Meanwhile in the capital city of Vengeance, a demon commander enters the Throne Room and runs up to the miniature king.
“Your Majesty! That human is back again! Should we put your plan on hold until he leaves?”
King Malevolence smiles wickedly. “Arc! His timing could not be more perfect! Infor the troops we are moving up the timeline to as soon as possible! Not even he can stop us now!”
Arc leads Trixie and Shining Armor south toward the former Vile Tribe hideout. Shining Armor looks to Arc.
“How long will it take to reach the Gates of Tartarus?”
“The trip on foot would take several hours. We're going to spend the night at my old house and head there in the morning. If I know King Malevolence, he's going to have a nice surprise waiting for us somewhere between the Vile Tribe headquarters and the Gate!”
Trixie looks nervous. “What makes you so sure?”
“Past experience. The king isn't really that bright. He'll stick with what he knows works. That and he knows the Gates will be my ultimate destination.”
Shining Armor looks around. “What's so special about that particular area?”
“Well for one thing, it's COMPLETLY flat! Probably the only place in Tartarus that is! At least... it is now.”
“Now?”
Arc nods. “It was there that my dragon friend Ember challenged me to see if I was... worthy’. In a moment of desperation, she unleashed the power within her spear! It completely destroyed the hill we had been fighting on!”
Shining Armor shakes his head. “Is that... how you befriend a dragon?!”
Arc shrugs. “Sort of. Most dragon's respect can be earned with a show of force. Ember and I were already friends by that point. Even more so after I risked my life to save her from an incurable illness. The only problem is, now she wants to become... my... uh... mate.”
Shining Armor and Trixie both stop walking and slowly turn to look at each other wide eyed! After a few moments of staring at each other, they slowly turn their heads back to Arc, mouths agape! Suddenly, both Shining Armor and Trixie fall to the ground laughing! Arc waits patiently for the two to get over their hysterics.
He rolls his eyes. “If you two are quite done laughing at my predicament...”
Shining Armor slowly gets up, still chuckling. “I... I'm sorry sir! It's just so hard to imagine your dragon friend being anything other than a warrior!”
Trixie wipes tears of laughter from her face. “Me too! Ember just seems so... bloodthirsty! Trixie is having a hard time picturing her in a wedding dress!”
“If you don't mind my asking sir, what are you planning to do about her?”
"Her father, the Dragon Lord, has already forbidden our marriage. Although it doesn't appear Ember will be so easily dissuaded. Mind if I ask you a question now, Shining Armor?”
“Certainly sir!”
“Why do you keep calling me ‘sir’?”
Shining Armor looks confused. “Well, because you're a superior officer. It's protocol.”
Trixie turns to him. “But, weren't you on your way to prison for life?! Didn't they... uh... fire you, or whatever, first?”
Shining Armor stops walking. His pupils shrink and presumably something inside him breaks. Trixie and Arc stop and look back at him.
“I... I guess I just hadn't had time to think about it. Although nothing was ever said, I'm sure Captain Decimus must have discharged me prior to us meeting, Trixie.”
Arc nods soberly. “So... what will you do when we get back to Equestria?”
Shining Armor sighs. “I have no idea! This is terrible! Twilight will be so disappointed!”
Trixie raises an eyebrow. “Not Twilight Sparkle!”
“You know her?!”
Trixie looks suddenly peevish! “Oh, I know her all right! It's thanks to her that I can never return to Ponyville! My life has been a constant downward spiral ever since the two of us met!”
Arc turns to press on. “We should keep moving. Although I would be very interested to know the rest of that story, Trixie.”
“Are you sure? It's not exactly short.”
Shining Armor nods. “Well, I think we have the time right now. This is of great interest to me as well!”
Trixie nods. “Okay. Here goes...”
She closes her eyes for a few moments and takes a deep breath.
“Twilight and I first met when we were both attending Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. It's really hard to get in, as they only accept foals with extremely high potential!”
