Chapters Trixie was running, her breaths coming in painful gasps. She wanted to stop, wanted to rest but she knew that if she did they would reach her. With their empty eyes and rotted flesh and cracked teeth, if they caught her they would kill her and eat her, so she kept running through the blackness. Just when it seemed like her heart would give out and her lungs collapse Trixie saw a faint blue light in the distance, with the new found hope rejuvenating her tired body she ran towards it to find an old wooden cabin, sanctuary!
As soon as she entered the cabin through it’s front door she quickly closed and barred said door and all but flew around the one room building looking for some tool of salvation but all she found was an old and rusted fireplace poker plucked near a roaring fire. With her weapon held tightly in her magic she waited,ready to do battle against these...things and as the began to beat at the walls and door of the cabin and smash the windows in the light of the fire Trixie could finally see her pursuers clearly and by Faust she wished she hadn’t. All of them were ponies once but now they were a twisted mockery of life, some were a brilliant scarlet because what ever force reanimated them took their skin but left the muscle, others were bloated and blue as if drowned in ice water and more still were wrapped in bandages that mold long since took over turning them wholly a ghastly green.
Just as they were about done breaking in several bright blue motes of light swirled about and in a tone of pure authority said “Begone Shades!”, from those motes a pulsing wave of energy was emitted destroying the zombies, before Trixie could comprehend what had happened the lights swirled again to form the image of an older unicorn, his mane grey and receded with age wearing a sweater vest with the a cutie mark that was a star and moon on a book.
“Hello Trixie, Remember me?” The apparition asked.
“Of course I remember you Grampa,” Trixie answered smiling at her grandfather but before she could say anything more the pounding that she thought was the zombies grew louder and in an instant the world fell away.
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Trixie sat up quickly in the bed of her traveling wagon, trying to shake the sleep away as she got up to deal with who ever thought waking her at this ungodly hour was a good idea. she read her clock on her way to open the door and asked without looking at who was there, “What reason do you have for waking me at 3:33 in the bucking morning?!?!?” She looked at who she just yelled that to only to feel her ears pin to her head and her mouth to smile sheepishly as she recognised the uniform of the royal guard, but before she could stumble out an apology the stern looking guard said, “Sorry for the hour Ms. Lulamoon, But there has been an incident involving your grandfather,” His features softened as he continued, “I’m to escort you to his home in Hollow Shades and I am sorry for your loss.”
Trixie was stunned into silence and could only nod numbly as the guard began giving her instructions and only dimly did she notice when a chariot the guard must of lead he too, took off and began flying towards Hollow Shades and as it did fly Trixie felt alone with a wound that never healed, a filly’s pain that she had since the Canterlot Express derailed some time ago.
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When they landed in front of the mansion some time later, Trixie found her mind and body working again and quickly began asking any pony she saw “What Happened?” and after a few baffled responses, one of the guards pointed her towards an overweight earth pony in a long coat that covered his cutie mark,standing in front of a doorway shaking his head.
“Are you in charge here?” Trixie asked, her patience thin.
The pony turned to her, sympathy in his eyes, “Yeah I am, Detective Legrass of the Hollow Shades guards.” he stated plainly.
“Well than Legrass, What Happened? Where’s my grandfather?” She demanded.
Without saying anything Legrass turned and gestured to some ponies beyond the doorway and in short order brought out something on a gurney that was covered in a bloody sheet.
“Um, Brace yourself Ms. Lulamoon” Legrass said but Trixie only heard him briefly before all of her senses were focused on the sight before her. The corpse of an elderly stallion in a sweater vest now horribly stained with the cutie mark of a star and moon on a book. As her eyes began to venture farther than the vest and ornate necklace tied to the vest, she braced herself to see the vacant eyes of the corpse but where should be was only a jagged and bloody stump.
“Whaaa…” Was all she could say before her emotions flooded her.
Legrass made another gesture and the ponies there returned the sheet to the corpse began rolling it out, and as he moved to put a comforting hoof on Trixie’s shoulder she slapped him and with tears in her eyes said, “What was that about? Why did you show me that?”
Rubbing his now sore check Legrass sighed and said, “I’m sorry but it’s my job and as the only living relative you had to ID the body. Was it him? Was it Star Tome?”
Regaining some composure she answered, “Yes it was, that was our family crest on that necklace.” She was silent a moment before asking, “What did that to him?”
“I wish I knew,” He closed his eyes and sighed before continuing, “None of this makes any sense, all the doors and windows were locked and it was something strong to rip his head off but there’s no evidence of anypony being here but your grandfather and us after the fact but I promise you will get who ever did this to him!” He finished with enough steel in his tone that Trixie guessed meant that whoever did do this might not see a courtroom and she was fine with that, Blood is repaid with blood after all.
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Two weeks,one wagon delivery, a funeral, will reading and no clues later, Trixie stood in the foyer of her ancestral home in her usual dress and looking at the grand staircase before her that leads to the second floor along with the doors on the first floor but she had the second floor key held firmly in her magic and was determined to succeed where the investigators failed.
She looked around the foyer and made note of all the family portraits of Lulamoons past and as she studied them there was something about each that unnerved her as if their gaze saw more than painted canvas should or maybe it was a look as if they knew something of what was going on but didn’t feel inclined to tell. Either way Trixie decided that musing on paintings won't answer a thing and thought that a good place to start was her grandfather’s bedroom or study. SO she reached into her hat to pluck out the key that opened the second floor and began to ascend the stairs.
As she approached the solid oak double doors that lead to the second floor and by extension the bedrooms and bathrooms, she placed the old silver key into the lock and turned it but instead of hearing the turning of tumblers she heard a short metallic whine and pulled back the key to find that it had broken and that she had only half of it.
It took a few minutes of fishing to get the half with the teeth out and even with her magic she couldn’t keep the key solid enough to turn the tumblers and in her frustration turned and kicked the doors with both of her rear legs. There was a solid whomp of impact but the doors did not give.
“Great now I have to call a locksmith to get in my own second floor!” Trixie put the broken key in a pouch in her hat and after a failed attempt to pick the lock which Trixie is sure it is enchanted to prevent such things, she walked down the stairs and through the doorway to the kitchen to grab something to eat and plan her next move.
The kitchen of the Lulamoon mansion was just as she remembered it, boxes bags and cans of non perishables, a stove and a table set for one with enough dust on it to make her think that it had been much longer than two weeks since her grandfather Star Tome Lulamoon had used it and the stack of take out boxes near the trash can confirmed the suspicion.
Trixie shook her head smiling sadly and said to herself, “Oh grandpa, you can find your way around an ancient necropolis in Prance but utterly lost and confused in your own kitchen.”
Soon the amusing mental image faded and Trixie felt once more sad and alone and in need of spirits, “Grandpa kept the good wine in the pantry.” She mused to herself as she went to the pantry and turned the handle, only to find it wouldn't budge, frustrated Trixie prepared a magic strike and unleashed at the stubborn door only to see her magic diffuse and a plaque appear with a some rune on it and what looked like a sword beneath it.
Frustrated again Trixie couldn’t help but scream, “WHO MAGICALLY LOCKS A PANTRY!!!” , after fuming for a bit Trixie thought sullenly, “Maybe there is some madeira wine in the music room.”
After filling a bowl with some dry cereal and beginning to munch on it she made her way out of the kitchen to the music room to find some wine but as she entered the old room her hope for the sweet libation died as she saw the state of the room with much of it’s furniture covered in sheets with a sprinkling of dust and cobwebs with the exception of the old grand piano,”Well” She thought to herself,”Grampa was never much of a musician.” She sat down on the bench in front of the piano and tried to play only to hear the striking of out of tune wires and to kick up a cloud of dust.
After coughing on the dust Trixie retreated covering her cereal to leave but stopped as she saw a picture above the old fireplace that was of three sigils of different colors in some cyclic relation to one another along with a fourth one in the center of the three.
