//------------------------------//
// Painted Lotus 
// Story: Neo Somnambula: Desert Lotus 
// by Robipony 
//------------------------------//

Snapshot lay upon the bed, her usual choker swapped out for a black dog collar with a leash clasped on. She wore a black headband that projected two blue holographic cat ears. Some black whiskers were painted onto her cheeks. 

It was a standard X-Streams room, only this room’s lighting was bright yellow. 

Looking over the client’s information on her HUD, Snapshot knew that this session was going to be a rough one. 

The client was a diamond dog named Griz. Roughly three-quarters of his body was cybernetic. This was his twelfth time at X-Streams, though this would be Snapshot’s first time attending to him. Then on top of that, he was fine not having X-Stream’s privacy protection feature, meaning he wasn’t afraid of others seeing his face. 

Hearing the sound of the door creaking open, Snapshot looked up to see her client enter the room. Upon seeing him, Snapshot’s eyes went wide. 

He was a massive diamond dog, a head taller than Thunderbolt. His left arm, both his legs, and his right eye were completely cybernetic, the silver metal contrasting with his dark brown fur. Adorning his form was a black sleeveless t-shirt, a black spiked collar, and a pair of black sunglasses. 

Griz smiled as he took off his sunglasses, revealing his remaining magenta eye and his red cybernetic one. “You must be the Desert Lotus. Are the uh… cameras running?”

There was a minute left to go. 

“Not yet,” Snapshot answered. 

“Well, I just wanted to reassure you ahead of time,” Griz said, “while I do like to play rough, I just want you to know that I have no intention of harming you.” 

While she wasn’t sure how reassuring that actually was, Snapshot was grateful for the effort. “T-thank you.”

After pulling off his t-shirt, Griz let out a deep content sigh, before tossing the garment aside and taking hold of Snapshot’s leash. 

As the countdown for the stream began, Griz smiled down at Snapshot. “Now let’s put on a show that nobody will ever forget.”





Gr00vyPickl3: Well, that's got to hurt.
PronTast3sG00D: Right, I can't believe she took all of that.
C0mpletelyN0rmal: She's gonna hurt in the morning. 
CornMaster69: Dude, she's going to hurt tonight. 
OnlyFlanks: I'm not even sure I could take that. 
C0mpletelyN0rmal: It was pretty big.
HR4kingHR4d: I still can’t believe she managed to swallow it. 
BadDragoness69: Even I don’t have toys that big.
LittlePrincess: I do.
Venusunev: But if she can handle all of that, I'm sure her clientele will skyrocket. 
RocketRed203: HOT!
Diggin4Diemonds: I'm sure that more than a few diamond dogs will want to have her.
S1l3ntKr33p3r: HELL YEAH!
Dankw3b: It should have been me!
RawHorsin72: I'll definitely be watching more of Desert Lotus's streams after this. 
BuckedX3: Same. 
RocketRed203: Super HOT!
WildFilliesNerU: This was an amazing stream.
PronTast3sG00D: Yes.
PronTast3sG00D: I'm so pumped for the next one.





Both Snapshot's jaw and hips were sore. The experience that Griz had put her through, while mostly pleasurable at the time, was beginning to catch up to her. 

A groan escaped her lips as Snapshot lay on the couch in the breakroom. As she lay there, Snapshot barely noticed the mare that had walked up to her. Looking up, Snapshot saw that it was Barb standing over her, a bag of ice resting on her right hoof. 

“Here,” Barb instructed, “put this on your belly, that should help with the swelling a little.”

Graciously, Snapshot took the gift. “T-thank you.”

Setting the pack under her belly, it felt really cold yet it did seem to soothe her soreness a little. 

Barb sat down on the couch next to her. “Was that your first time taking a diamond dog?”

“Y-yeah.” Snapshot nodded. 

Smiling, Barb gently rubbed Snapshot's head. “Yeah, one's first diamond dog or dragon can be quite a challenge. After a while, you grow used to it.”

