Hey everyone! Here I am! Back with another chapter! In this chapter, we cut back to Umbrosia to see how things are unfolding with our least favorite Tamaranean and her literally shadowy allies. And what's more, we also get introduced to another unscrupulous figure who has some especially morally reprehensible ideas of his own on how Blackfire can best achieve her desire for revenge against her sister. Sound worth a read? I certainly hope so! And I especially hope you not only read, but also enjoy what I have to offer and leave a decent amount of feedback. Onward with the fic people!

A/N: But first, just to remind you all, I do NOT own Teen Titans or anything else DC based. If I did, that piece of garbage replacement cartoon Teen Titans Go would have never existed (though on the bright side, at least it appears that we might finally be getting a proper canon 6th season for the TRUE Teen Titans cartoon as a result of that TTG movie; talk about a silver lining!). Anyway, back on topic, all in this chapter that I DO own are both the Umbrosians, and the name I've chosen to serve as the English translation for the name of a somewhat lesser known canon DC comic book character that appears in this chapter (and has yet to receive a canon translation for his native name in official DC canon). All that said, NOW onward with the fic!

Chapter 7:

To Rule a Galaxy

Blackfire felt a calmness as she looked down onto the vast army gathered at the base of the cliff. She smiled as she saw the Umbrosian soldiers talking amongst each other. "Yes," she thought to herself. "This truly is an ideal army for me. Perfect allies for me to have by my side once I am ruling Tamaran once more."

She turned around and walked away, her head lifted haughtily. "And with my sister, her friends, the best of the royal guards, and my old caretaker out of the picture, there are none who can stop me and my new allies from conquering the entire universe."

"I see you are happy."

Blackfire briefly jolted in surprise, and then rolled her eyes. "By X'hal, don't do that Nolfavrel!"

There was a chuckle, and the head of the Umbrosian council stepped into view. "A true ruler never lets his guard down. Not even among friends. Nevertheless, I am happy to see that you are content."

Blackfire turned around to watch the soldiers once more. "I will admit, out of all the beings I could have thrown my lot with, I truly made a wonderful choice of allies."

The councilman shuffled next to Blackfire. "I must mention though; we are still concerned about how you wish for us to leave the Vega system untouched."

"Well of course I'd want you to leave it untouched." Blackfire turned her head to face the councilman. "I need to have something to rule once this conquest is over. And it might as well be my home star system."

Nolfavrel spread his hands in a gesture of surrender. "I understand."

"Glad to hear that. But even so, I will still allow you the all clear to do as you wish with Gordania."

"Why that planet?"

"Is it not obvious? The Gordanians have been my people's sworn enemies for centuries. I'd have to be a fool to leave them alive and risk them attempting to overthrow me. I'll already be busy with keeping my own people and X'hal knows how many other Vega System races under control once I've become Empress, and the last thing I need is for a race that already hates my kind to be amongst them."

Nolfavrel raised his eyebrow. "If you say so." He looked in the direction of the soldiers. "Tell me, when do you wish for us to fulfill this desire to have Gordania destroyed?"

Blackfire looked at Nolfavrel. "After we've conquered Tamaran. No earlier. No later."

Nolfavrel nodded in understanding. "And when do you plan for us to do that?"

Blackfire thought to herself. "Having acted careless the last couple of encounters against my sister and her friends, I know better then to allow myself to repeat such a mistake. They may no longer be any threat to us, but the Gordanians are, and so are my people."

She lifted her head. "I shall allow our forces to continue celebrating for the rest of this evening. But I want us to be prepared to do battle with Tamaran no later then the day after tomorrow."

"If you say so. And what of the offer you made with the almighty? Have you had any further thought on your decision?"

Blackfire placed her hand in her right pants pocket, fondling the small crystalline orb within. "As I said, I am more than willing to serve as his host. But not yet. For now, I believe we'll be more than capable of obliterating any feeble resistance against us as we currently are."

Nolfavrel thought to himself, carefully weighing his potential responses.

"Lord Nolfavrel!"

Blackfire and the head councilman turned their heads in time to see an Umbrosian messenger standing behind them. The messenger bowed, his hands clasped together in respect.

"The force we sent to intercept the Tamaranean royal starship, it has returned. The council requires your presence for its debriefing."

Nolfavrel nodded his head, filing his and Blackfire's discussion to the back of his mind. "Tell them I'll be on my way shortly."

"Yes Lord."

The messenger turned to face Blackfire. "Your presence will be required as well."

Blackfire raised her eyebrow. "Why?"

"Another guest from off world has arrived. He claims to have been searching for you, and that he wishes to ally himself with us as well."

