For a thousand years Equestria was peaceful... For over a thousand years Equestria was ruled by good... The time has come for them to be reminded of Evil... The time has come for the Overlord to awaken...
For a thousand years Equestria was peaceful and happy... For over a thousand years Equestria was ruled by good and harmony... No more.
The time has come for them to be reminded of the true meaning of Evil. Time to crash the party. Time to crush Equestria! Time to bring back the black! To unleash the Minions of War!
The time has come for the Overlord to awaken.
Because Evil always finds a way...
Featured not even 15 hours after it came out on the 5th of April! And for a second time on the 14th of May! And again on the 18th of July. And now with a LoHAV Wiki Page!
“Alright class. Settle down.” The teacher called out. It took them about a minute, but the colts and fillies of this class of Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns finally quieted down and diverted their attention to Brass Compass, the Earth Pony mare that taught them Geography. “Thank you. Now, last week we finished with the final subject on Equestrian Geography. From this week on we will learn about the various other kingdoms that surround our beautiful land.” The old mare’s blue eyes looked over the class from behind the thick lenses of her glasses.
While she was an old earth pony who looked kind at first glance, she was known to be strict and fair, awarding those that deserved it and punishing those that bullied their fellow students. Normally earth ponies and pegasi would be intimidated by so many unicorns… But Brass Compass wasn’t easily intimidated. Some of her co-workers joked that her name originally was Brass Balls, but she changed it for decency’s sake. Of course, nopony said anything like that in the brass-colored mare’s rather impressive hearing range, or else they were treated to a harsh look and scolding that would make even Celestia nervous.
“Now…” She continued. “Which one of you can tell me what other countries do you know?” Several hooves shot up at that, bringing a smile on the old teacher’s face. “Why don’t you begin, Silver Amulet?” She asked a white colt in the first row before ducking under her desk to pull out a map of Equestria and the surrounding lands.
“The Griffins to the East..” The unicorn said. Brass nodded, attaching the map over the blackboard.
“That’s right. The Griffin Principalities lie to the East of Equestria, across the Great Ocean. Their position is one of the main reasons why there aren’t many around here.” She indicated the right edge of the map where the blue of the ocean was cut by the map’s border. “Very good, Silver. Anypony else?” The teacher looked over the raised hoofs before selecting the next student. “Yes, Radiant Shine?”
“The Zebrican and Buffalo tribes.” The yellow filly answered.
“Good. Can you tell me where they are in relation to Equestria?” The filly looked over the map, whispering the four cardinal directions under his breath before he pointed to the bottom of the map.
“To the South.” She finally said, earning herself a nod and smile from Brass.
“That’s right. The Zebrican tribes are to the south-west, living in the savannas beyond the San Palomino desert. The Buffalo tribes live directly to the south, mostly occupying the Macintosh Hills, where new Equestrian settlements are beginning to grow.” Brass didn’t bother to hide her smile. She was proud that her students knew that much about the world outside Equestria. She couldn’t believe how many ponies were ignorant of it… The old mare had traveled far and wide and had experienced the geography and culture of several countries outside Equestria. It was this that landed her a teaching position in the best unicorn school in the world.
By now most of the hooves were down. The Griffins, the Zebras and the Buffalo were the most well-known non-Equestrian species, and with them eliminated most students had no idea who was left.
“Yes, Harmonic Rhythm?” She asked a blue filly.
“The Pinguin Republic to the North.” She replied.
“Very good.” Brass said, the filly smiling widely at the praise. “Very good indeed. Now who’s next?” She looked over the two ponies that still had their hooves in the air. “Swift Tale?”
“The Dragon lands to the… Umm…” The gray filly frowned, muttering the cardinal points under her breath before she continued: “The south-east?”
“Excellent.” Brass smiled and turned towards the map. “Now that you know the lands around Equestria we will begin with…” She couldn’t finish as a voice interrupted her:
“But miss Compass, there is another one.” Brass Compass froze before turning to look at the colt.
“Moonlit Glade.” She scowled at the dark purple pony. “You know that I don’t tolerate being interrupted. As you know, it is very rude.” She continued glaring at the colt for a few more seconds before turning back to the map. “Now, as I was saying…”
“But miss Compass… What about the Overlord’s Empire?” The rest of the class looked at the colt confused, some of them snickering at what they thought was something out of a fairy tale. But Brass Compass stiffened at her words. The Empire was a place shrouded in mystery and legends… A place that was rumored to be as vile and bad as Equestria was pure and good… It was a public taboo that nearly everypony knew of… Yet nopony spoke of it outside the safety of their homes. Most ponies thought that it was a fairytale, something to scare the children with and make them behave. But some knew the truth…
“It would be wise if you do not speak of the Empire again, mister Glade.” Brass said in even tone as she turned around. Her face was expressionless as she looked over her class.
“Isn’t the Overlord just a fairy tale meant to scare us to go to bed early?” A filly asked confused. Brass just shook her head.
“That is true. The Empire is supposed to be ancient, older than any other nation on Equis apart from Equestria.” Brass Compass walked over to the map and circled a small area to the South of Equestria. “This is known as the Badlands. A place of desolation… A place where predators roam the lifeless ground, seeking for prey… A place where nopony dares to tread… No sane pony, at least.” She let out a soft chuckle at that. Many people called her insane for even thinking of going there, yet alone doing it… But she did. “The Overlord’s Empire is supposed to exist somewhere around here. But there is nothing there. Trust me, I have been there. I have explored the Badlands for a month, and I didn’t find any Empire there.” She stayed silent for a few seconds, wondering how to continue. The topic had been effectively steered to the Overlord’s Empire now, and she couldn’t just stop here, or the students would begin gossiping and looking for trouble...
“You probably know the tale of the Overlord, how he and his minions tried to enslave all creatures on Equis, only to be imprisoned by our beloved ruler, Princess Celestia herself.” She walked back to her desk and sat down, letting out a sigh.
“The legends say that the Overlord is still alive, even after all these years. That he is waiting for his beloved to return so that he can conquer the world in her name… Of course, that is impossible. Only the Princess can live for that long. So I am sorry, Moonlit Glade, but your answer isn’t valid.” The colt visibly deflated while his peers began to chuckle…
Equestria… The land of ponies... A land of sunshine and rainbows, of magic and harmony… Their kind and benevolent ruler, Princess Celestia, rules from her castle in Canterlot, in the very heart of the country. The majestic castle provides view to many of the land’s wonders, from the beautiful mountains of the Frozen North and the majestic city of Cloudsdale to the idyllic Ponyville and the wild Everfree forest. And, if you used a powerful telescope, you could see so much more… You could see past Unicorn Range all the way to Yanhoover to the West. You could see the beautiful snow plains to the North where the Crystal Empire used to be. You could even see parts of Las Pegasus to the south-east and the beginning of the city of Appleloosa directly to the south.
And if you looked just a bit more to the East from there you would see the Badlands… A lifeless wasteland where predators roamed free and only the strong survived… There was no intelligent life… Not on the surface, at least.
But deep down below, hidden from the eyes of any mortal was a cavern… Though to call it cavern was like calling Canterlot Mountain a hill… Both were gross underestimations. It was enormous… An enormous lake of lava bubbled on the bottom, flowing towards the depths of the planet.
The place’s inhabitants called it the Netherworld. It was fitting...
In the lowest level of the tower there was a chamber. Once lavishly decorated, now the tapestries were all but piles of dust, the once expensive paintings faded or gone, the carved stone eroded, the channels that once led lava over the room, providing illumination and intimidation value were now filled with cold rock…
This was the Overlord… The ruler of the Netherworld, and of what was now known as the Badlands… Here he lay in magic-induced slumber, waiting for a call…
Above ground events happened. A certain dark Alicorn’s prison was weakening… Already her dark magic could be felt by those who knew what to look for… But there were only two beings who could feel it. One was Celestia, the Sun Alicorn. With a smile she enacted a plan centuries in the making, preparing to send her best student to a small town where she would forge a bond of friendship that would in turn unlock the true potential of the ultimate weapon that Equestria possessed…
It didn’t take long for Nightmare Moon’s magic to reach the Netherworld. A carefully crafted ward was broken...
Outside, the entire Netherworld Tower shook visibly. Loose stones fell down, splashing in the sea of lava below. The bottom of the Tower opened, like the claw of a predator. Floating between the sharp spikes was the Tower Heart, a magical orb of great power and great potential.
At first the Heart was dull, lifeless… Then a spark ran over the smooth surface. The orb began to glow with otherworldly power, mystical energies reawakening after more than a thousand years of slumber. Then, a thick beam of magic shot down into the sea of lava.
The entire cavern shook as a whirlpool formed where the beam impacted the molten rock. No, it wasn’t the cavern… More than that shook. The tremors were felt throughout Equis, sending the inhabitants into panic.
The weather, leashed by the ponies, twisted under the onslaught of magic. Harsh winds blew pegasi around… Storm clouds gathered, sending bright flashes of lightning over the panicking masses… Animals of all kinds were frightened, trying to escape their confines and run away or hide…
And in the throne room the Overlord’s eyes snapped open, a pair of glowing lights in the darkness of his helmet.
Princess Celestia looked up at the moon and scowled, something quite unusual for the motherly ruler. Several hours had passed since the strange earthquake and the following storm washed over Equestria, sending the citizens into panic. The Royal Guard had their hooves full trying to restore order… The Princess herself had to visit several cities to calm the masses, reaching the point where she had to use the Royal Canterlot Voice, something she hadn’t done in centuries.
“Is the shattering of your bonds this violent, sister?” She asked. “Or is it just you lashing out in anger from your imprisonment?” The Mare in the Moon didn’t reply, but for some reason Celestia felt that she was smirking at her… With a huff the solar Alicorn turned around and walked back in her room. She had too much work to do to waste time in seeking answers to questions such as this. She needed to allocate funds to repair the damage that the earthquake and storms caused, she needed to finish planning for the Summer Sun Celebration and she needed to steer her pupil in the right direction to unite the Elements of Harmony…
Sometimes being a Princess was tedious… She could only hope that her plan would work and that Luna will be back soon, cleansed from the corruption that wretched creature inflicted upon her… That thought made her pause. What if… No, she shook her head. It wasn’t possible. The Overlord was gone. There was no way the evil creature still lived. Only Alicorns and Dragons could live for thousands of years, after all. And there was no chance of a successor popping up, he had stated that he was the only one of his kind on all Equis.
