girls... Sombra."
"Welcome my little ponies. I see you made it in."
"Sombra! Where's my brother and Cadence!"
"With me. In a much more comfortable spot. I assume that you came here under Celestia's orders like the goons you are."
"How dare you!"
"I can assure you, she should've come instead and with her sister. Sending somepony else to do her dirty work is cowardly."
"Princess Celestia is no coward! You take that back!" Rainbow Dash yelled at her.
"Mhm. Well, it wouldn't have made a difference anyway. I feel much better for some reason.. like all my potential has been released all of a sudden. Here. Let me show you." All of a sudden, pillars of crystals surrounded each of the Mane 6 like a prison. They were caged in by Sombra's crystals with the gaps looking incredibly slim.
"Sombra!"
"Stay there will you. I might have some use for most of you anyways." Sombra said, walking back into his throne room, leaving them all to be in this Crystal Prison.
"THIS WAS A DISASTER!" Rarity yelled. "Not even 10 minutes and we've already been captured along with every pony who's working under his control and Shining Armor and Princess Cadence are in there helpless! We're doomed!" She began to panic. They've never suffered a loss this fast. Not by Discord, Darkrai, Malamar or even Chrysalis.
"Pull yourself together Rarity! We'll get out of here! Now come on girls! Help me break through these crystals!" Twilight began firing magic beams at the crystals. These crystals weren't as fragile as they look. They were rigid. Thanks to his boosted magic, they would take much longer to even break pieces of it. Applejack tried to buck them all, but it wasn't going anywhere. Rainbow Dash couldn't do anything since a crystal had hit her wing. Rendering her in pain and unable to fly for a while.
Meanwhile outside, Ash has managed to cause a lot of distractions. By using Electroweb to halt them, he focused on getting the Crystal Ponies out of those chains.
"We're gonna get you all out of here. Pikachu. Iron Tail." Pikachu used its hard iron tail to break the chains holding them all in half. "Good job. Break the rest." It was a great call. All of these ponies weren't just being enslaved in chains.. but they were also being lined up to become soldiers. Sombra would place armoured gear on them, making them under his control so they could do him every bidding and be apart of his army. The Crystal Ponies had each been freed thanks to the iron tail as they had a moment of hope in their eyes but remembered where they are and who they were being ruled by.
"They all look so scared. So this Sombra guy's had them all terrified because of his ruling."
"Pika."
"And it should be like that if they want to see another day." From atop the balcony, stood King Sombra who was looking down on Ash. "What creature are you meant to be? Along with that yellow rodent."
"I'm Ash Ketchum. And this my partner Pikachu. You're Sombra I'm guessing?"
"King Sombra to you, boy. And you're in my empire now. I already have the rest of your friends locked up in my crystals. They should've known better than to oppose me. After all who needs a Princess when you have King!"
"Heh. I'm a king myself ya know. King of the Sea."
"Pika.."
"King of the Sea? Hah! That's less impressive. I suggest you get lost, boy. You and your bizarre rodent are just dust in the wind." Sombra said, going back inside.
"We're gonna stop you, okay?! Pikachu.. we gotta get in there and help the others."
"Pika!"
Trying as hard as they could, Twilight and the others had no luck breaking free from these crystals. They were already out of breath.
"Can't.. do it. Too many.. too hard." Applejack sat down, trying to catch her breath.
"We can't give up now... My brother and my sister in law are in there! We have to break free!" Twilight charged up her magic for one final magic beam. She was giving it all she had this time as she fired it point-blank at the crystals. But no luck. They still wouldn't budge. In fact, the only damage it did was create a small crack. Twilight had finally run out of energy as well. It was starting to leak bleak until...
Out of the grounds, shadows emerged. But not shadows of evil, shadows that will help. Out came Darkrai.
"Darkrai!" Twilight said with a smile on her face.
"Twilight. You can't lose here. Ash and Pikachu are already doing their best to save everypony else. Don't fall behind."
"But we can't break out of here. We can't phase through like you."
"That's why I'm here." Darkrai had suddenly summoned a dark void underneath them all, dragging the ponies and Spike into it. Darkrai phased through the floor as the gang entered out another dark void from the other side, away from the crystals.
"We're out! Oh, thank you so much Darkrai!" Fluttershy hugged the Nightmare Pokemon.
"Uhh.. you're welc-" Suddenly, Darkrai was hit from behind. A sneak attack from Emerald Aura.
"Miss me Darkrai?"
"Emerald Aura!" Rarity said. Cold Colt had also shown himself.
"It's payback time. Rainbow!"
"Cold Colt!" Fluttershy held Darkrai as the Pitch Black Pokemon looked at Emerald.
"You should've just stayed behind you know. Not that it would've mattered. The rift helping Sombra come back fully and gain much higher magic prowess would've still happened." Emerald said, revealing to them all why Sombra was like this now.
"So that's it. The rift is why the Crystal Empire was taken over so quickly." Twilight said.
"So scram. Or else things are going to get ugly. I've already got a hit on your precious Darkrai there. Don't wanna make things too hard now eh?" Emerald was getting a bit too cocky. Because the King of cocky was right behind her.
"And who are you to give orders in my kingdom?" She turned around to see Sombra, standing there and looking down on her.
"S-S-Sombra!" Sombra had heard everything. Now he knows of the existence of the rift and how it gave him all this extra help.
"So this rift is the reason why I am like this right now. To be honest, I should thank it. But I have no time to be thanking. Somepony's being apart of my army. And by some I mean the ones I deem as useful." Sombra had the same armour that was on the guards, ready to put it on some of them.
"Stay sharp girls. We may not be at full strength.. but we can't give up so easily like this."
"Twilight Sparkle. Great confidence. You'll be the first to wear it!" Sombra sent the armour and helmet towards Twilight, however, an Iron Tail had arrived knocking the helmet away. "Feh. You again."
"Ash! Pikachu!"
"You two. I think you two will do." Sombra said to Cold Colt and Emerald.
"Huh?" They both said in unison as Sombra had placed the armour and helmet on them instead. Once working for the rift, now working for Sombra himself.
"Oh, man. So they completely take a pony over once they're on."
"Pika.."
"Hahaha!" Sombra laughed as he stood up a huge pillar of crystals, looking down on them all.
"Get them."
King Sombra. Currently, the odds favor him. With Emerald Aura and Cold Colt who were both created by the rift now under his control, this situation could get ugly fast.
"Get them." Sombra stood atop his crystal stairs as Emerald and Cold Colt took action. They galloped towards the group. Twilight and the others were either hurt or tired, so it was defending them until they could recover.
"Pikachu! Iron Tail!" Pikachu jumped up, knocking the two unicorns away with a hard iron tail, even chipping the armor that was given to them.
"A tail made of iron?" This was new to Sombra. He had never seen anything like this before.
"Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded as two magic beams were fired at Pikachu. Light blue and green. The thunderbolt pushed them back easily. This impressed Sombra more. A creature that could shoot lightning from its body and easily overpower two unicorns. Cold Colt and Emerald Aura were paralyzed from the thunderbolt, unable to move. "Let's finish this! Electroweb!" The finisher. Trapping them there, by not only paralyzing them but also placing a web of electricity that held them there. The damage was so good that it destroyed the gear, removing their mind control.
"Great job Ash!" Pinkie Pie yelled.
"How odd. A creature that can shoot lightning from its body and conjure up iron from its tail and use it as a weapon. Where did you get something like this?"
"I-Its called a Pokemon. Creatures from the other world connected by gateways." Emerald Aura explained before passing out.
"That would explain all those gateways I saw in the distance. I've already taken an interest to these Pokemon. Especially this dark one."
"Like I'd let a guy like you get close to Pokemon." Ash retorted.
"Hmph. Well, then Ash Ketchum. King of the Sea. Try and stop me then!" Sombra's eyes glowed as crystals appeared around Ash and Pikachu.
"Pikachu! Iron Tail!" Pikachu easily destroyed the crystals with its steel tail, clearing away the crystals. The crystals were then used as weapons, aiming at an angle, fit for thrusting as they were targeted at Pikachu. Pikachu jumped over the sharp crystals that rose towards him. "Get up there with Quick Attack!" Pikachu ran up the crystals, rushing towards Sombra and getting him with a quick attack. Fast and moves at blinding speeds. Great for getting an easy hit in.
"Rodent!" Sombra bellowed, shooting Pikachu away with his corrupted magic. Sombra had then trapped Ash in a crystal prison the same way he trapped Twilight and the others.
"Cheap way out Sombra!"
"Oh please. Victory comes in many ways."
"Pikachu! Handle it from here!" Ash had relied on his partner to handle everything from here. He was going to send the others away from here before it got worse. Pikachu broke the prison Ash was in as he turned his attention to the Unicorn King. Ash picked up Twilight and Darkrai, obviously taking each of them outside one by one.
"You won't get far!" Sombra hissed. His horn had made contact with Pikachu's iron tail. Pikachu was using everything to make sure his trainer got them all out one by one. Ash kept picking them all up, sending them out. Sombra then slammed his hoof on Pikachu's tail, pinning him there.
"Pika!"
"Stay!" He declared. Aiming at Ash who was carrying Fluttershy and Rarity, Sombra was ready to blast him. Pikachu wouldn't let that happen as he let out a surge of electricity from his body, shocking Sombra. He did have his hoof on him so he was a prime target for instant lightning.
"Thanks, Pikachu!" Ash thanked his partner as he had gotten everypony out. Pikachu had jumped away from Sombra, hopping onto his friend's shoulder. "Let's go!"
"Get back here!" Sombra chased after them while creating crystal stairs to keep up with them.
"We gotta stop him! Electroweb!" Electroweb was sent towards Sombra, however, it was immediately destroyed by a magic ray. "No good. Darkrai! Can you throw one quick Dark Void?"
"I'm hurt but not defenceless." Darkrai tossed a dark void as it hit Sombra dead on. Sombra had been subjected to Darkrai's nightmares as well.
"Nice shot!"
"Pikachu!" This gave them all time to breathe as Sombra was temporarily out.
"Thanks for saving us Ash, Pikachu. And good job putting Sombra to sleep Darkrai." Twilight had greatly thanked them.
"Now quickly. Let's restrain him before he wakes up." Applejack insisted. They did just that. Twilight had used some of her magic that she had regained to lift Sombra up. Applejack and Pinkie Pie grabbed some of the chains that Pikachu broke and placed it around Sombra. Sombra was now immobilized for now. Every pony took some time to breathe as the Crystal Ponies walked up after seeing what just happened.
"T-They stopped Sombra!" A pony gushed. Soon all of them were applauding as they felt like they had been saved.
"Not for long ya'll. We'd best be careful. He could wake up from his nightmares and break free. We'd best find a better way to really restrain him for good." Applejack said.
"Cadence! Shining Armor!" Twilight ran back inside, moving up the annoying amount of stairs until she came across Sombra's throne room. There they were. Two ponies she loved for a long time.
"Twily!"
"Twilight!"
She ran to the two of them, hugging them.
"We knew you'd come and save us!" Shining Armor sighed with relief. Twilight was doing her best to try and break the chains restraining them, even trying some magic.
"Twilight. You'll need the key to break us out. Go search further in Sombra's room." Cadence told her. Twilight had advanced forward, entering the room of King Sombra. She looked around, searching for the key anywhere.. until.
"Hello there." Obsidian was sitting on a table casually.
"What are YOU doing here?!"
"Me? I'm only here to spectate. See how this goes down. I am an extension of the rift after all. And I gotta say, this is pretty fun so far. That small little scuffle between Pikachu and Sombra was pretty entertaining if short. I wonder what'll happen next once Sombra breaks free."
"You think this is fun?! My friends and everypony else are constantly in danger due to you and your rift's cruel actions!"
"Oh?"
"Ever since the rift merged the worlds together, constant threats have attacked. The control of Darkrai, Malamar's attack and you and Chrysalis's actions at the Royal Canterlot Wedding. And now this. You all have to be stopped before your evil antics become worse!"
"Do you really think the rift does this for the sake of evil?" Obsidian said which caught Twilight off guard.
"What?"
"The rift is neither good nor evil. If anything it's neutral at best. You see Twilight Sparkle.. this has happened before."
"Happened.. before?"
"Oh yes. The wedding, this. This has all happened before in the true timeline. In the original timeline, your world never crossed paths with the World of Pokemon. You never met your precious Minccino, Minccy. Your friends never met Pokemon that they could bond with. Darkrai never arrived to Ponyville and more importantly... you never met Ash and Pikachu. All of this is a separate timeline. A new timeline forged by the rift. And very soon, future events that played out in the original timeline will happen in this timeline as well... but with an extra dash of Pokemon."
Everything Obsidian said had blown Twilight back. This was a separate timeline? Ash and she never met long with the other Pokemon? And future events will play out?
"No way..."
"Yes, way. In a way... the rift created these bonds for you. It created your friendship with the world of Pokemon. In retrospect... your friendship with Ash is fake. Fabricated. Not natural. A False Friendship."
"Y-You're wrong! Ash and I are friends! We bonded like how actual friends would!"
"But you were never meant to meet. And very soon... once the rift is satisfied, both worlds will return to normal. All Pokemon and Humans will return to their world along with you ponies. Then it'll be like nothing happened. As for me and the others? We'll vanish into nothing. After all, we're just creations from the rift based on your world and the other world. But I'm rambling on for too long. Good luck with finding your key." Obsidian had teleported out of the room. Twilight took a moment to take this all in.
Her friendship with Ash was never meant to exist. And at any point in time, the rift will leave, causing both worlds to return to normal. Her ears dropped as she continued to look for the key. She eventually found the key, getting out and freeing the two of them. However, her mood was different. She felt nothing but sadness and a bit of doubt.
