//------------------------------// // The Late and Tardy Ninja // Story: The Great and Daydreaming Trixie's Adventures // by ShadeJak //------------------------------// “What?! What do you mean the other side of the building on the ground floor?!” Trixie protested; staring agape at the stallion who was teaching the class she’d walked into. “Exactly as I said, Miss Lulamoon. I don’t know where you’d get the impression Ms. Mana Script’s class is remotely near this area of the building but if you want to get to Room 124 remotely on time, you have about....” He looked at the clock on the wall, then back at the shocked filly. “…Five seconds…” he said, closing the door to his classroom and leaving the filly by herself. Oh no! Tardy on her first day? Why would Sunset Shimmer give her those directions?! She’d never make it now! Thoughts raced through Trixie’s mind and were suddenly interrupted when she was stopped in her tracks by the sound of the bell going off, signifying that class would start any moment now. She had quite a trip ahead of her and the hallway patrol would be out in no time. While they probably would have been helpful in getting her to her class, Trixie had her pride and her desperate attempt to look capable and independent to think about! “No! Trixie will not be made a fool of!” the filly declared to herself. “I just need to be quiet and careful and not get caught! I sneak into class, and they might never know I wasn’t there!” Staring at the now empty halls, Trixie slipped behind a locker and closed her eyes. Quiet… careful… she thought to herself. ~o~o~o~o~o~o~ It was a time of conflict in the distant lands of Neighsia, a kingdom to the far east of Equestria. For now, the Empress had been taken captive within her own palace of Uma Shiro by an evil usurper who would force the land under their rule and put an end to an age of heroes and honor in favor of tyranny and oppression! It would not be so, if the Cunning and Roguish Trixie, the super-secret ninja assassin from the great and powerful order of Shi-Neigh-Bee whose loyalty to the Empress was unfailing, had anything to say about it! A young blue filly in a black bodysuit and mask stuck to the shadows of the long hallway of the palace. Her informant who had helped her get past the guards had been a lowly traitor in service to the Empress’ enemies and had served to stall the honorable ninja by misdirecting her, as she never would have been able to best her in a fight! Luckily, Trixie had interrogated one of the usurper's guards and forced him to reveal the truth behind the location of the room they had taken the Empress to. Sighing, the ninja wiped her forehead with her hoof in exasperation and looked behind her. The interrogated pony lay unconscious and hidden away in the room behind her qas to avoid the alerting of her presence, so now her mission could truly begin. She knew that even armed with this information, it did little to change the fact that there were many halls and guards between her and the Empress who needed her help! The clever ninja checked her saddlebag, hoping for anything that could help her in this important mission should she run into danger. A short sword and her ninja powders would have to suffice in this case. A moment of shame was felt, for a ninja should always be prepared for all! “No! The Cunning and Roguish ninja master adapts to all threats regardless of what she has on her! We always improvise!” Trixie declared, covering her mouth when she realized she may have alerted the pretender’s guards! Noticing a small compartment, the ninja rushed over to it, using her magic to pop it open and ducking inside. Her keen eyes narrowed as she watched two soldiers pass by, their blades sheathed as they looked about for intruders. They looked dangerous, but Trixie knew she had eluded them! Her face fell when they stood there, looking around. One drew closer to her hiding place, suspicion in his cold, ruthless glare. Holding her breath, Trixie waited to see if he’d draw closer, his horn glowing as his katana began to unsheathe itself from the strap on his back… only for it to return to place as he began to walk away, rejoining his companion; the two of them continuing down the hallway immediately after. Trixie let out a silent sigh of relief as she watched them leave. She was a powerful and deadly ninja master, but she could not raise suspicion by taking lives along the way to her destination. It would be far better to continue with her strategy of having nopony know she was here. Making a quick dash down the hall, the stealthy and invisible Trixie passed several doors, each one decorated with a beautiful brushstroke painting representing a different part of Neighsia’s history or the room's purpose. Trixie, however, was a ninja, not an art critic, so their only importance to her was which one would inform her of the room which the Empress was being held. By her briefing, that would be the record storage room, where the traitors of the land hoped to burn her along with all history of the feudal age, an outcome that was sure to pass where Trixie to fail her mission. All it'd take was a quick study to find how far she was from it, now. That thought in mind, Trixie realized she may have needed some help, even if it cost her a moment. First, however, she needed to make sure she would not be seen! Spotting a door that lead to a servant’s supply room, identifiable by its brush-stroke art of a bucket and mop over its rice-paper doors, Trixie used her magic to slide open the door