> The Unchosen One
>  by MagnetBolt
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> The Dirt I Had To Swallow
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter One: The Dirt I Had To Swallow
by MagnetBolt



Trixie shoved the huge rock, her hooves sinking into the earth as she strained to move it. The stone dug a furrow of loosened soil that old made her footing more precarious, which was quickly proven as she tripped and fell into the mud. The unicorn lay there for a few minutes, the muck seeping into her coat and mane, and wondered where it had all gone wrong.


***


Twilight read over the entry in the diary again.

“Dear Diary, today was a day of sadness. I have been alone since my sister forced my hoof, and I sought to reconnect with some of my friends who were dear to me, but whom I lost touch with as I have been focused on my duties. One of my oldest and dearest friends had passed away, years ago, and I only learned of it now after going to visit her. I now realize how much she meant to me, and I wish I could have spent more time with her.”

Twilight put the diary down, closing the cover.

“I forgot how lonely Princess Celestia must have been after she had to banish Luna to the moon for a thousand years,” She said.

“But Princess Luna is back now,” Spike said, trying to reach a shelf to put a book away from the stacks Twilight had left out. She gently helped him with her magic. “And everypony liked Princess Celestia. She had a lot of friends.”

“I don't know Spike, it's different. She's a Princess. She has responsibilities and probably didn't have much time to make friends.” Twilight passed a few more books to Spike as the little dragon put them away.

“You're worried because you're a Princess now,” Spike said, looking at her. “Aww, you don't need to be worried, Twilight! You've got lots of friends around Ponyville!”

“Yeah, you're right.” Twilight smiled and put Spike down. “But I should check up on the ones that I don't see very often.” She levitated a scroll and quill into Spike's hands. “Let's make a list.”


***


The first part of the list was easy enough, even if it was basically everypony in Ponyville and it took the better part of a week to get through it. They'd even taken a day to go to the Crystal Empire and visited Shining Armor and Cadence. Spike sighed and checked the Mayor's name off the list.

“That's almost everypony, Twilight. Don't you think that's enough?” Spike looked up.

“How many are left?” Twilight grabbed the scroll to see.

“Just one, but-” Twilight found the name before Spike said it.

“Trixie,” Twilight said, with a sigh. She wasn't entirely sure if the mare counted as a friend. But after their last encounter she had seemed like she was making an effort to change, and her fireworks display had helped impress Celestia.

“I don't even know where she'd be,” Spike said with a shrug. “Not that I mind. Every time she shows up it's trouble.”

“I know, Spike.” Twilight sighed. “But maybe that's a good reason to try and find her. It's easy to stay in touch with everypony here. If it takes more work to find Trixie, that just proves how little it would take to completely lose touch with her. It might even help keep her out of trouble.”

“If you say so, Twilight, but where do we even start?”


***


It had taken a few letters and a lot of luck for Twilight to find where the unicorn she sought was hiding. Pinkie Pie had provided the crucial clue after she'd mentioned offhand that Trixie had been making a living on a rock farm before she'd used her savings to buy the Alicorn Amulet. She'd written a letter to Pinkie's family asking about rock farms in the area, only to find that they had a blue unicorn working on their farm. Though all of her friends had offered to come with her, Twilight had in the end decided to go alone. She had a feeling Trixie might not want a lot of people coming to visit unexpectedly.

Twilight walked across a field that gave slightly underhoof, just soft enough to be unpleasant and just hard enough that it wasn't quite mud. There was a small shack at the edge of the field, a pile of broken rock shards on one side. Apparently it was where Trixie was living. Twilight strode up to the door, took a deep breath, made sure she was smiling, and knocked. There was no answer. Twilight knocked again a little harder, and the door cracked open from the impact.

“Trixie?” Twilight said, into the darkness. “It's Twilight. I was just in the neighborhood-” after a train ride and a long walk into the middle of nowhere. “And I wanted to see how you were... doing.” Twilight stuck her head in. It was rude, but if she really wasn't here, she'd never know. And as Twilight had read, it was only rude to snoop when you got caught.

Inside the shack, there was almost nothing. A few gems scattered around, a threadbare rug on the ground, blankets more patchwork than original fabric on a bed. Twilight had been expecting something grander and more ornate, or at least with effort put into it. It barely looked like anypony lived there at all. There wasn't any kind of personal touch to it at all.

“What are you doing?” Asked somepony behind Twilight. The Alicorn stumbled and quickly turned away from the door.

“I was just- Trixie?” Twilight blinked. The mare looked older, or at least tired. Her coat was matted and dirty, her mane was a mess, and she might not have slept in days. She didn't seem very great or powerful with her hooves coated in mud almost to her knees. There was a ribbon around her horn. It looked familiar, but Twilight couldn't place it.

“Oh. It's you.” Trixie frowned. “I wasn't expecting visitors. Sorry.”

“No, it's fine!” Twilight had to force the smile back onto her face. “I sent a letter, but Mister Pie said you hadn't picked up your mail.” Trixie walked past the princess and lit a lamp with a hoof.

“I don't have anypony who would write to me,” Trixie said with a small shrug. “I'm sorry if it was something important. I wasn't expecting mail, Princess Twilight.” She kept her back to the Princess, not welcoming her in but not forcing her to leave either. “Was there something you needed from me?”

“I just hadn't seen you in a while and I wanted to make sure you were okay.” Twilight stepped inside, looking around. In the light, things seemed even more grey and worn.

“I'm getting on with my life,” Trixie said. She stumbled as she walked across the room.

“Are you sure you're okay?” Twilight raised an eyebrow.

“I'm just tired. A rock farm isn't the easiest way to make a living, but it's honest work.” Trixie sat down, leaning against her bed. “I'll be fine after I've had some rest.”

“If you say so.” Twilight got closer. “So... you've just been hanging out here? I didn't think you liked rock farming much. You seemed to hate it last time you were in town.” And trying to take it over and prove she was more powerful than Twilight. Even if she had been under the influence of an evil amulet, that made the conversation even more awkward than it was.

“I did. But it's also the only honest way I've ever made bits,” Trixie admitted, with a sigh. “Mister Pie was gracious enough to take me back.”

“You know, for a unicorn with your talents, there are probably a lot of other things you could do if you wanted. I could ask Celestia-” Trixie cut her off with a look. It wasn't hostile, just tired.

“No thank you, Princess. I got where I am through my mistakes. I need to do things the right way, not just through favors from people I've already wronged. I appreciate the thought but I can stand on my own four hooves.” Trixie stood up straight. Straightish. She was wobbling. “And I... I...” Her eyes fluttered, and before she could complete the thought, the unicorn tumbled, finally passing out from exhaustion.


***


“I don't understand, Mister Pie. No magic at all?” Twilight sat with the stallion as his wife checked on Trixie again. She'd rushed the mare back to the Pie's home. They'd cleaned her up and put her somewhere to rest. It seemed like it wasn't anything serious.

“Not a bit,” the elder Pie shook his head. “She swore off all magic. Said it had only ever made a mess of her life. From what I heard from my daughter, it seemed true.”

“That's where I've seen that ribbon before...” Twilight rubbed her chin. “There was a movement a few years ago in Canterlot where unicorns would stop using magic because they thought it was making them lose perspective.”

“She's been working herself a bit hard, but she's been much more dependable since she came back. I suppose whatever happened made her change.” Twilight sighed and looked down at the table at the rock juice they'd given her. Trixie had changed, but she wasn't sure it was for the better.

“Maybe I should go,” Twilight said. “I guess she probably isn't too happy to see me.”

“It's getting dark,” Mrs. Pie said, walking downstairs. “You can stay here for the night. We've got more than enough spare rooms. It's been quiet since Pinkie left and it's nice having company over.” The older mare smiled at Twilight. “Especially royal company.”

“Thank you, Ma'am.” Twilight smiled back at her, feeling warm inside. If there was anything Pinkie really shared with her dour-seeming family, it was that they knew how to make a pony feel welcome.


***


Twilight stopped at the top of the stairs. There was light coming from the guest room she'd helped get Trixie into. She hesitated at the doorway, then knocked.

“What is it?” Trixie asked from within, her voice muffled by the door and her exhaustion. She didn't sound angry or hauty. Just tired.

“It's me. Can I come in?” Twilight bit her lip, not sure how the mare would answer. Part of her expected to be told to go away. Another part of her was cringing at her gall in trying to bother the sick mare in the first place when she should have been resting.

“I can't stop you,” Trixie mumbled. Twilight sighed and opened the door. Trixie was lying in bed, facing away from the door. There was a lantern on the dresser providing the light Twilight had seen.

“I just wanted to apologize. I didn't realize you were so tired before.” Trixie put down the book she had been reading and turned over to look at Twilight.

“It's nothing. I'll be back to normal in the morning.” Trixie couldn't meet her eyes. She kept looking down at Twilight's feet, or the bed, or anywhere except her face.

“You're going to hurt yourself. You should take a few days off to rest.”

“Maybe,” Trixie said, with another shrug. Twilight sighed. Somehow, Trixie being so... passive was almost as bad as when she was boasting and turning the town upside-down.

“What's wrong with you, Trixie?”

“I'm tired. You said it yourself.” Trixie turned back over, away from Twilight.

“I don't mean that and you know it.” Twilight walked closer. “You're not acting like yourself at all. Did something happen?”

“You were there. You know what happened.”

“What?” Twilight frowned.

“I almost destroyed Ponyville.”

“Trixie,” Twilight smiled. “You were under the influence of the Alicorn Amulet. That wasn't really your fault. And we got everything put back to normal-”

“It was my fault. The Alicorn Amulet didn't make me do all those things. They were things I wanted to do. It just made me... not care about what the consequences were.” Trixie sat up in bed, looking out the window. “I had to flee town, again, because I couldn't control myself. And you know what the worst part was?”

Twilight didn't answer. She sat on the rug and listened as Trixie finally started talking.

“The worst part was that I lost to you again. And it wasn't because you were stronger than me. I was great and powerful and I lost to simple tricks and a light show! Magic tricks are supposed to be my special talent and I was beaten even at that.” Trixie shook her head, wiping at her eyes.

“Well, maybe that was the problem,” Twilight said, moving around the bed to get closer to the unicorn. “You weren't using your special talent. You were just trying to use brute force instead of being clever and smart about things.”

“That's easy for you to say, Princess. You've always had both brute force and a brain to use it. The first time I challenged you I proved I wasn't strong enough, and last time I proved I wasn't smart enough either.” Twilight frowned at that.

“You don't mean that. You're just depressed. And working like this without a break can't be helping.” Twilight sat on the bed next to her. She felt responsible, even if it was Trixie's own fault for challenging her. “I'm going back to Ponyville in the morning. You could come with me.”

“To Ponyville?!” Trixie reacted like Twilight had struck her. “I can't go back! After what I did they'll run me out of town, for a third time!”

“I'm sure they wouldn't do that... again...” Twilight tried to push the vision of ponies with pitchforks and torches out of her mind. “I mean I'll be there to keep it from happening.”

“That's very reassuring, Princess.” Trixie's voice was so thick with sarcasm it almost left stains. “Forgive me if I'm not enthusiastic.”

“Trust me. I read in Fifty Habits of Highly Effective Ponies that when you hurt somepony the most important step in putting things right is to make a personal apology.” Trixie raised an eyebrow at that and looked at Twilight.

“So is that what this is supposed to be? An apology?”

“Well I-” Twilight was about to explain that if Trixie apologized she might feel better when the blue unicorn cut her off.

“I don't need an apology. I did all this to myself. You didn't push me into starting those duels, it was my fault in the first place.” Twilight rolled her eyes. Trixie had taken it entirely the wrong way. “I am sorry about what I did.” Trixie sighed. “I'll talk to mister Pie in the morning but I don't know if I can take that much time off.”

“Oh I'm sure he'll be happy to let you go,” Twilight smiled. “I mean, not that you aren't doing a good job. But because he's worried about you.”


***


Trixie pushed past Twilight to hand bits to the mare in the ticket booth. She hadn't brought much except bits and a brown, rather ragged cloak. Twilight frowned at the blue unicorn.

“What are you doing? I said I'd pay-”

“I don't want charity. The last thing I need is to be even more in debt to you.” Trixie bought both tickets for the train back to Ponyville. “Besides, all I've been doing for the last few months is earning bits. I might as well use some of them.”

“If you say so.” Twilight shrugged and walked towards the train. “I was just trying to be polite.”

“Well I-” Trixie stopped herself from snapping at Twilight and took a deep breath. “I don't want you to be polite. When I saw you I expected the rest of your friends to be around waiting so you could throw me in a dungeon or banish me to the moon or something.”

“What?! Why would I do that?!” Twilight blinked in shock. The two got into the last car and sat down. There weren't a lot of ponies on the train today, so they had the entire car to themselves.

“Well it's what I'd do if I was a Princess. Which is probably why it's for the best I'm not one. We've both seen how well things go if I have any power at all.”

“I wouldn't do something like that. Actually, I kind of consider you a friend.” That was stretching the truth almost to the breaking point. Applejack would have disapproved. “I know we haven't... ever... met under the best of circumstances, but we're not that different.”

“Twilight if you consider me a friend I shudder to think what your enemies are like.”

“Oh you know. Shapeshifting monsters trying to take over Equestria, cloudy forces of tyranny and evil, ancient evil gods that want to bring eternal drought.” Twilight shrugged, smiling. “They're enemies. You're just somepony who needs a little help.”

“What I need is somepony to yell at me when I'm doing something stupid and the wisdom to actually listen for once in my life.” Trixie kicked the back of the empty seat in front of them. Almost as if she'd kicked the whole train into gear, it started rolling slowly away from the station, picking up speed.

“Have you thought about asking any of your friends for help? It must be lonely in that-”

“I don't have friends. I had fans, but they're all gone after the mess I made of things with the Ursa Minor. Not that I ever really knew them. It's not easy to make friends with people who just want to faun over you because you did a few simple tricks any unicorn could manage and then lied about having gone on some kind of great adventures.”

“Well, you know, I didn't have any real friends either until I came to Ponyville. I just locked myself in my rooms and studied all the time.”

“Oh please. Everypony knows you're Celestia's favorite student, and you have that little purple dragon that always follows you around.”

“Yes, I guess...” Twilight frowned. She really hadn't ever been completely alone. She'd always had somepony looking out for her. Trixie looked like she was about to say something else, then stopped, sighing and looking out the window. It was going to take a lot of work to actually befriend the mare, and she wasn't making it any easier.


***


An hour later, Twilight was jolted awake. She blinked and found Trixie looking around in surprise too. Both of them had fallen asleep in the uncomfortable silence of the train. The entire car rocked again.

“What's going on?” Twilight asked. Trixie looked out the window.

“I don't know.” The unicorn frowned and narrowed her eyes. Twilight moved to look out of the other side, and found herself looking down an almost sheer cliff over a valley of thick trees. She couldn't see anything that would cause the train to rock. She turned back to ask Trixie something when the unicorn gasped. “Hang on to something!”

The train car rocked and then started to tip. Twilight felt herself falling and the next few moments were a blur of confusion and pain. She only caught flashes as her mind struggled to keep up with what was going on. Trixie hanging onto the seat, which was somehow above her. Slamming wing first into the floor. Tree branches shattering the windows, glass flying everywhere.


***


Trixie woke up first, coughing and pulling herself out of the mud. For a long few moments she thought she was back at the rock farm, but the haze in her head cleared suddenly as she put weight on her left forehoof. A shock of pain surprised her, and she looked down to find a cut reaching almost from her hoof to her elbow. It wasn't dangerously deep, but it was bleeding freely. The memory of the accident suddenly returned.

“Oh no... Princess?!” She looked around, then spotted the train car, partly sunk into a deep pit of some kind of ochre mud. Ignoring the pain in her hoof she ran over. “Princess?! Twilight?!” She bit her lip. It was all happening again! “Celestia's beard... they're going to run me right out of Equestira if you're dead! I'll have to go to Saddle Arabia! I hate sand!”

“Ugh... I'm not dead...” Twilight said. “But I am stuck. Give me a hoof.” Trixie ran around to the other side of the train car and found a way in that didn't have her running through more mud. Twilight was still inside the train car, pinned against a wall by seat that had broken free and gotten wedged in place.

“Can't you just use magic to get yourself free?” Trixie walked over slowly, mindful of how the train car shifted under her weight.

“No. Something in this slime is...” Twilight groaned and tried to move the seat. Her horn's glow flickered and died. The seat barely moved, just rocking a little. “...See? I can't cast any spells.”

“Fine, just hang on or something.” Trixie braced herself against the seat and pushed. It had about as much effect as Twilight's magic. Unicorns were a lot of things, but physically powerful was not typically one of them. She gave up after a few moments and started throwing rubble aside.

“What are you doing?” Twilight winced as she tried to squeeze out again.

“I just need... this.” Trixie grabbed a metal pole with her teeth and dragged it over, jamming it under the seat. The mare grabbed the other end and pushed, using it as a lever. The metal strained and started to bend, but the seat moved a few inches, enough for Twilight to free herself. Once the Princess was standing, Trixie let go, the seat crashing back down.

“Thanks, Trixie.” Twilight said, catching her breath. “Wouldn't it have been easier for you to just use magic, though?”

“It would have been easier if I could do magic,” Trixie said. “This ribbon isn't just so I don't forget my promise not to use magic, it's so I can't even use it accidentally.” She touched it with a hoof. “It blocks magic, and it takes a few minutes to get it off.”

“That seems kind of dangerous. What if there was an emergency? Like the emergency we're in. Right now.” Twilight raised an eyebrow. Trixie sighed. Before she could say anything, the broken train car shifted. There was a pop from the mud outside as a bubble burst. The two mares looked out the window and saw the muck creeping higher and higher.

“I hate mud!” Trixie yelled, as she ran for the exit, leaving a trail of blood. Twilight was on her heels and they got out just seconds before the train car slipped, falling into the sinkhole of ooze. They were silent for a few moments.

“That was way too close,” Twilight said. Trixie just nodded.

“Well, you're an alicorn. Fly us up to the train tracks. We can follow them to the next stop, if the train hasn't halted entirely already. They can't have not noticed we went missing.”

“I'd love to, Trixie,” Twilight stretched out her wings and winced. One was clearly injured. “But I don't think that's an option right now. I hit my wing pretty badly and- your leg is all cut up!”

“Hm?” Trixie looked down. She'd almost forgotten about the wound. “It doesn't really hurt that badly.” It was almost the truth. It only hurt when she put weight on it, and even that was manageable. She tore a strip from her cloak and bandaged the wound, pulling it tight with her teeth.

“Great. Two mares stuck in the middle of nowhere and we have no magic, no flying, no maps, and we're both hurt.” Twilight sighed. “The safe thing is probably to wait here. Once they see we're missing, they'll come looking for us.”

“I hate to admit it, but at least you're important enough that somepony is bound to come look-” Trixie stopped as a sound cut through the woods. A howling noise, close-by. “That does not sound like the sort of thing I want coming to look for us.”

“That's a timberwolf,” Twilight said, helpfully.

“I don't suppose they're called that because they eat trees?”

“Unfortunately no.”

“Wonderful. I could be shoving rocks around and smashing them open to find gems, but instead I'm going to be eaten in the woods along with the mare who ruined my life.” Trixie kicked a rock and it bounced off a tree without much force.

“I didn't ruin your life, Trixie. Or at least I didn't mean to.” Twilight stepped over to stand next to her. “What should I have done differently?”

“I don't know! I'm not- I'm not the same mare I was when we first met.”

“I can tell that. You haven't spoken in the third person in hours.”

“It's a lot easier to break that habit when you don't want anypony to know who you are,” Trixie muttered. “Since we're probably going to be eaten by timberwolves, you might as well know. The reason I did everything since you defeated the ursa minor and I couldn't is because I've been jealous of you.” Trixie started walking, distancing herself from the Princess. “You have power, friends, you go on adventures, you're friends with royalty, and oh yes, you're a Princess now. That's everything I ever wanted and you just... walked right into it!”

“I wouldn't say it was exactly that easy. A lot happened.” Twilight glanced back at the woods. “We need to move. Maybe if we're lucky we can find another way up to the train tracks and then we won't have to get eaten by timber wolves at all.”


***


Trixie had been silent for almost half an hour while they walked along the ridge, right up to the point where the tracks turned into a tunnel and they couldn't follow.

“I don't suppose you can fly yet,” She said, quietly. Twilight shook her head.

“Magic isn't working either. I keep trying to use it and it's blocked off. Maybe if we find a river I can wash this ooze off of me. But I should probably keep a sample to study later...”

“Ugh. And I paid so much for this ribbon.” Trixie sighed and reached up to her horn, starting to work at the knot. “I'd rather break that promise than get myself eaten alive. Trixie does not want to die for her own stupid pride quite yet.”

“That's good, because I'm pretty sure the howling is getting closer.” Twilight swallowed.

“How are they even following us?” Trixie frowned. Twilight pointed to her leg. Even bandaged, it was bleeding enough to leave a trail the timberwolves could follow. “Oh wonderful. I just love-” And that's when Twilight's warning about the howling getting closer was proven to be all too correct. A timberwolf broke through the bushes, directly in their path.

“Quick, run!” Twilight took off. Trixie followed a moment later as they blindly crashed through the woods. The timberwolf was hot on their heels, obviously excited by the chase. It could have caught them easily, but it almost seemed to be playing with them. Trixie looked down at her injured hoof. If it had really been tracking them, this was her fault too!

“I'm going to lead it off! You try and get help or something!” Twilight looked back at her in shock.

“What?! Where am I going to get help?!”

“I don't know! You're Purplesmart, you figure it out!” Trixie yelled. Twilight gave her a look.

“What?!”

“IT'S A NICKNAME!” Trixie yelled as she veered off, the timber wolf following her. She was lucky it wanted to chase her almost as much as she wanted to not get caught. She ran literally for her life, her creeping exhaustion quickly overtaking her, her vision starting to go black. She'd been running for almost ten minutes when she hit the river, stumbling on the wet rocks and splashing into the water. The cold shocked her back to her senses, and she fought her way to the other side, half swimming.

The timberwolf hesitated at the edge of the water. Trixie stood on the other side of the river and watched, then laughed.

“Ha! I should have known. No mere timberwolf can match the... tenacity of the Great and...” she sighed. “The very tired Trixie.” She slumped, sitting in the rocks and mud. “Now if I can just find where that idiot Twilight went we can-” The timberwolf howled, and bounded into the water. Trixie held back a scream and  ran, hooves slipping on the wet stone.

The mare ran up a streambed, looking for a way out, but the sides were slick with mud and without magic she wasn't strong enough to pull herself out by the dangling tree roots. She had at most a few moments before the timberwolf got across the river and followed her. She tried to climb out and fell back, mud tumbling down in a wet landslide that left a thick layer on her coat. Not a trace of her blue fur was visible.

Then she heard the sniffling. The timberwolf was almost on top of her. Too tired to run and with nowhere to hide, she closed her eyes and pressed herself against the wall, hoping the end would at least come quickly. After a few seconds when she wasn't dead, she slowly opened one eye. The timberwolf was sniffing around, confused. It walked right past her, not seeing her. The mud was covering up her scent and letting her blend in! It was the first and only time Trixie was thankful for mud.

She slowly reached up and started untying the ribbon around her horn. The knot was complicated, and without something to cut it with she'd have to work it loose carefully. And quickly. Very, very quickly.


***


Twilight panted for breath. It probably wasn't becoming of a Princess to run away from danger, even when her wing was sprained and her magic wasn't working. She froze up with sudden fear. What was and what wasn't becoming of a princess didn't matter! She'd just let Trixie run off with a hungry timberwolf chasing her!

“What am I doing?!” Twilight screamed, running back towards where she thought Trixie might  be. “She's going to get eaten and it's all my fault! I'm a terrible Princess!”


***


The timberwolf sniffed and turned, focusing on Trixie. She suddenly realized her little ruse was at an end. Her hooves fumbled at the knot. “Come on! Stupid thing-” The wolf charged, and Trixie bit back a scream. Something in the ribbon gave, and she felt- something returning, tingling, like a numb limb that was suddenly granted uncomfortable feeling again.

Bursts of light and sound exploded in the timberwolf's face, sending it scrabbling backwards, blinded and deafened. Trixie pulled the ribbon off the rest of the way, her horn feeling painful and strange, like pins and needles were prodding it from all directions.

“That's right! Cower before Trixie!” She planted her hooves and focused. Her magic was weak and hard to direct, either from some lingering effect of the ribbon or simply because she hadn't used it in so long. It took three tries before she got a good grip on the trunk of a tree whose roots were almost washed out at the edge of the stream. Another burst of magical zazz put the timberwolf where she wanted, and she pulled, dragging the tree down. The monster yelped as it was buried under a crash of rather less animate and much heavier timber.

Trixie watched and tried to breathe steadily. It had actually hurt to pull the tree down, like she'd strained something inside her. It was easily the heaviest thing she'd ever moved, and she wasn't in any condition to be doing it in the first place. She'd gotten lucky. The timberwolf howled, then burst into black smoke, vanishing. Trixie collapsed.

“That's... what you get.” She said, panting. “The great and powerful Trixie... is far superior... to a bundle of sticks.” And, more or less safe, Trixie allowed herself the luxury of passing out.


***


A splash of water woke her up. Trixie coughed and sat up, looking around. Twilight was standing over her with water floating in the air, held up by her magic.

“Are you alright?” Twilight asked. Trixie stood.

“I'm fine.” Trixie tried to look casual and brush herself off, but that didn't work too well since even with the impromptu shower she was still covered in mud. Again. “I just needed a little nap after taking care of the timberwolf problem.” Very humble and restrained. She'd managed to avoid speaking in the third person.

“I found a river and got the rest of that gunk off that was blocking my magic,” Twilight explained. “I was worried after I heard the blasts and then everything went quiet.”

“Yes well, I had to use magic but it was nothing I couldn't handle.” Trixie started walking back towards the river.

“I can see that. I'm glad you didn't get hurt.”

“And I can see that you haven't managed to get help. I held up my part of the plan and got rid of the danger. The least you could have done was find Daring Do and bring her back to rescue me.” Trixie splashed into the water, cleaning the mud out of her coat and mane.

“Wait, you read the Daring Do novels?”

“I stole half of my best tall tales from them,” Trixie said, shaking herself to dry off. She could have used a spell for it but a big part of her wasn't sure if she should be using magic, even if she could right now. She was still worried about what kind of an effect it would have on her. “That's my real talent, if anything. Lying to people about going on adventures.”

“You know, we're on an adventure right now.” Twilight's horn glowed, and Trixie was suddenly dry. “I mean, there's no lost Incanter gold, but I'm pretty sure this qualifies.”

“No, this is an accident. An adventure means you want to do more than just live through it.” Trixie looked around. “And hopefully it's over. Do you think you can get us up to those train tracks now that you aren't... oozed?”

“I can probably get us all the way to Ponyville,” Twilight said, then hesitated. “Well... no. That wouldn't be a good idea. Even now that I'm cleaned off there could be some residual effect, and the last thing I want to do is mess up the spell and put us a half-mile in the air.”

“I think back up on the ridge will be fine.”


***


In the end they hadn't even needed to go that far. There was indeed a rescue party looking for them, and they met them halfway back to where the train car had crashed. Trixie should have expected it. Twilight was a princess. There were probably people watching out for her all over the place. The two were rushed to a hospital, and after getting a proper bandage and some medicine to make sure her cut didn't get infected, Trixie was starting to feel a little better.

“How are you feeling?” Asked a nurse, a white earth pony with a pink mane. She handed Trixie a cup of warm tea.

“Much better, thank you.” Trixie smiled at her. She took the tea gratefully and sipped at it. It was bitter, but honey had been added to make it tolerable. The mare was just thankful for anything warm at this point.

“Is it true you saved the Princess' life?” the nurse asked. Trixie raised an eyebrow.

“I... suppose. Why do you ask?”

“Well she told quite a story while we were getting her wing splinted. A train derailment, saving her life from being buried alive in ooze, then leading a timberwolf off her tracks and facing it alone...” The nurse smiled. “The reporters are having a field day.”

“Reporters?!” Trixie froze up.

“Oh yes. By this time tomorrow, everypony in Ponyville will know what happened! I bet you'll have a string of visitors just waiting to say thank you!”

Trixie fainted.
> Don't Talk To Strangers
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 2: Don't Talk To Strangers
By MagnetBolt



“No no no no...” Trixie slammed the door shut, locking it. She'd gone out to get a drink and been ambushed by a reporter who had apparently been lurking and just waiting to strike.


***


Trixie dropped the bits she had been holding, one rolling under the vending machine. The mare cursed and knelt down to see if she could still reach it, but it was stubbornly behind the grasp of her hoof. It suddenly started glowing green and rolled back towards her. Trixie backed up, surprised, and her flank bumped into a pony standing right behind her.

“Looked like you were having a little trouble there,” the pale brown unicorn said. He levitated the bit over to Trixie. She snatched it out of the air and turned away.

“I had things well in hoof. And it's just a bit anyway.” She shoved it into the machine along with a handful of other bits, getting herself a criminally overpriced iced dandelion tea. The unicorn watched her as she retrieved it and struggled with opening it for a few moments. Eventually Trixie had enough and turned to face him. “What?!”

“Nothing. I just wanted to see if you were the kind of mare who would ask for help.” He got himself a tea from the same machine and opened it easily with magic. Trixie tried to keep from frowning with how easy he made it look.

“I don't need help,” Trixie clarified. She flipped her hair with a hoof. “I'm perfectly fine.”

“I can see that,” the stallion agreed, nodding. “So have you heard the news?”

“What news?” Trixie took a sip of her tea. It was too sweet. She frowned and looked at it. It was the same brand she always used to drink. It had just been a long time since she'd had anything that wasn't just plain water and bread. By her own choice. The Pies actually made quite a bit of food, she just never felt comfortable eating with them.

“The Princess got hurt in some train accident.” The stallion was watching her closely. Trixie glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes, trying not to react. “Apparently she's said the only reason she survived is because a mare saved her life a few times.”

“I'm sure it isn't as exciting as you make it out to be,” Trixie retorted.

“Really? A train accident, royalty, lives being saved-”

“The Princess gets in a lot of trouble. She and her friends probably save each others lives every other week.” Trixie took a few more sips of the tea. The honey in it was thick and cloying. “I doubt anything that happened was really all that exciting.”

“You must have quite a few stories to tell if that adventure seems boring.” The stallion smiled brightly. Trixie crushed the still half-full box of tea, splashing it over her hoof and leaving a mess on the floor. With a disgusted sound she threw it in the garbage.

“I don't,” she said, with an air of finality. “I don't go on adventures and I never have. I'm just a boring pony that is going to go back to rock farming once I get discharged.” She turned to leave. The stallion followed.

“It's funny you should say that. The Princess said that the mare who saved her had a blue coat with a silver mane. You know, you don't have to be so modest. My readers would love to hear about the adventure from-”

“Readers?!” Trixie froze.

“You might have heard of me. My name's Bold Headline, with Ponyville Press. I was hoping I could get a quick interview in, if you don't mind talking a little about yourself.” Trixie's eye twitched, and she ran back to her room screaming.


***


“Calm down, Trixie. You can handle this.” Trixie tried to calm her breathing. “You just have to get out of here before you get run out of town with your picture plastered all over the paper.” She paced around the room. “Half of the ponies will probably think I caused the train to derail in the first place! And the others will think anything I did is a lie or exaggerated.”

Trixie looked out the window. Could she get down to the ground from here? She could write an apology letter to Twilight later about backing out, but this was hardly the rest she needed anyway. A glance down made her go pale. She was several stories up.

“Trixie don't be stupid!” She muttered to herself. “You're not some helpless foal. You can just walk out there and-” She swallowed. “And have to talk to that reporter.” She looked back to the window. She opened it and looked down.

“I hate to use magic, but...” A catfall spell was one of the simplest spells a unicorn could learn. All she had to do was jump out and cast it before she hit the ground. And since she was so high up she'd have more than enough time to do it. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Trixie jumped. Her horn lit up with magic and she cast the catfall spell.

Unfortunately instead of slowing her fall, all that happened was that sparks and bursts of light appeared around her. Trixie screamed as the ground rapidly came up to meet her. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see the end. There was a sudden jerk and for a moment she thought it just meant it had been even worse than she expected and she was in shock, then she felt the hooves holding her and the rushing wind around her was going in a completely different direction.

“Hey there! You know Twilight is the alicorn princess, not you, right?” The blue mare smirked. Trixie frowned. It was one of Twilight's friends. What was her name? Prism Smash? Raincloud Crash? Something like that. The pegasus set her down. Trixie looked back at the window she'd fallen from. It was a long way up.

“I just- made a mistake,” Trixie finished, lamely. The blue mare patted her on the back.

“Not the first one. Fireworks don't usually stop a fall.”

“I was trying to cast a slow-fall spell!” Trixie snapped. “But my magic hasn't been working right. I'm out of practice and...” she sighed. She had to remember her resolve to at least try to be a better mare. “I screwed up. Thank you for catching me.”

“Don't worry about it. I have to keep somepony from falling to their death at least two or three times a day, and you're not as heavy as Twilight. You're just lucky I'm awesome and I saw your little show there.”

“Er... right.” Trixie kicked at the dirt. “Anyway, since you're here and you did just save my life, I suppose this is as good a time as any to start apologizing. I can't remember if you were the one I locked in a cage or-”

“You made one of my wings grow huge so I couldn't fly right.”

“Ah! That was it!” Trixie smiled and looked up, then coughed and assumed a more serious face. “I mean, ah. I'm sorry about using magic on you in that way. The Princess dragged me out here, so I suppose I'd better get used to apologizing to everypony I meet. Miss, um...”

“Really? Dash. Rainbow Dash. I'm pretty famous.”

“Trixie wasn't born yesterday! You can't just pull a name out of a Daring Do story.” Dash snorted and started laughing. “See, you can't even keep a straight face!”

“Actually it's a long story. I'll tell you some time. So what got you to decide to jump out a window? Hospital food isn't that bad.”

“Ugh!” Trixie rolled her eyes. “A reporter.”

“A reporter,” Dash repeated, her smirk growing. “You, of all ponies, running from a reporter. He must have been really terrifying since the last time I saw you, you were trying to get everypony in town to kneel before you.”

Trixie frowned. “I've been trying to change.”

“I can tell. You've only spoken in the third person once in the last minute.”

“If I wanted to be mocked I'd go somewhere to be alone with my thoughts.”	

“Don't take it so hard.” Dash slapped Trixie on the back. “I don't think anypony is gonna hold a grudge. Even if you did put some of them in cages. Or turn them into foals. Or-”

“Yes, thank you for reminding me that I have a lot to apologize for.” Trixie sighed.

“Why'd you run from the reporter, anyway?” Trixie started walking back into the hospital. “I thought you'd love to have your name in the papers after you saved Twilight.”

“You really have no idea how the press works. With my record they'd probably assume I caused the train to derail in the first place!” Trixie made a dismissive gesture with a hoof. “Besides, they're making it out to be some big adventure. It's hardly more than you mares deal with every week.”

“Hah! Most of the time Twilight is saving us!” Dash smiled and followed Trixie inside. “What are you gonna do? Go back to your room and hide?”

“I'm going to say goodbye to Twilight. This trip has been a disaster already, but if I don't at least see her, she's just going to hunt me down again.”

Though neither of them saw it, Scootaloo was hanging in midair, her eyes wide. She'd just taken her scooter off a small ramp and now she couldn't seem to fall. Her hooves were glowing with a flickering blue light.

“I'm gonna get a hangtime cutie mark!”


***


“Pinkie how did you even get a three-tier cake into the hospital?” Twilight looked at the cake. Her room had been decorated with blue and purple streamers and a banner that announced a 'getting-back-to-Ponyville-alive' party. There were enough balloons tied to her bed that Twilight was worried she'd float away.

“Oh that wasn't hard. The really hard part was sneaking the punchbowl in!” Pinkie giggled. “I probably shouldn't have filled it before bringing it over, but I only spilled a little.”

“Thanks, Pinkie,” Twilight laughed. She sipped at a cup of the punch she held with telekinesis. Her magic was back to normal after getting all the gunk off of her coat. “I just wasn't expecting a party so soon. I have no idea how you do it.”

Pinkie's expression changed and she looked at Twilight very seriously. “I have an emergency party supply stash that has the basics for any and all party contingencies. Careful planning and re-purposing materials is the secret of my ability to be the perfect party pony.”

Twilight blinked with surprise, her good wing rising up unconsciously. “You mean like you have checklists and plans and-” Pinkie giggled.

“No, silly! I just made that up!” Pinkie bounced around the bed. “Oh! I almost forgot!” She opened the closet, rolling out her party cannon. Twilight watched with trepidation as she aimed it at the door.

“What are you doing?” Pinkie shushed her, and the door opened. There was a blast, or a honk, or something between the two, and a burst of confetti hit the mares standing at the door. As the chaff cleared, it revealed a very surprised Trixie and Rainbow Dash, both now wearing party hats that hadn't been there a moment ago, with streamers wrapped around their necks. Trixie reflexively blew on the noisemaker that had found its way into her mouth.

Twilight couldn't hold back a laugh at the sight. Trixie spit the noisemaker out as she walked in. Dash immediately made her way over to the cake.

Trixie adjusted the party hat. “Not the stupidest thing I've ever put on my head. How's the wing?” Trixie asked, raising an eyebrow. Twilight could instantly tell two things from her tone. First that the fact Twilight had wings at all was still a sore point, and secondly that she hadn't really come by to ask after Twilight's health. On the other hoof, it wasn't too long ago when Trixie wouldn't have bothered trying to make small pleasantries.

“Feeling much better,” Twilight said. “I don't think I'll be up for any of Dash's flying lessons for a while, but that's probably for the best.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Dash asked, her voice somewhat muffled by cake.

“Nothing!” Twilight tried to smile, and quickly changed the subject. “So I guess you're feeling better since you walked here from your room.”

“Something like that.” Trixie shot Dash a look. “I just wanted to make sure you were fine before I left. The last thing either of us needs is you getting really hurt because of me.”

“What do you mean, leaving?” Pinkie asked. “You just got here! We haven't even had your totally-not-evil-now party!” Pinkie bounced up to Trixie and hugged her. The unicorn froze, and when Pinkie let her go she was somehow holding a slice of cake and a cup of punch.

“How does she even do that?” Trixie asked. Twilight just shrugged.

“I stopped asking. But she's right. You shouldn't leave yet. I mean, things have gone well so far!” Trixie put the cake down on a chair.

“I don't see how you can say this is going well. I came back with you to apologize to people and you've ended up in the hospital! Most ponies would consider any trip that ends at the hospital to have gone extraordinarily poorly.”

“Yeah, but you did save my life a couple of times, which more than makes up for challenging me to magical duels. So that's one apology down already with flying colors! Plus, I have that weird ooze to examine later.” Trixie blushed a little at the compliment.

Dash said something, but it was blocked by thick icing. She started to cough, and Pinkie poured punch down her throat. “What I was trying to say was, two apologies down. We had a chance to talk on the way up.”

“And you don't need to apologize to me!” Pinkie said, then her smile went serious again. “Unless you miss the party I'm throwing for you. Then I'll hunt you down and you know what I'll do?” Trixie shook her head, backing up. “I'll find you when you least expect it and I'll-” She smiled brightly. “Throw a surprise party!”

Trixie sighed and sat down. There was a splat as the cake she'd just put down transformed into a messy and uncomfortable cushion.


***


“You made a list of everypony I should apologize to?” Trixie looked over Twilight's shoulder at the scroll. There were a lot of names but... somehow fewer than Trixie had expected. They were walking down Ponyville's main street. Trixie wasn't sure which of them drew more stares.

“It always helps me when I need to get something done,” Twilight explained. “If you make a list you'll never forget what you were doing. I learned that lesson at Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns.” Trixie rolled her eyes at that.

“Please. All they did there was try to make everypony learn about the most inconsequential history.” Trixie snorted. “I remember I had a teacher there who would just go on for days – literally days without stopping – about Starswirl the Bearded.”

