What the Overlords Dream of

There was complete darkness all around. The echo of dripping water sounded, and it smelled of dampness and mold. The space was cramped and cold. It seemed he had just come to his senses. Or had he been conscious for some time? In such an environment, it was difficult to determine any sense of time. Only the hard stone surface, exuding cold, gave a sensation of consciousness. After what felt like an eternity, footsteps were heard, along with incomprehensible muttering and the sounds of strange creatures. As the steps approached, a creaky, slightly raspy voice rang out. — Hey! Here he is! There was a grating sound of stone, and a crack of light appeared. It seemed there had been a lid above him all this time, which was now being slid aside. — Ahaaa! — the voice said again when the lid was moved. In the orange light of the opening, murky outlines of creatures appeared, looking somewhat like humans or reptiles. Their yellow eyes stood out brightly against the darkness. Behind them, the same creaky voice was heard. — It's him! Spray acid in his eyes! That will refresh him! Whether they sprayed acid or not, the creatures did something, and his vision finally gained focus. Before his eyes appeared three brown heads, with horns just beyond the temples and spikes growing along the sides of their jaws. All of them had eyes that glowed yellow in the darkness of this room. A fourth figure appeared, pushing the others aside to get a better look at him. It was missing one eye and held a strange staff with a glowing object on it. The creature itself was old, judging by the gray hairs on its face. It seemed he was their leader and the only one who could speak. They helped him up. As it turned out, he had been lying in a stone coffin all this time. No wonder it was so cold and uncomfortable. The strange creatures, whom their leader called minions, brought armor along with a red cloak and a piece of clothing that more closely resembled a loincloth. Also, on one of the bracers was a magical artifact in the shape of a hemisphere, glowing yellow, almost gold. They helped him put everything on; it was a pity there was no mirror to examine himself. Meanwhile, the head minion was delivering a speech to him. — Master! Cruelty suits you! Let's go! Great deeds await us! I sense the earth trembling with horror... He had a chance to look around the room. Apparently, it was an old basement, part of which was destroyed. There was also a lot of cobwebs and even mushrooms growing. Though no wonder, as it was hard to breathe from the stagnant, damp air, which encouraged the growth of mushrooms and mold. As this whole procession led him out of the basement, the eldest minion spoke again. — I am Gnarl, the senior of the entourage and a devoted servant of the Dark — the creature finally introduced itself. Soon they reached another room, where in the center was a cluster of levitating cobblestones swirling around a remnant of energy. On the sides were recesses that looked like chambers filled with various objects - from numerous plants to mini volcanoes. Also, next to the levitating stones was a structure resembling a mix of a stone bonfire and a portal. Gnarl shared more information. — This cave contains the Hatch, where minions are born and live. Now you are with us, and you can summon minions through the Minion Portal. — While the Senior was saying all this, several minions jumped into the portal. Gnarl explained that to summon one minion or a squad, it was enough to give a mental command, and it would work. Struggling a bit, he understood how the principle worked and summoned three minions. — Ahh, look at these cunning, vicious little eyes! The minions are ready to start a slaughter! — Gnarl displayed a semblance of adoration on his muzzle, tilting his head to the side and placing his folded hands against his right cheek. — Let's continue. Follow me, I will teach you the art of managing the entourage and conducting battle. — This time, he struck a pose from Asian martial arts and then bowed. — But if you wish to proceed immediately to the slaughter, then I will await you in the throne room. Having given this choice, Gnarl headed towards the cave exit, gesturing strangely and continuing the briefing. — They will follow you anywhere, Master, until you send them away. Distractedly looking back, he indeed saw the minions faithfully following right behind him. Going up the stairs, they emerged onto a small, bare clearing surrounded by stones and a lone maple-oak tree. On its trunk sat another minion, but he was dressed in a jester's cap and also had a staff with a skull wearing a similar cap. But his examination of the suspicious minion was again interrupted by the voice providing instructions. — Evil is not just fiery whirlwinds, panic, and chaos! — At that moment, the jester did a forward somersault, crashed down from the tree, and raised clouds of dust, but this didn't stop the speech. — True Evil is an art... and a bit of bloody mince! — Gnarl's smooth laugh was heard, and through its noise, a distant phrase from the jester was audible: "Sleeping Beauty hasn't woken up yet." This was enough for Gnarl to pay attention to him and finally "introduce" him. — This is the Jester, Master. He should have been nailed by his ears to the Tower wall long ago! Teach him to respect his master! Apparently, this was a direct instruction. Approaching the jester, he applied the jester with an axe. From this, the jester strangely bounced upward, doing multiple somersaults, and fell down again. It seemed he wasn't harmed by it, so this action was boldly repeated several times. A feeling of power filled his arm with each strike, and the beating was accompanied