No, the only evil coming is Nightmare Moon. And that would be easily dealt with.
Oh, if only Celestia knew how wrong she was…
Deep into the Netherworld the Overlord stood from his throne. The echo of his armored boots impacting the stone of the Tower carried far and wide throughout the dark and deserted halls as he ascended up to the Minion Burrows. The time had taken its toll on the ancient structure… Several times he had to leap over holes in the stone that lead to the lower levels of the Tower, or even straight to the sea of lava below. It wasn’t rare that he had to go back and seek a new route when a hole was too wide for him to safely jump across…
While the Overlord had no idea of the exact number of years he had been slumbering, he knew it was too long… The Tower was sturdy enough to last for centuries without maintenance, so the state of disrepair showed that it was much longer than intended...
Finally he reached his destination. A sigh of relief left his hidden lips as he saw the chamber more or less intact… It would’ve been a disaster to lose any of the four Hives. Still, the Overlord walked through the room, inspecting each Hive for damage. Again he felt relief when he found nothing wrong. The spell that he had cast on himself had taken hold over the Hives as well, ensuring that they were free from Time’s effects.
Making his way back to the first Hive, the Brown one, he stopped in front of it. The thing looked repulsive, like coiled intestines… But to the Overlord it was a familiar, welcome sight.
“The time has come for you to awaken, my most faithful Minions!” The Overlord bellowed in a deep voice that echoed throughout the cavern. The four Hives began to glow with their respective lights as the mystic magic inside them began to stir. “The time has come for you to crush my enemies under your numbers!” He raised his left hand, the jewel on the back of the spiked gauntlet shining brightly. “The time has come to remind this world of our presence!” His hand clenched in a fist as the light from the jewel shone brightly. The four Hives shone in response, blinding the Overlord for a moment.
His vision returned just in time for him to see the first Brown Minion emerge, yawning groggily and looking around. Finally its eyes settled on the Overlord and his mouth hung open.
“Mas-” It began before a kick from the inside of the Hive sent it in the air and to the ground. More Browns began to pour from the Hive, their shouts of “Master!” echoing throughout the cavern. But they weren’t the only ones… Reds, Greens and Blues poured from their respective hives, kicking, elbowing, stabbing, setting each other on fire or phasing through their fellow Minions as they raced to gather in front of their Master. The Overlord himself watched them impassively, even if he was amused inside… The small things’ antics amused him greatly most of the time. And when they didn’t he could always kick one or two around…
“Enough, enough!” A voice coming from the Brown Hive drew the Overlord’s attention. An ancient-looking Brown Minion was trying to crawl from a hole on top of the Hive.
“Uuuurgh!” The Minion tried to pull himself up, but wasn’t very successful. “Drat… I’m stuck… Little help here?” He asked, drawing an amused chuckle from the Overlord.
“You and you.” He pointed at two random Browns. “Pull him out. And do not damage the Hive.” The two Minions complied enthusiastically… Too enthusiastically, if the way they jumped on top of the Hive and began to pull on the unfortunate Minion, grabbing anything they could reach - his ears, his hair, even his nose.
“Agh! Get away, get away from me! Agh! Keep your paws from the earrings! I looted them myself, you kno- ahg!” The old Minion tried to bat them away as the Overlord watched in amusement. It served the old coot right… Gnarl was useful as an adviser and Minion Master, but sometimes he was rather annoying in his comments. After waiting a minute for the two thugs to prove once again that Intelligent was an adjective that never applied to the Minions he waved his left hand, the link that connected him to the Minions compelling the two to stop and turn their attention to him.
“Enter the Hive and push him from inside.” The two immediately complied, entering the Hive through another hole.
“Master, no! I’m fra-” Gnarl began before he was launched off the Hive and into a cluster of Minions. That, of course, resulted into a tangle of limbs, colors, insults, swears and Gnarl’s protests as the Minions tried to untangle themselves. It didn’t take long for one of them to hit another, which resulted in a short brawl that the Overlord didn’t bother to stop. He was too busy enjoying the screams of the stabbed and burning creatures, of the thunks as a club connected with a head or the sounds of flesh being sliced open… And over that Gnarl’s shouts of “Someone free me! Agh! Plesh! You stink!” from under the corpse of a Green.
In several short minutes the brawl ended, with its victor, a singed Brown, standing on top of several corpses, grinning in that demented way that only its kind could. The Overlord shook his head and approached the happy Minion before delivering a swift kick to its torso, sending it flying. A shout of “Weeee….” was heard before it impacted the wall with a crunch and slumped. The Overlord nodded to himself before walking to the pile of corpses. Using his foot he kicked them apart until he uncovered the slightly-green Gnarl.
“Ah… Thank you, Sire.” The Minion sighed in relief as he crawled out. “Was that really necessary? You know that I am not as springy as in my youth…”
“Of course it did…” Gnarl grumbled as he looked around, his yellow eyes taking in the chamber’s disrepair. “Milord, how long have we been asleep?”
“Too long, Gnarl.” The Overlord replied. “The Tower has fallen into disrepair. Whole sections of it are missing. A couple more centuries and the whole thing would have collapsed into the depths of Equis.”
“In that case I shall whip the Browns to begin repairs immediately, Sire.” Gnarl said and put his fingers in his mouth, letting out a sharp whistle that gained the attention of all Minions as if the Overlord himself used his Gauntlet.
“Alright fleabags, time to get to work. We need to get the Tower up and running so that we can spread chaos and mayhem in the lands above!” Cheers met the wizened Minion’s call as the others scattered around. It was ridiculously easy to motivate the creatures… Just promise them fights and bloodshed and they were ready to do anything…
“I want the path to the Forge to be cleared as soon as possible and a Forgemaster appointed.” The Overlord began to give out orders. “Get the Netherstone lifts operational as well. Dookie!” He motioned at a Brown who was scratching his back with a pickaxe. “I want you and the other Diggers to begin tunneling to the Surface as soon as possible.” The Brown nodded, running away to complete the order.
“Gnarl, send several squads of Greens to scout out the lands. I want to know the current date, as well as events that happened in our slumber. Try to loot a library… If you can explain to them what that is.” Gnarl groaned at the prospect of trying to explain anything to the dumb Minions and hobbled away.
Nodding in satisfaction the Overlord began the trek back to the Throne Room. He would wait there until he got news of the outside world. Then he would plan to recover his Mistress. And then...
Plowton was a small village located between Appleloosa and Dodge Junction. It’s significance was so small that they didn’t even have a train station. The only notable things that happened in the past few decades were the sudden earthquake and strange weather patterns a week ago.
Tonight, the village would experience another shocking event...
Violet Blossom was an ordinary Earth pony mare. Her cutie mark was the same as her name, signifying her talent in growing up the flowers that were her namesake. And indeed, her entire back yard was taken up by flowerbeds where she grew up the tastiest violets in Plowton. They were her pride and joy, and her main source of income.
As the last rays of Celestia’s sun shone over the garden the ground between two patches of flowers shifted before it was pushed up, not unlike a molehill. A molehill made by a mole bigger than a pony… Green light shone from the new hole in the ground before eight small figures jumped out.
The eight Minions landed on their feet and looked around. Nobody had heard or seen their arrival. The Greens were sneaky and they took pride in that.
As the moon rose the eight Greens moved to the fence that separated Violet’s garden from her neighbors. One by one they climbed over it, looking in disgust at the houses’ silhouettes. So idyllic… So boring…
So happy…
The Greens would love nothing more than to ransack the town, to burn and kill and pillage… But they couldn’t. The Overlord had ordered them to scout and take back as many books as they could carry without being discovered. Failure to comply with their Master’s orders brought punishments… Cruel, and unusual punishments…
Of course, that didn’t mean that they couldn’t be destructive while sneaky… It would be too much to expect that of them, even if the Overlord had bothered to specifically order against that.
The back door to Violet’s house slowly opened and a glowing yellow eye peeked through the crack. They didn’t even have to use their claws to pick the lock… These ponies were so trusting, they deserved what was going to happen to them. And so, one by one, the eight Minions sneaked into the small two-story house and began their search for what the Overlord needed…
“Umm… What ees Mastah wanting ‘gain?” One of the Minions asked, scratching the back of its bald head with a claw.
“Stoopid Mulch. Gnarl say Mastah wanteds us to find a libor… Liber… Umm…” The Green paused as he tried to remember the word. “A beeg house of booksies.” He finally said.
“Oooh…” The other minion nodded in understanding and looked around. “What is booksies?” The other Green promptly facepalmed.
And so the Minions began searching for “booksies”. It was a small miracle that Violet didn’t wake up as they ransacked the first floor of her house, making a mess of things. Their reasoning was that since the Overlord wanted books, then they were valuable. And people hid valuable things in many places… And so every place that could hold a book was thoroughly checked. The couches’ cushions were first thrown to the sides, to check under them, before they were sliced apart. A Green tried to climb up the fireplace, only to get stuck and flail around. Two others managed to pull it down, but not before one of them got kicked in the face, resulting in a shiner that sent the newly-freed Green into a laughing fit, which, of course, prompted a small scuffle. The leader of the group growled and smacked the two fighting Greens upside the head.
“Quiet! We’s not s’posed to be heard!” He hissed. The other two had the (small) decency to look a bit sheepish. Slapping them again for good measure the Greens returned to their destruction-slash-searching. Finally one of them called out:
“I found the booksies!” Seven pairs of yellow eyes looked at the Minion that called out before following his outstretched finger to a small shelf that held a dozen or so books. Quickly they gathered under it.
Unfortunately the bookshelf was too high for the Minions to reach. Not that it stopped them from jumping up at it.
After several failed attempts one of the smarter Minions decided to use a Green that had stumbled and fallen as a springboard. He managed to catch the top of the book with his claw before he fell down, sending him down onto his unfortunate brethren. The book hung on the edge for a second before it tumbled down, hitting the Green on the head and knocking it out cold.
The rest of the Minions gathered to look at the book. One of them snorted with disgust.
“Ugh, unicorn…” It gagged and reached out to try and pry the image of the unicorn from the cover. A slap made him pull his claw back.
“Mastah won’t be happy if the booksy is damaged.” The group’s leader snarled before taking the book and putting it in a sack that he took from his waist. “Mastah will be pleased with dis… Now get the other booksies.”
Now that they knew what to do the Minions helped each other to get to the rest of the books. Soon the sack was full and the shelf was empty.