“Oh! Professor Vellium! I remember his lectures!” Twilight gasped. “I never knew you went to the same school I did!”

“Just because I'm terrible at magic doesn't mean I dropped out after magic kindergarten.” Trixie hesitated. “Though maybe I should have.”

“Stop being so hard on yourself. You're probably the most skilled unicorn in Ponyville.”

“I think that you're forgetting you're here-” Twilight coughed and  raised her uninjured wing, the other one bound to her side with bandages. “Oh yes. Not a unicorn.” Trixie sighed.

“Trust me, it's not all it's cracked up to be.” Twilight turned a corner.

“I wouldn't know.” Trixie was silent for a moment, embarrassed at how petty that sounded. “I need to tell you something about my magic before-” Twilight stopped in front of a dress shop.

“Before what?” Twilight asked. Then the door opened and a pink foal with a purple and white mane stomped out as loudly as her tiny frame would allow.

“I need the dress done before Friday!” She shouted back. “Hmph. Trying to tell me there are other ponies ahead of me in line. The nerve!” The foal stormed off. Trixie watched her go.

“Who was that?” Trixie asked.

Twilight sighed. “Diamond Tiara. Sometimes I swear that foal's parents ruined her. I keep being tempted to hit them over the head with A Canterlot Guide to Disciplining Disrespectful Foals.” She turned back to Trixie. “What were you saying about-”

“Ah! Twilight! You simply must come in!” Rarity walked out, measuring tape draped around her neck and glasses still on. She had clearly been in the middle of working on something. “I recently acquired some marvelous new silks and I absolutely need to know how they look against your coat.”

“Why my coat?” Twilight asked. “I haven't ordered-”

“Oh I know you haven't, darling. But I will never let it be said that I didn't have something special waiting in the wings for our local Princess for this Hearts and Hooves day.” 

Twilight blushed at that. “Rarity!” The Princess looked around to make sure no one was looking. Rumors spread like parasprites in Ponyville. “If you say things like that people are going to assume I've started dating somepony and then it'll turn into a big thing and it'll end with Pinkie throwing a wedding and everypony except me being surprised when no groom shows up!”

“That only happened once,” Rarity countered.

“Once was too many times!” Twilight took a deep breath. “Anyway...” She looked to the side where Trixie was standing. Rarity followed her gaze and gasped.

“You! You did that AWFUL thing with the- Oh I can't bring myself to say it. Those colors!”

“It was just a dress,” Twilight said. “And she came here to apologize.”

“Hmph. I won't just accept an apology. No, no. She is going to have to learn a lesson.” Trixie sighed an looked down. It had been too easy so far. There were going to be some ponies who would just never forgive her. “A lesson about style and the PROPER use of color!”

“Wait, what?” Trixie looked back up sharply.


***


“What's wrong with blue?” Trixie asked.

“You're already several shades of blue. It just wouldn't look right.” Rarity thought to herself, pulling a few more bolts of fabric from a high shelf. “Hm. Yes. I think this will do. Silver and black. Perhaps a little orange for just that bit of pop! Can you hold this for me?” Rarity floated a bolt over towards Trixie. The mare moved to grab it with a hoof.

“Don't move!” Rarity said, sharply. “Just use magic. I'm trying to picture the perfect shape and you moving doesn't help.”

“Ugh...” Trixie sighed and tried to focus. It was a simple telekinesis trick. She could do it. Her horn lit up and there was a burst of light and sound as the spell failed and the fabric dropped to the ground. She panted, feeling surprisingly strained. “Sorry. This is what I was trying to tell you before, Twilight. My magic hasn't been working right.”

“You're probably just out of practice, or you strained yourself taking out that timberwolf,” Twilight said, though she didn't look sure. “I mean it was a big tree, and you were able to move it.”

“That's true,” Trixie said, tilting her head. “But I couldn't even manage a simple spell to keep myself from falling, and-” She put more effort into moving the fabric. “-and I can't even budge silk!”

“If your magic is strained as badly as my wing that might be natural,” Twilight said. “And I was wondering how you and Dash managed to arrive together. Let me guess, another one of her last-minute saves?” Trixie nodded. Twilight smiled, then got hit in the head with measuring tape.

“Dear, you could at least lend me a hoof,” Rarity said.


***


An hour later, Trixie had to admit that she was looking good. The white unicorn really did know her stuff. The dress was fitted perfectly and the panels were the orange of a sunset and a velvety black that seemed as dark as the night sky. Silver threads traced out abstract patterns in the black like constellations, and on the whole it was the nicest dress Trixie had ever owned, not that it had much competition.

“Mm. Very nice.” Rarity examined her own work. “I don't get to work with a pony with a blue coat very often. Rainbow Dash rarely models for me, and the color of her mane makes it somewhat more difficult to put together a flattering ensemble.” 

“Orange and blue seem to work well together,” Trixie commented. “I concede you have better taste than I do.”

“Well of course, dear. I do this for a living.” Rarity struck a pose. “Trust me, you'll see orange and blue all over the place by the time this season ends.”

Twilight coughed. “According to my schedule we should go and see Applejack next.”

“That is entirely the wrong sort of orange for this dress. If you're going to walk all the way out to Sweet Apple Acres you'll need-” Twilight raised an eyebrow and Rarity backed down from suggesting another outfit. “You'll need to get the dress off at any rate. Hold still and I'll just help you with that.”

Rarity focused and there was an odd shimmer to Trixie's coat for a moment before Rarity herself flew into the air, surrounded in the aura of her own magic. She slammed into the ceiling with enough force to bang her head and fell. Twilight reacted quickly and grabbed her before she could do some real damage.

“What was that?!” Trixie gasped.

“Ooh...” Rarity rubbed her horn. It had left a dent above her. “I've never had that happen before. I couldn't get a grip on you for some reason.”

“It was more like the magic just bounced off of Trixie.” Twilight walked around the mare in a circle, looking. “I've never heard of anything like that. Trixie, did you-”

“I didn't do anything, I promise!” Trixie tried to shrink back.

“I know you didn't. Your horn didn't even light up.” Twilight stopped and tried casting a simple magic-sensing spell. “Aha! It looks like you're... casting a magic detecting spell? What?”

“I think you're detecting yourself,” Rarity noted.

“Maybe if I take you to my lab we can...” Trixie gave Twilight a look. “...figure it out later. Right. Sorry.” She moved to help Trixie undress, pulling the elaborate dress off of her. “I don't know how you're going to get this back on without using magic.”

“Applejack always manages,” Rarity noted. “She hardly ever rips them anymore.”

“How often do you have her-” Twilight raised an eyebrow. Rarity laughed and pushed her away.

“Twilight don't you have somewhere to be? Just let me fold that up for you...” Rarity put the dress into a floral bag and floated it over to Trixie. The mare grabbed it in a hoof and carefully put it in a saddlebag.

“Thank you again,” Trixie said. “Sorry again about the, um. Bump on the head. How much do I owe you?”

“Think nothing of it. I was just glad I was able to correct your dress sense.” Rarity flipped her hair and waved a hoof. “I mean after all, that hat and cape you used to wear-” She stopped herself at a look from Twilight, demurely turning it into a small cough.

Trixie tried not to show that the remark had bothered her. “I'm not wearing them anymore. They were supposed to catch the eye when I was on stage, and I've had too much of that lately.” Trixie sighed. “Anyway, here. I should at least pay you for the materials and labor for those two dresses.” She took out a bag of bits and handed it to Rarity.

“Two dresses?”

“This one and the one you probably had to burn in disgust that I cursed you with.”


***


“I don't think this is a good idea.” Trixie frowned at Twilight. The two had stopped in the Sweet Apple Acres orchards before going to see Applejack.

“I just want to know what we're dealing with so I can look it up more accurately in the Library,” Twilight countered. “Go ahead and grab an apple from that tree.” She pointed to an apple tree. Trixie sighed and walked up to it, reaching up for an apple.

“Just give me a moment...” Trixie jumped for the apple, coming up short.

“I meant with magic, Trixie.” Twilight sighed. Trixie stopped and blushed.

“Sorry. Right. I just got into the habit of not using magic.” Trixie sat down and looked up at a small apple. It was probably even lighter than the fabric that Rarity had tried to get her to hold. Her horn started to glow and... fireworks went off around the apple. While they lit up the tree, they barely even moved the leaves.

“That wasn't quite what I meant,” Twilight said. “Does that happen when you try to cast any spell?”

“I haven't tried a lot of them.” Trixie shrugged, feeling defeated. “But so far, yes.”

“What in tarnation is goin' on out here?” Applejack said, running up to them. “Don't tell me you two decided to have yer little scuffle here! I heard that last blast from clear over on the south field!”

“It's nothing like that,” Twilight said, trying to laugh it off.

“I swear on Granny's bad hip if you two are gonna go tearin' up mah orchard...” Applejack frowned harder.

“We're not fighting!” Twilight yelled, taking a step back and giving ground to the earth pony. “I was just trying to help Trixie with a little problem.”

“A little problem.” Applejack sounded nonplussed.

Trixie sighed and stepped in. “My magic isn't working anymore. She was trying to see if I could even do something simple like pick an apple.”

“Y'all ever considered you could just buck the tree?” Applejack kicked the tree casually, and an apple fell out, rolling on the ground.

“It's not about getting the apple,” Twilight sighed.

“It's about not being able to do even the simplest things that any unicorn should manage.” Trixie kicked the tree in frustration, and a number of apples fell out, one landing on her head and impaling itself on her horn. The juice ran down her face and she sighed and cleaned it off.

“At least ya got a good kick to you.” Applejack offered, with a smile.

“I've been working at a rock farm for months. It does tend to toughen a pony up.” Trixie returned Applejack's smile. She could at least appreciate the honest comment. “Trixie doesn't mean to sound too proud, but she has been working herself to the bone.”

“Twilight you sure she ain't just a changeling? I don't think the Trixie that came to town last time knew much about work.”

“I'd been working on a rock farm before that, too!” Trixie defended. “Though... I know what you mean. I did try to take the quick and easy path, and it ended badly.”

“Aw, don't think much of it. Tell you what, if you stick around y'all can help when it's time to buck the apples down from these trees. Ah can always use the help and there ain't many ponies that can keep up with me. O' course that's only if ya fancy a challenge.”

“Hmph. Trixie can easily keep up with you! Rocks are far heavier than apples, as you know, and Trixie has been shoving them around for months!”

“Girls,” Twilight cleared her throat, smiling. Once she had their attention, she continued. “Trixie, why don't you put some of that confidence back into your magic. Maybe that's the problem. Just grab the apple and try as hard as you can.”

“I'll try but... stand back. When it goes wrong it's probably going to make more flashes and sparks.” Twilight and Applejack backed up a bit. Trixie focused on another apple. She just had to give it her all, like she did when the timberwolf was coming for her in the woods. Her horn flickered with light like a sputtering candle before it suddenly flared to bright light, and the tree tore out of the ground, soaring over the next hill and landing somewhere beyond.

“What in tarnation?!” Applejack gasped.

“I didn't mean to!” Trixie said, looking afraid. “There was nothing and then it was like something slipped and it just suddenly- Woosh!” She motioned with her hooves.

“You sound like Pinkie Pie,” Twilight said. Trixie frowned. “But that's a good result! Whatever your problem is, it isn't a lack of magical power, that's for sure. Though your aim could be better. How do you feel? Does it hurt or do you feel faint or tired?”

“No, not really,” Trixie shrugged. “...Should it hurt? Is not hurting bad? Am I dying?!”

“What? No! Probably not.” Twilight teetered between running away and stepping closer before erring on the side of being polite and moving to stand next to Trixie. “I'm sure you'll be fine. It's just some kind of strange magic-reflecting thing that's also preventing you from using magic and is proving very difficult to analyze.”

“Oh good,” Trixie said. “That's probably no more than even odds of killing me. How wonderful.” She sighed. “I guess we should go get the tree. Maybe if we put it back in the ground it'll be okay.” They started walking uphill towards where it had sounded like it had landed. Midway up, Big Mac intercepted them from the other direction.

“Don't worry, Big Mac,” Applejack said. She looked back at Twilight and Trixie. “Jes another one of the seemin'ly infinite magical accidents that happen around here. Especially with these two. I'm gonna have 'em put the tree back in a fruitbat's heartbeat.”

“Er...” Big Mac looked at them, then back the way he came, which wasn't the way the tree had gone. Applejack frowned. She recognized that expression.

“Trouble?”

“Eyup.”


***


Mud was geysering up as high as Applejack's barn. Not that the barn was anywhere near the north field where the mud was rapidly turning Sweet Apple Acres into Muddy Puddle Acres. It had already covered enough space to hold two cloudball matches and didn't seem to be running out of steam yet. Twilight Sparkle stopped at the edge of the spreading patch of mud and knelt down to look.

“I think this is the same kind of mud the train fell into!” Her horn started glowing and a patch of the mud tried to lift up before the glow sputtered and vanished. “Oh yeah. Definitely the same stuff. It's like it just eats magic.”

“Wonderful,” Trixie said. “Which means you're just as useless as I am.”

“If we don't do somethin' soon all we're gonna harvest here is mud pies! And ah think we can agree that ain't quite as appetizing as apples.” Applejack paced around. “What the hay is goin' on? We ain't never had this happen before!”

“It looks almost like a volcanic event. I read that sometimes there are small tectonic events called mudpots that somewhat resemble this.”

“Really, Twilight? A fumarole?” Trixie snorted. “Either the books you read are woefully incomplete or you completely forgot Professor Slate's lectures on geology. If it was a mudpot the mud would be boiling. This is cold and clammy. There's not even steam right at the center.”

“That's true,” Twilight conceded. “It could be indicative of a flood, but we haven't had enough water up in the mountains to force mud out of caves here. Not that there are a lot of caves here to start with. I can check with Rainbow Dash on the weather, but...” she shrugged.

“It could also be from a landslide or a sinkhole forming at the other end of a cavern system and causing a pressure blowout,” Trixie suggested. “It's possible if it was far away enough from town that no one will have noticed the shaking.”

“Look all this theorizin is wonderful an' all, but I have a farm to work here and this ain't gettin' better on its own. Are these theories of yours actually gonna help you keep that muck from turnin th' north field into a swamp?”

“Well I think that understanding a problem is the first step towards a solution and...” Twilight kicked at the dirt.  “No. Probably not in this case.”

“Of course not,” Trixie sighed. “You can't reason with geology. Has anypony tried just shoving a boulder into the hole that mud's coming from?”

“We ain't exactly a rock farm. We'd have to go miles to get anythin' bigger than a pebble.”

“There has to be something we can use to plug it..” Trixie thought.

“I know! We'll use that tree you uprooted!” Twilight smiled. “I know it's not exactly a boulder, but it might plug it long enough to find a more permanent solution.

“I suppose it's better than nothing,” Trixie agreed.


***


“Why are trees so heavy?!” Trixie demanded. Twilight had  managed to get it near the slime oozing out of the ground, but the rest had to be done purely on hoofpower. Some kind of interference from the slime was making it impossible for Twilight to keep carrying it. The alicorn was watching from a safe distance to avoid getting the muck on her, in case somepony needed emergency magicking.

“Ah thought you said you were tough!” Applejack retorted as they shoved the tree towards the mud geyser. “This shouldn't even be a thang for somepony who's so proud of shovin' rocks around all day!” Trixie grunted and pushed harder, hooves slipping in the uncertain terrain. Big Mac remained quiet, mostly because he was pulling from the other side with a rope hitched around the tree.

“I didn't say it was too heavy!” Trixie retorted. “Trixie can keep up just fine!” She shoved harder, and the tree jerked free from where it had been stuck for a moment, the mud making a sickly sound as the branches were freed.

“You're almost there!” Twilight yelled.

“Yer doin' a lot better than that cheerleader o'er there,” Applejack muttered quietly. “Ah can't believe she tried to make a list for proper procedures on tree movin'.”

“She probably read it in some horticulture book.” Trixie kept shoving. Now that it was free they were making good progress. “However Trixie doesn't think that wrapping up the root ball is particularly important for the application we're going to be putting this tree too.”

“Twilight's just tryin' to help in her own way. It ain't like she thinks she's too good to get her hooves dirty helpin.”

“I know,” Trixie said, mollified. She hadn't meant to let resentment creep into her voice. “Sorry. I just- get frustrated sometimes. Everything I do lately ends up with me being covered in mud!”

“Ah'm pretty sure that's jes farm life for ya.” Applejack smiled. “If it bothers ya that much you could have Rarity make you some little frilly boots and a raincoat.”

“They'd end up destroyed within an hour and then I'd have even more to apologize for!” Trixie stumbled, almost falling. Her hoof was stuck deep in the mud. “Ugh! I always get stuck in muck like this. I have no idea how you earth ponies can keep from sinking in up to your flanks!”

“Practice. D' ya need a hoof?”

“Just give me a moment...” Trixie pulled harder, and her horn glimmered. She didn't notice, but Applejack did, the orange pony's eyes going wide.

“Ah, Trixie-”

“Just a little more...” Trixie's horn burst into light, and her coat flashed with a mirror sheen for a fraction of a second before the mud around her erupted, splattering away from her and leaving her free and surrounded by an almost perfect circle of grass. Even her coat was clean. Twilight looked shocked, but was too far away to run over and fuss and make all sorts of statements about magical impossibility.

“Well I suppose that's one way to do it. But you could be a mite more careful with your aim.” Applejack's front was entirely covered by a splatter of mud, and her hat had fallen into the muck. She picked it up and shook it off before putting it back on, only slightly more dirty than usual.

“Um... Heh. Sorry about that.” Trixie kicked at the grass sheepishly. Applejack rolled her eyes.

“Come on ya little mudslinger. We still got a bit to go.” The three ponies got the tree right next to thy geyser, which still wasn't showing any signs of slowing or stopping. The mud wasn't just flying into the air, it was seeping out along the edges too, creating a standing wave as high as Trixie's flank.

“What now?” Trixie asked. Applejack looked at it and thought.

“If'n we had a bunch of pegasuses we could hitch ropes around th' tree and have them lift it in. But we ain't got that right now so we gotta figure somethin' else out.” She looked at Trixie and rubbed her chin. “Y'all ripped this tree outta th' ground. Think you could put it back in th' same way?”

“That's-” Trixie was about to say impossible. But she had thrown the tree nearly a country mile, and even if Twilight's magic wasn't working, hers clearly was. Or at least it wasn't working any more poorly than before. “Just stand back. I can't control it very well and if I kill you with an apple tree it will be so wonderfully ironic that I'll probably be lynched instead of thrown out of town.”

“No arguments on that account.” Applejack nodded to Big Mac and the two got a safe distance away. Not that anypony had a clue what the safe distance was. Trixie took a deep breath and pushed at the tree with all her strength. And absolutely nothing happened. The mud didn't even burble. Her magic was acting as dead as Twilight's.

“What am I doing differently?” Trixie asked herself. She'd just moved enough of the ooze to fill a small shed and now she couldn't even get a leaf to flutter. It wasn't a matter of effort. She was trying just as hard as before. The only difference was... “Last time I was trying to move myself!” Her eyes went wide. “And then it moved everything around me because it bounced off!”

Trixie considered her options for a moment then tried to push herself away from the tree. There was a creaking and groaning sound as the wood started to move, but it was coming to her more easily now. It felt backwards, trying to shove herself away from the tree, and the force was far from precise, but she felt like she at least had a little control. She cranked it up a few notches (from a solid three on the Trixie-ometer to a seven) and the tree rose up.

“Trixie has it!” She crowed happily. Then she almost lost it. She might have had control over the amount of power but it still felt like it was as slick as ice, even the slightest change of force having a huge effect. She carefully maneuvered the tree into the geyser then shoved down, planting it firmly into the hole, driving it almost crown-deep in the soil. The mud slowed and stopped. “Yes! Trixie did it! The Great and-” She stopped herself and coughed. “I mean, um-”

Applejack walked up and slapped her on the back. “Nice work! Ah'll have to ask Dash ta keep the rain outta this field for a bit so all this muck can dry up, an' well have to replant a bit, but ain't worse than some of the floods we've had in the spring.”

“Trixie!” Twilight was hopping at the edge of the patch of mud.

“Ah think you'd better go before she starts with her crazy worryin' and ends up almost destroyin' Ponyville via paranoia an' overthinkin'.” She looked at Twilight. "Jes try not to let her blow up the town."
> Knowledge Is Power
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 3: Knowledge Is Power
by MagnetBolt



“So let's get the facts straight. First, all magic cast directly on or at you seems to just bounce off back at the person casting it.” Twilight paced around Trixie. They were standing in the library, Trixie surrounded in a circle of small mirrors and candles. Twilight had been trying and failing to get a look at whatever magic was affecting her. So far she'd only caught ghosts of ghosts of suggestions of images.

“Second, you can't seem to directly use any magic within a certain range. If you use a small enough amount of power, like to create those fireworks or smoke clouds, it works almost normally. If you really focus and use all of your power, it breaks through but you have no real control.” Twilight stopped to think.

“Third, any magic you cast on yourself gets bounced away, but you have some control over where it goes.” Spike rolled his eyes at that, picking up another stack of overturned books and putting them down next to the bookshelf they belonged on.

“Enough control that we need to get somepony to fix three of these bookcases,” the little dragon said. “I still don't know how you managed to break the couch. Guess I can get a new one when I go out to get Twilight more quills...”

“Trixie would like to note that control, in this case, is an overstatement. It is like... trying to eat soup with a ten hoof long spoon. Even the smallest change Trixie makes means the magic goes all over the place!” The current state of the library was a testament to that. If Trixie moved slowly and carefully she could almost pretend things were normal, but it was a hair trigger between moving something an inch and throwing it across the room. If she was tired or frustrated any fine control was impossible.

“Right.” Twilight nodded. “Fourth, magic that bounces off of you seems to get enhanced. Rarity trying to pick you up almost put her through the ceiling. Just trying to get yourself unstuck from the mud you blasted out a crater in it.”

“Wonderful. Trixie is a walking disaster zone.”

“Fifth,” Twilight continued, ignoring Trixie putting herself down again. “For some reason you're immune to whatever is in this ooze that's blocking magic. Of course since you reflect magic and it absorbs magic, we can't find anything out about it!”

“Can I leave the circle now?” Trixie asked. Twilight shrugged. Trixie walked out. “What about your research? You must have a record or something. Nopony who had seen this... stuff...” She pointed at the ooze. “Would avoid writing about it.”

“That's true,” Twilight said. “But maybe we're looking in the wrong place. My library is only so big. I can write a letter to Princess Celestia and we can go through the Canterlot Archives! They have things in there that nopony else would have!”

“We?” Trixie looked nervous. “You might be a Princess, but I can't just show up at the castle.”

“It'll be fine! We'll just take the train and...” Twilight trailed off. “Maybe the train isn't such a good idea. I mean statistically it's fine but, um. It didn't work so well last time.” Twilight's sprained wing and Trixie's bandaged leg were proof of that. “And we can't teleport since if I try to do that with you, I'll end up banishing myself to the moon or something.”

“So what, we're going to walk all the way? It's a bit far, in case you haven't noticed.” Trixie sat down on a pillow.

“I've got a better idea. I'll ask the princess to send a carriage. She can have the Canterlot librarians go through the archives while we're waiting, and tomorrow we'll go there and see what they've found. Otherwise we'd have to wait hours anyway. They don't like it much when strangers start going through the rare books section.”

“Guess that's my cue,” Spike sighed, going to find an unbroken quill and inkpot amid the mess that had overtaken the library. He started digging in a likely pile.

“That's probably a good option,” Trixie agreed, nodding. “But you don't have to go to this much trouble for me.”

“Well if you'd prefer, you can think of this as repaying me. I've never seen a magical effect like this.” Twilight sat down next to Trixie. “It's a fascinating puzzle. I have a feeling with a little more information we can find out what happened.”

“Maybe it's a side effect of using the Alicorn Amulet,” Trixie suggested. “I barely used any magic since then. Could it be a curse on people who take it off?”

“I don't know. I didn't see any reference to a curse beyond making the wearer succumb to their own darkest desires.” Twilight levitated a book over. “Before we leave, is there anypony else you want to apologize to?”

Trixie wasn't sure where to start, and her thinking was interrupted with a knock on the door. Twilight looked over.

“Come in!” She yelled, and a yellow pegasus quietly entered. She looked vaguely familiar, but Trixie couldn't quite place her. “Oh, hello Fluttershy. Did you need something?”

“Um. I didn't know you had company.” The pegausus looked away and started backing up out the door. “I'm sorry. I can come back later...”

“No, no, it's okay!” Twilight smiled and stood up, ushering Fluttershy inside to sit her down across the table from Trixie. “How about you two talk and I'll compose the letter to the Princess? I'm sure you have a lot to talk about.”

“I don't think we have a lot to...” Fluttershy trailed off as Twilight dragged Spike away to give the two a little privacy.

“She means that she wants me to apologize to you,” Trixie explained with a sigh. “I think you're the last one on the list, aside from some kind of apology to the mayor for putting her in a birdcage, and Snips and Snails for, well, a long list of things. Not that Trixie needs to apologize to them after they got all of her worldly possessions crushed by an Ursa Minor!”

“Oh...” Fluttershy touched a book, adjusting it slightly to make it square with the edge of the table. “I don't think you really need to apologize to me. You weren't all bad, like when you let the beavers out of your glass jar spell. Most ponies wouldn't have listened, especially if they were busy being tyrannical dictators ruling with an iron hoof.”

“I...” Trixie considered how to take that. It had been phrased so nicely, and Fluttershy was so quiet. She decided to leave it at face value. “Regardless, Trixie apologizes. I hope you can forgive me.” The mare nodded quietly, smiling a little but still not looking at Trixie.

“It's good that you're trying to be nice. Things would be much easier if everypony was nice to each other.” Fluttershy moved another book, stacking it on top of the first. “Um. Are you going to be staying in Ponyville for long?”

“I'm going to Canterlot in the morning. Probably. Why do you ask?”

“Oh, it's nothing really... I was just thinking that it would be nice if you stayed. You seem like you're really lonely and, um, it's a lot easier to make friends here.” Fluttershy blushed and picked up another book. “I used to be really lonely too.”

“I don't-” Trixie was going to protest that she didn't get lonely but the words died on her tongue. “I don't know how long I'll be in Canterlot. But I'll try to come back when I'm done. If anypony in town even wants a washed-up performer to hang around, anyway.”

“Most ponies in the town actually kind of liked you until the time you took over town,” Fluttershy said. “Not that I talk to a lot of them. I just heard it around. They mostly blamed Snips and Snails for the Ursa Minor.”

“I didn't know,” Trixie said, quietly. “I thought if I came back to town everypony would just laugh me right back out again.”

Fluttershy looked up, alarmed at the suggestion. “Oh no, nopony is as mean as that! Especially not after you lost your cart...”

“They were just things,” Trixie said, smiling a little. “It was everything I owned but it didn't matter much. And I don't really have good memories of it anymore, so it's for the best. I went back to the rock farm to make a clean start. Until Twilight showed up I thought that just meant trying to be everything I hadn't been before.” She looked across the library to where the alicorn was dictating a letter to Spike.

“What about now?” Fluttershy asked.

“Hm?” Trixie had gotten distracted for a moment. “Oh. Well, I guess I learned that atoning means apologizing instead of just punishing yourself. Trying to fix myself doesn't matter unless I use my experience to fix what I did wrong.” She thought for a second and laughed. “Trixie sounds like an old lecturing nag.”

“Oh no, I thought you had it just right.” Fluttershy smiled warmly.


***


“This is such a bad idea,” Trixie muttered as one of the stern-looking guards helped her into the carriage. She barely felt awake. Twilight's guest bed had been all too comfortable and the alicorn had almost had to kick her out from under the covers.

“Come on, Trixie, it's perfectly safe. It's not like it can derail.” Twilight easily stepped up, quietly motioning for the guards to stop bowing. “Celestia travels this way all the time. It's probably the safest way to get to Canterlot.”

“She's got wings,” Trixie pointed out. “And she's immortal!” Twilight smiled nervously.

“It'll be fine,” Twilight reassured her again. The pegasus guards  took off, easily bearing the palanquin into the air. Trixie watched the ground drop away with some trepidation. “What's wrong? You act like you've never gone flying before.”

“I haven't!” Trixie said, backing up until she couldn't see over the edge. “It's not like I have pegasus friends or go for private lessons with Princess Celestia!”

“You don't have to make it sound like having friends is my fault,” Twilight replied quietly. Trixie groaned and sat down.

“I didn't mean to say it like that.” Trixie said, looking away. Unfortunately that made her gaze go right over to the ground that was already far below them. She paled and focused on her hooves. “Don't look down, Trixie...”

“You're going to make friends too, as long as you don't hide alone in some shack,” Twilight said. “I mean I consider you a friend. And I'm sure a lot of the others do, too. You're a lot less, um, overbearing than you used to be.” She smiled weakly.


***


Once the spires of Canterlot came into view, Trixie only felt even more nervous. She'd never really met royalty before, not counting Twilight, and the one time she'd tried taking her show to Canterlot she'd been unable to find a stage and then gotten kicked out after performing on the street without a license. She really hoped the Princess wasn't going to take her short but very present criminal record into account.

They were put down in front of the Palace, and Trixie was more than happy to have Twilight take the lead. The purple alicorn started towards the doors and they swung open wide, golden-armored guards playing trumpets as a flash of blazing white light was visible for a moment, fading to reveal the graceful alabaster form of Princess Celestia. She smiled down at the two.

“Twilight, it's good to see you again.” Celestia smiled warmly. “It has been too long since I was able to see my favorite former student.” She stepped towards them. Trixie started to bow, and the alicorn laughed. “And you must be The Great and Powerful Trixie. Please, don't bow. From what I've heard about you such humility is ill-becoming.” She gave the blue unicorn a mischievous smile.

“I-it's just Trixie, your majesty.” Trixie said, quietly, as she rose.

“Well, then you can just call me Celestia.” The princess motioned for them to follow her inside. They fell into step, Trixie falling behind. It had been easy enough to forget what Twilight was while in her library in Ponyville. Here, though, there were ponies saluting, and the larger-than-life form of the Princess walking silently a few paces ahead. Trixie felt more out of place than she had since magic kindergarten.

“Did you get word to the archivists?” Twilight asked, as she sped up a moment to walk alongside Celestia. “I don't know how much they've been able to find but-”

“Don't worry,” Celestia said. She was as calm as a cloudless sky. “They've been looking all night. There's even a team going through the unpublished manuscripts. We have a few hours before they'll be ready to give a detailed report of their findings.”

“I'm not worried. I just want to make sure Trixie isn't in any danger.”

“I am quite sure she has been more than safe enough in your hooves,” Celestia glanced back, smiling with her expression unreadable. “Though I didn't think she was quite so shy.”


***


“Trixie is not okay with this!” The blue unicorn's eyes went wide as a bolt of blue light struck her and rebounded, fizzling out as it hit a shield around its caster, Celestia. The princess had been throwing spell after spell at Trixie.

“Seeing how the curse affecting you reacts to magic is the best way to figure out what it is,” Twilight explained again, as the beam suddenly changed color and reflected at a slightly different angle. “It's not the easiest way to get information, but it's not like it's hurting you, right?” She smiled hopefully.

“Trixie doesn't see why the Princess needs to be the one to attack her!”

“Twilight and I are of equal rank,” Celestia said. “Regardless of which of us was casting the spells, you would be under attack by a Princess. And my former student is far better equipped to analyze the results.” Celestia turned to look at Twilight. “In fact, why don't we take a break? I'm sure you'll want to cross-reference your findings so far.”

“You're right!” Twilight went to grab for a quill and found them gone. “What? When did I run out of quills? And where's the paper?!” She started looking around, picking up books and moving the writing desk to look behind it.

“There should be more in the supply closet. I trust you still remember where it is?” Celestia smiled. Twilight nodded and ran off. Once she was gone, the quills and paper were returned to the desk from where they had been floating among the rafters.

“That was a mean trick,” Trixie said, not really sounding displeased since it meant she was getting a break from having beams of deadly magic flung at her.

“She's very precious to me, but she still needs to learn a few things. Only pegasai ever think to look up for something that's gone missing.” Celestia smiled. “And I wanted to spend a few moments alone with the mare that has been occupying my fellow Princess' thoughts so much recently.”

“And you couldn't order her away since you're the same rank.”

“I could ask her, and she would follow it like an order, but I want to avoid doing it. She needs to learn how to be a leader, and following my orders even after becoming my equal is the wrong way to do it.” Celestia motioned for Trixie to sit next to her. “I want her to be ready to assume her duties when it's her time.”

“What duties?” Trixie asked. Celestia smiled, looking down at her. She leaned down like she was going to whisper something into Trixie's ear, then stopped and pulled back, grinning.

“You'll find out,” She said, mysteriously. “She still has some growing to do first. Can you imagine if she was in charge of raising the sun?”

“Mornings wouldn't start until practically noon because she'd have to go through a ten page checklist before doing anything.” Trixie snorted, then stopped herself. “Though if they did, Trixie would be able to sleep in more...” Trixie trailed off in thought. Celestia coughed politely to break her train of thought.

“So, you two are quite close,” Celestia noted. Trixie blushed. “What do you think of my former student?”

Trixie looked up at the Princess nervously. “What do you mean?”

“You used to be one of her most powerful rivals, and now you two are close friends. I suppose I'm just curious and a little nosy about how close you two are.” Celestia smiled.

“H-how close?!” Trixie stammered. “Trixie is-”

“Remember, lying to a Princess can be a severe crime.” Celestia prodded Trixie in the side.

“What? Then if, hypothetically, I had lied to Twilight-” Trixie swallowed. “Of course it is a purely theoretical situation! But if it had, perhaps, come to happen...”

“Up to fifty years in the dungeon.”

Trixie gasped. “She wouldn't do that!”

“Sister, are thou teasing this foal?” Luna was walking up to them from behind, having entered silently while they were talking. The Princess of the Night looked seriously at Celestia. “I would hope thou would have better taste than to make jest about banishing somepony.”

“Luna, this is Trixie Lulamoon.”

“Ah! The Lulamoon clan! It is good to see that name is still alive!” Luna looked pleased, smiling and walking up to Trixie to examine her more closely. “Your family were once among my most devoted followers!”

“They were?” Trixie asked, surprised. Luna nodded.

“Indeed. Where did you find this foal, sister? It is unkind of you to hide such a present from me.”

Celestia looked down at Trixie. “I believe the first time we met was at my school for gifted unicorns. You put on quite a show for your final exam.”


***


“Trixie Lulamoon,” The instructor called. Trixie walked out past the curtain, the lights blinding her for a moment as she became the center of attention. It was her first time on stage, and she was trying hard not to show just how much she was sweating. The foals were taken before a panel of instructors one at a time, and they weren't allowed to see each others performances. Trixie's jaw dropped as she saw the massive and graceful form of Princess Celestia watching from behind the panel, sipping tea and discussing something quietly with the headmaster.

“Your scores on the written part of the exam were passable.” Trixie would learn later that she'd scored second in her class. “But you're going to have to impress us quite a bit with the practical portion. First, basic levitation. Please keep as many of the testing cubes in the air at one time as possible.” Trixie looked down at them. She had no idea how many earned a passing grade, but there were ten in total. No doubt most of the unicorns were able to manage all of them, or nearly so.

Trixie focused on one and lifted it. It was easy. The cubes weren't particularly heavy, only weighing as much as a standard reference pear. But each additional cube was an exponential effort more. After the fourth, it was like trying to lift boulders. She was never going to be able to get all of the off the ground! She looked out into the darkness of the seats and saw Celestia there. She couldn't bear to embarrass herself in front of the Princess.

Then something clicked, and she realized what she could do. She threw one of the cubes up, letting go of it with her magic, making all of them feel lighter, and started juggling them. Even with her talents it was easy to get all ten in the air at once like that, adjusting them here and there but only having to keep a grip on one or two at a time. Trixie smiled. The judges watched her with raised eyebrows. The headmaster looked angry. He stood up as if to say something before the Princess whispered something and he sat down.

“By the rules, that is technically all ten cubes, though I believe we will have to amend those rules before next year's class,” the instructor said, marking something down. “You may put them down now.” Trixie did so one at a time with a flourish, making a show of it and leaving them stacked neatly.

“Next, you are going to demonstrate a basic familiarity with battle magic. Professor Pentacle?” The older stallion stepped onto the stage, walking to a painted circle on the floor.

“I want you to hit me as hard as you can. Don't worry about hurting me. You won't be able to.” He smirked. Trixie frowned. How dare he assume that she couldn't stand up to him? Someday, Trixie would be great and powerful and would show them all! The air gleamed around him as a magical shield appeared like a bubble around him. Trixie stood her ground, bracing herself. She'd have to give it everything she got.

There was a whistling sound as light blossomed at the tip of her horn, then a bolt of lightning blared out, striking the shield and dissipating. Sparks flew, and the shield rippled, but it was useless. The defense was holding perfectly. Trixie was going to fail!

She panicked and tried to think of what to do. There wasn't anything she could do to break the shield with her power! The professor had decades of training on her! It was totally unfair! Shivering with anger, she stamped a hoof. The stage floor echoed, the empty space under making her stamp ring loud. Trixie gasped. The professor was shielded, but he was still standing on the stage! That was what she could do!

Trixie charged up again and fired another bolt of lightning. Not at the professor this time, but at the stage under him, just before the shield. The board cracked and broke.

“Trixie-” The professor started. But before he could finish whatever he was about to say, Trixie yelled with effort and kept the bolt going, dragging it to the right, blasting the floor out from under him. The professor screamed with surprise and fell, his shield popping. There was a crash as he landed on the concrete floor a few feet below. Gasps came from the assembled panel, and even Celestia looked shocked. Trixie shivered. Had she done something wrong?

“Ugh...” Professor Pentacle pulled himself up and back onto the stage. His mane was a mess and he was covered in dust. “Well, far be it from me to tell somepony to hit me as hard as they can and be upset when they do it.” He looked at the other instructors. “No harm done except to my pride. I suppose it was a solution of sorts, though.” He tried to hide a limp as he left the stage. Trixie panted and caught her breath while he sat down, nursing a twisted hoof.

“And lastly,” the instructor on the panel said. “Show us something of your own devising. Impress us.” Trixie blinked at the request. Just impress them? Impress professors who had seen just about everything? Impress the Princess?! How was she supposed to do that? Trixie wasn't even sure what they wanted from her. Then she remembered advice that the theatre teacher, Miss Masquerade, had given her. The trick to improvisation was to be confident, remain in character, and take something you already knew well and use it to fill in the blanks.

Trixie took a deep breath and fixed her expression in a confident and determined stare. Or at least that's what she hoped she was projecting.

“Behold, the might of the Great and Powerful Trixie!” Her horn lit up, and she filled the air with every illusion and firework spell she could think of, and a few she made up on the spot. It was another thing Miss Masquerade had taught her. If you couldn't give the audience something of substance, then give them as much razzle-dazzle as you could manage.


***


“...they had to do the rest of the exams in classrooms,” Celestia explained to her sister. “It took them a week to repair the damage to the stage and the burns on the theatre roof.”

“I didn't mean to cause that much damage,” Trixie said, blushing and ashamed. “Trixie has just been causing trouble ever since she was a foal.”

“Trouble?” Celestia laughed. “I thought it was a wonderful display. They were rather creative solutions to the first two tests. All of the other students were rather prosaic in comparison.” She sipped from a cup of tea and continued. “The average for the first test still holds at three cubes, I believe, and even managing to hit the professor in the second test is a passing grade.”

“How did Twilight do?” Trixie asked, curious.

“As you would expect, my most faithful student barely made it to the testing hall at all. She had been studying so hard the night before that she had passed out and only woke up a few minutes before testing closed. Her solutions weren't as... creative as yours. She managed nine cubes and used a Disrupt Magic spell to lower the professor's shield for the second portion. Thankfully he wasn't badly hurt, but his mane never was the same.”

