Twilight’s mind raced as Luna’s accusation towards Applejack hit home. Her first thought had been to accuse the element of honesty when it had been Twilight the whole time. Applejack’s only fault had been acting rashly out of care for her family, even apologizing for having to use brute force to disable her magic. Now, not only was Twilight’s friend gone forever, she was posed to take the fall for everything Twilight had done. Despite her desire to protect her friend’s reputation, it provided her the perfect opportunity to deflect suspicion from herself.
“Luna, you don’t think Applejack could be behind the disappearances, do you?” Twilight asked. She feigned as much shock as she could by widening her eyes.
“I have seen many good ponies do horrible things, given the wrong set of principles.” Luna looked out the window. "Sometimes the wrong emotions can get the better of you, even if you know deep down it's not right." She turned back and stared down at her tea. “If I could, Applejack could. . . anypony could. Tell me,” Luna turned to Twilight, “Has she been acting odd?”
“Hmm,” Twilight said. She put a hoof to her chin and began to re-word recent events in her mind. “Well let’s see, Dash visited and we had a lovely lunch, she went to see Applejack before heading back to the Wonderbolts. Is Dash okay?”
“Spitfire sent us a letter asking the same thing, and judging by her element she would be lucky to have suffered nothing more than a fillynapping.”
“I know Rarity and Sweetie were headed to Manehatten. Applejack, Apple Bloom, and Pinkie Pie were going to throw them a going away party. Pinkie Pie hasn’t gone missing, but the others at that party did.”
“So you have seen Applejack around recently? You are certain she is not dead—that she isn’t behind this?”
Twilight choked back a sob, glancing away from Luna. She could still smell the copper, see the stains in the wood. They had barely been cleaned from the floor for an hour. “She. . .” Twilight swallowed the lump in her throat. I killed her, right there. We got in a fight because I screwed up, and Silver murdered her to protect me. It’s all my fault.
Luna brushed a tear away with her hoof. “Twilight, I know how hard it has been for you to accept loss. It has been doubly so on your poor mentor. Please, have you seen Applejack recently? If she is behind this I must know now.”
“N-not since y-yesterday,” Twilight replied.
“And what did she say.”
Twilight’s mind went into overdrive, her tears of loss concealing the deception she was spinning. I could pin it all on Applejack, but that’ll only delay her a day at most. I would need a more capable culprit, someone to draw suspicion just long enough for me to finish my work and defeat Luna. But who?
Try as she might, Twilight wasn’t quite sure how to respond. If she admitted Applejack had been to the library, would Luna want to investigate it? She’d clearly already been to the farm. “She. . . said she would pay me a visit again soon. V-vinyl and her were going to get a drink.”
“Applejack, hanging out with Vinyl? This is most odd. We will go at once to check on this mare.” Luna stood up, her guard shadowing her as she headed for the door. She stopped looking back at Twilight. “I assume you are coming?”
Twilight was in shock, it seemed too easy however she had to continue to improvise. “Of course.”
The trio walked out of the library, and Twilight made sure to lock the door behind them. Echo continued his unrelenting gaze, watching Twilight’s every move. He seemed to be judging her more than he was guarding Luna.
The streets were desolate this morning, as they were on most. The ponies that remained weren’t quite as trusting as they used to be. Nopony would accuse somepony else of the disappearances, but they wouldn’t leave their house either. It made for an eerie silence in the street that morning.
They arrived quickly at Vinyl’s house just across from the Library. Luna opened the door, sending up a thin layer of dust from the floor. She began to survey the room.
“There does not appear to be anypony home,” Luna observed.
“B-but, Applejack said she was going to see Vinyl, where is she?” Twilight swallowed, noticing the layer of dust around the room. Perhaps she should have suggested Colgate instead, but if Luna detected any trace magic. . .
“Your majesty, the door.” Echo hadn’t appeared to move, yet Luna knew exactly which door he meant. She looked over at the door to the cellar. The door handle and lock had been ripped clean off when it was thrown open.