Shining Armor nods approvingly! “That's really impressive Trixie! I've heard that less than one percent of applicants are accepted!”
“Is that where you got the idea for the whole “Great and Powerful Trixie” shtick?”
“Well, kinda! You see, when I was about to take my entrance test, I was waiting patiently in the hall with my parents for the purple filly ahead of me to finish hers. I was that day's final applicant.”
Arc nods. “Can I assume the ‘purple filly’ was Twilight?”
Trixie nods. “Yes, it was! She went in and the doors were closed. After a little while of silence there was a deafening roar from outside! Then there was an equally loud crash from inside the Testing Room!”
She is silent for a time, as if thinking very hard!
Arc turns to her. “Well, what happened?!”
“I... don't know.”
Arc raises an eyebrow. “Wait! Two explosions and you have no clue what transpired?”
Trixie shakes her head. “No. The next thing I knew, the doors flew open and Princess Celestia and Twilight walked out of the Testing Room together! The group of Proctors followed them, for some unknown reason astonished! My parents and I ran after them to remind them that I had not yet been tested! They barely glanced at ME as they were so enamored with HER!”
“I'm sorry Twilight took the spotlight Trixie. But I know she would never have done so if she knew it would have hurt somepony else's chances of being accepted!”
“I admit, it did take quite a while for me to get over the rejection of our initial meeting. But don't worry, I was able to move on.”
“So, what happened to your testing time? Did you have to come back another day?”
“No. I never took the entrance test. My father told my mother and I to go back home. He said he would take care of everything. I don't know how he did it, but somehow he convinced the Proctors that I was so qualified that I didn't need any kind of test!”
Shining Armor looks confused. “Um... how did he do that?!”
Trixie shrugs. “I don't know! But it was in that moment that I knew I would be something great one day! However that wasn't the end of my troubles. In fact, they were just beginning. I started a regime of VERY advanced magic classes. It wasn't long before I was falling behind in every one of them! No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't seem to get ahead!”
Shining Armor turns to Trixie. “Didn't you ask the instructors for help? That is their job after all.”
“I thought about it, many times actually. But you see the Lulamoon family is a very proud one! We earned our place in society through the sweat and toil of our own efforts! It would shame my family greatly if they learned their daughter was asking for HELP!”
Arc shakes his head. “Was Twilight in any of your classes by any chance?”
“Are you KIDDING?! She was in EVERY class I took! While I do admit she is quite... talented, I always thought there were forces beyond my control that were scheming to keep me in her shadow! Every time we had to make a presentation in front of the class, the instructors would insist that she go last!”
“Is that a bad thing?”
Trixie shakes her head. “Normally no. But their reasoning behind it was so that the other instructors could leave their own classes a few minutes early to WATCH! Imagine the back of the classroom lined with instructors who have come to spectate!”
Shining Armor sighs. “I have to admit, that would make me feel a bit... overlooked. Did any of the other foals feel the same as you did?”
“They did! She was always being ignored by the others. They would always talk about her behind her back!”
“That's awful! She never told me about this! Do you think it bothered her at all?”
Trixie scoffs! “I doubt it. To tell you the truth, I don't think she even noticed! She always had her nose deep in some magical tome of some sort! The only time I heard her speak was during presentations and when she was muttering to herself while taking notes.”
Arc nods. “Sounds to me like all of you were just jealous of her success.”
Trixie looks to Arc, incredulous! “Jealous?! Me?! Never!”
“Well, why didn't you like her then? Did she intentionally do something... anything really, to earn your disdain back then?”
“Haven't you heard a word of my story?!”
“I said INTENTIONALLY!”
Trixie opens her mouth to speak but no words come out.
Arc sighs. “I thought so. Look Trixie, jealousy and rivalry are really just a part of growing up. It's completely natural to feel this way about someone whom we want to surpass.”
