Arc 1- 2 (Think Twice)

Trixie runs into the muddy alley and sees Gray Muffin disappear around the corner. She runs after him, and when she turns the corner he turns around, slams her against the wall and puts his other hoof over her mouth. She struggles and tries screaming, but it’s muffled and she might as well be almost completely silent with the hard rain pouring around them.

Gray Muffin looks over his shoulder and then back at Trixie. “I’m going to release you, but you need to stay quiet or I will leave you at the mercy of the guards. Are we clear?”

Trixie nods her head quickly and Gray Muffin releases her. She watches his movements carefully as his hoof falls from her face, then he puts his hoof to his mouth and makes a “Shh” sound as he peeks around the corner. While he’s scanning the area Trixie gags and wipes off the mud that was pressed into her face. Gray Muffin spots a couple of the Local Guards searching the alley for hoof prints, but that’s a lost cause since the rain is washing away everything. He motions Trixie to follow him and she obeys without question. Trixie is led through a maze of alleys and abandoned buildings, and it amazes her that the old stallion is able to keep them both hidden from the swarm of ponies searching for them. When they get to a bridge over the murky, misty river running past Barnville, Gray Muffin peers over the edge while Trixie anxiously watches the guards scurry about.

“Over here,” whispers Gray Muffin.

Trixie looks over her shoulder and sees Gray Muffin motioning her to come to him. She trots towards him and sees an old boat covered with banged up metal plates and a faded symbol in the shape of a wrench in a lightning bolt painted on the side. There are a couple of unicorn mares wearing all black, full body suits looking at them, too, as well as other ponies wearing similar garb working on different parts of the boat in almost total silence.

Gray Muffin nods to the boat below. “Jump.”

“You-you want Trixie to jump?” stammers Trixie.

“Did you just... Never mind. Either jump or I throw you.”

Some guards shout indistinctively and both ponies turn their heads and see a small army running towards them. Gray Muffin turns to Trixie and yells for her to jump. Trixie closes her eyes and jumps over the edge with Gray Muffin immediately jumping after her. Instead of feeling cold, murky water or a hard deck like what Trixie had been expected, she feels invisible hands grab her and gently lower her on the rough wooden floor on the boat. She opens one eye and sees that she’s safe on the boat, and that a green, magical mist evaporates from her and her other eye opens when she sees an orange one around Gray Muffin fade away. The unicorns quickly give them rubber boots and when Trixie sees that everyone is wearing them, and that Gray Muffin is putting them on like his life depends on it, she slides them on without question.

Gray Muffin runs towards the driver and orders him to get them out quickly. Trixie looks up and sees the Local Guards running on the bridge and ordering them not to move while aiming their weapons at them. Then she hears a whirring sound followed closely clicks and groans, and she watches in wonder as the back of the boat splits open and a tesla coil rises from the back. Then turbine engines on a ball-and-joint system on each side of the boat roll out and the boat lifts itself out of the river, splashing the guards with the murky water. The Local Guards scream and cower away from the vehicle, some even run away. Trixie can’t blame them though, she’d probably be one of the ponies screaming and running if she saw something like this rising out of the water. When the headlights on the vehicle flicker on, she can only imagine them looking like giant glowing eyes of a monster.

One of the ponies on the deck tosses Trixie a rope attached to a rubber coated bar. She stares at it like an idiot for a couple of seconds before the pony that tossed her the rope says: “Tie yourself to the pole, you idiot!”

Trixie awkwardly ties the rope around her body, and for good measure she also wraps her hooves around the bar and holds on tight. The ship lurches forward with a thunderous BOOM and Trixie eyes are forced shut as the wind pushes against her face. If she shrieks or screams or makes any sounds, she doesn’t hear it over the rushing wind and crackling electricity.

A couple of minutes later the pilot lowers the speed to a level where ponies can walk around comfortably. Trixie doesn’t need to open her eyes to know that her mane is a mess, she can feel it plainly. Trixie opens her eyes and tries to push the loose clumps of hair down, but it is fruitless, so she decides to leave her mane a mess and check out the tesla coil. She can feel her fur and hair stand up as she approaches it, and as cool as it is to look at, she knows touching it is out of the question.

