Born In Light, Forged In Darkness

by Jest

Trial Five: On The Run

Kanathara watched as the various demons under her father’s employ assembled in the largest available room. The crowd wandered around with confused looks on their faces and Kanathara couldn't help but think back to what happened only a few minutes ago. The memory was a poignant one, and it made the demon see herself in a different, more shameful light.

Was I really willing to act on that anger? Kanathara thought to herself. Despite what he's done, and the memories and context I’ve gained, surely I wasn't about to attack him.

The thought felt a little hollow to the keeper, who knew just how hot her rage had burned after she had walked into the room. Kanathara also knew that she had a habit of winding herself up if no one broke her train of thought, so it wasn't too farfetched to assume she may have done something she would have come to regret. Ultimately it no longer mattered, she decided, as the rage she had felt was gone, replaced by a grim acceptance.

She had already forgiven Tirek, but it did feel good to make him promise to teach her everything he knew. As she considered the centaur’s promise, Kanathara couldn't help but wonder what other secrets may be hiding in the old demon’s mind, a thought that nearly made the keeper salivate. Wiping her lips, Kanathara tried not to think about all the many spells, artifacts, and obscure knowledge that she may be about to acquire.

“You hungry there, boss?” Rainbow Dash asked.

Kanathara shook her head. “No, I grabbed something already. I’m just thinking about stuff.”

Rainbow Dash shrugged, and faced the assembly of demons. “Good, ‘cause if you still are, you should grab something while you can. You know what Cervantes used to tell us to never fight on an empty stomach.”

Kanathara frowned as she thought about the old armor demon, silently wondering if he was finally at piece now that he had been granted his final death. The keeper made a note of putting up some kind of memorial to her old teacher as soon as she found the time. Kanathara mused on the possibility of constructing a golem that looked like him, only to brush the idea aside when she noticed Tirek walk in.

The gathered demons all eyed him critically, most sizing him up, while a few others were merely confused as to why they were there. The tension was thick, as every demon Tirek had escaped with still held some modicum of distaste for their lord. Kanathara even heard a few whispered curses leveled her father’s way, though she paid them little mind, as she knew what was coming next.

After Pear Butter stood next to him, and both Velvet and Pythias had entered the room, Tirek cleared his throat and pulled out a small stack of papers.

“By now you no doubt know of the coming attack,” Tirek began. “Pythias has probably already told you of the plan and your role during the actual assault.”

A few nodded, others grunted, while the rest merely remained impassive, waiting for the old demon to get to the point.

“There will be no changes to the orders you’ve already been given, though I have altered your contracts slightly,” Tirek exclaimed, his announcement causing the assembled demons to perk up either curiously or nervously. “The short version is that you will not be serving me after this battle has concluded.”

Confused whispers abounded, while the more violent demons placed a limb on whatever weapon they had on hand.

“Explain!” one yelled.

“I intend to,” Tirek replied, raising the stack of papers high into the air. “These are your contracts. Most of you serve me for a limited time in return for safety and experience, while others’ contracts are more permanent. Regardless of the contract you’ve signed, you will be released from your duties as soon as you are slain, and your souls return to Tartarus. All I ask is that you do not kill any of the ponies.”

That made the crowd’s mood turn. A towering, plate mail-covered war demon stepped forward. “I assume we can confirm that?” he asked.

Tirek nodded, grabbed one of the papers and offered it to him. “Of course, though we don't have the time to go over each one individually.”

The war demon eyed his contract closely, before handing it back. “The alteration is within the bounds of our agreement, and it all seems to be there.”

A few shouts of exultation could be heard, as well as more than a little cackling.

“And as a sign of good will, there is a cache of goods buried under the site of my former tower. It is yours for the taking,” Tirek finished.

Rainbow Dash leaned towards the keeper. “Is he sure that's a good idea, I mean, one cache between all of them?”

“They’ll learn to work together, or kill each other. Either way, they’ll do it of their own free wills,” Kanathara replied.

The vengant shrugged. “I suppose so.”

“So if that's everything, return to your groups and await the orders,” Tirek stated.

The assembled demons quickly filed out, some already forming alliances, while others conspired against their fellows. Kanathara sighed. They are still demons, after all.

