Meanwhile the others finally arrive at the entrance of Trixie's cave. AJ being the first, quickly following the trail of footprints to the blue door.
“Christian’s footprints end here!” AJ yells as she stops near the door.
“Do you think Christian is in there?” Pinkie asks, eyeing the blue door.
“Only one way to find out!” Dash goes to knock on the door.
“Dash! Are you crazy?! We can’t just knock on the door!” AJ grabs Dash’s tail and yanks her back. “Trixie may have a trap waiting for us if she and Christian are in there!”
“Okay! okay! Next time don’t yank my tail, just tell me!” Dash complains as she fixes her tail.
“You probably would have done it anyway!” AJ yells at her friend.
"No I wouldn't have!"
Dash and Applejack start yelling at each other. Fluttershy on the other hand, spots a small gap between some rocks of the cave. She peers in to see inside the cave lair. She yelps loudly at what she sees.
“Uh, girls you might want to see this.” She says with a bit of nervousness.
AJ and Dash stop their feud and walk over to the hole with Rarity and Pinkie following. Inside, Trixie is sitting in her throne, laughing with Chris next to her.
“So, what’s next Ms. Trixie?” Christian asks to the blue unicorn.
“Ms. Trixie? Celestia was right! Christian really is hypnotized!" Rarity exclaims.
Dash puts a hoof on Rarity’s mouth. “Be quiet! Are you trying to get spotted?!” Dash says in a quiet tone.
“Now,” Trixie says as she gets up from her throne. “We capture Twilight’s friends.”
The Five gasp. “Told you.” AJ says to Dash. Dash sticks her tongue out at AJ as a response.
“Are you sure Ms. Trixie?” Christian asks. “With all due respect Ms. Trixie, It’s five against two. It seems unlikely that we'll capture them all. Not to mention it's the Elements of Harmony that we're dealing with here.”
Trixie turns toward her assistant with an evil smile. “Oh, don’t worry Christian. It should be easy if we captured Twilight!”
“Oh no, Twilight!” Fluttershy yelps. The others quickly giver her a death stare, a silent warning telling her to be quiet. Fluttershy ducks her head down below the rocks in retaliation.
“Of course Ms. Trixie, I have complete faith in your methods.” Christian says, nodding to Trixie. “By the way, where is Twilight?” He asks, looking around the cave.
“She’s doing some chores I asked her to do.” Trixie answers. She then makes her whip float toward her.
“Can’t say no to a quick whip snap!” Christian acknowledges.
“Indeed Christian!” Trixie laughs at the whitty statement and Christian laughs with her a few seconds later. The Five quickly stop looking through the gap. They all have an expression of fear and anger.
“We have to save Twilight!” Pinkie says.
“But what about Trixie and Christian?” Rarity asks. “We have to stop her first and snap Christian out of it!”
“Oh, I’ll make her stop!’ Dash says, exhaling angrily. “I’m gonna clobber her! Then, i'll smack Christian upside the head! A minor concussion should bring him back!” Dash starts marching toward the door. The sound of her hooves seemed to make the earth around her tremble. Before Dash can get to the door, AJ rushes ahead.
“I got the door! Dash, save your anger for Trixie!” Applejack puts her head down and rams the door. Blue wood splinters everywhere. Trixie and Christian, startled by the crash, quickly look up at the entrance of the cave to see five angry-looking ponies. Their nostrils flaring and their eyes giving off a look of sheer rage.
“TRIXIE!” They exclaim. Their voices echo throughout the cave.
Trixie smiles at this. The Five arrive right on schedule. “Well, well. Perfect timing girls!”
Twilight rushes in to see her friends, lined and poised to strike. The five glance over to see Twilight in her shackles, her chains clanging together as she stops.
"What's with Twilight? I thought you just captured her?" Rarity asks.
"Oh, she's our servant." Trixie answers with a devious tone.
"Not for long, Trixie!" Dash says, he voice raising with each word.
Trixie simply laughed in Dash's face. "Oh Dash, you're such a child! You don't scare me!" Trixie turned toward her captive. "Servant, go get our "guests" some refreshments."
"No." Twilight turned her head away from Trixie in refusal. Trixie floated her whip toward her and snapped it toward Twilight. Twilight immediately jumped out the sound. "Yes Great and Powerful Trixie! I'll get right on it!" Twilight ran out of the room. Her chains clattering behind her.
