Born In Light, Forged In Darkness

by Jest

Trial ???: Overwhelming Power

“But master, they were expendable! You said so yourself,” Stygian pleaded, his shadowy hooves raised defensively before him.

The superiority he plead to loomed over the shadow demon, his grey hoof raised, and his curved horn glowing a bright white light that lit up the impromptu torture room. The room around them was small and bereft of any decoration as the meditation room was all but empty, with only a few faded tapestries covering most of the walls and three large circles of alternating gold and blue inlaid in the floor. Everything else was made of a stark white marble imported from an entirely different plane of existence, the polished stone making up the domed ceiling that rose high above them.

“It doesn't matter if they were expendable or not, they were not yours to sacrifice,” snarled the taller stallion, whose lips curled back to reveal a row of dagger-sharp teeth that glinted in the low light.

His finely combed and well-manicured hoof slammed into the shadow demon’s cheek, knocking him to the ground. “Furthermore, you were tasked with taking them both back, or at least Mistmane, yet instead of teleporting away and bringing me my prize you stayed and tried to exact your petty revenge!” Starswirl shouted, his voice growing louder and louder as his curly mane began to straighten and stand on end, the grey and white locks becoming a fiery red.

“I’m sorry, master, but-” Stygian began, only to get another punch to the jaw, sending the shadow demon back to the floor, where he received another punch across the face, followed by a third, and then a fourth.

“You failed, again! Do you know how many times this has happened?” Starswirl yelled, his long and intricately decorated gold and blue cape flowing behind him on an unseen wind.

“N-no,” Stygian stuttered.

“Fifty-seven times, Stygian! Fifty-seven times you've failed me, and this time you have not only failed, but also lost me two of the pillars!” Starswirl bellowed, his pale blue eyes narrowing, his pupils elongating and becoming more draconic as his iris turned from a baby blue to a burning red.

“B-but, master, you said-” Stygian blubbered.

“I know what I said, but they were still important and with Flash, Somnambula and Meadowbrook all dead we are the last of the pillars!” Starswirl shouted.

“Why does that matter, sir?” Stygian muttered weakly.

“Because I had yet to finish my experiments on the other pillars, and I refuse to experiment on myself... But you…” Starswirl muttered, his mane falling back into place as his body morphed back into the more normal appearance of an aged stallion who was unnaturally tall, and with a long curved horn.

Stygian gulped. “Master?”

The larger stallion shook his head suddenly. “No, that would be useless, the elements abandoned us both.” The stallion sighed. “No matter, the research had hit a dead end anyway.”

The shadow demon slowly picked himself off the ground and brushed himself off, his body slowly inflating to fill in the damaged sections that had been punched in by his master. Though his body healed quickly, and easily, he remained relatively low to the ground, watching, and waiting for the other stallion to speak before Stygian uttered so much as a sound.

The superiority demon blinked and looked down, frowning at the other demon. “This changes little, and I suppose it was good that she perished before she was able to utter any secrets of ours. Her soul has likely suffered too greatly for her memories to be recoverable either.”

Stygian nodded eagerly, but knew better than to speak.

“Still, do not think this is the end of your punishment, you little failure.” Starswirl sneered, the stallion leaning down and jabbing a hoof into the shadow demon’s chest. “You have given our enemies a considerable power boost, one, which, although unlikely to change the fate I have set for them, should not be theirs to have at all.”

Stygian kept his jaw shut firmly and recoiled slightly, the smaller stallion wanting nothing more than to shrink into a nearby shadow and slip away through the cracks in the walls.

“Now then.” Starswirl stood straight, and began stroking his goatee with a hoof, staring off into space. “With that loose end out of the way, we have a rare opportunity in our hooves.”

“Master?”

“Though useful, Mistmane was clever, resourceful, and always managed to throw a wrench in my plans no matter how deep the hole I put her in.” Starswirl’s jaw clenched and he glared at something only he could see. “With her gone I can finally begin moving in earnest without worrying what new trick she is going to pull on me.”