"Thank you Twilight! Um... Are you okay..?" Shining Armor asked.
"I'm fine.. let's get out of here."
Outside, the Crystal Ponies had taken some time to relax. They had some hope in their hearts after the current defeat of Sombra. Twilight had come out with Cadence and Shining Armor, still down.
"You're okay!" Fluttershy sighed.
"Yeah..." Twilight mumbled.
"What's wrong Twi?" Rainbow asked.
"...Ash."
"Yeah, Twilight?"
"We're friends aren't we?"
"Of course we are. Why wouldn't we be?"
"Well..." She didn't want to tell them the truth. On how they'll have to part ways once the rift leaves or how their friendship is purely fictional. Never meant to happen.
"Something's wrong. Twilight. You can tell me." Applejack said to her currently sad friend.
"I don't want to talk about it.."
"Everypony. We have to get to it. The Crystal Heart. Twilight. You go home for now. Shining Armor and I have got this."
"But what if he wakes up?"
"I'll stay behind. I'll make sure he keeps on staying asleep for a long time." Darkrai insisted on staying behind to keep an eye on Sombra.
"Alright, Darkrai. Good luck." Ash replied. Making their leave, they left the Crystal Empire, leaving it in the hands of Shining Armor, Cadence and now Darkrai. Along the way, Twilight couldn't get all the words that Obsidian said out her head. She kept all that knowledge to herself.
Ponyville, near night.
Twilight had returned to Celestia's castle, letting her know that the Sombra situation, for the most part, had been dealt with.
"Well done Twilight. But it's not over yet."
"What?"
"There's still one final thing I want you to do."
"What's that princess?"
"A test."
"A test?!"
"Yes. But before that... Passion notices that you're feeling down about something. What is it?" If there was anypony she could tell it's Celestia.
"You see... I recently just learned that... my friendship was Ash was never meant to exist. In fact. The same can be said for you and Passion. This is all a separate timeline. Once the rift leaves... both worlds return to normal."
"And you're afraid that once it all returns to normal, you'll forever live with the knowledge of knowing that the friendship you made with Ash was never meant to be in the first place."
"Yes."
"Hmm. Tell you what. I want you to take this test... and after that... you'll learn two important things today."
"Yes, Princess Celestia! I'll get right to it! I'm going to need all my years of knowledge for this one!" Twilight galloped out of the room as Celestia smiled. But she frowned, knowing that the Sombra situation wasn't stopped for long. King Sombra was close to waking up. And to make matters worse...
His magic was still growing.
Sombra didn't stay asleep for long. Not many can break free from Darkrai's nightmares. Not many at all. But Sombra could... and he did. Once he broke free, the fear of the Crystal Ponies had kicked in once more as they began to panic. Shining Armor and Cadence were ready to stop him but this time with the assistance of Darkrai.
"Nice try. But your nightmares weren't that effective on me!" Sombra broke out of the chains with ease thanks to his magic. "Allow me to show you a true nightmare!" Those same crystal pillars rose once more but even higher. And they look much sharper than last time. "Having the power to cause nightmares to others by a simple void is both wonderful and a threat. And to think. On the other side, there are more like this one."
"We're still here Sombra! In case you haven't noticed!" Shining Armor yelled.
"Oh yes. You're still here. Why don't you get lost already? This kingdom is still mine!"
"Not whilst I am still here. I can put you in a deep sleep at any moment now." Darkrai said.
"I am aware. But it won't last long. My magic grows by the minute. You put me in a nightmare state once more, I will break out much faster than before."
"Shining Armor," Cadence whispered to him. "We have to find a better way to protect everypony else. Our protection spell won't last much longer." Shining Armor nodded in response. They had to do this quietly without Sombra ever noticing. Crystal Ponies all hid to avoid Sombra, still shaken up by his return.
Sombra had enough standing around as he immediately released a seemingly amped-up version of his magic rays.
Cadence placed up a protection spell, however, the beam had managed to make a huge crack in it. Shining Armor pitched in to help with the spell, keeping the spell up for a bit longer. Darkrai hid in the shadows, sneaking up on Sombra. But this tactic didn't work. Sombra had a much faster reaction time, shooting Darkrai down before he put him into a deep sleep again.
Thanks to Darkrai distracting Sombra, Cadence and Shining Armor took this opportunity to get a move on.
Elsewhere... Twilight had been sent back to the Crystal Empire. Whatever Celestia's test was, it must be grand if it means going back to the empire this soon. However, she felt a lot of pressure on her. Sombra waking up so quickly and having to protect the empire along with Shining Armor and Cadence who were still a bit drained. But it would be fine. Her friends are here to help as well.
"Are we really going back there again? I still haven't gotten over what happened with Sombra. Ugh..." Rarity shuddered.
"It's only been an hour. I'm not sure we're fully ready to take this on again Twilight." Fluttershy followed.
"We have to. The Crystal Empire isn't in the best state right now. We need to spread love and happiness to it. That way all hope will be restored to it and the ponies. Let's just hope Sombra hasn't gotten the better of everypony yet."
Shining Armor and Cadence had found a library, searching for any way to help protect the Empire from Sombra. Or at least get rid of him for good. They had asked an old pony who worked here where they could find any information. Unfortunately, she had no memory. After what happen with Sombra a hundred years go, most of the ponies only remember Sombra and not much else.
Outside, Darkrai was doing his best to distract Sombra. His dark voids weren't landing as much anymore. Sombra could tell when they could be thrown and where. The crystal ponies watched as this dark shadowy creature was helping to stop Sombra. They thought it would be the opposite. With its appearance, it looked like it would be on Sombra's side.
"How long are you going to keep avoiding me?!"
"As long as I can!" Darkrai released a dark pulse which destroyed the crystal platforms that Sombra was on. Darkrai was lucky to be strong enough to be a match for Sombra. Those crystals were tough to break. Twilight and the others arrived to see Darkrai handling Sombra.
"Darkrai!" Twilight called out.
"Twilight! All of you! Don't mind me! Just go and find Cadence and Shining Armor!" They took his command and kept moving on. They asked anypony if they had seen the two.
"I saw them go into the library over there.." A cowering crystal pony said. And in there were. Still searching for any information.
"No good. This might take forever. I don't know how much longer Darkrai can hold Sombra. Any luck Cadence?"
"No need, big brother!" They had entered the library. Safe and sound from Sombra.
"Twily! You're back!"
"Yes. We were sent here to help restore love and hope to the Crystal Empire!"
"Love and hope..." Cadence took a while to realise what this meant. "That's it! Love and hope!" She went through many of the other remaining books. "We need love and hope in order to restore the empire back to its true state and to push back Sombra!" She explained with a smile on her face. And she managed to find a book that could help with just that.
The History of the Crystal Empire. Everypony gathered up to the book as Cadence opened it up.
"A Crystal Fair. It was created by their first queen. And become their most important tradition. The fair was held every year to renew the spirit of love and unity in the empire so that they could protect it from harm." She read. "We could all put this together."
