Lulamoon's Legacy

by Crowborn

Chapter 2: Ominous

The World was silent. The Wind gone. The Trees stilled. The Animals silenced. Not a heart be could be heard amidst the Twilight.

Trixie stood in an empty meadow, it was a place she had never been to before, but somehow....familiar....

"H-Hello?" Trixie called out softly, her voice trembling with fear. The sky suddenly bathed itself in a deep Crimson, smothering the Sun and Moon. A dark, heated breath could suddenly be felt from the back of her neck. Trixie's eyes dilated in terror. A twig snapped from behind her and--

Trixie awoke.

Screaming.

It took a full minute for her to finally calm down enough to stop. She took deep breaths.

It was just a Nightmare...

Strange, wasn't Luna suppose to make sure ponies never had those?

Trixie shook her head, perhaps the Princess had just been busy. Who was she to question royalty?

......Twilight didn't count.....

Trixie groaned as she got herself out of bed, the memory of the nightmare thankfully fading from her mind. She took a look outside her window.

It had stopped raining. Thank Celestia... She thought to herself. The Sun had only just risen, and it was the beginning of a new day.

Trixie releases the magic in her crystal ball, she wouldn't need it now that the sun was up, and plus, it had done a good job of keeping the wagon warm anyways. Trixie then took a seat by her mirror, and grabbed her usual brush before staring at her own reflection.

Her eyes were still a little puffy from crying herself asleep last night, and her nose was still stuffy from the cold she had gotten from the rain, though it was no longer as runny as it once was. Her mane was a bad case of bedhead, and so she immediately got to work brushing it until all the stray hairs were finally back into place as they should be.

She then summoned her magic to grab a nearby bucket of water, as well as a rag, and brought them before her. The rag was a dirty one, the same one she had used to clean herself from the night before. She sighed, she would have to clean it later. She grabbed a fresher, cleaner rag and put the other one away for now.

She then dipped the clean rag into the bucket of cold water, and let it soak for a bit. Then, she pulled it out and began to wash her face with it, in order to at least make herself look more presentable for the day. It didn't help with the sniffles in the slightest, but this was far from her first time with a cold. She'd make do, like she always did. It wasn't like she had a show today, anyway. Or tomorrow for that matter. Maybe perhaps even the rest of the week with the way her luck was going.

Her thoughts drifted briefly back to the nightmare she had. She couldn't remember much of it, But still, she frowned.

Don't worry, you shall prevail against it.

Trixie scoffed, "Of course I will! It was just a stupid nightmare."

Great, she was talking to herself again. She was getting quite annoyed by that ever confident and hopeful feeling in her chest. What good has it's lies ever done for her anyways?

Trixie shook her head, dismissing those thoughts. Dwelling on that now would only sour her mood. It was a new day, and all she could do was keep moving forward, regardless of however hopeless it may seem.

Gathering her strength for the day, she opened the door and stepped outside. The ground was muddy as expected, and there were numerous puddles scattered about as far as the eye could see. With a sigh she stepped down into the mud, and made her way to front of the wagon. She inspected the left most wheel, noting how it was sunken half way into the mud. She muttered a string of curses to herself before harnessing her magic and engulfing her wagon with it.

With a grunt of effort, she began to try and lift it up. Slowly, but surely, she made it rise up just enough to get it lose, then she pushed it forward a bit, ensuring it wouldn't fall back in. Finally, sigh of relief, she released her flow of magic, and inspected her work. All seemed food so far....

With that out of the way, she hooked herself back up to the harness, and began to pull her wagon along once more.

It was just past noon when she finally stopped for a quick rest. As she gulped down the water from her flask to quench her thirst, she pulled out her map again to decide on what her next destination was. The closest two were Canterlot and Appleloosa, both in opposite directions from her current location, Canterlot to the East, and Appleloosa to the West.

"Hmm, so its hillfillies or posh nobles...." She didn't quite like either option. She wasn't quite sure which to choose until she remembered something very important: Apples hurt. A lot. When thrown at your face.

"Canterlot it is, then!" Trixie decided with a grimace. Her last visit to Canterlot hadn't ended so well, but, it had been a while. There was still a chance she could have a good show there. House Lulamoon was still technically a house of nobility, after all. Even if she was the only remaining member, and was practically pitch broke.

Well, that wasn't entirely true. She had money, but she couldn't touch a single Bit of it until she got married or had foals, whichever came first. If Mom and Dad were still here.... she thought bitterly, before sighing in defeat. She still missed them, even though she had been but a foal when they were taken away from her. Time never truly healed that wound in her heart, but she had learned how to move on and keep going. To make them proud...

Yet another thing I fail at... she thought bitterly.

You could never fail them. You are destined for Power and Greatness.

"....."

Trixie wasn't in the mood to argue, even if there wasn't anyone there to argue with. She continued her journey without a word, stopping only for snacks or to drink.

