The Mask of Despair and the Face of Hope

by Wings of Black Glass

The Princesses' Warning

“So how did it go with Zecora?” When we returned to the castle, we found Spike waiting for us in the map room, a stack of letters in front of him.

“Pretty well. She’s already working on a potion for Sable.”

“It should be done in a couple of days. I did not expect there would be such delays.”

“You’re doing it again.” I giggled.

“So I am.” He responded with a smile. “Would you rather I shut like a clam?” He was rhyming ever since we left Zecora’s. Frequently poorly.

“Uh…?” Spike pointed a thumb towards Sable, confusion apparent.

“Don’t mind me, Spike, I’m just being silly.” Sable rolled his eyes. With a little more spring in his step, he headed towards the stairs. “I’ll be in the library if you need me.” Without warning Spike hiccuped and coughed, a flash of green flame emerged from his mouth, and resolved into a scroll. Startled, Sable glanced back. “I was not aware he could do that.” I caught the scroll as Spike beat his chest. The seal was intimately familiar. It had been a while since the princesses needed to use this method to reach me.

“It’s a message from Princess Celestia.” The message unrolled, it didn’t take me long to read it. The news was bad. He must have seen my concern on my face, as Sable returned with a worried expression.

“Something wrong?”

“We need to go to Canterlot, immediately. There’s been an incident.”

“We?”

“They want you to come too. It doesn’t say why.”

“How do they even know about me?”

“I correspond with Celestia fairly regularly. I may have mentioned you a few times.” I set the letter aside, turning to my assistant. “Sorry, Spike. I’m going to have to ask you to keep working without me for a while longer.”

“It's a royal summons; I’m OK with it.” The little dragon gave me a thumbs up.

“Let’s go, Sable.”

“Right behind you.” Together we ran to the station, just in time to catch the train heading to the capital. Once seated he returned to the earlier conversation. “Why did you mention me in your letters to them?”

“Because you’ve been a part of my life for a few months, I’m not going to leave that out. That, and when I reported to them about our encounter with Despair, I wasn’t going to leave out what he said about you.”

“Do you think this could involve him?”

“It wouldn’t surprise me. We haven’t heard anything about him since we beat him at the lake.”

“I was hoping it would remain that way.”

“Frankly, so was I. We’ll know more once we see the Princesses.” Silence fell between us; the only sounds the clicking of the wheels over the tracks and the quiet conversations of the other passengers. I caught him watching me several times on the ride, I’d seen the thoughtful expression on his face before and knew I wouldn’t be able to easily pull him into a conversation about whatever he was thinking about.

After a while, the whistle pierced the air, and the train screeched to a halt in the capital city. After disembarking, Sable took a moment to stare at the city, the tall spires and gleaming walls reflecting in his eyes. It was obvious he was impressed, the architecture was quite beautiful if smooth marble and dark colors were your thing. He may also have been remembering the last time he was here, taking the entrance exam for Celestia’s school for gifted Unicorns.

We wound our way through the crowds, heading towards the palace. As I looked about, I noted that there were more guards than usual on the street. Many of them glanced around suspiciously. I hadn’t seen the capital this heavily guarded since just before the changelings invaded Shining Armor’s and Cadence’s wedding. Despite the increased security, the city was as lively as ever, whatever had the guards on edge didn’t bother the regular populace.

Without taking time to explore the city it didn’t take long to reach the palace gates. Unusually for this time of day, they were closed to the public. The situation must have had the Princesses really worried. The guards at the gatehouse recognized me on sight and allow me entry. They stared somewhat suspiciously at Sable but did not block his way. Sable, for his part, glanced around at the architecture and the beauty of the building; I couldn’t tell if he’d noticed the heightened security. We were ushered into the throne room, where we found Princesses Celestia and Luna in conversation with several city administrators and a guardspegasus. Celestia spotted us entering the chamber and then looked down at the smaller ponies around her.

“I thank you for your patience, but that will be all for now.” The guardspegasus escorted the administrators out of the room and shut the door behind them, leaving the Princesses alone with Sable and me. “It’s good to see you again, Twilight.” Her voice was calm, but I recognized the worry behind it.

“I came as soon as I got your message. What’s happened?”

“In a moment.” The taller of the Alicorns faced Sable, who bowed deeply, flaring his black glass wings to side as he did. “You must be Sable Stardust. I regret that we must meet in such circumstances.”

“How may I be of assistance, your Majesties?”

“Tartarus has been attacked.” Luna stepped forward and got right to the point. Sable's eyes went to her and opened wider.

