Begin Song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2s_aH67nTY

Dark Star - The Slayers Try Soundtrack

0:00.

The beam from the giant Tesla Coil shot up into the air, tearing a hole in the sky, a hole leading directly to the past. The beam originated from the now ruined castle of Sombra, who had finally revealed his true colors.

Starlight, the focus of this little war between Sombra and her friends, is floating in a trance inside a glass sphere filled with water. The machine, combined with the Staff of Jeria, kicked her powers up 100-fold.

0:22.

Sombra roared as fire and shadow spiraled around him. Below, everyone took cover, bracing themselves against the violent wind generated by the Dark Unicorn.

“What Shadows come and what Shadows may, I am their progeny…”

The fires and shadows completely covered Sombra, cocooning him inside it those elements.

Before, a fight with the clones of the humans that visited; Requiem, Jax, Bahamut, and the rest, left them all tired and wounded. it left Chaos Gun, Glade, and Bass critically injured.

“What Hell to await me and what life to receive me, I know not…

The fire and shadows combined, turning into the dark fire monster from the Leopard Village. A pair of green eyes with red, reptilian iris’ and purple fire coming out of the edges opened wide.

Shadow Sombra roared loudly into the sky, causing all of them to cover their ears. Dark arms formed out of the dark fire.

“but to be the epitaph of such power, I shall be…”

0:54.

Shadow Sombra roared again, this time sending out a little shockwave. The wave flattened everyone to the ground, making it almost impossible to move.

“Damn Him!” Bolt snarled.

“He’s so powerful, I can hardly move!” Leon snarled.

Though they were conscious, Chaos, Glade, and Bass could hardly move. Chaos was beaten to a pulp by Sombra, Glade had his ass kicked by Requiem’s clone, and Bass got stabbed in the chest by Sombra, just inches from his heart. That’s not stopping them from trying to get up.

1:15.

Shadow Sombra fired a shockwave of shadow at them. It washed over them all, knocking them even further into the ground. So much so, they left indents.

Shadow Sombra’s arms picked up Leon, Friction, Daring, and Bolt. With a snarl, followed by a loud roar, he slammed the 4 of them into the ceiling and left them there.

A few seconds later, the 4 of them fell on their own to the ground, which they hit hard. The ceiling crumbled and fell on top of them, trapping them.

“Aunt Daring!” Windancer exclaimed. Shadow Sombra roared, getting her attention again.

“We got bigger things to worry about, Windancer!” Marian said, trying to keep her hat from flying.

Both hands formed into fists. He punched the ground, sending out a explosive shockwave that took out Glade’s Soldiers. It sent the 7 of them rolling out of the ruined castle and into the snow.

“No!” Glade exclaimed.

1:47.

Shadow Sombra roared again, causing dark winds to rip though the remains to the audience hall.

“I shall be… the Arbiter of this World’s Destruction…”

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

Final Chapter

Starlight, Starbright

2:10. End Song

A slight breeze was all she heard. It blew by her ears, making them twitch. That’s what woke her up. Starlight stirred and opened her eyes to see herself floating, but not in the glass sphere, but on a ethereal plane. She got up rightside, feeling a bit groggy.

“Ugh… where… where am I?”

She got up and looked around. There was nothing for miles. Just a ethereal plane. How she knows what it looks like is a mystery to her. “Hello!”

“hello, Starlight.”

that voice caught Starlight off guard. It was the same voice from before; that told her she had a destiny. A bright light shone behind her. Starlight looked to see a pony walk out of it. “It’s been a long while.” the mare said.

Starlight waited for the light to disappear before getting a good look on the mare. She was a Alicorn like her, but with a pure white body with a red mane. “who are you?” Starlight asked.

The mare smiled and walked by her. “Someone who’s been watching this world for a long while; ever since it’s creation. Guiding it, watching as it went though changes... so many violent changes.”

Starlight looked at the mare, trying to figure out who she was. Wait, back then… “You called me your daughter. I recognize your voice.” the mare lightly chuckled. “why did you say that?”

The mare again chuckled. “I can everyone on Equestria my children; Ponies, Dragons, Diamond Dogs- everyone.”

Everyone? Then she must be… Certain she go who it was down, Starlight walked over to her. “So… why are you talking to me?”

The red haired mare stopped for a moment. Starlight wondered why she did that and walked over to her. Once Starlight was next to her, the mare talked. “Your father has a important role to play in a deadly conflict that stretches far beyond the confides of our world. Of any world.”

“my dad?” Starlight asked in disbelief. This mare must be joking. “the Stallion who locked my up in a glass sphere and is right now killing my friends and using me to rip a hole in time and space has a role to play in some conflict in the future, er, the past- ugh, you know what I mean! he has a role to play?”

The mare looked to the skeptical Alicorn and nodded. “yes. Unfortunately, that’s all I know. Whether it’s good or bad, I don’t know. I just know he has a important role to play.”

Starlight scoffed, finding this to be a big joke. “yeah, sure. And I’m gonna be a princess.” Starlight sat down and sighed. “besides… why should I care? Everyone wants to use me; my Dad, my Aunt and my Mom… even my friends…”

The Mare lightly chuckled. “now… I’m afraid that’s not true.”

“And how would you know?”

The mare gestured to herself. “I know, see, and feel all. Trust me, your friends care about you. Why else would they come back and risk their lives to save you?”