With the hopes of wine now firmly dashed Trixie decided to head to the library to perhaps find a spell of mending for the key or at least a couch to stretch out on till morning when she could call a locksmith. As she entered the library and cast a simple spell to light the fire she was faced with the old room and the smell of old books.
Her gaze wandered around the room and it’s shelves filled with lore, history and even the stories starring her favorite book hero of Darren Do from when she was a filly. Eventually her gaze went to where she had seen the guard wheeling out her grandfather’s corpse and couldn’t find a trace of the horrid affair in the library.
“Wow, the guards do a decent clean up job,” Trixie mused looking around the room, “Can’t even tell he died here,” Looking down for a bit she noticed a book that fell of a shelf, the book was called The Golden Bough and as she picked up the tome a piece of paper fell out that read in a shaky penmanship 3:33 is the key.
Trixie felt her brow arch as she looked at the paper, “Well isnt that helpful,” she said sarcastically as she walked towards the rear of the library towards her grandfather’s writing desk she felt cool air come from a bookcase to the left of the desk. Putting down the cereal she started searching through and around the bookshelf but couldn’t find why air was coming from this shelf as she turned to look at the desk again she saw an old grandfather clock that while ticking the hands weren’t moving, “Could it be that simple?” she asked herself as her magic moved the hands to 3:33 and as her grip left the hands, she heard gears whirring to life behind the wall and soon the bookshelf receded enough to allow her passage through the hidden hall.
She walked through the hidden hallway to the secret room and as she entered it she dropped the bowl in shock as she saw what was there, from a diagram of some evil pillar, to a giant stone head, a short sword hanging on a wall, a stone fragment and on the desk of this room was a book, with what appeared to be bones used for the books spine and skin for it’s cover. Trixie felt an oily cold presence wash over her from the book and as much as her rational mind wanted to run screaming, it was as if the cold was beckoning to her and against her better judgement she sat down at the desk and opened the book and suddenly her mind was full of images from some great writhing mass of flesh covered in eyes and maws in some great stone complex, a grand cathedral, a stone pillar in a desert and her grandfather in front of a giant worm.
Shaken by the thoughts Trixie falls backward and from the floor she saw under the desk a silver flask, after grabbing it and giving it a shake she heard a slushing sound and after opening and giving it a sniff, her mouth began to water at the smell of the wine and after a quick swallow smiled because of the taste of the madeira and with her new fortifying agent she looked at the book and said to it, “Bring it on.”
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“I had no knowledge of what was to come. Nor did I care. How the knowledge changed me... It will also change you. As you read this, you will come to learn fear as I have. You too, will come to understand, or you will perish. To think that once I could not see beyond the veil of our reality, to see those who dwell behind. My life now has purpose, for I have learned the frailty of flesh and bone. I was once a fool…”
Righteous Guard
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1000 years before the first Hearth’s Warming, the emperor of the pegasi empire, Kaesar Salade whose dreams were haunted by artifacts of great and terrible power and in desire of said artifacts, sent his soldiers to every corner of the empire, even to the empty quarter of the Saddle Arabian desert.
“Congratulations centurion Righteous Guard, your strategy against the bandits was inspired. But I must ask do you believe there is anything out here?" Asked a blue pegasus legionare.
“I don’t doubt the emperors faith or his orders. So follow orders,” Replied a tan pegasus in the decorated galea.
“Of course sir," answered the legionare striking his chest in salute before departing.
“Hold!” The soldier stopped to turn his gaze back towards Righteous, “Make sure everypony has enough water and food, lest we join the sand of this desert.”
After the soldier had left Righteous returned to his patrolling of the area. But all at once, on the winds he heard faint words:
Righteous. Come to us Righteous, the winds cooed.
The centurion drew his sword and held it firmly in his mouth as he tried to trace the words he heard back to a source but as he was searching for the source he stumbled upon a circle of five great standing stones and as he neared the center of the circle yellow energy began to arc back and forth between the stone and before he could sound his surprise the energy lashed out towards him and the world went black.
He awoke with his cheek on a cold stone floor as he sat up and opened his eyes he found himself on some dais in a room he’d never seen before, as he looked around he saw his gladius laying next to him and after arming himself he saw a ladder in a pit in the center of the room with no other options available he followed the ladder down to an ancient corridor that had several desiccated corpses in it.
“By the Titans,” He swore under his breath as he walked down the corridor. Near the end of the corridor he found a block of polished granite with a glowing sigil on it, as he held it in his hooves to better examine it, the corpses all began to creak and stir and soon stand up to start the shambling towards him. Righteous was stunned but soon military doctrine and battle forged reflexes took over and his gladius went snicker snack and cleaved the animated corpses in twain. With those abominations vanquished, Righteous put the block of granite in his pack and continued on his explorations of the complex and in the next several rooms he found more animated corpses and three more blocks of polished stone but each with a different sigil. As he got to the intersection of a t-shaped hallway he saw the door to his left was blocked by a field of yellow energy, so he went right and through the doorway Righteous entered what he could only describe as a colloseum for that was the only word he could think of to capture the essence of the great chamber and in a nice surprise as he surveyed the room, there seemed to be no corpses here to animate along with four great designs each with a grand rune over them and with a small void near the base of each. On an instinct Righteous put one of his blocks into a space that matched the symbol on the wall and found it slid in easily. Smiling to himself he quickly did that to the other three blocks and as he finished he saw a wave of energy come from the center of the chamber.
As he made his way to the exit of the room from the center he suddenly heard in some guttural tongue Chattur’gha Pargon Tier Aretak Pargon and red energy pulsed in the center of the room for only a second before coalescing in the form of a big pony who seemed to have been skinned. Righteous readied his blade and struck true rending the head from the creature and with another pass took the things forelimbs but where that seemed to end the smaller dead this one kept trying to move as it lied on the floor.
Righteous felt his ears pin to his head as he watched the flayed corpse suddenly regrow not only it’s limbs but it’s head, feeling panic begin to take him he quickly removed the head and limbs again and this time as it lay on the ground he began to trample it under his hooves and stab it with his sword till it stopped moving.
With the thing finally slayed he left the room to find the field that was blocking the other path now gone and as he walked through the doorway he found another dais with three obelisks surrounding it, as he walked on to the dais energy began to arc between the obelisks and he found himself in another room with of all things a statue of himself.
Prove your resolve, Righteous, Crush it cooed the voice on the wind again. As he examined the statute of himself with his fore limbs raised as if to tremble some enemy and as he examined it the voices continued, never relenting and in a moment of frustration in a moment of wanting peace he raised his sword and cleaved the statue’s head off before turning around and hitting it’s chest solidly with his rear legs breaking the facsimile wholly.
As looked over the rubble a wall in the rear of the room slid down revealing a secondary chamber and in that chamber sitting on a pedestal was a floating crystalline object, reminiscent of a jellyfish but as he motioned out his hoof to grab it blue lightning struck him firmly and in that instant he felt his blood boil and his heart explode but he did not die for soon the power that killed him soon filled him and gave him knowledge of the truth of things and what his purpose truly is and a new form in which to complete it, that of a liche the eternal undead.
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The return from the ante chamber from the heart of the ancient city was uneventful as any of the constructs of flesh and bone that tried to slow his path quickly met an end from his new arcane powers. Arcing bolts of blue energy would strike them in their chest and they would fall to the ground as ash before the bolt finished passing through a second construct.
With every bolt thrown and being of animate flesh and bone destroyed he felt his power grow and the rush of it felt divine. Soon he found himself at the dais where he started his trek, and where apprehension and curiosity was once felt now only knowledge and certainty of purpose existed. As he stood on the center of the dais with a wave of his hoof the energy built up in the design and soon he was back in the desert, standing between the great standing stones. With a smile stretching his now dried lips he made his way to the encampment.
As he walked back towards his old tent he could feel the gaze of all present fall on him and he loved it.
“Halt!” Came a shaky voice. Righteous swung his gaze till it fell on the tan pegasus he spoke to earlier holding his gladius as if he was ready to strike.
“Did you give the ponies extra provisions?” He asked the tan legionare, giving the weapon no mind.
