The Infernal Abyss.
Ruins Of The Infernal Palace.
The Spawning Pits.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe the new minion spawning pits as a small city. Several laws of physics were either manipulated or entirely broken to allow this massive cavernous lair to exist within the Infernal Palace. Dark orange lights generated from colossal crystals hanging from the cavern's ceiling gave just enough illumination to allow visitors to see the local minion architecture. The minion city was split into four sections, each specifically designed to comfortably house a specific minion tribe.
The area where the Blue Minion Tribe shall live once rediscovered by Overlord Taylor encompassed most of the Northeast section of the minion city. Several canals, resembling those of the famous Italian city of Venice yet with a prominent minion theme, flowed through the Blues territory and converged upon a massive lake surrounded via a couple of waterfalls. Behind those waterfalls were alchemy and magical research laboratories where newborn Blue minions could learn and improve their understanding of the magical arts. Also, the heart of the lake was a tiny island where the Blue Hive would be placed once it was found in the mortal world.
The Northwest quadrant was designated for the Red Minion Tribe. Upon the Northwest's cavernous walls were house-sized volcanic vents that constantly breathed forth giant rivers of magma which travelled across the barren wasteland which comprised the Red's territory. At the journey's end, the magma rivers poured into a basin about the same size as an Olympic swimming pool. Pools filled with flesh incinerating molten magma were scattered throughout the entire area. At the edge of the basin was a five-storey tall metallic statue of a Red Minion with a platform at the base of the skull where the Red Hive would be placed after the Red Minions were finally located on Earth Bet.
Southwest was the future domain of the Green Minion Tribe. A vast jungle that was almost identical to Everlight's tropical climate, it was the perfect location for the stealthy assassins of the Overlord to practice their stealth manoeuvres. Various ways to stab someone in the back, how to move through enemy units whilst camouflaged and stop to smell the rotting foliage and decaying meats littered around the jungle should they've any free time. The unique thing about the Greens section was that it had not one but several hidden locations to store their Hive.
Finally, the southeast quadrant was occupied by the sole minion tribe currently serving the Infernal Goddess, which was, of course, the Browns. The martial specialists of the minion tribes had converted the southeast into a shanty town with various armouries, pubs, training grounds and some 'cough' entertainment buildings located at the edge of the Browns domain. The Brown Minion Hive was guarded within a castle that appeared to have been haphazardly constructed from vastly different types of stone and wood. The Browns' citadel would've given architects around the world a heart attack as such a place shouldn't be structurally sound, yet somehow the Browns had managed to make the castle stable enough to allow their Hive to be safely stored within its walls.
All in all, the new spawning pits can safely house, feed, and give proper evil education to entire armies of minions regardless of the Tribe. Yet, sadly only a small group of freshly born Browns were the sole inhabitants of the city that defied multiple laws of physics. The minion newborns were currently gathered at a random training ground. This sudden gathering was because Gnarl wanted to introduce the new Browns to their demonic Overlord, who had descended into the spawning pits to inspect the minions that would be the first soldiers for her army of evil.
Random Brown Minion Training Ground.
Overlord Taylor's first impression of the gladiator-like Arena where the Browns trained in the bloody arts of war and carnage was relatively positive. Gnarl had explained during their short journey to this location that the minion arena was stylised after the one found in the Glorious Empire's capital city. Yet, unlike their human counterpart, Giblet, thanks to the request of a certain Minion Master, had installed iron cages over the different minion arenas, thus preventing any victims with the abilities to either fly or hover in the air from escaping the hordes of bloodthirsty Brown Minions.
The Infernal Goddess planned to return here later to sharpen her combat skills with a katana and improve her overall ability to command the Brown Minions. The aforementioned Tribe's newborns were lined up before their most Malevolent Master. She smiled evilly when noticing that Quaver was not only tied up against a massive log post located at the centre of this particular Arena. But had also clearly received a terrible beating from the newborns who weren't shy in practising the art of evil on the court Jester.
The Overlord wondered for a moment if she should make it mandatory for Quaver to be the testing dummy for all Minion Tribes newborns. It would certainly keep the newborn minions from each Tribe entertained for undoubtedly months on end whilst also preventing the annoying Jester from assaulting Taylor's delicate ears with that godawful abomination he dared to call poetry. However, such future plans would have to be put on the back burner since Gnarl was done with his inspection of the new Brown minions.
"Good news, Malevolent One," Gnarl happily said whilst making his way past the rows of newborn Browns; within mere moments, the Minion Master was standing side by side with his Overlording Master. "These forty Browns were birthed perfectly healthy." The evil entities created from Taylor's life-force harvesting efforts laughed gleefully since they cannot wait to start spreading chaos and destruction in the name of their Overlord. Gnarl even chuckled when some of the Browns began hitting each other with their wooden clubs.