“because they feel sorry for me. Because I’m a Alicorn. Because I can use time. There’s a number of reasons why’d they come back. They just hung out with me out of sympathy.”

“initially, yes. But as the years passed, they loved you for you. Take Bass for example. He never saw you as a Alicorn or a vessel of time. He saw you for you. That’s the Starlight he fell in love with. Isn’t that why you fell in love with him; because he was genuine?”

Starlight stayed silent for a second. “… okay. I’ll give you that. But what about my dad? Or my Aunt and my Mom?”

“Celestia and Twilight were strict because they didn’t want you in any danger. You having power over time was a new thing to the world and they were taking precautions. And your father is feeling guilty for having to put you though this. As evil as he is, inside he has a soft spot.”

Starlight wasn’t going to argue with her, if she is who Star think’s she is. That leaves just one question. “why… why do I have powers over time? Why am I a Alicorn?”

The Mare, knowing that Starlight would ask these questions, pulled up the video of Tsylatac using the pocket watch on Twilight, who was pregnant with Starlight at the time. “Your powers over time came from that pocket watch. It belonged to someone who that knight took it from.”

That watch… Sombra gave it to her. It’s currently with her person back in the castle. “and the Alicorn… well, you can’t obtain such mighty powers without a proper body. Originally, you were supposed to be a Unicorn as powerful as your mother. Now, you’re a Alicorn, a mighty species that few can dream of obtaining.”

Starlight still views it as a curse. She wanted a normal life, not this crap. “I don’t know…” she then remembered all the images she saw, of her mother becoming a princess and those odd humans. “um… one last question. Was my mom supposed to become a princess? And, those humans I saw, who were they?”

The Mare thought for a moment, noticeable by how her eyes moved. “your mother was supposed to become a princess. She had a destiny planned by Celestia that became derailed when a number of events that weren’t supposed to happen happened.. The most notable were the interference from the other-worldy forces. If those 2, Orochi and Tsylatac, hadn’t arrived, things would’ve been different. Requiem and her friends would’ve just watched the events unfold.”

“So… this is like a Alternate Universe thing?”

The mare nodded. “and those people you saw; Glade, Jade, Molin, and Skeith? They’re to have roles to play in the future as well. In fact, your father will be the reason why they come into play with what happens in this universe.”

This Universe… then they are in alternates as well? That means whatever’s going to happen… it’s gonna be big. What did Sombra get himself into? “so… what are you to do, Starlight? Help your father with his plans, or let the universe crumble?”

All this hurt her head, which is understandable for her. All this talk of Alternate Universe’s and larger roles… it’s all mind-boggling. But she had to focus on the here and now; and that’s saving her friends. They were her reason she endured 17 years of this; 17 years of personal torture. They were her reason for living and she was not going to let her family die. “Starlight?”

Starlight finally replied. “I am not going to let him kill my friends! He may live or not to do whatever plan the universe has. That‘s something fate has to decide, but I am going to stop him!”

The Mare nodded with a slight smile. “I’ll help you get out of that sphere, but you’re on your own after that.”

“I know.” the Mare spread her wings, causing a bright light to shine and cover them both. “And thanks for the talk… Faust…”

Faust looked to her in surprise, shocked that she figured it out so quickly. “and good luck. To the 4 of you.”

Starlight nodded, then stopped and lowered a eyebrow in confusion. “wait, the 4 of us?” the light blinded her before she could ask the question.

Shadow Sombra laughed like a evil madman, glad to see that these insolent insects are down for the count.

Bass managed to open one eye and looked up at the top of the machine. If he was going to die, he wanted to see Starlight one final time.

“HAHAHAHA! You can’t stop me! Nobody can!” Sombra boasted. “Soon, you’ll be dead and me and Starlight will be long gone! Hahahahaha!”

Everyone tried to get up but couldn’t. Sombra kicked their butts good.

Suddenly, the sphere began to shine brighter then it should’ve. “What?” the sudden bright light caused Shadow Sombra to fade away, making plain ol’ Sombra come back. He reappeared in mid-air. He quickly turned his cape into wings and flapped them to stay aloft. “What’s going on?”

Sparkles floated down from above, each one looking like a distant star in the sky. The sparkles fell onto the pain stricken ponies and revived them. Their wounds closed and healed, broken bones are put back together, and everyone felt refreshed. Goldie’s wings, unfortunately, were not healed, having been broken and maimed for too long for this to help it.

Bass held his wound, blood still dripping out. When the sparkles fell, the wound instantly healed. He took a deep breath and coughed up blood. He could move again without pain. “ugh… what?”

Glade grunted as he got up on all four‘s. “where is all this coming from?”

Bolt shoved a bit of rubble off of him and coughed. “Ugh…” a sparkle landed on his beak. He snorted and sneezed it off.

Sombra snarled, baring his teeth. Where were these sparkles coming from? And why were they healing everyone. “what is this? Whoever’s casting this, stop it or else…” he used his magic to pulled Goldie to him. “Or else this Pegasus gets it.”

Goldie struggled to get loose of his grip. Sombra tightened it and pointed his spear at her neck.

A sudden magic blast hit Sombra, making him let go of Goldie. The filly screamed as she fell. She was quickly caught by Season.

Sombra quickly regained himself and groaned. “You touch one hair on her head and you’re a dead man!” a very familiar voice rang. Another magic blast hit Sombra, this time sending him to the ground. Sombra cast a barrier spell and stopped the bolt just inches away from the ground.