“I've spent my entire life trying to become better, stronger, faster, and smarter than Twilight Sparkle! My tour of Equestria was not completely random, you know! I always intended for it to eventually lead me to Ponyville, so I could finally challenge Princess Celestia's personal student!”
“But why?”
Trixie seethes! “I wanted to beat her! To show her she wasn't the most powerful out there! And not just behind closed doors! Oh no, she needed to be publicly humiliated for all the pain she caused me over the years! She needed to know what it feels like to not be number one! Ever since I was a foal, I've wanted to be a great performer! To be able to hold ponies spellbound in awe of my abilities! However, the best I was able to do was be a traveling showpony. I've been from one end of Equestria to the other and performed for groups as large as a couple hundred ponies!”
Arc nods, sadly. “I'm almost certain I know the answer to this but, how did your “battle” with Twilight go?”
Trixie lowers her head as her ears droop. “Not... quite as I planned. I was able to easily defeat the few others that dared to challenge me. But when I extended the challenge to Twilight Sparkle, something I didn't see coming happened! She... ran away!”
Shining Armor looks over, surprised. “Okay I admit, I didn't see that coming! But why?!”
“I actually don't know. After I had walked off the stage, I expected to feel some degree of satisfaction at ‘defeating’ my rival! But I suppose making her run away wasn't really proving myself or my abilities to anypony! Least of all myself! I went back to my wagon for a good night's sleep, figuring I would think of something tomorrow.”
Arc nods. “Sleeping on it. It's sometimes the best thing to do... when you don't know what to do. Humans do it all the time!”
“Really? Does that work?”
Arc shrugs. “Sometimes. At the very least it helps us feel better, and can give us a fresh perspective.”
He looks over at Trixie.
“Did it help you?”
Trixie sighs. “Hardly. I was awakened late that night by two foals who somehow had led what I had thought was an Ursa Major to Ponyville. Thanks to them, I had to admit, in front of the whole town mind you, that I never actually defeated one and had made the whole thing up to make myself look good!
“Uh, Trixie? That sounds like it was more your fault than Twilight's.”
Trixie sighs. “Yes, well... you can't break an omelet without making a few eggs.”
Shining Armor looks confused. “But isn't that backwards?”
Trixie shakes her head. “It's an old saying in the Lulamoon family. My father told me it means that sometimes to get what you want, you may have to tell a few white lies.”
Arc frowns. “That doesn't sound like very good advice to give a filly.”
“Maybe not, but it's water under the bridge now.”
“I suppose it is. Sorry for interrupting. Please continue.”
“Well, I tried to fight the beast! But as I had thought, it was far too big for me to take care of! It was then that ‘she’ showed up!
Shining Armor nods. “Twilight?”
“Right. She used her magic to calm the beast down with a pretty lullaby. Then she diverted her magic to a nearby water tower which she somehow filled with milk! Twilight then carried the beast with her magic all the way back to the Everfree Forest, and presumably back to its cave. Everypony cheered for her and treated her like she was the best thing since sliced bread!”
Arc rolls his eyes. “Well, typically ponies cheer when you do something heroic like save their town.”
Trixie sighs. “I suppose so. But it just made me so mad that yet again she was taking center stage! I was so mad I didn't know what to do other than... run away. Now any time I go into Ponyville, all I get is a cold shoulder from the residents there.”
“I hate to say it, but I think their ire is well founded. If Twily hadn't been there, who knows how many ponies would have been hurt... or worse!”
Trixie hangs her head. “I... I know that! And I’m grateful that she was there to take care of the problem. However, ever since then my magic act has suffered greatly! It's like I'm living under a dark cloud! Some towns have even gone so far as to chase me out of town before I can even so much as perform! I guess word of my deeds preceded me.”
Trixie sighs.
“Now ponies judge me before they even get to know me...”
Arc nods. “Yeah... I know how you feel.”
Trixie looks up quickly, wide eyed! “What?! But... but everypony loves and respects you!”