Gnarl folded his withered hands whilst gazing fondly at the battle maniacs known as the Brown Minions. "Ah, just look at those keen little evil faces," within mere moments, the Browns began to merrily brawl against each other whilst Taylor, and Gnarl watched the senseless carnage unfold from a relatively safe distance. "Ready to loot, pillage, spread mayhem throughout the world and if necessary die upon command of their Overlord." The aged Minion Master laughed cruelly whilst the Browns continued to fight amongst themselves.
Taylor gave a small hmmm of satisfaction. "The Browns certainly don't lack enthusiasm when it comes to violence." She saw a minion throw their club at another random Brown, which missed its target and sailed passed the brawling minions and managed to strike Quaver directly on the head causing the Jester to cry out in pain. "Which will prove useful for our exploration into the south quadrant of Everday forest." The Infernal Goddess honestly didn't know what she'll encounter during her journey through the southern areas of Everday, so it was best to have some backup in the form of the Brown Minions just in case something dangerous decided to block her path.
Gnarl nodded in agreement. "Indeed, Sire," whilst the duo comprised of master and loyal adviser conversed about finer details regarding the exploration of Everday, the Browns got bored with hurting each other and instead turned their attention towards Quaver. Who screamed in terror as the newborns charged at him with clubs raised high in the air. "As we've already discussed during the trip here, ten Browns shall act as an honour guard for your Dark Magnificence, twenty-five shall guard the Infernal Gateway, and Giblet shall busy himself with training the remaining five as apprentice blacksmiths." When the Reds were found and accepted to serve their new Overlord, The Hell Forge would need a lot of minion power to keep it working at maximum efficiency. That was why Gnarl wanted a well-trained workforce of Minion Smiths to be ready for that day.
Overlord Taylor's amber orbs gleefully watched the savage beating that Quaver was receiving from the tiny minion horde whilst replying to her adviser's statement regarding the deployment of their current forces. "Hopefully, those twenty-five Browns can protect the Infernal Gate until I can find some construction tools to build a proper fortification around our sole entry into the mortal world." The Everday Gateway was Taylor's sole connection to the mortal plane. It thus must be protected at all costs, especially since it would take years before enough Infernal energy can be generated to open another hell portal.
Truthfully, the southern expedition was a means for expanding their knowledge on Everday's current status and finding anything of value within the southern areas. Such as construction equipment, none electrical, of course, since Taylor didn't exactly trust the violence-loving minions with power tools. After the southern surveys were completed, the Abyssal Overlord hoped to have gathered enough treasure and construction equipment to allow Giblet and his apprentices to build the mighty fortress. It would serve as the primary protection for the Infernal Gateway and her army's main base of operations within Everday.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about the Browns' capabilities when guarding your assets, Sire," Gnarl lazily replied whilst stroking his white beard. "After all, Browns are the most physically adaptive fighters of the four tribes and can master any type of weapon within a few short days." Of course, the ancient minion master was quick to warn the Infernal Overlord about the Browns' tendencies to equip items that aren't useful for combat, such as pumpkins or any other random object they could get their bloodthirsty little claws on.
Taylor grunted at the information provided by her chief advisor. She'll have to keep an eye on the Browns to ensure that they don't try using anything that would cause problems during the heat of battle. "I'll try finding some weapons for them during the southern surveys," While the wooden clubs were good for sparring in the minion city's arenas, the Overlord would prefer the minion to be equipped with at least iron weaponry. "Speaking of, I think it's about time to return to Everday and continue exploring." No matter how fun it was to watch Quaver get beaten to a bloody pulp, Taylor had a magical forest to conquer, and there were only a few hours of the day to get any progress done.
Gnarl nodded in agreement. "Of course, Dark One." The aged Minion Master clapped his boney hands together, which instantly caused the newborn Browns to cease their attacks upon the Infernal Abyss court Jester. "Okay, that's quite enough," Gnarl commanded whilst Quaver breathed a sigh of relief that the beatings were finally over. "You adorable maniacs have work to do for the Overlord, which means there's no more time to hit Quaver." The Browns went awwwww at the missed opportunities to inflict further pain upon the annoying Jester.
The Minion Master smiled with amusement at the disappointment of the Browns. "Now, now there's no need for such sad faces," Gnarl said in a grandfatherly tone whilst his smile turned sinister. "Especially since Quaver will still be here and ready to resume playing once Everday's southern areas are explored." The Browns cheered at the news while Quaver screamed with frustration at the knowledge that Gnarl was leaving him tied up within the Arena so he could be used as a chew toy for the newborn minions.
