Harry Houdini: The Great and Powerful

by CrackedInkWell


Chapter 1: Smoke and Lightning.

There is nothing like the applause of an audience. No feeling can compare to that moment when it’s like the entire world is stomping their hooves, chanting your name as if you’re a goddess. Roses gracefully land on the stage as you bow after that wondrous performance that they’ve just witnessed.

“Trixie! Trixie! Trixie!”

This is the kind of life that the blue magician had always wanted since she was a little filly. Even after that near social suicide in Ponyville, her new start in Manehattan was now fulfilling her dreams of fame, fortune, and above all, respectability.

“Brava! Brilliant! Wonderful!

Another bow and another smile to the audience as the scarlet curtain comes down. Although, as exhausting as performing goes, Trixie still felt as if she could go on for days as long as she heard that applause.

“Another excellent show, Ms. Lulamoon.” Turning her head, she found her two twin assistants, Peppers Ghost, and Miss Direction, holding several bouquets in their forehooves.

“I agree,” one of them nodded, who Trixie assumed to be Peppers Ghost. “The illusion trick was much better than last night’s.”

Trixie magically took a hold of the flowers from her adoring fans. “Yes, this was indeed a good night. I believe it’s about time we wrap everything up for tomorrow. But before I come and help, Trixie will be putting these in her dressing room.”

There was still quite a bit to clean up after. From the mess of cards that had been swept aside and the puddles of water to the gallons of gasoline and seemingly endless coils of rope, there was a lot to clean up and put away.

But even the Great and Powerful Trixie knew that it was all worth it to please some of the toughest crowds in Equestria when it came to fine tastes in entertainment.

“Excuse me, Trixie.” This time it was the stage director. The orange stallion came up next to Trixie as they walked side by side.

“Good evening, director,” she nodded to him. “How were the box office sales tonight?”

“We’ve sold out,” he said, “but that’s not what I’ve come to you for.”

Trixie raised an eyebrow. “Is there a problem then?”

“I’m not so sure,” he said as they neared her dressing room. “Among the audience, did you notice a certain… somepony?”

“What do you mean? As you said, it was a full house. There were so many faces out there that I doubt I could recognize anypony.”

“I saw somepony there that I think you should be concerned about,” the director said with a worried look. “I saw Discord.”

This got Trixie’s attention as they both entered her dressing room. “Discord? As in the Spirit of Chaos Discord?” He nodded. “That’s rather curious. What was he doing here anyway?”

“I saw him while I was on the balcony. He was, well… watching the show upside down on the ceiling. Come to think of it, I don’t know if anypony even noticed he was there since they were watching you the whole time. He didn’t seem to do much -- thank goodness for that -- but he seemed to look… thoughtful.”

“Is Discord still here?”

The director shook his head as she placed her flowers on the couch. “He was gone by the end of the second act. I’ve checked all over the theater for him or any sort of trace he may have left behind. The only thing I found was a lost toucan.

“Hmm… that is rather odd,” Trixie commented as she put her pointy, starry hat and cape on a coat rack. As she looked up through her small window, she noticed that it was raining outside. “Ugh,” Trixie grunted, “I thought it was supposed to be a clear night.”

“Huh?”

She pointed to the window. “I was talking about the rain. Wasn’t it supposed to be clear this evening?”

Adjusting his glasses, the orange stallion looked through the window. “Yes, that’s right. The weather team didn’t schedule rain until Friday. Perhaps somepony misplaced the paperwork or something.”

“It’s still inconsiderate of them. It would have been nice if they gave us some kind of warning beforehoof.”

“Maybe something got in the--” Before the stage director could finish his sentence, there was a surprising crack of thunder. As unexpected as it was, the Great and Brave Trixie did not jump at the booming sound and squeal like a little filly. Or, at least she tried not to.

“Dear Celestia!” the director interjected. “That sounded a little too close for comfort.”

“Oh, get a grip on yourself,” Trixie told him. “It’s merely just thunder. There’s no need to get all jumpy.”

He looked back at the window. “I wonder what’s going on out there.”

“As you said, it’s probably just a mix-up or something.” Trixie turned around and headed toward the stage. “Now come on, are you going to help with the cleanup or not?”

Soon enough, with some help from the stage director and her two assistants, everything was straightened out and ready for tomorrow’s show.

As Trixie and Miss Direction were putting their latest death trap into a corner, the twin spoke up. “Ms. Lulamoon, would you mind if I asked you something?”

“Ask me what?”

