Chapter Nine- A walk in the park

Umbra had lied; no one had ever given her permission to leave the Crystal Palace. Certainly there might have been an implication in the air that Umbra would now be allowed to go wherever she wanted, especially when Cadance had returned her magic. But nevertheless, neither Cadance nor Shining Armor had actually given explicit permission for the Dark Queen to actually leave.

But Umbra had broken the princess of friendship; she had reduced Silver Shield into an eager fuckslut, she had made the princess of love lap at the honey between her legs, and she had ridden the captain of the Crystal Guard like a horse (and nearly been fucked stupid in doing so, but she didn’t like to think about that part).

So Umbra was feeling bold. Bold enough to ignore the terms of her house arrest and simply dare Cadance, Twilight, or Shining Armor to try and stop her. But no one did; even as she marched to the entrance of the Crystal Palace itself, the guards on duty simply nervously opened the door for her. Most likely scared of the dominant aura that Umbra projected with every step she took.

It was a relief to feel the fresh air of the Crystal Empire for the first time in many weeks. The air of the empire in which she had been born and raised, biting and cold yet always fresh and cool. Never as stuffy and humid as the air would breathe further south in Equestria. Some might call it chilly, but Umbra called it home.

Or at least she had called it home when she was young. When she was naive, and when she didn’t know of her relation to the shadow creatures of the Umbrum. They seemed like happy days now, happier times when she had been neither Umbra the fallen queen nor Sombra the tyrant but just Sombra the colt. Playing in the gardens of her orphanage with sweet Radiant Hope, free to be kind and nice.

Umbra **** down the treacherous feeling of nostalgia that threatened to consume her heart. Even as her legs automatically took her to her favorite park of her childhood. A place where only the most hardy and resilient of plants could survive the bitter cold of the Crystal Empire. Gigantic spruce trees with dark green leaves rose into the cold sky. Around the roots of their trunks, sharp holly branches curled around the trees. Across the path a small pond could be spotted, which had been partly covered in ice, and rarely was there a bench that hadn’t been covered in frost or snow.

Umbra had drawn quite a few eyes as she walked, even as none knew her as the evil dark tyrant Sombra. She still struck an imposing figure, towering over other ponies by an entire head’s height even without heels. A raven mane as black as midnight flowing down to her wide and round ass, blood-red eyes that looked as if they’d been carved from rubies, and voluptuous tits that were easily the size of a small stallion’s torso.

But perhaps it wasn’t just her figure that drew the eyes, but also her outfit. Umbra, as a part of the Umbrum, had never had to fear the cold; even the coldest of ice baths felt to her like a gentle breeze. So she didn’t dress to conceal or hide, not now that she knew the power her sexuality could unleash. She proudly displayed her cleavage, cutting away the armor around her navel for all to see. Only her arms and legs remained properly armored, and the latter only to carry her impressively tall high heels.

Some were intimidated; others were overcome with lust and attraction. Umbra embraced both looks, for both gave her power. Whether it was by cowing those who’d once been brave and strong or drawing looks from devoted husbands and wives. Yet still she did appreciate the sanctuary and privacy of this park, even as a part of her wondered if she should take this opportunity to run away and scheme once again.

Then again, what scheme did she have that was better than the one Cadance and her family were practically offering her on a silver platter?

She took a seat on one of the park benches, clearing the frost and snow with her magic. Someone had been here recently and left their newspaper behind, but not so recently for it to have been completely ruined by the snow. At first Umbra had intended to ignore it until she spotted the word ‘Sombra’ in one of the headlines.

She picked it up; a simple drying spell from her horn was more than enough to make it legible again. She read the headline, her eyes narrowing with every word.

“KING SOMBRA: KING OF EVIL TO KING OF FOOLS?” Umbra read, her grip tight enough to nearly tear the poor paper. “Recent evidence shows that the once mighty King Sombra has been completely and utterly humiliated by the reformed and noble draqonequus, Discord.”

Umbra’s teeth ground together. If she had a year, she could perhaps list a third of everything wrong with this sentence. How dare they? How dare they imply that she was defeated? How dare they mock her?

Umbra tore the newspaper in her hands; she couldn’t bear to read another word. She could just imagine Discord gloating to the press, bragging about how he'd tricked her into taking part in Chrysalis's, Tirek's, and Cozy Glow's fool plot. How she had fallen for the Grogar disguise hook, line, and sinker. She could almost imagine him wiping away his tears as he laughed at how he'd warped Sombra into Umbra and made her into a big titted slut who'd be ogled and lusted for by every perverted stallion in Equestria. She wouldn't put anything past that damn Discord's insatiable, cruel sense of humor.