"Way better than those other two idiots." Trixie said as she turned back to the five ponies.
When The Five saw this they lost it. Their anger could only be described like a cartoon character, when someone gets so angry their head become red and steam comes out their ears. The funny part is, it was actually happening to the bunch. The most irate out of the group was Dash, who shoved her way to meet the light blue menace eye to eye.
"That's it! Trixie! Un-hypnotize Chris and free Twilight, or you'll be in a world of hurt!" Dash yelled.
Trixie frowned at this. "Me being threatened?! I will not stand for it!" Trixie stomped her hoof on the ground in anger.
Christian once again snaps out of his hypnosis. As quickly as he can he yells to the girls for help. Desperately shouting, "GIRLS! HELP ME! QUICK!" over and over. He then starts waving his arms like a madman to get their attention.Trixie realizes her fault and quickly becomes annoyed.
"Dang it! Magic!"
Christian, yet again, snaps back into his trance, replying with the same phrase."What do you need Ms. Trixie?"
The Five's rage subsided momentarily to spot this flaw in the spell. They quickly huddled into a concealed group.
"Did you girls see that?!" Pinkie exclaimed silently.
"Yea. When Trixie stomped her hoof, Christian snapped out of it." AJ said.
"But when she said "magic", Christian was snapped back in." Rarity finished.
Pinkie got a confused look on her face. "No, not that! Twilight never asked us what we would like to drink!" Pinkie started to pout like a spoiled child. "I wanted a pink lemonade!"
The other four look at each other and face-hoof.
"Pinkie, focus!" Dash exclaimed.
"Alright, I've got an idea. On three, we stomp our hooves at the same time to snap Chris out of this trance!" AJ said in a hushed tone.
"Got it!" The other four replied with a smile.
As the five were making their plan, Trixie and Christian look at each other, exchanging confused looks about the whole situation.
"Ready girls?" AJ said.
"Ready!"
"One...Two..."
"Why are you counting?" Trixie asks.
"THREE!"
The five turn toward Christian and Trixie and stomped their hooves like their was no tomorrow. The cave sounded like a stampede was running right through the stone corridors, getting faster with each stomp. Trixie got a little worried. She thought all the stomping would risk a cave in! After a few minutes, the five stomped coughing and breathing heavily.
"Christian...get...Trixie!" Dash said, panting as if she just ran a marathon in the desert. she collapses momentarily to catch her breath.
Christian looks at the group confused. "Why? Did she do something?"
"What the heck?!" The Five's jaws drop at his reaction. They show no emotion as they stare at their human companion, wondering why he was still acting like a mindless drone.
"While I love seeing you five act like complete idiots." Trixie said, holding back her laughter. "I must inform you that the spell only wears off when I stomp my hoof."
"Well, it was worth a shot." Fluttershy said, trying to be optimistic. The others glare at her with annoyance. A moment later, Twilight returns with a tray of glasses filled with water, balanced on her back. She has a disgruntled look on her face as she approaches Trixie.
"Here are their drinks Trixie." She says properly.
Trixie stops snickering at the five and looks toward Twilight with a frown. Trixie uses magic to make the tray float next to her. She then coughs as she addresses her servant. "Ahem, Trixie what?" Trixie raises her whip toward the purple unicorn.
Sweat runs down Twilight's temple. "The Great and Powerful!" She quickly replies.
"Good." Trixie turns toward the five. "Now girls, I think we can sort something out here. Christian, go and get some paper. I want to write the terms of this treaty." Trixie gives a small, evil smile to Christian as she finishes her sentence.
"Ah! Of course Ms. Trixie!" He goes to leave "I'll be right back girls." He quickly disappears behind Trixie's throne and down a rocky corridor.
Twilight's eyes grow wide. She knows exactly what's going on. Twilight opens her mouth to warn the girls about the upcoming trap, but Trixie turns her head toward Twilight and raises the whip. Twilight immediately shuts up. She mutters under her breath. "Calm down Twilight. The girls can get out of this! I know it!"
"Anyway, I bet you girls can't believe I got your little human friend of yours to do whatever I say!" Trixie says, beaming with pride.
"But, you umm, hypnotized him." Fluttershy says in a hushed tone.
"Your point?" Trixie says with a blank expression.
"Nevermind." Fluttershy becomes quiet, sits down and starts rolling around a small rock.
