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Chains of Tartarus

by Note Sketch

Chapter 1: 1. Alliance

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Waiting alone in her chambers, Celestia looked down at her crown on the dresser. She remained still as thoughts raced in her mind. Everything that happened, and everything that was about to happen, it all filled her with a nervousness she had not experienced in years.

Her eyes remained locked on her crown. Its beautiful design and priced gems once held a great deal of pride for her, but now it was no more than an accessory she used for formality. Yet it was this very piece of royal headwear that had driven her to make this decision. A decision she was not completely sure was the right one.

"Sister?" A voice called out from behind her. The sudden sound of her voice surprised Celestia and quickly made her turn around. "You called for me?"

"Ah, Luna. Come in, there's something I need to talk to you about." She said as she calmed herself and used her magic to place her crown back on her head while feigning a smile. One Luna could see right through.

"What's wrong? You don't seem like yourself." Luna said as she walked in. Her sister used her bright yellow magic to shut the door behind her, only making her worry more because of it. "Is everything alright?"

"I want to say yes." Celestia began. "But I think I might have made a mistake."

"A mistake? You mean this party you're hosting?" Luna asked as he sister began to direct her to the balcony. Together they walked out into the cool night breeze passing by. Their manes gently swayed in the wind's direction as they glowed to illuminate the rather dark area. "I must admit, this caught me and many ponies by surprise. To host a party at a time like this, and with such little notice."

"Yes, the party was rather rushed, but more so because of this new...acquaintance." Celestia said as she leaned against the edge of the balcony.

"The new ally you spoke about?"

"Yes..."

"You've been rather vague on who this pony is. I assume you wanted it to be a surprise?"

"No, well yes in a way. I just didn't want to make any pony nervous about this...ordeal." Celestia said as she looked away at the Kingdom of Canterlot. Luna wrinkled her brows in worry at seeing her sister so down and melancholy.

"Your vagueness is making me nervous, sister."

"I know it is. Which is why I brought you here before the party began. Before anypony saw what is about to happen." She said as she finally returned her gaze to her sister.

"W-What is it?" Luna asked in a dread filled tone.

"Whatever happens, I need you to remain calm. You have to promise me that, alright?"

"Sister?" Luna gulped, small beads of sweat beginning to form at her forehead from raw anxiety of seeing Celestia so grim.

Her attention, however, was quickly diverted back into the chamber when she heard a hoof hit the ground. Luna's eyes slowly widened as she instantly recognized the pony making his way towards them from the shadows. She gritted her teeth as she narrowed her eyes in anger, but Celestia's hoof on her shoulder held her back.

"Luna. Please. Hear me out."

<=•=>

"Doesn't this place look simply divine?" Rarity asked in her usual exaggerated manner. Her eyes remained glued to the sparkling decorations all around the banquet halls they were in. She had the same look in her eyes she always got when she found an inspiration for a new fashion line, no doubt she would be busy at work in the coming weeks.

"It does look rather pretty." Fluttershy echoed her friend. "What do you think Twilight?"

Both mares turned to look at their friend for a response, but as they did, grew weary at the distant expression she carried. At the moment the three of them sat at a large table that had been reserved for them, all the Elements of Harmony. While the other three had gone off to take care of a few things before the party began, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Twilight were content enough to sit and talk, or so it had seemed.

"Everything alright Twilight?" Rarity asked as she gently nudged her friend.

"Wha- huh?" Twilight replied as she was quickly brought back into reality, shaking her head to regain some composure. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Are you okay?"

"Oh, yeah. Why do you ask?"

"Well you've been a little, er, out of it Darling."

"Oh..." Twilight began as she brought her drink closer with her magic. Gently shaking the glass to mix the ice inside, she sighed. "I was just thinking."

"You've been doing that a lot lately." Fluttershy said softly. "You get really really quiet and shut everypony else off."

"I don't mean to. It's just things have been really..."

"Stressful?" Rarity finished for her.

"Yes. Things between Equestria and Taurusia has gotten on edge." She said as she finally took a drink. "First the Minotaurs began to demand a larger payment for some of their trade. Then we had the incident at Manehattan. One thing led to another and now we have both ponies and Minotaurs hating each other over trivial things. If we're not careful things could spiral out of control."

