It began with the summoning of six.
 
Six who only had one thing in common among each other: the fact that they were villainous being who shared the same enemies. Whether it was from the wilds of the Everfree Forest, or even from the nigh accessible realm of limbo. Even the realm of the dead itself could not stop the return of Equestria’s most wicked, and evil foes. But who, would you ask, is responsible for such an impossible task? Who could be capable of not only freeing a prisoner of the realm outside of reality, where time and space hold no swat, but returning the souls of those who had been sent to the Aether - a mystical extension of the Cosmic Source where all souls reside after death claims them? And who, in addition, is responsible for bringing these six together under the same roof?
 
To the shock, awe, and fear of those familiar with the name, it was the long thought deceased Emperor of Tambelon: Grogar.
 
The ancient ram, who had been christened as the “Emperor of Darkness”, and “The All-Father of Monsters” (which lead to creatures referring to him as the mythical beast, Typhon), had been observing the events of the past thousands of years, and had been slowly, but surely regaining his lost might in compensation for the loss of his Relic of Power, The Bewitching Bell……or as those who knew the deeper history of the ancient necromancer called it: The Maw of Belial. In that time, he had come to learn of the threat of six, seemingly insignificant, yet blessed ponies lead by one who had ascended to the ranks of alicorn-hood. The first MALE alicorn in history to have been ascended, named Dusk Shine. It was he, along with his friends, who wielded the Elements of Harmony, who were used to defeat some of the villains, while others had simply been bested by their unity, and comradery. Grogar desired to reclaim the world of Equestria as his own with the aid of these villains, yet knew that the key to their victory was in using the ponies own “strategy” against them: by working together in unity, this “Legion of Doom” would succeed where each alone has failed.
 
But there were two among them who were not so quick to fall in line. The first was the Shadow King, Sombra, who simply wished to remain on his own, and reclaim his empire without the aid of others. The other was perhaps the only other among who was far more dangerous than the six of them combined. Not merely because of his power to consume magic and grow stronger from it, and in turn nor was it his savage might: but his keen intellect, and his cunning mind. Long has Lord Tirek himself had plans of his own akin to what Grogar was proposing, from which he was receiving aid from a mysterious, but dark force. That is how he knew, with the aid of his own instinctual senses, the old goat was not who he appeared to be. And thus did he plan, and plot to overthrow the ancient tyrant, and take control of this alliance for his own purposes. But he was not as foolish as Sombra, and simply struck out on his own. He new he needed to assemble his house, and bide his time as Grogar supposedly did. For that, he required secret allies, and a shadowplay. King Sombra, and The Pony of Shadows, whom Tirek newly christened as Erebus, were his perfect candidates. And following the rejoining the missing fragment of the crystal that gave life to Sombra, he finally came face-to-face with his benefactor, and his one true ally for his accomplishments.
 
The True Emperor of Darkness, and Lord of the Djinn, named Apophis.
 
Through his training, and instruction, Lord Tirek’s power only grew by each day as he began his goal of conquest. The first step was to build an army worthy of the Darkness, itself. And thus, he and Sombra began using their knowledge of the dark arts, and all Apophis taught, to gain access to the accursed world known as “The Realm of Darkness”, from which they learned to draw power over Darkness itself, and begin corrupting hundreds of souls into demonic beastial warriors loyal to their cause. The next stage of his, and Apophis’ plan, came around when the present Grogar forced our villains to learn to work together. A difficult task, given their arrogant, and egotistical natures. But it was a necessity for this initial mission: recovering Belial’s Maw, aka The Bewitching Bell. After numerous attempts to recover it alone, and failing due to the mystical nature of the mountain that held the bell within, the six, joined by an already revived Sombra whom Tirek convinced Grogar to revive so that his usefulness does not go to waste, began to bond over their hatred for their shared enemies. With all of their powers, and skills, Belial’s Maw was recovered, and the mission successful. However, there was a moment when the villains realized how right, and how good it felt to work together, and it seemed as though they were about to have a moment of clarity.
 
Then Chrysalis herself realized what almost happened, and reminded the others of how infectious Friendship truly is, swearing she would not allow it to infect her as it did her hive. The others came to an understanding, but the young Cozy Glow pointed out the fact they were still indentured agents of Grogar. It was not only here that Chrysalis had suggested playing along with the old goat’s scheme, and eventually eliminate him……..but this was the moment when Lord Tirek dropped all of his pretenses, and exposed his ambitions to the other 3 villains, Chrysalis, Storm King, and Cozy Glow. Revealing he had already been preparing for the exact thing Chrysalis suggested, with the aid of Sombra and Erebus. He then further proved his cunning by manipulating the villains into helping him further his plans, with the promise that they all would not only gain revenge: but they would also claim the world as their own without the worry of being oppressed. Inevitably, they all agreed, and formed a covenant between each other. One that was included by two other agents of Tirek who had recently been brought forth: Nightmare Moon’s mysterious new host, Nocturnus, and a living homunculus and horcrux Tirek unwittingly created in his youth who had been in hiding since his imprisonment, known as Dismay. Together, they would overthrow the foolish creature masquerading as Emperor Grogar, and then bring Equestria to its knees.
 
