A/N: Ooh! What's this? A fast update? Inconceivable!
Disclaimer: I don't own Overlord, only Hanson
Chapter VI: The Final Countdown
Hanson awoke and stood up, stretching. Today was the day of the duel, and the young overlord had used his time, as well as Weaponizing Alchemy, well. As he was putting on his armor, scratched where Giblet had repaired it after his fight with the Blue champion, Hanson could hardly contain his excitement. He sincerely doubted that his opponent would be able to survive his secret weapon, should it come to that.
"Ready Hanson?" the Minion Master asked as the fully armed and armored Hanson descended the marble stairs from his chambers to the Throne Room and turned towards the entrance to the dungeon. Two browns turned a wheel and the reinforced door to the dungeon swung inwards, revealing a spiraling staircase dimly lit by torches. Unearthly screams echoed throughout the passage. "Don't worry; the screams are but memories of better days, when the Overlord tortured rebels and dissidents personally. I do miss those days…" Gnarl sank into memories for a moment, sighed and led the way down the steep staircase. The flickering light revealed what looked like bloodstains on the walls and Hanson wondered how much blood had been spilled there. "A few greens dropped a crate of tomatoes," Gnarl explained. "We use the dungeon more as a warehouse that a prison nowadays." Hanson nodded his understanding and followed.
A short time later, the duo reached their destination: the dungeon floor. Built in the style of a traditional gladiatorial arena, the dungeon had a sand floor, high walls with seating and an observation box. The underground chamber was lit by a series of torches, and the light reflected off of the onyx walls.
Hanson spotted his opponent standing in the middle of the arena, longsword in hand. "Now that both of the champions are here," the Overlord said from behind Hanson. Hanson and his opponent turned, spotting the Overlord standing in the observation box. "Let the duel begin!"
Hanson flexed his arms, the steel armor clanging and pulled out his axe out of its sheath that lay across his back. Hanson had redesigned his axe, creating a double-headed monstrosity with a steel shaft and a spike at the top, and from the way his opponent had stilled, Hanson knew that the axe had made quite the impression. Shifting his weight into a more balanced stance, Hanson moved towards his opponent who began to circle. Hanson knew that one, maybe two good hits were more than enough to finish his opponent, and in Hanson's arms the axe moved at the speed of weapon half its size and weight.
Realizing that defense was useless, the Black champion charged forward, his longsword gripped in both hands. Again, Hanson's weeklong study of weapon and armor paid off. Hanson knew that the only place the sword would do any real damage were his arms, where he'd been forced to remove much of the armor to increase his mobility. Thus, Hanson could ignore any strikes to his center of mass and protect his arms. The Black champion came at Hanson with an ineffectual flurry of blows that pinged off Hanson's armor, not doing any real damage. In response, Hanson swung his axe. The axe wasn't traveling fast enough to cause a disabling or mortal blow, but the impact of a seventy-five pound war axe was enough to stop Hanson's opponent in his tracks and cause him to double over as the axe slammed into the Black champion's midsection. Seeing an opportunity, Hanson stepped back and swung with a full force, two-handed swing. His opponent's sword came in a pathetic attempt to block, but could not halt the axe. The axe slammed into the Black champion's chest plate, bending it inwards with a tortured groan. Hanson heard a sharp gasp of pain and the sound of breaking ribs.
Hanson's opponent rolled and lay still in the sands facedown, the sands turning red below him. Hanson exhaled and raised his axe in triumph as a quartet of browns grabbed the corpse of the Black champion and carried it off.
Hanson marched towards the observation box, Gnarl waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs. "Master," the aged Minion Master said with an evil grin and a bow. "Welcome home." Hanson nodded and ascended the stairs towards his destiny.
The Overlord was waiting, helmet off, a glass of Drunk Sam's famous brandy in hand. Hanson paused at the sight of the elderly man, expecting someone far more impressive. "Hello Hanson," the old man said as he turned to face the young man. "Not very impressive am I?" Despite his age, the power coming off of the man was still palpable, and Hanson felt dizzy at its magnitude. "I suppose I should call you son now," the old man said with a small smile. "Though I sincerely doubt that I will be around much longer, owing much to the fact that there is an army camped out in front of my Tower." Hanson looked at the Overlord in mute shock. "An army? Why?" he finally said. "The paladin king William has allied himself with the elves and dwarves, and has come to bring his own brand of justice to my domain. The Overlord took another sip of the brandy and stood up, putting his helmet on. "I no longer have the strength to defeat him, and I fear the tower will be destroyed… I guess there really is no escaping the cycle." As he led the way out of the dungeon the Overlord continued, "Gnarl and I have known about their little 'invasion' for some time and have made the necessary preparations. You will escape with the brown minions and their hive, guided by Gnarl. He will teach you in my absence and help you become the Overlord." "But…" Hanson said. "Don't we need books to learn from?" The Overlord chuckled slightly. "Gnarl is immortal…he has outlived every Overlord that has ever existed, and he shall outlive you and I as well." The Overlord and Hanson continued up the stairs in silence until they reached the Throne Room. "Everything you need to know, Gnarl remembers, and will teach you. Learn well, for the continuation of the Overlord legacy rests with you now." Hanson nodded his understanding, but still had questions. "Where shall I go?" he asked. "Gnarl will take you to an ancient sanctuary, where, rumor has it there is more Evil energy than here. There, you will learn and in time, wreak your revenge upon those who destroyed your reign before it had a chance to begin. You will re-establish a Dark Domain and crush all in your way. Goodbye." The two Overlords, young and old shook hands and the Old Overlord stepped into the Tower Portal. "One more thing," the Old Overlord said. "I have no doubt that Gnarl will say this many times, but I can't resist saying it myself." He said with a slight chuckle. "Whenever you feel discouraged, or think that you have finally found an opponent you can't defeat through brains or brawn, remember this: Evil will always find a way." With another chuckle, the Overlord teleported outside.
Hanson stared at the Tower Portal's waters for a bit longer until the sound of shuffling reached his ears. "Sire," Gnarl said. "The time has come. The dwarves, in their infinite intelligence, have decided to dig a tunnel for their forces to invade our home. I predict they will end up in the Spawning Pit, and it would be in our best interest to escape through the exit they have conveniently provided. Follow me." Hanson nodded again and followed the Minion Master down to the Spawning Pit.
A/N: Next chapter, the war begins and Hanson escapes. Stay tuned folks. R and R please.
Also, it has come to my attention that chapter 3 has gone missing. I don't know what's up, but I will fix it.