Certamen

Chapters

Criminal Symphony
Party Joined
Bump in the Night
Morning Sickness
Better Shape
Smoking Style
Spider's Web
The Times We Live In
Rage Against the Pegasus Device

Criminal Symphony

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

My eyes shot open, darkness and bleariness replacing the lovely dreams of my sweet and aptly named marefriend Bon Bon. I fumbled with the covers as carefully as I could to avoid waking my marefriend from the serene grasp of sleep. Then, setting my forehooves down on the floor as softly as I could, I finished inching out of bed.

Softly touching down my rear hooves, I started an almost tiphoof crawl across the bedroom avoiding obstacles like a ninja on the prowl. I silently inched open and crept through the door.

At the top of the stairs, I ignited the magic in my horn which cast a shadowy illumination throughout the darkened hall. Carefully, I crept down the potentially treacherous stairwell before finally reaching the ground floor.

In the predawn penumbra, the light from my horn cast an almost ominous ambience across the object of my desire's confection shop. The normally joy-bringing barrels of sweets, appeared as demonic figures haunting the darkness causing a chill to run down my spine.

Swiftly, the scent of peppermint and licorice brought clarity to my senses, pushing back the fog of sleep hanging across my eyes.

I hit the lights, and a blinding sting pierced my retinas as the ground floor of the shop became illuminated. Shaking away the initial effects of the radiance, I willed myself through the door with the store’s telltale ding..

Ditzy Doo, Ponyville's walleyed mailmare, was hovering above the landing holding out a small envelope. Her blond mane appeared disheveled and unkempt, most likely due to the hasty nature of her early morning delivery.

"Good morning Ditzy," I finally managed groggily, "what brings you here this early?"

"Letter for you Miss Heartstrings, urgent and time sensitive!"

"Who's it from?" I asked curiously shaking the last of the sleep from my eyes.

"Octavia Philharmonica."

Tavi, but that must mean she... Not waiting another second, I fired up my horn which cast a wavering golden light across the gray pegasus. I reached out, grasping the mail and pulling it inside.

"Thanks, Ditzy, grab a muffin from Pinkie and tell her to put it on my tab." I uttered as I ripped into the parcel while simultaneously closing the door.

"Okay, see you later," I heard her muffled voice reply.

'Dear Lyra,

I am pleased to inform you that I have been in contact with my friends at Canterlot Studios. They have agreed to allow me to sponsor one of the teams for the newest season of Equestrian Champions.

Thinking about all you have been saying in our letters these last couple of months, I have decided to bring you in as a contestant. It will not be an easy task, but I feel that you have the talents and an impressive enough magical font to succeed in ways few other unicorns could.

I do apologize about the timing of this letter. I feel a little more forewarning would have been more appropriate. I will expect you at noon at the Canterlot Society Club for lunch and to meet the other members of your team.

It will be a few day venture, contracts are to be filled out and other such business, pack nice clothes and your ‘A-game’.

Always with love

Octavia Philharmonica'

There it was; the news I had been waiting for! After months of no work, begging and borrowing bits, I had a real opportunity to do something, to be somepony!

Leaping and bounding up the stairs, sweat poured down my brow and disappeared into the deluge of tears streaming down my face from excitement. I raced back into my bedroom whipping open the door almost as an afterthought.

"I got in, Bon Bon, I got accepted!" I shouted, my voice a fevered pitch.It would seem I screamed a little too loudly for the early morning, because my sweetie's annoyed expression was dripping daggers..

"Sweetheart, sleep, we can talk about it when Celestia has risen the sun," My love mumbled, half asleep.

"I can't sleep now; I need to start packing! Octavia said she has a meeting set up for me at lunch in Canterlot. Ditzy just dropped me off the letter, and oh horse apples. I need to catch the train in an hour or I will never make it in time!" I exclaimed breathlessly, pacing around the room.

Grabbing clothing and personal effects, I hastily shoved everything into my saddle bags. Carefully picking up my lyre case, I made a mental checklist ensuring I had everything I would need for a several day trip to Canterlot.

With a groan, Bon Bon rolled over and sat up, pre-coffee glaze coating her eyes. She stumbled out of bed, dragging our bedsheets like a wedding train.

Kicking off her trail of blankets, BonBon sashayed over to the bedroom door. Turning around with a wink, she said, "Too bad you are in a hurry, but I will make you some breakfast before you go."

Some ponies say I am a little eager when I catch a break, but they don't hesitate to use the term "starving artist" to describe me when I go for a while without a solid job. Honestly if Bon Bon didn't help ease the time between jobs, I probably would starve. Good thing my special somepony has steady work.

While fastening my saddlebags, I took one last look around the room, pausing on a picture of Bon Bon and I on our first date. It had been over a year ago when she and I first met, but I could still remember it like it was yesterday.

Fresh out of the academy, I was such a foal. Contrary to my parents' warnings and pleading, I struck out on my own. After only a week of paying for my room and board at the Bronze Manticore with the meager pittance of bits my parents gifted me, I ended up on the streets singing for my supper and sleeping in the woods.

During a particularly tough week and not having eaten in days, I stumbled across the town of Ponyville. After another unsuccessful day of playing, I hung out in a back alley until well after dark. Even the creepy pink pony who had stalked me for hours finally disappeared, hopefully for good.

Starving and broke, I made a horrible judgment call. Improvising a lockpick out of a bobby pin and a screwdriver, I broke into a small two-story confectioner's shop. Sneaking into the kitchen, my horn dimly lit my way to the porcelain and steel treasure box that would assuredly contain the life saving food I so desperately needed. While scrounging through the refrigerator, all attention drawn to the daisy sandwich I was masterfully crafting, a sudden intense pain arose from the back of my head and I found the floor rushing up to meet my face in a most unpleasantly expeditious manner.

Struggling to observe my attacker through bleary watery vision, and probably a mild concussion, I set my eyes upon an adorable, albeit angry, pink and blue maned earth pony. Her blue eyes glittered in the refrigerator light, and her beige coat slightly dripped water. Did I mention her mane was wet too? She was like the image of beauty, except for the rolling pin she was shaking angrily.

Being a rational unicorn, I responded in the most rational way I could think of when a malnourished unicorn is being besieged by an angry, wet earth pony. I curled into the fetal position and started blubbering like a baby.

When the next blow didn't come, I carefully raised my head. Maybe it was the concussion, maybe it was destiny, but I stared her directly in the eyes and asked, "Care for a sandwich?"

After a trip to Ponyville Hospital's emergency room, the mare, whose name I found out was Bon Bon, approached me hesitantly. "Miss, do you have a place to stay?"

"Yeah, I got a tent in my saddlebags, I'll be alright."

"What! Hay no! You have a concussion!"

"That I deserved-" I mumbled.

"Deserved or not, I caused it, and by Celestia, I will make sure you are okay!"

"I tried to rob you-"

"You were starving," suddenly the most cheeky grin crossed her face, "and besides, you owe me a sandwich."

During my time under her care I fell head over hooves for the earth pony, and one day, after making a small "fortune" playing my old beat up lyre in the park, I asked her out. I had a sandwich debt to repay, after all.

Nabbing the picture and stowing it safely in my saddlebags, I headed downstairs. A delicious aroma had drawn me from my reminiscing. On the table sat a bowl of hot oats, a couple of strips of hay bacon, and a cup of morning ambrosia.

Scarfing down breakfast like I hadn't eaten in days would have been a lot easier if halfway through I didn't decide to drink an entire mug of hot coffee.

"Ah-owwww," I moaned as I chugged a glass of water to soften the burning sensation.

"You know, Lyra, the train doesn't leave for another forty-five minutes, right?" BonBon chided me.

"I know. I'm just in a hurry. I really don't want to be late," I sighed as I finished my oats.

"I mean, I really am excited for you, but you need to calm down. You are going to over-stress yourself, and make a poor first impression if you go in there bouncing like a schoolfilly with a crush," she continued.

"Bon Bon, I know, but I haven't had a paying job in months, and your dad stares at me like a bum every time he sees me. I just want to be able to put some bits in the pot ya know, you can't hoof the whole bill," I stated matter of factly.

"Lyra Heartstrings," Uh oh, the lecture... "If I was worried about bits, I would have married some rich pony, not a musician who doesn't play in some big orchestra or a successful band," Ouch! "I'm marrying you, because I love you, the quirks, the personality, and the brains. The looks aren't bad either if I may say so myself," she concluded with a smirk.

"Hey, don't get all sappy with me now, I do have a train to catch," I replied lovingly, hiding a tinge of hurt.

"I know, I know. Do you have any idea how long you will be gone for?"

"The letter says I need to be there for a few days; to sign all the contracts and stuff. Plus, It would be nice to catch up with Tavi since I haven't seen her in almost a year."

"Don't get any ideas," suddenly a sexy smirk crossed her face, "unless you bring her home," Bon Bon cooed.

Unsure of how to respond to that, I saluted exaggeratedly, bringing my hoof to my forehead so rapidly I caught the tip of my horn. Now, most non-unicorns are unaware of a small factoid. Being the focal point of a unicorn’s magic, the horn is heavily concentrated with nerve clusters. Hitting a unicorn in the horn is akin to... Well, a stallion could probably tell you better than I, but needless to say I was staring at the ceiling with a concerned looking earth pony standing over me. My poor chair now ninety degrees from its previous position.

I attempted to roll over onto my hooves, but the straps connecting me to the saddlebags trapped under my chair prevented me from so easy a victory.

Horse apples.

I looked over to Bon Bon, my eyes watering as I tried to appeal to her for help, but to no avail, as her heavy laughter had caused her to turn the table into an impromptu face rest.

Slightly irked, I started to channel the magic into my horn for one of the most advanced spells I knew; teleportation. However, that dream was short lived, as the pain that answered my magical summons served as a reminder as to why I was in this particular situation.

After a few minutes of my best turtle impression, Bon Bon finally managed to stop laughing long enough to assist me by unbuckling the straps around my belly; however, not before stealing a not entirely unwanted kiss.

Finally free, Bon Bon helped me to my hooves, re-strapping on my saddlebags. With a final nibble on my ear, and a swat on my flank that left my cheeks a burning crimson, she ushered me out the door.

With the sun barely peeking out over the horizon, I hurried my way towards the train station. I cut corners and trotted at a decent clip until at last my destination was in sight. However, as I passed the alleyway near the sofa shop, I heard a less than desired voice call out my name.

A pale white pegasus with a bag of bits cutiemark beckoned me over to the shadows. The scars on his face easily complimented the macabre griffin fur coat he wore. The crowbar resting on the wall next to him removed any kind of illusion that this was a social call.

"Got my money?" He questioned mockingly.

"No, Usury, I haven't had a paying job yet. I'm on my way to start one in Canterlot right-" My well-rehearsed speech cut short by a hoof forcibly connecting to my muzzle.

"Two weeks Heartstrings, and you better have my bits, or your little fillyfriend better have insurance," he growled.

I backed away slowly until I was back into the light, then turned and galloped at full speed to the train station. I noticed a warm wet sensation dripping down my muzzle as I ran. Great, my nose is bleeding. Bon Bon is going to kill me if she finds out I owe that creep money.

As I reached the depot, I walked over to the fountain. Washing my face, I took a long look at my reflection. This is my big chance. I am going to be on tv, and if I perform well, I might be noticed enough to be signed to a label. I can't keep doing this. I need to borrow money as my work is infrequent, and now I'm risking Bon Bon by my actions. This is no way for anypony to live, so I have no choice. I will win this contest. I will make them see that I am great, I will make sure everypony from Baltimare to Las Pegasus will know the name Lyra Heartstrings!

_____________

I paced back and forth in my wagon, the aged mahogany resounded with the weight and force of my hoofsteps. My heart was racing, and all I could see was red.

"What do they mean ‘Trixie's show is a flop?’ Trixie is a top-tier magician! She uses the best tricks, the best lighting, and the best illusions! Those foals have no appreciation for what real art is!" I shouted at nopony in particular.

I opened with a bang, appearing to materialize from a column of smoke, the pyrotechnics masking my approach to center stage. I didn't expect a humongous reaction to a simple opener like that, but dead silence? Ridiculous! But then nopony gave even the slightest applause for my better tricks. What did I do wrong? The reviews said I had copied most of my act from other, more prestigious showmares, but how was I supposed to know that somepony had already done a failed water tank escape? I lead the trick into what appeared to be my death, eaten alive by mare-eating piranhas, and escaping through a trapdoor in the bottom. While the audience was fixated on the red food coloring, and the fish eating what appeared to be me, I crept into the auditorium, using an invisibility spell, and seated myself in the chair I cleverly reserved for myself ahead of time. It was brilliant!

However, in spite of all the research I had done, somepony by the stage name of White Horse, performed the exact same trick two months ago at a venue in Cloudsdale. I overlooked it because there was no way I could conceive an inferior, winged rat having the audacity to call herself a magician. But I had been wrong in the past. After all, that purple bookworm had gotten the better of me.

I glanced back at the mudslinging rag that had caused my fury, and decided that it needed to die for its insults. Levitating it off the table, I used a basic ignition spell to burn the heretical paper, satisfied when it finally fell to the floor in a pile of ash.

Maybe I should get a pegasus for my assistant?... It would be beneficial for me not having to waste so much time and energy setting up the stage myself, and then I could expand my repertoire to include new feats of wonderment, like sawing her in half.

To ease my mind, I set a kettle to boil, igniting the hotplate with my magic. For good measure I grabbed a bottle of bourbon from under the cabinet by my sink, pouring a double shot. Just as I settled in to relax for the night, a sharp whistle broke the silence.

Levitating the teakettle over, I poured some of the boiling water into my carefully prepared mug, the liquid cascading over the specially-picked blend of white tea, chamomile, and rose hips. The aroma-infused steam flowing up reminded me of times when I was doing better for myself, and thus was an indulgence I particularly enjoyed. Again, I poured another double shot. Can’t hurt to be overly relaxed right?

"Trixie needs to do something she has never done before; something nopony has ever done before. But what?"

Suddenly a knock on my door startled me from my relaxation. Who in Tartarus could that be at this time of night? I headed over and slammed the door wide open with my magic. On the other side was a light grey pegasus with a blond mane. She seemed to be staring at me and the ground simultaneously as she presented a small envelope in her mouth. I tried really hard not to stare back, but something mesmerized me about her eyes.

"Mail for one Trixie Lulamoon," she said, innocence pervading her voice.

"You stand before The Great and Powerful Trixie," I said, cloaking my anger with pride.

"Oh, I'm sorry; I must have gotten the wrong wagon. Ditzy Doo, you featherbrain, you messed up again," she slowly mumbled, the latter part clearly not meant for my ears.

She turned to leave, her head bowed in sorrow. Part of me wanted to just let her go, but curiosity gained the upper hoof, and after all, she was just doing her job.

"Wait, I am Trixie Lulamoon, you didn't get it wrong. I just...never mind," I said, a little offended that my stage name meant nothing to her.

Skipping back around, she hooved over the letter, "Then this is for you! Urgent letter from Octavia Philharmonica. It's time-sensitive, so you should open it right away."

I started to tear into the letter before realizing I had forgotten to thank the odd pegasus. I looked up, but she had already vanished into thin air.

"Trixie needs to get her for an assistant, I never even noticed her departure!"

I turned my attention back to the letter Octavia; she was that mare my old producer was friends with. I wonder what she wants? I haven't seen her since I was back home in Neigh Orleans!

'Dear Miss Lulamoon,

It has been a while since we last talked, and thusly it has been no small feat to track down an entertainer with housing arrangements such as yours, so forgive me If I skip some of the usual pleasantries and just get straight to the point.

I have the great pleasure to invite you to be a contender in the upcoming season of Equestrian Champions. Your already remarkable talents as both a showmare and an illusionist should give you an edge over the other contestants, in both the challenges, and in the hearts of our viewership.

I thought immediately of you when I was deciding who to invite, because of your recent fall from grace after the second incident in Ponyville and some of the terrible reviews I have read about you lately. I always enjoyed your performances, and I figured this might just be the thing you need to get over your little slump. The million bit prize probably wouldn’t hurt either.
I apologize for the suddenness of the letter, but if you decide to accept, I will need you to meet me in the Canterlot Society Club tomorrow at lunchtime for the rest of the details.

Eagerly awaiting your response,

Octavia Philharmonica

The letter slowly fell from my grasp as I tried to take it all in. Equestrian Champions was watched by millions of families all over Equestria! If I won, I would become a household name, and I could use the money to open a show in Las Pegasus.

This! This is it! This will be my greatest trick. I will win this game show, and be loved Equestria-wide. Thank you, Octavia, I will see you at lunch.

Hastily squaring away everything in my wagon, packing up and strapping down, I paused only to dump the bourbon into my tea and guzzle the whole glass, all pretense of eloquence forgotten. I fired up the spell matrix powering my wagon with a spark of my magic and headed towards the edge of town.

Onward to Canterlot; destiny awaits. "And nopony is more great or powerful than Trixie!"

_____________

"They say that even the most famous of ponies are still ponies. DJ Pon3 has transcended most DJs by way of singles sales, live shows, and record sales. She is brave, outgoing, a smooth talker, and just overall awesome. I can't honestly say that, that mare really is me. I am not the perfect DJ everypony expects me to be; I am afraid of everypony."

"Miss Scratch, I have to ask, how long have you been feeling like this?" Doctor across from me asked, his voice filled with genuine concern.

"Well, Doc, a couple of weeks ago on stage, I panicked. Two hours into a gig, somepony came up to me and I froze. There was nothing scary about him, but my mind just wouldn't think, I found it hard to breathe and sweat just poured down my neck."

"Is this the first time this has happened to you?"

"No, but it has never seeped through into my DJ personality. I just don't know what to do! This is affecting my work. How am I supposed to be in front of hundreds of ponies if any one of them could cause me to have a panic attack?"

"Well, let’s just get to the root of the problem..."

_____________

Two hours later

"Vinyl, you can't just sit there on the couch curled into a ball," I heard a rather familiar voice state.

"Octy! How long have you been standing there!" I half-shouted, a shrill pitch pervading my otherwise raspy voice.

"Over five minutes now, and truthfully I want to help," Octavia said morosely. A look of concern briefly crossed her face as she approached slowly, like one would an injured animal.

I could tell she was concerned, but I didn't want to burden her with my problems.

"It's nothing."

"It's obviously not 'nothing', I have never seen you act like this before. Did somepony hurt you?"

She reached her hoof out toward me, the rational part of me said to take her hoof, perhaps embrace her in a hug and proceed to unload everything on my mind. Instead, I just flinched. Stupid brain. She looked visibly hurt by my reaction, but I just couldn't build up the courage to tell her what was really wrong.

"I just- I don't know; give me a minute," I sighed slowly, uncurling myself from the couch.

She sat down next to me, her expression screaming 'I wish I knew what to say right now'. I slowly reached over and placed my forehoof on her lips to silence the inevitable.

"I saw a therapist today; he started asking me questions and I just panicked. I ran, Octy, I just ran from my problems. Like a scared little filly I just ran away."

"What? Why? Did somepony hurt you," she gasped, "Were you-"

"No and no," I stated flatly, "but I was terrified, am terrified. I thought I have always been able to control my fear, not saying it wasn't there, mind you, but I had it under control. However, two weeks ago, something flipped, I had a panic attack on stage. It was terrible, but thankfully not too many ponies noticed it. I don't know what to do, and I can't go onstage like this. Ponies go to see Pon3, not some scared little filly. I had to cancel the tour I was going to make through the Zebra Lands, and from what I understand, there was a riot in Roam."

"Vinyl, I wish I knew what to do. You’re my best friend, and I hate to see you hurting like this."

"Yeah, but short of a miracle, I don't think there is a Celestia-damned thing you could do."

"Vinyl, I... Actually, I have an idea. In an hour, I am going to go meet with two ponies, part of the reality show that I volunteered for. I don't know if it would help, but we need one more pony to fill in the team roster. Fleur recently fell ill, and I have been at my wits end trying to find a last minute replacement. It would be a huge favor to me, and besides, I think it might just help you to overcome your fear. You would be working in teams of three, small groups for a small start. And I have always found that the easiest way to solve any problem is one step at a time."

