//------------------------------// // 03 - Great & Powerful // Story: A Very Minty Summer Sun Celebration // by Zobeid //------------------------------// No longer tied down by her companions, Star Catcher took flight and, with a bird’s-eye view of the fairgrounds, she quickly located the jousting arena. Wooden bleachers on either side provided seating for the audience — in Pegasopolis they would have had soft cloud banks for the audience to rest upon, but obviously that wouldn’t work here with so many unicorns and earth ponies attending. Star Catcher fluttered down to an open space on the bleachers and dropped onto them with a clatter of hooves, then she found a seat and furled her wings. Aside from the seating arrangements, things looked pretty familiar to her. The ground was covered with a thin fog bank, serving as a safety net. In the sky around the arena were several small clouds where the contestants were preparing for action. A voice boomed out from the grandstand — with that peculiar, echoing quality that comes from magical amplification — and announced, “Our combatants are ready for the final match! Wielding the red shield, appropriately enough, is Red Sky.” Upon one of the clouds a pegasus stallion reared up and snorted, flaring his wings out in a dramatic pose. His red mane protruded through the slot in his helmet, forming a crest, and he already had his lance strapped to his right side, and the shield strapped to his left foreleg. He flapped his wings and lifted off in a swirl of loose cloudstuff, hovering in view of the crowd as they applauded, stamping their hooves on the bleachers. Star Catcher grinned and stamped with them. This was what she’d come to see! The announcer continued. “Facing him, with his signature yellow shield, is our reigning champion, a legend in his own time, Lance Wingstrong!” As the stallion reared and pawed at the air with his hooves, the crowd roared with cheers and applause, much louder than they had for the previous jouster. Star Catcher applauded too, but after the din had faded she wondered out loud, “Why haven’t I heard of this champion, I wonder?” “What, you haven’t heard of Lance Wingstrong?” came a voice from close by. “He’s just, like, the biggest hero that jousting has ever had. He won the Fire Wings prize five times in a row!” The speaker was a gangly pegasus colt with a steel blue coat and bright blue mane. He sighed wistfully as he turned his gaze upwards again. “I wanna be just like him when I grow up.” Star Catcher noticed that Rowdy pronounced the word ‘joust’ oddly, so that it rhymed with ‘doused’ instead of ‘dust’. Perhaps it was a local dialect. She said to him, “Really? Well, I suppose we don’t really get much news of such things on Butterfly Island.” The colt blinked. “Butterfly Island? I’ve heard of that, but I thought it was only something from a bedtime story. It was a place you could only find by going through a magical rainbow waterfall.” “What? No! I mean, yes! There’s a rainbow waterfall, but it’s no fairy tale. I live there. I’m the prefect, in fact. My name is Star Catcher.” “Cooool! I’m Rowdy. So what’s it like… Ooh, wait! They’re about to joust!” Star Catcher bit back the impulse to correct his pronunciation and instead turned her eyes upwards. The two stallions flew towards one another, each with a shield strapped to his left pastern and using his right hoof to steady and aim his lance. Instead of flying level, they both flapped hard to gain altitude as they approached one another (not easy to do while loaded with jousting gear), each trying to pick up the few extra inches of height that might score a winning hit. Squinting through their helmets, they swung their lances to the left, aiming with care. A sharp crack was heard as both lances broke, each having scored a solid hit on the opponent’s shield, followed by a cheer from the crowd. The competitors flapped their way back to their respective cloud perches, where their attendants were ready to slot fresh lances into their harnesses and wipe the white chalk marks off their shields, although making sure the judges got a chance to see them first. Meanwhile the announcer’s voice boomed again saying, “Those were solid hits on both shields, and it was close — but according to our judges, Red Sky’s hit was higher, and he’s awarded this tilt. And now they’re coming back to the field for their second tilt.” Star Catcher and Rowdy watched raptly. Star Catcher commented, “Those lances look a lot lighter than I’ve seen before. I’d hate to face down a stratodon with something that light.” Rowdy turned to stare wide-eyed at Star Catcher for a moment. “Stratodon?” “Shush, they’re starting!” The two stallions flew at one another again, and once again there was the