As nice as Barb's petting was, Snapshot couldn't help but be puzzled by it. “Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?” Barb asked. 

“Why are you being so nice to me,” Snapshot replied, “you always seem so distant and grumpy.”

After blinking a couple of times, Barb gave a sheepish smile. “Sorry, detoxing from Henbane Gummies is a bitch.” 

While Snapshot didn't personally take any drugs, she was aware that many prostitutes did. The most common cause for the death of prostitutes in Glowpulse was due to a drug overdose. Some would try to go cold turkey, but oftentimes they would suffer severe side effects and irritation was certainly one of them.

“Oh, I see,” Snapshot mumbled. 

Barb let out a slight giggle. “Sorry if you thought I was being unfriendly.”

“Don't worry about it.”

A notification popped up in the upper right corner of her HUD, indicating that somepony had sent her a message. Opening it, Snapshot saw that it was a message from Thunderbolt Sentinel. 



Sentinel: How are you feeling today?



After reading the message, Snapshot smiled and sent a quick reply. 



SnappinPh0t0s: I’m doing well.
SnappinPh0t0s: Thank you for rescuing me yesterday.
Sentinel: It was no trouble.



It was so nice how sweet Thunderbolt was. Snapshot wondered if Sentinel would be this kind if he knew what her occupation was. 



Sentinel: I found this mural today.
Sentinel: Would you like to see it?
Sentinel: It might be good for a photo.
SnappinPh0t0s: Sure.
SnappinPh0t0s: Where would you like to meet?
Sentinel: We could meet up at the park.
SnappinPh0t0s: Sounds good.



As Snapshot closed her messages, she saw Barb looking down at her with a mischievous grin. 

“Oh, were you talking to somepony?” Barb asked. 

For a moment, Snapshot was confused but then recalled that it wasn't uncommon for a pony's eyes to flicker when something popped up on their HUD. 

“Uh, yeah,” Snapshot replied, “A friend of mine has something he wants to show me.”

“Oh? Is it something naughty?” Barb teased. 

Snapshot shook her head. “No, he found something that he thought I might like to take a picture of.”

“You're a photographer?” 

Snapshot blushed a little. “K-kind of.”

Their discussion was interrupted as the door opened and Cadence entered the breakroom. 

“Barb, you’ll have a couple of clients in room two thirty-three in ten minutes,” Cadence said. 

“Duty calls.” Barb stood up and walked out. 

Cadence then turned to Snapshot. “Snapshot, I have a job for you.” 





Carefully Snapshot walked through the halls of X-Stream’s basement levels, a food box resting on her back. She had only been down here a few times, but she had never been to the footage room before. 

A heavy beat, reminiscent of a heartbeat, echoed through the building as she walked through the hallway. The white walls and floor tiling looked yellow due to the lights above. 

Following Cadence’s instructions, Snapshot eventually reached her destination. After a quick knock, she opened the door. “Hello?” 

Beyond the threshold, the room was dark, save for the light coming from the screens. Eclipsing the monitors was a chair with a pony sitting in it. 

“Did you bring my food,” a feminine voice asked. 

“Uh, yes,” Snapshot answered. 

The mare didn’t move. “Come put it on the table.” 

Stepping into the room, Snapshot cautiously walked through the darkness to the table. As she approached, Snapshot had a better view of what was on the monitors. 

Numerous scenes of X-Stream’s prostitutes serving their patrons could be seen on the screens in their rooms, their live stream chats on the right side of each. At the lower left corner, Snapshot could see Barb resting on a bed and she served to pleasure two stallions simultaneously. 

Snapshot was so focused on the scenes playing before her eyes, that she hadn’t noticed a turquoise magical aura pick up the food box. 

“Thank you.” The mystery mare said as she opened up the box. The smell of locust noodle ramen filled the air. 

“Oh, uh, yeah.” 

The unicorn mare had a bluish-gray coat, and a black mane that covered one side of her face, however, the most intriguing thing about this mare was the fact that the right side of her body was covered in tattoos of ancient hieroglyphs.

