//------------------------------// // Chapter Three // Story: Trixie's Rod of Wonder // by Emerald Harp //------------------------------// The next morning, the trio of rock workers walked into a very crowded Ponyville. Trixie got more than her fair share of sneers and dirty looks from the locals. The magician smiled back nervously and kept moving. Eventually, they made their way to the center of town. “Welp, ladies, I see some of my kin-folk over yonder I aim to visit with, so I’m gonna have to see you two later on,” Hayseed announced. “Aren’t you coming to the competition?” Trixie asked. “Nope. I reckon with that stick of yours, you otta’ win first prize.” Trixie beamed as she patted the metal carrying case of her new toy. After the three said their goodbyes, the magician and Maud plodded forward through the crowd of colorful ponies. They and the rest of the ponies followed tall, royal violet and gold signs directing them to the outskirts of town. When they were nearly at the edge of the Everfree Forest, most of the crowd made their way into a huge wooden amphitheatre constructed for the event. Outside the structure, a sign-up line was slowly creeping forward. Trixie joined the back of the line and turned to Maud. “Well, I’ll see you in the winner’s circle.” From behind, they heard, “Hey, Snipps. It looks like they’ll let anypony in this competition, even frauds.” Snips replied, “Heh, heh, she’s not so great and powerful without that . . . that . . . thing around her neck that made her great and powerful, eh Snails? Recognizing the voices, the ponies faced the two small unicorns wielding plastic wands. They were also wearing very cheap robes made to look like Starswirl’s. Trixie smiled mockingly down at the pair. “Snipps, Snails, my two best assistants,” she said warmly. Both ponies sneered at her. “We’re no assistants of yours. You’re no more magical then . . . uh, then Snails.” “Hey!” The other pony cried out indignantly. “What’s going on?” Maud asked. Her tone suggested she was disinterested but Trixie knew she was anything but. “Oh, nothing. In her hay day, the Great and Powerful Trixie had many admirers. These two were the most fanatical,” Trixie explained. “We were not!” Snips cried. “You’re just here to make trouble, aren’t you?” The magician grinned. “Actually, I’m here to win Celestia’s Magic Competition.” Snips and Snails looked at each other and burst into gales of laughter. “What’s so funny?” asked Maud. Snails was the first to recover. “Her magic stinks. I bet she couldn’t even turn a frog into an orange.” “Can you?” Maud asked the small unicorn. “He’s got a better chance than her anyday of the week,” Snipps answered. The fat little unicorn punched Snails in the shoulder playfully. “Me and him are gonna split the winning’s after we trounce every other pony here.” “That’s big talk coming from a unicorn with a plastic wand. Did your mommy by it for you?” Trixie asked condescendingly. “That’s none of your business,” replied Snipps a little too quickly. “Beside’s this baby is just for show. I don’t need it.” That remark stung the sky-blue unicorn more than the young pony knew, but Trixie didn’t let it show. Getting back into the action, Snails asked Trixie, “Why are you even here? You can’t do magic. You’re just a show pony with no . . . uh . . . no . . . what’s the word, Snipps?” “Talent,” Snipps said rolling his eyes. Maud shook her head. “Come on, Trixie, the line is moving. These two aren’t worth your time.” As Maud turned to face her friend, she saw that the magician had uncased the rod and was glaring at her antagonists. “No, Maud. If these two want to see magic, I shall give them magic. Behold!” “Trixie, wait,” Maud said in a monotone, but it was too late. The magician was already trying to cast a spell . . . but nothing happened. Trixie felt the bottom drop out of her heart. She tried again, pointing the wand at the ground, “Behold!” But there was nothing to see. The other ponies in the line joined Snips and Snails in laughing at the embarrassed pony. “Yeah, that’s some powerful magic you got there,” Snails snickered. “No kidding, I bet she’s been practicing all day,” Snips howled. Crest fallen, Trixie mustered as much dignity as she could and put away the rod as other snickering unicorns passed her. When she was done, she looked pitifully at Maud for answers. The Earth Pony pointed to an elaborate wooden sign that read, All magic is prohibited before the tournament and shall be enforced by Her Majesty, Princess Celestia. Have a nice day. The sky-blue unicorn blinked at the sign. A smile crept over her face until it reached from ear to ear. She then started to giggle, which turned shortly into a maniacal laugh. She laughed until she could no longer stand. Catching her friend before she could hurt herself, Maud asked, “What’s so funny?” Between heaves of laughter, Trixie replied, “My rod’s not broken. I can still compete. You have no idea how relieved I am.” The rock farmer shook her head. “You’re right. I don’t think I’ve ever been that relived,” she said dully. Sobering, Trixie collected her rod and