“Who dares?!” he yelled.

“Who do you think?” Starlight descended from the sky, angry as all hell to him.

Sombra went wide-eyed out of surprise and fear. Her friends all cheered. “Starlight!!!” they all happily exclaimed.

Sombra snarled and looked to his machine. The sphere wasn’t broken, so how did she escape? Since Starlight was out, the machine wasn’t operating at peak capacity. However, the mare was in there long enough to leave a big enough magical imprint for the machine to work with. It was working at 25% capacity but it still tore a hole in the sky. It just shrunk.

Sombra snapped. He doesn’t care about the rest of the plan. They can transfer the powers to another subject. “GET HER!!!” he yelled.

The shadows surrounding the machine stirred and broke away.

Starlight scoffed. “you could’ve given me a challenge.” she said. Her eyes went green, red, and purple, just like dear ol’ pop.

Starlight flapped her wings once, sending out a gust of air. Trick is, this gust was magically powered. The wind tore though the shadows, disintegrating them. Upon their destruction, the shadows instantly returned to their owners.

“Impossible!” Sombra snarled. “How were you able to do that?”

“I’m your daughter. I figure some things are genetic. You gave me these eyes; why not a little manipulation over shadows? Besides, I’m a Alicorn. We’re always over-powered. Or did you forget that already?”

Goldie laughed at the smart-alecky remark. “when’d she become a smartaleck?” Woona commented.

Sombra snarled angrily, nearly busting his teeth. This is not a part of the plan. There’s absolutely no way she should’ve been able to get out. It was unbreakable glass. And she was in a trance. How the hell is she able to stand here now? There’s no conceivable way. Unless… unless she had help from someone powerful. But nobodies’ that powerful, not even Alicorns… unless it wasn’t someone on this realm of existence.

Starlight descended and landed on the ruined stone. “Dad… please stop this. There’s no need to go on like this. It’s over.”

Sombra’s eye twitched. “over?” he looked down, trying to prevent his anger from bursting out. darkness, not his own, seeped out of him. “this took me 20 years to achieve. This took forever to come to fruition!” he looked up at her, eyes glowing red. “You! Malice! Tulip! Everyone! You all kept getting in my way! Could never let me achieve anything!”

Malice? Tulip? Starlight didn’t recognize those names. They must’ve been the foals who tortured him when he was a colt himself. That confirmed it. He was doing this out of hatred and pent up rage towards his old ‘friends’. something she’s glad didn’t happen to her. “Dad… it’s over. Please stop. For you sake.”

The group, not sure what’s really going on, really hope he takes her advice. They’ve been though one hellish fight with him, they don’t want to go though another.

Sombra snarled, his anger reaching a boiling point. He reared his head back and roared like a monster.

Begin Song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8IwuYQ99bc

Rebel Against Destiny - Tales of Destiny OST

Darkness shot out of him like bullet’s out of a gun, spreading everywhere. It washed over the ponies, leaving them dark-less. Sombra, now completely taken over, roared again, the darkness forming into wings, and took to the air.

Starlight, waiting until the darkness had cleared, looked up. “Dammit, Dad…” she softly said to herself. She looked to her friends. They looked back and nodded, each ready to do their part.

This is it. Their final battle. Against a opponent they didn’t see coming: Starlight’s own father.

With a steeled heart, Starlight flapped her wings and took off after Sombra. The rest of the Alicorn’s and Pegasi followed suit. The Earth Ponies and Unicorns went to the catwalk access to find a way up to the roof.

Bolt was too busy getting the rubble off of Daring, Leon, and Friction to go help and the guards were still out cold. Besides, even if they could fight, they wouldn’t. this was their moment and he wasn’t going to interfere.

A screaming streak of darkness shot out of the castle and into the air. It flapped it’s dark demonic wings, making a beeline for the portal.

A magic whip wrapped around Sombra’s hind legs and pulled him down. More whips joined in and helped pull him further. The now Mad Unicorn looked down to see the Alicorns pulling him down. With one last tug, they did, making him hit the ceiling.

The dark wings went away but the aura remained. Whatever darkness this is was still controlling him. “Sombra…” Glade started, “You are under arrest for kidnapping a member of the Royal Family, conspiring in crimes against Equestria, and working with a known Threat!”

Arrest? This poor excuse for a stallion must be joking. Sombra roared, sending spears of darkness towards him. Glade and Chaos quickly brought up a shield to protect them. The spears hit and disintegrated.

Soarin’ and Season flew around back. They rammed into the Dark Stallion from the back, making it bend in a way that shouldn’t be done for ponies. The sudden attacked propelled Sombra forward, right into Chaos’ fist, or the pony equivilate. One well placed shot to the lower jaw caught Sombra off guard and sent him up into the air.

Sombra quickly corrected, summoned the dark wings, and fired a powerful magic beam at the troupe. Starlight retaliated by firing her own. Erys and Woona threw in their own magic to assist. It was enough to stop his attack but not enough to reverse it. Chaos and Glade couldn’t help cause they launched their own offensive. They collectively slammed into his gut, trying to knock the wind out of him. Unlike last time, Sombra saw it coming and braced for it. With a evil grin, a shockwave shot out of him, sending the two falling.

