//------------------------------// // Skitchverse Chapter 4 // Story: A Tale of Two Trixies // by GreyGuardPony //------------------------------// It had been the familiar clatter of the train rushing over the tracks that had eventually dragged Trixie off to sleep but it was a bone rattling bump in the tracks that jolted her awake again. Blinking the sleep from her eyes, she took a moment to mentally curse the fact she had spent two days cooped up and sleeping on a train, rather than in her own house with its soft bed. The cool metal of the Sextant of Worlds remained clutched close to her barrel, locked quite thoroughly in her grip. Grumbling, she straightened in her seat, stretching to work the stiffness that came from sleeping in a seat out of her joints. “Should have gotten a private cabin,” she said, more grumbling to herself than anypony else. That was something that had been forgotten in the mad rush to make sure that this universe’s Greengrass or that camel hadn’t followed her. So a normal seat it had been. “Least they didn’t throw me off the train.” With this morning’s- Trixie glanced out the window. Correction. That looked more like sunset, than sunrise. She’d probably wind up in Ponyville after dark, presumably after this universe’s Element Bearers were already asleep. Like normal and sensible ponies. Still, at least she could confirm that Neigh Orleans was just as far away from Ponyville in this universe as hers. About two and a half days by train. Give or take a few hours. Rubbing the final remains of sleep from her eyes, Trixie examined the Sextant of Worlds again. The piece that Greengrass had added to it seemed to be a sight of some kind, which seemed...strange. Trixie was, admittedly, no sailor. But she was pretty sure that sextants didn’t have a little metal sight on the telescope end of the device. “Maybe a focus for magic?” She muttered, horn lighting up for another examination. There was no evidence that the sight had at one point been a separate piece. No line, no mark of it being melted into place. If anything, it looked like the magic had just neatly fused it into one piece. The arc scale was odd too. Where on a normal sextant, the numbers marking the degrees of elevation were on this one there were...hatch marks and swirls? They looked vaguely Naqhan or Saddle Arabian, from what little exposure to those languages Trixie had. A camel had been trying to get it. Maybe it was from his land originally? That would make sense. The item’s aura was powerful though, having sprung back to life at some point since her last examination. The fact that it was intact again seemed the most likely explanation there. Still…. With an exasperated groan, Trixie rubbed at her forehead again. The lack of sleep over the last few days had taken its toll. It felt like a thick blanket had been wrapped around her head. For a moment, she considered looking through the eyepiece, to see if there was anything else she could work out about the thing. But in the end, decided against it. If it activated again who knew where she’d end up. No. Right now, what she really needed was Twilight Sparkle’s analytical mind...or at very least a safe town to hide in until her own friends could track her down. With another sigh, she adjusted in her seat slightly, and waited for the train to carry her the rest of the way to Ponyville. - - - - True to her previous guess, it was late night by the time the train pulled into Ponyville’s familiar looking train station. Though this one had more electric lights, neatly designed to blend in with Ponyville’s natural architecture. There were also...guards? Two white coated stallions stood at either end of the platform, dressed head to hoof in the distinctive armor of the Royal Guard, but gold. Naturally. A quick peek with her magic confirmed that they had similar enchantments on their armor to give a unified appearance. They were watching the town very intensely, spears resting against their sides. Trixie actually perked up at this. If the Royal Guard was here, then that probably meant that one of this universe’s princesses was here as well. With any luck, that would let her expedite things quite a bit. Trotting off the train, she gave a slight nod to the guards and started down the short flight of stairs- “Hello Trixie.” The voice, husky, female and suddenly at her side, made her jump. It was a decision that she instantly regretted, as she landed and promptly went tumbling down the few stairs. “Oh, I’m sorry,” the voice said. “Didn’t mean to surprise you.” You totally did that on purpose. Trixie mentally cursed. Hauling herself back to her hooves, she looked back up at the platform. The mare seemed to be another guard, though not royal like the other two. Her armor