Darkstalker (Wings of Fire)

**Darkstalker** was an ancient NightWing-IceWing hybrid and one of the three main protagonists of *Darkstalker.* The most powerful dragon in Pyrrhian history, Darkstalker was hatched with animus, mind-reading, and prophetic powers. He was in a relationship with Clearsight until the conclusion of *Darkstalker*, in which she and Fathom were forced to trap him beneath Agate Mountain before he could destroy Pyrrhia.

Approximately 2,000 years later, Kinkajou used Darkstalker's own talisman to transform him into Peacemaker, using an enchanted strawberry which he ate, turning him into a young dragonet with none of his former abilities or memories of his past life.

## Description

Darkstalker had ebony black scales and dark midnight-black wings, appearing as almost a pure NightWing except for a line of icy, white, silvery IceWing scales where his wings met his body, which Clearsight described to be cold when touched. He had one silver teardrop scale on the outward corner of each of his dark eyes which indicate that he is a moon-born dragonet  and he had eyes which were as black as underground caverns. He had a narrow, handsome face, long, twisted horns, and was enormous, at least three times as tall as the largest living dragons. His huge wingspan was as wide as Agate Mountain, and he had a long neck. He wore a plain, white, half-hoop earring made of bone in his left ear. He was handsome and powerfully built, with scales that felt as hard as armor due to his enchantment. He moved slowly and purposefully and spoke in a cavernous, booming, low rumble.

## Personality

Before losing Foeslayer, Darkstalker was determined, confident, arrogant, observant, thoughtful, cocky, proud, defiant, happy, hopeful, mischievous, patient, intelligent, intense, knowledgeable, and sarcastic. He was charming, courageous, and cared about those he loved very deeply. He believed in not worrying excessively about the future and preferred to focus on the present. In his youth, he was willing to make an enormous sacrifice by creating his talisman in order to make Clearsight feel safe. Darkstalker later used his talisman to enchant things in secret. He hated sleeping, as he felt that he had so much to do and missing out on things made him feel restless. He was skilled at problem-solving and he had a nervous energy about him whenever he had to tell someone something. He knew how to play tricks with his words.

Several of his earlier spells were kind: a doll carved to look like a scavenger that would appear at Whiteout's pillow every night; a plate that kept prey warm for Foeslayer when she was late for dinner; a blanket that ensured peaceful sleep for Foeslayer when she was in the Kingdom of Sand with the NightWing army; a set of paints for Whiteout that never dried or ran out; a bell that rang whenever Fathom felt sad or lonely.

However, his later, larger spells were much more menacing: a dagger to kill one IceWing every full moon for one year; spells to torment classmates he hated in small, creative ways; a spell that sent nightmares to Diamond with all of the ways he planned to kill her. He was crueler than necessary towards Arctic and held a serious grudge against Indigo after she attempted to kill him. He began hiding certain enchantments from both Clearsight and Fathom and despite Clearsight stating she would never be okay with her feelings being manipulated and Fathom pleading with him not to use his animus magic anymore he used his powers without regard to either of them. He was dismissive, defiant, and even grinned at Clearsight when confronted about manipulating her foresight ability to only see the good futures. He looked puzzled as to why Clearsight did not want him to murder Vigilance and might have believed that Clearsight's moonstone earrings were simply a kindhearted, sweet gesture to help her focus less on desolate futures. He was completely willing to force Clearsight and Fathom along the path he desired, even if he had to drag them along it kicking and screaming. He was also willing to keep Clearsight in a relationship with him against her will, even if she had not wanted that.

After he began to seek vengeance upon the IceWing tribe after Arctic became even crueler, he became more dishonest, devious, vengeful, furious, manipulative, angry, and callous. He radiated menace. He adopted an unsettling new smile that implied Darkstalker thought he would always be okay, and nothing bad could happen to him, and that he could arrange the world the way he wanted. The loss of his mother broke him into a thousand pieces on the inside, making him furious and devastated, but he could hide it very well. He devolved into a sad, furious mourning, but a strange angry kind where he kept insisting his mother would come home soon, despite Clearsight telling him she would not.

