The Umbra Queen

by Car Cloth

The Umbra Queen

The walk through the Everfree Forest was long and nerve-wracking. Spike, Rarity and Sweetie Belle stepped lightly, fearful they would attract attention from one of the villagers or, in the worst case scenario, Fluttershy and Discord. As if the children knew the importance of silence, they never uttered a peep; they simply watched.

Onward they went, never looking back. The rain continued to fall through the branches of the trees overhead, washing down as rivulets of water. Although Rarity hated walking through the mud, dirt and grime, she was determined to make it to where her shadow was pointing. Using her magic, she crafted an impromptu umbrella, a very interesting and artsy umbrella, not for herself, but for her children. She didn’t want them to catch a cold.

At no surprise to Rarity, her shadow led her to Ghastly Gorge, the area they had trapped the Ruin Worms in. The shadow pointed downward, into the gorge itself. Rarity began jumping down a path of boulders when Spike leapt out ahead of her.

“Wait! What if you fall?” he cried.

“I’m perfectly capable of handling myself, Spike,” Rarity snorted.

“But you’re carrying Obsidian and Ebony… They could get hurt.”

“I would never let anything happen to them.”

“Maybe I should carry them… I am a dragon. I have claws for climbing.”

Rarity reluctantly looked back at her foals and then to Spike. “Are you sure? You won’t drop them?”

Spike narrowed his eyes into a sarcastic look of disbelief. “This is me we’re talking about. I’m practically the element of reliability.”

Sweetie Belle and Rarity chuckled at the dragon’s joke. Confident they would safe with Spike, Rarity lifted their carrying bag off her back and floated them over with their umbrella. Spike got on all fours in order to use the saddlebag; it was only then that Rarity realized how much he had grown. Spike was practically the size of a full-grown pony.

“What’s wrong?” Spike asked. “Why are you staring?”

“Oh, nothing,” Rarity quickly answered. “I just didn’t realize you had… Nevermind. It’s not important.”

Sweetie Belle and Spike exchanged confused looks. With the foals now on Spike’s back, they continued down the boulders to the bottom of Ghastly Gorge. The winds were howling when they got to the floor of the gorge, and water was rushing down the walls, threatening to become a flood should the rain persist.

Once at the bottom, Rarity turned and saw a massive cave; one built into the pile of boulders. This was where they had crushed the Ruin Worms; the boulders still stained with blood and chitinous remains littering the gorge.

“I don’t remember a cave being here,” Sweetie Belle whispered.

The cave opening was huge. Far larger than any cave opening Rarity had ever seen. Big enough for a house to go through. “I need to go inside,” Rarity told the others in an absent-minded tone.

“You don’t even know what’s in there,” Spike said with a scoff. “You can’t just go walking in!”

“Sombra might be in there.”

“And who knows what else! Don’t you see how this could be a bad idea?”

“We don’t have time to be wishy-washy, Spike. Ponies are in danger right now. I need to go.”

Spike took a deep breath and exhaled in exacerbation. After a moment of silence he motioned to the cave. “Fine. I know it doesn’t matter how much I protest. You’re just going to do it anyway.”

She smiled to him. “Thank you, Spike.” Rarity trotted toward the cave but suddenly stopped before entering. “Watch the kids until I get back. Make sure nothing bad happens to them.”

“I will.”

“And me too!” Sweetie Belle chimed in. “They like me!”’

Rarity slowly nodded and then continued her way into the cave. It was nice not to have the water pouring down on her face, but at the same time, it was dark in the cave. Hard to see. A suddenly dreadful feeling came over her the deeper she went. She knew this feeling… it was the same dreadful feelings from her nightmares. A terrible sense of unease…

The clopping of her hooves echoed against the walls. Using her magic, Rarity illuminated her horn in order to get a better view of what was going on. Much to her dismay, the cave built of boulders ended and a cave leading into the side of the gorge began. She was going deeper now… deep into the ground…

The cave around her was gloomy and black. Pools of still water were gathered along the edges of the cave and occasionally rare gemstones were jutting from the wall. Rarity would have stopped to examine the gems, but she had more important things on her mind. The further she went the more she wanted to turn around and leave. Something was wrong here. Something terrible.

Dark laughter caught Rarity off-guard. She froze in her spot and looked around, confused as to who was laughing. “Hello?” she asked in a timid voice. “Who’s there?”

“You don’t recognize me? You should.”

Stepping out of the darkness of the cave was… Rarity! A second Rarity! Taken aback, Rarity stared at herself in horror. Slowly, realization came over her. She knew what was going on… How had she not realized it before? “It can’t be…” she mouthed.

The second Rarity threw back her head in taunting laughter. “I have waited for this moment, Rarity! Waited. The look on your face is priceless.” Dark green magic swirled around the second Rarity, dropping the illusion and revealing Queen Chrysalis, the changeling queen. She was the same pony-like creature Rarity remembered; a twisted unicorn with tattered insectoid wings and a mane, tail and legs filled with holes.

“I don’t understand,” Rarity began, taking one hesitant step backward.

“Of course you don’t understand,” Chrysalis smiled condescendingly. “Let me spell it out for you. I devour the likes of love and affection. Not frivolous love, but true love and affection. I can smell from miles away. I felt the magic of the Ruin Worms… and something else… here in the gorge. What I found was something I never expected. King Sombra.”