was more that of a local, town guard, being simple chain mail. Her coat was a light grey color, while her mane and tail were a silvery blue. But the pale orange slit eyes, tufted ears, bat like wings and obvious fangs in her wide grin reminded Trixie of the disguises that the Lunar guard wore. Picking up her spilled hat, she used the opportunity to peer through her disguise to the pony beyond. Nothing changed. That was what she actually looked like. Trixie’s brain ground to a halt for a moment, yet another bolt of strangeness rattling her. The strange pony frowned at that, slowly waving a hoof in front of Trixie’s face. “Trixie? Are you alright?” Buck it. I am too tired for an explanation right now. “No, I’m fine. Just pretty tired from the trip. Is one of the princesses in town?” She nodded towards the Royal Guard. “Ah. No. We had a little bit of a disturbance here a few days ago. Shapeshifter got into town and gave everypony a scare. The Royal Guard is just giving us locals some support. Which does remind me….” Dipping her snout into the simple and rugged looking guard saddle bags draped across her back, the bat like guard pulled a short rod from its depths. Casting a slight green glow from its form its dark wooden form, Trixie could already feel the tingle from its magic in the base of her horn. With a flick of her batlike wings, the guard landed next to Trixie, slowly sweeping its light across her body. Trixie watched the examination with a raised eyebrow. Some kind of shapeshifting detection magic? When Trixie didn’t change into some kind of horrible creature, the guard seemed satisfied, tucking the rod back into her bags. “Alright Trixie, you’re clean. Going to be in town for long?” “Not really, no. I’m just here on some business.” “Have a place to stay then? I do have some extra room at my place. I’m sure that Scootaloo would be happy to see you again.” “I’ll be fine. I just want to get some rest. ...Which way was the inn again?” The guard gestured with a wing down one of Ponyville’s many streets. “That way, two blocks and it’s on your right, next to Berry Punch’s. Don’t go past it.” Trixie nodded. “Thanks.” Smiling, the guard nodded, returning to the platform with another flap of her wings. Walking into one of the many masses of shadow cast by the bulk of the building, she took up a defensive stance to keep watch. The shadows almost seemed to grow darker around her body for a moment, before she faded from view, lost in the darkness. Shoving down the urge to blink at that, Trixie set off again, following the directions. No princesses it seemed, so she’d settle for talking to Twilight tomorrow. After sleep, when her head was clear. Besides, there was no chance that Greengrass would be able to follow her. He had no idea where she went. - - - - “Definitely Ponyville.” Zizane opened her eyes, giving her mane a casual flick. Greengrass nodded from his seat. He had long learned to not question the unicorn and her intuition anymore. As a member of the cursed Discordian bloodline she- like all her kin- had odd abilities. The power that each Discordian inherited from their mad sire was different, as was perhaps fitting for somepony with some of his power. In the case of Zizane, her power revolved around chance and probability. She could literally predict the odds of what could happen...with an admitted margin of error. It did make the certainty of her statement...uncharacteristic, however. “And you’re sure of this? Absolutely?” “It’s practically screaming in my head when I think about her. ….Also, it makes logical sense. She’s gone to the Element Bearers for help in the past.” “Fair.” “If we’re going after national heroes, I’m raising my prices again.” That comment came from Blackhoof, who was sitting in the corner. A towel from the train was laid out on the floor, the minotaur’s meticulously maintained collection of firearms spread out on its surface as well as the tools to maintain them. Greengrass rolled his eyes. “We won’t be fighting the Element Bearers. It’s a matter of stealing what we need, not taking it by force. When we arrive in Ponyville, play it cool. We’ll get the lay of the land and then decide what we’ll be doing from there.” Smirking, Blackhoof quick drew one of his freshly cleaned firearms, giving the weapon a flourish like spin. “Easiest gig I’ve ever taken. Whatever you want to do boss.” Greengrass sighed. Hiring the mercenary had cost him most of his family’s remaining funds, most having already been drained by the search for the Sextant of Worlds. But as soon as he got his hooves on it…. He allowed himself a slight smirk. Yes, with the sextant, he would be able to finally reverse the flagging fortunes of his family. And if Trixie got in the way again...well, he’d