08-04-2016, 07:02 AM
This was the unglamorous work that nobody ever thought about when it came to being a villain. Oh, sure. The hero would burst into your evil volcano-top lair and smash it up, but did they ever stop to think about the amount of effort it took to create such a place? The architectural challenge of piecing together the right kind of materials in the right fashion to prevent everything falling in on itself? No. They just saw evil volcano-top lair as though it had a great big bullseye painted on it. No respect for the hours, days even, of effort which traditionally went into such constructions.
Lord Dominator, once feared throughout the Galaxy, was now literally up to her elbows in ash and dirt. The green-skinned woman had returned to the cave overlooking the Koopa Garrison, and had done her best to clear it of the majority of the debris which would otherwise get in the way. She wasn't entirely certain how well this was going to work, but she could at least get things started - of that, she was absolutely sure. These things would always take time, but since a ship didn't exactly seem practical (there was simply no way that one worthy of her magnificence would fit through the gates) a relatively secure base was a decent secondary option.
Dusting her hands off, Dominator retreated to the mouth of the cave and looked in. It wasn't the largest space in the world, but as an entrance hall, it would do. Closing her eyes, she raised both her hands and reached inside herself, focusing on the right kind of image. She wanted something intimidating, something solid, something which said 'hey, if you're here to cause trouble, back off'. As though being situated in the middle of a lava-filled hellhole wasn't going to do most of that work for her.
Her stores of Omnilium had increased markedly since her arrival in this misbegotten place, and the power flowed much more easily now that she knew - roughly speaking - what she was doing with it. The thought that she was imposing her will on reality itself was a pleasing one, and the light which flowed from her did so with flashing hints of red and green amongst the pure whiteness. It was just as amusing to think that Kyle, that pathetic koopa who had tried to kill her, was in some roundabout way helping to provide her the space she'd need to become even more powerful.
The world shimmered and warped as she solidified her desires, painting the picture firmly in her mind's eye. The entrance to the cave became one sealed-shut vault door, marked with Dominator's broken-heart symbol. The metal was jet black, shot through with brilliant red lines, and behind it the same material formed up into a nearly perfect cube.
Dominator was sweating profusely from the effort, but the heavy door opened with the barest touch for her, and retracted into the walls of the cube with the perfect hiss. There was little light this deep in the cave, and a six-foot circular hole remained in the floor. Setting herself down cross-legged, Dominator finally took the necessary step - summoning up a drill sized to carve deep into the rock, and create the first elevator shaft for her lair. She popped open the side, inspecting the inner workings to make sure that everything had in fact been created to her specifications... then it was the simplest thing in the world to programme in the parameters and set the device running.
As the automated minion set to work, she flopped over backwards. The near-deafening noise of rock crumbling and cracking before her wasn't enough to keep her awake. But, she consoled herself, this would be the last time she'd need to sleep on anything so hard and unforgiving as a bare metal floor. From here on out, she would have the privacy and security she craved.
When Dominator awoke, the noise had subsided and what little light there had been was now entirely gone. Plunged into darkness, she had to retrieve her phone and activate the torch to see what she was doing, but a quick flash down into the deep tunnel sure looked like things were off to a good start. Now it was just a matter of setting things up properly.
Before she could really set things running, however, she needed to get the power source in place. Her fingers dug into the side of the elevator shaft, and found the ridges the drill had left in its wake. Slowly, carefully, she scaled her way down - grumbling every pace of the way as her sneaker-clad feet slipped against the rock. It seemed to take forever, but at last she found the bottom of the shaft, and the large circular chamber hewn from the bare rock face where she had instructed it should be.
Her phone illuminated the drill, and there was some satisfaction in taking that power back into herself. No longer necessary, she didn't have to simply bury it as she would in her own world. There were some advantages to this Omniverse, even if she was loathe to admit it.
"Now come on, Dee." She murmured to herself, "Let's get this show on the road. Time for these idiots to learn just what it is you can do!"
Both arms spread wide, and her mind sang with the complex series of calculations, the incredibly intricate schematics, which she had laboured over for so long in her home dimension. The device was the true pinnacle of everything she had worked to achieve; capable of swallowing the energy from entire worlds and containing it for her use, the result here would be, she knew, spectacular!
... she was wrong.
When it flickered into life, the Pyro-Regulator was a mere shadow of what it had once been. A large platform of circular metal, and a few trailing wires from the ceiling, threaded throughout the complex, but with no fuel... at least, until she reached into her pocket and produced the first containment sphere.
Dominator tossed it into the middle of the room, and immediately the machine sprung to life. Cables snaked hungrily around the sphere, and the tiny amount of Volcanium X within was immediately siphoned throughout her new home. It was barely more than a few drops; just enough to get the lights running. The spluttering sphere of precious fuel wasn't much, but it was enough to illuminate the vicious smile that now tugged its way onto Dominator's lips. She had felt the same flutter of emotion when she'd created her first Pyro-Regulator; it was little more than a spark... but even the greatest infernos had to grow from something, and this was her beginning!
