//------------------------------// // The Masks come off // Story: The Fourth Star. // by Golden Paw //------------------------------//         The initial shock and wonder Foresight experienced at having seen real Lithi soon faded from her mind, quickly replaced by the horror of what the stone ponies had done: The Lithi had killed another pony, without mercy or compunction. It wasn’t that Foresight was ungrateful, the aforementioned pony had a knife to her throat, but to see a pony killed in such a detached way by another sentient being shook Foresight to the core.         Sky Strike kept his thoughts on the matter to himself as he galloped up the stairs, pausing only to let Foresight catch him up. "What was that all about?" He called waiting for the panting Foresight to draw level with him. She took some time to answer, not being the fittest of ponies having spent more time reading than running.         "I....I think they were trying to help us, the Lithi I mean," Foresight replied trying to block out the memory. She knew that sickening crunching sound would stay with her to the grave, “They said something about the fallen ones, I think they meant the negasi that tried to kill me."         Sky Strike snorted at this, " I knew that stallion, he's been in the militia for years and only a crazy pony would go against Enigma's orders, why would they want to kill you specifically huh?" His voice was full of confusion and Sky snorted before setting off up the stairs again.         Foresight nodded as she struggled to keep pace with Sky Strike, "I think we are dealing with mad ponies that want Nightmare Moon back," She managed to say, her lungs burning from the exertion while her leg muscles screamed.         "Why, isn't she meant to be all the bad things you can think of?" Sky Strike slowed to keep pace with Foresight as they came to a right angled turn in the stairs.         "Look we don't have time for a history lesson; the point is there are ponies and other things trying to help the eternal night come back," Foresight managed to gasp as they rounded another corner.         The stairwell was leading up in a square fashion with regular landings at each turn, Foresight secretly thanked the builders for that as she was forced to pause again for breath. Sky was about to say something when another explosion of purple-blue light echoed up the passageway behind them, causing dust to rain down on the pair. Both ponies looked at each other with worry before Foresight forced herself up and forward once more.         "I think that was the big stone door that just gave way," Sky Strike commented and they both quickened their pace on the engraved stone stairs. Their frantic hooves finally brought them to a small round room with a depressing lack of exits. Sky Strike let loose another frustrated snort, cursing that they had come so far only to be blocked yet again.         As Sky turned around to await their pursuers while Foresight looked about the room in desperation; she examined the walls and embossed patterns more closely for any clue of a way out. This area hadn't seen any pony for centuries by the looks of it, but it was oddly familiar to Foresight nevertheless. After taking a calming breath and closing her eyes Foresight reached out with her magical senses, she had a thing for old ruins.         There was that familiar feeling in the walls: Foresight recognised the 'taste' of the background magic in the air, having the same ‘flavour’ from her dreams and just like the mosaic before, it seemed 'know' her. With a little flexing of her mind she drew the power in and Images of the past danced through her mind. Taking what the past could teach her, Foresight knew exactly what she needed to do. Sky Strike felt a tingle along his back and turned to watch Foresight in mounting confusion. She was moving forward in a dream like state, tracing her fore hooves along the wall's embossed surface like a blind pony looking for a handle.         Shrugging Sky Strike refocused on the door way, the sounds of hooves were getting louder. His attention snapped back to Foresight as a sudden rumble of stone resounded through the chamber. The small room trembled as little motes of dust trickled down and to Sky’s wonder the whole room began to rotate. He backed away from the shifting stone and watched as their entrance was swallowed by the moving walls.         Foresight smiled to herself and opened her eyes in time to see another doorway grind into view on the further edge of the room. The grating stopped and the pinpricks of stars could just be seen further along the rough stone cave that was now revealed. Foresight hissed and closed her sensitive eyes as a bright flash filtered from the world outside. The sounds of cries and magical discharges could be clearly heard from ahead.         