“What?” The tan guard asked, confusion easily seen on his features before they hardened again lifting his blade as he demanded, “What are you saying abomination!?!”
“Abomination?” Righteous asked with dry amusement in his tone. “ I am you commanding officer son.”
“Righteous? Is that you?” The soldier asked, his sword falling to the ground.
“Of course! Now gather the guards and workers. I have found the truth.” He answered feeling his lips tighten into a ghastly parody of a smile.
“Truth? Was the emperor’s dreams true?” The soldier’s face broke out in a manic grin, “You found it Righteous! Praise the titans!”
Just hearing the mention of those being who he once worshipped before he had learned what a true god was caused anger to boil up from his chest as he spat the words: “Forget the Titans and that old fool Kaesar Salade! Ulyaoth is the truth of all things and I shall share his enlightenment with you all.” He said speaking even louder so not only to the soldier in front of him heard but all those around aswell.
From all around him he heard the response from his former underlings who answered with cries of Heresy, Blasphemy and Treason! from all those gathered around and in front of him the tan guard had readed his stance again, with blade held high ready to strike and said trying to hide any fear, “Righteous, Surrender the artifact and your end shall be painless”
Righteous felt an eyebrow arch and shook his head. With a sigh conjured up the power of his lord and released a corrosive wave of power and he watched as it played out, unmaking those around him leaving only burnt bones, cooked flesh and scorched armor.
His gaze fell on the remains of the young pegasus that tried to stop him and could only muse, “You could have held the truth of things,” He looked around to all the remains, “You all could have had the power! But alas only a few of us are blessed to hold and understand the way of things I suppose.”
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“Aeons have passed since then, and I have learned much. All at once, I understood. The forces of the multiverse all made sense under the transcending power of Ulyaoth. No mountain too high, no city too far. Face me, and you shall surely perish!”
Righteous The Liche
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As she finished reading the last words on the page her mind cleared, “What was that?” She asked herself, “It was as if I was there, as if I was him! Oh grandpa what is happening?” she finished in a half sob and as she sat there still trying to understand what had happened her eyes caught the old sword again.
She walked to it and picked it up in her magic and gave it a few swings and did the same with it in her mouth and the weight of the steel in either her magic or mouth was a comfort and as she swung it stances and combat forms entered her body and muscle memory took over and after another minute of practice with it she found a scabbard under the display and strapped it to herself, the feel of it comforting but as she stood there she remembered she had never been trained in the use of a sword at all and the only muscle memory that should return was her old ballroom dance lessons. She shook scared and confused and as she stared at the cursed tome again she felt in heart a dread of inevitability but even so she couldn’t help but ask, “Oh Fuest on high what is happening to me?”
She could no longer stand with the flask drained and her psyche strained all she could do was hold herself on the floor of the secret study and whimper. She couldn’t help it her mind was full of thoughts and desires to alien to be her’s and yet too familiar not to be, the urgent need to warn King Gilded Mane, a burning desire for an adventure, Dedication to prove that a love is true,and more, all those feelings causing a maelstrom in her mind that would not relent.
On the verge of tears Trixie looked around the room for anything that could ease her suffering and for a brief moment entertained thoughts of falling on her sword but before those thoughts could take root her gaze fell upon a small statue of a white alicorn with a red mane rsting on a nearby shelf and the storm quieted enough to bring the image of a griffon monk to her mind and how he dealt with the blasphemy so long ago and soon enough she found herself saying prayers and litines in a tongue she did not but with the ritual of those words her mind began to calm and she opened her eyes long enough to see the old griffon monk smiling down at her before disappearing into swirling motes of pale light, “Stay strong, Little one” came a voice from the lights as they vanished.
With a growing steadiness Trixie began to rise from her place on the study’s floor and make her way back to that cursed tome. As she looked down on the last entry of holders of the book and saw a younger version of her own grandfather on the page staring back, she couldn’t help but laugh a bitter laugh, “Stay Strong? Why? They won we lost. Game over!” Staring at the book she couldn’t help but loathe it. It and the knowledge that all of Equus was just some game to theses things and that ponies or griffins or whatever were no more important to them than a roach.
In her mounting frustration she picked up the book and threw it across the room and in it’s arc an envelope and a piece of metal fell from within it's pages. Curious Trixie went to investigate and found that the piece of metal was a pendent of some gold alloy with a design of three circles and a triangle connecting them. The sight of it caused the voice and desires of a long dead messenger to fill her but through her own will she took her eyes off it to look at the envelope and found it was addressed to her, after opening it, it read:
Dearest Beatrix, If you are reading this than I must ask for your forgiveness for being unable to keep you out of this whole ordeal. It was never my intention that you get involved but I do understand that it is a very real possibility that my age may stop me from acting with the swiftness needed and I again I am sorry but that is where you come in because I know you are the only one who can stop him and to help with that I have left you a focus of the ancients magick and the knowledge of it I have hidden as well, Sorry for that but I must separate the lock from the key and I fear that if Righteous finds my notes on that accursed magick he may very well become unstoppable but know that he is not now and well it may seem dark that only means the light is easier to find.
Love,
Pop pop Star Tome
Trixie saw the world grow blurry as she finished the letter, even in death her grandfather believed in her, even in death he thought the was hope, “Well then for you Pop pop,” She stopped to smile at a name given by a young filly, “I’ll try to fight them.”
She picked up the old book and began to flip through it because one part of the letter confused her, “Notes on their magick? Shouldn’t that information be here?” she asked herself as she looked and upon reaching the section where spells and runes were once kept she found only a gap in the book with evidence that the pages were cut out and in their place was an instant photo of her grandfather smirking with the massage, “Suck it Ulyaoth cronies” written in marker on the back of the photo.
She stared in disbelief of the photo and felt one eyebrow arch, putting the photo back all she could was shake her head as she paced about wondering, “If I was Star Tome where would I hide my notes?”. Her gaze fell on the discarded bowl and spelt cereal and had an insight into the mind of her grandfather.Quickly she collected the book and made her way out of the secret study to the one room in the manor that Star Tome would find truly vexing and alien, The Kitchen.
Once more Trixie stood before the pantry, still locked by an arcane seal and with a stronger purpose then hunger she started trying to deduce how to open it.
It didn’t take long before she ran through the list of dispelling magic that she knew, tried raming the sword into the slot and tried picking the lock with lock picks but all that accomplished was breaking many of the picks. Her new strategy was to bang her head against the door. As she rhythmically pounded her head against the wood a memory of a long ago lesson came loose.
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“Pop pop?” Asked a small powder blue filly who was still young enough to have rounded baby syllables in her speech, “How do urth ponies make magic?
“Magic? What do you mean, Like spells?” An older stallion asked in return.
“Well may be, cause in kida garten Mrs. B my teacher is a urth pony but she’s always puwwing stuff wike chalk and stickers and juice out of nuthing and when I asked Momma and Dadda they just smiwed and wuaghed,” The little filly scrunched her face up in anger, “I don’t wike being wuafed at.”
“I don’t imagine you do, not many ponies like being laughed at but to answer your question that magic isnt a spell, nor is it really magic.”
“Is’s not?”
“Heavens no, it’s called misdirection.”
“Missed directions? Wike when Mommy misses a sign on the road?”
“No misdirection is one you make somepony look one way,” Waving his right hoof an an example, “But are doing something somewhere else,” Tickling the little filly with his left hoof.
Through a torrent of giggles the filly asked, “Is that how Mrs. B does it?”
“Well not as obvious as what I just did but yes, thats how all the great magicians became great even the unicorns, by making their audience look or suspect one thing then surprise them with another.” He finished looking at the filly whose face was scrunched up again but not in anger now in thought.
“Pop pop? Can I be a gweat magician when I gwow up?”
The elder unicorn smiled and answered, “I don’t see why not but if your gonna be a magician you gonna need a stage name, all the greats had one.”
“Das easy, I’m,” She stood up on her hind legs and fanned her fore legs out dramatically,”DA GWEAT AND POWERFUL TWIXIE WUWAMOON!”