During the climb up to the roof, Eris snapped her fingers. This summoned a 500 ton anvil that dropped on Sombra. He snarled with a scoff and blasted it. The Draconequus’ creation blew up in a violent display. “eep.”

“You’re gonna have to do better then that to defeat me!” the Dark Stallion said in a inhuman voice. Starlight took notice of that. Something is clearly wrong here and she needs to do something about it.

Sombra powered up and fired a intense magical beam. It split off into 5 smaller beams and struck all the Alicorns. It didn’t hurt them but it sent them flying back a bit.

Golden Day and Windancer attacked from both sides, tying Sombra with a rope. They wrapped it around him and pulled it tight. No way he’s gonna get out of this… for about 2 seconds.

The rope instantly disintegrated as soon as it touched his skin, making that a waste of time. “Un… hehe…” Windancer gulped out of fear. Sombra yelled and fired a beam at her. It hit her, sending her rolling.

“you’re gonna pay for that!” Marian snarled as she and the others reached the top. Using her magic, she grabbed a sizeable brick and swung it at him. It hit, sending him spinning in his fall.

Goldie, Fire Ruby, and Filigree resorted to throwing whatever big bricks they could find at him, as they could not use magic. To a degree. Filigree lit one on fire with her breath and bucked it to him. It hit him in the chest, leaving a noticeable bruise.

Sombra growled with evil intent. “Damn them!” he snarled though his teeth. He looked to Starlight, then to the portal. He’d never make it with all these nuisances. He returned his attention to his daughter. “If I’m going down, I’m taking you with me!!!” he reared back then fired a powerful intense beam at Starlight.

It didn’t reach her.

Bass slammed into Sombra from the side, distracting him and making the spell fall short. The two fell though the hole in the ceiling and down onto the catwalk. Déjà vu all over again. This time went different.

Starlight blasted Sombra from behind then wrapped a magic whip around his neck. Bass charged at him then bucked him in the chest. More magic blasts came down from above, supplied by her friends. This monster is going down, slowly or quickly.

The Staff of Jeria stirred, then shot out of the machine and into his hooves. “ENOUGH!!!”

End Song.

Dark tendrils shot out of the staff, piercing everyone though the shoulder and wrapping around their necks. The tendrils then lifted everyone off the ground and a few inches into the air.

Begin Song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ViDPWCcwmg

Love Conquers All (Orchestrated and Extended) - My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Soundtrack

“I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!!!” Sombra loudly yelled. He swung the staff forward, towards the open spot in all the destruction, swinging everyone with it. They all yelled when they hit the floor. Hard.

Sombra broke the tendrils and flew down, taking off with a frightful force. He landed on the ground, causing a small yet very noticeable boom. “You… you all are nothing! Nothing but insects! Insects that need to be squashed!” he swung the staff again. The staff summoned magical hammers that slammed into each one of them. “Now just lie there and die!”

Sombra turned and walked away from them. A magic blast hit him behind the head, making him stumble. He looked back in boiling anger to see that Starlight did that. She is equally mad, but to him being the insane man he is.

“Dad… I asked you nicely to give up this insane quest of yours and you didn’t listen! I tried to get though to you but you didn’t listen. So… so I’m gonna try one more time. Please. Give this up. You can still redeem yourself what you’ve done! Maybe… maybe change the past right now, eh?”

Sombra scoffed. He lightly chuckled then angrily pointed the spear towards her. “change the past? Nothing can change the past; it’s set in stone. What I plan to do will change the world’s future and make those imbeciles see what happens when they mess with me! They will pay for what they did to me! And this world will be mine!”

Starlight shook her head ‘no’. “No, dad. Even the most insane tasks, even the most mind-boggling journeys to find…” she stopped, realizing that that last part was about her. “…to find yourself… it helps to have friends.”

Sombra scoffed. “Friends? Friends are nothing but a hindrance! Friends do nothing but hold you back and betray you when you need them most!”

Starlight shook her head again. “That’s not true. Friends can help you though the most difficult of times, can help you though thick and thin. And… can be a loving support. You never experienced that because you never had friends like mine; friends who don’t care who or what you are.”

She looked back to her friends, who smiled and nodded. “Mom told me that meeting her friends were the best moments of her life and she would never give them up for anything. And I agree with her. I wouldn’t give up my friends… my family… for anything in the world; not gold, not power. And definitely not some stupid attempt to travel though time.”

“That’s right!” Goldie said, chiming in. “my and Fire Ruby, we’ve been though heck trying to find our Cutie Marks. And though that, we’ve become great friends like you wouldn’t believe.”

“And when Soarin’ came to help us get the crop in for the winter when we didn’t have time,” Peppy added. “we were once rivals to see who was the best competitively, now we’re the very best of friends. And more.”

“and when I came to Ponyville to visit with Mom,” Erys said. “it was Pound and Pumpkin who warmed up to me and became my friends. They saw me for who I was; a normal, loveable pony.”

“And Chaos Gun, the pony who tried to kill us over and over? Turns out he’s a kind-hearted soul.” Sweet Song said. Chaos nodded in agreement.

“and if Starlight hadn’t come to Baltimare on her way here…” Bass walked up to her and grabbed her hoof. “… then I would’ve missed out on one heck of a adventure. And the best thing to come into my life.”

