//------------------------------// // Chapter 11 // Story: Defense in Depth // by Fon Shaolin //------------------------------// “...and that is how the Great and Powerful Trixie defeated the Black Beast of Caerbannog. Of course, it was much more difficult than simply casting a few spells! The Clever and Resourceful Trixie had to first find the monster, and let Trixie tell you, that was not the easiest thing in Equestria!” Originally, Twilight had thought the magister’s attitude was funny, maybe even cute. She spoke in third person! Who did that? And she was serious about it; she hadn’t slipped yet, not once. It was like sharing the road with a sidewalk performer from Canterlot, the ponies who either had flashy magic or quick tongues to get tourist attention - and Trixie certainly had both. “Are you listening to Trixie? Trixie is trying to help you!” Should have taken a dive, Twilight thought. “I’m listening, ma’am. You investigated the cave the beast was named after because of a hunch and discovered it was a mother. That’s why it’d been attacking Neighagra. So you just tracked its eating habits and it took you straight to its hunting grounds.” Trixie actually went quiet for a second. “...you’ve heard of Trixie’s adventures?” “You told this story a few hours ago, right after the one about how you fought kelpies down by Hollow Shades.” “R-Really? Ah, then… it was just a test! A test to see if you are paying attention, which is important for a magister!” Trixie exclaimed, tossing her hair. Twilight hadn’t been a saint growing up, but even she wouldn’t have been so transparent. “Did I pass?” Twilight sarcastically asked. She got a petulant look from the other unicorn. “A heckler at every show,” Trixie muttered, but at least it cut her story short. Twilight wondered if this was going to be a vertical slice of the whole mission. The first day on the train had been, after the shock of being back inside something that wasn’t a campaign tent had worn off, pretty boring. Trixie had disappeared into first-class while Twilight had to fight for a seat in coach. Apparently Fort Dressage was a popular destination between Canterlot and Las Pegasus because Twilight was squeezed between two old stallions in floral shirts, talking over her head about which casinos they were going to hit first. When that got old, they started trying to make conversation, talking about a nephew or a niece that had joined the guard and if Twilight knew them, without telling her what base, what class, or even what year they’d been in. Three hours of that, though, was better than what came next when the train had lurched to a stop in the middle of a canyon after someone had pulled the emergency cord in another car. Twilight had to endure the grumbling and angry looks when Trixie had burst into her car, telling Twilight to fetch their bags and that they were departing the train. In the middle of the desert. In a canyon. A canyon that was the perfect home for a bunch of slithering, slimy, poisonous sna- “Don’t think about them,” Twilight ordered herself. “If you think about them they’ll show up.” Trixie glanced back. “What are you grumbling about? Trixie thought you guard types loved the outdoors and a little exercise.” Twilight snorted. “You have six traveling trunks. If I didn’t have magic this would be a death march, not an afternoon hike.” But even Twilight’s strength was being put to the test right now. It felt like Trixie carried around steel bars in these things! Annoyingly, the azure unicorn smirked back at her. “Trixie can carry her own things, if it’s too much of a burden. Trixie is feeling much better after a nap on the train. Not tired and hungry like during our little… exhibition.” Giving Trixie back her bags right now would be perfect. The look on her face when Twilight called her bluff! But. But. Twilight really didn’t want to lose to this… civilian. “No,” Twilight grumbled, “I’ve got it.” “Good! Now, let Trixie concentrate. She might be a little turned around.” “You don’t know where we are?!” Trixie flinched as Twilight’s shout echoed off the high canyon walls. “Trixie did not say that! She is just… getting her bearings! Understanding the lay of the land! Monster hunting skills that a trainee like you wouldn’t recognize.” “I know what lost looks like, ma’am.” Twilight looked around at the high walls of the slot canyons around them. “Do you want me to get to the top of one of these walls and look for anything? Like maybe the train tracks, so we can sit there and wait for the next one?” “For someone who wanted to come along on this mission so much that she nearly started crying back at that fort, you sure do complain a lot.” Twilight sputtered. “I was not…! They were going to…” That smug grin was back on Trixie’s face. “You lost! Of course you should have taken me!” Up went Trixie’s nose. “The Merciful and Humble Trixie did not ‘lose’. She allowed you to win, after seeing how much trouble you would get into for wrestling like some Earth pony instead of fighting like a proper unicorn!” “First off, I think that was probably