-----

It was nightfall by the time Canterlot came into view, she was able to see the castle for quite a while now, but only just now did the city itself come into view.

Even Trixie had to admit, it was still an awe inspiring sight, even if she did like the scenic view of Hoofington more. Trixie couldn't help but feel a little nostalgic returning to the town of her birth, even if there were a lot of bad memories here.

The grand buildings, the lavish decorations, and the Royal Castle all looked just as dazzling at night as they did in the day, though in admittedly more subdued tones. She felt a spark bitterness and jealousy swell within her, but she snuffed that out as quickly as it came. The Noble Houses had made pretty damn clear where exactly she stood with them, and it wasn't like she was going to change their minds anytime soon.

It'd still be a few hours before she would reach the city gates proper, but she decided to stop and call it a night for now. She was tired and sore from pulling her wagon all day, and while crime was pretty low in Equestria, that didn't mean there wasn't any. It was simply safer to call it a night for now.

She followed her usual bedtime routine, and had just finished brushing her mane when finally decided to open the secret compartment underneath the small desk that held the mirror. Using her magic to unlock the hidden latch, she opened the secret mechanism and pulled out a small box from within. She opened it to see a small collection of items that she kept close to her. Her bag of bits, a few photos of her mom and dad, a signed autograph from Harry Hoofdini himself, and key which belonged to her mother, though, she never found out what it was for. She pulled out the bag of bits and began counting what she had managed to earn from that disaster of a show in Hoofington.

52 bits.

That is all she had.

Subtract the eight she started with (she didn't count the eight she gave to the foal), and her net profit was only 44 bits. That would barely last a week, if she was careful. But it was more than she started with, at least.

A small grimace pierced her lips. She remembered the days when her shows would rake in hundreds or even thousands of bits per show.

Now she was lucky if she even touched 200 in a month. Still, it was better than nothing....

With a sigh, she put the bits back into the bag and put the bag back into the box. She then pulled out a photo of her parents, the two holding their newborn filly.

"I miss you. I hope I can make you two proud of me....If it weren't for that stupid Twilight Sparkle, I--" she stopped herself. "No.....it's my fault....I'm sorry I've failed you...."

She sighed and put the photo back into box, but before she closed it, she gave one last glance within. "Goodnight Mom. Goodnight Dad. I love you...."

-----

She was back in the meadow. The sky was still drowned in deep Crimson. The Air, stale. The Trees, still. The Animals, silent. But there was something new here. A distinct odor that permeated through out her nostrils.

The sour stench of blood.

Against her better judgement, she followed the stench through the wooded meadow until she came across a small clearing. What she saw horrified her.

In the middle of the clearing was a mountain of bodies, each a familiar face, heaped together in a rotting mound of corpses. She saw her grandparents, her aunt, her parents, the foal she met in Hoofington, the two foolish foals who had lured that Ursa Minor into town. She even saw Twilight herself among the corpses, alongside all of the other Princesses. And most horridly of all, atop this rank and rancid pile of mutilated bodies, stood her own corpse, impaled upon a spike with a look of sheer agony and terror frozen upon her face.

Trixie wanted to scream, bit before she could, a cold, icy voice spoke to her.

"What have we here? Another Lulamoon has come to play? Silly little mare....I am more than you will ever be."
Suddenly, a giant maw of endless teeth lurched forward from above to devour her whole.

Trixie screamed.

Trixie squealed like a filly, flailing about and out of her bed before managing to come to her senses. She quickly untangled herself from her blanket.

She could feel her heart ramming the inside of her chest, threatening to burst free from its hold. But Trixie began taking deep breaths, "It's okay... It's just nightmare, you are okay....it wasn't real..." She told herself with shaky breaths. It certainly FELT real. But, she eventually managed to calm herself, and she could feel her heart rate returning to normal.

Just as she managed to get her hooves to stop shaking, she could feel that familiar, confident and hopeful feeling swelling in her chest again. Great....

It's time....

Wait....what? "It's time? What do you mean 'It's time'? That doesn't make any--"

Suddenly, Trixie felt it.

It was like a door deep inside of her that she never knew was there suddenly just...burst open. A soft magenta light began to fill the room as Trixie felt her mana surge forth like an ocean within her. Arcane circles began to form at her hooves, and she felt herself slowly being lifted into the air. A glimpse in the mirror revealed that her eyes had begun glowing a dazzling magenta, matching the color of her magic. Then, she felt them, two large, bat-like wings made of pure magic burst from her sides.

"W-What is happening?!" Trixie cried out in a panic. Then, from her chest, a large, star tipped staff emerged from within her, floating into the air. Before Trixie could question what in Tartarus was going on, everything went white....

And Trixie knew no more.

Author's Note:

Well, that escalated quickly, lol. Still, this was fun to write, and helps set up future plot points for later chapters. I hope you enjoy, see you in the next chapter!

Comments

[DualKitsune]

Trixie is a magical girl?