Trixie’s eyes shot open, jolting upright. Her sudden gasp resonated off the cave walls around her.
“Thank Celestia you're awake,” a familiar voice said. Female. Alto.
The fire refracted off the icy cave walls. It snapped and crackled to her left. A chill swept across her face. Sweat.
Heart racing. Voice hoarse. “Where’s Discord?” Breathless. She scrambled to her hooves. Numb. Lightheaded.
“Don't worry about him.” Calm. “Right now you need to rest.”
Eyes closed. Visualization blurry. Foot of the mountain. Blood. Bodies. Blood. Blood.
“Trixie, stop!” Stern. Afraid.
Light. Fingers of electricity. Blasted backwards. Sudden stop. No air. Vision tunneled.
“What. What. What.” Broken record. Or echos? Not sure.
“Trixie, you're in shock.” Concerned. “Just… just come back to the fire with me.”
“Why couldn't…” Throat dry. Thirst. “Why couldn't I…”
“We'll talk about it later.” Pleasant. Relief. “When you're feeling better.”
Firm grip. Pulled up. She smiled. “Here, let's get you rested up.”
Trixie woke up once more. She swallowed, her throat sore and arid.
“There we go,” the voice from before soothed.
The unicorn blinked, the other pony coming into view. She had a greenish-blue coat, a deep purple mane tucked into a bun. But her eyes were unforgettable.
“Opal?” she gasped. “How did you get here? How did you find me?”
The innkeep giggled. “I’ll take one question at a time.” She sat up, resting her chin on her hoof. “First off, I was flown here by the royal guard. Princess Celestia lifted my travel ban once she heard that you found the culprit. A draconequus under the alias of Boggs, correct?”
Trixie nodded. “That’s all we know, really.”
“Hmm…” Her eyes returned to the fire in front of her. “Anyways, as for how I got here, we actually saw a bright explosion coming from where you were fighting. Saw a couple of bodies fall from a cliff. We stayed behind until everything seemed to cool down and then investigated. It turns out you were that body.”
Trixie creased her eyebrows, feeling like she was missing a chunk of her brain. “I don’t remember much of what happened. I just remember—”
Suddenly the image of the battle projected in her mind’s eye. Her head spun and her stomach turned. She was only able to turn her head to the side before she vomited, the acid stinging her mouth and nose.
“Oh, my poor dear,” she sympathized, procuring a rag from her side. She hooked it around her hoof and dabbed it on Trixie’s chin. She held it then up to her nose. “Here, blow.”
Trixie complied and blew her nose, the burning irritation spreading out, but subsiding a little. Opal folded the rag over and dabbed a little on her chest, then attended to the mess on the floor of the cave. Without a bother, she scooped the vast majority of it onto the rag, going to the mouth of the cave to throw it into the wind.
“Th-thank you,” the unicorn said through her shivers. Why had it gotten cold all of a sudden?
“No problem.” She approached Trixie and nuzzled under her foreleg. “Let’s get you closer to the fire, dear,” she said, and Trixie once again complied, staggering weakly toward the fire before once again falling to her flank. The proximity nipped at her muzzle a bit, but filled the rest of her body with warmth that she desperately needed.
“Where's Shining Armor?” Trixie asked, her voice raspy.
“He's okay, and so are a couple of the other Crystal Guard recruits. A pony by the name of Rusty and a Pegasus named Rising Wing got away with only a couple scratches. However, the others weren't so lucky.”
Opal sat down next to her, looking her in the eye. “So, let’s get the rest of the bad news out of the way. First, you’re very weak. We can’t get out of this cave soon, unless the Crystal Guard finds us out here. Second, be it from the fall you took, or by any other means, your horn is broken.”
The unicorn felt her mind stagger behind and screech to a halt. “What?”
The innkeep nodded sadly. “It’s the unfortunate truth. You woke up before in a panic, and tried to use magic. You were blasted backward while doing so. So I suggest not using magic for the time being.”
Opal’s voice felt like it was coming from a mile away. Her horn was broken? She remembered the blast that Boggs had conjured, and the explosive pain that came afterward. Could it have been then that it happened?
She felt a cold sweat drip down the side of her face. How in the world could she help her friends? She was defenseless! Just when she was getting the hang of her magic as well. It was all pointless.
“Where is Discord?” she managed, looking left and right.
The innkeep locked eyes with her, but broke away after a split second.
“Opal. Where’s Discord?”
She sighed. “Nowhere to be seen. We figure Boggs took him, to Celestia-knows-where.” She picked at the ground with her front hoof. “It was one of the only things that Shining Armor was able to tell us before being rushed back to the Crystal Empire. They only had room for one on that trip.”