“Well, it’s about these tricks,” she said as the saw table was put back in its rightful place. “Don’t misunderstand me; I really do think that these illusions you keep pulling off are impressive. But don’t you think that, maybe, somepony else might come up with something new?”

“Like what?” the blue magician raised her eyebrow. “How many ponies do you know that could pull these sorts of stunts like yours truly can, except for that Twilight Sparkle?”

“From what my sister and I know, you’re pretty good, at a level above the other magicians in the city, but we know that sooner or later, somepony is going to come along with something better. All I’m saying is that, eventually, even you too have to come up with something newer than card tricks and magic rings.”

“Don’t you worry your pretty little head about that,” she patted her assistant’s mane. “I’m still a much more creative unicorn compared to anypony else in this city. Whatever they do, the Great and Powerful Trixie will do it better! Do you not trust your own boss to keep our show’s seats packed?”

“All I’m saying,” her assistant said as she started untangling the ropes, “is that you should keep an eye out. You’ll never know who, or what is going to make our audience expect more.”

By the time they were ready to call it a night, they stepped outside to find it pouring with rain. It was if the pegasi were throwing pools full of water down onto the city.

Trixie’s assistants and the director called for a cab so they wouldn’t be completely wet. She, on the other hoof, cast a simple umbrella spell, telling her companions that she would be walking home since her apartment was only a few blocks away.

“Do you think that Discord might’ve brought the storm?” the director asked.

Trixie looked up at the dark clouds above. “It’s doubtful. Even Trixie has heard about the antics of that creature, and this doesn’t seem like something he would do. I mean, a regular storm? You’d think he would make it rain gumdrops and snow powdered sugar. Perhaps Discord just couldn’t resist seeing a spectacular performance.” She looked back to the director. “It’s getting late. Have a good night everypony.”

They said their goodbyes as Trixie headed off into the streets, alone. Her walk involved a few dark alleyways and several dull neighborhoods, but she didn’t worry about any potential muggings or other dangers. She’d been hung upside down over a tank of sharks in a straitjacket, not to mention that she knew quite a few defensive spells and teleportation.

Besides, Trixie enjoyed being out in the rain. Despite her hooves getting wet, there was something about the sound of it that resembled the applause from her shows. Even the very smell of the rain was calming to her.

After a few turns and a few jumps over puddles, the Great and Powerful Trixie walked down a street that had a few shops and dozens of apartments. There was also an empty lot that had nothing but weeds and three brick buildings that enclosed it.

One might think that bringing up such detail was strange. Some would think that she was just simply walking home during an unscheduled storm. Perhaps even Trixie wouldn’t have found anything significant about the lot if it wasn’t for the sudden lightning that struck it. The flash was so bright that it temporarily blinded Trixie, and the deafening boom that followed afterward brought her to her knees.

It took a few moments for Trixie to recover. But once she did, she saw something very unusual. Where there was once an empty spot in an unremarkable place in Manehattan, there now stood a lighted, if not smoky theater.

Yes, a theater! Something like the same kind of space that the magician would perform with all of its electric lights and grand brick façade that held towering windows that looked out into the darkened streets. Yet, at the same time, something about this miraculous theater seems to be completely off to Trixie. For one thing, the doors were a little too tall for anypony. The same goes for the ticket booth too.

But the biggest thing about it is what made it all so strange were the posters and the big sign above the theater. Trixie got up to examine this theater that appeared out of nowhere to get a closer look at the posters that looked like they came out of some caravel.

Although each was different, they all showed the same creature with pale, pinkish skin, a raggedy dark brown mane, a slender body, and a flattened face that looked like it was done by a child. This thing was shown in several kinds of restraints like hoofcuffs, chains, straight jackets, and she even saw one where he was inside of milk can with padlocks all over the closed lid.

Looking up to the lighted sign that hung over the theater was an enlarged face of the creature with those piercing eyes, and below were the strange words: “The Great Harry Houdini: The Master of Mystery.”

“What’s a ‘who-din-I’?” Trixie asked aloud. “And more importantly, where did this place come from?”

The wooden doors of the theater opened and out stepped a very tall and slender being, standing upon its hind legs. The thing was covered in clothing, holding an umbrella in one of its fleshy claws.

Trixie froze when the creature spotted her. The two of them paused as they each got a good look of the other before the blue unicorn slowly stepped away.

Then the creature darted back into the theater, screaming at the top of its lungs. “Boss! Boss, get out here now!”

Quickly deciding that she didn’t want to risk running into that thing’s “boss”, she quickly bolted down the street, hoping that she might run into the police somewhere.