True Magic

by CodeMonkey

Chapter 9 - Haven

Chapter 9 - Haven

Trixie looked around in awe at what she was witnessing. “An entire city inside a mirror, is this even possible?” Trixie said quietly, partially to herself, and partially asking Magus.

Magus sighed in a disgruntled fashion. “You never cease to amaze me with how little of an understanding you possess of the arcane world.”

“Well, where I’m from, we don’t have deserted cities hidden inside mirrors!” Trixie quickly objected.

“First of all,” Magus began, “we are not inside a mirror, that would be ridiculous, we’re in a separate dimension accessed through a mirror. And secondly, to correct your impulsive misconception, this city is quite populated indeed.”

As if on cue, the sound of hoofsteps could be heard in the distance, steadily approaching. Trixie directed her attention to the sound and saw a young stallion trotting down one of the streets toward them wearing a postal uniform and carrying a large saddlebag with a picture of an envelope on the side. The stallion stopped at one of the building’s doors and slid a stack of letters through the mail slot, before moving on to do the same to the next one.

As quickly as she discovered the origin of one noise, the sound of a door slamming rang out behind her. She turned to see a uniquely-dressed pegasus mare leaving her home before flying off into the clear, blue sky.

One after another ponies of all kinds stepped out of their homes and started down the steadily filling streets or taking off into the air, bringing the city to life. Pegasi flew overhead as earth and unicorn ponies passed by, chatting amongst each other as they did. The once tranquil city was now bustling with commotion.

Trixie watched the busy ponies as they went past, many wearing extravagant capes, colorful pointy hats, and elaborate robes similar to the one Magus wore. They all appeared so normal, yet looked as if they were going to perform at a magic show or summon some otherworldly magic like she had seen before. The way they acted, it seemed as if they were unaware of the magical land they inhabited. Did they not know that this land existed in another world? Or was this just another ‘ordinary’ day for these ponies, living in a world of mysterious enchantment? The answer was obvious, Trixie guessed.

Magus turned and began walking away, “Come Trixie, you can sight-see and walk at the same time.”

She began to follow, still observing the inhabitants as they passed by, seemingly oblivious to their presence.

The native ponies all looked like any other pony one would meet in Equestria, to a degree, however, they all radiated with that similar feeling she had experienced from the caravan, Ripper, and her, self-proclaimed, Master. Compared to those other times, the sensation felt stronger. So much so that she was fully aware of what was around her, regardless of whether she physically knew it was there or not. The nearer the inhabitants came to her, the stronger the sensation got, but it was very different from all the other times. What in Celestia’s name was it?

“Mag--,” Trixie began before quickly stopping herself. She irritably sighed, fully aware of the asinine response she would receive if she continued. Swallowing her pride, she began again, “Master,” just the sound of her calling him that left a horrible taste in her mouth, “what is this feeling I keep having whenever I seem to be near anything…unusual? Is it the magic?”

“It is. It’s what is known as the Sense,” Magus explained, briefly glancing back at her. “Every follower of The Circle, Initiate or otherwise, possesses a sort of sixth sense that allows us to detect or sense when the magic of The Circle is nearby. You sensed it when you were near the caravan, remember?”

Trixie didn’t think to mention the time she felt it when she was near him and instead asked, “Then why does it all feel so…different every time? And if I can detect magic, then why can I only sense it sometimes?”

“Try not to forget,” he said glancing back again, “you’re still just an Initiate, and are new to this world and our capabilities. Over time your powers will, hopefully, grow to the point where the Sense will be as natural as your own heartbeat.”

“But why--”

“I was getting to that if you would permit.” Trixie grumbled quietly to herself, irritated by Magus’s arrogant behavior. “Every object, pony, mage, and other source of power within The Circle radiates with a slightly different magical aura, depending on the type and the strength of said magic. It’s not surprising that you can’t sense it all the time as I have said,” Magus continued before adding, with a small hint of amazement, “but the fact that you are able to tell the difference between the energies at all is quite impressive.”

Trixie couldn’t help but stop for a moment to enjoy the feeling of being complimented for once. She quickly caught up before she was missed.

