Misadventures of Trixie

by Tau22

Daring Dash

Two ponies walked together at a steady pace. Friends to the core, magicians, royal purple and star-struck blue. The morning sun shone upon them as they chatted, while autumn's colourful leaves made for wonderful scenery. The stage magician asked:
"Are you sure this method of yours works?"
The bookworm princess replied:
"Oh, indeed! Researched, tried and tested."
"It does make sense when you describe it, though I still fear the initial loss will make it hard to catch up to the others."
"Fear not, dear Trixie! The first time I used it, I even managed to score a medal!"
"Well, I do trust you. And whatever happens, we can have a nice, pleasant chat on the way."
"Yup. Complete with some nature watching!"

The starting line was already in sight, and boy, was it crowded! Dozens of ponies had gathered for the event and were busy stretching or conversing with their fellow runners. Other ponies seemed to have come as spectators. Among the crowd, Trixie could see several familiar faces.
Of all ponies, Fluttershy seemed to be competing, sporting a set of jogging gear and one of her trademark unsure expressions. Rarity assumed her rightful position as drama queen, sitting on a comfortable-looking couch and enjoying some refreshments before the event began in earnest. Applejack was at the very front, and waved at them with a smile. They both waved back as an energetic voice sounded from above:
"Fillies and gentlecolts! Welcome to the annual Running of the Leaves!"

From within a large, pink balloon, Pinkie Pie oversaw the world. Or well, part of it, though one could never be sure with that mare involved. At her side sat an adorable and infinitely-helpful purple-green dragonling, clutching a microphone in his claws. He continued their greeting:
"Coverage of the event is brought to you by your favourite announcing duo from the friendly skies! Spike!"
"And Pinkie Pie! The fun will be starting soon, so get your knickers out of a bunch mighty quick," she turned to her co-host and asked, still audible to the world below, "hey, did you bring the fudge?"
"Pinkie, your microphone!"
"Oh, hihi, silly me!"

Twilight looked around the area, then frowned. Trixie asked:
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing. It's just, she should be here by now."
"Who?"

As if on cue, nearby ponies started pointing to the sky. Was it a bird? Was it a dragon? Of course not, it was a pegasus! And what a pegasus, at that! At speeds other ponies could barely comprehend, she performed dizzying somersaults, pirouettes and acrobatics, all the while staying on-course and even avoiding actual birds. With a final nosedive worthy of the finest daredevils, she landed right on the starting line, light as a feather. Applejack immediately greeted the sky-blue pony with a hoofbump:
"Ah knew you'd make it, sugarcube."
The speed freak put on massive grin, brushing aside her striped, colourful mane:
"You know I wouldn't miss our run for anything. Not even a Wonderbolt invitation."
"About that, Ah ain't so sure."

The two athletes laughed and started chatting. The atmosphere of the entire event was laid-back and friendly. The proper kind. Rustling could suddenly be heard from above, as Pinkie accidentally flipped a switch:
"Where did that darned thing go," Trixie didn't know how she could have lost something in the balloon's limited space, but knew better than to question anything when Pinkie was involved, "Spike, tell them to get ready while I grab the fishing rod!"
"Umm, you already kind of... how does that even... ahem, runners, get to your positions! The Running of the Leaves is about to begin!"
"Good job. Now hold this barracuda."
"Aaaaaaaah!"

With many confused expressions, the ponies assumed their positions, Applejack and Rainbow at the very front, obviously excited. Trixie and Twilight were somewhere in the middle of the bunch and Fluttershy... where was Fluttershy? Bowing out at the last moment from anxiety, perhaps? That seemed logical.
"Ahah, I found it! Do it, Spike!"
"With pleasure. Runners! Get ready," she took a deep breath, "get set," she bent her knees just a little. At that moment, Pinkie pulled out what looked like a tribal warhorn, complete with intricate carvings and blew on it, drowning out Spike's final word, "go!"

And they were off! Speeding among Ponyville's colourful trees in order to get them ready for the winter cold. Well, except for two. Twilight and Trixie did not exactly move fast, their pace more akin to a swift walk than a proper run. It was a calm, relaxing experience, that much she had to admit. Especially since they were allowed to watch as throngs of leaves fell to the ground. It was all rather lovely. Pinkie and Spike flew ahead with the main group, as well, their often-nonsensical banter still audible in the distance. Something else was audible, too. The clatter of dozens of small feet. An enthusiastic voice soon reached them:
"Good day, mademoiselles!"