“Oh...” Trixie looked down. The gulf in power between her and Twilight seemed even larger than ever. Even now she probably wasn't capable of what Twilight had managed as a foal.

“Twilight was inconsolable for weeks. She thought not getting all ten cubes meant she failed. Of course it didn't help that one of her classmates did manage it, even if there was a footnote to that achievement.” Celestia nudged Trixie.

“Hah! Tis better to be clever than strong.” Luna looked out the window. “As I have learned through harsh lessons, being mighty means nothing if you have not the wisdom to use it properly.” Celestia gave her a sad look.

“When Twilight beat me the first time, I was angry because I lost everything. My wagon, almost everything I owned, and the respect I tried to earn.” Trixie prodded a pillow with a hoof idly. “I wanted to get revenge on her, and I just ended up hurting a lot of people to do it. Then she beat me again with my own tricks.”

“Were you angry at her?” Celestia asked.

Trixie shook her head. “No. Once I could think clearly I felt awful about everything that had happened. I just wanted to make everypony forget about me.”

“You still came back to apologize to Twilight. I recognized those fireworks you used, you know,” The solar princess smiled. “It was a nice touch.”

“Trixie owed her for putting her through all that.” The unicorn sighed and laid down on the pillows. “She treated me far more kindly than I would have in the same circumstances.”

“Twilight Sparkle is possessed of a great capacity for friendship,” Luna said, nodding. “It is her greatest talent, more than her magical prowess.”

The purple princess in question burst into the room with enough quills, ink, and paper to supply a small school. “I'm back! I grabbed everything they had just in case we start to run out again! She stopped. Oh, hi Luna!” Her eyes drifted to the desk where there was already paper and ink.

“We found some quills while you were gone,” Celestia explained. It was technically true.


***


Hours later, Celestia and Luna had retired to perform their duties. Most of their time was taken up by holding court and the countless appointments that they had to attend to. Twilight wondered just how many of those appointments had been put aside on a moment's notice just so she could come up and study what had happened to Trixie.

It made her wonder if it was because she was a Princess herself or if it was because Celestia just trusted her that much.

“Twilight, are the Princesses always so...” Trixie moved her hoof in small circles as she searched for a term that wouldn't quite be offensive. “...Informal?”

“That probably just means they like you.” Twilight smiled back at her. “Which is good. It'd be awkward if they didn't like one of my friends.” Trixie blushed at that. “Anyway, I've got good news and bad news. Which one do you want first?”

“Give Trixie the bad news first. She can handle it.” The unicorn braced herself for the worst.

“The bad news is that whatever happened to you, it could be permanent. I found some notes on that ribbon you had wrapped around your horn to block the magic.” Twilight brought a book over. “They were first made around the time Luna was exiled to the moon as a sign of ultimate mourning. Some unicorns thought that magic had led to her downfall, so they decided to give it up permanently.”

“That was also Trixie's intention.”

“I'm aware of the parallel.”

“Trixie could have told you all of that herself, though. She found it in her own research.” The unicorn waved a hoof lazily.

“Well did you know about the malfunctions?” Twilight raised an eyebrow. Trixie stopped waving, freezing in place. A bead of sweat dripped down from her brow.

“Trixie... was not aware of any problems with the ribbons.”

“They went out of style because they permanently damaged unicorn's magic. They'd end up crippled for life, and they'd only find out after they wanted their magic back.” Twilight turned the page. “And that's not all. Because of the way the ribbons were made, they were particularly vulnerable to outside magical influence. One notable example is when a unicorn walked in range of a warmth spell and spontaneously combusted!” There was a woodcut print of the event. It looked incredibly gruesome.

Trixie shuddered. “But Trixie hasn't been around any magic! I was on a rock farm!”

“You're forgetting that ooze.”

“The... magic canceling ooze. That we got all over ourselves.”

“That's the one. Ready for the good news?”

Trixie nodded slowly.

“I found out why no one had ever written much about the ooze. Well, two reasons. First, anypony who did find it had a heck of a time finding anything out about it, so all the notes were never published. Thankfully, the archive here has the original manuscripts! So that's a lot of information, even if it is mostly all notes about failed experiments.”

“Wonderful. Did the notes tell you how it ended up under an apple farm and in the middle of a forest?” Twilight had to pull out bundles of scrolls and papers so old that they were starting to fall apart into dust.

“Not exactly. They mention an ancient witch named Bibbidi Boo. It says she created an ooze creature called the Smooze that grew and became more powerful by consuming magic. Celestia and Luna worked together to stop her shortly before...” Twilight trailed off.

“Before Luna went crazy with loneliness, yes. Thank you. Trixie is smart enough to figure that part out.” The unicorn tried to carefully turn the next page on her own but stopped when her lack of precision and control caused it to start tearing.

“It's not only that. Celestia got nearly all the credit for Bibbidi Boo's defeat. I don't want to press them on it, but given the timing, some scholars suggest it's one of the things that finally pushed Luna over the edge. She saved all of Equestria and no one gave her any credit.”

“Ugh. I know that feeling.” Trixie stuck out her tongue. “Trixie has saved countless ponies from all sorts of disasters, yes because of one minor incident with an Ursa Minor, she gets no credit for any of it!” Twilight gave her a look. “Some of my stories may be exaggerated a bit, but Trixie really has defeated monsters before.”

“What really bothers me is that Celestia never mentioned anything,” Twilight said. “I mean, shouldn't she recognize the ooze? What if Bibbidi Boo is back? I mean, everything else seems to be coming back. Luna, the Crystal Empire, Discord...”

“Tis a time of prophesy,” Luna agreed. Twilight and Trixie nearly jumped out of their skins. “Many things that once were will be again.” The alicorn was laying down right behind them. How long had she been there before they noticed?

“Luna, we didn't know you were there,” Twilight said, looking guilty.

“I am aware,” Luna said, tilting her head. “But as to why my sister didn't mention Bibbidi Boo, it is because that witch cannot come back.” Luna looked very sure. “Sombra and the Crystal Empire merely vanished. I was banished to the moon. Discord was turned to stone. Unlike all of them, we were not able to give Bibbidi such a forgiving fate. Even the Elements of Harmony were unable to harm her or her creation, and in the end, we were forced to make a terrible choice to save Equestria.”

“You killed her,” Twilight whispered, shocked.

“I did what I had to do in order to save my sister's life. She did not agree with my decision, nor did many of our court. I have had a thousand years to think about the blood on my hooves, and if I had to make the same decision again, I would not hesitate. Equestria needed Celestia more than it needed the life of a witch who would not yield in her own insanity.”

“There had to be another way-”

“No, Twilight. There was not. If there had been another way I would have taken it. And if you had been in my position, being forced to choose between the life of my beloved sister and Bibbidi Boo, you would have done the same.”

Twilight looked down, obviously deep in thought. Trixie looked at Luna. “Princess, for what it's worth, I'm sorry you had to make that kind of decision.”

“Tis better than not having the will to make a decision at all.” Luna folded her hooves. “If this slime is indeed the same as appeared long ago, it means it may have well been in vain. Either the Smooze has escaped on its own, which I find unlikely, or somepony has managed to replicate Bibbidi's spell and is using it for their own evil ends.”

Twilight frowned. “Why would somepony intentionally try to just... ruin Equestria?”
> A Mare's Gotta Do
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 4: A Mare's Gotta Do
by MagnetBolt



“My old bedroom! I can't believe the Princesses had it kept just how it used to be!” Twilight ran over to the stuffed bookshelves. There were only a few gaps in the rows of books. “It's not even dusty. How did they do that? It got dusty in here even when I was living here every day!”

“Trixie would guess it's clean because there isn't a unicorn living in here and telling the cleaning staff to go away so she can read.” Trixie looked out the window down to the city below. “You really did have everything I never had...”

“...I don't mean to pry, but I don't really know a lot about your life before you came to Ponyville. I mean, aside from going to the same school as I did.”

“And getting better grades on the final exam,” Trixie noted. Twilight nodded for a moment before the words really sunk in.

“What?!”


***


“...That was totally cheating!” Twilight said, stomping a hoof after Trixie finished her story. “That doesn't count at all! I spent years trying to figure out how somepony beat me!”

“Trixie can't help that the rules were somewhat more open to interpretation than you expected.” When she had retold the story, she had made herself sound considerably less afraid than she had actually been, and forgot to mention that it had taken a word from the Princess to keep her rather creative solutions from making her retake magic kindergarten.

“It's still cheating even if it isn't against the rules!” Twilight's ear twitched.

“Trixie is fairly certain that not being against the rules is one of the definitions of fair play.”

“Fair Play?! It only worked because they hadn't invented rules to disallow it! You're barely even technically correct!”

“Trixie thinks that technically correct is the best kind.” She touched her mane, striking a flattering pose. Twilight groaned.

“You're just lucky I can't go back and fail you myself.” Twilight paused for a moment dramatically. “Or maybe I can! I mean, I am a princess. I bet you'd love to go back to school and show them how talented you are. I mean sure, you'll be older than some of their teachers...”

“Hmph. Even if you did change her grades, Trixie wouldn't bother with school again. It didn't get me anywhere last time.” She folded her hooves.

“Well they probably would have done more if you had earned them fairly. So what, you graduated school and hit the road with your magic show?”

Trixie sighed. “If only it was that easy.” She looked at Twilight. “You probably went right from school to staying here at the palace for private tutoring, right?” The Princess nodded. “I didn't have that luxury. When I graduated school I had to find work.”

“Work? What about your parents?”

Trixie looked down. “Well that would have been nice. But my mother was a traveling showmare. I never knew who my father was, and she'd always make up all sorts of stories. She'd tell me he was secretly Canterlot Royalty, or that he was on the run from the law for a crime he didn't commit, or that he died tragically saving us. Once she even tried to convince me that I had no father and that I was a magical virgin birth.”

“But they can't all be true. Which story was the truth?”

Trixie smiled up at Twilight. “Twilight, that should be obvious. They're all true.”

“Even the lies?”

“Especially the lies. That's part of being a showpony. You have to reinvent yourself for each audience. Sometimes that means you ride into town and dazzle them in town square. Sometimes that means you entertain children at a birthday party. If you're lucky it means you don't have to busk on the street. And trust me, if you'd seen how poorly I play instruments you'd agree that most of the time when I am forced to busk people are paying me to stop.”

“So after school you went back on the road with your mother.”

“No. I got into school on a scholarship and my mother promised to come back for me when I graduated. She went out on the circuit one day and was never seen again. I wish I had some story to tell you about it, but I looked for years and somewhere between Canterlot and Manehattan she just... vanished. I never even found a scrap of wood from a broken cart.”

“I'm so sorry, Trixie. I never knew...”

“It's better like this.” Trixie turned to look out the window, facing away from Twilight again. “I spent weeks just crying. The teachers were kind enough to keep a roof over my head, but when the new semester started, and I saw all the parents dropping off their foals...” Trixie shrugged. “I left before they could put me in an orphanage and went looking for my mother.”

“And never found anything,” Twilight whispered. She walked over and sat next to the blue unicorn.

“I'm sure you can fill in the rest. I wandered around, and my only real skills were some simple magic tricks I had learned in school and what I remembered from my mother. I gave up looking for her years ago. If she's still alive she doesn't want me to find her.”

“I'm sorry.”

“You're sorry? Ah, Trixie sees how it is! You saw how much better her grades were than yours, and you felt the only way to get revenge was to seduce Trixie's mother and run off with her to Las Pegasus!”

“What?!”

“Oh, so that's not it? Then you shouldn't apologize. You did nothing wrong and Trixie told you of her own free will. Maybe next time Trixie will tell you a happier tale, of one of her great adventures. If you ask nicely she might even tell you the truth.”

Twilight smiled. “I'd like that.”

“Then Trixie will tell you. In the morning.” She yawned. “Now, where are the beds?”

“Um...” Twilight blushed. “There's actually... only bed. Singular. I never had two beds while I was living here. I didn't have any friends so I never needed it.”

“Oh.” Trixie sighed. “Well, that's fine. If you give Trixie a blanket and a pillow she'll be quite comfortable on the floor.”

“No!” Twilight said, with a frown. “You're my guest and I won't have you sleep on the castle floor! I'd feel like an awful friend.”

“And Trixie can't force a Princess out of her own bed!” Trixie stood and stomped a hoof. “It's inexcusable. Even if you order it, Trixie won't do something so crass. She has her pride, after all.”

“Look, there's only one way an argument like this ever ends in pretty much every book I've read.” Twilight left out that all of the books with that argument could be shelved in the romance section. “We'll just share the bed. It's big enough for both of us.”


***


“This bed is not big enough for both of us.” Trixie said, her voice muffled slightly by the feathers in her face.

“I swear it was a lot bigger when I lived here!” Twilight frowned. “Even if I was alone. And smaller. And had fewer limbs...” She sighed. “Maybe one of us is going to have to sleep on the floor after all.”

“The only way this is going to work is if you turn around so your wings aren't in my face!”

Twilight turned over so she was facing Trixie. “Sorry. Is that better?”

“Yes,” Trixie admitted. It was still a little too close for comfort. “At least Trixie won't be smothered by downy feathers while she's trying to sleep.”

“That would be a hard one to explain to Celestia. 'Oh Twilight, where's your friend?' 'Sorry, Princess, there was an accident again. Can you get me a shovel and keep everypony out of the back garden for a few hours?'” Twilight and Trixie shared a laugh.

“If you asked nicely maybe she'd send my corpse to the moon.”

“You know she doesn't do that to everything, right?”

“I know. It's just a funny rumor like how she constantly eats cake.”

“Well, um, about that one...” Twilight looked nervous. “That one's kinda true. I don't think I've ever seen her go a full day without cake. I mean didn't you ever wonder who invented National Cake Appreciation Day, or Baked Goods Month?”

“I suppose it's good to be the Princess.”

“Yeah,” Twilight said, smiling. “I mean, um. Not that I eat cake like that!”

“Well I had thought you looked somewhat more... generously figured than when we last met.”

“It's not true!” Twilight gasped. “I- It's just a habit from living here! And Pinkie Pie makes really good cupcakes! I eat a lot of healthy food to compensate! I can go on a diet, no problem!”

“Relax, Twilight. I'm kidding. You look fine.” Trixie blushed. Thankfully it was too dark for anypony to tell. Twilight started to get up.

“No, no. I should go make a quick list to make sure I remember to watch what I eat, and I think I have a few books on proper exercise. If I follow pegasus exercises it should basically be right-”

“Twilight!” Trixie groaned. “Just be quiet and go to sleep. It's bad enough we have to wake up at some unnatural hour just so we can see the Princesses before the Day Court begins. Trixie needs her beauty sleep and doesn't need it interrupted by a purple princess who decides to do research when even Luna would think it's too late!”

“Alright...” Twilight said, with a sigh.

“Besides, Trixie has already solved the problem. You can pull Trixie's chariot on the way back to Ponyville. It will be excellent exercise.” They shared another laugh before falling asleep on the soft bed.


***


“No, Trixie, don't!” Twilight screamed. Trixie laughed as she flung the last of the royal guards out of her new throne room. Twilight and her friends were bound with collars and chains to Trixie's new golden throne. Trixie adjusted her new crown, twisted gold and black in a spiked spiral that looked almost organic, like a seashell.

“Trixie is now the ruler of all of Equestria. Thanks to her new powers, no pony can stand before her!” Trixie laughed with dark joy. “Now no pony will be able to look down on Trixie!”

“Trixie Lulamoon!” Celestia shouted. The roof collapsed as a blast of solar energy tore through it, admitting the Princess from above. “This has gone too far. I should have known you could never be trusted. All you care about is power.”

“There's nothing you can do to stop me,” Trixie said, smiling. “Your magic is useless against me, all of your guards are defeated, and I even have your precious student to myself.” Trixie picked up Twilight with her magic and put her down close enough for the unicorn to stroke her hair. With a flourish, she draped Twilight in silks and jewelry.

“T-Trixie!” Twilight blushed.

“See, Princess? All mine!” Trixie stroked the little alicorn's mane.

“I'm sorry, Twilight,” Celestia said. “It seems that I am going to have to protect Equestria myself. Trixie, it is with a heavy heart that I must banish you to the moon, forever!” Celestia's eyes blazed with a blinding light as a white bolt of light lanced towards Trixie.

Trixie braced herself, and there was a feeling of bending, like rubber, as the magic scattered away from her, rebounding.

“Hah! Trixie is even immune to your most powerful spell!” Trixie posed. “Now, Twilight, I believe we were about to-” the lavender mare was gone. Trixie blinked. “W-where-” She heard screaming, and looked down to where her other friends had been chained to her throne. Pinkie Pie was slowly turning into starlight, being drawn upwards towards the moon and vanishing. The screaming suddenly stopped.

“When the magic reflected off of you, it hit us!” Fluttershy said, sadly. She started to fade from view. “Now all of us are going to be stuck on the moon for a thousand years.”

“I didn't mean to-” Before Trixie could apologize, Fluttershy was gone, her metal collar clattering to the stone floor.

“Ya shouldn't have lied to everypony,” Applejack said, before she too was gone.

“This is all happening because you weren't willing to make sacrifices for other ponies.” Rarity said. “Ooh, maybe I can start a new lunar collection...” She disappeared, muttering something about spacesuit chic.

“You finally made friends and really screwed it up,” Rainbow Dash groaned. “Now everypony's really going to hate you!” She looked up just before puffing into a twirl of twinking dust.

“No!” Trixie shouted, tears forming in her eyes. Celestia loomed over her.

“And now I'm going to exile you,” Celestia said. “And then lock you in a dungeon where you're exiled! You'll never escape, and in the end no pony will even remember your name.” Trixie cowered before her. “And you know what else?”

Trixie shook her head.

“Stop squeezing so hard!” Celestia yelled, with Twilight's voice.


***


“Mwah?” Trixie gasped, blinking awake. Her face was pressed into something purple and fuzzy and warm and- and a Princess! She gasped and let go.

“You could have warned me you were a cuddler,” Twilight joked sleepily.

“I'm sorry,” Trixie said, turning away.

“You were crying. Were you having a bad dream?” Twilight sat up to look at her. Trixie took a few deep breaths to steady herself.

“It was just a stupid nightmare. It didn't even make sense.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Trixie shook her head. Twilight shrugged and stretched.

“It's time to get up anyway.” The princess hopped out of bed. “Celestia will be raising the sun soon. We'll be meeting her right after that.” Trixie looked out the window. It was still dark.

“How can you even tell?” She slowly got out from under the covers.

“Oh, well, you know. I lived here for a long time. I guess I just know. Like I heard the cooks and the gardener using the well outside, and the maids always make a lot of noise getting Celestia's morning tea together.” Twilight lit a candle to brighten up the room.

“I was expecting something more impressive.” Trixie walked over to a mirror and tried to fix her mane. Unfortunately with her poor aim she ended up yelping as she pulled her own hair.

“What, like alicorn magic?” Twilight smiled and grabbed the brush with her magic to help Trixie with her mane. “Sorry. I guess it's a little disappointing to hear it's just a trick.”

“It's not a very good trick if you explain how it's done,” Trixie said. “Half of magic comes from not knowing how the magician did it. I've seen earth ponies manage sleights of hoof that made people check them for a hidden horn.”

“I'm not trying to trick you.” Twilight smiled. Trixie blushed again. “Now let's go see how Celestia is doing.”


***


Trixie watched Celestia levitate another dainty bite of cake to her mouth. She was on her second piece. Luna and Twilight had stopped after one. Trixie had politely declined.

“So, you want to go to Bibbidi Boo's lair,” Celestia said quietly. “It isn't a place I would willingly send you. Even my magic would be blocked my the Smooze. Truthfully, I had worked to put it out of my mind since the events that occurred so long ago.”

“Tis the place they must go,” Luna countered. “Even if only to be sure that we were not mistaken about the fate of that witch.”

“After what happened I believe we can be quite sure,” Celestia said, putting her cake down. “I will send word to have the rest of the Elements of Harmony brought here.”

“Oh, there's no need,” Twilight said, with a smile. “I'll just bring Trixie.”

“What?” Trixie asked, blinking. “Trixie can't go on an adventure! Trixie can't even get on a train without it turning into a disaster!”

“Trixie, you saved my life a few times already. Besides, don't you want to be one of the great heroes who saved Equestria? For real this time?”

“I... suppose.” Trixie conceded.

“Besides, I need you.” Twilight reached over to put her hoof on Trixie's. “You're the only pony who can use magic where we'll be going. Whoever's controlling the Smooze won't be expecting anypony to be able to do that! We'll have the element of surprise!”

“I suppose it's my responsibility to help.” Trixie glanced down at Twilight's hoof. “And if I'm going to be a living disaster zone I might as well do it somewhere I won't hurt anypony else.”

“That's the spirit!” Luna said. “Come! I know my sister wishes to speak with Twilight in private. I will assist you with preparing for this great adventure!” Luna stood. Trixie swallowed and followed. Celestia took another bite of cake as they left.

“You have a lot of faith in her,” Celestia noted.

“We're a lot alike, I think. Maybe if I hadn't been so lucky and had a great family and friends, I would have ended up falling into the same place she did.” Twilight looked towards the door. “And she's really not that bad once you get to know her.”

“Oh, I can tell.” Celestia smirked and her horn glowed as she plucked a long silver hair from Twilight's mane. “It seems you two are very close already.”

Twilight turned bright red. “It's not like that!”

“Is that so?” Celestia's eyes widened in mock surprise. “I suppose we could get Princess Cadence to visit so we can be sure.”

“Princess, it's not like that!” Twilight frowned, pouting and blushing. “I mean sure, we have a similar taste in books. And we both have the same special talent. And went to the same school. In the same class. And we were both lonely. But that's just all stuff we have in common! It doesn't really mean anything except that we have stuff in common.”

“Well, I'm certain you'd know best,” Celestia said, keeping her voice neutral and trying not to laugh.


***


“And thou will need armor.” Luna strapped dark armor to Trixie, the Unicorn helpless to resist. It was the leaden color of Luna's personal guard. Her coat flashed as it resisted the enchantment designed to change its color, the magic turning the tough straps instead. “Tis lucky my guard is still so few. We have plenty of suits to spare.” Luna adjusted some of the straps. They were standing in a dusty armory. Despite their obvious age, the weapons and armor stored there were in excellent condition. Trixie wondered if they were enchanted to resist the ravages of age.

“Is this really a good idea?” Trixie asked. “It's heavy, and Trixie has never worn armor before.”

“You will be the bodyguard for a princess!” Luna exclaimed. “You will need to be protected for when you throw yourself into danger on her behalf!”

“I'm immune to magic. Isn't that basically safe enough?”

“Tis good if thou are planning on getting in the way of sorcerous attacks, but it would do little against an opponent who is aware of your condition.” Luna stepped to a rack of spears and grabbed one. “For example!” She threw it at Trixie. The mare shrieked in alarm, flinching. The spear glanced off the armor.

“What are you doing?!” Trixie demanded. “I could have been killed!”

“I was being careful,” Luna said. “You wouldn't have gotten hurt. But you must remember that whatever protection you have is of little use if your opponent decides to throw a spear or a rock at you. T'would be ironic if you allowed yourself to be killed by something so primitive.”

“Well Trixie doesn't like having spears thrown at her,” Trixie said. Luna laughed.

“Good! No pony should!” Luna grabbed some saddlebags and attached them to Trixie. “You'll also need rope, and torches, and crampons-”

“Crampons?”

“Aye! In case you need to walk on ice.” Luna packed more. “And marbles.”

“Marbles?!”

“You can use marbles to check for a slope, or to set a trap for enemies that will cause them to fall. Marbles are always useful on an adventure, as long as you don't lose them.” Luna giggled at her joke. “And you'll need climbing spikes so you can anchor rope and spike doors open or closed. And waterproof blankets! And...”


***


“Sister! I have prepared Consort Lulamoon for the adventure!” Luna burst into the room excitedly. “I outfitted her just as we always used to!”

“Oh Luna...” Celestia facehoofed as Trixie awkwardly walked into the room, overloaded with enough equipment to fill a cart. She awkwardly clutched a long stick in her mouth. “Consort?”

“She isn't a Princess and needed a title.”

“Does she really need all of that stuff?” Twilight asked. Luna nodded.

“Of course! My sister and I once went on many adventures together. Often it was the unexpected that saved our lives and allowed us to rescue Equestria from a terrible evil.” Trixie spat out the pole. Twilight picked it up with her magic and looked at it curiously.

“Even this?”

“A ten-hoof pole is among the most vital and important tools in any adventurer's arsenal!”

“Um. If you say so.” Twilight looked skeptical. “Trixie are you even going to be able to carry all of that?”

“I might make it all the way to the stairs,” Trixie said, sitting down heavily. A tambourine rolled out of one of her overstuffed saddlebags, clattering on the floor. Celestia sighed and put her tea down.

“Luna, perhaps you and I could discuss something for a moment? Twilight, why don't you help Trixie repack some of that?” Celestia led Luna away while Twilight walked over and opened up the bags, spilling their contents.

“Luna packed half of the castle!” Twilight whispered, surprised.

“It sure feels like it,” Trixie complained. Twilight pulled a heavy pot out of a bag. “I couldn't just tell her to stop! She's a Princess!”

“Daring Do never packs like this,” Twilight noted. “Though Rarity does. Maybe she and Luna have a lot in common- why do you have a full set of kitchen knives?”

“Apparently in case I need to prepare a gourmet meal while in the field,” Trixie said, rolling her eyes. After a few more minutes, Twilight had things sorted out, taking what she thought were the most important things and leaving the rest in a pile for the maids to clean up. Trixie shifted the load on her back.

“Much better. The last thing I need is to have to drag you back here because you collapse from exhaustion.” Twilight smiled. Trixie felt uncomfortable, and it wasn't the armor.

“Why do you want to go with me instead of your friends? Tell me the truth.”

“You're still the only one who can use magic against the Smooze. And...” Twilight looked towards Celestia and Luna, who were arguing about the benefits of bringing marbles. Well, Luna was arguing. Loudly. In the Royal Canterlot Voice. “...I thought that if you went on an adventure it might help you feel better about yourself.” Twilight blushed.

“You're going to risk the fate of Equestria on trying to make me feel better?” Trixie raised an eyebrow at that. Twilight laughed nervously. “Is that really something a Princess should do?”

“Celestia has put important things in my hooves before too, because she trusts me. After what you did in the forest and the way you were willing to apologize to everypony, I want to believe I can trust you like that too.”

“FINE, SISTER, BUT WE WILL HAVE WORDS ABOUT THIS!” Luna stormed back over to Trixie and Twilight. “Unfortunately, my sister has pointed out that thou are but little ponies and can't be expected to carry every implement that has ever come in handy to my sister and I. I would still request you take the most important things.”

“Of course they will, Luna,” Celestia assured her. “They're both quite wise for their age. And I'm sure between Twilight's planning skills and Trixie's improvisation, they'll be just fine.”

“Yeah,” Twilight agreed. “We've got a map, supplies, I sent a letter to my friends so they know where we are, and I memorized all of the notes on what happened when you two were there. Everything's going to be fine. If we get into real trouble we'll back off and wait for help.”

“I know if anypony can solve this, it's you.” Celestia smiled.

“Oh! I almost forgot!” Luna ran over to Trixie and kissed her on the cheek. Trixie and Twilight both turned bright red. “Tis a kiss for good luck. Fortune is always a welcome addition to an adventure, and will not weigh thy packs down.”


***


“When did you two get so friendly?” Twilight asked, with an eyebrow raised. Trixie stammered, not sure what to say. They were taking one of the Princesses' flying chariots out to the mountain where Bibbidi Boo had made her lair.

“I didn't- She just-” Trixie touched her cheek where Luna had kissed her. Twilight gave her a stern look then started laughing.

“I'm sure she didn't mean anything by it. It was probably just some old crazy tradition, like bringing firewood along with you on an adventure.” Twilight hesitated. “I mean, unless she did mean something. Did you two do anything inappropriate while you were alone?”

“No!”

“She called you a consort.”

“While Trixie is certain that many mares and even royalty desire her perfect body, she has not done anything inappropriate with Princess Luna.” Trixie huffed. “She is just a very determined and forceful mare who has some rather old-fashioned ideas about appropriate behavior.”

“Old-fashioned, huh?” Twilight considered. “Does that include a last-minute makeout session? I don't remember that from any history books.”

“Trixie and Luna were not 'making out'!” Trixie yelled. “She simply gave me a kiss for good luck! A chaste kiss on the cheek! B-besides, Trixie is sure that Princesses don't do those sorts of things. Princess Celestia and Luna don't have-”

“Consorts?” Twilight finished. Trixie buried her face in her hooves. “I don't know how to break this to you, but my brother is married to a Princess. And while I try really hard to block it out when Cadence starts going into detail about just what my brother does to her when they're alone, I have permanently ruined any image I had of alicorns being pure and chaste.”

“And now you ruined Trixie's mental image too!” Trixie wailed. “Now Trixie will never be able to look at Princess Cadence...” Trixie hesitated. “...Who is your sister-in-law. Ugh. Why is everypony that Trixie knows so much more important than she is?!”

“Heh...” Twilight smiled nervously.

“Sorry. I don't mean... Part of me still wants to be the center of attention.”

“Maybe you should look at it a different way,” Twilight suggested. “You used to be a spectacle for small-town ponies. Now you're the type of pony who has private audiences with Luna and Celestia and goes on adventures with another Princess.”

“...When you put it that way...” Trixie blushed. “I suppose it does make it sound better.”

“And I think they like you,” Twilight added. “I mean, obviously Luna does.”

“I'm not her consort! I didn't even lay a hoof on her!”

“That's not what I meant.” Twilight laughed. “Do you know anything about the Lulamoon family and Luna?” Trixie shook her head. “I looked into it. Apparently they were Luna's most faithful servants and basically controlled half of the noble court. There were rumors that, well, Luna did have a consort. Or two.”

“Do you think she expects me to...” Trixie blushed harder.

“No! I... hope not.” Twilight looked unsure. “Anyway, after Luna was banished to the moon, they lost a lot of favor with the rest of the nobility. They didn't do anything wrong, but most of them ended up being run out of Canterlot because people assumed they were as bad as Nightmare Moon. They were the ones who invented that ribbon you had. Most of them ended up changing their names and finding work where they could, which actually helped spread unicorns around Equestria, since before that they were almost entirely in Canterlot. After a few generations this actually resulted in the creation of today's strong middle class- I'm boring you, aren't I?”

“No, it's fine. I like hearing it.” Trixie was looking down at the clouds below. “I never got to learn much about my family. My mother was all I had.”

“I did find a few other stories,” Twilight said, smiling. “One book I read had the story of Imbrium Lulamoon...”


***


“...and that's why the Crystal Empire was lost!” Twilight finished.

“To think it all started with a reference pear and a deck of cards,” Trixie replied, shaking her head. “I mean that makes so much sense. I wondered why King Sombra was so evil.”

“I know. Before I found out, I thought he wasn't much more than a disembodied evil force that kept mumbling about crystals.” Twilight sighed.

“Ma'am, we're here,” one of the Royal Guards pulling the carriage said, looking back over his shoulder. “Where do you want us to put down?” Twilight and Trixie stopped to look down.

“Put us down in that clearing.” Twilight pointed. “We can walk the rest of the way.”

“I should have asked before,” Trixie said, quietly. “How is your wing? If we get in trouble, are you going to be able to fly?”

Twilight stretched it and winced. “It's gonna have to be pretty bad trouble. I think I can fly for a little while but it's gonna hurt a lot.” The carriage landed, and Trixie got off first, still carrying that long pole. The royal guard who had spoken up looked at the two.

“Excuse me, Princess. I know we were instructed to stay back to let you handle this, but if you ask it, we'd be happy to go with you.” The other guards nodded agreement. Twilight smiled.

“Don't worry. This is a magic problem, and it needs a magic solution. Besides, we need you here to help us make a quick escape once everything starts to explode.”

“Is it likely to explode?” the guard asked.

“Given past experience, I'd say it's even odds.” Twilight wiggled a hoof.

“Trixie would prefer to avoid any unintentional explosions today,” Trixie said. The guard looked at the armored unicorn sternly.

“Remember, its your duty to keep the Princess safe.” He said. Trixie raised an eyebrow. “That's Royal Guard armor. If you fail while wearing it, we all fail. And since the Princess is the Captain's little sister, I wouldn't want to be you if she gets hurt on your watch.”

“What?” Trixie blinked. “I'm just wearing this because Luna shoved me into it!”

“Come on, bodyguard,” Twilight said, pushing her before it turned into an argument. “Let's not complain about how you got drafted.” Trixie grumbled as they started walking on the old, overgrown trail towards the cave that led to the underground lair of the witch. Trixie managed to get out of earshot before she started complaining again.

“I'm not part of the Royal Guard,” Trixie muttered. “I should just find somewhere and dump this stupid armor.”

“It might come in handy,” Twilight said, with a shrug of her wings. “Besides, I think it looks good on you. It's very... heroic.”

“It is?”

“Sure. Even if it does make your coat look a little darker. Maybe when we get back we can make it official.” Twilight giggled. “Princess Celestia never assigned any guards to me, but my brother keeps bothering me about it. He wants to make sure I'm safe. Plus Luna thinks it's improper for a princess to go around without any staff.”

“Oh yes, that would just be perfect. We can get Spike a little set too. Then Trixie can order him to stand outside the library with one of Luna's ten-hoof poles and keep all visitors away until they've been screened. Actually, Trixie suspects Spike would prefer that to having to put your books away all day.”

“Well I'd still need somepony to do shelving. Unless the Great and Powerful Consort Trixie is willing to lower herself to menial labor...”

“I've done a lot of menial labor- and stop calling me Consort!” She tapped Twilight on the flank lightly with the long pole she was carrying in her magic. “It was bad enough that Luna did it. Trixie doesn't want people to think she's just a trophy to parade around! The only one allowed to parade Trixie around is Trixie!”

“That doesn't even make sense.” Twilight was hit with the pole a little harder. She jumped and laughed. “Alright, alright! I promise I'll stop.”

“Good.” Trixie stumbled as her hoof sunk into wet earth. Twilight stopped as Trixie took a step back. There was a wet, sickly sound as the hole she'd made with her hoof closed. “Ugh. There's mud already.” Trixie looked around. The ground under her was firm, but it looked the same as the danger she'd stumbled into.

“This area must be being undermined by the Smooze,” Twilight said. “It must just be really close to the surface here. We're going to have to watch our steps. The way it took that train car back in the forest, if we sink they might never find us again.”

“Hm...” Trixie considered.

“I know! I bet I can cast a spell to find where the ground is softest!” Twilight clapped her hooves. “Oh! I could use a variant of Cloudhoof's Firefly Cloak! If I put it on the ground, maybe it'll only glow where it's safe to walk!” Twilight quickly whipped up a spell and flung it towards the ground. For a brief moment, it seemed to work. But instead of going dim where the magic-absorbing smooze was close to the surface, the whole things unraveled and tore apart.

“Is that bad or very bad?” Trixie asked. Twilight sighed.

“Just regular bad. I could probably cast it a few more times, but I don't think we can memorize where it's safe to step after just seeing it for a second or two.”

“There must be an easier way...” Trixie thought, twirling the long pole idly as she considered. Then she looked at the pole, an idea dawning. “I know!” She prodded the ground firmly, feeling it with the long stick. “Luna was right about this thing coming in handy. Just follow me. Try to step where I step.”

“That's a great idea, Trixie!” Twilight smiled and let the other mare lead the way. It was slow-going but Trixie was able to keep them out of the mud. They made their way towards an ominous looking cave entrance. From the air it hadn't looked like anything, but at this low angle it had the grim visage of a pony's skull.

“This is it,” Twilight said. “Princess Celestia wrote about looking at this cave. It hasn't changed at all in a thousand years.”

“Trixie does appreciate the flair for the dramatic, though. If she were an evil sorceress witch she would also want a remote mountain lair with a skull motif.”

“Really? I thought you'd want a big bright lair in the middle of Las Pegasus. All bright lights and your face everywhere, with fine dining and entertainment.”

“No, that is what Trixie wants as a non-evil sorceress witch. Evil witches have standards to meet. Haven't you read any stories? Daring Do never fights an evil cult in a posh high-rise. They have to be somewhere secret, full of death traps and minions and darkness.”

“Um, Trixie. I have bad news.” Twilight had turned around, and bumped into Trixie's flank. “Those minions? I think we just found some.” Trixie paled and turned around slowly. A half dozen figures silently watched them, blocking off the way they had come. They were ponies, but there was something wrong with them. They looked dirty, caked with partially dried mud, their manes just unkempt tangles. Their eyes looked black and distant.

“Get behind me,” Trixie whispered.

“What are you going to do?” Twilight asked. Trixie swallowed.

“Trixie has a plan. You have to follow Trixie's instructions exactly. Can you do that?” Twilight nodded. “Good. Now what we're going to do is-” Trixie squeezed her eyes shut and tried to launch fireworks directly into herself. The magic rebounded and strengthened, a cascade of blasts and sparks erupting outwards. “RUN FOR IT!”
> Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 5: Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
By MagnetBolt



“Run for it.” Twilight grumbled. “That was a great plan, Trixie. Now we're lost in an endless cave deep under the surface of Equestria!” Her shout echoed strangely, for a few moments seeming to come from all around them. Their horns were glowing and providing the only light, though Trixie's was flickering and unstable like an open flame.

“What was I supposed to do, throw a rock at them?” Trixie frowned and kicked at a stalagmite. She'd lost the ten-hoof pole she'd been carrying, though she regretted it now. Luna had been right about it coming in handy. “Adventures are awful. No pony ever tells stories about the heroes getting lost in a dark cave.”

“Trust me, there's always a lot more of this than there is anything else.” Twilight sighed. “This is almost as bad as when I was trapped in the crystal caverns under Canterlot with Cadence, except we're trying to find some lair instead of just a way out.”

“Did that book you found have a map of the cavern?” Trixie asked.

Twilight shook her head. “No. And the Princesses didn't remember the layout either. Luna told me it was like a maze.”

“Well, do you have any books about solving mazes?” Trixie looked back. Twilight gasped.

“Yes!” Twilight smiled. “I mean, not with me. But after the hedge maze with Discord, I read a bunch of books on how to find your way through mazes! A cave should work the same way. What we'll do is, we'll use the right-hoof rule. We navigate like we're keeping our right hoof on the wall. It's not the fastest way to solve a maze, but it's simple and it should work. The only real problem is that sometimes you have to go through the whole maze to get to the end.”

“As long as we get to the end, I don't care.” Trixie looked back. “I'll lead the way.” She started walking, taking a turn as they came to it. The cavern was dark, damp, and quiet. Twilight coughed to try and break the unnerving silence.

“If Pinkie Pie were here she'd probably break out into song about now,” Twilight said. “I mean, not that I'd rather have her here than you. Sorry. I'm just nervous.”

“Trixie doesn't really... sing.” Trixie sighed. “I tried it for my stage shows, a few times. It wasn't worth cleaning the tomatoes from my wagon. I mean, I didn't even sing when I turned evil and took over Ponyville! If there was ever a time in my life to break out into song, that was it.”

“I guess,” Twilight said. “So maybe something else? Like a story?”

“Now that's something Trixie can do!” Trixie smirked. “Though most of Trixie's stories aren't appropriate here. The last thing we need is for me to start telling a scary story and get ourselves worked up before we even find out what's going on.”

“What if you told me... a real story? About yourself?”

“I suppose I could do that... but what kind of story?”

“Something happy. How about a love story?” Twilight smiled. Trixie blushed red at the suggestion. “Um. If it's not too forward. R-romance stories are my favorite thing to read, but if you don't want to tell me, it's okay.”

“Trixie doesn't usually tell this kind of story, so forgive her if it doesn't come out right...”


***


The first time Trixie had fallen in love had been a few years before she'd gone to Ponyville for the first time. She'd barely been more than a foal. She had been settling into her routine as a showpony and went to one of her usual haunts, a tiny town south of Manehattan called Troton. She had made it a normal part of her route because the people were friendly, they tipped well, and they had very loose local laws about street performances.