"Well, if it's any consolation, you at least have more Princess Duties to take care of like you wanted." Rarity said, trying to look at the brighter side of things. Twilight's only response was to allow her head fall onto the table in a deep exaggerated sigh.

Both Fluttershy and Rarity laughed nervously as they tried to think of a way to lift their friend's spirits. The unicorn did the only thing she knew would help even for a moment.

"Excuse me?" She called out to a waiter. "Could we get a couple more drinks?"

<=•=>

"How boring!" A voice shouted from above the mare taking a stroll along the castle garden. Rolling her eyes, she looked up and replied.

"If ya didn't wanna come, ya shoulda stayed with everypony else." Applejack said to her friend.

"I thought something exciting would happen!"

"Ah told ya, Ah just wanted to stretch my legs is all."

"Yeah, with that look on your face? No, you were trying to make sure there weren't any spies or something hanging around the castle."

"Rainbow, are ya trying to look for trouble? It's that kinda mentality that started this whole mess. We can't go 'round pointing hooves at everypony we see. This is just a get together Princess Celestia threw together to lift everypony's spirits." Applejack said as she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, except that Princess Celestia is hosting a party out of the blue right after that thing in Manehattan. I thought for sure something would at least explode." Rainbow Dash said as she flew lower to be at a more audible distance from her friend.

"Jeez, it's like yer the only pony actually hoping we break out into war or somethin'."

"Ha, those bulls wouldn't stand a chance against us if we did!"

"It shouldn't have to come to that!" Applejack said, raising her voice subconsciously. The last thing she wanted to worry about was war over taking Equestria, or worse yet, a draft.

"Yeah yeah, whatever." Rainbow responded, though it certainly didn't give her friend a reassurance that the conversation was over. Sighing, Applejack decided to take the route to avoid an argument.

"How 'bout we go back to the others? Ah've stretched my legs enough."

"Sure, it's boring out here anyway." Rainbow said as she flew higher up and darted towards the grand hall. As she left, Applejack came to a stop.

She took a moment to look up at the sky, the sun was long gone and in its place now stood the shining stars and grandiose moon. Smiling softly, she awaited for them to pass by. The same two shooting stars that appeared in the night sky whenever she wished for guidance.

"Please don't let war come." Applejack said softly before turning around to begin her trip back to her table. Though a certain pink mane was all she saw as she looked ahead.

"Hi!" Pinkie shouted, causing Applejack to jumped back a little.

"Gah! Pinkie, don't do that!" She said as her hoof clutched at her chest. "Almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Sorry!" Pinkie apologized, though the giggles she let out didn't exactly express it. "But you looked so sad, I thought I could cheer you up!"

"By tryin' to make me jump outta my fur?"

"I've never jumped out of my fur before, think it would be fun?!"


"Ah doubt it's a pleasant experience to be honest." Applejack said with a brow raised as she and Pinkie began to make their way back into the castle. AJ's calm walk in to the highly decorated halls of Canterlot Castle was ill complimented by Pinkie's skipping and hopping beside her, though by now ponies had stopped looked at her in a crazy manner. Likely because they already knew what to expect from the from her.

Quite some time had passed since their first visit to the Castle. Quite some time since the disaster they had caused at the Gala. Their names had since then grown in fame and word of their victories echoed in many ears. Now they could care less about what sort of mess or mishap they make when they take into consideration how many times they've saved Equestria, most ponies anyway. Others, for the sake of their own pride, continued to keep them at hoof's length until they've proven themselves worthy in their eyes. Notably, ponies like Blue Blood and his grand following.

"Say Pinkie." Applejack began, not exactly liking how quiet her friend was for a change. "Whatcha make of this party?"

"It's fun, missing a lot of balloons and confetti, but I guess they don't like those kind of things in high society parties like these. So I suppose it's okay."

"No, Ah mean, whatcha make of how we were all invited to this party?" Applejack continued to express her concern. "In the invitations Princess Celestia urged us to come. Made it sound like it was very important. Not to mention this whole gig was put together in like a day. Don't these sort of things usually get announced like a year in advanced?"

"Hmmm, I dunno." Pinkie replied bluntly. "But if it was put together really fast, that would explain why there aren't any balloons!" She said with a snorted laugh.

Applejack smiled softly at her, not really wanting to push her own worries on onto Pinkie's pep, she just nodded in agreement and continued forward. Perhaps she was simply reading too much into everything.