Starlight happily looked at him. Those were all good examples. Hopefully, Sombra would get that though his head. “You see, Dad? Friends can come from anywhere and help you though anything. You had crummy friends when you were a kid, sure, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make new ones now. Just… just give up this hellish plan. Please?”

All of this didn’t get though to him. Sombra was too far gone. He just snarled, looking at them like he wanted to kill them. He did want to kill them. With a yell, he grabbed the staff and charged at them.

Bad guys never listen to reason. Starlight powered up her magic and blasted him away. Sombra fell back and landed on the electrical currents of the machine, electrocuting him but not killing him. Sombra fell to the floor, steam hissing off his back. He got up with a snarl and charged at them again.

Starlight closed her eyes and concentrated. All her friends did the same.

A warm pink glyph shaped like a pocket-watch appeared beneath them all, glowing and sending sparkles into the air. A shockwave shot out. It hit Sombra and any fallen rubble and made them float in mid-air.

“What? What is this?” Sombra exclaimed.

The shockwave got the rubble off of Daring, Leon, and Friction. Bolt quickly helped them up. A second shockwave went out, this time causing the castle to rumble.

“What are you doing?!” Sombra yelled to them.

“Showing you…” Starlight opened her eyes. “what true power is!”

A third shockwave shot out, and this one was the kicker. The castle instantly came apart into individual bricks. The stones begun to spin around and around and around, like a tornado of rock.

“No! Stop this!”

The tornado spun to feverish speeds that would make a NASCAR driver queasy. The glyph glowed bright, as did Starlight’s eyes. Star flapped her wings, sending a powerful blast towards Sombra.

“No! NOOO!” the blast hit him, taking him out of view.

The blast made the stones and brick stretch out, covering the entire valley. It then collapsed on itself, bringing the brick with it. A few seconds later, it exploded out, causing a big pink dome-like explosion.

A beam of light shot from the dome and towards the portal. It struck it, causing the hole to collapse in on itself. Before it closed completely, a small twinkle of light came from within.

The hole closed completely, bringing this threat to Equestria to it’s end.

End Song.

It seemed like hours, or even days when Starlight woke up. She groaned and stirred as she opened her eyes. “…” she shook her head and got up. Upon doing it, she saw the aftermath of her attack.

The castle was completely destroyed. Nothing remains of it except for brick and rubble spread all over the place. The machine was completely destroyed. Nothing of it remained. Nothing except the Staff of Jeria, which laid at Starlight’s feet. She reached down and picked it up as the rest of her friends began to wake up.

“Ugh… did we win?” Goldie groggily asked.

Starlight looked back to her and smiled. She forgot the staff, walked over, and picked her up and put her on her back. “Yeah. We won. It’s finally over.”

Goldie happily sighed and rest her head on Starlight’s neck. “good. I’m beat.”

Glade walked over and picked up the Staff. He noticed something off about it. “wait… this is the fake.”

“The fake?” Star and Goldie glanced at each other. “Does that mean the real one is…”

“likely destroyed. Along with that dastard Sombra.”

“Good. He was a mean man.” Cotton said. She sat down and rubbed her hooves. “So… what’s for lunch?” everyone gave her a mean look. “right. Too soon.”

Sweet Song sighed and sat down as well. “I just can’t wait to get home. This has worn me down good.”

“Agreed.” Chaos said.

Glade looked to the staff. Well… Aunt Celestia doesn’t need to know it’s a fake. Right?

“Holy… you guys killed him!” Friction gasped, looking at the damage.

“That… was… awesome!” Daring exclaimed, laughing at the stunt they pulled. “Death by friendship. That’s a first.”

Windancer chuckled. “If you say so, Aunt Daring.” she sighed and leaned on Marian. “I’m just glad this is over.”

Sym looked at the damage they caused and took a step. It stepped on something odd. He looked down and yelled. “HOLY BEJESUS!”

He had stepped on Sombra, or what was left of him. All that was left was his right eye and his mouth. The rest was composed out of shadow. “Damn. We messed him up good.” Screw Loose said.

Sombra opened his eye and roared out of his mouth, scaring them all. He panted heavily as his eye moved all around. “What did you do to me?!” he snarled, still as evil as ever.

A jar quickly closed on him. The baby Draconequus grabbed it and screwed the top on tight. “locked you up, for starters.” Eris said with a smirk.

Starlight walked over and looked at him. “You left me no other choice, Dad. I had to stop you but I couldn’t kill you. Hopefully, some time alone will make you see the errors of your ways.”

Sombra scoffed and looked away. Glade grabbed the jar and tossed it to his men. “keep a close eye on him.”

“Yes sir!” they all said.

Fire Ruby yawned loudly. “Can we go home now?”

Starlight chuckled. “Yeah. I’ve had enough of this place to last a lifetime.” the group nodded and headed away from the place, ready to head home. Starlight took a step and heard the sound of broken glass beneath her. She looked to see that she stepped on a picture. She used her magic to pull it up.

It showed Sombra when he was a colt and they must’ve been his friends. There was writing on the bottom but the frame made it impossible to see. Starlight took the picture out and tossed the frame away. The writing said ‘Sombra and Tulip, Best Friends Forever.’ Tulip… that was one of the names he mentioned. Hmm… maybe she can help him. If she’s still alive.

Starlight put the picture away and walked after them. She still had something else to think about. And that was what to do with her powers. She used her magic to bring out the pocket watch. This was the source of her powers over time and as long as she had it, bad people will always come after her until the day she dies. Ugh, this was gonna be tough.

