Chapter 1
The portal crackled open as Lilith fell out of it, landing on the floor of her lair. Blood and energy poured out of her wounds as she forced herself up, eyes ablaze with fury as she stumbled across the mostly bare room to a lone door. Her missing right leg made it a challenge to move forward.
Champion had failed, just as she knew he would. That was part of the plan. But her losing to the ‘heroes’ was not part of the plan. She had expected herself to be able to handle a few ponies, but Lance’s wife, Twilight Sparkle, had proved to be more of a threat than Lilith had thought she could be. That counterspell she cast changed everything.
Pushing through the pain, she used her magic to throw open the door and stumbled through it. The room was filled with a light blue glow as a tank filled with Ego infused liquid sat in the middle of the room. It was currently unoccupied, as its occupant was elsewhere.
“Soon,” she grunted as she moved past the tank labeled ‘Kimaris’.This was just one of her projects she had put aside in favor of using Champion. It would appear she was going to need this project after all, but it wasn’t ready.
Instead she moved a large computer and began to type away at it with her magic. A hatch in the floor opened as a second, smaller, tank rose up, this one housing a mare’s body within it. Perfectly identical to her in every way. A husk.
“I detest this act,” she mumbled as she hit a button, draining the tank of its cyan colored liquid. The tank opened as she cast a spell on herself. Her body collapsed onto the floor, lifeless, as the one in the tank opened its eyes.
Lilith stepped out of the tank, checking her motor functions carefully. Once she was satisfied, she walked past her old body and used her magic to open a vent. The destroyed body was cast into the dark hole, followed by it slamming shut.
“Now then,” she said, her voice sounding much calmer now, as she moved to a large artifact in the room. Placing her hoof on it, it began to glow a light yellow.
“Holy Spirit Energy at ninety eight percent,” a faint voice said from the relic as she stepped back, satisfied. She’d only given Champion a small dose of the energy she’d stolen, leaving her with plenty for herself. Of course, she’d need a few more things before she could finally enact her grand plan.
But that’d come in time. For now, she just needed to make sure everything else went according to plan, at least somewhat.
With her other project not ready, she only had a few she could enact right at that moment.
One option stuck out to her, as she knew the person it involved had been wanting to make their move for a very long time.
A bit reluctantly, she moved to another ancient relic and interacted with it, causing a portal to open near her. She couldn’t leave through it, as she was restricted to this one and a few others, but she knew the person in question would know what its appearance meant.
It did not take long before a figure stepped through, covered in rags and armor. They seemed to take in the whole room before looking at Lilith, their face wrapped in cloth with a helmet atop their head. Only their eyes were visible as they stared at her.
“Finally calling me home?” he asked, resting a hand on one of his two blades. “Does that mean something has happened?”
“You could say that,” she answered, not giving him any further details. “Have you had your fill of dimension hopping?”
“I had my fill years ago,” he replied gruffly. “I’ve been wanting to return for quite a while now. It’s because of your insistence that I’ve stayed away this long.”
“Should I remind you,” she began, raising an eyebrow at him, “that it was your plan to involve the Watcher, despite my warnings.”
“He played his part,” the man countered. He looked her over, taking note of the Holy Spirit radiating off of her. “It was thanks to my plan that you have suddenly gained all of this Holy Energy.”
“The Watcher is a turncoat. He helped them during the most recent altercation, and now I do not know what his motives are.”
“It doesn’t matter,” the man said with a shrug. “As I said, he played his part. He was out as soon as he was defeated. I can handle him if need be.”
She narrowed her eyes as she held his gaze before shaking her head. “Richard and Champion are dead, if that matters to you.”
“It’s unfortunate,” the man said, seeming to not care. “Those two were just pawns in the grand scheme of things.”
“Nightmare as well.”
This seemed to cause him to pause for a moment. “How?”
“A newcomer provided support during the battle, and somehow brought an end to him.”
“That is a… tragic loss. But no matter, we can go forward without him.” The man walked past her and stopped before the tank, staring up at it. “And this one, is she ready yet?”