“Aw crap!” The mare growled, “They forgot to include the zesty sauce!”

As the mare grumbled, cursing under her breath she noticed that Snapshot was still present. With a sigh, the unicorn repressed her anger and focused her eyes on Snapshot, the golden irises of her eyes surrounded by a dark gray ocean. 

“Do you need something?” The mare asked. 

“Oh, uh, sorry, miss…”

The unicorn smiled. “The name's Tansha.”

“T-Tansha, i-if you don't mind me asking. What is it you do here?” Snapshot asked. 

Waving her hooves around, Tansha motioned at the various screens. “Oh, this! I basically work as the moderator for the streams. I make sure the clients stay in check, that the notifications are working properly and I monitor the chat to keep all the viewers in line.”

Looking at the screens, Snapshot felt overwhelmed. “S-surely it must be hard to keep track of all of them.”

“It'd probably be easier if I had a Doll Mode Program on my Ba-Link,” Tansha replied, “but I'm not a fan personally.”

“Why not?” 

“Just don't like that kind of stuff in my head,” Tansya answered, “besides there's a shower in here in case things get messy.”

“Messy?” As Snapshot pondered this, she managed to catch the smell of a slightly familiar feminine musk in the air. 

It was about then that another message appeared on Snapshot's HUD. 



C4d4nc377: Snapshot, you have an appointment with a client in room six twenty-nine.
C4d4nc377: Please be cordial.



“I have to get going,” Snapshot said.

As Snapshot left, Tansha gave a quick wave. “Thanks for bringing the food. Come see me again sometime.” 





Thunderbolt was standing patiently next to the park bench when Snapshot arrived. A smile graced his lips as he watched her approach. 

“I-I’m sorry for being late,” Snapshot said, “I-I hope you haven’t been waiting long.”

“No worries,” Sentinel replied. 

After catching her breath, Snapshot straightened herself. “T-then I guess I’m ready to go.”

Sentinel smiled. “I’ll lead the way.”

All sorts of bizarre things could be found in the Glowpulse district at this hour, from a mare with cybernetic head augments that made her head into a literal gun to a griffin selling banned VR games. There was even a drug dealer who was dishing out his drugs using a cybernetic scorpion tail. 

A couple of gangsters leered creepily at Snapshot, however, once they saw the tall stallion that was guarding her, they backed off.

Snapshot followed Thunderbolt through the streets. They went past the Kraken’s Den, an establishment where ponies would go to be pleasured by artificial tentacles. Then they passed by the Sweet Sparks Drug Den, along with the Whistling Cherry Brothel which catered to the stallions who wanted to be dotted on by older mares. Then there was the Evernite Diner, which served both as an old diner and a love hotel. 

After walking down an alleyway, Thunderbolt turned and motioned up at the concrete wall. “Here it is.”

It was the mural of a blue sphinx, fast asleep, curled around a pegasus mare holding a lotus made of glowpas. 

Snapshot marveled at the painting. “T-this is amazing!”

Pulling out of her camera, Snapshot began taking pictures of the mural at different angles. 

“I’m glad you like it,” Sentinel said. 

“How did you find this?” Snapshot asked as she continued snapping photos. 

“I spotted it on my way to a local coffee shop, and I thought you might like it.”

Smiling, Snapshot finished taking the last few photos. “Thank you I-I really appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome.” Thunderbolt smiled. “Would you like to get something to drink? I’m a little bit parched myself.” 

Finishing her pictures, Snapshot turned to Sentinel. “I-I wouldn’t mind.”





Snapshot fidgeted slightly as they sat in a booth at the Evernite Diner. This was an establishment where couples would typically order some food and drinks, rent a room for a few hours or maybe an evening, before having a coffee and going on their merry ways. Looking at the calm expression on Sentinel’s face as he read over the menu, Snapshot couldn’t tell if he was aware of this or not. 

She was so nervous that Snapshot hadn’t noticed the waitress when she walked up to the table. 

“Good evening,” the waitress greeted, “what can I get for you both?” 