“Do you like it?” asks Gray Muffin with a barely noticeable hint of smugness in his voice.

Trixie nods. “It’s amazing.”

A small, satisfied smile flickers across Gray Muffin’s face and he turns around and orders the crew to do some technical stuff that Trixie doesn’t catch. Trixie continues staring at the tesla coil in a trance like state. The way the electric currents visibly snake around the coil and discharge in the sky is artistic in its own way. When her eyes start hurting from looking at the bright light she peeks over the edge and watches the trees pass under them. Another wondrous sight to behold after escaping an unpleasant fate.

Trixie then frowns when the image of Sunshine’s lifeless eyes flash in her mind. She knows that Sunshine was vile, but she still can’t believe that Gray Muffin killed him, and the brutality of the execution was so horrifying that she almost forgot about what almost happened to her.

“Something bothering you?” asks Gray Muffin suddenly.

Trixie eeps and jumps around to look at Gray Muffin while clutching her heart. She tries fixing her mane casually in a poor attempt to act like nothing is wrong and says, “Trixie’s fine.”

“Third pony talk again?” teases Gray Muffin rudely.

“Well... er... it’s a force of habit.”

“I take it you are relaxed, then.”

“Um... kinda. But-”

“Don’t talk down to my ponies, Trixie. You only get one warning.”

“What happens if Trixie wastes her warning?”

“Then I’ll kick you off.”

Trixie’s eyes widen and can clearly picture Gray Muffin stopping the ship and kicking her off without hesitation. So she acknowledges his statement with a rapid nod. Gray Muffin returns the nod and turns around to do something else, but Trixie stops him and asks, “Actually, can we talk? Preferably somewhere private.”

Gray Muffin stares at Trixie for a couple of seconds before motioning her to follow him. She follows him down into the bowels of the ship, which is incredibly crowded with beds and technology, and he leads her to the very back. Trixie looks around nervously, and when she hears something suddenly scrape against the wood she jumps and expects something other than a stool being pulled out by Gray Muffin.

Gray Muffin points at the stool. “Have a seat.”

Trixie sits down and tries to think of how to tell her rescuer that she is grateful for helping her escape, but doesn’t approve of the killing. While she thinks about this, Gray Muffin looks at her intently, like he’s trying to read her mind.

“Mr. Muffin, what you did was heroic.” Trixie says as she looks down at the rough floor.

“I was just doing my job.” Gray Muffin says humbly while pulling out a stool for himself.

“But Trixie is a little bit concerned about your methods.”

Gray Muffin sighs and sits on his stool. “You do not approve of me ending his life?”

“Why did you have to kill him?”

“Why are you upset that I killed him? He did something horrible and yet-”

“Okay, I get it!” says Trixie irritably with a wave of her hoof. “But the way you did was... it was horrible.”

“He was scum and deserved more than what he got.”

Trixie tries to think of something to say, but Gray Muffin rambles on and on and on about how he did what he did for something called the Greater Good and that by killing Sunshine he saved the lives of untold number of ponies from horrible fates.

“But couldn’t you have tied him up and left him for the Local Guards or something?” Trixie says uneasily.

Gray Muffin shakes his head. “The system is broken. Ponies cannot rely on the Equestrian government to protect them anymore.”

“And let me guess, ponies can count on you. A pony who murders and steals.”

“You were saved by us, were you not?”

“Um... I guesses so.”

Gray Muffin leans forward. “Trixie, you must understand that there are ponies out there that do not want what is best for others. They are fueled by vice and want nothing more than to destroy what it means to be Equestrian.”

“I’m not following. I don’t understand what you mean.”

“Ponies like Sunshine exploit the desperate, such as you, for a promise of somepony taking care of them. They are taken in, cleaned up, and then sold as slaves. Drug dealers flood the streets with narcotics and poison the minds and bodies of the youth, promising them an escape from the Tartarus that Gray Area Logic wrought unto society. The corrupt schools and politicians and media moguls fuel this by teaching foals that there is never a right or wrong answer, only a convenient one. Those who believe in True Harmony are quickly silenced by the sheep who are dumb enough to believe their shepard’s demonizing campaigns. Which, unfortunately, is nearly everypony now.”

“But what about Princess Celestia? She can fix this, right?”