deal with that. He had dealt with worse than a self important magician. - - - - Trixie woke the next morning, to the light rata-tat of hooves on her door. “Miss Trixie,” the pleasant, if entirely too chipper mare's voice called, “breakfast is being served in the common room. Don’t sleep in too late, or you’ll miss it.” Flopping over in bed, Trixie blinked the sleep out of her eyes and then rolled out of bed. A good night’s sleep had done wonders for her mind and her mood and now she was ready to find a way home. “...After some breakfast at least.” One muffin and some juice later, Trixie was walking across Ponyville, the sextant held tightly in her magic, trying to work out where to find Twilight Sparkle. The library seemed like a logical choice. She lived there in two different realities, why not a third? Turning to head that direction, Trixie noted that there were still a few guards scattered around town, keeping a watchful eye on Ponyville’s citizens. For their part, Ponyville’s ponies seemed rather calm about the whole situation. A fact that Trixie wasn’t entirely sure what to make of. Were the ponies of this Ponyville less high strung, or more cynical? Continuing to mull over that question, she didn’t hear the mare addressing her until she was halfway down the street. “Trixie! Good to see you in town again!” Turning, Trixie found herself face to face with a very pale yellow coated mare. Her two toned reddish mane and tail matched the rose cutie-mark that stood out on her flanks. Trixie recognized the pony as Rose, one of the flower ponies that seemed to exist in a near constant state of panic back home. This Rose seemed to have just come from a bout of shopping. A pair of bulging saddlebags were thrown over her back and she was somehow balancing a full basket on her head, full of her namesake flower. For somepony who lives in Neigh Orleans, she sure seems to know a lot of ponies from Ponyville. “Good morning Rose.” She nodded. Rose smiled back. “Good morning! What brings you into town?” “I’m here to see Twilight, actually. I need her help on something.” “Oooh, I’m sorry,” she winced. “You actually missed her by a few days. Got some kind of message from Princess Celestia, shipped out for the land of sand and camels with the rest of the Element Bearers and Skitch-Sketch.” Who? I didn’t see anypony with that name in that book. The surprise must have registered on her face, because Rose tilted her head ever so slightly under the basket. “Trixie?” “Sorry...that just throws me off a bit.” Humming for a moment, Rose seemed to be thinking, before pulling her collection of flowers off her head and shoving it into Trixie’s chest. “Here, help a mare out and carry this back with me to my place. I’m sure we’ll be able to think of something.” Without waiting for a response, she began to trot off again. Trixie blinked before cantering after her, hurriedly tucking the sextant into the basket and floating the whole mess along behind her. Rose seemed quite cheerful as she lead the way, humming a happy little tune to herself. As they approached Rose’s house, Trixie could see that the flower theme was very much in full force. Roses, carnations, violets, daffodils and many other kinds of flowers that Carrot Top could probably name filled the front yard in three different rings radiating out from the house. Rose strode through the forest of flowers, throwing the door open for Trixie. “Can you put the roses on the kitchen table?” Half listening, Trixie nodded, her mind more drifting towards what her next move was going to be. Maybe she’d head to Canterlot and try to petition the princesses directly? Or maybe it was time to wait? Putting the roses down, Trixie raised an eyebrow at a large cork board that hung on the kitchen wall. Pictures of ponies were spread all across it, bits of colored string running from picture to picture, and even pages of notes. Gulping slightly, she took a half step back, a bad feeling settling into the pit of her stomach. The front door suddenly slammed closed. “Who are you?” Rose said, her voice having gained an angry hiss to it. Frowning, Trixie faced her. The earth pony was crouched low, stalking towards her, tail thrashing with visible anger. Trixie opened her mouth to explain, to let Rose know that she wasn’t a threat…. But a shocked scream was what escaped her mouth instead. Rose’s form was suddenly swallowed by emerald green flames. For a moment, Trixie thought that she was on fire but then the flames burst away, revealing a monster. It was roughly the size and shape of a pony, but that was where the similarities ended. Instead of a furred coat, it’s body was wrapped in a flawless, armored black shell, almost like a bug. Continuing that metaphor were the wings, four