<=•=>

Finally landing at the doors to the party, Rainbow felt the ground beneath her hooves and instantly felt out of place. Rarely would she leave the air, but even she knew that it wasn't the time or place for it. Taking a deep breath, she pushed the doors open and returned once more to the crowded interior of the castle. She instantly began to regret her decision of leaving the air.

"Oh come on." She said softly as she began to squeeze her way through everypony. Waiters would expertly avoid dropping the treys they carried, no doubt they've plenty of experience. Rainbow, on the other hoof, struggled to keep herself balanced as ponies bumped into her.

Thankfully there were certain parts of the room not too cramped and she did her best to aim herself in those directions to breath in fresh air in between her dives into the mass perfume and cologne that was drenched in the ocean of ponies. As she pushed her way out of a tight fit, she accidentally ran forward into somepony.

"Argh, sorry." She said as she rubbed her head, not even looking at who stood in front of her. "Hard to get around."

"My oh my, you best be careful then. We wouldn't want you to get hurt now would we?" A stallion's voice said.

Rainbow Dash froze. Her eyes opened wide ad she instantly recognized the voice she heard. Slowly she looked up at whom she now knew was a towering figure compared to her. With a sly smile, he chuckle softly at her reaction. His crimson eyes looked down at her in an almost menacing stare, yet the soft allure of his smile contradicted it. She couldn't tell if he was leering or glaring, either way, his presence alone brought dread to her heart.

"So...Som..." Rainbow tried to speak, but the shock of seeing his silver crown and red royal cape only made the task of saying his name more daunting. After all, he should be dead. "Sombra."

Again he chuckled. "It's 'King' Sombra, though I'm sure you already knew that." He said as he began to make his way around the mare and towards a crown of ponies to start up conversation.

Rainbow Dash slowly broke out of her shock. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she quickly grabbed a hold of one of the waiters passing by and pulled him close, making him drop his trey of drinks.

"Go to table E6, tell them to get here, pronto!" Rainbow Dash said as she pushed him away before taking flight. In a brash assault, she charged at the dark stallion. Sombra's smile was unwavering as he saw her approach. Only growing larger as his eyes were lit aflame in a purple blaze.

<=•=>

"Hello Applejack, Pinkie Pie." Rarity said as she waved at her friends coming their way. "How was your walk?"

"Super fun!" Pinkie shouted in delight. "Applejack and I had a super deep sister conversation on the way here!"

"Ah wouldn't call it that." Applejack said with a raised brow. "But it was kinda nice to just walk around. Ah dunno how ya'll can just sit around all night."

"It's better than walking around." Fluttershy spoke out. "There are too many ponies as it is. I got bumped into so many times just getting something to drink."

"Oh Darling, that's why we send others to get our drinks for us."

"But I wouldn't want to impose..."

"It's their job, dear, you're not imposing on anypony." Rarity said as she placed a reassuring hoof on her friend. "Oh look, he's coming back already. Wait a second, where are our drinks?"

"Uh, uhm. Excuse me." The waiter said hesitantly. "I was told by a rainbow maned mare to ask you all to come find her at the gathering hall down the corridor."

"Why couldn't she come tell us herself?" Applejack asked in annoyance.

"Probably because she began fighting one of the guests." He responded, though as the words left his mouth, the sound of a cup hitting the ground was heard.

All of the mares were in shock, though their silence was quickly broken when they heard the roaring scream of ponies running away from elsewhere. They immediately stood up and began running in their direction.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Rarity said mid gallop. Quickly turning back, she levitated a small gem and placed it on the waiter's pocket. "Thank you for the tip, here's your tip." She said as she resumed her run, leaving the stallion with his mouth open in surprise. "Don't forget about those drinks now.~"

"What in the world is that girl thinking?" Twilight asked out as she ran. "Doesn't she know this will make things worse for us?!"

"She better have a good reason for this." Applejack echoed her disapproval.

It was easy to find where Rainbow Dash was, all they had to do was run in the opposite direction everypony else was running from. Soon enough they reached the gathering hall where the fight was taking place. Quickly turning the corner to go into the large room, the group collectively gasped as they saw Sombra standing alone with debris spread all around him.

