Anton heard Applejack ask, "Hey, where's everypony goin'?"
Anton looked up, putting down the empty baskets. The ponies in the square were all heading away from the stalls, moving towards a cart on the far end of the square. "That", Anton said, pointing to the cart. "A merchant, maybe?"
"Don't look like it", Applejack said. "The cart's too small."
"It's apparently a new unicorn", Rarity said, stopping in front of the two of them. "She's supposed to be magically powerful."
"Hmm", Applejack mused, watching as the crowd around it began to solidify. "Ah say we check it out. Might be interestin'."
"Give me a minute to finish up here", Anton said. "I'll join you in a minute."
Applejack nodded, joining Rarity as they moved with the crowd towards the cart. Anton picked back up the baskets, stacking the empty ones and placing them into the back of the cart. The small number of apples within a few of the other baskets were taken out, shoved into one of the baskets that was more full.
As he was finishing up, he was drawn back to the cart by a loud voice, filled with pride and confidence like a Preacher, that rang out across the square: "Come one, come all! Come and witness the amazing magic of the Great and Powerful Trixie!" As the voice spoke, the cart unfolded, a platform expanding and areas in the back opening up, showing off brass horns and a variety of cheap decorations made of painted plywood.
He quickly tied down the baskets of apples, before heading toward the crowd. While slightly obstructed by the gathered crowd and the various pegasi flying above it, his view of the stage was still enough to see the light blue unicorn appear on the stage in a puff of dark smoke. She wore a purple cloak and floppy hat, decorated with blue and yellow stars, as well as a massive, smug grin. "Watch in awe as the Great and Powerful Trixie performs the most spectacular feats of magic ever witnessed by pony eyes!", she bellowed, rearing up on her hind legs. As she did, a burst of fireworks, flames, and other pulsating lights filled the square, practically blinding those in the front of the mass of Xenos.
As it died down, 'Trixie' began to manipulate her aura, creating blots of pink energy in the air and other tricks. Anton managed to get to a decent position to witness her abilities, watching with idle amusement.
After a while, however, she stopped, composing herself before facing the crowd. "Well well well", she said, her expression darkening and a scowl gracing her features. "It appears that we have some naysayers in the crowd. Who is so ignorant as to challenge the magical abilities of the Great and Powerful Trixie!? Do they not know that they are in the presence of the most magical unicorn in all of Equestria?"
"Just who does she think she is?", Rarity asked, glaring at her.
"A sorceress, evidently", Anton replied, earning a scowl.
Rarity snorted, saying, "You know what I meant."
"Yeah", Spike said, gesturing to Twilight. "Since we all know that-"
"Spike! Shhh!", Twilight hissed, grabbing ahold of him and leading him off to the side. The two of them exchanged whispers, eyes twisting back when another burst of flares went off, casting ever more bright and chaotic light across the square.
As the sparks and flames died down, Rainbow Dash took to the air, flying less than an inch from Trixie's face. "So, 'Great and Powerful Trixie'. What makes you think you're so awesome, anyway?"
"Why, only the Great and Powerful Trixie has magic strong enough to vanquish the dreaded Ursa Major!", she exclaimed with a flourish and another shower of sparklers.
The audience murmured amongst themselves, a few excited or awed bursts of conversation echoing above the din of the crowd. Trixie remained silent while they stewed amongst themselves, eating up the awed tone of the onlookers. She really did have the air or sense of a Preacher, allowing the masses to digest her claims before she continued.
However, her claim sparked a pang of curiosity in him. Walking up behind Twilight, he asked the nervous-looking mare, "What's an Ursa Major?"
"It's a kind of magical creature", she said. "It looks like a bear, though it's skin looks like the night sky."
Anton nodded, realization sparking in his eyes. "Wait, that's what it's..."
"When all hope was lost, the ponies of Hoofington had no one to turn to. But, the Great and Powerful Trixie stepped in, and with her awesome magic, vanquished the Ursa Major and sent it deep back to its cave into the Everfree Forest!", she exclaimed, giving another flourish.
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha", Anton burst out laughing, clutching his side. All eyes fell on him, including the now wrathful eyes of Trixie. "You? Beat an Ursa Major? Ha ha ha ha!"