The final stage of Apophis and Tirek’s plan arose during the Summer Sun Celebration, when they would go to Canterlot with their new allies under the pretense of finding a spellbook that could allow them to harness Grogar’s bell. Tirek and Cozy Glow suggested, but it was Tirek’s plan all-together: because over these past few months since meeting Apophis face-to-face, he had learned of the location of the TRUE Emperor of Tambelon: the remains of the nation of Tambelon, now a demonic mountain of corruption and evil known as The Well of Souls, where the spirits of the wicked reside for all time. A place that was strong with The Darkside of The Source, itself. Emperor Grogar, the fallen Baphomet (Elder God) made Djinn (Devil) resided in their as a nigh-lifeless corpse, while his soul had been imprisoned within the bell. Only one source of power could resurrect a Djinn should their physical forms be slain: fear, anger, and hatred. With his agents, Nocturnus and Dismay, out spreading and gathering this aspect’s energy, with the aid of their growing Tiracian hordes, Lord Tirek had been awaiting a special occasion for which he can acclimate enough anger, and fear to give the deceased Elder God life anew. Such an occasion came in the form of the upcoming summer sun celebration. This was meant to be the final celebration of the Two Sisters.
 
Well, Tirek would ensure this would be a celebration they would never forget.
 
In coalition with Chrysalis, the eight villains devised a perfect means of sabotaging the event, AND overcoming the castle’s new security in order to find the tome of Belial’s Maw. Tirek consumed magic in so subtle a fashion none would sense of suspect him, placing the blame on a mysterious sickness. Cozy Glow would manipulate the weather ponies into creating a chaotic storm, while Storm King uses his new powers of thunder and lightning to make it as hazardous as possible. Chrysalis, and Nocturnus would disguise as Unicorns, and begin wiling them with notions of their magical superiority. And the Dark Trinity of King Sombra, Erebus, and Dismay would enhance the growing anger, and fear from all of these deviations, and mysterious circumstances. Thus allowing Tirek himself to hold it in a crystal meant to house anger, hatred and fear. Even though Dusk and his friends undid the chaotic work of the Legion of Doom, their work was still a success. Not only did they obtain the tome which conveniently housed the knowledge of the Bewitching Bell/Belial’s Maw, but Tirek had gathered enough negativity from the ponies to empower a thousand Djinn. The Old Goat’s convenient timing to seek out an artifact of power to finally defeat our heroes presented our villains the opportunity they all needed. And their actions during the Summer Sun Celebration only inspired them to utilize the Neighpoleon term “Divide and Conquer” to its fullest meaning.
 
Tirek’s work, however, was only half done. Now that he and his comrades and minions had gathered the necessary fear energy, it was time to conduct the second half of raising the true Grogar from the dead: awakening The Balrog Seven. The Balrog were fallen Bahamut who succamb to the darkside of The Source, and had become Djinn of Shadow and Flame, due to their original status as Archangels. During the mythological event known as Ragnarok, the seven who once served Apophis himself as his most faithful servants, were banished into The Realm of Darkness, and trapped in a state of perpetual limbo. However, each had conveniently been cast into the realm through Equestria’s ley lines, where the life essence of the planet converged to form its mystical nervous system. These were also weak points in between the realms of light, and darkness because of the power each Balrog held. Thanks to Apophis’ bond with Tirek, the evil centaur was able to find the Ley Line which held the Lord of the Balrogs, and the greatest of the Seven: Grothmog. With dark magics provided by Dismay, Erebus, and Sombra, Tirek was able to awaken Grothmog, and bring him into Equestria. The only thing which prevented him from killing the four villains was Tirek channeling the essence of the Lord of Darkness, and Grothmog’s own master, in order for him to sense in the centaur a common cause. It was here that Apophis spoke through Tirek to explain that the other Balrogs also still lived, and required his power to awaken them. All seven were required for the resurrection ceremony to bring forth Grogar in order to ensure Darkness’ return. By Apophis, and in turn Tirek’s will, Grothmog set forth with the Dark Trinity to free the imprisoned Balrogs.
 
