Author's Note

Hi guys! This is just something new I thought up. I don't know how good it is, so i'll let you guys decide that. Leave a comment if you want. Let me know how good I did. If you want this to continue, you know the drill. But I'm really new to this kind of thing so any constructive criticism is welcome as well.

Chapter 1: To Be Great and Powerful

"In this world there exists only two kinds of people. Those who know their destiny, and hope to see it carried out. and those who wish to change their destiny, and work towards becoming something greater."-The Witch

The life of a magician is one of endless monotony. Pull a rabbit out of a hat here, cut someone in half there, teleport an audience member here, pull off a daring Houdini-esque escape there. And it goes on and on and on and on, day in and day out with no sign of ever changing, like some never-ending cycle. At least, that's how it felt to one Trixie Lulamoon.

Under her stage name, "The Great and Powerful Trixie", she took up the job of entertaining the masses. Keeping them satisfied with their daily dose of magical tomfoolery. It was all so tedious.

How could ponies with so much potential waste it on such trivial things as magic shows? Surely they were aware of the vast opportunities they were currently missing out on? How one could be so blind and still see was a complete mystery to her.

That wasn't to say she didn't enjoy her line of work. Seeing the smiles on the faces of the people who came to her shows is what she lived for.

It just got a little too...routine, at times.

There had to be something out there for her. Anything that could let her know that her dream wasn't just that. A dream.

As Trixie made the trek back to her wagon in the Everfree Forest, far from her most recent magic show, she found herself unable to stop sighing.

She barely picked up her hooves, allowing them to drag across the ground slightly as she walked. Her wizard's hat hid her downtrodden expression as she stared at the ground in defeat, and her star-studded cape hung limply across her back, offering what little comfort it could by protecting her fur from the seemingly even harsher rays of the sun.

It was hotter than usual this day, and while that would seem like nothing to most ponies, for Trixie, it was as if someone had deliberately cranked the sun up to eleven specifically for her.

The heat burned against her fur, penetrating past it to warm even her bare skin. It felt as if someone were watching her, judging her, punishing her in some way with their great big golden eye.

It felt as if they could see right through her. Hear what she was thinking, feel how she felt at that very moment.

Well, if they could, then so be it. She couldn't do anything about it. If they wanted to stare at her, let them. At least then they wouldn't have to watch her pretend on stage.

They could see the real her. Her as she truly was.

'Why am I doing this?' She thought. 'What am I doing with my life? I'm not a real magician! I'm not even a proper mage! How could I possibly show off like that and people don't notice! I'm a fake. A fraud! No matter how real my tricks look, they'll never be real magic.'

By now, she had made it to her door. She had no idea when she had gotten there. Her body was on autopilot the whole time she was walking. But when she finally looked up, there she was, right outside the door to her wagon.

Taking a moment to marvel at her subconscious navigational skills, she flared her horn and opened the door, stepping inside.

Once she was well and truly inside the wagon, she closed the door behind her, hung up her hat and cape, and proceeded to collapse onto her bed, where she lay with her face buried in her pillow for a couple of minutes before finally looking up.

She looked over to her nightstand, and, sitting there, in the light of the sun as it shone through her window, was a book.

She sat up on her bed, and focused her magic on the book.

It was enveloped in a purple aura of magic, and was brought closer to her. When it was close enough, she released her magic and let it fall down in front of her.

She read the title.

The Legend of the Witch

'I wish I was as great and powerful as you...'

She ran her hoof across the picture on the cover. And proceeded to open it up to the first page, which she started reading.

Not much is known about the witch, other than what history tells us. I suppose it is only fair to start at the beginning.
It all began with an incident known as Apocalypse Six. Six natural disasters hit the world at the same time, bringing about a new age of misery and suffering for the people of Equus.

The first, a tornado, hit Equestria, one of the largest countries in all the land. It devastated crops and made quick work of ponies' homes and livelihoods, taking along with it several poor souls in the process.

The next, an earthquake, tore apart the Griffonstone nation, literally ripping it in two and taking the lives of many unsuspecting natives. However, those that did survive managed to move inland to Equestria, and aid in the efforts to restore whatever crops did survive.