"That's gonna be a bit hard with Sombra roaming around." Ash responded.
"Yes. We have to put our faith in Darkrai." Shining Armor said.
"No need. Me and Pikachu can help Darkrai keep Sombra busy."
"Pika!"
"There you go running into danger again. Just make sure Sombra doesn't notice the Crystal Fair being put together." Twilight said to him.
"No need to worry! We'll lure him far away."
"Pikachu!"
"Besides. I bought this along with me." Ash said, raising his right hand to reveal his Z Ring.
With Sombra, Darkrai was running a bit low on steam. Sombra was still growing in magic so this meant that Darkrai was being pressured more and more. Before Sombra could get a clean hit on Darkrai, Pikachu's Iron Tail had knocked the unicorn king of his crystal platforms.
"We're here Darkrai! Twilight and the others have got this. We'll pitch in to help in the meantime."
"Thank you, Ash. Pikachu."
"Pikapi."
"How long will that last though? My magic has heightened to a point where I can now sense anypony from a faraway distance! I know where they are and what they're up to!"
"Then we just to make sure you don't get in their way! Pikachu! Quick Attack!" Pikachu moved at blinding speeds. The crystals formed up to try and stop Pikachu, but the electric mouse ran up the crystals while still in a quick attack state. Sombra could now see the quick attack coming as he flipped Pikachu over by raising his hoof up.
"Pika!" Sombra had then sent crystals upwards as they hit Pikachu's belly, sending him upwards.
"Pikachu!" Ash cried out!
"No more surprises! I can see much faster now!"
"Electroweb!" From above, the electro web was sent down. Sombra turned around to see it, destroying it with his magic. "Iron Tail!" A follow-up. An iron tail straight down, but even that was stopped by a shield Sombra cast.
"Darkrai. We'll have to lead him far away so that they can all focus on the fair."
"I know where we can send him. Back to the cold arctic north. He'll obviously return here no doubt so we'll join him in the arctic. We can keep him busy there."
"Great idea!" Pikachu kept hitting the shield with his iron tail. gradually breaking it. "Pikachu! Pull back for now!" Pikachu moved away from Sombra, returning to his trainer.
"You and your rat are persistent. I can see that you have been through many battles if it is this strong for its size."
"Hehe. That's the bond me and Pikachu share. Something you wouldn't get."
"Hmph." Sombra was wide open as the dark void appeared underneath him. "This again? Like I'd let you!"
"Electroweb!" Pikachu sent out an electro web which kept Sombra in place. The dark void also swallowed both Ash and Pikachu. Darkrai followed suit as they had left the empire and into the arctic north. The Crystal Ponies peered out, seeing what just happened.
"So.. does this mean Sombra's been stopped again? I don't know how to feel. They only temporarily stopped him and he got back up again." A crystal pony said, still worried.
The Mane 6 now had their opportunity. It was time to set things up for the festivities. Thanks to Ash, Pikachu and Darkrai, Sombra won't be able to stop this. He's currently occupied with the two. So they got to work.
After some adjustments, everything was in place for the festivities to begin.
"What's this thing for?" Applejack asked Twilight. There was this cracked sculpture of some sort of heart.
"The last page of the book mentioned that a Crystal Heart is the fair centrepiece. So I used my magic to cut one out of a crystal block."
"Nice work Twi. Think we're ready to get this fair up and running."
The fair is about to begin. High atop on the Castle balcony, came Princess Cadence, Shining Armor and Twilight. Pinkie Pie stood on the side with a wonky trumpet in her hooves. She blew on it, playing a horrible sound.
"Hear ye! Hear y-" Twilight was saying however Pinkie played that terrible ear wrenching sound once again which cut her off.
"Hehe. My bad." Pinkie hid the trumpet behind her.
"Ahem. Hear ye! Hear ye! Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armor do cordially invite you to attend the Crystal Fair! And no need to worry! Sombra isn't here!"
Other crystal ponies who weren't outside had come out for this announcement. They all took a moment to realise that for starters Sombra wasn't here anymore, he was hung up with some otherworldly visitors and there two new ponies who seemed to be rulers. This was enough to stir up some hope in all of them. And it did. Their crystallized bodies had shown once more. They all had a smile on their faces as they actually remembered what the Crystal Fair was. It was an important celebration... one that could never leave their memories due to how wonderful it always was. They all gathered around to enjoy this fair.
"Come on in y'all. Got food and drinks that'away. Games and crafts are that'away. Crystal Heart's in the back near the princess." Applejack said.
"Did she say Crystal Heart?" A pony said as they felt like they remembered a crystal heart. Rainbow Dash flew over to a Crystal Pony to try and get the memory of the heart back in em.
"Totally nailed it right?" The crystal pony got a bit worried, moving away from Dash. But Rainbow began to follow her. "Must be feeling a lot of love and unity right about now." Rainbow Dash had stopped by a cart full of corn, still following the same pony. "Gonna have some grub huh? What are you thinking? Crystal Empire berry pie? Maybe some crystal corn on the cob." She was talking to nopony as the crystal pony had left a while ago. "What is with these ponies?"
Some ponies weren't fully crystallized yet. They were still down in the dumps. Until two ponies could feel like they could remember all of this.
"Seeing all of this... I feel like I'm starting to remember. Remember things from before the king."
"Me too." They took a while to remember. And it hit then. Their crystal bodies came back to them in a beautiful flash and their true dazzling colors were seen once more.
"The Crystal Heart!" They said in unison. "Do you think they really have it?" Dash zoomed in once she saw these two return to normal.
"Of course we have it!" She said. "Can't have a crystal fair without the Crystal Heart right?"
"Of course you can't." The old pony from the library said as she had come out as well. "The whole purpose of the crystal fair is to lift the spirits of the crystal ponies, so the light within them can power the crystal heart so that the Empire can be protected!" She said with more energy in her voice, returning back to her true self as well. "I DO work at the library!"
"What's that about powering the heart?" Rainbow dash asked as Applejack even heard this.
"I just can't believe you found it. King Sombra said he'd hidden it away, and we would never see it again. I only hope it will still be as powerful after all these years. Mmm. Funnel Cake." This was a problem. The crystal heart there wasn't the real deal. And it's just sitting out in the open. If the crystal ponies find out that it is a fake... then their hope will fade out and it's back to droopy dim de-colored ponies. Rainbow Dash flew up, grabbing a nearby flag and placing it on the fake heart.
"Twilight! We may have a problem! The Crystal Heart is no sightseeing sculpture.. its the actual real deal!" Twilight gasped. She opened up the book, looking at the page of the Crystal Heart. Nothing about it being powered by the crystal ponies.
"I didn't know it was an actual relic. The book didn't mention anything about the crystal ponies powering the heart." She kept looking through until she reached a certain page. Or rather... no page at all. It's been torn off. "There was a page missing! How did I not notice?!"
At the Arctic North, Sombra was being occupied by the three of them. He wanted to get past but they wouldn't let him.
