Dark Realities

Enter the Dark Realities contest!

Dark Realities is a story serial written by users Chicken Bond, Varkanax39, and Jareroden97. It focuses on the struggle between a resistance of freedom fighters and the combined forces of Eostra Nihiltian, the "Dark Lord," and Millennium, who have conquered the recently reformed Spherus Magna in an alternate universe.

Prologue
A cloaked figure moved through the darkened skies of the night. She strode through the land with confidence and strength, not fearing the dangerous creatures that stalked these parts. They held no threat towards her, no significance, and if they dared attack her; well, their life wouldn't last as long as they had hoped.

It was for this reason none of the local wildlife within the Black Spike Mountains dared attack Eostra Nihiltian, for although she did not look like a particularly threatening opponent, her appearance disguised the raw power at her disposal that was nearly totally unmatched.

The Elemental Prince of Annihilation strode into the assigned meeting place, and growled in frustration. As she had predicted, no being had been at this meeting place. She knew she shouldn't be here. It had only been, perhaps, a day since Teridax's death at the hands of Mata Nui and the reformation of the planet Spherus Magna, and Eostra had already begun assembling the legions of the Shadowy Ones following their mass migration to the new world.

She was certain that if she attacked now, whilst the new society of the Matoran and Agori was being built, she could conquer all of Spherus Magna in several years, at maximum, a decade. However, a mysterious telepathic message sent to her shortly after her arrival on Spherus Magna had distracted her planning, the message only saying meet within the mountains.

Whilst she knew from her own experiences throughout her life that it could merely be a trap prepared by one of her enemies, something about the message told her it wasn't; and she couldn't help but remain curious as to what this "meeting" was about.

Eostra turned to leave the clearing, when she heard the sound of heavy, armored footsteps trudging towards her. She turned towards the area where the noises were coming from, and raised her mighty trident as she took an offensive stance.

She waited a total of five seconds.

Then, out from darkness of the forest, came the rough outline of a tall and bulky, yet surprising lean, figure. Although no definitive aspects of this being's appearance could give away it's identity, the moment Eostra's eyes locked with the that of the entity's, she knew immediately who it was.

"So, the legendary "Dark Lord" of the mighty Empire of Shadows has summoned me," said Eostra bitterly.

The "Dark Lord" was a being of great power, so great that his strength perhaps rivaled her own. She didn't like beings who were on equal terms with her own advanced levels of power.

The "Dark Lord" didn't move from the darkness, almost making it seem like the shadows themselves were clinging to his body. All Eostra could truly make out were those piercing red eyes, eyes that had struck fear into the hearts of thousands who had met his gaze. Eostra was not one of them.

"I did not summon you," spoke the "Dark Lord" in a chilling tone. This confused Eostra, though did not surprise her, and she quickly realized the situation.

"The your here for the same reason I am."

Had she been able to see him, the "Dark Lord" would have been nodding.

"Indeed you are," spoke a new voice.

Eostra and the "Dark Lord" turned their heads, and before them stood tall being of vast power wielding a menacing axe. Now this time, this did take Eostra by surprise.

The being chuckled. "Allow me to introduce myself, my name is..."

"Millennium," spoke the "Dark Lord" in disbelief, "leader of the Shadow of Ages... but you cannot possibly exist. Everybody knows that the tales of Millennium are a myth, stories told to Matoran in order to scare them into working harder."

"So it would seem," spoke Eostra. "Though why do you summon us here. If the legends surrounding you are true, you possess a mighty army, and following the recent circumstances of Teridax's death, we all need to rebuild our empires."

Millennium simply smiled; a truly ugly expression. "That is why I summoned you here. This world is weak, whilst we stand strong and proud. I'm more than aware that once we reform our legions we will all attempt to claim this world as our domain. However, our three mighty factions shall, no doubt, clash in an effort to claim ultimate power."

"Then let it stay that way," cried the "Dark Lord," the tone of his voice forcing the nearby rocks to crack. "Let the strongest empire stand over the others, and rule the world."

"True," spoke Millennium. "But a war between our armies would result in huge casualties on all sides that would cripple our forces to the point where the Matoran and Agori could stage an uprising; and actually succeed."

Eostra spoke. "What are you proposing then? What solution do you suggest to this problem?"

Millennium laughed hard, prompting Eostra to launch her fearsome powers of Annihilation at the Shadow of Ages leader. This was followed by another blast of power from the "Dark Lord," who attacked Millennium merely out of cruelty, as was his nature.

Millennium shrugged off the blast, and bombarded Eostra's mind with a powerful mental blast that shattered her concentration. The smile that had been on Millennium's face had vanished, and this time, he spoke in a much more menacing tone.

"The "solution" I refer to is an alliance between our empires. We are all equals, and neither of us could truly triumph over each other in a battle, without killing ourselves off all at once. No, If we join forces, we could cause the rise and falls of civilizations on a whim, we could shatter entire mountains effortlessly, and we could even, should we unite, conquer all those celestial bodies that exist beyond this world."

Silence followed Millennium's speech before the "Dark Lord" spoke up.

"Very well. I hereby commit the vast armies of the Empire of Shadows to this alliance, with the single goal of conquering creation itself. Once this is done, we shall rule together as the universe's true, and just masters."

"Excellent!" cried Millennium. "And I therefore commit the devotion and power of the Shadow of Ages to this cause with you, "Dark Lord," and together, we will ensure the conquest of all reality itself!"

The two entities turned to face Eostra, who was still making her mind. ''This alliance is unstable, though it may suit my purposes until the time our conquests are complete. Once that is done, I have no need of them, and the art of betrayal shall be required.''

"I wouldn't try that if I were you," said the "Dark Lord."

Millennium continued the dark being's speech. "We are all powerful in our own right, and betraying each other would only critically weaken our desired reign. Face it, Elemental Prince, you need us, whether you like it or not."

"And therefore, we're the only beings you can trust," the "Dark Lord" added finally.

Eostra then raised her head, and stared at Millennium, and then at the "Dark Lord," who's crimson eyes never gestured away from Eostra. She chuckled.

"Then I, Eostra Nihiltian, ally the might of the seven Shadowy Ones to the cause of this union. And I now decree that Spherus Magna, and the worlds beyond it, shall fall!"

The "Dark Lord" spoke. "Very well. Now let us part ways for the time being, we must gather our legions, and ready them for battle."

"Indeed," finished Millennium. "And once that is done, we shall come here once again for the final time before our conquest, and once that is done, Spherus Magna shall submit before us. Now come my... friends. The time has come for us to, literally, rewrite history itself..."