Stygian cocked his head but remained silent, watching as the stallion thought deeply on the subject at hand.

“Were they able to acquire her spell book?” Starswirl asked suddenly.

Stygian shook his head. “No, I took it before anyone noticed. It's currently in your office on your desk.”

The superiority demon nodded. “Good, though she knew a lot, at least we have her spells and they do not. Though I would have loved to get my hooves on that stallion of hers again. Every time I left those two alone for any extended period of time, Mistmane always managed to surprise me by adding another ward to the many layers of Rockhoof’s defences,” Starswirl mused aloud.

“Yes, he certainly was… difficult to kill,” Stygian muttered through gritted teeth.

“And so loyal and powerful, I really should set aside time to replicating the spellwork I did on his binding enchantment.” Starswirl chuckled. “If only I could chain all my minions with such restraints, this little scenario would never happen.”

Stygian shuddered in disgust, imagining the powerful superiority demon at the head of an army of dead-eyed demons bound to do his every will. “You would be unstoppable,” Stygian replied weakly.

“I would, wouldn't I?” Starswirl smirked, only to shake his head suddenly. “Still, loyalty and strength aside, he was surprisingly strong-willed, it's better that he's gone now. He is indeed dead, correct?”

Stygian nodded vigorously. “Oh yes, I made sure to linger long enough to confirm his death. They didn't even notice me watching them say their final goodbyes.” The shadow demon snickered to himself. “The fools.”

A sudden hoof to the jaw sent the shadow demon sprawling to the ground, an angry superiority demon looming over him, teeth bared and eyes glowing harshly. “If you were half as good at killing as you were at sneaking, all of our enemies would be dead!”

The stallion’s rage vanished quickly this time, with the taller demon taking a step back and placing a hoof over where his heart would be, his breathing slowing. “Get up, Stygian, we have much to discuss and I refuse to speak to you while you are busy pissing yourself.”

“I can't actually do… Yes, sir,” Stygian muttered, rising slowly on shaky limbs.

“The nightmare’s release is drawing nigh, but we have time left to remove Tirek. How many of my soldiers are ready to move?” Starswirl asked, not even looking at the shadow demon and instead staring off into space, the stallion rubbing his chin, deep in thought.

“Seven thousand strong, sir, not including the cannon fodder which number in the tens of thousands, give or take a few thousands or so, depending on how hungry the troops are,” Stygian replied.

“Good, and my generals, have they assembled?” Starswirl inquired.

Stygian nodded. “Amon, Belial, Grigori, and Maricha await your command, Rusalka has sent a messenger ahead of her arrival and Vepar is indisposed, but has sent his finest soldiers in his stead.”

“Good, good.” Starswirl muttered. “Vepar was the weakest of the bunch, so his loss is negligible. As soon as Rusalka is here, notify me immediately so we may begin operation Stormspire.”

“Yes, sir,” Stygian replied instantly, ducking into a slight bow.

“I will have to run the numbers again tonight, maybe redo the simulations to take into account the fact that they have a keeper,” Staswirl remarked idly before shaking his head. “Regardless, we have work to do, and one last ritual to complete. You will accompany me in three hours’ time after I have had a chance to gather the necessary supplies.”

“Sir? I thought Nightmare Moon’s return could not be sped up,” Stygian half asked half stated.

Starswirl smirked, looking down at the shadow demon with barely contained contempt. “Her arrival is all but set in stone, but our arrival is not. We will need to create several hard points between Tartarus and Equestria if we will have a hope of overrunning the ponies and ensuring that our mistress is successful this time,” Starswirl declared, the stallion hissing angrily when he spoke the title of the creature that held power over him.

“Sir? I thought she was going to raise a rebellion again, or perhaps resurrect the forces she buried in the shimmering hills,” Stygian inquired.

“I care very little of her actual plans, she will receive the help of my armies whether she wishes it or not.” Starswirl snorted. “Her arrogance cost us greatly last time, and this time I have ensured that there are elements in place that will make sure we are able to succeed despite her idiosyncrasies.”

