"Sombra," Twilight growled, probably wishing looks could kill, "what are you doing here?"

The mare was back up on her hooves but she still looked winded from her failed attempt to turn the tyrant into swiss cheese. Sombra, for his part, didn't seem offended in the least by her hostility. If anything he looked amused by the current state of affairs.

"Me? I've simply come to greet our newest arrivals to this Tartarus forsaken pit," Sombra replied with a grin I would've called insufferably facetious.

"And I suppose you waited until just now to show yourself for dramatic effect?" I questioned, meeting his fake grin with my flattest look as I jerked a thumb toward the surrounding cavern walls, "the fact that you just so happened to overhear our conversation through your crystals was mere happenstance, was it?"

"Ah, well... I'm afraid you'll have to forgive me a bit of curiosity," Sombra replied with a sad shake of his head, "such unfortunate violations of one's privacy come with the job I've been given, you see."

"The job you've been given?" Twilight asked with a bemused grimace. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously, "what are you talking about? You're a vicious, slave-mongering tyrant. What job could you..." her face paled, "unless... unless you—"

"Now there's no need to make that kind of face, Princess," Sombra chided with a mock frown, "your fears are misplaced, Twilight Sparkle," his frown turned bitter as he continued, "whatever acts of villainy you've clearly assumed I've committed, I assure you I have not—at least not since the Crystal Empire reappeared all those years ago."

"You're talking about when you came back as a barely sapient cloud of ominous black smoke?" I asked for clarification's sake, "you started spewing black crystals everywhere before getting banished back to whatever dark hole you crawled out of?"

That got an irritated eye twitch out of the stallion which probably meant I'd hit the nail on the head. Twilight, who'd also picked up on his annoyance, seemed mollified somewhat at his reaction.

"It wasn't quite so simple as that," the former tyrant answered in a forcefully measured tone, "but yes, that failure more or less sums up my last attempt to reclaim what was rightfully mine."

"Okay, I'll humor you then," said Twilight who, aside from a contemptuous scowl, had relaxed for the most part, "so you haven't attempted any more atrocities since then. If that's the case, how about explaining how you returned again and why you're here?"

"Oh, I'd love nothing more, Princess," the stallion replied, looking suddenly indignant and sounding like he couldn't wait to get what he was about to say off his chest, "believe it or not, it was the moon nag who summoned me back to this wretched world and it is that demented alicorn who now keeps my soul captive within these accursed tunnels."

Twilight's expression twisted into shocked disbelief at the revelation but all I could do was sigh as a few pieces of the puzzle came together in my mind.

"Yeah, that sounds about right," I replied with a helpless shrug, "not all that surprising, really."

"What are you talking about?" Twilight asked, whipping around to face me with a look of incredulity, "I know things are bad, but to bring back Sombra? How would she have even done that?"

"Probably through the same eldritch magic she used to get us here," I surmised, "it's just a guess, but I'd put money on it for sure," I nodded toward the tunnel, "you heard what she said about making that power work for you and whatnot," I pointed a thumb in Sombra's direction, "I get the feeling this is what she was actually referring to."

Twilight looked from me to Sombra as if trying to decide whether or not to believe it. In the end, it looked like it pained her to admit it, but she didn't argue the matter.

"But why though?" she asked with no small amount of helpless frustration in her voice, "why would she bring you of all creatures back?"

"She brought me back to do what she couldn't," Sombra answered, his own voice dripping with derision, "that foolish mare thought to push back the eldritch tide using that same alien power, but she failed."

"Failed?" I asked, curious despite myself, "failed how? What was she trying to do?"

"She never divulged that much to me," Sombra replied with a shake of his head, "all I know is that whatever she did, she used otherworldly magic to do it, evidently to no avail."

"And so she summoned you because...?" I pressed.

"Again, I wasn't made privy to all the details," the stallion's frown deepened, "but it had something to do with the true nature of myself and my magic."

"You're true nature..." Twilight muttered with a thoughtful frown. Her eyes lit up with understanding a moment later, "you're talking about your Umbrum heritage, right?"