“It wasn't always that way. When I first came to this land, anytime I walked the streets alone, all the shops would close and everyone would run into the nearest building and lock the door. I mean... I couldn't really blame them, being so much bigger than they are. That and it's not like humans have the best of reputations.”
“So... what did you do about it?”
Arc looks straight ahead. “I just went about my business as best I could. You might find it a bit ironic, but it was Twilight and her friends that really helped bridge the gap between myself and the citizens of Ponyville. You see, back then I really didn't have anywhere to go, so I was living with Twilight in her library. She did her best to try and make me feel at home in my new surroundings, mostly by making sure I was always seen with either her or her friends when I was outside.”
Shining Armor chuckles. “That's Twilight for you! Well, now anyways...”
Trixie turns to Arc suspiciously. “Although maybe she was trying to make sure you weren't up to no good?”
Arc nods. “I believe the truth lies somewhere in the middle. It's not like she INTENDED to pull me into this world after all!”
Shining Armor turns to looks at Arc! “Wait! She did WHAT?!"
“It's okay! I'm... actually really happy here in Equestria! I know there is no way back now, but again, I'm really quite grateful!”
Shining Armor appears mortified! “Sir! I am SO SORRY for what my little sister did!”
Arc chuckles. “Come on now Shining Armor. Just forget it. Even if there was a way back to Earth, I would still stay here.”
Now it was Trixie’s turn to be surprised! “Wait! Shining Armor... Twilight Sparkle is your SISTER?!”
Shining Armor nods. “Yes. I believe I said that when we were in the Audience Chamber. Although you were kinda out of it at the time. I... hope that isn't going to be a problem.”
“Well... I guess if you had told me that a week ago it would have been, but... I think I'm a different pony now. At least I hope so.”
Arc nods. “I hope so too, Trixie.”
“Thanks, both of you.”
Shining Armor turns to Trixie, confused. “What for?”
“Well for... you know... being there for me when I needed you. If I had come here alone, I think something would have eaten me by now. It feels good to be in the company of friends.”
Trixie looks around at the bleak and foreboding landscape around her.
“...now more than ever it seems!”
The party continues on for well over an hour in silence. Trixie looks over at Arc.
“Arc, if I may... do you ever wish you could go back to... um... where are humans from again?”
“Earth. And not really. I wish I could go back to get a couple of my possessions from my house and say goodbye to a few friends. But then I would come right back to Equestria!”
“Really?! Don't you want to go home?!”
Arc shakes his head. “Equestria IS my home now!”
“If I may sir, I must say your Loyalty to this land truly is impressive!”
“Thank you Shining Armor. But you know you don't really have to call me ‘sir’.”
“But sir...! Well what should I call you then?”
“Just call me Arc. After all, we're friends here, right?”
Trixie looks over, weakly. “R-right!”
“Trixie? Are you okay?”
Shining Armor looks at his friend, concerned. “You don't look so good!”
Trixie stops to catch her breath. “I... think I just need a rest. Perhaps I should have stayed in that hospital bed a bit longer after all.”
“I'm sorry Trixie, but this is not a good place to take a nap! Shining Armor, can you carry her?”
“Sure!”
Shining Armor uses his magic to lift Trixie and place her on his back. He turns his head to looks at her.
“Comfy?”
Trixie can only nod weakly.
Shining Armor continues on with Arc in the lead. “Don't worry. I'll make sure nothing happens to you.”
Trixie closes her eyes and responds weakly. “I... know... thank... you...”
In a few minutes, she is asleep.
“Si... I mean Arc, is there someplace nearby we can go to rest? Trixie really need it!”
"Agreed. We can take her back to the old hideout... if it's still standing that is."
Another hour or so later the trio arrives at the former Vile Tribe hideout. They enter via the front gate. Arc closes the gate behind them and looks around.
“It's just as I remember it.”
Shining Armor looks around the town. “Arc, you actually LIVED here?!”