She folded her arms across her large, ebony breasts. Whatever sense of confidence she had had from manipulating Twilight before seemed to wash away. She was suddenly starting to realize just how exposed her outfit made her. She looked like a stripper, didn't she? That fact started to creep into her mind once again, a reminder of her true status. Sure, she might be able to delude herself every so often that her raw sex appeal was a weapon of some kind, but it didn't change what she had been reduced to.

A whore. A slut. A meek little pervert who'd had to use the disgusting urges of stallions and the filthy fantasies of mares to get what she wanted. Oh, it gave her power; there was no doubt about that. And she couldn't deny the thrill it gave her to have ponies like Cadance, Twilight, and Shining Armor eating out of her lap. But she shivered to imagine her changing reputation, the way the average pony would think of her now. As a porn fantasy? A slut they'd masturbate to? As a joke or a fool, they'd scoff about at parties and mock online and in magazines. Fear would be the last emotion they were feeling.

Umbra buried her head in her hands, unsure what else to do. Did she continue on to manipulate these lewd fantasies of the princesses? It seemed to be her best opportunity for power, but the humiliation of the newspapers and the way ponies would speak of her in the streets. Umbra's pride was important to her; it was why she became the villain. She was owed so much more than the world was willing to give her; she needed to take it. By ****, seduction, or whatever else it takes!

"YOU HEAR THAT, WORLD!" Umbra screamed to the heavens. She imagined the clouds as images of Discord, Celestia, and all her hated enemies. "YOU MAY HAVE TRAPPED ME IN THIS BODY! YOU MAY HAVE REDUCED ME INTO A HOUSE PRISONER! BUT I WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED! NO MATTER WHAT HUMILIATIONS I MAY SUFFER OR DEFEATS, I WILL OVERCOME THEM AND RULE THIS EMPIRE AND EQUESTRIA ONCE AGAIN! MWA-HA-HA—"

There was someone watching.

"-ha...ha...ha..." Umbra feebly tried to disguise her maniacal laughter behind a cough, but she could tell that she had been drawing this mare's stares. Umbra's blood-red eyes fixed on the snow, only stealing the occasional glance, hoping against hope that the mare might continue on her path and forget all about her. But as Umbra stole one of her glances, she noticed that the mare looked almost identical to her.

Not completely identical, mind you; put the two of them side by side, and there'd be distinct differences. Umbra's mane being longer and more silky than her imposter's, and her own tits being a more natural design rather than the imposter's own tits, which show signs of magical enhancement. But all the same, at a distance, one could very easily find no distinction between the two.

It was no accident either, not from her outfit. A mimic of Umbra's own, she noticed, even as the strange woman was walking away. Only somehow even more lewd and revealing than Umbra's own. The biggest difference was that whilst Umbra's lewd outfit was meant to inspire fear and dominance, this mare was dressed like a stripper. Meant to arouse and inspire lust.

A range of emotions spread through Umbra. Disgust, horror, humiliation, anger, but also curiosity and intrigue. It could not have been long if the truth of her genderswapping had leaked. So how did this mare have this outfit already prepared… it must mean the pony had known about her transformation before. But how?

Umbra’s thirst for knowledge outweighed whatever other concerns she might have had. She used her restored magic to become a living shadow once more and began to follow this strange stripper girl. She made her way across the park and back into the streets of the Crystal Empire. She avoided the main streets and instead made her way through alleyways and back streets.

As they moved through the streets it occurred to Umbra that this stripper pony was most likely mocking her. She could just imagine it, her ungrateful subjects that she had once ruled, huddling together behind closed doors and scoffing at how far their rightful queen had fallen. And after all Umbra had done for them!

Soon Umbra found the destination of her stripper doppelgänger. Had she not become a form of living shadow, she would have snorted in disgust. She should have known; their path had taken them straight into the Crystal Empire’s red light district. Entire streets filled with sex toy stores, brothels, strip clubs, porn studios, and whatever lewd business a pervert’s mind could dream of lay in these streets, and Umbra’s doppelgänger was heading to the biggest place in town.

“The Dark Crystal Empire?” Umbra snorted, reading the blood-red neon sign blazing across the streets. The sun had started to set now, making the sign even more distinct against the other streets. A lewd silhouette of a stripper was held up high, as big as a billboard, outlined with dazzling red lightbulbs. The entire building was a parody of the Crystal Palace back from when she had ruled from it as Sombra. Though neon red lights blared where expensive crystals had replaced where the enchantments had once been.