"Yeah," I sighed. Foal steps. I can do this. I am DJ Pon3; I can be brave. Hay, if Dash's friend, um what’s-her-wings can face her fears. Worst case scenario; I can fake it. And after being on stage, in front of hundreds of raving ponies, this should be a walk in a park. Manehatten's Central Park, but a park nonetheless.

"I'm in."

"Splendid, I think you will love the mares I'm going to be meeting with today. One is an old friend. You might remember her; Lyra. The other is an old acquaintance of mine; she is an incredibly talented, albeit cocky stage magician by the name of Trixie Lulamoon. But um, darling, no offense... you may want to go wash your face up a bit," she took a long whiff at the air, her nose scrunching up and her eyes squinting a bit, "or maybe a shower. When’s the last time you took a bath?"

Backing away slowly, I chuckled under my breath. Three days ago, maybe? Using my magic, I grabbed my sunglasses and a hoodie before I slowly walked into the bathroom.

I walked over to the shower, considering asking Octy if she wanted to join me. I knew she would refuse, being a stallion’s mare after all, but it would make her blush. And seeing her all vulnerable was so adorable.

I popped my head out of the bathroom for a moment, my world famous Pon3 grin plastered across my face, although not quite reaching my eyes. Octavia was walking down the hallway, and she stopped to see what I wanted.

"Hey, Octy, I just thought of something that you could do that might help cheer me up."

"What's that, Vinyl?"

"Well, remember what you said about me needing a shower? Well, I am a very dirty filly, and I could definitely use some help with that."

As expected, Octavia grew bright red and her pupils shrank to pinpricks. She shot me a look of utter disbelief and stared for almost a full minute. I could tell she was racking her brain, trying to figure out if I was being sincere or not.

"Vinyl, sweetie, I know you are into, um, that sort of thing, but as I told you, that one time in Las Pegasus..."

"Relax Octy, I was just jerking your chain. I know, what happens in Las Pegasus, stays there."

With a sigh that sounded almost like a tire deflating, Octavia bopped me on the nose playfully. With all the refinement that her breeding and station could demand of her, she turned away and continued back to her room.

I couldn't help myself but stare at her flank as she unintentionally sashayed into her room.

Blushing and a sexy swagger? The adorable has been doubled!

I turned back into the bathroom, and looked at myself in the mirror for the first time in days. Sweet Celestia, I look like crap!

Author's Note

Redone, refitted, and more on the way, thank you for your patience, and I hope that this is overall a more pleasant experience.

Party Joined

I boarded this Celestia-damned train at six this morning! I continued staring at the small pocket watch I kept in my saddle bags, hoping that it was lying to me. There is no way I have only been on this train for an hour listening to this little brat cry. For an hour that parent ignoring her child has been grating at my nerves, all it would take is her to show a little love or discipline or something and he would be quiet. It was a four hour trip, and we were only an hour in. I was going to have two counts of murder on my hooves if this continued any longer...

"Argh! Shut up! For the love of Celestia, shut the buck up!" Oops.

"M-mommy, dat lady is b-bein’ mean to me!" the gray-coated foal cried out, tears rolling in even greater torrents down his ugly face.
More sobbing, and even louder now! Great! Irritatedly, I rolled my eyes and leaned back in my seat, trying to drown out the crying with my hooves.

"Don't you dare talk to my child like that!" A viciously angry voice dripping with pure venom shouted.

I turned my head and spotted the violet-maned earth pony that had been ignoring her foal marching my way. Her pupils were dilated to pinpricks, and her bloodshot irises almost matched her crimson coat.

Oh Sweet Celestia; she is the biggest earth pony I have ever seen! Celestia buck me...

"Miss rude unicorn mare, you will come with me," a threatening tone pervaded the angry mothers voice. The emphasis that the easily fourteen hoof pony weighed onto the word 'will' made it clear, in no uncertain terms, that I had absolutely no say in the matter.

Horsefeathers.

I followed her lead out of the passenger car we were in and into the adjoining dining car. The dining car was ominously empty, even for as few ponies that were on board today.
I looked at her hesitantly, unsure of what to say. After a few moments, the look of anger upon her face started to fade, the corners of her mouth starting to curl up. Sensing this was my opportunity I began opening my mouth to apologize.

THWACK!

I backed up, my eyes watering, blood dripping down my muzzle. I tripped a little bit as I ran to the bathroom, the mother aggressively shouting profanities and threats of violence after me.

I could hear the sound of heavy hoof falls catching up to me as I blindly charged to the relative safety of the restroom. Reaching the sanctuary of the lavatory, I slammed the door shut, latching the lock with my telekinesis and backing to the far wall.

Twice in one day? I really need to shut my mouth, but that was ridiculous.

I started to relax until I heard a loud bang on the door. The sudden emergence of a large hoof-shaped dent, clearly outlined in the old steel door, caused me to recoil like a cornered snake.

I backed up a little bit more as I heard the mare’s voice, resounding with spite from the other side of my sanctuary’s damaged barrier, "If you come within fifty meters of me or my foal again, a broken nose will be the least of your worries!"

I sat on the toilet, my muscles tensed, going through every one of the defensive spells I knew. Finally I was able to calm down once I was sure I could hear her retreating hoof steps. I cleaned my face off, pausing to look myself in the mirror. The tip of my muzzle was flattened and bent at an odd angle.

Slowly, I brought my forehoof to softly touch my bleeding nose. The sharp pain I experienced confirmed what my eyes told me: the mare was right about my nose being broken.

Carefully fighting past the pain, I ignited my horn. The golden glow reflected off my blood that had been pooling in the sink. I winced as I could audibly hear the cartilage and bone snap back into place. The anesthetic effect of my spell was almost enough to override the pain of the bones welding themselves back together. Almost.

Washing the remainder of the blood off of my face and out of the sink, I quickly scoped out the results of my healing. Satisfied that all the bones were in place properly, I severed the spell. A fresh wave of nausea accompanied the nerve trauma that remained leaving me a little shaky.

My medical skills are not at a doctoral level, but I am a graduate of Celestia's School for Talented Unicorns, so I have a little bit of healing magic under my belt, it has always been useful for times like this when my mouth was open and my brain was closed for buisiness.

I slowly unlocked the door, and hesitantly peered out of my small safehaven. Upon seeing the giant earth pony back in the other car, I decided to find myself another seat.

I slowly passed through the dining car, walking slowly to avoid any jarring motion to my face. I reached the door and and crossed the threshold into the almost-empty luggage car. Leaning against a few suitcases, I let my eyes and my mind slowly drift off. Deciding not to fight the magical drain and nervous trauma my body was suffering, I slowly let myself drift off to sleep.

_____________

"Trixie, we just ran your credentials, and you have two outstanding warrants in Ponyville for reckless endangerment, three in Stalliongrad for resisting arrest, and seven in Neigh Orleans for petty theft. You have the right to remain..."
"Trixie knows her rights! And she chooses to use the right to appeal immediately before a Princess," I cut the stark white guard off.

"Wait, what? Do you honestly believe you stand a better chance in front of one of our benevolent rulers than in front of a judge?" he asked, a look of genuine bemusement crossed his face.

"Trixie demands to have her testimony be held in front of Twilight Sparkle, the Element of Magic and crowned princess. Trixie wants immediate judgment to be passed. She is very busy today, and would prefer not to spend time in a jail cell to await trial and then sentencing."

The guard mumbled something under his breath as he cast the calling spell; I caught 'stupid convict' in there somewhere. His horn lit up as a bright purple light trailed into the sky and exploded into the shape of a six point star overhead. A few minutes later, another purple flash appeared at ground level. With a sheepish grin and awkwardly held wings, there stood the sopping wet alicorn, hastily straightening and drying her mane with her magic.

"Trixie?!" she questioningly exclaimed, pausing momentarily with an aghast expression set upon her face.

"Princess, this mare has invoked the ancient right of an immediate trial before a regent, she specifically asked for you," the guard stated flatly.

It is an old law in Equestria, to be able to stand trial in front of one of the rulers. It predates Princess Luna's banishment, and was established to allow a pony to be able to plead their case to one of the incorruptible Diarchs should they find themselves a victim of circumstance. As with a lot of the extremely old laws, it is still valid never having been scratched from the records, but not commonly known about. I had stumbled across it while researching an old Equestrian law book to make sure a trick I planned on performing wasn't illegal due to risk of property damage. While I wasn't able to perform the trick, I made sure to make a mental note of Trial by Regent law just in case some mob ever tried to have me lynched because I angered the wrong pony with my one-upmareship.

The guard explained why he was arresting me, and the uncomfortable expression Twilight wore spoke volumes about how out of her element she really was here.

After the guard finished, I looked over to Twilight and simply said, "You pardoned Trixie of her actions before you had wings. Trixie was wondering if you could do her a favor and make an official royal decree doing the same now?"

"Trixie, you have committed a lot of crimes. A judge would have you locked up for a long time," Twilight sighed.

"Yes, which is why Tri-I wanted to speak to you. You are one of my few friends, Twilight, and one of the few ponies who know the steps I have taken to turn my life around. So, please, Twilight, I beg you. Help me?"

"Alright, alright. Guard, take a note. I, Twilight Sparkle, do hereby grant a royal pardon to Trixie Lulamoon for all crimes she has committed against Equestria."

The gawking guard, clearly feeling duped, wrote down what the princess said. He teleported the scroll to what I assumed to be some sort of central guard post here in Canterlot for word to be spread.
Ignoring the guard, I turned to Twilight, "Hey Sparkle, Trixie thanks you for what you just did, and was wondering how she could repay you."

"Well, how about you just owe me one," Twilight said, blushing.

"Trixie can buy you dinner tonight and talk if you would like," I offered.

"Sure, it would be nice to catch up. How about around seven; we can meet at the palace gates. I need to go speak to Luna anyway, so this would work out pretty well."

"See you tonight, Sparkle," I said with a grin.

In another flash of teleportation magic, the princess disappeared. The guard turned to me, clearly frustrated that I had tricked him, but waved me through the gate anyway.

_____________

"Attention all passengers, we will reach Canterlot station in five minutes. Please watch your steps as you disembark the train. Thank you, and have a nice day."

Holy crap, heh. I managed to sleep through the rest of that trip? Maybe my luck isn't all bad today.

I sat around by the luggage for a few minutes as I waited for the brakes to engage so I could go about my day. A pleasant grin crept up on my face at the apparent change in pace.

Skreeee…...

Suddenly a sense of dread overtook me. I quickly pivoted around just in time to observe the carelessly stacked luggage lurch forward. I screamed and turned to run, but was simply was not fast enough. Before I knew it, I was pelted by several families’-worth of saddlebags and suitcases.

Pulling myself shakily from from the pile, I let out a sigh, and with a little more effort I was cleared of the detritus.
I quickly left the train feeling like it had run me over rather than me having ridden it. Marching my way toward the center of town in hopes that I would be able to avoid any more trouble, Celestia forbid something else happen. As I trotted along humming a little tune I had been working on, I noticed the mother and foal from the train at an ice cream parlor and decided to skirt my way past to avoid any more confrontation with the mare. Creeping along like a ninja, I snuck to a side alley without being noticed.

After a few minutes of alley hopping, my goal was in sight; the club where Octavia was to meet me at. With any luck I would be able to make it inside without any incident.

"Wow, Trixie has never seen a pony in your shape outside of a hospital before!" I hear a voice from behind me declare.
I turn about quickly and see a blue unicorn dressed in an extremely gaudy cape and hat.

"Hey, you're that magician who terrorized Ponyville a few months back, right?" I questioned.

"And you're not somepony Trixie recognizes, therefore you must be a nopony," the mare I assumed was "Trixie" returned harshly.

I just flopped down, water starting to form around my eyes. Memories of all todays little curses flashing through my mind bringing me to the edge of despair. Princess Celestia, did I kick foals in my past life to deserve this? Am I about to be beaten down by a pretentious mare who speaks in third pony? I just tried to look as pitiful as possible, hoping she too wasn't about to buck my flank into next week.

Trixie started to back away from me slowly, a perturbed look etched into her features, and turned to head into the socialite club. Crisis averted, whooohooo! Wiping my eyes, I followed her in, albeit with a minor limp from some new hurt my body had discovered. Octavia had better be buying lunch after the day I've had.

The club's interior was gorgeous; white marble pillars and a checkerboard patterned floor contrasted sharply with the crushed red velvet drapes. I trotted over to the Maître D' and asked about my friend. With a look of scorn about my current appearance, he led me to a large curtained table. Inside, much to my chagrin, there sat Trixie with Octavia and some other mare. The stranger in question was a vaguely familiar white unicorn with an electric blue mane. I'm pretty sure I had seen her before during the royal wedding; some sort of DJ.

"Oh my gosh, Lyra, what happened to you?" Octavia asked, shock and concern plastering her features.

"A load of horse apples, I think Celestia decided today was beat up Lyra day, to be honest," I muttered.

"Trixie isn't here to hear your life story, green one, Trixie is here for destiny," Trixie cut in abruptly.

I think I really hate her pretentious flank.

"Yeah, sorry about your day, dude, but we really should move on with paper signing and stuff," the mysterious white mare said.

"Well, allow me to get introductions out of the way," Octavia said, pointing at me, "This is Lyra Heartstrings, she is a classically trained bard, and a graduate of Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns." Next she gestured towards the obnoxious blue mare, "This is Trixie Lulamoon, also known as the Great and Powerful Trixie, an illusionist and stage performer of no small skill." Finally she pointed at the white mare, "And this is Vinyl Scratch, otherwise known as DJ Pon3. I believe her reputation should precede her."

Ohmygosh, thats Pon3? I have all her albums! I squealed internally. I quickly dug into my saddle bag for a piece of paper and a pen, "Miss Pon3 can I please have your autograph? Puhlease?"

"Um, alright, here, kid," Vinyl said, quickly jotting her name down.

I am so framing this when I get home!

"Trixie is offended, you don't want her autograph?"

"No, not really." I muttered, my brows furrowed in slight agitation.

"Fillies, we are here for a reason. Fanfillying and squabbles can wait for later. Paperwork signing now, please,” Octavia flatly stated.

She handed each of us a small stack of papers, certain lines highlighted for our respective signatures. I quickly scrawled my name several times throughout the documents as necessary before handing them back to Tavi.

After she gathered up the forms from the others, she beamed proudly, and with a small snicker announced, "Congratulations, you are all now registered cast of Equestrian Champions! Oh, and by the by, I would highly suggest you not fight amongst each other any more," Octavia glanced between the blue unicorn and me, "Lyra and Trixie, because from this day out; you two and Vinyl are all a team.”

It took me nearly a minute to scrape my jaw off the floor, my expression almost a perfect mirror of Trixie's. I quietly excused myself to the restroom, which proved to be a good call as it served a double purpose, a way to save face and and not have to listen to whatever objections Trixie had. As I slowly meandered to the restroom, I signed myself with the crescent moon of the lunar goddess.

Princess Luna, I beg to you as a faithful subject of the Royal Pony Sisters and a friend of your niece, Princess Twilight, please protect me from the wrath of your sister. For whatever reason, I'm pretty sure I've become the proxy for all of her anger and frustrations -- and I really like living.

Author's Note

And this is what procrastination earns, the next two chapters are just waiting for me to finish the editing.

Bump in the Night

_____________

"Trixie hates boats. That three-day boat ride was stupid and..." I was whining before being caught by another wave of nausea. My normally beautiful blue coat had taken on a slightly sickly-green tinge during the accursed sea trip, and to be frank, I was sick of getting sick and ending up covered in vomit.

"Ah, lighten up, Trixie, you pompous landlubber; it wasn't that bad," Lyra laughed. At some point during the first day at sea she had started wearing a ridiculous black bandana with a jolly roger on it and talking like a pirate. "Ye did make it ashore, didn't ye?"

She pat me on the back incredibly hard causing my stomach to lurch. I made it to a garbage can and deposited the contents of my stomach in one solid retch. I was starting to think the musician didn't like me.

"Shush, I'm trying to hear the rules, dudes, and Lyra, drop the accent it sucks," Vinyl scorned, her expression unreadable behind her signature glasses.

"Okay, fine, but I'm keeping the colors," Lyra spoke with a defeated yet defiant huff.

"...And furthermore, each team will be responsible for setting up their own shelter and finding food and water. This is a tropical island, so you should be able to accommodate yourselves pretty well. Also, remember, the camera staff are not allowed to help you in any way, so please do not harass them. If you see any of them doing their jobs let them be. Most of the filming is done via mechanical drones and fixed cameras, so that shouldn't be too big a problem," the handsome stallion who was acting as the show's host continued.

I had not been paying too close attention to the details having spent much of my time face down in a trash bin, but I got the jist of it. Survive, find food, find shelter, and something about cameras, but that seemed pretty inconsequential except that my magnificence would be on camera.

"And remember: there will be a challenge at the end of each week, resulting in one of the teams being eliminated from the running. The last team standing will have each member be awarded one million bits. This amount might seem like a lot, but you will need to overcome every obstacle the island has, as well as triumph over the other teams in the challenges. Play fair, and don't kill one another please. The competition will begin when the siren sounds in one hour. Until then, feel free to eat at the buffet, and get to know the competition. I will see you all in a week," and with that the host walked towards the docks, signaling some of the crew back with him.

I gazed around the clearing we were in, scoping out the competition - there seemed to be a pretty obvious pattern to each team. Only one type of pony comprised each one. In total there were two earth pony teams, two pegasi teams, and one other team of unicorns. I didn't really see any challenge among the competition however, as without unicorn magic, the two inferior races would have no chance. I noticed one member of the other unicorn team, though, one who might be a problem. Lyra had said she was a friend of hers while she was a student at Celestia's school as well, so that definitely meant she was very talented with magic.

I walked over to the mare in question. She was blue with a multicolored blue mane. An hourglass cutiemark rested upon her flank, signifying some sort of talent with time.

"Hello friend of Lyra’s; it seems we are to be competition on this show, but I really hope we can get along. You know between us as ponies. May I have the pleasure of knowing your name?"

"My name is Minuette, and I don't suppose you are the Great and Powerful Trixie, are you?" she asked, a bright look settling across her visage.

"Why yes, behold! I am the Great and Powerful Trixie," I proudly declared. I stood up onto my hind legs, summoning up some illusory pyrotechnics with my magic.

"Well, Trixie," she spat, and her entire demeanor flipped a one-eighty, "your behavior in Ponyville was appalling; my cousin Time Turner witnessed all of your actions when you had that Celestia damned Alicorn Amulet. Mares like you disgust me. Not only are you not great, but you need talismans and trickery to give you any kind of power you nag. My temporemancy will allow me to speed my way to victory, and I’ll have fun squashing you for good measure."

"Trixie thinks you have fat flanks," I stated.

"Augh, you are so pretentious. I'm getting nauseous just listening to the horse apples falling from your mouth!" she exclaimed.

"And your fat flanks and loud mouth are giving Trixie a headache." I rebuked.

Well that could have gone better, Lyra’s friends suck, maybe I should just keep quiet and allow my teammates to make friends.

I sauntered over to the buffet, clopping away from the seething time mage and a little eager to put something substantial into my stomach. I grabbed a strawberry and daisy salad, the bleu cheese and walnut garnish had captivated me like a siren's song. To round out my meal, I also picked up a cranberry and orange muffin. No need to start eating like a savage yet when there was real food to be had after all.

Heading back to my team's table, I indulged in the aroma of my masterfully crafted salad. As I sat down, I poured some vinaigrette onto my salad to spice it up a little bit, a nice hint of raspberry to both compliment and contrast the other flavors. I arranged my plate between my silverware before starting in on my meal; daintily, of course. After all, I must keep my composure after that fat flank insulted me. One does not simply become a successful showmare by letting her audience visibly anger her.

I sat in relative peace, enjoying my meal. I pulled my flask of bourbon from the extradimensional space in my hat for a solid shot of liquid confidence and grabbed a quick swallow. After finishing my meal, I set the dinnerware in a tub near the tables. I promptly returned to my seat, and leaned forward resting my head on the table. I enjoyed the relative solitude while observing my teammates interact with the others.