"Yes! Yes! Yes! Who's the greatest Bad Guy in the Omniverse? Right here! Who made a Pyro-Regulator in a cave, from nothing but a few scraps? Aw yeah, this girl right here! Give it to me baby! Give me all your Volcanium! Hah! Yeah!"
The moment of exultation banished the fatigue from her limbs, and Dominator treated herself to a little dance, clicking her fingers and scooting around the circumference of the new heart of her empire. Buried deep in the mountain, she needed more if she was going to build up a decent staff of serving bots - let alone a proper army - but flush with excitement at the possibilities her new home represented, Dominator smashed her hands against the bare rock of the corridor outside the power centre.
It took much of the rest of her reserves to coat the rest of the base. Five rooms in total, joined by a central elevator shaft and threaded through with power from the Pyro-Regulator. The walls were all the same polished metal, glowing softly from the dim red light of the Volcanium X flowing through them. With enough time, enough Volcanium X, and enough tender love and care, it might one day be a match for the capital ship she had so lovingly designed - but for now it was just the bare essentials.
At the top, of course, a throne room - because what self-respecting galactic conquerer could be without one of those? The space was largely empty right now, just an impressive throne atop a tall cylinder of metal. When the Volcanium X was flowing more freely, that could be illuminated in the magma-drenched style which she preferred...
The next level was the dungeon. A large space filled with barred cells; again, rather minimalist at the moment and unlikely to hold any determined Primes or sufficiently powerful Secondaries, really... but she could work on that later; it wasn't Primes she was concerned about dealing with at the moment.
The third level was the garrison. At the moment, again, mostly empty but for a couple of square, simple beds which could be used to house guests. No thrills or luxuries; the servants she'd create eventually didn't need such things, and she could hardly afford to spare the space herself.
The fourth level were her own chambers. She wanted to be as close to her precious Pyro-Regulator as possible, so she could feel the warmth of it as it grew and grew. Perhaps surprisingly, she kept her tastes modest; a simple kitchen with the basic amenities, a bathroom, a bedroom. So long as the Pyro-Regulator could maintain hot running water, a decent oven, and keep her refrigerator chilled... she could take care of making her own entertainment for the foreseeable future; there was more than enough to do.
And of course, on the fifth and final level, there was the Pyro-Regulator itself. Her pride and joy, and the fruits of all her labours. Now that she had somewhere to store her Volcanium X, the Omniverse no longer seemed like such a primitive and hateful place. Now, she had all the tools she really needed to make herself comfortable.
Which, of course, was really the point.
And with all of that energy expended to create her new home, Lord Dominator had never been so happy to be able to flop over into a simple, fluffy bed covered in pillows and blankets... and rest up.
At some point, she was sure, people were going to come calling. But for now, she could let herself just sleep and not worry about it. That, was a problem for tomorrow's Dominator to deal with.
Lord Dominator, once feared throughout the Galaxy, was now literally up to her elbows in ash and dirt. The green-skinned woman had returned to the cave overlooking the Koopa Garrison, and had done her best to clear it of the majority of the debris which would otherwise get in the way. She wasn't entirely certain how well this was going to work, but she could at least get things started - of that, she was absolutely sure. These things would always take time, but since a ship didn't exactly seem practical (there was simply no way that one worthy of her magnificence would fit through the gates) a relatively secure base was a decent secondary option.
Dusting her hands off, Dominator retreated to the mouth of the cave and looked in. It wasn't the largest space in the world, but as an entrance hall, it would do. Closing her eyes, she raised both her hands and reached inside herself, focusing on the right kind of image. She wanted something intimidating, something solid, something which said 'hey, if you're here to cause trouble, back off'. As though being situated in the middle of a lava-filled hellhole wasn't going to do most of that work for her.
Her stores of Omnilium had increased markedly since her arrival in this misbegotten place, and the power flowed much more easily now that she knew - roughly speaking - what she was doing with it. The thought that she was imposing her will on reality itself was a pleasing one, and the light which flowed from her did so with flashing hints of red and green amongst the pure whiteness. It was just as amusing to think that Kyle, that pathetic koopa who had tried to kill her, was in some roundabout way helping to provide her the space she'd need to become even more powerful.
The world shimmered and warped as she solidified her desires, painting the picture firmly in her mind's eye. The entrance to the cave became one sealed-shut vault door, marked with Dominator's broken-heart symbol. The metal was jet black, shot through with brilliant red lines, and behind it the same material formed up into a nearly perfect cube.
Dominator was sweating profusely from the effort, but the heavy door opened with the barest touch for her, and retracted into the walls of the cube with the perfect hiss. There was little light this deep in the cave, and a six-foot circular hole remained in the floor. Setting herself down cross-legged, Dominator finally took the necessary step - summoning up a drill sized to carve deep into the rock, and create the first elevator shaft for her lair. She popped open the side, inspecting the inner workings to make sure that everything had in fact been created to her specifications... then it was the simplest thing in the world to programme in the parameters and set the device running.
As the automated minion set to work, she flopped over backwards. The near-deafening noise of rock crumbling and cracking before her wasn't enough to keep her awake. But, she consoled herself, this would be the last time she'd need to sleep on anything so hard and unforgiving as a bare metal floor. From here on out, she would have the privacy and security she craved.
