//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: A Bargain Struck // Story: I, Monster // by Magenta Cat //------------------------------// It was only a spot. A little black stain in the middle of the white void that was Trixie’s world. Barely even noticeable, but it was a black imperfection in the otherwise perfect white. She tried to focus on it. It was the first thing she saw that wasn’t a product of her imagination. It also seemed to be moving. Not actually going anywhere, just a small quivering. Trixie wondered how long had it been there. But then again, there was no way to tell time in the void, and even now she couldn’t even begin to guess. It was like the very concept of time was like all other physical elements inside the void; non-existent. Yet the black spot was there, existing and occupying the totality of Trixie’s world. Before, she hadn’t been sure she had senses to perceive, as the white void was exactly that, a void; full of nothing, not even space. But now, Trixie could see something -the black spot- and that point of reference allowed her to orient everything she knew around it. There was something else in here with her, which meant there had to be space for it to be in. She could see, therefore there was light that would bounce on the spot and to her… Trixie realized that she needed a sense of sight to be able to see anything, which also meant her other senses, and by extension, her body, existed too. Out of reflex, Trixie moved a trembling limb in front of her. Instead of the dark blue paw with sharp claws she was expecting to see, she was met with an azure foreleg ended in a smooth hoof. She moved quickly, inspecting her body; four legs, azure coat, slightly above average height, cornflower and silver mane and tail. Reaching up, she could even feel her horn. Trixie felt inside her mouth, missing the four fangs she had grown accustomed to. Finally, Trixie slowly lowered her gaze to her own chest. She closed her eyes out of fear. She sat there like that, still being unable to tell how much time had passed, but her curiosity eventually won out. Trixie opened her eyes slightly, expecting to find the marks of the Amulet on her chest, or worse. But there was nothing, only her blue coat. As a final test, she put a hoof to her neck. Trixie felt her own pulse for the first time in longer she was willing to admit. Trixie was finally free of the Alicorn Amulet. And she would have never discovered it if it wasn’t for the black spot, filling the white void with existence and giving Trixie back hers. She started to theorize about the spot, thinking what could it be, what would she want it to be, and what she didn’t. When she had the first three theories fleshed out, she tried to combine them, maybe even unify the ideas that could help her define the nature of the black spot. Trixie’s thoughts evolved the perception of the spot into entire cosmologies surrounding this mysterious part of her very limited universe. Trixie was also able to sort of measure time too, through the beating of her own heart. Just the thought of that made her immensely happy. She kept trying to figure out the spot’s existence, which ended up giving her the hope of understanding her own situation and maybe finding a way to get back to the physical world. With the return of her body also came some of Trixie’s memories. They weren’t all there, mainly the broad outlines of who she was, but she did remember her friends, and she wanted to get back at them. For that, her only hope was the black spot, literally the only thing available for her. Growing tired of thinking, Trixie took a leap of faith and reached out for the spot with her magic. It was the first time in ages since she did so, but it was still an essential part of her. It was like walking again after an extended period of being still. Like drinking for the first time after crossing the desert. Like breathing after emerging from underwater. The feeling of Trixie’s horn igniting was invigorating in its energy and encouraging in the memory. She focused on the black… Crack. The black spot was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a fissure, looking like a jagged crack, was in front of her. Trixie tried to move closer, but her body was floating still in the void. However, there was movement from the black crack. Like the spot, it was quivering. Unlike the spot, it did so at steady intervals. Very familiar intervals. Trixie focused on it, trying to figure out why the intervals seemed so familiar. Then, when counting the time again, Trixie realized that the black crack was pulsing in perfect synchronization with her own heart. It was also spreading, a little more with each pulse. Trixie stood still, mesmerized by the only thing happening for her. The crack became bigger and bigger, growing quicker by each pulse, reaching twice Trixie’s own size. That’s when she realized that the black was replacing the white in her space. The black stained an effective half of her vision and then some more. Trixie couldn’t tell if the blackness was overtaking the infinite void, or if it was surrounding her. Whatever it was, there was a very small portion of white behind her, closing just as she turned her head to have one last glimpse of it. Unlike the white, which gave her the sense of infinite, the black was oppressing. Trixie felt enclosed, trapped by the dark mass. “STOP!” she shouted, mostly out of despair than expecting anything