It seemed that Lyra, true to her profession as a bard, was a very adept speaker. Anypony she talked to walked away in a pleasant mood, even if going into the conversation they were nervous, or even skeptical of the green mare.

Vinyl for the most part, however, seemed more interested in what was playing on her music device. I never saw her remove her headphones once, but she was able to respond to ponies who talked to her head on. She can read lips?! I need to learn more about this DJ. This Vinyl Scratch, she is definitely more than she appears.

Suddenly a loud siren blared out, sounding its klaxon call. All the meandering ponies quickly sprinted back to their respective groups and we all scattered into the woods. Lyra, Vinyl, and I made good time rushing ahead of all but one of the pegasus teams. I turned my head to say something, when I noticed Lyra casting a spell. Being unfamiliar with the magic of the bardic traditions, I made a mental note to ask her what that was later.

"Trixie, Vinyl, follow me, I just divined an optimal spot with water and shelter. It is just over that ridge," Lyra yelled, making sure that the still-headphoned unicorn could hear her as well.

She led us over a hill, and then through about a half mile of heavy underbrush before we set sight upon the shelter in question. It was a cave, set into a small cliff face; the interior was dark, but after illuminating my horn I could see that the path led a fair way in, outside of the light range of my magic.

"There is a spring in the back of the cave, as well as several edible plants in the area. I was able to locate the nearest habitable location, and I believe this will fit our needs quite nicely. Can you mares find some firewood so I can start a fire? It is going to be cold tonight, colder than I trust my coat to protect me from; so I am going to set up some leaf weave blankets." Vinyl and I both stood there jaws agape for a moment as we tried to comprehend what was just said. "I'm a bard, guys. I used to travel. You pick up some things," she finished sheepishly.

Not wanting to argue, Vinyl and I set out into the woods to gather supplies. I feel like I have underestimated both of these ponies. I need to find out more, but I feel like there is no way we can lose. But wait... If my companions are as skilled as they are, then what is our competition really like?

_____________

It was cold, but I decided to go for a walk to clear my head. I am not sure how much good that was doing me however, for as I walked I noticed the trees were starting to take on a very frightening appearance. It was eerie, and it seemed like trees were reaching down for me; the gnarled knots that adorned their sides seemed to transform into monstrous faces. Wow Vinyl, you really have an overactive imagination tonight. Look out, the boogeymare is going to get you. Wait... Did I really just think to myself in the thirdpony, really? I am going to hit that Trixie with a brick or something.

I continued on, an encroaching feeling of dread coming over me as I continued to trot through the underbrush. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed a flash; it had a light blue quality to it, and I thought I could vaguely sense unicorn magic. I wonder who that could be?

With my curiosity outweighing my uneasiness, I slowly made my way toward where I saw the flash. Before too long I stumbled across a clearing, and in the center a jasmine yellow pegasus was performing kicks and jabs. Every so often when she would let loose an attack, an energy pulse would form at her wings, and an aura of light would flash around her eyes; the odd light blue hue matching her mane and tail. This pegasus can focus her magic?

I sat and watched for several minutes before I noticed her attacks starting to slow down in speed. The shimmer of sweat clung to her lithe form. I watched until her conclusion, and as she slumped down against a tree to catch her breath, I started to clap my hooves. It's one pony. I can talk to her, and the less enemies we have on the other teams; the less they may try to hinder us early on. I walked into the clearing, pulling my headphones down to my neck and stopping the small flow of magic to the spell matrix powering my media player.

"What's up? That performance was amazing! Pretty mare like you hiding all that talent; I've never seen anything quite like that. What's your name? Because I bet it's as lovely as your eyes." Wow, do I really default to trying to pick somepony up when I act as Pon3?

"Um," the mare stammered, a blush overcoming her face, "my name is Raindrops, I uh..." she just trailed off and started looking at the ground, probably looking for what to say.

"-Can move with more grace than any dancer?" I suggested.

"Um, I'm not really good at..." she started before trailing off.

I'm making her uncomfortable, she is tongue tied as all Tartarus.

"You're DJ Pon3, right? I saw you perform at the wedding," she finally said.

"Yeah, my friend Pinkie got me that gig. Shame I didn't get to meet you there," I said seductively.

Her face turned a dark shade of crimson, as she attempted to avoid eye contact. I started to feel a little uneasy as I realized what I was doing, so I just sat down, leaning against a tree. I was really glad my magic sunglasses allowed me to hide my eyes, because there was no way they matched the confidence of my grin.

She walked over and sat down next to me. Horse apples.

"Do you want to, um... Talk?" she asked, hesitation in her voice.

"Yeah, I mean there is not a whole lot else for me to do on this island but wait for the challenges, so I might as well have somepony to keep me company."

We sat there for hours, talking about our lives, I skipped over a lot of the compromising stuff. No need to expose my weakness in front of the competition, but still it was nice to talk to somepony who wasn't Trixie.

"Hey, Raindrops," I started hesitantly.

"Yeah?"

"I'm going to head on back to my camp, but how would you like to do this again?"

"I would like that," she replied with a little giggle.

Celestia, she's hot. But I can't drop my guard now, I need to be careful, she can be really dangerous in a fight.

I gave her a small peck on the cheek causing her to blush uncontrollably and make a little mewling sound. I helped her up, and walked her to the edge of the clearing.

"See you tomorrow night?" I asked.

"Yeah," she sighed.

After she left, I waited a few minutes until the sound of her wings flapping faded away before I flopped down. Visibly shaken, I retreated into myself, unsure of what to do.

I think that mare likes me, she is cute, but I don't want to hurt her or something. If this were some random thing at a club, there would have been some cheap meaningless sex, followed by me going home. But I actually think I felt something for her, just the concept caused me to shake a little bit as I thought about all the possibilities. Or, maybe she was just trying to get me to drop my guard so in the some contest I would hold back or something. I've always been good at reading ponies, comes with being able to play a crowd, but this Raindrops mare was an enigma to me. Is it possible she really likes me?

After a while of contemplating the possibilities, I got up and started to re-trace my steps, walking back into the creepy woods to find my way home. The reaching branches and the snarled knots played back burner to my thoughts about that magical, alluring pegasus. Trying to escape the confusion of my emotions, I reactivated the spell matrix for my mp3 player. I lifted the headphones from around my neck to my ears, but paused halfway through as I heard a loud, audible snap, like a branch behind me breaking.

I turned to look, but shadows pervaded my vision, even through the light-amplifying lenses I wore. "Raindrops, is that you?" I asked the darkness, which had turned an eerie quiet. There was nothing that I could see, but the silence was making my skin crawl. I started to stumble backwards, intending to sprint back to the cave as fast as I could go once my legs moved properly again. In a vain attempt to console myself, I squeaked out, "R...Raindrops?"

A very deep voice answered me from above. "Most definitely not," it snickered.

Before I had a chance to look, something dropped on me from above, a solid cold mass colliding into my back. I screamed in agonizing pain. I could hear my bones popping, and a sharp pain tore into my neck. As the darkness began to take over I noticed a pair of glowing red dots reflecting in the slowly spreading pool of blood, which I had yet to realize was my own. The sound of heavy laughter rang as both a lullaby and a soliloquy as I blacked out, my last conscious sensation being the flesh on my barrel being rended open.

_____________

The sun shone brightly overhead as Bon Bon and I strolled through Ponyville Park. Our tails tightly entwined, and after a few minutes when our eyes met, we paused to embrace one another. Gazing lovingly at one another, we slowly inched closer until our lips locked together. THe taste of her tongue gently feeling its way around the inside of my mouth was pure bliss.

A few passing fillies that I couldn't quite remember the names of blushed as they turned the corner by some bushes and caught us in our scandalous romance. As the fillies bolted off in the other direction, I pulled away from Bon Bon for just a moment.

She started to tear up a little bit, but I quickly put my hoof up to her mouth. Surprised by the gesture, she gulped quickly but quietly.

Leaning in close, I whispered, "Hey, why don't we head somewhere a little more secluded, like maybe that shady tree thicket?"

Grasping her hoof, I led her to a particularly dark part of the park, near to where I first made camp when I came to town. With no chance of interlopers, I turned back toward Bon Bon, a predatory look crossing my face. Her eyes, large and full of understanding, pleaded for me to continue.

Leaping toward my marefriend, I pinned her down, planting kiss after kiss on her lips. I slowly began to work my way down, planting kisses and nibbles on her neck. I rubbed my hoof on her cutie mark in slow circles as I continued to nibble lower and lower.

Suddenly, a loud crash from behind me snapped my attention from the task at hoof. I slowly turned my head to see an imposingly tall, white alicorn. Her multihued pastel mane billowing as if caught in some sort of cosmic wind.

As she started to approach me, her horn started to glow a bright golden color; not quite unlike my own magic's aura.

A look of pure disdain crossed her face as she ripped me from the sweet embrace of my lover. "Lyra Heartstrings, you deserve no happiness in this life for all the crimes you have committed against my little ponies, and I will be damned if you don't die a slow agonizing death."

I tried to scream, but her magic was tightening around my throat, and only a faint raspy whimper escaped my lips.

"Lyra, you can't possibly think my sister is out to get you," a serene voice called out to me.

The solar princess froze, her magical grasp abruptly ended. I hit the ground with a small thud, grateful that I wasn't higher in the air. Looking around, I noticed that Bon Bon was also frozen, a silent scream etched into her features. As I stared at my paralyzed marefriend, I noticed movement behind her.

Quickly dispelling the images around us, a tall, dark-blue alicorn approached me. A ripple effect formed around her hooves, much like displacement on a placid lake. Her long, starry ethereal mane flowing much like her imagined sister's, the regal princess of the night magestically walked up to me.

Slowly, she sat down next to me, draping one wing over me in a comforting gesture. She nuzzled against me, a warmth filling me up from the inside, fighting back the crippling fear the nightmare had induced in me.

"But Princess Luna, even all long past occurrences aside; look at the evidence. In just one day, I got my flank kicked, what, two times? And I got nearly killed by falling luggage," I replied.

"Your fault and happenstance, no more. Celestia is too busy running the country to pick on one pony."

"But you can take time from yours to help one?"

"Indeed. Do you honestly know how long it has been since somepony prayed to me for something besides a good night’s rest?" she asked.

"Too long, clearly, but hay, are you really going to argue if I decided to respect you over your sister? I'm a bard; some of us remember the old stories."

"That is... a fair point actually. I will continue to listen to your prayers, and offer my advice to you if you need it. Mother only knows what you might do next," Luna sighed.

Suddenly the princess of the night stiffened, removing her hoof from her brow where it had rest for the majority of the conversation.

"Lyra, you need to wake up right now; your friend Vinyl just entered the world of dreams in pain, and I can feel her lifeforce ebbing!" Luna exclaimed.

"What? How?!"

"WAKE UP!"

I bolted upright, adrenaline fueling my body. I threw off my covers, casting a light spell as I did. I ran over to Trixie, and bucked her in the ribs to make sure she woke up swiftly.

"Trixie was sleeping. Somepony better be dying." The showmare grumbled.

Pulling her to her hooves, I yelled "Vinyl is in trouble; we need to move now!"

"What, where?" Actual concern from Trixie? Amazing.

I cast a tracking spell, trying to find her music player’s magic frequency. It pinged about a quarter mile from our camp. I took off at a gallop, gesturing to Trixie to follow me. We ran for about a minute before coming across a large, pale pony stooped over what had to be Vinyl. I cast a daylight spell illuminate the clearing. The figure fled the radius of the light faster than my eyes could follow, and honestly, that terrified me.

I ran over to Vinyl, and the first thing I notice was the blood. She had several lacerations to her chest and neck, and was bleeding severely.

"Trixie, take control of my light spell. I need full focus for what I am about to do, and I can't risk that thing coming back!"

"Trixie is not certain how to do that; she is mostly self-taught!"

"Match the magical wavelength of my spell, and focus on keeping the light glowing!"

"Trixie will try," she sounded uncertain, but I had to believe it could be done; that she could do it.

I watched as Trixie lit up her horn, it glowed a viciously bright, but unstable pink. Assured that she would be able to maintain it, I dropped the spell and set to work on healing Vinyl.

The first thing I did was set up a spell to monitor her condition, to make sure she didn't die while in my care. At the same time I used my magic to re-tether her severed blood vessels. Once that was finished, I began clumsily stitching together the muscles that had been damaged in the attack. Finally, after satisfied that it had been done so to the best of my abilities, I started sealing up the flesh. I worried that my fear of what had done this being still out there had hastened my work, and not for the better, but there was nothing to be done now. We had to get back.

Satisfied that the physical damage was mended to the best of my ability under the circumstances, I cast a spell to stimulate growth of cells. I focused primarially on her marrow to create new red blood cells, if the red tarnished leaves and dirt were to be believed, that's where it was needed most to replace all the blood she had lost.

Panting from all the exertion, I nearly collapsed, the numbness of overchanneling spreading from my from my horn to my hooves. My weight began shifting and I could feel my footing give way when suddenly a shoulder propped itself up to my side to steady me. Thanks Trixie, I owe you one.

"Vinyl's condition is as stable as I can get right now, but I need to get her back to shelter. If that thing comes back we may all be done for," I strained out, barely a whisper.

I began to ignite my horn for telekinesis, but Trixie cut me off with a mildly painful tap to the tip. "Lyra, Trixie does not need you over-channeling more and hurting yourself. Look at you; you're spent. Allow Trixie to carry the DJ. Just lead the way; Trixie doesn't deal with woods very often."

"I can do it. You are not properly trained, and I have the magic for this..."

Trixie cut me off abruptly with a genuine confident smile and a small cough, and not that cocky-flank grin she normally wore, "Trixie is a stage performer, an illusionist at that, she weaves together complex illusions from multiple spells. She may not be 'properly trained' but she is a master at multi-spell casting. So shut up; Trixie is helping now."

She is stubborn, but she sounds confident in what she is doing.

Trixie levitated Vinyl very carefully while maintaining my light spell; a second aura of magic began to surround her horn, expanding and pulsing, but never losing its luster. She started sweating from the exertion, but at the same time that smile never wavered, so I simply started to lead the way back.

After a few minutes of a half-sprint, half-stumble, the cave came into sight. Relief at last from the darkness-enshrouded woods! Hesitating for a minute to catch my breath, I set out to relight our campfire, casting wary glances back towards the trees. After the sparks took and the fire was roaring fiercely, I grabbed a large bowl I had carved from a stump earlier in the day and ran to the spring in the back of the cave. Filling it up with fresh water and pulling some moss off of the rocks with my teeth, I trotted over to Vinyl with the bowl balanced precariously on my head to see to her.

I checked her over; the wounds were going to scar pretty bad, because I was by no means a doctor, but she would survive. However, she had a slight fever, and that worried me. Taking the moss, I dipped it into the water and laid it across her forehead to help cool her down before laying down next to her and wiping the injury sites with my bandana.

I needed to get some rest, as well as a solid breakfast. I was spent physically and magically, and unfortunatefully I had over-channeled. The last thing we needed was two members of our team down with that... Thing out there.

Unable to stave off the fatigue any more, I closed my eyes and crawled over to where I had laid my mat for the night. Satisfied that the immediate danger to Vinyl was gone, I was finally able to start dozing off to sleep again. Princess Luna, I need to know: will she be alright?

I sat up in the cave, panicking at first before a familiar voice said, "Relax, Lyra, you are merely asleep again. Vinyl will awake in the morning; you rescued her, but all is not well. That creature that attacked you, neither my sister or I have seen anything like that for over a thousand years. I had thought them to have been eradicated after my banishment, but some must have survived. Vinyl will be alright, but I may need to come to her myself if she starts to exhibit any strange behaviors."

"What was that thing?"

"A monster. The name does not have a translation in modern Equish, but before my banishment they were called Vampir, and they are dangerous. Be careful, but fear not, my sister and I will hunt it down. I am not missing this season for a monster."

"Wow," I deadpanned.

"What? I like the show," Luna replied sheepishly.

With a flourish of her wings, Luna exploded into a large swarm of bats. The swarm flew up towards the moon, and as I watched, the all-too-familiar image of the the mare in the moon appeared upon its surface.

"Remember, Lyra, if you need me, I will always be here in the world of dreams. Simply ask for guidance, and I will see to you here."

She's going to keep watching me in my sleep?! Creepy... but romantic I suppose. I wonder what BonBon will think?

After Luna's departure, I dreamed about BonBon, a slightly more pleasant reprise of my earlier night-terror. Following that, though, my dreams just got weird. Wow, thanks, brain.

Morning Sickness

_____________

The sky was in its pre-morning twilight, only a few minutes before Celestia would raise the sun, and a few minutes after Luna lowered the moon. It was a time of harmony reflected upon by the royal sisters - neither of their primary celestial bodies looming over the land, but with evidence of both their handiworks painting a beautiful pastel scene for the early risers to enjoy.

I watched in awe, the beautiful passing of the torch a sight my schedule did not normally allow for. With my flask of bourbon and magically heated cape keeping me warm, I probably could have lived in the moment forever. However, the sun unfortunately slowly broke the horizon, it's light casting long spidery shadows across the land. But with the sun probably came safety; the creature last night had dashed off when introduced to Lyra's daylight spell, so I imagined it must have gone to ground for the real thing. I estimated it gave me sixteen or so hours to relax, because after a night of guard duty, only an hour of sleep, and having my ribs bruised by my lovely bardic companion, I planned on sleeping all of them.

In the name of getting in all the sleep I could ever want, I swallowed a stiff mouthful of bourbon. The sweet burn coursed down my throat, washing away all my anxiety, every last drop of stress over the night's events, like a river of pleasure. The warmth was a comfort I embraced like a lover in the early morning light.

Hesitantly, I stashed my liquor back into the extradimensional hole in my hat. The danger had passed as far as I was concerned, but I was still a little shaken up; alcohol has its limits, after all. It had been a horrifying night, and Lyra and Vinyl were both incapacitated; Vinyl by some monster, and Lyra by her own magic use. I had felt useless for the most part, no better than a pack mule and a flashlight.

So much for being great and powerful, Trixie. You couldn't even really help your friends.

I had decided to take watch for the night, using the time until the others were awake to practice Lyra's spell. I did so just outside the cave, casting it repeatedly. After about the first ten failures, I finally managed to cast the spell. I needed to be flexible in my line of work, so learning new spells by eye was a necessity.

Upon my initial success I became so elated that I lost the concentration and needed to cast it a few more times before I was able to get the spell cast right. While maintaining concentration on the first, I quickly cast my Magic Sight spell, and by Celestia what a beautiful intricate spell it was.

Few know this, but Magic Sight is a spell that was carried down through my family, one of the lost unicorn legacy spells that the Lulamoon main branch had kept locked up in their archives. It is a simple but treasured spell, originally designed for combat (which I had never thought I would have to use it for, magic tricks were nothing compared to what I had dealt with just in the time I had been here) to see the flow of another caster's magic - through illusions - and to see invisible opponents.

Basically the caster passes magic into their eyes and has it radiate outward, having it reflect off of the innate magic of the world (or the magic of an enemy). If one has the right eye for detail, or a solid enough memory, the caster could memorize the leylines of magic or copy the spell. Well, copy the spell if the caster was skilled or powerful enough with magic to cast it.

For me, once I cast a spell I simply needed to see my aura and I would be able to cast the spell any time I wanted, assuming my magical reserve held out. The small mirror I kept in my hat was my usual go-to when my wagon's full length mirror was unavailable, usually in situations such as this (because I had totally been in situations like this).

Mirror in hoof, I turned my eyes upon the miniature reflecting glass. The shockingly bright light that radiated off of my horn blinded me for a moment, but my concentration never wavered. Painstakingly slowly my eyesight came back, bleary at first but finally clearing up until just a few spots remained. I studied the flow of mana, observing each and every wisp and tendril that shot off. This spell was pretty high level stuff, probably a tier six spell, not just a novice lighting up their horn. Not something I would be replacing my own light spell with anytime soon, but a flood of light could become necessary.

