Daughter of the Unicorn King (In progress... maybe...)

        "I love you daddy!"

        >You were Princess Platinum.

        >"And a piece of my heart will always rest with you," Daddy gently nuzzles your belly, earning a giggle from you, "My crystal princess~"

        >And your daddy was King Sombra, the biggest, toughest, smartest unicorn in the history of ever. There was nobody that could top him, even those alicorn sisters were scared of him, they needed those cheap little rocks of theirs to even hope to win. Always used those, what cowards.

        "Why do you always talk fancy like that daddy?"

        >Sombra lets out an amused chuckle, "A proper monarch must always maintain an expansive vocabulary," You feel your mind drift as he keeps talking.

        "Vo-what?"

        >"'Vocabulary," Daddy responds, "And we need to work on yours, you cannot call me daddy forever, dear heart," You puff your cheeks in annoyance.

        "I can call you daddy for as long as I want, I'm a princess!"

        >Your adamance is rewarded with a surprised gasp from the dark lord, "Oh, apologies princess," He begins playfully, bowing before you humbly, "I did not mean to overstep my bounds," You put on the most stern face you can muster, but your smile breaks through when you spot his, "How may I repent for these transgressions?" You giggle foalishly.

        "I don't know, you can't get away with ordering around a princess!"

        >Sombra suppresses a laugh, "But of course, princess," You hum, trying to find a good punishment for your brazen daddy.

        "You gotta be my servant forever!"

        >Daddy feigns distress at your choice of penance, "But princess, I am but a mortal! Surely-" You raise your hoof to shut him up, you see him cock his brow in interest.

        "You got dark magic, you dirty liar. You are immortal!"

        >The dark lord laughs, "It seems I need to make my lies more opaque," He says, "I acquesce to your terms, crystal princess."

        "I think that lie deserves its own punishment."

        >Daddy's amusement with you does not falter, "And how shall you punish King Sombra?" He asks, cocky and prideful. After a moment of mulling it over you come up with something mean, barely containing your sly grin you daintily raise a hind-hoof.

        "Kiss my hooves."

        >You start giggling when you see his very real shock, "Kiss your-"

        "You heard me daddy, you need to repent! So get over here and kiss my hoof!"

        >Sombra hums, muttering something that is beyond your range of hearing. Slowly he makes his way over to you, head hung in faux-shame, "Must I, princess?"

        "A proper monarch should never have to repeat an order! You know your task, slave, comply or be executed posthaste!"

        >After a long silence daddy breaks out in laughter, and you can't help but join in. How could those nasty sisters not like your daddy? He was so nice to everyone, and all the unicorns loved him, "Perhaps I was wrong, dear heart. It seems you have been retaining those lessons after all," You roll your eyes.

        "I'm not stupid, daddy! I know when something's important!"

        >Sombra's horn flares to life, and sends you careening into a tight hug. You return it with all of your might.

        "I love you daddy."

        >"I love you too, dear heart," Daddy says softly, stroking your well-groomed mane and caressing your back, "Remember this above all. Since the night you were conceived, my heart gave you a piece of itself, one that you can never remove," You sigh as the dark lord starts up again.

        "Daddy!"

        >You annoyed groans do not sway him however, just like always, "Through this piece, I am bonded with you. Then the day you were born I made an oath, and do you know what that oath was?"

        "Cheese for everyone?"

        >Daddy rolls his eyes in bemusement, "No, that was not it," You decide to chime in again.

        "That can be just as much of a good thing if you don't like cheese."

        >"Let me finish, dear heart," Sombra says with a chuckle, "That oath, was a simple one," He clears his throat, "Princess Platinum, of the Unicorn Kingdom. From this day, and forever hence, I shall always be-" He leans in, mouth next to your ear, "-your eternal slave," For some reason it draws a shiver out of you, as well as a blush.

        "D-daddy don't say it like that~"

        >Daddy hums in amusement, "Oh? Does my heart enjoy her subjects submitting to her?"

        "N-no, you just say it all funny. It makes me feel all tingly..."

        >Daddy kisses your forehead, "Nonetheless, you will find it very much true," You groan as you process the implications.

        "That means-"

        >"Your punishment is completely pointless, I am already sworn by blood-oath," He responds quickly, before yawning, "I think it is time for us to turn in, dear heart. A well-rested mare is a presentable one."

        "I don't wanna go to bed!"

        >Your whining fails to get you anywhere, as daddy hoists you up and leads you over to your bed, which you get in with little protest. As he tucks you in you can't suppress a yawn.