great dragonfly shaped affairs that buzzed and thrummed threateningly. Bizarrely, it still had Rose’s mane and tail, though a curved, spike like horn poked through the former. Its eyes, vertically slitted, were just as angry as Rose’s had been. “Who are you?!” It snarled again. It still had Rose’s voice, but now that voice had an oddly echoing quality to it. Trixie did the only logical thing she could. Her horn glowed and she vanished. Shapeshifter, shapeshifter, shapeshifter! She mentally cursed, quickly casting her inaudible charm as well. All she needed was to make for the door and then warn- The creature dove forward, wings buzzing like a giant wasp. Its hooves moved fast, following a familiar pattern that Trixie had seen Raindrops use more than a few times in the past. The first one caught her on the shoulder, spinning her to the side the second strike passing through the air where she had been a moment before. Rubbing at her bruised shoulder Trixie blinked, a realization settling in. It wasn’t actually seeing her. Like the tiger, it was sensing or smelling her somehow. It also wasn’t letting up, calmly stepping to the right and unleashing another flurry of Iron Hoof strikes. Scrambling backwards, Trixie slipped back into the kitchen, bumping into the round wooden table. The basket of roses wobbled slightly, striking Trixie with a sudden inspiration. Grabbing roughly a hoof full of roses in her magic she now rushed to meet the giant bug pony. Ducking under one of the punches, Trixie wadded up the collection of flowers and jammed it right in the creature’s snout. Giving a rather surprised yelp, it toppled backwards, furiously rubbing at its snout. Not waiting, Trixie bolted for the front door. She was just about to it when the door suddenly swung open. The door’s edge caught her right on the tip of the nose, the impact sending a dull, throbbing wave of pain through her snout and right to the base of her horn. Falling back, she clutched at her nose, the concentration of her spells broken. The pony in the door was an earth pony with a hot pink coat, yellow mane and pair of cherries for a cutie mark. A pair of similarly decorated saddlebags were draped over her back, a few loose bits of paper peeking out from under the flap. “Rose, I got those-” Trixie jumped forward again, throwing a leg around the new pony’s neck. “Get the guard!” She shouted, pointing a shaky hoof at the armored bug pony. “It’s the shapeshifter!” The new pony didn’t move. Trixie blinked, looking to see what her problem was. The new arrival was frowning slightly, but seemed far too calm considering the existence of a bug pony in the house. She tilted her head slightly to regard Trixie a flash of green energy rippling across her eyes. Scrambling away from her, Trixie’s eyes went wide as the new pony likewise burst into emerald colored fire. Now another one of these bug ponies was facing her down, wings thrumming as it slowly advanced. Gritting her teeth, Trixie tapped into her magic, snapping off a bright flash of light into the creature’s face. Hissing angrily it flinched back, opening up a slight gap between it and the door frame. With a deep breath, Trixie lowered her head and charged forward. A shiver ran down her spine at the sensation of the creature’s thick shell sliding against her coat. But then she was free and back out into the streets of Ponyville. Behind her, she could already hear the angry buzz of two sets of wings rising into the air. Her invisibility and inaudibility charms were quickly reapplied. They might be able to generally sense her, but she had a plan. Bolting right for the town center Trixie began to weave her way around any ponies she passed on the street, sometimes drawing quite close, in an attempt to throw them off her scent. So far they were still on her tail. The shocked gasps from the ponies she had passed told her that, but the bug ponies hadn’t dive bombed her yet either. Drawing close to the town center now, Trixie could see that it was heavy with ponies now, most of them frequenting the many shops and restaurants that lined the wide circle. But there was also Lyra, this universe's Lyra, playing near town hall a small crowd having formed around her. A carmel colored pegasus, the red of her mane and tail repeated in the tips of her primary feathers, hocked copies of the morning addition half a dozen paces from her. And across the square from her...a guard! He was a massive stallion, easily the match of Big Macintosh in size and muscle tone, but with a slate grey coat and decked out in chainmail armor. His weapon, a powerful looking halberd, was easily at hoof, resting against a bale of hay at his side. Grinning to herself, Trixie picked up the pace, making a beeline right for