Chapter 2: D.O.A.
The being formerly known as Trixie Silverlight Lulamoon stood mesmerized before the mirror. Two lifeless eyes with pale purple irises looked back.
“What…” she thought.
The once-Trixie couldn’t take her gaze away from the mirror and it took her every single bit of willpower to hold her tears back. The nightmarish creature gazing back from inside the mirror wasn’t like Trixie in anything. The mane was a disaster, so tangled and stiff that it looked more like an old spider-web. The coat was dirty, all sweated over and sticky, flat against her skin. And her figure, the one that she managed to sustain, even under poverty and hard labors, was now more reminiscent of a dead tree than a mare. All of that, under a new paler tone. The reflection in front of the once-Trixie wasn’t that of a living pony.
“This can’t be,” she whispered in dread, reaching for the mirror.
To the once-Trixie’s horror, when she lifted a hoof, the reflection did the same. She jerked back in shock, still unsure if the image of the mirror was real or just a cruel joke. Trembling, she began to reach back for her own face instead. When a hoof, thin as a dead branch, touched the almost white face of the reflection, she barely felt it, but she knew that it was her own hoof, touching her own face. The face of a dead pony.
“This abomination,” she thought again. “Is it really me?”
The eyes of the reflection were wide with horror, its muzzle hanging open in a scream that never seemed to come. The once-Trixie wanted to scream. Why couldn’t she scream?
Air. She needed air to scream. Yet even as her hoof remained on her muzzle, next to her mouth, she realized she felt no breath against it. She should be panting now, taking in great lungfuls of air in an effort to rid herself of the horrendous scream, but… nothing.
The once-Trixie realized that she wasn’t even breathing. She tried to breathe, but it was as if the basic instinct on how to do so was now lost to her.
By this point, she should hear her pulse rushing through her ears, only instead, all around her was as silent as a graveyard. If she wasn’t breathing and had no pulse... the once-Trixie didn’t let herself finish that thought, instead rearing up on her hind legs and frantically pawing at her throat. She pressed her numb hooves into the dull fur and chilled flesh on either side of her windpipe, desperate to find some sign of life, however small.
Her panic unbalanced her, her rear hoof landing in something slick, causing it to slide out and bring her to the floor. She just managed to catch herself on her left fore-hoof, only to be assailed by another sign.
Looking down at it, she saw her dominant leg, from elbow to fetlock, was covered in a sticky dark liquid. Its color looked almost black in the darkness of the bathroom, but there was no mistaking it; blood.
Blood was oozing from a wound no bigger than an i.v. syringe, open and looking like it was still fresh on her left foreleg. She must have torn it out while getting free of her restraints. It was the source of the droplets she now noticed going back into her room, the source of the puddle she had slipped in.
But where was the pain? How could she do this to herself and not feel pain? Frightened of the new find, she also finally noticed the blood was still seeping from the ragged wound, soaking her fur further. And she still wasn’t feeling anything.
“No,” she finally managed to whimper.
The once-Trixie forgot any pretence of composure or dignity as she let the first sob rack her body. Now she wanted to cry. Cry at her misfortune. Cry at how she had gone from star of the show to spectacle of horror. She tried, she really tried, but the tears never came. She could feel her lower lip and jaw quivering in terror, but no matter how much she wanted to, neither tears nor screams came from the once-Trixie.
All she could do was to let herself fall the rest of the way to the floor and curl up in shock, but not before giving a last look at the monster behind the mirror. One last look at herself.
From the chest of her dead reflection, she managed to see an object. The Alicorn Amulet, harbinger of her new misery, was no longer strapped to her neck.
It was encrusted into her flesh.
“Doctor Stable!” Twilight called to him. “How is she? Is she alright? Please, tell me she’s alright,” she asked, tears running down her cheeks.
“Miss Sparkle, please give the doctor some space to breathe,” Nurse Redheart stepped in. “I can assure you that he’s been under as much stress as you.”
“What’s the news, doc?” Applejack piped up as Dr. Stable and Nurse Redheart walked through the doors. The girls had been waiting there almost four hours for them. “How’s Trixie doin?”
Dr. Granary Stable looked like how Twilight and the rest of her friends felt; terrible. The caramel unicorn’s mane was sweaty and dishevelled, and he had deep bags under his eyes. Nurse Redheart, standing next to him, looked little better. “I’m afraid, Ms. Apple, that will require a bit of an explanation.”
With a weary sigh, the doctor sat down heavily in one of the vacant seats across from the six mares. Redheart remained by his side, taking her own seat. Ponyville was a weirdness magnet, and working as an attending physician there, Stable had seen more than his fair share. This last case though…
“Ms. Lulamoon’s condition is... difficult, as a doctor, for me to describe--“
“What in the name of the Sun did you bring into our hospital?” snapped Redheart.