When Pythias turned to leave, Tirek caught her by the arm. “Wait, I need to speak with you and Pear Butter.”

The wrath demon in question stepped forward and let out an irritated snort. “Need I remind you that releasing us at this moment is out of the question?” Pear Butter declared.

“I know what you said, but it's not up to you. I’m the one who wrote the contract, and I’m the only one who can break it,” Tirek retorted.

Pythias frowned and grabbed the centaur’s arm, her gaze focusing on the fear demon.

Who suddenly looked confused and then a little sad. “Fine,” he muttered. “But the second this business is done, I am ripping them up. Regardless of the risk to myself.”

Pear Butter gave the seer a nod of thanks before turning back to the centaur. “Now then, do we know where they are?”

Kanathara shook her head. “They have deployed an anti-scrying field already, as have we. Neither of us will know where our enemies are until they knock on the front door.”

“The back entrance is fairly well-hidden, but we should still be prepared to fight our way out,” Tirek reminded the group. “I just hope that our small force can manage that much at least.”

“I’m sure it will be fine,” Rainbow Dash declared. “As soon as they start trying to break in, your minions will attack, and we’ll slip out the rear. Easy peasy.”

“Well, now you're just jinxing us on purpose,” Velvet remarked.

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “Hey, at least I didn't say something like ‘it couldn't get any worse’.”

“Except you just did,” pointed out Kanathara.

“Yeah, but it doesn't count ‘cause nothing bad has happened yet,” countered the vengant.

“We can argue narrative cliches when we aren't facing down a pack of demon hunters,” Tirek interrupted.

Kanathara nodded. “Right. We should get into place.”

“My thoughts exactly, follow me,” Pear Butter replied.

---

“Remember, as soon as you are outside, make a beeline for the narrow pass. It should give us enough cover to escape into the forest,” Pear Butter explained. “Now is everyone ready?”

The tight hallway leading up to the small, hidden exit was packed with demons ready to move at a moment's notice. At the very front stood the last remaining demons Tirek had under his command who weren't busy fighting the paladins who had already begun pushing into the base. They were few in number, but were also the strongest he had left, and each one appeared eager to complete this one final job before they were free to acquire the reward promised to them.

Behind them stood Pear Butter, Tirek, Rainbow Dash, Kanathara, Pythias, and Velvet, who wore all their usual equipment. Weapons were in hand, and spells had been cast, ensuring that they would be given the best chance possible to escape. Enchantments hummed and yet more magic built, ready to be unleashed the moment a target presented itself.

Kanathara nodded. “Let's do this.”

Pear Butter nodded before turning to the large war demon who stood at the head of the small squad. Turning the handle, him and the small group under his command surged out of the door, and into the wide open space beyond. The evening sun shone brightly, illuminating the boulder strewn landscape, as well as the cadre of silver armored ponies making their way through it in their direction.

Cursing under her breath, Pear Butter jabbed a hoof at the paladins. “Attack now, before they’ve had the chance to close the distance!”

The war demon and his squad bellowed their war cries and piled out of the small hallway, charging directly at the temporarily confused pack of ponies. That confusion didn't last long, and despite the rocky, uneven terrain, they quickly assembled into a boxy formation and charged right back. Though Kanathara couldn't see Shining Armor from where she was standing, the demon had a feeling that her pony brother was in the group that had been searching for a back exit as their coordination was a little too good.

“Come on!” Rainbow Dash shouted, pulling Kanathara along as they raced towards two great piles of rocks which formed the narrow pass and between which stood an entrance into the chaotic forest.

The path itself wasn't terribly wide, but the twin piles of boulders on either side were large enough to make circling around them difficult, if not impossible. All that was left to do was to sprint a few hundred metres and they would be home free, something Kanathara and her group were eagerly attempting. The broken terrain slowed the ground-bound members of their group slightly, but with all the buffing spells that they had cast, it wasn't considerable.

As they ran, Kanathara glanced over her shoulder briefly, watching as the demons crashed into the paladins’ defences. Though the demons were clearly invigorated by the fact that they would be free to pursue other contracts after their death, the paladins held firm. The ensuing counterattack did much to blunt the demonic advance, to the point that the demon’s splintered and were starting to get picked off.