racist,” Twilight deadpanned. “Secondly, I do not fight like some kind of Earth pony! I used a valid spell suppression and takedown technique they teach in the guard for arresting unicorns!” Trixie waved Twilight off, which only made the lavender unicorn angrier. “We were having a duel, not a street brawl. Mages use spells in a duel. That is one of the first things we learn at Celestia’s school.” That anger completely boiled over at that. Twilight groaned and threw up her hooves. “Why does everyone care so much about that stupid school?!” The surprised unicorn backed up a few steps before catching herself. “It is not a ‘stupid school’!" Trixie shouted back. "It is the most prestigious learning environment in the entire country!” Twilight jabbed her hoof into Trixie’s chest. “Oh yeah? If it’s so prestigious then why did some unicorn that went through the regular Canterlot public school system kick your flank a few hours ago!” It was impossible to tell what made Trixie angrier - that Twilight had said she’d lost again or that Twilight had only gone to public school - but the unicorn’s face turned fire-engine red. “I… Trixie… you…” She couldn’t even get the words out. Twilight wanted her to do something. This pony had dragged her out to Celestia-knows-where, out of training, on what was supposed to be a monster hunt! Now they were lost and another train wouldn’t be by for at least a day! Just when Twilight thought Trixie was going to well and truly explode, the magister took a deep breath. Then another. Then she might have started counting because Twilight could see her lips moving. “You are trying to get under Trixie’s skin,” she said, eyes still closed, voice still measured. The whole ritual seemed very much like something she’d practiced many, many times. “It won’t work. Trixie does not get baited by the hired help.” Before Twilight could react to that, Trixie’s horn was already firing. In a flash of magenta, she was gone! As annoyed as Twilight was, she was still floored by the casual use of spells she’d only seen in movies or read about in magical history books! Another pop! and Trixie reappeared at the top of the canyon. Trixie glared at Twilight from over the edge. “Trixie shall have a look around,” she called down. “If the ‘Great and Powerful’ Twilight Sparkle can lower herself to guard our luggage for a few moments, perhaps Trixie can find a place to camp.” “Yeah, well, I could climb up there if I wanted to,” Twilight muttered. It didn’t matter; Trixie had already walked away and all the venom Twilight had been ready to spit left with her. Another great first impression, Twilight thought, sitting down with a heavy thump. She felt exhausted, and not from carrying the luggage. Trixie was an annoying travel companion. A complete narcissist. 100% one of those ponies who only looked out for herself. And… she was completely right. “I am the hired help. I’m supposed to be working with her. She might even outrank me.” Twilight still wasn’t sure about where the Magisterium fell within Equestria’s military structure, but it clearly had enough pull that it could interrupt basic training and pull a trainee. And here Twilight was, getting into arguments with a magister! If only she hadn’t mentioned that stupid school. Or be so good at magic. Twilight didn’t want to admit it, even to herself, but it wasn’t really Trixie’s personality she had a problem with - it was the unicorn’s life. Not that Trixie had told her anything about it, but Twilight could imagine: a little, tiny Trixie acing the dragon egg test, being told she was the best thing the school had ever seen, and then whisked into a world Twilight had dreamed of getting into. An image of Feldspar came to mind, and not for the first time since Twilight had turned him down. He’d been blowing smoke, of course, saying that she could be the next High Magister, but even just being a regular mage… wouldn’t that have been like being in the Princess’s school? Just a little bit? But it wouldn’t get me any closer to her. That’s what I want. That’s what I’ve always wanted ever since I saw my first Summer Sun Celebration. But what would being a Royal Guard really do for her? Did she think that Celestia would take her into her confidence? Be friends? A princess, be friends with the hired help? Twilight couldn’t even be friends with Trixie, or Lightning Dust, or any of the other ponies she was training with. Bay Orchid wasn’t a friend, not really. They knew what their partnership was for. Was that friendship? Just enough exchanges, built up over time, to the point where a mutual partnership became a friendship? Shining Armor didn’t have this problem. Twilight knew that for a fact. Her brother was a social butterfly and could get ponies laughing or crying or whatever he wanted them to do. They just wanted to follow him. But Twilight Sparkle wasn’t Shining Armor, no matter what the cadre back at the base thought. I can at least be a better guard, Twilight thought. Twilight might not have been able to be her brother, but she could be herself - that pony didn’t fail. That