Chapter 76
I watched as the mare stormed out of town hall.
"Who dare's challenge the Great and Powerful Trixie!?" She questioned.
I paused for a moment.
'Did-did she just refer to herself in the third-pony perspective?' The darkness asked.
'Yes, yes she did.'
'...She seems arrogant as Tartarus.'
'You can say that again.'
I left my mental conversation and returned to the real world. "I-!" The mares around me all covered their ears. I cut my magic. "Sorry, forgot about that. I am the one who challenged you." I told her.
"And who might you be?" The mare asked. I observered her, she held herself above all others. I noticed the amulet she wore right away.
I was staring at the amulet. "Yep, that's dark magic." I stated. The girls around me just looked confused, but Trixie quickly brought up her hoof blocking the amulet from my view. "Oh, don't try to hide it. I've already seen it, and I didn't even need to see it to know about it." I told her.
"So you are familiar with The Alicorn Amulet?" She asked.
"The Alicorn Amulet?... Really?... That's a stupid name." I said.
"You-you didn't know about it?" Trixie asked surprised.
"Nope, I just know it's dark magic that powers it." I told her.
She glared at me.
'Have you ever run into this Alicorn Amulet before?' I asked the darkness.
'Once before actually. Not me specifically, but a previous incarnation.'
'And how were they involved?' I asked.
'They helped create it.'
'...So do we have an advantage, or is it full-proof?'
The darkness just chuckled. 'Well, it was designed so that only the pony that put it on could take it off, but do you think an incarnation of darkness wouldn't put some backdoor so it couldn't be used against us?'
'So what is it?'
'...Give me a minute.'
'Really?'
'Hey, it's been a long time since that incarnation.'
'Fine, fine. At least tell me you remember what it does.' I responded.
'Of course, it was designed to increase a ponies magical ability to rival the power of the alicorns, but it in true darkness fashion it came with a trade off. The ponies dark feelings and emotions were increased exponentially.'
'So she's kind of insane right now?' I asked.
'In a sense.'
"Trixie, I'm going to have to ask you to remove the amulet." I said aloud.
"Why would Trixie do such a thing?" She questioned.
"Would you be any more inclined to cooperate if I told you the amulet was corrupting your mind and emotions?" She just glared at me some more. "I take it that's a no."
"Your words mean nothing to me." Trixie stated. "I have risen above all ponykind. Only an alicorn could even provide a small challenge for me!" She shouted.
I looked to my sides, both my wings were folded in blending with my coat. I gave a sheepish smile as I extended my wings making them seen. Lost an element of surprise? Maybe. Saw the best surprised reaction in all of ponykind? Yes.
"You-you are-" Trixie stammered out in surprise. I felt a slight fluctuation in the dark magic in the amulet.
"Devilishly handsome, I know." I smiled fully.
Trixie's surprise became annoyance, and I felt the amulet become steady again.
'That's what it was.' The darkness said suddenly.
'What?'
'The backdoor, the amulet's greatest strength is anger and hatred. The farther you push her mind away from those feelings the weaker the hold of the amulet.' The darkness answered.
'And exactly what feelings make it weaker?' I asked.
'Well happiness and joy obviously, but I think taking the fear and sadness route might be more our kind of thing.' He told me.
'So if I just make her feel sad the amulet will weaken?' I felt the darkness give a pulse of conformation. 'easy enough...in theory'
"Will you focus!" Trixie said angrily. "You're the one who challenged me, but you keep staring off into nothing and spacing out!"
I returned my focus to Trixie, I opened my mind and allowed my power to seep through. I had a little difficulty getting through the small ward put up from the amulet, but it was apparent Trixie had no practice with fighting off mental attacks. I managed to get through and I began to worm my way through her mind trying to find some fear or sad memory.
I found one...and I'm not too proud that I'm going to be using it.
"Tell me Trixie, why are you so obsessed with power?" I asked.
She looked confused, but answered after a moment. "Because power is everything in this world. If you lack something you can use power to get it." She told me.
"Really? Are you sure it's that?" I questioned, pausing. I took a deep breath and let out a sigh, I didn't want to have to say this, but there wasn't another choice. "Are you sure it's not because your father came home drunk every night and beat you because you were a failure as a unicorn?" The words came out sounding strong, but inside it really just hurt me to say them.
The reaction was immediate. The girls around me gasped and stared at Trixie. Trixie's eyes were wide. She faltered and stepped back. "Why-How-Where did you-" She tried to ask her voice weakened.
"Why did he think you were so weak? Was it because you couldn't preform a simple levitating spell?" I continued my questioning, but the more I said the worse I felt.
Trixie's eyes opened even wider and I could see tears starting to form in her eyes, she already knew what came next. I sensed the amulet it was significantly weaker... but it wasn't weak enough. It pained me, but I had to continue.
I shut my eyes hoping to hide my own tears that had begun to form. "A simple spell that- that could've been used to lift a steel beam off of your mother and kept her from being crushed to death."
I kept my eyes shut, my own tears beginning to fall. I didn't like doing this, I didn't like hurting her like this. I didn't look, but I could hear Trixie. She was crying openly now. Her mind forced away from her anger, and instead being sucked back into her saddest day. The amulet was the weakest it had even been. I finally opened my eyes. Trixie had fallen back into a sitting position and was using her front legs to weep into. I began walking to her. My horn lit up with dark magic. Even if the amulet was weak normal magic still wouldn't be able to do anything to it. After some effort my dark magic pried open the amulets latch and it fell off. I continued to walk towards Trixie. I sat down next to her and wrapped my front legs around her.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." I told her. I could feel my fur becoming wet as her tears ran down my coat. I sat there comforting her, after all it was my fault she was like this to begin with. I was managing to hold back my own tears. A foal who wasn't good enough for their father. It was a little to close to home for me.