Author's Note

As mentioned in the C̸̞̙̭̽̌̀̈́̽̕̕ȗ̵̧̨̢̻̩̞̘͙̉̋̊͂͘ŕ̷͖̦̍͝s̵̫̪̋̍͂̆̆͆̄é̶̡̧̺͖d̸͎͒̒̿̈̀ version, this book will occasionally switch to other characters' perspectives. Sorry if this confuses or annoys you. They don't happen too frequently (besides this little upcoming section), but they are somewhat relevant to advance the story. Don't worry, we'll be back to Devan's tomfoolery shortly.

Tricks

She scurried forwards. Clouds were disturbing the sun's rays as she traveled alone. She hadn't managed to find Snips or Snails before setting off. Trixie had been alarmed when she saw the zombie ponies in the streets.

She had received news before setting off. Somehow, all magic and flying was disappearing. But she was still able to pull off spells she knew. She also knew there was a spell to return ponies in an injured or hypnotized-like state back to normal, but didn't know how to perform it.

That's why she was heading individually to Canterlot after packing some things and almost getting bit by an intruder. She hoped that Celestia could give her the spell to bring back the ponies who had been affected ... or maybe even bring back magic in general. She could be the hero of the apocalypse.

She would make it happen. Packed with snacks from AJ's shop, she would make it to Canterlot. She had just got in view of the train station. There was almost no way any trains were running, so she had expected having to run.

There were no ponies at the station, but she observed numerous red stains on the grass. She hadn't expected the train engine to be there. Neither had she expected to see bullet holes scattered on the train station's walls. The only glass remaining in the window was spikes and sharp bits on the edges.

She debated whether she should go in at all now. Time was ticking, so she made her decision quick. She ended up going around the station, ignoring the platform, and exploring the inside. There were little bits of glass scattered all over the station's floor. She also observed little blood stains on the glass and floor. Somepony had been cut by the falling glass or stepped over it to get something.

She was just about to leave when she heard voices from outside. They were not-so-deep stallion voices. Not wanting to startle anypony and cause an accident, she stayed inside. She worried that whoever it was would jump and mistake her for a zombie pony. She decided to call out to them and tell them she wasn't infected.

"Who's there?" one of them replied.

"It's Trixie," she answered.

She overheard one of them say, "I thought they only brought in Jen and Abby."

She gained interest, and leaned against the wall to eavesdrop.

"Pete was talking about letting a few of his girl friends in," the other voice whispered.

"But how is she here? We didn't get any new arrivals today."

"Fair point. Just ... draw your gun in case things get ugly."

Gun? She couldn't remember exactly what that was. She thought that she might've seen that word in The Human Explanation, a book written by Devan and Twi upon his arrival.

"We'll come around and meet you," he called.

She broke away. These didn't sound like any stallions she knew. They didn't sound friendly either. The only weapon she thought would work was a stun spell she'd known since losing the alicorn necklace, so she silently warmed it up and aimed for the door.

There was only the sound of their steps on the grass for a few seconds. It stopped. There was silence, then a bit of rustling.

Then they ran into view. They weren't stallions after all; they were boys like Devan. They carried foot long silver steel objects with a small barrel pointed right at her, reflecting the sun's light. She released the blue glow from her spell, slamming the taller boy in the chest and knocking him over. The shiny steel from his hands flew up and hit the smaller boy in the face, causing him to drop his own. He flinched before regaining control.

She warmed up another stun spell as the boy charged her unexpectedly. Only managing to throw a quarter power of her stun spell at him, he was barely phased. He tackled her, grabbing her horn with his hand. This only slowed the process of her magic. She warmed up a much less energy required shove spell as he slapped at her horn. The other boy would be lost in a daze for only a few more seconds now.

She readied the release of the shove spell as the other boy charged in. He grabbed a cone-like lock from his backpack and shoved it on her horn, shielding her magic while the other boy held her down. The cone locked over it, tightening itself over.

"Stop!" she yelled.

"Feisty one. But there's nothing to shoot us with now. Is there ... Trixie?" the taller boy laughed and stood up. They both tied leather lassos on her front hooves. She struggled against their pull.

"You should be lucky we aren't shooting you right now."

She wouldn't feel lucky until she could regather her magic enough to stab them with a dagger. Her horn throbbed with the tight lock securing her magic from getting anywhere. She tried flailing her head, but it was locked on tight. Her hooves were cuffed with lasso, preventing her from pulling it off.

Her magic wasn't strong enough to pry it off. It was a lost cause, but she fought as they pulled her on the train.

"We're going for a little ride, Trixie."