Shimmer Run 1981

Stygian settled onto a rock at the bottom of the harbor's shallows facing up. At first he thought of the sunrise when the orange glow hit the water above him but he knew it was too soon. He soon felt Sunset Shimmer's beacon calling out to him. It was feint but he felt a surge of emotion and knew he had to do something.

"Trixie..." A voice whispered in Trixie's head. She lay motionless on the deck of the boat. She was alive but unconscious. "Trixie..." Stygian's voice whispered again.

"Ow... Styggy?" She opened her eyes and tried to stand up but she felt too weak. She looked around at the aftermath of the battle. Sirens echoed in the distance and grew closer.

"Come to me..." Stygian's voice whispered once more. "We must be quick."

Trixie clawed at the deck of the boat and dragged herself to the edge. She could feel Stygian calling to her from the depths as she looked down to the water. "Are you sure this is safe Styggy?" She asked out loud in a dazed tone as she took a deep breath and slumped over the edge, plunging into the water and coming to rest beside the amulet.

"Wear me." Stygian ordered. Trixie shook her head as she continued holding her breath. The murky waters stung her eyes as she held them open to see. "I know you are frightened but it is our only chance." Stygian urged again.

Trixie reached out and grabbed the Alicorn Amulet and fastened it around her neck. She was instantly overcome with a surge of energy. A bubble formed around the duo as they ascended to the surface and out of the water. Trixie came crashing down on her hooves the middle of the dock, splintering the boards where she landed.

"We have to get back to the caravan." Stygian urged.

Trixie nodded and they quietly slipped out of the harbor and into the alleyway as police and fire ponies began arriving at the scene.

"I have a feeling we're going to be the ones on the wanted poster." Stygian sighed as the two climbed into the caravan.

Trixie took off the battered amulet and set it on the side of the mirror frame as she began wrapping cloth bandages around her wounds. Stygian's image appeared in the mirror.

"Sunset Shimmer is being held captive in the penthouse of the Neighami Trust building." Stygian explained with tears in his eyes. "One way or another he's expecting me. He will be well fortified."

"But he's not expecting US." Trixie reached over and placed her hoof on the amulet.

"I can't ask you to endanger your life like this." Stygian objected.

"Trixie wants to see you happy. Besides, where else would she be without her great and powerful crime-fighting caravan?" She smiled over at Stygian's image in the mirror. "It's just a shame we don't have time to rest and heal before the fight. This is a suicide mission." Trixie hung her head and sighed.

"We'll just have to use the dimensional inversion."

"But that's never been tested!" Trixie squealed in objection.

"I see no other chance. Please stand back." Stygian insisted. Trixie exited the caravan and stepped back.

Electricity crackled and arced around the caravan as it exploded into a torus of purple light. As the torus faded away Sunset Shimmer's van from the Canterlot High universe stood in it's place.

Trixie trotted over to the van and used her magic to open the driver's side door. "How is Trixie supposed to...?" She stared inside at the seat, clearly not meant for a pony.

"We'll have to figure this out as we go along." Stygian explained.

Trixie awkwardly twisted herself into the seat and placed her hooves at the side of the steering wheel. "Okay, now what?"

"Do you know how to drive stick?" Stygian asked.

"Stick?"

"Sounds like we're going to require practice." Stygian sighed.

Trixie shut the door. The van lurched forward and stalled.

"Why not just let me drive?" Stygian suggested.

"I think I'm figuring it out!" Trixie insisted. She pushed her hoof down hard and the engine screamed. The van went peeling off as she dumped the clutch.

The police ponies at the docks took notice of the odd contraption and tried to make chase but they couldn't keep up. The feeling of tension grew along with the towering visage of the Neighami Trust building as it grew closer on the horizon. Trixie stopped the van a safe distance away. Pegasi circled the building and many unicorns and earth ponies stood guard all around the building.

"That band from earlier left their demo record in here." Trixie held up a vinyl record and a red beam shot out of the Alicorn Amulet, scanning it. Dramatic electronic music began playing over the van's radio.

"You're the strategist. What now?" Trixie asked.

A monochrome display on the dash board lit up with a green and black wireframe display of the building. "The service entrance at the rear is gated off. So they only have two guards posted there. The service elevator can bring us straight to the penthouse. So if you can sweet talk your way past those guards we're home-free. Starswirl's office is at the opposite end of the penthouse level."

Trixie nodded as she drove around to the rear service entrance. As predicted two guards greeted them at the gate. They signaled for her to roll the window down.

"Special delivery..." She said nervously as the window rolled down past her face.

"Miss, we're going to need to see your delivery manifest." One of the guards ordered.

"Oh you don't need to see Trixie's delivery manifest." Trixie waved her hoof in their face and then pressed a button on the dash board. Two nacelles came protruding out of either side of the van, loaded with incendiary rockets wrapped with Trixie's signature 'purple and stars' pattern.

"We don't need to see your delivery manifest!" the guards jumped out of the way as a rocket fired at the gate, blasting it to pieces.

"Not exactly a master of subtlety." Stygian sighed. "Let me get this one." A wireframe of the service elevator door appeared on the display. The word "Hacking..." flashed on the screen. The overhead door raised and Trixie drove the van on. "Not everything requires brute force." Stygian lectured. The door closed and the elevator began it's ascent.

"You know they ARE going to be waiting for us at the top of the elevator right?" Trixie rolled her eyes.

"The subtle is my specialty. I'll leave that part up to you."

"Why does Trixie have to do the hard part!?" She protested.

As expected as the elevator doors opened at the penthouse level a legion of guards stood at the ready. Trixie pressed a button and the rest of the rockets fired. Wood and plaster flew in every direction as the rockets exploded, sending ponies and debris flying everywhere. "Piece of cake." Trixie boasted.

"Not quite..." Stygian said ominously. Trixie looked forward and saw another legion of guards assembling.

Trixie reached for another button on the dash board. The guards all looked down as the van projected a red and black laser grid onto the floor. "Styggy, activate the 'turbo boost'!" Trixie ordered.

"That would be not be advisable indoors." He protested.

"Trixie wasn't asking!" she shouted as she buried her hoof down on the accelerator pedal. The van shot forwards in a streak of red and purple. Guards dived out of the way as it crashed through the interior walls before finally becoming lodged in one. Trixie shifted into reverse and tried to accelerate but the van was stuck.

"It's no use. We have to go the rest of the way on hoof." Stygian said. "The office is just through this room."

Trixie grabbed the amulet out of it's alcove and jumped out of the van. It reverted back into it's Equestrian form. Ponies in white coveralls and dust masks fled the room as Trixie trotted intently toward the other side. The duo looked around. A latin sounding electric-piano riff sounded on a small radio chained to a support column in the middle of the room.

"Pottery wheels?" Trixie was confused at the sight of pottery wheels next to bags of magicaine.

"They must be embedding the pottery with magicaine so it can be transported around Equestria undetected."

"There's just so much of it." Trixie sighed. "They're going to poison everypony in Equestria at this rate."