crack of lances splintering. This time, however, Lance Wingstrong’s helmet was knocked off. A loud “OOH!” came from the crowd as he swerved unsteadily from the flight line, clearly rattled. The announcer called out, “Ouch, that had to hurt! Red Sky missed Wingstrong’s shield and impacted his helmet! That’s an automatic foul and loss of this tilt by Red Sky. But will Wingstrong be able to continue after that hit?” “It looked like that hit really rang his bell!” was Rowdy’s comment. “I hope he’s OK.” Star Catcher merely nodded. An assistant had already flown to collect the lost helmet and bring it back to Wingstrong’s cloud. The audience watched quietly for a few tense moments as Wingstrong spoke with his attendants. Then an enormous cheer broke out when the crowd saw them put his helmet back on his head and fit a new lance to his harness. He turned to face his competitor, and then pawed at the cloud with his free fore-hoof and snorted a challenge. “YES!” cried the announcer. “Lance is coming back to finish this round, and everything’s riding on this final tilt. Whoever wins this one will take the round — and today’s entire match!” Once again the two clashed, and lances shattered, but Lance’s lance scored a solid hit near the top of Red Sky’s shield. Yet another huge cheer and rumble of applause came up from the crowd as the announcer called out, “Wingstrong wins again! The champion stays on top of the pyramid one more time, and what an exciting finish it was!” He seemed to calm down a bit as he continued. “We’ll have the award ceremony momentarily. And before any of you ponies take off, don’t forget that we’re going to have a rodeo for the earth ponies here this afternoon, magic unicorn duels in the evening, and a fireworks show late tonight after the sky is good and dark!” “That was awesome!” Rowdy said. “Err, yes… Awesome,” said Star Catcher. “Although I wish I’d gotten here earlier. I only got to see the final round.” “Aww… That’s a shame. Hey, I’m gonna go find my cousin, Blue Thunder. He was one of the jousters. Would you like to meet him?” Star Catcher looked at Rowdy, and a smile grew on her muzzle, and she said, “I would love to meet one of the contestants.” Rowdy trotted away from the stadium’s exit, toward its opposite end, and Star Catcher followed. They went through a gate and wound through some colorful tents where ponies (almost all of them winged) were both chatting and packing up their gear into carts and wagons. Rowdy called out to some of them he recognized, flicking out a wing to wave — a gesture most of them returned in kind. To Star Catcher he commented, “My cousin is a cop in Cloudsdale. But he gets leave from work for big jousting competitions like this one.” “A cop?” Star Catcher asked. “You know… A police pony. He catches crooks!” “Oh, like a constable then.” Rowdy nodded. “There’s his tent, c’mon!” He trotted over to the tent and stuck his head in, then went on inside, and Star Catcher followed. “Hey Blue!” he called out as they entered. “Hey Rowdy!” came the reply. Star Catcher saw that Blue Thunder was, indeed, blue with a stormy deep gray mane and tail, and a build that she thought athletic but not overly bulked up. His eyes also settled on her, and he said, “Who is this lovely mare?” Rowdy started to open his mouth, but she pushed him aside and stepped forward and said, “I’m Star Catcher, and I’m very pleased to meet you.” She smiled… and batted her eyelashes… Not to be ignored, Rowdy added, “She’s from Butterfly Island!” “Butterfly Island, really?” He smirked and looked to Star Catcher as he asked, “What kind of stories you been tellin’ my cousin?” Star Catcher blinked and said, “Nothing, really. We only met a few minutes ago, and Rowdy kindly offered to introduce me to you.” She looked at the ground and scuffed at it with a hoof as she said, “I don’t really know anypony in this town, and I was feeling a bit lost.” A look of concern creased Blue’s face as he said, “Do you mean to say you travelled to Canterlot to attend the celebration all by yourself?” “It wasn’t something I planned at all. I’m here almost by accident, you might say. I didn’t even arrive with any money.” “Oh that won’t do at all! I’ll tell you what… As soon as we’re done packing up here, you can come along and hang with me and my crew. There’s always room for one more.” Star Catcher brightened up. “What a kind offer! Thank you! Can I help with packing up your things?” “Sure! The tent stays here, but everything else needs to go into that wagon just outside. We need to clear out and make way for the ro-day-oh contestants.” Then he glanced at the colt and said, “You can help too, Rowdy.” Rowdy responded by tossing his head, then grabbing a small item in his mouth and trotting