him. She only spared a slight glance behind her at the sound of the bugs buzzing into the square. They scanned the area, their slitted eyes searching for some clue to Trixie’s location among the crowd. “Oh no! It’s happening again!” Trixie wasn’t sure who among the dozens of ponies present shouted that, but the effect was immediate. The crowd immediately flew into a blind panic. Some ponies bolted for other streets, while others dove for cover in the surrounding buildings. Lyra was looking around, wide eyed, but her hooves remained on her lyre, horn glowing. The hulking guard immediately plunged into the crowd, bellowing at the top of his lungs to attempt to restore order. “Everypony calm down! Rose! What the hay is going on here?” And now he was in on it too. Cursing, Trixie changed direction, running down one of the smaller alleyways between two of the buildings, even while summoning another illusion. On the street furthest from where she was, a copy appeared for the briefest of moments, before its horn glowed and it vanished again. Hoping that would send the bugs and their agents the wrong way, Trixie debated her options for a brief moment. Need to get off the streets, hide for a little bit and let them chase the wrong trail. The building to her right had a window facing the alley. Hopping up on low wooden box, she pushed the window up with a hoof and scrambled inside. Pausing only to close it behind her, Trixie rushed out of the small kitchen into a large circular room, the wall shelves filled with what looked like art supplies. There was a set of stairs leading up, which she took, to slide into a bedroom and under the large bed in the corner. There she ended her spells. No need to overtax her magic at the moment. She crouched like a foal hiding from a thunderstorm, waiting for the sounds of panic to die down outside. What am I going to do now? Trixie mentally grumbled, tapping a hoof against the floor. The Element Bearers are gone...unless that was a lie? And now they have the Sextant of Worlds and my way home! Ugh! Everything since coming here has just gone straight into the sun! And...why does this section of the floor sound hollow? Loosely tapping that section of floor again to confirm it, Trixie couldn’t help but wonder what an artist- at least the downstairs seemed to hint at that- would be hiding in a secret compartment under her bed. Those thoughts were quickly shoved aside at the sound of approaching hooves. Three sets of them. Most likely the bug ponies and their guard having tracked her down. Cursing under her breath, she prepared to strike with another spell and run the moment she had an opening. Hooves entered the room now white, brown and...black? “Oh s-” The bed was upended with a mighty crash, a thick, black muscled hand closing firmly around Trixie’s horn. Growling, she reached for her magic, intending to show this minotaur exactly why that was a mistake. Her efforts made her captor chuckle, before calmly reaching up with his free hand and flicking Trixie right on the snout. It hurt, disrupting her spellcasting efforts which made Trixie all the angier “Put me down you walking carpet!” “Oh, calm down. I’m not going to hurt you,” he said, chuckling again and turning Trixie to face Greengrass and Zizane. “Not if you tell us what we want to know.” Greengrass said. He sounded just as insufferably stuck up in this reality as her own, with a smile to match. Trixie, really, really hoped that he didn’t have any noble rank in this universe. Sure, his lack of power wouldn’t help her immediately, but it would make her feel better. Trapped as she was, she had a chance to see the room in greater detail. In many ways, the small room- shaped like an orange wedge on its side- was a normal Ponyville bedroom. But in other ways it very much wasn’t. The walls had been covered with drawings all depicting strange, towering buildings made of glass and metal or more of those strange naked bear things that her friend Lyra had become once and there was some kind of grey...square...thing in the corner. She also noticed- in a moment of her brain latching onto a random detail- a collection of empty liquor bottles on one of the bookshelves. “How did you find me?” “Oh, yes, let me just reveal one of my aces in the hole. Should I tell you about my ‘evil’ plans as well?” Trixie fumed, shooting a glare at Greengrass and Zizane that she dearly wished could blast them right through the wall. “Where’s the Sextant of Worlds?” “I don’t have it anymore.” “I can see that. Where is it.” “Oh, is this where I explain my ‘evil’ plan now?” Greengrass rolled his eyes and nodded to Zizane. Smirking with confidence, the unicorn’s horn began to glow, a gesture matched by her eyes a moment later. “I know it’s probably