The Mask of Despair and the Face of Hope

by Wings of Black Glass

The Scourge

“Here I thought I was the drama queen!”

“Ha, I guess it was a bit much. I still wonder if it helped, in the end.”

“I can’t help but notice this story is going on for pretty much forever. At some point, you have to tell us how it all ends.”

“That’s just ahead.”

“Oh, are we getting close now?”

“Yeah, this is the last chapter. This is where we face Despair…”

“Twilight? Are you alright?”

“I’m sorry. It’s just this wasn’t that long ago for me. It still hurts…”

“Do you need to stop?”

“No, I need to finish this. I’ll feel better once I’ve told the story. No more secrets… Anyway, when I woke up…”

---

I yawned and kicked myself out of bed, stretching all my limbs, I felt as though I had overslept. After last night’s rather intense conversation with Sable, I had gone right to bed. My dreams were strange, bizarre and confusing even by dream standards, but the details were lost to me now. I glanced out the window, expecting to see a bright sunny morning. The light coming in through the window was diffuse, grey and weak. There was a dense fog outside, although the guard tents outside were close enough to be seen clearly, I could barely see Ponyville. I frowned, the weather pegasi should have been keeping the sky clear of this kind of fog.

The castle was quiet, was I the first one up? Spike wasn’t down at breakfast, or the library, or the map room. Neither were Starlight or Sable. Stardust at least I expected to be sleeping in, especially after last night, but not the others. I knocked on Spike’s door, no answer. When I checked on Starlight, the door swung open, and the Unicorn stumbled into the hall with her head hanging. She glanced up at me as she shambled by with heavy bags under her eyes. Her mane was a mess; she hadn’t cleaned herself up after waking.

“Starlight, is something wrong? You look terrible.”

“Hi, Twilight.” She sounded just as miserable as she looked. Very slowly Glimmer made her way to the stairs down but stopped at the top. “Too much work.” Then she turned around to go back to her room. She wasn’t even watching where she was going and bumped into me. “Hi, Twilight.” Glimmer’s stomach grumbled, she was apparently hungry.

“Aren’t you coming down for breakfast?”

“Too much work.” That wasn’t even a flimsy excuse.

“We still need your help for the spell to go after Despair.” Glimmer just grumbled wordlessly. “Come on.” She didn’t resist when I pushed her partway down the hall but made no effort to move on her own. “Did you get any sleep at all?”

“Lots. Just got up.”

“Oh come on! Get yourself in gear!” Glimmer continued to make no effort. So I simply lifted her bodily from the floor with magic and carried her down to the kitchen. To my surprise, Spike was there, a bowl of small gems in front of him. He seemed no better than Starlight and barely bothered to acknowledge my presence. I dropped Starlight at the table, and the Unicorn tried to pull Spike’s meal towards her.

“That’s mine.” Despite complaining the little dragon made no real effort to defend his breakfast. I passed his bowl back to him, not sure why Starlight would bother taking Spike’s food at all; ponies can’t eat gemstones. Even with his bowl back, Spike didn’t do more than nibble on one mindlessly.

“What is wrong with you two?” I huffed in annoyance. Neither one responded, and Spike flat out fell face first into his breakfast. It would have been funny if it weren’t so pathetic. “Look, we need to get back to work, and you two need to shape up.” Spike waved weakly for me to go away. Starlight set her head on the table, refusing to put any effort into anything. “Fine, you two can just… fight over breakfast or whatever this is. I’ve got more important things to do than force feed you two.”

“Bye, Twilight.” Starlight mumbled to me as I left the room. I looked in on the map room again, and only then noted there were no guards there. That was strange; there were supposed to be at least two in here at all times. I checked the front door, the guards there had curled up at their posts in a state much like Starlight and Spike. One of them was sobbing quietly. Now I was worried, and looked around for other patrolling guards and found none where they should be. The encampment the guards set up was nearby, so I headed that way to ask the commander what was going on.

