'It is time…’he thought. He couldn’t help but smile to himself at his musings. He raised his dark, glorious head and let loose a small chuckle. Several rocks fell from the gaping ravine next to him fell at the sound. ‘Soon…soon they will pay, all of them’. He arched his armoured body to unfurl his magnificent black wings. His dread visage was framed by a billowing mane of violet fire tipped with molten silver. He strong, firm body was supported by four mighty legs tipped with massive hooves, over which were armoured hoof-guards plated in black diamond. Novus smiled again, and imagined how wondrous his return would be. All of ponykind would bow down to his majesty once again, and he would finally take his rightful place as Lord Stallion of Equestria. ‘Still…’ he mused, ‘Celestia and Luna still need to be handled’. His rage began to boil at the remembrance of his two counterparts. They were his sisters, and they had locked him beneath the earth to rule Tartarus in darkness and misery. Rumour came from his agents on the surface that Celestia had ordered all mention of him to be removed from the Canterlot Archives, and that his name was only now uttered in stories that foalsitters tell frightened colts and fillies. ‘She will pay most of all…Celestia, my dear loving sister… she will pay, the lying bitch’, Novus thought angrily.
The time was close now; he could feel his old powers returning. He almost cried out in joy at the sensation taking place on the magnificent horn that crested his armoured head. A faint purple aura danced and flickered across its length, lighting the cavern around him with an eerie violet light. Novus reared his head back and let out a bellowing laugh that shook the very foundations of the earth. He could almost see the panicked ponies on the surface as they ran in every direction, attempting to flee the unnatural tremors caused by his mere laughter. He relished the thought. “It is time…” he uttered to himself, and closed his eyes in concentration. It was almost an eternity ago that he last used his true powers, but his soon stabilised the magical matrix building up in his horn. Usually, ponies never have to say the words to a spell, as they merely memorise it and cast it non-verbally, but this spell was different. It was one of the Elder Incantations, written by the Creators themselves, and so had to be spoken in order for it to come into fruition. Novus recalled the words quickly and began to chant in the old tongue of ponykind, long lost to the mists of time.
“Gracious Night, hear my cry, extinguish the stars in your dark sky. Heed not the voice of the two sisters, hearken to mine, the Lord of Stars. Hear my command and obey without pause, let no light through from the Moon’s claws. Darken land and sea and sky…” Novus almost laughed as he uttered the final words of the incantation… “And bid me return, and let me FLY!”
A terrible rumble came from above his head as his horn flared brighter than Celestia’s sun. Massive chunks of rock and earth fell away into the fiery abyss of Tartarus. Howls and shrieks echoed in the shadowed crevices and ravines as the creatures of nightmare bound within the prison of Tartarus cheered for their dark master, as they knew that his freedom would be their own. The vaulted ceiling of Tartarus cracked and trembled, colossal fissures scarring every few feet of rock. A dozen more boulders plummeted into the ravine as Novus finally reached the climax of his spell. “Celestia, I’m coming home!” he roared. The horn flared. Novus spread his raven coloured wings and pushed upwards with all his might. A violet lightning bolt leapt from the sharpened tip of his horn, arcing gracefully into the crumbling vault of the underworld ceiling. The bolt struck as Novus shot up into the air. A thousand rocks exploded outwards into the cool night air as the walls of Tartarus came crashing down. The black alicorn raced into the loving embrace of the surface air. His twistedly perfect eyes of blue fire radiated an elder power the likes of which the world had never seen for over a thousand years. “Tremble mortals and despair. Judgement has come to Equestria!” Novus bellowed into the darkening sky. It was then that he noticed just how dark the sky was. He smiled. The stars had heeded his command, and were slowly flickering before going out, one by one. He looked upon the earth that he had not laid hoof upon since that fateful day so long ago. The moonlight was but a fraction of the brightness it should be. Novus could only imagine the look on Luna’s face as she attempted to bring the stars back to no avail. “Come my brothers, and taste the night air!” Novus roared to the gaping chasm that now revealed the horrors of Tartarus to the world. A thousand times a thousand monsters, beasts, abominations and dark creatures crawled and dragged their way into Equestria. Many flew, and raced ahead to join their new master, their saviour. Novus smiled grimly as he gazed at the far horizon. Tiny ######### lights in the distance revealed the locations of two major settlements. One, Novus did not recognise. A village of thatched houses and wooden buildings lay before him. ‘A peasant hovel’ he thought as he scanned the town for any threats. The only thing of interest to him was the large crowd of frightened and agitated ponies gathering in the central square, a grey maned mare of middle years addressing the townsfolk in some sort of reassuring speech. But it was the lights on the high mountains that Novus regarded with most interest. “Canterlot…”
He helped build that city. He helped raise the shining spires and glittering towers, the marbled courtyards and fountain squares. Now he would be the one to cast it down.
“Vengeance comes for you Celestia…”
He flapped his wings once and sped back towards the shadowy expanse of twisted trees behind him. The Everfree Forest. Novus was no fool, and he needed to gather support from the forest dwellers if he was going to make any sort of revenge against his alicorn sisters. He quickly turned to the winged furies and demons that circled around the gaping wound he had caused in the earth. “Fly onwards, and raze that peasant village. Kill one third of the inhabitants and capture another third. Leave the rest and Canterlot be. They are mine…”
Novus sped off towards the dark forest, leaving his orders very clear in the minds of the winged monsters. With a single horrific battle cry, they flew towards Ponyville as one monstrous horde of death.