Before that task was fully completed, Tirek sought out two more allies for his war on Equestria who would aid The Legion of Doom in bringing ponykind to its knees. First were the infamous Minotaurs of Tauros, ruled by the ruthless King Minos. Though the Minotaurs and Equestria held peace for centuries, it was ultimately a cold war that Celestia had all but forgotten. But Minos had long remembered when his race invaded Equestria to claim it as their own, only for his ancestor, Ares, to meet humiliating defeat at the hooves of Princess Celestia. Since then, they had ultimately been exiles on their own Island kingdom - until Lord Tirek came before them, and proposed an alliance. Diabolically, he convinced Minos that Celestia had been bolstering her nations forces by allying with other races such as the Yaks, Buffalo, Griffons, Dragons, Kirin, Hippogriffs, and even the Changelings: and they intended to expand their reach to beyond Equestrian borders, including Tauros. All because the Princesses saw the Minotaurs as weak, and pathetic creatures who were no longer of consequence. And thus intended to remove a potential nuisance from their world. Tirek, however, promised a place for them in his empire when he, and his Legion of Doom, brings the Equestrians down by returning the world to Darkness. All who allied with him would earn a place in his new world, while all others would either be slaves, or be destroyed. A token of his good faith was the Wraith Axe, which would give Minos the power to wield Dark magic in a weaponized conduit. The selfish king accepted the gift after buying into Tirek’s manipulations. The moment he claimed the Axe, however, his mind and souls had been overtaken by darkness, and Minos became a slave to the will of Tirek. And ensuring the Minotaurs would aid in the war against Equestria.
 
His final ally came in the form of an ancient, and godly titan who had slumbered since the time of their worlds conception, whose strength was unmatched, and his many arms were unhindered by either land or sea: The kraken. The very beast who fought against a race of beasts ponykind referred to as “The Titans”, and brought them low with his frightening strength, and power: such a battle shaping the foundations of the entire world before the arrival of Laurana and Grogar ever came to this world. It took a great deal of power, but eventually, Tirek was able to place another curse of enthrallment on the Kraken’s mind, and made it his ultimate weapon. Just around this time, Grothmog and the Dark Trinity had completed their task and freed the remaining six Balrogs. At last, all of the pieces had been coming together, and the final stage was about to commence.
 
Now, Lord Tirek and The Legion of Doom were ready to travel to The Well of Souls, and await The Night of Eternal Darkness, when a planetoid and its moon, which pass by their world once ever 500 years, would temporarily orbit the sun, and would align with the moon to create a triple eclipse. A Great conjunction of Darkness.
 
By this time, Tirek had decided it best to utilized Grogar’s Bell to enhance his fellow villains so that they could aid in the ceremony. Belial’s Maw, who not only held the power to absorb ALL magic from every source, living or not, but to also hold it within forever. But a single spell allows for whoever wields it to command the bell to transfer its power into new hosts, all while retaining the magic itself. It could ultimately copy and divide its own power in order to transfer it into others while still wielding it. With this, Tirek cast the very spell to transform his allies into more powerful versions of themselves, fueled by Emperor Grogar’s magic. After this, they went to The Well of Souls, and discovered the broken and tattered remains of the Baphomet Djinn, whose soul had long been trapped in the mountain itself. But now, on the Night of Eternal Darkness, which would eclipse directly over this scab of evil essence, and allow the souls of evil beings who had been condemned to the purgatory that this domain had been made to manifest once again. The true Grogar himself no different. But now, The Legion of Doom had all they required to revive this ancient embodiment of Darkness, Death, and Destruction.The villains channeled their hatred into crystal of fear, adding to the stored aspect, as The Balrogs transferred their Djinn essence into the crystal. Augmented by the power of Belial’s Maw, the red crystal was driven into the remains of Grogar’s physical form, and infused the power it held into such a vessel. The process morphed the Fallen Bahamut’s form into an even more malformed shape, reminiscent of a draconequus from Hell, itself.
 
In the end, the ceremony was soon complete when Grogar’s own soul entered the crystal during its insertion, and allowed him to be made whole again.
 
Thus, the Emperor of Darkness, and The All-Father of Monsters was now among the living once again. But he cared little for the Legion, or Balrogs, and their petty schemes, and only sought to destroy them for thinking they could convince him to join their cause. But he was surprised when his own Bell protected THe Legion from his attack. And when Tirek himself took hold of it, he unleashed a spell of agony upon the hellish dark lord. It was then revealed that Tirek had added a special curse to the ceremony of resurrection: because Grogar’s essence was held within the Bell, Tirek could use it to control, and enslave the self-proclaimed Emperor of Darkness. The centaur knew very well the Djinn’s destructive reputation, and knew better than to leave things to chance. So he enchanted the bell, and made it into the controller for the “shock collar” binding Grogar to whoever holds the bell, and making him a slave to their will - though what noone knew was that when Tirek awakened the bell, Apophis gave him the secret to ensuring its true loyalty would be with the magic-eating tyrant, and would obey only him. As expected, Grogar was unhappy with such an arrangement, but even less than thrilled to learn there was an imposter out there posing as him for unknown purposes other than what he told the Legion. He was promised the opportunity to punish the trickster playing as him, and also guaranteed that he would also be given the chance to finish what he began long ago, and cleanse the world of all life in order to begin and rule over it anew. Either that, or have his very being absorbed into Belial’s Maw for all time.
 