Unfortunately, the encampment was equally useless. Every pony, from the camp cook to the commander himself, were curled up in their cots or just dropped to the ground, many of them in tears. A few wandered aimlessly about the camp in a daze, responding only faintly when I pressed for information. This was serious. My eyes went to the town of Ponyville, barely visible through the dense fog.

The town wasn’t in any better shape. The shops were all closed, and no pony responded when I knocked on doors. The few ponies I found out and about refused to meet my eyes or told me to go away miserably. A panic set in on me, and I started to run from place to place, looking for somepony, anypony, who wasn’t unresponsive.

“Is there anypony out there who can hear me?” I shouted, begging for an answer. I received nothing in return. The stillness in the air was oppressive; there weren’t even any birds singing. As I spun, trying to see through the haze, I began to hope I was still dreaming. It had to be some terrible nightmare; surely this couldn’t be real.

Something flashed through the mist, a light in the distance. Was it an answer to my call? Or some new torment? The light faded, it was over in the direction of city hall. At least I thought it was, the dim light and the fog made it hard to tell which direction I was facing. The light flashed again, a soft glow for a moment before fading away. There must be somepony there, and I broke into a run. A third time the light shone, closer and stronger than before, and I spotted the familiar form of a pony wearing a long black coat.

“Sable! Is that you?” The figure turned to face me, resolving into the dark purple Unicorn as I pushed through the haze. The light flashed, more brightly, from a spell he was trying to cast.

“Twilight?! Oh good, I was beginning to think I was alone out here.” His spell dissolved, and he shook his head.

“You’re alright? Please tell me this is all some nightmare.”

“If it is, it’s not one I’ve seen before. I found Starlight and Spike nearly catatonic in the kitchen, and you weren’t in your room.”

“I know, it's the same all throughout Ponyville. I don’t know what’s going on.” Panic seeped into my voice.

“Twilight, calm down. Take deep breaths; we can figure this out.” He glanced around, not finding whoever or whatever he was looking for.

“What were you doing out here?”

“Aside from looking for somepony not overcome by… whatever this is? I was trying to create an enchantment to push away this fog. It was supposed to use the same principles of the Crystal Heart, but it's not working.”

“You can do that?” I looked around; the situation did somewhat remind me of Despair’s attack on the Crystal Empire.

“Apparently not. It was a long shot anyway. What do we do now?”

“I don’t know, but we can’t sit here and do nothing. I’m going to check on Pinkie Pie and Applejack’s family. You should see if Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity are alright.”

“I’ll bring them back to the castle. It’ll be easier to keep an eye on them while we try to figure this out.”

“Good idea, I’ll do the same.” Sable nodded, we ran off without another word to each other. Sugarcube corner was dark, the colors of the town seemed more faded than they should have been, or was it just my mind playing more tricks on me? From within I heard a pony sobbing loudly. Was that a good thing or bad? I had to use magic to unlock the building, and found Pinkie Pie in her room, crying loudly. “Pinkie, are you alright?”

“Go away!” A stuffed animal was flung at me. My usually friendly and excitable pink friend was apparently just as affected by this as the rest of the town.

“Pinkie come on, we need you. Get up!”

“You’re just going to laugh at me!” Just like when Discord tried to turn us against each other. The thought it could be him doing it again passed through my mind, but I disregarded it, he had been reformed past this. Besides, this wasn’t his style; it was too subdued.

“I am not going to laugh at you, now stand up and come with me.” Pinkie shot upright, her mane which was usually goofy and fluffy had lost all its bounce and hung straight down. Tears streamed down her face even as she scowled at me.

“Admit it! You don’t like me! You think I’m just a waste of space, who never takes anything seriously!” Well, Sable might have thought it of her.