Arc nods. “It was better than living in the Wasteland. The walls kept the demons out, and ensured a certain degree of safety. This way...”
He walks over to a small house and opens the door for Shining Armor and Trixie.
“Home sweet home. I know it's not much, but please make yourself comfortable. You can take your armor off now, Shining Armor. This is probably the safest place in Tartarus.”
Arc picks Trixie up and carries her to his old bed. He covers Trixie with a blanket and strokes her mane a few times.
“Sleep well, Trixie.”
Arc turns to the small stove in the corner and gets a fire going before turning to Shining Armor.
“The nights can get a bit chilly sometimes. Now I need to go and find us some food. Can you look after Trixie for a bit?”
“No problem.”
Arc leaves the house, about an hour later he returns.
“Okay, supper is cooking and should be ready soon.”
Shining Armor looks at him, confused. “It is? Where?”
“We always cooked our meals in the fire pit in the center of town. No one in town had kitchen facilities in their homes, as cooking here is a rather... messy ordeal.”
“I'm not sure I follow.”
Arc sighs. “Don't worry. All will become clear in time. How is Trixie doing?”
Shining Armor looks over at the mare lying on the bed. “Well, she doesn't appear to be in any pain from what I can tell. I'm hoping she just needs a good night sleep after the day she's had.”
Arc nods. “How about you? I'm sure you could go for a good night's sleep as well.”
“I'll be okay. Is there anything I can do to help?”
"If you wouldn't mind going from house to house and gathering up a few more blankets, I would appreciate it."
“But... isn't that... stealing?!”
Arc shakes his head. “Not really. The Vile Tribe is never coming back for them. If they were here right now, I'm sure they wouldn't have any problem with us going through their houses, under these circumstances.”
“Well, okay. If you're sure.”
“I am, but your honesty is appreciated.”
Shining Armor goes through town and gathers up the blankets. He brings them back to Arc's house.
“Is this enough?”
Arc nods. “Yes. That should do nicely. Now I need to check on supper. I'll be right back.”
He leaves the house. Shining Armor walks over to Trixie and looks down at her. She stirs ever so slightly.
“Trixie?”
She opens her eyes slowly, groggily “Ugh... sorry... I'm... just so... tired.”
“Sorry to wake you up, but Arc says we should be eating here soon. I'm sure you can go back to bed after that.”
Trixie slowly rises from the bed, rubbing her temples with a hoof. “What a headache!”
Arc walks in the door. “Supper is done. It should be cooled down enough to eat in just a couple minutes. How are you doing Trixie?”
“I'm still really sleepy. Sorry about this.”
Arc looks at her, confused. “Sorry about what?”
“Well, if it wasn't for me, we could have been out of this place by now!”
Trixie looks around the room.
“Uh... where are we?”
“My old house from my first visit to this hellish place. Don't worry though. We're safe inside the walls of the Vile Tribe's old headquarters. Now I don't mean to sound rude, but we should eat before the food gets cold.”
Shining Armor looks over at his friend. “Trixie, can you make it on your own?”
“I think so. Thank you though.”
Arc leads the way to the center of town where a fire still burns in the twilight of the evening. He sits down, a bit embarrassed.
“Sorry if it doesn't taste the best. I was the hunter/gatherer type, so cooking wasn't exactly in my job description.”
Shining Armor and Trixie look at the food on the serving platter suspiciously.
Trixie looks nervous. “What... is it?”
Arc picks up a piece. “Beetle meat.”
Shining Armor’s face turns slightly green. “Arc, I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but...”
“I'm sorry, but this is all there is to eat in Tartarus. You really should eat it, if for no other reason than to keep your strength up. I know ponies find meat to be distasteful, but there aren't any plants anywhere!”
Shining Armor nods and turns to Trixie. “We really should try and get something in our bellies. After all, Arc did work very hard to prepare this for us.”