Twilight remembered storming down into the basement and capturing Vinyl. She had counted on the signs of a physical struggle pointing to Applejack. She only need a day, two at tops, to get the other elements.
“The door was forced open. It looks like something hit it hard,” Twilight said.
“Indeed, but there are no hoof marks. It is more likely a unicorn broke the door,” Luna said.
Twilight huffed, before following them down the stairs. Half of Vinyl’s speakers and other equipment had vanished, and the rest were in various states of disrepair. A few had been split in half during the week-old struggle.
Once Luna finished surveying, she noticed the marks on the wall. “It looks like a pony was thrown against this wall.” Luna knelt down, levitating a fragment of a unicorn horn up to her. “I think they were thrown horn-first into the wall, causing it to splinter a little.”
Twilight looked around, pointing out the split speakers. “Looks like someone smashed up her stuff and knocked her out cold.”
“Perhaps.” She turned to survey the young alicorn. “You seem to have recovered from your earlier shock. I need you to continue investigating while I retrieve Pinkie and Fluttershy.”
“No!” Twilight said.
Echo and Luna turned to regard her with confused expressions.
“I mean, please Luna. . . They’re my friends and I have to protect them. I have to know for sure they’re okay. I’ll go at once and bring them back to the library. You and Echo seem to be much better finding evidence, anyway.” Twilight grinned sheepishly.
“Very well, go and bring them back to the library. I will meet you there in one hour.”
Twilight vanished in a flash, teleporting out of the basement.
“Does she always act so odd? She seems almost guilty,” Echo observed.
“Yes and no. She has always suffered from the need to win the approval of everypony, and prove she can do everything on her own. Still, there is definitely something she has not told us. Whether it relates to Cadance’s death or the disappearances, I am not sure.”
“Then I’ll follow her as she finds her friends,” Echo suggested.
“No. You are right to keep an eye on her, but until the Lunar Guard arrives, you must stay with me. Anyone with the power to influence the Elements of Harmony is not to be underestimated. For all we know, the Nightmare has returned.”
Echo shuddered, glancing away. No amount of time could wash away the devastation of the Nightmare Wars. His entire race of bat-winged ponies had almost gone extinct after the war. If this Applejack had indeed been corrupted, Echo would snap her neck without hesitation.
*************************************************************************************
Lyra had been sitting in silence with Big Mac most of the morning. To be truthful, she was quite bored of staring out at the sun. Still, she knew Big Mac was obviously contemplating his emotions, wondering what to do now that he knew Applejack was dead. So, Lyra waited patiently.
“Beautiful day?” Lyra asked.
“Eeyup.”
“Are you ready to talk about AJ?”
“Ah ‘spose it can’t be avoided forever,” Mac said. He let out a long sigh. “She always was too stubborn. Ah reckon whether Twilight planned it, or ‘Sis stumbled into it, once she found out she’d have fought Twilight to save us all.”
“I would be proud to have had somepony fight that hard for me,” Lyra stated.
“Lot o’ good it did. Now AJ is dead, and Apple Bloom is a doll like you, isn’t she?” Mac turned to look at Lyra, who shrunk back.
“Y-yes. . .”
“How long?”
“A day or t-two before now. I saw her with Silver Spoon.”
Mac frowned and shook his head. “Why didn’t ya tell me? Is bein’ a doll more important than hanging onto things like honesty that made us ponies in the first place?”
Lyra hung her head in shame. “I’m sorry, but the only time I get to talk to you is when she brings you out at night. I don’t want her to hurt you. . . I knew you’d do something rash if she captured them. Now that she got in a fight that ended in Applejack’s death, what will you do? Who will she take that anger out on? You, me, all of us?”
Mac looked back up at the sun hanging low in the sky. “No, the judgement’s not mine ta pass. Celestia will find out, sooner or later, and Twilight will pay. If ah up and killed her myself, and the thoughts crossed my mind, we’d just end up stuck like this. Besides, who knows, with all that fancy magic, what would happen to us.”
Lyra scooted a little closer to Big Mac. “We’ll be fine, Mac. She trusts us—shares her emotions. I’m sure we can get her to see reason soon and send a letter off to Celestia.”
