Chapter Ten: From A Magician's Sleeve
It wasn't long before they'd devoured the last of their supplies. What water and food they'd had was now safely within their stomachs. While not the lunch of champions – a large helping of hay fries or a Fillydelphia Daisy Melt would've been quite welcome – it served its purpose. Trixie felt her magic coming back, little by little, and the other four were becoming pampered by the extended break.
Donut Joe gave a long yawn, “Let's wrap this up, the tension's putting me to sleep.”
“And on that inspirational anecdote...” Topstitch trailed off, getting to his hooves slowly and stretching his lazy limbs.
The others nodded their consent and helped gather up the rest of the gear. As they worked they avoided trading glances with the giant pair of double-doors which loomed over them. The portal was plain in design, yet imposing by its very nature, cheekily daring the party to set forth inside. When there was no putting it off any longer the ponies assembled at the base of the entryway and split up between the sides, throwing their shoulders into the heavy task of working them open. The massive hinges made no sound as they pressed inward, the light of the torches gradually spread across the massive space ahead, causing all the walls to shimmer strangely.
Luna's hoof was the first inside, it squelched loudly as it sunk into the plush carpet of the threshold. She pulled herself back in alarm, eying the substance she'd trod in as though it were surely poison. The gunk coated the entirety of the chamber beyond, a heavy stench of oil and ammonia mingled together. Luna squinted, silently willing her eyes to gather all the light that she could and still she couldn't see through the blackness that lay just beyond the torch's aura.
“If the last challenge is mopping this room, Trixie forfeits,” scoffed The Great and Powerful Trixie as she took one whiff of the room.
The others ignored her and delved further into the chamber. Their entry was heralded by the sound of twenty hooves squishing and squashing as they awkwardly waddled across the goo. It was undeniably the same as the goo they'd found elsewhere in the caves, only in much greater quantity. Not only was it the floor, the walls and ceiling were likewise painted in their entirety, giving off a spooky yet mesmerizing sheen to their surroundings.
Joe craned his neck to watch small globules drip from the ceiling like mucus rain. “You got me thinkin' about it, but, ah, didn't you say somethin' about slime, Socks?” There was no reply from behind him. Donut Joe stopped and turned around, staring at empty space where Knee Socks had been standing seconds before. “Aah, almond bear claws...” Joe swore as he noted that Socks had vanished completely.
He needn't explain what had happened, the others were already on high alert. Joe dropped the torch he carried to access his sword, realizing too late how bad an idea that was. The torch planted itself firmly in the goo with a soft hiss and the entire cave went dark. There was an uproar of squelching noises as the panicked ponies tried to right themselves and find a new light. None of them could so much as make out an outline in the pitch black.
“Cease!” shouted Luna. “Still thy hooves and listen.”
“I'm not moving,” Trixie piped back.
“That sound isn't coming from us,” said Mwali.
He was right. The sound was everywhere at once, echoing off all the walls, but it didn't originate from their small circle.
“Light,” Topstitch whispered into what he thought was Trixie's ear.
A small pinprick graced Trixie's horn. The ghostly purple faces of her friends stood out, or in Luna's case her chest and neck, her head was aimed upward while she strained her ears. It dawned on each of them that what little they had gained came at a terrible price, and that Trixie's horn served as well as a beacon as would a neon sign that proclaimed 'please eat us'. The squelching had stopped, but the smell was worse than ever, as though they were bathing in hair dye.
Another sound bounced around the room, a low gurgling like air bubbles in a water jug. Something dropped on Topstitch's shoulder, moist and cold. He bit his tongue to stop himself from yelping and his whole body shook. Luna took notice and followed the slime projectile back to its source on the ceiling. She raised her hoof and prodded Trixie gently, indicating her line of sight. The light from Trixie's horn intensified and the others mirrored Luna's posture.
Glorph...
Trixie gave a high-pitched squeal and bolted out of the semi-circle. Luna shouted after her, but was staring at the fleeing magician through a haze as a five-foot-tall cube of solid green slime splashed to the floor in front of Luna's face. The creature was tinged eerily purple by Trixie's magic, and two black eyes swam in its center like shiny stones. Luna froze, unsure whether to attack or retreat as it stared straight into her eyes and made one disgusting sound.
