Conquest

Cutie Mark: starryoak.deviantart.com/art/C…
Redesign Of: starryoak.deviantart.com/art/C…
The Four Ponies of The Apocalypse:
Conquest: You're Here
War: starryoak.deviantart.com/art/W…
Famine: starryoak.deviantart.com/art/F…
Death: starryoak.deviantart.com/art/D…
Finally getting around to the full cast of the Ponies of the Apocalypse, with War's design finally made, I decided to just go ahead and redesign all of them, and I'm very happy with the results
His design is inspired with his mane being blood, and his armor's scheme is based upon Nightmare Moon's armor and as is his eyes. The rest is the look I thought was interesting.
The story of the Ponies of The Apocalypse comes from before Nightmare Moon ever existed. They were the four leaders of Luna's Royal Guard, with each of the four being one of the three races of ponies and the subspecies of Bat Ponies. They still are the leaders of the Lunar Guard, but they have more important duties to perform now. They've become gods, or the controllers of previously untamed forces of nature or humanity(look, equinity just doesn't work and you know what I mean). They were selected for being the best of their species in Luna's eyes, and were her close friends and kept her company when things got lonely. But eventually, the effects of the Nightmare Forces started to prey on her fears and pushed them away from her. She had always worried that they had only been her friend because she was their Princess, and not for any reason involving enjoying her company. The Nightmare told her that they secretly hated her, affirmed her nagging fears and caused her to push them out of her life, so the Nightmare could take her over without anypony meddling. So they attempted to show their devotion by declaring that they would stand by her side no matter what would happen. The seeds of their oath were listened to. The oath they made was magic, even if they never signed a paper or created a spell. They were tied to Luna, they would be there for her no matter what. And the Elements couldn't break that bond, because they themselves represent friendship. But that came with a cost. The night that the Elements of Harmony banished Nightmare Moon to the moon, they were banished as well. The bond was too strong. They found themselves without a body and became ethereal entities. The four of them were stars, the four surrounding the Moon, the ones that aided in her escape. Whether they wanted to or not, they were to stand by her no matter what. Even if it was releasing ancient evil, they had promised. When they returned to physical forms, they no longer were mortal, and they had a new calling. Each of them had become a representation of one force of nature, one previously ungoverned or, inn Death's case, taken care of by Faustian Harmony, who wished to have rest from her job, writing the deaths of the world is a hard job, and she writes the universe already.
Conquest is a rather interesting pony, considering his job, you would seem to think he would be a very somber or aggressive pony, but he represents victory, not the bloody battles that his brother represents. He and War have always had a rocky sibling rivalry, but with their competing forces, they've grown a bit more aggressive in their rivalry. Their interactions and scuffles are more serious, but Conquest still likes his brother. The jury is out on War. Conquest is a rather sarcastic but kind stallion. He's usually joking around, but his jokes tend to have a slight edge to them.
Luna and Conquest were the closest of the four when they were mortal, and their bond restarted and grew after Luna was released from the grip of Nightmare Moon, with the eventual lead to the birth of Princess Cassiopeia. They're married and their relationship, while adult, can be a bit silly sometimes. Celestia had a foal before with Clever Clover, so she has experience with raising foals. Luna on the other hoof, has no idea what she's doing as a mother and is trying to figure it out. Conquest is a much better father, even without experience, though he's a bit doting. They clashed a bit during her being with a foal (though this may be related to being a Goddess bearing a foal) and they have a bit of a problem with Luna not always understanding when Conquest is joking. She's still new to the world of humor in the modern times, and while Conquest may have disappeared the same as her, he reintegrated much easier than Luna did. But most of the time, they're sickeningly adorable, even when fighting, if only because their fights involve Luna being clueless about raising their foal.
"Cease thy incessant screeching, thy little whelp!"
"/continued screeching/"
"CONQUEST, IT'S NOT WORKING!"
----
"How do you hold a foal, Conquest?"
"...Not by her mane, Luna."
".... I knew I was doing something wrong...."
Conquest and his brother War control two very similar concepts, which has led to a rather interesting situation; chess. A chess board, magically enchanted to only have the ability to be played by the two brothers. There's nothing a mortal can do to move the pieces, and each turn is dictated by the board. No cheating allowed. War can't move his chess pieces when it's Conquest's turn. Conquest can't move on War's turn, ETC. Every move dictates a battle in Equestria, from a minor fight or skirmish to out and out war, all are somehow part of the game. Conquest moves in favor of  peace, or at least victory for a side that leads to the effect of peace in the wake of victory. For the record, Conquest usually wins. Or at least as close as winning comes;  neither win as much as they do make a stalemate. For an example of War's victories, see 'The Hooffields and McColts' or a close call in 'Party Pooped'. The Equestrian-Griffon War was a long series of chess moves where Conquest was losing for a very long time, but eventually managed to best War and end it.