The third catastrophe, a phenomenon known only as "Gem Rot", decimated the food supply of the Dragon Lands, eroding their stores and forcing them to seek out assistance from the Diamond Dog Tribes. But it soon proved too difficult to coexist peacefully, as fights over gemstones forced the dragons to move further inward, toward a then better equipped Equestria.

The Fourth and Fifth disasters were the same in nature, as a love shortage in the Badlands forced the changelings to seek out the ponies to attain peaceful relationships for the purpose of harvesting love in a more passive manner, which lead them to the Crystal Empire, a place with its own shortage due to the drained spirits of those who called the territory home.

The last of these disasters hit the Everfree, and to this day has not been rectified. A flood in the river that ran through this odd place drove away all the animals, thus making it so they had to find new homes. Unfortunately those new homes included those of the already suffering populous. Many others died during that time period thanks to these disasters, But using a spell she herself created, the witch, and her five companions, sealed away the cause of all this strife, the mad chaos god, in stone, never to be seen again. Today, people from all over Equus live in six separate districts. No one knows where the Witch has gone, but even if she has left this world, her legend still lives on in all of us.

Trixie levitated the book back over to the nightstand and set it down, laying down in her bed and staring up at the ceiling.

'Who am I kidding? I'm nothing like the witch. I'm not great or powerful. I'm just a fake!' she thought.

She turned over onto her side, hugging her pillow close to her body as she took the time to calm down from her anger.

And then she began to cry, letting sleep take away all her pain as she succumbed to it's sweet embrace.

But, it seemed, her suffering wasn't done. Or so she thought, as she entered the land of dreams, she heard a voice call out her name.

"Trixie...Trixie...Trixie!"

The blue unicorn woke up to find that everything around her was shrouded in mist. Her room was gone. She dared not look down and find out that her bed was gone as well.

Even still, she found the lack of anything else disturbing, and shouted, "Hey! Is anypony there? Anypony at all?"

No answer.

She was starting to get scared now. She spoke in a trembling voice. "C-c-c-come out! I'll have you know i'm a trained unicorn mage! I can..I can defeat you if I want to!"

"Ah...but how can you defeat me when you cannot see me?" said the voice.

Trixie looked around and spotted a shadowy figure off in the distance. She stood up on all fours and made her way over to the figure, curious as to what it was.

"Who are you? Where am I? You'll pay for kidnapping me!"

The voice chuckled. "Oh no, my dear. I would never dream of such a thing. I assure you you are safe asleep in your home. This is nothing more than a dream."

"A...dream?" Trixie repeated, shock written on her face.

"Yes. This is only a dream. A very vivied one indeed, but a dream nonetheless."

"I see. Then...why have you come?"

"You are not a fake, Trixie."

Now Trixie really was shocked. "You heard that?"

"Of course I heard it. This is your mind, after all. And I assure you, you are not a fake."

"But...but how do you know that?"

"I know because I can see your potential, Trixie Lulamoon. You have more power than you know."

"I find that hard to believe. All I can do are a few lame magic tricks. That's not real magic."

"One's capactiy for magic is not just measured by what we can do with it, but rather, what we choose to do with it. Magic cannot be real or fake. It can only exist."

"Hey, wait. You never answered my question. Who are you?"

"I am she who the ponies call, The Witch."

Trixie stopped. "The witch...you were real?!"

"As real as real can get. And I assure you. I am still alive as well."

"I...I don't believe you. The witch is just a legend. She doesn't exist."

"If you don't believe me, then search for me, young mage. I assure you, you will find me. It is your destiny."

Trixie could only stare at the shadowed figure as it stared back, purple boring into purple.

"Unless you desire to continue working as a mere stage magician?"

"No, I don't!"

"Well, then, young Trixie. I suggest you get moving. Your destiny awaits."

With that, the shadow calling themselves the Witch was gone, and Trixie soon woke up.

A smile crept across her muzzle as she slid out of the bed.

She began packing for a trip, and was soon out the door, looking out over the town of ponyville.

"Alright, Witch. If you are real, I'll find you. And if not, then to Tartarus with it. It'll be better than my old job."