Looking around, they quickly found their friend bound in chains near the ceiling. Black metal chains wrapped around the pegasus, keeping her rooted in place. The chains all seemed to have been attached to a small black crystal that latched on to flat surfaces like the walls, ceiling, or floor.

"Gah!" Rainbow shouted as she struggled against her bindings.

"I think Rainbow Dash had a good reason after all." Fluttershy said meekly as she took a step back, hiding behind Rarity as she finally joined.

"Sombra!" Twilight shouted as she walked forward towards the stallion.

"Oh, hello there. Twilight Sparkle right?" Sombra asked as he turned to face her. "Do forgive me, I didn't want it to come to this, but your friend left me no choice."

"Release her!" She growled.

"As you wish." He replied with a shrug before stomping twice on the ground. The chains wrapped around Rainbow Dash quickly disappeared and she was left free.

Stabilizing herself mid fall, Rainbow Dash quickly flew over to her friends and took a combat stance as she recovered from the pain of the shackles.

"What are you doing here?!" Twilight continued her demands.

"I came to enjoy the party, like you I would assume." Sombra replied with a smug smile. "Or would you rather try to interrogate me all night?"

Something about his calm demeanor made him all the more menacing. His eyes lit in his dark magic as he seeped away the fear of the ponies around him, only empowering him more. Twilight knew that fighting him extensively would probably just make things worse. Instead, she sought to end it quick.

"Girls, get into your positions." She said as she took a step forward. Everypony did as they were told and soon they all began to glow.

"Ah, transforming, like you did against Tirek." Sombra said as he slowly began to walk forward. "I'm sorry, but I simply cannot allow it."

Jumping to the side, Sombra clapped his fore hooves together and magically created a black chain. Using it like a whip, he threw it at Applejack where it locked into a shackle. He then pulled her out of place and across the room, disrupting the group's transformation.

"Applejack!" The mares shouted out as they saw their friend crash into a table, knocking everything up into the air.

The shackled mare struggled to her hooves, the heaving chain at her torso making it hard for her to move at all. Gritting her teeth, she took hold of the chain and began to pull on it.

"A chain works both ways Sombra!" She shouted as she used one powerful yank to pull him to the side and knock him off balance. Shocked at her burst of strength, Sombra quickly recovered and used his magic to summon a crystal pillar from which he attacked his end of the chain.

"My oh my, you're certainly stronger than your pegasus friend." He said as he dusted his cape off. "This might be more entertaining than I anticipated."

"Enough!" A voice echoed through the gathering hall. In a flash of light, Celestia materialized herself above Sombra and came crashing down in a large dust cloud, hiding both her and Sombra's presence.

Murmurs were heard as ponies came to see the fight. Applejack's chain slowly began to disappear, allowing her to stand up right and await for the dust to settle.

"If you wanted me to set her free, all you had to do was ask you know." Sombra said casually as he continued to clean himself off. Celestia stood next to him with glaring eyes. Her powerful crash had managed to break the crystal pillar he had summoned, but had actually left Sombra unscathed.

"This was not part of the agreement Sombra!" Celestia shouted out.

"Neither was the part where I was attacked, but you don't see me crying about it." He replied with a cheeky smile, only irking her more.

"Princess Celestia, what's going on?" Twilight asked out as she and her friends rushed over to Applejack. "Why aren't you attacking him?"

"Because." Celestia said reluctantly. "Sombra is a friend."

"A friend?! Since when?"

"Since just over twenty-seven hours ago." Sombra interjected. "Actually, this entire party was made in my honor."

"You? You're the new ally mentioned in the invitation?!"

"The one and only." Sombra said with a small bow. "I'm Sombra, King of Tartarus and new supporter of Equestria. A pleasure to be formally introduced to each of you."

Left wide eyed and astonished by his statement, the mares looked over to Celestia for confirmation. She reluctantly nodded proving his words true. This only surprised them more and were left speechless for a moment.

The waiter from before slowly poked his head out of the crowd just outside the gathering hall. He made his way to Rarity with a trey full of drinks and placed it on a stable table close by before talking to her.

"Y-Your drinks."

"Umm, thank you kind sir." She said softly as she broke out of her shock. "Though considering the events we just witnessed, we're going to need more." As if on cue, a ceiling tile fell and broke the silence that had seeped back in. "A lot more."

Next Chapter: 2. Introduction Estimated time remaining: 17 Minutes
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