out of the tent. “Ro-day-oh?” echoed Star Catcher. “Oh yes, that’s the mud pony thing, isn’t it? I’ve never been to one of those. It might be fun to watch them scramble around in the dirt, or whatever it is they do.” She started to pick up some harness gear in her mouth to take outside, but then noticed Blue giving her a pained look. “That’s… a horrible thing to say,” he uttered softly. Star Catcher spat out the harness and said, “What? What did I say?” Blue Thunder stared for a moment, then shook his head and said, “Never mind! Just… Go ahead and take that out to the wagon, okay?” Star Catcher’s ears drooped with confusion, feeling as though she’d done something wrong but not sure what it was. “Oh… Okay,” she said, and she picked up the harness and exited the tent, passing by Rowdy, who was already coming back inside to get another item. She stretched her head into the wagon — a fully covered model, rather fancy from her perspective. She peered around its dark interior, trying to see where to best place the harness. After a moment she spotted some similar pieces of harness gear, and she nosed hers over against them. Just then she heard a rush of wings flapping outside and a brash feminine voice calling out: “Hey Blue! I got your shield back from that guy you loaned it to.” “Good deal!” she heard Blue say. “Just put it in the wagon with the other one.” Star Catcher backed out of the wagon and looked around to see who he was talking to, then her eyes settled the newcomer — and a jolt of confused fear shot through her heart. She tried to yell a warning. “Blue, look out! That’s a… g-g-guh…!!!” Blue just stared at her with a most confuzzled look on his face, seemingly oblivious to the danger right beside him. In desperation, Star Catcher spread her wings and lunged at him, scooping him up and shoving him back into the tent. “OOF!” went Blue, the sound closer to a cough than a word. Then, “What the HAY, lady?” “Listen to me! That’s a very dangerous creature out there!” “What? Naaah. Gilda’s cool. What’s your problem?” “It’s a griffin!” Star Catcher’s normally soothing and compassionate voice now hissed with fear as she struggled to make him understand. “They’re monsters that renegade unicorns created to fight their wizard wars.” From outside the tent, a muffled voice: “You know I can hear you guys talking in there, right?” “Oh no!” Star Catcher glanced around the tent. “We’re trapped like rats. Maybe we can squeeze under the back of the tent.” Blue Thunder reared up and put his front hooves on Star Catcher’s withers and said, “Hey, whoa! Calm down! I don’t even know what you’re going on about. Is this some kind of joke? Because it’s not that funny.” “Don’t you understand? They’re hunters! They eat meat! They eat ponies, it’s what they were made to do.” From outside: “I can still hear you.” Blue’s face darkened in a scowl, and he said, “Well that tears it. I wanted to be patient with you, but you’re nothing but a bigot, Star Catcher! There’s only one monster here, and it isn’t Gilda. Get out! Go!” He gave her a shove towards the tent flap. “Go on!” Star Catcher glanced fearfully over her shoulder toward the outside of the tent. “but… but…” “I mean it! Gilda won’t hurt you, but I might be tempted if you don’t get out of my sight. Go!” Heart pounding, on the verge of tears, Star Catcher leapt out of the tent and flapped her wings, immediately taking to the sky. Blue Thunder came out of the tent and sat on his haunches as he watched, along with Gilda and Rowdy, as Star Catcher dwindled into the distance over the city. Then he looked toward Gilda and said, “Hey… You okay?” Gilda rubbed her avian foreleg with a clawed foot and said, “Sure. You know I’ve got a thick skin. But she was definitely uncool.” Rowdy groused, “I bet she wasn’t from Butterfly Island either. She was just a big fat liar.” Blue Thunder shook his head. “C’mon, let’s load up the rest of this stuff and then get something to eat.” “Sounds good to me,” said Gilda. “I’m starved. I didn’t have nothin’ but a bowl of Meaties for breakfast.” As they staggered away from the Whirl-A-Gig ride, Minty and Pinkie Pie kept accidentally blundering into one another. “Ooooh, the world is going round and round and round,” said Minty. Pinkie laughed and reared up on her hind legs to give Minty a hug (and incidentally steady herself) with her front hooves. “Let’s do it again! No, wait! Let’s go on the roller coaster again!” “Don’t forget the magic show!” said Minty. “I don’t wanna miss that.” “Oh yeah! Let’s go see the great and powerful pointy-head!” They wandered a meandering path through the fair grounds, past the stands of craftsponies, past the stages where performers sang and played music, or danced, or joked, and past the refreshments — although they stopped long enough at Berry Punch’s stand to have some more hard cherry lemonade. Following the map printed on the back of the festival schedule they made their way to the stage indicated for the magic show. The stage had a purple curtain drawn across it, but there were properties set up on either side and above the curtain: trumpet-like metal tubes, a large pinwheel, a globe spangled with stars, and what looked like a fat skyrocket. Ponies were already gathering, although they seemed hesitant to get too close to the stage. It seemed as though everypony wanted a good view, but none of them wanted to be right up front. Pinkie and Minty had no such qualms. Minutes dragged by as a few more ponies joined the crowd and those already present milled impatiently, chatting and horsing around. Without warning a cool breeze gusted across the stage, fluttering the banners. Conversations died as ponies looked up and around. The sky darkened as clouds gathered and began to swirl around a glowing vortex. Pinkie and Minty reflexively leaned against one another as they looked up, wide-eyed, at the swirling mist. A bold female voice called out from the stage, “Come one, come all! Come and witness the amazing magic of the Grrreat and Powerful Trrrixiiie!” Fog rolled out from behind the curtains, spilling across the stage. A cloud of purple smoke burst on the stage, then dissolved into sparkles of light revealing a pony in their midst. Her coat was blue, her mane a much more pale blue, and she wore a purple cape and wizard hat spangled with stars — the cape clasped in front with a large gemstone, and the tall hat concealing her horn. “Watch in awe as the Great and Powerful Trixie performs the most amazing feats of magic ever witnessed by pony eyes!” She reared upright on her hind legs and threw her front hooves wide. At this signal fireworks exploded around the stage, colorful flames and sparkles bursting from the trumpet tubes and whistling as sparks spewed from the spinner. The ponies in the audience stamped their hooves and whistled appreciatively, Minty and Pinkie included. “Conjuration!” Trixie waved her hooves in the air as a purple glow appeared in front of her, then a bouquet of flowers popped into existence. Smiling, she levitated the bouquet closer, clutching it with her hooves and making a dramatic gesture of sniffing at the flowers. “Transformation!” Trixie tossed the bouquet, scattering the flowers in the air above her head. With purple flashes and puffs of smoke they turned into colorful croquet balls. “Manipulation!” The balls formed into a neatly spaced ring and began spinning, chasing one another as the whole ring tilted gracefully, all wrapped in the purple aura of Trixie’s magic. “Projection!” A bright orange-yellow star flew from Trixie and joined the croquet balls. It followed its own circular path tilted at an angle to theirs, and it left a comet-like trail of light, painting a fiery yellow ring. The crowd oohed and aahed at the mesmerizing sight. “And control over the elements themselves!” The clouds that had earlier gathered above the stage began to disperse, leaving a rainbow hanging in the sky where sunlight filtered through the mist. Suddenly the rainbow came to life and arced down onto the stage, then wrapped itself into yet a third ring, joining the ring of fire and ring of croquet balls above the stage. Trixie reared up again, repeating her dramatic pose and triggering another burst of fireworks around the stage, which only added to the spectacle. The crowd applauded, louder than before. Trixie waited until the applause began to subside, then removed her hat, overturned it and directed the croquet balls into it while the rainbow and illusions dispersed. “You haven’t seen anything yet!” she announced. “That was merely a warm-up. For the Great and Powerful Trixie’s next spell, however, she will require a volunteer from the audience. What brave pony will step forward?” Many of the ponies actually took a step backward, away from the stage. Trixie’s eyes scanned the crowd with an almost predatory gleam, then she pointed her hoof towards a pony in the front row. “How about… You, Pinkie!” Pinkie Pie yeeked, then asked, “H-how do you know my name?” “Trixie doesn’t. That was more of an observation.” This brought laughter from the crowd. A purple aura engulfed Pinkie and she was levitated upward to the stage, whinnying and waving her hooves in near panic, which only spurred more laughter. The magic deposited her next to Trixie. Trixie asked, loudly, “Now, Pinkie… You should know that Trixie always endeavors to return her volunteers to the audience in one piece. Do you place your trust in the power of Trixie?” “Um… I guess.” Giggles drifted up from