“I’m sure you will be Trixie, I’m sure you will be”
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Trixie’s eye shot open as the memory faded and even tho her head hurt she wanted to kick herself for being so thick. “It was a rope a dope,” She scolded herself, “Lesson bucking one of stage magic.”
She glared at the pantry knowing now that it was only a distraction and again tried to think like Star Tome and where he’d hide something and she again thought of the piano, was it out of tune or was something on the wires?
Quickly she ran towards the music room and opened up the old piano to find resting near the center of the great instrument, was a large packet of papers.
Tripadation filled her as she used her magic to gently pull the papers out of the piano and after the quick application of a light spell she began to read what was in the packet to find that it was the missing pages of spells and how the magic of the ancients worked and how it could be worked along with many yellow runes and a blue one.
As she poured over the esoteric lore a parallel in arcane theory she knew well made itself known. “This magic is like ley lines, pick a big source of power channel it with a circle then shape it with foci” She said to herself. Surprised with how simple it was at least in theory but now it was time to put it to practice.
She searched the spells till she found the one she was looking for then fished the key out of her hat and sat it on the piano bench and after making sure she had the right runes and the circle ready she intoned, “Ulyaoth Antorbok Magormor”. Blue energy raced from the center of the golden medallion towards the broken key and in a flash of light and spark, the key sat there on the bench new and whole once more.
“Score one for the Great and Powerful Trixie,” Trixie said smirking to herself, “Now Let’s see what’s on the second floor.”
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This time the door and lock gave no trouble and Trixie couldn’t help but feel a little pride at defeating such an aggravating foe but that feeling was soon lost for as she passed through the doors she heard a dreadful moan and she saw shambling down the hallway was the animated corpse of some poor unicorn pony who must have drowned for that blueish color he now had. On panic fueled reflex Trixie fired a blast of magic but as it need the beast, it’s own horn briefly glowed and her spell was harmlessly grounded.
With her fear now causing her heart to pound like a great drum she frantically drew the old sword and with it held firmly in her teeth, she charged the horror and with one sold pass took out it’s left side’s legs but as she turned for another pass she saw the horror, stilling standing just disappear into nothingness. She just blinked and after a few stunned blinks she realized that the world was sideways.
After setting up and shaking her head she thought, “Did I pass out and dream that?”. That possibility died the second she noticed a new burn mark on one of the walls. “Hallucinations? Oh no I… I need something for my nerves yes something for the nerves.” And with the new plan set she made her way to the master bedroom in search of any calming agents.
The Bedroom was just as she remembered it, a great four post bed, a small desk to the side, a small personal library, fireplace, paintings of an unknown vintage, doorway to a private bath but what Trixie noticed the clearest was a small wine rack near the desk and the fact that it held a few bottles of wine.
“Oh come to mama, my sweet madeira,” With the bottle firmly held in her magic, Trixie used her teeth to pull out the cork. After spitting out the cork she took a long pull from the bottle, letting the rich taste of the fortified wine fill her. Afterwards she refilled the flask and began her investigation proper of the room.
A look of the desk revealed several old journal pages from her ancestor, Dr. Silverthread Lulamoon and they deal with him just inheriting the mansion after the death of his father and how it has affected him. A perusal of the library revealed many books by the like of Poe, Goethe and even H.P. Hoofcraft. Trixie couldn’t help but wonder if the books were there to remind her grandfather for the stakes of all this or if he needed a laugh at those who thought they knew despair.
One of the paintings caught her eye, it showed an ancient city with great cyclopean spires and shadows seemed to cling heavily to many of the structures. The plaque that named the painting read: The Corpse of the ancient city of Riap-shid. Trixie held her head as the memories of that city from both her ancestor Silverthread and her grandfather filled her head and again if only for an instant the sword looked good again but she held her ground and the tide of memory subsided but the experience did take a toll and blurrily she walked into the private bathroom to look for aspirin.
As she rummaged around the medicine cabinet for a moment Trixie thought she saw something near the bathtub and as she went to investigate her mind was filled with a vivid image of her self in the bathtub full of blood with self inflicted wounds on her forelimbs. Scared Trixie fell back proclaiming nearly screaming, “This isn’t really happening!” and with that proclamation the image fell away.
She worked through the tears as she found the aspirin and after taking the mild pain reliever, she fell on the bed and tried to find comfort in the pillows and sheets. As she laid there trying to hold herself together her gaze fell on the bottom drawer of a dresser and it’s lack of a lock or any way to open it. It was completely blank except for a blue triangle with a circle at each point.
Recognizing what t it meant she sat up on the bed and began poring over the runes and notes again and in barely a minute she readied the circle and once again intoned “Ulyaoth Narokath Redgormor”. A blue pulse emanated from the circle and within seconds the triangle faded away revealing a lock. Well wary of the lock Trixie didn’t feel like looking for a blasted dresser key so once again out came her picks but this time, the tumblers tumbled and the drawer’s lock clicked open.
Feeling quite satisfied with herself she opened the drawer to find a red rune, more notes from her grandfather and chitinous claw floating in a bell jar. The sight of the claw brought back memories of the hidden city in the empty quarter of the Saddle Arabian desert but instead of stopping her, the flames the memories conjured instead hardened her resolve and she had a pretty good idea what would be in the notes.
The notes confirmed that the relic and rune are related to the ancient Chattur’ Gha. The notes also hinted at a plan to use the power of the other ancients and the great circle in the city of Riap-shid to banish Ulyaoth for good.
“If these notes are right than the other essences must be here,” Trixie reasoned,a s she paced about the room trying to ride this hope to a solution she saw something under the master bed. A quick bit of fishing with her magic revealed it to be old but large saddle bags. She looked at both the bell jar she found and the tome she was carrying and it became obvious that the bag would be needed if she wished to keep things where she could see them.
With the bags secure under her cape and the tome, notes and essence secure in her bags and with a quick modification her cape now closed with the circle of power and the runes and spells were held in her hat, “Better than a rabbit” she idly thought, “Especially that demon rabbit from Ponyville”.
As she left the bedroom she saw at the other end of the hall a heavy set unicorn wearing an antique coat and wig, pull out griffin made black powder weapons and walk through the wall only to be followed by the sounds of the firearms detonation and screams of terror.
Gingerly Trixie made her way down to where the apparition disappeared to and began to examine the wall. Which seemed solid but she couldn’t help but notice a bulging in the wall paper. “Their might be a door behind here but hmmm.” she pondered but soon an idea formed and she couldn't help but smile.
She pulled out the old sword and began to hack at the wall and well it cut through the paper and plaster easily soon the swings were in vain. As she looked over her handy work she saw way the blade stopped being effective because beyond the plaster was a door, sealed with heavy boards.
Trixie reasoned quickly that the most likely of places for a tool that could aid her would be was in the basement. As she made her way downstairs to the basement she couldn’t help but feel the hairs on her neck stand on edge as if somepony was watching her but she continued on to find the basement door under the grand staircase and as she went to open the door she quickly jumped back and readied the gladius only to find that she was still alone. She shook her head and said to herself, ‘Come on Trixie, keep your wits about you.”
As she made her way down into the basement she couldn’t help but shudder knowing that soon she will have to walk into darkness,to find a path into a nightmare city to fight a liche but that is still of the future and more immediate concerns needed to be dealt with. Such as finding the other essences but first things first, finding a way to get into the sealed room.
Looking around the room see saw several casks of wine, an old safe as big as someponies, a workbench and several boxes full of this or that but what really caught her eye was a way into the sealed room, A great lumberjack’s axe. The axe was as long as she was tall and it’s bladed head must have weighed in excess of thirty pounds or more but it would do wonderfully to tear down the old boards and open the room to see what secrets it hid.
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Well swinging the axe was awkward at first Trixie was able to compensate for this by using both her fore limbs wrapped around the shaft of the axe and her magic as steadying force. While her trust pegasi sword dinged the boards, the axe on the other hoof ate them. Cleaving through one on every other swing or so and it only took moments for the boards to be sufficiently removed to allow access to the old door.