Glorph.
The slime wobbled forwards. Luna cantered backwards and lunged as she drew her sword, driving the blade into its center mass. Mwali's spear crossed paths as it punched into the monster from the side and nearly found an eye, a third attack followed as Donut Joe sliced a crescent into the side opposite. The small beads swirled slightly, moving apart from each other to stare at Mwali and Donut Joe simultaneously. Suddenly it lurched forwards and its surface brushed Luna's muzzle.
As though by a dozen pairs of unseen hands Luna's face was being pulled forwards, into the slime's body. She couldn't breathe and her attempts to pull herself out were hampered by the ooze coating the ground. Mwali stabbed at the slime again, but it was unfazed the same as their first attack. Luna's eyes were almost to the wall of green when she snapped them shut and she could taste the gel on her tongue.
With a small leap and a mighty stroke Donut Joe hacked a corner off the cube. It slid off like a hunk off ice and splatted on the floor. The cube stopped just briefly to re-adjust its eyes on Joe as he stared aghast at the quivering lump of goo he'd severed. Luna took the chance to double her effort, releasing her sword and pulling away as Topstitch grabbed her about the shoulders and tugged her back. Luna's face came free and she gasped for air, choking out the repulsive goo and rubbing it off of her snout with a foreleg.
“How in Star Swirl's britches are we supposed to defeat that?” Topstitch exclaimed, sure to keep a fair distance from the slime.
Glorph, it replied unhelpfully.
“R-rinse and repeat?” said Donut Joe. “Maybe it just wants to style our manes for a fancy shindig.”
“Something tells me this goo isn't meant for haircare,” Mwali replied as he backed away.
Far from banter, Trixie was fixated on what sat atop the slime. Unmistakeably was the pointy red and black hat from Midnight Gloom's portrait. Her thoughts flashed back tot he slime throughout the dungeon, to the mess hall where the doors were barred and the occupants found gone. A shapeless slime wouldn't have had any trouble navigating the traps and small crevices of the entire fortress. Certainly it wouldn't be any trouble to sneak into the throne room and gobble up the mage himself.
“A sword, Donut Joe,” barked Luna.
Joe snapped out of his daze and fished in his rucksack. He brandished one of the swords they'd found earlier and held it towards her, but the slime blocked his path. “Uh, get ready to duck,” he said, curling his neck to throw the weapon.
Luna winced as he whirled the sword around and it flew over the slime in a deadly arc. It landed on the tip inches from where she stood and bounced up towards her muzzle. Luna deflected the hilt with her bracers and caught the grip in her teeth before it could fall into the muck. The slime moved its eyes to face her, though it seemed disinterested. It had a point, the sword would do no good if she couldn't harm it.
“Where's some of that meta-game stuff Socks was talking about?” said Joe, aiming the question at Trixie.
She fidgeted, that's right, the others had no idea how to deal with a slime. It was one of the most dangerous creatures in the monster compendium. They grow larger and stronger the more that they eat, and they could quickly regenerate any bits that got chopped off. There was no shortage of ooze for it to rebuild with. That wasn't to say they were invincible. If you mixed types of slime it could be toxic, and fire could always be used to burn away the slime. Trixie couldn't help her pride bubbling over. Ask her the core laws of levitation and her brain may as well be filled with straw, but she had Age of Nightmares memorized.
The showmare did her best to prance gaily across the sticky terrain, lording her knowledge over all of them. “Well, my ignorant colleagues, first of all it's useless to stab at it. Only slicing attacks can remove its mass, and the more you chop off the weaker it gets. Should it be that you can see to such a daunting task The Great and Powerful Lulamoon should be able to destroy it with fire and lay a final blow.” Trixie stopped a few feet from the slime and raised her hoof to her chin with a devilish smile, “Don't waste your final glorphs, slime, because you are no match for Trixie!”
