• Published 2nd Jun 2018
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The Mask of Despair and the Face of Hope - Wings of Black Glass



Everyone is the hero of their own story. Maybe, just maybe, that isn't always true. Sometimes, they are the villain.

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False Memory

The morning brought with it heavy rain. None of us got a good night’s sleep, the few small beds were crowded by multiple ponies each. I had half expected Sable to vanish during the night, to brood alone somewhere as he so often did, but he remained motionless the whole night.

“So much for that plan.” We stood outside, underneath the inn’s awning to keep out of the rain. “I was hoping to have better light to look for the throne fragment again.” I looked at the others, all still a bit weary. In particular Sable seemed to have not slept at all. He didn’t say a word and barely ate at breakfast.

“Can we go home then?” Rainbow Dash’s thought had its appeal, it’s been days since we left, and everpony had things they needed to take care of. But still, there was something I wanted to do here.

“I won’t stop you if you want to leave. But I’m going to stay here for a while longer. I want to see if I can figure out what happened to Sable’s parent’s memories. Maybe find Sereina if she still lives here.”

“We can ask if anypony who lives here remembers the thief. It’s our only lead at this point.” Rarity made a good point, the thief had implied he might have lived here at one point.

“I wish we had gotten his name at least. I’m getting tired of calling him ‘the thief.’” I found myself agreeing with Applejack on this.

“Despair.” At last, Sable spoke again. “Call him Despair then.”

“Ooh, Ominous.” Pinkie somehow managed to still sound upbeat. “Why that?”

“He said he would make Equestria face despair, and we will probably have to face him again.” He shrugged but didn’t raise his head. The way he held himself those first few days after I first met him came to mind; he was always so downcast. He looked much the same now. “Seems appropriate.” So, at last, we had something to call the thief, if not his actual name.

“Alright, I’m going to talk to Softwear and Earl Grey again.” The others blinked, Sable cringed. “Sable’s parents.”

“I’ll go with you.” Fluttershy stepped towards me and nodded.

“I guess the rest of us can ask around town about Sable, Sereina, and our thief. Despair, whatever his name is.”

“Starlight, as you do that see if you can figure out if anypony else here has had their memory manipulated.” I had a flash of inspiration. “Watch their eyes. I think I saw something yesterday but didn’t make the connection.” They all nodded and split into two groups. Starlight, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash headed off in one direction under an umbrella spell provided by Starlight. Spike, Fluttershy, and I started to turn towards the observatory on the hill outside town. The Unicorn in the black coat remained in place. “Sable, you don’t have to come with us if you don’t want to.”

“If you need to you can wait here for us.” It was clear he was considering Fluttershy’s offer, glancing back into the warm inn.

“No… I should go too. If only because…” He trailed off into silence, unwilling to give words to his concern. I put a supportive hoof on his shoulder; he was trembling again. I nodded towards him and tried to provide him with a hopeful smile, pleased he was willing to face this. We walked out to the little cottage in the valley underneath my umbrella. Just as we reached the white picket fence, I heard Sable’s wings chiming against themselves, loud enough to be heard over the driving rain.

“Sable?” Fluttershy noticed first, Sable had stopped following. He was shivering, not just because of the rain.

“I can’t do this, not again.” He started to back away.

“It's all right. You can go back to the inn if you want.”

“I’ll just…” Half panicking, he glanced around before fixing his eyes on the white observatory. “Wait over here.” She was about to ask if he’d be alright when he spoke again. “I promise, I won’t run away. I just can’t go in there.”

“You’re sure?” He nodded, rain running off him in rivers. It only occurred to me now he might not have known the umbrella spell, he hadn’t used it that night of Pinkie’s surprise party either. “If you change your mind, we’ll be right here.” Sable nearly ran up to the observatory despite the heavy rain. Now I looked down to Spike, my request already on my tongue.

“I know, I know.” Spike was already following the Unicorn. “I’ll keep an eye on him.”

“Thank you, Spike.” Fluttershy beat me to that. Now, down to just the two of us, we approached the door and knocked.

“Yes, hello?” This time it was Earl Grey who answered the door. “Princess! Welcome back!” The older Unicorn glared up at the sky for an instant before stepping back and waving into the cozy little home. “Please, come in out of the rain.”