As Umbra followed her imposter inside the building, she saw that the walls had been draped in black fabrics, sewn to mimic her old banners, albeit in less refined fabrics. The floor was a mimic of the black stone floors of her former castle. The windows had been barred like jail cells, much like they had been over a thousand years ago. The only light from the room came either from the neon red lights mimicking her old magic or the chandeliers overhead. It was a imitation of her old palace, an obvious fake. Much like how a stage play might attempt a castle or a forest for an audience, this building had been constructed to mimic Umbra's old castle.

Umbra continued to follow her doppelganger at a distance. She seemed unusually perceptive for a common Crystal Empire citizen. Umbra had always been a master of hiding in her shadowed form. Always able to contort her form to hide her body in the smallest of cracks, in the shadows on the walls, just outside the corner of one's eye. Her stealth was enforced by her dark magic, but this pony seemed able to see through it to a certain extent, kept looking over her shoulder in Umbra's direction. Who exactly was she?

Before Umbra could get a good look at her, she threatened to get lost in a sea of the visitors of this mockery palace. A bunch of horny perverts, lewd lesbians, and similar lookalikes to Umbra herself. If Umbra weren't in this shadow form, then her teeth would be grinding themselves down to dust. There were other strippers here too, some dressed like other members of his old court or the sex slaves that she had once enjoyed. Mimics of the very mind control helmets that she had used as Sombra to enslave them.

She could feel her eyes twitching; she felt the instinct in her hands to reach out and throttle every pony she passed. How dare they mock her? How dare they make such a lewd, sexual caricature out of her? She was to be feared, not lusted over! A dark queen, not a common whore! But these ponies didn't seem to care. The strippers walked with a shameless sexual grace to their hips as they lured the perverted visitors into VIP rooms and private dances. The one who had drawn Umbra to this humiliating circus had disappeared, but she could be any one of these many strippers.

Rage. Rage was all that Umbra could feel in this moment. She didn't know whether she wanted to unleash the full **** of her dark magic against these harlots or whether to use it to simply keep them in such pain that they would beg for the sweet release of ****. It would be so easy, and every instinct in her body begged her to use the magic that Cadance had restored to her to enact her vengeance. It was so tempting, she could practically feel her muscles itching to start strangling each and every one of them.

But Umbra was neither an animalistic beast nor a mindless savage. She had a plan, and she could see through the consequences of those actions. It would be cathartic, yes, but fleeting. It might snap Cadance out of her fantasy, bringing her back to reality. It wouldn't be hard for the alicorn, debased and humiliated as she might have been, to once again restrain Umbra's magic. Then move her from her somewhat comfortable quarters and into the deepest, darkest dungeons of the Crystal Palace and throw away the key.

For a moment Umbra considered her possibilities; certainly blowing this den of shame up in an explosion of black and red had its appeal, but it would only take half a second for anypony to put the pieces back together. Could she be more subtle, killing them one at a time... maybe... but she hesitated. Even with that, Shining Armor and Cadance might link back to her. It would be too much of a coincidence that this place, which mocked her, were to be destroyed on the same day that Umbra's powers returned. That left her with only one hated option.

She would have to be patient and have to wait. Build power and manipulate the lewd, perverted fantasies of Cadance, Twilight, and whomever else there was. Play on their stupid lustful thoughts, and when they have given Umbra all the power, when she was truly unstoppable, turn the tables on them and become the tyrant she had always been! Maybe whilst bringing Shining Armor to the dark side, whilst she was at it... he did have a nice cock after all...

Only when all that had been done could she return to this whorehouse and burn it and every visitor and worker who'd ever been here. Umbra scowled around, her form like the smoke of the smoke generators, determined to fix every face here to memory and ensure that they would receive their wrath one day. As she continued to catalogue each of her future prey, she was interrupted by the announcer.

"And now for the lady you've all been waiting for. The dark consort of Sombra herself, the one pony to understand his dark mind and cruel desires. May we all welcome the consort Radiant Hope!"

Umbra could feel her heart freeze in her chest, so suddenly she feared that she might be having a heart attack. At first, she managed to convince herself that it was not true. That the stripper walking onto the stage was just some role player, or perhaps a different pony with the same name.

But all those hopes were dashed in an instant, as the pony that walked onto the stage could be none other than the one pony Sombra had ever loved. Radiant Hope herself, with that gorgeous purple fur and bright blue eyes. She’d been so passionate and full of life as a young filly, Sombra’s only friend at the orphanage and the mare who he’d once grown to love.

She could barely believe they were the same pony, the Radiant Hope she knew would never be found in a place like this. Dressed like that!

She was the one she’d spotted in the park; now up close, Umbra could make the connection. She seemed different; her face contorted to mischievous yet sensual, but her eyes twinkled with the same carefree joy that they had always had. Umbra could feel herself falling; it couldn’t be real. Perhaps some kind of dream or a nightmare.