the audience. Trixie feigned surprise. “What’s that? Pinkie, my magic is telling me that some of those ponies in the back couldn’t hear your reply. Please say again: Do you place your trust in the power of Trixie?” Pinkie trembled, ears drooped low, biting her lip. Then she yelled out, “I trust you, Trixie!” “Outstanding! Finer last words were never spoken! Now, before we continue, Trixie must summon the Cabinet of Doom.” Trixie repeated her earlier motions of rearing up on her hind legs and waving her font hooves in the air. This time there was a flash of light and generous eruption of smoke on the stage. The smoke cleared to reveal an upright cabinet. Pinkie Pie frowned at the cabinet, noting that it was painted black and covered with mysterious symbols in gold, and the image of a horse’s skull dominated the front. The four legs of the cabinet each ended in a roller so it could be turned and moved easily, and the four corners at the top each had a gargoyle cast in bronze. This cabinet didn’t look like anything a pony would make — or want to be around. With a faint sizzle and magical glow barely visible under the summer sun, the cabinet door swung open and revealed two compartments: a large one below and a much smaller one above, with a shelf dividing them. Then Trixie said, “Brave volunteer Pinkie, please climb into the Cabinet of Doom!” Somehow, the more Trixie mentioned Pinkie’s bravery the less she felt it, and it showed in her drooping ears and tail as she hesitantly moved toward the box. Giggles drifted up from the crowd, from ponies amused by her timidity. Then a pony yelled, “You can do it, Pinkie!” That was Minty! Heartened, Pinkie climbed into the box, then smiled and waved to her friend. “That’s the spirit!” Trixie enthused. Then she moved next to the box and whispered to Pinkie, “Don’t move around too much and maybe I won’t lose any parts of you.” Pinkie’s eyes widened and she gulped as the cabinet door swung shut and latched, concealing her from view. Trixie backed away a few steps and her horn glowed with magic as the box began to turn in place. Trixie announced, “The mystical forces gather at Trixie’s command, to perform a transmutation beyond the comprehension of lesser ponies!” Smoke erupted again around the cabinet, this time with a generous helping of sparkles. As the smoke cleared, the cabinet slowed and came to a stop with the door once again facing the audience. “Behold the power of Trixie!” The door swung open, the motion accompanied by a burst of fireworks from the sides of the stage for emphasis. The large compartment where Pinkie Pie had been was empty, but there was something pink in the upper compartment. Trixie floated it out for the audience to get a good look at. They gasped as they saw, and then trampled the ground with applause. It was a plush pony doll that bore an uncanny resemblance to Pinkie Pie, right down to her cutie mark. Minty was aghast. “Nuuuu! Pinkie Pie! What has she done to you?” Trixie floated the plush toy down to Minty, who jumped to grasp it with her mouth. The magician cackled and said, “The volunteer is returned in one piece, as promised!” Minty hugged the toy to her chest and wailed, “I’m sorry Pinkie Pie, I should never have brought you here!” Trixie grinned down at Minty and said, “I thought you’d like her better this way.” Minty took the doll in her mouth again, leapt up onto the stage, then spat out the doll onto the floor in front of Trixie. With an angry glare Minty demanded, “Change her back!” Trixie glared back for a moment, then asked, “What is your name?” “I’m Minty.” Trixie then turned to the crowd and raised a hoof. “Fear not! The Great and Powerful Trixie has heard Minty’s plea and will restore her friend.” She then levitated the doll and floated it back into the upper compartment of the box, and closed the door. Once again the box spun for a while, the smoke-and-sparkles repeated, and the box spun to a stop. Trixie said, “Minty, would you please open the box and welcome back your friend?” Minty ran over to the box and reached for the door — but recoiled as black tentacles burst out of it. Minty screamed (along with the audience) and scrambled back as the tentacles whipped about, reaching and groping. Trixie charged forward, her horn glowing, and yelled, “Back! Back!” Beams of light shot forth from her horn and appeared to burn the tentacles, forcing them to retreat. After battling them for some moments, Trixie got them all back into the cabinet and slammed the door shut with her hooves. She turned to face the audience and said, “Sometimes Trixie forgets her own power!” Minty cried, “Pinkiiie! Where’s my friend?” “There!” Trixie pointed towards her wizard hat, which she’d earlier left laying on the stage. A