Worse yet for the fleeing group was the squad of pegasi who were swooping down from a nearby cloud, enchanted crossbows in hoof. Their armor wasn't as thick as the other paladins’, though it was obviously just as well-enchanted, as they moved unnaturally fast. A quick calculation told Kanathara that they wouldn't be able to make it to the pass before the first squadron of pegasi caught up with them.

Cursing under her breath, Kanathara let loose the magic that she had been building, not as an offensive spell, but rather a defensive one meant to create an artificial bank of fog. She knew any attempt at striking the pegasi would be a wasted effort, and she didn't have the time to figure out a way past their defences. Thus the fog bank worked to at least partially conceal them from the prying eyes of their pursuers.

A gust of wind suddenly picked up after Kanthara’s spell was complete, and a thick curtain of unnaturally thick fog settled over both the pass and the space leading up to it. While this happened, bolts began to rain down from the sky and Kanathara’s group sprinted into the cover of the magical fog. Kanathara could hear the sounds of fighting stop, signalling that their distraction had already been dealt with.

We need some cloud cover, Kanathara commanded as she leapt over a large boulder and rounded a second.

Right, Rainbow Dash replied, before inhaling a deep lungful of air and turning her head upward, unleashing a thin beam of concentrated hellfire into the sky. The cloud it hit instantly turned black and began to undulate as it grew larger and larger, quickly blotting out the evening sun and casting the area in darkness.

As soon as the sky darkened, the rain of bolts became so ineffective that their attackers abandoned range weapons entirely. Kanathara didn't let down her guard completely though, as she could still hear the flap of wings close behind her. Worse still, they still had a good distance to go, and it wouldn't be long until their ground-bound pursuers caught up to them.

The sound of something falling prompted Kanathara to briefly turn to smoke, inadvertently passing through a falling pegasus who had been ready to grapple the demon. Quickly reforming on the other side, Kanathara noticed that all around her, various pegasi were attempting to pin down the rest of her group. Tirek seemed slow to dodge, as was Pear Butter, but together the centaur’s magic, and Pear Butter’s raw strength ensured that any who tried, failed. Pythias always seemed just out of reach of her attackers, while Velvet had deployed a shield and Rainbow Dash simply outran her attackers.

“If they hit a single one of us, then it's all over. We need to shake them!” Kanathara shouted as she dodged out of the way of a second swooping attack from a knife-wielding pegasus.

“When I give the signal, dispel the fog,” Tirek yelled back.

Kanathara nodded, and together they continued to run until her father unexpectedly spun around and skidded to a halt. “Now!” he bellowed.

The keeper lit her horn, causing her fog spell to dissipate, the obscuring blanket vanishing as if blown away by a gale force wind. Leaving behind several pegasi who scrambled to gain altitude and potentially dodge whatever spells may be leveled their way. They didn't make it far though, as Tirek reared up and let loose a terrifying war cry, which had the effect of forcing all eyes to turn to him.

Kanathara looked away, as did the rest of her group who continued to run past the fear demon as his visage began to contort. The keeper didn't need to see what was happening to know that Tirek was using one of his most powerful fear spells, one which would cause all who gazed into his eyes to flee as fast as they could manage. The cry of shock and panic that rose from the ponies told Kanathara that his plan was a success. A glance over her shoulder confirmed this.

Screaming pegasi flew in all directions, most dropping their weapons while a few even tore off their armor before flying as high as they could. A second later the centaur caught back up with his daughter, panting heavily and having visibly shrunk a little more. Though weary, he seemed to have at least a little bit more magic left him in, which was good as something told the keeper that they werent quite free yet.

The walls of the pass rose around them as the clang of steel-shod hooves closed in from behind the group. Kanathara cursed her luck, the keeper having silently hoped that the armored column had conveniently forgotten to defend themselves against her father’s fear attack. They had no such luck however, and Kanathara was aiming a fireball spell over her shoulder before those in front of her suddenly skidded to a halt.

An enormous, glowing stone wall dozens of meters tall had suddenly appeared before them, blocking their escape and causing the group to screech to a halt. Pear Butter quickly turned and bucket it, and Velvet unleashed an explosion of magic, but neither did anything to affect the barrier. Kanathara began to channel her own spell, but her concentration fizzled when a bolt of holy magic zipped past her shoulder.