“I see you have arrived, my dear subjects.” Radiant Hope purred, her voice an imitation of Umbra’s own. Albeit one distorted with sensual undertones, like those Umbra had used when dominating Cadance and Twilight. She had to admit it was a good impersonation. “That’s good; you won’t want to disappoint your queen.”

She marched around the pole, her left hand holding it, her hips flaring to the right. It was a practiced grace that kept her rear concealed only by a thin strip of black velvet. The crowd was wild, lewd eyes feasting upon her. They were quiet for now, however, if only because their throats were dry and their hearts thumping madly in their chests.

“Now my lowly subjects, your mistress has a task for you.” Radiant Hope purred. Umbra should be feeling offended, but shock seemed to strangle that anger—and something else as well. “Watch.”

The crowd obeyed Radiant Hope’s order with silent enthusiasm. She started to dance more erotically, and every eye in the room was glued to her performance. Whether it was her shaking hips, her fantastic bubbly ass, or jiggling tits, every eye was **** to not miss a single bit of this performance. Least of all Umbra herself.

“You want more, don’t you?” Radiant Hope purred, her voice uncharacteristically low and sensual. Every head in the club was nodding like a gaggle of fools. “I can’t hear you.”

"Yes, Mistress.”

“Please show us more.”

“We’ll do anything!”

“Please let us serve you.”

More and more requests and pleas rang out through the crowd, as Radiant Hope continued to pretend not to hear them. Her face wore a mask of passiveness, a façade of disinterest. She was letting the crowd cook, letting them grow more and more **** to see more of their beloved queen. Umbra had only been focused on dominating others recently, but she could recognize a master at work.

Radiant Hope placed a finger to her lips. They had been covered with blood red lipstick like Umbra's own. "Then my subjects, if you wish to feast upon your queen's beauty, then it would seem that tribute is required.

Frantic hands reached into pockets, pulling out wallets, purses or simply pulling out bits raw, and throwing it at the stage. Dozens upon dozens of banknotes and coins started to litter Radiant Hope's stage. All of them of different values, Umbra spotted a good deal of fives, twenties, even fifties, and hundred bit notes being thrown on the stage. It seemed the crowd was possessed with a wild fervor to bankrupt themselves to see more of their queen's beloved body.

"Here, my queen, I have a hundred here. Take it!"

"Consider this my tax today! Fuck, why don't our taxes go to you instead of that lame princess?"

"Here, it's the last I've got on me. I hope it'll be enough, my Queen!"

Radiant Hope gave a chuckle, as one might give a particularly cute fan. It was enough to send the fur of the crowd shooting up as if they'd been pressed with balloons. "You poor, poor subjects of mine. But don't worry; your queen may be cruel, but she isn't unfair." Radiant Hope's hands reached around the red fabric restraining her breasts. "Nor is she a liar."

The fabric went flying, and if the crowd weren't stunned into silence by the gorgeous tits that were finally on full display, they would have erupted into cheers. Many of them had their mouths gaping open as if in silent celebration before their voices had been silenced by the perfect pair of tits that their eyes might feast upon. Had Radiant Hope's tits grown larger since Umbra had last seen them, or had she never had the chance to truly appreciate them back when she had been Sombra? They looked to be a good G-cup, bordering on H-cups. Defying gravity just enough to not sag or seem artificially fake and swaying as she danced with an abnormal grace.

She continued to dance and sway around the pole, her movements as graceful as a ballerina and as lewd as a whore. She carried a sexual grace like a seductive siren; she consumed the attention of her every viewer. They were obsessed; they needed her. They would do everything she wanted without mind control or any law enforced. Simply because that was how much they craved her body.

A small voice in Umbra's head wondered if this was a glimpse into her future. If what Radiant Hope was doing was a version of her own plans to gain power as a dominatrix. Dominating the lewd, perverted fetishes that seemed to lay within every mare in the Crystal Empire. It was an enchanting sight, the power she seemed to effortlessly wield with her sex appeal and body. She could gain this power. Umbra knew it; it seemed too familiar with her. Umbra could trace every movement that Radiant Hope made and knew that she could replicate each move if she tried to learn. If she put in the effort.

Radiant Hope’s performance came to a stop, and she blew a kiss to the horny crowd. They shouted and cheered with horny catcalls and lewd wolf whistling. They begged her to stay, demanded an encore, and offered whatever meager possessions they had left to get her to stay. Radiant Hope simply laughed in a haughty yet erotic way, silencing the crowd with a shiver down her spine.