The door creaked and the hinges groaned as she pushed the door open, weary of what she might find and the axe held in her magic as a deterrent for anything but all she saw in the old room which hadn’t seen life in centuries it seemed was the remains of four beds with old blood stains now black with age and the charred bones of three ponies in the center of the room. The lack of a fourth body made the already gruesome sight even more terrifying, her mind trying to figure out where the fourth corpse was.
Again she shook her head trying to stay on target and try to find anything of use in this room that took such effort to enter. Another pass of her gaze revealed a pair of the old pistols resting on top an old book. Trixie set the axe aside and in the dimness of the room without the glow of her telekinesis she needed to cast a light spell to see what the book was about. It was an old medical book and on the inside of the cover it read in flowing letters Property of Dr. Silverthread Lulamoon. Curious Trixie began to flip through the book but for the most part it was just talking about anatomy and physiology of ponies and common problems that could arise at least how the medical community thought several centuries ago but in the back of the book were many loose pages.
As she began to examine the loose documents she soon realized what they were, autopsies but not of normal ponies but of the foul things the ancients would summon or animate and as she read them she soon understood why her ancestor entered this room and killed his servants. He had believed that the has all been taken over by a creature known as a bonethief. A spindly crystalline creature that prys it’s victim's mouth open with it scythe like arms and then crawls down the throat to make itself a nice home in the abdomen where it can control the body that is now only alive in the most technical of senses.
Revulsion and fear filled Trixie as she finished her reading and looking back at the bones, the missing body now took on a more ominous edge. ‘Hnh, Just because you're paranoid doesn’t mean they aren't out to get you,” Trixie finished with a weak laugh, grabbing the notes and axe and leaving the room quickly.
Well glad to have more information on possible threats Trixie couldn’t help but feel frustrated that there was no essence there again it felt like the only thing she could do was find a sturdy wall and beat her head against it and it only took a few whacks before she remembered choosing the sealed room over the study and felt both foolish and a headache coming on for doing so.
Her grandfather’s study was much like she remembered it, bookshelves densely filled with books, knick knacks and curios, A suit of Armor from old Unicornia, a desk organized in a fashion only he could ever decipher and a great cabinet filled with all many of weapons from swords and crossbows to more modern means like firearms and in the case was a great beast of a firearm meant to be used to defend one’s self from rogue elephants and other dangers native to the continent of Zebraca.
Thinking that it would be wise to have such a grand means of defense in her possession Trixie tried to open the case but the door did not move, angered she readed the axe and swung hard at the case only for a counter spell of red energy to stop the axe an inch before contact and send her flying into the opposite wall.
Trixie sat there for a bit just counting the stars that danced in her vision, barely hearing the great axe as it was dropped by the spell’s effect. The disconnection of events from herself the blow brought was intoxicating. For the first time in what felt like a lifetime Trixie didn’t feel the pain or sadness of loss, nor any weight and expectations. The lack of all these pressures was akin to the best drugs she had ever had. But what felt like too soon the stars began to fade and her brain began reconnecting thoughts and memories.
As she tried to get back on her hooves only to stumble and catch herself on the bookshelf, as she caught her breath there her eyes looked past of all things a collected edition of Power Ponies to find another circle of power but this one with circles at the corners of a pentagon as opposed to the triangle she currently held. As she reached out for it she found that it was resting on a piece of paper. The paper was another part of the accursed tome but it dealt with augmenting the ancient’s magick to increase the power of a spell and the rune to do so.
“Hmm, Pargon eh? Well now that is interesting,” As she read over the possible application of the new found power, the text made reference to using the rune and others to dispel magick so long as the magick was stronger on equal grounds than what was dispelled.
“Stronger on equal grounds? Who wrote this a philosophy major?” Growling Trixie put the page and rune in her hat and switched out the disks and put the old one in the saddle bag and real the new circle may be nice she still needed to make some headway. Frustrated that she keeps finding herself without a direction she began to pace about the study sure that the circle and page wouldn’t be left here without a reason and that was when she began to put pieces together, whenever Ulyaoth or his cronies were shown they were blue and the section based on Righteous’ memory had a red zombie be summoned and he was aligned with Chattur’Gha, red just like the rune that was also his. “Red and blue why does that seem so familiar?” she asked herself only to wish to kick herself for being so stupid and quickly she made her way to a certain painting in the music room.
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Standing in front of it now the painting’s significance was revealed, with Trixie knowing the meaning of the red and blue symbols and being able to guess at the green one in the circle or the purple one in the center of it. “Judging by the flow of energy suggested here, red topples green which topples blue which topples red, sounds simple enough.” Smiling Trixie made her way back to the cabinet with a smile on her lips.
Standing in front of the for lack of a better word armory, Trixie readied herself and began to cast the spell, “Ulyaoth Pargon Nethlek Pargon Redgormor,” She intoned and felt the energy focus itself in the circle she wore before realising and as she saw the energies clash only for the red field to disperse. As both spells ended Trixie again had to catch herself, feeling drained from the effort was just one side effect of the alien magick, as she looked around the room any angle she saw seemed too sharp and any curve became too indistinct and blurry. She felt like she was in one of those impossible paintings full of endless staircases and infinite bars of chocolate.
Still woozy but getting better she made her way to cabinet and found that it opened easily. She couldn’t help but feel some pride in herself as she began to rummage around to look for goodies. Such goodies included the big gun but only about a dozen shells and of all things a stethoscope with a small note that read, Trixie Remember lesson four?
“Lesson four?” She asked her mind racing trying to find a memory that linked to the words and soon images of bent bobby pins and open padlocks along with an ear held firmly against a small safe. “Lesson four! Of Course!”
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With the stethoscope in her ears and the bell of the implement on the safe near the wheel and began trying to crack the safe and soon enough the safe clicked open. She pulled the safe open and found in another bell jar with a green effigy reminiscent of a some warped angel and green rune, As she picked up the jar for the barest second the world seemed wrong. Yet Trixie could put her hoof on what changed when she held it so she wasted no time stuffing it in the bag next to the claw. and the rune joined it’s friends in her hat.“Alright,” She said with a grin, “Two down one more to go and I guess also figuring out how to get to Riap-shid but details really.”
But as she turned to leave she saw standing there the last pony she could think of, her Grandfather.
tanding there bathed in a blue light faintly glowing was Star Tome or at least his ghost. “Grandfather!,” Trixie exclaimed feeling joyous tears in her eyes as she went to be near the spectre
“Ahh Trixie my little filly.” He replied his tone neutral.
“Why are you here? How are you here?” She asked.
“The how is unimportant the way is simple before I can rest I must tell you something.”
“Speak it Grandfather,”
“It is simply this Trixie, ever since the Canterlot express derailed and your parents passed away you have been nothing but,” His tone shifted growing cold like the space between stars, “A burden to me.”
Trixie felt her whole world break as her heart shattered in her chest, even when it felt like something in her hat got lose and now rested warm on her scalp but she barely noticed, eyes brimming with tears all she could do was ask, “What? Pop pop?”
“Don’t Pop pop, me you disgrace of a Lulamoon,” The ghost’s tone now as hot as the surface of a star, “Can’t even win a crowd in a farming town and you get so hung up on that one pony town that you buy a dangerous amulet and try to take it over.” Venom began to drop from his words as he finished with, “Fool! that is all you are!”
Trixie reeled back as if struck, crying openly now as what was left of her heart sunk even further from the ghost’s words but soon the world began to be tinted green and before she could even react to it her eyes fell on the apparition and where sadness once ruled anger took it’s place because under the green haze Trixie saw not her grandfather but the animated corpse of the pegasus, Righteous.
Now shaking with anger, not hearing the lier’s words or giving him a reading that she knew her mind briefly flashed with that griffin monk again and a spell suddenly formed on her lips, “ Xel’lotath Nethlek Aretak” she all but screamed as a green bolt struck the apparition and shattered the illusion of her grandfather revealing the projection of the liche.