All six of the mares turned to gape at the mare opposite them. Never in all their years had they seen the white earth pony nurse act in such a fashion. Her pink tail swished angrily against her seat as she glowered at Twilight and her friends, an action that for some reason her superior did not see fit to stop, or wasn’t brave enough to even try.
“What my colleague means,” said Dr. Stable in a weary, but even tone, “is that when a victim of dark magic is brought in, it’s expected that their care team is advised of the nature of that magic as soon as possible so that they may get her the proper treatment. Especially in a case as severe and abnormal as Ms. Lulamoon’s.”
“But you were there!” Rainbow Dash objected as she hovered over the rest of the girls. “You saw she was getting that crazy magic boost from the Alicorn Amulet, and then lost it when we tricked it off her. She just collapsed after from... from -- help me out here, Twi -- magic fatigue or something.”
Twilight piped up. “Yes! Magic fatigue, especially long term exposure to an artifact like the Alicorn...” She trailed off when she saw Dr. Stable sadly shaking his head at her, Nurse Redheart continuing to glower beside him.
“This was something far, far worse than just ‘magic fatigue,’ Ms. Sparkle. Though that had been our initial assumption, too.”
“So what was it?”
“Ms. Lulamoon was unresponsive when she arrived. We attempted... standard resuscitation techniques for ponies in her situation and with her symptoms. They proved ineffective.”
Fluttershy and Twilight let out a pair of distraught squeaks, Twilight being easily the louder.
“We were about to pronounce time of death when her Majesty and Miss Zecora came in,” said Redheart, picking up the explanation and trying to take the weight from the overworked doctor. “They had the alicorn amulet with them, and..." Nurse Redheart trailed off, her muzzle curling in revulsion. "They were able to stabilize Ms. Lulamoon. Such as she is."
“After that, we ran some tests to try and determine what happened.” Dr. Stable spoke again. “Our first sign that something was really wrong, though, was when we tried to draw blood.” The doctor squirmed in his seat. “What we got wasn’t blood at all.”
Even after dying, Trixie has her hopes and fears. She has her memories. Even beyond death, Trixie dreams.
She's got the Amulet in her hooves, finally.
She has fantasized with a power like this. She has dreamed of a power like this. The power to take the control, to fix everything, to set things right. The power over her own life. The very power of the gods, right in the pad of her hoof.
*baBum*
The Amulet is literally overflowing in energy, pounding like a war drum, and Trixie listens to it.
*baBum, baBum*
Trixie puts the Amulet over her neck. She's one step from the point of no return. Taking one last breath, she closes it with her hooves.
*baBum baBum*
Trixie can feel the power, surging through her like electricity through a lightning rod. But there's something she needs to do before fully using it.
*baBUM! baBUM!*
Trixie has to accept the power. She can’t just use it, she has to accept the darkness inside the Amulet and inside of herself to access the unlimited power behind it. To have limitless power, a pony first has to forget the concept of limitations. Like good or evil.
*BABUM! BABUM!*
Trixie's heart stops, so the Alicorn amulet can take its place. Losing it all has made Trixie's heart fill with rage and pain, hate and revenge. Trixie's heart has become useless for her, so she lets the Amulet replace it. Her blood is now spoiled, so the Amulet expels it from her body. Trixie willingly opens her mouth and the red liquid of life abandons her in a roar of rage. And power.
The Amulet's power is great, and its first test comes in the form of giving Trixie's veins a new blood. Something stronger to keep her going starts filling them, dark as the night and unstoppable as the dawn.
*BABUM! BABUM!*
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Love how this is going!
So...what the hell is Trixie??!!
It's now obvious that the Alicorn Amulet turned Trixie into some kind of puppet. Taking over and/or destroying her bodily functions. Now, without the amulet, she is just an animated decaying Pinocchio?
What is she?
5966206 A lich, with the amulet as her phylactery it seems that she needs to keep close to 'live'.
5966263
Well doubt that, because a phylactery is actually a piece of paper with the Lich name written on it. Sealed inside a vacuum lead container. As long as the paper with the name exist, the Lich is immortal.
Trixie is actually a rather unique case. I think in her case her own soul is trapped inside the amulet therefore it needs to be attached to her body in order for her to life, or this case life as the living death. If this is the case then there is hope for Trixie to get rid of her undeath curse though I doubt the writer would like to let Trixie walk the path of Alicornhood.