Spinning around, the demon found herself facing down a small column of silver-clad paladins, at the forefront of which stood a familiar stallion. “Give up! The barrier is reinforced with the light of the sun, you will not get past it, nor will you get past us!” shouted Shining Armor, his voice echoing off the rock walls.

“I have a plan, just hold him off for a while,” Kanathara remarked before slipping behind the group and lighting her horn.

Velvet nodded and stepped forward, unsheathing her mace as she did. “And you are grounded, mister!” she shouted.

Shining Armor gritted his teeth. “I should have known you were aiding the demons. It's not too late, there is time to turn over a new leaf. Surrender along with your cohorts, and I swear you will all be treated with dignity.”

“Would that be before or after you killed us for existing?” Rainbow Dash questioned.

“You, my sister, and mother have nothing to fear from us. Celestia has plans to save all of you,” Shining Armor shouted.

Rainbow Dash frowned. “Is it just me or does this plan sound worse than just getting killed?”

“At least you're apparently worth planning for,” Pear Butter muttered.

“Enough talk. If you do not want to surrender, then I will take you in myself,” Shining Armor proclaimed.

Pear Butter frowned, glancing at the still panting and clearly magically exhausted Tirek before turning to Rainbow Dash. “If things get out of hand, get ready to drag me out of here. I have my own trump card.”

“Fine. But you better not be a hundred feet tall or else that ain't about to bloody happen,” Rainbow Dash muttered.

“Get ready, here they come,” Velvet replied, gripping her mace tighter.

Sure enough, the paladins were already mid-charge, the half dozen heavily armed ponies sprinting at them with weapons drawn. The five demons lined up to meet them, while Kanathara muttered as another spell fizzled, her attempt at teleporting them away being stopped by some unseen force. She had more tricks in her arsenal, though it was obvious that bypassing this barrier would not be easy without leaving someone behind, and she wasn't going to let that happen.

Behind her, blade met blade, spell met spell, and the two sides clashed viciously with one another. Rainbow Dash faced off against a wiry earth pony clad in spike-covered armor who threw a vicious left hook at the vengant. Ducking under it, Rainbow Dash continued forward, using her momentum to headbut the paladin in the face.

His armor held strong, and Rainbow Dash leapt back, unleashing a short burst of flame before launching into a flurry of blows. The stallion seemed unfazed by either attack, his enchantments ensuring that the demon’s fire did not even reach him. He was also able to match the vengant’s impressive speed and blocked, dodged, or countered each strike the demon leveled his way.

Next to her fought Velvet, her horn glowed brightly as she swung her mace against what she hoped was her enemy’s head. Her opponent brought her shield up before the diabolist’s weapon could hit her though, the paladin’s own horn glowing a bright teal. Hopping back, Velvet unleashed her magic, causing the ground to erupt with sharp stone spikes.

The other pony seemed to be waiting for this though and countered with a shield that saved her from being skewered while also shattering the conjured stone. Velvet didn't let up though, and before the shield could even be lowered, the diabolist was already charging forward, her weapon impacting the pony’s helmet grille. Flames erupted from the demonically infused mace, and for a second Velvet held out hope that her attack had done something. Only for the pony to shake her head and reveal that she was fine and already building another spell to launch at her foe.

At the centre of their formation stood Pear Butter, who battled Shining Armor in close combat, her size increasing steadily as the fight continued. Though she was now a full head taller than Shining Armor, the wrath demon knew she wouldn't be able to keep up this fight for too long. Her injuries had only finished healing a day earlier, and the demon remained sore and burnt out from her brush with death.

Shining Armor wasn't about to go easy on her, and though he too wielded no traditional weapon, he didn't need to. Solid magic weapons hovered around him, battering at Pear Butter’s defences, his horn glowing brightly as he tried to drive the larger being back. Pear Butter wasn't about to let this happen though, as she knew well what a terrible position this would put the others in.

