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// --Snapshot - Unforgiven: Trixie's Story 
// Story: A Great Endeavor 
// by Rune Soldier Dan 
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June, 1940 – Hitler poses before the Eiffel Tower with noted Equestrian performer Trixie. German atrocities against Equestrians and other minorities were well-concealed at the time, and famed individuals like Trixie could continue touring cities much as they always had. “The Great and Powerful Trixie” enjoyed superb stage success during the first half of the war. Important politicians and officers attended her magic shows, and she was well paid to give private performances and demonstrations.

For some of the attendees, the purpose was not entertainment, but study. While many feared it, some Nazi officials wondered if the strange force known as “magic” could be turned to military use. In Trixie, they found a willing dupe. She happily explained some of the finer points of magic, and (with a bit of financial incentive) gave lectures on the nature of the unicorn horn. Testimonies at the Nuremburg Trials later revealed that her lectures and demonstrations significantly advanced Nazi research into magic. By grinding unicorn horns to powder and sifting out natural limiters and impurities, a chalky substance would remain that could temporarily grant humans a massive surge of magic power. In 1943, “Warlock” soldiers were tested to great effect in the Eastern Front. By 1944, the Reich was able to deploy them regularly.

From her perspective, Trixie just believed her career was moving forward. Blinded by the praise and wealth showered upon her, she eagerly accepted the lucrative contracts arranged by her German stage manager. At the time, Trixie saw the above photo as just another chance to be seen alongside important figures. She spoke very briefly with Hitler, though it was just a celebrity photo-op and was over within 15 minutes. Her naivety is revealed in her diary, the day’s entry describing Hitler as a “Friendly little man. Despite his victory [over France], he seems humble. He’s a lower-class sort with a lower-class outlook: just get the war done and the rebuilding begun. Good for him!”

By 1943, though, Trixie was gradually realizing she had been used. Other ponies had disappeared from the streets of France and Germany. She stopped receiving mail from Equestria, and when she sent messages she received no reply. After an argument with her manager, she woke up the next morning to find Nazi Party thugs assigned as “bodyguards.” She overheard two officers gossiping about “Warlocks,” the pair unaware that the pawn had become aware of the game. While certainly a flawed pony, the kind heart of the Equestrian race still beat within her: Trixie suspected what was happening, and felt the pull to take action.

She took to slipping out at night to do some digging on her own. Without a soul she could trust, it took months of lonely work to finally find one of the concentration camps in Northern Germany. She didn’t return that night, instead spending another month plotting a breakout.

Trixie was a powerful magician, but one unicorn could only do so much. Although her attempted rescue initially freed hundreds, all but a fraction were quickly rounded up. Trixie led the remnant in a harrowing month-long journey to Sweden. Exhausted, starving, and dogged by the Nazis, they finally crossed the narrows to the neutral country.

With no desire to enrage the Reich, the Swedes discreetly transported Trixie to Britain. Officially, there she was congratulated for her heroism and welcomed to safety. Outside the halls of power, though, she found herself a pariah. The above photo had been printed in Times magazine, forever associating her with the despised Hitler. Humans and ponies alike saw her as a selfish turncoat, selling out her kin and “switching sides” just to save herself.

Craving redemption, Trixie tried to enlist but was roundly rejected by the Equestrian army. She loitered in Britain for a while before falling in with the USO. The entertainment organization saw in her an excellent showpony and wasted no time in booking her to perform before the troops. Although she was often booed off the stage, other times soldiers cheered her magical antics.

While touring with the USO, she befriended two men by the names of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. These contacts helped her salvage her acting career after the war, though it would remain a shadow of those heady days in Germany, before she realized what an innocent photo would cost her.