Trixie's Challenge
“Lights! Camera!” Trixie said, strutting down Mane Street toward the Ponyville Library. It was just before lunch, and enough ponies hurried through the streets to give them the facade of an audience.
“We don’t have either of those things,” Crystal Ball said, rolling her eyes.
“Well, it doesn’t matter. The Great and Powerful Trixie needs no props. The Great and Powerful Trixie will best Twilight Sparkle with skill alone.”
“Sure you will, but does it really have to be a public challenge? It would be so much easier to sneak into her home and set her bed on fire. Then we could take her place, and feed on the dragon for weeks or even months,” Crystal Ball trailed off, a hungry look in her eyes. Trixie edged away from her.
“No, simply defeating Twilight is not enough. Trixie will crush her. Twilight Sparkle will be publicly shamed and humiliated. It’s what Trixie was promised.”
They came to stop just outside the library. “Twilight Sparkle!” Trixie called up without hesitation. Ponies stopped in the street to watch. A few recognized the unicorn and frowned in annoyance. After a beat, the second story window flew open.
“Twilight Sparkle! I, the Great and Powerful Trixie, have come to challenge you to a contest of magical skill to prove who the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria truly is! Do you accept my challenge, or will you run and hide from the inevitable humiliation you—”
“Oh, hey Trixie!” Spike called down from the open window. “Uh, Twilight’s not here right now.”
Trixie dropped her head, deadpanning as Crystal Ball laughed. “Of course she isn’t.”
*****
“Ah still think we should go back and ask Scootaloo again,” Applejack said, absentmindedly nibbling a doughnut. She sat with her friends at a quiet table in Sugarcube Corner.
“She’s already told us everything she knows,” Dash answered flatly.
“Maybe, but there ain’t no harm in double checking. Maybe she forgot something.”
“She’s been through enough. There’s no reason to go bugging her.”
“She ain’t been through anything she didn’t agree to,” Applejack said. “She knew that Discord was bad news to start with.”
“Yeah, so did we. Didn’t stop him from turning you into a liar,” Dash countered.
“Well, no, but...” Applejack trailed off.
“But what? Discord tricked all of us,” Dash looked pointedly at each of her friends in turn. “Scootaloo made a mistake, but she sees that now. And unlike the rest of us, she didn’t need any magic spells to help her. So forget about grilling her for more answers and come up with something that’ll actually help.”
Twilight dipped her head. “We’re at a dead end. Every tracking spell I know failed. I know you feel bad for her, but we need more information if we’re going to beat Discord.”
“Sugarcube,” Applejack said, voice softening, “we know why you’re being so protective, but we need to talk to her again. Nopony wants to hurt her.”
Rainbow’s face fell and she stared at the table, eyes heavy with guilt. “I should have helped her before it got this bad. I should have figured out what was happening sooner.”
Although Twilight blew a frustrated sigh, her eyes were filled with sympathy as she looked at her friend. They’d heard the same story almost every day for a week. “You couldn’t have known what was going on.”
“I screwed up. I didn’t just miss something, I’m the one who pushed her into it.”
“Now stop that right now,” Applejack said, her voice filled with a sturdiness that made Dash look up from her melancholy moping. “Just cause Discord said it don’t make it true.”
“Even if we beat Discord,” Rainbow continued, ignoring Applejack’s interruption, “she’ll have to live with that cutie mark her whole life.”
Further discussion was cut off as the doors to Sugarcube Corner burst open, and a powder blue unicorn stepped in in a flash of sparkles and smoke. “Twilight Sparkle! I, the Great and Powerful Trixie, have come to challenge you to a contest of magical skill to prove who the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria truly is! Do you accept my challenge, or will you run and hide from the inevitable humiliation you’ll doubtlessly face?”
The room was silent for a beat.
“Ugh, not her again,” Rainbow muttered, dropping her face onto the table in exasperation. “Of all the worst possible times.”