5966411 Phylactery's have gotten a larger number of varied differences in fantasy beyond what you've mentioned, typically as a sort of 'soul jar' that a lich could create through whatever means they can, see trope for details.
Though for some reason when you put it like that I'm reminded of the Hebrew Phylactery.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SoulJar
IT NEEDS MORE!
Some things I noticed:
When someone is "speaking in their head through "thought bubbles" You either use quotes, or italics. Not both:
There were a couple sentences where it felt like it jumped from past to present tense, probably because of a missing word. Also, a few spots where the word flow... seemed odd. But, that last one could just be me: I'm kind of weird when it comes to how one word flows to the next and links one sentence to the one that comes after.
Overall, an interesting concept and I look forward to see how this plays out.
5966846 So, Trixie is basically a zombie with her memories intact. The Alicorn Amulet now acts as her 'soul gem' and it keeps her going. Isn't that dangerous since the Alicorn Amulet corrupts all who use it?
More and more curious. The Alicorn Amulet is a rather interesting item. It's less like your regular soul jar/phylactery and more like... an horcrux.
Also; you might want to take the completed tag off.
5967386 A good way of keeping its corruption to something is to make sure it would never be able to be removed, a good way of doing that is by substituting itself for your life.
Of course that depends on what the Alicorn Amulet fully does here, but it is a good way of keeping itself intact because not many would want to die.
5967547 What?
This is amazing.
5967587 Well if you know something is trying to corrupt you, you'd try and remove it.
A method of keeping it on long enough for corruption to spread/hold would be to do as it's doing, you either lose yourself to the Amulet or you die.
"For although nepenthe has calmed me, I know always that I am an outsider; a stranger in this century and among those who are still men. This I have known ever since I stretched out my fingers to the abomination within that great gilded frame; stretched out my fingers and touched a cold and unyielding surface of polished glass."
NO blood! TF IS GOING ON HERE!?! Is she a zombie or something?
Warning: Before reading the following replies, you should take a look at the tropes Teasing Creator and Trolling Creator. Also, have in account that I hate spoiling stories with future details as also that I'm a long.time fan of The Riddler. It's recommended to have a grain of salt at hand.
5966043
Glad you liked it then.
5966206
Actually, she's dead (sorry, but you walked directly into that one). Well, I think that this chapter is to explain what happened to Trixie, now we just need to put a name for that.
5966263 5966846
Question; how limited is a lich in personality and memories? I'm not quite sure.
5966411
What if a soul if not the meta-physical image of a body? What is a body if not the physical extension of the soul? Where does fit the mind in all of this? Anyways, there's always hope. All will be well, eventually. I mean, with all the bad stuff that just happened, something good has to happen, right?
And why I wouldn't like the alicorn's path?
5967006
On it.
5967032
I've seen it in both ways, with and without the quotes, being the italics the only constant. And about the flowing of the wording it's probably because I'm Chilean, Spanish-speaker, which means that I'm more used to Hispanic phrase building rather than the Anglo one. I'll try to be more careful in the next chapter.
Well, glad you liked the concept. With some luck I should be able to end the expositions an go on with the story on the next chapter.
5967386
Indeed, having the thing that corrupts ponies on contact encrusted on her chest can't be good. I wonder if I left a clue in the previous chapter?
5967499
FINALLY! someone quotes a work that I actually know instead of mythology I'm not familiar with.
Thanks for that completely sporadic comment that I definitely not asked for in two separate times in your userpage.
5967547 5967587 5967964
So, is the AA taking Trixie as its hostage? Why would it do that?
5967898
Thank you.
5968170
Horses have 76 milliliters of blood per kilogram. Let that information sink in for a moment.
All credit for that image should be shared with Geoff Johnns, writer of Green Lantern, the comic that inspired that scene with this page:
static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/3/33372/885180-2_blue.jpg
In case you're wondering, yes, that IS blood.
5968304
Those are very legit and good questions. These are the poor and terrible answers; a) Stuff | b) Yes
5968336 Depends on the series, though personality tends to change what with the loss of body, feeling, and functions overtime. It's kind of hard to enjoy things when you can no longer taste or feel the breeze for example so most liches tend to be those who enjoy things like knowledge. Yo
Of course then you have lich's who can create new bodies for themselves...So it tends to vary... Very wildly at times. As for memories it tends to be fully intact short of a damage phylactery or improper binding to the "Soul Jar/Phylactery" in question.
As for why it may take her hostage..Who knows! The creator of the amulet could've just been a massive dick for all we know.
5968347
Okay.
5968336
Because the story seems to be heading towards a grim dark Gothic one. Hope for salvation rarely works in such stories as they rarely have happy endings they usually end with the protagonist in a tragic ending.