“That's not true, and you know it.” Pinkie burst back into loud sobs and dove back into her bed. I sighed, I didn’t have enough time to convince her to come along peacefully. I teleported the two of us outside, bed and all, hoping it would get her out from under the covers. When this plan failed I picked up Pinkie with my magic, dragging the wailing pony along as I galloped towards Sweet Apple Acres.

The farm was in no better state than Ponyville itself. Winona, the dog, didn’t bark when I approached, the dog barely even looked up from where she lay. Pinkie hadn’t stopped wailing yet, and to prevent a migraine I used magic to create a bubble of silence around the pink pony. When I tried to enter the house Pinkie snagged one of the kitchen table’s legs and refused to let go. With a heavy sigh, I left the pink pony there while I checked on Applejack and her family.

Granny Smith seemed the hardest hit, she just stared up at the ceiling from her bed, open-eyed and her face tear streaked. The elderly pony did not respond, but she was still breathing. I decided to leave her there where she was comfortable but made sure to close the door firmly.

Big Mac sobbed into his pillow, calling out for Sugar Belle, his marefriend. He seemed to think she had left him. With some prodding, I managed to convince him to follow me.

Apple Bloom I found standing upright in her room, staring back at her cutie-mark. The filly wondered aloud if she was worthy of her mark. Her failure to help Sable must be weighing more heavily on her than I initially thought. It could also be that whatever was going on here was just bringing up the worst feelings in those it affected. Fortunately, the filly followed when commanded.

I didn’t find Applejack in her room. I had to look around for a bit to find her out in the orchard, kicking weakly at the trees.

“Applejack? Are you affected as well?” The orange pony glanced at me, dull-eyed and weary.

“So much to do.” She moved to another tree and kicked again, a grand total of a single apple fell to the ground with a dull thud. Even the trees seemed depressed. “So much to do.”

“You don’t have to do it now. Come along; we need you.” Applejack didn’t respond to me, moving to the next tree in the line.

“So much to do, have to do it alone.”

“No, you don’t. We’re here for you, but right now I need you to follow me.”

“So much to do.” She wasn’t listening to me, lost in some fugue state.

“Applejack, listen to me.” I tried something else. “I need you to fix the door to the map room, back at the castle. Only you can do it.” The command to help caused Applejack to twinge, turning towards me. Once this was fixed, I would have apologize to her for lying.

“So much to do.” The orange pony stumbled slowly off in the direction of the castle, at least she was moving. I returned to the farmhouse, where Pinkie still hadn’t let go of the table, wailing silently under the effect of my spell. Again I found I had to teleport Pinkie Pie outside before I could carry her back to the castle.

I brought the lot of them to the map room where I found Sable was already back with the other three. Rarity was languishing atop one of her drama couches, with at least two buckets of ice cream with her, and some unfinished dresses she seemed to have shredded. Rainbow Dash floated about the room, randomly bumping into the walls or pillars and turning around, only to bounce off a different wall and start again. Fluttershy gripped onto Sable’s leg like a vice, sobbing softly. Sable looked up from where he was sitting beside Fluttershy.

“You’re back, good.” He eyed the group of distressed ponies with her. He raised an eyebrow at Pinkie Pie’s silence.

“Trust me, it’s better this way. She’s really loud.” He nodded.

“Rarity has been complaining about how nopony finds her work beautiful anymore. I had to drag her here on that seat. Rainbow Dash seems to think she isn’t good enough to be respected, and it was easy enough to get her to follow. And Fluttershy…” He looked down at her, brushing the mare’s mane gently. “She’s terrified of being left alone. I had a hard time convincing her to let go long enough too even walk back.”

“It's about the same with them.” I dropped Pinkie in her chair at the table, and the pink pony curled up on the seat, obviously still distraught but thankfully still silenced. Apple Bloom and Big Mac went and sat down of their own accord, and Applejack stood just inside the doorway, facing it nearly blindly. “I don’t understand it.”

“I’ve been thinking. This must be Despair’s work. It is too much like the attack on the Crystal Empire.”

