Twilight wasn't completely sure what to expect when she and Grogar were brought down to the almost empty and mostly ruined little settlement. Maybe a few demons, but that hardly counted for anything seeing as, until she met Grogar, she'd never seen any kind of demon before, nor had she read anything about them in life. If there were books on the subject, she'd never learned where to find them and doubted she would've been allowed to read about the mysterious race anyway.

The fact of the matter was that the undead filly was going in blind, and no matter what she saw, she knew she'd be completely blindsided, so when she found herself facing a pegasus filly with a pink coat, an icy blue mane that fell in bouncy curls, scarlet eyes wide with excitement, and a smile as bright as the sun upon entering the small settlement, she had reacted with the appropriate amount of bewilderment.

"Bwuh?!"

That singular noise of confusion was about as much as Twilight could get out before the other filly spoke, her little hooves pressed against her cheeks and her expression one of wonder and awe.

"Oh wow, is that another pony? In Tartarus of all places?" came the filly's jubilant cry as she flitted around a horribly confused Twilight, "who could've possibly expected such a thing? Not me certainly, no sir! What an exciting development! My name's Cozy Glow, what should I call you, new friend?"

"U-Um... Twilight?" Twilight replied, attempting to take a hesitant step back from the filly who'd called herself Cozy Glow, "my name is... Twilight Sparkle. How did—"

A small gasp escaped Cozy Glow's lips as her eyes fell on the small silver bell around Twilight's neck. Her interest having been piqued yet again, the pegasus filly pushed her way back into Twilight's personal space to get a closer look at the object.

"Golly, that's some bell you have there," the filly continued, cutting Twilight off as she hefting the bell in one hoof, "I've never seen anything like it..." she fell quiet for a moment before retreating a few steps and letting out a childish giggle, "it's like you're a little lamb who wandered too far from home and lost her way," she suddenly turned to address the large ram behind the lavender filly, seemingly unfazed by his appearance and smiling just as innocently as ever, "are you the shepherd who's come to bring her back, Mister?" her eyelids lowered slightly and her smile shifted to a small smirk, "...or is the poor filly more of a pet dragged to this miserable place by her master?"

Grogar eyed the small pink pegasus silently for a moment, his look inscrutable. A glance in Twilight's direction showed the filly was looking back at the demonic ram, unsure of what to make of the situation. Cozy Glow had clearly caught her off guard, and by the look of it, Twilight knew something was off about the other filly. It seemed she didn't quite know how to deal with her, but Grogar, rather than put Twilight's mind at ease, instead pointedly ignored Cozy Glow's question and turned to Tirek.

"It appears this creature has been the victim of quite a powerful hex, and if her demeanor is any indication, it was most likely a well-deserved punishment," he observed with a thoughtful frown, "am I to understand that this cursed demon is the one you spoke of, Tirek?"

"I'm afraid so," Tirek replied with a sigh, also ignoring Cozy Glow's indignant retort and Twilight's surprised exclamation, "I'm not exactly sure how it happened or what her real name is or even what kind of demon she is, as she's refused to tell anyone of her past. All I do know for certain is that she's a sadistic psychopath with a strange fascination for ponies."

"Ugh, no you withered old baboon!" Cozy Glow growled, flying over to the centaur, "what fascinates me is the power they wield! The magic!" she whipped around and jabbed a hoof in Grogar's direction, "and you! I'll have you know that I'm a pony and that I chose to become a pony willingly! There was a plan! There was a purpose!"

"And from your explanation, I can guess at what that purpose may have been," Grogar replied calmly and without missing a beat, "however, it seems that plan did not come to fruition, else I doubt you'd be stuck here, forever cursed to remain a pony due to your own foolishness," the ram gave Cozy Glow a small smirk of his own, "...am I wrong in that assumption, little one?"

Twilight looked from Grogar to Cozy Glow, hopelessly lost and wondering whether she should say something or not. Judging by the furious expression on Cozy Glow's face and the patient, almost expectant look Grogar gave the angry filly in turn, she decided it was best to let Grogar handle things for now. Cozy Glow opened her mouth to retort, but decided against it at the last moment, instead letting out an indignant huff and lowering herself back to the cobbled street before the ram.

"Who are you anyway?" she asked in a far more measured if still somewhat bitter tone, "and what's the deal with the filly? How did you manage to find her in that wasteland? I thought there were no ponies left?"