"Think you can keep me here for long?!" Sombra bellowed.
"Man.. is it me.. or is he getting stronger?"
"Pika-pika."
"His magic is growing by the minute. The rift really gave him a boost didn't it?" Darkrai said.
"Yes..." Sombra's magic grew to an exponential rate suddenly. It skyrocketed as there were clusters of pillars that overtook a large part of the arctic. This overwhelming evil was enough to push Pikachu and Darkrai back as the snow was sent flying away. Sombra's dark presence was spreading out so far that it was closing in on the Empire.
Twilight and Rainbow Dash had set out to find the actual Crystal Heart.
"I've been trying to figure out how I'm meant to pass Celestia's test. Retrieving the Crystal Heart must be it. But there is something else you can do Rainbow."
"Name it."
"You and the rest of our friends have to keep the fair going. Ash and Pikachu are doing their best out there right now to buy us all precious time. We can't let it go to waste. Everypony's spirits are at stake here. Along with the activation of the Crystal Heart. If Sombra comes back again, then the fair's a bust and Sombra takes over once more. So please Rainbow. Keep them all happy for as long as you can."
"You got it Twilight!"
"You seem pretty different considering what happened earlier in the room." Obsidian had shown up once again, hanging out like he normally does.
"It's that guy from the wedding!" Rainbow Dash said.
"Hello, again Twilight. I assume you've gotten over the harsh truth... or is it still hitting you?"
"What truth?"
"Oh. You haven't told your friends yet, have you? I mean you're no Applejack after all..."
"That's enough Obsidian. I don't have time for this! Rainbow go!"
"Alright!" Rainbow Dash zoomed out as Twilight kept moving.
"You can't keep hiding it from your friends Twilight. Eventually, they're gonna have to know." Obsidian's words stopped Twilight's movements, reminding her of the inevitable future outcome. "What's it gonna be? Keep hiding the truth and risk damaging your so-called friendship with Ash and Pikachu? Or face up and tell them. Everything. To see if you really are meant to be friends. I'll be waiting for an answer soon." Obsidian vanished like he suddenly appears.
Twilight was left with this horrible truth once more.
Keeping Sombra occupied was not going as easy as they thought. His growing magic started to overwhelm the three. If it comes down to it, then there's always the last-ditch attempt. The Z Ring. As for the Empire itself, the fair was still going on, however, the main goal is to keep the crystal ponies busy and entertained whilst Twilight finds the REAL Crystal Heart. So it was up to the others to make sure nopony gets close to the fake one Twilight built from magic. But the truth that Obsidian said came back to haunt Twilight. Now she has to handle all of this truth whilst trying to find the Heart.
It's a race against time. Reinvigorate all the love in the Empire before Sombra gets back and drives the crystal ponies into despair once more.
The fair was going well so far. Many ponies started to regain their crystal forms gradually as they joined in on all the activities and fun. The food, the hats that Rarity hoof crafted from straws, things were going swell. Until Rainbow Dash came to Rarity, whispering in her ear. Rarity gasped as they grabbed the attention of the crystal ponies.
"I just found out they're offering face painting for the little ones." She awkwardly said while picking up Spike. As the ponies left, Rarity picked up Spike, whispering in his ear next.
"Twilight's doing what?" The baby dragon said. Twilight was walking through the Empire, still needing answers and clues to where the Crystal Heart maybe. That is until she looked at the castle itself, and sprouted an idea.
"Twilight! Wait! I'm coming with you!" Spike ran to her.
"You can't. I have to retrieve the Crystal Heart by myself."
"I know. I promise I won't lift a claw to help you." Twilight decided to bring Spike along, setting out to the castle.
"Where are we going exactly?"
"I think I might know where King Sombra hid the Crystal Heart." She said whilst facing the castle.
"The castle?"
"The king would have been counting on the fact that nopony would dare come looking for it here. They'd have been too afraid to even try."
"I hope you're right."
"You and me both." Finishing their conversation as they entered the castle indoors. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were keeping an eye for anypony who thought of getting close to the heart. Rainbow was especially cautious. Moving around like a wild animal. A bit too cautious, as she went up to the face of a pony who was just casually walking by and just so happened to be near them.
"What are you looking at?!" She scared the stallion who backed away from her. "That's what I thought."
"Uh, Rainbow Dash. We're supposed to be acting like nothing's wrong." AJ whispered to her.
"Exactly." She said as she growled at some ponies who were watching, scaring them off as well.
Unbeknownst to everypony... something was picking up pieces of crystals from the Empire itself. Not from any caves, but from the walls, grounds and even bits of the castle. It was a Sableye. The Darkness Pokemon. The Crystal Empire. Normally Sabeleye's prefer gemstones and usually pursue Carbink to satisfy their love of shiny gemstones... but crystals were just as good. Just not the most frequent material to go after. And this Sableye found the jackpot. Practically everything was crystals. Even the ponies.
"Sableye.." The little guy said. He ran around, picking apart as many parts of crystals from the Empire with his tiny little claws. Who needs to dig branching holes in caves when you have it all here in the outside.
"Odd." A crystal pony said.
"What is it?" The other asked.
"That...thing is picking apart the ground and walls with its claws. And it's... eating the crystals?" Sableye was doing just that. Munching on a huge pile it collected. This was good for its eyes, after all, they did gain gemstones for eyes from eating so much. The little guy spread out to find more, picking apart as many crystals as he could find. AJ and Dash noticed the Pokemon moving rampantly around, taking apart the Empire little by little.
"What in tarnation is THAT?"
"No idea. Let me see." Rainbow Dash got out her Pokedex to get some info.
"Sableye. The Darkness Pokemon. Sableye can often be found pursuing Carbink to satisfy their love of shiny gemstones. Stories say this gem-eyed Pokemon can make off with your spirit, so many people avoid them." The dex said.
"Make off with our spirits?!" They both said. Applejack backed up against the fake Crystal Heart as Rainbow Dash was a bit shaken up. She believed the rumours of Sableye's taking spirits from others as she got a nearby crystal to try and back it away.
"Don't come any closer you spirit-robber!" Sableye, however, ate the crystal from her hooves like it was nothing.
"Woah nelly."
"What do we do? It might blow our cover if it finds out what's behind here."
"Calm down Dash. This here fake's not even made of gemstones."
"Yeah, but the crystals aren't gemstones either so what's stopping it?"
"What is that thing?" Some crystal ponies came around. This was getting bad. Now a lot of them were around the fake heart and curious about the Sableye. Sableye took a moment to realise... it can chomp on them as well.
"Sableye!" Sableye leapt up, taking a bite on crystal pony's mane all of a sudden. The crystal pony screamed as Sableye held on to the pony.
"It's eating her mane!" AJ and Dash yelled.
"What's eating who's mane?" Rarity wondered as she looked over the current situation. She saw Sableye and was taken aback. A Pokemon made that had gemstones on its eyes and chest. "Oh my!" Sableye was hopping from pony to pony, causing a huge commotion as he wouldn't stop biting them.