Sky's heart soared as he saw open sky again and galloped ahead. He stepped around rocky out crops covered in moss and finally ducked under the low mantle at the end of the cave to find himself outside once more. Sky discovered they were on a rocky plateau some distance above High Point. His happy mood at escaping the tunnels below stuttered, only to be replaced by anxiety as he saw the unfolding scene below: High Point was under attack, the air before him filled with battling creatures and magical spells flew across the vista.         Lifting his goggles: Sky saw pegasi, griffons and negasi all tearing into each other with wing, claw and spear. He gritted his teeth witnessing the final moments of friends and fellows as they fell wounded to their deaths below, mercifully lost to Sky's view among the burning buildings. Foresight caught up to Sky and gave a gasp of horror. Paying her no mind Sky Looked further and saw the flightless members of the militia doing their best to hold off these airborne foes.         High Point was a rough place with rougher neighbours, so they had their share of defences. Cunningly wrought crossbows, placed at regular intervals on the walls flung bolts into the air to cripple the attackers. Armoured lookouts had been constructed from sheet metal and wood to protect those inside and allowed stones to be hurled onto enemies below. Even with these defences in place Sky saw the town was hard pressed to hold the invading army at bay.         Another flash of spell discharge dazzled Foresight and she shut her eyes to block out the pandemonium below her before further rumbles from the cave behind them told the pair they couldn't linger here, but there was no obvious pathway down. Foresight Looked pleadingly at Sky Strike who just stood there, the fires of his burning home reflecting in his eyes.         "Sky we have to move!" Foresight called out but he didn't respond. Foresight looked about in a panic. Not knowing what else to do she tried to 'send' into Sky's mind only to find there was a conversation already happening within.         " ......That’s an order Sky, these maniacs are without end. We can hold them for a time and I won't give up High Point without a fight, but you will do far more good by following my orders colt." Foresight recognised Enigma's voice, her normal cold calm was gone and Foresight could feel the rage in her words.         "Like Tatarus, I'm gonna do that!" Sky Strike’s thoughts came back, he couldn't project them like a nightborn, but he knew Enigma could hear them all the same.         There was a ‘feeling’ of frustration more than the sound of such, ‘sending’ could be very empathic, "Listen you featherbrain, coming down here and getting yourself killed won’t do us any favours. They are after Foresight and that orb,]" Enigma's thoughts were edged with dread that Foresight felt in turn, he was coming to understand what Enigma was planning to do.         Sky’s next reply caused Foresight to shiver in fear, "Then why don't we just give them Foresight and that silly trinket? After that they can trot off into whatever hole they crawled out of." Foresight could feel Sky's head hurting and it only got worse with Enigma's reply.         "Listen, you miserable little foal ‘when’ this town falls, and it will, make no mistake about that, I am gonna take as many of these crazy cult ponies with me. If you’re still in range of my mind blasts when that happens, I will reduce that blob you call a brain into a puddle of mush. Now take the filly with you and get out of here, do I make myself clear?" Sky Strike stumbled, his head feeling like it was going to split in two while Foresight, who was only eavesdropping, recoiled from the harsh stab of pain. The ice cold malice in Enigma’s ‘sending’ was almost unbearable, even when only experienced second hoof.         Even though Enigma wouldn't be able to see it, Sky Strike nodded and turned a pair of bloodshot eyes towards Foresight, his angry gaze glared at the small mare and for a moment Foresight thought he would strike out at her. The Sky mastered himself and after a moment he spoke in a sullen voice:         "Come on we’re getting out of here." The pain and sorrow in these six words could have weighed down a rattle python and upon seeing Sky’s distress Foresight lifted a hoof to try and comfort him. Sky looked to the hoof with an expression of disgust and snorted at the gesture before motioning for her to climb on. Having no other choice Foresight clambered onto Strike’s strong back. Sky spread his wings, accelerated into a gallop before launching himself off the edge of the plateau with a final kick that sent small chunks of rock tumbling down to the fighting below.         As they flew off into the night, Foresight and Sky Strike felt the lingering traces of Enigma's final words. In the brief time Foresight had known Enigma she come to see her as a tough a mare, but a pony with a heart nevertheless. This made it all the worse to feel the deep sense of sadness underling her last ‘sending’ to Sky and Foresight.         