joined the line, ignoring the worried stares of the other unicorns. Waving to her friend, she yelled, “I’ll see you inside, Maud!” Sweat rolled down the magician’s back as she looked at the fruit. Her goal was simple; turn the orange into a frog. It was only round one of the competition, and already she knew she was going to fail. The constant jeers and boos from the crowd were not helping her confidence. They remembered the last time Trixie visited their town. She shook her head and tried to block out the hateful noise surrounding her. Trixie had hoped their goal would be broad, like “who could impress the Princess the most with their magic?” Such was not the case. Instead a fruit was placed in front of every single one of the unicorns. They were then told to change it into a frog. Most of the competitors had already successfully completed their task, some with more finesse than others. The ponies who couldn’t, hid their embarrassment as best they could while exiting the arena. Trixie promised herself that she would leave the amphitheatre in victory, but as she continued to stare at the orange, victory seemed so far away. As her mind buzzed, a loud voice issued from the throne at the top of the amphitheatre. “You have twenty seconds, competitor, until you are disqualified,” Trixie’s eyes bulged in shock. Knowing something had to be done now, Trixie gripped the plain looking metal rod between her hooves. She took a step forward and used her own magic to levitate the fruit while she pointed the rod at it. Nothing happened. As a fresh wave of nausea and panic welled up inside the magican, she felt several drops of water. Trixie looked up, and saw the sky had turned dark grey with clouds. With a great boom of thunder, the massive storm drenched the attendees with a deluge of rain. The magician’s mouth filled with water as she gaped skyward. As she sputtered and coughed, something squishy hit her in the face and stayed there. She shrieked in panic, dropping her rod into the mud as she tried to pry the thing off her. Trixie lost her footing on the muddy ground as she struggled. After a few more moments of desperate pulling and muffled screaming, the thing on her face loosened its grip. She opened her eyes and was face to face with a huge mud-green frog. She would have yelled in its face if she hadn’t noticed the bright violet aura encompassing both her and the amphibian. “Did you have to turn the arena into a swamp, Trixie?” Recognizing the voice, Trixe tried to turn her head, but found that she couldn’t. “Uh, why of course, Twilight. The Great and Powerful Trixie loves to make an impression.” Trying to sound as confident as possible, she continued, “Now release me! I have a competition to win.” The new princess rolled her eyes as the magician was lowered to the surprisingly dry ground. Twilight had cast a spell to clear the skies. “Just save the showboating until later, okay?” “No guarantees on that, Princess, I have an image to . . .” The words died in Trixie’s throat as she saw Twilight Sparkle looking curiously at her metal rod. If Twilight was not a Princess, the magician would have tackled the other unicorn to the ground and yelled at her to never touch her property. Mustering all her patience and control, she said calmly, “Could I have my ro . . . er, my walking stick back?” Twilight stopped turning the rod over in her hooves and looked at Trixie, eyes narrowed. She hoofed the rod back to her and replied, “I want a nice, clean competition, Trixie. If you step out of line once, if you use your magic to harm anypony in any way, you will be punished severely. Do I make myself clear?” Inside, Trixie was jumping for joy; she was still in the game. Outwardly, she scoffed and said, “Really, Twilight? I thought you knew me better than that. I never cause trouble. I’m just misunderstood.” Not rising to the magician’s baiting, Twilight scowled and pointed to where the other competitors were waiting for the next round of the tournament. Chin held high and wearing a triumphant smile, Trixie walked away from the Princess. Before she could enter the ladies’ locker room of the amphitheatre, she was confronted by two fans. “How did you do it?” asked Snipps. Smiling, Trixie innocently asked, “Do what?” “You know, the epic thundercloud,” Snails continued. “Oh, that. It was nothing a unicorn of my stature couldn’t conjure. I was bored and wanted to put on a show.” “Wow, you sure did,” gushed Snipps. A moment later he asked, “Could you teach Snails and me some of that magic after the competition? We didn’t even make it past the first round.” The magician thought for a few seconds before saying, “Hmmmm. The Great and Powerful Trixie shall consider your requests. In the mean time, Trixie hungers. Get the Great and Powerful Trixie a hayburger and an orange juice.” Bowing deeply, the two small unicorns said in unison, “At once, oh Great and Powerful Trixie.” They stumbled over each other in their haste to do the magician’s bidding. As she watched her two old minions do as she instructed, a nostalgic smile spread across her face. “I am back.”