Character Casting: Underworld · 3:22pm Apr 4th, 2018
DO NOT read this if you want to catch any spoilers or hints. Chapter 50 and you can read to your hearts content.
There is some confusion as to how the characters act, who they are, etc. This is a result of how fast I wrote up the story without thinking about their backgrounds beforehand. If you look at the time stamps on when chapters were released... You can get an idea how fast I was cranking out chapters, the result was Valkardian had ZERO background except for being a wizard/necromancer living in the underworld while trying to keep the ponies above away from his domain. In time you see WHY he wants to keep them away too.
Lets start with Shadow Moon: Shadow is a young woman who has little to no experience with the world and absolutely none with politics, philosophy, war, death and destruction. This is a thestral who only knows one side of history and has seen nothing beyond the limits of the town she grew up in. She is INNOCENT. Naive. Full of hope and passion but has no comprehension for anything else, to her the world is perfect because that is what Celestia has taught. Basically the American School System: Everything is fine! Everything is fine! Test on Thursday!
Valkardian: Here is a man who I tried to write out but wound up stuck on, it took over 15 chapters till I finally decided on how to build his background up by partially telling you through Shadow's eyes then also by his own actions and thoughts. At first this was a character that was so vague and grayed out he was going to be downright boring, that ancient crotchety wizard who is more interested in his books than the world above.
Having never written a story before it left me hanging on how to make him really shine as being evil but also trustworthy... After all his first concept was taken from D&D as a basic villain that was Lawful Evil with a dash of both Lawful Neutral and Chaotic Evil. That morphed as you have seen till he actually leans towards true neutral in most cases: You stay on your side of the fence, he, his.
When I wrote the story about his first war with Celestia and Luna it laid the premise for future events heavily. He tried to actually save two ponies (alicorns) he cared about by assassinating (personally no less) Steelshod's father. The two sisters took this as grievously and lashed out wiping out a town under Valkardian's protection that happened to be too far away for him to intervene in time. Not wanting to risk their pushing any deeper he launched an all out assault on the surface and utterly exterminated the ponies in one region of Equestria both in retribution but also to force them to go on the defensive. As such he became FAR more violent in protecting any he cares about. If he had to kill you and your entire family to get the point across, he will.
That brings up another major trait he has: cruelty. Oh he will torture the hell out of someone if they betray him and you will see it too. However! He does not take it lightly but reserves such punishment for those he see's as truly deserving of it. Evil. This is why the cases of torture in the story are so rare: Ruby, one High Priestess and he sort of tortures three others but they die quickly limiting their suffering, they were used as examples to make others talk. Ten thousand years and he more or less has six acts of torture to his name. Only three of which were drawn out in any way what so ever but one of them was a beating that resulted in him beating a pony lord to death in front of his people.
What this means for you is that should you get caught up in his happenings... The odds of you being tortured are... Infinitely small. He simply kills others quickly and does not leave them gasping on the ground. If you make yourself his enemy, you die. Quickly, painlessly or nearest to it and that is the end. No torture of the soul (Except Ruby who is imprisoned) or anything else.
Deals. Valkardian makes deals and will uphold them to the letter. He also will not stab you in the back afterwards either, it just means you are both back to being neutral again. This is a guy you can REALLY trust but just be careful where you step and what words you use.
He takes things seriously, very, very seriously.
BUT! He is a bit of an airhead, forgetful. Very caring in his own way about others though most see it as a little warped because of how he expresses it: Steelshod being the best example followed by his rage towards Celestia and Luna for what they did afterwards.
Short tempered. That is another of his faults and you see it bubble to the surface now and then but he manages to keep it MOSTLY under control. The one time he really lost his temper it was remembered as a "great harvest of the living." When Valkardian snaps, he snaps.
He also prefers to simply look at a situation for what it is without being blinded by wishful thinking.
Oh and here is one last tidbit: He does not deny being evil either! He accepts it as simply part of his being.
Celestia (this doubles as Luna's in a FEW ways but she slips back to her old ways slightly):
I wrote Celestia as not the "perfect ruler" who is motherly and loving. Instead I gave both her and Luna a darker past from the days when ponies still openly hunted each other down in blood feuds and petty warfare. Early Medieval. As such they both deeply regret how they acted back then and their actions. While Luna has come to terms with it and will not allow it to blind her... Well...
Celestia has her head so far up her own flank she no longer knows what the sun looks like. This is a character who is utterly traumatized by the past and it haunts her, it got worse when her own sister turned into Nightmare Moon and tried to take over in a very short lived civil war. The effect was it drove Celestia even deeper into a desperate scrambling to ensure that peace, love, harmony and friendship would be all her ponies would ever know and damn the consequences.