“Take the booksies to the Mastah.” The leader shoved the sack into the hands of another Green who gave a sloppy salute and ran through the back door to drop the sack into the Minion Gate.
Normally the Minions would’ve called the task complete, since they weren’t out to kill anything. But they were the first ones on the surface for a thousand years, and so they wanted to stretch their legs a bit… And besides, if they brought in more books they would surely be rewarded, right?
And so the Minions set on, silently wreaking havoc as they infiltrated house after house. Here they would defecate in a flower bush, there they would steal some instruments and bits or rip at some clothes that were hung to dry… Occasionally one would run back to the Minion Gate and drop a sack of loot into the Minion Gate. They kept this up for hours, until they all felt a tug on their mind, not unlike the tugging of a leash.
Their Master was calling them back.
Taking the last of the loot from the house (a nice set of kitchen knifes that could easily be repurposed into weapons), the Greens made their way back to the Minion Gate. As they passed a clothesline a certain Minion that went by the name of Putrid paused. His large yellow eyes stopped on a nice yellow sundress that somehow remained intact after the Minions’ rampage. Reaching up he plucked it from the clothesline. Holding it in one claw Putrid ran the other over the fabric in a manner that made it want to say the words “My precious”... Fortunately the Green resisted the temptation and stashed the dress away before hurrying into the Minion Gate.
An hour later the first resident of Plowton woke up and discovered what the Minions had done. Her screams woke up the neighbors, starting a chain reaction that would amuse young foals for generations to come… Assuming anyone was left to tell them, of course.
Back in the throne room Gnarl, as the only intelligent Minion, had the unfortunate task of sorting through the books that the Greens acquired. Why unfortunate?
“Agh! My eyes! How can such a monstrosity be allowed to exist?”
That was why. Right now Gnarl was looking at a children’s coloring book. His eyes had the misfortune of gazing upon a bright pink-colored pony… And this wasn’t the first time he had witnessed something so repulsive. A lot of the books were illustrated with pictures of ponies happily doing everyday stuff as if Evil didn’t exist there… As if it wasn’t around to make their lives miserable…
It was a small consolation that they would soon be back outside, wreaking havoc upon the unfortunate ponies. The Tower was nearly fully repaired, with the Forge operational and Netherstone lifts once more floating around, providing easier access to the different levels. The Minions were arming themselves with new weapons and pieces of armor… Though Gnarl knew that they would put on whatever else they found as soon as possible… He still remembered his times when he was a young Minion… Oh the things he put on his head…
In the meantime, the Overlord was leaning over a table that the Minions had brought in for him. Several books were opened in front of him. He was finishing browsing through a history book before he tossed it on the far side of the table. The only relevant thing he found was that Equestria had been at peace for centuries…
Looking through the other books he reached out and grabbed one that instead of a title had a unicorn’s head on the front cover. The title was on the first page: Equestrian Myths and Legends. Now that would be useful… A thousand years in slumber could make anyone into a legend… And so he began to read…
A couple of minutes later the Overlord’s roar echoed through the throne room as the book was hurled through the air, landing a few meters away from Gnarl. The Minion looked at the armored figure before hobbling to the object of his ire. Picking it up he flipped through the pages until he found the stories that his Master had just read.
“Oh my…” He said as he looked upon the two stories… The Mare in the Moon and The Overlord. He could see what ired his Lord so much… Neither of the stories was true. Luna turning into Nightmare Moon because she grew resentful and bitter? Hah! And the Overlord’s legend… That made the old Minion spit to the side.
“That wench! She dared twist the truth like that?” Gnarl growled. The book claimed that the Overlord was defeated by Celestia, that his evil Empire was destroyed and that his slaves were freed by her…
Lies.
Gnarl could still remember that day...
The greatsword sliced through the air, only to be blocked by a crossed pair of golden shortswords. The pony that was wielding the swords, a white unicorn stallion by the name Sharp Blade, grunted as the force of the impact caused a strain on his magic.
”Give up, blackguard! Thou shalt not prevail!” The pony growled. He actually looked a bit intimidating, clad in the golden and purple armor of a Captain of the Guard and wielding his weapons of choice… Unfortunately, he was fighting against a creature that had killed hundreds without mercy. A being that faced off dragons without flinching.
The Overlord didn’t reply as he pushed his enemy’s swords away and tried to strike him down. The unicorn sidestepped the slash and retaliated with a series of jabs. The human took a few of them with his armor as he stepped back, out of the weapon’s reach.
The two combatants began to circle each other, using the lull in their duel to take a breather. All around them Minions and traitorous Lunar Guard were fighting against the Solar Guard and the members of the Lunar Guard who resisted the corruption.
The sky was full of pegasi who fought each other. From time to time one would fall down, dead or about to die when he or she impacted the unforgiving ground.
Towering behind Sharp Blade was the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters. The once majestic structure bore the scars of the sieges that the Overlord laid upon it. And now it was suffering even more damage as wayward spells impacted it, blowing off masonry.
And finally, above the battlefield, fought the two sisters… Celestia and Luna… Or, as she was known now, Nightmare Moon, the Overlord’s Mistress.
Both the Overlord and Sharp Blade were aware of all this happening. And both were more or less indifferent to it… They had a score to settle, a grudge that began ever since the Overlord made his presence known in Equestria. They both knew that only one of them would walk from this battlefield alive…
As if by an unseen signal the two warriors lunged forward, resuming their duel. The Overlord led with an outstretched left hand, shooting a Fireball at the unicorn. Blade batted it away with one of his swords. However, before he could bring it back to properly defend against his opponent it was batted out of his magical grasp. The unicorn had no time to retrieve it as he was forced on the defensive. Blow after blow was deflected. Sweat poured from under the stallion’s helmet as he backpedalled, struggling to keep the Overlord’s sword away from him.
Battlefield awareness was something vital in any fight. Especially when the battlefield could change… Sharp Blade was an excellent warrior and commander, but even he could fall prey to the changes in scenery… Like the Pegasus’ corpse that he tripped over. The Overlord immediately saw his chance and closed in with a mighty overhead blow. Blade raised his sword to block the strike, pushing against the human’s blade.
He never saw the armored boot that hit him in the face…
The purple helmet flew through the air, landing several meters from where the stallion himself landed. Raising his head from the ground Blade shook it, his short-cropped sapphire-blue mane sending sweat flying everywhere.
A shadow loomed over the pony. Looking up he barely managed to grasp a nearby sword in his magical aura and lift it in front of him to block the first strike from the Overlord’s most feared spell - the Evil Presence. Evil power clashed into the sword in the form of lightning, stray sparks shooting out everywhere. Blade grit his teeth as he tried to hold under the onslaught.
The Overlord was amused… This pony continued to defy him to the very end… Holding his fist up he channeled his evil energies. The light in the air seemed to move away, as if frightened and repulsed by the darkness. Then he released it into a strong blast of dark magic that blew the sword away. Now defenseless, Blade was subjected to the full force of his Evil Presence.
The unicorn’s screams rose over the din of the battle as the dark energies coursed through his body, causing unimaginable pain. The pony writhed under the spell, screaming his lungs out. The overlord stepped closer, adding more power to the spell.
Blade could feel his memories being stripped off one by one… Gritting his teeth he tried to fight it… This was why the Evil Presence was so feared - it had three stages. First stage caused unimaginable pain to the target. The second stage stripped off their memories before filling the husk with nothing but devotion to the Overlord, turning them into his slave…
The last memories flashed in front of Sharp Blade’s eyes. His wife and children… A smile came onto the unicorn’s face as he recalled how he sent them to Canterlot.
The memory was destroyed, leaving behind the empty husk that was once Sharp Blade...
Then there was only devotion to his Master…
And then there was nothing...
The Overlord watched as the unicorn’s flesh dissolved, leaving behind an empty suit of armor. The third stage of the Evil Presence spell was death… The Dark energy overcharging the victim’s body, dissolving it into nothing. Some ponies called it a mercy killing… But it wasn’t. For the Evil Presence spell didn’t just destroy the mind and body… It also destroyed the soul, as the Overlord discovered after a series of dark and depraved experiments. Still, it was death on a battlefield, a worthy one for a foe like Sharp Blade.
“Ah, finally! That unicorn was getting on my nerves with his talking… It was about time he was destroyed.” Gnarl’s voice sounded in the Overlord’s ears. The wizened Minion had been watching the battle from the Netherworld Tower, clearly enjoying himself. But then again, what Minion wouldn’t enjoy fighting and slaughtering?
“Now that the annoying bug is squashed we can get back to- What?” Gnarl’s exclamation came just as a bright multicolored light washed over the battlefield. Both Minions and non-brainwashed Guards looked up at the light show. The Overlord looked up as well, his burning eyes trying to locate the source. As he squinted he could see it. That blasted bitch, Celestia, was glowing. No… It wasn’t her… The light came from six jewels that floated around her…
“The Elements of Harmony.” The Overlord could hear the old Minion spitting, as well as a muted groan that probably came from the cleaning staff. “What is Sunbutt doing..?”
Gnarl’s question was answered soon enough as a bright beam shot out from Celestia straight at Nightmare Moon. The corrupted mare’s scream brought a feeling that the Overlord experienced rarely if ever…
Dread…
There was a bright flash that blinded everybody for a few moments. When the Overlord’s vision returned he looked up at the two sisters… Only to find one. Celestia floated in the air, flapping her wings to keep herself airborne. And Nightmare… Nightmare was nowhere to be seen.
The Overlord stuck his sword in the ground, leaning against it to. His Nightmare… His precious Nightmare… She was gone… He felt numb… He felt dread and despair…
And then he felt the all-encompassing, burning rage. His hands gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, the armor rattling a bit as his body shook in anger.
“No!” The Overlord roared and threw his left hand out, sending a ball of fire at Celestia. Unfortunately she was too far away and the fireball missed her completely. But it still served as a signal for the battle to start anew, the ponies and Minions once again going at each other. The human paid no attention to them as he stalked towards the Castle, where the white Alicorn was gliding to land. Ponies tried to stop them, but he either sicced the Minions on them or used his magic to kill them.
“Sire!”
He didn’t have the patience nor the time to fight them.
“Sire, listen to me!”
He only had one goal now.
“Sire!”
He was going to kill Celestia and avenge…
“SIRE!” Gnarl’s shout caused the Overlord to hiss in pain as it echoed inside his ears.
“What, Gnarl?” He growled.
“Mistress Nightmare isn’t dead!” That made the Overlord pause mid-stride. She wasn’t dead?