"Oh-ho! It seems our veiled guest is more knowledgeable than I expected," Sombra observed with mild interest.

Sombra wasn't the only one who was surprised. I hadn't expected Twilight to know about the Umbrum considering what happened in her Equestria. But then again, If I took the time to think about it for half a second, it was more likely that she'd held onto that bit of info from what she pulled out of my mind.

Just how many of my memories did she decide to keep?

My suspicions were only heightened when I saw Twilight cast a side glance my way and frowned. They were all but confirmed when she spoke her next words.

"I have my sources," she replied evasively before shaking her head and pressing forward, "but I'm right, aren't I? She used you because you were an Umbrum?"

"She did," Sombra confirmed, his amused smile falling into a dark grimace, "she summoned my Umbrum soul back from the abyss and used a combination of that foul power and crystal magic from my own empire to infuse my essence into every single crystal in these caves."

"And that somehow keeps those things outside at bay," I surmised, "how does that even work anyway? You'd think your magic would attract them to this place like flies to honey."

"You would think so, yes... but that is not the case," came a familiar voice from somewhere behind us. We all turned to see none other than Luna approaching from the cavern's entrance, her stride slow and unconcerned by the conversation taking place, "the presence of an Umbrum bears a similar aura to that of the shades above, and it is that similarity that keeps them blind to these caverns."

"Ah, if it isn't the mare of the hour," Sombra commented snidely, "come to drag our guests into another one of your ill-conceived schemes?"

"I am ashamed to admit that my grasp of the eldritch rites is feeble and they alone would not suffice to protect these caves," Luna continued on as if Sombra hadn't spoken or wasn't even there, to begin with, "but through much trial and error I have found a working if temporary resolution, one that required the use of Sombra's... unique origins."

"How'd you even get the idea to use Sombra in the first place?" I asked, also choosing to ignore the very stallion we were talking about, "hasn't he been banished or whatever since like... way before this Equestria's Twilight became an alicorn?"

"A chance encounter with a crystal pony if you can believe it," Luna answered with a mirthless smile, "the meeting itself was... rather unpleasant for all involved, but through that encounter, I learned of Sombra's nature and what he might be able to do for us."

"You say such things as if I had any choice in the matter," Sombra snarled in disdain, "you failed your precious subjects and thus I was summoned and bound by your hoof, forced to fix your mistakes. Forced to endure this... this humiliation!"

"This coming from the tyrant who enslaved his own subjects?" Twilight snarled back, "you know what, Sombra? I don't condone what Luna's done to you, but I can't say you didn't deserve it!"

Damn, Twilight...

I didn't know whether to be impressed or unnerved by the sheer amount of vindictiveness in Twilight's voice. Sombra looked just as surprised, but her words apparently struck a sore spot because he was about ready to start spitting venom a moment later.

"Regardless of what either of you might say, Sombra is right," Luna interjected before things could get really heated, "I failed, and in the end, I had to rely on less scrupulous methods to ensure our safety," she paused to look over the small, crystal-filled cavern, "even then, this is no lasting solution. I have only mitigated our dire situation at best."

"Wait," I jumped in, looking over to Sombra as an idea came to me, "you cursed the Crystal Empire to vanish from the world when you were first banished by the Princesses, right?" I turned to Luna, "why not just do that with Equestria? I don't know where the Empire went when it vanished and yeah, their memories were fucked, but everyone and everything still came back alive and intact."

"That was actually my fallback plan when I brought the tyrant forth from the abyss," Luna replied before finally turning her full attention to the stallion in question.

"It wouldn't have worked," Sombra said in grudging response to Luna's unspoken demand for him to explain, "even if I wanted to drag this doomed kingdom into the abyss with me, I was brought back without the magical strength to do so."

He stepped forward suddenly, rushing toward, and passing harmlessly through a startled Twilight. We turned to find the stallion standing just as he had before on the opposite side of the cave.

"This body is nothing more than a mere projection, one I can only just barely maintain in my current state," he continued with a scathing glare in Luna's direction, "with my soul spread across the entirety of these caverns I pose no real threat and have no real power as anything other than a glorified barrier spell with eyes."