Blackfire and Nolfavrel looked each other in the eyes, silently considering this news. They looked back at the messenger. "The more the merrier," said Blackfire. "Tell the council we shall be there shortly."

The messenger turned around and shuffled off back into the darkness of the cavern tunnels.

. . . . .

Blackfire and the Umbrosian council were gathered around and watching the massive group of Umbrosian soldiers standing before them. The captain of this force took five steps forward before bowing. "The deed has been done. The Titans of Earth and the royal entourage of Tamaran have been disposed of."

Blackfire smiled, and nodded her head. "And I couldn't be happier."

Nolfavrel and the rest of the council, however, were not so quick to accept this news.

"You have proof of this?"

Blackfire directed a glare at Nolfavrel.

The captain was similarly not amused. "Is my word not enough?"

"You know just as well as the rest of our kind the dangers of only trusting someone on mere say-so," said one of the six female members of the council.

"And that is precisely why we strongly recommended you bring back a physical body part of the targets to display as proof," said a male.

"Fortunately," said Nolfavrel, "there is still room for forgiveness if you indeed haven't brought such proof . . . as long as the manner in which you killed them involved causing their ships to explode within the vacuum of space."

The force of Umbrosian soldiers seemed to start whispering to each other.

"Neither of the ships exploded," the captain admitted. "Although, considering just where we managed to strike the royal Tamaran starship near the end, it's quite frankly a miracle that it didn't blow up right then and there."

"Then how did you kill them?"

"By the time we'd struck them with that blast, they were within range of landing on Gordania. And we figured that the inhabitants on that planet would be more than willing and capable of finishing the job for us."

All 13 of the council members promptly narrowed their eyes. Even Blackfire's smile took on a much less confident look than before.

"Well," said Blackfire. "I suppose that's better than nothing."

Nolfavrel and the other council members weren't so optimistic.

"While understandable that you'd avoid going directly onto that planet," Nolfavrel began, "it would still have been preferable that you'd stuck around in some fashion to make sure that the targets indeed were killed by the Gordanians after you left them on their planet."

He nodded his head. "But for now, you may rest easy Phantrath. For the rest of our kind are currently in a celebratory mood on account of our otherwise entirely successful run of raids and similar activities across the galaxies. So for now, we will allow you and your men to help yourselves to food, drink, and merrymaking amongst the rest of us. But know this, you are still on watch from that other bit of carelessness you demonstrated on Rashashoon. If this turns out to be another costly screw up, you will be punished. And trust me, you will not be allowed a 3rd chance."

Phantrath bowed once more. "Understood my lord." He turned to face the soldiers under his command and they melted into the shadows to join their comrades, their captain following suit immediately afterward.

The council hung their heads, sighing in unison.

Blackfire turned her head to face them. "Well, I suppose it might not be all bad. My sister and the titans may have been killed by the Gordanians by now."

"If what you have told us about them is in fact true," Nolfavrel began, "then this possibility is unlikely."

Blackfire's shoulders slumped. "Must you be so pessimistic right now?"

"It is always wise for a ruler to be willing to consider the possibility of something going wrong. That way, he or she will never be disappointed." He then exchanged a silent message to his 12 fellow council members. They all nodded in unison, and then looked back at Blackfire. "Now we believe it would be wise to reschedule the assault on Gordania earlier than originally planned and do battle with Tamaran immediately after that."

Blackfire raised her eyebrow. "Why?"

"Like I said, it is always wise to consider the possibility of something going wrong. So it would be wise for us to eliminate this potential threat as soon as possible.

"For now, we shall all enjoy the festivities we have begun, just as you've planned. But tomorrow, we must have ourselves prepared to head out to conquer Gordania as soon as possible."

Nolfavrel's 12 fellow council members nodded their heads and hummed in agreement.

Blackfire remained confused, but ultimately acceded to her allies' wishes. "If you say so."

"Excellent. Now, let us handle the second matter the council was called upon for this evening."

Nolfavrel clapped his hands. "At this time, we are ready to hear what you have to say. Show yourself."

An armored humanoid figure that looked about the same height as Blackfire walked into the cavern. When this figure came to a stop, Blackfire narrowed her eyes. For some reason, she couldn't help but feel that something about this figure seemed familiar to her. In particular, she was starting to get the feeling that she could somehow recognize the armor, gait, bearing, and what looked like strands of silvery white hair sticking out of the base of the helmet.

Nolfavrel narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Show your face. The council and I wish to know exactly who wishes to speak to us."