        "Darn it."

        >Daddy laughs, "A father knows these things, dear heart," He says, "Never forget that," When he leans forward to kiss you goodnight you take initiative and give him a quick peck on the nose.

        "I love you daddy."

        >Sombra hums lovingly, "I love you more.”

        “No, I love you more!”

        >”I love you more than all the lands and wealth in the world.”

        “I love you more than the world!”

        >“I love you all the way to the moon,” You pause for a moment.

        “I love you all the way to the moon and back!”

        >Daddy laughs, “That's quite the distance,” You sigh in contentment, “Goodnight, dear heart.”

        "Goodnight daddy."

        >With one last kiss on your forehead he blows out the candles and leaves you in the dark. You loved it in the dark.

        “Where there is shadow, so am I...”

        >That's what he said to you once, when you were scared. But now you knew he was always with you, lurking in the dark.

 

        “Hey daddy?”

        >Sombra hums as he tinkers with various magical crystals. Nervously you shuffle your hooves as you open your mouth.

        “Why do the alicorn sisters hate you?”

        >Daddy sighs, “They do not hate me, dear heart. They hate my magic, what it represents,” You cock your head.

        “What does it represent?”

        >”Power,” He says bluntly, “A power that surpasses theirs. Dark magic rewards only those with the will to commit evils in the name of a greater good. Celestia and Luna would like us all to believe their tyranny of pacifism is the way of the future, and since the fall of Tambelon they have been keen to enforce this,” You find yourself spacing out as you try to process all of this.

        “H-how long did it take for Tambelon to disappear?”

        >”Ten-thousand, thirty-three hundred and six years,” Daddy tells you, and you find yourself gaping in awe in retort, “Without their precious elements, you will find that the princesses have little power for themselves. Yes they move the sun and the moon, but they also move naturally, albeit much slower,” He pauses, “What brought this up?” You find yourself shuffling your hooves again.

        “I heard some of the maids talking about it.”

        >Sombra hums, “Is that so?” He sets his experiments aside for the time-being, “And this suddenly made you curious of my little tiff with the princesses?” You nod shyly. Daddy starts pacing, “The princesses believe I need to step down, live out what remains of my natural life,” He stressed natural to emphasize the mortality aspect, “They frown upon my use of dark magic to give myself eternal youth.”

        “That's it? They don't like dark magic? Isn't that racist or something?”

        >A pause, “I'm not sure to be honest... not racist... perhaps they just want to distance themselves from the days of the Imperium,” You cock your head again.

        “Imperium?”

        >Daddy laughs, “Ancient history my dear, far older than the princesses and myself, a time of darkness and old-gods. The time that dark magic was conceived. I may show you one day, but those days are universally feared for a reason,” He gives you a stern look, “They are not for the faint of heart.”

        “Were they like evil or something?”

        >”The ancient Imperium spanned the world, where our precursors worshiped the planet-bound old-gods and the space-borne, crystalline star-eaters,” Was the retort, “It was a time so mired in superstition that many of the facts have been embellished greatly. We only know so much.”

        “But you said they were feared?”

        >Sombra smiles, “The ponies that try to look back, never return the same. The memory shards the ancients used in place of books and paper, immediately taught you everything the individual of the past knew. Everyone who's tried has gone insane, and only a select few are coherent enough to say something,” You shudder involuntarily.

        “Have you tried?”

        >”No, and I don't intend to. The ancients want us to forget of that time for a reason. The old-gods are no more, the star-eaters have dwindled to one, and it has not been seen in hundreds of years,” He pauses, “However every few thousand years or so a star in the night sky suddenly vanishes,” This talk of ancient monsters was starting to bother you, so you change the subject.

        “Hey daddy?”

        >”Yes?” He asks you.

        “Are you done working?”

        >Sombra examines his experiments, “I suppose I could call it a night, make some time for my princess,” You feel your heart leap and you can't help but bounce happily, “What do you want to do?” You immediately stop as a blush overtakes you.

        “I-I know this sounds foalish... but can we just... sit together?”

        >Daddy raises a brow, “That's it?” He asks, you nod your head, “I see no reason why not. We must all indulge our inner foal sometimes,” You cannot suppress your gleeful smile as he leads you out of his lab. As you stroll through the castle halls, everyone you pass stops what they're doing to salute you and daddy. To this day you found it a little creepy, but daddy always took it with an unreadable expression, it was just normal to him.