pony couldn’t fail, or she’d never get what she wanted out of life. That pony was a perfectionist, who micromanaged every detail until it was just so. And that meant she was going to stop moping. Twilight got back on her hooves and started making a makeshift perimeter with the boxes. They were out here hunting monsters, weren’t they? Twilight could almost hear her old ROTC commander barking at her. And what if some manticore had just swooped down and eaten you while you were sitting there feeling sorry for yourself? Get it together, Trainee! In no time flat, Twilight had a ring of rocks in the middle of the canyon, surrounding herself and Trixie’s luggage. It even had a little stone lean-to that she could take cover under, just in case that imaginary manticore did decide to show up. It was a neat little fort if Twilight did say so herself. “You’ve been busy.” Twilight jumped, which made Trixie’s laughter even more embarrassing. There wasn’t any way she could explain away yelping like a filly, so she just bit her tongue and tried to look angry. Trixie ignored her and did a lap around the little position Twilight had built. “Expecting company?” she asked, not commenting on the fort way or another, nor did she bring up the argument they’d had before she’d left. “You’re not?” Twilight countered, relieved to ignore it as well.“We’re out here to hunt monsters, right?” “Trixie never said we came out here to do that. We’re out here so that we can meet up with the rest of the team.” Her horn lit and she levitated over one of her traveling trunks. Twilight heard the locking mechanism in it twist and turn, until it finally popped open. Things spilled out at once - an extra set of black magister robes, some ancient-looking books, a… A wizard hat? It looked like a toy, with its crude little yellow stars stitched against the blue background. Twilight went to pick it up with her magic, but Trixie quickly shoved it back into the trunk. “It’s rude to touch someone’s things without their permission!” Trixie snapped. Twilight had a response chambered and ready, but she bit down on her tongue. Trying a different approach, she reminded herself. “Sorry.” It was a bit gratifying to see Trixie stare at her like she’d grown a second head. The other unicorn chewed on the world for a few moments, just to see if there was anything negative in the simple apology. “Well,” she finally muttered, “apology accepted.” A few more seconds of digging drew a happy little whinny from the magister and the awkward moment was forgotten. “Finally! Trixie’s conference crystal!” Twilight trotted up to the trunk and peered over Trixie’s shoulder. In her telekinetic grip was a little silver crystal, no bigger than Twilight’s hoof. Trixie puffed herself up and floated it over right in front of Twilight’s snout. She seemed incredibly proud of the little thing. “Well? What do you think?” The moment stretched on an uncomfortably long moment as Trixie waited for some kind of reaction, but Twilight had zero idea what was so special about the little bauble. She didn’t want to look like a foal, though. “It’s, ah… very impressive?” Trixie blinked at her. Then, finally, it set in. “Of course you wouldn’t know. You’re not a trained mage.” She rolled her eyes and whisked the crystal back. “There are only a few dozen sets of these in Equestria, Trixie will have you know. They are relics of the fabled Crystal Empire that she’s been entrusted with!” And Twilight had no idea what that was either, but she made a surprised face like she did. There was no way she’d give Trixie more of a reason to look down on her. “The Crystal Empire?” “Of course. Trixie is a very important pony!” Trixie was practically glowing with pride. “Now, help Trixie set this up. We need a flat surface.” Twilight looked over to her stone fort. She picked up one of the larger rocks with her telekinesis and flipped it around until its smoothest surface was right-side up. “Will this do?” she asked. “...damn Amazon pony…” *ahem* “Yes, yes, Trixie supposes that will do. Just… just put it down somewhere.” Twilight tried to not enjoy the way Trixie jumped when the massive stone plummeted back down to the ground. Trixie whisked away the dust and dirt with a few swipes of her magic. When she was finally satisfied, she put the little crystal down in the center of the rock and jumped back. Just when Twilight was going to ask if she needed to do anything, Trixie lowered her horn and blasted a stream of magic at the crystal. Twilight was the one that jumped back this time as magical sparks flew every which way. She was sure the whole process was very magical, but when the canyon suddenly darkened like the sun had just been extinguished Twilight decided to just stand behind Trixie and ride out the storm. In the light provided by Trixie’s spell, Twilight watched the crystal lift off the stone and hover in the air. Her ears flicked; there was something in the air that she could almost hear, like a ringing, as the thing began to spin wildly. Trixie’s magic tapered off a moment later, but the crystal was