The Ending of the End - 4 Parter

In the cavernous abode of Grogar, the Father of Monsters, Lord Tirek and Cozy Glow read over an ancient grimoire splayed on the giant stone table in front of them. Grogar’s scrying orb lay dormant beside it, putting off a shadowy aura. The sorcerer himself was supposedly far away, retrieving a powerful artifact that he would use to end Twilight Sparkle’s reign before it began.

Tirek saw a green flash in the corner of his eye and turned. “Ah, Chrysalis! Another successful field trip, I presume?”

“Spreading distrust among these ponies is almost too easy!” Chrysalis gloated. Her sickly green telekinesis lifted a purple journal with a large star on the front. “So generous of Twilight Sparkle to write down all those friendship problems she helped solve.”

“That we helped un-solve!” Cozy Glow made a slashing motion with her hoof on the last word and smiled deviously.

Chrysalis tossed the journal away and planted her front hooves on the table, baring her fangs. “Without the ‘magic of friendship’ behind them, Twilight and her friends will be powerless before us!”

“And everypony is still blissfully unaware of our plan,” Tirek purred. “Grogar’s Bell!” He hoisted the indestructible bell onto the table, where it landed with a resounding thud. Cozy rubbed her hooves together, and Chrysalis salivated as she eyed the bell. Tirek flipped a few pages ahead in the grimoire. “This artifact is known by many names: the Talisman of Terror, the Firmament of Fear, the—”

“Uh, we get it! Grogar could be back any minute!” Cozy Glow interrupted, pouting. “Can you skip to the good part?”

Tirek rolled his eyes. “Grogar’s magic was once empowered by all the fear in Equestria.”

“And the bell is gonna let us do that too?” Cozy asked excitedly. “So, since we got everypony turning on each other…”

Tirek grinned and pointed at the book, which depicted an image of Grogar using his bell to absorb a yellowish stream of power from a group of cowering unicorns. “All we have to do is activate it with this spell, and our powers will be multiplied a hundredfold!”

“Then what are we waiting for?!” Chrysalis surged forward and grabbed the bell. “I’m sick of wasting time on that old goat’s master plan!”

“Very well.” Tirek adopted a look of concentration, and his horns started to glow. “As agreed, we all work together to defeat the protectors of Equestria.”

Chrysalis and Cozy both nodded once.

Grogar’s Bell rose in the air, enveloped by Tirek’s magic, and started to glow white.

Zap!

A blast of yellow magic shot between Tirek’s horns and silenced the centaur’s spell in an instant. Yellow-black telekinesis suffused the Bell and whisked it away from the three conspirators towards a shadowy figure in the cave’s entryway. Intense yellow eyes with red irises and dark pupils glared out at the trio. The only other visible features were two immense, curved horns.

“Is this a bad time?” the figure growled.

“G-Grogar!” Cozy stammered, looking at her colleagues and then Grogar himself with wide eyes.

Grogar stepped into the light, howling with wicked laughter. The telltale yellowish-black glow of his magic charged around his horns.

My Little Pony
My Little Pony
Ah, ah, ah, ah...
My Little Pony...
I used to wonder what friendship could be
My Little Pony...
Until you all shared its magic with me
Big adventure, tons of fun!
A beautiful heart, faithful and strong!
Sharing kindness - it's an easy feat!
And magic makes it all complete!
You have My Little Ponies...
Do you know you're all my very best friends?

Grogar attached the bell to his collar with a loud clink, laughing maniacally. Instantly, a dark light pulsed through his body. The bell sent waves of yellow-black energy rippling out, filling the chamber with suffocating power. A blinding halo of arcane light surrounded Grogar, forcing the other villains to cover their eyes.

After a tense moment, the display subsided, and Grogar looked at the trio with detached amusement.

“P-Please, be merciful, oh mighty Grogar!” Cozy Glow whimpered, dropping from the air to curl into a semi-fetal position on the table. Chrysalis snarled, and Tirek took an instinctive step back, eyes wide.

“Fools! It was obvious that you would try to take Equestria for yourselves,” Grogar thundered, jumping down to join the trio at the scrying table. “And need I remind you of your pathetic track records?”

He motioned at his scrying orb in the center of the stone table. It showed past visions of Tirek getting reduced to a weakling by rainbow magic, Chrysalis fleeing from her hive in disgrace, and Cozy Glow ranting after her plans ended in disaster. The three villains’ eyes widened in shock as they witnessed their previous defeats. Then the orb shifted, showing the three villains at Mount Everhoof as they plotted together after retrieving Grogar’s Bell.

“‘Let Grogar think we're his loyal servants. In the meantime, we'll hatch our own plan,’” Chrysalis’ voice echoed from the orb. The device darkened, leaving the stunned villains in silence.

“Wait… you knew all along?!” present Chrysalis growled in frustration.

Grogar grinned slyly. “I wanted to see if the three of you could truly work together. And look—you finally did.” The bell on his collar gave an ethereal clang, and tendrils of magic shot out, wrapping around the trio. Eldritch energy coiled around their bodies like living chains, yanking them into the air. The three villains struggled fruitlessly as the tendrils tightened. Grogar snarled and stomped his hoof, cracking the ground beneath him. “Now… you will aid me in my conquest of Equestria, and together we will destroy our enemies once and for all!”

Chrysalis’ eyes narrowed, and she crossed her hooves defiantly. “And if we don’t?”

The tendrils glowed, and dark magic slowly started eclipsing the trio’s bodies.

“None of you were able to defeat Twilight and her friends! What hope do you have… against me?” Grogar said in a chilling tone. Cozy Glow yelped and hid her head in her hooves. The Father of Monsters fixed his glowing eyes upon the trio. “The fate of Equestria will be decided this day. You may play a part in it… or be removed from it.”

There was a moment of silence as the three greatest enemies of Equestria considered Grogar’s proposal.

“I’m in!” squeaked Cozy Glow. “Totally in!”

“Works for me!” Tirek said nervously, staring at the black mass overwhelming him.

Chrysalis’ green telekinesis flickered as she struggled to push Grogar’s powerful magic off her.

“Fine!” she relented.

The magical bonds dissipated, dropping the trio onto the floor.

Grogar climbed atop the stone table, looking down at the other three contemptuously. “The moment has come to make our move. For too long, those pitiful ponies have had ‘friendship’ to empower them against us. But this time, it will be their undoing!”

Deep in the outcast swamps of Equestria, Grogar’s terrible laughter echoed.