Presumably having a weapon to fight back against this creature that had hid inside the darkness of night, I felt more confident in my ability to provide a vigil over my companions. Thankfully however, I never needed to use it. With the exception of a few normal nocturnal noises, it had been quiet the whole rest of the night.

I had wandered into the back of the cave, and pulled out a large cast iron pot from my hat. I filled it with water from the spring and the cool, blessed water splashed up onto my legs; it was rather refreshing and a welcome contrast to the warm numbness my alcohol provided. It was like a moment in heaven, clean and pure, not a worry in the world. But like all good things, the moment had to pass, so feeling a little invigorated from the cold water, I proceeded back to the campfire, cooking pot - sloshing to the rim - in tow.

Carefully I tossed some wood onto the fire, making sure not to stir up the embers too much. I looked around for a minute, searching for the grate Lyra rigged together from some scrap metal she found. With practiced ease, I levitated it over the firepit and set it into place.

I set the pot on the grate to boil, increasing the expediency by stoking the fire with my magic. Within a minute there was a nice rolling boil perfect for cooking the mixed food stuffs Lyra had gathered. This garbage barely looks edible, some roots, a hoof-full of weeds, and a couple of mushrooms. But I suppose I have eaten worse in my life. C'est la vie!

_____________

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Pain. I've hurt before, but right then as consciousness returned to me, I felt like I had been shoved through one of those griffon meat grinders and sewn back together. My skin felt like it was crawling and my every muscle in my body ached.

What happened to me? I remember a voice, and pain, but after that?

I must have moaned more audibly then I realized, because I could vaguely make out Trixie talking to me.

"DJ, Trixie is making 'stew'. She knows that getting healed draws as much from the recipient as it does the healer so she insists you eat. Trixie does not want a liability on the team."

The cold detachment in her voice hurt, and I could almost feel my blood start to boil at her words. However, I was hungry, and that 'stew' was screaming my name.

I struggled for nearly a minute before giving up and asking, "Hey Trixie, I'm having a hard time getting up, can you pour me a bowl, please?"

She shot me a look of exaggerated, albeit minor, disdain, causing me to flinch internally, but poured me a bowl anyway. It was pretty good, despite the spartan ingredients and I quickly drained the bowl. Oddly however I still felt famished, my body craving something I couldn't quite place. I figured once Lyra woke up, I might just grab more soup to fill the emptiness, if there was enough.

Eating the soup restored a little bit of my strength, so slowly, agonizingly, I started to push myself off of my sleeping mat. My legs threatened to give out several times, wobbling and almost collapsing, but I finally found myself on all fours.

Step by step, each hoof-fall bringing a new wrack of pain, I half-crawled to the pool in the back of the cave. Taking special care not to fall in, I lowered myself to the edge, kneeling on my forelegs. I dipped the end of my muzzle into the water, closing my eyes in bliss as the frigid water touched my tongue. Swallowing mouthful after mouthful, I realized just how dehydrated I was.

After a full minute I finally opened my eyes, my vision a little bleary. A tear dripped down the corner of my eye tracing its way down my muzzle before finally splashing into the water. I watched the ripple, noticing a tiny tinge of red at the epicenter of the displacement. Worried, I wiped my face; a smudge of red stained my foreleg.

Panicking, I dipped my hooves in the water and threw some water on my face. After the water cleared up, I peered into it, though the poor lighting made discerning features on my face difficult, with the edges actually appearing slightly blurry. Dissatisfied with the results, I pushed myself back up and returned to the campfire.

Noticing my sunglasses next to the fireplace, I tried to ignite my horn to grab them. Try as I might, however, my magic just seemed unable to lift the Celestia-damned thing. In a fit of rage, I channeled as much magic into my horn as I could manage, getting only a faint glow around my horn. Praying it would be enough, I extended my magic toward the glasses, a faint red glow surrounded them.

What in Tartorus? That's new, my magic has always been blue in the past. I've heard unicorns can have their auras changed by traumatic events though, and I can only imagine what must have happened to me if I feel like this after being healed.

I carefuly floated my sunglasses up to my face, the pince-nez design settling easily into place. Feeling a little bit more secure by having my link back home on me again, I decided to take stock of my body.

I noticed immediately that there was severe scarring under the fur across my neck and barrel at just a cursory touch, but thankfully my fur covered most of it. On my left foreleg was a pretty thick pink line visibly offsetting the alabaster white.

Struggling to my hooves again, I trudged over to where Lyra and I had put our saddlebags. Digging into mine I pulled out my hoodie; I had been feeling a little feverish, so I figured I should warm up a little more. I clearly didn't feel violated and was trying to cover myself, not at all.

"Hey, you're awake," I heard Lyra mutter, half asleep. "Luna said you might be out for days."

Luna? Does she mean the princess?

I started to quake involuntarily. It only lasted for a moment and was gone before either of the others noticed it. But I felt it, for a fraction of a second a wave of undiluted horror washed over me.

"What does Princess Luna have to do with this?" I asked, hesitantly testing the waters of her involvement.

"She sensed your attack last night. If it wasn't for her..." Lyra's inability to finish her statement left me feeling even more hollow.

"But," Trixie quickly jumped into the conversation, "the bard was able to heal you."

"Yeah, real bang up job too," Lyra said with an annoyed growl, emphasizing her irritation towards her healing skills with an eye roll.

"Well, I'm not dead. That's one hell of a start," I muttered, appreciative of the work regardless.

To try and reassure Lyra I was going to make it, I half skipped, half winced over to where she was laying. I plopped down next to her with a rather audible thud. Ow! She cringed almost as much as I did. A silent scream escaped my throat as the shock set in.

The cold stone floor was a harsh mistress, and decided to remind me that I would need to ask permission before I could pretend to be better. The sudden impact left my whole body feeling numb. Well, to be honest, unfeeling except for sharp stabs of pain wracking my entire body.

A soothing voice, unintelligible but familiar, buzzed near my head. I tried to focus on it, but the shock from the pain was overpowering. For the second time in as many days, I could feel my mind fading to black.

Cold! Shivering, soaking wet, all of my alacrity shot back into me in a torrent of ice cold water. A wooden clunk told me everything I needed to know as I saw the last traces of pink fade from our fire bucket. If looks could kill, Trixie would have been buried alive, drilled into with an auger, pulled back out of the ground with a large hook pushed through the drilled hole, brought back to life with the magic of the Princess, before being pushed hoof first, slowly, into a woodchipper.

_____________

I stared at Vinyl, her mane hanging limply over her face hiding her eyes, but the scowl she barely hid on her lips was anything but subtle. I continued to watch her, a restraining spell at the ready, just in case she was going to react violently. She suddenly ceased her quivering, and with a defeated sigh, started to wring the water from her mane with her magic. Thank Luna that she let that go. Wait... wasn't her aura blue?

"Vinyl," I started slowly, "are you feeling alright?"

"I'm soaking wet thanks to Trixie," she growled with a roll of her - now visible - eyes.

"Trixie was merely making sure you didn't collapse again," the blue mare quipped in.

"Trixie, I think there might have been slightly better ways to handle that," I deadpanned, my hoof solidly cemented to my face by that point.

"Trixie," Vinyl growled, "if you ever, and I mean ever, dump water like that on me again. I will shove that bucket so far up your plot that a team of surgeons couldn't remove it."

"Girls, we need to all calm down." I cautioned moving between the two, my horn glowing as I prepared a spell.

Trixie looked at me with one eyebrow raised before quickly adding, "The bard is right, Trixie apologizes for her actions."

After a few moments of the tension in the air being so heated a balefire bomb could have gone off and nopony would have noticed it, Vinyl slowly retrieved her wet sunglasses and returned them to her face. "I accept your apology Trixie. But don't, and I mean don’t, ever do anything like that again."

"Well then, if this is settled, I'm going to go eat breakfast now." Both mares looked at me abashedly, as my stomach let out a clearly audible gurgling noise.

I sat down by the fire and ladled myself a bowl of soup. Spooning myself a bite, I let it set in my mouth for a moment, Trixie had done well with the recipe I gave her, the soup was flavorful and not too watery, a seven out of ten. Her ability to walk short distances and follow simple instructions would surely save us all.

Better Shape

"Vinyl, you have been making incredible steps towards recovery," Lyra pointedly commented as she jogged with me through the woods, "it's almost like you're a new mare!"

Silently I grimaced, the words hitting a nerve. I opted not to notice that as the week progressed, I had found myself perceiving things more clearly and my reflexes had almost doubled. This morning for instance, I had woken to the sound of a wasp buzzing near my ear and before my brain even registered the source it was already being propelled at supersonic speeds in a "not by me" direction.

Lyra tapped me with her magic, catching my attention; before I even turned, her elevated heart rate and heavy breathing told me what she was going to ask. With an audible plop, I sat down onto my haunches. The sharp stabbing pain was an unwanted reminder of four nights ago. I stifled a groan of discomfort as I watched Lyra lean against a tree, catching her breath.

The morning sun glistened off of her coat, catching in the sweat that pooled around her shoulders and the nape of her neck. I chewed on my lip to avoid saying anything as I watched her wipe away the sweat, a sudden wave of hunger shot through me and I realized that Trixie was probably busy cooking up our breakfast by now.

"Lyra, as much as I need the exercise, I need to get some grub in me before I die. I swear dude, I feel like I haven't eaten in a week."

"You've been eating every morning, right?" Lyra asked, a tinge of concern infecting her voice.

"Yeah, and every night too."

"What do you normally eat like?"

"A lazy college student. Potato chips, cold pizza, warm beer, and leftover Chineighs food," I quipped sarcastically.

"I... that's not what I meant and you know it."

"Hey dude, I'm being serious right now, this is a high metabolism and needing to work in awkward places during a gig, not diet and exercise," I said patting my belly with satisfaction.

"Some mares would kill for that."

I waved her off dismissively, my stomach doing its best impersonation of a whale as I waited for Lyra to finish panting like a dog. With her breath back, she straightened herself out; taking on a more regal bearing, we both set the animal inside aside as we started back to camp at a brisk pace.

As we reached the clearing, I could clearly hear Trixie arguing with somepony. Her laudy, self-important tone continuously cutting off whoever was her current victim. Breaking into the clearing, I could see the Jasmine-yellow pegasus from the other night, backed into a corner by Trixie who was currently violently brandishing a ladle in her magical pink glow of death. As soon as she saw me, any concern for Trixie faded and I promptly became reacquainted with the ground in a flurry of speed, yellow, and feathers. A light peck graced my cheek as Raindrops abashedly helped me back to my hooves.

"Vinyl, oh my gosh. I am so glad you are okay. I went looking for you the other night and all I could find was blood! I didn't know what to do, but Thunderlane suggested I try here. He said your friend was here practicing some light spell in the middle of the night last night and I just had to see if you were okay and..."

"Woah, dude slow down. Breathe, I mean really. I take ponies' breaths away all the time, but as you can see, all two meters of me are here and in one piece."

Her nervous energy bubbled out in giggles as she nuzzled into me, a contented sigh escaping her lips. I had forgotten how heavenly she smelled, the scent taking me far away to a place with just her and I - my tail flicked happily as I pictured it, until a huffy "AHEM" broke into my fantasy.

"And who, by the way, is this? You shouldn't be playing with other ponies you know, she's obviously just here to steal our secrets or something," Trixie angrily scolded me.

"What secrets do we have? Huh Trixie?" I responded with a little more force than necessary.

My ears flicked agitatedly as Lyra went to stand closer to the obnoxious blue mare.

"She does have a point, we don't really know her. We are competitors," she reproachfully mentioned. I might have imagined the spike of jealousy in her eyes as she looked at my friend cautiously.

That's a little odd, is she mad that I am siding against one of the team?

"I realize that, dudes," I muttered, warmth pulsing my face. "She's... a friend." Swallowing my fear and aggravation, I grinned and introduced them. "Raindrops is her name." To my - for lack of a better term - mare-friend I added, "The one who attacked you is Trixie, and my other partner is Lyra Heartstrings. But... aw ponyfeathers, I'm going to kick myself for this later, but you probably should go back to your team. They probably noticed you've gone missing for a while and might be worried about you."

Raindrops looked away, and nodded forlornly. Why do I get the feeling she was hiding something? Aw horse apples, I'm probably just being paranoid. But as I watched her stride away in abject defeat, my heart began to pitter-patter to the beat of a song I had never heard, and I've remixed almost any beat you could think of.

With Raindrops gone Lyra and Trixie immediately confronted me, pelting me with a barrage of questions and complaints about my new pegasus cohort. Trying to catch anything over the din of their prodding, I grew more and more frustrated at the futility of it.

"Shut up!" I screamed.

A stunned silence filled the clearing as I pointedly stomped up to the two mares. My face inches from Trixie's I whispered softly, menacingly, "Trixie, shut the buck up. For they love of Celestia, I will bucking end you if so much as one more word comes out of your mouth right now."

I leaned closer to Lyra and asked her simply, "How do you know if you're in love?"

Dumbstruck and her mouth agape, Lyra just stood there blankly. Flapping her gums like a carp, for once the outspoken talkative bard was speechless.

"Equestria to Lyra. Snap out of it." I waved my hoof in her face a few times before bopping her on the nose.

A quick indignant yelp dragged her back to reality, and with a mild stutter she gave me a really long complicated answer that involved something called oxytocin and hormone levels. I would be lying if I said I understood a single bit of it.

"Um... what?"

"I'm not repeating myself," Lyra responded agitatedly.

"Trixie doesn't understand what drugs have to do with real love. She knows that some allow you to bypass it into a bed, but..."

In a metaphorical flash I found myself leaping at Trixie's throat, but a literal flash of gold held me suspended in mid air. Unable to so much as twitch my ears in irritation, I silently protested the abrupt interference by the green bard. My teeth bared in anger, my jaws spread at an unusual width quickly drew a gasp of astonishment from my captor. Walking in front of me Lyra stared into my mouth, eyes wide in horror.

"Vinyl... your teeth... they uh... um... look."

She deftly snatched a small mirror from Trixie's hat, much to the magician's chagrin as she realized that her personal space and possessions had just been violated. I looked into the mirror and gazed upon my wavering reflection, a pair of sharp fangs jutting down from my top row of teeth and a sickly pallor encompassed my coat.

Shaken to my core, all sense of aggression faded immediately as I tried to absorb the gravity of my situation. Lyra slowly set me down, releasing me from the binding. I tossed my sunglasses to the ground and wrestled the mirror from Lyra. I stared at my eyes for a long time, the new red glow of my magic a perfect match for my luminescent eyes. Shrinking back, I dropped the mirror, horrified by my appearance. I looked like some sort of horror movie monster, a creature of nightmare straight from the stories my mother read to me as a foal.

A tear slowly cascaded down the side of my face, my eyes wrenched shut as I began to cry in earnest. Sniveling I wiped my face only to be given an even more macabre vision: the smears on my foreleg glistened a deep crimson.

Panicking I ran to the spring and began to wash my face. A river of red spread from where the water splashed back into the pool. I sat there, unable to take anymore, a loud shrill wail escaped my lips. I screamed for almost a minute before I could feel my vocal chords start to strain and my voice begin to crack. I flopped down sobbing silently, my ears drooping to either side and my face covered with my forelegs.

A cold hoof on my back and a soft, warm voice pierced the veil of misery as Lyra sidled up next to me. "Vinyl, I can't even pretend to know what you must be feeling like right now, but you're my friend. If there is anything I can do to help you, please don't hesitate to ask."

I nuzzled up next to her, staining her coat red, but the warmth of her body began to permeate my soul. Pulling away, I splashed water on my face again. Washing away the blood, I got another good look at myself.

I was startled to find that my eyes were back to their normal shade. The only thing that made it clear the past few minutes were more than a dream was the slight red stain around my eyes. Relief mixed with confusion and terror as I didn't know what to make of my new situation. As I thought about it, a heavy numbness settled over my spirit and I stood up, shaking out my fur. "Lyra, dude, I need to eat."

"Huh?" She questioned.

"Breakfast, I'm shaking so bad right now, I need to distract myself."

I slowly marched up towards the front of the cave, a slight pang of guilt eating away at me over my reactions towards my two friends. My only two real friends other than Octy, I realized, except for maybe Raindrops, and that just made the rancid acid eating at my gut all the worse. Blissfully however, a cool breeze blowing into the front of the cave helped to soothe me a bit.

I hadn't realized that Lyra was following me, being so sunk into my sullen hole, but I suppose that it was only logical. She spoke to Trixie, who had been sitting on the floor looking dazed and somewhat green, before I had a chance to - perhaps to save either of us from awkward embarrassment.

"So, is the food ready yet?" Lyra inquired of her cheerfully.

Trixie looked at me with something akin to fear before nodding her head towards the laid out bowls. "Of course the soup is ready, Trixie does keep up with her obligations," the mare snorted indignantly, trying desperately to get back to her old self.

The klaxon call of the islands alarm system pierced the morning like a stiletto as we finished breakfast. The signal to gather for competition was met by universal groans from around our cave as Lyra finished tying her mane back into her bandana and Trixie clasped her cape shut. I continued scrubbing for a full minute, making sure every tarnish to my coat was washed away.

Clean and refreshed from my earlier breakdown, I levitates my glasses into place and put my headphones around my neck to obscure some of the scarring.

"Yes, Trixie gets it, you want to be presentable for televising, can we go now?" The conceited blue mare questioned.

"Trixie, cool it, we have a bit of time, some of the other teams will undoubtedly take longer to reach the meeting spot, since we basically obtained the best real estate island wide," Lyra quickly put in.

I waltzed out of the cave, my head held high, grey hoodie on and ready to face the world. I hit play on my mp3 player and let the music play softly into my neck, the vibrations setting a beat I quickly hastened to meet. Hoof after hoof, the cadence slowly reaching a crescendo as I picked up to a canter, Trixie and Lyra lagging behind by a few meters.

Within a few minutes, the clearing came into view, one of the rather pony teams, apparently lead by a massive brute of a stallion with a mane of brown and short shaggy grey fur. A bear trap around a compass rose cutie mark rest upon his flank, indicating to some sort of talent in hunting. A little disturbed by the connotation, I shyed my eyes away and onto his two companions. The first was a purple on purple mare with a pair of gilded scissors emblazoned upon her flank, she was staring vacantly at the ground a veil of sleep over her eyes. The other, a small black maned stallion with dirty white fur, his cutie mark was a grave stone crossed with a pair of shovels, was nose deep in a book with a pair of headphones on.

Something was vaguely familiar about the small stallion, so I trotted over to him and patted him on the back to grab his attention. He turned to look to me, pulling one earbud out as he set his book down. I recognized the track he was listening to as being one of my earlier songs.

A big grin crossed his face as he eyed me down, "The names Shady Way, big fan miss Scratch."

He held out a hoof, which I promptly bumped with mine.

"Couldn't help myself," I confessed, "you looked like the most interesting member of your team. What brings you here?"

"My label dropped my band after my brother quit, and I needed the bits. My older brother wanted me to strike it big on my own and unfortunately going back to the old family business isn't that good a pay, so he hooked me up with some bigwig executive connected to the studio and got me an in."

"Really? What band were you in? What did you play?"

"Oh, you probably haven't heard of us, My Toxic Affair, we had some radio play, but we never really went mainstream. I was the bass player." He shrugged off the last bit, seriously underselling himself. They were big when I was a younger filly, and I was really surprised that I didn't recognize him on sight.

You're slipping Vinyl, music is your life because of guys like him.

I facehoofed as I mentally scolded myself for being so stupidly forgetful. I actually learned bass before I started in the disk jockey business and recording techno, and this guy was my idol. Shady was only a few years older than me, and basically was why I even looked into making music as a foal.

"You have grown up so much since I listened to you guys, I didn't even recognize you! Oh sweet Celestia I feel so dumb, you dudes were my favorite band all through high-school. I even saw you guys live a few times."

With a quiet chuckle Shady said, "Wow, that's some sort of irony isn't it. My favorite musician is a fan of my old band."