Mac looked at Lyra. Since Twilight had left him as a full size plushy, Lyra was about the size of his hoof—if he still had one. “Ah ain’t gonna lie, if she gives me half a chance ah’m grabbin’ Apple Bloom and gettin’ on the first train for Canterlot. Whether ah’m the only thing helpin’ her sleep at night or not, Applejack would expect nothin’ less than for me to die tryin’ to save her family too.”
Lyra climbed over Mac’s leg and curled up in his lap. “Please. . . let’s just wait a little longer. Maybe she’ll get better. I don’t want her to hurt anymore ponies.” Lyra began to cry as she hid her face under a hoof, resting against the warm plushy.
“Bon Bon?” Mac asked.
“Yeah. . .” Lyra sniffled. “I m-miss her. She was like the s-sister I never had and I l-lost her too. I. . . think I understand Twilight now. It hurts so much to lose a pony you love.”
Mac put a hoof on Lyra’s back and began to rub it. “Ah know it does, Lyra. It’s part of life. First my Grandfather, than my parents, now Applejack. Everypony dies, that’s why we need our friends to be there for us.”
Mac sat there stroking Lyra’s plastic mane until she stopped crying. “Thank you, Lyra.”
Lyra looked up at him. “For what?”
“For being my friend.”
*************************************************************************************
Twilight rushed over to Fluttershy’s cottage, stopping only to grab some supplies from her house. She had less than an hour to bring Fluttershy and Pinkie back to the library. That meant, she only had one hour to capture both and blame it on Applejack. Already, Twilight knew that line of deception wouldn’t last much longer.
The outside of the cottage was quiet, with no animals in sight. Quick glimpses showed that a few were still hiding in their burrows, but it was obvious animals had learned to stay away from the Cottage.
Twilight walked up to the door slowly, aware that she had scared off most of the animals. Turning them into dolls had been fun, therapeutic even. She never would have guessed a bear could be turned into a doll, and once she tried it out she kept on going. Now, New Ponyville had birds, lizards, rabbits, gophers, and more. Perfect pets for a perfect Ponyville.
Knocking on the front door, Twilight decided she didn’t have time to wait. She pushed the door open. “Fluttershy?”
There was no answer, and she soon saw why. Furniture had been overturned, fresh claw marks were in the floors, and spilled food was mixed in with animal feces. The inside of the house looked like a tornado had hit it. A few stray animals ran around as if they’d gone feral.
Twilight hurried towards the kitchen and found it empty. She quickly went upstairs, slowing down when she heard the pegasus crying in her room.
“Fluttershy?” Twilight asked.
“Go away!” she shouted, and began sobbing again.
Twilight walked in the room quietly, suddenly feeling pity for her. “Why are you so sad? I came to make you happy.”
“I. . . I can’t.” Fluttershy pulled her long mane over her face to hide it. “I-it’s all my f-fault. I lost t-them all.”
“Who?" Twilight asked.
“The animals. A-angel told me they were disappearing but I didn’t l-listen. Then Angel disappeared. I looked everywhere, all across the Everfree. . . the rest of the animals were gone when I got back. They tore my h-home up and w-went feral!” Fluttershy began wailing as the fresh memories had their pain renewed.
“Shh. . .” Twilight rubbed Fluttershy’s back. She looked up at the nearby clock to gauge her time. “It’s okay.”
“Why Twilight? Why do I have to be alone? Even D-dash l-left without saying goodbye!”
Twilight noticed the cold apple cider on her nightstand and heated it up with her magic. She sprinkled a little curare in it too easy her passing. “You don’t have to be alone Fluttershy. Your friends are all waiting for you.”
“B-but I don’t w-wanna die. I tried but I c-couldn’t,” Fluttershy whimpered. She extended her forehoof from beneath her hair, and Twilight saw some half-healed cuts on it.
For a moment, Twilight felt guilty. She should have made time for Fluttershy sooner, and decided to be honest with her. “They’re not dead. I’ve granted them immortality, Dash, Rarity, Angel. . . they’re all living back at the library with me.”