here somewhere. Who would be better to watch over an item like that than your world walking friend,” Greengrass said. Trixie blinked for a moment, before she was able to recall something that had come up during the conversations with Kassa and company. That this universe was somewhat familiar with visitors from beyond. And she had somehow picked that exact building to hide in. “Don’t play dumb. Your previous exploits made the national papers. Everypony pays attention when a crime lord is locked up.” “There,” Zizane said, pointing a hoof towards the hollow point of the floor. “I’m pretty sure it's in there.” Trixie blinked again. The Sextant of Worlds was back at the bug pony’s house, forgotten in the chase. So what was she…. “If you would my dear. I’m going to keep an eye on Trixie.” With a nod and another one of those infuriating smirks, Zizane trotted over to the spot on the floor, the minotaur helpfully (or not) turning Trixie so that she could watch. It didn’t take her long to run her hooves across the grain of the wood and find a seam. Finding the opening to the compartment, she stepped back, slipped her magic around the edges and flipped the top off. In the grip of the minotaur, Trixie could clearly see a thick metal box resting in the hole. “Interesting. Very, very interesting,” Zizane said after a moment or two of observation. Reaching forward, she grabbed the sides of the box and lifted. A truly brilliant flash of light seared Trixie’s eyes as a crackling bolt of lightning roared forth from the hole, washing over Zizane’s form. The unicorn gave a rather pitiful sounding squeak before toppling over, the box spilling from her hooves, the lightning fading in the next moment. Again, Trixie’s elevated position gave her some insight. There was a line of string running from the underside of the box and into the hole, where it then passed through a strange looking device of brass and glass. There was a distinct resemblance between it and the miniature canons on the minotaur’s waist, the still smoking tip angled so that it would blast whoever lifted the box and thusly pulled the string. Another flash of light was right on the heels of the first, however. And when this one faded, there was some...thing now standing between them and Zizane. Trixie truly struggled to wrap her mind around what she was seeing. The thing was huge and if it could have stood upright in the room, it would have towered over Greengrass’s thug. As it was, its winged, bipedal form had to crouch to fit in the room, the tips of its dragon like wings scraping the ceiling. It’s muscles looked like they had muscles, all covered in reddish scales, save for the parts where bony spikes and horns poked through. And the eyes. Its eyes just glowed with power and malice. “Boldly you sought the power of the planes,” it said in a voice so deep, Trixie swore that it rattled the glass. “But now, you will pay the final price for your arrogance.” With a bone chilling roar, it surged forward, the dagger like claws on its hands extended to rend and tear. But even as it pushed off, Trixie was noticing things that didn’t click right in her head. The claws on its feet made no mark on the floor or no sound as it pushed off. Its wings didn’t move from their original position even though they logically should have. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, patches of its scaly skin looked almost sketchy, like they came from a drawing, rather than off a real creature. All signs of an illusionist that hadn’t entirely mastered their craft yet. Greengrass seemed to have realized something was up as well, having placed a hoof on his thug’s arm to keep him from firing his guns. The monster hadn’t taken more than a step before it froze in place, confirming Trixie’s feeling that it was an illusion. Greengrass then took a step forward, whether to check on Zizane or grab the box, Trixie wasn’t sure, when a second magical flash rolled through the room. This illusion was of a pony, a unicorn to be specific. Her coat was leaf green, mane and tail sky blue, save for the strip matching her coat that ran through both. She glared into the room with intense amber eyes, that didn’t really look at anypony in particular. Then, she sat back on her haunches and crossed her forelegs. “Hello. You can call me Skitch-Sketch. Sorry about the dramatic appearance of my friend here,” she said, motioning to the scaled beast. “If you’re seeing this illusion then it means that you didn’t speak the passcode to deactivate mine and Twilight’s spell. Which means that you shouldn’t be here.” “It also means that you’re probably here for reasons that you shouldn’t be. Aiming to find the way I got back to Equestria after I left? Want to take a little trip to other