"We have to put a stop this Applejack!"
"No need! I can handle this!" Rarity stepped up. "Mine!" Rarity also leapt forward, grabbing onto Sableye with ease. She had stopped a potential disaster from happening by easily catching the little dark ghost Pokemon. "There. Not too difficult. Now I think I'll hold on to this little darling for a bit."
"Hold on there missy. You ain't thinking of using it for anything... illogical, are ya Rarity?" Applejack said, gazing at Rarity.
"What? No, no. Don't be ridiculous. I'm only after the dazzling gems on its chest and eyes."
"Well then... make sure you get THEM as well." Rainbow Dash said as she was pointing at a horde of Sableye that appeared over the horizon. The Empire pulled them all in like moths drawn to light.
"Nopony panic! They're completely harmless! They'll only bite on you... Wait that doesn't sound harmless." AJ tried to make sure nopony went nuts. Now that there were multiple Sableye's, the entire Empire's crystals will be gone in a few hours.
"We have to stop them, or there'll be no empire! Pinkie Pie! Draw their attention!"
"With flash, Rainbow Dash!" Pinkie Pie replied.
"Rarity! You're a gem expert! You do the catching!"
"I'll craft up a huge batch of hats! Getting them all in!"
"Fluttershy! I don't know if they count as animals but try your best if you can."
"Okay!"
"Applejack... we have to stay here and keep a good eye on this sculpture."
"Will do, can do."
The Sableye were chipping away as Pinkie Pie had gathered up some crystals. Thanks to her being born and raised on a rock farm, working all day, she can break them with ease. Those hooves are just as strong as Applejacks'.
"Here little purple imp things! Check out all of these delicious and ripe new crystals! Eh? Eh?" The Sableye's became suckers for them as they stampeded towards Pinkie Pie like rabid dogs. "Uh oh." They glomped on the hooves of Pinkamena, biting like crazy. "OWIE! IT HURTS!"
"Holy moly those things are aggressive! Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash let Fluttershy do her thing as she went over to try and reason with them.
"Now now. Let's not get aggressive. I'm sure you all love to eat crystals. But please don't munch on my friend Pinkie's hooves. She needs those to bake for other ponies, so they can also eat what they love. Like you." The Sableye all looked at Fluttershy as they stopped munching on Pinkie's hooves.
"T-Thanks Fluttershy." Pinkie's hooves had marks on them. From all the biting. Let's just hope Ash is having just as much luck as we are."
Sort of. Ash was still trying his best to keep Sombra busy.
"You are stubborn like a cockroach, boy!" Darkrai was on the ground as Sombra lifted Pikachu and Ash with magic. "You put up a great fight. But at the end of the day... you are just a child."
"Yeah. I get that a lot! Thunderbolt!" A swift thunderbolt shocked Sombra from above. This used to deal heavy damage to him, but after all those minutes, his magic has grown to gain resistance to electric attacks. Courtesy of the rift.
"Nice try!" Sombra then used his magic to slam the two of them down on the ground as they screamed in pain. "Look at that... my force has already snuck into the Empire. I think I'll pay your Twilight friend a visit.
"It isn't over yet Sombra!" Ash and Pikachu got off from the snowy ground.
"My. You are more than just stubborn."
"Pikachu! Spin with Thunderbolt!"
"What?!" Pikachu began, spinning around while using thunderbolt. The counter shield was in play. Sombra didn't think too much of it as he fired a magic beam, but the thunderbolt blocked it due to frantic movements of it. "Trying to block me eh?" Sombra had cast a barrier around him as he ran around the counter shield.
"Gotcha!" Out of nowhere, Ash grabbed a hold of King Sombra, keeping him there.
"You brat! Let go!"
"I ain't letting go! Darkrai!" Darkrai got up from the ground, recovering as he charged up a mighty dark void. This one grew to an exceptional size this time.
"You fool! Are you planning on sending us both into a nightmare state!? It will never work! I've grown strong enough to break free much faster now!"
"Not if we share nightmares.."
"Huh?!" Darkrai tossed the amped-up rift downwards towards the two.
"Pikachu! Go with Darkrai and make sure everything in Empire is fine!" Pikachu nodded, knowing his friend will be okay. The dark void engulfed them both, sending them both into a nightmare state.
Meanwhile, Twilight was frantically looking around the castle for the Crystal Heart. High and low. But to no avail.
"It's gotta be here somewhere. It's just gotta be." As she and Spike continued through the castle, Twilight spotted a familiar piece that Celestia showed her before they came to Empire. She then remembered what Celestia said about the Crystal Empire and about its love.
"If the Empire with hope and love, those things are reflected around all of Equestria. If hatred and fear take hold..."
It all clicked to Twilight.
"Of course!" She shouted.
"What? Did you find it?" Spike asked.
"No. Because this isn't King Sombra's castle."
"Well, isn't this where lived when he was in power?"
"It is. But it didn't look like this." Twilight concentrated her magic on the throne, her purple glowing horn had suddenly gained a darker light. Black lightning-sparked out of it. The same spell that Celestia used to show Twilight what would happen in hatred and fear took over was happening to her as well. The green, purple and black energy had appeared on her horn as well as it was making her struggle. Twilight fired magic at the throne, revealing what was truly there.
A flight of stairs. That went down. Really, really far down. Spike looked down at the number of stairs, getting chills as he gulped. Twilight led the way by making her horn glow to give off light in the dark area. However, she wanted Spike to stay behind suddenly.
"You stay here."
"Uhh.. if you insist."
Down, down, down. That's all these stairs went. Twilight kept moving along, unsure if she was even closer to the bottom.
"Can you see what's down there yet?!" Spike shouted down as his voice echoed.
"Not yet. I can't tell how far down this goes!" She replied. The purple mare used her magic to pick up a random crystal, dropping it down. The crystal kept falling and falling. Twilight was waiting for a sound of impact... but nothing. Dead silence. Sombra was twice as evil for having this absurd number of stairs.
"Oh, dear." She galloped onwards as one of the stairs cracked, making her slip. She fell from the stairs but luckily enough that was the boost she needed as she arrived at a door, right at the very bottom and saving herself with her magic.
"Yes! Finally!" Twilight went over to use her magic to open the door, however... they had vanished. She found another but that vanished as well. "What in the.." She went over to the next door she saw, trying to get there before it flew off. "Stop..moving!" The door she went too moved around the stairs, heading upwards. Another door appeared as the purple unicorn was getting frustrated. She had then used that same corrupt magic to fire at the door... and that's what opened it.
"Spike! I think it's here!" She smiled going through the bright light that shined in the door.
But she found herself in a familiar place. Canterlot. Celestia's throne room.
"What are YOU doing here?" Princess Celestia said with a somewhat different tone of voice she normally uses.
"I don't know. I opened the door and.."
"And now you must go." She responded.
"Go where?"
"It doesn't matter to me. You failed the test Twilight." She looked back at her with a sort of angry look on her face. Twilight was hit by this hard. What just happened?