“Where is she?” He asked.
“Look up, Sire.” The Overlord’s burning gaze lifted up, looking at where the Sun and the Moon stood. At first he didn’t see anything unusual. Then… Then he saw a familiar visage in the Moon.
“If I am correct she has been imprisoned, Sire.” Gnarl continued. “You must remember, the Elements do not kill. They couldn’t kill that thing Discord, they would certainly leave Nightmare alive. No, sire. She has been imprisoned in the Moon.”
“For how long?” The Overlord immediately asked.
“I am not sure, Master. It could be months, years, decades… But my money is on centuries. As much as it pains me to admit it, the Elements are powerful, and even Nightmare’s magic will need a lot of time to erode the walls of her prison.” That calmed the Overlord down… Not by much, but now he could think clearly.
“Then I shall kill Celestia and await for Nightmare’s return.” With that the human continued walking towards the castle.
“Master, no!” Gnarl stopped him again. “It will not work favorably for you.”
“Explain!”
“Sire, as you know, your subjects will need food. Your Minions need food. And we can not grow food without the sun. As much as it would please me to see Sunbutt dead, she is needed to the rotation of the Day and Night. Unless you have another Alicorn on hand, Sire?”
“Then I shall corrupt her.” It was a simple solution. And everyone knew that simple solutions were the best.
“I wouldn’t advise that, Sire. Nightmare would not be happy if she returned and found you with Sunbutt. And, as I pointed out, we do not know how long will she be imprisoned. Would you like to spend the centuries waiting for her, with her sister there every day to remind you?” As much as the Overlord didn’t want to admit it, Gnarl was right. The Minion was too wise sometimes…
“And there is no guarantee that you will live that long.” Gnarl continued.
“What would you advise then?”
“Retreat.” That word rendered the human speechless. Retreat? That was something that others do, not the Overlord.
“In all my years, all my battles, I have fought to the end. I have yet to be defeated. And now you wish me to retreat?” He growled menacingly.
“It is the only option, Sire. Retreat, and we shall plan of a course of action.”
With another growl the Overlord raised his left hand. The command jewel on its back flashed. The sound of a horn reverberated over the battlefield. All Minions paused their fighting before turning tail, running back towards the Minion Gates. The Overlord sent one last hate-filled look towards the castle before turning around, walking into the Netherworld Gate. With a flash of light he disappeared, leaving behind only the brainwashed Lunar Guard…
And so the bitch had taken the Overlord’s tactical retreat and twisted it into a victory… Well, it was, but it wasn't as glorious as the tale told. No, the Overlord just returned to the Netherworld tower, crafted his plan to slumber until Nightmare was freed and then enacted it. As for his slaves… Well, the Minions went to bed with full stomachs. And his former Empire on the surface was destroyed, either from the passage of time or by the sunbitch.
“There is a benefit in this situation, Master.” Gnarl said, hobbling to the table and putting the book back on it. “The ponies think of us as a fairy tale. This will only make their fear of you much more satisfying.” The Overlord looked at the Minion. He was right…
A flash of color drew the Overlord’s eyes to the side. Turning his head he could only blink at the sight. It was a Minion… A Green Minion, wearing a yellow sundress… Both the Overlord and Gnarl stared at him as he happily made his way to one of the side passages.
“Gnarl…”
“I saw it too, Sire.”
Life in the Netherworld Tower was getting back to normal… As normal as it could be with the Minions, that is.
And so the day of the Summer Solstice (or the Summer Sun Celebration, as the ponies called it) came. Many beings made their plans for that day… The towns planned the festivities, the ponies planned their private celebrations… And two beings made their own, special plans for that day.
Princess Celestia, one of the greatest schemers in the history of Equestria (not that anyone would know that, she had made sure of it) wore a smile on her face as she watched her plans come to fruition. The Alicorn princess had carefully manipulated the events that would lead to her sister’s redemption… And it wasn’t easy. She had to gather the newest Bearers of the Elements of Harmony in one single town, something that challenged even her skills. Then she had to plan the damage control for when her sister got out and held the Moon in the sky… And then she would have to reintroduce Luna to a modern Equestria…
While the Princess made her plans in the highest towers of Canterlot, the Overlord outlined his own in the deepest reaches of the Netherworld Tower. He had determined the date of Nightmare Moon’s return and the day was approaching fast. And another book had told him where he would have to go to find her.
Soon… Soon he would be reunited with her…
And then he would make Celestia pay...
“Sire, before you leave, I have a suggestion.” The Overlord’s burning eyes looked at Gnarl as he put his helmet on and adjusted it to be more comfortable. Today was the day of Nightmare Moon’s return, and the human was getting ready. His Arcanium armor was polished, his Mana reserves charged to full… He was nearly ready to set on.
“As you may remember, Sire, you spread a number of Tokens to alternative Equestrias during your reign a thousand years ago.” Of course the Overlord remembered… It had been suggested by… a certain someone that he didn’t want to think about… But it had paid out. The experiences in these other, alternative worlds helped him immensely. “I would suggest you do this again. Your connection with them expired during our slumber, Master.”
“Have Giblet create the Token.” The Overlord commanded as he reached to the rack of weapons and pulled out his weapon for this encounter. The large mace rested comfortably in his hand as he swung it up, resting its end on his shoulder.
“I have already taken the liberty of tasking Giblet with that, Sire. The Token was completed half an hour ago.” Gnarl reached inside his cloak, his claws digging around for a second before he pulled out the object out. The Overlord took the Token from his adviser’s claws and looked over it. The less than palm-size wide black disk with the Overlord’s sigil engraved on both sides shone under the torches’ light, just like he remembered…
Turning around he walked over to the stones that served as lifts to the different levels of the Tower. An unspoken command had him taken down to the Throne Room. The Minion Guard saluted as he passed them on his way towards the Netherworld gate.
Another command had the stairs under the Gate open in an iris-like fashion. The stones receded to the sides, revealing a swirling mass of energy. If one’s eyes were able to pierce it then they would have seen the smooth orb that was the Tower Heart, and the lake of lava directly underneath it.
This was the Netherworld’s energy, generated by the Tower Heart itself. It was what made life in the Tower possible… It gave power to everything that needed it, from the lifts to the river that Mortis used to resurrect dead Minions.
Normally it would take a great deal of magical power to transport something through the Void, not to mention a great deal of preparation and some very rare ingredients, with something that had already travelled through it being the main one. However, the Overlord had a way around those limitations...
The Netherworld energy, the same thing that connected the Tower to the multitude of Gates that were scattered throughout the lands during his reign, would work both as a power source and substitute for some ingredients. A substitute for another vital component was there as well. The Overlord himself was a being that had travelled through the Void, and as such he had its “scent”, for the lack of a better term. That "scent" was in everything that had come with him, from his old clothes that were still kept in a protected chest hidden in his chambers, to his flesh and soul. It was also imbued in his magic, the very thing that he was now channeling directly in the field of energy below him.
The swirling mass twisted in ways the mind was not meant to comprehend before a hole opened in its center. Slowly it expanded, a perfect sphere of black that led to the Void itself.
With the Portal opened the Overlord held the Token high above it. The light in the throne room began to dim as he channeled his Evil Presence spell into the black disk, filling it with his essence.
“I am the Overlord! Scourge of Equestria! Corrupter of innocence! If you seek to dominate the weak. If you wish to destroy all who oppose you. If you are willing to pay the price, then you may call upon my aid!”
By now the Token was sufficiently imbued with his Evil Presence. The disk sparkled with dark power before it settled down. Only those worthy of the Overlord’s help would be able to feel the power within and call upon it. Unclenching his fingers he let the Token drop into the modified Netherworld Portal. He could feel his connection with it branch out as the disk was multiplied, the Void sending it throughout the Multiverse.
“I believe it is done, Master. I’m sure that calls from aid from other evil-doers will start arriving soon. Oh glorious co-operation!” Gnarl said, approaching the Overlord. The old Minion tried not to look into the Portal to the Void before the stone steps rearranged themselves over it. “Now, I believe you have a date with your Mistress, Sire. One that is long-overdue… It is best not to keep your lady waiting. You know how women are.”
The Overlord nodded in agreement. It would be prudent to get to his Nightmare before Celestia tries to seal her again, or purge her of his Evil energies, and he couldn’t let her do that. Walking down the stairs to the center he raised his left arm towards the ceiling. The jewel flashed as he commanded the Tower to transport him.
Now, normally, petitioners and other idiots who wanted to meet with the Overlord were dumped down the same Netherworld energy that he briefly modified and dropped his Token into. But he was the Overlord. He had a more dignified, not to mention a cooler way to travel from and to his Netherworld Tower.
Five curved spikes descended from the ceiling above the Overlord, spiralling as they surrounded him, like the claw of a beast reaching for its prey. The Netherworld’s mystic energies swirled in their center before sucking the armored figure up, immediately transporting him to his chosen destination…
The Everfree forest stood as it always has - dark, wild and unnatural… At least that was what the ponies thought. They could leash and control Nature anywhere they settled, except for this patch of land…
Of course, for the other species on this planet, the Everfree was a perfectly normal place, if a bit more dangerous than other forests. After all, it did have Timberwolves, Manticores and Hydras living in it…
And now it was going to be host to several other dangerous creatures…
Several bunnies looked up from their lounging spot as the ground in the clearing shook. A large metal drill burst from the ground, sending dust and debris everywhere. The fluffy creatures quickly scattered into the bushes, not looking back as the drill separated like a claw, forming a raised dais surrounded by spikes. Blue light shone in a beam from the center, illuminating the otherwise dark clearing.
The Overlord’s imposing figure materialized from the Netherworld Portal, his burning eyes scanning the area as four Minion Gates, one for each Minion type burst from the ground. Satisfied that everything looked good he stepped down from the Gate and raised his left hand, the jewel on its back flashing as he sent a command.
Hordes of Minions jumped from the holes, whooping in joy as they breathed outside air for the first time in a millenium. The creatures looked around before running in formation behind their Master. When they stopped coming out there were seven Browns, six Reds, seven Greens and three Blues, all waiting impatiently behind him.
Twenty-three Minions… He could command more, whole legions of them… But he wanted to be subtle today. Which is why he had taken only enough to be able to deal with any obstacle in his path.
“Testing, testing, one two? Is this thing working?” Gnarl’s voice came directly into the Overlord’s ears. The old Minion was still in the Netherworld, using the Tower Heart to communicate with the human while hearing and seeing everything he did. “Can you hear me Master? Oh, there you are!”