They both turned in surprise to see none other than the Master of Chaos. His body was changed greatly, even longer than usual, and he now sported countless sets of small, insectoid legs, like some sort of oversized millipede. Fluttershy sat comfortably on his back, enjoying a cup of afternoon tea. Twilight wasn't quite sure how to respond to that, but Trixie remained nonchalant:
"Ah, hello, Discord! And you too, Fluttershy!"
"The leaves falling is a wonderful sight, isn't it?" the shy pony replied.
"She wanted to see it, but knew she couldn't keep up, so I offered a few hundred helping legs."
"And here I thought you were helping her overcome a fear related to pseudo-racing."
"Funnily enough, that is an unintended bonus. Now, let's see how the rest are doing," his neck extended like a periscope until he could see above the trees. He shouted back down, "oh, yes, Rainbow and Applejack are in the lead. How utterly predictable. Not exactly a popcorn flick, this race. Speaking of which, anyone want some cotton candy?"

A generous serving appeared in his outstretched hand. Fluttershy received a specifically-calculated portion without even having to ask. Trixie and Twilight both shook their heads and the princess answered:
"No thanks, Discord."
"Suit yourselves, more for me! Oh, my, they may wish to watch out for that wyvern."
It took just a few moments for the information presented to reach the three ponies' brains. Once it did, though, they shouted in unison:
"Wyvern?!"
"Oh, yes, the one flying at low altitu-ah," after feeling a sudden increase in pressure, Discord turned around to see two extra ponies on his back, "hey, what gives?"
"Step on it!"
He just shrugged, happy to get a bit of excitement:
"Aye, aye, Princess!"

Trixie didn't exactly know how Discord accelerated at least threefold without her feeling anything. She did know wyverns, however. Distant cousins of dragons More akin to large, aerial lizards than legendary beasts. No fire breathing shenanigans, either, but still trouble. Their trusty steed caught up to the main group just in time to see a blur swoop above the tree line with a roar. This was followed by a different sort of scream:
"Woaaaaah! Mayday, heyday, Sunday! We've been hit!"
"And we're going down!"

As the two announcers screamed, a blue streak rose to the sky. It reached the damaged balloon in a second flat and pulled the crew to safety in the nick of time. Their transport crashed into the tree line moments afterward. Rainbow Dash descended down to the ground, not even hindered by the dragonling on her back or the ever-grateful mare in her front hooves:
"You're a real hero, Rainbow! And if I've read the stories right, the hero deserves a kiss," she giggled, before giving Rainbow a playful peck on the cheek, "there!"
"Yeah, heheh," Rainbow seemed a bit flustered, before once again kicking into high gear, "now, where's that fat flying lizard?!"
Discord, still high above the trees, shouted while pointing with an elongated arm:
"Over there and still flying!"
"I'll teach him to mess with my friends!"

She rose and Twilight tried to stop her:
"Rainbow," but the speedster was already gone, hell-bent on getting some payback, "oh, crud. Fluttershy, come with me! Something is very wrong with that wyvern and we need to know what."
"Ummm, okay!"
As the two rose into the air and followed Rainbow, Trixie felt just a little bit dejected. But then, she realised how multi-talented her circle of friends was. She turned to her favourite shape-shifting Lord of Nonsense:
"Hey, Discord..."

---

Of all the things that could have happened, Twilight did not expect Trixie to suddenly almost ram into them with the help of large, bat-like wings. She did an involuntary pirouette as she tried to fly straight, then met gazes with the princess:
"These bloody wings are impossible!"
"How did you even get them?!"
Fluttershy giggled:
"I feel Discord might have had a hoof in that. I must say, though, it's still better than your first time, Trixie."
"That's not saying much," she growled, "how's Rainbow doing?"
"I'd say she's doing just fine, actually."

And by the gods, she was. The pegasus was little more than a colourful blur, flying circle around the brown, winged lizard. The wyvern's jaw tried to snap at her in annoyance, but its teeth only managed to chomp against each other. It flapped its large, leathery wings and hovered in the air, finally coming to a halt and growling at the brash pony. As they closed the distance, they could hear her shout:
"Hah, can't touch this! Think you can do better, scale-brains?!"