“No. . . nopony lives forever,” Fluttershy said.
“Yes, they can.” Twilight brushed her friend’s mane. “I fixed them, made them better. I took half the town. . .”
“What, where did you tell them to go?”
“They’re happy and I made them all live with me now.”
Fluttershy uncovered the hair from her face to look at Twilight. “What? You mean they’re not gone, you just. . . foalnapped them? But you wouldn’t just force a pony to live with you. Did they all come and ask for your help?”
Twilight paused her hoof between her shoulderblades. “Yes. They wanted my help, but they didn’t know how to ask. I had to help them learn the truth, that they never had to die. I’ve never told anypony before we had tea.” Twilight glanced at the clock, deciding to speed things along by playing off her kindness. “I’ve turned all my friends into dolls. I had too—everything is perfect—the whole town is rebuilt!”
“So you actually foalnapped them? You made them all into dolls?”
“You make it sound like a bad thing,” Twilight said. “They’re happy and they’ll live forever. They don’t have to cry anymore. Here, drink this.” Twilight levitated the cider to her. “When you wake up you’ll feel all better and be with your friends.”
Fluttershy looked at Twilight and at the cup. “So you made Angel and Dash and everypony else disappear? All because you don’t want to lose anypony too?”
Twilight smiled. “Yes. Don’t you want to join them? Do you want to see all your friends again?”
Fluttershy gulped and thought about it for a moment. Silently, tears had begun to roll down her cheeks again. “Will. . . it make you happy? If I do will—can you ever. . .” She began to sob out loud. “Please, forgive me. I wasn’t kind at all, I was an awful pony not to—I should have visited more. I shou—”
“Yes, I forgive you.” Twilight cooed. “Here, it’ll all be over soon.” She lowered the cup to Fluttershy’s mouth.
“Ok, we can be happy again. . . I can see my little Angel bunny again.” Fluttershy was crying as she drank the hot cider. She laid her head back down on the pillow, and was rewarded by Twilight rubbing her back right below the wings. Fluttershy’s sobs began to grow weaker and even the flow of tears seemed to slow down. She quickly cried herself into her final slumber in the embrace of her most trusted friend.
“Good mare, such a kind pony.” Twilight hummed a song gently to her as the poison paralyzed every muscle except her heart. Once her breathing stopped, Twilight began to cast the spell. It was slow and still painful, but she had healed enough to cast it cautiously.
*************************************************************************************
“Alright, Scootaloo, are you ready?” Dash asked. She had brought the filly outside the shield that trapped them in the basement. Vinyl and Octavia’s tunnel had finally reached a loose floorboard. The faraday shelter and tunnel were still in place underground, giving them a secret safe-haven and a way through the shield Twilight couldn’t detect.
“Please, you’re sure there is no other way? Do I have to do this, Dash?” Scootaloo begged.
Dash smiled and put a wing over Scootaloo. “Yes. You and I are the only ones who can make it up the stairs. If I go, Twilight will catch on instantly. Remember our deal, Squirt. You’re my sister now and you have to make it to Celestia so we can get turned back to normal.”
“I know,” Scootaloo said. “It’s just. . . I finally got you to notice me, to l-love me. . . and now you’re making me go. . . and Twilight will probably kill you like Bon Bon when she finds out. . .”
“Scootaloo.” Dash lifted her head up before the filly could start crying. “Twilight won’t kill me. That’s the whole point of this. She wants to force us to be her friends! You just worry about reaching Celestia. Make it onto the next train and you’ll be fine.”
“Pinkie Promise?” Scootaloo asked.
“Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. And remember, Scootaloo, if you don’t do this Silver will come back to play with the crusaders again. Everypony here needs you—I need you. You’re the bravest filly I know” Dash smiled and was rewarded when Scootaloo smiled back, eyes beaming pride.
“You really mean it?” Scootaloo asked, her wings fluttering in excitement.
“Yeah, now you need to get in position above the door. We don’t know when she’ll visit again, but everypony will be ready when she does. Now, I need to go see if I can knock out that shield with a rainboom.” Dash winked, and the two pegasi parted ways.
