The Great and Powerful Trixieverse

by Lord King Cocoon

9 Traversing the Everfree

Twilight had been dealing with several Canterlot Nobles by this point. And she now had a new appreciation for what Princess Celestia had to deal with. Fancy Pants did say that this was more on the extreme end of what the Princess normally has to deal with. But knowing what many Canterlot Nobles are like, it’s likely a similar experience in that many of them ask for the same things, making things rather redundant.

So far, Twilight had to listen to questions like ‘Where is the Princess?’ and ‘Why are you taking Princess Celestia’s place?’ and ‘What do you plan to do?’. Those questions were getting on her nerves, not because of how rude they were (although that didn’t help either), but because she heard them over and over and over. In some cases, she heard the same question asked multiple times by the same pony.

But there were other questions asked by the more reasonable nobles that were more constructive, like ‘Have you instructed the Royal Guard to take action?’ and ‘Is there anything that I can do to help?’.

“What will you do to ensure the continuation of the Noble class?” another snobby noble asked, “I am well respected in this community and cannot be lost to whatever is happening.”

Prince Blueblood stepped forward to answer, “We will do everything in our ability that anypony worth protecting will be protected,” Blueblood replied, being very specific about what he said.

Twilight was thankful that Blueblood was as snobby as he was while also being as competent of a Regent as he was. He knew how to placate the snobby nobles because he knew how they thought. But despite his snobbishness, he’s not as shallow as he appears on the surface. He knew what to say to make it sound like they would protect the nobles because the snobbish nobles believed that they were the only ones deserving to be protected. But when he says they’ll protect everypony worth protecting, Blueblood knows that what class you are doesn’t matter since all ponies are worth protecting. Blueblood may view himself as above commoners, but he’s demonstrated how competent he is. Just because he views himself as above commoners, it doesn’t mean he thinks commoners aren’t worth protecting.

Twilight was oddly thankful that Blueblood was the one helping to answer questions.

---

Six cloaked figures were traversing the dark forest. The one in the lead stood out with the staff that she carried on her back. She was the newest addition to the group. Trixie wondered what the staff was for. But she didn’t ask, assuming that it may be used as a weapon.

“So, how did you get to know a Zebra?” Trixie asked Flutters as they walked.

“It actually happened during the Rainbow Storm,” Flutters answered, “Simply put, me and Rainbow crashed into the ground, and Zecora found us and healed us as much as they could.” Flutters then shook one of her prosthetic hind legs, “But as you can see, she can’t regrow limbs. But causing the Rainbow Storm is how I got my cutie mark.”

“That seems like a painful way to get your cutie mark,” Trixie replied.

“When I got struck by Rainbow Lighting, it caused my brain to rewire,” Flutters continued, “The neurologist said that the part of my brain that controls fear was rewired to react with the humor part of my brain. So when I’m supposed to be afraid, the reaction is to laugh. I’ve learned to tell the difference between proper humor and how I react to fear. But now I feel so much more free since before the accident, I was very shy and skittish.”

“So what you’re saying is that the reason you’re so happy and carefree is the result of brain damage?” Trixie questioned.

“I prefer not to use the term ‘brain damage’, for obvious reasons,” Flutters replied, “That makes me sound like I’m disabled.”

Trixie took a moment to think about that, “How do you feel about saying your brain was ‘rearranged’?”

“You mean my amygdala is where my frontal lobe should be?” Flutters said with a giggle.

Suddenly, as the group was walking by a cliff, the ground below them collapsed into a rockslide. Flutters and Thunderlane were able to react easily enough, being Pegasi. Zecora had somehow managed to hop from rock to rock as they fell in order to land at the bottom of the cliff safely. Trixie revealed that her cape was more than it appeared. Trixie was hovering in the air, slowly and safely descending to the bottom. The moonstone in her brooch glowed as she descended.

Vinyl managed to keep close to the wall, where she used her magic to make her hooves latch onto the unbroken solid ground.

Maud, however, was sliding uncontrollably down the hill toward the drop. Vinyl saw this and took action, “Hold on, I’m coming!” Vinyl called out before releasing the spell on her hooves and slid down the hill to catch Maud.

Maud managed to grab hold of the ledge before falling to her doom but couldn’t get a hoofhold to climb back up. Vinyl grabbed onto Maud’s forelegs for support, then reactivated her spell to latch onto the ground and not slide. However, she wasn’t strong enough to pull Maud back up.

“Maud, what do I do? I can’t pull you up!” Vinyl asked.