He quickly pulled out a small pad of paper and a pencil from a small space in the back of his book and jotted down a number. "Give me a call after this whole deal is over and I can introduce you to the guys. Hay, maybe we can even jam or something."

"Dude, that would be so wicked. I'm totally holding you to it. Maybe you guys could come to my studio in Canterlot? We could set up my equipment and record something."

"That sounds awesome, but uh Vinyl, the announcer guy just got here, so maybe we pick this back up later?"

"Yeah, def."

Slowly, the rest of the contestants filled into the clearing and gathered around the host. He was holding a map and tapping his hoof impatiently as we crowded around.

"Fillies and gentlecolts, the day of the first challenge is here, and wouldn't you know it? We are going to start off with a little detective work. Somewhere on this island, a pirate and a magi fought one another for days, in the wake of the battle the wizard hid the magical amulet the pirate was seeking in an underground cave. Now, this amulet is a powerful talisman, bringing about luck to its bearer. The team who finds it will get to feel that luck right away, since their team will be immune to being disqualified or voted off for the duration of this week. We will begin after breakfast, so make plans with your teams and get ready to start looking."

I turned towards Lyra and Trixie, "So gals, what do you think. We got this?"

_____________

As a bard, I have many skill sets. Cooking, music, cartography, story telling, but never have I been a skilled finder of things. For the sake of my bandana and the two utterly city mares in my company however, I just became our tracker. Yay - wait, how the hay does Trixie not have any survival skills?

"Are you sure you can't just locate it with magic?" Trixie asked me for what I swear was the seventeenth time.

"No Trixie, whoever hid the amulet cast obfuscating spells over it. I have already tried to scry it but to no avail, and I swear if you ask me one more time..."

"You will what?"

"I won't stop Vinyl next time you piss her off."

Trixie paused, her mouth hanging slack. The utter silence was refreshing. I took the moment to recompose myself. Where would I bury treasure if I wanted to be able to retrieve it but prevent a non-unicorn from reaching it. Somewhere with natural obstacles that would prevent an earth pony from easily traversing the terrain and without enough room for a pegasus to easily maneuver, like underwater, in a cave.

There was a resounding smack as I realized we had probably been sleeping right next to some Cel-Luna damned magic artifact.

"Girls... I think I know where it is."

"Yeah?" Vinyl inquired, perking her ears up ever so slightly.

"In our cave... under the spring."

"What? Are you bucking kidding me?" Trixie shouted, "We have just spent two hours searching through the hills and you mean we could have accidentally choked on it in our morning soup?!"

"I... no. It is probably buried under the water. I was unable to detect anything in the water, but if there are several layers of magic protecting it, that would make sense."

"Trixie is going to buck you into next week."

"Sorry, I prefer beige."

"That's not what I meant." Trixie grumbled.

"Dude, Lyra, you just broke Trixie. She said 'I'." Vinyl managed between snickering and snorting.

"Sh-shut up. Trixie doesn't find this to be funny. She only has eyes for one."

"Yeah," I countered, "Yourself."

Trixie looked away, blushing a deep purple and digging into her hat for something.

Ignoring her, I started galloping back towards our base camp at full speed, my tail waving wildly in the wind with reckless abandon.

Our camp was virtually unmolested, only hoofprints and a blue mare with an hourglass cutiemark standing over our fire pit intruding on the otherwise sanctified resting spot. Moreover it was a mare I knew.

"Colgate, what are you doing here? I mean here at my camp, not here as in on the island, because I saw you at the opening ceremony cussing out The Great and Powerful Windbag."

"Just looking for the amulet," she looked around with a bemused expression, "and your magician."

There was a ruckus behind me as Trixie and Vinyl burst into the clearing. Colgate stormed over to Trixie with purpose and conjured a small glove from the æther. I knew what was about to happen, but that amulet was so close if I was right.

I grabbed Vinyl by the tail and dragged her into the cave. I cast a basic light spell forming a glowing ball of light overhead since our fire had reduced to smoldering embers after we left. The pale bluish light glowed eerily off the walls making our camp seem ominously foreboding. We made our way over to the spring, the placid water having become a daunting obstacle.

"Hey Vinyl, do you have a water breathing spell?"

"No dude, why would I?"

"Polymorph it is." I muttered.

"Huh?"

"I'm going to be changing my form to allow me to navigate underwater, can you stand guard and make sure nopony interrupts me while I am down there? No idea what could be waiting for me."

"Um, yeah I guess, what do you want me to do about Trixie?"

"Eh, she is probably getting her flank kicked, just make sure it doesn't spill into here."

"Oookay?"

I turned to face the water, focusing my mind on the polymorph spell. The change began slowly, I could feel my bones and organs slowly reshaping themselves for aquatic survival. My hindlegs melding together with my tail, the bones fusing and cartilage forming in places not natural for a pony. My forelegs melting down into flippers, the bones essentially disappearing. Finally, the flesh along my neck severed, a pair of gills opening and new membranes forming to allow me to breath in the water.

"Woah, what the hay are you?" Vinyl asked.

"Just something I saw in an old tome. I think it's called a kelpie."

I pulled myself towards the water, inching slowly until at last my flippers hit water. Taking the plunge, I took a deep breath, the sensation of water filling my mouth almost caused me to panic, but slowly I acclimated myself to breathing in the water. The inky murky blackness of the underwater cave was obscuring my vision so I quickly recast my light spell startling several small fish.

I swam down to the bed and started poking around with a stick held in my magic before striking on something wooden. I cleared the sediment off of what appeared to be a door of sorts. I blinked a few times and tried to lift it, but it appeared to be stationary. I tried the handle and the door appeared to be unlocked so I slowly opened it.

Much to my surprise, the other side was not just more sediment, but an apparently endless void of water. A large patch of sargasso floating in the void drew my attention so I pushed my head through the door. Looking either way all I saw was water. No apparent boundaries of any kind, somepony could get lost in here and never find their way back if they weren't careful. I pushed myself through the door observing that I could in fact still see my way through into the other side.

Slowly and cautiously I swam towards the giant floating mass of kelp, looking it over carefully to make sure I wasn't going to be swimming into a shark or something. A slight glint in the seaweed caught my attention, I swam closer and upon inspection I found a treasure chest. It was an old falling apart box about a meter square, algae formed along the outside and there was corrosion upon the hinges and latch. I grasped the box in my telekinesis and pulled it from the sea grass.

Disturbed by the sudden displacement in the water a skeleton lurched forward. I screamed but when the bones didn't move I calmed down. It was a little disturbing, but it didn't appear to be unread. But the old bones still reminded me what would happen to a pony who couldn't breath under water.

I started to leave the sargasso when motion out of the corner of my eye quickly startled me. Swimming in my direction was the largest shark I have ever seen. Its mouth was easily large enough to swallow me whole and each of it's eyes were the size of my head. I looked back to the door swimming at a breakneck pace. I made the mistake of looking back for the giant tooth filled maw opened, revealing what must have been one of the most horrible deaths I could imagine.

The mouth was almost upon me as I broke through the door. I turned back and I could see the inside of the mouth of doom, my light reflecting through the door and off of the creatures throat. Horrified I slammed the door shut and swam to the surface, box in tow. Breaching the surface I dispelled my kelpie form, my body reverted to its natural shape. Panting and sputtering, coughing up little globs of water, I dragged myself onto the shore with my prize.

_____________

“Trixie’s victory shall taste sweet when the bard and the DJ hear of how Trixie bested you,” I said, standing happily over the unconscious light blue mare.

“Hopefully Trixie can think of a good way to describe the battle to the other two that sounds convincing, Trixie does not want to appear weak, after all, knocking over a rock while running and throwing illusions around is not a very compelling story,” I thought aloud, suddenly aware of the fact that I cared what the other two thought. I must not repeat that.

I kicked the mare with my back hoof as I walked over her, a loud crunching noise originated from underneath her. I painstakingly put all my weight into rolling her over a little to examine what the noise had been. I had to stifle a series of profanities when I saw the small gold, and more importantly, broken compass. I looked through the small saddlebag on my flank and found that my worst fear had been realized, the broken and slightly bloodied compass was mine.

“How could Trixie have been so stupid as to lose her compass,” I whined out loud, not caring who heard me at this point, though the only one around I noticed was, at the moment, lying in dreamland. “And break it, Putain de merde!”

Frustrated, I tried desperately turning around to see if I could find which way was north on my own, as the bard had at the beginning of this stupid show, but no. I've camped in the woods before, but never very far off the road, consequently being as skilled in the outdoors as Lyra is was simply a pipe dream.

I plopped my hindquarters on the ground irate and seething. “The bucking fight turned Trixie all around, she is just glad she knows up from down, time and space getting distorted ruined me.” My head throbbed but I didn’t try to comfort my head with a hoof, afraid I would realize how tired I was from blasting ineffective spell after spell at the fat flank chronomancer.

Knowing how lost I was, I decided against my better judgement, to saunter forward into the woods, picking a direction with little certainty that I would be right, and sticking to it. “If Trixie is going to be wrong, she is going to at least be persistent.” Hopefully I don’t get too lost, anyway it is an island so worst case scenario I will hit water.

If the shadows were anything to run by, it must have been getting late. The late evening dew was starting to cling to my coat in sheets, my cape was soaked and I still hadn't found the camp, miserable would be a light description for my current state.

Even with my poor survival skills I knew that I would need to get into shelter. The wind was picking up and the humidity, while already sweltering, was also increasing. A storm had to be on the horizon and if the conditions were anything to go by, it would be a doozy.

I hastened my gait to a canter looking every which way for some sanctuary from the oncoming rain. A small cave looking crevice on my right loomed in the distance, so putting hooves to dirt as quickly as I could I galloped forth.

On approach I noticed a few hoofprints near the cavern as well as signs of recent activity. This must be the campsite of one of the other teams, so I might even be able to find some solace with the company of other ponies.

Dark would have been a mild understatement for the interior, even my daylight spell seemed only to slightly push back the darkness, though that may have just been a result of my diminished power from my earlier duel. I progressed deeper in, all trepidation lost as I heard the rain begin to fall torrentially just outside, some of it even splashing into the cave and splattering against my fur.

I started into the old cavern, ducking under some bats that had taken up residency on the ceiling. Pushing deeper I noticed a gradual upward slope and the ground seemed to smooth out as if the stone was worked.

I continued on until I hit a dead end, a large cul du sac with the remains of a fire pit and some fire wood. Using the little bit of magic I had left I sparked a small pyrotechnic spell into the tinder I arranged. I laid out my hat and cape to dry by the fire and leaned against the far wall with my flask. I took a firm swig feeling the warmth flow through me, revitalizing my reserves a little bit.

With a yawn I leaned against the cave wall, the crackling of the the wood slowly eased me off to sleep.

Crash

I awoke with a start, the resounding echo of a thunderbolt lingered in the cave causing my ears to ring for a minute. Quickly catching my bearings, I quickly noted to my dismay that the path I had used to get in had flooded over during my nap, but part of the wall had collapsed and some sort of glow emanated from the other side. Curiosity getting the best of me I climbed up and tossed my cape and hat on. Fatigue still clung to my bones but the adrenaline fueling my body pushed me past it.

The hole was small, barely large enough for me to squeeze through comfortably with only a few scrapes.

Upon entering the room I was astonished, covering the walls were runes. Some I recognized from tomes of ancient arcane lore I had studied in the Canterlot Archives, this had to be some sort of summoning room. I walked around trying to read every rune I was able to, to make heads or tails of the situation. I paused on one, it was similar to the rune for Nightmare Moon, but altered slightly, the second half was replaced with the sigil for lands or realm.

I cast my Magic Sight and the effects were almost blinding. There was so much ambient magic I was flabbergasted that I couldn't simply sense its presence, somepony must have cast one of the obacur-whatever-ing spells Lyra was talking about before because the matricies here were spectacular. It was almost as if somepony were trying to cast a major calling spell to pull in an extradimensional creature. Take that Lyra, see I learned stuff on my own.

"You know, you have to be one of the most unlucky mares alive." A deep voice behind me said.

I whipped around at a breakneck pace, almost losing my balance in my haste. Before me stood an extremely tall skeletal creature with bat wings and a pair of fangs like Vinyl. This must have been her assailant, a thestral, an ancient one at that.

"Who are you?" I asked, stumbling back.

"Surprise."

Smoking Style

I stared in shock as I tried to comprehend whether or not it was saying its name or throwing me an unwanted party, but by the aggravation plastered across her skeletal visage I assumed the latter.

"That's really - that's your name?" I questioned disbelievingly.

"Hmph, perhaps, though that matters not cretin. I'm terribly sorry, but I'm afraid I can not simply allow you to walk out of here alive."

"Alright, ass, Trixie requests a moment," I replied, trying very hard to appear sullen and crestfallen, "If I am going to die, it sure as buck isn't going to be sober."

"...What?" the creepy skeletal pony - Surprise I guess, if that was really what it called itself - not that I cared, but it was nice to put a name to a face, even if that face was messed up and trying to kill me - asked.

"Bourbon, you uncultured mule, I am going to drink a shot of bourbon." My eyes narrowed slightly.

"Fine. Whatever. Just do it so I can eviscerate you without you whining," Surprise sighed, its face firmly planted into its hoof.

Slowly I pulled off my hat, taking care to casually check around the room for any exits that existed. Besides the room I came from which really wasn't an option as the water rising into the tunnel had blocked all access, there was a passage behind my would-be assailant. All I had to do was get past this demonic, probably invincible creature of the night. Well, this ought to be interesting.

Popping the top off of my flask with my magic, I began casting the first spells I could think of, using the glow of my levitation to hide any other castings. In an instant, my outline blurred until I was completely invisible, several copies of me appearing in a circle. As I teleported far to the left, my flank brushed painfully against the rough cavernous rock wall. I silently stifled a scream as I winced in pain, a gash dripped with blood.

"Nice trick, but you aren't going to get away that easily," she hissed as she tore into the first of my illusory copies.

Casting my voice onto a copy I steeled up my resolve and taunted, "Going to be harder than that to catch me."

Jumping from the first to the second illusion, I held the image a bit longer adding secondary effects to imitate what I hoped would emulate pony flesh and blood. The illusion gasped and started to fall with Surprise on top of it. After a few seconds I dismissed it dropping her to the ground.

"Buck, are you kidding me?"

Casting my voice onto the rest of the illusions I said, "Aw what's the matter, immortal undead creature can't catch a simple show mare?"

She shrieked with rage releasing several tendrils of some sort of black ichor in all directions. I hit the deck as they penetrated all of my copies, dispelling them, but from my sudden position on the floor, they passed over my head. Really glad I wasn't in that, that could have hurt.

I cast another set of spells, this time putting a little more magic into one of the illusions. A circle of fire appeared around the creature and several more copies of me appeared in a blinding flash of pink light and accompanying fog. The creature took a pause as it hesitantly pushed a hoof through the flames.

"Is that the best you have, hiding and throwing up fakes?" she hissed, looking around with growing malice and irritation nonchalantly stepping through the illusory flames.

I slowly crept over to the cave entrance, muffling my hoofsteps with a silence spell. I began scratching runes into the dirt and started dragging my hoof, forming a circle around the room.

Suddenly a weight threw me back. I hit the far wall with a substantial amount of force. Thankfully though, because of my muffle spell, no noise was made. I was able to scramble to my feet, throwing up another spell, covering the ground with an illusory mist and casting my magic sight. I may disbelieve my illusions, but that doesn't stop them from obscuring my vision so I just decided I was going to bypass that.

"I may not be able see you, but I can smell your blood!" I heard her call.

Well, buck. I could feel some blood trickling down my face. I pulled a knife from out of my hat and sliced my leg open and started splattering the blood around, teleporting again.

At the teleportation site I started the circle again and sent the pommel of my knife in the other direction, to continue the circle.

A few more tendrils shot past me as I crawled low, drawing the circle. With the circle complete I had one of the illusions begin chanting. Words flowed through the air. When the creature started to attack one, I had another continue the chant. Then another started a completely different chant. I breathed shallowly, the wounds were starting to hurt, but I couldn't give up now. Because it suddenly dawned on me that I was going to win.

"Checkmate, monster."

"What are you?" Surprise asked with a gasp.

Slowly Surprise's hooves left the ground and she rose up in the air surrounded by a glowing pink miasma. Every centimeter was apparent agony as the holy light infused magic lifted her higher.

"Ah-ah, a magician never reveals her secrets." I clopped my hooves together, and gently set them inside the circle.

A series of thin pink glowing lines appeared, creating a six point star inside the circle. The thestral was completely surrounded by my binding spell.

"What are you doing?" the beast half-screamed.

"By the light of Celestia, foul beast of the night, Trixie binds you to the circle. By the will of Luna, caretaker of the very night you profane, Trixie immobilizes you. May the stars turn their eyes from you, may the ground never embrace you, and may you never find solace from the sins you have made. Your unlife is now forfeit and your violence is at its end.

"Trixie banishes you to the plane of shadow to be punished by creatures of the Lulamoon employ. May Celestia have mercy upon your tainted soul, for you shall receive none from me."

With a final jerk the monstrous undead was slammed into the ground with bone-crunching force, its form slowly ripped into an ephemeral mist. With a final squeal of pain Surprise was ripped out of this plane of existence.

Hah, do better than that, bard!

I broke the seals and pulled out a scroll from my hat and conjured a small bit of charcoal. These runes weren't going to study themselves, and I had a text that I may be able to compare them to in depth. I set to work gathering rubbings of various sections. This was going to be a long night.

_____________

"Hey Lyra, Trixie is still missing."

"I know, and with that creature out there we should be out looking for her," Lyra replied. A heavy drowsiness hung on her eyes; she had appeared haggard ever since she had come out of the water. She had been visibly shaken, but she refused to talk about it, and with Trixie gone she was just about ripping her mane out in worry.

Her horn glowed again as she attempted a new scrying spell, and as every past attempt had shown, not a trace of her could be found. Insanity is repeating the same action over and over, hoping for a new result, and based on the eye twitch Lyra was beginning to develop, it showed. A wide grin crossed her face as she started to waver, her magical connection failing as her too large grin stretched impossibly wider. Suddenly, unable to sit upright any further, she collapsed on her side. She curled up into a ball, the smile on her face cloaked by her tail.

A hushed sobbing drew my concern to Lyra as she gently rocked back and forth in the fetal position. She was muttering about she was a bad friend and didn't deserve our trust. I scooted over next to her and wrapped my forelegs around her withers in a tender hug. She nuzzled into my stomach, a torrent of tears flowing down her face.

"There there, she will probably be back in the morning," I comforted her. She had to be, right?

Lightning flashed in the sky, revealing Lyra and the rain that was still pouring in sheets, making all mundane means of tracking close to impossible. Even after the rains had started, we followed the tracks as best we could, coming across a bloody compass and a place where two pairs of nearly identical tracks split up.

We followed them for several miles before coming across the other unicorn team. The blue who had instigated the fight with Trixie almost matched her hoof print verbatim, to a margin of a few degrees, something that a casual inspection had missed; it set us back so long that the tracks were washed out by the time we reached the clearing where Minuette and Trixie had magically duked it out.

"We are getting no where," Lyra mentioned to me, an edge of hysteria in her voice.

Through gritted teeth I exhaled, "I know that, thank you very much. There's got to be some way..."

Lyra turned in circles. "We've wandered around for hours, and we have no way of finding her now and the camp is so far away and I am hungry and she is probably going to DIE!" She lay down in the mud with a thump and closed her eyes tightly, trying to get back control of her sanity.

I sighed, "Oh for Luna's sake..." as I trotted back to my comrade.

She must have heard me, for she suddenly perked up. "Luna! Of course!" Quickly she attempted to wipe the tears from her face which only resulted in a streak of mud on her nose and flopped down on the ground snoring like a chainsaw.

I walked up and poked her a few times but she was out like a light. Wish I could fall asleep like that, narcolepsy is a gift.

_____________

I awoke in a starry field.

"You called?" a voice from the side murmured.

I turned swiftly, almost bumping faces with her. "Luna! Yes, hey um, sorry to bother you but the Great and Pretentious Trixie is missing and if you could, y'know, please find her, that would be awesome. Um, your majesty."