“I hear you, Gnarl. Guide me to the Castle. Our time is short, and the area has changed from a thousand years ago.” The Overlord commanded.
“Ah, yes. If these maps are correct then the Castle of the two Pony Sisters…” Gnarl didn’t bother hiding the disgust in his voice. “...is directly to the West. That would be your current left, Sire.”
The Overlord nodded and looked to his left. Thick bushes and tree trunks barred his way. In another situation that would just mean that he would have to seek some other way around. However, such things were only a minor obstacle for someone with a horde of Minions behind his back.
Raising his hand up he pointed a finger at the trees and brushes. The Minions happily obeyed his command, surging forward and starting to do what they did best. The Browns and Greens chopped and bashed at the trees, turning them into splinters while the Reds burned the underbrush. Soon there was a clear path in front of the Overlord who strode forward at a sedate pace.
It didn’t take long for them to emerge in another clearing. There seemed to be a problem though… A pack of Timberwolves had taken residence in it.
“Ah, I was wondering what had happened with that pony’s experiments… It seems that they have survived, even after a thousand years.” Gnarl commented as the wooden beasts looked up at the small horde of Minions and snarled. “Unfortunately, they seem to have forgotten who was on top of the food chain. Remind them how things are done, Master!”
The beasts didn’t wait for an invitation as they charged forward. But the Overlord didn’t wait either as he commanded the Reds to attack. The Minions complied, breathing fire in their hands before throwing the balls of flame at the wolves. Three of them were hit, catching on fire instantly. Within seconds they were dead, nothing more than piles of ash and charred wood. But the rest didn’t falter, continuing to charge. The Browns surged forward to meet them, maces, swords and axes at the ready. The charging beasts met the chaotic horde… Barks and whoops of joy mixed in the air as the battle commenced, the wolves tearing apart several Minions before they were bashed into pieces.
One of the wolves managed to tear through the wall of Minions and went straight for the Overlord. It leaped in the air, jaws wide open as it went for the human’s neck. Unfortunately, that also made it unable to dodge… The Overlord’s mace intercepted its flight, smashing the beast apart.
“Huh… Life here must’ve made them soft…” Gnarl commented. Only two Browns had died in the short battle… “Oh well, nothing can be done.” The Overlord could hear the shrug in the old Minion’s voice. And he had to agree… Back in the days the casualties would’ve been higher…
“This world is soft.” The Overlord said as he directed the Blues to resurrect the fallen Minions. As he was about to leave the clearing he saw the twigs that were left from the wolves start to twitch. Then, in front of his eyes, they started to come together and form a massive Timberwolf, easily three meters in height.
“Oh, now this is new…” Was Gnarl impressed by that? The Overlord couldn’t tell… And he didn’t have time to wonder as the massive Timberwolf roared at him before swiping with his paw. The human jumped back to avoid the wooden claws that nearly grazed him. Several Minions weren’t so fast and were sent in the air, some disappearing in the woods and the unlucky ones hitting the trees with a crunch.
Looking around the Overlord assessed the battlefield. It was fairly bare, with two entrances, one behind him and one behind the wolf. A small rock formation to the side was the only notable thing and… The rocks!
The jewel on the back of his hand flashed green as he motioned to it. The Greens quickly made their way to it as the Reds and Browns started to attack the beast, burning and chopping away at its legs and torso. It didn’t do much though, as it was covered in the bark of some tree that was at the same time hard to cut or smash and hard to burn...
As the Greens climbed on top of the rocks they had a view of the massive Timberwolf. Using the height advantage they jumped on its back, using their claws to remove pieces of its hard armor to uncover the softer insides. The wolf tried to dislodge them, but they held on too tight. The only two that it managed to remove managed to scamper away with the help of a Fireball from the Overlord.
A large piece of bark fell from its side, revealing softer, burnable wood. The Overlord immediately took advantage of the weak spot, pointing his left hand towards it. A stream of fire surged out as he cast the Flamethrower spell. The beast roared in pain as its insides caught fire, starting to trash around. The Greens jumped from it before it fell down, twitching and smoking.
The Overlord calmly walked over to the wounded being. The gap in its armor was sending a column of smoke up in the air. For a second the Overlord debated letting it live, but then decided not to. The thing’s Lifeforce would help him with building up his army… Pointing a finger at the wound he channeled his magic in the gauntlet. A ball of fire shot out and the Timberwolf exploded. The only thing left behind was a charred spot and glowing balls of yellow and green energy that the Minions immediately went to collect and present to the Overlord with cries of “For the Mastah!”
This was Lifeforce… The energy that the Hives used to create more Minions… It was crucial for the Overlord’s efforts… No Lifeforce meant no new Minions, and he needed them… There were many casualties in the first few days of their awakening, many of the Browns, Greens and Blues managing to fall through the holes in the Tower, suffering a fiery death in the sea of lava. Quite a few Reds managed to fall as well, but they just swam back to the shore and found their way back to their workplaces… It had even become a recreational activity for them, something that the Overlord watched from time to time to amuse himself.
Hmm… Perhaps he could make Lava Diving into a sport…
His musings were cut short as he heard the bushes rustle. The Minions gathered around him, ready to face the new threat. The Overlord readied his weapon as he searched for his new enemy.
Finally they appeared. A dozen or so Timberwolves crawled out of the bushes. At first the Minions tried to charge forward, but a command held them back. These wolves weren’t acting aggressively… No, they were hunched over, staying low as they dragged themselves forward, their ears pulled back, their tails tucked between their legs…
Before coming to Equestria the Overlord knew a lot about dogs… And even if he hadn’t met a normal canine during his time here, he still remembered what a submissive dog looked like. And the Timberwolves were a textbook example of that.
Waving his hand he commanded the Minions to step aside before he walked up to the closest one. The wolf was looking to the side, avoiding eye contact. It started to whimper as the Overlord reached down… and patted its head. It froze at the contact before it started to wag its tail as the human continued to pet it. This continued for a few seconds before the Overlord rose up, the wolf following suit. A sound made him look to the side, where one Brown was petting another wolf.
“Good wolfy.” The Minion said before hopping on the back of the Timberwolf. The animal was startled at first, but a scratch behind its ears made it docile again.
“Well, Sire, it looks like your show of strength has made you these Timberwolves’s Alpha, which had the added effect of them allowing the Browns to mount them.” Gnarl said in the Overlord’s head as the rest of the Browns jumped on their rides. It didn’t take them long to move behind their Master, coming in a loose formation.
Nodding in satisfaction the Overlord looked up at the moon. The face of his beloved was still there… But he knew it wouldn’t be for long. Morning was approaching… With the thought of their reunion he continued forward. The path from here on was a bit clearer, no doubt being a trail that the Browns’ new friends made. Finally, after an uneventful fifteen minutes of walking through the forest, he saw his target.
The first thing he saw was the castle itself. The once majestic structure that had been badly damaged during the last battle before the Overlord went to his slumber had suffered the passage of time worse than the Netherworld Tower. It was a small wonder that it was still standing… The next thing that he saw was the biggest obstacle to reaching the castle...
“Oh my, it seems that the old moat has eroded over time, becoming a gorge… Look around, Sire, there must be a way past it!” Gnarl said as the Overlord walked to the chasm, looking down in it. There was no way to go down and then climb the walls back up, so that was out of the question. So he set on to look for another way.
Walking alongside the gorge he found what he was looking for - a tall tree that seemed ready to fall down. Unfortunately, it was on the other side of the chasm. There was one problem though… there was no way for him to jump across, not to mention the Minions… Unless…
“Sire, canines are great jumpers. Perhaps our new friends can help us with our problem.” The Overlord nodded and directed the Browns. The mounted Minions drove their steeds forward, the wooden creatures’ mighty legs propelling them fast. Coming to the edge of the gorge they jumped, clearing the gap with ease. Immediately they swarmed the old tree, jumping and bashing against it. It didn’t take much for it to topple with a creak, falling across the chasm and creating a bridge. The Overlord tapped it with his mace a few times. It seemed sturdy enough… Still, he sent his Minions first, having them test it out. Seeing that it held under the weight of several Minions at once, he climbed on top of the tree and started making his way across.
Just as he reached the middle of the tree he heard a sound he didn’t want to hear. The sound of wood breaking… That prompted him to break into an all-out run. It was an un-Overlordy action, but his life was a bit more important as the tree broke apart and fell in the chasm just as he leaped from it.
Standing up the Overlord brushed the dirt from his armor and looked up at the ancient structure. If he knew his Nightmare Moon, and he knew her well in all senses of the word, including the biblical one, she would come here soon, followed by her sister… Her, or the ones chosen by sunbutt to be the new bearers of the Elements of Harmony...
Walking into the castle the Overlord glanced at the statue in the hall. He could feel a familiar magic emanating from the orbs… The Elements of Harmony… A smile formed under the cloth that covered the bottom half of his face. He could destroy them and Celestia would stand no chance against him and his beloved…
The Overlord strode to the statue that contained the Elements. Lifting the mace from his shoulder he took a stance, grasping it with two hands before swinging with all his might. The force behind the blow was enough to shatter a stone wall, something that the human had done several times before.
And yet, his arm was halted by an invisible force before the mace made contact, the steel stopping centimeters from the impact. The Overlord’s eyes widened as he tried to push the weapon closer, but to no avail.
With a growl he pulled his hand back, meeting no resistance. Lifting the mace high above his head he brought it down, trying to smash the magical artifacts again. And once again he was stopped… Why? Why couldn’t he destroy them? There was no spell barrier that kept them safe, he would’ve seen it upon impact. No, it was something… else…
“You don’t want them destroyed?” The Overlord whispered, his eyes narrowing at the five orbs, glaring as if he could destroy them like that. “Then so be it.” With a snarl he turned around, motioning for the Minions to follow him as he walked through the ancient castle’s corridors…
As the Overlord set on to prepare his ambush the image of the Mare in the Moon disappeared from the celestial body…
And so the time came. The six mares that would become Equestria’s greatest heroes had braved the challenges of the Everfree forest, overcoming the trials of Honesty, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity and Loyalty. They had gone past dangerous landslides, a hurt manticore, enchanted trees, an upset river serpent and the three Shadowbolts.
Not even the putrid stench that made them gag when they entered the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters deterred them...
