Xenia did not know where she was. It seemed like a forest, but everything was all topsy-turvy. None of it made any sense. That was when she began to suspect Discord, but looking around, she realized she was merely upside down. This confused her even more.

Why am I hanging from a branch? And what the fuck am I doing here?

Unsure of how to answer herself, Xenia reached up and grabbed ahold of the branch. Letting her feet slip, she now hung onto the branch, everything right-side up like it should be.

Looking down, Xenia judged the distance to the ground. Feeling it was safe, she let go and dropped, landing among a pile of old pine needles. Getting to her feet, the human girl glanced around again. Ok, so, I know this isn't the Everfree. Walked around in there enough to get a feel for it. What other woods are in Equestria?

Contemplating the answer, Xenia began to walk around, looking for key signs. Finding nothing, she sighed. "Guess I'll just have to walk until I get out of here," she said, her voice echoing in the darkness.

It was then she began to feel eyes on her. Growing suddenly nervous, Xenia looked around. She thought she saw something moved behind her, and turned to face it fully as it emerged from the shadows.

Xenia gasped as terror and realization hit her. "You," she whispered.

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Xenia awoke gasping, bolting upright and glancing about in a wild daze. It wasn't until she realized that she'd only been dreaming and had just woken up that she began to calm down.

Wait...what was I dreaming about that got me so panicked?

Before she could collect her thoughts and piece it together, a door to her left opened, shedding light into the dark room, and an unfamiliar pony walked in. He was dark grey, with a black, flowing mane and tail, and his eyes were green where the white should be, with red irises. Both gave a faint glow, like the one his curved red horn did. That was all Xenia could see, and it was only thanks to the small amount of light seeping in that she could.

"Ah, good, you're awake."

He had a deep voice, and very pointed teeth. As he walked closer, Xenia began feeling that this pony was either royalty, or had once been. Of course, it helped that she finally bothered to acknowledge the silver and black crown on his head.

It hit Xenia like the force of a tornado. "You're...Sombra."

The dark pony chuckled. "So you've heard of me. I'm not surprised, what with you having stayed with that little dragon and his princess for so long."

Extremely weirded out, Xenia raised an eyebrow. "Indeed. Now, this is all a little odd, even to me. It's not that I'm ungrateful for you saving me when I fell over the balcony," she said, her memory of the previous night returning, "but I must inquire as to why."

Sombra chuckled again as he sat next to her bed, taking care to not let his red, white-fur lined cape touch the dark marble ground. "I can understand your confusion at the sudden approach I had, but there are quite a few things I think it appropriate to discuss with you."

Xenia studied the ex-tyrant with eyes used to merely observing things. "What could you possibly have to discuss with me? I can't really help you take over the Crystal Empire again, if that's what this is all about. I may have Discord's power, but I have no real control over it, and it only shows up spontaneously, like its real owner."

Sombra waved a hoof, dismissing the notion. "No, I have no intent to storm the Empire for now. I've come to talk to you about the recent disturbances I have felt."

Blinking in confusion, Xenia questioned, "Disturbances?"

The dark king nodded. "Ever since your arrival, I have felt many flashes of dark magic that are not my own. Granted, they feel slightly like mine, but much more twisted. I am unable to locate who is using it, but it seems to always be focused around one being."

Xenia only needed to see the look on his face. "Me."

Sombra nodded again, standing up as Xenia swung her legs around, preparing to get up and pace in thought. "Yes. I know you'll probably have no idea what's happening either, but I thought it better to bring you here. Whoever is trying to mess with you is not joking around. Whatever they're up to is very serious."

What Sombra was saying put a damper on Xenia's pacing, her eyes narrowing as she glimpsed something in the back of her mind. "Yes... I have no idea who is causing this trouble, but I too have no doubt that they intend harm. Although...," Xenia started to say, but let herself trail off.

Sombra raised an eyebrow. "What is it? Do you remember something that could help?"

Xenia shook her head to clear it, her mind having gone all fuzzy as something tried to make its way to the surface. "Well, I thought for a moment I did, but I lost it! Oh well, I think I have somepony who does have some answers though."

Sombra watched her mull some things over for a second before she nodded. Then she looked back at the dark unicorn king. "There's an alchemist who lives in the Everfree. When I first appeared, she warned us about some evil thing appearing in the future. I could never get the full story from her, but perhaps you can."