poofy pink pony head was sticking out of it, blinking with confusion. Pinkie squirmed and clambered out of the hat, despite the obvious impossibility of ever fitting into it to begin with. Minty pounced Pinkie and gave her a crushing hug. “Pinkie, you’re okay! I was so scared!” Pinkie grinned and hugged back. “I’m better than okay, I’m fantabulous. That was awesome!” To the crowd Trixie asked, “Was there ever any doubt?” She magically triggered some more fireworks and struck a triumphant pose. Then, after the applause began to die down, she thanked Minty and Pinkie and nudged them off the stage. When they returned to the seating area, the two earth ponies were so excited that they hardly paid any attention to the continuing magic show. “What happened to you?” Minty wanted to know. “What did you see when you were a doll?” “Doll? I wasn’t a doll. I just went through some weird places. It was… um…” She struggled to find words, then said, “It was sort of like there was a wall that I never noticed before, and I just went to the other side of it for a while. I’ve never seen anything like it before. I’ve got to figure out how to do that.” Minty laughed! She said, “We’re earth ponies, silly! We can’t do unicorn magic.” Pinkie grabbed Minty with her hooves and looked her in the eye with a serious and determined expression that Minty had rarely seen before, and she said, “I’ve got to figure out how to do that. And I will.” Then she broke into a grin again and said, “Just think of the pranks I’ll be able to pull! It’ll be so much fun! But that’s enough magic for now, we’ve still got the rest of the fair to see. Come on!” At that she went bouncing away from the magic show with Minty trotting along trying to keep up. A dapper gray unicorn stallion navigated confidently through the maze of city streets that visitors to the city often found so baffling, until he came to a small shoppe with a sign indicating “Collectible Coins & Currency”. A smaller sign read, “We Buy Gold & Silver”. Entering, he found a sparse interior, although there were some display cases showing off commemorative and antique coins. An olive green unicorn stallion greeted him. “Good day! I’m Filthy Lucre, but please feel free to call me Luke. What can I do for you?” The collector smiled and said, “Don’t you recognize me, Luke? Granted, it’s been a while…” Luke peered, thinking for a moment. “Oh! Jet Set! My good fellow, it has indeed been a while since you’ve graced my shop.” Jet Set shrugged and said, “I must admit, my interest in numismatics waned for a time. However, I recently stumbled across some enigmatic coins that I need a regarded professional opinion on.” “Then you came to the right place! By all means, I would be happy to examine them.” Jet levitated the three coins from his pocket and spread them out on the counter, upon a black velvet examination pad. Luke peered at them, his eyes going wide. With his own magic he flipped them to examine both sides. He brought over a magnifier and cast a light spell. He muttered, “most remarkable… Where did you find these? But of course, they can’t be authentic…” “That’s what I want you to determine,” Jet said. “Please do keep in mind, I’m not practiced in casting the authentication spell myself — but I do know how to read the results, and I am well-versed enough in magic to tell whether you’re casting it correctly.” Luke gasped, feigning shock. “Sir! You wound me! I can assure you that the thought of deceiving you never even began to speculate about the merest possibility of crossing my mind.” “No, of course not,” Jet Set said. “Please do continue.” Luke stared at the coins with a slight frown, and his horn glowed as he cast the spell. Within a few moments the soft glow of his magical aura was replaced by a brighter one of pure green. He drew in a breath, a very sincere gasp this time, and then softly breathed out, “they’re real…” Jet Set blinked. “I must admit, I’m rather surprised at that myself.” “But where did you get them?” Luke asked. “The vast majority of these were destroyed during the reign of Discord, more than two thousand years ago. It’s not the sort of thing one finds in pocket change.” “How ironic that you should phrase it that way! That’s almost how I came about them. I got them from a vendor at the fairgrounds. He said a couple of ponies paid for their food with these.” Luke said, “That’s amazing. But… Could those ponies still be wandering around the fair grounds, spending more of these?” “Your guess is as good as mine, but I suppose if they had three of them, they could just as easily have more.” Luke pondered for a moment, then turned his head, looking towards the rear of the shoppe, and called out, “Brass Bit! Come here, girl, I need you!” There was