Maud looked down to the ground below before looking back to Vinyl with her classic emotionless face, “Let go.”

“Are you crazy?!” Vinyl exclaimed, “I know you’re a durable Earth Pony. But even you can’t survive a fall like that! And I’m not going to let you fall!”

“No, I’m not crazy,” Maud said, “If you let go, I’ll be safe.”

“How can you think that?!”

“Listen, I know what I’m talking about,” Maud said in her monotone way. But to reassure Vinyl, she turned her lips up into a slight smile, “Let go, and I’ll be safe. If you hold on, your magic will eventually fail, and we will both fall. If you let go, we will both be safe.”

Vinyl took a moment, looking into Maud’s eyes, before making a decision, “If you’re lying, I will never forgive you,” Vinyl said before releasing her hold on Maud, causing the gray Earth Pony to fall to her-

THUMP

Vinyl looked over the ledge to see that Maud had landed on a small ledge a few feet down. Maud didn’t have much space to move, but she was safe for now.

Thunderlane flew up to retrieve Maud. But when he got there, she was gone. He was tempted to look down to see that Maud was safe and sound on the ground. Rather than think too much about it, he went to retrieve Vinyl.

Once all six of them were safe at the bottom of the cliff, Thunderlane had to speak his mind, “Maud, how did you get down here?”

“My sister would call it a ‘shortcut’,” Maud said simply.

Trixie used her spell to see magic. She saw that a lei line connected the ledge where Maud had been and the spot where Maud appeared, “My friend is more about the academic side of things like this,” Trixie said, “But I think you’re able to connect your Earth Pony magic to the lei lines of the world to do quick teleports, or ‘shortcuts’. Is there anything else you can do with those abilities?”

“Yes,” Maud said simply.

Trixie waited for a moment for elaboration that would never come, “I don’t know why I expected anything more than that.”

“You have a Cloak of Levitation?!” Vinyl asked, walking up to Trixie, “Do you know how awesome that is?! They’re like super rare!”

Trixie’s ears folded back, her mood clearly dropping at the memory, “It’s…more complicated than that,” Trixie said hesitantly, “The day I got my cutie mark was during the entrance exam for Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. It was also the day of the Rainbow Storm. When I got struck by a bolt of lightning trying to hatch what was thought to be a Dragon egg, my magic went into overdrive as I was trying to transfer energy into the egg. I was out of control and pulling magic from around me. The instructors were hospitalized for a month from Hypoarcania. But my mom was there too. And because she didn’t have the same well of magic that the instructors had…my mom died of Hypoarcania. I…I killed my own mother that day. The magic I pulled from her was transferred into this moonstone. This isn’t just a Cloak of Levitation. This cloak is, more or less, my mother. It even has a will of its own.”

A tear ran down Trixie’s cheek, which her cloak had wiped away.

Flutters, who was crying her eyes out, tackle-hugged Trixie, “That’s so sad!” She cried, “You got your cutie mark by killing your mother! I don’t know how I’d be able to-,” Flutters’ tears completely dried up when another thought came to mind, “Wait, you said what was thought to be a Dragon egg. Was that egg actually a Changeling egg?”

Trixie nodded.

“You may have lost your mother that day,” Flutters said in her upbeat tone, “But you also became a mother that day!”

“And I may end up losing my daughter too,” Trixie said, breaking down.

Thunderlane then grabbed Trixie’s shoulders, “Trixie, I can’t promise that we will save your daughter in time,” he said matter of factly, “But I can say that time is not on our side. If you let yourself worry, that distraction will take up time that we don’t have to spare. So rather than worry about what might happen, focus on finishing the task at hoof before it’s too late. The sooner we find the Elements and defeat Nightmare Moon, the sooner we save Ocellus. You can worry as much as you need to once we’re done.”

Trixie nodded her head, unsure how else to respond. But that small spark of hope was reignited.

---

Sweetie Belle, Silver Spoon, and Rumble were staying at Ocellus’s bedside, each one taking turns to take care of her. Currently, it was Sweetie Belle taking care of Ocellus. Rarity found it sweet that the three of them were willing to care for their newfound friend.

Rarity’s train of thought was derailed when Sweetie Belle looked over at her with worry, “Rarity!” Sweetie called to her big sister, worry evident in her voice, “I think Ocellus is getting worse!”

Rarity hurried over to check on the little ‘Ling. The other children came to see what was wrong, as well as Rainbow and Big Mac, who had heard Sweetie’s call. As Sweetie suspected, Rarity noticed that Ocellus’s breathing was becoming more labored with shallow breaths.