The liche’s apparition showed surprise for the briefest seconds before saying, “The monk’s creation? You're more resourceful than I thought, but no matter I-,” Trixie interrupted him with another blast from that spell and another.
“No talking, Think you can twist my heart?” Tears falling from her eyes that blazed with fire, “Hear this you ancient bitch! I am going to kill you and I am going to buck in the teeth of your god! FACE ME! and despair.” again the liche was stunned into silence at her tirade and before he could react Trixie screamed the incantation, “Xel’lotath Pargon Antorbok Pargon Aretak!” a column of focused green energy leapt from her circle and struck the liche in his chest causing the apparition to scream before it dissipated into nothingness than Trixie was once again alone.
She slumped to the floor and while there took her hat off to see what fell from it’s place to discover it was the green rune she just got from the safe, “Great if it wasn’t for dumb luck I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between an imposter and my own grandfather, I am a failure.” She finished dejected.
“Failure you say? Well that’s just an opportunity to learn,” came a far too jovial voice Trixie looked up from where she was sulking to see her grandfather again this time sitting by the stairs, with a groan Trixie responded between clenched teeth with, “I have no time for games Righteous, Xel’lotath Nethlek Redgormor!” Trixie almost blacked out from the energy the spell needed but she didn’t allowing her to see the wave of dispelling magick rush from her, towards the ghost to do...nothing.
“What?” she feebly asked, “How?”
“Oh stubborn filly, It’s me, Pop pop.” He responded with a smile as he went and knelt down by her, ‘And you have been pushing yourself too hard.”
There was no point in trying to hold anything back Trixie wept and told her grandfather everything and the old ghost listened and when she was finished he said “I'm so sorry Trixie, you’ve suffered so much in so little time.”
“It's not your fault Pop pop, I wanted to find who killed you and kick their teeth in,” they were silent for a time till Trixie asked her speech slurred with fatigue, “Why is the world all woshi wagi?”
The old stallion smiled as he spoke, “Because channelling the ancient's power is a strain on the mind and body and you did just rapid fire spell slapped the liche.”
“Alright alright,“ she was silent for another moment before asking, “What did he mean by the Monk’s creation?”
“There was a griffin monk who found the tome over a millennia ago, who was a scholar of the occult by the name of Gudmundur and when he fought against righteous he devised new ways to use the runes much to Righteous’ annoyance.”
“I’m so tired but still so much to do, the last essence and a path to the city and-”
“Quiet Trixie, you’ll find them in time I have faith in you but for now rest and dream of Darren Do. I’ll wake you in an hour or so.” And with that the world went mercifully dark for Trixie and her dreams took her grandfather’s advice and insured she was part of the adventure of one of her favorite book heros.
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Trixie awoke suddenly and bolted straight up, as she took quick inventory of herself and surroundings and noted that she couldn’t have been asleep long on the floor or else she would have had more aches she saw an old wine bottle full to the top of some faintly glowing elixir as she went to examine it she found a note tied to the neck of the bottle, it read Well not my favorite tipple but just a swallow should help you feel rejuvenated. Love Star Tome.
Smiling Trixie put the bottle in her bag and stretched, but as she did something her grandfather said kept bothering her. “Darren Do?” She asked herself, “Haven’t thought about him since I was a filly.” Her gut kept telling her that it was a clue and so she made her way up from the basement and towards the library.
As she entered the library, a wall in her mind she didn’t know was there broke, causing the storm of memories of the previous bearers of the tome to flood her mind. She felt herself fall to the cold wood floor of the room clutching her head at the pressure and weight of these personalities and their drives.
As she laid in the fetal position trying to ease the pain, she felt talons rest on head and thought her end had come. But it didn't; the talons just rested there. She could feel a warmth radiate from them that gave a sense of ease and security that made her think of a favorite shirt or a foal’s blanket, and soon the storm in her mind relented, once again behind the rebuilt wall.
Trixie looked up to see who had helped her and was greeted by the blue translucent form of the griffin she had seen earlier, with his talons on her head with his own bowed repeating a prayer. “The good monk Gudmundur, I presume?” She asked her voice rough and creaking like she had been crying.
He stopped his prayers and smirked as he replied, “I am a monk but as to being a good monk that is more up to debate.”
“What?”
“Well most monks weren't a former Godi or rune-carver of The Allfather.”
“But you're a monk of Faust.”
“Aye but I was not born a monk,” He laughed to himself. “No one is and it was because of my pagan upbringing that I was able to be such a thorn in the liche’s side if only for a short time.” He paused and looked up as if watching the movements of things that Trixie could not herself see. "But we must hurry, our time is short and I fear you couldn’t handle the stress if the wills of the old bearers overtook you again.”
“But what can I do?”
“Find the last essence and make your way to the corpse city and end this nightmare!”
“I don’t even know how to get to the city and even if I did I don’t think I am strong enough to beat him!"
“Little one," He said his tone like warm tea or maybe for his case mead. "You are strong enough. There are not many how can claim to have paid such impudence to Righteous and live to tell of it. And as for traveling I am sure you grandfather has left you the means for that aswell. He was the sort to be ready for most things.”
“But where would I even look for the last essence?”
As the monk’s spirit dissipated Trixie could hear as if spoken from a long tunnel, “Remember his last words before your dreams.”
And with that Trixie was alone with her body shaking from the stress of it all. Yet with her mind now calm she thought furiously trying to decode any hidden meaning in her grandfather’s words about Darren Do, but not finding any she decided to find the old books and see if a clue was there.
The books were where she remembered them being kept and lo and behold the entire Darren Do series by C.S. Yearling was there along with the books by his daughter A.K. Yearling but as her eyes skimmed the titles one didn’t fit, a story called Darren Do and the demon of Gouxia. Trixie had read the entire series cover to cover and had no memory of this story and as she pulled the book out she found that it’s dust cover was just a mockup and the real story was Darren Do and the Monk’s Legacy. as she was about to put the book back she saw that the book was hiding a small that was almost flush with the wall. Curious she pushed it and heard gears whir and some levers click and then part of the wall paneling nearby opened up.
She peered in the secret compartment smiling as she saw a black heart floating in a bell jar and purple rune and a seven point circle of power and more of her grandfather's notes. “Well, now I just need to find a way to the city.” She said as she put the final essence in her saddle bag and put the rune with the others and the circle on her cape. As she thought on her next course of action she began to read notes on this magick her grandfather had left. As she read on it became clear to her that Star Tome was building on the work of another, perhaps the work of Gudmundur and the work theorized the possibility of using this magick to create a teleportation spell that should deliver the caster safely to whatever destination they wished provaded she had something that resonated with the desired location.
She made her way back to the secret study to look of anything of use and found in odd fragment of stone on the desk but as she looked at it and the lines upon it she couldn’t help but feel she has seen something like it before, her gut told her to hold on to it as well as go back to the study proper.
Her gut was right the stone she first thought was a paper weight matched the stones and designs in the painting of the city, which meant she now had her resonance and in another dash of insight took the painting from it’s mount to find on it’s backing a completed version of the teleportation spell with all many of figures, formula and power calculations already finished, quickly she began to construct a proper magic circle with a piece of chalk she found in the saddle bag along with writing out the runes and insight of the notes on the painting's back and soon it was done and she sat in the center of the circle holding the stone fragment.
Before she cast the spell she made sure she had everything she would need and even grabbed the elephant gun and the shells and with that slung on her back she took her place in the center of the circle and began to chant, “Ulyaoth Pargon Tier Pargon Pargon Santak Pargon.” The spell’s energy enveloped her and the stone and both began to pulse and soon the energy released and the world of the study around her faded away.