The princess of the night looked perplexed and amused. "This wasn't on tonight's episode..." It must have been the dirty look I gave her, because she then amended with a chuckle, "All right, all right, yes I'll try, okay? But no promises."

_____________

I lay down next to Lyra, and started staring at my hooves, because I really didn't know what to do. I sat around for several minutes wishing I had a book to read or something. Boredom had sunk her wicked talons into my brain, so in a fit I started to play with my mp3 player, fiddling with the dials and scrolling through music.

Uncontent with and irritable about the same thousand some odd songs I had, I tossed my mp3 player into my bag and plopped onto the ground. The grass was cold and moist against my back, causing my discomfort to rise considerably. In a last ditch attempt to amuse myself I puckered my lips up and blew a giant spit bubble. As I pushed the air out of my lungs and into the membranous ball of slobber, I felt my tongue graze across the razor tipped incisors that had unceremoniously invaded my upper line of teeth.

My eyes slid to my comrade. She hadn't moved for many minutes now, and I was lonely and bored. A day had gone by since we last saw our partner, and I didn't really understand how sleeping helped our cause. And my stomach growled so fiercely. A while since proper food, too... Having the diet of a college student left my cooking skills with much to be desired, and without pre-packaged ramen or hay fries, I would have to wait for Lyra to rise.

Oh sweet Celestia a nice apple sounds so good right now, or even that soup that Trixie had made. I am so hungry... My stomach ached with its emptiness.

Flailing on the ground and blowing spit bubbles lost its entertainment value pretty quick, so I dragged myself to my hooves and started to pace around our impromptu campsite. I dragged my rear hooves, scuffing a line behind me in a vain attempt to draw a picture in the dirt, but even my stick pony just made me hungry, and it looked like shit (I don't know why I expected anything else).

Bored and hungry I tossed myself onto my back to stare at the stars, using Lyra as a pillow. The soft skin of a performer greeted me, but the little furs on her back started to poke into my mane and messing it up as I wiggled to find a comfortable spot against the voluptuous bard. I rolled over to stand, but all I succeeded in doing was shoving my muzzle into the nape of Lyra's neck. I took a deep breath of air as I pulled away, but a smell akin to mint and juniper pulled me in for a second sniff. Lyra, her mane smelled delicious, almost like candy and liquor. Her short flowing mane that curled tantalizingly around her neck, her sweet mint smelling neck... I lowered my head to her, slowly centimeter by centimeter as my vision faded out. A longing feeling like lust invaded my brain as I felt warmth on my nose. I opened into a grin, drool dripping down the corner of my mouth as I bared my fangs.

_____________

Luna didn't seem to be having much luck, she was sweating and looking rather nervous. After what seemed like an eternity, she opened her eyes and looked at me somewhat guiltily. "I could not find Trixie. I am very sorry, dear. She must be awake, or somewhere even my powers do not reach. It would be useless to keep trying, for now anyway. Good luck - and wake swiftly! For I fear for your safety as well!"

I stared at her. "But I have Vinyl-" I started to say, before being thrust back to consciousness.

_____________

I pulled back horrified, but still grimly satisfied with my actions. Blood spattered all across my muzzle, and Lyra's green pelt was contrastly stained red. It was a macabre sight to be sure, me standing over my victim.

A cold shiver jolted down my spine as Lyra began to stir. With every minor motion, more blood pooled from her neck. A small puddle had formed by the time she let out a pitiful groan. She started to thrash about in wracking pain and her hooves beat a small indent into the dirt.

Her bloodshot eyes opened with a pained blink, taking in the full view of me in my monstrous state. Plastered with blood, my eyes certainly glowing red, six-centimeter fangs hanging from the corners of my mouth. I knew she was going to think me a traitor and a monster, and honestly, I felt I rather deserved that at least.

"Lyra..."

_____________

I stood up shakily. "Vinyl! What in Tartarus have - what have you done?"

Reality set in as a large droplet of water splashed down onto the back of my neck setting it alight with pain along the left side. I stumbled back, away from the one I considered my friend, tripping over a rain-slicked log onto my back. A burning sensation began to radiate from around the injury site; a silent scream caught on my lips.

"Vinyl. You..." I paused, composing myself, unsure of what to say and bleeding. "I don't know what is happening, but you need to control yourself, if you attack anypony else... I just, I don't know what."

She looked stricken and guilty. "I don't know either..." she whispered, tears torrenting down her bloody face, more red to the mosaic sanguine. She made no move to wipe either the sanguine of her tears or my blood from her face, though the rain was doing a pretty good job of it by itself. "I don't know what happened. I lost control..."

I silenced her with a hush, putting my hoof to her muzzle. "I dont know if I want to forgive you, what's happening to you, or if something is going to happen to me now. But we both need sleep, and I need food to begin healing myself. I know we passed by a bunch of wild mushrooms, not long ago, so I can start some food at least. And regardless of what you are now, you are still Vinyl Scratch, my teammate and confederate in this competition."

A numbness enfolded my entire being and with it came exhaustion, but I wasn't down and I certainly had been through rough spots before. Grudgingly, I pushed myself past the threshold of exhaustion and pain. My limbs moved of their own accord, down to the small copse where I had seen the fungi earlier, by pure tenacity and willpower at this point. I needed to heal myself so I could find Trixie, or Luna forbid, should I have to fight Vinyl.

_____________

A sullen emptiness and a macabre sense of pride were having an argument in my gut as waves of nausea and revulsion flittered through me, just barely overcoming the feeling of fullness like none I ever experienced before. When we reached the mushrooms, Lyra dug up about twenty and shared them with me. I only ate a few before my body began to reject the solid food, half of me hoped that she was wrong and they were poisonous mushrooms after all so I could escape my guilt.

I gave Lyra the remainder of my mushrooms, on the account I already ate. Bad Vinyl. I spotted a cave about fifty meters ahead of Lyra and I, it wasn't much, but it was something.

We trotted over to it, silence filling the air as only our hooves beating against the dirt broke the oppressing quiet.It was dark, true to cave fashion probably one of the darkest caves I had ever been in, even with my enhanced eyesight and light filtering glasses I couldnt see more than five meters in front of my snout. I walked to the back of the cave which led into a decline filled with water and curled up into a ball, depression consumed me and I sunk into Luna’s embrace.

_____________

In the morning I found a hoof-full of berries and ate them before Vinyl woke. She could find her own food, anyway, maybe thin out the competition a bit... I thought; a twang of guilt was followed by a slight need for revenge as I prodded her awake. She looked at me bleary-eyed before remembering her actions of the night before and looked abashed.

"Ignoring the basic rules of horror movies, we should split up," I suggested. "I will go this way," I pointed towards a grove that had previously been obscured by the rain. "You can go the opposite way. Okay?"

She just nodded and dejectedly shuffled off her way, which was rather dark and gloomy looking.

I didn't watch her go, instead was somewhat reinvigorated in the search for our friend. So far there was no sign of her. Then - I saw hoofprints in the mud. Even though they were clearly not Trixie's, they were someone's that weren't mine or Vinyl's either! These tracks are somewhat familiar. No wait, very familiar, like someone I know... Not Bonny, not Vinyl, not my own (that would be silly), not anyone I have met from here near as I can tell.

I followed the tracks for about twenty minutes, deviating from my wasted effort in tracking Trixie, when I stumbled into a clearing in which sat a small rustic cabin.

The cabin was an old hoofbuilt A-frame, the kind that was popular one hundred years ago, with a coat of light red paint on the wall I could see and a slate covered roof. The door was made of sandalwood with a large brass knocker, the material of which matched the rather ornate lion head handle.

Hesitantly, I followed the tracks up to the window which was cracked open, the curtains blocking my vision. Carefully I slid the window open and peeked inside, and what I saw caught my attention. It was trashed, broken furniture and an overturned shelf spilled its its contents all over the floor. A small oil lamp sat burning on the floor near the broken table in the center of the room casting deep shadows that melted into the darkness, creating an almost Gothic appearance. Several trails of the familiar hoofprints tracked around the room upsetting the dust before ultimately leading to a recently used door.

Quivering with anticipation, I climbed in. With a soft thus I hit the ground causing some dust to fly into the air. I gasped in annoyance at myself for making noise, inhaling a large portion of the dust cloud. Try as I might to resist, the dust eventually caused me to burst out coughing.

The sound of hooves quick trotting to the door put me on edge, so I quickly and quietly creeped behind the broken table, blocking myself from the door. It slowly creaked open, the hoof-fall encroaching into the room.

It was then that one of the last voices I would have ever expected sounded out. With an air of refinement, I heard the gray earth pony ask, "Who’s there?"

"Octavia, what’re you doing here?”

Author's Note

Sorry about the delay guys, I just have been suffering from writers block, then perfectionism, and just generally being away from my typing devices because of work.

Spider's Web

I wandered around in the vicinity of the cave Lyra and I slept in for the better part of the morning. I had found a tattered piece of blue cloth with what appeared to be parts of stars on it and my "keen" tracking skills astutely determined that Trixie slept somewhere nearby if the minor detritus was to be believed.

Vinyl, you are so full of horse apples, you don't know the first thing about tracking. You watch Lyra do it and you saw that movie Sherclop Pones: A Study in Scarlet and suddenly you think you are a master of deductive reasoning and pony tracking.

As the morning progressed, I searched throughout the cave, watching as the water slowly waned to reveal a passage deeper into the cavern system. I decided to investigate that area once I finished scouting out the immediate outside for any more tatters of cloth, but came up empty hooved. I decided ponies have no business being in the wild; cities were our real natural habitats.

The sun's progression marked its noontime zenith before the water drained enough that I dared traverse it. I waded into the water. It was barrel deep and murky but I wasted enough time and sitting around was getting me nowhere, and I was oh so curious as to the contents of the bowels of this cave that I just had to push further.

I stumbled blindly through the dark, my horn, glasses, and enhanced eyesight combined just barely allowed me to identify wall and water. The drowned catacombs proved to be much more traitorous than the placid water would imply. I slipped several times, a nasty undercurrent invisible from the surface almost drowning me repeatedly. Multiple small holes in the floor stole my footing and damn near snapped the bones in my pastern, and I continuosly smashed those stalactawhoozits into my cannons.

Stalactites, stalagmites, I never could remember which ones were which. Because you are a moron. Shut up brain.

Bruised and bloody, I finally came to a rising point in the path that carried me above water. The path led into an eerie and green back-lit room. A hole in the wall allowed for ambient lighting from an adjacent room, which cast long spindly shadows from every little bump, ceiling and floor. To make matters worse, the familiar coppery smell of blood mixed with the mildew and mold that permeated the room. I realized that it was becoming way too common a smell for my tastes, though unfortunately not an uncomfortable smell.

All pain ignored, I rushed through the hole, following the hazy blood scent to discover its source. Spattered all across the walls and floor, drops and splotches of red life were abundant, trailing and thickening before finally concluding at its origin.

In the center of the room, surrounded by scrolls of vellum and a blood stained knife was a capeless Trixie, her hat covering her eyes and casting a shadow over her blood encrusted muzzle. Her barrel and all four legs were a patchwork of matted fur and dried blood.

It hit me like a buck to the stomach: Trixie was hurt, maybe as bad as me. Panicking, I rushed over and leaned my ear right next to her mouth. Warmth pulsed rhythmically onto the soft flesh of my earlobe, making me flick it in annoyance.

"Vinyl," Trixie moaned softly.

"Yes, Trixie?" I whispered softly.

"You smell awful. Please vacate the area of Trixie's face."

I recoiled like I had been struck. Leave it to Trixie to insult her would-be savior.

With a grin I muttered a rebuttal, "Yeah, well dude, you smell awful too." Nailed it. "What happened exactly?"

Trixie pushed herself off of the blood-soaked ground and twisted her neck until a disgusting pop sounded out. Getting to see her entirety, I could see I overreacted; the cuts and abrasions covering her body were mostly superficial, save one particularly nasty groove running down her right eye. Nothing that wouldn't heal in time or with Lyra's care.

"While you were away Trixie bested a creature of the night. A feat truly worthy of the Great and Powerful Trixie, if she does say so herself. Why, it was more impressive than beating the Ursa Minor."

"What?"

"Nothing, DJ, nothing."

"Ok then? Lyra and I were searching for you all through the night, and honestly, I have something to say to you."

Trixie rolled her eyes and annoyance as she prepared for me to say something demeaning to her.

"Trixie, I'm sorry for being a total flankhole, it wasn't cool at all. I mean, just because I was under a lot of stress from almost being killed, then subsequently being turned into a monster, doesn't mean I can act like a monster. Please, I’m begging from the bottom of my heart, I need you to forgive me.”

She looked at me almost as if I had grown a second head. Slowly she approached me and I felt my body shrink down, every part of me ready to accept whatever judgment she would mete out. I closed my eyes, tears forming in the corners as she raised one hoof high into the air.

I actually started to cry as she wrapped her arms around me, the warmth of her body surrounding me. She lightly tousled my mane and whispered into my ear.

“Trixie forgives you, and you aren't a monster.”

We hugged for a few more minutes before she pulled back and spoke. “A total ‘flankhole’ these past few days to be sure, but Trixie doesn’t think you are a monster, Vinyl. Trixie fought a monster, and that was not you. Trixie feels that you are a good pony who has a lot of issues in your life at the moment.”

I looked down, ashamed, and mumbled under my breath. Trixie looked at me, confused, so I looked up and repeated myself, a slight quiver to my voice.

“I bit Lyra.”

“So, is she alive?”

“Yes, when I left her she was as healthy as a horse.”

“Well Trixie does not see what the problem is then.”

“Isn’t she going to be changed like I was?”

“How would Trixie know? She is not an expert on vamponies.”

“Heh, right," I sighed.

“However, Trixie does know that you need to stop angsting and focus. You may have be cursed to drink blood, but Trixie has seen you move faster, and your muscle tone has improved as well. It sickens Trixie when somepony becomes a vampony in a movie or a book and then just whines about how they are no longer Equestrian. As long as you control yourself and don't eat anypony, this is really a boon for you.

She continued talking, going off on a lecture about the consequences of our actions, and our responsibilities to our fellow ponies. But I rolled my eyes behind my sunglasses, the faint glow they produced proving to be very distracting as I started trying to focus on anything that wasn't her, she seemed to be back to her old long-winded self.

After Trixie concluded her rant she snorted irritably. Clearly by the look of annoyance she shot my way, I was busted. Trying my best to salvage my innocence, I listed my eyes around the room we were in, trying to find out what the room was.

The runes covering the wall may as well have been Zebrican for all I knew, but there was presumably another way out. All in all it looked like a small war-zone had broke out in here, but if Trixie fought the monster that changed me then it made sense, I supposed.

“Trixie, did you explore down the other tunnel at all?” I asked.

“Trixie started to after gathering some rubbings of the symbols on the walls, but after about ten minutes fatigue got the better of her and it was a veritable maze beyond the hole. Trixie decided to head back to familiar ground since the tunnel she came in flooded over.”

“I assume you mean the tunnel I came through?”

“Did you come through a maze?” I shook my head vigorously. “Then yes, the tunnel you entered through.”

“It’s not flooded as much now, dude. I mean, I made it through, but it was still pretty treacherous,” I stated, pointing down to my banged up legs.

“Trixie thinks we should try the maze. Trixie has enough scrapes and bruises for the time being. Speaking of which, where is the bard? Trixie could use some healing.”

“Umm yeah, after my little episode Lyra and I split up to, I guess, cover more ground.”

“So the bard got scared because the vampony she was going to sic on Trixie had a midnight snack?” Trixie questioningly snarked.

“Presumably," I deadpanned.

“Seems like karma got the best of her," Trixie muttered.

I gave her a ‘shut up’ stare as she pushed absent mindedly on the metaphorical knife in my gut. “Lets just get out of here and find her.” I sighed.

“Trixie agrees, that would be for the best.”

A half hour passed as we blundered around the labyrinthine cave system seeking an exit, coming to several dead ends and eventually becoming hopelessly lost. Aggravated, I turned to Trixie to see if she knew how to teleport us out.

“Trixie can teleport, but it is not going to do us much good.”

“Why not?”

“How far are we below ground?” I shrugged. “How far into the maze are we?” Still nothing. “Where is the room we were in? How thick are the cave walls? Do you get the picture, DJ? There are too many unknowns for Trixie to just ‘poof’ magic us out, as painful as it is for Trixie to admit. We are going to have to find our way out the hard way.”

“So are we stuck?”

“No, simply displaced, but we will find our way eventually. Trixie has read about things like this before, we just need to pick a wall and hug it until we come across something. We have just been wandering up until this point, but now Trixie is feeling claustrophobic - what is that?”

Trixie ended her little tirade with a horrified expression, gesturing behind me. I turned for a look and settled my eyes on an old dessicated cadaver.

“Well, that’s going to be us if we don’t find our way out of here."

“Trixie is starting to be wary of her situation.”

“Vinyl agrees,” I replied.

Realizing what I said, I mockingly jabbed Trixie’s ribs. She grunted in annoyance and flicked her tail at me as if I were a fly.

“I’m going to check the body for any kind of identifications,” I informed Trixie as I started towards the corpse.

I inspected the cadaver with general disgust, especially when I had to move the body, and found a fifteen by fifteen centimeter patch of stone that was the wrong color. With my
hoof, I pressed my hoof firmly down upon it and the button depressed instantly, sinking down about two centimeters before a soft click pierced the air.

A large portion of the cave wall descended into the floor, revealing an artificially lit hallway. The fluorescent lights were bright, cutting through the darkness and causing both Trixie and I to look away.

It was your typical office or warehouse type deal, concrete walls and laminate floor with a paneled ceiling with hanging fluorescent lights. The whole hall was almost surgically white with a marble patterned floor, almost sterile in the way that no dust floated in the air or seemed to settle on anything.

Hesitantly, I stepped one hoof in the entryway. No alarms triggered, and I wasn’t immediately vaporized, so I assumed that either nopony knew or cared that I was here. I waved for Trixie to follow me, and while at first she shook her head she sighed and followed after me.

We walked down the barren hallway, taking a few turns here and there when there was no other choice, before coming across a metal door with some sort of arcano-tech locking system.

Intrigued, I started playing with the lock, punching buttons in a random sequence until the lights on it shifted from the warm yellow color to an angry red and a buzzer went off. Undeterred, I looked at Trixie and asked if she still had that knife, which she promptly handed to me with a raised eyebrow.

Wedging the knife into the small seam where the lock and the door met I began pulling until the facing and interface fell, hanging by a few wires.
Trixie piped up behind me. “Vinyl, Trixie is curious. Do you actually know what you are doing?”

“All electronics run on a similar principle, magical or otherwise. A signal leads into the components and runs through various channels before hitting the motor or board that creates the effects that you want. My intent is to bypass the locking mechanism and just power the motor in hopes of opening the door.”

“That may be the dumbest thing Trixie has ever heard,” Trixie said as I began cutting wires and splicing them together. “Trixie thinks that the ponies who design locks like that would expect somepony to figure that out and therefore make it impos…”

Her stunned silence and gaping mouth were the cherry on top as the door slid open to reveal the continued hallway on the other side. Prancing like a filly with a special somepony, I bopped Trixie on the nose to bring her back into reality.

“Vinyl Scratch one, Trixie whatever her name is zero.”

“Lulamoon,” Trixie answered.

I think my heart stopped when I heard her name. Trixie was a Lulamoon? Her family were arch magisters and wizards of the highest order. It was an ancient line dating back to Starswirl the Bearded in the age of Princess Platinum. For all I knew Trixie might be the most powerful unicorn alive since Twilight grew wings.

I backed away slowly like Trixie was a ticking bomb before realizing I had never seen her do anything impressive, though, she did say she defeated the monster that attacked me.
Trixie waved her hoof in my face, snapping me back to the situation we were in. I forced myself to stop hyperventilating and calmed down, feeling my heart ease down a little. “Trixie doesn’t like talking about her family for exactly that reason. She wants ponies to know The Great and Powerful Trixie for her own merits.”