Trixie’s heart fell to her stomach, her eyes stinging. She lost. She tried her hardest, and did everything she could. She traveled across half the continent, twice. Pinkie Pie was arrested. Hundreds of mares were now without a home. Not to mention that there hasn’t been any news on the well-being of any of her friends; just rumors of death. And now Discord was captured by Boggs, and her magic was taken away from her.
She broke out into sobs. “I never should’ve come here!” she exclaimed. “Everywhere I’ve been… there’s just been ruin. All because I tried to be a hero!”
She felt a hoof around her, pulling her close. Opal’s warmth spread through her body. “It’s all right…” she whispered. “It’s all right…”
Three days passed while waiting for the Crystal Guard. Most of the time spent in the cave was Opal nursing Trixie back to health. The first day was spent trying to get her to stand, the next to get her to walk. The pain that she experienced while essentially relearning how to move once again was unparalleled. She fell and fainted, tripped and scuffed herself up while trying to do the most basic things. Each time her irritation would burn like a bonfire, but slowly that fire suffocated. She had slowly realized what a privilege it was to walk, to stand, and to even cast magic. Things she had took for granted were now precious to her.
It was by the third day that she didn’t faint while walking short distances; a miracle in and of itself. Her body still ached and her knees still shook, but it was better than nothing.
She was outside the cave helping Opal gather firewood when a chariot appeared in the sky. Her excitement bubbled over as she waved and whooped, the innkeep following suit. The chariot landed in front of them, and inside was a white-coated mare with a deep blue mane, precariously styled. Rarity smiled at the two. “We have a chariot for two for the Crystal Empire.”
“Rarity!” Trixie gasped, rushing to hug her. She felt a quick hoof around her when the fashionista started gagging.
“Egads, Trixie!” she exclaimed, pulling away from the embrace. “You smell—” She bit her lip. “Very interesting.”
“I know,” the magician deadpanned. “Try living with it for a few weeks.”
Rarity gave a nervous laugh. “I think I’ll leave that up to you, thank you very much.” She lit her horn, pulling up a tin canister. “Fortunately though, I’ve come prepared!” She sprayed a puff of mist on Trixie’s chest, under her forelegs, and on her belly. The perfume smelled strongly floral; anything more and she would’ve suffocated.
The magician coughed. “Th-thanks,” she croaked.
“No problem, darling!” Rarity glanced over at Opal. “Well, we’d better all get seated! We have plenty of things to discuss when we arrive!”
Opal shrugged, taking a seat next to Trixie, and within seconds, the chariot took off. She felt butterflies in her stomach as it grew heavy. Within the next minute, the cave that Opal and she had taken shelter in fit under her hoof, the snow around it reflecting the afternoon sun in a straight, unbroken streak. The Crystal Castle’s spires looked like twigs on the horizon. Have we really traveled that far? she thought.
“I’m very sorry to hear what happened to you, darling,” Rarity sympathized after a moment. She twiddled with her hooves. “It sounds absolutely terrifying.”
“I-it’s okay,” Trixie stammered, even though in her mind, things absolutely weren’t. “It’s none of you guys’ fault.” She resisted the returning memories before they came. “Anyways, is it just you up here, or are there any others?”
The dressmaker bit her lip. “I’m afraid I’m not aloud to say, darling. Royal decree.”
The magician furrowed her eyebrows. Royal decree? she thought. What could the Two Sisters be hiding?
The rest of the trip was spent in relative silence. Every now and again, Rarity attempted to bring up business in her shop, but the conversation points fell flat before long, and she’d since given up. She did, however, mention that the rebuilding of Ponyville was happening rapidly with the help of the Canterlot Guard. “It’s amazing how well versed they are in the trade,” Rarity mused, almost as if she was daydreaming. “They got the town square fixed up in no time at all!”
It took all of two hours before they passed over the first mountain range, the Crystal Empire spreading out below them. It was weird to see that they weren’t descending, but instead, the chariot carried itself to a large balcony toward the top of the castle. As they continued, the pegasi up front waved their wings majestically in front of them, catching the wind and slowing them down. Soon enough, they landed on the balcony itself, the pegasi ending their passage in a contained trot before eventually coming to a stop.
Once stopped, Opal opened the door to her side, stepping out onto the crystalline structure. Trixie followed suit, only to discover a pinkish dragon with rounded, green spines. Spike the dragon waved enthusiastically toward them, but slowed when his eyes fell upon the crown of Trixie’s head. “Oh…”
With that single word, the magician wished she had a hood to pull over her head. Resisting the urge to try to hide it, she managed through a strained laugh, “It’s fine, Spike.”