She really is motherly, kind and loving. Make no mistake on that. But under that skin lies something else, a past that if she drew on it would result in a monster similar to Valkardian if not somewhat worse. It remains bottled up though.
Luna as stated came to terms with this, being locked away on the moon for a thousand years then being accepted back so willingly has given her quite the perspective of events and people. As such she is more willing to draw on that past to help stave off problems in the present or future. Her actions are one of the only reasons Valkardian did not march out and simply annihilate the ponies between himself and the objective.
Emperor Steelshod Jr.:
I really enjoy this character. While Valkardian is OPEN about being evil, if you walked up and asked he would just tell you "yes, I am an evil baby killer" Steelshod is the STARK OPPOSITE. This is a guy, foreigner, who's father was making the first encroachments into Equestria before being stopped by Valkardian. Trying to reclaim his fathers legacy he attacked the two sisters and lost quickly despite his attack coming at the crux of the war between Celestia and Luna's invasion of Valkardian's domain.
Absolutely obsessed with his dynasty's legacy he did not take well to any of this let alone his own defeat and fled the continent. Caught up in a civil war that was completely unintentional on Valkardian's part it incensed him further as he then had to fight for centuries to regain any kind of control because of his own weakened state.
If you have not figured it out yet... Steelshod is Machiavellian in what he plans. Being set back for millennia drove him up the wall and knowing his own weakness began to use subterfuge and propaganda to achieve his goals. By the time the old kingdom was rebuilt more than a thousand years had passed, that is how long and brutal the civil war was. Severely depopulated by the endless plagues and famines that came with it he focused on making an army that was specially trained.
Learning from his past defeat and the problems at home Steelshod bought his time till Equestria was ripe for invasion then began nibbling at the foundations before making his move. He plans ahead but that does not mean plans go awry. He is also an example of how quickly the veneer of lies can wear away if you are not quick to solidify your position after a victory.
As Napoleon said: The most dangerous time is not the battle itself but after the war. After the war is over ANYTHING can happen!
Steelshod had never heard of this and fell into that trap. Also he became so certain of himself (rightly so too) that arrogance boiled up after his victory and failed to see just how big a threat Twilight, Shining, Bright Lance and Valkardian could be. To him they were now past tense but still had plans drawn up just in case.
In his case it is kind of like being the most powerful SOB on the planet with an army to back it up then suddenly finding out that the ant-hills you stomped on to get there are turning out to be buried giants.
Valkardian is honest and straightforward with you... Steelshod is the guy that you would walk up to, shake his hand, receive a hearty slap on the back from while he smiles at you warmly. Meanwhile he is signaling the assassins in the room to make certain there are no survivors. He will lie, cheat, steal and double deal with hell itself to get what he wants while also plotting to take over hell and dethrone the devil himself because he honestly sees himself at being able to do a better job at it.
Does that mean he raped Celestia or Luna in the story? No. His mind is on other things but you can bet he is planning to! His lineage must live on and who better to sire his bastard fawn? He will never get the chance to though.
Perspective moment:
If you put Valkardian and Steelshod in the same position here is how they differ:
Valkardian: Killed the family and now there is a squalling baby? Mercy kill or leave it behind. He can not take care of the baby.
Steelshod: Killed the family and now there is a squalling baby? Laugh about it inside then have a debate about whether to have someone raise it for use as future fodder in his wars or propaganda value that he is "merciful." Then decide it does not matter anyway and stab the baby to death and blame the enemy for it.
Betu:
Another favorite that you will never get to really see. Here is an old stallion who has seen it all and is probably the smartest man on the planet for knowing the truth. An old man who knows full well what Valkardian has done but knows he can also be trusted to carry things out to the letter. While he despises him, he trusts him and is not so proud as to deny needing his help to solve a larger issue.
He cares very deeply for the people of Saddle Arabia and Zebrica being a major mover and shaker for improving conditions for all. At the same time he is so favored by the higher, unseen powers that he can call on them to inspire the people.
Just how powerful is the old man? Celestia, Luna and Valkardian would be insanely hard pressed to fight him without being underhanded, not in a melee mind you but because of what Betu can do with his own powers despite not being a unicorn.
Example:
Betu is the old man you see sitting in the gardens with a bunch of kids telling them stories and playing with them. Pity the poor SOB that threatens the kids because there would be nothing left of them but scorch marks on the ground. This is a guy who can literally call down the "wrath of god" on his enemies. Let that sink in.
Zebra Family.
Qufai and her siblings are more expanded upon than Betu but still not enough because I wrote out a whole lot. They grew up as mercenaries then quit because the tedium and rigidity of a military life was not for them. However, they were very good at it. So good they became bounty hunters and even raiders across the border.