When Dominator awoke, the noise had subsided and what little light there had been was now entirely gone. Plunged into darkness, she had to retrieve her phone and activate the torch to see what she was doing, but a quick flash down into the deep tunnel sure looked like things were off to a good start. Now it was just a matter of setting things up properly.
Before she could really set things running, however, she needed to get the power source in place. Her fingers dug into the side of the elevator shaft, and found the ridges the drill had left in its wake. Slowly, carefully, she scaled her way down - grumbling every pace of the way as her sneaker-clad feet slipped against the rock. It seemed to take forever, but at last she found the bottom of the shaft, and the large circular chamber hewn from the bare rock face where she had instructed it should be.
Her phone illuminated the drill, and there was some satisfaction in taking that power back into herself. No longer necessary, she didn't have to simply bury it as she would in her own world. There were some advantages to this Omniverse, even if she was loathe to admit it.
"Now come on, Dee." She murmured to herself, "Let's get this show on the road. Time for these idiots to learn just what it is you can do!"
Both arms spread wide, and her mind sang with the complex series of calculations, the incredibly intricate schematics, which she had laboured over for so long in her home dimension. The device was the true pinnacle of everything she had worked to achieve; capable of swallowing the energy from entire worlds and containing it for her use, the result here would be, she knew, spectacular!
... she was wrong.
When it flickered into life, the Pyro-Regulator was a mere shadow of what it had once been. A large platform of circular metal, and a few trailing wires from the ceiling, threaded throughout the complex, but with no fuel... at least, until she reached into her pocket and produced the first containment sphere.
Dominator tossed it into the middle of the room, and immediately the machine sprung to life. Cables snaked hungrily around the sphere, and the tiny amount of Volcanium X within was immediately siphoned throughout her new home. It was barely more than a few drops; just enough to get the lights running. The spluttering sphere of precious fuel wasn't much, but it was enough to illuminate the vicious smile that now tugged its way onto Dominator's lips. She had felt the same flutter of emotion when she'd created her first Pyro-Regulator; it was little more than a spark... but even the greatest infernos had to grow from something, and this was her beginning!
"Yes! Yes! Yes! Who's the greatest Bad Guy in the Omniverse? Right here! Who made a Pyro-Regulator in a cave, from nothing but a few scraps? Aw yeah, this girl right here! Give it to me baby! Give me all your Volcanium! Hah! Yeah!"
The moment of exultation banished the fatigue from her limbs, and Dominator treated herself to a little dance, clicking her fingers and scooting around the circumference of the new heart of her empire. Buried deep in the mountain, she needed more if she was going to build up a decent staff of serving bots - let alone a proper army - but flush with excitement at the possibilities her new home represented, Dominator smashed her hands against the bare rock of the corridor outside the power centre.
It took much of the rest of her reserves to coat the rest of the base. Five rooms in total, joined by a central elevator shaft and threaded through with power from the Pyro-Regulator. The walls were all the same polished metal, glowing softly from the dim red light of the Volcanium X flowing through them. With enough time, enough Volcanium X, and enough tender love and care, it might one day be a match for the capital ship she had so lovingly designed - but for now it was just the bare essentials.
At the top, of course, a throne room - because what self-respecting galactic conquerer could be without one of those? The space was largely empty right now, just an impressive throne atop a tall cylinder of metal. When the Volcanium X was flowing more freely, that could be illuminated in the magma-drenched style which she preferred...
The next level was the dungeon. A large space filled with barred cells; again, rather minimalist at the moment and unlikely to hold any determined Primes or sufficiently powerful Secondaries, really... but she could work on that later; it wasn't Primes she was concerned about dealing with at the moment.
The third level was the garrison. At the moment, again, mostly empty but for a couple of square, simple beds which could be used to house guests. No thrills or luxuries; the servants she'd create eventually didn't need such things, and she could hardly afford to spare the space herself.
The fourth level were her own chambers. She wanted to be as close to her precious Pyro-Regulator as possible, so she could feel the warmth of it as it grew and grew. Perhaps surprisingly, she kept her tastes modest; a simple kitchen with the basic amenities, a bathroom, a bedroom. So long as the Pyro-Regulator could maintain hot running water, a decent oven, and keep her refrigerator chilled... she could take care of making her own entertainment for the foreseeable future; there was more than enough to do.
And of course, on the fifth and final level, there was the Pyro-Regulator itself. Her pride and joy, and the fruits of all her labours. Now that she had somewhere to store her Volcanium X, the Omniverse no longer seemed like such a primitive and hateful place. Now, she had all the tools she really needed to make herself comfortable.
Which, of course, was really the point.
And with all of that energy expended to create her new home, Lord Dominator had never been so happy to be able to flop over into a simple, fluffy bed covered in pillows and blankets... and rest up.
At some point, she was sure, people were going to come calling. But for now, she could let herself just sleep and not worry about it. That, was a problem for tomorrow's Dominator to deal with.
![[Image: AwKNJPl.gif]](http://i.imgur.com/AwKNJPl.gif)