Though on the other hand you could chance the story to have a happy ending. Though the path towards it could will add more then a few skeletons in the closet for those involved. It could be a motivator for Trixie to chance her ways, to redeem herself. But she will need to go through a hell before she reaches her salvation. But even when she does she will need to life forever all the misery and damage she has caused to others forever chancing her views into a grim one.
At least that's if you plan to write this story as a grim dark Gothic one. So far the story feels like one, but I guess it still can go anyway.
As for the soul thing, the mind is actually your consciousness. A soul and consciousness are two separate things though they are linked to each other. Empathy and emotions are part of the soul (hart) while sentience and memories are part of you consciousness (mind). In your story especially in chapter 2 it shows Trixie still has emotions so she still must have her soul. So that is why I thought it must be trapped inside the Alicorn Amulet. Which actually can work in your benefit now that I think of it.
What if that's the Alicorn Amulet true function or original intent of its creator? Grab the soul of the wearer and slowly transform the mortal soul into an immortal one? In other words the Amulet is like the greek Ambrosia. You know the nectar from Greek Mythology that allows a mortal to become a god. However the Amulet is either corrupted because of the darkness that lies in every soul or the transfer is simple to much for the mortal body to take, or maybe combination of both. You could perhaps make it even darker by mentioning no pony thus so far has overcome the amulet and all those whom wore it ended up in tragedy. This would give a whole new level of despair for Trixie to handle. However she has no choice then to walk the path set in front of her if she ever hopes for salvation no matter how small or impossible it is for her. She needs to purify her soul and/or the amulet in order to reach salvation.
Oh the possibilities you can go with this story are seemingly endless, I could just keep rambling about all the possibilities and paths you could take but I better stop brainstorming and just wait and see what path you will take with Trixie. Please don't let us wait to long. We are almost dying in anticipation to read the next chapter.
5967964 So Trixie will cease to exist no matter what she does? If she removes it, she dies. If she doesn't remove it, it will corrupt her again, which will force others to somehow destroy her. This is becoming depressing.
5968336 So... she's a Red/Black Lantern..... I'm okay with that honestly.
5968336 Indeed. Completely at a whim.
To continue this whim, commentary on the chapters on a whole. For the first one, I was of mixed feelings. The first section was good, but the Trixie section irked me. Mostly because Trixie was being Trixie. Also because it was a bit confusing at parts whether it was First person Trixie or Omniscient Narrator. It also ended with me being more confused than just 'plot hook' confusion.
The second chapter was better. A good recap as to how Trixie got to where she is, and a bit more on what she is, without actually telling us what she is. And a good start and build up for your inverse lore as to what the Alicorn Amulet is and can do to a pony. And a nice moment with the doctors.
Hmm... this post seemed longer in my head. Oh well.
5968336 You're just keeping the completed thing up to troll us aren't you?
5968445
Gothic? Probably, I'm a big time fan of Burton and Poe. Grimdark? Nah, I' may be changing my style, but grimdark is a line that I don't plan to cross.
Now Trixie redeeming is a more likely scenario. I've thinking on how to make my own "Trixie comes back" fic since, well, since I first watched Boast busters. But with masterpieces like Getting Back On Your Hooves or The Mysterious Miss L. being around, it's hard to do it and stay original, so it took me this long to actually come around the idea without being cliché (I hope).
Now, about the questions, I was throwing them to open some ideas. For example, even if she doesn't recognize herself anymore (hence calling herself the once-Trixie), she's still she. Other point is that her soul, by body or by amulet, is still in this plane or at least connected to it.
In regards to the amulet, well, when the only book available on the matter has only a couple of sentences on the matter, it's hardly the whole story. As you said, what is the AA's original purpose? Who created it? That two questions alone imply their own universe of answers. answers that may not be proper for a sane man/pony to know.
And also, there's the concept of limit, but i'm pretty sure that I left part of it clear in the last scene.
Me too, mate. Me too. *cue to credits music*
5968627
Well, you know how important is to have everyone in character, especially in an emotional fic like this one. BTW, congrats for the last chapter of Regeneration, as soon as I have enough time, I'll read it.
5968663
I don't think that the Doctor would be this cal if that was the case. And sorry, in any way I want to be or write something depressing.
5968692
You know, if the AA operates like a Red-Black ring, does it makes the Elements Blue (hope) and the Crystal Heart violet (love)? And where are the other colors?
5968913
The second half of the first chapter was purposely made to fell uncanny. Yes, that's Trixie speaking, the same in the first third of the second chapter. Both parts are made to compare how big of a shock is what Trixie saw in the mirror to make her go from "Trixie is best pony" to "the once-Trixie".
glad I managed to give some character to the medic staff. I was trying ti get a blue oni/red oni kind of relationship there.