Unamused, the slime skated towards her with an alarming swiftness across the oozy floor.
Trixie yelped and tried to spring backwards, only to be suction cupped back down. She laughed nervously, “Trixie has reconsidered her threat, and would like to negotiate for her release.”
“Her hide changes color with a swiftness that could shame a chameleon,” said Mwali. The zebra sprung into action to pull Trixie out of harms way.
Behind him Luna took off, separating herself from the goo and flying near to the ceiling of the cave. Without ado she dove back in at an angle, severing a large portion of the slime's body before banking away and going for another attack. Donut Joe saw the slime's eyes swirling to find the princess and took the chance to deal damage of his own, catching the slim across the middle with his sword and trying to cut it clean in half. His sword came to a stop and became like lead, lead which was encased in cement, cement which had been chained in place and said 'glorph'. Joe put his hoof up to separate his sword from the slime, but his limb sunk in an inch or two instead. Just as he was about to panic a flash of blew lit the spot and the slime's body boiled and exploded outward as it was blasted with lightning.
The slime made its disgusting noise again as its eyes split apart into four, moving them to watch Trixie behind it, Luna above, and Joe in front. The last eye settled on Mwali as he approached quickly with an incandescent sword in his teeth. He drove it across the slime's body and rent a sizzling gash across its face and destroyed a large portion of it. In response the slime leapt clean over Mwali and towards Trixie, singling her out as the one who'd first used magic. She hopped away to avoid being landed on and swallowed whole, firing off a panicked heatwave as she peddled back. The slime swiveled its eyes in little spirals as it grew agitated and began to inch the other way.
“It's going to regenerate,” Trixie huffed, as though it were everypony else's fault. “Keep on it or it'll just keep healing.”
Just as she said, the slime began gathering more goo to its form and slowly rebuilding the sections that were cut off or burned. It made its bubbling noises quite happily all the while, zigzagging across the sticky ground.
Luna was on top of it. Soaring through the air and unimpeded by movement penalties, the princess swooped low and hacked off another layer of slime even as it was being built up. The others were too far away, and she landed to try and land another blow or two. A small bulge appeared on the slime's surface and Luna regarded it curiously for a moment, at least until it splashed outward like a cannonball and hammered the joint of Luna's right wing.
“'Dat can't be good,” said Joe. Pausing in his struggle to get nearer the conflict.
The projectile hardened and pinned Luna's wing in place, effectively grounding her. She wasted no time in scoring another two cuts, but beat a hasty retreat as another bulge formed and aimed straight for her head. This one was smaller, easier to avoid, but as Luna raised the broad side of her sword to intercept the projectile she was struck instead by an acidic smell and heard a sizzling from the blade. The weapon itself was intact, but the goo had gnawed the blade gently and removed much of its shiny finish.
The slime made to engulf Luna, only to receive two small knives plunged into its back. Topstitch's throwing knives were swallowed entirely and floated strangely in the middle of the cube as it paused and repositioned its eyes to see the new attacker. Its gaze was met with a colossal fireball to the face. The orb sunk in and at first seemed like it might be snuffed out, only to expand quickly and blow a gaping crater in the slime. Its glorphs turned into a watery groan as it fled in the other direction.
Mwali was already there, the zebra had overcome the footing and now moved as lithely as a jungle cat. He slashed wildly with his illusory blade and lay deep ruts across the slime. As soon as its eyes could change position it whipped out a gooey tentacle and slapped Mwali across the face, stunning him more than anything else, but the remnants of slime on his cheek began to burn away the fur.
Luna grumbled as she re-engaged. They surrounded the slime and lay about it from all sides, far enough from each other only to allow Trixie a clear shot with her magic. Every hunk that they sliced away merely trembled on the ground before slithering back to the greater whole, and the slime had no trouble chasing them off or getting around the ponies. It felt like nothing was working, even burning away the slime just caused it to flee and pick up more. All the while it made its awful 'glorph' sound and taunted them as it slowly destroyed their gear and whittled away their endurance.