So instead of backing away, Pear Butter matched his furious assault, scale-covered hooves batting aside his weapons one after another before she unleashed a gout of flames. Fire met magic, and the inferno was quickly quenched, but Pear Butter had never intended on actually hurting her opponent with such an attack. When the smoke cleared, the wrath demon had risen above her opponent’s shields and quickly slammed her hooves against his barrier.

Though the magical shield held, it was clear that the unicorn was straining to keep it that way and with Pear Butter growing larger by the second he was forced to change tactics. When next the demon’s hooves came down, the male leapt back, abandoning his shield and dodging out of the way. The ground splintered, and a deep crack ran lengthwise across the chasm between paladin and demon, revealing that there was a cavern not far beneath the surface.

Tirek wasn't faring as well as his allies were, the fear demon’s exhaustion causing his movements to slow and his magic to take more concentration to utilize than usual. Still, the demon had centuries of experience, and even the crushing weight of his weakened state couldn't stop him completely. With conjured flame swords in each hand, the centaur matched the lightning fast attacks of his unicorn opponent.

Who stood on her back legs, forehooves gripping tight a pair of curved blades which hummed with holy energy. When their weapons clashed the demonic and holy energies met, causing an ear splitting screech to rend the air. Still, neither opponent backed down, each one meeting the other’s slashes and thrusts with a block or a dodge before going right back on the offensive.

Beside him stood Pythias, her dual opponents both slashing or attacking her with little affect. The mare and stallion pair both tried furiously to lay the seer low, only to always end up missing by mere inches. A warhammer flew at the bipedal demon’s head only to strike nothing but air at the same time that a greatsword would have cut the demonic being’s legs off.

Narrowly dodging out of the way, Pythias somehow managed to slip around their attacks and get inside the male’s defences, her hands gripping the stallion’s helmet tightly. With her ally between herself and her enemy, the female paladin was forced to go around, giving Pythias just enough time to work her magic. In a flash, the stallion found himself lost in a sea of future actions, his every action, attack and movement playing out at the same time.

The flood of possibilities was too much for the stallion, and he slammed his eyelids shut and vomited into his helmet, collapsing in a heap. Pythias nimbly dodged out of the way of his fellow before she could get an opening however, and the mare stood over her fallen friend. With one of her opponents now worried about the safety of the other one, the seer had a little more room to act, though even still, there wasn't much she could do.

Thankfully an answer quickly presented itself when Kanathara shouted in victory. “I got it!” she triumphantly declared.

Sure enough, when all eyes turned to her, an enormous hole had been bored straight through the wall, causing Shining Armor curse himself for not getting to the keeper in time. “Hold the line, paladins! Do not let them turn tail now! Our reinforcements are not far!” bellowed the male.

Pear Butter grumbled under her breath, now standing twice as tall as the pony she faced yet had still not scored a hit on. Worse still, there was little chance of escape, as the second they turned around the group would open themselves up to another attack. It was then that she remembered the crack she had already caused, and a glance down revealed that though narrow, the gap between them was surprisingly deep.

“Get ready!” shouted the wrath demon a second before she took a step back and inhaled, filling her enormous lungs with potent fuel.

Shining Armor, knowing full well that this was likely another feint, conjured a shield over him and his paladins anyway, inadvertently allowing the demons and Velvet to back up without fear of reprisal. A massive eruption of hellfire spewed forth from the wrath demon’s maw, her now mammoth size allowing her to bathe the entirety of the paladin line in fire. The intense heat made even Velvet shy away from the flames, the mare backing up to the hole Kanathara had made in Shining Armor’s wall.

The paladin’s shield held firm, the cascade of flames splashing harmlessly against his thick barrier, though their surroundings remained unprotected. The stone ground, already weakened from the fight, began to glow hot, and upon seeing this, Pear Butter unexpectedly cut off her fire breath. Before the paladins had a chance to rally, she raised her forehooves high before bringing them down hard enough to shatter stone.

The crack, which had been mere centimeters across, grew until it swallowed up a dozen or more meters. Pear Butter immediately turned and fled, her size shrinking fast enough that she was able to squeeze through the hole just after the rest of her group had already escaped ahead of her. That didn't mean she make it out without taking a few hits though, and her back was peppered with ineffective spell fire before she was able to slip behind cover.