Begrudgingly, Grogar accepted the offer, and thus completed the Legion of Doom as their primary weapon of ultimate power, with the Kraken as their second.
 
It was just around that time when the false Grogar returned to the lair they had called their base of operations for the past several months. That was the day of Dusk Shine’s coronation ceremony, and the passing of royal powers. Supposedly, he intended for them to attack the prince during this ceremony with a small, ruby-shaped jewel he had found. But when he stated once again that they needed to work together in order to succeed, The Legion of Doom struck. With the newer additions of Nocturnus, Dismay, Minos, Grothmog, and The Kraken, the fake Grogar was easily subdued by their combined power, and this was the moment they revealed the further scales of their treachery. He even had the gaul to ask why they never told him they had Belial’s Maw. Cozy made a quick remark about the reason being because they’re villains, which in itself explains everything. But when the True Grogar appeared before him, he added “And besides: it’s not good to take things that don’t belong to you………son.” Those with magic channeled their power into the bell, and drained the Old Goat of all his power. Such actions undid the spell of concealment that gave the imposter his guise, and the perpetrator was revealed to be…………
 
Discord?
 
Though surprised, The Legion payed him no true heed. For while he may have proven a real challenge before, he was now inconsequential without his magic
 
Now, at last, The Legion of Doom was ready to make their move. They had sown the seeds of anger and fear in the hearts of Pegasi, Unicorns, and Earth Ponies. The army Lord Tirek had desired was now numbered at the hundreds of thousands. The most powerful demons and monsters were at his commands. And now, he had the united, evil alliance had long desired ever since he had escaped Tartarus. Taking charge, Lord Tirek announced that the time of their victory is at hand. A new power is rising, and The Balance was once more returning to the Darkness. On this night, the land would be stained with the blood of their enemies, and the world be theirs to do with as they pleased. Whatever grievances they had in the past were of no consequence. For they were more united in purpose, and their resolve has never been stronger. They were truly a United force. More united than Dusk Shine and his friends. More than The Pillars of Equestria. And more than The Princesses themselves. All would fall to their might. With Belial’s Maw fueling their power, no creature in all the land could oppose them, and win. And after performing a ruse with the bell by testing its full power on Cozy Glow to see if they could harness Discord’s chaos magic, Lord Tirek retained possession of the artifact, claiming that they neither could wield its full power, nor would they need it. They were connected to it in body, and in soul, and it would give them all the power they needed.
 
All unaware that Tirek was keeping the Bell’s power away from others in order to obtain his ascension with Apophis, his one true ally.
 
After demolishing the old lair, they returned to The Well of Souls to rally their Army of Darkness. Tiracians of various types, and Minotaurs armed with the most formidable weaponry and armor ever seen were now ready to unleash their torment upon the land. Heeding Chrysalis’ suggestion, Lord Tirek gave the command to what was now HIS Legion of Doom, and sent the dark forces to scatter, and eliminate all threats to their reign as their army marched upon what was once a peaceful land. Soon it would become a domain of despair, misery, and death….and the grave of the equine races as we know it.
 
With Tirek himself spearing the charge to Canterlot, the final conflict has begun.
 
A new Ragnarok has arrived.
 
The Age of Harmony and Light is over.
 
The Time of Darkness, and Anarchy has come once again.
 
There will be dawn for Equestria.
 
THE LEGION OF DOOM
 
Leader, and Second in command:  
Lord Tirek  
King Sombra
 
The Legionnaires:  
Grogar  
Nocturnus, The Night Terror  
The Storm King  
Queen Chrysalis  
Cozy Glow  
Erebus, The Pony of Shadows  
Grothmog, The Balrog Lord  
Dismay, The Avatar of Terror  
Honorary Members/Underlings/Army:  
King Minos, and the Minotaur Legion  
The Tiracian Horde  
The Kraken  
The Balrogs of Vashtar(Darkness)
 
MLP characters are all owned by Hasbro, and DHX  
The Balrogs are owned by JRR Tolkien  
The Kraken is owned by Legendary Pictures  
All of the art above is owned by their respective owners, including Me and MelSpyRose, Pyrus-Leonidas, Atohas, StarDustSentry, winddragon24, Icedroplet, Vector-Brony, MyHysteria, Loukaina, dx8493489, Orin331 and Thylacinee