It wasn't long before they were scattered again. Trixie was stuck cleaning up the mess, burning away the still-living bits as the slime skittered away. Donut Joe and Topstitch were still having trouble trekking laboriously through the syrupy mire and Mwali was running out of magic. At least between the four combatants they could keep the slime's attention divided, but its projectiles fired rapidly and from all sides, making it difficult to keep up a volley of attacks for any period of time.
“We noft gon be able to keep dif up,” Topstitch garbled through his weapon's handle. Trixie gave him a look of utter confusion that only made him feel like more of an idiot.
“Kill it faster then!” Trixie replied.
Mwali's armor was all but burned away, patches of skin exposed and scarred as if he'd bathed in a fryer. Luna's chain-mail was scarred as well, and the face of her buckler had been almost entirely melted from catching the goo bullets with it. She was out of breath and more than a little irritated as she hacked at the slime and fought to pull her only good wing free of its suction. She and Mwali had abandoned all form and fought more like belligerent swashbucklers than any sort of trained warriors.
To the untrained eye it seemed like a challenging fight, however, to the seasoned role-player there were other forces at work. Things were a little different from normal tabletop games, but she could tell the slime was just a little too fast and too quick to rebuild itself. Mayhaps he'd done it because she'd used meta-game knowledge to help win the fight, but Socks was making this even harder on them than it should've already been. At the rate they were going at least one of them would be gobbled up and digested before the fight was won. Unless a certain magician happened to have brought a wild card into the game world with her.
“Topstitch, do you know what would be helpful?” Trixie asked.
“If I strangled Socks the next time he showed his stupid face?”
Trixie paused to consider that. It would've definitely been fun to watch, but it wasn't what she meant. She nudged Topstitch closer to the slime with her muzzle. “Get the others to distract the slime, but don't waste time trying to hurt it anymore. Trixie needs to concentrate for this trick.”
The stallion showed no inkling of understanding. “To do what?” he asked.
“To perform feats beyond your wildest imagination,” Trixie replied, sitting in a regal pose only to lather her entire backside in goo. The sensation was disturbing at best, and would go on to haunt her nightmares for years to come. A frown wormed its way onto her face as she stood back up. “Leave Trixie to her art...” she muttered meekly.
Topstitch turned away and looked for an opening in the fight. He was just in time to watch as Donut Joe took a walloping punch in the schnoz from a flailing tentacle. The stallion's hind legs were encased in hardened goo and he didn't have the time or traction to crawl away from the advancing slime. Mwali and Luna flanked the creature to cover him, but Topstitch was closest, and with his dirk he hacked at the goo trapping Joe and helped him to his hooves.
“Trixie wants us to play defense,” Topstitch explained. “She's got some kind of plan, let the others know.”
Joe looked nonplussed, “Well sure, they're right over there. Just shout it, HEY-”
Topstitch jammed a goo-covered hoof in Joe's mouth, causing him to splutter and choke. “Don't let Socks hear you, I suspect he's doing a little meta-gaming of his own.”
“One thing at a time, eh?” said Joe, realization dawning on his face.
Topstitch nodded and left to inform Luna.
The Princess of the Night was busily engaged. Mwali had run out of spells to use without burning a hole in his neck and that left the onslaught largely up to her, with the others running interference at most. Her sword gashed and flew to and fro, large quantities of slime came loose and wobbled to the ground to be kicked away where they couldn't join up with the body again. She only noticed Topstitch just in time to stop herself from reflexively beheading him, and paused long enough to draw a deep breath and lend him her ear.
“Trixie's trying something different, she needs us to keep it busy.”
Luna huffed, part exhaustion and part anger, “A thousand pardons, but what dost she think We are doing? We are not continuing this attack for the fun. Without her magic what are we meant to do to wound it?”
“I don't know, I don't play these games!” Topstitch whined, “but we have to think of something.”
“Step aside, ladies,” said Donut Joe, cracking his neck with alarming volume. He hadn't forgotten that he had magic too, and one way or another he was determined to make it work. Watching Mwali swing around a sword made of fire had twinged the smallest of jealous nerves in Joe's competitive nature. He wasn't about to let anypony get swallowed by what looked like the result of a year's worth of congested sinuses. He tried to focus on the mental image, reaching out for the soft tingle of magic. “Stripes,” he called out, “I'm gettin' somethin'. What do?”
