//------------------------------// // The Great and Powerful Memory Lapse // Story: Appledashery // by Just Essay //------------------------------// “Mmmffg... guh... graaugh... muh...” Grunting, wheezing, and panting for breath, a lone unicorn climbed her way out of a wheel-shaped hole in the rocky earth. Sunset Shimmer's coat was covered all over in soot and grime. Her horn flickered with residual energy, for she had employed it in levitating herself gradually—cliff by cliff—over the past twenty-four hours of ascension. At last, after languishing in the labyrinthine depths of the grave of Consus, she approached the surface of the earth. An overcast circle of gray sky loomed above her. Just as she was finally climbing out of the round hole, something soared by overhead. “H-huh?!” She looked up. Blue feathers and a multi-colored tail streaked by, disappearing within a blink. Sunset's turquoise twitched. She snarled. “Rrrrrrrghhh—!” She reached another hoof up, but slipped. “Whoah... whoah-whoah-whoah!” She fell back fifteen feet, landing on the nearest cliff below. “Ooof!” Rainbow Dash touched down in a gravel quarry. She winced, cleared her throat, then awkwardly trotted forward, approaching the blue flanks of a collapsed-and-sobbing mare. “Uh... erhm...” Rainbow smiled awkwardly. “H-how ya doin', Trixie?” “Hrmmm—!” The unicorn rose up with an upturned nose. She rub-rub-rubbed at her muzzle, then pouted, puffy-eyed. “The Great and Powerful Trixie wasn't crying! How could you even insinuate such a thing! It's preposterous!” “Uhhhh...” Rainbow gestured. “All I said was 'how are you?'” “Oh...” Trixie fidgeted. “Right.” She sniffled. “Well it's none of your business!” “Uh huh.” Rainbow gazed ahead of them. “I don't suppose that 'business' would have anything to do with this huge pile of lumber that once used to be your shack?” “A HOUSE!” Trixie spat. “It was the Great and Powerful Trixie's beautiful manor!” She gestured at the messy splinters. “Now just look at it! It's reduced to refuse, like everything else in the Great and Powerful Trixie's life!” “Er... yeah...” Rainbow Dash gulped. “Look, about that—” “Trixie simply doesn't understand!” The unicorn dramatically moaned. “Everything was starting to look up! She had made a splash in this Celestia-forsaken town! She was just starting to pay her dues! And then—out of nowhere—everything gets smashed! Just like in that one loathsome town! Like in every loathsome town!” She collapsed on her knees, shuddering. “The world is so bland and uninteresting. Doesn't it know that it needs somepony great and powerful to liven it up a bit?! Is that too hard a gift to receive?!” “So maybe you're a tad bit boastful...” Rainbow Dash squirmed. “And abrasive... and pompous... and even maliciously dishonest with your powers...” “Hrmmmmmmmmm...” Trixie folded her forelimbs, teeth-gritting. “But join the club!” Rainbow smirked. “I'm no perfect pony either! But I still carry on! And I've got friends around to help me improve myself!” “Trixie wonders if you have a point to get to in all this...” “Point is, bad stuff happens in this world, often times without any reason. Like your shack—” “HOUSE.” “R-right, your palatial manor.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “It's a total bummer what happened, and you absolutely didn't deserve it.” “How would you know?!” Trixie turned to glare at her. “You're just as worse off as everypony in this town!” “Huh?” “Pfft!” Trixie rolled her eyes. “I speak of this pathetic curse that's stripped us all of our memories, of course.” “Oh, right.” Rainbow's ears folded. “That.” “Sometimes I wonder if this is Harmony's way of telling me that Trixie should just give up,” Trixie muttered, burying her face in her front limbs. “Mrmmmff... that Trixie just isn't meant to be Great and Powerful.” Rainbow Dash glanced left... glanced right. Suddenly, she brightened. “Or maaaaaybe...” She smirked devilishly. “It's just a sign that you should consider starting over.” “Hrmmmf... Trixie has tried that,” the unicorn grumbled. “And look what it got Trixie!” “And since when did doing the same thing the same way ever get you a better result?” Rainbow Dash smirked. “You should take a leap of faith and try something different, girl! I mean... that's what being Great and Powerful is all about, right? Being bold... being awesome... being...” “Daring?” Trixie blinked, misty-eyed. Rainbow tried not to wince. “Yeah. Sure. That too.” “But what would Trixie do?!” the mare murmured. “Where would Trixie go?” “I'm sure you can discover the 'what.'” Rainbow trotted forward and placed a hoof on the mare's shoulder. “As to 'where'...” She winked. “I think I got you covered.”