The air was cold, stale and musty in the corpse of the great city of Riap-shid but Trixie only noticed that fact only dimly for it felt as if her head and hooves were filled with powdered lead and her lungs burned as if she was breathing in fire and flames. The black blanket of spell exhaustion was closing in and she didn’t know if she wanted to fight it. The idea of just letting the world and all it’s trouble’s go was so tempting but the image of an old stallion’s headless corpse and that of a being who wear that stallion's form entered her heart and mind giving her enough energy to work through the haze and to take a swig from the bottle Star Tome gave her. Her eyes shot open as the drink went down her throat feeling like frozen lightning as it went from her stomach out towards her limbs, reenergizing the whole of her being. Where once fatigue and despair dwelled, hope had blossomed in to replace it. Where her mind was clouded and confused was now clear as a bell. She even felt her mouth form a vicious little smile, “That’s the ticket, Worth tasting like burnt coffee.” she made a check of her surroundings feeling an energy marker from where her spell brought her, “My path back I suppose,” she idly mused to herself but she turned to face the entry to the great city and it’s massive central pillar.
Her face hardened as she looked on at the great tower and of the city more than likely filled with nightmares of a bygone age but she straightened her hat and bags and made sure her cape was clasped and with the ancient sword at the ready she made her way to the gates, ready to face any challenge before her.
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Trixie was running for her life, dodging around the animated corpses only sparing quick glances for her eyes to confirm what she could hear and feel in the ground. A blue bipel beast vaguely reminiscent of a great ape was chasing her though how it could see her despite having three mouths and no eyes was another question, one Trixie really didn’t want answered so she ran as the horror squashed those too slow to escape it’s path. Trixie wasn’t slow and ducked into a side alley.
The great horror continued it’s chase and as it lumbered into the alley raising one of it’s great limbs to smash the pony, it’s limb met a field of purple energy that caused it to recoil and before it could do anything more, Trixie bellowed holding the big gun that was glowing with green energy, “SUCK ON THIS UGLY!”, the plume of flame left one barrel of the big gun and the shot caused the great horror to jerk violently to one side, a steady stream of a blue ichor came from it’s wounds. Angry it tried to charge at Trixie and well the shield spell did break not before it’s backlash ended the beast.
She stared at the defeated foe, idly rubbing where she had the gun braced, feeling the beginnings of a bruise start to form but she did her best to ignore it as she picked up the saddlebag and piece of chalk that helped her form the barrier and she replaced the spent shell in the gun and noted that she only had five shells left,including those in the the gun before she slung it on her back once more, as well as holding her sword at the ready and noticed that it’s edge was chipped the blade itself was beginning to warp. With a sigh she intoned the spell, “Xel’lotath Pargon Antorbok Pargon Magormor,” and watched as the green energy raced and danced along the sword, straightening and restoring it as well as infusing it with energy at least for a while.
As she gave the sword a few practice swings, she lost her balance for a second as her head began to buzz, she reached into her bag to pull out the potion and took another swig from it and in a moment’s time the buzzing in her head and unsteadiness of her limbs left her. As she looked at the bottle her grandfather left her, she noted that it was already half gone, “How ever this potion works I must be reaching its limit as well as my own,” From her spot in the alley she looked up towards the central spire still forlornly looming above her, “Guess it’s time to give this magick a rest and do things old school.”
She left the alley and turned towards the tower and saw that several zombies blocked her path, the first one no more that ten feet away lurched at her, she countered with a quick sidestep then with all the force her horn could muster she flung the gladius at the creature and the glowing blade buried itself half into it’s skull quickly falling over dead again. She retrieved the sword in time to remove a limb of another undead that had tried to grapple her. As it slaked to one side due to it’s missing limb Trixie kicked it hard enough to hear bones crack and as it fell over unable to move she removed it’s head with one quick motion.
In moments the small group of undead was no more, with a quick flick of her magic the ichor flew free of her sword and sheathed it and used a free hoof to wipe the sweat from her brow and began her solemn march.
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As she neared the doors of the great tower, she readied herself by recasting the enchant item magick on both the sword and gun and also cast a shield magick on herself. Steeling herself so she can take on this darkness eternal before opening the doors a thought crossed her mind that made her smile a mischievous smile.
The doors of the tower swung open with great force causing the Liche in the center to jump back and shield his eyes from the torrent of wind that held them open, “Righteous Guard! Your reckoning comes!” bellowered the blue and quite pissed off mare. The Liche countered with a bolt of black lightning that he sent forth at Trixie only for it to pass through the image before he could react two loud booms filled the hall and Righteous heard and felt his armor splinter under the impact of the blow followed by another such blow and another only to be finished with an enchanted gladus entering his chest pinning him to the floor.
Before she left the prone Liche she kicked him hard enough to knock some teeth out and still smiling to herself began walking about his ritual area to figure out how best to undo his working. She was on her way to get her bag by the entrance when there was a detonation of power that caused her to go flying through the air and land in a heap.
“Impudent Charelaten Mage of a Child! Did you honestly believe that me the servant of the great mage-god Ulyaoth. Could be bested by an old sword or fire stick? Even with the magicks you’ve stole you have lost. Not even a miracle could save you now.” and with that the Liche turned away from Trixie to continue his work on summoning his god.
Trixie laid there partially because she felt utterly defeated and partially because she wasn’t sure she could move if she wanted to. as she laid there her mind drifted and reflected on many things of her life including a conversation from long ago.
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A blue unicorn sat at a table in a library fiercely writing on a piece of paper, she was not yet a mare nor was she a filly anymore if her cutie mark was anything to go by but her braces hammered home the fact that she was a teenager.
“Grandfather!” She nearly yelled, “I don’t get this bucking worksheet!”
“Language! Trixie I did not raise you to talk like a street trotter.” Came a stern stallions voice from across the table,as he sat down the book he was reading and picked up the worksheet he gave it the once over and said, “And this is just basic magic theory and how magic can take shape be it a spell or runes or even song sometimes spontaneously so.”
“Spontaneous magical song? Really grandfather?” She asked a skeptic’s eyebrow arched.
“Yes well ponies bursting into song is rare here in the city but more rural locals like Appleloosa or Ponyville they are much more common but they can happen anywhere one common place is as guests enter the Grand galloping Gala for the first time.”
“Okay..” She saids till a bit skeptical, “Why do they do it?”
“Well,We ponies all of us are innately magical and that can cause are emotions to run high, it’s believed by some that the songs help keep are internal mana in check while others think it’s a way to spread good cheer or maybe even as a defense mechanism against hostile magic. Just like the appendix we really don’t know.” He continued to look over her work sheet before flipping it over and asking, “see me dominate because I’m powerful and great?”
The blue pony’s face turned a bright shade of scarlet as she grabbed the worksheet and song on the back away from her grandfather and tried to mumble an explanation as the older stallion just shook his head and laughed.
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Her eyes shot open and by her own resolve or stubbornness she stood up again, ready for one last go at the Liche. She focused on every good memory she had began to draw power from them as she made her way towards the Righteous in his circle, He turned and scoffed at her, “What’s this worm, Another pitiful trick?”
She smiled and was happy to oblige his perfect start up line. So she opened her mouth and sang, “You better believe I’ve got tricks up my sleeve, See me dominate cause i’m powerful and great!” The song not only flummoxed the old Liche but seemed to be healing her or at least allowing her to ignore her pain and not willing to lose her advantage she pressed on, “ You think you’ve got what it takes to go blow to blow, I’ve got more moves than you’ll ever know I own the stage I’m all the rage, you’re from the past I’m from the space age!”
She rushed him and hit him hard with an energy backed right hoof, the blow causing him to stumble about drunkenly trying to remember how to bend reality to his will and walk a straight a line too, “ No! This is impossible, You should be broken and begging for death. How? He asked backing away from the mare.
“Don’t mean to brag don’t mean to boast but I’m a six course meal and Righteous? You're just burnt toast Think I’m gonna give up? No! Never ever ever ever!” And with that the song and the magic tied up in it reached its crescendo and cascaded out of her it was as if Equestria itself was aiding her as the power engulfed him and annihilated him leaving nothing but the remains of his armor and what acted as his core for so long, a blue statue suggestive of a blue jellyfish sat there and as she picked it up a horrible alien voice filled her being.