*************************************************************************************
“Mr. and Mrs. Cake?” Pinkie asked. The pair had put their babies to sleep and were headed back to their room.
“What is it, Pinkie?” Mr. Cake replied.
Pinkie’s knee got pinchy, followed by several convulsions down her spine.
“Oh dear, Pinkie Sense again? Mrs. Cake inquired.
“Yeah, it’s been getting worse. I think I’ve figured it out though, but you’re not gonna like it,” Pinkie explained.
“You can tell us anything. We consider you family,” Mr. Cake said.
“It gets worse right before a pony disappears. I’ve been taking notes and right after Applejack visited, it happened again only. . . worse. And. . . I think it’s coming for me next. I haven’t had my spleen itch since I cloned myself and Twilight almost sent me back to the mirror pool.”
Mr. Cake put a hoof on Pinkie’s shoulder. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, Mr. Cake. Please. . . I need you to take your family and tell my father what I told you. My family will take you in to live on the rock farm. If you don’t get a letter from me in one week—” Pinkie stopped to close her eyes and take a deep breath. For the first time, her Pinkie Sense scared her, and she could not laugh the fear away. “Never come back.”
“Honey, are you sure this is the best idea?” Mrs. Cake asked.
“Yes,” he replied. “Pinkie has always been there for us. If she says we need to visit her family, I trust her.” Mr. Cake turned his gaze back to Pinkie. “Whatever it is, Pinkie, know we love you like our own daughter. You take care, and don’t forget to write us, okay?”
Pinkie had tears glistening in her eyes as her mane couldn’t quite hold it’s normal curls. “Thanks, Auntie and Uncle Cake. I don’t know what I’d do if you or the babies got hurt. Just—” Pinkie began bouncing up and down on her hooves, indicating a doozy was coming. “Please go quickly. Whatever it is, its been causing all the strange stuff lately.”
Pinkie went downstairs and started putting up streamers. She had some cupcakes stored away and brought them out. By the time the Cakes had grabbed their children for an impromptu vacation, the living room was ready for a party.
“Really, Pinkie, a party?” Mrs. Cake asked.
“Yeah, it’s for her. She should be here soon,” Pinkie explained.
“Who?”
“The mare responsible for all this. I’m the last one who can help her.”
*************************************************************************************
Twilight was flying across town when she stopped to catch her breath. At the same time, she saw Trixie come around the corner. Almost out of reflex she wanted to just blast her dead on the spot. That unicorn had been nothing but trouble for her. In her current state, however, such a brash attack was unlikely to work.
Twilight quickly figured out a better plan. The unicorn was ignorant to what was going on, a skilled magician. . . and a perfect scapegoat. She landed and walked towards her.
“Hi, Trixie, what brings you to town?” Twilight asked.
“Hello. Is it usually this quiet in the afternoon? I recall there being more ponies in town, and Trixie was supposed to meet Colgate for lunch today. Have you seen her?” Trixie asked.
“It’s usually this quiet; a lot of ponies left. As for Colgate, she’s at her Dentist’s office. You can probably still go to lunch with her.”
“Thanks, Twilight. You uh. . . take care. You look like you could use some sleep.” Trixie turned and trotted off down the street, looking for the large white molar sign that indicated the Dentist office.
Twilight shook her head. She only had thirty minutes left before Luna expect her back, and now she had even less time. She had to make sure Luna caught Trixie at the Dentist office. Hopefully Pinkie Pie is as easy as Fluttershy.
She trotted up to Sugarcube Corner and let herself in. The bell jingled, and she noticed neither of the cakes were there to greet her. Good, that’ll save me time. “Pinkie?” she called out.
“In here, Twilight! Surprise!” Pinkie called out. She was sitting in the living room at a table with a dozen chocolate cupcakes. The room was set up for a party, but nopony was there.
“This is odd, even for you, Pinkie. Who is this party for?” Twilight asked.
“It’s for you! It’s my ‘sorry it took me so long to make you feel better’ party.”
