//------------------------------// // Unicorns are Overpowered // Story: Daring Do and The Golden Mirror... and Also Trixie // by The Sleepless Beholder //------------------------------// Unicorns are overpowered great and powerful “You are already getting annoying,” Daring complained. “Oh shush. You know Trixie can’t leave her wagon anywhere.” Trixie gave a couple of bits to a unicorn mare, who gave a signal to two big stallions to stand guard next to the wagon. “There, it didn't take too long, did it?” “Why were you here in Camponia?” Daring wondered as they walked. “Trixie made a show yesterday, earned some good bits, bought some things, and visited the temple of Ta Ponyhm.” “So, it’s true that they turned it into a tourist attraction?” “Yeah, although there are some restricted sections.” Trixie thought about it for a second. “We aren’t going there, are we?” Daring raised an eyebrow. “Are you disappointed?” “No, if you are looking for it, it must have value. Trixie is more like, confused. Wouldn’t somepony have already found whatever treasure was there by now?” The adventurer smiled. “Some secrets are well hidden to the eyes of the inexperienced ponies.” The magician smiled. “Good to have a pony with an eye for tricks and deception like Trixie around.” Daring’s mood soured. “Please stop talking like that.” “Trixie makes no promises.” Eventually, they arrived at the temple. Ta Ponyhm was a very old stone temple, but what differentiated it from others was the jungle that grew inside of it, covering the stone with green moss and roots, while trees reached higher than its ceilings. “Pretty beautiful, isn’t it?” Trixie asked while they entered the temple. “It is. First time I’ve seen it,” Daring admitted. “Trixie’s sure that you have seen things more impressive in your adventures.” “Yeah, but I’m always being chased, so I don’t have much time to stop and appreciate the view.” Trixie looked at her with a little worry. “That’s kind of sad.” Daring sighed unconsciously. “I guess, but I can’t say that I will forget any of it anytime soon. That’s kind of why I started to write my-” Daring stopped herself. "Why am I telling her this?" “I get it.” Daring paused for a moment. “What?” “I said I get it. It’s like your way of remembering all those things lost in the action before they fade away from memory and no pony ever knows about it. Adventures would feel empty if you didn’t have a way to tell them to others, right?” Daring was surprised, both by her words and by the fact that she stopped using third person. “It's not exactly as you say, but… pretty close.” Trixie smiled and pointed at some stone stairs. “Do we go down?” “Yeah, give me a minute.” Daring walked away, moving between the trees inside the temple. Trixie waited patiently, looking from time to time to make sure the mare hadn’t run away, and finally saw Daring come back with a lit torch in one of her wings. “You know the temple has electric lighting, right?” Daring smiled. “You will see.” “Very well. Do you want Trixie to guide you to the restricted sections?” “Please do.” While they walked, Trixie tried to give a little tour, reciting what they told her in her visit yesterday. Daring knew almost all of it, but the unicorn's rambling was a more tolerable experience than awkward silence. Daring’s attention was diverted to the torch she was carrying, making them stop. “Did you find something?" Trixie asked. "We aren’t in the restricted section yet,” “Give me a minute.” Daring got close to the wall, moving her torch along its surface, looking for something, until she found it. “Do you see the flame?” Trixie got closer and noticed that the flame of the torch was slightly inclined, opposite of the wall. “A draft.” “Exactly. There are gaps between the bricks, so there’s probably a door to open.” Daring started to tap the different bricks, looking for some clue, until she found one that she could push into the wall. She kept searching, finding another loose brick, and then another, and another, until the fifth made a portion of the wall fall apart, showing a secret passage. Daring smiled and started to walk into the dark hallway. Trixie walked beside her. “You were right. Hidden in plain sight.” “You have to discover many of them until you learn how to look for them.” “You are clearly a professional.” “Thanks.” Not too long into the secret corridor, both mares started to hear strange noises ahead, like small dry whistles. They walked more carefully, and when they turned a corner, they found the source of the noise. Three sections of the wall had a pair of large magical circles that were constantly firing dart-like crystals from one wall to the next. Daring stopped to give a closer look, but couldn’t figure out a way to disarm them. “Okay, you may want to turn back now. The only way across is to time the firing sequence and move fast-” Daring turned her head towards Trixie and saw the unicorn slowly poking her foreleg between the magical circles. The crystal darts bounced off a magical shield around it, and then Trixie tried with the rest of her body, noticing that they could not harm her while the shield was up. “Still unsure that Trixie wouldn’t be useful?” the magician asked with a smug smile. Daring grunted. “That’s just cheating.” “You are free to try your method. Or, you can get close to Trixie so she can protect us both.” With a little resignation, Daring went with Trixie, and they crossed the trap unharmed. “So, did Trixie earn a thank you?” Daring looked at her with a frown. “No, we still haven’t found the artifact.” Trixie rolled her eyes and continued walking down the corridor. “Fine, let’s move then.” Daring let out a sigh and followed behind her. They walked in awkward silence for some time, until Trixie talked again. “What kind of artifact are we looking for exactly?” “It’s an ancient relic that was used in old rituals as a form of magical redirection or amplification, or something like that. The point is, it can be used for some very harmful spells in the wrong hands.” “Trixie can imagine. If Starlight or Trixie had that, things could have been worse.” “What do you mean worse?” Trixie looked away. “Nothing, just