I wouldn't say you're completely powerless, I thought as I cast a pointed glance at the surrounding crystals, Big Brother is always watching after all...

"Even if he could do something like that, would that really solve anything?" Twilight added, having evidently recovered from Sombra's surprise, "even if you sealed Equestria away for a thousand years what would you have to come back to? The world might be even worse off than it already is by then."

"It is as you say," Luna agreed, "as I said, it was a fallback plan, something I had considered if this—" she gestured to the black crystals, "—did not work. Had this plan fallen through, I would have had Sombra seal away Equestria while I remained behind to search for another solution, but I know now that such a thing is not possible."

"So if the Sombra barrier drops, then that's it," I surmised, "you all go extinct and the shades take over."

Luna didn't reply, but she didn't have to. As far as she knew, there were no other options. I thought about asking about the Elements of Harmony, but knew she would've already tried that if it were possible. The fact that Twilight hadn't brought it up probably meant she thought the same thing.

"I haven't given up just yet, and neither has my sister," Luna finally said after an uncomfortably long silence, "I have spent the last few years scouring the land for a way to bring the Old Night to heel," and then she turned her obscured gaze in my direction, "...and impossible as it may seem, I believe we may have found our answer."

Oh, I don't like that look at all.

"Uh, Luna?" I asked, taking a wary step back from the mare, "what are you talking about?"

Instead of answering, she turned away from us and back toward the tunnel.

"My sister wishes to speak with the two of you and I think we've kept her waiting long enough," she replied before making her way out of the small cavern, "all shall be explained once we meet with Celestia."

"Wait, hold up! Wait a damn minute!" I called out, "you're just gonna waltz right out there with the strange biped in tow? What happened to keeping a low profile?"

"That won't be necessary," Luna replied without missing a beat, "my sister takes care of that problem even as we speak."

"What?"

What the fuck is she on about? Seriously, I feel like we took a weird turn somewhere suddenly and I don't like where this is going.

Sombra's sudden laughter did nothing to help the sensation that something was very off. I looked over to the stallion to see him looking back at me with a toothy grin. He was still chuckling that knowing chuckle when he addressed me.

"I would've liked to get to know you a bit more, Salvatore," he said, "it's not every day that one sees a creature so unique as yourself after all. Perhaps we will meet again in the near future, assuming you survive what this world has to offer."

He then turned to Twilight, his smile dropping into something a little less mocking and a little more calculating and cold.

"And your presence here confounds me more than his does," he commented, "I lack much of the context needed to understand your motives, but I know you are not the same mare that defied me all those years ago.

"That said, you would do well to heed your bipedal friend and keep your head down if you know what's good for you."

"Is that a threat?" Twilight growled.

"It's a warning," Sombra replied evenly, "I don't know what it was like back in the Equestria you came from, but the legacy Twilight Sparkle left behind in this world is one of bloodshed and betrayal."

His voice was cold before, but now it was downright icy. His expression had grown so severe that Twilight actually took an unnerved step back from the stallion.

"I'm sure Luna has told as much already, but let me impress upon you the position you're in," he continued, "you can call me a tyrant. A slave monger, a villain. A monster. But for all my heinous deeds, I wasn't the one who awakened an apocalyptic nightmare and destroyed the world. That, Twilight Sparkle, is your legacy. That is what you left behind."

Maybe it was the intensity in Sombra's voice as he tore into her. Maybe it was something she saw in his eyes. Whatever it was though, it left Twilight speechless and shaken. She stood there for several long seconds staring back at Sombra with eyes wide and mouth flapping uselessly.

"But... but I didn't," she argued weakly. She gave a slow shake of her head, "that wasn't me... I didn't—"

"If they find out who you are under that disguise, do you think that's going to matter?" Sombra asked with a cruel bark of laughter, "some of your friends are still alive, you know. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie if I remember correctly."

"They survived?" Twilight whispered, some small semblance of hope rising in her tone. I grimaced at that look, knowing full well what Sombra was doing.

This motherfucker...