“Sorry Trixie, we’re kind of busy right now,” Twilight said, barely sparing a glance for the other unicorn.
“So then you admit the Great and Powerful Trixie is the most magical unicorn in all of Equestria?”
“Sure.”
Trixie paused, uncertain. She hadn’t considered Twilight might not accept her challenge.
“I, uh...” She looked out the door at Crystal ball, who just shrugged. “If you win this challenge, the Great and Powerful Trixie will tell you who freed Discord.”
“What?” the filly outside hissed.
“What?” Twilight coughed, nearly choking on a pastry.
“The Great and Powerful Trixie knows about Discord’s return, and has information the rest of you want, but she will only give it to you if you manage to beat her.”
“I vote we ask the princess to lock her up until she talks,” Rainbow said.
“Seconded,” Applejack chimed in.
“Just hold on,” Twilight said quietly. “She’s probably just lying to get us to play along.”
“Probably,” Rarity agreed, “but we can’t be sure. Honestly, accepting her challenge might not be a bad idea. We all know you’re the more magical unicorn. At best, we can get some new information, at worst it’ll get her out of our manes.”
Twilight sighed again. “Fine, you’re on, Trixie.”
“Good. Meet Trixie tonight at seven in the Ponyville Park.”
*****
The sun was beginning to set as the six ponies made their way to the park. A large wooden platform had been erected just north of the small lake. It was a perfect square with no back walls or curtains. A light had been placed in each corner to illuminate the stage.
Trixie waited at the center of the stage, surrounded by waiting ponies. Apparently word of the magical competition had gotten around.
“Alright,” Twilight muttered, climbing onto the stage without preamble. “What’s it going to be? Magical knot tying? Levitation? Pulling bunnies out of— GAH!” She dropped to the floor as a bolt of static purple lightning passed overhead.
“The rules are simple, the first pony to leave the stage loses,” Trixie said, horn glowing dangerously.
“Wait, you never said anything about a fight!”
“The Great and Powerful Trixie will best you, just as she banished the dreaded Ursa Major!”
“Ugh, not that again. Nopony can—” Twilight jumped aside from another bolt of magic. “I never agreed to—” She jumped straight up as a blue fireball passed underneath her.
She caught the next bolt on a magical shield and, with a shout of frustration, disappeared in a flash. She appeared next to Trixie and fired her own bolt of magic. It knocked Trixie aside, rolling her several yards until she slid right off the stage and hit the ground below.
Only after she caught her breath did Twilight notice the cheers of the onlooking ponies. She shook her head and walked to the edge of the stage to check on Trixie. Her friends had circled around below and nudged the crowd back while the other ponies began to file away.
Trixie sat on the ground, dirt in her mane but otherwise unharmed.
“Alright, spill it,” Dash said. “What do you know about Discord?”
“But, how?” Trixie mumbled, ignoring the question. She looked up at Twilight, angry tears in her eyes. “Trixie is better than you! Trixie is the Element of Power! I can’t lose against some small-town pony like you!”
“The element of what now?” Applejack asked.
“Trixie is the Element of Power,” she repeated. “The opposite of the Element of Magic. Discord said...” She turned to glare up at Twilight. “I’m greater than you. Without your friends, you’re nothing.”
Twilight looked down at her, a realization forming in her head. “Discord got to you too, didn’t he? Convinced you to free him by telling you what you wanted to hear.”
“It was easy,” Trixie said, stomping a hoof as she stood. “Trixie undid your spell in a matter of seconds.”
“You said you’re the opposite...” Twilight trailed off. Her head snapped up and she blinked in surprise. “So Discord really did create his own elements.”
“Is that even possible?” Rarity asked.
“I don’t know,” Twilight said with a frown. “Rainbow Dash, could you fly to the library and have Spike send a letter? We need to get the princess here to talk to Trixie.”
With a quick salute, the pegasus took off into the darkening sky.