5969368
Honestly, I have no idea. As far as I'm concerned, all of this is all a dream... within a dream... of a fabricated memory... inside a virtual reality... in a fictional world made with toys... inside another fictional world with giant robots.
5970195 Fear is Black Magic
5970201 I'm sure that if Sombra were to meet Sinestro, it would end in bromance.
5970220 Nah.... Atrocitus and Sombra however....
5970223
What about Larlfleeze vs Tirek? It's been stated that the Orange Ring can affect magic.
5970266 Yeah Larfleeze would win.... Orange Ring OP. Plz nerf.
5970277 In Johns we trust... unless Didio is involved.
5970317 True. Also of the Mane 6 who do YOU think get what rings?
5970321
Hmm, that's always a tricky question. Although I support the blackest Night Equestria line up of Rainbow Dash, Spike, Twilight, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy, I would like to see other scenarios.
For example, Alan's magical ring being found by Spike at the show's premiere and affecting the curse of the series. Or the Elements being actually connected to the emotional spectrum. Or Celestia an Luna trying to decide which one is fear and which one is hope. Or Sunset getting a yellow ring and trying to cope with the fact that she still instills fear.
Or my favorite (an possibly a future project) Lightning Dust and Gilda, in their condition of antagonists, being actually the strongest wills in Equestria and being basically the Hal Jordan and Guy Gardner o Equestria.
5970405 I SUPPORT ANY AND ALL IDEA TO MAKE THAT LAST ONE A FAN FIC.
5970410
Well, it was second in my ideas blogpost, right after Actually, I'm dead. Who knows.
5970412 .....PM me. We have MUCH to discuss.
5970195
Can you give me a link to "The Mysterious Miss L" somehow I have a trouble finding it. I have read "Getting back on your hooves." And I found it really good especially the antagonist Checker Lulamoon.
Personally my favourite fiction of Trixie redemption for now has too be "The Unchosen One." by MagnetBolt But that's mostly because I love the comedy that was thrown in the fiction while at he same time keeping it serious when it needed to be. It also has an unfinished sequel called Scholar's Mate which is even more hilarious. Both the slapstick humour as well the witty remarks (mostly done by Trixie) are awesome. Though I guess "The Unchosen One"isn't really a redemption story but more about a character moving on with her life. Still the 1st few chapters Trixie tries to redeem herself but through circumstances she never gets the chance as Equestria comes in danger from an old G1 foe. (Nope it's not Tirek)
5970618
The Mysterious Ms. L in all its glory by the amazing YourBronyGod. Seriously, I can't say enough good things about that fic, since it's one of the five ones that got me into bronydom.
Ohhh, The Unchosen One. Man, I was in serious love with that one. Granted, it kinda jumped the shark with Scholar's Mate, but both are still very high in my top Trixie stories.
Hmm, I wonder how much of MagnetBolt's story got its way into this. To be honest, I'm never aware of how much does a story influences my writing till I'm finished.
5970195 Explain to me The Big O, please!
5970814
Well, this is more fancanon than anything, but my favorite theory about the finale is that it was all inside Angel's head and Roger was actually an actor for the series they were producing, making the final episode an allegory of keeping it up or cancelling the show.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/WMG/TheBigO
5970838 That kind of makes sense. But I never watched the show is what I meant.
5970869
Oh sorry. Well, huh, okay, let me put it this way *deep breath*
Bruce Wayne becomes James bond with the Mazinger Z in a Steampunk dome city. Let that one sink in while you see this kick-ass AMV:
5970893 HOW OFTEN ARE THE FIGHT SCENES!?
5972151
More than enough. Two seasons and both available on YouTube the last time I checked.
5972281 Ever watch Gurren Lagann?
5973486
I'll answer with this tittle a chapter of mine: "Unbreakable, untouchable. Impossible!"
In other words: ROW ROW! FIGHT THE POWER!!!
5973763 WHY DID HE HAVE TO DIE!?
I could see Trixie slowly rotting until she falls apart.
5975249
Like this?
static1.squarespace.com/static/5116d7aae4b085e20f7e3d3a/t/54187745e4b092e5551ab0d2/1410889542073/flash3.jpg
Or like this?
mlpforums.com/uploads/monthly_04_2013/post-3492-0-41858900-1366047322.jpg
Like the skeleton pony.
5975544
: Humph! What an insult! To suggest that Trixie's beautiful face would ever be reduced to that bony mess. It's not like Trixe were to rot like a dead... pony... oh my...help me. Please.