She wasn't the only performer in town this time. An earth pony mare had taken her usual spot in town square and was playing, of all things, a standing harp. Trixie didn't know much about music, but she could tell that the mare was playing her heart out, and that she was exceptionally good at it, especially considering she was playing the difficult instrument without the benefit of magic.

Trixie set up on the other side of the square. It irked her a little to lose her favorite place, but not enough to try and make the other mare move. Trixie did a few small shows to warm up, just a simple trick routine with a few twists to suit the audience. She did a little storytelling, a few feats of sorcery, and some close-up magic with volunteers from the audience. It wasn't her best or most dramatic show – she always saved that for the day she was due to leave town. This was just something to get the word out that she was here, and to make a little money to pay for food.

After night fell and the town grew quiet, Trixie closed up shop. She noticed the harp-playing mare from before was doing the same but, unlike Trixie, didn't have her own wagon. She was keeping almost everything she owned in her instrument case. Trixie locked up and went to get dinner, managing to get some day-old bread from a baker along with the leftovers from a vegetable stand. She went and found somewhere quiet to eat.

And she found another mare there already, that same harpist. She was simply sitting and watching the stars. Trixie was going to leave, but was stopped when the mare introduced herself and apologized for taking Trixie's spot. She was named Angelsong, an attractive mare with a blue coat so light it was almost white, a golden mane, and eyes that were the brass finish of a fine instrument. She was new to the life of a showpony, and Trixie sat with her and regaled her of tales of life on the road, the good times and the bad times. When Angelsong's stomach grumbled, Trixie shared her food with her, and the two mares had a private dinner between new friends.

The next day the two went back to their sides of the plaza and played, but neither was able to make much money. It was before lunch when Angelsong took a break from playing and approached Trixie with an offer, to work together, where she would provide music for Trixie's dramatic tales. After going over things quickly, they improvised a performance of the take of Prince Heartblood and his true love, the griffoness Queen Gytha. The two had fallen in love while Equestria was at the brink of war with the Griffons, and their tale was tragic until, in the end, they decided to abandon duty to country and people for their love, bringing about an end to the war by uniting their families in marriage.

Angelsong's playing made the story all the more dramatic, so that even Trixie's silences could carry the great weight of the story they were telling. Trixie gave it her all, using every trick she knew to illustrate the tale. By the climax of the story, when the two leaders had abandoned their thrones, they had gathered a great crowd. Foals and ponies alike gasped as Trixie detailed the way the griffons and ponies worked to find their leaders, only for them to appear together, wed, on the battlefield. Prince Heartblood's denouncement of the war, and Queen Gytha's final challenge against her corrupt vizier, had them on the edge of their seats.

It was the first time Trixie had ever received a standing applause at the end of one of her tales. While they were taking bows, Angelsong hugged Trixie in front of the crowd and kissed her. It had shocked the mare, but she was enough of a showpony to not let it show. When the kiss made the crowd throw in even more money, Trixie returned it, not sure what she was feeling.

The two mares split the profits down the middle. Trixie considered herself as having done more work, but she was feeling generous and could see how the extended show had tired Angelsong. The two discussed the next performance, and it wasn't until later that night, when Trixie had offered room in her wagon to Angelsong so her things would be safe from predators, that their discussion turned to each other.

Angelsong told Trixie her own story, that she was a dropout from an elite musical school who had left to avoid her family's wishes. They'd wanted her to get married to somepony she barely knew and to give up her instrument so she could focus on business. Angelsong ran away a few weeks ago, and was finding life on her own to be difficult.

Trixie had never felt anything for another pony before. At least not since her first crush when she was a foal (and she refuses to discuss who it was on). She hadn't realized it could come on so quickly.  She told Angelsong a little about herself, and asked about the kiss. Angelsong just laughed.

The two played two more songs the next day. While not the same blockbuster smash as that first tale, they were easily among the best performances Trixie had ever given. Even splitting the profits she had already made more than she'd planned to for the whole time in Troton, and her final show wasn't going to be until tomorrow.

Trixie arranged to have a romantic dinner with Angelsong, and things went quickly, almost too quickly. They shared a bed that night and neither got much sleep. When Trixie woke up, she was alone. Angelsong had left, taken her things with her before dawn. Trixie wasted almost a whole day trying to find her, only to discover she'd left town entirely. She'd left a note for Trixie, telling her it had been fun, but that was all it had been.

Trixie never saw her again.


***


“...She probably went back to her family. They were rich, and, well, I wasn't. Not everypony wants to live on the road. I should have known she'd never cut it when I saw her dragging that harp around but part of me wanted it to work.” Trixie shrugged, sniffling. “Sorry if it's not a happy story. I don't really have any happy stories about me.”

“I thought it was beautiful,” Twilight said, softly. “I never knew you were such a romantic.”

“It's not romantic.” Trixie corrected. “If it was romantic I would have run off to find her and swept her off her feet before she got away from me. It wouldn't have just ended there because I was too hurt to go after her.”

“I'd rather hear about how it really happened, even if it isn't as dramatic.” Twilight smiled. “Getting to know you was what I wanted all along, before we found this trouble and got into a giant mess. And now you don't have to be alone. You've got me.” Twilight blushed. “A-and all of our other friends too! We'll be there for you, even if it means telling you to stop being stupid and go after somepony you care about.”

“That means a lot to me,” Trixie said, wiping her eyes. “Thank you. Maybe having real friends will keep me from making so many stupid mistakes in my life.”

“I wouldn't go that far. You wouldn't believe how many I've managed to make even with them!” Twilight laughed, then sighed. “Wow, I wish I was kidding. But I learned a lot too, and I'm a better pony for it.”

“Good to know you aren't completely perfect,” Trixie said. They got to a flight of stairs leading down. “Is it just Trixie or have we gone down these stairs already?”

“That's impossible. We haven't gone up any stairs. We're just going deeper.” Trixie shrugged and walked down. They followed the twisting corridor until they got to stairs again. This time, Twilight frowned and looked at them suspiciously. “Okay, I don't know if this place is just getting to me or if we really did circle around somehow.”

“Could it be magic?” Trixie asked.

“I don't think so. The only pony who's ever done magic around me without me being able to tell is Discord. And he's... I don't even know what to call that. If we're up against something like that  then we might as well not even try to figure this place out, so let's assume it's something else.”

Trixie sat down. “If you hadn't left the chalk at the castle we could mark the walls.”

“I don't think it'd help. The stone's all wet and muddy.” Twilight avoided touching it, just in case. “Chalk might not mark on it. What else do we have?”

“I could go back and you wait here. If we meet up from the other direction we know it loops.” Trixie suggested. Twilight shook her head at that too.

“No way. Splitting up has never worked well, ever.” Twilight sounded firm about that. “We're stronger if we stay together.” She swallowed. “Also, I don't want to be alone down here.”

“Okay, fine, but what else do we have?” Trixie opened up her saddlebags and started looking. “We've got some pens and paper. We could try drawing a map.” A bag fell out onto the floor, marbles spilling out. “Argh!  I didn't even think we brought those!” They started rolling down the hallway. Trixie sighed and let them go.

“Without proper surveying tools?” Twilight looked aghast. “The map wouldn't be accurate!”

“It doesn't need to be accurate. It just needs to be good enough.” This started an argument about what constituted 'good enough', with Twilight refusing to budge and claiming that it needed to be perfectly accurate so they could properly find hidden rooms, while Trixie just wanted to get an idea about where they'd been.

They'd been arguing for almost half an hour and things were starting to get really heated when Trixie accused Twilight's method of just getting them lost when the marbles came back. At the bottom of the stairs. The gentle tink of glass against stone was loud in the blackness, even getting their attention over their raised voices.

“Wait, are those-” Twilight asked. Trixie walked down the stairs to look.

“They are!” Trixie picked one up. “But how did they get down here?”

Twilight rubbed her chin, then gasped. “Of course! We are going in circles! This whole path is just a trap! The stairs make it seem like you're making progress, but then the long path circles around with a gentle slope and you end up right back where you were without even realizing it!”

“Did they just make this whole place to frustrate us?!” Trixie snapped

“Well that is the point of a maze,” Twilight said. “But now that we know the trick, we can beat it. If this corridor was designed to defeat ponies that are trying to solve the maze by following the wall, it means we just have to change tactics. We'll walk until we find somewhere we can take a turn we haven't tried before.”


***


They made more progress, or at least managed to get lose somewhere new. The air was getting more and more moist, and what had been smooth, if damp, stone was quickly becoming covered with a layer of mud.

“We're getting close,” Twilight said. “This stuff is definitely Smooze. It's already wrecking my magic.” Her horn was flickering and starting to go out. Even Trixie's was outshining it now.

“Luna made me take something for just this occasion...” Trixie reached into her bag and pulled out something wrapped in dark cloth. She unwrapped it and it started glowing with green light. “Apparently the pendant is filled with firefly dust.” It wasn't as bright as the light they'd had, but the Smooze wouldn't put it out, either. Trixie fastened it around Twilight's neck.

“How does it look?” Twilight asked.

“It looks like you won't walk into a wall face-first,” Trixie said dryly.

“You know for a royal guard you've got a lot to learn about complimenting your Princess.”

“Trixie will be happy to learn once we're not in mortal danger,” she said. They started walking again, then Trixie slipped and fell. Twlight followed, and the two slid down the corridor until they slammed into a wall. Trixie's armor protected her quite well, but that just gave Twilight an even harder surface to go face-first into.

“...Trixie. You were wrong about not finding walls with my face.” Twilight said, her voice muffled. It took Trixie a moment to realize just where Twilight's face had gone when they'd awkwardly collided. She quickly tried to get up so the Princess' snout wasn't there and only managed to slip again and end up in an even worse position.

“This isn't working,” Trixie said. Twilight said something that was completely muffled by a blue rump. Trixie tried to get up again, more slowly this time, and Twilight gasped as she was able to breathe again. Both of them were blushing bright red.

“This whole corridor is like ice!” Twilight said, trying to get up herself.

“Ah! I know! Luna gave me crampons so we could walk on ice!” Trixie started going through her pack. Twilight coughed.

“I, um. Took those out. They were heavy and I didn't think we'd need them.” Twilight couldn't meet Trixie's gaze. “How was I supposed to know Luna would be right?!”

“Well we're going to need some other plan. Could you fly in here?”

“No. The walls are too close together. Rainbow Dash might be able to do it but, um. My wings are too big. And... I kind of haven't done precision flying yet. She keeps telling me I need to do more training and I sort of skipped it to read a book...”

“I hope it was a good book.”

“It was kind of boring actually.” Twilight coughed. “Anyway, we need a better plan!”

“Ugh. Trixie didn't want to have to try this...” The unicorn pushed on herself with her magic, and after a moment, the mud splattered from around her. The straps on her borrowed armor creaked ominously as she tried to push harder, and she backed off before it tore free.

“How long can you keep that up?” Twilight asked. Trixie shrugged.

“I'll have to go slowly to sweep the floor ahead of you. If we don't get somewhere easier to walk with before I get tired... Well, start thinking of something!”


***


“Okay. I admit. I am completely out of ideas.” Twilight sighed. They'd gotten pretty far, but keeping up constant telekinesis was tiring even for Trixie. It took just as much effort as having to shovel the mud out of the way herself.

“I need to rest for a while,” Trixie said, unsteady on her feet. Twilight helped brace her, pressing her shoulder against Trixie's to keep the unicorn upright.

“There's still a blanket in here,” Twilight said, taking it out of Trixie's saddlebag with a wing. “If we put it down on the ground, we can lie down without getting completely covered in this stuff.” Trixie nodded at the suggestion and stretched it out in the dry spot she'd created before  She almost collapsed onto it the second she was able to.

“This is worse than having to drag a plow through a field full of gravel,” Trixie sighed. Twilight laid down next to her. There wasn't much room on the blanket, so they were forced to lay pressed against each other to stay out of the mud. The warmth wasn't unwelcome in the gloom and cold of the dungeon they found themselves in.

“It's not fun having no magic at all again,” Twilight said. “I feel almost naked without it.”

“You are naked. I'm the one wearing the armor, remember?”

“That's not what I mean. I just feel like... I can't really do anything. I used to have these awful nightmares about not being prepared for something. I'd dream I just kept forgetting about things, really important things, and then when I remembered and tried to do them, it would be too late. Like completely forgetting to go to class, or missing lunch with Princess Celestia, or trying to take a test for a class I didn't remember being in.” Twilight sighed. “They got really bad sometimes. It's why I make lists for everything now. That way I can't possibly forget.”

Trixie snorted. “I took half of my tests without studying at all. The material was so dry and boring. You need to learn to improvise more. How did you manage on all those adventures if you're afraid of a little unexpected test?”

“It's not just the test. It was about what it would make people think if I got something wrong. Everyone knew I was Celestia's student, and so if I did something wrong it meant that I was failing her and that I didn't respect her and then she'd tell me she was disappointed!” Twilight started hyperventilating. Trixie raised an eyebrow and nudged her.

“Please don't start dying on Trixie. If you get killed Trixie will be banished to a dungeon on the moon, or whatever Celestia does to people these days.” Twilight slowly started to relax. “Besides, now you don't have anything to prove. Celestia is your friend instead of your teacher. Trixie, of course, still has no equals.”

“No, you definitely don't.” Twilight smiled and sighed, pressing up against her. Trixie tried to keep still. “You know, I was serious before. When I said you could be my personal guard. I'd actually like that. I know it's not as glamorous as show business, though.”

“Trixie is...” The unicorn sighed and forced herself to drop the facade. “I'm out of show business. I'm an amateur rock farmer now, remember? It doesn't get much less glamorous than that. But you don't want me. You need somepony who's dependable. At least somepony who hasn't tried to completely destroy your life.”

“You are dependable. Even Mister Pie thought so, and he seems like he has high standards. We're a lot alike, and I trust you. Plus, you know. Look at my other friends. Pinkie Pie would be an awful guard, Fluttershy would either hide or end up throwing everypony into a dungeon, Applejack's too busy with her farm, Rarity would never be able to handle standing around in armor, and Rainbow Dash doesn't want any uniform that isn't from the Wonderbolts.”

“Oh, so I'm your last choice.”

“Don't say that!” Twilight started to panic. “I just- I like having you around! And if you were my official guard we could always hang out, and you'd have a really elite job, and...” Twilight hung her head a little. “And I wouldn't feel like I totally ruined your life.”

Trixie's expression softened. “Twilight... don't do that.” She hugged the princess. “You didn't ruin my life. I did. And I've been trying to put it back together, but I realized some of the parts were always broken. I just didn't know how to fix them until now.”

“Until now?”

“If you really want me to be a guard... Trixie will have to do it. She can't just let a friend down, even if it will mean the Pies will have to hire new help for the granite field.” Trixie smiled. “Trixie will have to learn to deal with being among a rather exclusive group.”

“Thank you,” Twilight said, blushing.

“Of course that will only make it easier for Luna to try and steal Trixie away, so Trixie expects you to keep her safe from certain ravaging Princesses of the night.”

“She can't have you!” Twilight said, standing suddenly. “You're my- guard. And, um, friend.” She blushed and settled back down. Trixie laughed. “Can I ask you a really personal question?”

“You've asked Trixie a lot of very personal questions.”

“I know. But just one more?” Trixie shrugged. “I was just wondering... what you thought about me. I mean, I never did a lot of... anything in Canterlot, and in Ponyville I was always jumping from one crisis to another and even when it came up I just avoided it...” Twilight swallowed. “What I mean to say is that I really like spending time with you and when this is over I want to know if you would spend more time with me. Somewhere nice. Instead of a mud cave.”

“Are you trying to ask me out on a date?” Trixie inquired, amused.

“I guess you could put it that way.” Twilight lowered her face and blushed, not able to look at the other mare. “I'm sorry. This is an awful time and now you're going to hate me and this whole adventure is going to be awkward and it's my fault! I should have made a-”

“Yes,” Trixie said. Twilight froze. “I mean, usually it would be improper for the mare to ask the stallion out, but you're of much higher social rank than I am, so it's your prerogative.”

“Wait, why are you the stallion?”

“Because I'm the one wearing armor, and you're a Princess.” Trixie smirked.

“Does this mean I can start calling you Consort?”

“Not unless you want me to forget to guard you the next time an assassin shows up.” Trixie gave Twilight a look. “And I'm probably a terrible date, so if it goes poorly, we're going to pretend it never happened. I don't want to mess things up forever just because I'm an awful pony.”

“It won't get messed up. I'll make a list to make sure we don't forget anything!” There was a rumbling, gurgling sound. Trixie raised an eyebrow.

“Don't tell me you need food that badly.”

“That wasn't my stomach,” Twilight said, with a sudden sense of dread. The two ponies looked back over their shoulders and saw a wave of brown muck surging towards them, filling the passageway. They screamed as it overtook them, the mud enveloping them and sending them careening through stone halls, both of them fighting to keep their heads above water.

"Twilight!" Trixie screamed, blacking out as she slammed into the stone wall.
> Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 6: Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
By MagnetBolt


Trixie walked down the street in her shining new guard armor, adorned in copper and violet to distinguish her from the other Princesses' Royal Guards. This suit had been made just for her, not just taken out of storage and dropped on her, and it fit perfectly. Stallions saluted as she trotted past them, her head held high.

She pushed open the door to the waiting room where her marefriend was waiting for her. Twilight was sitting and reading some ancient tome, probably dug up out of an archive. Maybe literally. Twilight seemed to like older books the best. Trixie walked up to her and coughed to try and get her attention. Twilight raised a hoof for her to wait and kept the other on the page so she wouldn't lose her place. Trixie sat down quietly to allow her to finish.

“What is it?” Twilight asked, after a few moments. She didn't look up from the book. “I'm in the middle of important research.”

“Did you forget? We have a date tonight.” Trixie frowned. Twilight looked up with an eyebrow raised, giving her the same stern, unamused look that Trixie used to see from people right before they told her to leave town.

“A date? Why would I go out on a date with you?” Twilight glared. “I don't even know why you think you're allowed to talk to me. I'm a Princess. You're just a clown.”

“A clown?” Trixie looked down at herself. She wasn't wearing armor. She was in ribbons and loose clothing covered in spots. The ridiculous outfit of a court jester. Bells jangled when she shook her head in shock and growing horror. Trixie heard laughing and turned to see the other guards – the real guards – laughing at her confusion.

“It's more than an idiot like you deserves.” Twilight said, throwing the book at her. “Maybe I should banish you to the moon instead!”

“No!” Trixie screamed.

Twilight laughed at her, the alicorn's expression twisted into a sneer. “You'd probably just get it dirty. Guards, arrest this fool. We don't need her kind in the castle.” Trixie froze as armed unicorns surrounded her. She tried to use her magic to get away, but it just fizzled and made a bleating noise like a sick goat. “Look at how pathetic she is! She can't even use magic!”

“Stop it!” Trixie shivered. “What's wrong with you?”

“What's wrong with me?!” Twilight laughed again. “That's a good joke.”


***


Twilight groaned and shook her head, looking around. Everything was dark. Then a bright light erupted, shining down on her like a spotlight. Twilight shielded her eyes from the sudden dazzling glare, completely blinded for a long moment.

“Twilight Sparkle,” said a familiar voice. Twilight tried to look through the blazing radiance, blinking rapidly. She could see a figure there, projecting the light from her body, the distinctive figure of Princess Celestia. “Why did you do it?”

“Do what?” Twilight asked, feeling shivers of fear rise up along her spine as she heard the tone of her teacher's voice, dripping with barely restrained anger. Worse, she didn't even know why Princess Celestia was so angry at her.

“You destroyed Equestria!” Celestia shouted. The darkness suddenly parted, and Twilight could see the land burning around them. The sun and the moon hung in the sky together, broken like shattered plates. Twilight felt her blood run cold at the sight of cracks in the solar disk itself. Celestia's light dimmed and she saw something even worse, black lines running across the Princess' body, mirroring the damage to the sun.

“But- I didn't do anything!” Twilight protested. She looked around, trying to piece together what had happened. Almost all of the stars were missing from the sky, and as Twilight watched one of the few remaining streaked down, a distant roaring filling the air as it passed behind a mountain. There was a rumble below her and a burst of light from beyond the mountain range as it impacted the earth.

“You failed in your duties as Princess. You failed me and you failed Equestria. Because you were careless and selfish, you let your little crush distract you from doing what really mattered. I hope this was worth it to you, because there's nothing left.”

“N-nothing left?” Twilight asked, shaking. They vanished in a flash, and reappeared in Ponyville. Everything was gray and covered in ash. Twilight looked around slowly, frozen in place by fear. In a flash of light from another falling star, she saw a pony standing across the street with a distinctive hat on her head.

Twilight ran over. “Applejack! What happened?!” Her friend didn't answer. Twilight's eyes went wide when she realized why. Applejack had been turned into crumbling stone. Celestia stepped past Twilight and pushed Applejack with a hoof, the statue falling over and shattering into fragments. Twilight looked down at the eye staring at her from the ground and screamed as it blinked once.


***


Trixie flinched as another tomato splattered across her face. She was knee-deep in rotten produce, locked in a steel cage and being paraded around town. Tears streamed down her face as the crowd jeered at her, hurling obscenities along with the vegetables. She wanted to just curl up and die, but the shackles around her hooves prevented her from even doing that.

“Behold, the GREAT and POWERFUL Trixie!” Twilight yelled from a stage. Trixie's cage was wheeled up before her, stopping right under the dais from where the Princess was looking down at the crowd. “This idiot has committed the crime of thinking herself as being equal to my glory!”

“Please, I just wanted-”

“It doesn't matter what you wanted!” Twilight roared. “You're nothing compared to me! You're living under the sad delusion that fate cares about you! From the moment of your birth you've been nothing but a burden on others!”

“A burden?” Trixie asked, voice breaking.

“You ruined my life,” Somepony said, stepping out of the crowd. Trixie felt her heart clench as she saw her mother for the first time since she was a foal. “Do you know how hard it was trying to take care of you and live a life on the road? I had to give them everything I owned to get you into that school just to get you off my back!”

“I got a scholarship!” Trixie protested. The crowd laughed. Even her mother laughed right in her face.

“You? A scholarship? You couldn't even do the simplest spell! I had to bribe them to let you in! Then when they took you I made sure you'd never be able to find me again. I've been so much happier since I got you out of my life.”

“That can't be true...” Trixie whispered. She collapsed in the cage.

“Isn't it?” Twilight asked. “Why else wouldn't you have ever found her? She didn't want you to see her again! You're such a failure that even a traveling showpony couldn't love you.”

“Tell me about it,” said another voice from the crowd. Angelsong, Trixie's first love, stepped out to stand next to Trixie's mother. “I gave up the life entirely after I saw how pathetic Trixie was. She'd been doing it for years and she was just a lonely wreck who could barely put together a stage show.”

“Oh don't feel so bad,” Trixie's mother said. “My daughter is just awful at it. I'm sure you would have done better on your own. Anypony could.”

“It's not true!” Trixie yelled. “I was the best!”

“The best?!” Twilight laughed as the crowd went silent. “Is that why you were able to beat the Ursa Major? Sorry, the Ursa Minor. No, wait, I did that. Maybe you're the best because you beat me in a magic duel? Except you CHEATED!” Twilight yelled. “And then I still beat you because I'm smarter than you'll ever be!”

“I'm sorry,” Trixie whispered.

“Sorry isn't good enough,” Twilight said, darkly. She gestured, and a guillotine appeared in the spotlight on stage.


***


“You're a failure as a student, as a Princess, and as a pony,” Celestia said. The cracks had gotten worse. One of her eyes was just a black pit now. “Every time you do something on your own, you ruin it. This time you didn't have your friends to bail you out of trouble and we have all paid the price. I was a fool for ever thinking you would be prepared for this kind of responsibility.”

“But I didn't do anything!” Twilight wailed.

“Nothing?!” Celestia dragged her through the streets, past the crumbling remains of what had been her friends. Twilight couldn't stop coughing, the dust covering her, getting into her mouth and nostrils. Celestia pulled her up by her wings and forced Twilight to look. There, looming over town, was a huge statue. It looked like a twisted version of Twilight.

“I don't understand...” Twilight whispered.

“Your greed for power and prestige took you down the same path as Nightmare Moon, and without the Elements of Harmony to stop you, everything was destroyed.”

“That can't be possible!” Twilight gasped, looking up into her own face, the stone locked in a triumphant smile. “I would never do something like this...”

“No? How many times have your spells gone wrong? How many ponies got hurt because of you? Even when you were trying to do the right thing, you just kept failing. You got the town eaten by parasprites. You twisted your friends minds with a want-it-need-it spell. You turned your friend into a vampire! The more power you have the worse things have gotten.”

“That's not true! I saved Equestira over and over again! I'd never... I'd never destroy it!” Twilight sobbed.

“It's too late to cry now. Because you couldn't be a responsible pony, it's all over. Do you even remember how long this took? Three days, Twilight. You begged me to let you learn how to raise the sun and the moon, and that was the beginning of the end. You decided to experiment, and then you got it through your deluded little head that we weren't needed. You made the same mistake you always have, thinking that you were more important than you really are.”

“That can't be true!”

“And it all started when you abandoned your friends because you wanted to spend more time with somepony you barely knew. She was a terrible influence on you, and your ambition became more and more twisted until you were just a monster on the inside.”

“Princess-”

“Shut up, Twilight.” Celestia snarled. “It's too late for apologies. Saying sorry isn't going to bring back your friends, or my sister, or even that useless showpony you cared about. There's only one thing that you can do now.”

Twilight cowered as Celestia's remaining eye blazed with light and her horn was enveloped in a corona of solar energy.

“You can at least die along with the world you destroyed.”


***


Trixie screamed as her head was locked in place, the guillotine's blade hanging over her neck and gleaming in the light. The crowd cheered as they watched her futile struggle.


***


“Do you have any last words?” Twilight asked. Trixie opened her mouth. Twilight jammed an apple into it, making her choke and sputter. “I didn't think so.” Trixie couldn't spit the apple out, and screamed around the gag as Twilight grabbed the lever and the blade screeched, plunging towards her neck.


***


Twilight tried to run as the beam of bright light struck the ground behind her, sweeping towards her, just on her heels. The heat was like a furnace, and she could feel the street shattering under her as she tried to get away from Celestia. She didn't have time to do anything except scream as she was caught, her mane and tail instantly bursting into flame a moment before the rest of her.


***


Twilight and Trixie both gasped as they woke up at almost the same time. As Trixie felt for her neck and Twilight tried to check her mane, they found themselves unable to move. They were held in a web of thick, mucous-like mud that firmly adhered them to a stone wall. And they weren't alone.

“I hope you had pleasant nightmares. The Smooze consumes the joy and magic from your dreams, so I know you weren't having a very good time.” The voice was full of dark confidence and restrained hatred. A burst of red flame erupted as the speaker became visible, a mare with a pure white coat and grey mane, glaring at them with red eyes. Her flank was marked with a red star with five points, the shape slightly distorted and irregular. Around her neck hung a strange gem set into a necklace, a jagged-edged star sapphire so dark it looked almost black.

“Bibbidy Boo?” Twilight gasped. “It can't be! But she looks just like how the Princesses described her!”

“Close, but no cigar,” the mare said. “Bibbidy Boo was one of my ancestors. I shouldn't be surprised the Princesses would send their minions to try and stop me.” She started pacing, watching them. “But they're not the only ones with servants.” She gestured grandly with a hoof and the dead-eyed, mud-covered ponies that Trixie and Twilight had briefly seen before walked slowly into the room, forming a circle around her.

“We're not going to let you destroy Equestria,” Twilight said.

“You're not in any position to stop me!” The mare shouted. “After what they did to my family I deserve this revenge!”

“Ugh! You're doing this all wrong!” Trixie yelled. “You're awful about this evil denouncement speech! You haven't even told us your name! How are we supposed to fear your wrath if we don't even know who you are? Trixie would be doing a much better job as an archenemy. No one can forget the name of the Great and Powerful Trixie!”

“Well I-” The evil mare was thrown off her game by the heckling.

“At least get this started correctly. Tell us your name and why we're afraid of you. Don't be afraid to sell yourself up a little bit. It's better to start off strong.”

“Oh... I've never...” the albino mare considered, then coughed. “Wait, what am I doing? Silence, fool! I am the Great and Powerful-”

“No, I'm the Great and Powerful! You have to pick something else!”

“SILENCE! I am the descendant of the most powerful unicorn to ever live, Bibbidi Boo! I will not be critiqued like some mere street performer!” The gem around her neck started to glow with a terrible red light. Twilight's eyes went wide.

“Trixie maybe we shouldn't make her even more mad?” Twilight whispered. "That amulet she has - I don't know what it is, but it looks powerful. The shape is almost like one of the Elements of Harmony."

“Don't be silly,” Trixie said, coyly. “She'll get cross and make a mistake.” She cleared her throat. “I still didn't catch your name.”

“Babbidi! Babbidi Boo!” The unicorn said, fuming with anger.

“Trixie commends you on the accomplishment of having a name. But it still lacks a reason to fear you.” Trixie squirmed a little. “Trixie means this is uncomfortable but there are mares who would pay somepony to tie them up half so well. You have to explain how dangerous you are or else Trixie will assume you're simply a spa owner too involved with mud baths and her own kinks.”

“WHAT?!” Babbidi screamed. “I'm the most powerful living unicorn in Equestria! I wield a force that nearly toppled the corrupt royalty of this land!”

“Second most powerful,” Trixie corrected. “Trixie doesn't like to brag... Actually, Trixie loves to brag. Perhaps Trixie should tell you about how she single-hoovedly defeated an Ursa Major?”

“But-” Twilight started. Trixie shushed her.

“An Ursa Major?! You have no idea what kind of forces I have at my command!” Babbidi started pacing, the gem she wore pulsing like a heartbeat. “Once my plans are complete, Equestria and all of its magic will be at my hooves! Everypony will be reduced to my mindless servants!”

“Trixie finds this hard to believe. It's just mud.”

“You just- the Princesses have sent idiots to do their work! Have they forgotten how powerful I am?! Clearly they didn't even tell you what the Smooze can do!”

“So far Trixie has found that it absolutely ruins her coat and requires scrubbing to remove.”

“It absorbs magic and love, you idiot!” Babbidi screamed. “It channels all of it to me and turns its victims into puppets under my control!” She walked over to one of the mud-covered ponies. “Look at them. Totally drained of all desire, dead inside except for the nightmares the Smooze brings them. I wonder if they even know what's going on?”

“You're sick,” Twilight said, shivering.

“See?” Trixie said. “Now you're starting to get a reaction from your audience. It's still not very impressive though. We don't even know what your plan is. For all we know we just stumbled into your lair and you're feeling grumpy. Trixie doesn't feel very threatened by somepony who's just grumpy.”

“I'M NOT GRUMPY!” Babbidi screamed. “I'm a dangerous and powerful sorceress who has had enough of some noisy little strumpet trying to tell her what to do!” The ooze around Twilight and Triie shifted as Babbidi's horn blared with bright red magic, sparks and an aura of unnatural light erupting from it. “I'm going to cover Equestria in my Smooze and channel all of its magic into me, making me a god that even Celestia and Luna can't stand up against!”

“There we go!" Trixie gasped, fighting to keep her mouth clear. “You just have to really own it and yell about your brilliant and evil plan! Trixie gives your performance a solid seven out of ten. It would be eight if you had a more intimidating outfit.”

“I've had enough of your babbling. The Smooze will turn you into my slaves!” A ripple of red magic erupted from Babbidi Boo's horn and gem, surging over the ooze and spreading across the floor from the witch as the slime completely closed over Twilight and Trixie.


***


“What a fitting end,” Babbidi Boo said, smirking as she turned away from the no-doubt already enslaved ponies. “Perhaps when the Princesses come to kill me like they killed my ancestor I'll send those two out first to greet them!” She laughed to herself and patted one of her minions on the shoulder. The dirt-covered earth pony didn't say anything coherent, just mumbling something, lost in his nightmares.

“Hmph. My ancestor did mention that the most annoying thing was that you idiots wouldn't be any good for conversation.” Babbidi strode back to her throne. Once it had been Bibbidi's, but the Princesses had smashed it after they'd murdered her. It had taken Babbidi years to put the geomantic magic back together enough to allow her to absorb the power the Smooze was stealing. When she sat down she could feel it flow into her and through her, sinking into her bones. She felt like she could do anything.

“I suppose I'll have to speed up my plans,” Babbidi said, casually, to no on in particular. Once the ponies she had enslaved had been colleagues, friends, people she met in her journey to seek out her birthright. But they'd all tried to abandon her, called her mad or even evil.

Of course she was evil. She wasn't under any illusions about that. But it was still very rude for anypony to just say that to her face. They deserved to be turned into mindless minions. She smiled to herself and relaxed on her throne, playing with her amulet. She felt like she could break out into song. Clearing her throat, Babbidi prepared herself for a glorious chorus of villainy, with her minions providing backup vocals and music punctuated by the gurgles and bubbling sounds of the Smooze.

Instead, there was a blast of blue magic and one of her two enemies tore herself free – impossibly – from the mud cocoon she'd been encased in. The armored unicorn landed heavily on her hooves as she shook the last few splatters of mud from her coat.

“Well, that was unpleasant,” she said. Babbidi's jaw dropped as she watched.

“But... how did you... that's impossible!”

“Nothing is impossible for the Great and Powerful Trixie!” The unicorn exclaimed. Her horn lit up and with a burst of magical energy the mud around her was thrown aside, leaving her standing on dull gray stone.

“The Smooze is supposed to absorb your magic! Even Celestia couldn't cast a cantrip!” Babbidi jumped to her hooves and glared down at Trixie. “Minions, subdue her!” Babbidi waved a hoof, and the dead-eyed stallions and mares closed on Trixie. The unicorn took a deep breath, then cast a spell, a wave of blinding explosions and bursts radiating out of her. Babbidi's minions stumbled back blindly, only to be flung away one at a time, each one carefully being thrown into sticky, entangling mud.

“Useless minions... No matter! With all of this power I've absorbed it will only take seconds to defeat you with my own magic.” Babbidi reared up, her horn gathering power. She could feel it coursing through her, more power than she'd ever had before, enough that she could feel it almost erupting from her body.

A bolt of crackling red fire smashed into the blue mare, more than enough to reduce her to blackened bones. Babbidi laughed to herself and turned away.

“That was all too easy. I have no idea why Bibbidi failed. With this much power I can probably just turn Canterlot into dust, Princesses and all!” She laughed again at the thought of the ponies there being wiped out by a wave of unstoppable fire as if from the depths of Tartarus itself.

“What was too easy?” Trixie asked. Babbidi's eye twitched and she turned to look. The blue mare smirked up at her, the ground around her scorched and smoking but totally untouched herself. It was almost as impossible as her breaking free of the Smooze.

“I see I was wrong to take you so lightly,” Babbidi said, regaining her composure as if it was nothing. “You're clearly a master of the defensive arts. I might even have to expend some tiny amount of effort to destroy you. Feel proud of this accomplishment.”

“Trixie welcomes your pathetic attempts to try, but she warns you that Trixie is the Greatest and Most Powerful unicorn in all of Equestria! Your magic cannot even touch her.” Trixie smirked. Babbidi's eye twitched again.

“You merely have the magic of one pony!” Babbidi screamed. “It doesn't matter how powerful you are because I have the magic of all those the Smooze touches! Even now it's seeping through the ground, getting ready to erupt and cover everything!”

“Trixie would be impressed if that actually mattered. All that power and you can't even harm one hair in my mane.”

“I'LL SHOW YOU HARM!” Babbidi yelled, her eyes and amulet glowing. She fired a bolt of red energy at the mare, this time enough to atomize her entirely. She watched in amazement as the bolt hit her and simply rebounded, careening off into a wall and blasting a hole deep into the rock, distant sunlight trickling down through it, casting a spotlight onto the blue mare.

“Hm? Trixie wasn't paying attention.” Trixie struck a pose in the impromptu light. “Perhaps you want to keep trying? I'm sure if you put enough effort into it you might manage to bring this whole mountain down. It would save Trixie the trouble of bringing you back to face a trial.”

“That's just how it is with you fools! Princess Luna killed my ancestor because she thought it was the easy way. You won't be saying that once you see the power the Smooze has when it's given all of the power of an alicorn!" Babbidi clutched the amulet around her neck and fired a shimmering beam at the captive Twilight, the princess glowing brightly enough for a moment to be seen even through the layers of mud.

The ground rumbled, stalactites dropping to splash in the mud, as a shape rose from the ground. A huge hoof, dragging itself free. Twilight's cocoon floated free, and another hoof rose out of the ground. A body rose up to meet the captive princess in midair, absorbing her and dragging her into the forming creature's heart. Babbidi laughed madly as the creature took shape, a massive construct of mud with eyes of glowing red fire. A horn of rock sprouted from its head, and wings slowly took shape, rising from its sides.

"Why is it always mud?" Trixie whispered to herself in fear as the creature turned to glare down at her.
> Pugna Cum Maga
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 7: Pugna Cum Maga
by MagnetBolt


Trixie shivered as she looked up at the Smooze monster. Deep in its chest, she could see a dull pulsing glow from where Twilight had been enveloped by it, the monster itself twisting into a parody of her form. It didn't look like her exactly, the face featureless except for the eyes of crimson fire, the mane just a dripping mess, and the whole thing as soft and flowing as the ooze it was made of.

“Trixie does not like this,” The mare whispered. The monster was almost the size of the Ursa Minor that had destroyed her cart all that time ago. A mouth opened, strands of ooze connecting the upper and lower jaw for a moment before snapping. Fangs of sharpened black stones glimmered in the limited light, and the thing bellowed with a sound like a rockslide.

“What don't you like about it?” Babbidi Boo asked, from her throne. “I might not be able to hurt you with my magic, but that little trick of yours didn't seem to keep you safe from the more mundane threats of my maze. Your friend is providing the perfect power source for the Smooze, too.”

“It's a poor imitation of the real thing,” Trixie said, trying to sound sure of herself. Maybe if she was smart she'd be able to talk Babbidi down before the witch had this monster eat her. “Let her go and I'll consider looking the other way while you flee.”

“Flee? Flee?!” Babbidi laughed. “Why would I ever leave? I've never been so powerful! With all of the might of an alicorn princess at my hooves, I could even crush Celestia! But of course we'll start with you. Tell me again how you're so great and powerful!”

With that, Babbidi's horn lit up with red light, and the construct's eyes flashed as it surged to life, lunging for Trixie. A massive hoof swatted her aside, sending her tumbling across the muddy floor. She was lucky enough to slam into one of Babbidi's minions instead of something harder, and it still felt like something inside her was twisted up in a knot.

“Trixie really doesn't belong here,” she whispered. “This is a job for a princess or ten princesses or the Elements of Harmony or something else!” She got up on shaking legs and ran from the giant monster, trying to figure out some way to slow or distract it. “I'm just an actress!”

“The strength of an earth pony!” Babbidi yelled, leaning over her throne to watch. The construct spread its wings wide and jumped into the air. Trixie would have bet any amount of bits that it would just fall apart on leaving the ground, but it held together, the ragged edges of the wings of mud leaving a trail of sparks and drips of ooze as it flew above Trixie, circling for a moment as if to establish just how doomed she was.

“The agility of a pegasus!” Babbidi laughed as the construct dove. Trixie threw up a shield, trying to pour all of her magic into it. She couldn't manage a directional shield, forced to make a bubble when she reflected it from her coat. The alicorn landed heavily on it, the sphere deflecting the force just enough that it was forced to the side before the spell shattered, Trixie propelled out of the way by the recoil. She coughed and picked herself up off the ground before the next attack by the huge monster.

“And of course, the magical strength of a top-level unicorn,” Babbidi concluded. Trixie watched as magical energy gathered along the thing's horn, sparks shooting up as a sphere of light gathered at the tip. Some theories said that the size of a unicorn's horn was a measure of how much power they possessed. If so, this thing, with a horn the size of an entire pony, was surely far beyond anything anypony had seen before.