Meanwhile, Taylor chuckled at Quaver's misery as the annoying Jester deserved to suffer for creating that abomination he dared to call poetry. "Welp, I better head off," the Abyssal Goddess walked off towards the arena exit. "See you within a couple of hours, Gnarl!" She waved back to the Minion Master whilst the crystal illumination from the ceiling caused her Brute Beetle armour to shine with an earthly glow. After Taylor vanished from view, the Browns abandoned their positions and ran for the secret tunnels that would lead them to the currently available Minion Gates.
Gnarl, now with only Quaver to keep him company, sighed with contentment. "Ah, it does my black heart good to witness the new generation of evil so eager to cause death and mayhem to the innocent inhabitants of the world." The Aged Minion Master began heading for the exit as the chief advisor to the Abyssal Overlord Gnarl had specific administrative duties he needed to fulfil before the end of the day. Yet, as Gnarl was about to leave the Arena, Quaver's tired voice managed to reach his elderly ears.
"Wait a moment, Gnarl!" Quaver cried out while the Minion Master turned his head to stare at the blood-covered form of the Overlord's court jester. "Ya won't really leave me here for those uncultured brutes to senselessly beat me for hours on end, would you?!" Gnarl rolled his yellowish eyes at the Jester's pleading tone. Honestly, the Minion Master already noticed Quaver's wounds rapidly healing from the beatings he received from the Browns' wooden clubs; give it a couple more heartbeats, and the Jester should be back to perfect health.
"No need to worry, Quaver," Gnarl began after taking a moment to cage his annoyance towards Quaver's pointless bellyaching. "I intend to remove the chains binding you to that post." Quaver's ears pricked upwards at the news. A happy smile graced his rotten and yellow-toothed maw as freedom was just a moment away from being granted to him. The fact he'll avoid being the Browns' favourite form of entertainment and that there would be future chances to continue writing his beloved poetry was just icing on the cake.
Quaver was so delighted that he didn't waste a moment thanking Gnarl for his kindness. "Oh, thank you, Gnarl, I was always…."
"In six or nine months." Gnarl interrupted Quaver's attempt to voice his gratitude causing the Court Jester's mouth to fall open in disbelief upon hearing how long the Minion Master planned to keep him tied to the post. Gnarl laughed evilly at Quaver's torment and left the Arena without even glancing backwards.
"Gnarl, that's not funny!" Quaver screeched as iron gates slamming closed echoed from the Arena's main entrance. The Jester grumbled at the unfair treatment he received from Gnarl, yet after being left alone for a few minutes, he sighed with annoyance and glanced downwards at the iron chains that kept him bound to the wooden post. Quaver knew what had to be done in order to regain his freedom from the literal chains of oppression. With a determined expression, Quaver started using his tooth-filled maw to dig into the wooden post and was attempting to bite his way to freedom.
Time Skip.
Everday Forest.
Infernal Gate.
"Hm, not much has changed since I've last visited." Taylor's amber orbs scanned the surrounding area whilst the symphony of hellish energies, and unholy lightning gently faded from existence. The sole difference she noticed from the last trip to Everday was that the sun had long since descended from the sky, meaning it was now nighttime. The silver rays of moonlight that managed to pierce through the forest's canopy were also an excellent method to understand the mortal realm's current day/night cycle.
After a few heartbeats of studying the familiar surroundings, the Overlord descended the Gateway's staircase. Upon reaching the bottom step, a Brown Minion Gate, which appeared to be comprised of jagged obsidian, rose from the earth. Brownish flames suddenly roared to life from within the Minion Gate's maw, yet strangely enough, the oddly coloured fire didn't seem to give off any heat. Taylor gazed upon the supernatural flames with fascination before remembering that she needed to start searching the southern sections of Everday for anything that might be valuable for her future conquests.
"Welp, I'd better summon the Browns." Taylor raised the Overlord's Gauntlet towards the sky; the moonlight reflected off the gauntlet's gemstone, which caused it to shine with a malevolent glow. Closing her amber orbs in order to better concentrate on the task at hand, the Infernal Deity mentally commanded the Browns to rise from the Minion Gate. Mere moments after, the mental command was given a sound easily recognised as a mighty war horn erupted from the Overlord's Gauntlet. The war-horn's bellow only lasted a few seconds, and maniacal laughter was soon heard echoing from within the depths of the Minion Gate.