"Anyway, back to the matter at hand. Girls, please step forward so we can discuss this matter further" Trixie puts her head up a tad to show her
The five look at each other blankly. Negotiate what?! they thought. Dash quickly breaks the silence as she speaks her mind.
"What's there to discuss?! Free Twilight and un-hypnotize Christian! That's all you have to do! WHAT'S SO HARD ABOUT THAT!" Dash yells at Trixie. Trixie shakes off this little rant. Dash was quite the loud mouth.
"Ok, I will." She replies.
"Good! Finally you come to your senses!" The five start cheering. satisfied by her response. Maybe this won't have to be settled violently after all!
"...For 200 bits! Each!" Trixie finishes her sentence will fixing her hair.
The Five gasp. Trixie was putting a price on their friend? Seriously?! "We don't have that kind of money!"
"Alright, then step closer and we can discuss another form of payment..." Trixie grins.
AJ looks down at the cave floor, look at the others, and sighs. They had no other choice. "Fine. We'll negotiate...something."
The five, knowing their is no other choice, step forward. After a few steps, a rumbling is heard. The five stop and look up to see a huge steel cage drop directly on top of them. "WHAT THE?!"
"Gotcha!" Christian emerges from the darkness, His white teeth showing from an evil grin. He was pleased with another successful capture. And this time, it was a five for one deal!
"Trixie laughs with pride. "Well done, my loyal assistant!" She pats him on his back. Christian nods in confirmation.
Rarity looks around quickly. "What do we do?!" She starts running around in the cramped cage, pushing against the bars trying to find a way out.
Rainbow Dash smirks at this pathetic excuse for a trap. "Don't worry, I got this girls!" Dash turns toward Trixie and spreads her light blue wings. "Forgot about these babies Trixie?" Dash says with a cocky grin.
Trixie is less than amused. "No, not really."
Dash seems confused, but shakes this feeling quickly. "Are you sure? Because it looks like someone isn't thinking today!" Dash gets ready to soar up and push the cage into the ceiling.
Trixie raises a brow and the cyan pegasus. "Oh, really?" Trixie lifts up the throne's armrest once again and pulls the switch. Dash begins to fly upwards when she is suddenly thrown back down to the floor. Clamps wrap around the mare's body, trapping her wings. The same happens to Fluttershy. Also, pairs of shackles, just like Twilight's, magically attach themselves to each of the ponies' hooves. Finally, a plastic covering is placed on Rarity's horn.
Pinkie looks at the chains and turns toward Rainbow Dash. "Ya know Dash, I think she is thinking today!"
Dash turns toward the pink pony with aggravation. "Not the time Pinkie!" She screams.
"Girls...No." Twilight looks at the ground and starts to lightly sob.
"Now, I have you ponies right where I want you!" Trixie stomps her hoof down in victory. As Trixie laughs triumphantly, Christian, quickly realizing the situation, quietly backs up to the other end of the cave while Trixie obviously laughs her head off in victory. He mutters under his breath.
"If I am going to save the girls, I got to be careful this time. Can't let her know I've snapped out of it." Christian looks at the cave walls. The sides were uneven, with small ledges sticking out. They led up to a bigger ledge near the ceiling of the cave. "Hmm, that gives me an idea!" He quickly scrambles to the wall and starts climbing.
Meanwhile, Trixie approaches the caged ponies. "Now, I have the rest of your little group Twilight. And they were so easy to trick!" Dash snarls at her captor.
"Let us out Trixie!" Dash screams right at Trixie's face. unintentionally spitting on her.
That won't be happening anytime soon Dashie." Trixie mocks her as she wipes off her face and returns to her throne. "Now, with you all in chains, I can focus on my main targets: Celestia and Luna!" Trixie voice echoes s throughout the cave. "And then, my revenge will be complete!" She cackles at her great success so far.
The Six's eyes widen. Their jaws drop to the ground followed by a gasp. "You mean, this was all for revenge?" AJ says to Trixie.
Trixie glares at her with pure anger. "Of course! After my little stunt with the amulet, I was stuck in Everfree Forest for weeks! Trixie approaches the cage yet again. "It wasn't that bad however. I found a hypnosis book while following a river out of the forest..."
As Trixie was telling her story to the five in the cage, Twilight hears rocks crumbling. She turns toward the upper left of the cave to see a shadow climbing toward a ledge right over the cage. "That must be Christian! But how?" She whispers to herself. Then she remembers that Trixie stomped her hoof after she trapped the others. Twilight starts jumping and nodding toward Christian. The five look at Twilight with a confused look. Trixie stops her story to look at Twilight.