Now, the six friends were facing off against Nightmare Moon herself. Just a second ago Twilight Sparkle, Princess Celestia had her revelation about the true nature of the Elements of Harmony, as well as the Spark that would reveal the Sixth Element. The six mares were floating in the air, the shattered remains of the Elements of Harmony forming upon their necks…
“No!” Nightmare Moon shouted as she felt that accursed power building up. No, she couldn’t be banished again, not before she had the chance to see him... Alas, it seemed that she was doomed… Only a miracle could save her now…
And a miracle did happen, in a way. Nightmare Moon’s eyes widened comically as six shapes jumped from the rafters, landing on the ponies’ backs and sending them crashing on the ground. The Green Minion that landed on Twilight’s back quickly snatched the crown that was the physical manifestation of the Element of Magic, while the others used their deft fingers to remove the necklaces from her new friends’ necks (and to ruffle Rarity’s mane, to her great distress) before the six creatures jumped away and fled.
“What in Tarnation?”
“Hey, get back here!”
“Aaaaaah! My mane!”
“Eeep!”
“Squeak!”
“What the…”
The six mares’ reactions were as different as themselves, but they shared one trait: confusion.
Confusion at what just happened.
Confusion at what were these strange assailants.
Confusion… Which gave way to fear as the sinister laughter echoed all around them, the sound bouncing off the walls. The six mares quickly forgot about the Elements of Harmony as they huddled close, nearly forgotten instincts telling them that they would be safe that way…
In the meantime, Nightmare Moon was staring at the six Green Minions, her jaw agape. It took her a few seconds before she could shake her stupor, but once that was done she threw her head back, laughing merrily.
“Oh, my dear beloved… I should’ve recognized the smell of your Minions…” She said with a chuckle. The only reason she didn’t was because she was set on bringing vengeance upon her sister, as well as preventing the Elements from being reactivated and used against her… Again.
The other six mares looked around, trying to locate who was she addressing. And then came the sound…
At first they thought it was the sound of normal hoofsteps… But they sounded wrong… Irregular, half… And the sound, it was as if whatever pony was doing it was wearing solid steel horseshoes…
And then the source appeared from the stairwell… The six mares cowered in fear as the armored figure’s burning gaze swept over them, much more terrifying than the wicked armor or the massive mace on his back. It made them feel like the prey species that they were…
After what seemed like ages (but was in fact less than two seconds) he looked past them and to Nightmare Moon. The mare immediately knelt in submission, a happy smile on her face.
“Beloved.” She greeted the human as he stepped past the six mares and approached her, the small horde of Minions following him. A motion of his hand allowed her to rise, an order she was more than happy to obey. While she was fully devoted to him, the six mortal ponies shouldn’t see her like this…
“Master, we…” Nightmare began, but the human’s deep voice interrupted her.
“This is not the time.” He said, turning to face the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. Three of the mares seemed ready to faint just at the sound of his voice, and… No, wait… The Overlord squinted with his eyes (not that anyone could tell). One of them was standing too motionless… He had the feeling that the yellow pegasus with the silly name (then again, they all had silly names) had somehow fainted and was only standing up due to her muscles locking in fear…
Weak… Pathetic… And highly amusing, the Overlord thought with a chuckle. Doubly so for the other three mares that were glaring at him. The orange Earth pony and the cyan pegasus looked ready to try and charge him… He almost wished they did, he would’ve loved to hurt Celestia’s new toys…
And then he met the eyes of the final pony, the purple unicorn… Twilight, he had heard the others call her… She seemed to be the leader of this ragtag group and the Element of Magic itself…
As the Overlord’s burning eyes met her violet ones he could see a mixture of emotions in them… There was the fear that he was accustomed to, as well as the confusion he expected. But there was something else there, something that caught his attention.
Curiosity…
This one… He would have to be careful about her…
In the meantime, the six friends were all trying to move, to do something. And yet they couldn’t, even Applejack and Rainbow Dash, who’s brave facade was hanging by a thread…
“Wh-who are you?” Twilight asked the question that was in the thoughts of all six of them. The helmet… It looked familiar… As if she had seen it somewhere, but where?
“He is thy Lord and Master, plebeian!” Nightmare Moon spoke, her wings flaring as she took a step forward. “He is thy Overlord!”
All six mares gasped and huddled even closer as she mentioned the title. The foal’s tale of the Overlord was as famous as Nightmare Moon’s, and was discarded as such. But tonight they had met one legend… They couldn’t dismiss the notion that another one was up and about after a thousand years of slumber…
“You six…” The Overlord spoke. “You are the new bearers of the Elements of Harmony.” The mares’ eyes were drawn to his left hand as he raised it, the jewel on the back of the gauntlet flashing green. Six Minions materialized from the shadows, the Elements held in their grasp as they hurried to him and presented their loot.
The Overlord reached down, the Minions piling the six pieces of jewelry in his hand. He made a show of inspecting the six pieces of the Elements of Harmony for a moment before he clenched his fist.
“No!” The mares gasped, thinking that he had crushed them. The truth was that they were just transported to his treasury, an awfully convenient way to plunder treasure and take it back without having to worry about it being stolen along the way.
“You… You destroyed them…” Twilight gasped, sitting down as she realized what that meant. The Elements of Harmony were the only thing that could stop Nightmare Moon and return Princess Celestia… Without them...
“No… Princess Celestia…” The purple unicorn looked ready to cry in despair, and her friends were more or less on the same track. The Overlord just stared impassively, while Nightmare Moon chuckled.
“Oh, my sun-loving sister… She has fled, like the peaceful coward she was…” The alicorn spat the words out, slamming her hoof down in irritation. The six mares took a step back in fear as the stone under her broke, a small crater marking the place she struck.
“I have not!” Like shadows before the sunlight the mares’ fears and despair were dispersed as they heard the voice. Nightmare Moon didn’t share their enthusiasm as she turned to face the newcomer.
“Celestia!” She spat out the name as the sun diarch flew through a window, gracefully landing on the ancient stone of her old home.
“Oh, look. Sunbutt has come to the party.” Gnarl’s voice came in the Overlord’s ears at the sight of the alicorn.
“Luna. It pains me to…” Celestia began, but was interrupted almost immediately.
“Do not speaketh that name!” Her sister shouted, her wings flaring in anger. “We are Nightmare Moon, the Overlord’s Mistress!” Now it was Celestia’s turn to flare her wings at the mentioning of the name.
“You must stop this, Luna! You are…” She tried to go through to her sister, who she believed buried under Nightmare Moon’s influence. Unfortunately, it seemed that today was “interrupt Celestia day”...
“Mine.” The Overlord’s deep voice cut like a knife as he stepped next to Nightmare Moon, laying his hand on her back. Her wings folded under his surprisingly gentle caress, her reptilian eyes closing as a cat-like purr of pleasure emanated from her chest.
“Overlord…” Celestia hissed as the two rulers locked their eyes in a silent battle of wills.
“Celestia.” He returned the “greeting”, if it could even be called as such. “Master Schemer… Grand Chessmaster…” The white alicorn grit her teeth at his words, an uncharacteristic action that shocked her pupil.
“Don’t you dare call me that, Scourge!” She hissed out, to the Overlord’s amusement.
“I only speak the truth, Schemer. But you have gotten rusty… Have you lost your touch without me?” He asked with a dark chuckle. “Look at your toys, Celestia. Do you notice anything missing?”
Celestia spared a glance at the six mares while keeping the Overlord and Nightmare Moon in her sight. She wasn’t stupid enough as to lose sight of them… This could very well be a trick for her to turn her back on them so that the fiend would attack her…
It took her a few seconds to notice it, but when she did she momentarily forgot about the two evil beings. The girls weren’t wearing anything…
The Elements of Harmony weren’t present…
Celestia let out a gasp before she faced the Overlord, who for some reason hadn’t capitalized on the opportunity.
“Where are the elements, fiend? What did you do with them?”
“I have taken them for myself.” It was a simple reply that horrified Celestia. The Elements of Harmony were the only way to purge her sister’s mind and body from Nightmare Moon’s influence. If they were in the Overlord’s possession then there was no chance for her to take them back… Nopony, no griffin, no living creature had ever entered the Netherworld Tower without permission and lived to get out… Even a thousand years ago, when the Overlord had the Dark Tower over the Netherworld Tower to provide a clear entrance, it had been impossible… And now, with the Dark Tower destroyed by her magic…
“No!” She growled, lowering her body closer to the ground. Her front leg started to paw at the floor, the hoof digging grooves in the hard stone. With a shout she unleashed a spell, her sharp horn shining with a golden aura before a beam of magic shot at the Overlord.
The human didn’t flinch as a midnight-black oval materialized in front of him in the last moment. The shot was deflected, flying over the six mares who screamed and huddled close to the ground, before it punched right through the wall behind them.
But Celestia wasn’t waiting to see the effect of her spell. She was already charging, another spell surrounding her horn and reinforcing it to act as a spear as she aimed for the Overlord’s heart. She was going to finish this in one strike, she was going to end the blackguard now…
A dark blur shot from beside the human and a moment later Nightmare Moon’s horn was locked with Celestia’s, the auras surrounding their horns sparkling from the points of contact.
The two alicorns strained for a few moments, glaring in each other’s eyes as they tried to gain the upper hand… Or hoof, horn, whatever. They continued for a few seconds before Nightmare Moon reared up and tried to buck Celestia, who dodged by a hairbreadth and returned the favor. From there the fight degenerated into a mass of flashing hooves, horns and magic that was more appropriate for a ballroom brawl and not a duel between two regal sisters.
The Overlord watched in amusement for a few seconds before he turned his attention to the others that were present. The six mares hadn’t even made a sound, their instincts telling them that if they stayed silent the danger would pass them...
Unfortunately, they had no luck with that. The Overlord raised his left hand towards them and extended a finger like Death’s judgement. The command jewel flashed briefly as he willed a command in his Minions.
The creatures let out a war cry and surged forward, ready to bash the ponies’ skulls in, burn them like twigs or slice them apart. They weren’t subtle about it either and their victims were alerted.
Twilight was the first to react. A bubble of raspberry-colored energy sprang to life, enveloping her and her friends in a protective shield just in time for a Brown to smack face-first in it, something that would’ve been hilarious in other circumstances.
As the Minion fell back unconscious another took his place, bashing the shield with his weapon, the rest of the Browns and Greens gleefully following his example as the Reds threw their fireballs.