Two sultanates have insanely strained relations with the nation they are from and often times send spies, assassins and others across the border. As such the Merchants Guild, Priesthood and Military are often times seen dragging someone off never to be seen or heard from again. As a result of this they sent their own teams across the border to keep tabs and even carry out attacks on the military or nobility.
Today we call this Black Ops. Qufai and her two siblings were operatives and they specialized in reconnaissance and retrieval of "people of interest." They made more than enough to retire but also had so many close calls (it is dangerous work after all) that they decided to semi-retire and enjoy traveling on their boat. Sometimes they smuggle a little now and then but otherwise they just want to enjoy life but are more than happy to take on a bounty for a little excitement.
Qufai is around... 38 years old. Wild life.
Despite their experience and being mighty warriors they are still only three. As you see in the story, if you get enough enemies pouring in on you shit happens and no matter how good you are: you can still get hit.
Qufai and her siblings are also fiercely loyal to each other and as you saw in one chapter become wrathful towards those who injure one of their own.
Never try and steal their boat. They are not known for taking prisoners unless the job requires it.
RELATIONS! Alright so a good portion of the story revolves around Shadow Moon and Valkardian's relationship towards each other. When I wrote them up it became more and more a "love/hate" relationship. On the one hand you like Valkardian but also want to see him dead. That sums it up rather well but Shadow does like him despite the flaws and his evil nature.
Valkardian also likes Shadow more and more as time goes along and you should know by halfway through he would not harm a hair on her head. He even says as much during one chapter when it is revealed how he would act if someone harmed her.
His feelings towards her a muddled however, on the one hand he made a promise long ago to Blood Lily and has kept it up but at the same time... Shadow has become more than a student. She more or less represents a part of him that was destroyed so long ago by the ponies in how they reacted to him even after millennia had passed. Being attacked by the two he cared for so deeply (Celestia and Luna) really left a deep rooted distrust of others and allowing them to get closer.
Despite this he has found himself growing quite attached to her but knows she wants to go home and is holding secrets from her for many reasons, some selfish but others for her own safety and that of others. He is in a very tricky situation as experience and feelings battle themselves out.
This is a huge spoiler so watch it!
Graff Nacht Klinge. (German) Lady Night Blade. Ancient lich. This old gal is the great grandmother you never had who one day baked you lots of cookies and doted over you then on Friday is in the newspapers and on TV because she blew the governors head off with a .50 saying "he was an utterly useless bastard! I did everyone a favor!"
Herr General Blutlanze. (German) Lord General Blood Lance. Imagine having an old Prussian general for a grandpa. He is strict, blunt, no tact, harsh but he means well. Believes in honor, integrity, duty, loyalty, courage, chivalry and being a gentleman. He is the one that when your parents sent you off to visit him made you keep everything in perfect military order, clean, pressed, starched and taught you etiquette. Then when you were old enough taught you how to use a sword in true gentlemanly fashion.
Ritter Albtraum. (German) Knight Nightmare. Sounds strange but the first is his TITLE. A commander and spymaster but also secretive despite being undead. Keeps to himself. That uncle you had who never came around but once or twice every few years and no one knows what the hell is doing for a living let alone where he lives. That is until his face popped up on INTERPOL for the assassination of El Presidente on some forgotten tropical island. Don't worry. He was chivalrous about it! Gave him a running start.
Tasty tidbit for you based on the above:
Shadow Moon: That doting older sister or aunt who drove you up the wall because they cared so much. Kid picked on you at school? Don't worry, they wont. That or they will transfer schools. And states.
Valkardian:
The uncle you were never allowed to see or talk to. Parents had a restraining order placed against him for a fifty mile radius before you were even born but somehow he still manages to visit you without getting seen by all the cameras and motion detectors your parents have carpeted the house and lawn with. Takes you fishing and to the library a lot making your parents and the local police howl in rage because they can just never catch him at it. Never drives the same vehicle twice. Picked you up at school in a dump-truck once. Dont ask.
He also taught you everything the cops and government never wanted you to learn and how he got his hands on that information is a mystery. Also taught you how to convert your BB gun into a machinegun and so many things that an eight year old should never know it made god weep.
When that bully broke your nose they showed up at your house the next day scared to death and apologized before giving you a fistful of peso's and that their parents have sobered up and stopped dealing drugs. They are also moving to Argentina.
So how will it all end? I have no idea. I have two endings in mind now but can not decide on either. I might just leave it up to the readers on if they want to read an "aftermath" that is not as action packed with huge battles but more resolution of problems, feelings and conflicts.
Well that sums it up!