The beast seemed ready to attack, when a far more graceful pegasus flew between the two with a shout:
"Stop," the combatants froze in place and gazed at her, "you should both be ashamed of yourselves, just behaving like a pair of children," a guilt trip was immediately obvious on both, "is this any way to solve a disagreement?"
Suddenly, the creature spoke up, in a very properly pronounced accent:
"In my defence, my lady, this hooligan assaulted me first. I do agree I might have lost my temper and I apologise deeply for this."

Trixie and Twilight just shared a confused look, but Rainbow was in full confrontation mode:
"I attacked first?! You hit my friends' balloon so hard it crashed!"
The wyvern's charcoal, serpentine eyes grew just a bit wider:
"What, what, what?! Oh, dear, was that the bump I felt?! I do hope everyone is alright."
"Yeah they are. Because I'm awesome."
"By Tiamath, that is good to hear," Twilight perked up at the mention of the name, "I am terribly sorry. In my panic, I flew without considering the danger I could potentially pose. Please, forgive my ignorance."
Fluttershy flew closer and rubbed her muzzle against its bestial snout, earning herself a monstrous purr:
"It's okay. You're not a bad wyvern at all."

Trixie homed in on the important part:
"If I may, you said you were panicking?"
"Oh, yes. The creatures appeared so suddenly I barely had time to pack my tea set," with its head, it motioned to a comically tiny backpack tied around the base of its wing, "would have been a dreadful loss, mmmyes."
"Creatures?" Twilight joined the interrogation.
"Oh, yes. Nasty things, seemed quite flustered about something overall. Decided it might be good to find a new lair. The old one was getting a bit small, anyway."
"Could you please describe them in more detail?"
"Hmmm, well, let's see. They looked very much," at that moment, the earth below trembled as a massive new shape burst from the ground and towered above the surrounding tree line, "like that, actually."

The being was absolutely massive in size, easily dwarfing even the proper wyvern. It was akin to a horrific snake, its scales a very dark purple. Its head was a jarring contrast of light pink, with a red, mane-like structure attached. Briefly, it looked around with numerous large, black eyes, then roared. Its entire head opened into three separate parts, revealing several long, prehensile tongues. Rainbow immediately commented:
"Ugh, why did it have to be tentacles?"

Trixie, meanwhile, identified their foe:
"A tatzlwurm! This far east," the others were giving her that look. The one that begged for exposition, "what? Nobody else is subscribed to 'Fantastical Fauna Monthly'?"
"I haven't read the newest issue yet, I'll admit," the princess frowned, "but I have tackled this particular kind of creature before," a second monstrous snake burst from the ground, and screeched, "though, it was alone last time."
"This is bad," the showpony said, "we need to calm them down before they hurt someone!"
"Umm, maybe I could calm them down, a bit. But they seem to be really angry right now, for some reason. We'd need to make them listen."
"Hah, I bet a good kick would do the trick."
Fluttershy, to their surprise, agreed:
"That just might work. They seem tough, they can take a bit of roughing up," she turned to their noble friend, "mister wyvern, would you be willing to help us with this?"
"And teach these ruffians some manners in the process? Why, I must say, my lady, count me in!"
"Alright, everyone! Two teams! Me, Fluttershy and, ummm..."
"Gerald."
"Right, Gerald. Team two, Trixie and Rainbow. Keep that one busy, we'll get to you as soon as we subdue the other one."
One by one, her non-conventional army responded:
"Got it!"
"Yeah, let's roll!"
"Umm, right."
"To victory!"

Team one grouped and flew to meet their monstrous opponent. Rainbow and Trixie shared a look, Rainbow obviously optimistic about the whole ordeal:
"Alright, Trix, ready to rock?"
"Ready when you are."
"Hah, we'll see if you can keep up."
"Before you rush off to danger, allow me to do this!"
"What are ya'," the pegasus spun around as a small flight of clones suddenly appeared around her, saluting. Her grin grew wider, "woah, radical! He won't be able to keep track of me now!"
"My plan exactly! Go get him, Rainbows!"
"Oh, we will!"

Equestria's first one-pony squadron set off to meet its foe in combat. Trixie nodded with a satisfied smile, when a small bucket suddenly appeared before her, filled to the brim with popcorn. She followed the strangely elastic arm that held it back to her mysterious benefactor. Discord's single fang was at a particularly strange angle as he grinned:
"Popcorn, Trix?"
"Don't mind if I do," she lapped up a good number with her tongue and as she chewed, looked over the battlefield. The Running of the Leaves seemed to have been forgotten, as spectators and runners alike gathered to watch the battle. The world's most proper wyvern, while much smaller than his opponent, seemed to be having little trouble with keeping the massive worm subdued, "look at the grip on Gerald!"
"Oh, yes! The way he holds onto its neck with those shapely talons of his is almost enchanting."
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were ready to profess your love to a wyvern."
"Och, Trixie," the draconequus winked, his grin growing wider, "I'll have you know, I am an equal opportunity romantic."
"Somehow, that does not surprise me," she looked towards the other worm. Her illusions were performing as intended, flying around in a seemingly random pattern, but the original was something else, "look at her go!"