"Twilight, don't—"

"Oh, yes!" Sombra interrupted, grinning like a devil with a contract to sell, "no doubt you'd love to see them? Well, I know where they are. I'd even be willing to guide you to them if you—"

The tyrant let out a choked gasp and shuddered violently. He snapped a furious glare to something behind us and, following his gaze, we saw that Luna had returned. Her horn was aglow with that same blue-black aura and her own gaze was focused on Sombra.

"Luna!" Sombra ground out through clenched teeth, "you—"

That was all he was able to get out before his body completely dispersed into black smoke once more. The smoke then separated and shot off in every direction before sinking back into the surrounding crystals. The cavern was left in complete silence in a matter of seconds.

"Come," Luna commanded after a minute as she retreated back to the tunnel again, "let us be on our way."

"Luna..."

Luna stopped again, though this time she didn't bother turning around. She didn't reply, but her shoulders seemed to sag ever so slightly at the sound of Twilight's quiet voice. I didn't say anything either. I figured I had nothing to say on the matter. If she wanted to talk later that was fine, but right now this was something I felt Twilight and Luna had to sort out.

"What happened to Fluttershy and Pinkie?" Twilight fully turned to face Luna, her eyes glossy but her expression set, "are they... okay?"

There was another stretch of silence, and then...

"No, Twilight," Luna said in a tone just as quiet as Twilight's, "no they are not... and I would strongly advise against seeking them out were I you."

Twilight, didn't answer right away. Instead, she looked away with unfocused eyes and an expression twisted by grief. I thought she was going to break down right then and there, but to my surprise, it wasn't long before she was raising a hoof to wipe her unshed tears away and making her own way out of the cavern.

"Let's go, Sal," she called back, "it sounds like Luna and Celestia have a plan and I'm pretty sure it involves us somehow," she gave Luna a pointed look, "am I right?"

Luna hesitated a second before giving a tentative nod.

"I thought so," Twilight said with a scowl, "I don't know how to feel about that, but I'm willing to at least hear you out," she looked back to where I still stood with an expectant raise of her brow, "Salvatore?"

Sheesh, it's like we didn't just have a conversation about not getting too involved.

"...Gah, fine goddammit!" I groaned, throwing up my hands and raising an exasperated look to the heavens, "it's not like we have a choice, do we? We can't navigate this world on our own and I'm willing to bet you won't help us unless we help you, right?"

Luna frowned at that.

"I would like to think you would help us regardless," she said with some reluctance, "but yes, though I did oppose the arrangement, those are the terms my sister has set."

Saying you 'opposed the arrangement' doesn't mean shit if you end up agreeing in the end!

"Alright," I sighed, "let's just get this over with."

And with that, the three of us left the claustrophobic cave and entered the claustrophobic tunnels. I was glad to note that while the tunnels were twisty and branched off into a million different confusing pathways, they did get a bit roomier.

We continued through the tunnels for the next half hour or so without having seen another living soul. In that time, no one spoke and I didn't blame either Luna or Twilight. I wasn't sure what Luna's deal was, but Twilight looked like she still had a lot on her mind.

I just didn't feel like talking and had actually slipped on my wireless headphones to listen to some music. I kept the volume down low enough to hear if one of the mares was talking to me, but otherwise, tuned everything else out.

I was just getting comfortable when I heard Twilight speak for the first time since we left the cavern. Curious, I couldn't help but turn my headphones down just a bit more.

"Um... Luna?"

Luna didn't respond, but the tell-tale flick of an ear told Twilight she was listening.

"About the Crystal Empire... did Cadance and—" Twilight began, but Luna cut her off with a shake of her head.

"The Crystal Empire fell mere hours after the awakening of the Old Night," she explained, "I am sorry, Twilight, but neither our niece nor your counterpart's brother survived as far as I know. The only crystal ponies left are the ones who chose to migrate to Equestria proper before the calamity, and their numbers are very few."

"Oh... I see," Twilight replied, looking crestfallen, "I guess that was too much to hope for given the state of the world," she fell silent a second before her ears perked up with renewed hope, "wh-what about Spike? Did he survive? Is he here?"