Every corner of the city was vibrant and signs of magic were everywhere. Streams of colored light sailed through the air overhead, decorating the sky with a rainbow of hues. As the streams arrived at an individual, they turned into small scrolls, like a magical message system. Non-unicorns appeared in a flash of gold light as they stepped out of odd, cylindrical structures on the side of the street. Young colts threw a small, sparkling ball of red light around to each other, as if it were a toy. The whole city appeared to be in the midst of a festival of magic. Trixie admired the flashy clothing worn by every stallion, mare and foal; reminding her of the showy hat and cape she once wore. Though, out of all the ponies around her, two in particular caught her eye. They walked side-by-side down the street, wearing black armor over burgundy robes. Hoods hid their faces as they steadily approached, like an ominous, dark cloud.

“Trixie,” Magus said upon seeing the figures, “if asked about your position, respond by saying that you are an Initiate. Anything else, answer to the best of your knowledge or just say you don’t know. Speak only when spoken to, otherwise keep quite. Do you understand?”

His words seemed more serious than usual, as if he was uneasy about something. Trixie agreed, unsure why he told her this or what could cause him such discomfort. Before she had time to contemplate the answer, Magus abruptly stopped dead in his tracks, the two armored ponies having appeared in front of him. They both had a strong, stallion build and were a bit taller than her or Magus. An ill-fated feeling surrounded them as the stallions stared at them with their unseen eyes, as if examining them. Magus remained quiet as he eyed the two back.

“Apologies,” one of them finally said in a deep tone of voice, “but would you two please come with us?”

Magus nodded silently before following one of the robed ponies, leaving the other standing in place, still staring at Trixie. Although his eyes were hidden, she could feel his unflinching gaze on her skin, almost commanding her to follow. As she started to tail Magus, the other, breaking his statue-like demeanor, stayed close behind her. It was certainly uncomfortable following and, to a greater extent, being followed by these creepy stallions, not sure where they were leading them or what they wanted.

They were escorted down a nearby alley that, unlike the street, was devoid of any sign of life. Despite the sun shining in the sky, the alley was considerably darker the further they ventured with an unnatural dark shadow hanging over them. It was as if they were walking into a dark cave rather than a narrow side road. The sound of the streets seemed to become muffled, like distant voices miles away, with every step they took. The darkness and silence grew as any presence of the world disappeared without a trace.

The brief moment of silence was soon interrupted by the slow, continuous screech of metal grinding against metal. The sound grew louder as the narrow alley opened up into a small space where the two neighboring buildings formed an empty, circular space within the area The walls were hardly distinguishable, both being plain and black. At this point there was no light save for a floating ball hanging overhead in the center, illuminating the still cobblestoned street.

As Trixie stepped into the area, a flickering shine gleamed in her eye. The curved blade of a sword glimmered in the light, held blade down by another armored pony. The source of the sound became apparent when his whetstone made another pass along the edge as he watched them enter. Looking around, Trixie saw more of the dark ponies standing at different corners of the area, frozen in place as they watched them, appearing to be waiting.

A few of them had horns poking out from under their hoods and others had wings protruding from small holes in their armor, while the rest were obviously earth ponies. The small features that distinguished their race were among the only things identifiable about them. Except for the two that had brought them here, they all carried some kind of weapon. Curved swords were slung across backs, and large, blunt maces dangled from flanks. It soon occurred to Trixie that she felt no energy radiating from them. Compared to the street, she felt blind in a sense not being able to feel where they all were. It was not the greatest feeling in this circumstance.

The stallion leading them stopped as he neared the center and, without being told, Magus walked ahead and stood beneath the floating light as if knowing exactly what the cloaked ponies wanted. Trixie hurried to his side, preferring to stay as far away from these armed equine as possible. Just as she arrived at his side, the pony stopped sharpening the blade before sheathing it into its scabbard, returning the world to silence. The other black armored ponies, appearing to come to life, approached and surrounded them, in an almost mechanical like fashion, forming a circle. The ground at their hooves lit up and formed a white magical circle that glowed as small balls of light rose from it. Trixie was startled by the situation, where Magus appeared unnerved by the event.

“State your names,” the pony, who sounded like a stallion, directly in front of them said in a demanding tone.

“Magus,” the crimson pony responded.

“Uh, Trixie,” she said unsure of what was happening.