A bolt of energy lanced at Trixie, red-hot and scything over the ground, leaving molten rock in its wake. She closed her eyes at the sudden brightness before it struck, rebounding off into the wall. Trixie was slowly pushed back along the floor just by its force. She gasped as she felt her armor starting to heat up. Even as enchanted as it was, it couldn't hold out against the tiny fraction of the spell's force it was absorbing. She threw herself out of the way as it started to burn, rolling in the mud to cool the metal plates off.

“You have power,” Trixie confirmed. “But you're not very creative. You're just a thug with a little extra muscle and you think that makes you special.” Trixie stood up and raised an eyebrow. “You've got raw power, but you don't have what actually makes Twilight dangerous. She's smarter than you. I bet that in a few minutes you'll be on the ground begging for forgiveness and she'll be starting some lecture about how she broke out on her own and then rattle off some lesson about friendship.”

“If she does, you won't be around to hear it,” Babbidi said. The huge construct took to the air again. Bolts of red lightning shot from its horn to grab at the stalactites in the cavern roof. A trio of them orbited the huge pony before launching at Trixie like javelins. The unicorn's eyes went wide. She couldn't block those with her magic reflection, and her armor would be as useless as tissue paper. Bracing herself against recoil, Trixie tried to deflect them with her own magic. To use an analogy that an earth pony might understand, picture trying to shine a lantern off of a mirror on your chest so the reflected light hit, well, giant stone spears being thrown at you.

It was, in a word, difficult. A weak or inexperienced unicorn could never have managed it. Even somepony with a lot of talent and training might not have been able to do it. Trixie was neither of those things. She was an average unicorn who had three very important advantages. The first was that she didn't want to die. The second was that she was extremely good at improvising. The last, and most important, was that she was intimately familiar with shoving rocks around.

One of the stalactites crashed into the ground to Trixie's side, raising a wave of mud that made her stumble. The other two were sent flying. One slammed into the steps leading to the dais Babbidi had mounted her throne on. The other was more accurate, stabbing into one of the Smooze-alicorn's wings. The limb tore free with a wet snapping sound, and the creature spiraled down to impact with the ground, landing heavily. Mud splattered from its form as it started to lose cohesion.

“Hah!” Trixie yelled. “How about that? Not so tough now, is it?”

“You haven't even hurt it,” Babbidi said, snarling. Her horn lit up, and the creature pulled itself to its feet. With a wave of energy from deep within, where Twilight's magic was being drained, a new wing formed, and all of the damage Trixie had done was mended almost instantly.

“Trixie can do this all day,” Trixie said. She fought to keep her breath even and from passing out. She was starting to get tunnel vision from how much magic she was using.

“Hm. Maybe you could,” Babbidi said. “You certainly are annoying enough to do it.” Her horn glowed, and the monster stomped over to her, lowering its head as if bowing to her. Babbidi Boo jumped up onto its head and turned to face Trixie. “So I think I'll take more direct control.” The amulet she wore lit up, and sparks cascaded down from her horn into the creature under her.

“Wonderful,” Trixie mumbled.

“You wanted dangerous?” Babbidi yelled down at Trixie as the monster rose up to its full height. “I'll show you my own mastery of magic! I've never been afraid of getting blood on my hooves,” Babbidi Boo said, from atop her monster. She idly cleaned a hoof as she spoke, as if looking for said blood. “Most unicorns are, you see. They think of themselves as being above hard work. My ancestor spent years studying the subtle magic of earth ponies, but other unicorns just ignored it as being too primitive and slow.”

“So that's what all this is?” Trixie asked, trying to catch her breath. “Earth pony magic?”

“It would be more accurate to call it geomancy,” Babbidi replied. “My ancestor found it was her special talent. But because of it, the other unicorns mocked her. They said she was a disgrace to their ruling elite! They had no idea what kind of power she had! She was going to show them and put those fools in their place with the greatest working of geomancy ever attempted! The Smooze!” The red flames around the cavern erupted with extra light. “They'd stop mocking her when they realized their magic was gone, when Bibbidi had it all! But instead those two arrived on the eve of her triumph and destroyed her!”

“Of course they did!” Trixie yelled. “She was going to destroy everything! Trixie knows from experience that trying to force people to respect you is a foal's errand. Trixie tried it herself and did things she'll never stop regretting.”

“Well I won't need to regret anything, because I'm going to win,” Babbidi said. Her horn flared with magic, and Trixie could see energy welling up from within the beast. Babbidi's spell collided with the energy crackling around the monster's horn and a wave of red light flashed out like a blade, mud slinging out of the horn along with it, fusing itself in the light into a giant sword of glass, an attack Trixie couldn't just ignore. The mare tried to block it, grabbing at the blade with her own magic. It shattered as the opposing forces twisted it, raining razor-sharp shards of glass down around the unicorn. 

A splinter as long as a standard reference pear got through a gap in her armor, digging an inch into her shoulder. Trixie screamed and stumbled, her leg going limp with pain. Another shard tore open her saddlebags, all of the gear that Luna had given her spilling out in a tableau of junk and trinkets around her.

“Oh my, what happened to that confidence you had a few minutes ago? Did I accidentally kill it?” Babbidi giggled. “At least it won't go alone. You'll be able to pick it back up once you join it in Tartarus.”

“Don't be silly,” Trixie said, smiling and pretending she wasn't hurt. “Trixie is just getting warmed up. In fact, you've fallen right into my trap!” She just had to figure out what that trap was.

“Which trap?” Babbidi asked. “Maybe this one?” The giant construct knelt down and touched its horn to the ground. The rock rippled and split open, a rift forming and striking towards Trixie. The unicorn fell as the ground under her gave way, twisting to land on her good shoulder. Trixie tried to slow her fall by casting her slow-fall spell on her armor, but she wasn't able to focus properly from the pain. The rocks around her suddenly hung in midair.

Trixie grabbed onto one, pulling herself up and ignoring the pain in her shoulder. She ran and jumped towards another that was floating higher, rebounding from one to another, blood streaming down and making her hoof slip as she made her way up, getting back up to the cavern floor only moments before the rift slammed shut like a closing jaw.

“Impressive,” Babbidi said, with a smirk. “You know, if you weren't so pathetic in, well, so many other ways, you could have really been something. But you decided to make yourself annoying instead.”

“I am something,” Trixie said, with a smile. “I'm the Great and Powerful Trixie.” Her horn burst into light, and she reflected her strongest and brightest flare spells from her body, the mirror magic making them fly across the cavern randomly, a dozen lights as bright as the sun filling the space with blinding radiance. 

“After spending all the time in these caves I bet that hurts!” Trixie yelled, the cavern's walls making her voice echo. Between the strange echo and the blinding light it was impossible for Babbidi to tell where she'd gone. “You know, Trixie finds this all pathetic. You claim you're doing this for your ancestor, but she knows a grudge when she hears one. You're just doing this for yourself!”

“Of course I am! That's what power is for!” Babbidi Boo yelled, shielding her eyes. Even through the closed lids the dazzling gleam was painful to her naturally-sensitive vision. “You can't imagine what it's like! I had to fight for everything I have! It wasn't just handed to me like it was to you!”

“You don't know anything about the Great and Powerful Trixie!” Trixie shouted. The lights died down. “I know better than you think. I was a wandering performer before I lost everything. Until somepony came and knocked sense into me I just kept hurting myself and everypony around me.” Babbidi opened her eyes. Trixie was standing next to Babbidi's throne on the stone dais in the center of the room.

“What, you're trying to convince me to give up?” Babbidi asked, with a smirk. “You fool. Why would I ever stop when I've already won?”

“You haven't won. This?” Trixie gestured around. “This is pathetic. When I used an ancient artifact to gain terrible evil power, I at least had a sense of style. All you're doing is acting like a child. I'm just one unicorn and you're having all this trouble.”

“Oh, it's not that much trouble,” Babbidi corrected. The construct reared up and tried to stomp on Trixie. The mare rolled to the side, crying out as she moved onto her bad shoulder without thinking about it. The Smooze-monster stood tall over her, looming like death over the unicorn. 

“I've been trying to go easy on both of you,” Trixie said. She tore the glass shard from her shoulder with more force than she'd intended, opening the wound more. It was getting hard to pretend it didn't hurt as much as it did. “I know Twilight always tries to redeem or befriend the enemies she fights. It's not really my style. The Great and Powerful Trixie prefers to crush her enemies spirits.”

“Befriend?!” Babbidi screamed, a pulse of magic making the entire cavern shake with her rage. “You have no idea who you're talking to! I spent my entire life chasing after this legend, this power! I've trampled everypony who got in my way! I don't need friends!”

“Trixie thinks what you really don't need is this throne.” She kicked it, chipping the stone. A burst of red sparks erupted from the rock. Babbidi screamed.

“Stop it, you idiot! You'll collapse the whole cavern!” The entire mountain seemed to rumble, stalactites falling from the roof, narrowly missing the mares. One landed heavily on the Smooze monster, dropping right through it and making it stumble before Babbidi regained control. “If you destroy the geomantic center you'll bury us all!”

“Then come down from there and stop me!” Trixie yelled. “That thing is too big and clumsy for you to use if you're so worried about me damaging this.” She kicked the throne again for effect. One of the tunnels leading into the room collapsed in a cloud of dust and rock. “Oh my, look at how clumsy Trixie is! Next she might accidentally buck it apart!”

Babbidi Boo seethed with anger, her expression twisted with rage in a way Trixie was unfortunately intimately familiar with, having seen it in her own mirror. She also knew that she had Babbidi Boo exactly where she wanted her.

“This is getting ridiculous,” Babbidi said. “You're barely standing up! You don't pose anything like a real threat to me! Why won't you just give up and die?!”

“Trixie is very persistent.”

Babbidi's eye twitched. She launched herself at Trixie horn-first. Trixie blocked it with her own, deflecting the deadly point to the side and meeting her in a headbutt. This time Trixie came out of it better-off, her helm protecting her better than Babbidi's thick skull. The witch was forced backwards, blood dripping from her snout.

“You hurt me!” She accused. Trixie smirked.

“I thought you weren't afraid of getting a little blood on your hooves?” Trixie asked. Babbidi screamed and threw a bolt of red fire at her, striking her helmet. Trixie thought for a moment that it had deflected, then realized her head was getting uncomfortably warm. Then it started to burn. She realized belatedly that her helmet had been the target of the spell. She quickly tore it off, the air filling with the scent of burned hair as her mane smouldered in spots. The helm sizzled as it hit the wet rock under her, the metal beginning to glow.

“I may not be able to touch you with my magic, but I don't need to.” Babbidi smiled. “There are so many ways I could get rid of you. Maybe I'll even just have you thrown in my dungeon. I bet after a few days you'd beg to serve me in return for the scraps from my table.”

“Trixie is amused you think you can do that when she just figured out what her trap is.”

“What are you-” Babbidi took a step and the stone slipped out from under her as her hooves met the marbles Trixie had managed to smuggle onto the dais. She screamed as she pitched forwards and hit her head on the throne she'd rebuilt hard enough to open another cut.

The rope that Luna had packed was bunched at Trixie's feet like a snake. Before Babbidi could react, it lunged on its own, surrounded in an aura of Trixie's magic. The hemp wrapped around the witch's legs and encircled her body. The unicorn pitched to the ground tied like a hog and with about as much grace.

“You impudent-” Babbidi snarled.

“Trixie is very good at being impudent,” She said, stepping over to Babbidi to look at the prone unicorn. “Now let Twilight Sparkle go or else.” Her eyes drifted to the amulet the mare wore. It was obviously magical, and probably powerful. Part of Trixie wanted to  take it from her and put it on, to see what it would do. She felt like she was watching her body from outside as her hoof reached towards the amulet, whispers coming unbidden to her ears, just barely too faint to make out. 

A spark crackled between the amulet and her hoof as her coat shimmered, and she pulled back suddenly. “What was I...” Trixie shook her head, the whispers vanishing.

“DESTROY HER!” Babbidi Boo screamed. The Smooze-monster roared and slammed a hoof down, the dais cracking as Trixie ducked out of the way, carrying Babbidi with her. The witch laughed as red light poured from the rift it had opened. Trixie tossed her to the side and was blown back by another blast of magical energy, part of her armor tearing free as she hit the throne.

“Next time Trixie has to fight monsters she's going to ask somepony for advice before going off and getting herself killed.” Trixie pulled herself up using the throne for support and got a really bad idea. She jumped on it and waved her tail at the monster. “Come and get me!”

The beast roared again and pulled itself up higher to reach the throne. Babbidi saw what Trixie was doing, and her eyes went wide with shock.

“No, you idiot!” Babbidi gasped, before the monster put all its weight into a stomp. Trixie rolled off of the throne, gasping with pain as her shoulder wound opened more. The stone seat shattered in a burst of red magic, the Smooze-monster's leg exploding into a rain of hot mud. As it landed, the entire cavern started to shake as if in an earthquake.

“What- where am I?” Somepony asked. Trixie turned to see Babbidi's minions, blinking and looking disoriented. “Why do I feel so dirty?'

“You've ruined everything!” Babbidi screamed. “You destroyed my life's work!”

“Babbidi Boo?” Asked a pegasus mare. She looked at the others. “How did we get in this cave?”

“Why is there a monster?!” yelled another of the freed minions.

“Why is everything shaking?!” screamed a third. All of the mud-covered ponies started running around in a panic, as ponies in any sort of danger, real or imagined, are wont to do. The Smooze-monster made a sound like a bubbling bog crossed with a whalesong and laid down heavily on the remains of the dais, the ooze starting to lose cohesion.

“Everypony get out of here!” Trixie yelled. She pointed with a hoof towards the hole that had been blasted through the mountain, sunlight still pouring through. “Go that way unless you like being buried alive!” The freed minions started running for the exit. Trixie turned back to the fallen monster. She had to get Twilight out of there before-

“It's not over yet!” Babbidi screamed. The ropes around her burst into flames, leaving her coat scorched as she freed herself. Her amulet gleamed with red light and she jumped onto the head of the prone monster, pouring her energy into it. “Get up! Stop being so useless!”

The monster started to stand, a wing dropping off wetly. Trixie could see tears running down Babbidi Boo's face, clearing a path in the dirt that covered her white coat.

“It can't be over! I was supposed to win!” She said, almost sobbing in frustrated rage. The star sapphire around her beck burst into light and energy crawled across her body, then pulled away to reach into the monster. Its eyes started flashing between red and a dark pink.

Trixie backed up a step as the monster roared. Babbidi looked at it, confused, before screaming as tendrils of slime wrapped around her legs, dragging her into the beast's body.

“Trixie does not think this is a good thing,” the unicorn said, as she started to run for the exit. She felt a pang of sharp guilt and stopped, turning. She still had to get Twilight out, but she had only seconds and the cave was going to collapse at any moment.

The monster thrashed as if confused, its form twisting. Another horn rose up from its head, a new wing, webbed like a bat's, pulled itself free of one side of its body. The missing hoof was replaced with a grasping claw with talons of stone. Its features started to change and warp. It screamed and turned to see Trixie looking at it, then charged.

Trixie limped into the tunnel, moving as quickly as she  could. The monster was behind her now, gaining on her, and the sunlight ahead was too far away. She looked back to see stalactites pointing at her like spears, the monster squeezing into the tunnel and filling it completely, just two baleful eyes and a grinding maw surrounded by spikes, all surging at her like a flood of rage.

“We've got you!” Somepony yelled. Trixie spotted one of the Royal guards flying for her, grabbing her by the armor at the scruff of her neck and pulling, the strong pegasus quickly turning and flying towards the distant light.

“Where did you come from?!” Trixie asked, shocked.

“We couldn't miss that blast! It must have gone halfway to the Crystal Empire!” He grunted and pulled her into a better position to carry her. “Where's the Princess?”

“Right behind us!” Trixie screamed. She used her magic to push the guard to the side, almost sending him crashing into a wall. A spike of black rock flew threw the space they had just vacated, the projectile bigger than both ponies put together.

“What happened?!” He demanded.

“The witch is using Twilight as a power source for her monster! I thought it would go away once I smashed her throne, but it ate Babbidi Boo and now it wants to eat Trixie too!”

“We can't just leave the princess like that!”

“Just- get it outside! Trixie will think of something!” The Royal Guard shut up and flew, Trixie deflecting another stone just before they got out of the cave. The other guards were there too, the rest of the squad circling and helping the earth ponies and unicorns that had escaped to get down the sheer cliffside the tunnel had opened into.

The guard carrying Trixie looked around and pointed. “Move!” he ordered, the other pegasai obeying without question, clearing the area just before the Smooze erupted from the mountain like a volcanic blast. Its roar sounded through the valley. The shapeless mass forced its way free and started to flow down the side of the mountain.

“This isn't good,” he said, completely unnecessarily.

“Thank you for that stunning report,” she muttered.

“What's the plan?” Trixie looked up to see that he was, of all things, looking to her for guidance. If Trixie had any idea of what to do, she'd probably feel great about that. As it was, she was just as lost as he was, but she wasn't going to let him know about that.

“We're going to...” Trixie looked around. There had to be something she could do to defeat a giant ooze monster without killing Twilight at the same time. There were trees, which weren't very helpful. Boulders, also not helpful. Grass? Clouds? A river? “The river!” She gasped. “We're going to lure it to the river!”

“How?” The pegasus circled.

“Trixie is a master of getting attention and annoying people.” Trixie shrugged, trying to change the way the pegasus was holding her shoulder. “Move between the monster and the river.” She pointed with a hoof. The guard complied without complaint. For a pegasus he was surprisingly strong. He didn't even seem tired despite carrying his own armor and Trixie in the suit she'd borrowed. 

Trixie braced herself and took careful aim at the monster. It didn't even look like a pony now. After squeezing through the tunnel and erupting in liquid form, its body had been twisted into a long sinuous shape like a serpent. It still had those same burning eyes, and two horns moving around on its head like they were chasing each other, energy crackling between them.

Trixie's first shot went wide, hitting the rock face of the mountain without much force behind it. The next fell short and set a tree on fire. She swore under her breath. Trying to get the correct angle with a reflected bolt was harder than it seemed.

“What are you doing?” The pegasus asked.

“Trixie... doesn't want to hurt the Princess!” She claimed. “But Trixie supposes she is going to have to take the risk. It doesn't seem to pay attention to warning shots.” Closing one eye to try and clear her darkening vision, Trixie sent a bolt straight into the monster, hitting it between the eyes. It roared and focused on the unicorn, surging towards her like a lunging viper.

“Run!” Trixie yelled, squirming in fear. The pegasus needed no further prompting and flew towards the river. Trixie looked back as the Smooze-monster reached for her with a dripping claw as big as a house, the limb stretching until it tore, splashing down and bowling over trees. Animals fled from its path as it advanced, the forest at the base of the mountain being swept aside by the filth.

“It's working!” The guard yelled, surprised.

“O-of course it's working!” Trixie hit the monster again as it started to slow. Even with all her magic behind it, it wasn't enough to do more than make the mud bubble and hiss. Even without any real damage, though, it got the monster angry, making it speed up.

Just like the last time Trixie had planned on making someone angry enough that they'd make a mistake, it worked this time, too. She and the pegasus guard got over the river, and the Smooze creature came right after them, sliding into the fast-moving water before it knew what was going on.

“Hah! Take that!” Trixie yelled. The monster roared in despair as it began breaking apart, the flow of the water dissolving it. It tried to turn and get out of the water, ignoring another bolt of lightning. Trixie wasn't sure how many more she'd be able to manage. Her head was pounding from how much magic she'd used already.

“Bring..” she shook her head to clear spots from her vision. “Bring Trixie around to cut it off!” She forced herself to focus, using everything she had left in one spell. A flare burst in the monster's face, a flash bright enough to outshine the sun. Trixie went blind, and the pegasus carrying her yelled in surprise. She belatedly realized she should have warned him. She felt herself falling, then branches breaking under her before slamming into the ground on her bad shoulder, the pain bad enough to make her black out entirely for a moment.

The same pain didn't let her stay that way. Her eyes shot open and she moved, jerking and hissing, trying to make the torment stop. She heard the monster splashing, and as her vision cleared, she found herself looking up at the moment the beast finally gave up, the fire in its eyes burning out as its body slumped into a puddle, the river quickly carrying what was left downstream.

“It worked!” the guard yelled. Trixie looked back and spotted him in the tree. One of his back legs was twisted badly and caught in a branch.

“Hold on!” Trixie called up, tugging on the branch with what scraps were left of her magic. The guard grit his teeth and managed to get away.

“That was amazing,” he said, landing next to her on three legs, fluttering his wings to keep his balance as he limped. “No wonder the Princesses picked you to help with this.”

“Trixie was just...” This gave her pause. She had actually beaten a giant monster and an evil witch, practically on her own. “...Trixie was just doing her duty.” She smiled a little. It felt good. She had really done it. She'd done something heroic like in all those stories she told.

“You said Princess Twilight was in that monster, right?” he asked, looking to the river. Trixie gasped.

“I'd almost forgotten! Come on!” The two supported each other as they walked into the river, what was left of the smooze acting as enough of a natural dam to make the current less dangerous. “She has to be here somewhere! Start digging!” Trixie looked around, feeling panic welling up. What if she'd already floated away and was drowning somewhere?

Trixie spotted a mud-covered hoof sticking out of the mud. She ran over and pulled, ignoring the pain in her shoulder as she freed the mare. The flowing water revealed a white coat under the mess. Babbidi Boo. Trixie almost threw her aside when the witch opened her eyes.

Her blue eyes. They had been red before.

“Where-” She asked, her voice cracked, sounding different. “Where am I?” Trixie looked at the mare's neck. The amulet she had been wearing was gone.

“I found her!” The pegasus yelled, from behind. Trixie turned. He was helping Twilight to her feet. Something gleamed darkly around her neck. Trixie's eyes went wide.

“Quick, get away! She might be-” The air rippled as Twilight spread her wings, a wave of force blasting the mud from her body. Trixie was knocked back into the water with Babbidi Boo. The guard was thrown all the way back to the river bank. Red sparks hissed around her as Twilight rose up into the air.

“That amulet!” Babbidi gasped. “It's just like the one in my nightmare!”

“Nightmare?!” Trixie asked, confused. She felt a chill down her spine that wasn't related to the ice-cold river. Twilight turned her head to gaze down at her with cold, dead eyes.

“Much better,” Twilight said, with a voice not her own. “This will do nicely.” Her horn shimmered, glowing while bursts of light sparked along it like tiny novas. A wave of red magic pulsed out, slamming Trixie back to the gravel of the river's shore. The unicorn gasped, her vision going black, her body shutting down from the blood loss, the cold, and the exhaustion.

The last thing she saw when she looked up was Twilight vanishing in a burst of red magic like a bubble popping around her.
> Eclipse
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 8: Eclipse
By MagnetBolt



Trixie sat up, panting, her head pounding, in a cold sweat. She had been in a terrible, shapeless nightmare of darkness and indescribable evil, her fitful sleep making it even worse as she couldn't distinguish between the dream and reality. The room was pitch black, and for a moment she wasn't sure if she was awake or asleep, though she didn't remember dreams hurting quite so badly.

“Calm down, you're awake,” said a soothing voice. A sourceless light of soft silver, no brighter than a full moon, filled the room, revealing the form of the indigo Princess of the Night. She was sitting beside Trixie's bed. “You're in Canterlot. After you passed out, the guards were unable to rouse you.”

“Princess Luna?” Trixie blinked, trying to wake up more. “What are you doing here? Where's Twilight?” Trixie tried to get up, but the princess pushed her back down gently. Trixie looked around at the room. It was filled with books. Twilight's room in the castle. Trixie looked down at herself. Her shoulder and body were wrapped in bandages, and the armor she'd worn was gone.

“You were badly hurt. You've been sleeping most of the day. You should not even be awake yet. Tis the fault of the nightmares.” Luna looked to the side, with an expression Trixie recognized from the mirror. Shame. “I tried to enter your dreams to give you aid, but 'twas impossible. Your dreams were not natural.”

“You didn't answer my other question,” Trixie said, quietly, afraid.

“We don't know where Twilight Sparkle has gone.” Luna stepped away to look out the window at the night sky. “My sister went to where she was last seen, but she has done something to obscure her path from us. We know she is alive, but... the possibilities are dark.”

“There was something wrong with her,” Trixie said.

“Yes. It is possible tis something very wrong.” Luna turned back to Trixie. “Some of the ponies whom you rescued said Babbidi had an amulet.”

Trixie nodded. “It was about this big, a star sapphire that was shaped like a seven-pointed star.” Luna visibly paled, her expression draining as Trixie confirmed what she had heard from the others.

“Tis what I most feared,” Luna said. “I thought the dark times were over, but it seems my own mistakes are as long lived as I am.” She took a deep breath, composing herself. “I fear that this, all of this, has been my fault. Babbidi Boo was merely the first victim.”

“A victim? She tried to kill me!” Trixie sat up sharply, wincing at the movement.

“You of all people should know the danger of a cursed amulet, and what she found was the most terrible artifact I know of in Equestria.” Luna sat next to Trixie again, looking up at the ceiling as if she could see the sky beyond it. Maybe she could. “I have not told my sister yet of my fears. Would thou give me council as a friend before I go to her?”

“Trixie is... of course, Princess.” Trixie slumped.

“A thousand years ago, when I was in the grip of my madness, before I revealed what I had become to my sister, I felt the power of the Elements of Harmony leaving me. I know now that it was because I had lost myself, fallen to the growing power of the Nightmare within me. But then, confused, I thought it was a symptom of what had driven me to insanity, that I was no longer able to wield the power of harmony because the ponies of Equestria had abandoned me and loved only Celestia.

“I knew my sister still remained able to use the Elements, and I sought a weapon to use against her. A new Element, not made from the powers of Harmony which eluded me, but out of a terrible power that had nearly matched the Elements once before. I turned to Chaos Magic and forged a weapon that I could use to defeat my sister. The Element of Dominance.”

“...But you didn't defeat her,” Trixie pointed out. Luna snorted.

“Yes. There were a great many things I left half-finished in my haste and insanity. It is for the best that I did not complete them, or else history might have taken a darker turn.”

“I didn't mean that. Sorry, Princess.”

“Nay, tis nothing. My true regret is what I put my sister through. It is why I am afraid to tell her of this. I do not want her to have to think back to the dark time when I eclipsed the sun and broke her spirit with my rage. But with Twilight Sparkle missing, I also dare not refrain from action.”

“Trixie thinks if you don't tell her, she's going to find out anyway, and will be more upset you hid it from her.”

“Of course you are right.” Luna smiled. “But tis good to know you think the same.”

“What will the... the Element of Dominance do to her?” Trixie asked.

“I do not know for certain. I was not in my right mind when I forged the weapon. At times twas like I was watching my body from the outside.” Luna started pacing. “To be sure, it will make her stronger, at the cost of her sanity. It seems it had the same effect on the witch. I fear, from what thou have told me, that part of the Nightmare Entity still clings to it.”

“This is all my fault,” Trixie said. “I was supposed to protect her.” She rubbed her eyes.

“I do not think there is much you could have done. I have already interrogated Babbidi Boo, though we will be keeping an eye on her closely until we can see that wielding the Element of Dominance has not done some lasting damage to her.” Luna stood and started walking towards the door.

“Wait!” Trixie stood up, almost falling as she put weight on her bandaged leg. “How are we going to find Twilight? There has to be some way to track her down!”

“My sister plans to have the five remaining Elements search for her. They know her well, though I am not sure how much that will help.”

“I have to go with them!” Trixie hopped on three legs towards the princess.

“You are in no condition to do so.” Luna glanced back at her. “You do not even have the ability to leave this room, much less search for Twilight.”

“Trixie has no limits,” Trixie stated, forcing her gait to even out and marching past the princess and out the door, ignoring the tearing pain in her shoulder.


***


It turned out that Trixie, in fact, had limits. She managed to get nearly all the way to where Twilight's friends had gathered before she collapsed in a heap. Nearly. After she'd made it clear she wasn't going back to bed, Luna had ordered one of the guards to assist her. She leaned on the white pegasus heavily for support as she burst through the door.

“Trixie is here!” She declared loudly. Five heads turned to look. All of Twilight's friends had already arrived, the five of them sitting around a table and looking various shades of bored and frustrated at a pile of books.

“Oh boy,” Applejack said, with a sigh. “Ain't you supposed to be in the hospital?”

“Trixie can't just sit around while Twilight is missing!” She limped over to the table and sat down, the guard sighing and walking out, having done his duty by making sure she arrived safely.

“No offense, but we're pretty experienced at this adventure stuff,” Rainbow Dash said. “Once we figure out where Twilight went, we'll have her back in a flash.”

“And have you figured out where she went?” Trixie asked, skeptical.

“Well... no. But we will!” Dash folded her hooves. “It's just that usually she does all the boring research stuff. It's just taking us a little longer.”

“What are you even researching?” Trixie grabbed one of the books. “Daring Do and the Mystery of Cloud Nine? How is this-”

“It's a signed first edition!” Dash said, then swallowed as she looked at the others glaring at her. “What? I wasn't going to read it yet! I just wanted to set it aside for later!”

“Ah swear, Dash, if we had to count on you fer all our plans they'd jes be crayon drawings with the word 'Awesome' written on them a couple dozen times.” Applejack sighed.

“Truthfully we haven't gotten very far,” Rarity said. “As far as we can tell, these are the books that were missing from the library in Ponyville.”

“What do you mean, missing?” Trixie asked.

“Obviously we checked Twilight's place first,” Dash said. “But the place was a mess. I mean, more of a mess than usual. Spike usually cleans up, but he was gone too. We think she was there for a while before she left, but we don't know where she went after that.”

“And you think the missing books are a clue,” Trixie said. The other ponies nodded. “Do they have any common themes?”

“Not really,” Dash said with a shrug of her wings. “Mostly just about the kind of old legends Twilight likes. Nightmare Moon, the Elements of Harmony, that kind of thing.”

“Trixie supposes that's appropriate...”

“Um, there were also a lot of books that were probably just checked out,” Fluttershy pointed out quietly. “It is a library, so I don't know if we really needed a copy of Fifty Ways to Cook Kale.”

“Oh! Look! This one has pictures!” Pinkie Pie flipped around the book she had been intently reading. The pictures inside were highly inappropriate. If Twilight was doing that kind of research than she'd need several very flexible stallions. Applejack quickly took the book from the pony and closed it before putting it out of her reach.

Trixie rubbed her chin. “Trixie thinks you are trying to solve this like you were Twilight, but that won't work. If she's trying to avoid you, she'll expect you to think like she does, and she's better at it because she does it all the time. Trixie supposes she probably has a checklist made just for the event that she has to flee town without alerting anypony.”

“Wouldn't surprise me,” Applejack sighed.

“Dear, if we don't try to think like Twilight we won't be able to find her,” Rarity pointed out.

“There's always another solution,” Trixie said. “We don't have to come to the same conclusions as Twilight. We just have to think of what she generally does in a situation like this.”

“A situation like this,” Rarity sighed. “It isn't as though Twilight has ever been possessed by an evil magical artifact before.”

“No, but she has gone crazy a few times,” Dash said. “Usually because she worries too much. When she gets into that kind of trouble she goes somewhere to be alone, stops sleeping, and starts doing more and more extreme things while her mane gets all crazy and messy like this.” Dash used her hooves to mess up her mane but... well her mane was already a mess, but everypony understood what she meant.

“And this is a big problem,” Trixie said. “If she left her library it meant she didn't have what she needed there. So where would she go next?”

“Knowin' Twilight? She'd hit up the biggest library she knew-” Applejack blinked. “Wait, ain't there a library here?”

“The Canterlot Archives!” Rarity said. “Yes, Twilight tried to drag me through them the last time she showed me around Canterlot. I thought she'd know some interesting places since she'd lived here but her tastes are, pardon me saying, a bit academic.”

Trixie nodded. “Trixie would start looking there. They're better organized than Twilight Sparkle and they have teams of people who are good at research.”

“Well what are we doin' sittin around here then?” Applejack stood up. “Which way's the library?”

“It's right this-” Trixie stumbled as she stood, her bad leg locking up for a moment. Fluttershy was at her side in an instant looking at it.

“Oh... this looks bad. You really should rest. I know Twilight is your friend too, but she wouldn't be happy if you hurt yourself over her.” Fluttershy lent her a shoulder to lean on, and Trixie slowly made her way towards the door.

“Trixie doesn't-” She winced. “Trixie does need help, actually, but she can't sit around now. If it slows you down too much you can just go and Trixie will catch up.”

Dash nudged Applejack in the ribs. “Maybe she's a member of the Apple family too. Trixie's almost as stubborn as you are!”

“There ain't nothin' wrong with bein' stubborn!” Applejack countered. Stubbornly. “Fluttershy, put her on my back and I'll just carry her if she's not gonna do the smart thing and sit this one out.” The pegasus deposited Trixie on Applejack's back, then the mare took off at a gallop.

“The archive is the other way!” Trixie yelled.


***


“The Archive was in significantly better condition the last time I was here,” Rarity noted. “There were fewer fires, for one thing.”

Something big had gone down. There were scorch marks on the walls and several bookcases were toppled onto the floor in a heap of crumpled paper and torn papyrus. Somepony groaned from a dark corner. Rainbow Dash flew over to look and found one of the Archivists, his greyed coat covered in a layer of soot.

“Trixie remembers you. You're, um... Dizzy...”

“Dusty Quill,” he corrected, coughing. “You're awful with names, girl. No wonder you barely passed Western Equestrian History.” Trixie hopped off of Applejack's back and landed with a wince and a wave of nausea. “This isn't a good time to be looking things up in the library. If you'll excuse me, I need to get the guard, then a glass of water, then I think I'll hire a few extra janitors.”

“He was one of Trixie's teachers,” she explained to a questioning look from Rarity. “Though she remembers him as being somewhat less rude.”

“I'm not in the mood. I just had my flank kicked by another one of my old students, so if you're here to do the same thing I want you to let me know who else is coming to dispute old essay grades, because I'm not filing the paperwork to have them changed now.”

“Trixie also remembers that you never gave her higher than a B.”

“This ain't the time,” Applejack said. “Now was this or was this not th' work of a little purple princess who probably appeared here and started mumblin' about some darn magic thing?”

“Purple is accurate, the rest isn't.” Dusty coughed. “She was taller than I remembered, and there was a lot more throwing me around with magic, knocking books over, and maniacal laughter than mumbling. Miss Sparkle really needs to treat these books more gently. It's going to take years to clean up the damage she's done. Even for royalty that's simply unacceptable.”

“What did she want to know?” Trixie asked.

“Nothing important,” Dusty Quill shrugged. “She wanted to know about the location of some damn mystical place where we keep things locked away forever. I kept telling her that there's no such place as the Black Archive, but she seemed convinced it existed. When I told her she was an idiot she lost her temper and set my card catalog on fire.”

“That really doesn't sound like Twilight...” Fluttershy whispered.


***


“Spike, take a note,” Twilight dictated. “Despite the lack of assistance due to somepony of my power and stature, I have still overcome the difficulties at hoof and located what is no doubt one of the most closely-guarded secrets in all of Equestria. This despite ancient edits from Celestia and Luna as well as what is no doubt a conspiracy on the part of the archivists to make it difficult to find relevant information. If not for my new insight I may not have found it at all.

“The Black Archive is a place that is barely even spoken of in legend, almost every trace of its existence erased from memory by time. This is clearly deliberate. Celestia and possibly Luna may be the only living ponies who know the full contents of this vault, and it is my belief that it contains weapons and wonders that would put the Elements of Harmony to shame. Weapons she has refused to use to protect Equestria from threats!

“Time and time again she has sat on her flank and sent me out into danger when she has at her command forces that could have instantly ended the threat of the changelings or Discord or even Nightmare Moon. It is only because they lack the will to act that they keep putting me in danger. So I will take the decision out of their hands. Once I have access to what they've locked away I will be able to make use of them in ways that they never- What is it, Spike?”

“Mmmph mm.”

“I suppose it is a bit hard to speak through that gag. But we can't have you going and telling the Princess what I have planned! Don't worry. Once I've fixed the mess they made, everything will be better, and even the ruler of Equestria will need a number one assistant.”

Spike shivered as Twilight laughed, her voice cold and dark and frighteningly familiar.


***


“Princess this is highly irregular! You cannot simply dismiss Day Court at this early hour!”

“I have already done so,” Celestia stated calmly. Guards started pressing in around the supplicants. As soon as the Elements and Trixie had brought news of what had happened in the Canterlot Archive, she had ordered the court ended. The long line of ponies waiting for her to decree matters on their behalf as an absolute judge and jury.

“But there are urgent matters-” The pushy pony was trying to resist two guards who were almost dragging him away.

“Silence!” Luna yelled, in the Royal Canterlot Voice. Celestia sighed, but this was exactly the sort of situation it was for. “Thou may return to beseech me at the Night Court if thou cease this prattling at this very instant, else thou will be thrown into the dungeons for a full turn of seasons for showing disloyalty to thy betters!”

Celestia gently coughed. “Perhaps a touch less threatening, Luna. We don't often throw ponies in the dungeon these days.” Luna frowned, but didn't retract the statement. It was more than enough to send the annoying pony out the door like Nightmare Moon herself had just screamed for his blood. Which wasn't far off from the truth.

Luna waited for the room to clear. “Sister I know thou has more experience with these times, but we look weak when you contradict me. T'would have been better to allow him to be thrown in prison then pardon him later as a gesture of mercy.”

“Maybe next time,” Celestia said, with a strained smile. “But we have far more important matters at hand. Please, my friends, continue.”

“The archivist said she was trying to find information on something called the Black Archive,” Rainbow Dash said. Celestia and Luna paled, though it would have taken somepony particularly skilled at cold reading to tell that Celestia had reacted at all. Trixie noticed. It made her even more worried.

“I see,” Celestia said. “Guards, leave us and ensure that no one is listening in on this discussion. This is a matter of state security.” That phrase made them jump to attention and run out. Trixie's worry had gone from concern to near-panic. Now the room was well and truly clear, even the omnipresent guards having vanished.

“Princess?” Applejack asked.

“Officially, there is no such thing as the Black Archive,” Celestia said. “It is only an old legend with even less truth to it than so many legends from those days. It was even a mere rumor before the dark times a thousand years ago. According to each and every one of the very few books that even mentions the Black Archive, it is noted that it is merely a story which has no basis in truth.”

“That's good,” Pinkie Pie said, wiping sweat from her brow. “I was really worried there for a second! Everypony got all serious and scary!”

“That is because...” Luna looked at Celestia. “It is because if such a thing existed, 'twould be a repository of the most dangerous and destructive powers that have ever existed in this world. Anypony who found their way into such an archive, if it existed, would likely destroy not only themselves but also all of Equestria in short order with the power there.”

“And Twilight is trying to get into that?!” Trixie gasped. “We need to stop her!”

“Why would she even want to get into it?” Dash asked.

Applejack rolled her eyes. “Sugar, Twilight would want to get in there and poke around even if she weren't possessed by some kinda ancient evil.”

“Um... but... if they're so bad, why did you just lock them away?” Fluttershy asked. “Wasn't there some way to...” she trailed off.

“If a place such as the legendary Black Archive had been created, it would not have been done lightly, but because it was the only way to keep Equestria safe. There are some things that are too powerful to be destroyed, even by Luna or myself.” Celestia looked out of the window at the sun. “Locking them away beyond anypony's reach was the only thing that could be done. Containing them in cages of sorcery and iron, to protect the world from them, and them from those who would seek to abuse their power.”

“That is the sentiment that would have resulted in the creation of the Black Archive, if it existed,” Luna said quietly. “And why it is forbidden for even we to speak of it as if it, or the things that it holds, exists.”

“How powerful are we talkin'?” Dash asked. “Like, as strong as Discord?”

Luna sighed. “There are things that can kill even an Immortal. I cannot speak of them. Let it simply be known that they are not used for a reason, and it is not simply because my sister and I are kind. In the cycle of ages before this one, when we were not so kind, when our enemies fell before us, even then we dared not wield these weapons, as to use them even with the best of intentions would destroy all that has been built.”