“Pinkie,” Twilight chuckled, “I feel fine.”
“No you don’t. It’s my fault, isn’t it? I was the one who was supposed to make you happy after Cadance died. I should have known when you said you hated parties it was only because you were sad.”
Twilight’s eye began twitching and she blinked a few times to stop it. Her teeth were grinding as she recalled the first three months after Cadance died. “Don’t be ridiculous. You tried to throw like three parties a day! Yeah it was annoying, but at least you tried! Where was Dash? Off with the Wonderbolts. Applejack? On her farm. Fluttershy? Crying herself asleep. . .”
“Is that why you did it?” Pinkie asked.
“Did what?” Twilight sat down at the table, across from Pinkie and the cupcakes. She saw one of Pinkie’s legs twitch. Pinkie Sense, how did I forget? This might not be as easy as I think.
“You’ve been making everypony disappear. I don’t know where you sent them, but I could sense it each time it happened. At first, I thought they were all just leaving, but then Applejack—She came here worried about you, and not an hour later I got a horrible Pinkie Sense.” A tear rolled down her cheek as she remembered the sensation that accompanied Cadance’s suicide. “A sense I haven’t had since I was in Canterlot when Cadance died.”
Twilight grinned. “Impressive, you could sense her dying? How did you figure out it was me?” The blinds around the room pulled themselves shut in a faint purple aura.
“I didn’t know it was you at first, I could tell you were coming for me though. Then it all clicked—you feeling sad, not wanting to lose anypony. What did you do? Turn them all to stone so they couldn’t die?” Pinkie asked.
“No, better,” Twilight explained. “I anchored them to dolls, allowing them to live forever in my dollhouse. It’s quite nice, actually, and since you were so clever to figure it out perhaps you can come peacefully.”
“No, I can’t.” Pinkie gestured to the cupcakes. “Would you care for a cupcake?”
Twilight eyed them suspiciously, loosening her saddlebags with her magic. “No, I don’t want a cupcake. And if you know what’s good for you, then you won’t fight me. That’s why Applejack died.”
“You. . . you killed her?” Pinkie asked. She gasped and her eyes widened in horror as she walked backwards. “Why?”
“She attacked me, nearly killed me, Pinkie. . . it got out of hand and then Silver came in. . .” Twilight had remained in her seat, beginning to cry.
“Twilight, it’s okay.” Pinkie came in closer against her better judgement to comfort her friend. She felt an itch on the back of her neck just in time to duck.
A plank of wood had been ripped off the floor and Twilight nearly knocked her out with it. Pinkie had sensed it and gotten out of the way.
“Don’t make me do this, Pinkie! You’re coming with me whether you want to or not!” Twilight screamed. Her voice was cracking, her mane becoming disheveled as she fought to choose between whether she was sad or angry.
The plank continued to weave through the air, never coming close to Pinkie. The pony ran for the nearest door before Twilight slammed it shut.
“Twilight, we can talk, it doesn’t have to be like this! I threw this party just for you!”
“It’s a trick! You spiked the cupcakes, didn’t you? Benzodiazepine? Hemlock? Maybe just some ambien? YOU NEVER LOVED ME!!” Twilight screamed. She was becoming more desperate, throwing glass cups and swinging the wood plank wildly.
Pinkie continued to dodge the blows as Twilight tore the room apart plank by plank.
Twilight filled the air with laughter, and Pinkie dove for a window before the shutters closed. She crashed through the glass and would have escaped, if not for Twilight’s hold on the wooden shutters on the outside of the building.
Pinkie collapsed to the floor, bloodied and whimpering. “Giggle at the ghosties. . . .guffaw at the grizzly. . .”
“You’ll see Pinkie. It’s better this way.” Twilight brought the plank of wood down, splitting it over Pinkie’s skull. She blacked out.
*************************************************************************************
Twilight ran back to the Library with only five minutes to spare. She had never been late, if she was late Luna would find out. It was bad enough she didn’t have time to clean up at Sugarcube Corner. She ran up to the door of the library, stopping to compose herself. Twilight ran her magic through her mane to straighten it out a little. There were no scrapes or cuts to betray her. She checked the straps on her saddlebags, which contained Pinkie and Fluttershy.