"The pony is an undead construct, Cozy Glow," came a smooth yet robust feminine voice from further into the settlement, "a flesh puppet given life through Necromantic magic, and a fine specimen to boot."

All eyes turned to see a creature Twilight had only read about in a cultural history book once. Languidly strutting her way over to the small gathering was a tall bipedal molly with a fur coat the color of burnt sienna and a head of bright orange hair swept back in a nearly waist-length bouffant. The feline wore a somewhat extravagant and rather formfitting dark red robe. The robe was trimmed with a generous amount of white fur and adorned with a simple belt of gold plates. All in all the feline, an Abyssinian by Twilight's reckoning, cut a striking figure.

Cozy Glow had been an unsettling character for reasons Twilight couldn't quite pin down before Grogar pointed it out, but the Abyssinian made Twilight uncomfortable for entirely different reasons. Once she'd reached Twilight, the molly leaned down and looked over her, her pale green eyes flashing with a strange light as she inspected the filly's small frame. Her expression was one Twilight herself might've worn when working on a particularly interesting science experiment. Like Cozy Glow, she reached out and took the bell in one paw, turning it this way and that and letting out a low hum of approval.

"Yes, very fine work indeed," she muttered, "seamless, no imperfections to be found in the body, ample room for magical development, and the soul is... oh? Oh-ho... I see..." the eerie glow in the Abyssinian's eyes faded and she gave a deep chuckle of amusement before rising back to her feet and meeting Grogar's eyes, again in much the same way Cozy Glow had only moments ago, "and I take you must be the creator of this exquisite work of art? I must say, the utter perfection with which you've sculpted this construct speaks highly of your skills as a Necromancer."

"When you've worked to hone the craft as long as I, you tend to pick up quite a few things, certainly," Grogar replied before narrowing his eyes slightly, "though I'd thank you not to belittle my apprentice by referring to her as a mere construct. There is far more at work beneath the surface than you can possibly glean from such simple methods, witch."

Though his voice was calm, there was a hint of warning that Twilight could pick up even if she hadn't been bonded to the ram. Rather than frighten the filly, his words left her feeling a mix of pride, gratitude and even a bit of relief, although she wasn't sure where the latter had come from. The apparent witch for her part simply chuckled and raised a placating paw in response.

"Oh, I've no doubt," the witch replied smoothly, "and I meant no offense, honest. My name is Katrina, and as you were evidently able to guess, I am indeed a witch, a witch who wishes to become more than she is, as all our kind do eventually."

"A... witch?" Twilight asked, turning to Grogar for clarification. The word niggled at her, but she couldn't quite place where she'd heard the word or what it meant, "I think I read about those once, but I can't remember all that well..."

"I don't blame you for your ignorance on the subject, girl," Katrina answered with a remorseful sigh, "witches are a breed rarely seen in ponykind given how oversaturated your species is with magic."

"You see, child," Grogar continued, "of all the magic-wielding creatures known to exist, there are those with an exceptionally small amount of magic in their blood—small enough that it cannot be channeled through conventional means. These creatures—at least those who choose to make use of what they have, found a way to use their meager gifts in different ways—ofttimes through certain runes, potions and brews, incantations or a combination of any of these and maybe more.

"In some circles, they might be known as alchemists or shamans," at Twilight's look of recognition Grogar nodded, "the methods may differ drastically depending on culture and practice, but the commonality lies in the fact that those different methods are used to manipulate an external thaumic or equivalent energy source outside of the body in light of the severe lack of thaumic energy within the body. It would be simple enough for you or I to use these methods with the proper know-how, but the biggest difference is that, as mages who predominately manipulate internal magic, we have no need to resort to such methods."

"Right, technically unicorns and pegasi rely on our horns and wings as catalysts for our magic, but our magic still comes from within, and I've read that even if we lose our horns or wings, our magic will manifest in... other ways," Twilight muttered with a small grimace. She'd read about such a thing, but it hadn't turned out to be a very pleasant topic, especially where unicorns were concerned. Brushing the thought aside, she turned and eyed Katrina for a moment, a bemused look crossing her face, "so you're a witch... but how did you end up here in Tartarus? You don't look like a demon. Are you like Cozy Glow?"