The stallion paused for a moment. Trixie was unsure if it was her nerves or the feeling of the magic encapsulating her, but she could feel small vibrations shaking throughout her body. Observing the ponies that surrounded them, it seemed as if they were feeling the same thing as well. Trixie didn’t know how she knew this, but could tell it was the truth.

“State you positions,” he said in the same tone.

“Grand Archmage”

“In-Initiate,” Trixie said slowly, still uncertain as to why they were being interrogated, but also because she was taken aback by Magus’s esteemed title. Another pause, followed by another vibration.

Before long, another pony spoke out from behind them, this time a mare. “Why have you come to Haven?”

“I seek,” Magus said, “to supply my Initiate with the proper tools and materials she will need for her admittance into The Order. I also require a resupply of a few alchemical ingredients.”

The same pause and vibration ensued, like clockwork, before another voice rang out, a stallion once more, “Do you seek to cause any ill to the citizens here?”

“No”

“Will you see to it that your companion does the same?”

“Yes”

The vibrations escalated suddenly, almost causing Trixie to shake, but ceased after only a second. The light at their hooves vanished, taking the tension in the air with it, as the stallion ahead of them stepped forward. With a slight bow of his head he said, “Then, The Order welcomes you to our city.” He looked to Trixie with his shadowed eyes and said in a manner that could chill her bones, “And it extends a very special welcome to you, miss.” Despite his complement, she still felt unnerved by his presence and felt that replying wasn’t the wisest decision. He looked back to Magus before giving another slight bow of his head and saying, “Our apologies Master Magus for this inconvenience, but we thank you for your cooperation regardless.”

“Of course,” Magus said. “When dealing with apparitions, such as this, one can never be too careful.”

“Very true sir. We wish you safe travels. Please, enjoy your stay with us,” the lead pony said again. The others around bowed their heads, before vanishing into the dark. The darkness, the silence, and the ball of light vanished with them and in moments the sounds of the streets roared in Trixie’s ears once again. Sunlight illuminated the area around them and all was normal, at least as normal as being in an alternate universe of magic could get.

Trixie looked around to find that the alley was shorter than she had previously believed. The distance they had walked to get here was far longer than the backstreet they stood in. The space they had been in only moments ago was gone with only the narrow road remaining; causing Trixie to wonder if they were even in Haven during that entire affair.

Magus turned to leave the way they came in before Trixie quickly said “Wait!” turning to him. “What was that all about? Who were those ponies?”

He stopped before he sighed to himself. Looking back, he said, “They are known as the Ordo Fatorum, the Order of the Fates, and they serve as The Circle’s protectors. To you, they are harmless. So stop your trembling.”

Trixie hadn’t realized, but he was right. Her knees quivered uncontrollably, as if the temperature had dropped below zero. She quickly took control of her legs and forced them to cease. Magus continued to observe as she regained her stance. Wanting to take the focus off of her composure, Trixie asked, “And the light?”

“…A truth field. To ensure we were not lying when we said who we were.”

“Didn’t we already do that? I thought that was the whole point of those thugs outside?”

Magus sighed again as he turned to give her his full attention. “A secondary line of security. It’s uncommon that visitors arrive at Haven through the mirror as we did. Most prefer to teleport here. I assume you saw the Teleportation Chambers back on the road, they’re the cylindrical structures.”

He turned back and began to walk away, leaving Trixie with a boggled mind. 'Wait,' she thought before rushing to his side. With anger in her voice, she said, “You mean we could have teleported here the entire time!? Why didn’t we do that instead of taking the time to walk here and going through all that?”

Rolling his eyes, apparently not interested in explaining his motives, he said, “One, it’s best you see and experience these events now rather than later and secondly, on a more important note, I hate long range teleportation. Gives me the most horrible headache.”

Trixie scoffed at his response as she thought, 'Would it really have killed him not to put me through all of this?' She shook her head in annoyance as she followed him back out into the lively street, continuing their trek across the city.