Mwali looked at him, agitated as he thrust his spear pointlessly through the slime's lower half. “Focus on where the power lies and let it flow. Form a spell in your mind's eye, then simply let it go.”
“Monkey think, monkey cast spell,” Joe simplified. He focused on the tingling hex mark like trying to tense an oft forgotten muscle. If anything it felt like he was about to pop a blood vessel in his neck, but he went with it. The hex gave off little more illumination than a night-light. His first instinct was to run home for his mom as heat pooled in his neck and began to burn underneath his skin. The blade of his sword hummed gently and Joe saw the first cracks of electricity arcing across its tip.
Just then a giant gob of goo collided with Joe's face. His eyes were glued shut and he was knocked over flailing and unable to breath. All traces of magic faded as he struggled to free his face before the slime hardened.
“Next time I'm playing a mage,” Topstitch grumbled as he moved quickly to Joe's side to free him again.
Luna turned her head to find Trixie. She stood stock still in the same place she had been for several moments now, her eyes snapped shut in concentration. “Thy solution would be appreciated any moment now,” Luna shouted.
“Shh!” she hissed back.
Trixie's breathing was laborious and it felt like her horn might explode. Were it the real world she had no doubt that it would've broken ten times over. Although the others couldn't see it her insides were writhing like all of her muscles had become snakes. Every inch of her body was flooded with magical energy that she'd pulled out of her surroundings. In the real world it would have never worked, at least not in a cave like that one, but within the game world everything around them was innately magical. It allowed her to pool a massive amount of energy, the type that she needed for her ultimate technique.
“Trix... Triiiixie, Trixie what the hay are you doing to my game?” Socks' voice echoed in Trixie's brain.
It was almost enough to throw off her focus entirely and she winced painfully as a spark of errant magic shot off her horn. She had to speed up the process. She poured all the magic she'd gathered into her horn like opening up floodgates filled with lava. Tiny sparks became zig-zagging bolts of purple aura. A small wave pulsed from her hooves, wobbling the gel around her as a small sphere began to form above her head. It was black, with a ring of jagged white teeth spinning rapidly in its center and shocks of purple energy thrashing about inside, crackling madly as they tried to burst the shell.
“Trixie,” Sock's voice was closer now. He was standing just beside her. His temper was unmistakable as he roared, “Trixie if you don't stop whatever that is- Trixie you listen to me!”
The battle nearby had paused as all combatants turned to watch the spectacle. The sphere had grown exponentially, small waves of force ripping off of it at odd angles and producing an unnatural wind around Trixie's figure. Spikes of electricity singed the gooey ground and even threatened to burn Socks' coat.
“What is she doing?” Mwali asked.
“I got nothin',” said Joe, jaw agape. “I just don't wanna be in the way of that spell.”
It wasn't a spell in the classical sense. Trixie was nowhere near good enough to write her own magic, that much she had to admit. She realized now it may take a lifetime before she was able to hold that much energy back in Equestria. Instead of a spell it was more like taking a garden hose, turning it into that of a fire engine, and then turning that into a full-blown hydro-cannon. What she was doing wasn't a spell, it was unleashing pure raw magic
“Trixie!” Socks splashed his hooves in the goo beside her, looking completely irate before he threw his hood up over his head. “You're ruining the game! I won't have this!”
The orb left at breakneck speeds, and the laws of physics felt no mercy. Trixie was simultaneously leeched of all the energy in her body and blasted backwards clean into the air. Her attack careened magnetically through the darkness of the cave towards its target, now the only source of light in the cave. Trixie only had time to blink before she bounced off the ground, rag-dolling violently as she smashed into something very solid. She lay immobile at the foot of Midnight Gloom's throne, covered in green gel and watching in awe.