"Hardly," Katrina scoffed, turning to sneer at the pegasus in question, "this little cretin sacrificed almost everything she was as a demon to harness pony magic. I am no demon, and I will not stoop to such methods to get what I desire. No, when I become a true mage, it will be through due diligence and my own sharp wit."

"Ha!" Cozy Glow snapped back with her own vindictive sneer, "lofty words coming from a pampered little housecat who let her slaves do all the work!"

"Perhaps you'd like to give our new guests a tour of the town, Katrina?" Tirek interjected, glaring at the witch as he cut off her outraged retort, "or what's left of it at any rate."

"Oh, I'll do it!" Cozy Glow cried, sidling up to an increasingly uncomfortable Twilight with a smile almost too wide for her face, "I can show them all sorts of neat things I've found since we came here, and in exchaaaange~" Twilight hadn't thought it possible, but Cozy Glow's smile widened even further, "you can tell me all about life in Equestria! Oh, won't that be fun?"

"U-Um..." came Twilight's uncertain response.

"As much as it pains me to break up such a budding friendship before it begins," Tirek replied, his expression and tone showing he wasn't pained in the slightest at the idea, "your... talents are needed elsewhere, Cozy Glow, and I have things I must also attend to."

"Can't it wait?" Cozy Glow groaned in annoyance, "It's been literal ages since I've talked to an actual pony!"

"No, it can't," Tirek replied seriously, "Moloch will be wondering where the 'general' of his 'army' went, and it won't be long before he comes knocking on our proverbial door. I don't need that headache right now, not when we've potentially gotten a lead on how to get out of here."

"Wait, seriously?" Cozy Glow asked, her irritation all but evaporating as she flew over to Tirek, "does that mean we can finally—"

"No, not yet," the centaur cut in, pushing the demon-turned-filly away, "there's still a lot of work to be done. It will be some time before we can move onto the next phase... but in the meantime..."

He trailed off and glared at Cozy Glow who took the hint and rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Fine, I'll go deal with the four-armed freak... again," she grumbled before turning to the other filly with a wave and an innocent, friendly smile completely at odds with her prior behavior, "I'll see you again soon, Twilight! Then we can hang out and talk about all kinds of things!"

With that, she flew off towards the portal they'd all come from and was soon out of sight. Twilight and Grogar watched her go each forming their own opinion of the strange demon filly. If Twilight was being honest, she really hoped she wouldn't see Cozy Glow again, despite the many questions she had about her origins. Still, she got the feeling it wouldn't be so easy to avoid her, and though it was less obvious to Twilight, Grogar felt much the same. Something about Cozy Glow didn't sit right with the Necromancer, but he couldn't put his cloven hoof on what it was... at least not yet. It wasn't the poor attempt at a friendly façade or her demonic nature, but something else—something... deeper.

"What are you hiding?" Grogar muttered to himself before shaking his head and addressing Tirek, "so you are not the only demons who roam Tartarus."

It was less a question and more a statement of fact, a statement at which Tirek sighed in response.

"I'm afraid not," he began, "while it is true there are very few demons left in Tartarus, we—that is Cozy Glow, myself, and a few others here—were not the only ones to wake from our long healing slumber. I was the one to cast the spell, but there are others elsewhere in Tartarus that took similar measures," he nodded towards Katrina, "the witch stumbled upon this place after escaping from another such pocket of survivors."

"You escaped?" Twilight asked, turning to Katrina with a questioning look, "what does he mean? What happened?"

"I'd rather not talk about it if you don't mind," Katrina replied with a grim frown, "suffice it to say that we didn't quite see eye-to-eye on... certain matters."

"And that is a fairly accurate representation of our situation as a whole," Tirek continued, "there aren't many of us and our camps are spread incredibly thin. We've only found two other camps like ours so far and neither group is willing to cooperate with us and would rather rebuild Tartarus into the thriving demonic community it used to be."

"Understandable," Grogar replied with a knowing nod, "for some it is not so easy to abandon their home... and I take it this Moloch is the leader of one of these groups?"

"And a constant thorn in my side," Tirek grumbled, "he's a warmongering fool who thinks he can bring about a new age by ruling through military might alone, and he wants to add my potential power to his own," he shook his head in disgust at the thought, "he's trying to bring as many of the survivors as he can to heel, and unfortunately that isn't the end of it."