Now sporting a few more scratches, and a couple new burn marks, the wrath demon looked over her shoulder to observe her handiwork. A wide crevice had opened between them and the paladins, a barrier that wouldn't be very difficult to get past, if it hadn't also caused either side of the pass to come loose and crumble towards the ponies. Now scrambling to dodge boulders, and a yawning abyss that opened beneath them, the paladins abandoned their attempt to chase their quarry.

“They will go around, we should move in case they have a flight enchantment on their armor or some other surprise,” Tirek remarked.

“Velvet, you probably know the area a little better than us, take Rainbow Dash and lead us out of here,” Kanathara commanded.

The pony nodded. “Right.”

Together the group began to run into the woods, putting the paladins firmly behind them. As the darkness of the treetops closed in around them, the demons and singular pony couldn't help but relax. The cover the forest granted was significant, and it would make any attempt at chasing them down all but impossible. Add to that the predators and scavengers that would be attracted by the commotion, and their escape was all but secured.

Until they stumbled into a small clearing where two armored ponies resided, one unarmed, the other wielding a massive crossbow.

Rainbow Dash groaned. “Not you two again. How are you even here anyway?”

Applejack snorted. “I know this forest better than my farm. This was the only way you had a chance of losing them, and we were scouting for the paladins since they set out.”

“So what are you going to do, fight all of us at the same time?” Velvet asked, gesturing to the five demons who stood around her at the edge of the clearing.

“Noper doper!” Pinkie Pie declared, even while she kept her crossbow leveled at the mare. “Unless we have to of course. But that wouldn't be very good for you.”

“Right, I’ll make this brief.” Applejack tapped the ground next to where a small magical circle was already inscribed. “If I tap this, a squad of paladins will teleport in and you’ll be up shit creek without a paddle. But I don't want to do that. I’m here for answers, and if you promise to give ‘em to me, I’ll let ya go.”

Kanathara glanced over to Pear Butter who looked on in a mixture of guilt, pain, and confusion. “What do you want exactly?” inquired the keeper.

“I want answers from her,” Applejack declared, jabbing a hoof at the wrath demon. “If you promise to meet me, then we can all pretend like this little meeting never happened.”

Before Kanathara or anyone could utter a word, Pear Butter took a step forward. “I swear,” proclaimed the demon.

Applejack nodded. “Good, you’ll know the meeting spot.”

Pinkie Pie lowered her weapon and breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness.”

“We better get moving, we can talk about this later,” Tirek urged.

Kanathara frowned, but couldn't dismiss the wisdom of his suggestion, as she could hear the distant clatter of steel. The paladins had likely picked up the trail and were on their way once more, leaving them with little time. With no other options, the group continued on as they had first intended, with Rainbow Dash and Velvet taking the lead.

They quickly put the small clearing behind them, their group sprinting through the trees as they tried to lose their pursuers. While this happened, Pear Butter glanced over her shoulder with a fearful expression, as if the demon were being chased by a terrifying apparition. The worry and pain evident on Pear Butter’s features made Kanathara uneasy, but the keeper couldn't dwell on those thoughts for long.

Right now her survival depended on getting her little group out of harm’s way, which meant she had to keep her head down and her attention focused on what lay ahead. While at the same time Pear Butter couldn't stop thinking about all that she had just left behind.

Author's Note:

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Comments

[Anachronon]

Hm, I wonder what Applejack will do after the confirmation that her mother is alive, demon or not.

[Mahtan]

10220201
Yet. As was said before many of them dislike Tirek and some are going to want some "vengeance" on him.

Or not, you are the author while I am just a random going with how it would play out in reality given the infirmation we as readers have.

[Mahtan]

10212409
Pry seven Holy Mary and give 7 small jumps.

[Jest]

10220559
Some do, but ninety percent of them entered into a contract willingingly. Plus they've seen him get his ass kicked pretty thoroughly and recently. Plus thats without considering the bonus Tirek paid out, and the difficulty that comes with chasing someone across the planes. Its just too much effort for little reward.

[Noobblue]

Oh no! I caught up! Dagnabit...

[Love able chaos]

The second reunion of mother and daughter.

[Zarc2003]

I FKING KNEW IT!!!!! PEAR BUTTER IS APPLE JACKS MOTHER