private IC: Return of the King (1x1 with Catpone Cerberus)

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"a chance?" Flint questioned "You didn't suggest anything." she pointed out, yet again not at all threatened, though she had prepared to react in case Sombra attacked "You have impressive voice though." Una took few steps back, it seemed, or well, felt, like Sombra may actually explode, so she wanted to have some distance since she didn't know what would happen.

Flint's body language signaled that she was preparing to leave "I would be offended that you called me filth, but I'm used to it, it's the favorite of the arrogant, undeserving elites of...every nation really." "Don't worry, I'm leaving anyway, you are boring, and your companion seems to have lost her self-identity, shame really, us freaks should be proud of what we are, and let nobody else control us." she turned her back on them "Toodles, I have a feeling I will see your ugly mug again." If Sombra didn't do anything, she would then leave, first she walked quietly, but soon she'd start to hum, then quietly sing, as her walking slowly but surely transformed into skipping. 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra would maintain an un-nerving hateful stare as Flint walked away. His silence remained unwavering, even until long after Flint had left his sights. If he had power over the land, perhaps he would have had her executed for not obeying his orders and suggesting such ludicrous ideas. His stance was that of a military commander looking at a soldier who had deserted him. Every aspect about himself wanted to fight there and then to show her who was in control, but he could not - not so close to the Equestrian capital. 

"I'll keep my eye out for her." Sombra spoke quietly, and proceeded to lead Una back into the city, so they could study more magic. He sighed.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"You could probably tell as much your highness, but that....creature, was off in the head." Una said quietly after Sombra had said his comment "She felt twisted, it's hard to describe in words, but it was terrifying in a different way to yourself, your highness." "The fear I feel towards you inspires respect, but for her, it brings disgust and distrust." 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

"A creature that would only cause me trouble." Sombra spoke, looking to Una with a glare. "I let her walk away for one reason. We are close to Canterlot. A fight would be easily seen. Otherwise, I would have killed her." he said without hesitation. "We must perfect the arts of magic, and spend days, if not weeks learning all that we can know." he spoke.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"Now she will cause trouble for the current rulers." Una remarked, not really expecting any response, it was more meant as a conclusion of her own thoughts, though it wasn't the actual end of said thoughts, as she was still pondering about Flint, mainly her origin, as she didn't necessarily believe that she was from different world, or at least not from her world, since she was clearly very self-interested and...unpredictable, she simply didn't see what it was she would have been designed for, as even for chaos and destruction, as Flint herself had said non-seriously, she was clearly not suited for it due to being seemingly terrible at not getting caught, hay, she straight up admitted it to random strangers.

"Are you not concerned about that...thing she apparently saw, your highness? If she actually saw something of course." she was fully aware that there was no way of knowing if she had told the truth, but she had a feeling Flint was honest when it came to things she said, mainly because of how open she had been about her own crimes "I haven't sensed anything, so if there is something, it most likely does not feel strong emotions." with the sample size of whole three individuals and a helmet, she was now pretty sure it was emotions she sensed. 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra looked to Una, and was glad that she remembered what had happened. "I am concerned, but if there isn't anything to go off of - I can't do anything about it. If it was really the two sisters who were behind that, we would have likely been swamped by guards and sought after to be killed or permanently imprisoned, but nothing has happened yet." he grunted and shrugged. Sombra would charge his horn up. A small black pulse would ripple throughout the air, he was attempting to detect anything hidden. Now was the time to do that before they'd go into the city center where others would easily notice any magic he'd be casting.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
There would be something, but the way it became apparent probably wasn't what Sombra expected, as it wasn't that Sombra's spell would detect anything, rather, there seemed to be a spot where the magic was nullified by something when it passed through said spot, a round spot that was slightly bigger than a baseball, though if Sombra tried to use something more targeted, he'd find that it was no longer in the same spot, as whatever it was moved around, and it moved quick. 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra would attempt to use his magic to quickly capture the spot in his magic. He was a bit frantic to restrain and capture whatever it was - in order to find out what it was. He may or may not be able to capture it. If he was unable to, he'd attempt to lead them away from it. If he was able to capture it, he would try to look at it, scanning it with a spell. 

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
Capturing it directly with magic would fail due to the previously mentioned magic nullifying effect, it seemed that whatever it was, was protected with some kind of anti-magic means, though it didn't mean it couldn't be captured, as if Sombra was clever enough, he could use his magic to use something non-magical, like air or something more physical, to capture it instead. Though repeated failed attempts would chase it away, but if it was actually gone or just hiding, that was anyone's guess.

If Sombra did think fast enough and managed to capture it, the scanning spell would again fail for previously stated reason. 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra failed once, and then realized he could use his magic to cast something non-magical to capture it within an air bubble. Now that he captured it, he would attempt to slam it into the ground repeatedly with his air magic, seeing if that would reveal what it was. 