After a few minutes, the streets became crowded as storefronts and stalls lined up along the street. They had apparently entered the market district of the town where stalls that sold all sorts of items, from produce to trinkets lined the street. Salesponies stood outside shop doors and announced their special offers and wares to those walking by. Large, elaborately designed signs hung over the stalls and stores, telling what they sold and displaying their unique tastes in names. Trixie began to read the signs as they passed by: Enchant’s Enchanting Emporium; Slugger and Jig’s Apothecary; Wise Acre’s Mage Items; Waltz’s Not So Evil, But Still Very Magical Black Cauldrons; the names went on.

Upon seeing the names of the stores, Trixie’s gaze leapt from the signs to the windows where something caught her eye. In the window she noticed something very peculiar about the reflection it cast. By now, she wouldn’t be surprised if she couldn’t see her reflection in the glass, but this time it was very different. Trixie still couldn’t see her own reflection but now she could see a dark deserted street, a very different scene than what was around her. It was like looking at a completely different place.

Trixie stopped and approached the window, curious about this surreal phenomenon. She peered deeply into the window, past the reflection, to see the inside of the crowded store. Puzzled, Trixie took a few steps back to see the reflection again. Looking at the empty, imprecise image, then back at the busy street behind her, she was baffled by the oddity.

“It’s Trottingham,” said Magus. Trixie turned to see him standing next to her, staring at the same window.

“Trottingham?” Trixie asked, confused. “How can that be Trottingham? Aren’t we in a different dimension or some--?”

“I thought I told you,” Magus sternly interrupted, “that you may sight-see on the way. Is that proving a challenge for you?”

“A challenge?” Trixie retorted, feeling insulted. “I just stopped for a second to look at this…window, is that such a problem to you!?” she said, becoming infuriated with him.

“It is,” he calmly replied despite the tone of her response.

Before Trixie could express her rage at him, Magus quickly and almost harshly said, “Before you begin to argue with me, I hope you can remember that the faster we can finish our time here the faster you may learn magic and thus the faster you may be rid of me.”

Trixie grumbled to herself, cursing the stallion under her breath, trying to contain her displeasure. “Can you at least explain this without the attitude?” she said demandingly.

At first, his eyes lit up in anger and it appeared as if he was about to attack her, but he immediately stopped himself, shutting his eyes tightly and taking a deep breath. “If I do,” he slowly said, appearing to be desperately trying to suppress his emotions, “try not to get side tracked again. We have much to do and not a lot of time to do it.” With another deep, calming breath he said, “We are in a parallel dimension to the ‘normal’ world that you know. Haven is not in the Shadow Realm, it lies in a dimension we call the Mirror Realm. Unlike the Shadow Realm, which resides in a plane on its own, the Mirror Realm exists alongside Equestria. The only connection between here and there are the reflections you see. Although, not every reflection here shows Trottingham on the other side.”

“So, that’s Trottingham, and we’re not in a mirror just another world that acts kind of like a mirror,” Trixie said slowly trying to understand the spectacle and his odd behavior.

“If you wished to explain it to a six year old, then yes,” Magus said, unintentionally fueling Trixie’s ire as he appeared to be trying his best not to shout or lose his temper. “The image is one way, however. Meaning, we can see Equestria, but Equestria cannot see us. And, if you haven’t noticed, it was almost sundown back in Trottingham, when dawn had arrived as soon as we did.”

Suppressing his initial comment, Trixie looked up into the sky to see the shining sun above, just now figuring that the sun and moon must work opposite of Equestria. All of the elements of this world were almost too much to take in. She was still trying to get past the fire conjuring pony bit.

Just as she turned back to Magus, she noticed he was stuffing something into his robe as he licked his lips, as if he had just drank something. It was a minor oddity compared to the one at hoof. She ignored it and said, “First the Shadow Realm, now the Mirror Realm. How many realms are their exactly?”

“More than you or I will ever know,” Magus said as he took his hoof back out of his robe and began walking away in a seemingly more hastened but relaxed pace than before.

Trixie looked back at the window once more, before resuming the walk with him.

Comments

[Xenonic]

2397465 You're my friend nauw. We're gonna have soft tacos for dinner!

[CodeMonkey]

2411931
Yeah sorry about the misspelling. This was before I got an editor. Lord knows I needed one.

I couldn't really work around the large paragraphs too much because it is just her. I suppose I could have added more thoughts and such, but I just couldn't figure out any dialogue that would work. Glad you're liking the story so far and their is a lot more to Magus than meets the eye.