now emitting enough light that Twilight could easily see it. “It’s pretty impressive, right?” Trixie huffed. She wobbled on her feet and Twilight braced her without even thinking about it. Trixie looked shocked, but she didn’t pull away as the crystal began generating its own magical field. And then suddenly a web of magic snaked out of the spinning crystal, spanning an area about as wide as the stone it had been sitting on. The web looped back into itself on the corners, creating a… well, a window if Twilight had to guess. Suspended in the air. Twilight didn’t even need to answer Trixie’s question - it was plainly written on her face. She had never seen this kind of magic. Never even heard of it! Portals! A face appeared in the crackling energy and Trixie quickly bowed. She shot Twilight a significant, furious look and she hurriedly dipped her head as well. “Magister Lunamoon. You’re late.” The static noise Twilight had been hearing suddenly sharpened into a voice, clear as a bell. Clear - but thunderous. It shook Twilight down to her hooves. Trixie was shaking. Twilight could see the unicorn’s hooves shivering at the corner of her vision. “M-Master. Trixie wasn’t…. Trixie… I mean no one told me that you would be…” The unicorn in the portal raised a hoof and cut Trixie off before she could stammer herself to death. “You were not told because you did not need to know.” His eyes, ancient, almost grey with age, slid over to Twilight. And then Twilight knew exactly how Trixie felt. This pony, Sol Shard, was something ancient. Powerful. Twilight knew she was imagining it, but she could almost feel the weight of his magic pressing down on her, as if his attention were a physical thing. As if something Old had just noticed she existed and was now considering - considering what Twilight didn’t know, but she felt her knees lock. “Good. You chose this one.” “My… my master told me to watch for a purple unicorn at the fort, and to test her. Should I have… not tested others?” Trixie sounded fairly terrified and as curious as Twilight was about the conversation, she knew not to interrupt. In fact she wanted to get as small as possible… because Twilight knew this pony. She had recognized him the second his face had appeared in the portal, and she knew why Trixie was so cowed. Sol Shard, High Magister of the Grand Spire. Breaker of the End Titan, Gigax. Master of the Deep Mysteries. There were hundreds of epithets attached to the stallion now taking the measure of her and any one of them was worthy of tales that would last generations, but put together and he was easily the most powerful unicorn since Star Swirl the Bearded! And he was right there. The ancient magister shook his head. “If she could not overcome a simple test from the newest magister in our order, then she is not needed. I am pleased.” Trixie’s head snapped up with a wide grin, but then she remembered herself and quickly looked back down at the ground. “T-Thank you, sir.” “Indeed. I will inform your Master Sunburst of my pleasure as well.” His attention cut back to Twilight. She got a distinct feeling that she was being evaluated and it was a long moment before he spoke again. “So. You are the pony who defeated my suppression rings.” Trixie let out a strangled gurgle. “The seven rings at Canterlot?” she hissed. Numbly, Twilight nodded. Sol Shard had made those rings? The stallion hummed. “Well, I created the design,” he amended, maybe smiling when Twilight looked up at him. “It was a very impressive feat, and it puts you in incredible company. I understand you were given an offer to join the Magisterium, that you declined, afterward?” Twilight stammered for a moment and Trixie’s eyes turned apocalyptic. “Well, I mean, I didn’t join to become a mage. Sir. Master.” “Just ‘Sir’ is fine. You are not, after all, one of my mages.” “Am I… in trouble?” There was a distinct pause from the High Magister, one that lasted long enough that even Trixie snuck a few glances upwards at him. He seemed to be considering the question in full, which was nice of him, but it did nothing to ease the growing terror in Twilight’s chest. “Certain parties were disappointed you turned down the invitation. Many on the High Council are not used to such an offer being spurred. Magister Feldspar has many associates on the council who hold him in the highest regard.” His eyes narrowed only a fraction, but Twilight felt the breath go out of her. “Myself included. The way you declined was not becoming of a guard, or a unicorn. Magister Feldspar is a dear friend and deserved better than such embarrassment..” “But… but the things he said about the Guard, and Princess Celestia…!” Some of the old fire came back. Feldspar had said some awful things about the Royal Guard! And the nobility! He said-” “-that your talents would be wasted guarding empty rooms, selfish nobles, and that Princess Celestia would never need the protection of a simple guard?” Even though his face didn’t change, there was an aura of exasperation from the ancient magister. “I managed to get the entire conversation out