I lounge on the deck after equipping my armour, rifle and pistol, with plenty of ammunition for both with a cold glass of bloodapple juice in hand with Desire, also armed and armoured, and Twilight in their own chairs next to me.

Selene is with Primrose Scroll and her guards just chatting.

Twilight has a worried expression and glances at me before speaking up. "Are you sure we're going to be okay?" she asks me.

I chuckle and take another sip. "Of course. If they attack us, I'll just have my Shadow Wraiths pull everyone into the shadow realm while Desire and I will show them the grave mistake they made," I reply.

Desire giggles deeply. "Hmmm, I almost hope they do! I haven't really let loose with my new Demonlord strength yet and this could be a good opportunity... But then again, we don't want more enemies than we already have," she says with a sigh.

After a good twenty minutes or so, one of my soldiers walks up to us and nods to me. "My Lord, the Minotaur has returned with the Chieftain," he reports and heads back to the boarding ramp.

"Whelp... Time to see how this goes," I say and get up.

We make our way down the ramp and wait for the Chieftain and their white knight to arrive. They stand about twelve feet from us and I take in the Chieftain's appearance.

I raise an eyebrow seeing as they're a female. Just as tall as the white knight, and half as muscular, she's wearing solid half-plate armour with padding under it but her biceps, thighs, hands, and stomach are exposed as a large greatsword that's more like a sharp slab of iron with no handguard is strapped to her back.

Her fur is a dull grey, her eyes are a deep brown while her horns are jet black. She has plenty of scars all over her body showing she's had her fair share of battles.

"I am Onyx Battle-Born, Chieftain of the Minotaurs. I've been told you want to make a treaty with us, and why should we trust the word of a Demon?" she asks me.

I laugh, making her raise a brow. "How do you trust any word from a stranger? Doesn't matter if I'm a Demon, Pony, Gryphon, Zebra, or Minotaur. Trust has to be earned no matter who they are, so how do we earn your trust? I honestly just don't want you to side with the Gryphons or Zebras when they decide to go suicidal and attack us. I have an army of over two-hundred thousand that can take on around ten of you at once, each. I have weapons and armour that out match anything on this world, I have war-machines that are constantly evolving and tip the balance on any battlefield. But I only bring these to bare if threatened," I reply and tilt my head.

"Do you intend on joining the Gryphons in threatening me or my allies?" I ask her politely.

She narrows her eyes at me and huffs. "And how am I to believe any of that? For all we know you're bluffing."

I grin as I turn back to the ship. "IRONHOOF! THUNDERHORN! GET DOWN HERE!" I yell out.

Minotaurs gasp as they see the larger Balrogs clad in thick fel-iron armour with arm guards that are two inches thick, and a pair of massive hammers weighting eight-hundred pounds with heads in the shape of a bull's skull on their backs walking down the ramp and stopping beside me. "You called, my Lord?" Ironhoof asks, his muscles bulging as he glares at the Minotaurs around us. His wife Scarlet just smiles and sits on the sloop's railing as she watches.

"Ironhoof, Thunderhorn. Think you can take on these Minotaurs by yourselves?" I ask them as I gesture to the aforementioned Minotaurs.

They both look at each other and then to the Minotaurs with grins. They've both been training with each other daily and have found their strengths and limits. From what I can tell, Ironhoof is about four times stronger than this Chieftain, and ten times stronger than the average Minotaur here. Thunderhorn is slightly weaker than his brother but still seven or eight times stronger than the average Minotaur himself.

They both are some of the strongest demons I have physically and their regenerative abilities rival mine. They just have no ranged abilities, unless you count giving them modified ship cannons they can hold like an RPG as a ranged option.

Ironhoof laughs before abruptly stopping with a serious expression. "Easily, my Lord," he replies, making most of the Minotaurs glare at him.