Within a few heartbeats, the first Brown Minion jumped out of the Minion Gate; the little devil performed a backflip before landing before his Overlord's feet. The acrobatic act earned an amused smile from the Infernal One as the other Minions came rushing out of the Minion Gate. After the thirty-five Browns exited their Gateway to the mortal realm, they swiftly gathered around Taylor, who could clearly see their devotion to their Overlord and the desire to cause mass chaos shining within their yellow eyes.
"~Maaasssssssteeer!~" The Browns excitedly cheered whilst bowing before their most malevolent master. Overlord Taylor waited a moment to allow the Browns to finish showing the proper amount of respect they believed her title of Overlord deserved before getting back to the task at hand.
"Alright, that's enough grovelling for now." Taylor motioned with her gauntlet-covered hand for the Browns to rise, which they did after a moment of hesitation. Once she was sure the Minions would grovel at her shoes, Taylor split the small horde between those that would stay to guard the Infernal Gateway against any threats and those that would accompany her to the southern parts of Everday. The task of assigning the Browns took a few minutes. Yet, after it was completed, Taylor had selected the best melee fighters to act as her honour guard.
The Overlord marched away from the Everday Infernal Gate with ten Minions eagerly following their Dark Master. When the small war band reached the southern blockade, which had previously prevented Taylor from exploring the southern sections of Everday, the Infernal Goddess pointed towards the obstruction. She gave a command that her honour guard was all too happy to obey.
"Destroy it!"
The Browns cheered with savage glee and, without a moment to lose, charged the barricade with wooden clubs raised. The obstruction didn't stand a chance against the violence-loving Minions as they smashed apart the wooden foundations and ripped off the steel reinforcing the barricade's structural integrity. When the Minions were finished tearing into their target, all that was left were splinters scattered upon the ground and pieces of torn apart metal that a few Browns collected as souvenirs of their first time out and about in the mortal realm.
Taylor surveyed the carnage for a moment before nodding in approval. A few praises were given to the Browns for an excellent job at removing the obstacle from their path, and whilst the Browns giggled at the acknowledgement of their senseless carnage Taylor established contact with Gnarl via the Overlord's Helmet.
"Gnarl, I've removed the obstacle blocking the southern areas," The Overlord informed her chief advisor while walking down the southern pathway. "I'll contact you again once I've found anything useful or interesting within Everday's southern sections." Taylor carefully kept an eye out for any possible dangers as her war band descended through the southern pathways. The Infernal One honestly didn't want to repeat the whole Unicorn incident a second time, so she kept her guard up until it was confirmed that nothing too dangerous lurked within these parts of the forest.
"Understood, Sire," Gnarl's wise voice echoed within the Overlord's mind. "Be sure to keep an eye out for any treasure and remember the only useful innocent, light-affiliated magical creature is a died one, ha, ha, ha!" The Minion Master's cruel laughter filled Taylor's ears for a few heartbeats before fading away. The Overlord smiled with fondness at Gnarl's advice regarding how to handle magical entities that were born from light magic and, within seconds, gave a mental reply to the ancient Minion Master.
"I'll keep that in mind, Gnarl," Taylor slashed a low-hanging branch with her katana, which was immediately set upon by the Browns, who smashed it into a million pieces as punishment for daring to get in their Overlord's way. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got some exploring to do." Taylor's amber orbs narrowed when she saw something that resembled human structures within the distance of the southern pathway. The Overlord quickened her steps as structures usually meant that there were valuable items to loot, and Taylor was honestly excited at the prospect of her first pillaging. However, she attributed that excitement towards her demonic nature and the fact she was the divine manifestation of all things evil.
Gnarl must've sensed her growing excitement because he was relatively quick to agree. "Of course, Sire," evil snickering could be heard from Gnarl's side of the connection. "Having fun pillaging the ruins of Everday." The link closed a second later, thus allowing Taylor to fully concentrate on the task of looting the ruins that somehow survived the 'Transference.' The first building that the Overlord could make out from her location seemed to be a crafting store which was perfect as there had to be some valuable tools for Giblet to use in constructing her fortress
With an excited grin plastered across her pale lips, Taylor raised her katana forwards to the crafting store, which held a sign at the front that possessed bright red words written in French letters saying 'The Bountiful Craftsmen Superstore.' The Browns immediately understood their Overlord's silent command and raced towards the crafting shop to loot it for everything that wasn't nailed down. Within moments they reached the store entrance and swiftly proceeded to smash their way past the doorway. The Infernal Goddess chased after her Minions as she wanted to join in the looting.
Overlord Taylor's conquest of Everday was now truly beginning to pick up steam.