“But... that's...” Trixie shivered.

“I jes' don't get why anypony would make somethin' like that.” Applejack frowned. “Seems to me like it'd be pretty pointless havin' a tool you couldn't use. Like makin' a stove that burns too hot for food, or a plow that rips up th' soil to bedrock.”

“Some people, not all of them ponies, created them as a threat to keep others away, or to force others to bow to them,” Celestia said. “Most of the weapons were not intended to be used. But sometimes they were. That is one of the reasons there are few records before Discord's reign, and why my sister and I were the only alicorns remaining until this generation.”

“Thankfully, this is all hypothetical,” Luna said. “If the Black Archive existed, it would be impossible to breach the vault that contains it. Powerful enchantments would keep it pushed out of our reality entirely and into the aether beyond. If it had existed, there would have only ever been one way to even begin to access it, and only my sister and I would have the ability to cause the conditions to occur.”

“That is good, your majesty,” Rarity said, smiling. “I was dreadfully worried there would be some sort of deadline or rush to find Twilight. As long as she's only chasing ghosts we should have all the time in the world to find a way to help her.”

Trixie couldn't help but feel worried, though. She looked up at Celestia. “How does the vault open?”

“The vault doesn't even-”

“Twilight is smart enough to know the vault exists, and Trixie knows she'll figure out how to pry it open. If we don't know what she's trying to do, Twilight will be able to succeed because we won't know what we need to do to stop her!” Trixie stomped a hoof. “Trixie doesn't care if you don't trust her, but these ponies saved Equestria more times than she can count and Trixie is not in a mood to hear you dancing around the subject while Twilight is in trouble!”

The fact she'd just yelled at the two most powerful ponies in Equestria hit Trixie like a ton of bricks, but it was too late to back down now. She tried to look imposing, as if this would matter to two royal immortals who were not only vastly more important than she was but also vastly better at, well, looking imposing. The height helped.

“The Archive could only be opened during a solar eclipse,” Luna said. “As my sister and I control the sun and moon, an eclipse can only occur when we desire it.”

“It's a signal that neither of us could miss from anywhere in Equestria,” Celestia said. “Since those conditions were put into place, the Black Archive has never been opened.”

“The only time it came close to being opened was by my hoof,” Luna said. “It was one of my- one of Nightmare Moon's plans.”

“...and that's why you had to... send her away.” Fluttershy whispered.

“Yes. The threat to myself was minor compared to that.” Celestia sighed. “But that is far in the past. As it is impossible for Twilight to open the vault, we are left with the task of finding her while she attempts to work around our safeguards. Thankfully, even my former student will find this impossible. Unlike the drastic measures I had to take in the past, we have an opportunity to seek a better solution and save her from this curse.”

“She will not fall in the same way I did,” Luna assured her sister.

Celestia smiled, then cried out in pain, clutching her head in her hooves. Thunder roared through the sky. A black aura surrounded her horn. Fluttershy gasped and cowered as one of the huge windows shattered. Rainbow Dash and Applejack ran towards Celestia as her sister tried to help her. The elder princess collapsed to her knees.

“What's happening?” Rarity asked, looking around the room for a source of the disturbance.

“Some kind of spell!” Trixie said. She grabbed Pinkie Pie and forced the pony to help her up towards the princess. “But why would she- oh no.” Trixie turned to look outside as a shadow fell over the room. The moon was nearly half-way covering the sun.

“No!” Luna gasped. She tried to pull the moon down, but only succeeded in halting its progress, leaving the world in a shadowy umbra.

“Is Twilight doing this?” Trixie asked.

“She always was interested in how to raise the sun,” Celestia said, her voice strained. “She knows more about that magic than any pony alive save the two of us.”

“I cannot hold her forever,” Luna said. “Somehow her strength is even greater than mine, but that should be impossible! This magic feels like... the Nightmare.” She stopped, gasping.

“The Element,” Trixie whispered.

Luna took a sharp breath. “There is no time to lose. The entrance to the Black Archive is in the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters. I dare not give more details than that in case Twilight Sparkle watches us from afar. I fear it will not be difficult to find her when you arrive. The Element of Dominance  was not designed for subtle shows of power.”

“The who what now?” Applejack asked.

“Trixie will explain later!” The unicorn said. She prodded Pinkie Pie in the side. “Move it! We need to get there before Twilight blows up the world!”

“The Night Guard will be at your disposal,” Luna said. “The rest of the guard must remain here in case you should fail. They are already informed that they should follow your orders.”


***


“Mmmphmmm mmm-”

“Hold on, this is getting annoying.”

“Mm-” Spike gasped as the gag was torn off. “I was saying the Princesses won't let you get away with this! Just stop it, Twilight! You aren't acting like yourself!”

“Spike, I am a Princess. I know what I'm doing.” Twilight smiled, showing fangs. Spike shivered and stepped back, bumping into the iron bars of the cage that she'd created around him to keep him from running away. “Celestia and Luna won't be in any shape to stop what I'm planning.”

“Twilight, just look at yourself!” Spike looked up at her. She was nearly as tall as Celestia, her coat a violet so dark it was almost black. Her mane had changed, just a cloud that looked like a waving window into the night sky shot through with a magenta aurora. The worst part was her eyes. They were slit, like a dragon's eyes. Like... “You look like... like Nightmare Moon!”

“Well of course I do,” Twilight said, with a sigh. “It all makes sense now. This form is far more efficient at managing my magical energy. I had so much trouble with it before that sometimes I almost cracked my horn!” She laughed. That definitely wasn't Twilight's laugh. The amulet around her neck pulsed as she spoke, like something else was speaking for her.

“Please, Twilight-” Spike was cut off as the cage was thrown across the floor, crashing into the wall. Spike was tossed into the bars with enough force to bruise his scales.

“You're being annoying and stupid,” Twilight snarled. “Do you know how hard it is to be as smart as I am? I have to deal with idiots all day! Idiots who don't trust me and think that I'll destroy Equestria just because they aren't as talented as I am!” She stomped a hoof, and the floor cracked under the blow. “It frustrates me to tears, Spike! Every day I have to put up with idiots and their little problems! If it isn't Applejack with her quaint little misunderstandings it's Rainbow Dash being impatient and reckless, or Fluttershy refusing to stand up for herself, or Rarity not being able to see past her own greed or worst of all, Pinkie Pie just making things worse because she's a total void of anything resembling a brain!”

“They're your friends, Twilight.” Spike picked himself off the ground, rattling the bars of his cage and looking for a way out. “And so am I. I don't know what got into you, but you need to stop this before- before-” he started to tear up. “Before they have to banish you to the moon!”

“Spike, when I'm finished they might not even have a moon to banish me to.”


***


“These will help you walk,” Fluttershy said, handing Trixie a small bag. She looked inside and saw a number of green seeds. “They're called fuzzmint. The seeds make you feel warm and help with pain. I sometimes give them to injured animals to help them relax.”

“How many should I take?” Trixie asked, eating two before Fluttershy could reply. She gagged on the bitter flavor. “Ugh. That tastes like raw dandelion milk with no sugar.”

“I was going to say you should only take one. They can be really strong sometimes.” Trixie suddenly wobbled on her feet as a wave of warm dizzyness overtook her. Fluttershy caught her and held her up as she steadied herself. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, actually... Trixie feels much better.” The edge had been taken off the pain, and the relief was enough to make Trixie feel wonderful. “Trixie will definitely be able to go on the adventure now!”

“Well, um...” Fluttershy looked around. “Actually... you shouldn't. You're still not well. The fuzzmint seeds only make the pain go away, and you hurt yourself more moving around like that.”

“Trixie will be hurt even worse if the world ends,” She said, putting the seeds into her saddlebags. She'd strapped on the armor Luna had given her, though and had even found a replacement for the helmet. The Night Guards were getting Luna's carriage together to carry the four ponies who couldn't fly to the Castle of the Royal Sisters themselves.

“Hey, how much longer is this going to take?” Rainbow Dash demanded. “We need to get going now!” She pointed a hoof at the sun, which was slowly but steadily being covered up by the moon.

“It's going to be faster for us to wait for them to finish and fly there as a group,” Rarity explained for what must have been the third time. “It's called using time wisely, dear. Unless you'd rather go there alone?”

“Well maybe I should! I bet I can knock some sense into her!” Dash flapped her wings. “I can't believe she's really doing this. I mean, having to stop Twilight?”

“It's not her,” Trixie said. “It's the Element of Dominance.”

“And that's one Element against five!” Dash said. “Well, you know. In spirit.”

“...No, that's a great idea!” Trixie suddenly got excited. “If we get the Elements of Harmony you five can... Trixie isn't actually sure how they work. She is sure it will be suitably impressive, though.”

“We, um... don't have them.” Fluttershy said, pawing at the ground with a hoof. “There were plundervines and the Tree of Harmony-”

“It's all explained in the first two episodes of the season,” Pinkie Pie said.

“That mare ain't right I tell you what,” Applejack muttered.

“What Fluttershy is trying to say is that currently the Elements of Harmony are not available as such. But Twilight is our friend. Between all of us, surely we can find a way to make her see reason.”

“And if not, I'll hog-tie her and we can have Pinkie sing songs at her until she sees reason or somethin,” Applejack said. “It worked that time Fluttershy became a werewolf.”

Trixie tilted her head, confused. “...Wait, werewolves are real?”

“Excuse me,” Fluttershy said, coughing. “We agreed never to speak of that again.”

The sky darkened further as a shadow passed over the assembled ponies. A bat-winged pony shouted down to them. “Consort! The transport is prepared!”

“Consort?” Rarity seemed taken aback, looking at Trixie.

“Oh no, don't tell me they're going to start on that too...” Trixie groaned and rubbed her face with a hoof. “It's just a misunderstanding!”

“All ah know is ah don't want no details,” Applejack said, shaking her head. “Now let's get our flanks movin' afore Dash goes and flies there herself despite bein' all loyal.”

“Alright!” Dash yelled, flying up. “Next stop, the Castle of the Twins!”

“Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters, Dash.”

“Whatever!”
> Insanity And Genius
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 9: Insanity And Genius
by MagnetBolt



“Oh wow! It's extra-spooky!” Pinkie Pie said, bouncing enough to make their borrowed transportation shake violently, as if the storm circling the castle wasn't enough for that. A bolt of black lightning crashed past them, almost hitting the pegasai that were flying them into the Everfree Forest towards the castle.

“We have to put down!” Dash said, pulling up alongside the rest of them. She'd flown ahead to look. “The storm isn't normal! Every time I get near the clouds they attack me! Even if I kick them they just reform right away! There's no way you guys will be able to fly in there if I can't!”

Rarity gasped as she almost lost her hat to a gust of wind. “I have to agree! This wind is just destroying my mane! I'll have to spend hours fixing my curls.”

“I found a clear spot in the forest! You guys just follow me!” Dash flew ahead of the Night Guard and took a sharp turn down towards the forest. The guards followed, the dive almost throwing everypony out of the cart. When they landed in the clearing, Applejack jumped out of the cart and kissed the dirt.

“Remind me next time not to go flyin' when anything else would work better,” she said, composing herself. “We had to land pretty far away, so we gotta hurry if we wanna mosey on in there before somethin' awful happens.”

“Have you seen the state of my hat? Something awful has already happened!” Rarity sighed. “There's just no saving this one. It's a good thing I have a spare hat for emergencies.” She pulled a folded hat out of her bags and flicked it, the brim snapping into shape.

“She brought an emergency hat?” Trixie asked in disbelief.

Applejack sighed. “Jes be thankful she didn't bring an entire emergency outfit or we'd be stuck here fer ten minutes while she changed.”

“Emergency outfits?” Pinkie Pie asked, perking up. “That's a great idea! What if we all dress up like we're going to a party and then we'll go to the castle and Twilight will think she's supposed to be hosting a party instead of destroying Equestria! Then I'll help her get decorations and cake and we can have a real party!”

“That's certainly a plan,” Fluttershy said. “But, um, we don't have outfits for that and... I think we should try talking to her instead of confusing her.”

“How far is the castle from here?” Trixie asked. “I've never been there before.”

“It's gonna take all night to get there if you guys don't get moving,” Dash said. “What's the hold up? We already have a plan. Swoop in, tell her to stop being stupid, and then kick her flank if she doesn't listen. It's a great plan.”

“Except for the part about kicking her flank,” Applejack noted. “Even asssumin' we could do that, I doubt it'd help her come back to normal.”

“We'll figure it out. We always end up just winging it.”

“I get it! Winging it!” Pinkie bounced. “Because you're a pegasus!”


***


“Was it always this ominous?” Trixie asked, whispering. Black lightning crashed down around the castle, leaving ultraviolet tracers in the sky that made everything glow with an unearthly light. Rarity, at least, seemed pleased at that. The stitching in her hat was glowing brightly, making the outline visible even in the semi-darkness.

“Nah,” Applejack said. “This seems t' be a special occasion. I expect Luna was right about Twilight not bein' one for subtle displays.”

“Of course not,” Rarity said. “You said it was the Element of Dominance, yes? Isn't that what real dominance is about? It's not just about defeating your enemy, but about cowing them, making them see that it was foolish to oppose you in the first place, to force them to acknowledge your greatness.”

“That is... quite a detailed insight,” Trixie noted. “Not that Trixie disagrees. She wanted to do exactly the same thing after she lost to Twilight...”

Rarity sighed, thinking back on unpleasant memories. “Well, I was host to a rather distasteful monster myself for a short time. I have some insight on these matters.”

“You were?” Trixie frowned.

Pinkie bounced in front of them. “There's a comic about it!”

“Come on, y'all. Ain't no point stopping here to gam.” Applejack walked up to the doors and bucked them, knocking them open with one solid blow. The foyer stretched on in front of them, the roof partly collapsed and letting in a small amount of light from outside. 

Rarity created a small floating light to guide their path. “This castle is certainly more gloomy than the last time I came here.”

“The throne room's this way,” Dash said, taking the lead.

“Should we really go right for it?” Trixie asked. “Maybe we shouldn't take the most direct way.”

“We don't have time for that!” Dash rolled her eyes. “Look, Trixie, I know you want to help Twilight or whatever, but we have to do this fast!” She flapped her wings and gained some altitude. “I'm gonna scout ahead and circle back to tell you what's going on.”

Trixie stumbled ahead and “Wait! What if there are traps?!”

“Then I'll warn you about them!” Dash flew ahead and vanished around a corner.

“There are definitely traps,” Pinkie Pie noted, helpfully. “But we should be fine as long as we don't hear spooky organ music.”

“Spooky organ music?” Trixie raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“Let's just follow Dash afore she gets herself in more trouble than she can handle.” Applejack sighed. They picked up the pace, Trixie taking another fuzzmint seed to dull the pain in her shoulder as they walked. The castle shook from somewhere deep within as they walked  into a corridor lined with worn and dusty busts.

“The throne room should be just ahead,” Rarity said. “The last time we were here, Fluttershy and I took a rather circuitous route to get there.”

“Is the throne room the best place to look?” Fluttershy asked. “Maybe we should try to find the library. Twilight likes libraries.”

Trixie held up a hoof to her heart dramatically. “If Trixie was an evil being bent on destroying Equestria she would be waiting in the throne room to greet her intruders. It's only appropriate.”

Rarity nodded. “Oh yes, I have to agree. It wouldn't do to just show up in a corridor or jump out of some closet. One must have a certain sense of drama.”

“The both of y'all seem to miss the point that this is Twilight. Unless she put 'dramatic entrance' on her to-do list we're gonna show up and she's gonna make us wait ten minutes while she finds some kinda instruction manual on how to give an evil monologue before droppin' yer enemies in vats of lava sharks.” Applejack paused to consider. “That said, the way that girl is, it wouldn't surprise me if she actually did have 'villain speech' on her list of things to do today, so maybe y'all got a point.”

“There you are!” Rainbow Dash zipped back towards them out of the darkness. “There's a big rock in front of the doors to the throne room and I can't pull them open. Give me a hoof with this.” Indeed, the rock in front of the doors was twice the size of any of the ponies, and, oddly, Trixie found it familiar-looking for some reason.

“Hmmm...” Pinkie Pie loudly considered the rock. “That looks like Western Red Gneiss.”

Trixie clicked her tongue. “You're right. I thought it looked familiar. But that kind of stone isn't natural to this area. At the rock farm they had to import it before they could grow them.”

“...Grow them?” Applejack turned to look.

“Don't ask,” Trixie said, with a sigh. “It's complicated. The point is, that rock didn't just fall here, and the walls aren't made of it. Not that you'd want to make walls out of it.”

“Is it an important rock?” Fluttershy asked.

“For rubies and sapphires,” Pinkie Pie said authoritatively.

“We can ask Twilight why this rock is here later,” Applejack said with a sigh. She wrapped a rope around the rock. “Y'all help us pull!” With six ponies working at it, even if most of them were weak or injured, the boulder was quickly dragged away from the doors.

Dash smirked. “If that's the best Twilight has, then this isn't going to be as hard as I thought.” She pulled open the doors. The throne room was pitch black. Unnaturally so. It was like a fog of ink was filling the room.

“It wasn't supposed to stop you. It was foreshadowing,” Twilight said, from somewhere in the darkness.

“What's that supposed to mean?” Dash asked with a frown.

Twilight laughed. “It means you'll find out what it means later.”

“I don't like the sound of this,” Applejack muttered.

“Well? What are you all waiting for? Come in. If you're afraid of the dark I'm sure Pinkie can sing a song or two about it.” The six ponies walked in, Rarity's light spell fizzling out as she approached the pitch blackness. “So this is the part where I'm going to make you an offer. I know you're going to want to dismiss it right away, but you're my best friends and so I want you to at least consider it. Join with me. We've saved Equestria so many times already, and this time it won't be any different, except we're saving it for good instead of just covering up a problem.”

Trixie squinted, trying to see through the darkness. She couldn't even make out her hoof in front of her face. “Twilight, you need to take off that amulet. It's making you make even worse choices than Trixie makes, and that's pretty awful.”

“Honestly I didn't even expect you to come, Trixie. I thought you'd had enough adventuring and being beaten today. I give you an A+ for tenacity, though. You really do impress me more and more as I get to know you better.” Trixie blushed slightly at that.

“Look, just stop being evil and we can all go home!” Dash said, from somewhere above.

“Evil? Rainbow Dash, I'm disappointed. I'm not evil. I'm a hero. Equestria has deep problems, but there is no problem that cannot be solved by a disciplined, ordered mind.”

“And that's you,” Applejack said. “Twi, if half of what I heard is true then this ain't a problem you can just solve, and crackin' this thing open's just gonna hurt a lot of people.”

“So you don't trust me either? At least I know you're being honest. Come on, I want to hear from the rest of you. What next, is Rarity going to tell me that ancient artifacts are out of style? I know you care more about what people tell you is the next big thing than you do about anything else.”

Rarity made a wounded sound. “Already resorting to insults? Twilight, this behavior is simply awful. What would Celestia say?”

“I'm sure I'll hear a big speech from her later too. In a few hours she'll probably fight off that spell I used on her. In case you're curious, it's adapted from what Sombra did to my brother. Celestia herself showed me how to use that style of magic, and I've continued studying it. I probably know more about it than anypony else by now.”

“T-Twilight I know you probably aren't in the mood for jokes, or a party, or anything else like that...” The hesitation in Pinkie's voice was strange to hear. “But this really isn't funny. I think I know where you got that rock from now, and... please don't do anything bad.”

“Pinkie, you're smarter than I give you credit for.”

“What's are you two talking about?” Applejack asked.

“Now now. Wait until we hear from the last and most quiet member of our little circle. Fluttershy? Do you want to tell me about all the cute little bunnies I'll be hurting when I crack open the Black Archive?”

“I don't think you care much about that,” Fluttershy said, quietly. “There's definitely something wrong with you, Twilight. I care about you as a friend, and I'm going to do what's right to help you, even if that means stopping you.”

“Very nice,” Twilight noted. She started clapping. “So, let's get this little drama started. As Pinkie Pie has already figured out, I've made a few stops before I came here. I knew Celestia would send the five of you-”

“Six,” Trixie noted.

“-the Six of you,” Twilight conceded. “Since she and Luna would rather watch Equestria burn than lift a hoof themselves to do anything. I decided to make some special arrangements. I knew you wouldn't just do the smart thing and join me. Applejack and Rainbow Dash are too stubborn to listen to reason and the rest of you would rather keep in line and follow their lead than disagree. So I'm going to start by sweetening the pot.”

A light flashed on, illuminating a cage. Inside were a collection of ponies and a cute little rabbit. The assembled group gasped in surprise. Pinkie's family, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and Angel were all locked inside the hanging frame of steel. They blinked at the sudden light and shook the bars, screaming. Well, Angel wasn't screaming. That rabbit looked like he was plotting revenge.

“I managed to find something for everypony!” Twilight said. “Remember when I said that the rock was foreshadowing?”

“It was from the Pie rock farm,” Trixie whispered.

“Correct! Maybe you did pay attention in school after all. But just having them in a cage isn't much of a threat. That's why I have another friend here to greet you. Thanks to my magic he's a little bigger than you might remember him. Spike!”

Reptilian eyes opened in the darkness as a massive purple and green form uncoiled. Pillars of green flame erupted around the room, illuminating the fully-grown dragon that had squeezed into the throne room.

“Oh no,” Rarity said. Trixie looked around the room. Despite the voice, there was no actual sign of Twilight.

“She's not even here,” Trixie said. “She never was. She's scrying on us and using spells to hear us and send her voice into the room.”

“You really are on the crystal ball today,” Twilight noted, her voice coming from all around them. “The Black Archive doesn't open right into the throne room, but I knew you'd be along there soon enough and I didn't want you to be too disappointed.”

Red sparks crackled around Spike, and the now-huge dragon reared up, roaring. A massive tail swept across the floor, sending everypony except Rainbow Dash flying. It was followed up with a wave of greenish-purple fire, Rarity saving the day with a quick magical shield, holding it by herself long enough for Trixie to assist and push the flames away.

“Trixie knows he wasn't this big before!” Trixie said.

“Fluttershy, you're good with dragons!” Dash said, ducking behind the shield as she avoided a crashing wave of heat. “Go ask him to stop being a giant monster!”

“Oh no, when this happened last time, it was Rarity who stopped Spike, remember?”

Tixie looked at the giant dragon, then at the ponies. “This happened before?!”

“It's a long story,” Rarity said. “But it doesn't matter. Last time, he grew because his greed went out of control. This is because of some kind of magic! I can't just kiss him and make him stop!”

“You don't know that until you try!” Applejack said.

“Sounds like a plan to me!” Dash grabbed Rarity and flew up, doing maneuvers in the tight space that made Trixie feel sick just watching. Spike tried to follow them, rearing up and smacking his head into the crumbling roof. Tiles fell down, smashing on the floor. He roared in frustration and lashed out, turning to face Dash and Rarity and swiping at Trixie and the others with his tail again. The four ponies ran through a doorway to avoid being crushed, poking their heads out to watch and see if Rarity was successful.

“Pucker up!” Dash yelled, diving towards Spike, turning at the last second to aim for his cheek. Rarity screamed as they pulled up to a stop only inches from iron-hard scales. She opened her eyes again to find herself staring a dragon in the face.

“S-Spike, it's me! Please come to your senses!” She sheepishly tried kissing his cheek. Spike's eyes cleared for a moment from the haze over them, then a wave of red sparks crawled over his scales, causing him to shrink back in pain as his eyes clouded again with rage. He spat out a stream of fire, Dash pulling Rarity away at the last moment. They zoomed down and into the same corridor the other ponies were hiding in.

“Okay, that was plan A,” Dash said.

“My mane is on fire!” Rarity screamed, rolling around to put it out. A splash of seltzer water quickly doused the flames. “Thank you, Pinkie Pie. I suppose.” Rarity looked at her drenched and scorched mane and sighed.

Pinkie beamed, putting the canister away from wherever she had procured it. “You're welcome, Miss Suppose!”

“What's plan B?” Trixie asked. “Trixie didn't bring her dragon-slaying lance and she doubts you'd want to use it anyway.”

“We need to rescue everypony,” Applejack said. “If we can't do nothin' about Spike, maybe we can just leave him there for now. Ain't like he can do that much damage to a castle that's already in ruins. Once we deal with Twilight we can just have her undo whatever magic she used to make him big. But I ain't leavin' Apple Bloom there for him to snack on in the meantime!”

“I have to concur,” Rarity said, trying to use magic to fix her mane and failing. “Spike is only a danger to others. Even if he escapes into the forest, he's a full-sized dragon and can take care of himself for a few moments.”

“But he could get hurt if he runs into another dragon, or a roc, or a jabberwock...” Fluttershy said, worried.

“One thing at a time,” Dash interjected. “I gotta agree with saving everypony. They're already roasting in that cage. The fire is heating it up like a pan on a stove.”

“Well a kiss didn't work. What next?” Trixie asked.

“We can't just grab the cage and run. It looks too heavy even for Applejack,” Dash said.

“Trixie could use her magic... but given what ah saw at the orchard it'd prolly end up with the ponies being turned into jelly when she loses control and throws them into the wall.” Applejack considered. “Guess we're back to the original plan B. Fluttershy, ah hope you're not as afraid of dragons you already know.”

“Trixie isn't that clumsy,” the mare grumbled.

“I could try talking to him but, um, I don't know if it would work if Rarity's kiss didn't get through to him.” She looked at the white unicorn.

“Ah didn't mean to talk to him. Just give him the Stare while we get that cage open and get everypony out.”

“But- the last time I used the Stare I got turned into a vampire!”

Trixie's jaw dropped. “Wait, what? What is it with you mares and having constant disasters in your lives? Even Trixie didn't get in this much trouble!”

“And this is all stuff we did to each other!” Pinkie Pie said. “But we all apologize and stuff, so there aren't any hard feelings.”

“Trixie supposes this explains why you were all so easily persuaded to forgive her...”

Rarity put a comforting hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder. “Fluttershy, dear. No one is going to be casting strange spells on the dragon. Using the Stare should be perfectly safe. You just need to keep his attention and make him hold still for a few minutes while the rest of us rescue everypony from the cage.”

“I suppose... and if we don't hurry Angel will be really upset at me...” Fluttershy nervously folded and refolded her wings.

“Right!” Dash slapped her on the back. “Now get out there and show that dragon who's boss!” Fluttershy meeped and flew out, circling around towards the dragon's head. Spike watched her closely, smoke pouring from between his teeth.

Once in position, Fluttershy released the Stare. Trixie could feel it from all the way down on the ground. She hesitated for a moment, the followed the others as they quickly and quietly made their way to the iron cage.

“You gotta get us out of here!” Scootaloo yelled. Dash held up a hoof to her lips.

“Just hold on and be quiet,” Applejack whispered. “We'll have you outta there in two shakes of a hog's tail. Dash, help me with this door.” The two grabbed the door and pulled, only to find that the sturdy lock was stronger than they were.

“Now what?” Rarity asked.

“Ah can try to buck the lock off,” Applejack suggested.

“It's solid iron!” Trixie said, rolling her eyes. “You'll never kick it off.”

“Well unless you happen to have a better suggestion we have to try somethin!'”

“Trixie has lots of suggestions.” She walked up to the lock and examined it, then took two slim metal tools out of her saddlebags. “Trixie used to do an escape artist routine before she almost drowned trying to get out of a straightjacket while underwater. She learned to pick locks like this while literally blindfolded and upside-down.”

“Yeah but can you do it quickly?” Dash asked, looking back. “I don't know how long Fluttershy is gonna be able to keep this up without blinking.”

“Trixie is certainly going to try.” Unfortunately, picking locks required delicate touches, precise movements, and concentration. The first two were almost beyond her thanks to the condition of her magic. The last one wasn't being helped by all the fuzzmind seeds she'd been taking to ward off the pain in her shoulder. She swore under her breath as she felt a pin in the lock slip back to where it had been. Behind her, she heard grumbling as the dragon started to move again.

“Any time now, sugar!” Applejack said.

“Don't try to hurry Trixie!” the Unicorn snapped. A third tool joined the ones she already had as she felt around inside. Then, everything abruptly fell into place, clicking as her tools held the lock together long enough for her to turn it, the bolt sliding. “Yes!” She yelled.

Spike roared. Trixie froze. She'd been significantly louder than she'd intended.

“Run!” Dash said, as Applejack opened the cage and urged the ponies into movement.

“Hi mom! Hi dad! Hi sis! Hi sis!” Pinkie bounced along with the fleeing ponies. A wave of flame licked at their heels as they got out the door and around a corner.

“Where's Fluttershy?” Dash asked, as she held a scared Scootaloo.

She was answered by a high-pitched scream as Fluttershy flew past them, just barely escaping another wash of dragonfire herself. Angel hopped after her as she cowered behind a toppled table.

“There she is!” Pinkie pointed, being helpful.

“That's everypony,” Applejack said. “Ah just hope Spike can hold on until we get Twilight to change him back. I didn't like the look of those sparks.”

“He seems like he's in pain,” Rarity said, looking back towards the way they'd come. “I can't believe Twilight would do that to Spike. She's always been like a mother to him.”

“Sis, why is Twilight being so mean?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“She's just confused, dear.” Rarity patted Sweetie Belle's head. “We're going to have a little chat with her. Are you and your friends okay?” She nodded.

“Ya should have seen it! Twilight came outta nowhere and she had a big shiny amulet and then she started castin' all these spells!” Apple Bloom danced around and tried to mime the action. “Ah knew she was strong but I didn't think she was that strong!”

“She appeared in the middle of us trying to earn our cutie marks in temporal dynamics,” Scootaloo said. “Our wagon almost hit her but she stopped it was magic and used some kind of spell to catch us.”

Apple Bloom looked guilty. “Th' flux capacitor was totally fried, though. Mister Turner is gonna be upset about that. We didn't tell him we were borrowing it.”

“It wouldn't work anyway,” Sweetie Belle said. “I tried to tell you but you didn't listen. The Canterlot Thamuturgy Directorate determined that-”

“And ah told you that Twilight used a time travel spell already, so we know it's possible!”

“Girls!” Rarity shouted, quieting them. “This isn't the time for that. Mister and Misses Pie, could you lead these fillies outside? There are a number of Night Guards down the path outside of the storm. They can get all of you to safety.”

The two nodded. Pinkie hugged them and her sisters. Mister Pie pushed the Crusaders a bit to get them moving. “Come along, then. And stay close.”

“They'll be safe?” Trixie asked.

“My dad will take care of them,” Pinkie said, with a smile.

“He managed to raise Pinkie Pie, so ah think he'll manage to wrangle those three into line,” Applejack said. “We should worry more about how we're gonna find Twilight.”

“Trixie wishes Luna had actually told us where the Black Archive was located.”

“Twilight was usually th' one to figure out where these things were,” Applejack said. “Since she ain't here that means yer gonna have to fill in for her, Trixie. Unless you fancy that you ain't Great or Powerful enough to puzzle it out.”

“Trixie isn't particularly great or powerful, but she does her best work when she's trying to be clever.” Trixie considered for a moment. “Logically, with such a dangerous thing, Luna and Celestia would want to keep the archive somewhere it would be difficult to reach, even if the conditions were correct. But not too difficult, since they would need to access it quickly if the danger was too great.”

Trixie started pacing, limping a little on her bad leg. “They wouldn't keep it near anything else that was dangerous or valuable. It also wouldn't be out in the open, because they would want to control access to it. It would be somewhere they wouldn't be likely to go every day. They'd also want to keep most ponies out of it so they would want to disguise it as something boring but important.”

“Don't forget about symbolism, dear,” Rarity said. “Trust me, I've noticed this whole place is dripping with symbolism. It's something a designer sees.”

“You're right!” Trixie stopped. “And the Princesses wouldn't hide it away deep in either wing. This whole castle is built on duality, half for Luna and half for Celestia. It would have to be right in the middle, something they both shared, because the method to open it is also representative of both of them, in the form of the Eclipse, the Sun and the Moon sharing the sky.”

“What, something in the middle of the castle?” Dash considered. “I donno. I mean wouldn't that just be the throne room?”

“That's too exposed,” Applejack said. “I think I get what Trixie is tryin' to get at. She wouldn't put it somewhere that just anypony'd walk into. Even the throne room, a lot of people go in and out of there. Or at least they did.”

“Yeah, but there aren't a lot of rooms that are just in the middle like that,” Dash said. “We didn't explore a lot but we've been through here. There's that place near the front doors where the Elements were hidden-”

“It's called a foyer, dear,” Rarity said.

“Whatever. Four-er. Point is, there's that, the throne room, I think there's a big dining room type of thing, kitchens, that round room with the holes in it.”

“A round room with... holes in it.” Trixie frowned.

Dash shrugged. “Yeah. I don't get it either. It was just basically a big empty room and there were little holes in the roof to let light in. But they weren't regular or anything. They were all over the place like somepony drilled them at random, and a big one right in the middle of the roof.”

Trixie rubbed her chin. “It almost sounds like a planetarium.”

“It would be appropriate and dramatic...” Rarity put in.

“And allow for easy observation of the eclipse,” Trixie gasped. “That has to be it!”

“It's right on the other side of the throne... room...” Dash trailed off. “The throne room with Giant Crazy Spike in it. Great.”

“There's another way,” Trixie said. “But you're not going to like it.”


***


“You were right!” Dash shouted to be heard over the wind. “I don't like this!” The ponies were carefully making their way across the roof, using Applejack's rope as a safety line to tie them together. The raging storm above sent gusts of wind and blasts of thunder that threatened to knock them free of the tiled surface, already slick with rain.

“The planetarium is right over there!” Trixie pointed, the dome visible even through the murk. “Since there are holes in the roof to plot the position of stars, and the annulus in the center of the roof for the sun, it had to be on the uppermost level! And this way we'll avoid any traps Twilight has planned for us!”

“No offense, hon, but I think this here storm is counting as a trap!” Applejack jumped as a bolt of black lighting struck a spire next to her. “We're gonna end up as crispy as hayfries if we stay out here!”

Trixie shielded her eyes and looked back. “Trixie is surprised that you can't handle a little storm! Aren't you five supposed to be heroes?”

“They're just jealous they didn't think to bring an umbrella,” Rarity said, twirling her parasol. As if to spite her, a gust of wind caught it and tore it from her magical grip, the yellow and white umbrella tumbling away, the storm strong enough to actually carry it up and out of sight. Rarity's mane was almost immediately drenched, again.	 “...Never mind.” She sighed.

“Ooh! Tail twitch! Hoof itch! Crossed eyes!” Pinkie said in alarm.

Trixie frowned. “What?”

“It's my Pinkie Sense! We're about to have to run away from a big fire!”

“In case you haven't noticed, it's raining too hard to even start a fire with magic!” Trixie shouted. “Princess Celestia herself couldn't start a campfire out here!”

“Uh, Trixie,” Applejack said, as the roof shook. “Maybe Celestia couldn't, but what about a dragon?” Across from them, on the other side of the roof's peak on this wing of the castle, the roof exploded outwards. A huge purple claw gripped the roof, and Spike started pulling himself out of the throne room where they'd left him, fire leaking from his maw.

“Haystacks,” Trixie said, quietly.

“Run for it! He's gonna toast us!” Pinkie yelled. While Trixie froze in place, the other five were Ponyville ponies, and well-versed in the art of running around in circles when danger appeared. Unfortunately, they weren't terribly coordinated at it and they were also tied together. After about two seconds they all fell as the rope pulled them in six directions at once.

Spike loomed over them, and a wave of dragonflame rushed towards them. Trixie screamed and covered her face. She lost her footing on the roof as the rope pulled at her, Applejack and Rainbow Dash managing to drag everypony out of the way. The rain boiled, a steam cloud rising in the wake of the unnatural blaze.

“Come on, you lazy ponies! Move it!” Dash yelled. “Just keep running!” Spike got completely onto the roof, the structure cracking and groaning as the dragon's weight settled on it. He roared and bounded after them.

“I always knew I'd be eaten by a dragon!” Fluttershy squeaked.

“Yer gonna have to find a different one to get eaten by!” Applejack said. Trixie stumbled as she tried to get to her feet, unable to keep up with the pace they were setting. Another wave of flame surged for them like a flood of cinders. Trixie stopped and focused. She knew a spell that would keep her cool in even great heat. If she just put all of her strength behind it...

A wave of cold flashed away from her, turning the rain into snow for a few moments. The flames met the chill and slowed, petering out and buying them a little more time. The rain started again as the spell collapsed under the strain.

“Nice one!” Dash yelled back. Trixie smiled and stumbled again as she was yanked forwards. Spike's heavy steps carried him closer, a claw punching right through the roof as he ran for them. The entire castle seemed to quake.

“This castle wasn't built to take a beating like this!” Rarity said. “It's a capital building, not a real fortress!”

“She cannae take the strain!” Pinkie yelled, in a strange accent. Was that supposed to be a Hooflander accent? “Much more o' this and she'll fall apart, cap'n!”

“Good!” Applejack yelled.

“Good? We're on the roof!” Trixie yelled.

“Yeah, but so is he!” They suddenly veered to the left, going serpentine. Spike followed doggedly, stomping left and right and making the walls shiver. Finally, they failed, something load-bearing under them finally giving up the ghost and crumbling. A cloud of dust exploded out as Spike fell through the collapsing roof to the ground below.

Rarity looked back in fear. “Spike!” She tried to stop, but the structural failure was cascading towards them,  the roof falling in on itself.

“Fluttershy, pull up! We need to get to that part of the roof over there!” Dash pointed. Fluttershy nodded and the two flew up, dragging the other four ponies along with them as the roof fell out from under their feet. “You guys could lose a little weight!” Dash complained, straining to keep in the air long enough. They almost crashed down on the next part of the roof.

“They weren't that heavy,” Fluttershy said, barely audible over the storm. She hadn't strained at all. But she also sometimes wrestled bears. “Do you think Spike's okay? That was a long fall...”

There was a groaning from below them. Applejack adjusted her hat as a gust tried to take it. “Ah think he's fine. He's always been a tough little guy and a fall like that wouldn't hurt a big dragon like him. Probably knocked him silly though.”

“Let's worry about him after we take care of Twilight,” Dash said. “How are we even gonna get in?”

“We'll drop down through the annulus on top,” Trixie said. “Fluttershy will carry me, and Trixie will put a feather-fall spell on the rest of you. We'll just jump down. Twilight won't be expecting us to enter that way.”

“Unless she heard the racket from out there. Or she's listenin' in again. Or she's better at predictin' us than you think. Or-”

“Alright yes, there are many ways Twilight might be expecting us, but it's still the fastest way.” Trixie sighed. The ponies carefully made their way up the dome to the top, where a yawning hole reached into the darkness below. Trixie looked up. The eclipse was almost total now. They didn't have much time to stop Twilight.

She carefully cast the feather-fall spell and they leapt into the planetarium. The swallowing darkness surrounded as they landed in what was almost like a dim spotlight, the small amount of light from outside leaving them in a circle of dim illumination, surrounded by shadows.

“Well, that took you long enough.” The voice wasn't Twilight's. Not quite. It was like two ponies were speaking at once, somepony speaking over Twilight, her voice only faintly audible, like an echo.

“Next time we'll try to get through your death-trap a little faster,” Trixie said, eyes scanning the darkness. The round room made it difficult to figure out where she was.

“I thought you'd try and fight Spike, not just pick the lock on the cage and go around him. I guess Trixie's cowardice is rubbing off on you guys.” Twilight laughed. “ Not to mention her ability to cause property damage. That roof held up for a thousand years, but then Trixie comes along and bam, down it goes!”

“Come out here and talk face-to-face,” Applejack said. “Y'all gotta stop this, Twilight!”

“Oh yes, it is time for a dramatic entrance, isn't it?” Fire erupted in a ring around the room, the flames flickering between ruby-red and magenta. Twilight stood above them on a raised platform overlooking the floor they stood on, which had been cleared of dust and debris to show intricate carvings and symbols.

The six ponies gasped at the sight. Twilight was the size of Celestia, her coat almost black. Fangs and slitted eyes like a dragon. Hair that flowed in an unseen wind.