Obviously not convinced, the dragon snapped out of his stupor, and gestured to the doorway ahead of them. He cleared his throat. “We’re not headed to the Great Hall this time. Step through those doors however, you’ll need to keep everything that happens there a secret.”
“Trixie has heard about the whole Royal Decree business,” she said. She straightened her posture. “But who better but a magician to keep a secret?”
Spike pumped his fist across his chest. “That’s the spirit!” he exclaimed. “Now, go on ahead. There’s a lot ahead of you.”
Trixie nodded, walking over to the grand double doors of what seemed to be a bedroom. The rippled, stained glass made it hard to discern exactly what was going on but she could see a few blobs walking around inside. The unicorn took a deep breath as she finally opened the door outward.
The room was more exquisite than she could’ve imagined. It followed the theme of the whole castle with white crystalline structures and purple highlights that struck through it. The room itself was in a diamond shape, the king-sized bed nestled in the left corner. Of course, any chance of humble living was thrown out with the painstakingly crafted furnishings and lush velvet rugs, each complementing the theme of the castle itself.
But sitting on the edge of the bed, was the familiar lavender-coated alicorn that she loved to hate. Part of her was relieved that Twilight Sparkle was okay, while the other was annoyed by her very presence.
“Hello, Trixie,” the princess said, her voice weaker than she remembered. She held a hoof wrapped in a thick bandage in the other.
“Hi…?” The magician felt like a chunk of her brain had went missing. Was this it?
Twilight squinted. “You look confused.”
“I’m not confused!” she blurted, the exclamation much louder than she had anticipated. She cleared her throat. “Trixie was just lead to believe that there was a big secret that was being shared.”
The princess gave Trixie a deadpan expression. “There is. I am.”
The magician frowned. “What?”
Twilight exhaled a sigh. “To everypony else, I’m dead,” she said calmly.
“But not to Rarity. Or Spike.”
“Nor to any of my close friends.” Twilight rubbed her injured hoof, flinching. “It was dangerous to have my well-being announced. So the Princesses started the rumor that somepony from our company died. They didn’t say it was me until a few days ago.”
“Because you were attacked by Boggs,” Trixie pieced together.
Twilight hesitated, creasing her eyebrows, then nodded. “Yeah, that was her alias. Her real name is Envy.”
Trixie frowned, ever confused by Draconequus naming conventions, but also… “How in the world did you figure that out?” she asked.
“Shining Armor,” the princess said without hesitation. “While Envy was carrying him by the horn, he said his life flashed before him. Among the flashes was a name he hadn't heard before.”
“Envy,” she completed, and Twilight nodded. “Is he okay?” she asked after a moment’s hesitation.
Twilight nodded. “He’s recovering. The drop of the cliff broke a leg and a couple of ribs, but altogether, he's been doing okay.”
The unicorn raised a hoof to her mouth. “Okay. So, you’re dead, the company was decimated, all because of a Draconequus terrorist. Where does this put us?”
Twilight gave a weak grin. “Right on topic,” she said, amused. “But nowhere yet. Wherever Envy went, she didn’t leave a trace, and everyone involved in this is recovering. I thought you’d need a little more rest, considering your humble home for the past couple of days.”
Trixie opened her mouth to complain, but she stopped before she said anything. An actual bed did sound nice, after all. She proceeded thoughtfully, “But what about Bo—er, Envy? Do we know anything about her plan?”
The alicorn sighed, brushing the floor with a rear hoof. “No, unfortunately. But we’re in no condition to face her even if she strikes.” She nodded to Trixie’s now-broken horn. “I’ve heard from Fizzlepop that she was incapacitated for about two weeks after her horn broke. Said that whatever magic she could use at that point was weak. And whenever it wasn’t, it’d hurt her even more.”
“That doesn’t mean—!” A surge of pain jetted from her skull down her spine. She flinched, ducking her head down. That doesn’t mean I’m useless, was what she wanted to say, but the pain made her eat her words.
“Right now, rest,” Twilight insisted, standing with a slight limp, and lighting her horn. A stack of papers jumped up from an ornate nightstand at the foot of the bed. “There’s a guest room across the hall from here if you want to sleep. I’ve got some paperwork to do.”
Trixie managed a smirk through the pain. “Still gotta do princess stuff?”
“Kind of.” Twilight levitated a quill and an inkwell from the top of a chest of drawers, matching the crystal aesthetic almost perfectly. “I’m doing some of it for Princess Celestia. Forging signatures, all that jazz.” She levitated a paper in front of Trixie without looking. “This one is of particular interest.”