Pinkie burst into the library, carrying a new letter. “THEY’RE COMIING HOME! THEY’RE COMIGN HOME!” She cheered.

“they’re what?” Twilight and Halo said as they got up and walked over.

“Yeah. It’s short but it’s to the point. They’re coming home in a few days!” Pinkie cheered again. “With Starlight!”

Twilight and Halo looked at each other, then evilly snickered. “Pinkie… think you can throw one hell of a Welcome Home party?”

Pinkie happily gasped, then cheered again. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!? OF COURSE, I CAN!!!” she hopped off, eager to see her daughter again.

The group returned to Baltimare and cracked their backs. “Finally! Baltimare!” Eris Shine exclaimed.

Starlight chuckled. This was where she had the most fun during her trip. And where she met Bass. The two looked at each other with such warm and loving eyes, it was almost sickening. Baltimare was a turning point in their journey. And they were glad.

They were at first.

“BASS!”

Rita, Cliff, and Meryl came out of nowhere and dog-piled on the unsuspecting pony. Cliff laughed and gave Bass a noggie. “Oh, it is you! Oh, Bass! You loveable pony you!” Meryl laughed.

Starlight laughed at the sight of Bass’s embarrassment. “you know them?” Windancer asked.

“Yeah. Friends of Bass’.” Starlight explained.

Bass yelled and was able to get out of the dog-pile. “haha. It’s good to see you guys too.” he happily said. “You guys remember Starlight, right?”

“Starlight!” they cheered.

“they remember.” she commented.

“So, what happened? You find your dad?” Rita asked.

“Was it fun? Did you all have lots of exiting adventures?” Cliff asked.

“you two hitch up?” Meryl chuckled.

Bass and Starlight looked at each other and chuckled. “Yes, yes, and yes.” Starlight said.

Cliff wrapped his arm around Bass. “hey, Lucky you, Bass. Hitching up with a Alicorn. That’s good pickin’s.”

“Hey! I didn’t hook up with her because she was a Alicorn. I hooked up with her because I love her.”

“OOOH!!!” Meryl and Rita went.

Big city girls. They’ll go ‘ooh’ at anything.

The group arrived at Baltimare station, which was a direct line to the port 3 miles away. “Yay! We’re almost home!” Cotton happily exclaimed.

“I can’t wait for you to meet my mom.” Starlight said. “she’s a bit of a bookworm but you’ll learn to like her. And I’m certain you’ll like Ponyville as well.”

Ponyville… all the way there. Bass stopped walking and stood there. Star saw this and looked back. “Bass?”

“Something wrong, Twilight?” Glade asked.

She wasn’t sure if something was wrong or not. “no… it’s nothing.” she hesitantly said. “you guys get on the train. I’ll go have a chat with him.”

“Don’t wait too long.” Marian said as they made their way to the railway.

“What’s wrong?” Starlight asked Bass.

“Um…. I-I’m not going to Ponyville.”

“What?” she asked in surprise. “why?”

“Because… because I can’t leave this place.” he looked back to the city. “Baltimare is my home. All my friends are here. I was born and raised here. And I’ve been to Ponyville before. Not exactly my cup of tea.”

“So, what? You’re not coming?”

“no. this town is in a rough time and I feel like I can help. You know?”

She partly knew. “but… you helped me.”

“Because you needed it. And though that decision, I have the best marefriend I guy could ask for. But… but I just can’t leave my friends.”

Starlight partly understood. Leaving her friends to find her dad was the hardest choice she ever made. “so... Are we breaking up?”

“Faust, I hope not. We’ll keep up with letters and the like. And maybe, once things have calmed down here, I’ll come visit.”

Starlight didn’t like it. She really didn’t. but being loyal to his first friends and his city… reminds her a lot about Aunt Rainbow Dash. “You know long-distance relationships never work, right?”

“Doesn’t mean we can’t try. … here.” he reached back and pulled out a necklace from his saddle-bags. “This was my mothers. I want you to hold onto it.”

His mother’s necklace… he must really care about her if he’s giving her something this important. “Thanks, Bass.”

Bass leaned in and kissed her. It was a somber kiss, like Starlight was losing something very important. He broke it and smiled. “see you later… sweetheart…” Bass turned and headed back to the city.

Starlight just stood there, then she looked at the necklace. “Bass…” she put the necklace into her saddlebags and walked to the train. Her friends watched this little scene unfold and felt sorry for her.

When Starlight came onboard, Marian went to comfort her. “are you okay, Starlight?”

She looked away from her friend then sighed. “Yeah. We didn’t break up. He just couldn’t leave Baltimare or his friends.”

“but… we’re his friends.” Goldie said.

“but we weren’t his first.” Star said as she sat down. “and he’s very loyal to his friends and to Baltimare. He couldn’t leave them behind.”

“oh…” her friends all looked at each other with somber faces. “how do you feel?”

Starlight took a deep breath and sighed. “not great. I understand what he’s going though; leaving Ponyville and all of you was the toughest choice I had to make, but I don’t like it.” she pulled out the necklace and sighed.

Shadow saw puffs of smoke over the horizon. He smiled wide then jumped down from the top of the library. “I see the train! They’re coming!”

He landed and headed for the group, which has a surprise party planned at Octavia’s and Vinyl’s club, Electronic Symphony, which they named after their son. “You remember to place the note, eTu`nes?” Twilight asked.