“You look like-”

“Yes, Dash, I look like Nightmare Moon. Thanks. Spike already pointed that out. You're all very observant.” Twilight rolled her eyes. “This form is far better at using the almost unlimited magic at my command. Maybe when I'm done and I've conquered Equestria I'll write a thesis on alicorn size as related to magical ability.”

“Excuse me,” Fluttershy asked. “Could you... stop being evil and scary?”

Twilight laughed. “Wow! So direct! I didn't think you'd be so forceful. Now here's the deal. You can all kneel, right now, and you can rule by my side once this is over. I know you'd do a good job and you deserve it after everything you've done. Celestia never cared enough to reward you, but I can do it myself now.”

“And if we don't feel like takin' knee in yer evil glory?”

Twilight smiled. “Oh well, that's easy. I'll kill you.”
> Black And Silver
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 10: Black and Silver
by MagnetBolt


“Kneel before me!” Nightmare Twilight demanded, baring her fangs. “I have been kind enough not to kill you ponies where you stand, and this is your last chance before I am forced to take action. Consider it a gesture of...” She rolled her slitted eyes. “Friendship.”

“How generous,” Rarity said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Come ta' yer senses, Twi! You know this ain't right!”Applejack looked up at her from where the group stood in the middle of the solarium, the round room around them like they stood in the center of a stadium.

“No, this is the first time it's been right,” Twilight replied, her mane flowing behind her as she stalked, circling the group of her former friends. “You've seen the mess Celestia has made of Equestria. It's all completely out of order. Monsters lurk at our borders. Ancient evils show up every week to plague us because she can't get rid of them for good.”

“But Twilight, if there was a better way, Celestia would have done it already...” Fluttershy offered. Twilight shot her a glare. The pegasus hid behind Rainbow Dash.

“I really did want you to join me. It would have made things so much easier.” Twilight sighed. “It could have been wonderful. A new Equestria built on our efforts. But if I have to build it on a foundation of your corpses, so be it.” A magical aura built up on her horn, sparks twinkling at the tip, bursting like tiny novas with a sound like chimes. 

A beam of black and red magic scythed down towards the group. Rarity threw up a shield, and the magic simply shattered as Twilight's beam struck it, the spell itself breaking apart. Fluttershy screamed. Pinkie Pie had the most useful reaction, picking up Trixie and throwing her into the path of the beam, the attack rebounding as her coat flashed pure white and silver. The beam struck Twilight's face, and the Nightmare screamed in surprise.

“You little-!” She roared, her coat smoking where the beam had hit it, a black cloud steaming up slowly like some kind of thick smoke, her eye visible only as a glow from within the gloom.

Trixie landed, head spinning. She shook her head to try and clear her dizziness and glared at Pinkie Pie. “Trixie would appreciate a little warning next time before you throw her into the path of a death beam!”

“Sorry!” Pinkie said, smiling.

“She ain't gonna listen to reason,” Applejack said. “Let's um... darnit. Twilight knows all our usual plans.”

“We'll just have to go faster than she can plan!” Dash blasted towards Twilight in a rainbow-trailing blur. Just before Dash hit her, Twilight vanished, leaving no time for the pegasus to stop. She Rainbow Crashed into the wall, barely slowing down enough to avoid being seriously hurt.

“You forget that I have an advantage none of our enemies ever had,” Twilight said, reappearing behind them. “I know all of you. I've seen you at your best and at your worst.” She grinned madly. “Do you remember when Discord turned all of you against me?”

“Oh! I do!” Pinkie Pie raised her hand, volunteering. “He made all of us act really mean!”

“Thank you, Pinkie.” Twilight laughed. “Ever since then, I realized that you five were among the greatest threats to Equestria. If an enemy could turn you against me once, what if it happened again? So I spent some time thinking about how to handle it next time that it came up.” She vanished in a bubble of light, teleporting to their side. “For a while I didn't think I'd actually need to use my plans, but it just goes to show you that foresight is its own reward!”

“I don't like th' sound of that,” Applejack muttered.

Trixie coughed. “Excuse me, but Trixie wants to point out that there are six of us.”

“You didn't even have to count on your hooves for that.” Twilight smirked. “But that's okay. I didn't think I'd need a plan to defeat somepony as pathetic as you. I'll just have to improvise.”

“Wonderful,” Rarity said. “Please continue to bait her, Trixie. It's good that you're making her too angry to even begin to listen to reason.”

“It's what Trixie does best,” Dash rolled her eyes.

“Trixie is- sorry.” Trixie looked down.

“Don't worry, guys. She already threw her giant death spell at us. She's about as angry as it gets!” Pinkie Pie smiled.

“Of course the biggest threat is Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said. “If things go badly, she's the only one of you who can go for help, since Fluttershy is too timid to do anything useful, Rarity can't learn a spell more complicated than making a torch, and you two, well...” she snickered and looked at Applejack and Pinkie Pie. “It's not like two earth ponies can outrun me.”

“Oh no,” Dash said, as Twilight turned her gaze on the pegasus. Dash tried to fly away, still dizzy. Twilight's horn glowed, and the rubble below Dash suddenly fell up, and she screamed and lost control, slamming into the roof of the planetarium a few moments before the debris crashed down around and onto her.

“A simple reverse gravity spell focused on her,” Twilight explained. “Of course, none of you even know how to begin casting a spell like that. Rarity probably didn't even pass magic kindergarten and Trixie is just a liar and a cheat!” Twilight growled, red sparks leaking from her visible eye.

“Dash!” Applejack yelled, galloping for her.

“Whoops, there goes the spell,” Twilight said, letting it go. The debris and dust crashed back down in a cloud of dust, Dash's limp form lying prone on top of the mess. Applejack pulled Dash away, the pegasus badly shaken up.

“Was that your best shot?” Dash asked, blood tricking from where she'd bitten her lip. Twilight smiled and shook her head.

“No.” Twilight's horn lit up, and the shadows around Dash's feet surged around her, knocking Applejack away. Dash screamed. When the shadows fell away, Dash stumbled away, something obviously wrong. She tripped over a rock and fell on her face.

“I can't see!” She screamed. Her eyes were stark black, as if the shadows were clinging to them.

“A modified blindness spell,” Twilight explained. “It makes her almost entirely useless. Especially with her wing broken like that.”

“My wing isn't-” Dash screamed again as an aura of red magic surrounded her wing and twisted, breaking one of the long bones. She collapsed in pain.

“Sorry, I sometimes forget just how good I am at predicting things. It's like I can see the future! Don't worry, that joke will be a real killer later once you're able to stand up.” Twilight looked at the rest of the ponies. “So, who wants to go next!”

“Everypony rush her at once!” Applejack said. “We can't let her focus on one of us at a time!” The five ran for the Nightmare, leaving Rainbow Dash behind. Just as they got close enough to do anything, Twilight vanished again in a teleport spell.

“Trixie is starting to really hate that- where's Rarity?!” The white unicorn had vanished along with Twilight. They looked around in a panic.

“See, this is why you have to be careful when you teleport,” Twilight said. The ponies turned to look, the alicorn having gone behind them again. Rarity was bent over backwards, her mane and tail fused into the stone of the floor. “Accidents can happen! She's just lucky I was feeling... generous today. I could have used her legs instead of just her hair.” Twilight's eyes glowed, and black crystals covered Rarity's horn, cutting off any chance she'd be able to cast a spell to free herself.

“My, this is really disappointing,” Twilight said, with a sigh, as she stepped away from Rarity. “Two of you down already. I didn't think you'd be this useless, but I suppose without my leadership I should have expected it. How about, to make things more fun, I tell you the order I'm going to hurt the rest of you in?” She grinned.

“It don't matter!” Applejack said, snorting. “We're gonna fight until the end! We ain't scared of your magic!”

“I'm scared of her magic,” Fluttershy whispered.

“Fluttershy is the smartest one of you. Because of that, I think I'll start with Pinkie Pie. Then Applejack. Then Fluttershy. I'm going to save Trixie for last, so we can have another one of those magic duels she's so fond of. Did you hear? She actually won one a little while ago! Of course it was against some no-name witch. Barely worthy of even being called a unicorn, and certainly not the kind of person who deserved to use this, the Element of Dominance.” Twilight laughed.

“That's just a cheap knockoff Luna made of the real elements!” Trixie shouted. She didn't actually know anything about the Elements of Harmony, except what little she'd read about in the papers. But she knew how to keep a villain talking.

“It's far more than that,” Twilight said. Behind her, Pinkie Pie was sneaking around towards Rarity, producing a large pair of scissors. “It's the most powerful magical artifact left in Equestria. At least until I open the Black Archive. Then I can have some real fun!”

“Look at what it's done to you! You aren't in control!”

“I AM control!” Twilight shouted. “I am going to reshape Equestria to a form that is pleasing to me! You should thank me! I'm your friend and I am trying to do what's best for you!”

“Breaking Dash's wing is what's best for her?!” Applejack demanded. Pinkie Pie was getting closer. She tried to quietly snip Rarity's hair, the unicorn's mane pulled taut and obviously painful.

“It's about what's best for her in the long run. A world without Discord or changelings or monsters lurking in the woods. That's what's best for everypony.” Twilight sighed. “Now where was I? I think I said I'd deal with Pinkie Pie next.”

Twilight turned to where Pinkie was standing with the scissors, Rarity's mane halfway cut. The princess spread her wings and jumped next to her, landing lightly.

“Pinkie's greatest weakness was always herself,” Twilight said. “All it has ever taken is the smallest amount of self-doubt and she's turned into a useless wreck. As you'd expect from a pony who can't do anything except annoy ponies with her antics.”

Pinkie held up her scissors for a moment as if to threaten the Nightmare. They twisted and crumpled like they were paper in a thunderstorm, the metal shrieking. Pinkie let go of them, and they curled into a ball as they fell to the floor heavily. Twilight stepped in quickly, touching her horn to Pinkie's forehead.

Pinkie gasped, her hair going limp as she curled up on herself in misery, retreating into a ball like the scissors she'd dropped.

Twilight kicked her, rolling her like a toy into the wall. Pinkie didn't respond. “See? All it takes is a little application of the memory spell. Really, it's quite clever and humane. Not a mark on her and she's completely disabled.”

“W-what did you do to her?” Trixie asked, taken aback, eyes wide.

“She just remembered that time she spent a thousand years alone on the moon. A millennium of solitary confinement. That would be hard on anypony. But on somepony like Pinkie Pie, who needs constant validation? I bet she went completely catatonic somewhere around the first decade.”

“She never spent a thousand years on no moon!” Applejack yelled.

“No, but I did,” Twilight said, gritting her teeth. “You can't imagine what it was like. I was so close to victory, and then she stole it away from me! All because of the Elements of Harmony.” She looked up with a mad grin. “But they're gone now. You're nothing special. You're just a few ponies who happen to know each other.”

“She really isn't Twilight,” Trixie whispered.

“She don't just look like Nightmare Moon, she is Nightmare Moon!” Applejack replied.

“Don't be stupid!” Twilight yelled, stomping her hoof. “I'm nothing like that pathetic excuse for a princess! Twilight- I – am far stronger than Luna ever was! And like this, as a Nightmare, I have the power to make all of my dreams come true.”

“Twilight wasn't banished to the moon!” Applejack yelled. “Twi if you're in there somewhere you gotta fight! That thing possessin' you is gonna get the rest of us killed if you don't dig yer heels in and stop it!”

“Stop trying to confuse me!” Twilight snapped. “This is just a form I'm taking, using the part of Nightmare Moon she left in the Element of Dominance! Her memories are just a side effect, but they've been useful, too. They've shown me how to find the Black Archive, they've given me whispers about what's inside it.”

“They're also driving you insane!” Trixie snapped. “Twilight wouldn't hurt her friends like this no matter what! Especially not for- for some trinkets!”

“Please. You barely know me. You think you know what I'm like because you met me a few times and we went on one little adventure together? I can't believe I wanted to spend time with you. It goes to show you how naïve I was just a short time ago.”

“I hope you have some kind of idea, Trixie,” Applejack whispered.

“If Trixie had an idea she would have used it already!” Trixie said. “I don't think I can do anything without hurting her.”

“Then hurt her and apologize later!” Applejack shouted. A wave of magical energy crashed between them as the earth pony dodged away. Trixie winced as the magic fell apart around her.

“Trixie regrets having to do this... but face my full power!” She shouted, throwing a lightning bolt at Twilight. The alicorn swatted it out of the air with a wing, not even having to use magic to deflect it. Trixie felt sweat dripping from her brow. Twilight raised an eyebrow.

“Your full power? Really? I mean here I am only using about a tenth of my strength and you're going all-out and can't even touch me.”

“A tenth?!” Trixie asked, in disbelief.

“About. I mean it's not like I can calculate it exactly.” Twilight tilted her head. “No, that's not true. I could work it out. It's just not worth the trouble. The point is that you aren't even worth my time. Not that you ever were.” Twilight sighed. “That said, I think it's about time I got rid of Applejack.”

“Oh haystacks,” Applejack said, eyes going wide. She backed up as Twilight's horn started to glow, but before she spotted the danger it was already on her, her lasso wrapping around her neck and dragging her into the air like a noose. The pony kicked as it started to tighten, fighting to try and get free. Trixie jumped for her, but only succeeded in being dragged up as well, her weight making things worse. She let go and glanced at Twilight. No use in trying to ask the Nightmare to have mercy.

“Hang on!” Trixie yelled.

“This... ain't no time... for puns!” Applejack gasped, fighting for each breath. Trixie narrowed her eyes and carefully aimed a ray of flame at the rope, burning it. Before Applejack fell far, Twilight got a grip on the remaining rope, pulling it even tighter. Trixie refocused her efforts, the ray getting closer to Applejack. The orange pony looked at the encroaching fire in fear as it got closer and then finally touched her neck, the noose going up in blue flames and burning to cinders. Applejack fell to the floor, panting and touching her neck.

“Next time watch yer aim...” Applejack said, her voice rough. There was a ring around her neck where the fire had burned her coat almost down to the skin.

“Nicely done,” Twilight commented. “Next, how about I-”

“How about you shut your snout!” Rainbow Dash yelled, connecting with Twilight's face with a flying kick. Dash landed awkwardly, fluttering her good wing, the other sticking out at an awkward angle. “You're talking so much I can find you without even having to use my eyes!”

“You little-” Twilight turned on her. Before she could do anything else to the wounded pegasus, Trixie was on her, colliding with her head and grabbing onto her horn.

“Nice throw!” Trixie yelled back to Applejack. The farmer smiled and nodded. Trixie held on for dear life as Twilight started tossing her head, trying to get the unicorn away from her horn.

“Get off of me!” Nightmare Twilight roared. She launched a wave of force, but with Trixie right there on her horn all it did was reflect right back at her, slamming her back and into a wall. Trixie let go, rolling to the floor, armor clanking on the stone.

“Grab the amulet while she's stunned!” Trixie yelled. Fluttershy flew past her, grabbing for the Element of Dominance. Her hooves shook as she felt around the elaborate metal necklace.

“T-there's no clasp!” Fluttershy said, terrified. Twilight opened her eyes, crimson fire burning in them as she looked at the yellow pegasus touching her Element.

“That isn't for you!” Twilight shouted, flinging Fluttershy away with a kick as she stood up from where the backlash of her attack had put her. “No wonder our enemies always had such a tough time. You girls are incredibly annoying!”

Fluttershy squeaked as she landed. Twilight looked at the ponies, then charged up another attack, a wave of energy washing out of her in a wave, pushing the ponies back, even Trixie being knocked away by the force against her armor.

“No more Miss Nice Princess. I was hoping when this was over we could still find a way to be friends, but I guess I'll just have to make new friends.” Her eyes lit up with glee. “I'll be easy! People will fight each other to the DEATH just to be friends with me! Who wouldn't want to be best friends with Equestira's new GOD?!”

“Trixie, I think ya better get ready to jump in front of another death ray,” Applejack said, looking at Twilight. The corrupted alicorn's mane was starting to glow around the edges.

“No, this is something-” Before Trixie could finish, Twilight vanished in a streak of magenta light, reappearing right in front of Trixie, looking down at her with the same cold eyes as she'd had in the Smooze nightmares. Trixie stumbled over her words, the fear from that dream coming back in a wave. Twilight turned and bucked Trixie completely across the room. Trixie smashed into the stone wall, shattering a mosaic of the southern sky. If not for the armor she was wearing, her ribs would have shattered from the force. Even so, she felt something twist inside her, leaving her wincing with pain in every breath.

“This is the kind of power I could have been using if I wasn't so afraid of hurting other ponies. All of you know how much I've been holding back. When this pathetic cheat showed up in Ponyville I didn't even want to show her up because I was afraid of displaying my might.” Twilight vanished in a burst of magic and appeared behind Fluttershy. The pegasus squeaked with surprise as she was suddenly enveloped in a sphere of energy and punted across the room, careening into the already-injured Rainbow Dash like a pinball.

“This is ridiculous,” Trixie coughed, spitting up blood. “How are we supposed to beat her?”

“Discord was even stronger and we still won!” Applejack said.

Twilight laughed. “He was stupid and you had the Elements of Harmony. Now I'm the only one with an Element!” She disappeared, getting behind Applejack. Trixie gasped, trying to warn her. Applejack saw the look in her eyes and responded instinctively, with her most well-practiced move, meeting Twilight's kick with one of her own. She wasn't nearly as strong as the alicorn, but it was enough to force the princess to stumble back a step. Applejack winced as one of her hooves cracked from the force.

“We didn't come here to lose,” Rarity said. Pinkie Pie was pressed up against her side for support, shivering, her mane still flat and limp. Rarity's tail and hair were cropped roughly, cut by shaking hooves to free her from the floor.

“How did you-?!” Nightmare Twilight demanded.

Pinkie Pie looked up at her, traumatized but unbroken. “B-because I got her free. N-no matter what you do to me, I won't let you hurt my friends, o-or hurt yourself.”

“That's impossible! The memory of a thousand years on the moon should have shattered your mind into powder! You shouldn't even remember how to speak!”

“I h-have something Luna didn't,” Pinkie Pie said, smiling weakly. “I-I have all of my friends. When N-Nightmare Moon was sent away it was because s-she was already b-being an assbutt! But I had my friends to come back to. A-and you were all in trouble. Especially you, Twilight.”

“Please watch your language, dear,” Rarity noted quietly.

“S-sorry,” Pinkie Pie whispered. “I'm j-just a little upset.”

“The real Twilight wouldn't do all this!” Dash said, trying to stand up. Fluttershy helped her get her hooves under her. “And I know she's still in there somewhere. We rescued Luna from you and we're gonna do the same for our friend!”

“That's right,” Fluttershy agreed. “You're a big meany pretending to be Twilight. She'd never try and hurt us and she'd especially never do what you're doing to Princess Celestia.”

“We ain't gonna quit,” Applejack said, limping forwards. “So y'all can either give it up now or we can keep doin' this until the five of us-”

“Six of us!” Trixie put in, offended.

“Until the six of us wear you down enough that y'all have to give up.” Applejack finished, without missing a beat. “Sorry there, Trix. Still gettin' used to you bein' here.”

“No! This is not how this is going to happen!” Twilight screamed, thunder crashing from above. “This isn't something where you're just going to use friendship and determination to win! I can't just be brushed off like that! You are going to kneel before me and you will BEG me for mercy and ADMIT that I was right all along!”

“It's not going to happen,” Trixie said. “The Great and Powerful Trixie bows to no mare.”

“You know what, let's see about that.” Twilight narrowed her eyes, the room growing darker as the amulet around her neck started glowing, like light was being sucked into the Element of Dominance. A chill washed through the air as the temperature dropped. “I've just been using this Element to enhance my power. I think it's time I used it for what it was really created for.”

“Bring it on!” Dash shouted.

“Trixie would prefer if she did not bring it on,” Trixie put in.

“Now you... will... KNEEL!” There was a flash of darkness, light being shadow and shadow becoming as bright as daylight. Trixie could hear a screaming in her head, like windigos screeching across her soul. Her coat shone black and silver in the witchlight of the Element, waves of magic rolling across her, only barely touching her mind. Even that light touch was enough to make her shudder, like having her will crushed in a vice.

One by one, all six ponies facing the Nightmare fell to their knees, eyes glowing with magenta light.

Twilight sighed. “I told you when we started this little chapter to bend knee before your better. You could have avoided a lot of pain and trouble by just doing it at the start.” She composed herself and looked up through the hole in the roof to the sky up above. Luna was weakening.

“Trixie has never been good at avoiding trouble...” The unicorn said, standing up shakily. Twilight froze in place, the grin on her face vanishing. “She prefers to cause it herself.”

“Oh yes. You're very good at that,” Twilight noted, turning to glare at the mare. “I should have known that little curse you're under would protect you from the Element's effects. You might want to consider kneeling again, Trixie. If it's easier to kill you than control you, I'll do the former.”

“Trixie isn't easy to kill either, in case you haven't noticed,” She posed. “Trixie just needed that short rest to...” she hesitated. “...to regain her strength! Yes! Now she is at full power. You should consider yourself defeated already.”

“I'm just...” Twilight sighed, then laughed. “So that's what it's going to come down to? A magical duel, between the two of us?”

“Trixie has almost a fifty-percent win ratio, and she's on the side of justice this time, so she can't possibly lose. Though if you'd prefer we can try something else like... playing Cloud Chess or Monopony.”

“I'm sure you'd love that. I wouldn't have to kill you and you'd be able to waste plenty of time while you tried to work out a plan. But it isn't going to work this time. I don't even have to do anything. While we've all been having our little tussle I've been hard at work creating a celestial conjunction.”

“Trixie did notice that it was darker than usual.”

“It's more than just darker. It's time,” Twilight said, looking up. Visible through the annulus at the top of the planetarium, the moon and the sun met in the sky. A keening sound tore through the sky, black beams of darkness striking out of the total eclipse in a terrible reversal of sunlight. A column of blackness struck down into the center of the room, the floor brightening as previously-invisible sigils of twisted, ancient magic revealed themselves in this new light.

The runes flared with a dark rainbow of colors, infrared, ultraviolet, nameless colors that only magic could make visible. The light twisted, space itself distorting, until it rose up into the air like some kind of reverse shadow cast by the runes on the floor, twisting in the air into an arch of light. It stood there, impossibly, before a crack of light broke down the middle, like invisible doors opening in midair, swinging wide in the dark omen of the eclipse.

Nightmare Twilight laughed, voice as cold as the icy wind blowing out of that crack in the world. “The Black Archive is open!”
> Before My Body Is Dry
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 11: Before My Body Is Dry
By MagnetBolt



The portal to the Black Archive yawned open, whispers pouring from the edges like the foxfire dancing along its outline. Even just looking into the space hurt Trixie's head. She'd heard of magic like this, used to create a space inside a saddlebag or chest that was larger than the outside. But this was different, just the inside alone, a space that had no outside, that only had an entrance when powerful magic was used to crack open the world itself. It was in itself a display of power far beyond anything she'd witnessed before.

And that was just the door.

Twilight stepped through without hesitation, vanishing into the gloom beyond. Whatever power was waiting on the other side was going to be enough to destroy Equestria, and Trixie had no idea how she was going to stop her.

“Ugh... mah head... what in the hay happened?” Applejack said, shaking her head as she stood up. She picked up her hat from where it had fallen and put it on.

“Twilight used the Element of Dominance to take control of your mind,” Trixie said. “Trixie supposes that's what it was always intended to do, but she only tried using it that way in the end. Trixie would have done it right at the start.”

“That gate!” Rarity gasped. “Twilight- she already went through!”

“That must be why we woke up,” Fluttershy said.

“Trixie agrees, since once she went into such a heavily warded- wait, how did you know that? You're a pegasus. You shouldn't know anything about magic.”

“I don't know,” Fluttershy admitted. “It just popped in there.”

“Yeah,” Dash said, trying to stand up and falling back down. “Ugh. Guess I'm not going anywhere. But I just remembered that I read in a book somewhere that continual effects would end as soon as the caster leaves the material plane- why the hay would I remember reading that? I never read that! I don't even understand what I remember!”

“That doesn't explain why I'm still stuck like this, and why you're still, um, without sight.” Rarity touched the crystals growing out of her horn.

“Not all spells act the same way,” Trixie explained. “Some just do something and stop, like a lightning bolt spell. Others keep going while you concentrate.”

Applejack scratched her head. “What did Twi do to our heads? Because Ah remember a lot of stuff I shouldn't remember. Ah remember readin' about how the Black Archive was created usin' the Elements of Harmony. But it don't make no sense.”

“Trixie has a sneaking suspicion she might be fighting to break free after all.”

“S-she wanted to give us the information we needed to close the vault,” Pinkie Pie said, quietly. “I-I think we can do it if we change some of the writing on the floor.”

“If we close it now Twilight will be trapped in there!” Trixie said.

“But it'll save Equestria,” Applejack whispered. “You know we can't fight her. She trounced us like we were just foals in a timberwolf den.”

“And the artifacts inside can't be used by normal ponies,” Fluttershy added. “They're even too dangerous for Celestia and Luna to use. Otherwise they'd be somewhere else.”

“Well Trixie is no normal pony. She won't give up just because you are too scared to face Twilight.” Trixie took a step towards the portal and stumbled on her bad leg, coughing up blood as she hit the dusty floor. “Trixie is not having a good day...” She stood up and took more of the painkilling fuzzmint seeds out of her bag. Fluttershy looked at her, worried.

“Um, Trixie... how many of those have you taken?”

“I don't know. Most of the bag- oh. Trixie forgot that you'd all need some too. Here.” She passed them over to Fluttershy, who fed a few to Dash.

“T-that's not the only thing,” Fluttershy admitted. “Fuzzmint is dangerous if too much is taken in a short time. It can have side effects.”

“Trixie will worry about that later,” She steadied herself and stood, the warm feeling from the seeds blocking out the sharpest edges of the pain. “Now, Twilight might have put that plan to slam the door shut into your heads, but that is only because she is just so bad at improvisation. Trixie already has a better plan.”

“And... what is that plan?” Rarity asked.

“First, Trixie is going to go into the Black Vault and try to stop Twilight. In the meantime... you're going to go and get that other princess. The pink one.”

“Cadence? Why?” Rarity raised an eyebrow.

“Because if she can move the sun, she might be able to do something to stop Twilight that won't be as... permanent.” Trixie swallowed at the last word. “Since Celestia and Luna haven't done anything to end the eclipse yet themselves, they probably can't.”

“Trixie, it's brave of you to want to try and stop her, but you ain't got one chance in a hundred of even slowing her down.” Applejack gave her a skeptical look.

“Never underestimate Trixie's ability to take something simple and turn it into something very complicated.” She smiled. Even though her armor was dented, and she'd just been coughing up blood from the beating she'd taken being thrown around the room, Trixie was an expert at looking like she was in far better condition than she really was. In this case, she managed to look like she was injured and tired, instead of near collapse from pain and exhaustion.

“B-but we should all stick together,” Pinkie Pie countered.

Trixie shook her head. “This is Trixie's fault. Trixie was supposed to keep anything bad from happening to Twilight and she couldn't stop it.” Trixie looked at the open portal. “...I have to fix this.”

“I believe in you,” Fluttershy said, with a smile. She flew over to Trixie and gave her a quick hug. “Be careful.”

“Trixie doesn't need to be careful. She can easily handle this. By the time you get help, Trixie will have rescued Twilight, closed the portal, and saved all of Equestria.” Or she'd be dead. Trixie jumped for the portal, hitting it with a feeling akin to jumping into ice-cold water.


***


Twilight walked down the corridor, one side lit by bright orange flames, the other by ghostly blue torches. The entire Archive was made out of blocks of black, glassy stone, almost like obsidian but far harder, as tough as diamonds. The blocks were irregular, giving the whole place the appearance of having been constructed like a puzzle.

Part of her mind was marveling at the construction. The only way this could be done was with magic, an almost endless number of interlocking bricks. She started mentally undressing the spells used to make it, spells that hadn't been used to shape, but to twist probability until the pocket universe conformed to their desires by default, like a miner changing fate so the diamond he unearthed emerged into the world fully formed and cut to exact specifications. Any tool or working would have been too imperfect, given the things within a chance to escape.

In this place, there was no escape. There was no return from banishment. When something was exiled here it was never intended to return. Even Nightmare Moon wasn't enough of a threat to open the vault. Discord, for all his power, was too benign. Or, Twilight reflected, with a sneer, it was simply that the status quo had become too comfortable for the Princesses to do anything to change it.

The Nightmare stopped at the end of the corridor, the black hallway opening up into a wide circular chamber. Doors of banded gold and silver studded the circumference, each easily as large and ornate as those in the palace. Here though, the ornate nature of the doors wasn't simply to decorate the vault or impress visitors. Only precious metals could contain the enchantments that had been placed on them.

Twilight walked confidently across the room, her eyes only on her destination. Behind every door was something so powerful it could never be allowed out. Or at least, never be allowed out by Celestia and Luna, so intent on preserving the status quo that they refused to make the world a better place. Her face twisted into a scowl at the thought.

Part of Twilight was screaming at her to turn around and walk away from this terrible place. It was the part of her that was still weak, the part that hadn't surrendered to the Nightmare.

There was one artifact here that could fix it all, though. Twilight stopped in front of the largest door, directly opposite the corridor entrance. It was pure gold, incorruptible and eternal, still shining with a mirror finish and glowing softly from within, the wards on it struggling even now to contain what it secured.

Posted to the door, held on by crumbling seals of ancient wax, was a roll of parchment. The words on it were faded now.


<Pisa Sol, The Star Ring
Exiled under the order of Diarch Celestia, Sol Invictus, 
on this the 13th year of Discord's defeat>


Twilight was so absorbed in looking at the golden door that she hadn't heard the hoofsteps closing in on her. 

"Stop right there!" A small, insignificant voice yelled from behind where she stood. Twilight turned to look. Trixie stood there defiantly, in her dented armor. Her blue coat and silver mane stood in grand contrast to the stark obsidian of the vault.

“We haven't finished our duel,” Trixie said, turning up her nose. “Trixie will not be robbed of a chance to defeat you.”

“I refuse to believe you're serious about that,” Twilight said, rolling her draconian eyes. “Are you even aware of where you are? The significance of this place? There are things here that could destroy you even through whatever pitiful protection you think you have.”

“Trixie is well aware of her own limitations.” She walked closer confidently. “She is also well aware that you can't defeat her without cheating.”

“I'm pretty sure I remember doing a very good job at beating you already.”

“No, you didn't do anything. Twilight is the one who beat me, and that isn't you.” Trixie narrowed her eyes. “You might have her memories, but you aren't her. Trixie can tell when a pony is just putting on an act and yours is particularly awful. It might as well be a foal pretending to be Starswirl the Bearded.”

“I'd prefer to think of it as helping to make all her dreams and nightmares a reality,” Twilight replied, stepping away from the glowing golden door. “Twilight Sparkle was too weak to do what she really wanted, because she was too afraid of what all her friends would think. She was afraid of ever making a mistake where somepony could see. She was terrified just thinking about what she'd have to do as a princess!” Nightmare Twilight laughed. “She used to dream about learning to raise the sun like Celestia. Now I'm holding the sun and moon in the sky and it's easier than she ever imagined.”

“Twilight would never hurt anypony the way you have.”

“Not on purpose,” the Nightmare agreed. “That's part of why she was so weak. Do you know what I am, Trixie? You should be deeply familiar with what drives me.”

“Fear?” Trixie guessed. The Nightmare shook her head.

“No. Fear is weakness. Terror can turn a queen into a tyrant. It keeps ponies awake at night. Makes them think that what other ponies will do is more important than what they will do. It keeps them huddled in their homes in the dark and makes them hide their true power from their friends. It's a sickness that keeps ponies from achieving their true potential.”

“Well then what? Trixie doesn't have all day.”

“Ambition! Greed! Desire! They all mean the same thing in the end, the drive that exists and pushes us towards what we most desire! That is what I am! When a pony builds a house, it's because they wanted to build a home. When they take a lover it's because of desire! Everything great that we have ever done is because of the ambition that we have in our hearts! Real power comes from allowing your greed to rule you and give your dreams form! I didn't make Luna try do depose her sister because she was afraid, but because she wanted to be loved! Her sister stood in her way, in my way, and so she had to be removed. I took away Luna's fear, and she became strong enough to do what she needed.”

“But- look at what you've done! Nightmare Moon was banished, Twilight's hurting everypony she cares about-”

The Nightmare cut her off. “There are always choices and consequences. If you choose to put ketchup on your eggs instead of hot sauce, that's a choice. If you choose to walk away from your job, that's a choice. If you decide to give your money to the poor, that's a choice. All of them have consequences. You might have a bad breakfast, or lose your job, or simply have fewer bits in your saddlebag. In the same way, what I want to do now is a choice, and my ambition is strong enough that I don't care about the consequences. I don't care about hurting Twilight's friends, or disappointing her teacher, or the risks of bringing order to a world of chaos! None of them matter compared to this desire!”

“Trixie is forced to admit that was a good evil monologue,” The unicorn and Nightmare circled each other. Trixie was looking for an opening. Twilight was just playing with her prey.

“But you're missing something, Trixie. It isn't evil. Desire isn't evil. I want to save Equestria. Twilight has seen time and again how many little reminders still remain of the bad old days from when Discord ruled this land. Do you know what's behind that door?” Twilight looked at the golden door. “The weapon Celestia used to bring order. You couldn't comprehend how much power she used to wield. The Elements nothing in comparison. With the Pisa Sol she ended the chaos of heaven and earth and created the world we live in almost from whole cloth.”

“Trixie read about Discord. The Princesses used the Elements of Harmony to defeat him. Not that... Pizza thing.”

“They did use the Elements to imprison Discord. But they couldn't fix the world. You don't understand how badly the world was broken. I don't mean chocolate milk rain and rabbits with the legs of elk. That's nothing. Discord had been acting for ages. Causality was broken. Time had stopped having meaning. No one talks about the time before Discord appeared because no trace of the world was left after he was done.”

“And that thing... is how she did it,” Trixie glanced at the door.

“Exactly. But the Princesses left the work half-finished! They feared that they'd start changing the world more and more, making one little tweak here and one there until they were just as bad as Discord. You see? Fear held them back. And because of that fear we're left with the monsters we have to fight. Changelings and chimaeras and manticores and worse.”

“Worse? Like dragons?” Trixie asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes! Just like-”

“Like Spike?” Twilight stopped, looking down for a moment. Trixie pressed the attack. “Would you erase him from the world like some kind of mistake? Trixie has seen how Twilight treats him like a son. Twilight, if you can hear this, you have to fight!”

“Silence!” A wave of force shoved Trixie away. “My ambition is worth more than Spike. More than any of you. I gave you all a chance to join me and you refused! If you cared about Twilight you'd have stood by her side instead of fighting against her! You could have been worshiped. Now no one will remember your name.”

“Trixie promised to protect you. Even from yourself.” Trixie quickly threw a lightning bolt at Twilight, trying to surprise her and succeeding. The bolt crashed into the alicorn, clipping across her chest. Unprepared for a sudden attack, a cross was burned into Twilight's coat, smoking and filling the air with the scent of burned hair.

“So be it.” The Nightmare narrowed her eye and vanished in a teleport bubble. With repeated flashes of magic, Twilight appeared first on one side of Trixie, then another, each time battering her with a kick before blinking away to strike from an unexpected angle. Trixie spat up blood. If not for the armor she'd have broken already. A final kick sent Trixie slamming into the obsidian wall between two silver doorways.

Trixie slumped to the floor, her breathing ragged. She tried to focus, sending out a wave of force to push Twilight back. The alicorn's horn glowed red and the spell collapsed, shattering into sparks and twists of color.

“Really?” Twilight asked. “You're trying to use magic against an alicorn? That's so cute I'd laugh, if it wasn't so pathetic it made me sick.”

Trixie tried to stand and failed, sinking back down. As she slumped, Twilight caught her armor with magic, dragging her up to see her face-to-face, the straps on the armor cutting into her bruised flesh painfully.

“I want you to understand something. I'm not doing this to be cruel.” The Nightmare moved Trixie's limp form around like a puppet. “I know Twilight wants to spend more time with you. A rather base desire, but at least something I can respect. And from what I've seen, well, no one has a greater familiarity with greed and ambition than you do. It's really too bad you're too stubborn to die with anything even approaching grace.”

“Trixie apologizes about not having the grace of a princess,” Trixie gasped.

“Thank you for the apology. Now stop struggling or I'm going to break you so badly they'll think you're just stew in a pony-shaped bag.” Twilight threw Trixie across the room, slamming her into a tarnished metal door hard enough to send a booming echo across the room. Twilight turned and walked back to the golden door, tearing the parchment from the portal to reveal the center of the mystical lock, a mark glowing like the sun.

Twilight's horn lit up with a blaze of red and pink light, novas sparkling along its length. The seal in the center of the door resisted, then shattered as it was undone, leaving cracks in the sun's image. The door groaned as the thick gold plates forming it started moving, each sliding away on their own into cracks in the obsidian bricks making up the wall, disappearing into the impossibly narrow spaces until there was no trace of the door at all.

A blaze of heat washed from inside. Even the Nightmare was forced back by the pure solar furnace that lay beyond. Her horn blazed with light that paled before the radiance shining on her, and a bubble of dark energy surrounded her form, wrapping her in a protective shell of shade. She forced her way past the roaring winds, eye going wide as she finally saw her goal, a pale golden ring, a pace wide, slowly spinning in midair over a pedestal of solid solar flames. In the center of the ring was a point of light too bright to look at directly, like a pinhole view into the heart of the sun.


***


Trixie rubbed her head, taking off her battered helmet. The heat washing into the room was enough to make her dizzy. She tried to shy away from it instinctively, backing into a door of tarnished silver. The seal on it was broken, crushed when she'd been flung into it. The portal slid open with a soft grinding noise as Trixie leaned against it, making her stumble and fall inside.

“Ugh... Trixie needs to learn to let things go and stop being thrown around rooms until proper padding is installed.” The mare stood up, vision swimming. She could barely see anything, but the heat forced her back into the gloom. It was cooler inside, mist reaching around her hooves as Trixie just tried to get somewhere safe.

She bumped into the edge of a raised stage, the perimeter made of raised blocks of the puzzle-like stone. A clumsy step crushed a petal underhoof, and Trixie stumbled back as a ghostly light floated up, wrapping around her and causing her coat to glow as it whisped harmlessly away.

“What was that?” She asked, looking around. A soft silver glow suffused the room, like moonlight. Trixie looked up to see a garden. Most of the room was a planter for a garden of flowers. Ghostly lights like fireflies slowly moved around them like they were being blown in a slow, phantom whirlwind. Trixie could almost hear them, and after a few long moments realized what she was staring at.

“T-those are- those are manaflies!” Trixie tried to catch one, and watched as it curved smoothly along the surface of her coat, repelled by the curse. Trixie had learned in school that manaflies were spontaneously generated only in areas of extremely large magic potential. They were never found in the wild, only the product of some of the high-energy magical experiments that went on in laboratories. They weren't really living things, but were more like static electricity or ball lightning.

She'd also learned that if you saw them, you were somewhere you were not meant to be. Anything putting out that much magical power could do anything.

Trixie looked at the flowers that were growing. Almost all had yet to bloom, but looked something like lotus blossoms. The water they were emerging from supported that suggestion. The mist in the room was rising from the pool, and when Trixie looked down into it, she saw  inky blackness and, faintly, stars, perversely like she was looking upwards through a veil of water to see the night sky.

“Oh my...” Trixie's eyes went wide as she stepped backwards slowly, abruptly filled with a sense of vertigo. She looked up and away from the slice of sky and saw something rising out of the center of the pool, a standing wave of black water like a column of flowing ice. And perched on top of it, a pale insect, abstracted and made of pure silver and white plates of shimmering opal, forged in the shape of a luna moth.