There was a pause before he lifted his gauntlet encased hands and removed the helmet from his head. His eyes blazed with fury, determination, and pride. "I have come to offer my services alongside those of exiled Princess Komand'r." He bowed. "Alongside her, I wish to serve as a soldier. And possibly as a spy."

"Intriguing request. Do explain your reasoning for it."

"I once loved someone very dearly. More than I can say." He clenched his right fist, blue sparks seeming to crackle. "And for a time, she seemed to feel the same way. But then one day she was taken from me. I alone cared enough to go off to try to find her and bring her back. Two years after my search began, I learned that she had managed to return home of her own free will, only to then depart back to the foreign planet from which she'd come. Lately, I have become aware that she has completely forgotten me and cast me aside in favor of a native from the planet she now falsely considers to be her home instead."

He rose to his feet. "And now, since the person I love seems so happy to have wiped her hands of me and the rest of my kind are all too eager to let her throw her life away like that, I now wish to join forces with the only one who seems to be willing to care about the proper way things should be."

Blackfire nodded, but kept her eyebrow raised. "Interesting. But why do you wish to involve yourself with me? Where do I fit into all this?"

"Simple. This person that I speak of? You hate her just as much as I used to love her. And as far as I'm aware, you wish to personally kill her in battle. I, however, have an idea that you might find even better."

"Oh really? And what might that be?"

The figure removed a thick sack he'd had slung across his shoulder, reached into it, and drew out two pieces of technology that Blackfire promptly widened her eyes upon sight of.

"X'hal have mercy," she said in surprise.

The visitor nodded. "Last year," he began, "I raided a Psion lab, and I made sure to confiscate this technology for myself before I destroyed it."

He gestured to the first of the two machines, a device that reminded Blackfire of the virtual reality helmets she'd seen during one of her visits to Earth. "This is a Psion hypno-helmet."

He gestured to the second machine, which Blackfire thought looked like a mix between a laptop computer and a hologram projector. "And this, is a Psion mind manipulator."

He scooped both machines back up into his arms. "With these two combined, I should have all the power I need to allow my alternate suggestion to be carried out."

"And what might that be?" Nolfavrel asked.

"Simple."

The guest looked back at Blackfire. "I will allow you to do with the rest of our people and anyone else who dares try to oppose you however you wish. But as for me, I wish, in the event that your sister and her four friends from that miserable troq planet known as Earth turn out to still be alive, to kill those four friends myself. I also wish to specifically save the one who has replaced me in your sister's heart for last and force her to watch as I kill both him and the rest of her friends from her false new home. And then . . ."

He allowed a ghastly grin to appear on his face. "I wish to allow her just enough time to cry and start grieving from the losses before I then use these machines to first erase her memory of them as well as all her memories of her time apart from me, and then replace them with whatever false memories I think of and similarly alter her mind and personality so that she will both treat you with the respect she failed to show you before and love me, and only me, as fully and truly as she used to before I lost her."

Blackfire's purple eyes widened, and so did the red eyes of all 13 of the Umbrosian council members. "That," said Nolfavrel, "is a very dark goal indeed."

Blackfire nodded her head in agreement, now feeling numb from just what had been suggested. For a brief moment, she found herself feeling doubt as to whether she truly wanted something like what this man had suggested to happen to her sister. But then she remembered her lingering rage and desire for revenge against her sister, and her doubts were submerged beneath her hate.

She nodded her head. "Your proposed alternate solution is acceptable." She opened her eyes. "State your name. As partners, I wish for us to be equals in our work."

"Gladly." The visitor nodded, his white hair dazzling in the light of the cavern's braziers, his green eyes literally glowing, and his hands encased by what looked like brilliant blue star bolts. "You may call me Cometbolt. And I will gladly serve as your partner, Blackfire."

And just like that, another chapter complete! And holy moly did this chapter end on a chilling note! Nonetheless, I hope that you all read and enjoyed what I have to offer in this chapter! Not to mention that you leave plenty of (NONFLAME!) feedback (remember, I require an exact minimum of 2 reviews for this chapter before I allow the next completed and approved chapter of this story to be posted). Furthermore, I also hope very much (and hopefully so do the rest of you) that we indeed do get the promised 6th season of the True Teen Titans cartoon that we so desperately need to serve alongside Teen Titans fanfiction to wash the foul taste of Teen Titans Go out of our mouths, and that said 6th season is TRULY worth the God knows how long wait. All that said and done, I once again hope you all read and enjoyed this new chapter!

Coming up next: Meanwhile, back on Gordania, a tense council meeting is underway that could very well determine the fate of the galaxy.