“What the-”
A flurry of admonishments filled the room as the dark sphere spiraled on its course and impacted the slime at the complete opposite end of the cave. The impact was louder than thunder. This time the slime didn't melt, explode, or sizzle, it was just torn apart. It only took a second or two for the waves of energy pouring off the sphere to vaporize the slime, its pointy hat, and all the goo in the surrounding area. The space where the slime had been was engulfed by a miniature lightning storm that sounded like the static from a thousand television sets as the sphere swallowed itself and imploded.
The resulting shock-wave knocked all five still-standing ponies off their hooves. After the orb detonated an entire wall of the throne room shattered and collapsed. Rock and stone cascaded from the ceiling and through the dust was glimpsed starlight and the glow of the gigantic full moon hanging in the night. Suddenly the entire cave was lit with the natural glow of the celestial body, more than enough light by which to see the paralyzed and pitiful form crumpled at the foot of the throne.
Trixie's hat was gone, and she almost looked like a slime monster herself from all the goo on her coat. She could've been dead as she lay there, one eye open, if not for the smirk that played at her lips and grew as she took in the results of her all out attack.
“What in Tartarus have you done, you stupid, inconsiderate mare?” Socks tiraded. “That's not a spell from the game! You cheated!”
Trixie couldn't reply. Everything was too hazy. Socks sounded like a broken trombone more than a dungeon master. She wanted to gloat, to tell him what mischief she had wrought. Most of all she wanted them to know her technique's name. Sparkle-Buster Cannon. A magic attack without equal.
The others swarmed her body as Trixie faded from consciousness. As Luna supported the mare's head Topstitch broke out all the healing salves that remained. Donut Joe frantically tried to get the burning goo off of the showmare's coat before it could do any damage. Mwali was particularly alarmed, he stood off to the side with bated breath, his tongue caught and his heart frozen as he stared at their best hope of breaking out of the illusion.
Socks paid them no mind. He retracted within himself to brood, staring forlornly at the night sky. That was it, game over. A few small-time traps and small encounters, and Trixie had rounded it all out with one cheap trick. How had she even done it? He had no idea. Socks reached into the pocket of air and retrieved his notebook, flipping quickly to the page with Trixie's character sheet stapled to it. He didn't even need to look at her list of spells, he knew that whatever she'd done wouldn't be on there. So how did she do it?
Socks flipped to the last page of his notebook, skimming past his notes concerning the fight with the slime monster. All the way at the bottom was a tiny scribble that read 'End'. As his eyes lingered there they began to water. Back to the real world then. Back to his store, day after day. Making costumes in his spare time so all the little foals could have their make believe fun. It wasn't a bad like... but by comparison? This was so much more. Watching the world through a crystal ball, changing Equestria forever with the stroke of a pen or the flick of his silver tongue. It was intoxicating, and heartbreaking that it would end on such a weak note. How was he supposed to say goodbye to all that?
A black quill appeared in the air beside him, the tip already bathed in ink. A devilish idea lay seeds in his mind, a simple white lie. How would they ever know? They wouldn't, he rationalized. What if they found out? They couldn't, not in a million years. Changing Equestria forever, with the stroke of a pen, that dream didn't have to be over, not yet. Before he could convince himself to stop Socks pressed the quill to his notebook paper and drew one long wavy question mark. The dungeon master watched the ink set in, and as it dried he smiled to himself. Silently congratulating his own genius.
'End?'
* * *
When Trixie next awoke she was laying on her back, and when she opened her eyes she wasn't surrounded by four walls and five other ponies expressing their relief to be back home. There were no walls around her, just a towering mountain on one side and a far drop to the lush green forest below. An icy wind fluttered through her hair and set her teeth chattering. Trixie clung to her cape, wrapped about her as it was like some sort of cocoon.
Save the sounds of nature she heard nothing, and assumed she was alone. The sky was the only thing in view without turning her head, and she learned quickly that turning her head hurt, a lot. So she stared in silence up at the brilliant lights in the sky, particularly a group almost directly above her, a constellation she'd never seen before that made up a strangely defined face. Before she could make any further observations a periwinkle muzzle with wiry orange hairs blocked her vision.