Sombra had a thoughtful look on his face, his eyes far away as he considered her words. "I remember seeing the zebra sometimes. I never really gave her much thought. Maybe...yes, I will retrieve her. I should go now, while it is still night. I will be back shortly. Meanwhile, feel free to look around. My palace is made entirely of black crystal, so you should find it very interesting."

Unsure what he meant by that, Xenia watched Sombra disappear in a flash of black smoke. After standing there a while, she shrugged. "Well, guess I better take him up on his suggestion."

She promptly stepped out into the hallway. Her jaw instantly hit the floor.

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The moonlight gently caressed Canterlot Palace, giving it a beautiful silver glow that many inside Canterlot admired.

Deep in this castle was a large group of ponies, four alicorns, three unicorns, three pegasus, three earth ponies, a draconequus, and a zebra.

They were seated around a large table, a large lamp burning above their heads. At the front were the alicorns, with the draconequus at the opposite end, and the others all scattered along the sides.

Celestia was addressing them all, her usually calmly flowing mane flapping about uneasily as she said, "You have all no doubt heard about what happened yesterday evening as I was lowering the sun. Be assured you are not alone in your confusion over Sombra, whom we all thought was gone. We tried piecing it all together while we awaited your arrival, but so far the only remotely possible reason is his use for Discord's powers. Unfortunately, even that seems a slim chance, for there is no way for him to get them, nor could he control Xenia in any way to help him. So, we are here to discuss what else there might be to this."

Silence followed her words, everypony obviously thinking. Then Applejack spoke up. "Don'tcha all find it a midge suspicious that Sombra suddenly appeared right aft'r Xenia came ta Equestria?"

Rarity blinked at her friend. "Why, whatever do you mean? Surely you don't suspect Xenia to have anything to do with bringing that brute back?"

Rainbow laughed as she though about the idea. "Maybe she accidentally brought him back with all that sneezing after the pepper joke!"

The laughter quickly faded after the plausibility of that idea sank in.

Fluttershy glanced between her friends, almost too afraid to speak up, but knowing she wouldn't be judged on her opinion. Hopefully. "But, um, why would he, uh, bother? Wouldn't he just go to conquer the Empire again? Surely he didn't take her just to thank her. Right?"

Twilight sighed, glancing at the shimmering marble table that was carved right out of the floor. "That would return us to option one, he took her to use Discord's power. Many things about that theory still don't add up, but it's the best we got. That being said, what would we do about it? And more importantly, how would he hope to help her use the power properly even if that is the plan? She might be able to just stroll into the Empire, but without the ability to control chaos, that would be useless. Besides, as Celestia said, he couldn't outright get her to go along with it."

At this point, Luna suddenly smiled and spoke up. "I've got it! Next time she goes to sleep, I'll enter her dream!"

Several of the others got excited, but Celestia was shaking her head. "No, sister. We might not have time for that. Besides, he could have easily thought of you, and put up a sleep barrier or something. Maybe even keep her from sleeping."

As they continued arguing over the matter, Fluttershy thought of something that had been bugging her for a while. She wanted to ask, but didn't want to interrupt. Besides, it was probably not important. Maybe. Possibly.

"Hey Flutters, what's wrong?" asked Rainbow.

Fluttershy jumped as she realized everypony was looking at her. Her cheeks lit up in embarrassment, realizing Celestia had been speaking to her. "Oh, uh, I'm sorry your Majesty, I was just thinking about something you said earlier. I'm, uh, sure it's not important," she muttered, hiding her face behind her soft pink mane.

Celestia smiled softly, trying to put the pegasus at ease. "Come now, Fluttershy, what is it?"

Peeking out at those around her, Fluttershy gathered her courage and stuttered, "Y- you said Xenia fell over the balcony while freaking out and telling you to stay away. Why d- do you think she panicked like that?"

The table went quiet again as all eyes now turned to Celestia, who had traded her smile for a troubled frown. "To be honest, I've been trying to figure that out as well. When I took her up onto the balcony, everything was fine, but after she looked away from the view to address me, then looked back, it's like she saw something. I'm not sure what, but it frightened her. I think, maybe, perhaps, she saw a glimpse of the future Zecora said was coming." The princess shuddered. "I dare not think about what would even scare an odd being such as Xenia."

Just then, the aforementioned zebra spoke up. "A brew I could set and seek the answers to it all, but first a cauldron you must call."

Everypony at the table stared at her in confusion. "Uh, what?" Celestia asked, her eyebrows scrunched in puzzlement. Zecora sighed and facehoofed. "Ask a servant to bring a cauldron, summon ingredients I list, and answers maybe I can give."