Trixie watched her go, a jolt of panic going through her. She turned on the spot and charged forward.
Applejack had been expecting the move, and Trixie ran headfirst into the farmpony. “Ya ain’t going anywhere.”
Trixie bounced and stumbled, falling flat. She looked fearfully at the five ponies moving to surround her. “Stand aside, the Great and Powerful Trixie will not be detained like some petty criminal.”
“Not until we get some answers out of you,” Twilight said. Her voice softened as she said, “The princess knows how easy it is for Discord to manipulate ponies. I’m sure if you help us, she’ll go easy on you.”
Anger flashed in Trixie’s eyes and her mouth went off before she could think about it. “You think Trixie was manipulated? The greatest unicorn in all of Equestria is not somepony to be tricked and used!”
“The one thing Ah don’t get,” Applejack said, rolling her eyes, “is how power is supposed to be the opposite of magic. That is what you said, right? The Element of Power?”
Trixie sniffed and looked down her snout at Applejack. “Trixie is the opposite of the magic of friendship. Trixie’s power is all her own, and not dependent on anypony else.”
Twilight frowned. That didn’t sound quite right. She’d known since facing Discord the first time that the strength of her magic had little to do with her element. Otherwise, Discord could have stopped after taking her horn. He hadn’t believed he’d won until she’d given up on her friends. So wouldn’t the opposite of the magic of friendship be...
“Loneliness,” she thought aloud. “He picked you because you drive everypony away.” She put a hoof to her mouth a moment later. She hadn’t meant to voice the idea, and hadn’t realized how mean it would sound.
Trixie turned on her, teeth clenched in anger. “The Great and Powerful...” Twilight was looking down on her with a sad expression. “The Great...” Everypony around her was staring at her with that stupid look of pity. “I...” she stumbled over her words.
And then Trixie laughed. “What good is your friendship when everypony you care about turns against you? Trixie doesn’t need friends that will just drag you down. You can understand that, can’t you Twilight Sparkle? Doesn’t it hurt you that your friend Spike would turn against you and help free Discord?”
Trixie smiled in triumph, watching Twilight’s face go from sad to confused and finally coming to rest on shock.
“Or did he not trust you enough to tell you? Your own assistant, a good friend. I even hear he’s like a brother to you.”
“You’re lying,” Twilight half snarled, looking at Trixie with real anger for the first time. “Spike wouldn’t do something like that.”
Trixie answered with another arrogant smile. “I think it’s time for the Great and Powerful Trixie to take her leave.”
“Ah told you,” Applejack said, moving closer, “ya ain’t going nowhere.”
Green light flashed and Applejack found herself on the ground a dozen feet away. The crowd around the stage had broken up and disappeared, except for one white unicorn filly.
“You’re finally ready to go?” Crystal Ball asked.
Trixie nodded, “We’ll finish this another time, Twilight Sparkle.”
With a flash of green light, they were gone. Twilight sat down in the shocked silence that followed their departure. Finally, Rarity spoke up, “I’m sure she was just saying that to get to you. Spike would never help Discord.”
Twilight nodded, “You’re right. Wasn’t that little filly the one you told us about? The changeling queen?”
Rarity nodded, shivering slightly at the week she’d spent in her own basement.
“Twilight!” They looked up at the muffled call to see Rainbow Dash drop from the sky, a piece of paper in her mouth. She landed and Twilight levitated the paper up to read it.
“It’s from Spike,” Rainbow said. For a moment, Twilight could have sworn she saw genuine fear in the pegasus’s magenta eyes. “He’s gone.”
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Oh man, shit is getting real now. Twilight is going to freaking lose it when she learns that Spike, Luna, and Scootaloo are helping Discord.
Edit: Wow I got the first comment, that never happens to me.
Well, trixie kind of blew that one.
Mwahahahahahaha!
Oh the plot thickens. I love this story. Now I want Discord to win
Trixie failed. Big shocker there. Though I do like how her Element is Loneliness and not Power. Makes a lot more sense.