rambling. What does the relic look like?” Daring raised an eyebrow but decided that she already had enough things to worry about. “It’s a golden m- Look out!” The warning was not quick enough, and Trixie could only look in horror as a huge rusty axe held by a pendulum exited the wall at her right and speeded towards her midsection. Only to get stuck halfway. The magician backed up, watching as the death trap let out tortured mechanical noises, trying to complete its deadly swing, until the whole mechanism broke apart, and the axe fell to the ground, getting covered in pieces of rusted metal. “That was… unexpected,” Trixie said as she recovered from the shock. “Not every trap survives years without maintenance.” Daring walked to the axe and gave it a kick before looking at the floor, pointing at a tile that had sunk in the ground. “Pressure plates, be careful where you stand.” Trixie’s eyes glued themselves to the floor. “Duly noted.” They continued their march along the corridor in silence, until Daring saw a light at the end of the hallway. “I think we found-” Daring was interrupted as the ground beneath them cracked, and a second later it collapsed, sending them down into a pit of spikes. Daring immediately took flight to stop her fall and watched as her companion continued falling. Trixie lit up her horn and managed to levitate her body just in time so that the spikes didn’t pierce her chest. “Trixie is getting tired of this temple.” “You decided to come along. Deal with the consequences.” As Trixie got out of the pit, Daring saw legit anger in the unicorn’s eyes. “Trixie just had a near-death experience, and you still complain about her helping you?” Daring frowned. “You are only “helping” me because you want to cheat your annoying name and title into my books!” “You know what? Forget about the stupid book. I don’t know what Rainbow sees in you.” With that, Trixie continued walking towards the light. “The exit isn't that way!” Daring called out, but Trixie ignored her and continued walking. “You are quite stubborn, you know?” she said, following the magician. They finally arrived at a large chamber illuminated by a ray of sunlight coming from a hole in the ceiling. In the center was a small ziggurat surrounded by nine stone pillars, each showing carvings of what appear to be shamans or priests, each wearing different types of clothings and symbols of worship. At the very top of the ziggurat, right below the ray of sunlight, was a stone pedestal. Trixie looked in amazement at the chamber. “Wow, what’s the story of this-” “No!” Daring screamed before flying to the top of the ziggurat at breakneck speed. Trixie quickly ran behind her, and when she finally caught up to her, she found the pegasus trotting around an empty pedestal. “Where's the-” “It’s not here!” Daring screamed again. “Did Luddic Path get it before we arrived?” “Well, there is a hole in the ceiling,” Trixie pointed at the source of light. “This is bad. Very, very bad.” “Can Trixie ask - who's Luddic Path? She doesn’t remember you mentioning him in your books.” “That’s because I have to censor our encounters so the books can be published to the general audience,” Daring explained. “Oh,” was Trixie’s response, but the implications quickly sunk in. “Ooooh. This is bad.” “Yeah, and now that he has the artifact, he will no doubt try to- Get down!” Daring tackled Trixie to the ground, two arrows flying over their heads. Both mares quickly ducked behind the stone pedestal, hearing more arrows hit their cover. Trixie took a quick peek at their attackers. Two unicorns, heads covered in light brown cloth, and wearing long brown cloaks that hid leather armor underneath. “Who are those?” “Luddic’s followers.” Daring hit her head against the stone pedestal. “I’m such an idiot. They weren’t hunting me down, they were following me so I could find the artifact for them!” “But the artifact it’s not here. We didn’t find it,” Trixie countered. “I hope they didn’t either. Maybe they are just trying to get rid of us.” “Well, Trixie would prefer to remain un-ridden.” “I can’t fly towards them, and they will flank our position at any moment, if they don’t just call for reinforcements.” Daring looked at the hole in the ceiling. “You think your shield can block some arrows while I take us out of here?” “Trixie can, but you will have to carry me.” “I-” “If you imply that Trixie’s fat, Trixie will throw you to the archers.” Daring rolled her eyes and simply grabbed the magician by the midsection, quickly taking flight towards the ceiling. Arrows flew towards them, but they bounced off Trixie’s shield. “You are actually quite light,” Daring admitted. “Trixie thanks you.” “Bunch up, it will be a tight fit.” Trixie pulled her hooves close to her body as they entered the hole, but they quickly ran into a problem as the close space didn’t allow for Daring to flap her wings effectively. Trixie quickly realized the situation and changed her spell from shield to levitation, dodging a few arrows aimed to her butt while she lifted both of them up the hole with some difficulty. “You can’t call me fat either,” Daring warned her. “Trixie’s lifting both of our weights, so she can’t make that comment.” After a long ascent, they finally reached the surface, and Trixie collapsed on the ground, completely exhausted. Daring took a moment to check their surroundings. They were deep in the jungle; not exactly sure where. She looked to the sky, using the position of the sun to locate the north. She made memory of their movements inside the temple and guessed that the city was probably eastward of their location. She looked at the exhausted Trixie. “We need to move. Can you walk?” “Don’t think so. Can we rest a little?” Daring took Trixie and hauled her onto her back before going eastward. “We need to get as far away from Luddic’s followers as we can. Try to regain some strength.” “Ok. Sorry for the heavy load.” Daring stopped for a moment. “…Trixie?” “Yes?” “Thank you for staying with me. I don’t think I would’ve escaped the temple without your help.” “Glad to be of help.” Trixie closed her eyes and got some rest while Daring continued her way into the jungle.