"Do you doubt the Great and Powerful Trixie?", Trixie said.
Anton said, "Yes. Yes, I very much do. An Ursa Fraking Major?"
"What are you doing?", Twilight asked.
"Refuting a claim", Anton said, before turning back to Trixie.
"Well, if you have doubts about me", she said, before sweeping her hoof over the entire crowd. "Any Ponyvillians who wish to try and best me, I shall outmatch you. Come one, come all."
"Alright then", Anton said, climbing up onto the stage. He removed his laspistol, letting it hang at his side. "Applejack, could you..."
"On it", Applejack said, pulling out her lasso. With a quick motion, she shot it out, wrapping the red fruit from a nearby tree in the rope and pulling it in. As it flew in, he grabbed it in his aura, before tossing it up into the air. It sailed up, nipping the bottom of the clouds, before stalling and finally beginning to fall. As it fell, he shot up his pistol, firing a bolt of energy that vaporized the whole thing in a single motion.
"Impressive", Trixie said, giving him a withering sidelong glare. "For an amateur."
He snarled, raising the laspistol. "You dare-", he began, stopping as he felt the platform beneath him deform. Looking down, the boards of the platform pressed down as if he was as heavy as a Baneblade. The pink glow around it stopped, and he only had time to mutter, "Oh frak", before flying off into the air. He sailed up, brushing against the cloud before falling back down. He flailed his limbs, his laspistol falling to the crowd below, when a massive impact hit him in the chest. He flew off, coming to a sudden halt as he slammed into the apple cart, slumping against the scattered and broken fruits and baskets.
+++++~+++++
Anton kept his scowl, even several hours later and miles from the site of his humiliation. When he had come to, he learned that Trixie had also committed similar humiliations on Applejack and her friends. Of course, he couldn't exactly exact any sort of retribution against her, leaving him to head back home with a sour mood and a scowl.
As soon as he was free from the company of the townsponies, however, his mind once again began to race. Why did he care beyond his own humiliation, and the humiliation of a servant of the Emperor? His own wound was obvious, but why care about Rarity having her hair turned green, or Rainbow Dash being sent spun around like a top? Why should he care? He had no answer for it, and that frustrated him to no end.
"O Emperor", he muttered. "Why do you surround me with temptation and force me into sin? Was I not faithful to you? Have I not given my body and soul to you when I was pure? If this is merely a test, give me a sign." Maybe this was a test. That his arrival in this place and body was truly the poor luck of the universe, and that his contact with those around him were some sort of test of his faith?
As he mused, he heard twigs snapping off to his left. Normally, he would ignore it; most of the creatures of the Everfree had long ago learned to steer clear of him and the holy light of his lasgun. However, this time, it was accompanied by a nasal voice saying, "Ow!"
Turning off the path, he pushed through some of the brush and plant matter that formed a practical wall along the edge of the path. After he was through the brush, he found himself in a somewhat open section of wood, the source of the voice now apparent. It was one of those two brats that were kissing the hooves of Trixie. They stood outside a massive cave, taking a few tentative steps into that dark maw.
"Hey!", he called, stepping over the small plants and tall grass that formed the ground between the two. They instantly froze, turning to face him. "What the frak are you two doing out here?"
"We're looking for an Ursa Major", the fat one said.
Anton froze, his ears twitching. "Repeat that."
The skinny one said, "We're looking for an Ursa Major."
"Ok, you are serious", Anton said, bringing a hoof to his temple. "Yeah, what are you two thinking?"
"We're trying to prove that Trixie really is as powerful as she is!", the fat one said, genuinely... proud?
"No", Anton said. "You two are trying to be idiots by actively going into a restricted area looking for a nearly impervious monster that can rip apart a Chimera with ease." Well, he assumed they could; he didn't have one on hand to test, and frankly, the Administratum would probably have him shot for wasting such a warmachine on a test.
"You live here, don't you?", the skinny one said.
Anton sighed again. "Yes, I do", he said, his irritation growing. "But unlike you two, I have enough common sense not to go near the cave of a giant beast that is incredibly hard to bring down. Now, I am taking you back to town, and you will not be coming out here unless I am with you. Is that clear?"