"What are you doing servant?" She demands.
"I...am...um..." Twilight tries to think of an excuse.
Trixie grows impatient and starts yelling at Twilight. "Twilight sit still or else!"
"Y...Yes Great and Powerful Trixie. I understand Great and Powerful Trixie." Twilight mutters.
"No, I don't think you do!"
As Trixie chews Twilight out, the five quickly glance up to where Twilight was pointing to see Christian finally reaching the ledge. They smile at the fact that Trixie is completely oblivious at Christian's whereabouts. Trixie turns around back to the cage. The Five pretend not to notice anything.
"Anyway, where was I before I was SO rudely interrupted!" Trixie tries to think of where she left off. "Ah yes! the book! Anyway, I hypnotized your ambassador from Earth, captured you all, and here we are!" Trixie sighs as she ends her story.
Christian looks down at Trixie. "All I've got to do is tackle her like a football player and force her to let them go!" He backs up as far as he can for a running start. He takes a few deep breaths and lines up hs jump. He only had one shot, and if he missed, he was going to be a servant with two broken legs.
"And now, before I forget..." Trixie sneers.
Christian runs off the ledge and jumps toward the blue unicorn. Trying to be as silent as possible in the process.
"Magic."
Christian stops in mid-air. That one word Trixie said made him land flat on the ground in mid-jump. He gets up and brushes off some dust and gravel. "Oh, I am terribly sorry Ms. Trixie! I don't know what got into me!"
Trixie shrugs it off. "That's quite alright Christian."
The Five and Twilight become extremely confused. They look at the blue unicorn. "How...did...you...know?" They are speechless at what they just witnessed.
Trixie laughs at their stupidity. "What? Do you all take me for a fool?"
"Yes." Pinkie replies. Dash hits her in the side to shut her up. "Ow!"
Trixie glares at them. "I knew I stomped my hoof. I just wanted to torture you ponies with a glimmer of hope before I snapped him back into his trance!"
Twilight looks up angrily at Trixie. She's captured her, her friends, and has her frenemy as a servant! And is now planning to capture her teacher and her sister?! Trixie has gone too far this time. "You will pay Trixie! The Princesses will make you stay in the dungeon for the rest of your life!" Trixie sighs at Twilight and snaps her whip toward Twilight a few times. Twilight yelps at the sudden movement. "GAH! I mean, all hail The Great and Powerful Trixie!" Twilight cringes at her word choice.
"Now, i'm going to give you five the same choice I gave Twilight: Surrender and become my servants, or Christian can deal with you personally!"
AJ rolls her eyes. "Wow, thanks for the easy choices!" She replies sarcastically.
Trixie becomes angry. "SILENCE! You will not speak unless I tell you to!" Trixie snaps her whip toward the cage a few times. The five jump.
"GAH!" They become deathly silent.
Trixie continues. "So, what will it be?" The five look at each other. They remain silent, not murmuring a word. "WELL?!" Trixie yells impatiently.
Rarity looks at Trixie. "Oh, were we allowed to speak?" The others snicker at the response. Twilight puts her hoof over her mouth to prevent Trixie from hearing her. Christian growls at the caged ponies. Trixie becomes irate as well, but conceals her emotions. She doesn't snap her whip, but nods at Christian. He in return, grins as he fires a dart extremely close to Rarity's front hoof. The five jump back at the close proximity of the shot.
"GAH!" They back up as far as possible, the bars of the cell leaving imprints on their backs. It's not like the dart would hurt them, but it was shot so fast, it seemed like it would go right through Rarity's hoof. Trixie yells at the five.
"I want an answer! What will it be?!"
Dash blurts out. "Well, i'm not staying in a cramped cage forever! And Christian just proved that he is out of the question!"
"Girls, we really don't have a choice." Fluttershy mutters.The others exchange looks of sadness and failure. Finally, after an eternity of silence, AJ speaks up with an answer:
"All right Trixie, We surrender." They hang their hands in anger and shame. They may be captured, but The princesses will stop this madness! they thought.
Trixie's grin grows from cheek to cheek. "Wise choice you five." She raise the cage from the prisoners, the chains still attached as The Five are released from the cage. "This is going to be fun! Wouldn't you say Christian?"
He nods in confirmation. "Indeed Ms. Trixie, Indeed."