The best way to play this would be to get Luna to draw the conclusion. She opened the door and found Luna enjoying some tea with Echo. He stood up and resumed his vigil beside his princess.
“Twilight, did you find them?” Luna asked.
“No, they were gone. The only pony I ran into was Trixie. . . I’m so sorry, Luna, I’ve failed you.” Twilight looked at the ground. She began to think of Applejack and cried, adding to her elaborate ruse.
“Trixie? What would a traveling magician who lives in Manehatten be doing here?” Luna asked.
“I don’t know,” Twilight said. “B-but she said she was going to see Colgate about s-something.”
Luna walked around the table and lifted Twilight’s chin up. “Twilight, you have not failed me. I will need your help to solve this matter. We should question Trixie at once. Until we can find out what happened to Applejack she is our only other suspect.”
“Okay,” Twilight said. “I’ll show you where she is.”
*************************************************************************************
Trixie walked into the Dentist’s office. The aura of mana hung thickly in the air, signifying powerful spells had been cast here recently. Depending on the type and strength of spell, the aura could last seconds or weeks.
Though she may lack the raw talent of Twilight, her special talent was still magic, and she had studied just as hard to learn all she could. She began to recall half-forgotten texts and classes from her fillyhood.
Trixie closed her eyes, searching out the magical leylines that supplied the essence of magic to each unicorn. They were tainted a sickly redish-black. She followed them to the point of highest concentration, keeping her mental wards up. She only hoped they would be enough if her fears were true.
She passed the reception desk where she felt something tingling in the air. Focusing her horn, she could make out faint tidbits of conversation, and a scream.There was a blurry image of two ponies, however it was not enough to be useful. Trixie’s eyes sprung open and she lost her connection to the ether. The magic she was sensing was black magic; Trixie feared that a pony had been killed here.
“Colgate?” Trixie called out. She walked past the reception desk, not noticing the small doll laying on the floor that had once been a receptionist.
The dental exam room had the highest concentration of magic. Trixie opened the door slowly, noticing some signs of a struggle. Dental tools had not been put away, a couple trays still lay on their side. Trixie closed her eyes and brought up her mental image of the arcane magics in the room.
In the center of the floor was a vile trap, designed to crush the life out of a unicorn while inhibiting their magic. The harder the unicorn fought and channeled magic to escape, the quicker it would constrict them. Trixie had nightmares about such evil magic as a child. Her cousin had once told her a horror story on a camping trip. She claimed the traps were strong enough to crush a pony into a literal pulp of blood and bone fragments.
She circled around the dentist’s chair, eying it suspiciously. A trap designed to kill a pony would be detectable for a month if it was triggered. This ward had not been triggered, instead Trixie deduced it must have been de-activated. It lay dormant and would only be detectable for two days at most. Who ever had come and cast it, must have done so recently. The fact that Colgate was nowhere to be found meant they had come for her.
Trixie continued to look around the room. She noticed a couple hairs sitting on the dentist’s chair. She levitated them up, noticing they were a familiar shade of lavender. Leaning in closer to get a better look, her hoof crossed the trap, reactivating it.
She froze as she stepped on the proverbial landmine. Her mental wards were burning against her mind, threatening to shatter and allow the trap to activate and kill her. Trixie slid her hoof back out of the circle as slowly as possible, focusing all the magic she dared in an attempt to disable the trap before it’s full power crushed down on her.
************************************************************************************
“This is Colgate’s office, can you sense that?” Twilight said.
“Yes, a unicorn is in there channeling magic, a powerful one too. Echo, prepare yourself,” Luna ordered.
“Yes, Princess.”
“Luna, be careful,” Twilight said. She followed her inside. The three of them walked around the reception desk towards the source of the magic.
Twilight glanced to the side, recalling her recent trip here. She gasped as she saw the receptionist laying on the ground as a doll. Fuck. How could I be so stupid?!
Echo picked up on her dismay instantly, and followed her gaze. Before he could speak, Twilight interjected. “Look, Luna!”