“Yep. And clear as day, too.”

“Great! This is going to be the best welcome home party ever!” Pinkie exclaimed as she can.

The train rolled into Ponyville station and hissed to a halt. The group walked off and headed for the exit.

Starlight closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Ponyville… it’s been forever since she’s been home. Nothing has changed; it looked completely the same. Well, mostly. The streets are barren. Which is odd cause this is the middle of the day. Normally, the streets should be filled. Now…

“where is everyone?” Sweet Song wondered.

Sym wondered that as well, then looked to see a noticeable note taped on the pole next to them. It said Starlight so it must be addressed to them. He walked over, grabbed it, and read it. “What’s it say?” Woona asked.

“says to come to Electronic Symphony, but it’s not saying why.”

“with our luck, it’s probably a surprise party.” Glade chuckled. “Pinkie probably planned a ‘welcome home’ party for us all.”

Cotton and Eris Shine looked at each other and evilly snickered. “if that’s true, we better hide our surprises.”

The group walked to the night club and stopped just outside. They heard commotion inside the club, followed by shushing.

“Yep. Party.” Woona chuckled.

Starlight shrugged. “better get it over with.” she chuckled.

They agreed and went in. as they predicated, the entire place was dark. Sym rolled his eyes and flipped the lights on.

“SURPRISE!!!” their parents all cheered. Pinkie and Marble popped out of nowhere and blew into a couple of noisemakers. Celestia and Zilver did the same. “WELCOME HOME!” the rest cheered.

Starlight smiled. “It’s great to be home.” she said. To tell the truth, she lied. She didn’t like being home. She’d rather be with Bass.

Twilight ran up and hugged her daughter. “it’s so great to have you home! And safe from that Sombra character.”

“Yeah… funny you should mention him.” Star chuckled. Glade turned back and nodded to his troops. They walked in and handed the jar to him. “Say hello to that little dastard.” she said as Glade showed it to them.

Everyone yelled at the sight of the deformed Sombra. “Holy Guacamole!!” Spike exclaimed.

Twilight cautiously walked over and tapped the glass. “is he alive?”

Sombra opened his one eye, causing Twilight to jump back and yelp. “I’m still alive, you dumb mare!”

“yeesh. Even in this, he acts like he’s all tough.” Soarin’ grabbed the jar and shook it. “You’re not tough anymore, short stack!”

“un… how did… you defeat him?” Cadence asked.

“a whole lot of luck.” they all replied in unison.

Celestia used her magic to grab the jar and pull it to her. “I remember you, Sombra. You caused a lot of trouble for us and you’re gonna be put away for a long, long time. Shining Armor.” she handed the jar to her. “as soon as we return to Canterlot, lock this charlatan in the dungeon.”

“yes ma’am.”

Dash flew over, got a good look at Sombra, and winced. “Damn.” she turned her attention back to the group. “you guys said you had a surprise for me?”

Eris Shine and Soarin’ looked at each other and smiled. “a good one.”

Before Dash could ask what it was, a sudden weight hit her back. “Me!” Eris said with a smile, holding her head upside down in front of hers.

Dash couldn’t believe her eyes. This had to be a dream. “please tell me I’m not seeing things.” She desperately asked.

“nope.” Fluttershy siad with a wide smile. “that’s her.”

Rainbow Dash happily gasped, then flipped over, catching Eris in her hooves. “Eris!!!” she hugged the baby Draconequus tight. “I can’t believe it’s you!”

“believe it.” Eris said with a smile and wink. “I’m back and I’m here to stay!”

Rainbow happily squealed and hugged her more, tears streaming down. “I’m never gonna let you go again!” Eris hugged her back.

The party didn’t even start and already, everyone was happy. The Mane 6 haven’t seen Eris in ages and they’re happy to see her. Celestia leaned towards her daughter. “how did she come back?” she asked Erys.

“you don’t want to know.” she replied.

Pinkie cheered and jumped onto a podium. “Let’s get this party started!!!” she pulled the string on a party-popper, sending streamers flying.

Sombra, his entire body now composed of shadow and out of that jar, sat in a corner of his glass cell nestled deep in the dungeons. Cosmos has this wing commissioned for any baddies they come across that can sink into floors and slip out. Sombra was their first occupant. That Dark Unicorn had sunk into a slump when the youngest Captain of the Guard approached his cell.

“not very cozy, is it?” Glade asked.

Sombra gazed up at him then looked away. “go away.”

“gee. That’s too bad. And here I brought a visitor for you.”

A visitor? For him? He glanced up to see a Yellow Pegasus with a Egg-White Mane. He recognized her instantly. “Tulip.”

“I was surprised when that mare said it was you.” she reached into her saddle-bags and pulled out the picture Starlight had found. “we all thought you were dead.”

Sombra looked down at the picture and sighed. “That colt is dead. And he has been for these past 40 years.”

“Sombra… I’m sorry for what we did to you back then. Nobody should be treated that way.”

“too late to apologize.”

The mare, feeling defeated, glanced away and sighed. “I tried.” she turned to leave. “just so you know… not everyone was afraid of you.” she walked off, leaving the picture behind. Sombra looked down at it again and sighed in defeat.

“Wait.” he said. The mare stopped and looked back. “un… how… how is everyone?”