Onyx narrows her eyes before huffing. "Then I propose a contest. My best warriors against those two in the arena, then you and I shall fight. Should they win, I will not side with the Gryphons. And if you win, I will count Tartarus as allies of Minos! But, should they lose, Tartarus will be banned from entering Minos. And if you lose, I will side with the Gryphons! What do you say?" she explains and asks me.

I grin widely and chuckle as I walk up to her making her guards tense up. I hold out my right hand to her. "Challenge accepted!" I gleefully announce.

She grasps my hand and squeezes, to her shock I felt no pain, nor my armour bent as I 'lightly' squeeze back, getting a small wince from her. We shake for a few seconds before both letting go.

She puts on a brave face and speaks up. "Only you and those two are permitted to enter, the rest will wait on board your ship," she tells us and I sigh.

"Was hoping to show off a bit, but if that's how it has to be then so be it," I say and turn back to the others. "We'll be back soon! Just relax and enjoy yourselves until then!" I say, getting a worried look from Twilight before turning back to Onyx.

"Oh, and if I find out any of your people attacked mine or the Equestrians, or even just harmed them, I will retaliate with my army," I warn her and start making my way towards the main gate. "Ironhoof! Thunderhorn! Let's go!" I call out to them.

They don't answer but I hear their heavy footsteps behind me.

"Keep an eye on them but don't attack unless provoked!" I hear Onyx say before she catches up with us.

I see her in my peripheral vision as we walk to the city's gate. "So, what are the rules for these fights?" I ask her as she walks ahead of us.

"As your Minotaurs think of themselves so highly they will be facing a hundred of our best warriors, no magic shall be used and they may only use what weapons they have with them. Our fight shall be the same, no magic and only what weapons we bring in with us," she replies.

"Is it a fight to the death or till one surrenders?" I then ask her as civilians gossip around us, keeping their distance but following as word spreads of a fight within the arena.

"Either, if one surrenders, then they are out of the fight, but most warriors are too stubborn and will fight to the end for their honour," she replies as I look around the city.

Solid grey brick buildings much larger than most of even Fel-Haven's buildings, besides the skyscrapers of course. The roofing appears to be clay tiles and there are a lot of ornamental weapons, banners, and statues of warriors dotted about the city. People all around us are talking about us while many start following.

We take a left off the main road and ahead of us is a large coliseum structure. "Follow this bull to the Arena's pit, I'll get the fight announced and ready," Onyx tells us and walks off down a side hallway.

"Alright, let's get this show started," I say with a smirk, getting a huff from the bull but he walks off down the main hallway. It doesn't take long to exit the building where we're led into the main arena. Flat bloodstained sand in a circular pit that's fifteen feet below the spectator stands, which is half full already and more minotaurs flood in to fill the empty seats.

Weapons line the pit's walls, ranging from axes, halberds or spears, hammers, tridents, it seems there's no shields, bows, crossbows, or one-handed weapons here.

"Minotaurs of Minos!" A loud deep male voice calls out. I spot a black minotaur on a balcony overlooking the arena with a megaphone in his hand. I wonder if it's powered by magic as the tech here I've seen is primitive. I also see Onyx standing next to him. "We have a special event for you today! For the very Overlord of Tartarus himself and two of his demons will be facing off against one-hundred of our finest warriors and the chieftain herself!" he says, getting cheers from the crowd.

I raise an eyebrow and look back to Ironhoof and his brother. "Well then, get limbered up and ready for your fight, try not to kill anyone, only knock your opponents out, no permanent damage, think of it as a test. If you win without a single kill, I'll give you both rewards," I tell them with a chuckle.

Thunderhorn grumbles while Ironhoof roars out a laugh boisterously. "Sounds like a challenge! Oh how I wish Scarlet was here to watch this!" he says and finishes with a deep chuckle as they both start stretching their limbs.

"Now I present our finest warriors and gladiators!" the Announcer says as the side gates open up and out floods a hundred Minotaurs of varying sizes, colours, and armour ranging from full plate to nothing but a loin cloth. I also notice quite a few sporting nasty scars and appear to be quite skilled.