to happen. To Trixie’s surprise, the black retreated from the small spot of white. Almost immediately, it went back to be only an element of the white void, instead of dominating it. The black mass stood in front of Trixie, still pulsating, only it was changing form. From the center, four lumps of it extended downwards like limbs. Then a bigger one upwards. It took definition too. The fractured edges that extended like cracks now changed into a smooth outline. The five lumps took more definition, too; four slim pointing down and the round one up. Trixie couldn’t decide if it was fear or curiosity that kept her from screaming again, but she kept herself silent, gazing over the spectacle. When it finally stilled the black had become a perfect silhouette of Trixie’s body. Pony and shadow stood unmoving in front of each other. “Uh, hello?” Trixie greeted it, cocking her head and raising her left hoof. To her surprise, the shadow copied her motions. She moved her hoof from a side to another, something the shadow also imitated. Trixie’s confusion only increased, but at the same time, an idea crossed her mind. She and the shadow sat down, while Trixie began thinking things through. “You will do everything I do?” She said without moving anything but her lips. The shadow didn’t do anything. Trixie took note of it being only a silhouette, without a mouth to move. “I guess I will do the talking, then,” Trixie said aloud. “You know, I once thought you were all of creation.” She chuckled. “Way back when you were only a tiny black spot.” She put her hooves closer to each other and laughed a little when the shadow did the same. “Not gonna lie, I still don’t know what are you.” She lay on her belly, resting her hooves over the smooth surface of the void. “But you make a good listener.” Trixie yawned. “So, I don’t expect you have the shadow of a deck of cards, don’t you?” The shadow shook its head. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Trixie closed her eyes and rested her head on her forelegs, but once her mind registered what just happened, she rose up almost in a jump. “Did you just move?!” The shadow, still sitting on the ground, only nodded. “Alright, there are only two options here,” Trixie began trotting around the silhouette, seeing how they were still connected by the hooves, like a real shadow. “The first one is that I’ve finally and understandably lost it.” Trixie got closer and put a hoof over the shadow’s surface on the floor. It was smooth and cold, like touching a fine ceramic. The shadow moved its gaze towards Trixie’s hoof. “Or you are actually here, wherever ‘here’ is, and this is really happening.” The shadow looked back at Trixie and nodded again. She sighed, drawing back her hoof and turning away. “Damn, I was hoping it would be the former.” Trixie looked over her shoulder. “I was actually looking forward to it.” “Whatever.” She shrugged as the shadow trotted to her side. They both sat down as Trixie looked back at it. “I’ll guess you’re supposed to be that thing that took control out there?” The shadow cocked its head. “Yes, I remember enough of that.” The shadow’s only reply was to look away, avoiding Trixie’s gaze. “Calm down, I’m not as angry as I should be,” Trixie reassured it. “But I do want answers.” The shadow gazed back at her, ears at attention, and slowly nodded. “Does that mean that you truly are Trixie’s shadow?” It shrugged, raising a hoof and spinning it from side to side. “What do you mean ‘kinda sorta’?” The shadow tapped a hoof over its chest. “Oh,” Trixie looked away this time. “You mean you come from the Alicorn Amulet?” The shadow nodded, but after that it also pointed at Trixie. “Alright, now you’re just plain unclear.” Trixie stomped her hooves as she got up. “Which one are you?!” She pointed an accusatory hoof at the shadow. Its only reply was to nod again. “Agh!” Trixie’s hooves trembled as she threw her head back in frustration. “Can’t you give me a straight answer?” The shadow gazed back. Then it shrugged. “Seriously?” Trixie cocked her head. “Isn’t there any way you can, I don’t know, at least communicate with more than hooves and gestures? Because just between you and I, Trixie sucks at charades, so we’d be here a very long time.” The shadow’s ears perked as it got up. It pointed with a hoof at Trixie’s horn and nodded. Then, it pointed one at its own horn and shook its head. “Alright, you have no magic,” Trixie replied. “So?” The shadow trotted closer to her, making Trixie feel uncomfortable, although she didn’t know why. It once again pointed at Trixie’s horn, while pointing at its own at the same time. Then it nodded. Trixie was going to reply, asking what that would mean. But then an image flashed in the back of her head. It was herself in the middle of a lonely road, putting the Alicorn Amulet for the first time. She remembered having to accept the Amulet’s magic in order to use it. Trixie realized that she didn’t know why she remembered that, but had a suspicion. She looked directly at the shadow, which stood quiet, but gazing up at her horn. “Let me get this straight,” Trixie rubbed her the bridge of her nose. “You can’t use your own magic, so you want to use mine, right?” The shadow nodded excitedly. “Is there any catch? Because the last time I agreed to something like that, I ended up here.” The shadow shook its head quickly. “How can I be even sure this is not a trick?” The shadow put a hoof over its chest, making