The mare looked to Glade, smiled, then walked back to her old friend. “well, Malice went and got himself…” Glade watched them for a moment and left with a smile. A few years of this and maybe Sombra will change, maybe enough for him to be with Starlight again.

If he changes.

Starlight looked out the window of her room to the sunset. It’s been 2 weeks since she came back to Ponyville and… and she doesn’t feel like she’s home. Like she’s whole. She looked down at the necklace Bass gave her and sighed. She misses him a lot.

In those 2 weeks, everyone had fallen back to the same routine, like nothing had ever changed. she spent her first day back searching for that mare in the photo, that Tulip girl.

She used her magic to summon the pocket-watch and she looked at it as well, trying to figure what to do.

A knock came from her door, catching her off guard. “Come in, mom.”

Twilight opened the door and entered. “how did you know it was me?”

“Lucky guess.” Starlight walked to her bed and plopped down on it. She felt a slight pang in her gut when she did so. She’s been getting those a lot lately.

Twilight glanced at the watch. That was the same one Tsylatac used on her. 2 weeks later and she was still having trouble wrapping her head around Starlight’s story, especially Sombra’s plan. “how are you feeling?”

“down.” she sighed. She pulled out the necklace and looked at it with watery eyes.

Twilight knew that look. She saw it a lot 20 years ago. Hell, she had that look with Halo. “You miss him, don’t you?”

Starlight sighed. “I find it hard to eat and difficult to sleep. It’s funny. I’ve only known him for a few weeks and yet… I miss him like I lost someone really important to me.”

Twilight sighed as she sat down. “that’s love for you.” Starlight lightly nodded and sighed again. Twilight didn’t like seeing her daughter suffer. “you know… when I was young, Celestia taught me that sometimes, I should just follow my heart. Cause it never lies.”

“and what did you do?”

Twilight smiled, leaned down, and kissed her on the forehead. “I had you.”

Starlight lightly smiled then looked at the necklace. “so… you think I should follow mine?”

“I’m not telling you what to do.” Twilight got off of her bed. “I’m just giving you a option.” she opened Starlight’s door and headed out. “you coming?”

“No, I… I feel like going to bed early. Been tired all day.”

“okay. See you in the morning.”

Twilight closed the door and headed downstairs. Starlight looked at the necklace, the pocket-watch, and the sunset. She closed her eyes and came to her final answer. She raised the hoof with the watch and…

Goldie woke up after a long night’s sleep and yawned loudly. “what a dream…” she grumbled. She got up and headed for the bathroom, scratching her hind-quarters. She licked her lips as she neared it, giving them moisture, and reached the doorknob when she noticed that Starlight’s door was slightly open.

“Strange. She never had that open before.” she head over to see what’s happening.

She opened the door and saw a shocking sight. “MOM!!!”

It took her and Halo a few moments to get there. They arrived to see the sight. “Goldie, what’s-- oh.”

Starlight’s room was completely barren. Her drawers and shelves were void of all her belongings. The window was wide open with pull marks leading to it. The only thing she left was her bed and bed sheets. She clearly didn’t need those where she was going. On the ground was the remains of a pocket-watch. It was broken and busted up, unable to work anymore.

“she’s gone.” Twilight gasped. Halo saw a note on the bed and grabbed it. Twilight leaned in to read it and Goldie hopped on the bed to get a look.

“Dear Mom, Dad, and Goldie…

‘Sorry for the abruptness of this but… but I had to do it. Mom told me I should follow my heart. Which I did.

‘I destroyed the watch, which served as the vessel of my powers over time. When it went, my powers over time went as well. I’m now a normal Alicorn. I never wanted those powers and I didn’t want bad ponies coming after me because of it. They’re gone for good. And as for my whereabouts… well…

‘I felt empty without him. I… I want to be with him and I’m going to be. Please, don’t stop me. I love him and I can’t be complete unless I’m with him. Mom told me she went though the same thing with you, Dad.

‘I’m gonna miss you. But I hope you’ll come and visit Baltimare sometime. The 4 of us will be waiting…”

Twilight smiled as tears fell down her face. She wiped her eyes with a happy smile.

“So… she’s gone?” Goldie asked.

“Yeah…” Halo said, putting the letter down. “gone, but not far. Or forever.”

“huh… but what did she mean by ‘the 4 of us’?”

Twilight sniffled and wiped her eyes again. She looked out the window to the north. “it means… that she’s moving on… and for the better.”

The mutated Oscurita roared as the Orion rammed into it. It fired it’s main cannons into it’s tough hide, causing it to roar in pain.

The Dark Knight Tsylatac walked though the fields far from the battle, looking for something. He spotted it and went over to it. He reached it and shook his head. “it feels like it’s been forever, hasn’t it? Sombra?”

The horribly mangled remains of Sombra, with just one eye and no mouth, stared at him with fire of anger in his eyes.

When that blast of Starlight’s hit him, it violently ripped him apart, sending half of him though the hole, while the other was found by them.

Since he had no mouth, Sombra couldn’t talk. Tsylatac chuckled and got up. “You were supposed to bring the girl with you. But you failed at that. And we can’t change it. But… we still have some use for you. But with your body as is, you’ll need a new one. Which I do believe we have…”

Tsylatac disappeared in a flash of dark fire, taking Sombra’s body with it.

Author's Notes:

the battle for Equestria is finally over, but a much larger war is about to begin...