of him, and it is a typical argument from any magister that regularly works with the Princess. She does, from time to time, confide in some of us.” Twilight’s world went cold. “The Princess knows Feldspar? They talk?” “They know each other quite well. In fact, you could say that Magister Feldspar and Celestia are thick as thieves. I know that you have come up in conversation. Celestia has even asked me about you, in the context of the designs of my suppression rings.” The would-be guard fell back on her rump. Feldspar, the unicorn Twilight had tossed out of her hospital room after calling a coward, was a good personal friend of Princess Celestia’s. He had discussed things with the princess. Twilight started to wheeze. Her chest felt like it was in a vice, but Twilight didn’t have the brainpower to devote to concern. Someone was patting her on the back, or maybe slapping her, but the world felt like a big cotton ball to Twilight. She stumbled and fell over, still fighting to get air, but the tremendous ringing in her ears was breaking all concentration. She needed air. To her oxygen-starved brain, it made sense to just take it. Her horn lit and summoned “air” - as much air as it could, until stones and sand began whipping through the canyon. Trixie dove for cover as one of her trunks was blown clear off the ground. “Twilight!” she screamed. “Trixie commands you stop this insanity!” She tried to fight it back, but could only clear a small channel that she could stand in and that wouldn’t stop something big from being hurled right into her. A wisp of orange magic snaked down from the sky. In the portal, Trixie could see Sol Shard’s own horn light, but he was hundreds of miles away. Surely he couldn’t... “That’s quite enough.” The force of the command came in the form of a suppression spell that instantly collapsed Twilight to the ground. Everything, every mote of dirt or flying stone, dropped to the ground like something had just cut all the puppeteer's strings. His control was so great that Trixie’s shield was still working. She could feel the massive Working in the canyon, but it had spared her and the portal both without so much as an interference flicker! That kind of control shouldn’t, couldn't, be possible! But Sol Shard, High Magister of Equestria, lived the impossible. He let out a sigh and shook his head. “Moody, lacking control, quick to anger, quicker to jump to conclusions… for this pony to have such power…” His eyes were focused on Twilight, narrowing. Trixie could guess what he was thinking. Ponies like Twilight appeared from time to time, although they were starting to appear with more frequency. Lones, criminals, murderers - just a host of powerful unicorns bent on destruction. Aberrations, the Magisterium had begun calling them. Unicorns that refused to live quietly in society and used their powers for evil ends. Or just ones that couldn’t control themselves and lashed out at anything or anyone around them. Twilight was a classic case of the latter. Sometimes the Magisterium could help them, but usually they’d already done something terrible. And some, the really powerful ones, could never be let back out into society - or worse. Trixie licked her lips. She shouldn’t stick her snout into this anymore. Twilight was certainly a liability now that she had Sol Shard’s attention, and even Princess Celestia was keeping tabs on her. Better to just let the High Magister sort things at this point. But Trixie’s curiosity doomed her. When she looked back up Sol Shard was staring straight at her, considering. “This Twilight Sparkle is a loose canon,” he said, conversationally, as if he hadn’t just broken all the rules of magic as Trixie understood them. As if they were peers instead of him being the second most powerful being on the planet and her being a fresh magister. “Y-Yes? She certainly is... churlish.” “And rebellious. And has an inflated opinion of her place in the world.” Oh gods. “B-But she’s also a guard! And really, really wants to serve Equestria! And does what she’s told and has no flair for the dramatic and goes through other pony’s things and-” He silenced her with a look. “And she reminds me of a pony that Sunburst brought to my attention a few years ago. A dropout from Celestia’s school, a runaway, a filly who wanted to be a traveling magician until she was found by my apprentice.” Trixie knew where this was going. She hung her head. “You want me to train her, don’t you?” And the old goat of a Magister looked at her and smiled. It was a horrible thing, with his nearly-blind eyes and wrinkled face. “Sunburst did tell me you were clever. I’ll expect to see some progress when you rejoin the coven in Las Pegasus.” The magical window went black and the crystal fell to the sand. The sun came back in full, banishing the magical darkness needed for communication. The stone Trixie had originally wanted for the summoning was gone, blown away by the hurricane Twilight had unleashed. So were most of her travel trunks. Trixie let out a scream of pure, annoyed rage. Twilight snored in bliss.