Rarity didn’t want to say anything that would make the children worry any more than they were since that would only hasten the Changeling’s degrading health. But if she said nothing, they would likely catch on and worry anyway.

“The recovery process is just taking a lot of energy,” Rainbow said, coming up with an excuse, “And you know how you get out of breath after you’ve run out of energy, right? This just means that she’s working hard to recover. But she still needs your help since your love for her will give her more energy.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Rumble said. It’s actually now how recovering works, but it did give them the confidence that helped to push away the worry. It was a white lie that at least extended Ocellus’s life.

“Thanks for that,” Rarity said to Rainbow, out of earshot of the foals, “I don’t know if I would’ve been able to come up with an excuse like that.”

“Yeah, well, I have experience making excuses,” Rainbow said. Then she realized what she said, “I mean, it’s for Ocellus’s health.”

Rarity grinned at Rainbow’s statement, “You were a troublemaker when you were a filly, weren’t you?” Rainbow’s cyan cheeks turned a light shade of red as a bashful expression covered her face, basically answering for her, “I thought so.”

---

The six had returned to their trek to the castle. Thunderlane headed to the front to talk with Zecora.

“Zecora, was it?” Thunderlane asked for confirmation, receiving a nod from the Zebra, “How were you able to get down that rockslide so easily? It was a quite impressive demonstration of agility.”

“Living in the Everfree requires training my dexterity,” Zecora answered with a proud grin, “Many beasts call the Everfree home. But with dangers, the beasts are not alone. When that unnatural rockslide struck, it was good that I had agility and a bit of luck.”

“Unnatural rockslide?” Thunderlane questioned, “What do you mean by that?”

“In the Everfree, rockslides are nothing new,” Zecora said, “But that cliff face had been smoothly cut though.”

“But who could’ve cut the cliff?” Thunderlane asked, more to himself than anyone else.

“Whoever it was has not made themselves known. But it seems that we are not alone,” Zecora said in a low tone, “We may need to watch our back. Nightmare Moon may be responsible and may again attack.”

“Nightmare Moon…” Thunderlane said with a shiver of fear. Then he changed the subject, “So, I hope you don’t mind me asking. But what’s the deal with the rhyming?”

“As a filly, I was fascinated with the arcane. But not doing magic drove me insane,” Zecora said, “So I came to Equestria to study the magic that you do. And my rhyming helps me focus on my shaman voodoo.”

“So the rhyming is by choice and not some Zebrican practice?” the Pegasus asked.

“My rhyming is optional. But as you can see,” Zecora replied, “my rhyming has become quite natural to me.”

“Do you ever slip up on a rhyme?” Thunderlane asked curiously.

“I cannot personally think of a time,” Zecora answered.

“Ha! You didn’t…” Thunderlane was about to call Zecora out, “Rhyme. Time. Does rhyming with what I say count?”

“As you can see, it does. So no need to pout,” Zecora said with a cocky grin.

“Oh, come on!” Thunderlane exclaimed, “Pout doesn’t even properly rhyme with-”

SPLASH

As Zecora and Thunderlane approached the river, they entered the splash-zone of wild raging rapids. With how violent the waves were, there was no way for the non-Pegasi to cross.

But it was apparent that the source of the turbulent waters was not the river itself but something underneath the surface thrashing about. This suspicion was confirmed as a large purple Sea Serpent rose from the waters, thrashing as he wailed in despair.

“What a world! What a world!” the sea serpent cried.

“Excuse me, sir… or ma’am,” Trixie said, not sure what the serpent identified as, “What’s wrong?”

“I don't know,” the serpent admitted, “I was just sitting here, minding my own business, when this tacky little cloud of purple smoke just whisked past me and tore half of my beloved mustache clean off, and now I look simply horrid.” The serpent pointed to the missing half of his mustache.

“Really?” Vinyl asked skeptically, “This is what the fuss is about?”

“But of course it is,” Trixie replied, “I may not be a fashionista. But I know that you must look your best if you’re going to present yourself in front of an audience. You clearly keep your scales nice and shiny,” Trixie said, looking at her reflection in one of his scales.

“I know,” the serpent sniffled.

“And you clearly put effort into your mane to make it worthy to be presented in front of the world!” Trixie exclaimed.

“Oh, I know, I know,” the serpent confirmed, cheering up at this show of empathy.

“But it’s all meaningless when everypony’s attention is drawn to only half a mustache!” Trixie continued.

