Dark Side Of The Moon

Chapter 8: Sombra

Three months ago, living in Canterlot with his brother Jet, a warm place to sleep and three decent meals a day had seemed hopeless; something as likely as a camel fitting through a needle eye.

Being a magic student on a scholarship was even more unlikely.

Not to mention weekly meetings with Princess Luna in her personal library.

Yet here he was, living all three of those things.

How sweet and satisfying was life now! He had everything he could ever want.

And so did Jet. Being surprisingly popular with the ladies, Jet did some odd jobs here and there, until he had finally settled down as a bartender at another upscale club. It wasn't the Starry Nightclub, but it would do.

Every night, Jet would bring home a different girl. It was a relief that he and his brother had different rooms. He didn't want to be up all night listening to the moaning. It reminded him too much of his mother.

One black evening, the girl who stumbled in, arm around Jet, was Chrissy. Blue green hair, chocolate skin, she looked exactly the same. But the makeup caked on her face looked unnatural, and her slim frame resembled a beanpole.

Sombra thought it would be over after that. Jet would come home with someone else. He really was a playboy. A practically penniless bartender chasing all the pretty girls.

That was, until, he heard her shrill voice from behind the door.

"We have to do that again! It was so fun!" Chrissy squealed, laughing as Jet nuzzled her. She threw off her high heels, massaging her feet. "How did you get the Argentine tango footwork so quickly? I always mess it up."

Jet was back with the same girl. After 3 months, he had found a girl he wanted to see again.

Though Sombra disapproved of his brother's lifestyle, he kept his mouth shut. Jet certainly wasn't pleased with Sombra diving so deep into the political world.

And Jet seemed to have settled down.

They both had everything they had ever wanted.

But how long would it last?

Five days prior, a group of citizens in the Crystal Empire had been actually stupid enough to try and rebel against the Dusk family.

Through Luna, he had found out that the princesses had been sent a letter from Specter Dusk, demanding a rather large sum of money.

For each day they refused, a new body part of Amore was sent to them. A bit of an ear. Her right pinkie. Her left pinkie. Rumour had it, they had sent Celestia and Luna her appendix. A warning, perhaps. Or a reminder that the same thing could happen to them.

The Moon Room, as Luna and Sombra now referred to it, was their one safe place from all the political chaos. That was, until Luna invited it in. Along with Celestia.

"It all comes down to a logical vs moral debate," Luna would say, rubbing her temples. "You see, giving the Dusks that much money would severely cut into our savings, and our economy is already crumbling. But if we don't, we end up getting Amore's body parts, the citizens get tortured, and we might be next. Does she really deserve this?"

"Yes," Sombra growled, his mood darkening at the thought of her. "She had it coming. Karma's a bitch but so is she."

There was silence for 5 minutes before they continued discussing.

"We either sacrifice our economy, or we sacrifice Amore and the well-being of the Crystal Empire citizens. They're halving rati0ns and carrying out brutal punishments!" Luna worried.