and swiftly ducked inside. Sitting down and floating out her map of the palace, the young but skilled ninja used her horn to light up the blackened closet and look over the directions carefully. Her false informant had sent her a good distance from her destination, but her observant and ninjalike perception allowed her to find where she needed to go in seconds. “Yes! Nothing will halt Trixie’s mission, now!” the young ninja declared. “Somepony in there?” a voice asked, approaching. Trixie’s eyes widened, having risked giving herself away. She needed to use the super-stealthy skills she’d learned in her years of rigorous ninja training if she were to avoid capture! Quickly grabbing up a towel, Trixie flung it over herself and lay down in the corner next to a broom, once more holding her breath as she heard hoofsteps approaching. The sound of the door sliding open and light filled her hiding place shortly after, Trixie kept silent, knowing the guard need only lift up the towel she’d hidden herself under to discover her. It was most fortunate that the conqueror’s forces were not the most persistent sort, as a few seconds later darkness returned to the young ninja’s hiding place and the sound of the door shutting followed after. Emerging from her hiding place, Trixie leaned over and pressed her ear against the door, listening to the fading hoofsteps of the guard. Once she was certain she was safe, Trixie slid open the doors once more and rushed out towards the stairs. She was running out of time, thanks to having to stop and get directions, so she would need to be quick if she were to succeed at her mission! Leaping with the grace and precision of a grasshopper, Trixie jumped onto the rail of the stairs and wrapped her forelegs around it, sliding down the winding passage with far more ease and silence then she would have made at full gallop. The stealthy and innovative ninja grinned in satisfaction at her brilliance as she drew closer and closer to the ground floor, but the end of the rail came much sooner then she’d expected and the young ninja could not stop herself in time. With all her momentum she’d built up on her rapid descent, the filly was sent flying into the air, her tiny legs flailing about helplessly as she attempted to avoid landing on her face and while fortunate enough not to, she instead ended up rolling across the floor and right under the legs of a castle servant that had been walking by, leaving him behind in the dust with a bewildered expression as she continued tumbling down the hallway. Finding herself upside-down in the hallways of the palace, Trixie slid to the floor on her back and away from the wall she’d landed against. Looking around, Trixie saw that her short sword and explosive powders lay next to her, thankfully intact. Getting up and dusting herself off, the filly quickly floated them back inside her saddlebags and looked at the doors. There appeared to be one with a pony playing wind instruments over a pond that she figured to be dedicated to music, and one that depicted a Neighsian landscape. “Hm…” Trixie looked them over, noticing neither of them had the number she had sought on them. There were voices within, no doubt of captured servants and the enemy’s guards. She would free them in time, for now, the ninja warrior had her mission to complete! Noticing the door on her left sported an even number, and the right an odd one, Trixie rushed over against the wall on her left and leaned against it, sneaking along carefully as she counted down the numbers of each door she passed. Her eyes widened when she turned and looked at the latest door she had leaned against and saw that it sported several calligraphy-covered scrolls and the numbers 1, 2, and 4 engraved above it. Leaning against the door, Trixie could hear a mare’s voice within, no doubt the Empress herself. She was saying the names of several ponies, no doubt those who would be able to help end the false ruler’s plans for domination of the eastern world! She could not afford to miss this. “Hey!” a voice suddenly shouted and Trixie turned, seeing the servant she’d slid past earlier and two of the enemy soldiers. “Oh no!” Trixie cried out, realizing she’d been spotted and drawing out her short sword, which only caused the three stallions to stare in confusion at her. “Ha-ha! You will not bring the most cunning and capable ninja of the Neighsian world to your master! The Empress shall be freed from your evil!” Trixie declared proudly, floating out her explosive powder and setting it off, creating a cloud of smoke that quickly hid her. Waiting until it had started clearing up, the brave ninja sliced her way through the rice paper door and sprinted through as fast as she could. “…Trixie Lulamoon?” the Empress inquired as the young ninja threw herself onto a cushion and sat herself up at attention, surrounded by other but far less promising pony ninjas. ~o~o~o~o~o~o~ “Present!” Trixie declared proudly, floating her ruler into her saddlebag and sporting the biggest smile she could muster. “As you can see, Trixie was not tardy at all!” A moment of silence passed as the other students and the teacher, Miss Mana Script, stared at the filly in confusion. Before Trixie could say anything, however, the custodian and two other stallions walked in through the open door, one of them floating a small, burnt-out smoke bomb over to the teacher’s desk. “Um… Trixie can explain…” the filly said sheepishly, slowly sinking behind her desk in embarrassment as all eyes continued to be on her.