Luna turned to see what Twilight had found. She levitated the doll over to her and probed it with her magic. “Good work, Twilight. It appears to be some sort of black magic. Perhaps later I can figure out if the pony inside is alive or dead. Now, quietly, we have a suspect to apprehend.”
The trio headed slowly towards the dental exam room. Twilight heard Echo growling softly. She fought the urge to look at him, he was suspicious enough as is.
The door was wide open and Twilight smiled in glee. Trixie had in fact come looking for Colgate. The de-activated trap that Twilight knew would fade away within a day or two had been re-activated by her. She was now standing on the edge, channeling all her energy to escape it.
Twilight knew once inside the trap escape was impossible, yet Trixie had not gone all the way inside. She had stumbled right into the spider’s web in time for the spider to arrive.
“Trixie Lulamoon you will explain yourself at once!” Luna commanded in her thunderous royal accent.
Trixie stumbled backwards, narrowly avoiding being eviscerated as the spell triggered. The dentist’s chair was crushed into dust by the spell, which dissipated and tainted the air with the smell of sulfur.
Trixie looked up, dazed. “Luna? I. . . something happened to Colgate!”
“Silence! What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I was just—” Trixie’s gaze fell upon Twilight. The hairs on the chair came back to the front of her mind. Trixie scrambled backwards, firing up her horn. She had never successfully teleported before, but the wicked smirk on Twilight’s face told Trixie all she needed to know.
“Princess it’s her! It’s T—”
Trixe was interrupted as Echo emitted a high pitched screech. Twilight covered her ears, her horn blazing in agony. She stepped backwards trying to get away from the noise. Trixie’s horn faded instantly, her magic interrupted.
Luna smiled, having not been effected even slightly. “Trixie Lulamoon, you would do well not to use your magic again. We are not amused.”
“No! She’ll kill us all! I didn’t do it. It wa—”
“What’d you do to Applejack!” Twilight yelled. She had to make sure Trixie didn’t go planting ideas in Luna’s head.
“Twilight, please calm down,” Luna said, quieting her tone.
“No, she did it, didn’t she? Stealing all my friends, hurting Colgate! That was a devil’s trap! What kind of horrible mare uses such foul magic?” Twilight advanced on Trixie, causing the cowering unicorn to fire her horn up again.
Twilight was prepared this time, suffering less from the high pitched noise Echo emitted. Trixie’s horn powered down, and Twilight saw something silver flash out of Echo’s saddlebag.
A ring slammed down on Trixie’s horn, blocking her magic. Twilight shuddered at how easily Luna and Echo had worked together to completely silence her magic. If Luna caught onto Twilight, their battle would be over before it started. Out of the two of them, Echo would have to be first to go.
“No, please, Princess.” Trixie fell to the ground groveling. “I didn’t do anything wrong!”
“We are done here, my little pony. You will be questioned back at the library. You will remain silent o—”
“No! Please not the Libra—”
Luna levitated a muzzle over from Echo’s saddlebag. She fastened it around Trixie’s head, clamping her jaw shut. Trixie began crying, curling up into a pathetic heap of her azure hair.
Luna leaned over her, softening her tone from the commanding royal voice. “Forgive me, my little pony. I have not had to act as such in a thousand years. You are charged with foalnapping, treason, and murder. You will be questioned before we decide whether you will stand trial before Celestia and me, or released. Nod if you understand.”
Trixie managed something akin to a nod of understanding.
“Good, now get up and walk,” Luna ordered.
She lay on the ground quivering still. Twilight was enjoying every minute of it. This was well worth the humiliation of the magic show and alicorn amulet.
“Walk!” Luna commanded.
Trixie cried harder to the point even Luna started to feel bad. Twilight was holding back her laughter, when finally the guard spoke up.
“Princess, allow me to carry her,” Echo said. “She is clearly traumatized.”
Luna glanced back at her guard, then Trixie. “Very well. You shall be carried back to the library for interrogation, Trixie Lulamoon. Twilight and I shall finish searching the premises.”