“An encore? What pitiful servants you are! Greedy, spoiled, ****. Do you think such worthless creatures like yourself deserve more of my perfection?” Radiant Hope’s eyes searched through the crowd with a piercing stare. She silenced each of them and brought each of their cocks to their full height with just her gaze. “I will give you an hour. That should give you time to run to your banks, find the ATMs, drain your savings, and return to your queen with pockets filled with gold to provide your queen her tribute. Until then…” Radiant Hope turned on her heel and strode towards her dressing room with a supermodel’s strut. Pausing only briefly to look back over her shoulder to a **** audience. “You’ll be left with your fantasies."

She lifted the thin scarlet fabric draping around her ass and gave it a little shake. A perfect image to be seared into the minds of her audience before, finally, she disappeared backstage. Almost the second she was gone, there was a stampede to escape the club, the audience all looking to find different sources of revenue to devote to their queen.

Umbra was still prowling in the shadows, hiding in a particular dark corner of the ceiling where she was least likely to be spotted. What was that? Why would? How? When would-?

Thousands of questions formed in Umbra’s head, one after another. But not a single one seemed to be able to form in a coherent full sentence in time. At the sight before her, she might have thought she was dreaming. Had it not been for all the other secrets she had discovered today—like Twilight’s crush on the Crystal Guard, the repressed feelings Shining Armor experiences, or Cadance’s dirty submissive fantasies—Umbra might have thought it was impossible.

But it wasn’t, just part of a pattern. A pattern that had repeated itself with Cadance, Silver Shield, Twilight Sparkle, and now Radiant Hope. And Umbra knew Radiant Hope, or at least she thought she did. Thought she would never be the kind of pony to do something like that.

She had little time to ruminate, though; the seconds were ticking down quickly and becoming minutes. She had only an hour to act, so as a shadow she glided through the air vents until she found the vent just above Radiant Hope’s room.

She found her lounging in her dressing room; there were bricks of Equestrian notes as cash. From up close, Umbra realized that she had cast a small illusion enchantment around herself. With Umbra’s own umbrum eyes, she had been able to see through it, but to the untrained pony, Radiant Hope’s fur and mane would have seemed as dark as Umbra’s own. Just another way she was determined to make her whorish imitation of Umbra more authentic.

Umbra passed through the vent grate effortlessly as a shadow before forming noiselessly back into her true form behind Radiant Hope’s back. “It’s been a long time, Radiant.”

Radiant Hope turned on her chair, eyes wide with shock. As her eyes settled on Umbra’s body, she could see them take in every inch of Umbra's dark, sensual form. At first with shock, then with the same perverted gaze that her audience had just fixed upon Radiant Hope’s body.

That was until Radiant Hope found her gaze fixing upon Umbra’s eyes. There Radiant Hope must have realized that Umbra wasn’t a regular stripper here to audition for this den of sin. Radiant Hope was simply too familiar with Sombra to possibly mistake her eyes for anyone else.

“S-Sombra? Is that you?” Radiant Hope gasped, stumbling out of her chair with an outstretched hand. As if she were walking towards a long-lost family, returned to the grave. “W-What’s happened to you?”

“Discord.” Umbra growled, but sadly that didn’t seem to be enough to sate Radiant Hope’s curiosity.

“B-but I thought you’d been killed. By the magic of friendship… I thought I’d never see you again.” She gasped, tears in her eyes. Before Umbra could do anything, she threw herself into a hug, her large breasts squashing against Umbra’s own.

The **** of the impact kicked the air out of Umbra’s lungs, and with it the anger. It seemed to vanish, and a timid, weak part of Umbra seemed ready to forgive Radiant Hope for her mockery of Umbra almost immediately. At the very least she would give her an explanation.

“It was Discord.” Umbra admitted with gritted teeth. “It turns out when I was ‘rescued’ by Grogar that it wasn’t Grogar at all. But our dear old friend Discord.”

Radiant Hope said nothing, so Umbra decided to continue, her right hand subconsciously moving to stroke Radiant Hope’s mane. “It was a stupid plan on his end. He wanted to show Twilight Sparkle that she was ready to be a princess by letting a whole bunch of villains out to work together. That way she could defeat them and become worthy of being a princess."

Umbra spat on the floor, while Radiant Hope’s face scrunched into one of adorable, sweet confusion. “Okay. I follow you so far, but how did you get from that to…” Her eyes trailed up and down Umbra’s body, and Umbra could not keep the flush of shame off of her face.

"Well, I naturally was in no interest in going around doing whatever some old goat asked of me. So I struck out on my own.”

"Yes, I heard.” Radiant Hope said, her eyes flashing with something resembling disappointment. “You mind-controlled the entire town of Ponyville, turned them against Canterlot, and destroyed the Tree of Harmony. At least until Twilight and her friends stopped you.”