“Oh no! Did anything escape? Is Tirek still secure?” Celestia held up a hoof to hold back my questions.

“The prison is still secure. Tirek and the other prisoners remain where they should be.”

“Oh, good.” I let out a held breath, my pulse already steadying.

“I don’t understand, if the prison is secure, why have we been called here?” Sable shook his gaze away from Princess Luna.

“We do not believe the attack was intended to release the prisoners.” Luna continued the briefing. “By the time the guards were able to chase away the lone assailant he had plenty of time to break out any of the prisoners had they so chosen, yet he did not.”

“A single attacker? How did they get past Cerberus?” I thought back to the other times creatures had escaped Tartarus. The only truly notable moment was when Cerberus, the huge three-headed dog, wandered away and the centaur Tirek was able to slip out unnoticed. Security at the prison was tightened after the incident to make that more difficult. Tirek’s later assault on Equestria was probably its most desperate hour; even Discord was defeated by him.

“We still don’t know how they were able to bypass the defenses.”

“According to the warden’s logs, a single guard failed to report to duty the day before. He was later found at his home, encased within a crystal. He was alive, but his mind was badly damaged. He is still recovering.” I turned from Celestia to Sable, who met my eyes.

“Despair.”

“Nearly certainly.” He nodded, frowning.

“That is what we believe as well.” Luna spoke again. “You are the only ponies to have had interactions with this new threat. What can you tell us about him?”

“Unfortunately, not much more than what Twilight has reported to you in her letters. My only so-called ‘interaction’ with him was when I found him trying to steal the Alicorn Amulet from the Castle of Friendship.”

“He did not speak to you?”

“No. He was more concerned with trying to kill me.”

“Twilight, you said in your letter that Despair told you he knew Sable Stardust. Can you explain this?”

“I can only tell you what he told me.” I glanced at Sable, who nodded, this was no time for secrets. “He said he knew Sable more than any pony ever could, and that he knew what Sable had done to his family.” Thankfully they did not press on that issue, I had forgiven him, but they might be less merciful for manipulating the minds of the villagers of Pinewood.

“He did not elaborate?”

“No, he didn’t. I think he was trying to taunt us, get us off balance.” Then again everything else he said had been the truth, now that I thought about it. Celestia returned her attention to Sable, narrowing her eyes.

“You still say you know nothing of this dangerous Unicorn?”

“I apologize. But my memory, most of my personal history, has been lost to me. If I once knew this pony, I do not anymore.” Sable frowned again. “If I may ask, what do you think Despair was after when he attacked Tartarus? You said you didn’t believe he was there to free any prisoner.” Luna and Celestia shared a glance and looked together at me.

“You trust this Unicorn?” Luna gestured to Sable, who had the decency not to look offended, he remained stoic. Although when he wanted he could be hard to read, I’d seen him control his emotions carefully before.

“Yes. I do.” I didn’t hesitate. Sable closed his eyes when I vouched for him, smiling softly.

“Very well. When the guards found the assailant, he was standing before Tirek’s prison.” For some reason I found this profoundly worrying, my stomach became a pit. “The centaur was laughing when the guards chased the attacker away. When I interrogated him, he was tight-lipped on details.”

“He didn’t say anything helpful?”

“He did say one thing, which worries us greatly.” Celestia spoke. “He said that ash and sorrow were coming and that we would be powerless to stop it.”

“Sounds like an empty threat to me. He was trying to rattle you, and it seems to have worked.”

“There is… something else.” Luna hesitated. Celestia nodded towards her, encouraging her to be open with this information. The sisters had clearly been speaking on this subject before. “For several weeks now I have felt something strange in the night air. It has been difficult to place, but I feel as though something is coming. There is a… dark sign… of some kind on the horizon.”

“Metaphorical, I assume.” Luna nodded, confirming Sable’s interjection.

“If it were just the one thing, I could dismiss it.” The Alicorn with the midnight mane shook her head. “But this premonition I have felt, along with Tirek’s assertion, is too much to just ignore given the risks that Despair is willing to take.” Sable stepped away, looking southward out the windows. I could see him casting his tracking spell, ensuring the Alicorn Amulet was still hidden within the anti-magic aura of the changeling throne. From where I stood I couldn’t see the little arrow, but he turned back and nodded confidently a moment later.

“The Amulet is still hidden. Good.” I began to pace, trying to figure out what Despair was up to. “He’s gotten bolder. First, he attacked Starlight and the Crystal Empire, but he kept to the shadows, and no pony got a good look at him. Then he stole the Alicorn Amulet from under our noses, and the changeling throne, right beside the hive. Now he’s gone after Tartarus and Tirek with an all-out assault. I don’t get it.”