Rainbow was... was there something faster than a blur, or would that mean she was invisible? In any case, the pegasus let loose her inner daredevil, performing somersaults and darting between the creature's furious, flailing attacks. Its tentacle-like tongues lashed around it, swatting at the incorporeal attackers to no avail. Rainbow let out a cocky chuckle and taunted the worm:
"Hah! Not even close, ugly!"

In hindsight, this proved to be an error. The creature's many eyes narrowed as it followed the sound to its source. With a roar, the tentacles lunged in her direction. She yelped and performed a few more dizzying manoeuvres. The first and second tentacles snapped at nothing but air, but the third managed to grab hold of her hind leg. She struggled to free herself of the iron grip, but more and more soon wrapped themselves around her. She did not stop struggling, though she was doing little more than wasting energy at that point. Slowly, the beast pulled her closer to its monstrous maw.

"Oh, no," the showpony shouted, turning to her shape-shifting accomplice, "Discord, plan B!"
"W-what's plan B?! Plan C has chocolate, wouldn't you rather..."
"No! I need you to propel me at that monster!"
"Propel you? But what will yo-?
"Leave that to me! Just do it!"

Without another word, he saluted her like a trained soldier. With a snap of his cloven hoof, a sizeable slingshot suddenly materialised in the air. It seemed to be equipped to fire elephants, if need be. Trixie also received a complimentary helmet on her head, its stars and colours almost identical to those on her regular hat. A pair of blue goggles appeared shortly afterwards. Without a second thought, she assumed her position. Discord pulled back and looked down at her:
"Are you sure you wouldn't prefer the chocolate?"
"Fire me. Now."
"As you say," at the top of his lungs, he then shouted, "foooooooooooooooooore!"

Internally dismissing the improper use of the warning, Trixie tried to concentrate on her spell, only to finally realise just how fast she was going. The world around her was little more than a blur and she had to struggle against the wind to maintain her path. It was... amazing. Exhilarating. If Rainbow felt like this every time she flew, she understood the pegasi's lust for speed perfectly. But she had a job to do. And she hoped it would work.

Her horn glowed once more and Rainbow's doppelgangers vanished, much to the tatzlwurm's confusion. She needed every bit of arcane power she could get. With a grunt, a familiar, violet shield appeared before her. Staunch defender in almost all cases. On that day, it would be on the offensive. The snake noticed her approach, but was too preoccupied with trying to devour his captive to do anything.

Unicorn and monstrous snake clashed with devastating results. The worm was almost uprooted from the ground by the impact, but instead merely came crashing down, taking a good few trees along with it. Trixie, meanwhile, spun out of control, her flight skills actually hindering her efforts to regain control. And then, the unpleasant sensation stopped, as a pair of hooves swept her from the air.

She looked up at her dashing hero, Rainbow's smile already back on prominent display:
"That. Was. Awesome! You were like a missile, just flying, and then, boom! Right in the," Rainbows stream of thoughts was interrupted by a light peck on the cheek, "w-wha?"
"Haven't you heard," Trixie replied teasingly, "a hero deserves a kiss."
She blushed, but regained her composure in record time:
"Bah, shouldn't I kiss you, then? Without you, I'd be dinner. Besides, what you did was incredible."
"The great Rainbow Dash giving out praise? How unexpected."
"Hey, credit where credit's due."

They finally landed and Trixie thanked the gods for blessed ground. Familiar faces soon appeared, not dissuaded by potential danger. Rarity rushed closer with a handkerchief and immediately got to work on getting dirt out of her fur:
"Darling, look what that dangerous stunt did to your coat!"
"I'm more worried about what this helmet is doing to my mane."