“Ugh…” Twilight fell to her knees as she tried to maintain the shield. Silently she thanked her brother who taught her the spell… If she had used another shield it would’ve failed by now… But even this one was straining her, especially with the Blues joining in, their claws inflicting more damage to the magical construct than the other three classes’ weapons combined.
The six mares gasped as a crack appeared in the shield, spreading on the glass-like surface. A few seconds later the shield shattered, the mares screaming in fear.
“No!” Celestia’s shout was the only warning the Overlord had before a wave of fire swept through his Minions. Not even the Reds survived the intense heat that left behind only charred corpses and half-melted stone. A flash of light and Celestia teleported next to the six mares.
For a moment she met the Overlord’s eyes. Her expression sent a clear message: this wasn’t over yet. Then, with another flash of golden light, she was gone, the six mares disappearing along with her...
“No! Come back, ye coward!” Nightmare Moon shouted, the walls cracking from the sheer volume of her voice. Her wings spread and her horn was enveloped by her magical aura as she prepared to follow her sister.
“Enough!” The Overlord’s command halted her. Her magic settled down as she looked at him.
“But beloved, she is weakened! Now is the best time to attack and finish her!” It wasn’t as much of a statement as it was a plea.
“No. Let her be.” The Overlord’s command was absolute and Nightmare Moon lowered her head in submission.
“As you command, beloved.” She raised her head once more as the Overlord approached her.
“Take us to the Netherworld Tower.” The human commanded, glancing over what remained of his Minions. It was a shame that he had to lose that many, but he accomplished his goals.
He had taken the physical manifestations of the Elements of Harmony for himself. Celestia knew that he was back. And he was reunited with Nightmare Moon.
There was only one thing he could think as Nightmare Moon’s magical aura enveloped him and the pair turned into mist, disappearing from the Castle of the two Pony Sisters.
“It's all going according to my plan.”
A flash of golden light signalled the arrival of Princess Celestia and the bearers of the Elements of Harmony in her chambers. The seven mares collapsed on the spot, exhausted from their ordeal. Everypony stayed silent for a few minutes, content with just being alive after that adventure. But the silence couldn’t go on forever…
“Princess…” Twilight began, lifting her head from Celestia’s bed where she had ended on. “Was… Was this true? Was that really the Overlord?” She asked the question that was on everypony’s mind. Even though she had been the one to discover Nightmare Moon’s return she was still trying to grasp the fact that not just one, but two legendary villains had resurfaced. Silently she prayed that this wasn’t true, that the being was an illusion of some sort, or an imposter or…
“Yes…” That single word from her teacher shattered Twilight’s attempts at deluding herself.
“Wha-? But how?”
“I… I don’t know…” Celestia sighed, lowering her head on the floor. “I thought he was gone for good… That he and his Minions were dead, buried under the rubble of the Dark Tower when I destroyed it…” WIth another sigh she looked at the dark sky outside and shook her head.
“Today wasn’t supposed to end like that…” She said with a sniff and stood up. Twilight had never seen her teacher like that… It was as if the weight of the world had fallen on her shoulders.
“Today was supposed to be the day my sister returns… Today was supposed to be the day the Elements of Harmony assemble and vanquish Nightmare Moon… Not…” Celestia held back a sob.
“Not the day of the Overlord’s return…”
Twilight felt her eyes water as she saw the Princess’ pain in her eyes. Silently she hopped off the bed, wrapping her front hooves around the alicorn’s neck. Celestia’s eyes widened in surprise before she smiled and returned the embrace. She wasn’t that surprised to feel five more pairs of hooves join the hug.
After a few minutes she opened her eyes and looked at the ponies who comforted her.
“Thank you, my little ponies.” She said with a smile. “I needed that…”
“Anytime, Princess.” Applejack said, her friends nodding in agreement.
“What are we going to do now, Princess?” Twilight asked as the mares broke the hug.
“You are going to go back to your lives… There is nothing you girls can do now. As for me…” Celestia sighed. “I need to prepare…” There was much work to be done… She would have to increase recruitment for the Royal Guard, she would have to dig up old training manuals and prepare her little ponies for the Overlord, she would have to plan… So much to do, and she wasn’t sure she had the time to do it...
“But first I would have to raise the sun.” With that announcement Celestia walked towards the balcony.
“But wait, Princess…” Celestia stopped, turning back to look at Rarity. The white unicorn shrank under the gaze, but the alicorn’s smile urged her to continue. “What about Nightmare Moon? I thought you couldn’t raise the sun because of her?”
“Oh my little pony…” Celestia chuckled. “While it was true that I couldn’t raise my sun because of my sister, she won’t hold the night for long.”
“Wait, wasn’t she all “Eternal Night” and such?” Rainbow Dash scratched her head with a hoof. “I mean, that’s what she said…”
“Yes, she was.” Celestia nodded. “But now that she is reunited with the Overlord she won’t plunge the land in eternal darkness…” The alicorn looked down, thinking of the sad fate that would befall her ponies if she couldn’t stop those two.
“No… Nightmare Moon wanted eternal night, but the Overlord is worse than that…”
“How can that cretin be worse?” Applejack asked. As a farmer she knew what the effects of an eternal night would have on the world, or at least to the crops. Without sunlight the plants would die, and everything that ate them would soon follow…
“He wants to rule over all…” Celestia replied. “He wants to Dominate or Destroy everything until he is the sole ruler of Equestria. And then… The entire world…”
“But how is that worse than Nightmare Moon?”
“Because, under his rule everybody will suffer for generations. Forced to slave under his rule, to praise him, to make his infernal constructions…” The six mares gulped as they imagined it. Their friends, their family, themselves… All chained and slaving under the whip of those abominable creatures the Overlord commanded… Fluttershy fainted on the spot while Rarity moved closer to a fainting couch that Celestia had in her room before following the yellow pegasus’ example.
Sighing Celestia left the mares to think as she walked out on the balcony. Her horn shone with a golden aura as she grasped the sun with her magic and raised it over the horizon. To her relief the celestial body complied, its first rays coloring the sky in that orange hue she loved as the moon hid on the opposite side.
The Overlord could be the Ultimate Evil, but at least he could reign her sister in…
And then, to Celestia’s utter surprise, the moon came up again, making a wobbly spiral…
The Minion Guard tensed as they saw the dark mist filling the throne chamber, their weapons held at the ready as they prepared to assault the interloper. To their disappointment it turned out to be their Overlord, as well as a pleasant surprise…
“Ah, Mistress Moon. It’s a pleasure to have you back with us, milady.” Gnarl said as he walked down the stairs from the throne and bowed.
“Ah, Gnarl… We never thought we would be glad to see thine ugly face.” Nightmare Moon said with a smile before looking around. “But we are not glad to see what hath happened with the Tower…”
While the Minions worked tirelessly to repair the Netherworld Tower they still had some way to go… Resources were scarce, not to mention that they only had a couple of weeks to work at it. Scaffolding was everywhere around the walls, Minions doing their best to repair the stone.
“A thousand years of neglect would do that, Mistress. But we are making good progress towards returning the Tower to its former glory.” Gnarl nodded.
“Yes, they would… Oh well, nothing We can do for now.” Nightmare Moon once again looked down at the Minion Master. “I trust that the bedchambers are restored?”
“Oh yes, Mistress. We finished working on them days ago and managed to locate a nearby pool of water to fill in the pool.” The reply left the alicorn grinning.
“Excellent…” She said before looking to the Overlord. To her surprise the human was already walking towards the bedchamber. She hurried after him, leaving Gnarl to oversee the construction Minions.
“Beloved.” She called out as she walked into the chambers. They were just as she remembered them, with the large pool, the piles of treasure, the fantastic view of the Netherworld outside… And the grand bed… Nightmare Moon smiled and licked her lips. It had been a thousand years for her… With a flash of her horn her armor disappeared, showing her glorious body unobstructed.
“We need to plan our…” The Overlord started, but Nightmare didn’t listen to him, one of the rare cases where she would dare do something like this. Turning into mist she flew in front of the Overlord, gaining his attention before she materialized in front of the bed.
“Come, beloved. It hath been a thousand years since this bed hath been used.” Nightmare Moon said with a sultry voice as she beckoned her master behind the curtains. The Overlord grinned under the cloth that covered his mouth. World domination could wait, he was getting some tail today. His helmet clanked against the floor as he removed it, allowing his short light-brown hair to spill out. His face was just as Nightmare Moon remembered, young-looking and handsome. A shiver of pleasure coursed through her body at the thought of how she was the only one privileged to see it...
The rest of his armor was removed shortly, piling next to the bed. A brief flicker of Nightmare Moon’s horn pulled the curtains closed, giving them privacy. A few seconds later her moans filled the chamber...
The Overlord was many things - ruthless master commander, expert warrior, grand mage… He could easily rule the masses with an iron fist (like he did in the past), command an army from the frontlines, craft destructive spells and summon unimaginable horrors against his enemies…
Of course, he wasn’t perfect.. No, far from it. He needed help to rule, his skills with a sword were much better than his magic ones, he was better at leading small units of Minions rather than large armies… His plans were more on the simple side, though that was usually more effective than you’d think…
And then there were the things he wasn’t good at… Romance was something that he knew the concept of, but was unable to do (at least in the traditional sense…), his people skills were severely lacking thanks to the limited interaction he had outside his Minions and Mistress (and the occasional prisoner or petitioner), and the less said about his art skills the better… The paintings hung in the Dungeons still unnerved the guards, and reading his attempts at poetry was one of Quaver’s favorite methods of torturing the prisoners and punishing the bad Minions...
But there was one thing he really prided himself of. He was a great lover.
“Wow, Mastah!” A Minion exclaimed as he peeked through the curtains that divided the bed from the rest of the chamber. Another one shoved him a bit, his head peeking next to the first one, only for both to get a faceful of magic, courtesy of Nightmare Moon. A janitor Brown sighed and grabbed the two corpses, dragging them out for the Blues to resurrect as the tower shook under the passion of the Overlord and his Mistress, the tremors spreading even above ground...
In the world above, Princess Celestia glared up with an annoyed expression as her sister’s moon swirled through the sky in erratic patterns...
The room was empty, save for two chairs and a single occupant. A young man was sitting on one of them - a comfortable picnic chair with a steaming cup of coffee in the armrest holder. He was dressed all in black - black sweatpants, black socks and black shirt. His long hair was unbound and hiding his face as he furiously typed away on the slightly battered laptop that was set on his knees. Suddenly he paused and looked up, as if he could sense being watched.