"Well, it was at that moment that Discord decided to reveal his whole charade. Then in order to punish me, he stripped me of my power and changed my body into…this.” Umbra gestures to her newly enhanced body. She couldn’t ignore the way Radiant Hope’s eyes widened as they soaked in every inch of Umbra’s new body.

Fuck, now her nipples were hardening. She couldn’t let Radiant Hope’s eyes linger for long, or Umbra was sure to get distracted. “And ever since then I’ve been locked in the Crystal Palace as Shining Armor and Cadance’s guests.”

She didn’t mention her plan to regain her power just yet. It would not be wise, and it would be a distraction. Radiant Hope hung to every word of Umbra’s story, until at last she gave a weak smile.

“Well, if nothing else, at least Discord wasn’t so cruel to have put you in an ugly body.” Radiant Hope said, her smile sheepish at her ill-fated attempt at humor.

“So it would seem.” Umbra said, her eyes tracing alone Radiant Hope’s outfit. The lewd mockery of her own outfit. It was so strange how many details that Radiant Hope had got right, but then again she was perhaps the pony that knew her the best.

“So…” Umbra said, and she was pleased that Radiant Hope at least had the decency to blush.

“Ah…”

“Well?” Umbra said, pulling away from Radiant Hope’s hug and folding her arms. “Perhaps you’d like to explain yourself.”

"Oh right...yes, I suppose I should." Radiant Hope stammered, looking more and more self-conscious by the minute. "I-I have to admit I don't really have that—I don't really have a good reason. It's just after you were gone, I—" Radiant Hope took a deep breath. With every word she spoke, she seemed to be about to die of embarrassment. "I didn't know what to do when you were gone; I didn't have anyone else. I was lonely, and less importantly, I was broke. I needed to make money or I was going to be thrown out on the street."

Radiant Hope's gaze was now darting in any direction that wasn't Umbra's face now. The ceiling and the floor seemed to be her favorite places to look at; she looked very much like she was wishing that the floor might open up and swallow her whole or something. A way to escape the sheer awkwardness of the mess she'd found herself in.

"But I wasn't able to find any other jobs. I mean, you'd think it was easy with my healing cutie mark, but I never did get the chance to study medicine, did I? And when I tried to apply for jobs, everyone would ask me for qualifications, and it's not as if I could pay for a scholarship without any money. So I got a bit ****.”

“So you decided to strip to pay for medical school?” Umbra asked, eyebrow raised. She didn’t quite know if she was buying Radiant Hope’s explanation or not.

"Yes, I did. At least at first.” Radiant Hope admitted, eyes fixed to the ground with shame.

“At first?” Umbra asked, her voice dripping with disbelief. Every second Radiant Hope’s face seemed to scrunch together, like she was sucking a particularly sour lemon.

"Well, you saw how those guys responded back there, didn’t you?” Radiant Hope said, and her voice was on the verge of pleading. **** to make Umbra understand.

And as much as Umbra hated to admit it, some part of her did understand. She did see how those horny stallions and mares looked at her. Unable to tear their eyes away from her, falling over themselves to please her. Not at all like the monotone, passionless automations that she had gotten with her mind control helmets. True, eager followers.

But Umbra did not let any of this show on her face. Her only response to Radiant Hope’s point was a small grunt. Radiant managed to find the courage to continue speaking anyway.

"Well, did you see the power I held over them? How I could get them to do whatever I wanted with just a few smiles?” Radiant Hope pleaded. Subconsciously Umbra’s arms unfolded, and her piercing red gaze looked away, as if she were terrified that she might accidentally betray how much she truly understood.

Nonetheless, Radiant Hope took it as a good sign. “I’ve never had that. I’ve always been powerless, whether at the orphanage or with the Umburum. So it felt good, really good. I suppose you knew all about that when you were… you know.”

When she was Sombra, when she was dark lord of the Crystal Empire. It went unsaid, but what Radiant Hope didn’t know was that there wasn’t anything like this. Never so passionate, never so eager, never so loving, never so real.

Only as Umbra, with Cadance, Silver Shield, and Twilight Sparkle, did she understand. Something in Umbra’s face seemed to betray that understanding because Radiant Hope was growing more confident.

“It was something I was good at, Sombra, something I excelled at. Even more than my healing magic. And the money they gave me and the thrill. Dear Celestia, the thrill.” Radiant Hope’s eyes glazed over, no doubt remembering that thrill of having legions upon legions of love-struck, adoring fans. "It sets my soul on fire. To dance for them, to control them with my body, to dress up like- "

"Like me," Umbra said, the sharp edge to her voice cutting through Radiant Hope's fantasies. She had the good grace to look guilty at least. "Well, I wasn't the one who found this place, if that's what you're asking. But it was a place that spoke to me on some level, because well..."