As he finished, a shadow fell over the three of them. The two colts looked up, screaming. Anton whipped around himself, eyes going wide. Standing over the three of them was, just as it had been described earlier, a massive bear, with skin like the night sky above them.
+++++~+++++
Anton yelled, "Keep moving, you fraking brats!" He turned slight, continuing to backpeddle, firing a few shots at the pursuing beast. It roared and kept charging, the shots only forming dark spots on its spectral skin that quickly faded.
The three of them ran over the hill, with Spike being seen on the flat part of the field. The colts ran past him, to which he asked, "What's going on?"
Anton ground to a halt, firing another two shots, before grabbing Spike and taking off back into a solid run. "That!"
Spike looked back as Anton once again began running. Even though he couldn't see the little thing, he could practically hear his eyes bulging in his skull. "Is that what I think it-"
"Yes, yes it fraking is!", Anton yelled, firing another shot. "Look, I'll keep it out of town. Get the Guard. Get a Militia. By the Throne, get one of your Princesses down here. Just get someone!"
Spike nodded, hopping off of Antons back and running towards town. Anton, meanwhile, continued to pepper the beast with fire, trying to draw it away from the town. While it was angry at the screaming colts, it was more angry at the curse-ridden stallion shooting it with a lasgun. It gave chase, claws slashing the ground and roaring.
Anton kept running, his legs sparking with pain and his chest pounding. He finally slipped his laspistol back into its holster, no longer able to keep it up in the air with his constant movement. He looked over his shoulder, seeing it was still on his tail. Literally; one of the claw swipes came much too close for comfort, shaving off a decent bit of the back of his tail. He couldn't keep this up. He had to do something.
He grit his teeth, before jumping away from another swipe. He dug in his hooves, lighting up his horn, and reached out with his aura. He had long grown used to the unique ability that this Xenos species had, about being able to grab things with the aura. Though it disturbed him, he had grown accustomed to this kind of phantom manipulation. It was just like reaching out and grabbing something with your arm, albeit with different properties: being able to grab bigger things, things out of your reach, or even things in motion with ease.
Like the downward swipe of an Ursa Majors claw, for instance.
The flickering golden aura surrounded the front of its body, locking it in place in a shimmering golden shield. He grit his teeth, desperate to keep the grip upon the creature even as it jerked and twisted beneath the aura. The most minute movements that it made were like he was trying to keep ahold of a cloud. It kept trying to slip his aura, and if it wasn't it was merely trying to brute force the aura.
He held firm, albeit not without struggling. Sweat poured down his face, concentration forcing his eyes to clamp shut. "Fear is naught, for my faith is strong", he murmured, trying to keep his focus. One slip up, one second lost, would mean the beast would come crashing down upon him. "Fear is naught, for my faith is strong." Parts of his aura felt strained, the strain forcing its way down to his horn, which in turn shot spikes of pain through his body. He sank to one knee, moving his aura away from some parts of the beast and to others, reinforcing the vital areas and letting the weak ones fall to the relentless pressure of the beast. "Fear is naught, for my faith is strong!" Soon, he was only holding onto the arms, allowing the beast to thrash and roll its massive form, roaring in anger and triumph. "FEAR IS NAUGHT, FOR MY FAITH IS STRONG!"
"Aquila!". Twilights voice, filled with fear and concern. His concentration broke, eyes snapping open and head snapping to the side. Twilight stood on the edge of the field, Spike on her back. Trixie and the two colts stood off to the side, Trixie wearing a nervous expression in contrast to the confident assurance of the colts. Around them, almost the whole town watched as his aura failed, and the beasts claws plunged down.
As he closed his eyes again, bracing for the end, he was swallowed by a cold chill. It faded as soon as it came, and he found himself on warm, somewhat wet grass, flat on his side and wheezing. His eyes refused to open, while the voices around him were a faint murmur and whisper, barely audible. As the noise, both of voices and of the whir of unicorn auras, only one thought came to him; one from earlier.
If he was being tested by the Emperor, had him protecting the town of Xenos... caused him to fail?