“Ah, you’re here already?” He asked. His face was a bit gaunt and his beard was unshaven… The overall effect made him look like Jesus a bit. “Good. Welcome, dear readers, to the first Questions and Answers with the Overlord. I’m your host, the Author, or just Malcho if you prefer that.”
“Now…” The Author continued, leaning back in his seat. “I believe that it’s time for the star of the show. Please welcome… The Overlord!” The man quickly wrote something on the laptop and a door appeared in the wall. A second later it opened, allowing for the Overlord’s imposing figure to enter. His eyes scanned the room, his body tensing in the unknown setting...
“Welcome, your Evilness.” Malcho’s voice drew the Overlord’s attention to him, his burning eyes setting on the human. To his credit, the Author didn’t flinch, he just smiled. “Come, take a seat.” He said, motioning to the second chair in the room.
The Overlord looked over the throne, an exact replica of his own, before walking over to it and sitting down. Even in that pose he was as menacing as usual…
“Now, Overlord, do you know who I am?” Malcho asked.
“You are the Author.” The Overlord replied simply. He could recognize one of the two beings who were greater than him… “And before you ask, I guess that you are breaking the Fourth Wall for a reason.”
“Well…” Malcho waved a hand. “I wouldn’t call it breaking the Fourth Wall, at least not in the way Pinkie Pie does it…” The two humans looked around, as if expecting the party pony to pop in. After a few seconds of nothing happening the two shared a sigh of relief.
“Right… Thank goodness she didn’t come… It would be hard to deal with her.” Malcho said before taking a sip from the cup of coffee. “Anyway, welcome to your first Questions and Answers session. Here your fans will ask questions and you…”
“Will answer them.” The Overlord finished for him.
“Exactly. Now, are you ready?”
“I guess so. I would like to return as fast as I can anyway. Nightmare was still sleeping, and I want to get back before she wakes up… She’s the type that likes to cuddle in the morning, you know?” He asked, to which Malcho nodded.
“Yeah, I know. I’m writing her, after all. Now, let’s begin.” The Author started the blog post with the Questions and browsed through them. “Hmm… Not as many questions as I would’ve liked… Less than a dozen… Oh well. Now, where to begin with… Ah. I see one that’s directed to me.”
“Now, we’ll begin with the question from Cade Adams from Equestria… He’s asking me: “Jesus… What’s an overlord?” Well, I think that my guest is better to answer that question.” The Author turned around to look at the other human in the room.
“Well, Cade, Overlord is a title given to a powerful lord, one who rules over many peasants and other lords. In this situation I’m an Evil Overlord, the archetypal fantasy villain. My job is to rule over the weak, destroy those who oppose me and have better shags than you.”
“Ouch… That was a bad one.” Malcho commented with a chuckle as he dismissed the question. “You do get a lot of pussy, don’t you?”
“You know better than me.” The Overlord answered with a menacing chuckle.
“That I do…” The Author grinned. “Now, for the next question. Since we’re on that theme, I’m bringing you Serefin from TV World, Inaba. He asks: Do you usually bang someone after taking them to your tower?” The human looked at the Overlord for an answer.
“What kind of question is that?” The Overlord rumbled. Malcho nodded and tapped a few times on the laptop’s keyboard, bringing Serefin into the room.
The newcomer barely had the time to blink as the Overlord shot a spell at his head. His brain exploded spectacularly, not unlike that scene in Scanners.
“Did you have to do it like that?” The Author asked, not hiding his disgust as he wiped a few chunks of Serefin from himself. “It’s going to take me forever to get him out of my hair…”
“Yes.” Was the Overlord’s short reply. “Next?”
“Well, since we’re on the theme… Cyberpunked from Georgia asks: How long does it take you to clean your armor, on average? That many spikes, it doesn't look like it'd go in a warm wash with a cup of detergent.”
“I don’t know.” The Overlord shrugged. “I don’t clean them… I have several suits of armor and I just change them while giving the parts to the Blues to wash.”
“Practical as always.” Malcho added his comment with a nod. “Now… We can group the remaining questions in three categories: Religion, Politics and Relationships. Which one should we start with?”
“Hmm…” The Overlord rubbed his chin in thought. “Let’s start with the most evil one - Politics.”
“The many blood-sucking insects, eh?” Both chuckled at the old joke. “Alright then. First, Tonto from the space between worlds, from where he watches your magnificent adventure…”
“A bit stalker-ish, if you ask me…” The Overlord quipped.
“Yeah…” Malcho nodded in agreement. “He’s asking: When you begin your glorious conquest of Equestria, will you reconstruct your old EMpire in the badlands as well? And while we’re at it, you may answer the question of NightShadow76 from Equestria: Even though it may be foolish of me to ask, but are you willing to accept a pony or two in your ranks?”
“Well, Tonto the stalker, I doubt you should even ask your question.” The Overlord started in a matter-of-fact tone. “What kind of Overlord would I be without an Empire to rule? And NightShadow, the same. I’m going to need subjects to rule over, after all.”
“Very true.” Malcho nodded. “Very true. You know, you need to reconstruct the Dark Tower. After all, you need a public representation of your power.”
“You’re right. Do you think you can make it in a few chapters?”
“I’ll see what I can do.” The Author promised. “Now, I’m going to ignore Meleekanos’ question since I doubt you even care about Communism…” The Overlord nodded in agreement.
“The only social-economic system I care about is mine.” He interjected.
“Yes… So let’s go with Religion…” The two shared a grimace at the word, though the Overlord’s was hidden by his helmet. “Now, Prof_Omnom from Mount Anarch, Titan, asks if you’re a heretic…”
“I’d say no. I don’t follow any gods, after all, and I don’t plan on joining any religions in the future. Though I wouldn’t mind having a religion after me…” You could see the Overlord forming plans as he said that, thinking of the details of becoming a deity…
“I’ll consider it. And with that you also answered the question of World Bearer of the Warp. He wanted you to join the Four Gods of Chaos…”
“Heh… As if I’d ever do something like that. They may be a merry bunch, but I bow to noone.” The Overlord snorted in disgust.
“Exactly. And with that we move onto the most interesting questions…” Malcho said with a smirk, prompting the Overlord to glare at him. “Oh, don’t give me that look, you know that you’d enjoy yourself as well if the roles were reversed.”
The Overlord could only growl at that. It was true…
“Now, who should we begin with… Aha. This guy… Xu… Xlef… Ugh…” He gave up on trying to pronounce the name and tapped the laptop’s keyboard a few times. The word xluferx materialized in the air above.
“This guy from Arequipa with the unpronounceable name is wondering why you chose Luna to be your Mistress instead of her sister.” Malcho looked at the Overlord just as the armored human growled.
“Nobody questions my decisions! Bring him here to be executed! And give me a weapon!” He bellowed.
“Alright, alright… Sheesh! Hold your horses!” Malcho sighed as he typed on his keyboard again. A log appeared in front of the Overlord’s throne, the axe that was aptly named The Executioner stuck in it. The Overlord stood from his throne and lifted the massive weapon without difficulty before giving it a few test swings. Nodding in satisfaction he looked at the Author, who nodded back and pressed a single key on his keyboard.
xluferx appeared in the room, bound and gagged, his neck and head laying on the log. The Overlord lifted The Executioner in the air, holding it briefly before bringing it down. There was a thud as his victim was decapitated, the head rolling off somewhere.
“Satisfied?” The Author asked, completely unphased by the gruesome execution.
“Very much.” The Overlord replied, cradling the weapon as he returned to the throne.
“Good. But seriously, why only one and not both Alicorns?” Malcho asked in curiosity. The Overlord sighed, knowing that he can’t act against him at all, and mumbled something.
“What was that?” The Author asked, straining to hear.
"Luna's best pony..." The Overlord mumbled, to the Author’s amusement. The armored human glared at his creator as the latter almost fell from the chair with laughter. It took him a few minutes before he could compose himself enough to speak again.
“Oh god…” He chuckled. “Best pony… This is going to be fun in the future…” He chuckled again and leaned back. “Oh, I needed that…”
“Just get on with it…” The Overlord growled.
“Heh… Alright, that leaves us with the question of refferee from Marelaysia…” The Author paused for a moment before shaking his head. “Damn horse puns…”
“And to think that there will be more of them coming…” The Overlord nodded in sympathy.
“Yeah…”
“At least you don’t live in horsepun-land.”
“True…” Now it was Malcho’s turn to nod in sympathy. “Anyway, back to the show. His, or her, question has two parts. The first is: You and NMM were together for quite some time yes? Which leads to the question of how you never had a successor as of yet.” The two humans looked at each other before the Overlord sighed.
“Seriously? Someone has to ask that? Are they blind or something? I mean, I’m a human, she’s a pony. Our genetics are incompatible. I can’t sire a heir from her” He explained.
“Well…” The Author rubbed his chin in thought. “Maybe they have a spell for that?” He asked, looking back at his character.
“You think? They didn’t have anything like that when I came to Equestria.”
“Well, a thousand years is a lot of time…”
“True… I guess I should kidnap a unicorn doctor or two.” The Overlord said, making another plan in the process.
“Yeah. And now for the second part of question…” Malcho smirked before he read it. “Are you impotent?”
Silence reigned for a few minutes as the Author struggled to keep his chuckled in. The Overlord stayed silent, unmoving… As if he had shut down… Only the glow from his burning eyes intensified…
Then it started… His armor rattled as he shook in rage. The light in the room seemed to move away, as if frightened and repulsed by him…
“WHAT?” His shout was probably loud enough to be heard in the neighboring universes… It was definitely enough to deafen the Author for a bit…
“Ouch…” He mumbled, rubbing his ears.
“How dare he? How dares a lowly peasant even presume that? Gnarl! Send the Minions after this “refferee” pony… person… thing! I want him dragged in the dungeons! I shall deal with him personally!”
With that the Overlord stood up and stormed out of the door and back in his fanfiction. The Author continued to rub at his ears for a few more seconds before sighing.
“Damn… I think I lost the hearing in my left ear…” He grumbled and leaned back in his chair. “And he didn’t even wait to be dismissed… Or to answer Val’s question… Oh well, it was for the better. And just for him, I’m going to say this: what kind of Overlord will he be if he does everything when there are Minions to do the same?”
“Well, that concludes this Question and Answer session. Follow my story to see when the next one is going to be, as well as who will be the starring guests.” He typed something on his keyboard before waving to the readers.