Darkstalker then suddenly appeared happier and more energetic, explaining that he had found a way to deal with all of his most annoying problems. These included enchanting Indigo to become trapped inside of a small wooden dragon, and to leave a note for Fathom to manipulate him into believing she had returned to the Kingdom of the Sea and did not love him anymore; enchanting a pair of moonstone earrings for Clearsight to, unwillingly, be forced to focus on the brightest futures and not be able to see the bad futures of her and Darkstalker together and enchanting Arctic to obey his every command. He acted falsely sympathetic towards Fathom and was grimly determined upon finding and punishing the dragon who had sent Quickdeath to assassinate him. He eventually was eerily blank when facing the concept of Foeslayer's death, and wanted the NightWings to fear and respect him. Clearsight saw multiple highly likely futures in which Darkstalker killed her after she stole his talisman and feared that Darkstalker would soon enchant away her and Fathom's ability to feel and think for themselves freely.

After awakening from his sleeping spell, Darkstalker acted like a charming, sincere, ambitious leader, causing other dragons to follow him. Immediately after being released, he cast a secret enchantment to make other dragons believe that he was charming, friendly, humbled, and unambitious, though he was already convincing enough without magic to win everyone over. However, after being released from said enchantment, Darkstalker was seen as menacing, brainwashing, genocidal, complicated, sinister, evil, and deserving of what had come to him. When Moonwatcher explained how fundamentally wrong killing the entire IceWing tribe was, he only growled that they had started it. He appeared externally to be polite, friendly, at peace, and slightly bored. His gaze was intense and made Qibli feel as though Darkstalker could look through him, to see all the versions of Qibli that had ever existed and all of the ones that might ever be. He was desperately lonely but did not trust other animus dragons; each one was a threat to his absolute power. He believed he was the greatest animus dragon to have ever lived, believing he was completely unstoppable and regarded others around him to be "boring, ordinary creatures". He was careful to feed his subjects' vanity and need for usefulness so that they would love him all the more. He said he wanted to make the world a better place, and he wanted genuine friends, but it was difficult for him to admit when he was wrong, and he was astounded and upset by the soul reader's opinion of his lack of morality. His choices were vengeful, dark, and damaging, even if he genuinely believed they would lead to the best future.

## Relationships

### Anemone

Darkstalker acted as a mentor to Anemone, and she looked up to him as being wonderful and all-knowing. He encouraged her to use her magic but tried restricting her only to use them with his permission. Darkstalker stated that he believed Anemone could have been someone who he could have worked alongside had she not tried to mess with him. Due to her naturally rebellious personality and hatred of Moonwatcher, he eventually sent her off to the Kingdom of the Sea. Later on, once she and the other animus dragons of Pyrrhia were summoned to Darkstalker, he affirmed his view of her as a tool by suggesting he run tests on her and Stonemover to learn more about animus limits, even suggesting driving her insane. Darkstalker secretly hated SeaWings, specifically Anemone's family, because of their ancestry linking them to Fathom.

### Arctic

Arctic resented Darkstalker. He often rudely asked his son if any part of him resembled an IceWing, and was furious upon Darkstalker's hatching that the dragonet did not resemble him. Arctic thought Darkstalker was a creepy name, and he never looked Darkstalker in the eye, and often glared at him. Darkstalker believed that Arctic was the most dangerous dragon within the lost city of night, and when Clearsight observed Arctic and Darkstalker interacting, she noted that there were many giant, furious, unspoken thoughts and feelings that were not verbally expressed between them. Darkstalker was dangerous, quiet, angry, and crueler than necessary towards his father, and the only slight liking he had towards Arctic was due to his love for Foeslayer. He was suspicious of and bothered by Darkstalker's mind-reading abilities, and was jealous of his son's knowledge of Foeslayer's thoughts. They often tried to avoid one another as much as possible, and Darkstalker was aware of multiple futures where Arctic attempted to kill him. Despite his seething hatred towards Darkstalker, Arctic refused to kill his own son. Darkstalker never cared much about Arctic's hatred towards him.