“Not yet,” Lilith answered as she stepped up next to him. “I have her in a training dimension at the moment, getting her used to her abilities.”
“How long till I can use her?”
“Depends on if you want her at her full potential or not,” Lilith said as she shook her head. “I fear we’ll have to scrap her though, her mind is… a bit broken.”
“A broken mind is easier to manipulate,” the man countered as he moved away from the tank, walking for the other tank in the room where Lilith’s new body had been stored. “I see you had to resort to swapping bodies.”
“There’s three Lance’s now,” Lilith said, causing him to laugh. “The one named Twilight Sparkle is a problem.”
“I warned you,” he said with another chuckle. “Alright. I’m assuming the plan is the same as it’s always been?”
“It is,” she assured him.
“Good,” he said with a nod, turning his attention to the computer as he seemed lost in thought.
She raised an eyebrow at him, waiting for him to continue, but he remained silent. “Yes?”
“Ah, sorry,” he mumbled, snapping out of it. “I haven’t been back to Equestria in a long time. Just got lost in thought.”
“Did you at least accomplish all your tasks?”
“I did,” he replied with a sharp nod. “It was worth it, in the end. A convoluted plan, but it was the best course of action.”
“Then you know what you have to do next,” she said firmly, getting a nod from him.
“I do. They’re all dumb and gullible, they’ll take me back without a single thought. I’ll be able to get the final items I need and I’ll finish them all off myself.”
“There are a few fresh faces you’ll need to be weary of,” she warned. “I’ll transfer you the knowledge once you’re ready.”
He gave a nod as he tapped a finger against one of his sword handles. “Is my one lackey still around?”
“She is,” Lilith confirmed. “However, she’s been depowered and has swapped sides as well.”
“Oh has she now?” he asked with a sinister tone. “I’ll have to do something about that. Has she told anyone anything?”
“I’ve kept tabs on her. She remained silent, due to her broken mind.”
“Ah, you just gotta love a broken mind,” he laughed. “So easily manipulated. It’s unfortunate she’s swapped sides, but I’ll deal with her. I should have done so a long time ago, anyway.”
“Finally, the elements have new bearers,” she continued. “But two of them have died recently.”
“Perfect!” he exclaimed. “That makes it so much easier. Any other developments?”
“Plenty,” she said with a nod. “However, the only important fact you need to know right now is that Champion killed the two Princesses.”
“He did? Both of them?” he asked, seeming a bit surprised. He wavered for a moment before shrugging. “Now that is VERY unfortunate. Complicates things for sure.”
“That’s your only reaction to that?” she asked, a sly smile on her face. “Cold.”
“Can we turn off Ego’s and Ego weapons?” he asked, moving to the next topic of discussion.
“Only for a short time,” she answered. “And only once. The artifact is cracked and only has one use left in it.”
“Better make it count then,” he mumbled, raising a hand to start undoing the cloth around his face, slowly unwrapping it.
“If we perform this next act, I need to know, are you able to deliver?”
The cloth hit the floor as he turned to her, giving her a smile, his face scarred from years of travel. “Haven’t I always delivered in the past? I kept everyone in check and made sure everything went as you wanted. The only hitch in the plan was a certain someone getting caught and getting banished. But as I said, I’ll deal with her when I can.”
“How much do you know of the one known as Scamp? Did you do the research like I asked?”
“She’s a problem, yes,” he said with a nod. “But only when she has access to powers. Right now, she shouldn’t be a problem.”
“The woman is my granddaughter, so I want her alive.”
“That’ll be easy, trust me,” he assured her. “She may be hard to fool, but I’m already an established member of their group. She won’t suspect a thing.”
“If she does become suspicious, even for a moment, your cover would be blown. You understand that, correct?”
“You worry too much,” he chuckled, removing his helmet, letting his long hair fall behind himself.
“You’ve been gone a long time. You will not be able to-”
“I’ve got it covered,” he interrupted her. “Lance alone is the most gullible. He’ll vouch for me even if the others don’t.”
“You are too sure of yourself.”
“Well of course,” he said with a smirk. “I am their Prince after all."