“Alright well, I will respect that, and request that you don't disintavaporate me or whatever, Miss Lulamoon.”

"Miss Lulamoon is Trixie’s mother. Trixie is just Trixie, or The Great and Powerful Trixie if you aren't into the whole brevity thing.” I nodded, dumbfounded. “Now if you don’t mind, can we move on now?”

I nodded again and started down the hall, Trixie in step, our hooffalls echoing in unison. After a while, we came across a placard, which had arrows pointing both left and right with brief descriptions of what was down each adjacent hall.

“To the right is the exit,” Trixie announced.

“Dude, don’t you want to see what this complex is?” I asked her.

“Trixie wants to get out of here and for things to get back to normal.”

“In case you haven't noticed, this whole place reeks of cod.”

“Trixie smells no fish,” Trixie stated flatly.

“I,” I saw her arch her brow and I face hooved, hard. “I want to know what in Tartarus this whole place is about.”

“As does Trixie, but this,” she gestured toward the left hall, “this can wait until we find Lyra. It’s really not going to go anywhere.”

I pouted in defeat, but Trixie's logic was sound. For all we knew Lyra could sitting in the stomach of a giant snake, being slowly digested or something, an image I was desperately trying to suppress. But just as Trixie took top priority, so did Lyra; my friends before my curiosity. I trudged down the path to the exit, but not without glancing back at the direction that potentially held answers. Wistfully, I saw what I thought was a flicker of movement, but after staring for a moment I rationalized that it must have been my imagination.

We emerged through a trapdoor into a pretty devastated room. The wooden walls had holes all throughout and debris littered the floor. Broken furniture and books were more prevalent than the dusty floor space.

A low moan from the other room signaled someone’s presence, so I crept to the door and pressed my ear to it. Unable to hear anything I twisted the handle with my magic. The door inched open to reveal a pretty similar scene, differing primarily by the seafoam green lump sprawled out over the floor.

“Lyra!” Vinyl shrieked, vaulting past me to the motionless body.

I walked over to investigate, noting the massive amounts of bruising and swelling across Lyra’s face and forelegs. Her sides were moving rhythmically, so she was breathing at least, but she looked really bad off. I for one was glad that I wasn't in her shoes right now.

Suddenly, one of her eyes shot open, the other one far too swollen over to move well. She looked around the room before settling her gaze upon me and moaned out a single word, a name we all knew, “Octavia,” before slumping back into unconsciousness.

Vinny and I shared a look as we tried to process what she said. If Octavia was in fact here, worse if she did this, it did indeed smell of fish. “Trixie,” Vinyl began, “we need to save Octavia, she—”

“Probably did this to Lyra,” I finished cutting her off.

“How could you say that?” Vinyl gasped, ” Octavia is a good pony, she could never do this.”

“Lets look at the facts shall we, she gathered each of us here, we were all desperate for something so we were quick to grasp onto a chance to do anything without thinking twice, bad stuff has happened to us since we got here, Lyra appears to have seen her, and now she has been brutalized by what could only have been an earth pony’s strength. You tell me how this looks.”

“Not good.”

“Damn straight not good, this is enough for an indictment by Equestrian law.”

“I just don’t want to believe it, but you're probably right.”

“Well then, we need to get Lyra to safety, and then if you're still being a Celestia damned fool, you, and I mean you, can look for Octavia.”

Vinyl looked to be on the edge of tears, and I’ll admit that was over the top on the harshness scale, but we needed to look after our own right now and Vinyl was not thinking straight.

I looked around and upon spotting the door scooped Lyra up with my magic. Not even bothering with the handle, I pivoted on my hind legs and bucked the door open. With a resounding crack that sounded almost like an explosion, the door burst into pieces ranging from splinters to chunks the size of my head. With a ferocious battle cry I charged for a few seconds before sliding to a stop and sheepishly turning around. “Vinyl, Trixie must confess, she was out here because she got lost. Do you know how to get back?” with a sigh Vinyl gestured for me to follow and led us, hopefully back to camp.

Our camp was in a pretty sorry state when we got back; hoofprints everywhere, our bags tossed aside and looking pilfered, and our fire pit completely out. I set Lyra down on the mat she made for Vinyl. That seemed like years ago now, but the sad truth was, only a week or so had truly progressed.

I filled the cooking pot full of water to wash up her wounds, and set to tending her. While I was washing away the blood I noticed she had an amulet around her neck, and so I asked Vinyl if she knew what it was.

She glanced over and took a look at it before saying, “That’s the amulet she pulled from the bottom of the spring.”

“Was she wearing it before?”

“Not as far as I know.”

Concerned, I tried to pull it off of her neck but to no avail. Annoyed, I went for it with my magic, but I couldn't even catch hold of the damn thing. I realized it must be similar to the Alicorn Amulet in that only the wearer can remove it or some such nonsense.

After finishing up I looked over Lyra, still concerned. Admittedly she didn't look half as bad without all that blood covering her coat, so to help the swelling I grabbed a few pieces of cloth and doused them with water. I cast the simple cantrip I use to make ice on the soaking wet rags to freeze them. I pushed away, satisfied with Lyra’s health for the time being, though unfortunately not having her medical skill I could not be certain of her exact state. I wandered over to the fire to get some sleep.

I watched in horror as the Ursa Minor smashed my wagon. It was just my stage for shows but my home as well, it held all my wordly possessions, a lot of which were irreplaceable for just sentimental value. I turned to run, my hooves impacting on cobble stone down the vacant night time Ponyville streets. I screamed and ran, feeling myself wear down. Each step I took propelled me forward, but every time I looked back, the Ursa just appeared closer, each step of its worth at least twenty of mine. I realized with dread that it was going to catch me. even now I could feel its breath in short bursts hitting my back. Up ahead I saw a cul-de-sac trapping me in the path of the monster’s wrath. In a panic, I glanced left and right to look for a way out, but there appeared to be no room between the houses for me to squeeze through and no side streets for me to run down.

The great beast’s warm breath beat down on my back, and the oppressive odor seared my eyes and my nose. This was it. I silently bid farewell to everyone I knew and loved, wished I could have made it with the pony I liked, prayed to make it to Elysium, and closed my eyes, the warmth of my tears wiping down my face in great torrents.

“Trixie of clan Lulamoon, you need not fear any longer,” I heard a voice say.

“Yes, death has a certain finality,” I stated flatly, my eyes clenched tight to avoid looking at the reaper.

“Trixie, you are a silly pony.”

I opened my eyes to gaze upon the face of Princess Luna mere centimeters from my own. Neither going to confirm nor deny having shrieked a little.

“ Princess? If there is a puddle on the ground, can we assume it is just the rain?” I stammered out.

She closed her eyes and shook her head. “It’s not raining.”

“Oh.”

“Our secret, Trixie, I promise.”

“Thank you, Princess. But if I may, why are you here?”

“Besides your nightmare? Lyra asked us to find you.”

“That isn't a big deal anymore, and I’m afraid I have dire news.”

“Yes?” Luna asked leaning forward.

“Lyra has been attacked by someone we trusted and we are afraid she may have a concussion,” I informed her.

“That is dire indeed. Worse yet is that unconsciousness is usually dreamless, so we can't even contact her via our dream walking.”

“Do you have any healing magic that I could observe? If I see it, most likely I can cast it.”

“Alas, Trixie, even if we could cast proper healing spells, in the world of dreams magic is so drastically different that there is no way to translate it to the physical plane. Here, the aether is everything and bends to the will of the ponies who inhabit it - literally anything you think of you can do - but it only affects the dreamscape.”

“Well, buck.”

“We apologize, we will think about what we can do. As soon as we have something we will render our assistance. Lyra is quickly becoming my favorite pony.”

I blinked and nodded. Quickly I realized I had no idea what was going to happen, so I looked towards the departing princess and tried to shout for her, but she blinked out before I could get her attention. Looking around, I realized I was having a lucid dream at this point so. I just lay back and thought about being in the embrace of a certain lavender alicorn. I chuckled to myself as the scenery shifted to what I assumed the inside of her bedroom, inside of Golden Oak Library.

Author's Note

So much late chapter, I should have the next chapter out by months end, thanks for being patient with me guys.

The Times We Live In

Darkness. All consuming darkness. No sense of up or down, no sense of time. Just a void in every direction, trapped alone with just my thoughts and silence. Imprisoned in my own mind, a stranger inside my own head.

I wasn’t really asleep per the word, as I could feel my breaths entering and exiting my lungs, my muscles twitching beneath my fur, and I could feel my heart beating. Ba-bump, ba-bump. But I couldn’t feel anything external, no grass against my skin, no air movement. Just myself inside the void, my flesh a prison in the truest sense of the word. It was Tartarus.

I thought back to my friends. Vinyl with her passion, marching forward to a beat only she could hear, but still very clearly full of doubt and uncertainty. Trixie with her bravado and arrogance, masking a whole plethora of insecurities about where she belonged in the world. My sweet Bonnie, home and safe in Ponyville with all the others.

Wait, no, not all the others, I saw Octavia, she was here. She attacked me. She beat me down, and put this amulet on me. What does it do?

I tried to reach out again with my magic, welling up the energy inside me, focusing it to my horn, directing the flow to probe the aether and touch the damn thing, but again, I could accomplish nothing…

But wait. This time was different. There was a pulse back.

Who touches the Sun? It was an oddly familiar presence, projecting the thoughts into my head. Was I not as alone as I had presumed?

“Hello,” I tried thinking back, “my name is Lyra Heartstrings, I don’t know what’s happening right now.”

My little pony, how is it that you have touched your consciousness to the sun? None, not even the mightiest unicorns alive are able to touch it, let alone project their will into it, yet today as I try to raise it, I find somepony has asserted their will onto the heavenly body.

“Princess Celestia?” It seemed unreal, yet as real as anything else in this forsaken place.

Indeed, I gather you are not here of your own free will, so I must ask, how did you find yourself in this place?

I thought about it for a moment, gathering my wits, heart beating a little faster as the prospect that I might be getting out of here, before answering, “I believe it was this little gold pendant that was -is?- latched around my neck.”

There was a pregnant pause, while she considered what I said. I could feel her observing me, laying me bare before her discerning gaze. Uncertainty made its way into my being again, anxiety rising as the thought of what was happening actually forced itself into my forethought.

Finally the somber alicorn broke the silence. Lyra, this is going to be rather uncomfortable for you, what I’m about to do. Possibly the most painful thing you will ever have to go through. I believe I know the culprit of your current dire straits, an ancient relic from before the three tribes united. It was one of the things that allowed the unicorn tribe to move the sun and moon before my sister and I ascended. It is called Sat Imperium, it allows a trained wielder to connect to the sun and move it across the sky. I thought it destroyed, but I know of no other such device that could imprison you so. I apologize for what is about to happen, but you will be cleansed of all dark magics working against your soul, freeing you from it’s effect.

In the blink of an eye, before I could even respond, everything inverted, the darkness bloomed into into fire and light, and every inch of my being became fuel for the enormous pyre. All of my sins and faults burst into flame, while my dreams and desires, burned to ash and blossoming into life simultaneously. I felt like clay inside of a kiln, heated while undergoing a physical transformation from soft and pliable to a solid constant. It was awesome, it was terrifying.

After what felt like an eternity of pain, I noticed a new sensation, dampness on my skin. It was a strange relief to feel something outside of me. I was awake; I mean, I hurt like the dickens, but I was in fact awake. I tried to say something, but my throat was dry and severely swollen and all I could do was make a rasping sound as the air forced it’s way past my vocal cords. Frustrated I just grumbled mutely for a second while trying to adjust to being in my body again.

I tried to open my eyes, but only one was able to open more than a sliver, the other just throbbed and sent a new spike of pain through my shattered body. I gazed around without moving my head, as much as I could; it appeared I was in the campsite again. I could see the sleeping form of Trixie snuggled up under her usually pristine cape; what I could see of it appeared wartorn now.

There was a water canteen casting a long shadow in the early morning glow sitting within reach of where I was lying. I tried to reach my left hoof out towards it, but I could tell right away that my pastern was fractured, so I rolled slightly onto my back to reach out with the right.

“Sweet Celestia, you’re awake,” a familiar voice cried out, startling me, “here, let me help you with that.”

Vinyl lept into view, horn alight, casting off a red glow that matched the aura that manifested around the canteen. It rose off the ground and I opened my mouth expectantly, unsure of what else I would be expected to do.

Sweet relief poured down my throat, soothing the dryness, though, much to my chagrin, I could taste my blood with each swallow. My eye widened as the thought of blood and drinking made the connection in my mind and I felt my teeth with my tongue. To my surprise, I was greeted with normal, non-fanged pony teeth. I looked at Vinyl and smiled; she looked concerned, but her scowl quickly changed to a smile of relief as she noticed.

“You totally didn’t change,” she sighed contentedly.

“Nope,” I whispered, cringing a bit at the raspy tone of my voice.

“You do sound like horse apples though,” she jived.

Gently, I nodded my head, careful in case there was damage I was unaware of. There was a bit of stiffness, probably a mixture of swelling and being immobile for so long. Then I remembered my main concern.

“My leg is broken.”

“Is there anything I can do?”

“I need a splint on it; find two small sturdy sticks and a piece of cloth, like one of the longer tatters of Trixie’s cape,” I laboured, each word hurting slightly less than the last

“Aight, just one sec.”

“Thanks.”

I tried to gather my magic to seal the fissure in my bone, but I could barely make a few sparks appear, let alone focus anything. My head hurt so bad it was amazing I could even do that, so I wasn’t really all that surprised. With an exasperated croak, I rolled over onto my left side; even that little bit was almost too much for me right now, as evidenced when my leg impacted the ground, shooting a fresh spike through my body.

Concern etched deep into Vinyl’s brow as she leaned over me and into my line of sight again. She had a couple of sticks in her telekinetic grip and a piece of blue and white cloth in her mouth.

“Place the sticks on either side of my leg, so that they extend above and below my foreleg,” I said, “then tear the cloth into two strips.” After a breath, I continued, “And tie one around the cannon and the other around the small pastern.”

With fervor she complied and within a matter of moments my leg was splinted. Careful to avoid putting pressure on it, I rolled over onto my stomach and rose shakily to my hooves.

“Quite a role reversal, no?” I joked.

Vinyl gave me a sideways stare, “I’m not even going to dignify that. I do have a question to ask though... “ There was quite a long pause, and I noticed red moisture forming around the corners of her eyes. “Was it Octavia?”

“Yes.”

She grieved loudly and shambled over to the wall; she reared up on her hind legs and lashed out. *CRACK* Stone exploded out from the point of impact as she fell onto her haunches.

“Why, Octi, for the love of Celestia, why?”

I limped over to her and nuzzled into the nape of her neck. “It’s not easy for me either, but I can’t imagine what you must be going through right now.”

“How could she do this? She is… was one of the kindest and coolest ponies I knew. How could she betray me like this?”

“Betray us, you aren't the only one she stabbed in the back.”

“You two make it hard to sleep,” Trixie muttered.

“Good morning to you too, sunshine,” I retorted.

“How are you feeling, Lyra?” Trixie asked, a touch of concern tinting her voice.

I sighed. “I hurt pretty bad, feeling kinda like I got hit by a train to be honest. Leg’s broken and I can't open an eye.”

“Trixie meant in more of a, eat other ponies and bad sunburns kind of way.”

I shot her a look with my one good eye. “Thanks for your concern. I'm not changed, I think it might have to do with something Celestia did while I was trapped in the sun.”

“Trixie knows you got hit on the head, maybe it did a little more damage than initially thought,” The mare commented, sounding a tad bit more alarmed.

“I'm serious, something about this amulet linked me to the sun,” I gestured at it with my broken leg. “It caused my consciousness to be transferred out of my body and into it.”

“And you mentioned Celestia, how does she fit in?” Vinyl cut in.

“Well, she cast some sort of spell on me, she said I was ‘cleansed of all dark magics’ so I'm guessing she kept me from turning.”

“Are you kidding me?” Vinyl yelled, “The princesses have the ability to remove vamprism and no one thought to contact them when I got bit?”

“I don't have a direct line to Celestia, Vinyl. Also, I had no idea.”

“Don't even pretend now like you haven't spoken to Luna in your dreams. If there was a cure, why the buck did they let me turn into a parasite!”

“Vinyl, I think you're over reacting,” I began, trying to calm her.

“Over reacting? Over-bucking-reacting? I got transformed into a creature from stories parents tell their foals to make them behave, don't tell me I’m over reacting.”

Vinyl looked at me with disgust and threw on her sunglasses. Her eyes may have been hidden, but I could see the red lines streaking down the side of her face and onto her neck.

“Sorry, you’re right, I spoke out of line. I should have realized what a slap to the face it has to be,” I exhaled.

“I’m thirsty, with a thirst that can’t be quenched without, ya know, risking the life of another.”

“Actually Vinyl, I’d like to apologize, I’ve been a complete ass to you, and I’d like to make it up to you.”

I limped over to the still prone Trixie and whisked her hat off with my teeth.

“Hey, what are you doing with Trixie’s hat?” Trixie asked, annoyance dripped from every word.

“Taking your knife.”

“Why would you want my…”

“Lyra no!”

I took the blade by the hilt and cut a deep gash into my broken leg, then grabbed a cup from my bag. I could barely feel the cut as blood flowed into the vessel. I gestured to Vinyl, she looked horrified.

“Drink the blood, you need it,” I muttered while I wrapped an impromptu tourniquet around my leg to stave the blood flow.

“I don’t know what to say,” Vinyl breathed, hunger clouding her voice.

“Don’t say anything, just drink,” I grunted.

“Trixie is going to be sick,” the narcissist gagged, looking even worse than usual.

“You don't have to look,” I retorted.

Vinyl looked uneasy about the idea, but swallowed her nervousness and grabbed the cup and brought it to her lips. With every fervent sip the luster in her coat seemed to improve and the glow around her horn started to compound.

With a satisfied sigh she gingerly set the cup down and wiped the blood from her lips.

“You know Lyra, you taste pretty good,” she paused for a second before continuing, “no homo.”

“I mean, lesbi-honest here Vinyl, the only thing more homosexual than you was that Pegasus you were sucking face with. What was her name again? Raincloud?”

“It was Raindrops, actually, and now that I think about it we should find her. Honestly, we should see if we can find anypony, it's weird how little sign there has been of anypony else in a while.” Vinyl replied.

“I vote we go out and look,” I announced.

Trixie and Vinyl both turned to me with matching disapproving glares. I could tell they weren't going to let me do much until I could walk right.

“Trixie will stay here, she will let Lyra nurse her bourbon until the bard can cast spells again.”

“I'll go see if I can find Raindrops or one of the other contestants here,” Vinyl said, and with a flick of her tail she was gone.

I sprinted through the shadows, every detail as clear to me as if I were looking through a microscope. High and low my eyes roamed, piece of yellow fur, drop of blood, scent of Raindrops.

I was angry, I could feel my rational self falling away. Trixie's lecture about holding myself to standards be damned. I had been an angst machine, self loathing and afraid for the future. I'd hurt Lyra and risked giving her my curse because I was weak.

I'd been played by my one time friend in a time of weakness, an identity crisis. I knew now, I was neither of those ponies anymore, I needed to be something more. I'd died on this island, slain by the beast who'd drained me. Abandoned by the Princesses to its curse. “Surprise,” that was the name Trixie told me it had given her.

That's one of the Wonderbolts isn't it?

I racked my brain for a second, yeah, she's the mare with the yellow mane. Maybe it's the same one?

What are the odds though, really?

At this point I was prone to give anything a bit of consideration, after all, this was a pretty impossible situation. I mean, what was really going on?

Coming out of my inner thoughts, I sensed trouble ahead; I could hear ponies screaming and a clashing of metal in a clearing up ahead. I crouched low for a brief moment before launching myself through the air into a tree; I grabbed a branch and shifted my inertia to rotate into a squatting position on a thick branch.

I was impressed at my own strength and agility, a slight shiver ran down my spine as I for the first time truly understood what I now was. Physically superior, blood thirsty, and predatory. I'm designed to kill.

I don't have to like it, nopony likes all the things in life, but I sure as buck was going to use my strengths.