They all spread out and start claiming weapons from the walls. "Guests! Select from the walls your weapons!" Mr Announcer tells us.

Both Balrogs reach back and pull their eight-hundred pound hammers from their backs and slam them into the ground, making a foot deep crater from each impact. Once done showing off, they heft them onto their shoulders with loud clangs of metal.

I chuckle and spot some now nervous looking Minotaurs around us. "Remember, not a single kill and I'll reward you for it. But if you have to, I'd rather you live than risk your lives for a prize. Now, show them what Tartarus is made of," I tell them before flying off up to the Announcer's balcony and take a seat on the railing.

"So, how long do you think this will take?" I ask Onyx as I look at the Minotaurs circling the Balrog brothers.

She laughs as she looks down as well. "I feel you've underestimated my warriors, it won't take long for my warriors to beat yours," she replies confidently.

I just smirk and focus on the coming battle.

"Warriors! Prepare for battle!" The Announcer yells, getting a cheer from the now full spectator stands. "The match will end when neither side can stand! Fight!" And the battle begins.

---

---

I grin and ready my hammer as the Minotaurs around us start moving in. "So, Brother! Are you ready to prove our father was wrong about us!?" I ask him and look for the strongest warrior I can find.

"Then how about we prove it to him together right now?" he asks and looks toward a Minotaur in full plate.

I look and my breath catches in my throat. Walking towards us in slightly damaged armour is our Father, Dark grey fur, cream coloured horns, green eyes, and a scar on the left side of his forehead, wielding a large battle-axe. I growl deeply as I place my left hand on my brother's shoulder.

"Keep the others off me while I go say hello..." I tell him coldly. 'I'm going to enjoy this' I think to myself.

He sighs and elbows my ribs lightly. "Just remember, don't kill him. Can't prove anything to him as he doesn't recognise us right now. Let's win and then chew him out. Then we can get Mother and Heartsong out of here as our prize for winning. It's been too long since we sent them any coin," my Brother tells me, making me sigh and calm down. He's right.

"Then let's stampede through them all... I'm thinking eight minutes, twelve tops," I reply and then roar out loudly before charging straight at my Father like a train.

My heavy hoofsteps leave small imprints of my metal clad hooves as I thunder across the arena floor. My Brother charges behind me, hammer at the ready before he slams his weapon lightly into his first opponent, sending him flying into two others.

He doesn't slow down as he starts swinging left and right, sending Minotaurs flying over others, any hit he receives is either deflected off his armour, or too light to even stagger him.

I leave them to him and focus on my Father who frowns at me and readies his axe. As I reach him he swings and I do nothing as it slams into my helmet, the clang of steel on fel-iron rings out through the arena. But it doesn't stop my momentum and I slam head first into his chest, cracking his chestplate and sending him tumbling past other warriors.

I swing my hammer left and right, mowing down warrior after warrior, making sure to not deal a fatal blow, broken bones maybe, but they'll live.

My father grunts and shakes his head as he stands back up and watches as I defeat every warrior that gets within range. He picks up his axe and with a bellow of rage, rushes at me again where the other warriors back away giving us some space.

He swings his axe and I return it with my hammer, despite mine being heavier, I'm surprised that he managed to stop it with as little recoil as possible.

I frown and swing again with the same result, we start trading blows on each other's weapons until the ninth hit shatters his axe. I smirk as I grab a warrior trying to attack me from behind and throw him into my father, knocking them both down to the ground.

I glance at my brother and see he's already taken down about forty warriors. I feel pride for him as he's come a long way since we reunited back at Skullcove Bay, no longer the timid and reluctant pirate, but now a strong and proud warrior!

I return my attention back to my own fight and start knocking out more warriors while I wait for my Father to get back onto his hooves.

---

---

I smirk as I look at Onyx and the slack jawed Announcer. She's wide eyed in disbelief as my Balrogs have taken down seventy of the one-hundred warriors in just nine minutes, without a single fatality so far.