"I don't understand! The test-"
"Not only will you not move on to the next level of your studies... you won't continue your studies at all."
"I...You didn't say anything about no longer being your student if I failed!." She began to tear up, ready to cry.
"Didn't I?" She said, walking off.
"But... what do I do now?" The laughter of Sombra echoed through the room all of a sudden. An artwork of him appeared on the glass windows. It was him gaining victory and Twilight failing. Twilight cried... not knowing what to think of what had just happened.
Then the voice of Spike echoed through her next. Spike had run down the stairs himself. Twilight was sitting at the door with her eyes glowing green and purple. Spike's shouting snapped her out of it.
"I know you told me to stay up there, but you were down here for such a long time and you weren't answering so I got worried, came down here and you were just staring at that wall and I was calling your name but I couldn't seem to get your attention..." He was talking rapidly, in a bit of a worried state. "What were you looking at? I mean, it's just a wall." Spike had walked up to that same wall, looking at it. He too was taken over by the illusions.
"Ponyville? How did I get...No! I don't wanna go!" He was suffering through the illusions as well, tearing up. "Please Twilight! Don't make me!" Twilight closed the door to snap him out of it.
"King Sombra's dark magic. A doorway that leads to your worst fear." Twilight Sparkle explained.
"We were home... and you told me you didn't need me anymore." Spike wiped the tears from his dragon eyes. "You were sending me away..."
"A fear that will never come to pass." She said, hugging her dragon helper. "I'm never gonna send you away. And I'm not gonna fail my test." Her magic had fired at the same wall with the crystal that showed them their fears, revealing the actual door that led somewhere real.
Going through, led to something worse than both their fears combined.
More stairs.
"What's in there?" Spike asked, standing afar, just in case.
"Stairs." Twilight sighed. "Lots and lots of stairs. Maybe you should come with me this time. They went up together, moving on the flight of stairs.
Darkrai's Nightmare world. Sombra and Ash were both in it.
"Feh. This won't last, Darkrai."
"You're here with me now Sombra." Ash was standing in the distance, facing down Sombra.
"Even in the nightmare world, you still want to quarrel? Your family must be stubborn in general. You're just a boy. You can't handle nightmares without having to go home and cry to your mother."
"Oh if only you knew. I've been here before and I've conquered my fears a long time ago. The only thing you gotta fear is me."
"Hmph. Pathetic." Sombra fired a magic beam at Ash. It made contact as it looked like it destroyed him, levelling him into nothing. However, Ash had shown up behind Sombra. "What the-?!"
"Neat huh? If you conquer your nightmares in this world... you can live it out like a dream that you can control. Multiple Ash Ketchum's appeared out of nowhere, surrounding Sombra.
"You think you can scare me, boy? I will take on a hundred of you for all I care!"
"It's not taking me on that's the terrifying part. Or even the amount of me's. You haven't figured out the worst possible scenario for you."
"What are you on about?"
"You already got beaten a long time ago. By Celestia and Luna themselves. And now you're facing off against her student, Twilight and her friends."
"So? She is just a mere pupil and they are just dead weight. And I have grown much more powerful than before."
"Yeah, you would say that. But you were gone for a long time. So you don't know what they're capable of. If anything.. Twilight is a future Celestia in the making. She's already managed to defeat past enemies that even Celestia took down. I learned all of this once the worlds crossed over and Pinkie told me their past stories."
"What are you on about?!" A huge projection of Twilight appeared behind all the Ash's.
"You can't see it, can't you? Twilight's capable of taking you down like how the two sisters did. You're too focused on your grasp of power that you don't notice the major obstacle that you'll never get past."
"You think that'll stop me?! Some mare and her friends?! I am King Sombra!"
"Oh yeah? Because you sure are having a hard time against a kid and his electric rodent."
"Silence!" Sombra blasted all the Ash's until one remained. "I am going to make sure you and your precious little friends are forever enslaved by me. And as a bonus, I'll put you all to war and watch you be the first to fall."
"Heh. I'd like to see you try. Besides... Pikachu and Darkrai are most likely already at the Empire. And you and I have as much time as we want. Notice anything?"
"...How am I not free yet?"
"We're sharing a nightmare. It's twice as long and I'm in control here, buddy!"
"You can't keep me here forever!"
"Watch me! Even if you aren't scared! We're gonna be here for a long time!"
Back at the Empire, all the Sableye had been caught thanks to Rarity keeping them in huge hats after she ended up using every piece of her weaving materials.
"There goes all my materials. I do believe that is all of the-" It wasn't. One sneaky Sableye jumped up, clawing away at the cloth that was hiding the fake sculpture, revealing it to all the crystal ponies. "Oh."
"This isn't the Crystal Heart..." A crystal pony said. Their cover had been blown.
"Pikaka!" Pikachu and Darkrai had returned.
"Pikachu! You're back!" Pikachu went over to hug Fluttershy.
"Pikapi! Pika-Pikachu, Pi Pika!"
"What did he say?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"He said that Ash is keeping Sombra busy by sharing a nightmare with him. We have to solve this before he wakes up with Ash."
With Twilight and Spike, after going through all those stairs and flipping everything upside down to reveal the true path... they had finally arrived at where they needed to be. And there it was.
The Crystal Heart.
Floating there in all its beauty. Twilight gazed at its dazzling looks as she took a step towards it. However, Sombra's magic has increased to a point where he can now act even in his sleep. Once Twilight moved closer to the heart, black crystals popped up from beneath, knocking away the heart and trapping Twilight. Sombra's outside magic had turned the skies into a dawn color as his laugh echoed through the Empire.
"The heart! Where's the crystal-"
"Here!" Spike called out. "It rolled over to me when you dropped it." Crystals were rising from the ground as the cold chill of the air was getting to Spike.
"Don't move! You can move just not towards me!" Twilight said. She teleported out, however Sombra's magic teleported her back in, smacking her against the crystal walls. "How could I have been so foolish? I was just so eager to get it. And when I saw what was going on outside-"
"You have to get out of there Twilight! You have to be the one to bring the Crystal Heart to Princess Cadence. If you don't, you'll fail Celestia's test!" Thunderstruck as things seemed to be getting worse.
"King Sombra's already attacking the empire. He could reach the crystal ponies at any moment. Reach Princess Cadence.. my brother... my friends. There may not be enough time for me to find a way to escape. Twilight began to worry as she came to a conclusion, facing Spike. "You have to be the one to bring the Crystal Heart to the fair."
"ME?!" Spike said in surprise. "But Twilight-"
"Go."
"But-"
"GO!" She demanded as crystals kept rising. Spike picked up the Crystal Heart. It was all him now. Crystals had arrived across the entire Empire, beginning to cover most of the buildings.
"Pikachu.."
"Woah nelly. That ain't right." Applejack said.
"This is terrible... unless.." Fluttershy got an idea. "Rarity! Let the Sableye go!"
"Are you INSANE?!"