universes for adventure or power or whatever?” She jabbed a hoof at the towering beast again. “Consider smiley here one of the many reasons why you just turn around and go home. It’s…,” she sighed for a moment, rubbing her forehead. “Look, it’s not safe out there. This is a Pit Fiend. It is what’s known as a devil and is one of the most powerful of them. A pure manifestation of evil, it exists only to corrupt mortal spirits and tear down anything that’s good or benevolent. Back before the first civilization rose and their creators were just nomadic hunter gatherers, these things were fighting an eternal war against another race of pure evil, the demons. And they are just one of the horrors that live in worlds beyond this one.” Shaking her head, she ploughed on. “I know that you’re thinking that you’ll go out there and do amazing things. And maybe, if you get really, really lucky, you will. But what’s a lot more likely, is that you’ll end up dead on some world you’ve never heard of before, from something you’ve never encountered before. And even if you do get lucky….” She trailed off for a moment, staring down at her own hooves, almost like she was seeing them for the first time. Then she sighed again. “It’s a dangerous business, going out your door. You wake up one morning and...you don’t even recognize yourself in the mirror anymore.” Eyes going wide, Greengrass ran through the illusions for the box. The illusion of Skitch didn’t react to the pony running through her, instead looking up from her hooves. Her eyes seemed desperate, almost pleading. “That thing will give you nothing but trouble. So, if you came here looking for adventure, go away. If you came here trying to find a way home, cause you’re trapped here? Go to town hall and tell them. There are protocols in place. We’ll...well, we’ll do what we can.” Greengrass strode back through the illusions, with the box firmly clutched in his grip. “Well,” he said, smiling broadly, “good news for you Trixie. I won’t need the Sextant of Worlds. I found something better!” “A box?” “Well...yes. But inside this box must be the device The Collector used to come to Equestria in the first place!” “Ugh! Why do you even want to go to other universes anyway! They sound horrible!” Trixie exclaimed, trying to squirm out of the minotaur’s grip. “You’re...kidding, right?” Greengrass blinked. When Trixie didn’t respond, he shook his head. “The Collector attacked the whole world with magic and technology beyond anything we’ve created so far! If we could get our hooves on even a fraction of that, we could turn Equestria into a superpower that nopony could ever challenge! And then even Princess Celestia and her vaunted ‘morals’ won’t be able to stop me from reclaiming my family’s glory!” Trixie smirked. “So, was that your ‘evil plan’ that you weren’t going to tell me? And don’t you care about Zizane? She could be dead for all you know!” Almost as if on cue, Zizane came stumbling through the illusionary form of Skitch-Sketch, rubbing at her forehead. “What...hit me? I remember reaching for the box-” “Lightning, my dear. But it seems that you’re okay now. We have our prize.” “Great,” Zizane said. Trixie thought she still looked a little cross eyed. Greengrass was examining the case closer with a bit of a frown. “Seven locks? Paranoid, that’s for sure. Look around for a key. There has to be something here.” “Oh, one more thing….” The illusion of Skitch had spoken up again and was shooting a furious glare across the room. “If you came here, trying to get your hooves on that device for some personal gain? Hope that I don’t find you. Because if I do? I will take you down. And you won’t get back up again.” Greengrass rolled his eyes. “Oh, and one more thing!” Greengrass was now gritting his teeth. “When the illusion was summoned? It also sent an alarm spell, courtesy of Twilight Sparkle, straight to the guards. I’ve been rambling to keep you busy,” she said, before laughing. “So, if you’re wondering who the schmuck is? That would be you.” A door slammed open downstairs, the minotaur dropping Trixie to face down what might be coming his way. Landing with a soft “oof” Trixie jumped back to her hooves and charged right at Greengrass. “Give it!” “Out the window!” Greengrass shouted. Zizane rolled backwards shoving the window open with a free hoof. Then she toppled backwards out the window. Trixie took a step forward, intending to give chase or at the very least, see what happened to her. A canon like bang roared through the room, something striking her in the back. The impact smashed her to the floor, a numb sensation quickly engulfing her legs. Groaning, she wondered what had just hit her, when there was a click, followed by a loud bang. And Trixie blacked out.