"Oh?" Grogar commented, "is he not aware that you lack the strength you once had?"

"He is, but he assures me that won't be an issue," Tirek answered with a dismissive wave, "nevermind the fact that he wants me to become one of his underlings in exchange for the return of my might, nevermind the fact that I don't trust him—it's because of his stupidity that I ultimately refused, and yet he hasn't given up.

"According to our sources, he has a demon working under him that can produce lesser demons ad infinitum. I'm not sure if that's completely accurate or mere exaggeration, but even if it is true, he doesn't have what it takes to run a camp let alone rule the entirety of Tartarus. He has immense power and numbers at his disposal, yes, but that's all he has. He has no wit whatsoever, nor has he any real charisma or a head for leadership. Any empire he builds will be an empire of glass, destined to shatter beneath him."

"I see... and Cozy Glow?" Grogar asked, deciding to withhold his own thoughts on the matter for the moment, "what of her role?"

"Intel," Tirek replied simply, "somehow she's gained Moloch's trust. Exactly how is beyond me, but it's thanks to her information that we're able to stay one step ahead of him," as if foreseeing his question, Tirek raised a withered hand, "if you're worried about a potential betrayal, don't be. Not only does Cozy Glow hate Moloch as much as I do, but she wants out of Tartarus more than any of us here."

"I'm not sure we should be so complacent," Katrina chimed in with a scowl, "I've seen Cozy Glow work. Moloch may not have any wit or charisma, but as much as I hate to admit it, that filly can produce both in spades if she really puts her mind to it," crossing her arms, the feline witch turned a troubled gaze towards the portal high atop the hill in the distance, "who's to say she won't steal Moloch's 'empire' out from under his nose and come for us?"

"Do you truly think her capable of such a feat?" Grogar asked, "if she truly is as cunning as you say, it is certainly possible, but given her appearance and personality I have my doubts things will be that simple, even if she is planning a future betrayal."

"...Who knows?" Katrina replied after a moment, "all I'm saying is that we should all watch our backs for the time being. It doesn't hurt to be too careful after all."

"I suppose you're right at that," Tirek conceded, "but enough about that for now. I really do have other duties I need to get back to elsewhere," he gave Grogar a nod, "we will see each again soon, and hopefully, then I will have everything necessary to resolve that issue of yours," he glanced at Twilight, who was staring up at the portal with a thoughtful frown. That caused the centaur to raise an eyebrow, but he decided against commenting and instead turned to Katrina, "show them around, have them meet the others, and when you're done—"

"I understand, I'll get right back to work," Katrina interjected with an airy wave of her paw, "now that I've perfected the mixture I'm guessing you'll want to stock up, right?" she paused and her face fell into an unsure frown, "...it did work this time, right?"

"It did, and yes I will," Tirek confirmed, "I'm sure we can find other uses for it, so I'd rather have more of that potion on hand just in case." His orders given, the centaur turned and clapped his old friend on the shoulder with a sardonic smirk, "well then, it's hardly an ideal vacation spot, but all the same try to enjoy your stay for the moment, eh, Grogar?"

"Oh don't worry, Tirek," Grogar returning the smirk in kind, "I fully intend to make the trip worthwhile, I can assure you of that."

"Ha! I'd expect nothing less," and with those words and a hearty chuckle, Tirek trotted off up the steps towards the portal, "until next time, old friend."

As with Cozy Glow, Twilight and Grogar watched the centaur go for a moment when Twilight's half-thoughtful, half-worried voice drew the ram's attention.

"I hope he can do something about the hunger," the filly murmured, "I really don't wanna go through that again..." she shuddered at the memory, "it was a lot worse than the last time."

"Tirek is a capable creature, child," Grogar replied, "if whatever method he plans to utilize fails to resolve our predicament, I'm certain it will at the very least provide some useful insight into the matter."

"And hey, if his methods fail to sate the lich's hunger, perhaps I might be able to find a solution with one of my solutions," Katrina cut in, causing both the filly and ram to look her way questioningly. At their expressions, the witch merely smiled a toothy smile, "and now that I've gathered your attention, let's go meet the other poor souls who got stuck down here, shall we?"

I feel a little weird about this chapter, but that might just be because I haven't worked on the story in a while, so I apologize if it feels off.