"Trust me! They'll eat the black crystals!"
"Okay.. if you say so, darling." Rarity picked up the hats, letting the Sableye roam free. They set their sights on the crystals, ready to chow down. Sombra was getting stronger. He had broken free of the nightmare world.
"Finally!" He had no time to waste. With instant teleportation he was off. Ash had woken up as well, holding his head.
"I gotta get there quick!" He ran as fast as he could, heading to the Empire.
The worst-case scenario had arrived for the Crystal Ponies. Sombra was back.
"K-KING SOMBRA!"
"Looks like your friend Ash couldn't hold me back for long!"
"HEY! EVERYPONY! I GOT THE CRYSTAL HEART!" Spike said, holding it high up.
"That heart.. is MINE!" Sombra fired a beam at Spike, however, Pikachu countered with Thunderbolt. Darkrai attempted to put him into a nightmare again, however, Sombra had hit Darkrai with emerging crystals from underneath the Pitch Black Pokemon.
"RUN SPIKE!" Rarity screamed. Spike ran as fast he could towards Cadence with all his strength. Sombra was closing in as Pikachu kept getting in the way.
"MOVE OVER RAT!" Sombra fired a frenzy of magic blasts as they hit all over the Empire, even damaging the Sableye in the process. A blast hit near Cadence, creating a huge hole and making it harder to reach her. Things were coming down to the wire. Ash had arrived, seeing what was going on.
"Pikachu! Hold on!"
"Pikapi!"
"ASH!" The mane 6 yelled.
Spike, Sombra, Pikachu and Ash. All moving as fast as they could. One to stop the heart and one to give the heart.
"Rainbow Dash! Toss me!" Ash said. Rainbow Dash flew down, grabbing Ash as she launched the trainer high up.
"I'm coming buddy!" Ash hopped on Sombra's head, gaining an extra bounce as he reached Pikachu who was standing atop a swerving pillar of crystals.
"You won't.. and CAN'T STOP ME!"
"We'll see about that. Pikachu!"
"Pika!" Ash's Z Ring began to spark. Ash took off his hat, placing it on Pikachu. The Electric mouse jumped up to fist bump and high five his partner as it was time. For a Z move.
"Stronger than a Thunderbolt's 100,000 Volts... 1,000,000 volts!" Sombra was closing in as everypony was getting nervous, some about to faint as Spike was closing, also having to focus on jumping over that huge hole. "No. Even bigger than that! This is our full power Sombra!" Unreal bursts of electricity was surrounding Pikachu, surging up from within him.
"Pika Pika..."
"Pikachu! 10,000,000 VOLT THUNDERBOLT!" He raised his fist in the air with all his strength. Pikachu was full charged, jumping over to the charging Sombra, head-on.
"Pika-Ka-Ka-Ka-Ka-KA! PIKA! PIKA!" With a mighty cry and a great thundering echo, multi-coloured volts of thunder emerged, shooting at Sombra. They clashed with the Unicorn King's barrier, making a sound equal to that of 10 thunderstorms going off at the same time. The attack was pushing Sombra back as he was struggling.
"C-CAN'T LOSE TO THIS!" The force of the thunderbolt managed to tilt the castle, making a better angle for Spike to reach Cadence.
"Great job Spike!" Cadence used her magic to lift up the heart as she flew down, making sure to avoid the clash of thunderbolts and magic. The clash was spreading lightning bolts all over the place, causing craters to form. Everypony was avoiding it as Cadence reached the centre. "The Crystal Heart has returned. Use the light and love within you to ensure that King Sombra does not!" She returned the heart back to its normal location as it stuck there perfectly.
This overwhelming unity and love had restored the crystal bodies to ponies who were once dull and grey. The ground lit up with a bright beautiful blue light that spread out across the Empire. The heart spun around, turning even Cadence and the rest of the Mane 6 and Spike into Crystal Ponies and Dragon. This even turned Ash, Pikachu and Darkrai crystal. The combined force of the thunderbolt and the Crystal Heart had overwhelmed Sombra, destroying the black crystals, much to the Sableye's dismay and freeing Twilight as well, making her crystal too.
Sombra's body had been destroyed by both the 10,000,000 volt thunderbolt and the Crystal Heart, finishing him off and restoring love to the Empire. Once and for all. A beautiful array of lights spread out in the sky being filled with the colors of the thunderbolt as well, even being seen from Canterlot and Ponyville. Celestia and Luna knew that it was done.
And that was that.
Everypony rejoiced as they had won against Sombra. The Empire they knew and love had returned. Ash and Pikachu took a deep breath. That was a ride. They are exhausted.
"Whew. Finally."
"Pikachu.."
"Good job Spike." Twilight said from above.
Peace had returned to the Empire as everypony went on to live their normal lives and return to their homes. The Mane 6, Ash, Pikachu, Darkrai, Spike, Cadence and Shining Armor had left, leaving the Empire behind.
"Oh. I do so wish it was permanent. Did you see how my mane just absolutely sparkled." Rarity said whilst carrying all those Sableye.
"I didn't know we could be affected. Having crystal skin was so cool." Ash replied.
"Pikapika."
"Everything's gonna be okay. You gotta stop saving my rump like this. Starting to get embarrassing." Shining Armor said to his sister.
"Wasn't me who saved you in the end. It was Spike."
"It's just a test. Maybe she'll let you retake it."
"I don't think she's gonna give me a new test." Twilight sighed, all upset.
Back at Canterlot, Spike and the others were outside, starting to panic, especially Spike. He felt like he had robbed Twilight's victory and test completion.
"Keep it together buddy. Gotta stay strong. For Twilight." He said, pacing back and forth while breathing. Celestia was outside, gazing at the wonderful lights that were coming from the Empire.
"It's beautiful." She said.
"I wish it had been me who ultimately made it so. But it wasn't."
"Twilight. As I understand it, Spike brought Princess Cadence the Crystal Heart, because you weren't sure how quickly you would find a way to escape the tower. You weren't willing to risk the future of the citizens of the Crystal Empire in an effort to guarantee your own. Far better that I have a student that understands the meaning of self-sacrifice than one who only looks out for her own best interests. Similar to how Ash risked his own life to save you back at the Royal Wedding."
"Does...this mean..?" Twilight said with a glimmer in her eyes.
Spike was still outside, worried still.
"She's totally gonna lose it! Keep it together buddy. Stay strong! For Twilight."
"Pika.."
Then, Twilight came out of those doors, saying those words they all wanted her to hear.
"I passed!"
"Pika-Pikachu!"
It was a rough ride. Going to Crystal Empire, returning and heading back to save it all. It was something that Twilight thought she wasn't ready for. Even if she was to do her best at any costs. Whatever it takes. But with her friends beside her, she was prepared. It was a high-stake test but it was completed.
And so, the world of Pokemon and this world continue on. With a new Empire in the mix, who knows what's next? The rift does. Whether it's on the side of good or evil...it will be there to see it through and enjoy itself. No matter what.