### Clearsight

Clearsight was Darkstalker's soulmate. Darkstalker loved her without reserve or hesitation, mostly reciprocated. He was enthusiastic about their relationship and tried his best to make her feel happy and safe. He disliked that she worried over their futures so much, but loved her wholly. However, the tragedy of Foeslayer's presumed death shattered him, and he became indifferent towards her free will and happiness, although later apologizing to her imagined presence. He tried to keep her focused on the happy futures where they had dragonets, but ultimately manipulated Clearsight's ability against her will, even seeming defiant and indifferent when confronted. Although Darkstalker lied to himself about this attempted manipulation of Clearsight being the best thing for her, it was really about keeping her from knowing about his schemes. Their relationship ultimately failed due to Darkstalker's actions, and Clearsight is not to blame. Clearsight loved Darkstalker very much, and tried her best to keep their futures bright, but eventually had no choice but to betray her beloved by trapping him in a cave within Agate Mountain with a bracelet enchanted by Fathom. She was sad enough about him that she considered staying with him until the mountain crushed her. She mourned him — and their possible future dragonets — for a long time after he was trapped, and never moved on, even after relocating to Pantala. After he was set free, one of the first things he asked about was about Clearsight and what had happened to her. Later, he cried for Clearsight, apologizing for putting that spell on her and promised to never do that again. He believed that Clearsight did not want to betray him and was tricked into doing so by Fathom. He became so desperate to have her back that he attempted to enchant Fierceteeth into a living version of Clearsight. He refused to lose all of his memories and become a new dragon as he did not want to forget Clearsight.

### Fathom

When Indigo initially attacked Darkstalker, Fathom protested, stating that Darkstalker did not seem dangerous, and admitting wistfully that he could be a friend. Darkstalker wanted Fathom to trust him, but internally was willing to enchant both Fathom's mind and his relationship with Indigo. He genuinely wanted Fathom to be happy, but ultimately controlled several important aspects Fathom's life without his knowledge or consent. He desperately wanted to safely like Darkstalker, as well as badly wanting to trust him. After Darkstalker laughed at Fathom's joke, he was delighted, and Darkstalker spoke gently towards him. Fathom was one of his best friends, and he found himself so wrapped in warmth and attention around Darkstalker that he could forget, for hours at a time, about what he had been through during the massacre. Darkstalker was attentive to Fathom's feelings, and he made Fathom feel comforted. He would have followed Darkstalker anywhere, and Darkstalker was often irritated by Fathom's caution towards animus magic. Darkstalker eventually was completely willing to transform Fathom's mind into a quieter, less anxious state with animus magic so that he would not have to listen to his worried thoughts. He also cared for Fathom's happiness, and Fathom later discovered that Darkstalker had enchanted a bell that would ring whenever Fathom was feeling sad or lonely, and that was why he had always known when to show up and lift him from the worst loneliness. Darkstalker did truly care for Fathom, but as Fathom grew more concerned for his friend's morality, he was eventually forced to betray his friend. When Darkstalker awoke from Fathom's enchantment, his hatred of his former friend was so strong that he despised all of Fathom's descendants.

### Foeslayer

Foeslayer is Darkstalker's mother. Darkstalker loved his mother and wanted to protect her in every way possible. Darkstalker was willing to do anything to see his mother again after awakening from his enchantment, and he appeared desperately hopeful at the prospect of seeing her. He had an immense care for her and often enchanted everyday items to bring her more comfort in her life. Foeslayer was one of the only dragons that he truly loved, according to Clearsight, along with Clearsight herself and Whiteout. When the IceWings took her, Darkstalker offered to kill every IceWing for revenge. He sobbed when they were reunited.