Stygian held back the biting remark that was on the tip of his tongue, the shadow demon only barely keeping himself from uttering something he would no doubt regret. “A solid plan, sir, but why are you telling me all this?”

“Partly to keep you in the loop, partly to gloat, I must admit.” Starswirl chuckled. “You are one of the few creatures whom truly understanding the scope of the task before us, and knows its great difficulty.”

“Worse yet, the ponies have begun to prepare themselves for our arrival,” Stygian remarked with a frown.

“True,” Starswirl remarked with a shrug. “But they fail to grasp the true power of the army that even now moves on their prim and perfect lands. Equestria will be ours, but first, I have one last job for you, one last chance to prove yourself before we return to Equestria and do the will of our dark mistress.”

“Anything, my master,” Stygian replied quickly, ducking into a short bow.

“The spies have confirmed that they have managed to break through the majority of Tirek’s wards undetected, thus giving you enough wiggle room to scout the areas that my spies have not been able to.” Starswirl smiled. “This will be your last opportunity to earn your final transformation and acquire the power you have sought for so long, my familiar.”

Stygian couldn't help but grin despite the demeaning words leveled his way. “You will know every secret Tirek’s tower holds before the morrow, this I swear.”

“See to it that I do, or else I will do worse than simply slap you around until I grow bored,” Starswirl replied with a sneer.

Stygian gritted his teeth and held back another biting remark that wanted desperately to spill past his lips. “Your will be done,” Stygian whispered, before his form lost all semblance of cohesion and bled into the floor, vanishing from sight.

Leaving Starswirl to stand in the midst of his meditation room, a small smile on his face. “Ahh, I can hardly wait for my revenge. Finally, Tirek, you will get your just deserts.”

---

Kanathara was adrift on a seemingly endless sea of darkness that stretched out into infinity. The imp floated on her back, the cold bite of the water dulled somewhat by her tough, leathery hide and the heat that burned deep in her core. After all, demons at their heart were born from hellfire, and Kanathara was no exception to this rule.

She wasn't sure when she had returned to consciousness, or how, only that her last memories were of being submerged in the latent magic of the keeper, her soul sent adrift in the massive currents of power that had been at Mistmane’s beck and call up until the moment of her death. Now, that power was unbound and was slowly seeping out of the keeper’s body without a will to be dominated and controlled.

The imp looked up at the sky, only to find not the endless, featureless darkness she had assumed she would, but instead saw stars, plenty of them. As she gawked, she quickly realized that these stars were a part of the now dead keeper’s memories, the soul that burned in the imp’s stomach giving her a taste of the dead demon’s mind and what the keeper had seen.

For a moment, her mission was forgotten and Kanathara looked up in wonder, amazed by the sheer detail of the sky that lay before her. Tartarus had no such night sky, only an endless cloud cover that stretched from one horizon to another, somehow letting in the cruel light of the endless fires, but still obscuring the sky at the same time. Now though, now the sky was open to the imp, allowing the young demon to stare up in wonder.

That was until she felt a shift in the tide she floated upon, alerting her to the words her father had spoken many days ago. “Work quickly. As soon as the keeper dies her magic will begin to dissipate and you will need to absorb a certain amount of it or else the transformation will be incomplete.” Tirek had spoken sternly, though his grim expression was marred somewhat by a faintly guilty look Kanathara had noticed in his eye.

She refused to think about that for now though, as she had a job to do, and not long to do it if she hoped to finally receive the power she had first craved nearly twenty years ago. With a grunt, she tensed her muscles, only to realize that she had no idea where to start.

The ocean that surrounded her was her mind’s conceptualization of the keeper’s power, and yet it somehow needed to be inside her. Well, in a way it needed to be, she doubted she could physically drink an ocean.

Closing her eyes, the imp simply allowed herself to lay in the ocean of power, eyes shut tight as she thought of how best to tackle her situation. It needed a vessel, a home, a place for it to reside, and what was an imp if not a vessel for such a power. She felt a large grin spread across her face and she chuckled darkly despite the monumental task that lay before her. One way or another, this power would be hers, the only question left was how best to claim dominion over it.

