//------------------------------// // Chapter Twenty // Story: The Crucible of Restoration // by Golden Paw //------------------------------// The rattling sound of stones bouncing down the chasm caused Foresight to step back in fear. The disturbed rock continued its clattering descent, the echos carrying far around the caves and setting Foresight’s teeth on edge. She worked up the courage to peer over the precipice and even with her natural night vision was unable to see the bottom. The sounds died away and after a long pause Foresight gave up waiting for further sounds of impact. Deep enough thank you very much. “This place has seen extensive upheaval,” Impasse commented, reaffirming what Foresight already knew. “It’s a wonder the city above is still stable,” She muttered, looking around the cracks and fissures that riddled the stone. Under the deceptively solid surface of snow and ice surrounding the Crystal Fiefdom the bedrock was a jagged collection of fracture lines. Caves, abyssal cracks and a network of sinkholes resembling more a rocky sponge than sensible foundations. It was deathly quiet down here too, Foresight and Impasse’ voices the only sounds apart from their hoof falls. They carried no lights and Foresight found the pervasive darkness oddly comforting, its textures alive with hundreds of hues of black that only a dark unicorn could see. “It is the city itself. The very crystal has grown to secure and create its own foundations,” Impasse explained and Foresight gave him a curious look. “Since when did you become so knowledgeable about this place?” She peered around and saw it was indeed true. The same crystal that made up the city above was here also. Great pillars and struts seemed to have grown right through the stone, anchoring the jigsaw puzzle of bedrock into something far sturdier. “The crystal ponies are well aware of the nature of their home Foresight and were only too happy to share it with me,” Impasse stated. Foresight cocked an eyebrow, “When? You’ve been in your casket since we arrived.” “You understand that when Twilight and the others tried to cure me they drew a little piece from each of the crystal ponies correct?” Impasse said and Foresight grinned as understanding dawned. “You connected with them and learnt from them? Your curse didn’t destroy the knowledge they imparted. Am I right? She was rewarded by a simple nod from Impasse before her face fell, “They don’t know about the secret chamber do they?” “No Foresight they do not. It seems Sombra was very particular about hiding that information from them,” Impasse confirmed. Foresight’s frown became a scowl, “Typical of your mad tyrant I guess, but if he was so intent on hiding the place why is it now so eager to be discovered? What’s changed?” She looked about the jagged rocks and cracked walls all around, the shadows suddenly seeming far less comforting than before. “We are here for one thing,” Impasse’ cold manner seemed to mirror the sudden dread creeping into Foresight’s heart. Foresight had tried to reach out with her magic, just as she’d done in so many other places, but she felt nothing from the walls. Apart from the ever present flow along the crystal roots the stone was as silent as the void. That in itself was worrying. Everything had history to it, even an empty wasteland had a ‘feel’ to it, but here? Nothing. It was as if something had taken all the essence of this place and simply removed it from existence. The only response Foresight was getting was the dull throb from the hidden chamber deeper down. Whatever Sombra had hidden was like a malevolent dog awaiting its master and silently called out for his return. Sombra was dead and gone, at least that’s what Foresight had been told and fervently hoped to be true. Destroyed utterly by the Crystal heart’s power when freeing the city above. Yet Foresight knew there were almost always scars and leftovers from such events. Yeah like me and Impasse. “We can still turn back Foresight,” Impasse suggested. Foresight agreed that would have been the logical choice, but if there was anything she’d learnt from Twilight these past months it was to trust your heart. That intuition was telling Foresight that leaving this task to others was a very, very bad idea. “We will just have to be careful, not much further now,” Foresight whispered as the growing dread pressed down on her. Every hoofstep only increased that feeling and Foresight began to understand it for what it was. Fear, but not hers. The lurking power was looking to be found, yet she and Impasse were not its chosen targets. It was seeking those it could twist to darkness, those who were full of goodness and purity. As the watching force recognised the tainted nature of both Foresight and Impasse its fear and frustrations grew. All this seeped into her mind as with a greater effort they rounded the last corner and saw the door again. It was unchanged from when Foresight had seen it days before save the sullen desperation pouring from it, “We’re not who it wants to see,” Foresight said finally and Impasse regarded her before looking to the closed portal. “Many things are not what they seem, remember South Craxinum,” Impasse cautioned and Foresight shivered at the name. Those distant woods and the beautiful plants there conjured up painful memories. It wasn’t until you understood why they looked so appealing and the brittle bones of those who hadn’t known, tangled in their roots that you could truly appreciate the horror of South Craxinum.           “Well you got me out of there when I was in trouble and I hope you can do the same here if things go badly,” Foresight said as she approached the malevolent door. It seemed to glare at her despite the lack of eyes, the smooth black wood reminding Foresight yet again of an ill treated guard dog. She studied the stone archway and the runes it bore. They didn’t so much glow but rather appeared as darker cracks into somewhere else and Foresight quickly looked away as her stomach churned.         “Right, now how do we open you I wonder?” Foresight asked and the door gave a metaphorical growl. She studied the panels and noted there was no handle or knocker, yet the design of the portal indicated the door was meant to open outwards.         Bracing herself Foresight put out a cautious hoof and felt the door’s anger at being touched by her. She was like its master, yet so unlike him. The wood radiated confusion and anger, yet couldn’t move.         “Okay I guess we’re going to have to do this the magical way,” Foresight sighed with defeat. “I was really hoping this would be simple. Impasse you know what to do if I get in trouble,” It wasn’t a question.         Foresight and Impasse had investigated so many dangerous sites in their time together that it was second nature now. Still Impasse reminded her of the drill, “Don’t interfere unless absolutely unavoidable. Nevertheless be careful Foresight.”         His words, although repeated and spoken without inflection, still managed to cause Foresight’s heart to flutter and she drew strength from that. Now prepared Foresight closed her eyes and with stern determination reached out with her mind. The screaming blackness and violent welcome was no surprise to her, many an evil creature’s tomb and cursed burial mound had such barriers upon them. So when Foresight found her ‘mental’ self standing in a cold dark void she wasn’t rattled. When did I become so jaded? Foresight could hardly remember the filly freshly graduated from Celestia’s school off on her first field trip anymore. Years of struggle and most tellingly of all meeting the lithi had shorn much of that naive filly away. Leaving a sharp point that even now looked for the likely traps and dangers cracking this lock would put in her way. The memories were so vivid that they nearly brought a smile to Foresight’s face, those early years going on adventures with ‘Sky Strike’ As her mind focused on the pegasus Foresight saw the trap for what it was and cursed herself for the slip up. Yes there he was now. Even though Foresight knew it couldn’t possibly be ‘Sky’ there he was. Standing in the dark and smiling in a sad way at her, “Foresight, it’s good to see you.” The greeting only brought an angry frown to her face, “I know you’re not real so don’t even bother okay. ‘Mind mirror’, right? Turn my own fears and insecurities against me?” If the creature pretending to be Sky Strike was phased by her reply it didn’t show it. Instead it flashed a winning smile, with just the little roguish charm that Foresight had loved about Sky. She watched the cream and brown mottled pegasus from her past ‘trot’ about her in the empty blackness, “Does it matter if I am? You still miss me terribly and you know I can drown you in guilt, make you relive all the things you could have done to save me.” It was a low blow and even if Foresight had been expecting it she still felt the tug of her heart strings, “Save him yes, I have those regrets and pains but I deal with it.” Sky’s muzzle was right by her ear in an instant, the pony not moving but simply being there. “Really? Is that why you have Impasse around? To help you deal with the guilt?” Foresight’s eyes narrowed, “Of course, I’m weak and haven’t got over the stallion I could never have. He was too old for me and I’m a dark unicorn and so could never be with a normal pony even if he’d said yes.” She knew what was coming, her last memory of him had not been a happy one. The sight of Sky’s mangled body and that one pleading eye still wracked Foresight’s heart with pain, “I told you to go Foresight and you did, what a wonderful way to demonstrate how much you cared for me.” Sky’s voice was just how Foresight remembered, of course it would be it was drawn from her own memories, “Left me to die to save yourself, what a faithful little filly you were.” “Yes I did and I would do so again, because even if it hurt and even if it meant I’d carry that guilt with me it was still the right thing to do,” Foresight said calmly even as the tears began to well in her eyes. I hate mind mirror traps. This was an impressive one Foresight had to admit. The most basic mind mirror could look into your memories and pull your worst fears out and throw them at you. Like a real mirror showing a picture of you, but backwards. Twisting good things you had done so that they seemed wrong and make you doubt yourself. Honesty was the best counter, everyone had things they were scared of or wished they could have done better, things they regret. Face up to them, accept you weren’t perfect and resolve to do better in the future. That was how you confused a basic mind mirror trap. This one was clever though, it adapted, “Should I skip the part where I mock you for having feelings for Impasse? How it’s disloyal to my memory. How you’re just trying to make up for leaving me to die in that filthy tomb?” Foresight gritted her teeth, very clever. “Yes that would save some time.” “So you want to get through this door correct? Well be my guest, you’re obviously too experienced for my tricks to work on you.” Sky asked and Foresight was on instantly on guard. She felt the door begin to move in the world outside and recalled all the warnings Impasse had given her. “Sombra’s library is within your grasp, now you can find a way to cure him without the others’ help,” The battered and bleeding Sky flashed a predatory grin.  “The power and knowledge is all here you know, maybe you could even turn him into a dark unicorn like yourself?” That genuinely shocked Foresight and she felt the brief flash of temptation ignite a spark inside her chest. Check that. Frighteningly clever. She paused and looked at Sky with a new intensity, “You’d want to help me?” “Of course Foresight, I did love you when I was alive. Why did you think I told you to run, to leave me to those monsters and save yourself?” Sky said, as if explaining things to a foal, “There is no greater love than laying down your own life for the one you care for. I stayed and held it off so you could escape.” A part of Foresight longed for that to be true, for Sky’s desperate last stand to be in her defense, to keep that creature from killing them both. It probably was, but to have this creature say it was unnerving. “I would want you to be happy now of course, so go and use the library beyond. Find the thing you so desperately want and go with my blessing,” Sky was whole again and even smiled at Foresight. The sight screwed up her stomach and made Foresight’s heart flutter at the same time. Maybe I could, I know this thing is playing a game with me and so that knowledge will… The shock of disconnection drove Foresight to her knees and she gasped. The cave floor was beneath her and Foresight could see the ice crystals all around. The door, the doorway and a good portion of the surrounding rock was smothered in frost. The only clear places was a set of hoofprints that lead to the door and terminated in Impasse’s grey body. One hoof had slammed into the dark wood, thrusting the portal shut again while leaving its timbers cracked and splintered. Not only this, Impasse’ hoof had several new hairline fractures running through it and she felt her breath catch. Foresight heard the deadened ‘click’ of the door locking again before she slowly looked up at Impasse, “You were succumbing.” Foresight shook her head, the lingering image of Sky’s encouraging brown eyes slowly fled away, allowing her to see the real world again, “I…was...in control...I” “You were succumbing,” Impasse repeated and Foresight shook with anger. “I had everything under control, the door was opening,” She snapped. “King Sombra subdued an entire kingdom and it took both Celestia and Luna to bring him down. It is not surprising he left some very potent traps behind,” Foresight struggled to focus, the words seemed to be crawling into her brain at a snail’s pace. “It didn’t just try to scare me, or even stop me in the end I had talked it down...I” Foresight mumbled before she looked at the door. “See even now you are doubting, You were falling under its thrall and had you entered in that state ‘it’ would have been in control not you.” Impasse explained and Foresight felt the fury rise again.. “You don’t need to remind me of what could have happened Impasse. I have done this before, you’re just being over…..” Foresight stopped, shocked with herself. I would never have been angry at him for protecting me before. He knows when to pull me back, he’s my rock, my anchor. Impasse has never steered me wrong since I met him. “And now you are angry that I saved you. If I had not broken your connection there and then you would have been lost,” Impasse said without accusation. Foresight’s ears drooped and she looked up to Impasse with sorrow, “It said I could save you, not Twilight or the others but me. It said that Sombra’s library could teach me how I could save you.” “And at what cost Foresight? You know nothing good could have come from such evil knowledge. We are cursed now because others trod a darker path than was wise,” Impasse didn’t scold and that just made Foresight feel worse. Foresight looked to the door which was resolutely shut again. It seemed to be grinning nastily at her. Impasse’ blow had barely marred the wood and that surprised Foresight. I’ve seen lithi shoulder through prison bars as if they weren’t there, what’s this door made of? Finally Foresight bowed her head in defeat, “I’m sorry.” “You were not yourself,” Impasse’ words didn’t say he’d forgiven her, just stated the simple fact as always. Just for once I wish he’d.. “Right, so to get through the door?” Foresight asked to the world in general feeling very small and more than a little useless. “The door is protected by magic. The walls are not,” Impasse stated and Foresight’s eyes went wide. “You’re not going to try and dig through! You’re too badly injured Impasse I can’t let you,” Foresight pleaded even as Impasse tapped the wall and listened with his ravaged ears. “Only a foot or so. I think it will be doable without too much serious harm to my body,” Impasse may as well have been reading out of a dull instruction manual for all the care he showed. It didn’t surprise Foresight that Impasse would risk injury in such a blasé manner. It did still wrench her heart. I’m really going to lose him if we don’t find a cure soon. “Please Impasse let me try again I…” She tried but clearly his mind was made up, the cold logic would not be argued with. Foresight could only stand and watch as Impasse began to pound the wall, wincing every time he carved a chunk out of the stone. It had scared Foresight the first time she’d seen a lithi use its strength in this manner. A lithi could dig through rock as easily as an earth pony cleared dirt, the dark magic of their curse lending them power and endurance. That was what she’d always understood, but centuries