The hopeful look in her eyes faded as Luna once again shook her head.

"Nay, 'twas young Spike's decision to follow after the perpetrator of this tragedy," she replied, "like the Twilight Sparkle of so long ago, he too has vanished from this world."

Twilight had no response for that one, at least nothing verbal anyway. Her expression shifted from shock to heartbreak to something like acceptance or maybe understanding?

"No, that... makes a lot of sense," she finally said after a moment, "if he was anything like the Spike of my Equestria, I can see him making that kind of decision without any kind of hesitation. Honestly, if I were in his position... I'm not really sure I wouldn't do the same for him."

"I wonder..." Luna muttered though she didn't bother elaborating.

"Well... what about those 'eldritch rites'?" Twilight asked, apparently wanting to change the subject, "that was what you used to teleport us to the Crystal Caverns, right? How did you even learn to cast spells like those?" she let a bit of wonder slip into her voice, "the spell matrix you used to trap me back in the cellar... I've never seen anything like it. It was... beautiful and horrifying."

"The eldritch rites are not spells but rather abominable rituals that act as spells," Luna explained as we all turned down yet another rocky corridor, "the stasis field is a rite of my own making—something I learned in my journey through the Dreamlands."

"Whoa, back up," I chimed in, slipping my headphones down to gawp at the alicorn, "you've actually been to the Dreamlands?!"

"I have," Luna confirmed with a nod, "I spent several long years there, in fact, and much of my knowledge regarding the eldritch and arcane come from my time there. It is also where I learned of you humans and the horrifying deities you worship."

"Hey, don't lump me in with those cultists," I replied with a raise of my hands, "I'll admit, those gods fascinate me, but I don't worship them. Most humans don't—at least those not living in the Dreamlands."

"I see," Luna said, "forgive me then. I have only ever seen those humans that reside within that mystifying place."

"It's cool," I reassured, "still, the fact that you've been to the Dreamlands makes a bit too much sense now that I think about it. In fact, I'd be more surprised if you'd never been."

"And those spells—er, rites," Twilight added, "you learned all that in these Dreamlands?"

"I did, but the rites I know I only learned after years and years of study," Luna admitted, "even after all this time, what I know amounts to little, such is the difficulty of this practice."

"So... this is just a guess," I began after thinking on it for a bit, "but did the Twilight of this Equestria happen to get her hooves on these 'edlritch rites' by any chance?"

Luna chuckled at that, but just like all of her other smiles and chuckles, it was a bitter, humorless thing.

"A good guess, Salvatore," she said, "the eldritch rites I use are adapted from the sacrificial rituals used by human cultists for use by a pony mage, specifically myself."

"Wait... you used sacrificial rituals as a base for your rites?" I asked incredulously, "sacrificial rituals?"

"Indeed," Luna affirmed, "but lest you judge me too harshly, know that I never once used these rites beyond the Dreamlands," she turned to face Twilight as we walked, "nay, it was not I that first brought these horrid rites to bear on Equestrian soil, but your counterpart in this world."

"The other Twilight Sparkle?" Twilight asked in shock, "how did she learn the rites? Has she also been to the Dreamlands?"

"Not during her time on this plane, no," the alicorn replied, "I know not how, but the traitorous mare managed not only to learn the invocation method on her own but was able to improve upon it."

"She did that...?" Twilight muttered in disbelief.

"Is it really that hard to believe?" I asked with a shrug, "I mean, her talent is magic, right?"

"I suppose you are right at that," Luna conceded, "the mare left a journal behind with detailed notes regarding her invocation method, among other things.

"It is through those notes that I learned just how deeply she understood the craft. In what had to be a matter of days, her mastery of the eldritch rites had far exceeded my own, and though I have pored over those notes, I still to this day struggle to comprehend much of what she wrote."

"I'm sorry, but can we go back to the whole 'sacrificial' part of all of this?" Twilight asked, eyeing Luna worriedly, "you said the rites were adapted from sacrificial rituals. Does this new method still require some kind of sacrifice?"

