//------------------------------//
// Starting the Pursuit 
// Story: The Mask of Despair and the Face of Hope 
// by Wings of Black Glass 
//------------------------------//

“What did he take?”  It was Sable who asked.  The three of us stood in my room, facing the now blasted cabinet where I had hidden the amulet.  It would seem my fears about it being too lightly defended were well founded.
“The Alicorn Amulet.”  Sable tilted his head; he clearly didn’t remember it.  “It is a powerful magical artifact, which grants nearly unsurpassed powers to the one wearing it.”
“It also corrupts them, making them more and more unstable with each spell cast.”
“You were wearing it during your accident.  Only the one wearing it can take it off, thats why I had to ask you to do it.”  Sable let his gaze drop to his hooves, carefully considering the ramifications of this revelation.  I looked around my room, other than the blown out window and the broken door there was very little other damage.  I would have expected the room to be ransacked as the intruder searched the room.  “It would seem he knew exactly where to find it.  How did he know?”
“Could that be what he took from me, in the Crystal Empire?”
“I doubt it. I never told you where I hid it.”  I shook my head.  “He couldn’t have pinpointed it so precisely if all he knew was that I had it.”  I started to pace again.  “Ooh, I should have destroyed it when I had the chance.”
“You can’t really blame yourself, we had no idea there was somepony out there willing to take such a wild risk to steal it right out from under you.”
“It was stolen once before; Sable found it where Zecora had hidden it inside Everfree Forest.”  I stopped pacing, looking out through the shattered window at the forest in the distance.  “We have to find him and get it back.  Before he does something crazy.”
“But how?  He could be anywhere by now.  We don’t even know which direction he ran off in.”
“I know, I know, you don’t have to state the obvious.”  I snapped back, and Glimmer frowned towards me.  “Sorry, I’m just a little bit stressed right now.”
“It's alright.  We’ll figure this out somehow.”  Silence fell for a long moment, nopony had an immediate answer.
“I know how we can find him.”  Sable spoke, having been quiet for a while.  “He’s got the Amulet.”  He said this as if it were supposed to answer the question.
“Yeah.  How does that help us?  Are you expecting to follow a trail of destruction?”
“We can trace him the same way I found the Amulet in the first place.”  Sable looked out the window.  “I remember now.  I have a spell which can track it.”
“Isn’t that convenient.  How did you manage that?”  Now he turned to affix his gaze on Starlight.
“I don’t remember how I got the spell, some ancient or obscure tome?  Maybe I made it up myself.  We can argue about what I knew, and when, later.  Are we going after the Amulet or not?”
“It doesn’t matter.”  I interrupted before they descended into bickering.  “We have to go after him immediately.  In the hooves of someone so reckless, it can only lead to disaster.  Do it, Sable.”  He nodded and faced the window again.  He focused, and I watched him carefully.  Magical circles, manifested by his magic, appeared around his horn.  An arrow at the center of his spell, just past his horn’s tip, spun wildly before pointing in the direction of the amulet, quivering slightly.  I followed the arrow with my eyes.
“South, the amulet has gone south.”  Sable’s spell dissipated, the arrow vanishing.
“Alright, I’ll get the others, and we can get moving.”  Glimmer and I turned towards the door, but Sable hesitated, still looking out the broken window.  “Let's go, Sable!”
“Twilight Sparkle, wait a moment.”  I stopped, ears raised, as he faced me.  “I don’t think the others should come.”
“What?  Why?”
“This Unicorn we are chasing now has one of the most dangerous artifacts in Equestria, right?  We already know he is willing to use lethal force against us.  We can each protect ourselves, via shield or escape.  With five others alongside, can we protect them all?”  He made a good point, and I took a moment to consider.  “Rainbow Dash and Applejack are both physically capable, but against such power…  I don’t want to lead them into danger when we cannot keep them safe.”
“This is hardly going to be a picnic for us either.”  Starlight waited by the door, agitated.
“Of that, I am acutely aware.  I worry I might be the load among us.  This adversary has already bested me, even without the power of the Amulet.  In the end, I might only be useful for finding them in the first place.”
“Don’t say that.  You held him off, all alone, long enough for me to get back.”  I stepped up to him and placed a supporting hoof on his shoulder.  “Don’t sell yourself short just yet.”  He glared at my hoof for an instant, still sensitive about being touched, although he didn’t pull away.
“Still, can you really say you want to bring Fluttershy to face this threat?”  He locked his eyes on me, waiting for an answer.  I dropped my head; it would be dishonest to say I did.  “Risking myself to fix a mistake I made is one thing.  I will not ask it of them.”
“And are we any different?  You’re asking it of us.”  Sable made to answer Starlight’s question but stopped himself.  Two more times he went to retort, and each time he realized he had none.  At last, he dipped his head, defeated.
“We want to help, Sable.”  I lifted his head with my own hoof until he met my eyes.  “Give them the chance to make that choice themselves.”





“I can understand why he didn’t want us to come along.”
“The thief does sound scary.”
“Even then, there’s no way any of us stayed behind.”
“I’m really glad you all did come along.  Particularly Fluttershy.”
“What did I do?  I’m sure I couldn’t have captured the thief myself.”
"It wasn't what you did against the thief that mattered.  It was what you did for Sable."