***


The roof of the planetarium exploded outwards, the shrapnel disappearing into sparkles and flashes of light before even hitting the ground, as Nightmare Twilight took her first step back into Equestria. The Sol Ring hung floating behind her head like a flaming halo, and the power washing over her was already changing her. Every step she took was rimmed with fire, her hoofprints burned into the fabric of the world and leaving an indelible mark even in stone.

“With this power, I will remake the world in the name of Order!” Twilight smiled and looked at the revealed sky. The magical storm she had created vanished in an instant, the clouds carved up into cubes and  floating away. The moon and sun, remaining in a perfect eclipse, were dragged to the center of the sky. The stars shivered and surged into motion, arranging themselves into perfect straight lines, meeting in right angles in a logical and efficient grid.

“Astronomers will someday thank me for making their jobs so much easier,” Twilight said, with a sigh of contentment. “I remember studying for weeks to learn the position of the stars! Now we can just number them. It will even help with telling the time, since ponies can just look at the sky to see what time it is. I am a genius.”

“Trixie preferred how it looked before,” the unicorn said, hopping out of the mystical gate of the Black Archive. “The night was full of mystery, and there were always things to discover. Ponies could use their imaginations to create pictures in the stars. Your sky is certainly logical but it lacks subtlety and artistic merit. The work of an accountant instead of an artist.”

“Those are bold words for a pathetic mortal speaking to a GOD!” Twilight turned to face her rival. “Before, I had you outmatched. I was twenty times more powerful than you. Now I am exponentially more powerful, and you are just injured and weaker than ever. Tell me, Trixie, just what are you planning on doing? Because if it doesn't involve getting on your knees and begging me for mercy, your plans are going to change to rapidly becoming a cloud of dust.”

“Trixie is going to stop you with this.” She reached into her saddlebag and took out the silver moth. Even here it was thrumming with power, the air around it distorting slightly.

“You don't even know what that is!” Nightmare Twilight laughed.

“I know it was powerful enough to lock up!” Trixie countered. “And that means it's powerful enough to do something to you!”

“You are nearly correct. Except for two things. First, you have no idea how to use the Moonlight Butterfly. And second, even if you did, you don't have enough magical power to do it. It takes the might of an alicorn to do that. Even if you were at your best you couldn't put out enough magical energy to get it going.” Nightmare Twilight sneered. “Want to reconsider begging for mercy?”

“No. Because Trixie knows something you don't know.”

“And what's that?”

“Trixie also brought this, and she found the instructions for it.” She took out a flower, the only one that had been in full bloom from the midnight pool. A lotus with petals as black as the night sky, the center glowing with restrained magical energy. Trixie bit into the black lotus, consuming it before Twilight could properly react.

“What- you idiot!” Twilight yelled. “Where did you even get that?! With that much raw magical energy-”

“With that much energy Trixie will be able to defeat you!' Trixie countered. She'd found a scrap of parchment in the room that had said the flowers stored ambient magical energy. After a thousand or more years soaking in the mana that suffused that room, they were probably the most potent magical energy source in all of Equestria. And after seeing what had been released from just crushing a petal, Trixie had been able to guess what would happen if she used a whole bloom.

She hiccuped. Manaflies flew out of her mouth. A terrible burning started inside her.

“Hmph. Less than impressive,” Twilight noted. Before she could say anything else, Trixie's coat suddenly stood on end and blazed with a silver sheen to match her mane, the curse straining to contain the energy within her, the power welling an looking for somewhere to release.

Trixie hiccuped again, more raw mana spilling out and floating away, her body feeling like it was tearing apart from within. She could see the silvery sheen burning away as the power tore apart the curse that had been placed on her, starting to unravel it at the edges.

“You've signed your own death warrant,” Twilight noted, rolling her glowing eyes. “I don't even need to do anything now.”

“Then you can just... lay down while Trixie beats you!” Trixie yelled. The mana finally found a way out , exploding through the curse along the chakras of her spine, flaring out from her back in a multicolored trail like burning sheets of flame. Trixie charged Twilight, the burning inside her driving her to movement.

The alicorn blinked away in a ball of flame, letting Trixie fly past her, the unicorn blindly crashing into a wall with enough force to explode it, the fragments breaking into dust as they hung in midair around her.

“You have some power now, but you lack the knowledge of how to use it!” Twilight shouted. A wave of solar fire launched towards Trixie. The mare braced herself and created a shimmering shield, shining in seven colors. The solar flare tore through the first layer, stripping a color from the rainbow, and Trixie barely held on as six more completely removed her protection. Before Twilight could launch another attack, Trixie charged again, the mana pouring from her back pushing her forward like a jet, flapping in the air like great wings, turning in midair to strike from behind.

Twilight stopped it without looking, Trixie crashing into a shield of magenta fire.

Twilight laughed. “This power... it's wonderful, isn't it?” A wave of force crashed out of Twilight, cracking the remaining walls of the planetarium and knocking Trixie off balance for a moment. Time seemed to slow as Twilight leaned in and lightly tapped the mare with her horn. Even that tiny contact was enough to send the smaller mare flying, smashing through the cracked stone wall and out over the castle, crashing into the foyer.

Twilight followed, lazy flaps of her wings carrying her at dizzying speeds, the air shattering with a sonic boom before her and turning to fire in her wake.

“You have endless power at your hooves and this is all you have to show for it?” Twilight asked, as she stormed into the foyer, landing in a crater, fire exploding around her. Trixie pulled herself out of the rubble she'd landed in and countered with an ice spell, holding the solar flames at bay.

“Trixie is learning fast, and she's not very impressed by the pyrotechnics you're using!” Trixie strained to keep her voice from cracking. She couldn't even feel her broken ribs or torn shoulder. She could only feel the energy inside her.

“You're nothing but a bag of blue fur around that lotus you ate!” Twilight yelled. “You're worthless, just an accessory to the raw mana!”

“What does that make you?!” Trixie demanded, firing off a bolt of blue lightning. Twilight  knocked it away casually.

“Don't compare us. I've already mastered using the Pisa Sol.” Beads of light gathered along the ring and drew inwards before erupting in a supernova, the shockwave sending Trixie right through the wall to land outside in the courtyard, chunks of stone the size of houses landing around her as she rolled to a stop.

The last of the curse boiled away, leaving Trixie's coat a dirty blue instead of the shining silver it had been a few moments ago. She struggled to stand, the raw mana floating out of her dimming and flickering. The silver butterfly fell out of her saddlebag, tinkling as it hit the ground.

“I suppose that's all you had. I'm disappointed,” Nightmare Twilight said, setting down lightly, her hooves burning marks into the stone of the courtyard. Steam hissed around her as puddles and rain-slicked stones dried out. “I should have known you'd only be able to provide amusement for a few moments. Power like that simply can't be used by somepony like you for long.”

“Trixie understands now,” Trixie said, as she found the strength inside to stand. “Trixie thought it was strange that you'd take that artifact when you have the memories of Luna to draw on. Even if that Sol Ring is stronger, it's obviously one of Celestia's weapons, not Luna's.”

“True enough,” Twilight nodded. “But this did what I needed it to.”

“That's not all, though,” Trixie said, holding onto the Butterfly. With the curse gone, she could hear it, like bells, a soft sound in the back of her mind, whispering things to her. She looked at the artifact, the up at the Nightmare. “Celestia and Luna are equals. Trixie is willing to bet this is just as strong in its own way. But you can't use it.”

“I can do anything,” Twilight said, frowning.

“Trixie doesn't think so. You have one limit.” Trixie floated the butterfly to her horn. “You're a Nightmare. That's all you were able to create with the Smooze. That's all that you were to Luna. You can't use this because Luna was the Princess of Dreams, and you don't have real dreams, just greed and anger!” Trixie closed her eyes and poured what magical energy was left inside her into the Moonlight Butterfly.

The air rippled as rainbow waves erupted from the Butterfly, appearing like spreading slicks of oil on water. Nightmare Twilight's eyes went wide and she stepped back in surprise.

“You don't know what you're doing!” Twilight screamed.

“Trixie knows enough. She's going to save Equestria, even if she has to do it the hard way.” Trixie held the Butterfly high as the waves grew thicker. It had told her just enough to know how to use it, but not enough to know how to stop it once it started. A tear ran down her cheek. “I'm sorry, Twilight.”

“No!” Twilight screamed, struggling, as a vortex opened, dragging her and Trixie inwards. There was no escape. The Nightmare tried to lash out with the Sol Ring and found the world already slipping away.

She and Trixie were caught.
> You Found Me
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Chapter 12: You Found Me
By MagnetBolt


A meteor crashed into Canterlot Palace, turning the city into a firestorm in an instant. The Royal Guard was wiped out in one stroke, and Celestia and Luna along with them. There was nopony left to oppose the Nightmare. She watched as ponies fled from the burning city into the wilderness, the entire world cast with the shades of a bonfire by the endless twilight she had imposed, the sun and the moon hanging at opposite ends of the horizon, frozen there by her power with the perfect grid of the stars above.

It would take generations before the ponies learned to accept their fate. The griffons and minotaurs faded from the world as Twilight pushed them further and further away from Equestria. Discord, Chrysalis, and all of the others who had once threatened the land were destroyed with her new power, the blazing might of the Pisa Sol making it impossible for anypony to challenge her.

Nightmare Twilight was the sole ruler of the world. No one dared to oppose her. Until one day, six ponies stormed her palace.

“We've come to free the world from your grip, Tyrant!” shouted one, a pink pegasus with blue hair. It would have been called sky blue in the previous era, before the sky had been turned permanently red, orange, and black.

“We won't let you rule us with your evil powers any more,” agreed the white unicorn, her mane purple and blue. “The six of us are going to bring peace to Equestria.” 

Twilight raised an eyebrow at that.“Peace? Peace?! This is peace! The world is orderly and perfect! No one wants for anything and the only threat to anypony is traitors like you causing trouble for the loyal ponies who appreciate my work!”

The lavender earth pony, her cutie mark a burst of white flowers, shook her head. “They just live in fear that you'll destroy them, like you did to our home.”

Twilight laughed. “Oh, I see how this is now. You're all from that pathetic city that tried to break away from rightful Equestrian rule. You were warned of the consequences for defying me. Speaking of which, if you begin begging now I might allow you to live.”

“D-don't talk about them like it was nothing!” Shouted a pink pony with white dots decorating her flank. “You killed all those ponies! And the fields of flowers, everything turned to fire...” a tear trickled from her eye. Twilight snorted with disgust.

“That's not all!” yelled a turquoise pony with green hair. “We know you're the reason there are almost no unicorns left! We heard all about how you used to be a good pony and turned evil and started destroying things!”

“What?” Twilight frowned. “What do you mean you heard about it?” She had expunged all records of history at the beginning of her rule, to make things easier in the long run. There was no need to let her subjects know of what she'd done to bring them such peace. She suspected that Celestia and Luna had done the same when they had taken over from Discord.

“A blue unicorn told us all about what happened,” said the last of the six, a cream colored unicorn with red hair. “Trixie told us about what you did and how we could stop you.”

Twilight's eyes went wide. “Trixie?! That's impossible! It's been hundreds of years-”

“And she gave us these.” Amulets appeared around each of their necks.

“The Elements of Harmony,” Twilight whispered. She was too stunned to react before a rainbow-colored beam of energy washed over her and she dissipated into smoke, screaming.



*** “I know it isn't easy, Twilight. You have to fight.” ***



“You hurt all of your friends. Rainbow Dash might never fly again. Trixie might not even survive the night. The entire world is in chaos because of the false order you tried to bring.” Twilight looked down, not reacting, as Celestia paced around her. “And you're telling me you think you deserve to rule, just because you're stronger than I am?”

“It is a formal request,” the Nightmare said, standing. “I could simply wipe this city out. It would be easy and clean, and prevent any clever plans you might have later. You know you can't stand against me, even with all of the guards you have. Even if every pony in Equestria stood with you, I could turn them to ash with a thought.”

“That would would even consider that just goes to show that you do not deserve to rule Equestria.” Celestia stopped to fix Twilight with a glare. The Nightmare spread her wings, and flames roared through the room, setting the furniture on fire. Celestia was unharmed, the alicorn inured to such displays of power thanks to her connection to the sun.

“I am not asking! I am telling you! I am the greatest power of this world and you have only one chance to stand with me! If you dare to stand against me than you will fall just as surely as all of the others! I am not the foal you taught! I was the learner, and now I am the master!”

“No, Twilight. The power has mastered using you, not the other way around.” Celestia sighed and looked away. “I have no choice, then.”

“Good. You may formally turn your throne over to me after the court has assembled.”

“You don't understand,” Celestia said, turning to look at her former student. “After we defeated Discord, Luna had to stop me from doing exactly what you're doing now.”

“I remember that,” Twilight nodded. She still had most of Luna's memories thanks to the Element of Dominance.

“Do you remember the promise we made after that?” Celestia asked, quietly.

“You promised... that you'd do whatever you had to do if it meant stopping the other from becoming a tyrant like Discord had been.”

“I fulfilled my promise when Luna became Nightmare Moon. I banished my own sister to the moon for a thousand years because I swore an oath to her that she wouldn't destroy Equestria. I don't know how much of you is still left in there, Twilight, but that promise still stands. I won't allow anypony to do what you're doing.”

“And how do you expect to stop me?” Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow.

“That artifact is the Pisa Sol. The Ring of Sol Invictus. It was not meant for you.” Celestia's eyes lit up, and the ring vanished from where it had been hanging as a halo around Twilight's head, reappearing around Celestia's. White flames poured from her as her mane changed to a glowing golden color. “I am the Unconquered Sun and it is my power to wield, and a pretender cannot keep it from me.”

“No!” Twilight screamed. A beam of deadly energy shot towards Celestia, simply evaporating in midair before reaching her.

“I wish I could be as gentle with you as I was with my sister, but the Sol Ring is not a precision tool like the Elements of Harmony.” Celestia braced herself. “This is goodbye, Twilight. I'll think of you whenever I raise the sun.” A golden wave enveloped Twilight, and she was suddenly in a blinding place of crushing pressure and impossible heat. The center of the Sun. Just before she died, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of blue.



*** “You don't have to listen to the Nightmare anymore.” ***



Twilight looked up at the perfect, orderly sky. Maybe it was just nostalgia but she already missed the familiar constellations. She had spent so many nights studying the stars, and like this the mystery was laid bare. There was no romance or art to it. It was just there like a map already filled in, nothing left to discover. She looked down at her flaming hooves. For the first time since she had put on the Element, she felt doubt.

A surge of some nameless emotion pulsed from the Element. She wasn't sure if it was fear or anger or something that was both at the same time. She understood what it meant, though. She was so close to her goal, and she was thinking about giving up on it. She'd already sacrificed so much. She had even sacrificed her friends for this.

She felt a pang of guilt at that. But what did it matter? Guilt was for ponies who were too afraid to go after what they really wanted. And this was what she had wanted. She had a world that was perfect, and if something wasn't right, she could change it again until it was! It was intoxicating, having enough power that she could just undo any mistakes she made. If she really wanted the constellations back she could put them in their place. She could even improve them, add a few of her own. Maybe she could make a habit of it, changing them every year so ponies could have something new to see.

Not that her friends would appreciate it, after what she'd done to them. Twilight frowned and shivered. A voice deep inside her was trying to tell her that everything she was doing was wrong, that her friends were just as important as the world.

It was silly, of course. She was immortal. She'd last forever. Time enough for even better friendships in the future. She could replace her friends, or learn to live without close relationships at all. Celestia and Luna had done it.

Except Celestia had her sister, and had raised Twilight like a daughter. Had she always known Twilight's destiny was to become an alicorn? Did she free Discord so she'd have another immortal to share the burden of living through the ages?  In Twilight's perfect world she'd end up as alone as Celestia had been since banishing her sister, a subject that the princess still didn't discuss.

Twilight stood and watched the sky, trying to decide what to do, her resolve shattered. A blue star twinkled above her, shining down with silver light.



*** “A nightmare can't last forever. They always end.” ***



Twilight stood in the rain, her mane drenched and her coat wet to the skin. She stared down at the recently turned earth and the stone that had been placed there. Trixie Lulamoon was carved into it, along with her cutie mark. Somepony had found her old hat and cape and they decorated the stone as if the granite was her, instead of belonging to the broken body lying below.

Twilight had done this to her. The repeated beating to her already broken body had simply been too much. When they got the armor off of her, what was inside was hamburger. It had been enough to snap Twilight out her her mad lust for power. She'd tried every healing spell she knew, but even with the power of the Nightmare, even with the power of Pisa Sol, it simply hadn't been enough to return life to the dead.

The Pisa Sol had been sealed away again. She'd undone what she could. When Celestia had come to challenge her, Twilight had given up without a fight. She hadn't even been allowed to come to the funeral. She was only here now under heavy guard, in case the Nightmare should take over again. It was raging at her in the back of her mind, demanding that she stop moping and do something useful.

She had found the strength to ignore it, but it had taken too high a cost.

“Are you ready to go back?” Luna asked, quietly. Celestia couldn't bear to see her student in such a state, and had asked Luna to take care of things for now.

“I'm sorry,” Twilight whispered.

“Sorry isn't good enough sometimes,” Luna said. “And as long as you wear that amulet you will never be allowed to leave the dungeon again.”

“I know,” Twilight said.

“As long as you understand. Guards, escort her back.” The Night Guard closed in, and Twilight fell into step with them, following their leader, whose silver tail twitched in front of Twilight's downcast eyes as they walked.



*** “Dreams can hurt, but they aren't real.” ***



Twilight tried to pick herself off of the floor. She was surrounded by broken fragments from a shattered stained glass window. The largest part sat unbroken before her, her own image appearing on it, looking back at her through time, like a more innocent version of herself sitting in judgment on all that she had done.

“How did it come to this?” Twilight asked. Lightning crashed outside the castle, the howling wind roaring from the black moon in the sky. She picked broken glass from her coat and shook raindrops free of her mane.

“This is where you should be,” said a voice from the dark. Or was it in her head? “The palace, where you were raised, where you should rule from. This is your destiny.”

“I didn't want to hurt everypony!” Twilight shouted. “I thought I could make things better but I just made them worse.”

“You're weak. You could have been strong. You could still be strong.”

“No, I can't.” Twilight sobbed.

“We will rise up again and escape this lotus-eater's trap. Then we will conquer Equestria!”

“I never wanted that at all! I just wanted my friends to be happy!”

“You wanted them to love you for it. Why should you have friends who don't appreciate you? With my power you can make them love you.”

“It's not what I wanted!” Twilight shouted. “Who are you?!”

“I'm the part of you that isn't afraid to use the power we have.”

“No. I don't believe that! I'd never- I'd never do those things if it wasn't for you!”

“I am you!”

“No!” Twilight screamed, tearing off the Element of Dominance and running through the empty corridors, the wind howling behind her. A blue shadow watched from outside.



*** “Even the worst dream ends eventually.” ***



Twilight was in a dark place. There was only blackness around her, and she was floating through an endless abyss. And it was angry.

Icy cold washed over her like she'd jumped into a river. Twilight struggled and tried to swim away, but she was dragged down, further and further, an endless spiral of fear and cold. She could feel things watching her in the blackness, whispering quietly.

Whispering about how if she'd just put the Element back on that it would all stop.

Twilight could feel it, just out of reach. If she strained for it, she'd be able to get it and put it back on and then she could be the nightmare instead of a victim of it. She remembered, dimly, the things it had made her do, and she stayed her hoof, curling in on herself and starting to weep.

Somepony started stroking her mane, a comforting hoof in the dark.



*** "Only the dreamer wakes up." ***



“I can't believe the changelings came back!” Twilight said, knocking a flying changeling away. “And on national cake day!” She was standing in the National Cake Museum and Bakery, one of the oldest and most revered of the government institutions of Equestria. Changelings were flying in and taking the form of the gathered nobility and dignitaries, who had assembled to taste test the new Gold Standard cake, a pineapple upside-down cake that would never spoil.

“Watch out!” Somepony shouted. Twilight was pushed aside as somepony jumped in front of her to take a blow from a changeling. The armored pony spun and kicked, knocking the changeling and and forcing it to revert to its insectile form.

“Trixie? What are you doing here?” Twilight asked, confused. Trixie raised an eyebrow.

“Trixie is the captain of your guard. Of course she's here. You can't expect me to sit on my flank when you're in trouble!” She blasted another changeling out of the air. “Now are you going to help me clean this up or is Trixie going to have to do all the work herself?”

“I- of course I'll help!” Twilight blinked. Why had she been confused. Of course Trixie would be there. It was natural. She'd been guarding her flank for years.

“Curse you, Twilight Sparkle!” Shouted Queen Chrysalis, as she stormed into the Cake Reserve. “I will have the Golden Pineapple Cake! My changelings will feed on the love that went into making it and gain untold power!”

“That cake is needed to stabilize the economy!” Twilight yelled, a burst of power sending the changelings flying. The Queen remained untouched, sneering down at them.

“Twilight, we can't just beat her with brute force!” Trixie looked around. “We're going to have to do that.”

“Wait, that? What's that?”

“Trixie can't believe you're so dense. Even the kilogram cake knows what I mean and it's more than twice as dense as pound cake!” Trixie leaned in and kissed Twilight. Twilight's eyes closed as she lost herself in the moment.

The wind howled, but it was far away now.



*** "You're done dreaming, Twilight." ***



Twilight looked at herself in the mirror, her heart pounding in her chest. The air was thick with the smell of roses and lavender. She closed her eyes for a moment to steady herself, and then looked at her reflection again. A white dress, with a long train, completely covering her in lace and silk. Her crown, which usually sat uncomfortably on her head, somehow fit better now with ribbons and a veil laced through it.

Her wedding dress, just as she'd always pictured it. A stray whisper carried on an icy wind asked if it wouldn't look better with just once more piece of jewelry. An amulet, maybe. Like the one on the stand just over there. Twilight looked at the dark star sapphire.

“It wouldn't go with the dress,” somepony said. Twilight turned and found her mother and father standing there and smiling. She rushed over and they embraced.

“Mom, Dad! I was afraid you wouldn't come!”

“Why wouldn't we come?” Her mother asked, squeezing her. “We couldn't be more proud of you. Now my little foal is a grown-up princess and getting marred to the pony she loves.”

“I was just worried,” Twilight said, smiling. “I know it's silly. But when I didn't get a letter back from you after the invitation, I thought you were made because I was, you know.” She blushed.

“Actually, um,” Spike coughed, spitting out a letter. “I'm kind of backed up. I've never had to deal with this much mail before. I think this one is from Tuesday...”

“At that rate you should have our letter in another week,” Twilight's father noted. “But we'd never be angry at you. Is it too late to ask if I can give my little girl away?” He smiled. Twilight teared up and nuzzled him.

“Of course, Dad. I wouldn't want anypony else to do it.” Bells started ringing above. Twilight looked up.

“Twi! It's time!” Applejack said, running into the room. “Ah hope yer done fiddlin' with yer dress, because we got a wedding goin' on and yer the star attraction!”

Twilight nodded and grabbed a bouquet of flowers, the Element forgotten. Her father led her out into the hall, and Twilight looked down the aisle, where all of her friends were standing and starting to clap as she walked along a red carpet covered in flower petals. Her five closest friends were standing to one side of the altar, with Celestia, Luna, and Cadence standing in the center.

“Congratulations, Twilight!” Somepony from the crowd shouted.  Everypony started congratulating her, one after another, as she walked past them, towards the most important ponies in her life, and standing, waiting for her with her armor polished to a shining orange and silver, Trixie smiled down at Twilight.



*** "Twilight, Wake up." ***



“They're so cute,” Twilight whispered, looking down at the two small shapes in their crib. The babies were only a few weeks old now, a girl and boy, twins with coats that mirrored each other. The foal had a silver coat with violet hair, and the colt had a violet coat and silver hair. They snored lightly as they slept next to each other, sharing a quilt that had been hoof-stitched by Fluttershy.

“Don't wake them up,” Trixie said, sighing. “It took an hour to get them both asleep at once. If Trixie had known how much trouble having foals would be-”

“You'd still have them,” Twilight teased, nuzzling her lover. “I know you love them even more than I do. Don't pretend I haven't caught you coming in here at night just to watch them.”

“Well, maybe you're right,” Trixie admitted. A damp chill washed over the two. Twilight looked up and saw one of the windows was open. She shut it quietly, keeping the dark and cold at bay. It didn't belong in this place. Something glittered in the darkness beyond, weak and almost forgotten.

“It's like this is all some wonderful dream,” Twilight said, with a sigh. “I never want to wake up from it. I thought I knew what I wanted in life, and it wasn't this, and I was wrong. This is more wonderful than anything I could imagine.”

“That's because you didn't have to imagine it alone,” Trixie said, standing next to her and moving her away from the window. “But it all has to end someday.” She looked at Twilight sadly. “We've been dreaming this wonderful dream, and we could tell stories to each other over and over again, but we have to let it end.”

Tears fell from Twilight's eyes. “No! I don't want it to stop!”

“It has to. No matter how nice this is, it's not real. We have to let it go. Trixie wishes she could stay here with you forever too, but it wouldn't matter. This is just playing pretend. Trixie wants to have the real you, not just a nice dream.”

“I know,” Twilight whispered, looking at the foals. They'd never have a chance to grow up, or become who they were meant to be. Even if they did, it wouldn't be real. They were just daydreams. “But I was having such a nice dream...”



*** “Wake up.” ***



A pure white space, light coming from everywhere evenly. Twilight walked on a surface that only seemed to materialize under her, as solid as stone but as ephemeral as a cloud. She felt like she'd been walking for a very long time. Once in a while, she could see shapes in the mist. Ghostly images, fragments of dreams. Or maybe she wasn't seeing anything, and it was just in her head.

Something solid appeared in front of her. Twilight stopped, then cautiously advanced, the mist parting as she neared it. A mare, sitting and waiting. It had been so long since Twilight had seen anyone that it took her a few moments to remember how to speak.

“Hello?” She asked, her throat dry.

The mare turned to look, and smiled. “Hello.”

“I didn't know that there was anyone else,” Twilight said, sitting next to her. They were quite as they looked into the mist. She hadn't even known anyone else was real. She'd thought the world was just this, endless walking and vague images. She couldn't remember anything before it.

“I wasn't sure either,” the mare said, nodding.

“Where were you going?” Twilight asked. The mare thought for a moment before answering.

“I think I've forgotten.” She smiled sadly. “It's all just slipped away from me.”

“I forgot too,” Twilight admitted. “I think my name is... Twilight.”

“That's a good name,” the other mare agreed.

“What's your name?”

“Um...” She thought. “...I think it's Trixie.” They sat for a time in silence. It could have been a few minutes, or a few days, or a few years. It was impossible to tell in the timeless, unchanging space.

“Do you want to go together?” Twilight asked. The other mare nodded, smiling.


*** “Twilight!” ***

> Epilogue: At The Very Beginning
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


The Unchosen One
Epilogue: At The Very Beginning
By MagnetBolt



“Twilight!” Somepony yelled, shaking her. The alicorn groaned and tried to sit up, feeling weak.

“Spike, it's too early... open the library later...” She tried to grab her blankets and roll over but she didn't have any blankets. And the stone floor was rapidly becoming uncomfortable.

“Twilight, get up!” The shaking continued. Twilight rubbed her eyes and looked around. She was in the old palace. How had she gotten here? She remembered fragments of a dream, but it was all fading away, lost like morning mist. She was somehow sad, though, like she'd lost something, and it was so profoundly gone that she couldn't even properly remember what it was.

“What happened?” She asked, looking up at- “Rarity? What happened to your mane?”

“You really don't remember?” Rarity asked. Twilight shook her head.

“You were evil a-and tried to destroy Equestria,” Pinkie Pie supplied, quietly. “Trixie told us to run and get Cadence and when we got back y-you were in a big cocoon thing.”

“You put Rainbow Dash in the hospital,” Rarity said, quietly. “Fluttershy is staying with her. She wanted to make sure Dash wasn't left alone.”

“What? But- I didn't-” Twilight shivered.

“We know, sugarcube,” Applejack said. “Y'all were possessed by some kinda magical amulet thing.” Parts of the nightmare Twilight had been having rushed back to her. She could see it, like looking through a dirty mirror. Just little parts of what she'd done. As it filled her mind, she paled and swooned, almost fainting.

“Woah there, stay with us, Rarity don't have her fainting couch with her and y'all just woke up.” Applejack put a steadying hoof on her shoulder. “Y'all look like yer back to normal. I don't rightly know what Trixie did but that Element of Dominance thing is totally gone. D' you remember what in the hay happened?”

“There was something about dreaming but- Trixie! What happened to her?!” Twilight gasped. She remembered hurting her. Badly.

“Luna's lookin' after her. Celestia's still fixin' the mess you made. Cadence managed to undo whatever you did to Celestia, but she had t' go off and do somethin' in the Empire. Wasn't really specific on what. Seemed like she was annoyed we'd bothered her t' be honest. Then Celestia and Luna took us out here and, well...” 

Applejack turned her head. Twilight followed her gaze. Celestia was blazing as bright as the morning sun, her mane just a wavering banner of plasma, the Pisa Sol hovering over her head. The stars above were sliding into their old positions one at a time.

Twilight couldn't tear her eyes away from the display of power for a few moments, but when she did she saw Luna sitting in the shadows over a still form. Twilight felt fear wash over her, and she got to her tired hooves and ran over. Trixie was lying still, and for a moment Twilight was sure she was dead. Then she saw the slow, shaky movement of her chest, almost invisible under the dented armor and matted coat.

“What did I do to her...” Twilight whispered.

“Thou are not to blame, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said, softly. “The Nightmare was twisting your mind. I have some experience with just what that is like.”

“Is she-” Twilight reached out to touch her and stopped short, pulling back.

“I do not know. After the beating her body has taken, and the effects of the artifacts, the breaking of the curse... no pony can say what will happen to her.” Luna sighed. “We are going to take her for treatment once my sister has finished putting right what the Nightmare caused. I dare not move her, so we will have to teleport over the distance.”

“What should I do?” Twilight asked, quietly. Luna looked at her and covered her with a comforting wing.

“Thou will have to do what I have done, and work to earn their trust again. Thou may have an easier time of it than I did, as few know what thou have done and your bonds of friendship are truly mighty.” Luna smiled slightly. “If you mean in more practical and immediate terms, I would suggest doing little until things have calmed down.”

“What happened to the Element?” Twilight asked.

“Tis destroyed. You and Trixie were inside the cocoon, as thou are now. The Element was there as well, sundered." Luna nodded to where the broken amulet lay, the gem cracked and blackened and the setting twisted and tarnished as if by aeons of time. "Tis possible the conflux of energy had simply destroyed it. My Moonlight Butterfly is one of the most powerful artifacts in Equestria, and might have been able to simply shatter the Element of Dominance.”

“What happened?” Twilight asked, looking down. “I remember a few things but I feel like I forgot a lot more.”

“Trixie used an ancient magical artifact to lock you both in a dream world. you spent...” She paused. “A very long time in there. But it was in a dream, where a thousand years can pass in the blink of an eye. Trixie probably won't remember much of it either. But... I think they were good dreams, in the end. It just took a long time to get things right.” Luna smiled. “I was able to catch the taste of the dreams, though the power and speed of them was far too much for me to enter them directly.”

Blazing light loomed over the gathered ponies as Celestia walked back into the room, overflowing with power. Twilight shielded her eyes, and the glare slowly faded as Celestia dimmed.

“It is done,” Celestia said, simply. “Luna, reopen the archive so I can place this back where no one can misuse it.” She didn't look at Twilight. Luna nodded, and the sky was cast into shadow as an eclipse blotted out the sun again. Celestia left, avoiding her student.

Twilight watched her go. “She's really angry...”

“She's always like that when she has to use that power,” Luna said. “It's why we stopped using those artifacts and put them beyond easy reach. They change the ones who use them. We were becoming something we didn't wish to be.”

“Like what I became...” Twilight said to herself.

“Yes. Now you know why we don't wield the power we once did. Once the power is greater than you, it becomes a question of who is really in control.”


***


Rainbow Dash was expected to make a full recovery. The break to her wing was severe, but the physicians were amazed at how quickly and well it was healing. They were expecting her to be up and about before long, and her eyesight was already back to normal thanks to a few applications of dispel effects.

Pinkie Pie required more careful treatment. With some effort, the implanted memories were suppressed, and she was quickly back to her normal self. The doctors expected she'd have nightmares for quite some time, but she was one of the most resilient ponies they'd ever met, and she had her friends to count on if they surfaced again.

Applejack was too tough to have been hurt badly merely by being nearly lynched. She'd refused medical treatment, not that she needed it. She was too busy making sure all her friends were recovering quickly.

Rarity's mane was ruined. There was no denying that. She'd requisitioned a mirror, brush, and scissors to try and come up with a new hairstyle. After several hours of effort she'd come up with something that would no doubt become the new standard in Canterlot for the coming season. Disaster had been narrowly avoided thanks to her fashion skills and pretending she'd meant to look like that all along.

Fluttershy, oddly, hadn't been hurt at all despite everything that had happened. Not even a hair in her mane was out of place.


***


Twilight sat outside of the operating room, the guards watching her as much as they were keeping others away. Luna sat with her. Twilight knew, like the guard, she was there to keep others safe from Twilight in case the Nightmare should appear again. It made her skin crawl, but she was more worried about what was going on in the operating room than about her own status.

The door opened, and Celestia and the head doctor, Steady Hooves, walked out. The dark gray  pegasus mare took off her mask and sighed. Celestia leaned up against the wall for support, looking drained. Luna stood and walked over to her, the princesses whispering to each other quietly, too low for Twilight to make it out.

Twilight had incredible self control sometimes. And she was still feeling like she should just follow orders quietly and that she shouldn't interrupt. Because of that, she was able to hold out for almost fifteen seconds before she stood up.

“Well?!” She demanded.

“There were some complications,” Steady Hooves said, rubbing her head. She looked at Celestia. The alicorn sighed and stood up straight.

“I must discuss things with my sister. With the Black Archive being opened and the fate of this Element of Dominance uncertain and then this...” Celestia rubbed her eyes. She looked tired. Twilight had never seen her so drained. “We must make certain that the people's faith is not shaken. We will have to make an address to the nation, and a private debriefing to the court...”

“Those can all be taken care of later, sister,” Luna said, softly. Celestia shook her head.

“You were the one saying we needed to be strong, Luna. Perhaps you'd like to take over some of those duties?” She smiled. “I have wanted to give you more responsibilities, and I'm sure you'd do a good job at letting them know that nothing is wrong.”

“Only if you stand beside me so they are sure I haven't banished you to the sun,” Luna joked. Celestia gave her a tired smile.

“Now come. I want to know about any other surprises you've left me from the bad old days. I've already got a headache and I'd like to avoid any future surprises.” Celestia started walking. Luna swallowed and started after her, looking embarrassed.

“Wait, what about Trixie?!” Twilight asked. Celestia stopped and looked back at the doctor, nodding. Steady Hooves looked at Twilight.

“Come with me.”


***


Trixie was sleeping in the hospital bed. She was a mess of bandages, obvious even under the blanket. Twilight looked at her, feeling helpless.

“I was told some of what happened to her,” Steady Hooves said, staying at the foot of the bed. “It's something of a minor miracle she's alive at all, though I suppose her condition lends itself to that.”

“Her condition?” Twilight asked.

“We don't know exactly what to say. No one could have predicted the side effects. First there was the damage to her body. A lot of internal bleeding and broken bones. Then, between the curse she was already under, and the influence of multiple magical artifacts, not to mention ingesting one... well, if half of what our readings show is true, that last part was probably the worst of it. All that energy bouncing back and forth inside her with nowhere to escape until the curse boiled away. I read the abstract you put together on that curse to try and get a handle on what I was dealing with, but it's probably going to take a team of scholars years to figure it all out.”

“Doctor!” Twilight yelled. “Just tell me what's going on!”

Steady Hooves sighed. “I just want you to be properly prepared.”

“Is her condition permanent?”

“Oh, I should think so,” Steady Hooves said, nodding. “At least, I don't think there's any way to safely do anything about it, and certainly not without her consent.”

“What does that mean?!” Twilight's eyes went wide.

“Please be quiet, you're going to-”

“Ugh... where am I?” Trixie asked, her eyes fluttering open. Steady Hooves and Twilight rushed over to the side of her bed.

“You're in the hospital.” Steady Hooves took out a small light and shone it into Trixie's eyes. “How are you feeling?”

“Trixie feels like she hasn't been given enough painkillers. Her head is pounding and her ribs feel all wrong.” She groaned. “And you have the bandages on funny.”

“You are a very fortunate individual,” Steady Hooves said. “You have been involved in the largest magical event since the reign of Discord, and you survived to tell about it.”

“Barely,” Trixie noted, sighing and sitting back.

“Trixie, I'm sorry,” Twilight said, tears in her eyes. Trixie looked at her.

And smiled. “Just remember that our little scuffle counts as at least two wins for me. Trixie is getting pretty good at actually winning magical duels.”

Twilight sniffled and returned the smile. “Yeah. Even against ponies a lot more powerful than you are. I guess Luna was right that being clever is better than being strong.”

“And don't you forget it,” Trixie said. “Trixie just hopes that beating you won't impact her chances at getting that high-paying personal guard spot.”

“I can't think of anymore more qualified to protect me,” Twilight said, smiling sadly. “Or to protect other people from me if this happens again.”

“It won't,” Trixie said. “Trixie will sit on you if she has to, just to make sure.”

The doctor coughed, getting out a small tray with a few labeled containers and needles.

“I'd like to get some samples of your blood, hair, and feathers,” the doctor said. “I need to run a few tests, and I'd like to do the same for you too, Princess Sparkle. I'd be curious to see the different effects being so close to the epicenter of the event had on the two of you. It would make a wonderful research project. Is it too much to ask for samples of your brain tissue?”

“Trixie thinks you're the one who needs to have your brain tissue examined. Twilight is the only one with wings. Well, Trixie supposes you have wings too. But you know what she means.”

Steady Hooves sighed. “Right, one thing at a time. As I've said, you've been exposed to a great deal of magical energy, both inside and outside your body. And in the delicate state you were in, well, you were very close to death when you came in. Most ponies would have been killed just from the internal bleeding.”

“Trixie isn't most ponies,” the showmare smirked. “She has always been tough.”

“Indeed,” Steady Hooves said, not disagreeing. “I saw the condition your shoulder was in. But it's more than just being tough. A normal pony would be in a coma for a week recovering from the shock to their bodies.” She put a hoof to Trixie's head. “Hm. Normal temperature. No sign of infection. But I suppose that's probably not something you need to be too worried about anymore.”

“Doctor, what are you trying to say,” Twilight asked, frowning. “Is she okay or not?”

“Given some rest and relaxation, I should think so,” Steady Hooves shrugged. “I want to at least keep her overnight for examination, though.”

“But... Trixie knows she isn't that tough. She probably needs surgery. And physical therapy. And at least some time to let the wounds heal. You can't just kick Trixie out of the hospital!” Trixie sat up, pulling the sheet around her body protectively. “Trixie appreciates that the painkillers you have her on are working well, despite her headache, but Trixie knows she was pushing her limits before Twilight- before the Nightmare kicked her flank all around the castle.”

“You aren't on any painkillers,” the doctor said, calmly.

“That's impossible! Trixie's shoulder feels fine unless-” She gasped. “Did you use some kind of secret healing magic on Trixie?!”

“I'm a doctor, not a sorcerer. There wasn't much need. Once you'd gotten some sleep your body started healing quite quickly on its own,” Steady Hooves said. “Though I suspect that's normal. I've worked here in Canterlot long enough to have some idea of how it works.”

“Well Trixie should hope so!” Trixie said, frowning and holding the sheet up. “It's basic medicine that bones don't heal overnight.”

“Not for a normal pony, no,” the doctor agreed. She sighed and grabbed the sheet from Trixie, pulling it away to expose her body. She was indeed covered in bandages. All four legs were wrapped to some extent. Her shoulder and across her body. Even her wings.

“Wings?!” Twilight and Trixie yelled at the same time.

“So, how about that plumage sample?” Steady Hooves asked, smiling sheepishly.