Silence was Luna's only response for a worryingly long time—a trend I was beginning to notice with the alicorn. Eventually, she stopped walking altogether and fully turned to address Twilight's question. I was expecting her to say yes and then give an explanation.

What I wasn't expecting was for her to lift up her thrashing mane and reveal two empty eyesockets as dark as the void-black mane she'd pushed aside.

"Well, shit," I muttered at the sight.

"Sweet Celestia," Twilight gasped in horror at the same time.

"The invocation method might have changed but the rites will not be denied their toll," she said, dropping the writhing mass that was her mane and continuing on as if she hadn't just shown us that sickening image, "this was the price I paid to protect our dear subjects, and I still failed them."

Twilight and I glanced at each other behind her back, neither of us really sure what to say to that. Ultimately it was Twilight that spoke first. She swallowed nervously before opening her mouth.

"So... you have to sacrifice something every time you use those rites?" she asked, "when you teleport us? When you summoned Sombra?"

"Every invocation requires a sacrifice," Luna confirmed, "but I have learned something of a workaround for most of the rites I use."

"A workaround?" I asked, "what kind of workaround?"

"I have found that shortening my own lifespan is sufficient enough for most rites," she said, dropping that bomb as if it was nothing, "Sombra... was a special case that required no sacrifice from me."

"You're slowly killing yourself and you call that a workaround?!" Twilight practically shouted, "Luna... how many years have you shaved off of your own life?"

Just gonna skip right over what she said about Sombra, huh? Not even going to try to read between the lines on that one? Alright, whatever.

To be honest, I didn't particularly care about this Sombra's fate—especially after what he tried to put Twilight through earlier. And I understood where Luna was coming from to an extent given how long-lived she was. Apparently, that didn't matter to Twilight though, which, yeah that figures.

"I am not entirely sure," Luna replied after thinking about it a bit, "I would imagine twelve hundred years at least."

All Twilight could do for a brief moment was blink, her shock rendering her temporarily speechless.

"Twelve—"

"It is fine, Twilight Sparkle," Luna tried to reassure the stupefied mare, "as alicorns we are not immortal, but the years we live number in the tens of thousands. Celestia and I have lived for well over a thousand years, but we are still as foals compared to the alicorns of the ancient past."

"And just how did you manage to find that out?" I asked.

"That... is something we can discuss at another time perhaps," Luna replied before stopping just short of a large set of ornate double doors I hadn't noticed until just now, "we have arrived at mine and my sister's chambers."

I frowned and took another look at my surroundings. I'd been so invested in the conversation that I hadn't really paid any attention to where we were. Looking around now, I saw that the rocky tunnels had given way to a dark blue polished stone hallway at some point.

Further back I could see that we'd actually already passed through one set of doors into this hallway and I had no idea what was past those doors. There were no other doors in the hallway either, just this long, ominous corridor leading to Celestia and Luna's chambers.

And while I'm thinking about it, where the hell are all the survivors? I don't think we saw a single creature on our way here. Then again, I wasn't paying attention so maybe I missed someone?

The strange thing was, I had the strongest feeling that I hadn't. It really did seem like there was no one around. I looked down to gauge Twilight's reaction and found that she looked just as suspicious as I felt.

Glad to see we're on the same page at least...

"Luna?" Twilight asked, turning to look the mare square in the face, "where is everypony?"

"Likely gathering within the audience chamber," Luna answered. She lit her horn and a dark blue glow surrounded the large oaken double doors before us, "no doubt awaiting my sister's announcement."

"Announcement?" Twilight asked, "what announcement?"

Luna turned to stare directly at me as the doors slowly creaked open. It was at that moment and with her next words that I realized my original plan to lay low wasn't going to happen.

"Those who remain are scared. They are tired and many creatures have lost all hope of a better future. They need what neither I nor Celestia can give them. They need somepony to place their faith in. They need a hero. They need a savior... and we're going to give them one."

I stood frozen like a deer in headlights at that response. My mind was racing but only one thought seemed to register fully in that instant.

Oh, hell fucking no!

Next Chapter: Equus IV – (Reluctantly) Crossing the Threshold Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 5 Minutes