Gray Muffin scoffs. “Celestia endorses Gray Area Logic, and because of that, more ponies such as you, have become victims of injustice.”

Trixie looks down to ponder Gray Muffin’s claim. “And Princess Luna?”

“She sees the line between right and wrong clearly and understands the symbolism and strength behind True Harmony,” replies Gray Muffin proudly, but then he sighs and also looks down. “But I fear that she doesn’t have the power, nor the influence, to make the changes. And even if she did, she fears what might happen should she get a position that holds as much power as her sister.”

“Is she afraid she’ll turn into Nightmare Moon again?”

“Possibly.”

Trixie nods and tries to think of something to say. As grateful as she is, she still doesn’t like the fact that Gray Muffin killed Sunshine, but given his obvious conspiracy theory type paranoia she knows there will be no reasoning with him on that matter. However, she believes that he did have a point when he labeled her as a victim. She thinks about Sunshine’s hooves all over her, his nasty tongue in her mouth, and how he wanted have his way with her in a prison.

“I don’t want to be a victim anymore,” whispers Trixie, shaking and tearing up as the horrible event plays back in her mind.

“Really,” says Gray Muffin with some skepticism.

“What Sunshine did to me was horrifying and I don’t want that to ever happen to me again... Can you help me?”

“How.”

“You can... um... Oh, I know! You can train me!”

“Train you? You criticize me of my ways a minute ago, and now you want me to train you?”

“Please! I-I can’t let that happen to me or anypony else ever again!”

“No matter how hard you try, there will always be a victim.”

“But one less if you let me join your group!”

Trixie jumps off her stool and approaches Gray Muffin with a pathetic, pleading smile. Gray Muffin only shakes his head in disagreement and when Trixie is right in front of him she sits down and her pleading smile broadens while making a small, squee noise.

“No.”

Trixie forces her smile to stay, but her ears droop and her eyes lose the hopeful glint. Then her smile twists into a pout.

“Why!” whines Trixie.

Gray Muffin frowns.“Because I know you won’t be able to handle it. If you didn’t want to see your violator killed, what makes you think you’ll be suitable to fight for justice?”

“Trixie can handle anything you throw at her!”

“No third pony talk.”

“But it’s true! You underestimate the Great and Powerful-” Trixie sees Gray Muffin glaring at her and she smiles sheepishly while shrinking down. “Me.”

“No, you overestimate yourself, Trixie. Trust me when I say our group is not for you.”

“Hey! Trixie-”

“Third pony.”

“I’ve been through a lot over the years and I need this!”

“No, you want what has not been offered to you.”

“But I-you-you saved me without breaking a sweat! I-I want, no I need to be like you if I want to-”

Gray Muffin snarls and immediately leaves the room. When the door slams shut Trixie cringes and looks down with her ears drooped and body sulking, realizing that she said something stupid.

“Smooth, Trixie. Real smooth,” mumbles Trixie to herself.

Trixie runs to the deck and sees Gray Muffin walking around and checking on the working ponies. He gives approving pats on the shoulders and praises, and occasionally fixes a small problem before moving on. Trixie tries to get his attention by calling his name, waving her hoof in front of his face, and walking in front of him, but he ignores her each time.  Finally, after a good fifteen minutes of badgering on Trixie’s part and Gray Muffin checking, double checking and triple checking the double checks, he stops in front of the tesla coil and stares at it. Trixie walks next to him and tries to get his attention once again.

“Gray Muffin, did I say something to hurt your feelings?” she asks.

“You said something arrogant, and your word choice was very childish,” replies Gray Muffin harshly.

“What did I say?”

“You said you needed to be like me. But if you knew who I was, who I am, who I plan on being, you’d think twice about your words.”

Trixie is silent for a moment as the words seep in, especially the last part, but knowing that she had obviously struck a sore spot with her rescuer she tries to make amends. “Look, I’m sorry for what I said, I wasn’t thinking. But the thing is, I don’t want to be afraid anymore. I am tired of running and begging and-and I’m just sick of everything! I am disgusted at what I had become just so I wouldn’t starve... And you look like a pony who has no fear.”