“There is something all these have in common. At one time or another, they have all been existential threats to Equestria.”

“Luna is correct.” Celestia spoke again. “Your report said that Despair is capable of stealing memories. Could he be gathering information on all these attacks?”

“To what end?”

“Equestria will face despair.” We turned to face Sable. “That’s what he said before he escaped from Twilight.” He dropped his gaze to the floor, frowning deeply. “This may be worse than we thought.”

“What do you mean?”

“Can I assume Twilight has told you of my… accident?”

“That you lost your memory when you failed a spell? Yes.”

“That was not just any spell. When I entered the castle that day, I did not know it. Then I assaulted Starlight Glimmer, and used my memory magic to steal the spell from her mind.” Celestia and Luna both gasped and turned on me, I cringed, I had not, in fact, told them this detail. “Despair has shown he knows several of the spells I do, perhaps we learned them together, I cannot be sure. But if I can steal a spell and not just memories, what could he have taken?”

“Oh no.” The pit in my stomach grew to encompass my heart. “Starlight has powerful Cutie-mark magic; she can switch or even remove them.” Celestia’s face matched my own fear.

“And Tirek knows powers that can steal magic from Ponies to grow his own.”

“Despair is not just gathering information. He’s collecting the most powerful and dangerous magic in the world.” Heavy silence fell as we each considered the ramifications of Luna’s revelation.

“Princesses, you should immediately send a detachment of guards to Pinewood Village.” It was Sable who broke the silence first. “There is a lake to the northwest of the village where the Amulet is hidden.” He needn’t have bothered saying anything; Luna was already moving to the door to call for the captain of the guard.

“As dangerous as Despair is now, if he gets his hooves on that he will be an order of magnitude worse.” I felt a hoof on my shoulder; Sable was shaking again, real fear on his face as it was when we found his parents.

“I just realized. Starlight’s time travel spell, he could have taken it too.”

“That spell requires the friendship map to work.” Too late I understood his fear.

“We just left it undefended.”

“Celestia!” I snapped to face the tall Alicorn with the pastel rainbow mane. “Send a message to Spike, right now! Tell him to find Starlight Glimmer, and have her guard the map! She’s the only one there who could fight Despair on even terms if he attacked.” Celestia nodded and headed away. “Sable, we should head back to Ponyville as soon as we can.”

“I agree, but I feel I should say we still don’t know what he is planning, or where he is going. These preparations mean nothing if we cannot chase him down. We’ll be forever on edge, watching for shadows around every corner.”

“Unfortunately.” Luna returned from the door. “We do not know these things. We can only take what precautions we are able to. We will also have a detachment of guards sent to Ponyville to protect the map table and the Elements of Harmony.”

“Do you think that’s necessary? The Elements are safely within the tree of harmony, and even if he could take them, he can’t use them.”

“At this point, I believe no precaution we could take is too extreme.” Celestia returned, a scroll vanishing out of sight as she messaged Spike. “I wish we could do more as it is.” The tallest Alicorn went to the window, looking out over her city of Canterlot and then north towards the Crystal Empire. “I will have Cadence warned as well. Despair might make another attempt on the Crystal Empire. Then we will begin searching for him in earnest. He must be found. This is no longer tolerable.” She stood tall as she came back to face us, at her most regal and authoritative. “Twilight, I want you and Sable to go back to Ponyville, defend the map, search your library for spells we can use to track him, create your own if you need to. I will do the same here.”

“During the night I will search the dreamworld for him. If he dreams, I will find him. Perhaps I will glean some trace of his plan, if not his location.” The main door opened, and several guardsponies entered. I turned toward the door and headed away, Sable bowed again to the sister Alicorns and followed. When we left the throne room, I heard hoofsteps approach from within. “Twilight, wait a moment.” Luna partially emerged from the throne room. “There’s something else I need to talk to you about.”

“Can it wait? We need to get to the station.”

“It will only take a few minutes.” I nodded, and we both turned back to face her. Princess Luna stepped out from behind the throne room doors and glanced at Sable somewhat apprehensively. “It is a… personal matter.”

“I will wait for Twilight at the train station.” Sable gave her his respectful bow and headed away.

“So, how can I help?” At my question Luna gestured to the side and led me away from the throne room, to somewhere a bit more private, as more guardsponies arrived.