Socks' pale fur seemed to glow against the backdrop of the moon, and his neon pink irises gleamed at her. A smile crept across his lips as he saw she was awake. He hissed one solitary word, “Cheater.”
A sheet of paper was now hovering in her face. Her own character sheet, Lulamoon de Fleur Mariotte. With the exception of a minor edit at the bottom, in glowing gold letters her own handwriting had been revealed and it read, 'Special Ability: Sparkle-Buster Cannon'. No magician likes it when her tricks are spoiled, but Trixie couldn't help grinning. The last moments of the battle with the slime flashed through her mind in rapid succession.
“Invisible ink,” Socks went on, “now that's clever. I've never seen that before. How did you know I wouldn't just rule that you couldn't use it?”
Trixie squirmed and attempted to escape her cocoon, but she was wrapped up tight. Socks' hoof pushed firmly on her chest, keeping her still. She gave up and answered, “Trixie hoped you would respect her ingenuity enough to let it slide... plus Age of Nightmare's core rulebook also states that a player can make any custom options they want, as long as the dungeon master approves of it.”
Socks mumbled a swear. He hated technicalities. Even if he hadn't known what he was agreeing to, he had approved each and every one of their character sheets. Still, invisible ink was a low blow. If they'd still been sitting around a table he would've never let her get away with it. “Fair enough, I suppose. It doesn't look like you'll be using it any time soon, anyways, not if you like having a horn.”
“What?!” Trixie's eyes shot upwards, trying to get a glimpse of her horn, images of a shattered and broken stub plagued her thoughts.
“Made you look!” Socks exclaimed, full of glee.
Suddenly his smile wasn't scary, it was just infuriating. Trixie tripled her efforts to escape her own garment, the pain she could suffer if she could just get her hooves around his neck. It was no use, and she had every reason to suspect magic was at work there. “So it didn't work,” she said. “We're still in the game.”
“Correct.”
“And Trixie suspects you're not too upset.”
Socks snickered, “There are worse fates. The others went back to town to see if finishing the quest would work, but really I don't think it'll do much good.”
Of course not, Trixie thought sourly. She sighed and looked back at the stars, “What are we supposed to do then? If the script is over how does this stupid game keep working?”
“Oh!” Socks beamed at her, both hooves on her chest as if he were about to swing her around in circles. “You'll love this, I know I do. It's totally automated. It's all going on its own script now. I mean I'm still in charge, of course, but it works just like a real society. There's farmers farming, and bankers taking everyone's bits. I wouldn't be surprised if you find a few ambient quests in town either. I was worried that the whole world revolved around you five, but it's all there, even if you're not.”
“Trixie doesn't care what farmers and bankers are doing, what are we supposed to do?”
Socks formed a small 'o' with his mouth and furrowed his brow in thought. “You're right,” he said, “without a script you five are adventurers without an adventure. I'll get to work on it, straight away.”
“To escape! What are we supposed to do in order to get out of your insane playground?”
“Playground, that's... actually, that's perfect. It really is like a playground here, wouldn't you say?” Socks giggled to himself. She didn't quite share his enthusiasm and he added in a chastising tone, “Don't worry, you'll be fine. You're adventurers, and while farmers are farming, adventurers should be adventuring. If we play along with how the game's supposed to go I'm positive it'll end sooner or later.”
Trixie's reply was cut short by the sound of wings pounding against the air. Her cape magically unbound her and Socks backed away so that she could wobble to her hooves. Princess Luna rose above the edge of the cliff and came to ground between the two ponies, bowing her head as though she'd been carrying a sack of bricks on her neck. Luna sunk to her haunches and took a moment's pause before greeting them.
“Thou are awake, Great and Powerful Trixie,” she said. “We owe you a debt for your actions in the cave.”
“For all the good it did,” Trixie replied.
Luna closed her eyes in thought. “It did enough, we are all alive and unharmed due to you.”
As much as she wanted to, Trixie couldn't flaunt her prowess. She broke from the princess's gaze and played with a rock on the ground instead. They'd won, but it wasn't the total victory she'd wished for.