“I agree. But we don’t have a Crystal Heart to dispel this.” I looked around the room, my heart tightening when I saw all my friends so distressed. “At least he hasn’t gone after the map.”

“I haven’t seen any runes or magic circles either.” He tried to move closer to me but stumbled when Fluttershy’s grip prevented him.

“Don’t go.” The Pegasus’s whisper was barely audible.

“I need to talk to Twilight; I’ll be right outside.” Fluttershy squeaked. “All right, you can come with me.” With some help from Sable, she managed to stand. Slowly he escorted her outside, and I followed. There were too many distractions inside to think properly. One of the two guards outside appeared to have wandered away, his armor and shoes left behind in a neat stack. That was worrying, but I didn’t see him anywhere nearby, and I couldn’t go running around after every lost pony. “It’s as if every pony is experiencing their worst fears.”

“It's not fear, not really. This is something else, something deeper than fear. Do you think this could be what Despair meant by ‘Equestria would face despair?’”

“It's possible.” He quickly reconsidered. “No, it is probable.” He glanced at Fluttershy, she was pushing right up beside him. “Why are we immune? If anything I should be the one most affected.”

“I don’t feel anything odd. Well, nothing magical anyways.” I looked around again, the sky and the town still encased within the thick fog. “I don’t get it, why isn’t he coming after us? He’s got us almost completely at his mercy. Where is he?”

“What time is it?” Sable frowned as he looked up.

“I don’t know, sometime mid-morning I think. Why?”

“Then where is the sun?” A pit opened in my gut.

“Wait here.” I leaped into the air, flying high until the ground and the castle below vanished into the grey fog. I rose higher, trying to break free of the mist and haze. Still, I was surrounded by the cloud. Was I even still ascending, or trapped by some spell? The air whipped past me, I was still moving, but I couldn’t find the top of the cloud.

I was about to teleport back to the surface when at last I broke through. I’d gone as high as a small mountain to breach the top of the fog. In the sky above there was neither sun nor moon. A few dim stars were all that I could see in the twilight between night and day. In the very far distance, I could see mountains, including the one where Canterlot resided. The city itself was engulfed by the fog, although I thought I saw a few palace spires sticking up out of the haze. As I turned, I could see the mist spread as far as I could see, if not farther. I teleported back to the ground, appearing where I left.

“It’s bad; the fog reaches all the way to Canterlot.” I shook my head as I explained.

“At least now we know why he isn’t attacking us here. He’s nowhere even remotely nearby.”

“We have to get to Canterlot, parts of the palace may be unaffected. The princesses might be able to help.” Or need it themselves.

“How? The trains certainly won’t be running.”

“I can teleport us there.”

“All the way to the capital?”

“It’s difficult with a passenger, but I can manage.” I looked at Fluttershy, and Sable’s gaze followed. He nodded.

“Fluttershy, listen to me. I need to go; you have to stay here.” The yellow Pegasus opened her eyes, desperation clear.

“No, stay.” Her voice so frightened hit my heart like a train. Sable escorted her back inside.

“Applejack is right here, so are Rarity and all the others. They will stay with you.” He lightly kissed her forehead, prying her off him and guiding her to Applejack’s side. The orange pony didn’t notice even when Fluttershy gripped her leg. “You are not alone here.” Slowly Sable backed out of the map room, closing the door behind him. I could see Fluttershy still reaching for him as the door shut. He turned back to face me, determined. “Let's go.”

“Brace yourself; this might get a little rough.” He nodded and stood beside me as I began to concentrate. Energy built around us as I focused on the throne room of the royal palace. I cast, and we blinked out of reality.

---

“This curse, it affected us all this badly?”

“It was even worse than that, actually. It was so much worse.”

“What about the princesses, the Crystal Empire?”

“It covered all of Equestria, everypony was affected.”

Author's Note:

Part 8: The End of Equestria begins.