Although a few were still confused, Celestia's face cleared. "Oh, I see. Yes, that seems viable. Kinda. I guess I don't understand alchemy all that great, but I can certainly get you a cauldron, our master chef uses one for the Hearth's Warming Day Feast every year. As for your ingredients, summoning spells are very simple for me, and we may even have what you need here. The castle is home to many odd plants and spices."

As Celestia called in a guard to tell him to get the cauldron from Bon Appètit, the chef, Zecora made a list of everything she would need. Celestia was easily able to get all of them by simply summoning the shelves from Zecora's home. Of course, the zebra wasn't happy about this, but let it slide cause she knew Celestia would send them back after she was done.

Finally, when everything was ready, Zecora began. The things she had listed were all thrown in one by one, and when she had finished with them, she stirred the pot, then frowned. "Of this afraid I was, without a fire, nothing will we learn."

Now Celestia frowned. "I knew this was coming. Alright, I know I said earlier you couldn't have one, but if this is truly the only way to learn what we need to, I suppose I have no choice. I'll just have to control the flames from getting out of hoof, as well as the smoke."

Ordering the guard just outside the door to get some wood, the ponies and draconequus inside waited, twiddling their thumbs or hooves in the awkward silence.

Finally, the guard came back, hauling on his back a small cart filled with wood. Leaving it next to the cauldron, he went back to his post.

It took Zecora less than ten minutes to get the large pot boiling. When she felt it was ready, the zebra went to stir it again, ready to reveal what Xenia had seen, possibly also Sombra's reasoning for taking her.

Yeah, that didn't go down.

Instead, a blast of red hit the cauldron, spilling it's contents, and ruining the spell. Celestia, startled, lost her hold on the bubble which she had trapped the rising smoke in, purging the room into a stinging mist. Coughing, eyes watering, Celestia yelled, "Sombra!"

The grey king did not reveal himself as pounding sounded on the door, the voices of royal guards sounding on the other side.

Running over, Discord tried to open the doors, but found them sealed shut. Cursing the loss of his magic again, he himself started to cough.

Already some of the ponies in the room were starting to stumble from smoke inhalation. Seeing this angered Celestia even more, who sent a random blast at the shadows creeping along the wall. "Show yourself, you coward!"

Trotting over to her, Luna put a hoof on her sister's shoulder, holding in a cough of her own. "Sister, we have to get out of here! The others are not able to breath as easily in this smoke, we can't risk them dying from this!"

Seeing the wisdom of her words, Celestia turned to the door to blast it open. Unfortunately, at the critical moment, Rainbow accidentally ran into the princess. The spell misfired as Celestia's head was pushed to the side. The blast intended for the door instead hit Luna, who went flying into a wall, sliding down it seconds later, unconscious. Celestia, horrified, cried, "Luna!"

It was then she realized most everypony else had fainted. Her and Discord exchanged a panicked look, knowing this was not good.

After seeing the accidental attack on the night princess, Sombra could not keep himself from laughing. His dark laugh echoed around the room as he knocked the lamp from the ceiling, extinguishing their only light source. Then he swooped down like a falcon and wrapped the fainted Zecora in his magic. He and she then promptly vanished with a hiss of black vapor as the guards burst in, having used a statue as a battering ram to finally get in.

All they and Celestia could do was stare in shock as the last of the vapor vanished into the air.

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Xenia had never seen anything more amazing, and considering the view she had gotten of Equestria yesterday, that was saying something.

The castle actually seemed to pulse, like it was a living thing. Inside the see-through walls, veins of red magic magic shifted around, lighting the hallway with an eerie glow.

Looking in both directions, Xenia chose to go left. As she started down the hallway, it became apparent that this place was huge. She supposed it shouldn't be a surprise, the king had said it was a castle. Still, Xenia had trouble grasping just how anyone could not know about this place. Judging from the huge, sprawling throne room she had just waltzed into, it was easily the size of the Canterlot Palace.

As she poked around, Xenia had a growing feeling in her that the story she had heard about from Twilight had a whole other side to it. Why would someone powerful enough to make their own kingdom try to take over another? Was there something nopony knew about Sombra?

As she though these things over, there was a sudden flash, and Sombra appeared, a sleeping Zecora next to him. As Xenia raised an eyebrow, he smirked.

"Now, let's get some answers, shall we?"