“THINK YOU CAN STOP THAT WHICH HAS BEEN IN MOTION SINCE BEFORE YOUR COUNTRY FORMED?” It asked.
But Trixie ignored it and with her bag once again in her grasp began going over notes and setting up all the essences.
“STOP!” it commanded, “I AM A GOD! MY WILL WON’T BE DENIED!”
Again Trixie said nothing but felt a smug satisfaction as the god floundered and tried to bribe her.
“POWER, RESPECT I CAN GRANT YOU THESE THINGS.
She was almost done setting up the essences and was now changing up the lines of the circle and the runes of the spell.
“I CAN GIVE YOU THAT WHICH WILL LET YOU OUTSHINE THE SPARKLE!”
Trixie paused for a second and was treated to an image of herself wielding immense arcane power and being called the greater mage by Twilight herself but her gaze fell on the remains of the last one who was promised power from Ulyaoth and she finished the preparations.
“FOOL I WOULD GIVE YOU ANYTHING YOU DESIRE! AND-” He continued but she ignored him instead put all her focus and the last of her reserves towards what may very well be her greatest, most powerful and possibly final magic act. “Mantarrok Pargon Pargon Bankorak Pargon Pargon Aretak Pargon Pargon!” She intoned and with the first spell cast purple light from the heart wrapping around Ulyaoth’s essence.
“NO I SHANT DIE!” He yelled causing the city to shake around her but still she spoke the next spell, “Chattur’gha Pargon Pargon Nethlak Pargon Pargon Aretak Pargon Pargon!” With the second spell cast weights of red energy formed around the claw of Chattur'gha before draping themselves around the blue essence sealing it’s aura.
“NO! NO!” He cried as she began the final spell of, “Xel’lotath Pargon Pargon Antorbak Pargon Pargon Aretak Pargon Pargon!” Trixie finished with a croaking shriek as she watched a spear of green power being emitted from the sigil of Xel’lotath before striking and shattering the essence of Ulyaoth. Trixie smiled hearing that the death throes of the “god” and that the city of Riap-shid was once again silent as a tomb and with that silence she let oblivion take her.
Trixie didn’t remember gathering up the remaining essences, nor did she remember leaving the city but she assumed she must have with her first clear memory being of herself clutching the saddle bag tightly while Detective Legrass was asking her what had happened with the room of study circling above her.
“Blood payed back blood, Legrass” was all she said before everything went black again but the next time she awoke it was in a hospital bed,she shot up looking around only to have a nearby nurse come and calm her down. After a few panic filled moments the nurse calmed her down and Trixie went back to resting.
“Trixie? Are you awake?” came a male voice she didn’t recognize and she opened her eyes to find a unicorn with a dark mane and blue fur in a doctor's coat.
“I am now. Where?”
“You at Mercy’s Rest in Hollow Shades and I’m Doctor Cross Stitch. Do you remember being brought here?”
She shook her head weakly.
“Not surprised, I’ve never seen a pony with such an extreme case of both magical and physical fatigue. With how banged up you were I was worried you might not wake up.”
“So what should I do doc?”
“Rest and let the healing spells work and as soon as you can try to eat, Ok?”
She nodded and was about to turn over to sleep but the doctor added just before he left, “Oh by the way you have some visitors. Do you feel up to seeing them?”
She mulled it over for a moment before nodding, wishing to get it over with no matter who showed up. To her surprise the first pony who walked through the door was a lavender alicorn with a purple mane followed by the portly earth pony detective Legrass.
“Trixie!” the alicorn exclaimed, “I’m so glad your ok!”
“Sparkle? You are?”
‘Well of course I am Trixie I worry about all my friends.” She said giving Trixie a hug and well she was stunned for a second she was more than happy to return the hug
The stallion coughed into his hoof, “Sorry for interrupting but there are some questions that need to be answered,” Twilight let go of Trixie and Trixie asked, “Like what?”
“Like what happened? Not just too your Grandfather but to you? you were gone for all of a day atleast, So spill.”
Trixie took a deep breath and was quiet for time before speaking, “The short version is that a crazy cultest killed my grandfather to keep him from interfering but I interfered instead and ended the cultist’s plan.”
“Okay..and the long version?” He asked.
“Would be hard swallow but if you two want to hear it then close that door and pull up a chair. It started long ago in Saddle Arabia with the centurion Righteous Guard…” Trixie with no drama or gravatas told the detective and the princess everything starting with Righteous and the tome and ending with her ritual against Ulyaoth.
“Umm Ms. Lulamoon that story is something else but I have to ask you is it the truth?”
Twilight turned from the detective to look at Trixie who only nodded. Legrass sighed and said under his breath “I always get the weird ones,” Before saying aloud, “I’ll put your short version in the report and i’ll return you saddlebag shortly.”
Both Trixie and Twilight blinked for a second before Trixie asked, “Just like that? You believe me? I mean it happened to me and I have a hard time believing it.”
“Ms. Lulamoon… Trixie I had known your grandfather for a while and being friends with him I have seen some strange things. So yes I believe you and I also never heard the long version of your story got it?”
“Yes Sir,” Trixie said quickly even putting in a quick salute and with that the detective left leaving just Twilight and Trixie there.
“I should be going too.” Twilight said making her way to the door.
“Sparkle..err Twilight wait.”
“What is it?”
“In my saddlebags that Legrass is getting there is a tome and several bell jars hold strange things. With me so far?”
Twilight nodded in the affirmative.
“I want you to seal them away. Where and how I don’t care but please make sure they never see the light of day or night ever again. Please Twilight.”
Twilight was stunned for a second never seeing Trixie this serious or vulnerable before but she gave a resolute nod and said, “Of Course Trixie. In fact I just found Starswirl’s old lab and-” Twilight kept talking about something she had found or did but Trixie didn’t hear her because with that weight lifted she slept sound like a filly napping next their Pop pop.
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A week later and Trixie was back at the mansion under her own power and well she still ached and suffered headaches when casting all but the simplest of spells she couldn't help but smile as she sat in an easy chair in the library, drinking tea with both Sparkle… er Twilight and the pink one, er Pinkie who was gone getting cupcakes.
“So you’re sure that the items are secure Twilight?”
“For the umpteenth time Trixie yes,” The lavender alicorn responded slightly exasperated, “Besides if you’re so worried about the tome and such why not hand over the runes as well?”
“Because,” She steadied herself, “Because if or when of the others try to take our world I fear that the runes might be the only weapon we have to wield against them so I wish to study them.”
“Okay Trixie if that is your wish I don’t agree with it but I’ll go along with it.” And with that the conversation entered a lull till Pinkie returned with trays of goodies both balanced on her head and back.
“Alright everypony here’s the cupcakes and some super special mega delicious red velvety thanks for saving our collective plot cupcakes for you Trixie!” Pinky proudly announced passing out pastries to every pony present.
Trixie held the cupcake in her hooves and looked at it for a second before saying, “Thank you Pinkie for the cupcakes and this low key party. To be frank I didn’t know you did low-key.”
“Of course I do Trix! I mean sure I love doing bombastic extravagant ostentatious parties but I wouldn’t be a premier party planning pony without being able to do the quite kind as well and knowing when that kind of party is needed.” Pinkie finished with a proud smile that somehow squeaked.
The three ate in silence for a moment before Pinkie asked, “So now that the big bad gone Whatcha gonna do now? Amaze audiences with magic that ends in a k instead of a c?”
“I don’t know really I might go back to school here at the Muskatonic or I might just relax at home either way I think I need a break from the life of a traveling magician.” Trixie was silent for a moment before adding with a smile, “But enough about me, What’s this I hear Sparkle about you and traveling tutor? How scandalous princess.” She finished with a laugh as the lavender alicorn’s face became a brilliant shade of red and quite excellently bungled out a series of sounds, none of them words that left the other two ponies laughing and that is how the day went between the three friends now that everything was fine.
The End
Author's Note
And so ends my first story I submitted to FimFic I hope you enjoyed it!