Art by Cherivinca Art on Tumblr! (This is probably the most gorgeous and creative take I've seen on Darkstalker and his IceWing ancestry!)

He's a well written character. His was a slow fade – through his Legends book we see that his intent was to protect those he loved, and to do what's best for the NightWing Kingdom, because he was convinced that he had the grandiose destiny of being the main character.

But as time went on, his power slowly corrupted him – I think Foeslayer being kidnapped by Diamond was the turning point. If not the turning point, it was the coup de grâce to Darkstalker's shot of a redemption arc. 

There's a thin, but imperative, line of difference between magic and power when we discuss what corroded Darkstalker's morals: his magic is what allowed him to be powerful, but his power was the overall influence he had over the dragons of Pyrrhia. While his animus magic was the tool that allowed him to carry out his evil deeds, it was his position as a respected dragon and leader that grew his insatiable greed for more and more power, more and more influence. He wanted to be king of the NightWings, and he believed he deserved to be, since he had lived his life under the guise that he was Pyrrhia's most powerful dragon.

Think of it like this: a sword is a useful weapon in the right hands. It can be used to good or for evil. It gives its wielder power. But that doesn't mean the sword is to blame for the falling of empires; it's a tool. It all comes down to how the person wielding it utilises it.

Great character, but the part of me that loves happy endings will be forever damned that Darkstalker's story ended so bittersweetly. At least he as Peacemaker will live a happier life with his mother Hope. <3

I believe "Immortals" by Fall Out Boy is Darkstalker's theme song. Hello? Its pre-chorus even says "I am the sand in the bottom half of the hourglass (glass, glass!)"! I think the song is like, his perspective during the ancient years, when he's trying to convince Clearsight that he has the Kingdom's best interests at heart when really he's descending into evil. "I try to picture me without you but I can't, 'cuz we could be immortals!"

More lines of the song that I think reflect Darkstalker pretty well: "They say we are what we are, but we don't have to be; I'm bad behavioured, but I do it in the best way!" I think this could connect to his IceWing ancestry and his inherited animus magic from Arctic. "The constant drumbeat in my home is the evils of animus magic," is what Darkstalker told Clearsight. Arctic is convinced Darkstalker is destined to be evil/lose his soul, but the hybrid himself doesn't think so. Darkstalker also justifies his darker parts as normal, as regular punishment for the dragons who have wronged him or want to wrong him (plaguing the queen with nightmares, killing one IceWing every full moon).