Deep beneath the wasteland that was the Crystal Empire, Sombra surfaced from his improvised bath. Sitting comfortably with his back against a stalagmite, Proferlix dipped the line from a fishing rod into the pool.
"Awww, and here I thought I caught myself a REAL whopper.", the armored goblin wisecracked.
"Be thou ready for more reasoned discourse, Sombra? Proferlix was here for more than thine dinner.", Jolfr's phantom voice purred, seemingly coming out of every shadow at once.
"Yeah, Stony's been a little worried about the care and feedin' of his army. Demons only eat cause they like it, but you? An' you don't have much of an army without swords, armor, supplies...". Proferlix slapped his armored belly. "Fort-un-ate-lee, when his goons chewed up all the OTHER gobbies I had with me, I made em see reason."
"By which he means he crushed them in a cunning trap.", Sombra heard Jolfr whispering. "Yeah. Reasonable. And when big dark and spooky poked his head in while I was chatting..." "Poking them with his sword.... "We had ourselves a nice little haggle."
"Proferlix's people are quite crafty. And he had his own travails. A pact was quite easy to make, one that benefits both thee and me.", Jolfr said in a more conversational volume.
"Yep. Stony here lends me his goon squads for a bit, my boys get em all nice an' scary with armor and weapons...and we clear out some annoying little flying pests from the caverns that are sitting on what should be gobbie turf. Then, my boys help Stony's clan up top. Plenty of cold, hard loot to pry from a buncha soft little "pohnies". We'll all be sittin' pretty on golden thrones in no time!"
"Tis astonishing how much goblins are willing to do for enough "shinies", Sombra.", Jolfr whispered once more.
"Oh, and don't worry. I'm throwin' in food and board and all that kinda stuff, pointy."
"The name....is Sombra."
"Yeah, pointy. Whatever you-" Proferlix was interrupted as Sombra's horn dragged him into the pool up to his neck and held him there. Weighted down by his armor, the goblin flailed and sputtered as the unicorn yanked his head below the surface.
He did not relent until the goblin's panicked flailing ceased and the last bubble of breath gurgled from beneath it's mask. Only then did the unicorn pull the limp form out of the pool and hooked it's sword belt to a protruding chunk of rock, leaving Proferlix dangling and drip-drying on the cavern wall. The sword itself, he left underwater. Shaking water out of his fur, Sombra waited patiently for the beast to revive.
Five or six minutes later, the goblin hacked up a lungful of water and screamed in terror.
"You're crazy! YOU MAD MOG-HUMPING FREAK! I'LL GUT YA! I'LL-"
The sharp length of Proferlix's sword was suddenly resting against the goblin's own throat, a stream of liquid running down the fuller of the blade. The crimson aura of Sombra's horn gave the drops of water the disturbing color of blood as they struck the floor.
"You seem to have an inflated idea of your place in the world, beast. You are a minion. My lord deems you useful. For that, you were granted the privilege of not being torn to pieces. If I find you disrespectful, if I find you useless, if I find you do not benefit MY rule with anything save your utter, total, complete obedience and effort..."
The edge dug itself ever so slightly into the goblin's windpipe, leaving Proferlix's throat burning.
"I will hack off your useless tongue and toss the rest to my Kindred for a plaything, and the next one of your kind will have your fleshless skull as a reminder to do better. ARE WE UNDERSTOOD, YOU PULING GREEN WRETCH?", Sombra roared at the cowering goblin.
"Y-yes! You's the boss! The big boss! The grandest of Greedaloxes! Whatever you say! DON'T KILL ME!"
The unicorn stared at Proferlix's mask so intently, the goblin thought he could see through it. The sword pulled back from the goblin's throat...and the goblin crashed to the ground, his belt snaking it's way through the air to coil itself across Sombra's back. The weapon floated into it's scabbard with an audible snick.
"Until I find something more fit to kill with, this peasant's weapon will suffice. Your first task is to deliver me one. Be swift. There is no place in the darkness for you to hide if you fail. GO!"
Holding up his armored leggings with one paw, Proferlix stumbled out of the cavern. A faint smell of piss marked the goblin's passing, and he was gone.
"Oh, well -done-!" Jolfr's voice oozed appreciation. "Getting yon craven to soil himself twas a nice touch."
Cowardly, greedy scum to use as fodder, nothing more. What were these pests it wanted killed?" "Some creatures called "Moogles". Goblins can fight, but they're as interested in stabbing each other in the back as they are winning, and the moogles are more numerous and better organized." "Hmph. At least goblins seem to understand the proper application of fear and cruelty. First the goblins, then these "moogles" for some proper slaves. That should give us enough meat to grind into an army of conquest- one goblin would cow half a dozen ponies, one Kindred a village. Then, we can get back to decorating my throne room with dead alicorns." "Why, Sombra! Thou hast beaten me to your "welcome back from near-death" gift! Come to mine crystal, and I shall show them to thee."
Sombra's thoughts screeched to a halt. "What? One of Celestia's servants is dead? Show them to me!"
The unicorn's last bits of ill temper vanished as he galloped, replaced by elation. A fourth of his plans fulfilled before he knew it? The images of his loathed enemies broken on the cavern floor cycled through his mind's eye in a disgusting circle- Luna, the pink bitch that had nearly killed him, the purple runt...and digging his hooves into the stone, he came to a halt before Jolfr's phylactery.
"Show me! Show me!"
Wordlessly, two Kindred warriors stepped into the dim circle of light surrounding Jolfr's crystal, each bearing a gleaming statue. Settling them on their feet, the creatures returned to the darkness.
Frozen forever in crystal, Cadence and Shining Armor stood before the delighted unicorn. Cadence's face was marred by a look of despair, while Shining's bore a grim snarl of determination.
"The best part is, they're still alive in there- frozen at the moment where they realized all was lost, that their doom was upon them. Touch them. See for yourself." An ebon tendril stroked Shining Armor with the same kind of shivering joy most ponies would associate with foal-fondlers or serial cupcake killers.
Sombra laid a hoof on Cadence's horn. Suddenly, the feeling of utter loss soaked in through the contact- loss of control, loss of the love by her side, loss of her people, her Empire, her life. All was lost...lost...lost...
The unicorn drank her despair like fine wine. The endless fount of suffering left him giddy, victorious- why, this was better than killing the wench! His own pretty little alicorn, broken in spirit for eternity. Breaking off the contact, he threw his head back and laughed, with a vicious edge to the mirth that sent it cutting through the dark places to reach the rapidly retreating Proferlix. The vile sound jabbed like a steel-tipped goad to the goblin's floppy green ears, and he redoubled his panicked pace.
In his terror, he never noticed the cyclopean form of an ahriman shadowing his progress. Seeker didn't understand or care why the green thing was running faster- it just meant that it would lead the way to more, sooner. Lord Jolfr desired them for servant-slaves, that was all that mattered...