        >Eventually he leads you back to your room, where he hops onto your bed. You quickly join him, snuggling up to his larger form. His armor felt cold, but that was okay, you knew it was him and that was all that mattered.

        “I love you daddy.”

        >Daddy chuckles, “You say that a lot.”

        “But I do, more than anyone else.”

        >”I'm flattered, dear heart. But one day, you will find someone who captivates your heart, rules your thoughts, and it will not be me,” You puff your cheeks in annoyance.

        “It sounds like love makes you obsessed.”

        >Another amused sound from daddy, “They say love makes you stupid. I was stupid enough to knock up some poor mare and have you.”

        “Daddy!”

        >The dark lord pulls you into a hug, “Sometimes mistakes are the best things to happen to us,” He kisses you chastely, “And you, dear heart, are the best thing that will ever happen to me.”

        “You mean it daddy?”

        >He smiles, “Any true father can say the same.”

        “You're not saying it because it's some secret stallion-law right?”

        >Daddy rolls his eyes, “Of course not, I don't need a law to tell me what my heart says,” You hug him with all of your might. You feel your eyes welling for some reason, and your grip somehow tightens as a result.

        “Daddy...”

        >Sombra pulls away, when your tears meet his fur, “Are you crying?”

        “N-no!”

        >He immediately wipes a tear from your cheek in retort, “Then I guess there are some ninjas peeling onions,” You punch him square in the jaw.

        “Princesses don't cry! It's just a little dusty in here and I wanna sneeze.”

        >Daddy chuckles in amusement as he pulls you back into a hug, “You can cry if you want, my crystal princess. Your father will not think any less of you,” You decide to take him up on his offer, fake sneezing so you don't seem like a liar. Although daddy already knows, he knows he just touched your heart, said something that made you the happiest filly in the world.

        “I-I love you d-daddy.”

        >You barely manage to squeak it out between sobs, “I love you more,” He immediately retorts before kissing your head.

        “I-I love you more...”

        >”I love you to the sun,” You puff your cheeks in frustration, tears beginning to dry.

        “I l-love you to the sun and back!”

        >Daddy makes a wounded sound, “Damn,” He mutters. You giggle as he wipes the last tears from your eyes.

        “I always win daddy.”

        >You kiss his nose, as is tradition, “Won't stop me from trying,” He retorts.

 

        >Today daddy took you to the park. You were having loads of fun, even if the other foals were scared of daddy and avoiding you. That was okay though, 'cuz daddy was there to play with you. You did loads of things together, build sandcastles, play on the swings, and the thing you loved most of all: chase.

        “You gotta run faster if you want to catch me daddy!”

        >You run as fast as your little legs would allow, daddy leisurely jogging behind you. He could go pretty fast without trying, but you were faster than he was. Whenever you turned back around you bet he'd break into a full gallop to close the distance again.

        >”Princess, watch where you're going!” Daddy orders every time you crane your head around to see how close he was to getting you. You paid him no mind, it wasn't like you were going to run into-

        >You ran headfirst into a tree, and you hear daddy shout something. However you are too stunned to do anything, you simply stare at the ground, then you spot a drop of fresh blood slap against the dirt. Your blood.

        “DADDYYYEEEEE!”

        >The pain makes instinct take over, and instinct tells you to cry for your father.

        >Daddy is with you in seconds, pulling you into a tight hug, “Shh, I'm here, dear heart,” You sniffle loudly in response, and he gently caresses your back in an effort to calm you, “No more tears, my heart, you are strong,” You fail to notice the crowd that has gathered around you, watching the adorable scene unfold.

        “O-owies daddy... I have owies...”

        >The crowd of unicorns collectively aww, “I know,” Daddy tells you as he inspects your wounded skull, “This is why you look where you're running,” You continue to wail audibly against Sombra's chest.

        “I'm sorry daddy!”

        >His grip on you tightens, “I know heart, I know you are,” He pulls away, “Now let's clean you up,” Your face flushes.

        “H-here?”

        >”Yes, here,” Daddy tells you, “We cannot risk your wound getting infected, plus I don't want to carry a bloody filly through town, people will judge me,” With that he starts lapping at your wound.

        >What? That's how ponies clean their foals.

        “D-daddy, not here! Th-there are ponies watching...”

        >The crowd d'aww's and snickers, and many disperse. Although some stick around to hear your protests. Eventually though, in spite of your adamant struggles, daddy finally manages to lick you clean. The crowd disappears as the dark lord sets you down and starts leading you off.

        >You fail to notice that the tree you hit was now a smoldering crater.