a small cross, then it opened both hooves and finally put one hoof over its eye. Trixie stood dumbfounded at the gestures. Out in the real world, Pinkie felt a twinge in her hind-leg muscles and a wave of nausea roll through her gut. “Someone just made a Pinkie Promise,” she said out of reflex. Then she felt a small twitch in the back of her right hoof. “And it’s unclear if it’s honest.” She squinted her eyes. “Alright, first of all, how do you know that?” Trixie pointed at the shadow with a hoof. “And secondly, that doesn’t really assure me you’re not lying.” Trixie looked to both sides, then above and up, then back and forward. There was white in every direction, except where the shadow was projected over. “But then again, what else is there to do here?” Trixie ignited her horn. “Alright, I’ll lend you some magic.” Trixie somehow knew how to do it, probably the same reason she could interpret the shadow’s gestures, as the shadow’s horn got enveloped in the same violet aura. “But one misstep and I’ll just ignore you the rest of our time here.” She chuckled, thinking it was probably the worst threat ever, but at the same time, it was the only one she could really make. The shadow nodded once again, as it looked to a side and pointed its horn. A square of purple light appeared in the space next to them. It looked like Trixie’s own screen spell. It was all white, but then a small silhouette of a pony appeared. It was very simplistic, almost minimalistic. From the silhouette, a smaller one grew under it. Next to the first figure, another one sporting wings appeared. This one also grew a shadow under it. Under then, a third drawing of a unicorn appeared with its own shadow too. An alicorn and its shadow also joined the three. Trixie felt how more of her magic was being directed at the illusion as more drawings appeared. First a griffon, then a sea serpent, then a dragon and so on. The screen soon was full of silhouettes picturing almost every species Trixie knew of and then some she couldn’t recognize. The only thing in common in all of the small drawing was that each one of them had a shadow. All the drawings then disappeared and were replaced by a more familiar one. It was a black and white version of Trixie’s own cutie mark, also projecting a shadow under it. At first, Trixie didn’t know how to react, but that changed when a second drawing appeared. It was a triangle with wings and an unicorn’s head. It was noticeably smaller than her cutie mark, but Trixie couldn’t help feeling a chill on her back nonetheless. It quickly shifted to fright when the Alicorn Amulet was placed above her own cutie mark, touching the upper tip of the star. When that happened, the shadow of Trixie’s cutie mark began to retreat. As it did so, the drawing’s white parts began filling with black, until the cutie mark was turned into a pitch black silhouette. It also began to grow. Trixie felt how the shadow was pulling more and more magic as it continued, and so abruptly cut the flow. She yanked her head away, panting. Trixie didn’t want to look up. She didn’t want to see more. She didn’t want to even think about it. She wanted to go back to being alone. Shutting her eyes tightly, Trixie tried to ignore everything, but when she did so, a cold and smooth thing touched her shoulder. It took all of Trixie’s willpower to not jump away at the feeling and only look back. However, she couldn’t help but wince and recoil away when she saw her own shadow standing right in front of her, no longer projected on the ground. “What are you?!” Trixie shriked in fear. Her shadow only pointed a hoof back at her and then extended both to its sides. Trixie remembered some words said with her own voice. “The dark side of the world,” Trixie repeated. “Present in everything and everyone who has a shadow.” She looked back at her shadow and then down, checking that their hooves were still connected. “So, the Amulet never took possession of me? Only empowered my own evils?” Trixie felt the weight of what she was saying. “Am I a monster?” Her shadow shook its head and forelegs vigorously. It then pointed at itself. “But you’re just another part of me,” Trixie protested. Trixie’s shadow pointed at her with a hoof and at itself with another. It then put both hooves together. “So what if I can be good too? You are the one who won in the end.” She looked down, trying to hide her tears. “Now we’re paying the price for it, trapped forever in this white void.” A black hoof lifted Trixie’s chin. Her shadow was shaking its head again, only this time slower. “No?” Trixie’s shadow kept shaking its head. “What do you mean by ‘no’?” Her shadow only stood still as she looked around them. “Last time I checked, the freaking Elements of Harmony sent us here.” Trixie’s shadow shrugged. “Okay, you got that point, but it did take a millennium for the last two guys who escaped to figure that one out.” Her shadow quickly raised a hoof in the air. “Did I say a magic word?” Trixie’s shadow nodded excitedly. It lifted its right hoof and then its left one. Then, it put them together and lifted them together higher, only separating them to entirely extend its forelegs aside. “You mean we can be free?” Trixie took a few steps back. “If we do it together?” This time there we no more gestures. Instead, Trixie’s shadow trotted closer to her until they were only a hoof away from each other. Two slits of red appeared in the shadow’s face, slowly opening