Arc nods as he eats. “If you really can't stomach it, I understand. Don't force yourselves on my account. We should be out of here by tomorrow anyways.”
Shining Armor sits down and picks up a chunk of Beetle Meat with his magic. “I honestly can't remember the last time I ate. Other than a few mouthfuls of food before we were banished, that is.”
Trixie sits down next to Shining Armor. “I... don't know if I can do this.”
“Don't worry about it Trixie. I won't be offended or anything if you don't eat it.”
Trixie turns to Shining Armor.
“What do you think of it?”
“It may not taste very good, but it is pretty satisfying. Just to be fair though, I'm hungry enough to eat pretty much anything!”
Trixie sniffs at the food and makes a face! She then takes a small bite.
"Ugh! Arc how did you eat this every day?!
Arc shrugs. “It actually tastes okay to me. Most humans love meat after all, just like ponies love hay and oats.”
Trixie nods. “I'll try to eat it then.”
The trio continues their meal. Shining Armor looks around at the empty houses.
“So, what happened to the ponies who used to live here?”
“When Twilight and her friends broke into Tartarus to rescue me, we took them with us. You can meet them tomorrow when we leave. They built a new town just outside the Gates of Tartarus.”
Trixie looks to Arc, nervously. “Are they... friendly?”
Arc nods. “Considering they’ve lived their entire lives here, yes. Truth be told, they’re actually the descendants of a group of criminals banished to Tartarus a very long time ago. Their leader is a rather... eccentric stallion named Mythic Honor.”
They finish their meal. Trixie and Shining Armor appear quite tired.
“I think you two should get some sleep now. It's been a rather... interesting couple of days.”
“What about you, Arc?
Arc stands up and looks to Trixie. “I think I'm going to take a peek over the wall and see if we have any movement from the Demon King or his minions from Vengeance.”
Shining Armor looks to Arc, a serious look on his face. “Are you expecting an attack?!”
Arc shakes his head. “I don't believe he would be so foolish as to directly assault us here. He knows that I can take whatever he can throw at me and give it right back! Last time I was here, he tried to blackmail me into helping him pass through the barrier into Equestria. I'm sure he's had plenty of time to come up with another plan though. Don't worry. I won't be long.”
Shining Armor nods. “We'll wait for you here.”
Arc heads over to the wall and picks up a dusty spyglass. He points it toward Vengeance
“Now then... let's see what the royal pain is up to over there.”
He looks at the capital city. The town seems to be very active even considering the late hour. Building supplies are being carried toward something covered with a large tarp. It is almost as long as the city itself is, but narrow!
“I do wish I knew what he had under there. Somehow I doubt he's building a monorail.”
Looking toward the area in front of the city gates, he spies what may very well be the Demon King's entire fighting force is camped in front of the city!
“This is... not his best plan... I hope.”
Arc walks back to the fire pit, Trixie and Shining Armor are sitting there waiting for him.
“Anything interesting?”
“Sort of. It looks like they’re building something over there. Couldn't tell what though, as its covered with a sheet. A really big sheet! The Demon King has also assembled what I believe to be his entire army in front of Vengeance!
Trixie begins to shake! “Are... are they coming HERE?!”
Arc shakes his head. “Doubtful. I'm guessing this is another one of the King Malevolence's plans to escape Tartarus. The army is probably waiting to invade Equestria! I really wish I could get a look under that sheet and see what it is we're up against.”
Shining Armor appears concerned. “What should we do about this?!”
“At the moment, nothing. It's not safe to be running around outside the wall after dark, as many of the more dangerous wild demons are active! We should get a good night's sleep and head for the Gates of Tartarus first thing in the morning.”
“But, what about the invasion?!”
“I wouldn't really worry too much about that. King Malevolence has been trying to escape from here for centuries! As you can see, none of his plans have worked out. It stands to reason that this plan will be no different.”
Trixie nods. “If you say so, Arc...”