by the jester's cries of pain and Gnarl's encouragements. — Good, hit him more. Don't stop! After a relatively short period of violence, the jester ran off to the side, and Gnarl, looking contentedly at the beaten jester, spoke again. — See, what a reaction. Evil is not so easily forgotten! But the jester hadn't had enough and began to provoke his opponent. — Come on, tin can... you disgrace the good name of evil! It worked, and the jester received another portion of blows. But he almost immediately ran up a broken column. Shouting insults again. — Come on, princess. You hobble like a dead badger, and you smell even worse! — All this was accompanied by grimaces and even walking on his hands. Gnarl commented again. — You can't reach him, sire, order the devils to shut his trap! Again giving a mental command, he directed his left hand with the hemisphere towards the jester. The minions happily rushed at him. Before the attack by his kin, another taunt flew out of his mouth. — Oh, what a riot! Overlord - play-doh! — But his tune didn't play for long, and now the jester was being beaten by three clubs of other minions, and Gnarl's adoration was heard again. — My heart rejoices when I see them rushing about... tearing each other to pieces... — After a short pause, words were heard again. — Recall the entourage, Master... Every last one! The principle was the same, and the minions followed his mental command and soon were near him. But the jester intervened again with his barbs. — Master Overlord, where is your malice? With a normal command, the entourage can't reach the jester, but if you point the way with your hand, the minions will calmly walk to the right place and add a few more blows to the restless jester. But this didn't dampen his desire to make snide remarks. — Is this Evil, Overlord? More like a snail! — And with these words, he dashed forward. And Gnarl immediately said not to let him escape and to order the entourage to catch "that numbskull". The minions didn't need much time after the order, and soon the jester's pitiful cries were heard again. — Aaa! It hurts! It hurts! — After this, he finally ran away and most likely hid somewhere in the corners of the Tower. And Gnarl spoke again. — I think you are ready, Master. Let's go to the throne room. Evil brooks no delays! — With these words, the whole procession headed into the Tower. The entire Tower, including the throne room, was destroyed. The banners were faded and very worn. Many fragments littered the floor, and rays of light came through the roof, indicating holes in the ceiling. During this time, bushes and grass had managed to grow. In general, at the moment, it didn't resemble an abode of Evil at all. More like an old, abandoned castle, only suitable for bird nesting. But judging by the marks on the floor, they had used the vacant space appropriately. The throne was at the end of the hall and old in the middle. However, there was nothing majestic about it. A decent chunk was missing from the back, and the steps leading up to it didn't inspire confidence. And it didn't look very comfortable, just bare stone with mold and moss on it. But Gnarl boldly approached closer to the throne and proudly pointed around. — Your throne room, Overlord! He approached the throne, distractedly examining the surroundings, which echoed with some faint memories, but these thoughts were so fleeting that his consciousness simply couldn't grasp them. Against the background of disjointed thoughts, Gnarl's raspy voice continued to flicker. — Alas, nowadays, a queue of self-proclaimed heroes lines up for any stronghold of evil! The last ones were particularly annoying, even finished off your predecessor! At these words, brighter images began to appear in his head. He is approaching the Tower. It seems... it's intact here? Next to him are figures. They are all blurry, and the voices sound distorted, as if from deep underwater. But one can count that there are seven of them, and he is the eighth. "Who are they? Why are they standing in front of the Tower, which is still intact? What are they doing here?" All these thoughts filled his head, causing a severe pain that radiated to his temples and blurred his vision, but it seemed Gnarl didn't notice this, so he continued speaking. — But you appeared, Master! Evil will find a way everywhere! — Suddenly the Senior's muzzle darkened, and the cheerful note faded from his voice. — They looted and almost destroyed the Tower. But this obstacle is insignificant for the forces of Darkness, Overlord. You are our new master! — Gnarl gestured emotionally again. Then he added insinuatingly. — Rebuild the Tower, punish the false heroes, and reclaim the domains of Darkness! They moved further from the throne into the hall and reached steps descending into a depression filled with water. From this place, one could feel a small energy, most likely remnants of former power. Gnarl pointed to this place and explained. — This is the Tower Portal, Overlord. Unfortunately, it lacks a power source - the Heart of the Tower. But a little energy still remains. — It seemed he wanted to continue the explanation, but a powerful surge of force began to be felt near them. After a couple of moments, a figure formed, slightly shorter than the Overlord, but in very similar armor. Besides the difference in height and armor, the eyes also glowed green in the slit of the helmet. The face wasn't visible, just like the Overlord's. A heavy pause hung for a few seconds, and then an irritated male voice rang out. — What is going on here, Gnarl?! Who have you brought here now... — The unknown figure threateningly approached them, looming over Gnarl, drilling into him with his eyes...