//------------------------------// // Thinking for Tomorrow // Story: The Rejected 6 // by ArtichokeLust //------------------------------// Trixie trotted through Canterlot's main street at a brisk pace, stopping for a second to stare at the draconequus talking to two white stallions, then shrugging and trotting some more. It wasn't long until she made it to the outskirts of town and found her traveling home... It wasn't nearly as nice as the last one. All of the accessories she acquired throughout the years were gone, smashed by a giant rampaging baby bear... Okay, how in the HECK did Twilight manage to find a book on Ursas? Did some pony decide it would be a good idea to stalk house sized bears? Did they have some sort of stomping fetish or something? Trixie just assumed there wouldn't be any detailed information on Ursas, because, one: they're territorial and attack if provoked, and two: they're ridiculously huge. Trixie stepped inside her travelling home. The home was cut from a single large tree. It had all the hinges necessary to fold out and turn into a stage, and it had all the nice woodwork of the old home, plus a few additions. It really didn't cost anything, she just found a tree, sliced it in half, and started carving it apart with her magic. Trixie sat down in the center of her large wooden box and closed her eyes. She let her thoughts run free and tried not to pay any attention to any of them, but that's kind of hard to do after using a memory spell. Instead, her mind threw up after-images of the words she read and pictures representing what they meant. Then those pictures got stronger, eventually throwing up an entire world around her. Trixie knew it wouldn't be long before the effects of the spell would take hold of her, so she locked her door and turned on her protection spells, in case she might "sleep walk"... The words fully enveloped her... "Modified defense spells, volume 1, By: Star Swirl the bearded" "Chapter i: introduction" Trixie found herself in an old memory. She was a filly back in magic-school, facing old bullies around her. She had told her teacher about the bullies, but she had ignored Trixie, and her parents weren't allowed in the school after the last time they tried to protect her. The bullies had found a place and time where no one could come to help her. Trixie's adrenaline filled mind took in every detail around her... "I will start by saying that, if any of my spells could be learned by every single unicorn, I would wish for it to be the spells in this book. And if I had to choose only one, then it would be the shield spell. Alas, the amount of information that goes into any advanced spell is built off of many previous spells combined. So whether it is a defensive or offensive spell, it will still be hard to learn. But as with any of my other works, you will find as little obfuscation here as possible. "Throughout this book, we will begin with the basic shield spell and add on to it to create shields that can do variousthings including: protecting entire cities, being virtually indestructable, and transferring as little heat as possible. I will refer to various other texts that describe the transfer of heat and motion in case the reader is not familiar with the concepts." The endless stone white columns and walls surrounding Trixie did nothing to calm her. They only created endless shadows in the shapes of looming ponies, slowly moving and almost making her jump. There were three bullies surrounding her. The one in front of her was pink with a red mane, and the two behind her were red with a blue mane, and completely purple. Female, male, and male respectively. She remembered them, but she didn't remember their names. It didn't matter though, they didn't deserve to be remembered. "Further on, we will discuss more complex concepts such as: speed spells, gravity spells, repulsion spells, hardening spells, and light spells." "Chapter 1: the Shield" The bullies all stepped forwards at once. "The direct connection that the horn has to the equine brain makes many spells intuitive, but for harder spells you have to know how the world around you works. The best theory so far is membrane theory; everything around us consists of finite membranes contiguous through specific equations, and the horn consists of membranes that are contiguous through equations that are valid in dispersed regions of space and time. This allows for the modification of membranes far removed from the pony. "To create a basic shield, feel for the matter surrounding you, and compress it into a sphere. Trixie knew what was going to happen next. They would all try to attack her, and she would cower, unwittingly creating a powerful shield. But Trixie was older and harder to scare now. The bullies crouched, smirked, and then leapt at her. Bored, Trixie created a simple, but powerful, shield spell, causing the bullies to bounce away from her like peasants. "Section 1.1: Silly Limericks for Silencing Loudness" Trixie still knew what would happen next. Her teacher would come by at the perfectly wrong moment and blame her for getting into a fight against the three other unicorns. If their leader wasn't the teacher's daughter, maybe she wouldn't have been so blind. But now the lecture would be coming along... Thankfully she knew a silencing spell now... Outside of Trixie's mobile log house, strange lights and the sound of creaking could be noticed as Trixie's containment spells barely managed to hold her. Occasionally, some magic would leak out and slow down everything around the house, or crush some unsuspecting grass. But it wasn't too noticeable unless you were close to the house. Lightning Dust rested her head on her pillow, satisfied with her... strange... day. Her mind was still having trouble coming to terms with the fact that Discord had saved her from her unending temper-tantrum that would probably have cost her a job, and whatever reputation she still had. She wasn't complaining though... Anyhow, tomorrow would be interesting. Apparently Motion would be temporary weather captain. What would he do? She wondered... Would he destroy the deviants' dignities by forcing them to dance? Would he... Lightning Dust tried hard to think of ways to humiliate the weather team using things related to motion... Maybe he would throw them for a loop? Lightning snickered and turned under her covers, eager to watch the rookie tease the other rookies.