This problem was in her mind, she decided, as it was simply a puzzle waiting to be cracked, and out of the mire of confusion, Kanathara grinned, an idea coming to mind.

She was not small, not anymore, she was a keeper of secrets, not a mere imp, not a bottom feeder or lowly mana eating creature that lurked in the bottom levels of Tartarus. This was all hers by right, as was Mistmane’s very soul, and she would claim what was hers, no matter what.

Kanathara’s eyes snapped open, and she dismissed the chaotic miasma of confusion and scattered thoughts that had clung to her for the past few minutes, and instead focused solely on being able to take what was hers by right of conquest. Standing up suddenly, the imp forced the ocean of power to gain a solid surface, her will bending the laws of this place to suit her desires. With that little test out of the way, she focused on imaging that she was no longer an imp, forcing her mind to carve away her now cramped, and too small flesh.

Leathery hide peeled off her body like she were being flayed alive, thick strips of flesh vanishing the instant they separated from the imp’s form. Revealing only darkness beneath, at the heart of which shone a blood red sun that pulsed angrily with barely contained power. The stripping of her flesh elicited no cry of pain from the imp, as she knew that this was all merely a conjuration of her mind, which was simply trying to actualize the action Kanathara felt her soul start to go through.

Her skin peeled away from her legs and up her torso, until finally it reached her neck and face, swiftly ending at a point between the imp’s eyes. The discarded flesh vanished, leaving behind a faint purple outline of magic in the shape of a hooved creature, that contained the same blood red heart. She paid no mind to the loss of her horns, mane and flesh, for they were all transitory, a mere reflection of her weakness, and inability to grasp true power.

She no longer needed her talismans that gave her strength beyond a mere imp, speed beyond the bottom dweller she had been for the past twenty years. Not even the loss of the horns she had been so proud of brought her a hint of regret, for she knew there would be a far grander apotheosis just on the horizon.

One she willed herself to reach, pushing herself towards her desired goal faster, lest she be unable to reach it at all.

Thinking back to Mistmane’s appearance, Kanathara first remembered the demon’s flowing ethereal mane. Focusing on her own scalp, Kanathara gripped her will like a weapon, and used it to pull at her very essence, forcing her ethereal being to stretch and contort. A long, flowing section of herself was forced thin and long, falling from her scalp like a great wave that hung over one side of her face while the other side was empty of hair.

The simple magenta color was not enough for the imp though and she mixed it with a deep black reminiscent of the night sky that hung above her. She watched on in glee, as her mane became black at the base, and purple at the ends, betwixt which flowed a sea of stars caught in the gentle glow of twilight.

With that out of the way, she focused on her horns, only to stop herself just before conjuring the twin ram’s horns she had seen on the keeper. She herself had similar horns when she were an imp, and though she was tempted to emulate the keeper’s appearance, they were not intimidating, or radiated the type of power Kanathara wished to emulate, two things she desperately wanted her new appearance to have. And so she thought of something else entirely, focusing on the point where she had seen a unicorn’s horn grow from, and focusing her will on that same point.

Her being stretched and contorted once more as it was pulled out of her, the glowing magic that was her soul taking on the shape of a long sharp horn. It wasn't enough that it was sharp though, she wanted it to be unique, striking, and able to make her enemies stop and stare in a mix of awe and fear. So instead of making it straight and long like a unicorn’s, she bent and altered it into a shape more unique than that. The magic became slightly thicker, and flatter, and grew straight from her head until it bent forward and then back once more. With a horn more akin to a khopesh, Kanathara looked up and smiled, noting that although it was longer than any unicorn horn, it was not unwieldy, or appeared too large for her new proportions.