“I am loath to betray the privacy of another pony’s dreams, but I think you should know.” She stopped by a window, overlooking the palace courtyard, I spotted the figure in the black coat of Sable moving towards the city. Luna gestured to him. “That Unicorn, Sable Stardust, I have had to visit his dreams quite often as of late.” Some part of my mind was not surprised.

“Why did you send him away? Shouldn’t you speak with him yourself?”

“I repeatedly have, in his dreams, he does not seem to remember our conversations. I want to bring this to your attention because his dreams feature you prominently.” I felt my face flush, and I sidestepped away from the princess of the night. Luna giggled at me. “Not like that.” Her voice dropped, the mirth disappearing. “No, this is darker. In his nightmares, he often sees you or one of your friends, sometimes his parents, and sometimes even himself injured or worse. Sometimes it is because he fears he has done it himself. And sometimes he is alone, in a pit of unrelenting darkness even I cannot reach through.”

“I still don’t understand. Can’t you help him?”

“I banish the nightmares, and I help when I can. But his dreams are not getting better. They are getting worse.” She paused to let that sink in. “Last night his dream saw not just you, but all your friends and his parents, dead because of him.” I recalled how he was just earlier today, cracking jokes and bad puns on the way back from Zecora’s. He seemed happy enough.

‘I know what that despair did to him, what it is still doing to him.’ The thief said that at the lake. I remembered the look in Sable’s eyes the moment he broke my grasp in the air above his childhood home. He had been so sorry, so ashamed, so lost, so… broken.

“He needs your help, Twilight. He’s afraid, terrified that he will let everypony down, that he will do something horrible to you. I’ve told him he was better than that, that he can trust you, that he can trust himself. Nothing works.” I could see Sable standing on the hill that night in Ponyville park. ‘You think just talking about it will make everything turn out for the better?’ Disbelief in his eyes.

“I’ve been trying to help him for months now.” I looked up into the eyes of the other Alicorn. “I thought he was getting better, I really did.” Sable’s words to Fluttershy back at the changeling hive came to me. “It’s all a mask.” He really had given up, hadn’t he? Now Despair’s charred face and ashen voice laughed at her. “His own despair will kill him.”

“I fear that may happen.” Luna nodded sadly. “I don’t know how to help him anymore.” I let my gaze fall back to the city outside, so blissfully unaware of the threat. I had no flash of realization, but I knew what Stardust would say.

“Don’t save me, save Equestria.”

“What?” Luna’s shock brought me back to my senses. I blinked, I hadn’t realized I said it out loud.

“That’s what he would say. He wouldn’t want us wasting our time trying to save one pony, not when Equestria itself may be at stake. Even if it was himself.” Maybe especially because it was him, I didn’t say that aloud. “Thank you, Luna, for telling me. But I think he’d be right, at least for the moment.” Now it was Luna’s turn to blink in confusion. “We have to concentrate on the threat of Despair.” I joined Spike in wishing Sable has chosen a name a bit less dramatic. Or perhaps his choice was even more apt than I thought. “We weren’t going to find a solution right now anyways. Maybe now that I know, I’ll figure something out.” I turned away, sullenly, and started out towards the station.

“Twilight, don’t give up on him. It is never a waste to save even a single pony.” Luna called out one last time before I got out of earshot. “Your friendship has saved our world before; you can save him from himself.”

Slowly I made my way to the station, lost in thought. I’d watched him for months; I thought I knew him. He even said I could read him like an open book. How much of the hope I saw in him was a lie? How could I save him? It wasn’t all that long ago he said ‘I am not asking another to take responsibility for my own wellbeing away from me.’ Would he even let me?

A train whistle split the air ahead of me; it must have been the train arriving at the station. I had to break into a gallop to reach it in time; I had been walking so slowly I almost missed it. Sable was waiting for me by the open passenger car door, twin tickets at the ready. He raised an eyebrow and tilted his head curiously when he saw my expression.

“Was Luna’s concern so severe?” I had no answer for him as we took our seats, for once it was me who couldn’t bring myself to meet his eyes. “Well, OK then.” He looked out the window as the train moved, watching the city of Canterlot vanish behind the mountain. The ride back to Ponyville was spent with silence between the two of us.

---

“He is just relentlessly depressing, isn’t he?”

“From what you’ve been telling us, it really did sound like he was getting better.”

“It never occurred to me that he had years and years of experience hiding his real feelings. His sorrows were hidden behind layered masks, and I couldn’t see through them all.”

“It’s alright Twilight. You did the best you could. You cannot be completely responsible for his happiness.”

“I know. But that doesn’t make me feel any better. I failed him.”