Rarity gasped and Pinkie handed her a cool drink to calm her down. It was then that team one appeared, Fluttershy at the very front. They hovered closer to the beaten tatzlwurm's head. The creature's fighting spirit was visibly gone, replaced with exhaustion. Equestria's most graceful pony floated right in front it and Trixie could finally make out strange marks in the creature's scales, akin to burn marks. She spoke to it, her usual timid nature put on hold:
"Hello, mister tatzlwurm," it regarded her with a few eyes, "I talked with your friend over there and he mentioned you were the one who persuaded her to come all the way here. Could you please tell me why you travelled so far to cause trouble?"

For a few moments, it seemed as though it would ignore her, but the pegasi's lovely voice was not so easily ignored. It replied with a low growl, barely audible, but there. No one but Fluttershy could understand, of course:
"Payback? What sort of payback are you talking about," one of its prehensile tongues slowly slithered out, turned around and rubbed one of its scars, "someone hurt you."
At that, the purple alicorn stepped closer and looked at the worm:
"And I think that someone was me," the worm's eyes narrowed and it grunted, "was that a yes?"
"He mentions there was another, too."
"You'd have to go north to find her, I'm afraid. And if you remember, you're the one who attacked us."
There again came a set of growls which necessitated translation:
"He says you two were aggressors, because you invaded his territory. His kin are very protective of that."
Twilight frowned, but then her lips curled into a faint smile:
"In that case, I am extremely sorry for our intrusion. We were just trying to help a friend," she turned towards Discord with an annoyed glare and the mischievous spirit whistled innocently, "at the time, we defended ourselves in a manner we considered appropriate. If you let us, we can find a way to treat those scars and make your scales good as new. In return, I merely ask of you to be less immediately forceful when defending your territory. A simple warning growl would perhaps be better than an all-out attack."

The monstrous snake was silent, contemplating the offer. It was then that the other worm moved its head closer with a high-pitched wail. The burnt one looked up and growled in response. They went back and forth in this manner for a good while and Trixie leaned in to Fluttershy, who was listening intently:
"Hey, Flutters, what are they saying?"
"Oh, they're just talking it out. Gandr, the female one, is telling Jormun he should just let it go, especially after we offered to patch the scars up. She also agrees that he has a bit of an explosive personality. Overall, she seems to care about his well-being quite a bit, even though he's stubborn. Oooh, and they've agreed!"

Before anyone had the opportunity to ask, Jormun's extensive tongue slowly made its way to Twilight. Gently, it wrapped itself around her right front hoof and slowly shook it. The assembled ponies cheered.

---

"Runners and watchers, put your smiles back on! The annual Running of the Leaves can now come back like a good cup of afternoon tea! From the friendly skies, these are your favourite commentators! Pinkie Pie!"
"And Spike!"
"And today with a guest host, a wyvern of good manners and even better flying!"
"Oh, yes, that would be me, Gerald! And I must say, the world always looks lovely from up here!"

Trixie smiled as the commentating trio passed overhead. She was sure it was less comfortable than sitting in the balloon, but beggars could not be choosers. The first thing to greet her when she looked back down was a familiar, colourful mane. Dashie's trademark grin was there, immovable as a mountain:
"Hey, Trix."
"Hiya! Ready to run like the wind?"
"You bet, heheh. Listen, I just wanted to say... well, thanks. For saving me back there and stuff."
"You saved me afterwards, remember? If anything, we're even."
"Yeah, well, I've given you tough times in the past. Even after Twilight said you'd changed and stuff," she looked down at the ground, "I should have opened my eyes, I guess. And I'm sorry for all that. You're actually pretty rad.”
"Coming from you, that's a high honour, heh. And don't worry. Loyalty must be earned, as they say.”

Rainbow chuckled, then presented one of her legs for a hoofbump. Trixie grinned and their hooves clopped together. With that, they assumed their positions. There were still lazy leaves to take care of, after all.

Comments

[Mooncalf]

Jormun and Gandr. Cute.

And Gerald sounds like quite the proper gentleman. Gentledrake. Whatever. All in all, good chapter.

[Tau22]

6221428

Och, you give us too much credit, I think!

Nonetheless, we are glad to have such an adoring fan!

[Alondro]

And then the worms, which were secretly super-villains, ate everypony. And Discord. Because... I dunno... magic worm magic or something.

What a twist!

[Tau22]

6223457

You have the script for Tremors 8 on your hooves there! There was a Tremors 7, right?

[Alondro]

6223546 Hollywood just stole the idea, along with all the ideas of everyone. Which they'll ruin trying to adapt to old properties' prequels, sequels, reboots, and convoluted crossovers.