I've never gotten first before!
This story is awesome. Has it been featured on Equestria Daily?
The plot thickens
I am unaware which side I'm rooting for, but either way, I like it
need moar
Well, fuck. The excrement is approaching the rotary cooling device.
Well clearly I'm rooting for the Mane 6. And I do wish the others hadn't been so weak. Ah well, few can possess a will as overpowering as my own! Heck, against me, Discord would be the one to end up a grey faded shade of his former self! *Alondro is the Supreme Being, the Deux Ex Insert!!*
Man, if Rainbow's reaction's to Scootaloo's betrayal is something, I can't wait to see what happens when Twilight learns about Spike's involvement with DIscord's return, especially after Trixie told her so suddenly.
I think in a way This round belongs to Trixie, not in terms of power, but in terms of emotional victory against Twilight.
Great update as it was kind of sad to see Trixie make a fool of herself again, both in show and in battle.
Yet, Now I wonder what will Twilight and the others do now that the seeds of Discord has really hit close to home this time around.
Also, I find it kind of annoyed that the girls let the Changeling Queen slip through their fingers...again.
Please do keep up the good work upon such a great tale like this one.
Wow I can't wait until the "s***" hits the fan
1052246
She 'blows' at everything...
Bud-Um-Tsk!
Dang right when it starts getting even better a cliffhangar....
It was short yet awsome!
Cliffhanger! But Scootaloo wasn't in it!
Poor filly!
Who wants pie?
Woo! new update!
EDIT: aaannndd there goes their only communication with the princess.
This story reminds me of the Ultima computer game: The Eight Virtuess .
Power of Loneliness
neat
http://ultima.wikia.com/wiki/Virtues
I do love how easily Twi beat Trixie, at least as far as the magic contest went.
I like Trixie but she was patheetiiiiiiiiiic. I fully expect her to get in some major trouble for her actions. Now four of the Elements of Disharmony are known. If Twilight is smart, based on what Trixie said she might be able to figure out there are six elements to counter there six. Unfortunately, she won't be in any state of mind to do much in a moment.
And than Spike was disowned.
Trixie as the Element of Loneliness. Totally called it
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So Trixie element isn't power after all. What will she think of the truth? How will Twilight react when she find out Trixie was telling the truth about Spike?
Well, that battle was anticlimatic, but predictable. Trixie is steadily becoming more of a liability to Team Discord. Though I guess being the Element of Loneliness will make you do that. Nice.
This is one of those stories that make you sqeel! Poor Scoots........... So.... Great epic story that's so sosososos good!
The pieces are coming into place. Perhaps Trixie's little blabbing was all a part of the plan.
Well, crap.
Can't wait for more.
Discords opinion on Twilight Sparkle
Am still rooting for Team Discord.
THE SUSPENSE HAS BEEN DOUBLED!
Poor Scoots. She always was my favorite...so I'm still backing Team Discord as well.
Oh, Trixie, you and your big, fat mouth.
For your sake, let's hope this was all part of Discord's master plan, otherwise you may have failed him for the last time. Chokey Choke.
Dash's reaction to Scoots being gone will be priceless, as well as Twilights reaction to Spikes leave.
Deception, Anger, Cruelty, Greed, Treachery and Despair.
Lol, Twilight dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/Twilight_Sparkle_lolface.png
And incoming Twilight rage in 5... 4...
1052236
mariokartadventures.webs.com/photos/mkds-snapshots/blueshell-1.jpg
Yes! Go Discord! I've been rooting for him since the beginning. I am the element of anger!
HOW!? HOW !? HOOOOOOOOOOOOW?!??!?!?!?! SO FAEFAFAKAIGNDS GOOD! AGAW=(IT =W#HTYBW#
1053913 That's kind of...heartless, really. Who knows what might happen to Twilight?
Ya
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Ah
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