Luna moved closed, a wing unfurling towards Trixie's side, but she thought better and retracted it. She was in no better spirits than Trixie was, and she was likewise mired in disappointment that they had not already made it back to the real world. Beside Trixie she stared up at the moon in silence, wishing for the first time she could remember that the sun were hanging in its place, that Celestia was there and already had a plan to fix everything. Her sister had a special way with comforting others and inspiring hope.
Where Luna strained for reassurance in her words, she sounded instead cold and calculated. “With our gains from the dungeon the others have found us shelter, and a portion of the earnings were put towards this,” Luna retrieved a small purple gem from a satchel. It glittered softly and its inside swirled like water. “A sage told us you could use this to travel to town in your weakened state.”
Trixie took the gem in her hoof and lowered her horn to touch it. Both glowed eerily. She looked at the alicorn before her as though she was a filly. “It's called a homestone,” she explained. “Just how much of Trixie's loot did you squander on this?”
“Magical services are not in cheap supply here, but we did our best to barter a fair price.”
By the scowl growing on her lips Trixie made it clear she wasn't appreciative. I'm not handicapped, she thought bitterly. Trixie can walk just fine.
Luna sighed. “Trixie, thou and ourselves may not have met on good terms. Thou may not even like us very much. Our ideals are different, but we do not think ourself wrong that you wish the best for everypony here, just as we do. In some ways thou are even an admirable pony.”
Socks, playing witness nearby, was flabberghasted. “'Admirable'?” he seethed, “She cheated!”
Trixie couldn't help but turn her head upward at the word. She found herself staring right into the princess's eyes. Admirable, the word held a special place in her vocabulary, but it was uncommon to hear it from lips other than her own. Hearing it from a princess was like listening to an alien dialect.
Luna nodded, her expression now gentle, “Were that you had walked another path you could have been a fine member of the royal court. Beyond your knowledge of this game, I see in you a strength of spirit.” Luna turned her gaze up to the sky, pausing so she didn't fumble her words. “It is my sister's belief that magic is only the second most powerful force in Equestria, and she has often said it to be dwarfed by the power of heart. Love and determination can achieve things more incredible than any spell.”
Trixie's head felt heavy again. She was tired, too tired to even register what Luna was saying to her. Her determination was being gnawed away, though she could still feel it egging her on. Somewhere deep inside it laughed away the princess's praise.
'It's no surprise,' the voice said, 'after all, Trixie was destined for greatness from the day she was born.'
After what felt like too long spent in silence Trixie finally forced herself to ask, “If you're the Princess of the Night, and you can control dreams, why can't you just wake us up?” Her own voice sounded strange, almost like she was making a wish.
Luna thought carefully on phrasing her answer. “Within a dream even the Princess of the Night is only as the dreamer thinks us. In a dream it is the dreamer who holds absolute power, and we cannot sway events that they wish to remain unchanged, only aid when they have lost control and given way to nightmares.”
Trixie's head turned imperceptibly towards Knee Socks, who stood idly nearby as he changed costumes a dozen times or more at his whim. “Trixie suspects the dreamer is content here.”
Luna followed the movement and caught sight of Socks. She continued more quietly, “This dream will not last forever, I promise you. Have faith in the ponies around you, for they are all of noble heart, and shall prove it to you before the end. I believe that you will do the same, for thou are in possession of a great and powerful heart.”
What wounds Trixie's confidence had suffered were slowly fading. She didn't know what she could say about her faith in others, Socks least of all, but she could at least agree with the last bit. “The Great and Powerful Trixie isn't a mare to be toyed with by illusions. Trixie is going to beat that insufferable hatter, and his defeat will be spectacular, I promise you.”
Socks chuckled as he caught her speech. He approached the cliff's edge to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the two mares, despite their incompatible height differences. “As long as we're clear on that, there's nothing wrong with making it a good show,” he replied, his smile broad.
Trixie's contemptuous smirk was for the haberdasher's eyes alone. She flipped her mane and laughed, “Trixie always puts on a good show.”