After traveling a fair distance, leaving the raging conflict behind, Sky Strike turned about and hovered with slow beats of his wings, as if taking taking one last look at his home.         Foresight peered over his shoulder and saw the wastes outside were covered in moving shapes, thousands of small pony like figures struggled, which in turn were dwarfed by the outlines of huge creatures lit by the fires of the burning town above. The smaller scurrying shapes darted about these behemoths who completely ignored them. Instead the monsters threw themselves directly at the supports of Up Town; battering the stonework with their serpentine bodies, or coiling around to crush the core pillars holding up Sky’s home.         There was another sound 'felt' in the soul rather than by the ears; it was an exaltation of triumph mixed with an insane laugh that no right thinking pony should ever be able to replicate. Foresight's eyes and magical senses were drawn to a ball of darkness, somehow managing to appear blacker than the shadows around it. Foresight could feel the power from here; it seemed there was a very strong mage leading the hoard.         By the feel of the magic the mage was a fellow nightborn and its 'sending' was whipping those about him into a frenzy of rage. It further dawned on Foresight that this pony was probably directing the monsters fury like a sheep dog drives its charges before it and shuddered to think of such power being brought against them.         Her attention was drawn to a particularly bright flash of blue light that briefly illuminated the masses below High Point. “That came from the guard house,” Sky Strike commented in a voice filled with emptiness, all the warmth drained from his manner by the tragedy unfolding before his brown eyes.         With deceptive slowness, the pillars sustaining Up Town crumbled: hurling stone, bodies and fire down onto the hoard below. Foresight thought it unlikely Enigma had directly caused the collapse; nightborn lacked even the basic telekinetic strength of a normal unicorn but their powers over minds were second to none. What she did feel was the grim satisfaction of the commander as she made sure as many of the attackers ‘couldn't’ choose to get out of the way of the falling mass.         There was final, "Good luck, by our true Luna, you are both going to nee..." that resonated in watching ponies’ minds before being cut off in sudden silence. Tears flowed down Foresight’s muzzle as Sky Strike turned about and flew away from High Point. Foresight had only known Enigma for a few days and in that time she had shown a kind of rough maternal side that Foresight had grown to admire.         Sky Strike was torn up inside, when he said that he only looked out for himself it had been a simple lie to sound far stronger in front of Foresight. Foresight realised she hadn't terminated her connection to Sky and was almost overwhelmed by his sense of loss, which poured off him like a noxious cloud. Foresight keenly understood that the only place he had really cared about had just crumbled before Sky Strike's eyes and he was hurting more profoundly that he could ever explain.         Sky Strike and Foresight spent a fraught few days avoiding the far ranging fliers of the ‘Fallen’ as the Lithi had called them. Once it became apparent that neither Foresight nor the orb was still at High Point the attacking horde had spread out into the wastes searching for stragglers.         Foresight gained a newfound respect for Sky as he carefully weaved his way between search parties and kept her hidden from those that sought Foresight. She thanked Celestia that this pegasus was on her side for now, sure that had Foresight been alone she would never have escaped.         Exhausted by their ordeal, the pair finally found a place to rest in an abandoned scorpani nest. Sky Strike had barely uttered a word since they had fled High Point and Foresight didn't blame him, she had only a tiny taste of the pain consuming his mind.         If she was honest, Foresight wasn't in the mood to try and talk much either, she still smarted from Sky's suggestion to turn her over to the Fallen. Foresight tried her best to see things from his point of view, but it still appalled her how willing he was to give her up. No pony could be that cold surely?         Sky seemed to be running in a strange detached manner now, having made sure the den was clear he went and stood watch at the mouth of the tunnel in silence, not speaking one word to Foresight the whole time. She had to admit he had chosen their hiding place well: Being concealed in a gathering of small rocky outcrops and thorny brush, any search party would have to practically be on top of the burrow before they noticed its entrance.         