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
There would be a metallic bang when the thing was hit on the ground, but besides that there wouldn't be anything for a small while...until suddenly a voice came out of the still invisible orb "Took your paranoid flank long enough to notice the drone, and not without help from some insane hybrid." Sombra would probably be able to recognize the voice, as it was the voice of the green female dragon he had met while getting the disguise for Una "I told you someone would be watching." after the last words, the object became visible, it was an orb, made of metal-like material, with glowing, orange, glass-like surfaces on what one could assume to be the sides, and in between those areas, there was a small yellow circle with black dot in it, a camera. 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra would move towards the strange object. The last thing the female dragon would hear from the other "end" of the device would be the sounds of Sombra's enraged growling and hissing after he realized what this object was. He was absolutely frustrated and enraged at himself for letting this thing go for so long. On the plus side, he now knew what it was - and he knew how to discover more of these in the future if more of them were to come about. After the object would become visible, he would use his magic to trap it from moving further. He wanted to have this thing torn apart and analyzed for what it was - but for what he would do now, he would aim to capture it in his magic, seeing if he could find a way to make it inert / inactive. Sombra hated being filmed, evidently.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
There was no obvious ways to disable it, it was, put in the simplest, a perfectly round orb, and while the sides felt like glass, it was something lot more durable than glass. "You are wasting your time, even if you manage to break it, I have plenty more, and you can't even use it for anything." the orb said "I don't care about your little schemes, I'm not even in Equestria anymore, I'm mainly observing the specimen you have with you out of curiosity." "I'm past worrying about Equestria, in fact, I have a request for you, if you manage to take over, please rip out Celestia's heart for me." she took the situation lot better than Sombra, as in, she sounded as monotone as she had when they had met, the orb wasn't indestructible, it got scratches and dents from being beaten, but it seemed it would take a while before it'd break.

Una, as always, stayed out of the situation.

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra would listen to the voice that had spoken - as he had no choice because he could not easily break the orb like he had thought. "I know more about her than you'd think, and you'd better tell me exactly why you find her so interesting. I will say this - give it a few years, and when I eventually succeed in taking over Equestria, if you help me, I will give you a place at the table..." he would say, his enraged tone vanishing as he would stop trying to destroy the orb, now that he had more of a clue what was going on. 

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"As I told you when we met, you have nothing to offer me, because I already had everything." "I had fame and infamy, I had power that only few could surpass, I had practically infinite riches, a dragon's dream life." "For almost 800 years I had all that, but then I burned it all." her tone was still perfectly monotone "For I realized I was too blinded by success to see the strings tied to me." "That abundance is partly why I'm so interested in the creature you are dragging around, among everything else, I also had knowledge, I had access to everything that the whole of Equestria had ever known, I have also lived a long life, so things have gotten bit dull." "But this servant of yours, a secret project of an enemy empire, using a species long thought extinct, it is something new, fresh." 

 

 

 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra would go silent and allow the voice from the orb to explain herself. He hadn't met a being like this before and didn't entirely know what to say. Usually everyone wanted something, unless this dragon was merely lying. Which could be possible, of course. "If it is true, then I do not know what I would be capable of offering you other than my respect. It is obvious I wish to destroy the vile two sisters and their reign over Equestria. I was too stupid and dimwitted to achieve success the first two times." he sighed shamefully, before continuing, "If you truly know what the whole of Equestria had known, do you know what I can use to effectively brainwash the Equestrian guard to serve me? My magic for that is quite...out of date, as well as my means to do so." he would state.

"And this enemy empire...who are they?" he asked, awkwardly. Not having used to this sort of conversation.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"I didn't say I know, I said I had access to" the dragon corrected "Think of it as...a giant library you can access through your mind, I lost the access when I turned against the empire." "Though the answer is easy even without that, you don't need anything special, besides the princesses themselves, nobody has their minds protected here, quite the contrast to back home, where mind control was pretty much obsolete." not the most useful answer, but she had never actually agreed to help Sombra, so probably to be expected "Until you mean actual brainwashing, to which the answer is, propaganda, ponies are herd animals, and quite gullible, though what exactly that would be? I don't know, the culture here is so different."

"The enemy empire, which doesn't exist here, you know the name of already, 'The United', the one in all the papers and the one the other dragon mentioned." "In short, it is, or was, depends how you look at it, an alliance turned empire, its original point was to defend against the two Equestrian Empires, but it eventually turned into a tyrannical empire of its own." 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

"This world has advanced rapidly compared to that of my time - however, the ponies and culture is all soft and weak. In my reading, they have faced very few tragedies and live in perpetual utopia. An easy, comfortable life in which they don't have to do much. The Princesses rule with absolute power, while in reality the ruled know very little about them or their origins." Sombra would speak, "It was different in the past. The Dragons, Changelings, and others posed near constant threat during Equestria's formation. Now? The Changelings are scattered to the wind, the Dragons are at peace with Equestria, and the other races don't dare disturb this dystopian peace." Sombra would state ominously.