“I apologize for the intrusion.” He shut the door behind us, and I took a quick glance around the room. Softwear was hard at work over at the loom; rugs, tapestries, and folded cloth in neat stacks behind her. The blue pony glanced over, pausing only long enough to smile and wave before turning back to her work, wholly focused on what she was doing. The room was well lit and warm; a small fireplace crackled gently. A staircase led upstairs, and I saw another doorway leading to what looked like a study behind the stairs.

“Did you manage to find your friend?” Earl Grey seemed to be earnestly concerned. It took me a moment to recall the last bit of our conversation from yesterday.

“Oh, yes. He hadn’t gone far. Let me introduce you to Fluttershy, another friend of mine.” The Unicorn bowed to the Pegasus, very much like Sable would.

“Your home is lovely.” She returned the bow.

“Come, sit.” Earl Grey gestured to the table near the center of the living room, covered in small wooden parts little larger than splinters and a single clear glass bottle lying on its side. “Tell me how I can be of service to the Princess of Friendship.” Earl Grey started to put the little wooden parts on a nearby shelf, but before it got away, I managed to read the nameplate for the ship-in-a-bottle, the ‘Enterprise.’ The shelf he put the partially constructed vessel on had many other little bottle-ships on it.

“Actually, I have some questions for the two of you.” Softwear flicked her eyes up from her weaving for an instant and then frowned at her work. With a huff, directed inward, another gesture so similar to Sable, she stepped away to join us. “And I apologize ahead of time, but they might be a little strange from your point of view.” The two married ponies glanced at each other, confused.

“I’m flattered you think we might be able to help you. But what could we possibly provide you with?”

“It's quite a long story.” Fluttershy glanced away from Earl Grey.

“First of all, do you recognize the name Sable Stardust?” I watched them intently. Just as yesterday, their eyes flashed.

“No… no, I don’t think so.” Fluttershy winced at the flat tone of Softwear’s voice. I was not surprised.

“Have you ever met a charcoal black Unicorn with scars all over their face? You would know, they are very distinctive.” The couple looked at each other again, both frowning.

“That doesn’t sound familiar.” Earl Grey answered, no flash this time. Curious.

“Do you know a pony named Sereina?” Fluttershy asked this question.

“No.” Simple and quick. Again, no flash. Equally curious.

“Have you ever seen this before?” Time for a new tactic. An illusion manifested by me appeared on the table, depicting the angular silver mask with the lightning motif. The only object which survived the fire at Sable’s hovel.

“Where did you find that? It disappeared off the Alicorn statue in town some years ago.” Now, that was interesting.

“Have either of you ever been to Canterlot?”

“Yes. Several times.” Ah, progress.

“Do you remember what you were doing there?”

“Of course, we were…” Softwear’s voice trailed off, and her gaze dropped to the table.

“Looking at a school? Why were we…?” Light flashed within their eyes again. “Must have been visiting a friend.” A pattern began to form in my mind.

“Do you have any children?” Both pairs of eyes flashed brightly at Fluttershy’s question. Each pony grasped at their head for a moment before returning to normal.

“No, unfortunately.”

“Not for lack of trying.” Earl Grey grinned playfully towards his wife. Softwear’s face flushed deeply.

“Earl Grey! Don’t embarrass me in front of the Princess!” She jabbed him in the side, without real force behind it.

“OK, I have one more question. And I want you to answer without thinking, just say the first thing that comes to mind.” I waited until I had their full attention. “The purple Unicorn's favorite drink?”

“Sarsaparilla float.” Simultaneously both Earl Grey and Softwear answered, and had just enough time to face each other in surprise before their eyes shone brightly with blue light. Spasms overcame them, and they both fell to the floor, twitching.

“My goodness, are you alright?” Fluttershy darted around the table to support Softwear, I held Earl Grey steady with my magic, so he didn’t hurt himself. The spasms stopped after a moment, and they panted heavily, apparently in some pain. It was apparent now, whatever was done to them which removed Sable from their memory was not a one time effect.

“What was that?” Softwear stood, aided by Fluttershy. “Oh dear, I seem to have fallen. I’m not usually this clumsy.”