“I'll have a canned coffee,” Thunderbolt answered.

“S-same,” Snapshot said. 

After jotting down their order, the waitress walked over to the next table. No surprise, the gown that the waitress wore was designed to complement her figure for any stallions that might be looking for some eye candy. Just one of the perks of the Glowpulse district. 

From Thunderbolt's straightforward expression, he didn't seem to notice. 

“Well, thank you for hanging out with me,” Thunderbolt said, “my job has odd hours, so it’s hard to find ponies to hang out with sometimes.”

Working in a brothel, Snapshot understood that all too well. This arrangement of theirs was nice, which made her feel uneasy. Thunderbolt was a good friend, but would he still be her friend if he knew who she was? 

As Snapshot pondered this, the waitress returned. 

“Here’s your canned coffees,” the waitress said as she set the drinks down on the table. 

“Thank you,” Thunderbolt said. 

After shooting Thunderbolt a charming smile, the waitress walked away. 

 “D-do you come here often?” Snapshot asked. 

“Sometimes,” Thunderbolt answered, “like if I forget to make my lunch or don’t feel like preparing dinner.”

As Snapshot sat there with Thunderbolt, she knew that she had to tell him the truth. As scary as it was she also knew that if she didn’t tell him about her occupation eventually he’d find out and this relationship would crumble apart. 

“Thunderbolt, there’s something I want to tell you,” Snapshot said. 

Sentinel raised a hoof. “We’re friends, so there’s no need to be formal. You can call me Sentinel or Senti if you want.”

“Senti, there’s something you should know,” Snapshot said. 

Thunderbolt’s eyes flickered as something appeared on his HUD before he let out an annoyed sigh. “Sorry, apparently something happened at work and they need me to go back.” 

“Oh… okay.”

Snapshot’s ears drooped as she watched Sentinel leave. 





It was late as Snapshot walked through the streets of Glowpulse. She let out a yawn as she walked across a bridge on the way home. 

Walking along the bridge, Snapshot could see something glowing to her left. Turning she saw the giant hologram of a pink pony. Their features were completely obscured except for the thousands of eyes that were looking down at her lustfully. 

“We're lonely.” Thousands of voices rippled through the air. “We could use your company.” 

The eyes leered down at her, the gaze oppressive and overwhelming. Instinctively, Snapshot stepped back and noticed that something felt off. Looking down, she realized that the bridge and surrounding buildings had completely changed.

Everywhere around Snapshot there were photographs. Even the ground was made entirely of photos. They all were the same image, the picture that Snapshot had taken the night she first met Thunderbolt, however with one huge difference.  

The part of the photographs that she was in, was scorched or torn out. 

High above were glowing blue pyramids that rotated in the air in a circular motion, like asteroids drifting in space.

“Please tend to us,” the eyes said, “we feel so lonely.”

Looking across the strange bridge, Snapshot saw Thunderbolt walking away. 

“Senti, wait up!” Snapshot called out as she ran after him. 

“Go away,” Thunderbolt growled, not stopping as he walked away.

Confused, Snapshot continued to follow, trotting to catch up to him. 

“What's going on?” Snapshot asked. 

“I want nothing more to do with you,” Thunderbolt hissed. 

“I-I don’t understand. Please tell me what’s wrong.” As Snapshot reached out and touched Thunderbolt, the stallion turned around, anger burning in his eyes. 

“Get away from me!” Thunderbolt barked, “You're dirty!”

Snapshot's heart cracked in her chest at the last word. While a part of her had felt it to be true, she had never thought that he would say it to her. 

As Snapshot watched Thunderbolt walk away, holographic pink tentacles began to wrap around her body. 

“It’s okay. You don’t need him. You don’t need anyone,” the eyes said, “just keep pleasing us. All of us.” 

Snapshot awoke in a cold sweat, her heart beating rapidly in her chest. After blinking a couple of times, Snapshot realized that she had been crying. 

“I-it’s just a dream.” Snapshot rubbed the tears away. “J-just a bad dream.”