"I think it was you who underestimated my warriors, Chieftain Onyx," I comment and look back to the battle.

I chuckle as Thunderhorn is using a smaller Minotaur as a makeshift club before throwing him into another Minotaur.

It doesn't take long for them to beat ninety-nine warriors leaving one battered full plate warrior left standing. I raise an eyebrow as to why the Brothers are focusing so much on this single warrior. I can see them talking to each other which makes the warrior suddenly angry and pick up an axe and a hammer off the ground before charging at Ironhoof.

Their weapons collide, sending sparks flying at how hard they're hitting each other. Thunderhorn is just standing to the side watching them fight.

The warrior parries Ironhoof's hammer with his axe enough to then swing an uppercut with his hammer and slams it into Iron's jaw, making him stumble back a few steps.

Impressive, that was the first solid blow any of these warriors managed to connect. Iron shakes his head and huffs before walking back to the warrior and resuming their trade of blows.

Over the course of four minutes they continue to fight, but it would seem the warrior is getting tired while Iron is still going full steam. Ironhoof back hands the hammer away while headbutting the axe, leaving the warrior open for a hoof to the chest, sending him onto his back and he's not getting back up if the haggard breathing I hear is any indication.

"And I think that's a win for my warriors," I say, shaking Mr Announcer out of his stupor.

"A-A-And we have our w-w-winners! The Demons have defeated all one-hundred of Mino's finest warriors!" he yells out, making me hiss and rub the inside on my right ear.

"So, I guess it's our turn now? Fair warning, I'm just as strong as them but much faster. Are you sure you want to fight me?" I ask her.

Onyx shakes her head and glares at me. "I have never backed down from a challenge, even at the risk of death," she replies and heads to the balcony's doorway.

"Fair enough," I say and jump off the railing and glide down to the two brothers fist bumping each other.

"Well done, Brother! I dare say we are the strongest Minotaurs in history!" Ironhoof boasts, getting a head shake and smirk from Thunderhorn.

I land next to them and chuckle. "Not a single fatality. As promised I shall reward you both. Iron, you will become captain of my flagship Death from above when it's rebuilt. It is a Man'o'War class ship with one-hundred cannons, eight ballista, a bomb bay, sniper nests, and heavy armour plating. Scarlet will be your second in command," I tell him, making him look beyond excited.

"Thunderhorn, is there anything you would like?" I ask him.

He frowns and looks at Iron before looking back at me. "I want our mother and sister to move to Tartarus with us and be given comfortable lives," he replies with determination.

"Is that all? Granted, we'll go and get them before we head back to Tartarus. But for now, sit back, rest, and watch my match. Then while the Chieftain and I come up with a treaty, you can go visit your family," I tell them, getting nods from them before Iron looks back to that last warrior and huffs before walking off with his Brother.

I glance at the warrior as he and many others start to get up slowly before helping others onto their hoofs and out of the arena. I'll have to ask about their fixation on him later.

I see Onyx enter the pit and I smile as I do some mild stretching. "Any specific rules for our fight or just fight till the other can't?" I ask her.

She draws her massive slab of a sword off her back and holds it with both hands at the ready.

"As I stated before, no magic, and until only one of us stays standing," she replies and waits for Mr Announcer.

"Spectators! We will now begin the match of our Chieftain against the Overlord of Tartarus himself! " Mr Announcer yells to the crowd, getting them to cheer at their Chieftain and to jeer me.

I look around and spot a sword just as big as hers but less decorated and send out a tendril to pluck it off the wall and bring it to me. I test its weight and it feels like a good three-hundred kilograms. Not bad, but nothing compared to the Balrogs hammers.

I get into position and smirk at Onyx while she glares at me. The arena is silent as the tension rises in the air.

"Fighters get ready!" Mr Announcer yells. "FIGHT!"

Next Chapter: Chapter 61: Chieftain VS Overlord Estimated time remaining: 12 Minutes