a sound of movement and a feminine voice called back, “Coming!” Momentarily a yellow unicorn pony appeared, a young mare barely more than a filly “What is it, Papa?” she asked. “Beebee, I’d like for you to run an errand for me. Go find my old associate, Mister Doubloon. Something’s come up that I need his help with. Tell him it’s a golden opportunity, he’ll understand.” Brass Bit fidgeted and said, “You mean the Basher?” “Yes, yes… Basher Doubloon! You know where to find him, right? Go on then!” She tossed her head in an emphatic nod, and trotted out the front door. Jet Set frowned. “Basher Doubloon, really? I’ve heard of him. It’s not the most savory of reputations, I dare say.” Luke waved a hoof dismissively. “Oh, he’s not so bad. You know how stories get exaggerated. Anyhow, we don’t have time to waste, and he knows how to get ponies to cooperate. You’ll see. The three of us can head back to the fair grounds, if you’re game, and we’ll beat the bushes until we see what drops out, eh?” Star Catcher wandered through the fair grounds, head held low, unhappy, grumbling to herself. Wanting to catch up with Minty and Pinkie Pie, she wended her way back to the food court and asked Berry Punch. “I think I overheard them say something about a magic show,” was all Berry could tell her. Ah. The Great and Powerful Trixie. Maybe she could catch up with her friends there. Star Catcher thanked Berry Punch and went in search of the stage where the magician performed. Within a few more minutes she’d reached it and saw that the show was already in progress. Star Catcher looked around at the crowd of ponies, not seeing her friends. She worked her way around to the front of the seating area, while the other ponies stamped their hooves in applause for whatever trick that Trixie had just performed. “For her next feat, Trixie requires another brave volunteer from the audience! How about…” Trixie pointed a hoof at Star Catcher. “You! Porky!” Star Catcher gawped, her jaw hanging open, and she raised a hoof to her chest. “Me?” she mouthed silently. “Yes, you! Come on up here!” Startled and confused, Star Catcher was engulfed in a purple glow of magic and began to levitate into the air — then sagged back down as Trixie grunted with effort and shed some sparks from her horn. After a few moments of struggle Trixie gave up, dropping Star Catcher back onto her hooves while the crowd hooted with laughter. Trixie caught her breath, then held up a hoof to silence them. “Trixie is better known for her immense skill and knowledge of magical arts, rather than brute strength,” she announced. Then she looked down at Star Catcher and said, “Could you please give your wings a flap and hop up here onto the stage?” Blushing, Star Catcher complied, spreading her huge wings and giving a couple of flaps as she hopped up and took her place alongside Trixie. “Okay, Porky,” said Trixie. “Please tell the crowd your name!” “It’s Star Catcher,” the pegasus said softly. Trixie rolled her eyes, then said, “Many of Trixie’s volunteers are nervous when they take the stage. They are afraid of making a mistake. When you speak and the ponies in the back row can’t hear you, do you know what that is? That’s a mistake! Now, would you please tell the audience your name again, so all of them can hear?” Star Catcher’s face burned with embarrassment. Fortunately, she’d learned to use Command Power during her weather service training. Her instructor had even praised her unique ability to make herself understood over the roar of a tempest. She drew in a deep breath, and then she shouted out, “MY NAME IS STAR CATCHER!” Banners around the stage were torn and ponies were knocked from their seats by the power of Star Catcher’s voice. Trixie fell back onto her tail and her world went black as her wizard hat was picked up from the stage and hurled into her face. She scrabbled with her hooves to remove the hat from her muzzle, then stared at Star Catcher. “Was that okay?” Star Catcher asked, her voice once again barely audible over the ringing in Trixie’s ears. “Trixie thinks all of Canterlot must have heard that!” High up in a tower of Canterlot Castle, in her private study, Princess Celestia sprawled comfortably upon a large cushion, lightly gripping it under herself with her hooves. A report floated in the golden aura of her magic as she perused it. Suddenly her ears perked, and she looked up from the report. Her mouth hung open as she stared out the window of the tower, her ears straining to pick up any sound. After a few tense moments she sighed and turned her head away from the window. She shook her head and snorted a small, ladylike snort. She mused, “Ridiculous… The centuries must be catching up with me, I’m starting to imagine things.”