of abuse was finally catching up with Impasse. With every strike Foresight was sure the cracks threading Impasse widened ever so slightly, spreading and branching like the roots of the city above. Only instead of arcane sensitive crystal these simply exposed more of Impasse’ dark core. It was like fire, only utterly black. Leaking out of the crack covered surface, they managed to add further shadows to the already lightless cave. She watched as he scooped away the rock, removing crushed stone like a foal playing with dough. The enchantment surrounding the door practically howled its defiance as Impasse relentlessly bypassed it. Foresight winced at the silent scream of rage only she could hear when Impasse finally broke through the wall and a flash of dirty purple light exploded out of the breached wall. There was a howl of defeat and Foresight failed to hide the grin of triumph as the spell unraveled, its guardianship finally ended. The last wisps of power dissipated and the door lost its malevolence, the wood becoming just a simple collection of timbers within a stone archway. The runes that had radiated malice faded one after another and Foresight could feel the rush of normality flood back. Eagerly she used her magic to understand the nature of their destination and instantly regretted it. The dead emptiness was replaced by the terrible weight of all the evil acts held within and Foresight shook as the pain washed over her. Too late she tried to close her mind to the parade of heartless atrocities within. Every conceivable act of pain, any spell or ritual with every kind of ‘ingredient’ imaginable washed over Foresight. The freshly removed hearts of foals being used to fuel spells of domination were laid out in horrible detail. A recipe detailing the sacrifice of hundreds of lives just to gain one drop of life extending elixir was forced into her mind like a burning dagger. This wasn’t Sombra’s library, Foresight realised through the haze of agony she felt. It belonged to something far darker and older of which Sombra was simply a student. He’d learnt at the hooves of something primal from the dawn of the world and this place was its library. “We...need...to burn this place,” Foresight muttered between gasps. Sombra was a tyrant, but the evil seeping out of this one room was beyond imagining. But…. There were answers here too, Foresight realised. Despite the horrific methods she could see the results achieved and the answer to both her curse and Impasse’ could be there somewhere among the vile filth. After all, this was the biggest collection of dark magic lore Foresight had ever seen. They could surely learn all they needed from here, if they were careful. It was fascinating and repellent at the same time and Foresight was keenly aware of Impasse’ failing ‘health’. Maybe it would be worth a small look? Put off the destruction of this pit of depravity until they were sure there was absolutely no good that could come from it. “Foresight?” Impasse asked, drawing her attention away. He still regarded her with cold calculation but Foresight thought she could almost see the ‘echo’ of worry deep within his’ black eyes. “It’s evil, there is no other word for it Impasse,” Foresight replied slowly, “But maybe….” “One step into darkness is often followed by two and then quickly by three Foresight,” Impasse replied and Foresight felt the war raging inside her. They were so close here, her intuition was insisting that what she sought lay within. And what about Twilight’s efforts? They hadn’t heard anything from them since the Bloomberg had crossed the mountains. She only had Twilight’s word about what she’d found in the vault. Was there something Twilight didn’t want to tell them? Some cure that was possible yet she was unwilling to reveal it because it was too unpalatable for the Princess? There had been the whole mess with the doppelganger. How were they sure that Twilight really was Twilight this time? No one else had seen what occurred in Sal Palomino. Maybe it had been the real Twilight who had died in the briefing room? The doubts came fast and furiously into her head and Foresight felt the awful tug of fear again. She might lose Impasse before Twilight could find a cure. He was looking worse every day and the determination to break himself doing something stupid and noble was only making that worse. Could she wait that long? Could Impasse afford to wait that long? “We need to know exactly what we’re dealing with Impasse. I suspect it may not be a simple matter as burning a few books,” Foresight finally replied. That was almost the whole truth. She stared at Impasse who hadn’t moved since he’d breached the wall. Foresight looked over his half shattered face, the chipped and fractured state of his hooves. she knew then that she couldn’t stand to lose him. She would do what was needed to be sure he survived. The quiet warning voice in her head screamed it was the lingering effects of the mirror trap, but Foresight shoved them aside before reaching her decision. Without another word she stepped up to the door, the ancient wood was visibly weathering before her eyes. The time which had long been held back by the enchantments placed upon them was fading and the wood was rotting even as Foresight approached. She gave it only the lightest of touches and the door crumpled in upon itself before forming a pile of splinters and dust. Before her was revealed the shelves of possibly the greatest (and most despicable) library in the world. Feeling her own heart harden with resolve Foresight stepped into the room with Impasse watching coldly all the while.