By far the worst part of their flight from High Point was during daylight hours, which managed to be both a blessing and curse: With the day’s light and warmth the number of searchers dropped off, the altered among their number unwilling to brave its light, but it left Foresight at the mercy of the celestial orb’s heat.         From fear of her magic drawing unwanted attention, Sky Strike strictly forbidden Foresight to use her protective aura. This had forced the pair down this small hole as Foresight neared collapse from the unrelenting heat. It wasn't much but felt like paradise to Foresight who took deep breaths of cooler air, blessed relief from the torture outside.         As Sky stood sentinel at the burrow’s mouth Foresight took time to examine the orb properly. There had been precious little time during their escape and with the noon day sun trapping them here, she distracted herself from the woes of the past few days with a closer inspection of the small trinket.         Foresight had already guessed at the common root of the inscriptions on the small sphere, which closely matched the writings under High Point. The main difference was these runes glowed blue from within and Foresight could easily feel a gentle flow of power contained there. Unlike that brief connection she had felt with the ambient magic in the tunnel, the power in the orb was protected from her. It resisted all Foresight’s attempts to call its substance to her and stubbornly gave her no clues as to its purpose.         Foresight was so engrossed in her study of the artifact that she failed to notice that Sky Strike had slipped away at some point from the burrow. When she finally did the sun was well past its zenith in the clear sky and after a brief moment of panic decided it was probably best to let him be off and clearing his head and went back to studying her hard won prize.         The sun was heading for the horizon by the time Sky did returned, carrying couple of withered looking reeds which he offered to Foresight. She absent mindedly took it in one hoof before chewing on it, her focus once again on the mystery before her. Her face soon changed from intense concentration to one of disgust. "Urgh what is this?" she asked out loud, Foresight’s voice sounding raspy, it had been hours since she last had a drink.         "Food," Sky simply informed her as he chewed on his reed. Without another word he went to lie down at the back of the dirt hole they found themselves in. He hadn't looked directly at Foresight the whole time and she suspected he was still withdrawn into himself.         Foresight hung her head sadly, she couldn't begin to understand what the stallion was going through, his home gone and any pony he knew probably dead. Foresight felt an inkling of his feelings from her powers: The gaping hole left in him as the one piece of security Sky Strike had ever known was destroyed. She was also angry with him, he would have sacrificed her in a heartbeat back at the battle, but even that anger was swallowed up in the sense of pity she felt for him now.         After a few minutes of closer study Sky Strike finally said something, "Well, was it worth it?" The despondent question came from behind her. "Can you even figure out that thing?" Sky's misery was heavy in every syllable and it was the first time he had given more than one word answers to Foresight in what felt like days. Foresight wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing, Sky blamed her for High Point’s destruction, she didn’t need to read minds or emotions to tell that.         Foresight gave a deep sigh, trying to block the suppressed anger coming off Sky. After all that had happened she didn't have the reserves to lie to him, "Honestly I have no idea what it's for, I was just tasked with getting it. I hoped it would be clear once I held it in my hooves, most things are when I turn my mind to them, but this....."         Sky Strike snorted and shuffled a bit further away from Foresight. Would Sky really have given her over to those ponies? She found herself wondering. She felt a surge of gratitude that Enigma had stood up for her when the chips were down. Foresight had only just met the mare and Enigma had done so much for her, which sounded at such odds with how Sky Strike described the ex commander of the militia. The pony he described was heartless and ruthless, but in the end she had helped them and Foresight fervently wished she knew why.         She found her attention wandering. Foresight hadn't gotten much rest recently and that was starting to catch up with her. Sitting on the hard dirt floor, Foresight felt all the stress of the horrible things well up within her. Sky had been distracting her from it, keeping Foresight angry and focused on other things, but now she had time to stop and think they came creeping back to trouble her.         