“Oh, my head.” Earl Grey blinked, noticing now how I immobilized him. “Would you mind putting me down please?” Still a little worried, I complied. “I’m sorry we couldn’t help you.”

“Actually, you were very helpful. And I have some bad news. You two have been enchanted, or cursed.”

“We have?” Softwear and Earl Grey stepped closer to each other, arm in arm, I could see them shaking a little.

“I’m afraid so.” I nodded and took a moment to choose my words carefully. I didn’t want to trigger the curse again. “You don’t know it, but you have lost someone important to you. They were taken from you, and your memory has been manipulated so that you would never know it. Do you remember the Unicorn who was with me yesterday?”

“That jittery fellow in the black coat?”

“That was Sable Stardust, your son.” More blue light in the eyes of Sable’s parents when Fluttershy spoke.

“You must be mistaken. We don’t have a son.” Fluttershy winced again.

“If you wouldn’t mind, I want to inspect your minds. I might be able to remove the curse and restore your memory.” The couple stepped away from us to discuss it in some privacy.

“Do you really think you can help them?”

“I don’t know yet, I hope so. It depends on how the curse was designed.” Sable’s parents were still talking in low voices. I overheard Softwear say something about trust, gesturing towards us. I took Fluttershy to the window where I wouldn’t eavesdrop again. “Think about it; this could be our best chance to really help Sable. We can give him his family back!”

“Should we go get him?” The Pegasus looked out towards the white observatory on the hill, concern clear as day on her face.

“Not yet. Let us not get his hopes up, just in case.”

“Oh… I guess he shouldn’t be here anyway; we don’t want to stress him or his family without good reason.”

“Princess Sparkle?” I turned away from the window to find Earl Grey and Softwear arm in arm, apprehensive but determined. “We’ve come to a decision. Please, go ahead.” The two took a seat by the table, and I stood before them. It took me a moment to decide which spells to use, and then I began. First, I went to Softwear and places my hooves on the mare’s temples before focusing.

“This may feel a bit strange, brace yourself.” An outside observer would only see the two of us facing each other with glowing eyes. If pressed I would find it difficult to explain precisely what I was doing; the mental realms can be confusing to describe. It was almost like standing at a hundred crossroads in a crowded city and trying to read signs in a foreign language you don’t understand. I searched Sable’s mother’s thought patterns, looking for the barriers and wards that a curse would leave. In this analogy, it would be like trying to find crossed out signs or roadblocks.

For a while I found nothing, there was not actually anything blocking Softwear’s thoughts directly, the roads were clear. So I pulled back, trying to see the whole city instead of the individual streets. And now I could see the hole, a section of her mind which had been cut off from the rest; there were no roads that led there. This quarter was blocked away by a force that continually built new structures wherever the streets might lead to the restricted area.

I imagined myself going to one such wall, as if it were a pile of bricks, and demolishing it. I could see the memories beyond, represented here by a park, but only until the wall repaired itself. I pulled back again, this time leaving the city entirely, and released Softwear. We both gasped, it was some time since we started.

“Twilight, are you alright?” Fluttershy held me upright, and Earl Grey braced his wife.

“I’m alright. I think I know what’s going on now. But I need to be sure. Earl Grey, are you ready?” The grey Unicorn glanced down at his wife, still catching her breath. She smiled up at him supportingly and nodded. Earl Grey faced me and held very still while I placed my hooves on his temples as I did with Softwear.

Instead of diving low to skim the streets of the mind I stayed high where I could see everything. I watched the comings and goings of thoughts along the roads until I spied the walled-off park, just as before. Could I enter the area directly? When I came close, the curse threw up a fog before me, blinding me, and I found myself outside a locked gate. The spell was adaptable, clever. Deep in Earl Grey’s mind, I tried to break a small crack into the wall and peered inside. Not looking for memories now, I was trying to see what was building the walls. My entry was detected, and I spotted a shape facing me before the brick was replaced. It was a stone Alicorn, the statue from Pinewood Village. Twice more, at new entry points, I tried again. Each time I saw the figure, blocking the way further into the walled-off memories.