She was blushing, but not from lust this time, well, not only lust. It was the same kind of blush that one would expect to see on a blushing schoolgirl talking to her crush.

Umbra herself was unable to keep a blush off her face. She couldn’t deny that she and Radiant Hope had once been close, and Umbra’s heart certainly hadn’t forgotten, not least of all when it thundered so hard in her chest.

“Your dark allure, your sinful nature. You radiated power, drive, and ambition. You would have made anyone weak at the knees, and I wasn’t an exception.” She admitted, the words tumbling out of her mouth faster with every word she spoke. For her part, Umbra didn’t dissuade her, but she couldn’t help but feel a swelling pride in her chest. “You’ve never really thought about it before, but you’ve always been sexy.”

“Am I?” Umbra hoped the surprise in her voice wasn’t too obvious, but somehow she doubted it.

"Well, as Sombra, you were, but there was a fantasy that seemed to spread throughout the Crystal Empire. One that just seemed to consume our dreams and desires. One in which you weren’t a dark lord but a dark queen. And…well, they certainly were interesting.” Radiant Hope admitted, pressing her two index fingers together.

Umbra scoffed. So it wasn’t just Discord who wanted her to be dancing around in this body, but half of the Crystal Empire?! What was wrong with this place?

“So, well, I thought the idea was hot as well, and because I knew you so well, I was able to be more authentic. The Dark Crystal Empire isn’t the only place with this theme of a dark queen like you; it’s very popular and profitable.” Radiant Hope admitted, eyes scanning Umbra’s face for any sign of anger or displeasure. Umbra just snorted, hiding her brooding thoughts. “I think that might have been why Discord turned you from Sombra to Umbra in the first place, now that I think about it. Perhaps he already knew.”

“Wouldn’t surprise me.” Umbra admitted, her hands curling into fists. She wanted to punch something, to break anything. Not just because she was angry, but because she understood and hated that.

"Yeah, well. Given the theme was so popular, and because I found the idea so hot, it seemed a natural choice.” Radiant Hope said, her voice now on the verge of pleading. All but hoping Umbra would understand. “And Celestia, forgive me, I’ve never been so popular, so admired, so happy before.”

That last word stung. It pierced through the layers of anger that Umbra had buried herself under and **** her to be sympathetic. Despite everything Umbra still wanted Radiant Hope to be happy.

“I hope you can forgive me.”

Umbra chewed on the information, her stomach a mix of acidic humiliation, treacherous sympathy, and shameful arousal. Could she forgive her? She wanted to, and she was struggling to hate Radiant Hope for this. A twisted, sick, perverted part of her might even be glad of it.

Umbra was silent, and the silence was suffocating. She needed to say something, but she couldn’t give Radiant Hope an answer yet. Instead, one thought, one thing stood out like a sore thumb as more humiliating than anything else.

“Is there…” Umbra swallowed, her every syllable radiating with rage. “Is there nobody in this empire that fears me anymore?”

For a split second, an amused smile flashed across Radiant Hope’s face. Until she decided, wisely, to crush it at once. But it was enough to tell Umbra everything.

“Sombra… Umbra…” Radiant Hope said, confusion mounting across her face as she wondered how best to address her. Umbra just gestured for her to ignore it and keep speaking. “It was a thousand years ago when you ruled this empire."

“Most of the ponies here have been frozen from that time.” Umbra snarled, angered at the injustice. To be so easily forgotten. “They should have remembered my tyranny firsthand."

She wanted to be feared, not mocked. For these last few weeks Umbra had lamented her fall from ruthless tyrant to useless nobody. But this was an insult on another level. To be told that she had never been truly feared at all?

“I know Umbra, but it seems that they’ve all accepted it. They know that Cadance can take care of you, and they remember that with Twilight and the magic of friendship, you're—"

“Not a threat? Pathetic? A joke?” Umbra couldn’t keep the tears out of her eyes. Humiliating, insulting. That’s what it was. Everything she’d feared had come true.

Her knees gave out; she could not keep the shame off her face any longer. Nor the malice on her face. She sank to the floor. Radiant Hope was gracious enough to kneel down to meet Umbra at her level.

She felt stupid; her whole life she had been wanting to be someone to be feared. But it seemed that even after being enslaved and broken, everyone just saw that as an amusing anecdote. Not something to be feared. Umbra might have cried if she didn’t want to appear as even weaker than she seemed already.

Radiant Hope at least seemed sympathetic. She placed her purple hands on Umbra’s ebony hands, a reassuring smile gracing her lips. “There, there, it’s not so bad.”

“Not so bad?” Umbra spat, eyes narrowed. But this time Radiant Hope didn’t quiver; she knew that Umbra would never hurt her, and Umbra could not bother to pretend to be feared.