So many dead, all for some stupid prophecy. She let her fore hooves droop, leaving the ball resting in her lap as z few tears began to trickle from her eyes. Why had she even thought she could do this quest? Yes she had seen things in her sleep and the mages of Celestia's court had told her that she had something great to do, but in the end she was just a scared filly barely out of foal hood. It had all seemed such a big adventure when they had first set out and now......         Foresight’s tears trickled down her muzzle and dripped onto the floor beneath her. A couple splashed on the orb and to her sudden surprise it began to shift. Two halves, that had not been visible before, rotated slowly in different directions and the orb opened, reminding Foresight of a coconut that she had brought from Zebra lands one time. There were shimmering letters and shapes picked out in blue light lining the inside of the hollow orb.         All of a sudden the mental barrier that had been blocking Foresight’s understanding began to fade and the message inside became painfully clear in their intensity. "Only the tears of one touched by darkness, but with light in their heart can open me, to show that the children of the queen of darkness may the better path choose and wish freedom for their creator," drifted into Foresight's mind like a melancholy song.         "Who was that?" Sky Strike asked in an annoyed voice, but Foresight ignored him, the orb finally giving up its secrets. Foresight looked up to Sky excitement in her eyes, "I got it open! I think I can read it now!"         Sky looked at Foresight in complete incomprehension and she saw fear welling up in his shocked eyes. To her horror, Sky Strike readied his wings, the blades were still attached and Foresight shrank back in in fear.         She really didn't like the way Sky Strike was looking at her and Foresight spoke again before putting a hoof over her mouth. She then looked down at the now open orb and realisation dawned on her.         "Sorry Sky, It happens sometimes when I try to work out old writing and stuff, it kind of gets into my head" Foresight 'sent', she didn't like to use that method of communicating but found it necessary at times like this. Sky Strike didn't look relieved to hear Foresight in his head and looked skeptically at the trinket now held in her hooves         Foresight shook her head sadly, how could Sky be scared of this? In ways she couldn’t describe she knew everything would be alright. Ignoring the bemused Sky Strike, Foresight turned her attention back to the words inside the sphere which danced and flowed but were as clear as night to her now, she skimmed over what was written: "On the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about night time eternal."         Foresight was not surprised, this phrase was written in a few books back in Canterlot. This was nothing new to her or others who studied history, but Foresight's pulse quickened as more words revealed themselves to her:         "The Stars number shall be four, three shall come from each of her children in darkness. Of the pegasi who will fly only by night that they may be the mare's spies, listening a way to undo her enemies. The earth ponies turned to cold stone that they may bar the path for all who would bar her return. Finally the unicorn folk, turned to darkness that they may bend the minds of Equestria to her will that she may be accepted upon her return."         Foresight's eyes went wide with shock. She had never heard any of this before. With mounting dread she read on:         "The darkness that went forth shall return to she who sent it and break her prison. In so doing the Princess of the Night will be lost to her nightmares and the land shall forever mourn the sun's passing." That could only mean the altered Foresight surmised, but the orb was not done giving of its words:         "But from that same darkness shall the fourth star come with the hope of salvation. Though the three are compelled, the fourth light will come by choice and lend its heart to unlock her cage. That the mare banished and lost to the world may return."         Foresight felt the power of the orb dwindle and wink out, evidently its task complete. It was only then that she noticed how cold the den had become, her aura had flared up without Foresight noticing. Looking around she saw small ice crystals had formed on the floor about her and Sky Strike had pressed himself against the dirt wall, his brown eyes full of suspicion and fear.         Foresight dropped her aura and smiled to show everything was okay, she felt filled up now, the cares and woes of the last few days somehow lighter on her shoulders. Sky Strike shook himself, clearly hiding his fears behind a mask of anger.         "Have you done babbling nonsense? Only I have just lost my home and friends because of you! It would be nice to know it was at least worth something more than a bad poem!" Sky Strike glared at Foresight.         