I released my hold on Earl Grey, falling back with a gasp. The room spun, no, it was me. Fluttershy grabbed me before my vertigo overwhelmed me. The Pegasus helped me to remain standing, Softwear let Earl Grey rest his head on her shoulder. I didn’t hear the rain anymore, just water dripping off the roof outside the window.

“Did it work?”

“Other than dizzy, I don’t feel any different.” Earl Grey spoke first.

“No, the curse is still there. But I think I know what’s keeping it going now.” I stood on my own and turned to leave, Fluttershy followed. “I’m going to go see if I’m right. I’ll be back soon. Fluttershy, please wait here. I want somepony here in case I break the spell.” The Pegasus nodded. I left the little cottage behind; the rain had stopped. The clouds above still threatened more, but at least it wasn’t pouring now. To save time I took back to the air, flying back towards the Alicorn statue at the center of the town.

The statue depicted a winged pony, sitting with their wings partially unfolded out behind them. One hoof was held out as if to let a bird land upon it. Its face, what’s left of it, was raised up towards the sky. Something glinted upon its head when a break in the clouds let the sun out for a moment, it was a faintly star-shaped slab of a silvery metal, fused to the stone, right where its right eye should be. In the exact spot where a similar break on Sable’s mask was. The garden around its base was poorly maintained, weeds choked out the few flowers which remained and ivy clung to the statue, climbing up to wrap around its neck and arm. There was no clue as to what ancient and forgotten hero the icon represented.

The poor statue itself was not what interested me; instead, it was the magic I believed the stone had been imbued with which brought me here. Using various detection spells, I poked and prodded it, physically and magically. There was definitely something magical at work with it. It took me several more minutes to figure out the enchantment, aided by a visualization like the one Sable used at the Crystal Heart.

The curse was mostly passive, responding only when a pony who lived within Pinewood Village thought of something specific, Sable Stardust in this case. That is why it took a moment to react when a stray thought led to him, such as the questions regarding Canterlot I asked his parents. Why Despair, assuming he was responsible, would target memories of Sable so explicitly, I did not know.

I was about to start dismantling the spell when I remembered the trap Despair left in the Crystal Empire. I backed away from the statue and searched about it for runes or other signs of danger. Despite searching for another few minutes, I didn’t find any. There didn’t seem to be any protections in place, and I wasn’t sure if that was comforting or not. Still, I had nothing left to lose now and closed my eyes to better focus on my work.

Slowly I began to unravel the curse, expecting at any moment to be beset by some hazard. Nothing tried to stop me, the spell itself put up almost no resistance. Despair clearly never assumed this would be detected, let alone removed. When the last magical construct dissolved, I opened my eyes to find the statue steaming slightly, the released power evaporating the rainwater. It seemed somehow more at peace than before, cleaner somehow. There was only one way to see if I was successful.

I glanced around, the saloon from yesterday was nearby. The same Bartender from before was still there and nodded towards me when I walked up.

“Good morning, what can I get for you?”

“Nothing for me, thanks. I was hoping you could answer a question?”

“Ask away.” He shrugged.

“You wouldn’t happen to know a Unicorn named Sable Stardust would you?” For a moment I expected to see the flash of light that I had come to associate with the curse, but I didn’t see it.

“Stardust? Hmm… wasn’t that Softwear and Earl Grey’s kid?” It worked, the curse was dispelled!

“Yes!” My feet left the floor; I couldn’t contain my joy.

“Haven’t seen him in years. Used to come in and order a float whenever he needed to feel better. Wait… was that him yesterday?”

“Yes!” I jumped again, barely even listening.

“That's good to know he’s alright.” He nodded, oblivious to the fact that ten minutes ago he did not remember Sable at all.

“I’ve got to go, thank you so much!” I outright sprinted for the door with a laugh.

“You tell him I said hi when you see him again, alright?” In a moment I was back high into the air, speeding towards the observatory, easily visible from above.


“You got rid of the curse! Good.”

“It sounds like it wasn’t even difficult.”

“…”

“Twilight? What’s wrong? You look a little ill.”

“Because I know what that spell really did…”

Author's Note:

[Redacted] no more! finally. I kept trying to work his name into the scene somewhere so I could start using his name. This is what I eventually settled on for revealing it. Trust me. Its quite appropriate.

As a minor warning, this next part might sting a bit...

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