"What I saw in those papers is a more advanced world than this one is. The key to conquering this world will be propaganda, technological advantages, and brainwashing." Sombra spoke, wanting thoughts on that.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"Yeah I know." the dragon stated, one could say she sounded disinterested, but then again, she hadn't exactly sounded interested at any point, it was surprisingly hard to read emotion when the sound came from a metal ball "In all of their differences, our worlds have lot in common." "But the thing you are right about, is the difference in advancement, though you may have not fully grasped just how big of an difference that is. Whatever this world's most intelligent minds can come up in hundred years, has been obsolete for hundreds of years there." 

"I do not care why you oppose the princesses, nor will I give you answers how to do it, it is the fate of every empire to fall, back home that fall is coming soon, a great bloodshed shall come, if the world doesn't collapse upon itself first, and here? well, you will succeed if fate lets it be so, it is not my place to get involved, as much as I dislike what the two sisters could become." 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

"If what I see as advanced here is obsolete - then I would be at a loss upon seeing whatever it is you see as normal. I may be a King, but my past self was stupid and I lost because I was stupid. I may hate the Two Sisters with every bone in my body, but ultimately, part of the blame for my failure lies in my inability to think clearly. I have seen the weaponry, blueprints, all of it for myself. It will take some time for me to continue to understand what you see as obsolete." Sombra states, collecting himself and his composure more. 

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"You are currently seeing something like that." the dragoness pointed out "I'm sitting on a boat, at the middle of a sea, yet I am talking to you, seeing you, and hearing you, without actually as much as opening my mouth." "I'm also seeing and hearing various other things, all around the planet, all like it's through my own eyes and ears." "This is the norm, where I come from, one of the cheapest, easiest to produce pieces of military-level technology there is." 

"For your failures I have no comment, but you make a mistake to underestimate the princesses, they are special, one bad day from becoming the most powerful beings this world has seen, or most likely ever will. There's a reason why I don't call our versions by title, as they are beyond such titles, beings of such power that it would be more accurate to call them gods." "This world stopped their rise once, but can it do it again?" 

The orb then turned towards Una "I have seen you wonder why they rub you the wrong way, to that I have an educated guess,  you are mix of dragon and changeling, one species oppressed and leashed under the control of the two sisters, and one exterminated by the same rulers, combined in the hands of a empire with burning hatred towards Equestria." "So whatever your true origins are, the idea that they are the enemy has most likely been beaten so deep into you, that it has become an instinct." 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra smirked in a devious manner. "Ah, so the two sisters are not so benign as they would leave their subjects to believe? Even if your world is a different reality than this one - it is probable that they've done things behind closed doors, massacre a population there, enslave one over here..." he chuckled at the darkness of it all, "They keep their stability through the populace believing in fanciful illusions and tactfully omitting anything that goes against their order. It's obvious. The ponies here hardly question anything, they never think for themselves - never realizing that they are already chained." he grinned.

"Just that they advanced in slavery as they advanced in technology. The best slave is the one who thinks they are free. And they use things like "Friendship" and "Harmony" as a way to achieve that. How pitiful, but effective...as much as it soils me to admit." he then would look to Una.

"As for you - perhaps I might say that you were created as a weapon to wield against the Equestrians." he stated.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"Incomplete weapon." the dragon specified "I cannot know what the planned result was, but having seen their other projects, and our own, she is still work in progress." 

"I do not know what the princesses here have done to hold their long peace, because while finding things out is what I'm good at, I do not care." "Equestria can be swallowed by the sea as far as I care." "Though, I have one advice to you, little pony, ego kills an empire, the two sisters had eyes and ears everywhere, yet because they failed to hear what they didn't want to see, they were blind to the obvious, they were too busy fighting each other, to see they were building up to their own fall." 

 

 

[King Sombra]

@Catpone Cerberus

Sombra would grit his teeth a bit. He tried his best to remain rational, but the rage twitched in his mind. "After they put me inside of a dark void for a thousand years where I was neither living nor dead, it is hard to even think straight...that long, without a physical body...and then they destroyed my original body after I initially tried to take over for the second time. I had to regrow my body entirely. I have questions about my sanity." he mumbled a bit, but shook that aside, "What other projects do you speak of?"

[Catpone Cerberus 23,428]

@Props ValRoa
"Even if I had any reason to explain it in detail to you, we would be here for months, though I'm only little surprised that you cannot put two and two together without my help." the dragon stated "What do you think I speak off? Other living weapons, super soldiers, creatures bred and modified to kill and destroy." "I am one in fact, though the sisters were less into genetically modifying creatures, and instead chose to just replace flesh with metal." "The problem with The United's way of doing things is that it's lot harder to put a kill-switch to something entirely biological, something that is necessary in the case one of your weapons goes rogue, a situation that is ultimately inevitable, because intelligence tends to seek freedom." 

"Good example of this failure was a creature I learned of just before I ended up here, a modified dragon, walking, talking, chemical weapon, its bodily fluids were pure, constantly changing toxin, which is also easy to gasify, truly a weapon of mass death, and it went rogue, killed everyone in the facility that created it." "Only reason it didn't do more damage was because a rip in reality pulled the entire facility into who knows where."