Nergal

**Nergal** is the secondary antagonist in the television series, *The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy*. He is a minor player in the second Disney Vs Non Disney Villains War, serving as one of Oberon's Anti-Acolytes.

## Disney Vs Non Disney Villains - Part Two

### Beginnings

In order to understand what Nergal has become, we must look at his past. Back to his days at Doomsday High, when he and Hecate vied for the coveted position of cheer captain- Oh. Wait. Sorry. That's a little too far back. Instead, we shall go back to the glory days of the Underworld. We all know Hades, Lord of the Dead, but what most people don't know is that to run an operation as big as the Underworld, Hades needed some help. The Grim Reaper would collect the souls, and Anubis, Hel and Nergal would organize them. All of these gods were sworn to the duty of keeping the worlds of the living and the dead  permannetly separate unless Hades made an express decision to let someone go.

To that end, there were very few gateways from the world of the dead to the land of the living. The gods could gross easily, and mortals could always find a way to get around the security system and get IN, but it was nigh impossible for the dead to get OUT. Several gateways - the Eye of Gazeem, the figurehead of the Black Viper - were locked up. The River Styx was guarded by Cerberus, who would devour any soul that tried to escape. The only true portal in and out was the Grim Reaper's scythe, which could open a rift between the two realms. Naturally, there were always those who did not wish to be dead. They lay in wait, observing, looking for a way to best the rigid system and break back out into the land of the living. The most ardent seeker of escape was Ayam Aghoul, who could never accept that he'd actually died. He vowed to find his way out if it ended his very existence. And that meant he'd have to play dirty. Among Hades' co-workers, Nergal quickly climbed the corporate ladder. His charming demeanor as well as his efficiency at soul organizing quickly earned him Hades' favor, and soon, he was Hades' second in command. The only thing Hades couldn't stand about him - oddly enough, since the other gods thought there was a LOT about Nergal that was intolerable - was his rivalry with the Grim Reaper. Nergal and Grim just couldn't stop picking fights with each other over the littlest things. Hades often warned them angirly that if they didn't stop, one day, they would regret their little war, as it would cause doom for the very Underworld.

One day, things went too far. During an altercation, Nergal saw an opening and stole the Grim Reaper's scythe on a whim. To this day, he couldn't tel you if he intended to give it back or keep it forever. It didn't matter for long.

Ayam Aghoul lay in wait. When he saw the scythe passed from the all-powerful Grim to the less physically and magically powerful Nergal, he pounced on the opportunity, leaping out of hiding. He forcibly knocked down Nergal and took the scythe for himself, then used it to tear apart the Grim Reaper, doing the impossible and killing Death. Nergal could only watch in horror. He hadn't intended for such a thing to happen.

After he was sure Grim was gone, Aghoul used the scythe to open a portal to the realm of the living, leaping to his freedom. He entered an unlife where he would eventually meet the other members of the Sorcerer's Society as well as Mirage and her Agrabanian army built aganist Skeletor. He still has the Grim Reaper's scythe to this day.

Other dead souls saw the rift and took advantage of it. Among them were two of the most recent deaths- Vlad Masters, deceased headmaster of Evile Academy, and Nikolai Technus, a professor at the same institution.

Hades eventually found and closed the rift before any more souls could escape. Enraged, he put all of the blame on Nergal and cast him out of the Underworld forever, telling him not to bother coming back. Among his last words to his former second in command were "As of now, you have no friends in existence." Words Nergal would always remember and try to avert. After that, it seemed like things just couldn't go right for Nergal. When something as big as his career in the Underworld had failed, all other little things in his life fell apart. He couldn't even work  a vending machine without it jamming, play a board game without losing, or buy a drink without the bottom falling out and drenching him. He finally found a sanctuary in the center of the earth, where he waited while war waged around him.

As for the demise of the Grim Reaper, Hades set that right by putting the task of soul collection in the claws of Anubis. Hel, on the other hand, introduced Hades to Loki - someone he'd be sure to remember later.

### The Battle of Bald Mountain

Nergal is a member of the Anti-Acolytes, a faction devoted to preventing the rise of Chernabog. Nergal aids in the assault on Bald Mountain, facing down the Acolyte, Hecate. Hecate summons a crystalline monster that knocks Nergal aside. However, after fellow Anti-Acolyte Count Marzo wipes out the monster, Nergal electrocutes the goddess. The Anti-Acolytes are then victorious.

## Non Disney Villains Tournament

### The Triumvirate of Terror

Nergal is a member of Nox's Triumvirate of Terror, a group through which he intends to reverse the flow of time. Nergal and his compatriots, Him and Discord, decide to take on the leader of the animated Legion of Darkness, Myotismon. Nergal enters Myotismon's lair first first, trying to hit Myotismon with his tentacles and some energy blasts. Neither attack works. Discord arrives at just the right time to distract Myotismon, allowing Nergal to get an attack in with his tentacles. Nergal then opens up the shades to Myotismon's lair, blinding the vampire with sunlight. In spite of this, Nergal ends up on the receiving end of one of Myotismon's magical blasts. When Him and Discord seemingly defeat Myotismon, Nergal rejoices. However, Myotismon is still alive and emerges from the rubble unscathed. Frightened, Nergal runs away, along with the rest of his allies.

### Chaos Unleashed

Nergal and the rest of the Triumvirate of Terror kidnap Red, the hellcat, transporting him into a city to wreak general havoc. In particular, they have him torture the innocent farmer, Eustace Bagge.

## Cartoon Villains War

### At Bill's schemes

Meanwhile, Bill Cipher, beginning the next phase of his plan, opened a portal into his home dimension, summoning two beings, **Nergal** and Jack O’Lantern. Bill had hoped to recruit them as henchmen in his schemes. Unfortunately, although Nergal seemed cooperative enough, Jack O'Lantern had his own plans, and intended on eliminating Bill and taking his place. Bill then banished Jack back to his own dimension, never to be seen again. Impressed by Bill's power, Nergal agreed to work with him, much to Bill's glee.

Bill Cipher and Nergal continued watching the events of the war unfold from afar, all the while making plans to bring about their ultimate endgame: a cataclysmic event they called "Weirdmaggedon." In the interest of making these plans a reality, Bill decided to hire the services of Vlad Plasmius, bring him into their faction.

### Freeing some monsters

Nergal introduces Bill Cipher to a new ally, the Boogeyman. Equipping him with the all-powerful Hand  Of Horror, Bill sends him to harvest the souls of terrified children.

Wanting to send a message to the world and put an end to Aku's interference in his plans, Bill Cipher enlists the aid of Nergal to summon and take control of an ancient evil entity and send him to destroy their rivals.

### Vs Father

With his master plan entering its final stages, Bill Cipher wishes to be certain that nothing else can interfere with his schemes. To this end, his sends Nergal to look into Aku’s allies, the Fire Nation, and see whether or not they will pose a threat to him. At the same time, Father, looking to further gain Ozai’s trust and cement his position as the next Fire Lord, is preparing for an attack on the Earth Kingdom city of Zaofu. However, will a certain demon looking to make friends bring his winning streak to a fiery end?

### Death

Deciding that the time has come for him to bring about Weirdmaggedon, Bill Cipher sends Nergal and Vlad Plasmius to steal the inter-dimensional rift back from Aku. However, upon breaking into his lair, the two find the fortress protected by none other than Aku’s brother, Discord. While Vlad moves on to find the rift, Nergal faces off against Discord in a one-on-one duel...