“So no one will ever fear you. Is that really the worst thing in the world? Perhaps it’s a blessing in disguise. An opportunity.”

She said it all in a soft voice and with a gentle smile. She could give that Pegasus, Fluttershy, a run for her money. But Umbra was in no mood to hear any ‘bright’ side right now.

“Opportunity? What opportunity? Am I expected to dress in one of your outfits to start prancing around like a whore? She said it with more venom than she’d intended, but Radiant Hope brushed it off.

“For a second chance.” She answered, looking Umbra in the eye.

“A second chance? Are you going to start singing about the magic of friendship and how everyone can change?” Umbra scowled, with visible effort to avoid rolling her eyes. She’d heard enough of Twilight and her friend’s songs to last a lifetime.

“No, that’s not what I’m going to do.” Radiant Hope said, with an amused but almost disappointed smile. She was actually considering it. “But there are more ways to power than through being feared. And what has trying to rule with fear left you with?”

Umbra’s fists started to unclench as she considered exactly what Radiant Hope was suggesting. The answer to her question was obvious: ruling through fear had left Umbra with nothing. No power, no castle, no empire, and apparently not even a legacy. As Sombra, she had been left with nothing, while her enemies seemed to have everything. Was there another way?”

“So what are you suggesting? Do I give up? Give up my power? Give up my quest? Settle down and become a nobody?” She fixed Radiant Hope with a piercing gaze. That would be too far; nothing would ever make Umbra give up her quest for power.

“No. I’m not suggesting that.” Radiant "Hope," said gently but firmly. “But there are other ways to gain power. Look at Celestia and the Princesses. Their influence stretches across the world, across all kingdoms, and they didn’t gain it through ****.

They were weak. That’s what Umbra wanted to say, but she held herself back because the retort was too obvious. The results simply spoke for themselves. The princesses had everything, and Umbra had nothing. So instead she responded with sarcasm.

“You want me to start singing like them?” Umbra scoffed, eyebrows raised. But she meant it more as a good-natured joke than a venomous jab.

Radiant Hope laughed gently; Umbra betrayed a weak laugh of her own. “Nothing like that, but why should you be feared when you can be loved? What would make better servants? Zealots or cowards?”

Radiant Hope knew how to appeal to Umbra’s ego. Cowards or zealots? It was hardly a difficult choice. But Umbra knew that she didn’t have the charm to rule like Celestia. She simply wasn’t that kind of pony.

“And why would anyone love me, Radiant? I’m not about to start investing in schools or cutting taxes. I’m not going to be making any pony's life better, nor am I going to be improving the empire. My subjects will serve me; that will be their purpose. I’ve never needed to be loved.”

It was harsh, but Umbra had long since given up any attempt to disguise or hide her intentions. She could not pretend to care about the sheep of the Crystal Empire. She was a wolf, and they were her prey.

Radiant Hope seemed disappointed; the kind of look on her face mirrored that of a parent disappointed that her two children couldn’t get along. “I wasn’t going to say that. But you’ve already seen what I did on stage, didn’t you? How even now they’re draining their bank accounts to throw their money at my feet. That’s influence. That’s love. That’s power.”

Umbra couldn’t deny that; she’d known that firsthand, after all. It was little different from her experience with Cadance and Twilight, but the scale was grander. The way their eyes would blaze with lust and devotion, how they’d do whatever you wanted for a mere taste of your body.

Umbra thought about her plans, the ones she had to dominate the Crystal Empire. Suddenly they seemed so tiny, so tame. Why settle for making a few puppet leaders? Why merely corrupt the hearts of a few princesses? She could have thousands, millions of zealous slaves. Each was entranced by Umbra’s perfect body and happy to throw away their worthless lives if it meant serving their Mistress. What was a little flimsy mind control magic compared to loyalty like that?

"You see me ruling with lust, more than love it would seem," Umbra said quietly. Her words came out slowly, her devious mind calculating the practicality of doing exactly as Radiant Hope said. Her eyebrows were furrowed as she pondered each and every possibility that Radiant Hope laid before her. She'd never be feared again; that was a bitter pill to swallow. But Radiant Hope wasn't wrong about the power, the prestige, the influence. Perhaps more than Umbra had ever imagined.

But it would be another sacrifice than just the fear it would inspire. Only Umbra could inspire such lust, not Sombra. It would be one more step away from the stallion she'd once been and another one into becoming Umbra for real. A possibility that by the day seemed to grow terrifyingly tempting. Perhaps there was only one thing now that stopped Umbra from taking that plunge. The thought of Discord's face, his head thrown back in mocking laughter as he saw Umbra debase herself completely.

She couldn't do it, could she?