“No pony lives without fear,” says Gray Muffin, and then he turns to Trixie and she looks down to hide the shame in her eyes. “And I had wealth, and a family, and it was all taken away from me because of the choices I made. You built up a false world and when your lies were discovered you became what you are now. But I was saved from my darkness by becoming a pony who could do whatever it takes to ensure that no pony suffers from the injustice that I had faced.”

Trixie looks down and scrapes her hoof against the rough deck as his words sink into her.

Gray Muffin steps towards Trixie. “Trixie, you can never be like me, but if you truly want to become a better pony and fight injustice, then the ponies I work with can help. But know this, they never do anything halfway. Commitment is lifelong, there is no backing out. Do you understand?”

Trixie looks into his eyes without waiver. “I understand.”

“I am going to ask you again. Do you understand the gravity of what you desire?”

~~~~~~~~~~

A few minutes later the airship lands in a clearing in the forest and Trixie is levitated off of the ship and gently lowered on the grass below. Gray Muffin is also lowered next to Trixie and he escorts her away from the ship, near the tree line.

“Do you remember what I said before I killed Sunshine?” asks Gray Muffin sternly.

“Trixie thinks so,” says Trixie hesitantly.

“Repeat it.”

“What?”

“Repeat what I said before I killed Sunshine.”

Trixie looks at Gray Muffin, and then at his ship. She takes a deep breath and goes on to reciting what Gray Muffin had said before he crushed Sunshine’s neck. “There is only black and white. There is never gray... For justice is absolute.”

Trixie gets nervous and starts sweating profusely while stepping back when Gray Muffin doesn’t say a word of recognition or disapproval. Finally, after what seems like an eternity of silence, Gray Muffin nods approvingly.

“Good, now, if you really want what you say you must do two things. First, you must find the manor that resides in an abandoned dragon cave with a waterfall on either side of the entrance. Second, once you find it, you must repeat my final words to Sunshine and they will let you in. If you don’t they will kill you,” instructs Gray Muffin.

“Wait, aren’t you taking me with you?” asks Trixie.

“No.”

“Why!”

“I think it’s obvious.”

“...A test?”

Gray Muffin does a subtle nod and walks back to the ship. Trixie tries to ask him for a general direction, but he ignores her and after he’s pulled back on he orders the ship to leave. Trixie shields her eyes from the dirt and blades of grass kicked up by the vehicle’s turbine engines and when the ship is above the trees, it speeds away and disappears from view within a matter of seconds, leaving Trixie alone in the field. She looks around the clearing and paces in circles for a few seconds before deciding her best choice is following the ship. She takes a deep breath to collect herself, and then boldly marches into the forest.

~~~~~~~~~~

Trixie had been trekking through the forest for hours, she had traveled all night and the day is now reaching afternoon. During her walk she had asked anyone she came across for directions to the manor Gray Muffin described, but the responses were either: “I don’t know”, “You’re crazy”, “Turn around and go home”, or “If you blow me I’ll tell you”. Needless to say, the pervert that said that lost his front teeth after Trixie bucked him in the mouth.

When she finally reaches the area with abandoned dragon cave Gray Muffin described, the first thing that she notices is that the waterfalls cascade down and have created a mist at the bottom that shrouds the base of the mountain. The second thing that she notices is that the mountain is very steep and the waterfalls had made it slick and almost completely flat in certain spots. So, not only is she tired from what seemed like days of walking, she’s also starving because all she had to eat was grass and fallen leaves, and to top it all off, she must climb up a slick mountain with her bare hooves.

‘This is going to be fun,’ thinks Trixie sarcastically.

Trixie walks into the mist and shivers when the freezing dew clings to her coat. She instinctively shakes the water off, but she feels like a water magnet because as soon as she shakes the dew off, twice as many attach themselves onto her. She grits her teeth and tries to ignore the numbing cold, but ignoring it goes right out the window when she falls in neck deep frigid water. She’s briefly submerged, but quickly rises back to the surface and gasps for air and coughs out the numbing water. Trixie frantically searches for any way out, but she can’t find any, so she does the only thing she can do. Swim blindly until she reaches the mountain.

