The way that the Empire has been described does not capture its true beauty in the slightest. Even though the windows of the train are caked in snow, the ice blue towers and spires of the Crystal Castle ringed by green grassland are unmissable and absolutely breathtaking. The best part of all of this is knowing that I will be helping Sombra claim it for his own again, and maybe fulfilling my own fantasies of becoming one of his top guards. That last one is far less important though: getting him back into the Empire is by far my top priority.

When the train stops, Wishbone and I climb off, and we are greeted by several unicorn guards. The leader of the group turns out to be Prince Shining Armour, Captain of the Royal Guard. I remember that news of his wedding travelled even to the Everfree Forest. To be honest, I'm surprised that somepony smart enough to have such a high rank in the Guard was unable to realise that his fiancee had been replaced by a Changeling, until his actual fiancee came into the room and made him realise what was going on. The things that love does.

He watches the darkening sky nervously, then tells us, "Everypony, get to the Empire quickly, it's nearly dark." Running behind him, I wonder what he means for a moment, when I realise that's probably when Sombra's trying to break into the Empire, which is currently surrounded by a translucent blue field of energy. So keen to see that he does not get in.

Darkness falls before we reach the blue shield that surrounds the Empire, and the sky is filled with a roar louder than any thunder I have heard. Shining and the other guards push us forwards , trying to keep us moving. I soon see what we are running from: a huge grey cloud swirls above us and shapes itself into the face of King Sombra, in his corrupted form. His irises are once again blood red, ringed by sickly green where the eyes should be white, and they give off that purple magic. When he appears in my dreams, he always looks like a normal pony, and I am not used to seeing him like this. Quite frankly, it chills me to the bone. He cackles, and his grey horn glows red as it tries to fire at the blue energy field that's protecting the Crystal Empire. Everypony except Prince Shining Armour fires spells at Sombra - or whatever that cloud in the sky is - and I notice for the first time the black crystals on his horn that stop him from using his magic. Sombra must have hit him with a spell, either accidentally or deliberately. Shining must have asked for it.

As the unicorn guards dodge attacks and Wishbone continues to run towards the safety of the Empire, I stop and yell, "Sombra, no!"

As if on cue, he stops, and looks down at me.

"Sombra, it's Moonlight. You know me. We're friends."

The cloud dissipates and Sombra, the actual King Sombra, although still wielding that dark magic of his, looks at me affectionately. He jumps from cloud to cloud, trying to get closer to me. I don't know whether he has realised that this is our little act, but either way, he's acting just how he needs to.

"Moonlight Shade, get away from him," demands Shining Armour. Sombra sends a blast of magic in his general direction, then turns back to me.

"Please, don't keep on doing this, Sombra. Don't try to get into the Crystal Empire by force. There are better ways to be a true leader of an Empire."

The guards stand a few metres away, their jaws agape, shocked to the core and unable to intervene. Sombra looks like he is considering what I have told him, when I know that he is just choosing the right words to make the performance seem authentic. He stops using his magic, and his eyes return to how they normally look. "Moonlight, tell them that I have seen the error of my ways and that they are being unrealistic. They refuse to listen to me, but maybe they will listen to you."

"I'll try," I tell him. I actually will, because he deserves better.

He gives me a nod. "Thank you, Moonlight. Will I see you again?"

"Sure! The Princesses say that everypony is welcome in the Crystal Empire, so I'll be around for a while. It's a shame that the Princesses would tell such a lie, but what's to stop us from meeting on this side of the barrier?"

We laugh together, and Sombra says, "Meet me here tomorrow evening, if you can."

"I will, and I'll try to get Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armour to let you into the Empire. See you tomorrow, Sombra!"

I watch as he walks across the clouds and away from the Empire. He is incredibly skilled at magic, that's for sure. To be honest, he's very sweet when you get to know him. How everypony can hate him is beyond me.

It is quiet all around, save the whistling of the wind as it blows the snow across the plains. Shining Armour, the other guards and Wishbone all stare at me.

"How did you do that?" Shining eventually asks.

"He has visited my dreams a few times, and he seems to have a soft spot for me. He wants to be accepted into society again, but to be honest, he doesn't really know how. All he sees is that he's being shut out of the Crystal Empire, where he belongs. I'll explain in more detail when I know I'm not going to freeze to death."

When we cross the blue barrier, I feel the difference in temperature immediately: it is warmer than the Everfree Forest in the actual Empire, which is much smaller than its name suggests. Still, it is an amazing place, and how the Crystal Ponies thrive here is completely beyond me. I see some of them, but they look like they need a bit of cheering up. Their faces are unnaturally gloomy as they walk around the small town. I don't make any comments, however.

Eventually, we reach the centre of the Crystal Empire, where the Castle is situated. Wishbone - who is still shocked over the Sombra incident - and I are escorted inside, up a couple of flights of stairs, through a hall and outside onto a balcony. I immediately recognise Mi Amore Cadenza, the Princess of Love, by her wings that seamlessly change from pink to purple at the tips, and her long pink horn. However, for a princess, she looks truly dishevelled, with large bags under her eyes and her mane frizzy. She smiles at us nonetheless and introduces herself.

"Cadance, these fillies here are Wishbone Willow and Moonlight Shade," Shining Armour says, pointing at each of us as he tells his wife our names. I bow to her in respect and Wish does the same.

"What brings you two so far away from home?" she asks with a voice like silk.

"I may have - or be able to acquire - information about King Sombra. He seems to like me and has already started telling me of his plans."

Princess Cadance raises an eyebrow at me. "What has he told you so far?"

"From what I gather, he just wants to be back in the Crystal Empire and has seen the error of his ways, however he is resorting to desperate measures, such as dark magic. He can't see the point in being nice if it won't allow him back into the Empire."

"Hmm. In what way would you say he likes you?"

"Pardon?"

"Are you just friends or more?"

I have no idea where this is going, but I cannot refuse to answer to a Princess, especially when surrounded by guards and in front of her husband. "I am just friends with him... but we are very close."

"Moonlight, today I received a letter from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. I hate to say this, but I fear that he is manipulating you into believing that he is innocent. He has done so many wrongs, and now we are trying to make sure that he does not repeat those mistakes."

"You aren't even giving him a second chance!" I cry indignantly.

"He does not deserve one."

How is it that second chances have always been Celestia's way, yet she refuses to give one to the pony who reaches for it with both hooves?! I cannot stand the hypocrisy of this conversation for a minute longer, and fly away from the castle. I decide to visit the Crystal Library and search for anything that could give me a clue about how things were before and during Sombra's rule. I ignore the librarian, and find my way around based on the titles of the various books on the colossal shelves.

Eventually, I find the correct section. I look for a few seconds, then I find just the right book. I am about to take it off the shelf when a magenta aura takes it from my grasp. I try to find the source of the magic, and then I see her. Celestia's latest qualified slave, the one who screwed up everything when I was with Nightmare Moon.

Twilight Sparkle.