Before Trixie could read past “Request for the Release,” the purplish aura dissipated, and the paper tumbled to the floor. She locked eyes with Twilight, eyebrow cocked.
The princess chortled nervously, picking up the paper once again. She sorted it into the stack of papers she carried in front of her muzzle. “I-it’s a form for a pardon for Pinkie Pie.”
“Oh!” Trixie exclaimed, another surge of pain rattling her brain. She clenched her teeth. Would it even stop? “So we’ll have her back soon?”
“I hope so,” Twilight sighed.
As if passing to a dream itself, Discord awoke. No ground to support him, he felt himself tumble in free fall, the sudden weightlessness making his stomach sour. Looking wherever he may, however, no light greeted him. He blinked and felt something like a cloth round about his eyes. As he reached for his face, however, a jolt of pain surged about the crown of his head. Flinching, he continued, the pain only getting worse as his talon edged closer and closer.
“You can’t take it off,” an alto voice rumbled around him. Abandoning his hopeless quest to free himself from the shroud, he spun aimlessly as the sound bounced all around him. “Who are you?” he sneered.
The voice gave a mock-shocked gasp. “Must you forget your own kin so?” it whined.
Boggs, Discord thought. “My kin don’t kill for sport,” he retorted. “Now, mind telling me who you really are?”
A cold laugh echoed around him, but closer this time. “What’s the fun in telling you right away?” The voice focused piece by piece to his left, getting louder. “The only thing you need to know…” Her warm breath tingled his ear, making his hair stand on end. “... is that you have what I need.”
Preparing his claws, he turned to swipe at the noise, but not before two claws met at his temple. Like a flash of light, images of his memories played out in front of him in high speed, knocking him backward. He tried to hold his head in his claws only to be met by excruciating pain once more. He forced his arms to his sides. “What did you do?” he yelped in shock.
“Don’t you even recognize your own tricks?” Boggs’ voice asked. She hesitated. “Hmm, you and this Fluttershy did get pretty busy…”
Discord felt heat tingle in his cheeks, his chest burning in anger. “Glad you’re enjoying it,” he growled through his teeth. If it weren’t for the fact that Boggs’ voice was too far away, he would’ve tried swiping at her again. Recollecting himself, he snapped his fingers, but the feedback from casting a spell was absent. He snapped once more when two mismatched hands enveloped his.
“No use doing that, sweetheart,” Boggs taunted. In a quick motion, she bent his wrist back with a painful crack, her hoof planting squarely on his chest, knocking the air out of him as he soared backward, his back hitting a hard surface like concrete. He gasped for air as his lungs burned and his body was stunned.
In a shaky motion, Discord massaged his wrist. “So…” he wheezed. “You gonna… kill me… or what…?”
“Not yet,” she answered, clicking her tongue. “I need your mantle.”
By the time she found her temporary room, the sun began to set on the west horizon, the red sunlight spilling across the reflective tile. She didn't want to admit her own exhaustion, but in truth she was having trouble keeping her eyes open. She cursed under her breath when another pounding headache came. The world spun, and she caught herself on what she thought would be the wall. But she heard a soft click of the door opening and she fell into a pair of hooves.
“Trixie!” an alto voice yelped. “Are you all right?”
Her ears twitched, voice ringing familiar. She looked up and saw her best friend's pinkish coat and blue eyes. “Starlight!” she exclaimed, tears rushing to her eyes faster than ever before. Without realizing that she tackled her, they both fell to the floor in each other's hooves.
“Tr-Trixie wanted to be there when you woke up!” she managed, her voice overcome with sobs.
Starlight nuzzled into her neck, her face wet with tears. “I know.”
“I'm s-so sorry!”
Starlight wrapped her hooves tighter around her, pulling her closer. “It's okay, Trixie. It's okay.”
They lay in the doorway for what seemed to be ages, not an inch between them. But Trixie relished in the moment. After all, there was no room for pride here. She finally had her friend back; what more could she have ever wanted?
After a moment, Starlight grunted, “Hey, Trixie? As much as I love you, the tile's not doing any favors for my back.”
Trixie blinked as she pulled away. “Sorry,” she said, standing. When Starlight stood out from underneath her, she stretched in a cat like manner, arching her back downwards as a few light pops cracked from her joints.
“There,” her voice quivered with pleasure. “Much better.” She straightened up, looking back at Trixie, her eyes significantly less red than she anticipated. “Well, we're sharing a room, so come on in. I'd love to hear about your adventures.”