After swimming out of the freezing body of water, Trixie pulls herself out, curls up on the ground and shivers uncontrollably while her teeth chatter so hard she’s afraid they’ll break. Trixie then rubs her hooves together and creates a spark from her horn. When realizing that her magic has returned, Trixie laughs with relief and quickly gathers as much wood as she can, dries them up using her weak magic to do so, and then creates a small fire. Trixie sits by the fire for an indefinite amount of time before her bones and muscles no longer feel frozen, and when that happens she sucks up her uneasiness and braves the mountain. As she climbs, she's constantly bombarded by the water cascading down, and the slick rocks cause Trixie to slip and slide more times than she can count, and the bruises she gets from those are equal in number. It also doesn’t help that every step she takes makes her muscles and bones scream and beg for her to stop.

It takes Trixie at least six hours to reach the cave, which thankfully has a flat entrance and some natural stairs made from intermingled tree roots and stone. She has to use the last bit of her strength to climb up the stairs, and when she’s safe inside the cave’s mouth she rolls on her back, panting heavily and ready for a much needed nap. Trixie can’t even tell the difference between her sweat and the water from the waterfalls, and frankly she doesn’t really want to think about it.

Trixie looks to her side and smiles victoriously when she sees the manor. Its built directly into the cave with an elegant network of small towers and wooden tubes connecting to the main household, and the main household entrance has a giant set of oak doors with a wrench inside a lightning bolt etched in them. She then groggily wipes sweat and dew off of her face, forces herself to stand and proceeds to approaching the manor with the grace of a three legged pony with crooked eyes. As she walks her mane gets a small itch and her eyes shift between the towers of the manor. Trixie stops walking and looks around, but doesn’t see anything, so she continues walking, but this time with more caution. After reaching the doors she takes a deep breath, waits a minute to recollect her miniscule energy and then knocks on the door. All it takes is one knock for the door to open. It groans in protest as it grinds across the stone floor, making a nasty scratching sound that hurts Trixie’s ears.

When the doors fully part she sees a dark hallway with small pockets of light made from weak torches. She swallows her fear and walks inside while mumbling “There is only black and white. Never gray. For justice is absolute.” quietly, over and over again. When she’s a few paces in the door suddenly seals itself shut and Trixie turns around just in time to see a unicorn mare levitate a rectangular stone slab hiding in the ceiling in front of the door. The mare has the same color scheme as Gray Muffin, only her hair is darker, longer and combed to the side to partially cover her eye, and she doesn’t have his black spots. She also has a stone for a cutie mark and Trixie can’t help but laugh at the inside, thinking how much it would suck to have such a cutie mark. The unicorn, after finishing putting the boulder in its place, stares at Trixie murderously, and Trixie continues to walk down the hallway with the unicorn closely following her. She looks at each of the torches and sees that they have the same design on them as the door.

“Keep walking,” orders the unicorn.

Trixie gives the unicorn a dirty glare. However, when the unicorn charges her horn and the rocks on the floor break apart and reform to a dozen small sharp blades, Trixie instantly apologizes and practically runs down the hallway. The urge to laugh about the unicorn’s cutie mark is also tossed very far out the window.

Finally, after walking for five minutes down the hallway of Tartarus with the murderous unicorn trailing her, Trixie enters a large extravagant room brightly lit with electric light. Sitting in the back of the room on a simple wooden throne is an armored pegasus stallion with a lightning bolt as a cutie mark wearing a fancy cape that has a pin with a similar symbol holding it together. Standing next to the pegasus is Gray Muffin, wearing his usual outfit. The pegasus stands up and walks towards Trixie while spreading his wings. Trixie doesn’t have the strength to stand, so she collapses on the floor and can only watch as the pegasus approaches while his wings retract to his sides. She looks at Gray Muffin and pleads with her eyes for him to help, but he merely shakes his head.

“Who are you!” booms the pegasus’s voice.

“There is... there is only black and white. There is never gray... For-for justice is... absolute,” says Trixie weakly, she’s on the brink of passing out.

“Who are you!”

“I... My name is Trixie... Trixie Lulamoon.”

“Why have you come!”

“I... I came to... I came to learn how to defend myself and become... a better pony... and to learn to fight injustice so... so that no pony will suffer what... what I have suffered through.”

“Who told you about my residence!”

Trixie nods towards Gray Muffin and then briefly loses consciousness, but when her eyes snap open she’s staring right into the eyes of the pegasus, and he doesn’t look too happy to see her.