Rarity shook her head in disbelief, taking another step back. “Is he… is he here?”

“Of course he is! How could he not be?” Chrysalis began walking forward, delighting in her tale. “I found him in the body of a Ruin Worm… They are beasts of legend and the one he was trapped in was no exception. He was yearning for someone to find him… his one true love. So… I changed my appearance to match yours, Rarity. I came to him and comforted him when he was about to give up all hope. His love for you has fed me this last year… making me strong.”

“No… that’s impossible! I saw Sombra die! We buried him!” Rarity could hardly take what she was hearing.

“Are you that daft, child?” Chrysalis hissed in disgust. “He was dead when you found him! Don’t you remember? Finding the Nightmare Gem?”

Rarity opened her mouth to disagree but then found herself breathless. He… he had been just the Nightmare Gem when she found him. He had no body then…

“He had been destroyed by Twilight Sparkle, and before that he had been destroyed by Princess Luna and Princess Celestia. How many times must he be destroyed and resurrected before you understand he cannot die?” Chrysalis laughed at Rarity’s horrified expression.

“No! This time was different! He gave up the Nightmare Gem on his own! He got rid of it! He was free!”

Chrysalis began circling Rarity like a hungry shark. Her dark green eyes were alight with cruel amusement. “Do you know nothing of the Nightmare Gem? Did you not bother to investigate its properties? Sombra will never be free of the Nightmare Gem. It will haunt him for eternity. His very essence is trapped within. What you saw die was nothing more than a shadow of himself. Just like your actual shadow.”

Rarity looked down at the ground and took a deep breath. The shadow Sombra had given her… “I… That can’t be…” He’s been alive this entire time? I could have come seen him? Rarity closed her eyes. I promised him I would stay by his side! How could I have let him down like this? How could I have let Queen Chrysalis get to him?

“But it gets better,” Chrysalis laughed. “With his help I slowly replaced all of Ponyville with my changeling subjects, even the elements of harmony. One of my changelings, fueled by the Discord’s love for the yellow pegasus, even managed to place the God of Chaos under a hypnotic trance! He’s under my control now! The God of Chaos! I would say that was checkmate but the God of Chaos is nothing compared to King Sombra now that he inhabits the body of a mature Ruin Worm! I’m literally in control of two of the most powerful beings in all of Equestria! Me! I’m Sombra’s Shadow Queen! His ultimately powerful Shadow Queen!”

Chrysalis roared with triumphant laughter, her duel voice echoing off the walls and reverberating in Rarity’s ears. Rarity glared, tears welling in her eyes. “Why!? Why would you do this!?”

“Why?” Chrysalis repeated in a harsh and dark tone, cutting her laughter short. “Why? Because I need to feed my people, girl. You ponies preach harmony and equality, but where is my equality? Where are my subject’s equality? Why do you ponies shun us? You’re hypocrites, is what you are. Hypocrites. Especially you. Where were you when Sombra was here in the gorge, hm? You left him. I was the one that came to him when he was trapped. I was the one that moved the boulders away. I was the one that whispered sweet nothings in his ear until he was strong again. Now he is rewarding me with whatever I want. Or should I say… He’s rewarding you.”

Chrysalis changed her form to that of Rarity’s once more, laughing the entire time. Rarity took deep breaths, trying to comprehend everything that was happening. What have I done?

“Do you see what will happen now?” Chrysalis asked as she cast a green circle of fire all around Rarity. “I’ll ride on the back of a mature Ruin Worm right into Canterlot… The Nightmare Gem will feed on the fear of the ponies that witness it… which will in turn give Sombra’s shadows more power… A vicious cycle of empowerment that not even Celestia couldn't stop! And if that wasn’t enough, Sombra’s love for you will empower me! Just like Shining Armor’s love for Cadance once fueled my magic… I’ll have enough power to decimate all of Equestria! My changelings will never be hungry again!”

The green fire encased Rarity in a teleportation spell, taking her even deeper underground. Before Rarity knew what was happening she was trapped in a tiny cave in the deepest portion of the gorge… trapped… unable to get to Sombra or inform anyone of Chrysalis’s plans…

What have I done?

Comments

[Gdenofa]

I had a feeling it was queen chrylisis. It's hard not to feel terrible for Sombra!

I also can't help but feel sorry for the changelings. Sure, their queen is a power hungry dictator that loves to reveal every plan to her foes right before she succeeds, but she does have a point of them being shunned by society. The changelings may seem cruel but they are only following orders and doing only what they know to survive.

[Black_Heart]

But but...*spoiler* and the *spoilers* are not in the character tags! Is that even legal?

Kidding aside, this was a disheartening blow, what little remains of poor Sombra is being sucked dry, this can't get worse

...but again, the royal evil pairing is also a good ol favorite...

[Car Cloth]

4604312
Shh! I didn't put them in the tags because I didn't want to give away! (It's our little secret)

Here's what Opal would say about this part of the story:
i15.photobucket.com/albums/a358/quickpixie/gifs%20and%20macros/allislost.jpg

[Darkmario]

Well buck i just never expected Discord of all people to be under the changelings control and now there is Ruin Worm Sombra the situation is looking pretty damn bleak. this is awesome I love it.

[Brony4eva]

Wait who is the father to rarity's foals when did she and sombra bang?

[Bloodstone38]

4968497 Sombra and Rarity banged at the end of chapter eight in the prequel The Umbra King. It was off screen.