like eyes. Trixie’s shadow raised its left hoof. Trixie looked down at it, seeing the Alicorn Amulet being offered to her. “If I do this,” she took a step forward, swallowing her fears. “I won’t be your puppet again.” Trixie extended her left hoof too. “That’s my condition.” She lowered her head, looking directly at her shadow’s eyes. “Understood?” A third slit appeared over Trixie’s shadow’s snout. It was bright red too, like its eyes, and curved into a smile. Slowly, it opened wider, as if about to speak. “To… Ge… Ter.” The voice was Trixie’s own, only deeper. It once again made the motions of the Pinkie Promise. This, somehow, didn’t really assure Trixie. The back of Pinkie’s head was violently assaulted by an astonishing amount of small twitches. “Why?!” Pinkie looked at the heavens, shaking at the uneasy feeling. “Who is making these morally ambiguous Pinkie Promises?!” Trixie sighed, taking her time to feel her own heart racing. She didn’t want to forget that feeling. After blinking, she took the Amulet in her own hooves to inspect it. It felt heavier than she remembered. Besides that, it looked exactly the same as when she first saw it in the shop. The smooth metal, the small details, the admittedly good cut of the gem in the middle. She remembered admiring the design of it for a long time before putting it on the first time. Trixie looked up to ask her shadow for one last gesture of reassurance. But when she did so, there was nothing there. Once again, Trixie was left alone in the emptiness of the white void. It was once again the flawless white as it was at the beginning; perfect and incorruptible. For a moment, Trixie considered putting the Alicorn Amulet down and going back to her dreaming. The fantasy she created when being only thought was beautiful, and she really enjoyed the eternal calm the void offered. But. Calm only offered so much to her. After all, she was still Trixie, the pony who craved to be Great and Powerful. How could she do anything about that by being enclosed in the middle of nowhere? She had her heritage too. The last Lulamoon, daughter of the road and the wind, wasn’t supposed to be away from the open landscapes and big skies that were her true home. And at the end, being enclosed by the Elements of Harmony took away from Trixie the only thing that really mattered to her: Her freedom. “I do want to be free,” Trixie surprised herself saying out loud. “But I don’t want to hurt others.” She thought about her friends. She couldn’t remember their last moments together, but she could feel she was once willing to sacrifice her freedom for them. Trixie clenched her jaw. “I’m sorry, but I can’t just stay chained forever.” She inhaled, lifting the Alicorn Amulet. “But I promise I won’t let them get hurt.” Trixie felt the metal touching her chest. The storm came back to Ponyville. In the sky, the moon didn’t shine like usual, bringing the always watching light in the darkness it represented. Instead, it showed its dark side. The new moon reigned over a darker night as the clouds began to gather. Lightning furiously hit the ground as thunder roared in the distance, accompanied by the north wind’s own howl. Nature’s very elements were in revolution. *baBum* The first drops of water fell over the black statue of the pony turned into a demon. The drops ran down the obsidian, making it shine brighter with each flash of light in the darkness. The mist surrounded it, slowly forming a swirl around it. Once again, the north wind howled through the storm. *baBum, baBum* The ground under the statue began to slightly shake. The mist swirling around it was pushed away, along with small pieces of dirt. A new lightning bolt flashed in the night, but instead of white, it was red. *baBum baBum* Small bits of red electricity traveled over the statute’s surface. Trixie could feel her body again. She couldn’t move and her eyes were closed, but she knew she was back in the abomination she was turned into by the Alicorn Amulet. *baBUM! baBUM!* Trixie felt trapped inside the obsidian. The feeling ignited the rage in her. In her chest, the red marks on the stone outlining the Alicorn amulet shone brightly. The obsidian began to crack, creating a small network of glowing red fissures. *BABUM! BABUM!* Two sets of claws broke free from the black stone, stretching and then pressing on the pedestal under them, crushing its border. The rest of Trixie’s body followed, first contracting, only to violently stretch out, sending away the bits of obsidian. *BABUM! BABUM!* Trixie, still on her hindlegs, roared in the night. When she opened her eyes, they were glowing in the same red as the marks on her chest. There was a red aura surrounding her, but it wasn’t the smooth magic of a pony. It was the cascading one of a power above mortals, way beyond their darkest nightmares. Trixie fell down on her four paws. The aura around her stretched out and dissipated, as the glow in her chest and eyes slowly shut down. A small group of beings across the world, all of them linked in some way or another, felt the disturbance. The younger ones, just recently connected to the great scheme, barely noticed it enough to think anything of it. Some of the older ones, who had a life of learning to lead their minds, had to meditate carefully of what just happened. Only three of these beings really understood that something with the world had changed. The Avatar of Darkness was awake again. Trixie was alive!