Foresight felt her anger return also, the sense of calm and support fading as mysteriously as it had come. It wasn't her fault that things had turned out the way they did. She hadn't asked to be chased through wastes by a huge snake that killed her companions, or to have a crazy army of Nightmare Moon worshipers come and attack the town. Foresight never asked to be born the way she was.         "It's not nonsense you lout! It's vital and important and could mean the end of the world as we know it if we don't figure out what it's talking about!" She shouted back, "I didn't cause all this! If you need somepony to blame then take it out on the ones who attacked your home not me!"         The ice was spreading from Foresight's hooves now and her horn glowed with a dangerous light. She had been through more than a filly her age should have been and was tired, scared and over all now very angry. Foresight felt that she stood a little taller than before, it wasn’t that she had outwardly grown, but she sensed a greater weight to her presence somehow and she used that feeling to meet the eyes of Sky who were now glaring at Foresight.         "Well maybe if we had just given them what they wanted then they wouldn't all be gone! I wish I had left you in the wastes to be eaten by that snake!" Foresight could 'feel' that Sky didn't really mean those words but his emotions were worn thin; even as a small voice called to Foresight to be calm she ignored it, at this moment not caring if they were found.         "You moron, they wanted the orb just as much as I needed it they would have attacked High Point without me being there, I didn't choose to make my home over a dangerous magical artifact!" This last outburst was sent right into Sky Strike's mind and it burned his emotions as much as it froze his brain.         Sky Strike roared in pain, dived forward and for a moment Foresight thought he was going to tackle her but he simply swooped past, then out of the den into the failing light outside. She just 'humped' and turned her attention back to the now dark and lifeless orb. Foresight’s tears had frozen on her cheeks but she paid that no mind.          Exhausted she sank down onto her knees and tried to cry tears that wouldn't come, her aura of cold freezing them before they could form. The stress and pain was overwhelming and the brief feeling of support quickly snuffed out with Sky Strike’s leaving. With a frustrated snort Foresight turned over and lay there for a time, feeling sleep creeping over her even as she fought its embrace. As her exhausted mind wandered Foresight feared the nightmares would come again. They had been growing steadily worse since she left Equestria, but strangely this time, as sleep finally smothered her waking mind, the nightmares seemed muted and distant.         Instead she dreamed of Sky Strike, flying out into the falling dark, not caring where to. The sky was cool and welcoming, but he didn't feel any comfort from it. He hurt deep down, yeah his life had been rough, but it had been his life and he had made the most of it. Even Enigma had a kind of soft spot for him, but now even that had small mercy had been stolen from him. It wasn't Foresight's fault but things had really started going downhill just as she showed up.         It took a long time to burn off the anger Sky felt inside, but once it had Sky admitted just how foolish he had been. Shaking his head in shame Sky turned about and headed back to where he had left Foresight.           She was young and had no idea what this place held for her. He may be a ruffian, but he wasn't a monster and wouldn't leave her to fend for herself and most likely die out here alone. Not only that, but the last orders of Enigma had carried with them a sense of dread and fear he didn't know his commander could feel. Enigma wanted Foresight safe and Sky would do his best to live up to her last words.         Deep in his core he knew he had to take care of Foresight, for good or ill. She really was all he had now. Sky didn’t realise how far he had flown away and he only arrived back at the burrow as the sun had sunk halfway behind the horizon. He took a deep breath as he landed at the burrow's mouth, an apology forming on his lips. "Um Foresight, I... I'm really sorry. It just got to me there and I....." Sky Strike was just in time to see the hairy thorax of a gigantic multi legged creature disappear down a concealed tunnel in the wall of the burrow.         Cursing he rushed forward only to be met by an almost invisible barrier that clung to him and refused to let go. As Sky watched, the back legs of the creature tugged on a couple of 'threads' although this was a poor description of them. They looked more like ropes by their size and glinted in the fading light from outside. As these pulled taught they lifted up the fake dirt wall section and to Sky’s horror he briefly saw the cloaked bundle of Foresight was clasped in its front mandibles. All too late Sky Strike understood just why this burrow had been abandoned.