### Indigo

Clearsight foresaw that the dislike between Darkstalker and Indigo, which spiraled into a future with no Indigo in it. She did not see a clear path to a future where she got Indigo and Darkstalker to trust each other. Indigo's attack on him had deeply rattled him to the point where he made his scales invincible in order to protect himself. Darkstalker saw Indigo as a threat to him and Fathom's friendship, so he turned her into a small wooden dragon so she would not turn Fathom against him. However, she was later freed by Fathom, who turned against Darkstalker due to what he had done.

### Moonwatcher

The first dragon Darkstalker had talked to since his imprisonment was Moonwatcher; he seemed to be very fond of her, caring for her and not wanting anyone to harm her. During the time, she was the only dragon he could talk to, and he mentored her. He took a rather friendly approach, and it seemed that he enjoyed teaching her how to deal with her powers effectively without any problem. However, it is later revealed that he may have been manipulating her for his own benefit. In *Talons of Power*, he really cared about Moon and keeps mentioning how she is similar to Clearsight. He wanted her to trust him, and she was noted to be one of the very few dragons he truly cared about, not putting any spells on her and trying to convince her to understand him. Moonwatcher was Darkstalker's best friend when he emerged from Agate Mountain. Darkstalker refused to enchant Moonwatcher's mind as he did for most of Pyrrhia, and she believed that he was not evil. She genuinely liked him, largely due to the fact that he genuinely likes her, and he was one of the only dragons he trusted to believe in him and enjoy his company of their own accord. They were genuine friends, and Darkstalker considered a party boring because Moonwatcher did not attend. She believed that he was good, and that he wanted the most peaceful future for Pyrrhia, and she believed wholeheartedly that he would never kill her. He appeared genuinely wounded when she began using skyfire and protection spells against his magic. She flinches whenever she hears his name.

### Qibli

Throughout the books, Darkstalker showed signs of suspicion towards Qibli. He saw that Qibli could get in the way of his plans, starting in *Talons of Power* when Turtle casts a spell in the room Qibli was in. Darkstalker likes Qibli, and is appreciative of how quickly his brain works to assess situations so that Darkstalker does not need to spend time on explanation. He believes Qibli to be as smart as himself, and he wanted Qibli to be one of his genuine friends, as he considered Qibli as funny and interesting. He was willing to enchant Qibli to be his best friend.

### Turtle

Upon first meeting him, Darkstalker looked at Turtle with a flash of burning hatred in his eyes. This causes Turtle to enchant a stick, making it so that Turtle was entirely removed from Darkstalker's awareness. Darkstalker mistook Turtle for Fathom and blasted fire at him. In the last chapter of *Talons of Power*, he thought Turtle was too unpredictable and enchanted away his animus magic.

### Whiteout

Whiteout was Darkstalker's only sibling, and he was extremely protective of her. He made sure she was always content. This is shown when he used his magic to return her favorite scavenger toy to her whenever it got lost. He thought she was the prettiest dragon in all of Pyrrhia, besides Clearsight, and he would stand up for her when others picked on her for her strangeness. Whiteout was also one of the only dragons Darkstalker truly loved, according to Clearsight, along with her and Foeslayer. He was extremely paranoid and furious when Prince Arctic tried to take her to the Ice Kingdom, causing Darkstalker to see Arctic as a threat so much that Darkstalker forced him to mutilate himself publicly. He thought that Whiteout was perfect the way she was.

### Winter

Darkstalker saw Winter as a threat and cast a spell on him that would make Winter worship him and agree with everything Darkstalker said. However, Darkstalker promised not to hurt Winter and spared him from the IceWing plague. After Winter was freed from the enchantment, he swore that he would kill Darkstalker, and that it would be long-winded and bloody.

Credits to Wings of Fire wiki