“It’s true,” the serpent started to cry again, “I’m hideous!”

“But there’s no need to fret anymore!” Trixie said, her presentation mirroring her stage persona, “For I, the Grrreat and Powerful Trrrixie am here to assist you with your conundrum!”

Trixie summoned a magical pair of scissors and cut what was left of the stump of a mustache and the other side of the mustache to ensure that he was even on both sides. As the scissors disappeared, a violet glow appeared on the sea serpent’s snout. In a few moments, his mustache grew back just as magnificent as it was before.

“Now you’re perfectly worthy of presenting yourself on stage!” Trixie exclaimed.

The serpent looked at his reflection in the water to see that his mustache was as good as new, “My mustache!” He exclaimed, “You six want to cross this river? Then allow me!”

The serpent extended his body so that it could be used as a bridge for the ponies.

“Thank you very much, good sir!” Trixie said, still in showpony mode.

“And allow me to introduce myself properly,” the serpent said, “My name is Steven Magnet.”

The six mares introduced themselves before leaving the sea serpent to his own devices.

---

“Tacky? Tacky?!” Nightmare Moon growled, pacing back and forth in anger, “My mist form is not tacky! It’s a reflection of the beautiful night sky! But what would ponies know of the beauty of the night?”

Nightmare Moon looked into a magically summoned mist to analyze what the ponies had managed so far, “They had tamed a Manticore. They gained a 6th member. They survived a rockslide! They calmed a raging sea serpent! What next? Will one of them make an Ursa Major their pet? Will another transform into an Alicorn? Will another rise from the dead after I kill them personally?!”

But then another thought came to mind, “Those six ponies are an unstoppable force,” Nightmare Moon said in a calmer tone, “But if I could convince them to side with me, they would make for formidable captains for an army. They alone are an army. Perhaps I should stop trying to stop them and start trying to recruit them.”

With a new mindset, Nightmare Moon turned to place new traps.

Author's Note:

This is likely the last chapter before the holidays. Maybe I can get one more in before the holidays, or at least before New Year's Eve. But I want to take a break for the holidays, as well as not take up your holidays

Although not all of them are obvious, each of the Trixieverse!6 had gone through an Element test. Since I don't plan on having them explained in the end like Twilight did in the Maneverse, I'll explain them here:

• Flutters' test of Laughter was obvious, since its the same test as her Kindness test with the Manticore.
• Zecora's test of Generosity was simply offering the cloaks and to come with them on a dangerous journey without being asked.
• Maud's test of Honesty was a role reversal of Applejack's test of Honesty. I liked the idea of swapping roles while keeping the event the same.
• I also made that test also be Vinyl's test of Loyalty, refusing to let Maud fall. And I was torn between making it comical with landing on a second ledge, making it dramatic by having Trixie send the Cloak of Levitation to catch her, or just have her use the "shortcut" as she fell. But I felt the comedy aspect was the best way to go.
• Trixie's test of Magic was the same as Rarity's test of Generosity. I thought the best way to keep Steven Magnet in was to have Trixie use a mustache spell on him. I felt her sense of being a performer was a perfect replacement for Rarity being a fashionista.
• And Thunderlane's test of Kindness wasn't a single test of several small tests. He doesn't like more ponies coming because that means more ponies to get hurt. He's willing to go into a fight so that nobody else will get hurt. And he's willing to comfort Trixie when she gets worried about Ocellus, and is tough so that he tells her what she needs to hear.

I'm trying to keep as many of the tests as I can to keep with the Maneverse version. I've already dropped the "haunted forest" that was Pinkie's test because I didn't know how to implement it. And since I combined the Loyalty test with the Honesty test, I can't use the Shadowbolts in the same way. And the Generosity test was completely different without interfering with the original.

Going forward, things will start to change more because Nightmare Moon will have to think differently about how to stop the Trixieverse 6.

Comments

[Comickook]

Hey there. Definitely did an excellent job on the dialogue, characterizations, action and future chapter set-up. Most certainly appreciated Twilight's reflection on how frustrating the nobles are being and how surprisingly helpful Blueblood is being as well as how you reworked the canon trials so that they make more sense for the characters (for example using a modified version of Applejack's canon trial to combine an Honesty trial for Maud AND a Loyalty trial for Vinyl and the way Trixie helped Steven), the discussions of how all six of them got their Marks and Nightmare Moon rethinking her strategy.

Anyway, really looking forward to more of this. And Happy Holidays to you and your family and friends.