“I’ve heard of you ‘Great and Powerful Trixie’. You are an egotistical, lying, tramp.” sneers the pegasus.

Trixie looks down to hide her shame, even though she knows it’s hopeless. It seems everyone that knows about her can only think ill of her.

“I was,” whispers Trixie sadly, but then she looks at the pegasus with tears in her eyes, begging him to accept her. “But I...I don’t want to be that... I don’t want to be that pony anymore.”

“So you want to fight the things you once were?” inquires the pegasus.

“Yes. Please accept-”

Roar Shock kicks Trixie away and she yelps while rolling across the floor. A sharp pain shoots throughout her side and she struggles to stand while coughing painfully; the coughing makes the pain in her side spike.

“Since you want to fight injustice and evil your training starts now!” yells the pegasus.

“You can’t be-!”

Trixie is rammed in the chest by the pegasus at lightning speed and she skids across the floor and bangs her head against the wall. Now she has a horrible ringing in her ears on top of the smart pain she’s feeling in her side and on her head. She also feels a warm liquid trickle all over the back of her head and down her neck. Trixie once again looks at Gray Muffin for help, and she does see him walking towards her, but she doesn’t know what he’ll do since he’s taking his sweet time to get to her. However, she knows one thing is certain: this guy will kill her unless someone stops him!

“Evil waits for no pony!” snarls the pegasus.

He stomps Trixie’s gut and she cries out while curling in the fetal position.

‘There-This can’t-Oh dear Celestia!’ cries Trixie’s thoughts.

Trixie hears Gray Muffin say something, but with everything fading around her she doesn’t understand a word he says. She looks up and sees her attacker bringing his hoof up, slightly distracted by Gray Muffin. The final moments of Sunshine play in Trixie’s mind again, her eyes widen and her horn suddenly bursts into action. Her horn acts like a giant cannon as a telekinetic blast hits the pegasus in the chest and rockets him backwards all the way into the ceiling. He bounces off of the ceiling and lands belly first on the throne. The throne shatters into mere splinters of what it once was and he is covered by falling debris made up of loose rocks, timber, and lighting fixtures.

Trixie is surprised that she was able to do such a feat, but that doesn’t stop her from pushing herself up and going on the defensive, even though her energy is borderlining nonexistent. Her eyes dart around the room as more ponies of all types wearing armored outfits step out to confront her, but everything is fading into darkness at a faster rate now and she can just picture herself getting slaughtered. Her ear twitches when she hears the ground rumble and her ears droop and her jaw drops when she turns to the source. The unicorn that led her to the throne room is levitating a large, spiked mace made out of pure stone into her grip. Trixie knows she’s a dead mare now.

The unicorn's eyes narrow and she grits her teeth as she positions herself for a charge. Trixie, relying on what has to be pure adrenaline, uses her magic to grab a table and hold it in front of her as a shield.

The unicorn charges Trixie and is about to swing the mace against the table, but before she can, Gray Muffin steps forward and yells: “Terra, stop!”

The unicorn, Terra, looks at Gray Muffin, bows and lets the mace fall and crumble to the ground. Upon impact, the stones melt into the ground, leaving only small bumps to let others know of the manipulation the unicorn used on the ground.

Gray Muffin helps the pegasus out of the mess and whispers something to him and he nods and tries to make himself look presentable while he limping towards Trixie. “Trixie Lulamoon, I am Roar Shock, head of this organization. My faithful student, and closest friend, Gray Muffin, has advised me-”

Trixie’s eyes roll back and her vision blacks out as she collapses to the floor, completely unconscious. The last thing she hears is the table she tried to use as a shield fall and break next to her.

oooOOOooo

Roar Shock immediately orders a medic and Gray Muffin runs to Trixie’s side and checks to make sure she didn’t die on the spot. He breathes a sigh of relief and silently thanks Luna when he sees her chest rise and fall slowly.

“She’s going to need a good rest. Call Redheart and get some Healing Mushrooms,” says Gray Muffin to Roar Shock.

Roar Shock nods and limps out of the chambers while Gray Muffin supervises the medics putting Trixie on a stretcher and follows them to the infirmary. When they put her on the bed Gray Muffin pulls up a stool and calmly waits for her to wake up.