With a smile, she focused next on her legs, forcing the stumpy, pathetic limbs of an imp into the long, shapely legs of a demon who could count succubi as their distant cousins. Remembering the way that Mistmane’s body drew the eye in, and guided it along her curves where the viewer got lost, Kanathara focused on that and sculpted her form thusly, emulating the image that lay in her mind’s eye. Unbeknownst to her, the ocean below her was growing smaller and smaller, the enormous body of power being pulled into the imp’s form and fueling her changes.

She became taller, her body elongating and losing the childlike appearance she had been forced to live with for the past twenty years. Painstaking attention was given to ensuring that her new proportions were perfect, and that she was every bit the strikingly beautiful creature she had seen in the book nearly twenty years ago. Flashes of that very first keeper appeared before her eyes, making Kanathara grin wider still, her confidence surging.

She would be more beautiful, more adept, and all around more powerful than even Mistmane, this she was sure of.

Next came her fur, which was the same lustrous magenta and black as her mane, her body eagerly adapting the equine appearance with ease. Something that Kanathara chose not to think about for now, as she was busy assessing her new fur. Only to frown when she realized that having an identical coat and mane color made her mane seem less impressive and she forced her fur to change until it was a deep black with only the barest hint of purple left at the tips.

Nodding to herself, she began to draw the symbols of power into her flesh, the glowing lines of pink flowing this way and that without Kanathara having to even think about it. Though she considered stopping herself, she ultimately chose not to, the now former imp correctly reasoning that this was simply a part of the process. Though one thing she did change was that she encouraged the power to flow over her face and neck as well, something Mistmane apparently had not allowed.

Though the power at first resisted, it seemed to find her suggestion agreeable, and subsequently swirled up either side of Twilight’s cheeks before criss crossing over her muzzle and meeting at her horn, completing the circuit. When that happened the mare nearly jumped out of her newly formed flesh, the burst of power that surged through her making her body tremble with both joy, and anticipation. She already had more power than she could have dreamed of as an imp, and she was not yet finished.

Focusing on the last part of her transformation, Kanathara fought vigorously against the natural tug of the flowing power, forcing it to create not the ugly tome she had seen around Mistmane’s neck but rather a slim, black one. It's cover bore only the demonic word for power, which glowed a bright red on the face of the thin black book that now floated beneath her neck. Knowing what was coming next, Kanathara influenced the magic to flow in a different way, so that it conjured forth not black, but silver chains which worked perfectly with her new body.

Glancing down at that new body, Twilight smiled, only to realize that she had yet to create her eyes, which she ultimately decided would be a bright magenta unmarred by the black that intermingled in her mane and fur to varying degrees. Her pupils were slitted like that of a dragon and when she looked into her own eyes using the altered perception of her mindscape, she saw not the eyes of a weak imp, but the gaze of a powerful keeper, who was every bit the adult she appeared to be.

With a confident nod, she glanced around her, noting idly that the ocean was gone, leaving her standing there alone in a now featureless void.

“It is time,” she announced.

Author's Note:

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Comments

[Mirvra]

Eeeeeeee!!! It's happening!!! :3 EAGERLY looking forward to the next chapter Jest XD I NEED to see Rainbow's reaction to Kanathara's new look XD

[Mirvra]

9706018
The WAAAAGH!!! called. Dey jus wanted ta tell ya dey're tak'n all yer stuff an' stomp'n' yer 'umiez...

[Honey Lavender]

9706104
Alas, this cannot be allowed. FOR THE EMPEROR!!!

[Honey Lavender]

Very nice choices, Twilight/Kanathara. Truly badass

[Kichi]

A new keeper of secrets has born... All hail Empress Sparkle!

[Love able chaos]

Nicely done Sparkle, nicely done.

[Backlash91]

Fully up to date now, and i cant wait for more!!!
One question...does kanathara have wings in this new form?

Is there art of her so we can get a visual of what she looks like?

[Jest]

9733960
She does not and there is not. Though im planning to commission some.

[Backlash91]

9734435
Well i am a commission artist for my job. Been doing art for ten years ^^ and would love to do some art for this story!

[Jest]

9735496
Well well well, I guess my search for an artist is over XD feel free to slide into the ol DMs and let me know your price structure.