Brushing off the wave of narcissistic, I looked down to see two ponies fighting, one was the blue unicorn from earlier, I think she's a dentist or something, the other was a yellow pegasi with blue hair. My intended damsel in distress.

I dropped down like a bag of sand on a rope, cut by a dastardly villain in a cheesy play right onto the Blue unicorn. I heard an audible snap as her from leg gave out, collapsing her beneath me and knocking her out cold, at least, I hoped she was just out cold.

“Vinyl? Vinyl is it really you? You were hurt,” Raindrops asked me, unease and suspicion dripping from every word.

“In the flesh, I'd been hoping to find you, I smelled blood and heard fighting, wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“I'm alright, something is wrong though. Many of the ponies who were here have gone crazy.”

“What do you mean?”

“There was some sort of magical shock wave over the island, everypony hit by it went feral or something.”

“Woah,” I muttered, “what the buck is going on on this island.” And why didn’t I notice?

“I have no idea, where's the rest of your group? We should stick together for safety.”

“Yes, we should definitely stick together. The others are at our campsite, I'm going to grab this unicorn, maybe Lyra can check her out, see what's going on.”

I reached down and grabbed Minuette with my magic, something was off about her, I could feel it just touching her. It was almost an alien sensation, not really dark magic like how mine now felt, dripping with the foul energies of unlife. It was just… Off. As if someone had underlay her unicorn magic with another something.

You really should have payed more attention in magical theory, genius. Thanks brain.

I was so distracted trying to figure out how to describe the sensation I felt touching the blue mare, I completely spaced on the fact that Raindrops had been talking to me. I shook my head and looked at her apologetically. I noticed she had an absolutely horrified look on her face, mouth hanging open slack and she shot her hoof up towards Minuette.

I turned just in time to react and jump away from a giant black tendril that had snaked out of the fallen mare's mouth. Her eyes were open, clouded over with a pearly fog, blood dripped from the corners of her eyes and her nose, her movements as she rose were shaky and rigid, a broken bone pierced the skin of her leg releasing an oozing black ichor down the appendage.

I could feel my stomach churn at the sight of the wretched abomination, my every sense turned up to eleven. I bared my teeth and lunged for the beast's throat, I quickly learned the mistake I had made though as I was batted aside, crashing through a tree with an explosion of splinters.

As I rose to stand for round two, I caught sight of an eerie green flame burst into existence around Raindrops hooves. With a mighty cry she leapt through the air, accelerated with a flap of her well toned wings. The impact snapped the unicorn's head back, causing a rather loud cracking sound. That however didn't stop the creature from slowly lurching towards us, giant tendrils exploding out of the pony's back.

“Holy buck,” Raindrops muttered.

“What is that thing?” I screamed.

The creature pushed itself off the ground with its tendrils. A horrifying, sickening, squelching sound sound accompanied its every movement. One of the oozing masses of flesh lunged towards Raindrops, quick as a bolt but I was quicker. I hurled myself towards her and yanked her aside. Just in time too, as rubble exploded out of the area she had been standing where the tendril impacted.

I grabbed as many shards of rock as I could with my magic and flung them at the creature, a loud whistling sound accompanied them as they fled. The impact was massive, shredding flesh and smashing through bone, bits of flesh accompanied a torrent of blood as they ripped through. Much to my dismay however, the creature still stood high on its tentacles; noticeably damaged, dripping blood and ichor all over the ground, but still coming.

Raindrops looked at me, my own fear reflecting in her eyes. We needed to run, that was all there was to it.

I yelled, “Let’s go, we can regroup and figure out how to protect ourselves from this thing. Celestia help us that the rest of the others aren’t like this.”

With a nod she took flight, following me, but barely keeping up as my unhallowed speed made me a blur of white, dipping and dodging through the trees. I kept looking back and up to make sure she was able to keep pace, and she did at first, but I noticed the further we went, the more she lagged behind.

Thankfully it wasn’t long before we were able to out pace the monster. My heart pounded as I took a moment to catch my breath. I had just moved faster than I had ever seen a unicorn move in my life, but barely a thin sheen of sweat dampened my coat, my muscles felt no fatigue and after just a moment I was good to run again. Raindrops on the otherhoof was panting and absolutely drenched, I gave her a reassuring hug, ignoring the moistness for the moment of sanctuary.

“We’re almost back to the camp,” I softly encouraged her.

“We need to be prepared for whatever is happening here, I have never seen anything like that,” she replied.

“I don’t even know how to prepare for that, it was like something out of a Lovecolt novel.”

“The same way ponykind has overcome all threats,” she began, “we work together and we protect ourselves as best we can.”

Lyra had been drinking off of my decanter for awhile; every so often she would light up her horn and begin casting healing magic on herself, but like a dying flashlight, her magic would inevitably flicker out. One particularly impressive fail constituted of her starting to cast before just falling onto her side giggling.

“Are you really that drunk?” I asked her with a sigh.

“You’re a silly pony Trixie,” she snorted with laughter.

With a raised eyebrow, I tartly asked, “How many hooves am I holding up?”

“Uh… Three?”

“I’m not even going to dignify that with a response.” All four of my hooves were solidly planted in the floor.

“I’m not drunk Trixie, see, watch.”

Lyra tried to stand up but ended up falling onto her back again. She started giggling and wiggling on the ground trying to roll over.

I realized I had made a mistake, not knowing her alcohol tolerance. “Okay, so Trixie is taking her flask back now.”

“Nooooooooo,” she whined, hugging it to her barrel, “I love it.”

“We are literally fighting for our lives right now, you can’t be all drunk like this filly.” I took a threatening step forward.

“Don’t tell me how to live my life.”

I eventually snatched the flask from her. It was a painstaking process because I wanted to make sure I didn’t hurt her worse than she already was. She tried pouting at me, but the effect was broken by her head swaying around.

“Trixie, stop moving, I’m trying to talk to you.”

“Trixie is not moving, you are drunk.”

“If I were drunk, would I do this?”

She sat up and stared at me super intently, she was silent as the grave except for the steady rhythm of her breathing.

At that point there was a small ruckus and I turned to watch as Vinyl and Raindrops trotted into the camp, both quite visually shaken. It was a bit unnerving to say the least, Vinyl not seeming to be one to be shaken easily.

“Are you two okay?” I heard Lyra gasp.

I admitted I too would like to comprehend. “Indeed, Trixie wants to know what happened.”

“Well, I’ not really sure how to put it into words, it was Minuette, she-” Vinyl started.

“It was awful, just, I don’t, the blue unicorn, she-” Raindrops stammered at the same time,

“-turned into a monster,” they finished their respective sentences in unison.

“...What?” Lyra asked, pained concern etched into her expression. I was surprised she had the cognitive abilities at this point to be concerned.

“Yeah, it was awful dude, she grew giant tentacles and she almost killed Raindrops. I tried to fight her, but I don’t even know if I hurt whatever she became.”

Lyra limped over to Raindrops, her horn alight. I guess my draught had worked its wonders because she hadn’t even been able to lift the flask a half hour ago.

“I’m going to do a quick medical exam, make sure you are okay, okay?” Lyra asked them.

“Sure Dude,” Vinyl replied.

“No!”

“What?” Lyra looked shocked at Raindrops as she violently shook her head.

“I just… I don’t like being touched with another's magic, it’s too invasive.”

“Okay,” Lyra responded uncertainly, magic horn glow wavering.

“Is this about your weird pegasus magic?” Vinyl asked her.

“Weird pegasus magic? What do you mean, I thought it was just weather stuff, I don’t see how that’s weird.” Lyra stated, amazingly able to make coherent sentences in her inebriated state.

“It’s some..” Vinyl started.

“No!” Raindrops yelled.

“Okay, you’re acting awfully strange right now,” I said.

“Okay, spit it out, what the hell is Vinyl talking about, Raindrops?”

Annoyed with the recursive conversation I cast my magic sight spell. The world faded to gray and colorful lines of mana began to saturate the world. I saw Vinyl’s aura in it’s sanguine color and Lyra’s gold, I turned to Raindrops and almost choked.

“She’s a bucking changeling!” I yelled, pointing my hoof at the pegasus.

“What, you’re crazy,” she tried to deny.

“Like Tartarus you aren’t. You’ve got three seconds to transform or Trixie is making you change, bug.”

A look of fear set in as she realized I was serious and as she began backing up towards the cave entrance, Vinyl stepped between the imposter and I, her horn glowing with magic.

“You aren’t touching her.” Vinyl growled, her anger radiated like a torch.

“I do not have time for this. She is a changeling, they kidnap ponies and eat the love of their victims. She’s probably manipulating you Vinyl,” I screamed at my friend, I realized I broke character, but I didn’t care. “For all we know, this whole thing is changelings.” My mind was working overtime and I was going to do whatever I had to to protect myself first and foremost.

“Stop you two,” Lyra tried to cut in, wobbling and clearly not understanding the gravity of the situation.

“Wait,” Raindrops pleaded, “I can explain.”

“What is there to explain,” I hissed, barely above a whisper. “One. Two.”

“Three.”

“Vinyl, I’m so sorry.” There was a flash of green fire and Raindrops disappeared, replaced by an insectoid black pony with a small horn and translucent wings. Something shocked me though. She was crying.

Rage Against the Pegasus Device

A changeling. A bucking changeling. I had a crush on a parasite? My luck has to single hoofedly be the absolute worst on all of Equestria. Well, it did have a certain irony to it. I was a blood sucking parasite, so I guess that made me the worse monster here.

“Raindrops?” I asked in a shaky tone.

She turned her head away, shoulders visibly shaking.

“Changeling, what do you know, how is your hive involved?” Trixie growled.

“Does it really matter what I say? You aren’t going to believe me anyway.” Raindrops mumbled.

“Maybe you start by giving Trixie a reason to trust you, why are you here?” Trixie asked with a despondent tone.

“My Queen wanted an infiltrator to use the show as a gathering point for love. She said it was such a ratings monster that we would be able to feed the whole hive for years with the stockpiled love. It was my job to gather love and send it back with a few contacts who had replaced supporting staff. I tried to contact them when everything went crazy, but there has been nothing but dead air in the hive mind. I’m out of reach of anyling.”

“That’s actually pretty believable,” Trixie said after a brief pause.

“Well it’s the- you believe me?”

“I mean, you'd have to be pretty dumb to use that as an actual cover story if you got caught. So, either you made it up on the spot, which is possible, or it’s the truth which you’d have no reason to not share since we are all in this together.”

“Trixie, I never realized you were capable of thoughts that deep,” Lyra jovially mocked.

“Yes, Trixie is amazing.”

“Never mind, there it is.” Lyra sighed.

Raindrops shifted uncomfortably while the two started arguing so I looked to her to address her myself.

“So, where is the real Raindrops?” I asked.

“She lives somewhere around Ponyville. I saw her during this water gathering thing for Cloudsdale. I think she’s part of the weather team. I just took the form because my queen said we needed a pegasus and she was the first one I thought of.” Raindrops said with a shrug.

“So, no kidnapped damsel in distress for me to gallantly save after defeating the horrible changeling menace? The Menace is the damsel all along? What, is every breezietale a lie?”

“Did you actually just snap?” Raindrops questioned.

“Maybe, so this whole time, it was you?” I replied.

“Yeah, I don’t even know if the real Raindrops even knows you exist.”

“Dude, I live in Ponyville. Now that I think about it, I've definitely seen Raindrops in passing at Sugarcube Corner. How did you come to have her disguise?”

“Oh, that’s easy, the wedding thing.”

“The wedding thing?”

“We’re not allowed to talk about it, the Queen literally gutted one of my sisters the first time someling talked about it after it happened.”

“That’s pretty messed up.”

I looked to see what Trixie and Lyra were doing, but they were still arguing about what to do with the changeling so I figured I’d try to learn a bit more about her.

“So uh, what’s it like being uh…”

I gestured my hooves in a general pony outline before pointing at her.

“A changeling?” She prompted.

“Yeah, that.”

“Well, I mean, I could ask you the same about being a unicorn. Honestly, we’re not that different all said, I mean, the big differences you probably already know about. I eat love, which is why I had to find a source here, you. Which I think is what you really want to ask me about.”

“Yeah,” I sighed, "I really do."

"Well, I won't sugarcoat it, you were a tool to me. A source of food and nothing else. Originally, changelings aren't meant to be able to make attachments with ponies. The queen actually keeps all of her harvesters unable to build attachments of any kind.

Oh mother, this conversation would be a lot easier to have if it were still that way. Ever since I first lost contact with the swarm, everything possible that could go wrong, has. I failed as an infiltrator, I was distracted. Distracted by you. At first I didn't know what to think, but the more I thought about it the worse it became. I needed to find you, be with you. Apart of it was survival instinct. I knew you were attached to me. I could feel it dripping off you like honey and I needed to eat.

There was something more though. A need to just see your smile. Hear your laugh. Smell your mane. I've never felt anything like it before and honestly, it scares me to death. And seeing you today risking everything to save me, it made up my mind. I need you Vinyl, like the grass needs the sun. I was so worried that monster would kill you and I'd never be able to tell you what I felt.

So, please Vinyl, while it is in your full rights to do so as I lied to you from the beginning. Please don't send me away. I need you."

"I..." I trialed off.

It was so weird. I had this alien creature professing its love for me after revealing its own duplicitous nature. I'd have to be an idiot to not believe her. So, my logic dictated that she must have been telling the truth.

I tried to speak, but the words just failed me. My pulse was racing and I could feel the corners of my eyes getting damp with blood again. I lurched forward, wrapping my hooves around her neck and burying my muzzle into her chitin. Shocked, she latched on tight. I could feel the sleek hard shell of her carapace, but I could also hear the steady rhythm of her heart.

"Raindrops, I want to trust you. Please, I really need you to not lie to me anymore. I just couldn't handle it if you were right now."

She clung in tighter. It was like a little moment of heaven, just the two of us, our hearts beating a million miles per hour.

"Hey," Trixie yelled, pulling me out of my daze. We have way bigger fish to fry right now."

I turned my head and gasped. Lumbering towards us were several really rough looking ponies. Not in the 'wrong side of town' kind of way, more of a 'they've been dead on the side of the road for several days' way.

Lyra looked at the shambling cadavers and asked, "Are those really zombies?"

Trixie's horn burst into a nova awash with eldritch flame. She bounded forward hurling a ball of fire straight at the first horror. Black tongues of negative energy joined the pyre as they ate at the rotting beast, slowing its’ movements. Despite the damage, it trudged forward one shambling step at a time, driven by some lifeless goal.

“Trixie needs everypony to grab onto each other. She's not very good at teleportation, but we need to get out of here.”

I grabbed Raindrops and dove towards Lyra as Trixie started to channel her magic.

Oh sweet Celestia, that tastes like blood.
I looked around to see I wasn't the only one who had lost the contents of their stomach; although, I was the only one who looked like they were at the site of a homicide. Trixie rose to shaky legs. She helped pull Lyra out of the puddle of booze and half digested food that she was sprawled on her back in. We were going to need baths or else we'd smell like the end of a frat party.

I checked on Raindrops, who looked a little shaken. She was panting heavily, but it looked like she was at least spared the nausea. I rubbed my foreleg across her back and squeezed her close to me. She was shaking hard, vulnerable. I could feel my fangs poking into my lips, my mouth salivating. I could smell something, not blood, but definitely life.

I pulled myself back. I couldn't do it. She turned towards me, and I could see my eyes glowing, reflected in in her hard icy blue ones. I needed to feed, and I needed to leave fast.

_____________

“Trixie, Trixie-” Belch “Trixie, where's Vinyl Trixie.”

“You need to lie down Lyra, you're really drunk.” Trixie scolded me.

I wasn't drunk, because if I was drunk, I would have known I was drunk. You don't become a college drop out without that knowledge. How much did I even drink? How much does Trixie's flask hold? Wait, maybe I was drunk, because I think I threw up, but maybe I should sleep. But the zombies, we had to do something about that.

I tried to cast a healing spell on my leg, but I couldn't remember how to. So, I laid down on my side. When I wake up, we can face the problems.

_____________

Think Trixie, what would Twilight do right now? There's gotta be some answer, some little mistake I'm overlooking.

In the caves, the rubbings, the underground facility; there had to be some sort of connection, what am I missing? The thestral had come off like she was in charge, but if that was so then why was this all happening? There had to be a bigger player at hoof… Octavia!

We had to find her. She has to be involved somehow. Her apparent attack on Lyra is proof of that.

“DJ, do you think you can find Octavia on the island?” I asked, only to be met with silence.

I looked around the clearing I had teleported us to, but beyond a scorched spot where we emerged, it was all but abandoned.

Oh, right, Lyra did say something about her leaving. This is literally why we had problems before, you can't split up in a crisis. Oh, and apparently our only real ally is a changeling, this is amazing.

I lowered my head, my ears dropping and my eyes watering a bit. We're all idiots. We are all going to die on this island. And worst of all, nobody is going to remember me as anything more than the total flank who enslaved a city and perpetually screwed things up.

Well, if I was going to die, it would be by my terms. This place wasn't going to break me! I am going to be more than a hoofnote in the annals of history! I'm a sorceress for Celestia's sake! I won't be some corpse lost in a cave! I won't go down without a fight! Whoever is behind this, whatever is going on, it won't break me!

I looked around for my hat but to my horror it was nowhere to be seen. It had to still be at our old camp.

“Lyra? Hey, Lyra,” I said, nudging her in the side.

“Wazzat? Trixie? Did Vinyl come back?”

“No, but I'm going to find her and go get my hat back. I can't carry you, but I can't leave you here like this. You're not going to like it either. You're really drunk but the alcohol should have done it's job by now, I'm sorry.”

She looked at me in confusion, her drunken stupor leaving her unable to really track what was going on. I lowered my horn to her and started casting.

_____________

Blood everywhere. I could smell it in the air, hear it pulsing through the veins of animals, but they didn't interest me. I could smell her perfume and hairspray. Years of being roommates had well acquainted me with her smells, and she was close. Octavia, I needed to find her.

Raindrops didn't think I knew she was following me, but I could hear her wings flapping. She had transformed back into her pegasus form and was tailing me. I had tried to lose her several times, but she was undeterred. The rhythmic flapping of her wings set the pace as I charged forward.

Ahead of me is the small out building with the entrance to that complex. I should've gotten the others, but they can't even keep up. They're both exhausted. So, I went alone. I have to keep them safe.

I braced myself as I kicked off the ground, smashing my shoulder into the door. Figured I'd just let myself in.

Clapping? Who's clapping, her…

“Octavia,” my voice was not my own, “why?”

“Vinyl, I'm so glad I get to see you again before it’s all over. My master told me to kill you, so I sent some of my puppets to your camp. I'm glad you escaped, really.”

“You almost killed Lyra! I almost died! Ponies have died! How does that not matter to you?”

“Because we will all be dead soon, reborn into a new world, free of famine and war, where everypony is equal, and life will start anew.”

“Do you really believe any of that? That sounds ludicrous.”

“Please believe me, I feel truly awful for what I've done, for the things I will do.” she almost whimpered.

“I want to, I really do, you're my best friend, please, just tell me who you work for.”

“Do you really think after all I've done I could ever find redemption in this life? Bah, it's too late now, as dusk falls, so too does the time of mortals.”

“Octavia, what happened to you, was it all a lie this whole time?”

“No Vinyl, I really do love you, even with your wubs and bad taste in mares. But, this will be the last time we talk as more than enemies. This world with its princesses is going to burn in the power of my lady. All brought equal and the world restored to it's natural order.”

“Then for this last time can we truly part as friends?” I asked, forelegs thrown out to gesture a hug.

She looked at me hesitantly, before taking a careful step forward.

“Okay, one last time,” she said, a tear in her eye as she threw herself into my embrace.

“I really did love you, you idiot Octi.”

Her screams and thrashing did not last long, her blood quickly sated my thirst as I took her essence into myself. As I pulled back she almost looked relieved, the life fading from her eyes.

“I'll see you again Vinyl.”

“Goodbye Octavia.”

Her heart stopped, she was gone.