Trixie and Eris passed through the doors of the strange casino. They were dead certain that they had. They'd gone up the steps and pushed open the same doors. Eris in particular was sure of this, because she'd done it before. But this time, something had gone horribly wrong.

Because instead of stepping into that depraved gambling den, the two found themselves in the open desert, on top of a cliff overlooking a distant 19th century town. Eris was dressed in a long dark trenchcoat, with a glorious black cowboy hat on her head and a revolver holstered backwards on her left hip, perfectly in reach for a cross draw. Two black leather boots with copper stars affixed to them completed the costume. Oh, and she was riding a fully saddled Trixie.

The blue pony's ears flattened in irritation. "The Great and Powerful Trixie had better receive a superlative 10-page essay on why any of this is happening to her."

"Well now, baby..." drawled Eris in an unnecessary southern accent. "Ah reckon this is all a big game of Discord's. He sent us bouncing through the multiverse to begin with."

"But only to trap us in a world with no magic!" Trixie said, her ears flicking nervously from side to side. "He said he wanted to wait until Anon was dead so that he could claim you for his wife!"

"Who knows what the Big Kahuna is thinking? And who cares! Fact is we're here now..." Eris took the revolver and weighed it. It was the same weapon given to her on her earlier visit to the casino. "Whatever his game is, we've gotta play it. I say we ride into town and face the music. Nyeugh!" Caught up in the moment, she jabbed Trixie's sides with the stars to spur her on. The unicorn swore very loudly, and Eris was thrown from her seat. "Okay, maybe we'll skip the epic entrance..."

The town sign read: "WELCOME TO HUMANVILLE. POPULATION: 2."

The latter was obviously a lie, as the dusty and barren town of Humanville was filled to the brim with folks going about their own business. Most of them were humans belonging to the Wild West era. But there were also a few domesticated Equestrian ponies replacing the role of the horses. It seemed that Humanville didn't receive many visitors. Many suspicious glances fell on Trixie and Eris as they passed through the main street. Trixie peeked nervously at her fellow ponies. It did not take a whipping to tell her that they were being treated as second class citizens. She saw a whipping nonetheless.

"Psst!" Trixie whispered. "The Quiet and Inconspicuous Trixie begrudgingly admits that she isn't always the sharpest tool in the shed-"

"A momentous occasion." Eris replied.

"-but sometimes, one's guts is all one needs to know that a place is no good!"

They stopped at a local saloon, and Eris tied Trixie's rope to a nearby post where the other customers had tied their own ponies. "Sorry. But everypony- I mean everybody else is doing it with their rides. Don't wanna stand out. I'm gonna do a bit of reconnaissance. We should at least get the lay of the land before we decide what to do next. You talk to the other ponies. We'll meet back up in an hour."

"Hurry back!" Trixie hissed. She already had to rely heavily on her stage training to cope with the pressure of most of the town seemingly holding their attention on the duo.

Merriment came to an end as Eris swung open the doors of the saloon. Silence. One man stood up from the counter, still holding his shot of whiskey. Eris' jaw dropped. "Dad?"

It was Anon, dressed in a dirtied suit, with grime covering a once-copper sheriff's badge. Eris glanced into a nearby mirror, and sighed in relief. It couldn't be Anon. She was still Anon. She could feel Anon's thoughts sleeping in the back of her mind. But then who was the sheriff? And why was he taking aim?

"Ah warned you, missy." The fake sheriff Anon said coldly. Several more men stood up. His henchmen, Eris figured, to support the sheriff's word. They all took aim. Fake Anon stepped closer. Eris' hand inched closer to her own revolver. "Hold! One twitch from your finger is all it takes to earn one twitch from mine. Now... in case you weren't paying attention, we here in Humanville take pride in our... harmony. And no subhuman thieving cheating filth is gonna mess with that. Ya got ten minutes to get the hell outta my prized and orderly town."

"You know who I am?" Eris gasped. He had called her 'missy'.

"You ain't nobody. Scram." He fired at her feet. A dozen bullets from his friends soon followed. Eris ducked out the saloon, leaving behind only drunken laughter. She rushed back to Trixie, jumped on her back, cut the rope and jabbed her sides. "OWWWW!"

"Sorry, sorry! Just... you know... flee for our lives!"

Trixie rolled her eyes. "Oh, was it a bit unhealthy there? Were you mistreated? Poor little human." She said in a cooing, mocking voice before a bullet whizzed past her head. "Wha-... what the hay was that?!"

"JUST GO!"

Galloping out of town, the duo found nothing but endless sand dunes. Even the cliff, despite its prominence earlier, had entirely disappeared. Seeing nothing on the horizon, they had no choice but to stop while the town was still visible in the distance. "Well, this sucks." Eris grumbled. They both laid down, their backs against a massive rise which provided some protection from the setting sun.

"Trixie's hair is a complete mess." The blue unicorn whined.

"Let's take stock of the situation." said Eris. She recalled that Anon loved to inventory. It gave him a fake sense of control over the situation. The same coping mechanism applied now. "We have no food, no water, no place to stay. A prominent landmark has disappeared. We do have precisely one revolver, with six rounds."

"And two throwing stars. Those are going first." Trixie glared at the metal spikes, and rubbed her aching sides. "Ninja style!"

"There's no way we can attempt a desert crossing. And I don't think there's anything out there anyway. Whatever Discord wants from us is in that town. That's why he removed the cliff and the casino doorway. We're being directed, our choices written down for us before we can take them."

Trixie grimaced. "Trixie still doesn't see why she has to be here. All she wanted was some sweet vengeance against those who harmed her family. If Trixie was in the mood to a side trip through madness, she'd have asked Prince Blueblood to show his Morris dancing photo album."

"Bahhhh! What are we going to do!? We go back in through the gates and my fake dad will make Swiss cheese of us."

"Not... necessarily."

Eris slowly turned to look at Trixie. Conflict was written all over her face. "... what?"

Trixie groaned and facehoofed. "Look... Trixie was talking with some of the other ponies. And her suspicions were confirmed. They are slaves. All menial duties in Humanville are handled by ponies. Including gatekeeping. I believe we could sneak back in quite safely... although what we do after that, Trixie cannot imagine."

"That's a start..." Eris stood up again, clenching the revolver. "If I could just talk to one of them, find out what the temperature of the town is like!"

"Really hot, I would imagine? It's scorching." Trixie asked, baffled.

"I mean the attitudes of the people there! The sheriff has his henchmen, but there were only a few of them. There has to be someone who might stick with us. We'll wait til the sun is down... and then we're gonna find out."

"Joy."

The duo's second entrance into the town of Humanville was even less epic than the first. The slave ponies - apparently regarding Eris and Trixie as potential saviors - clustered around and the duo had to keep hushing them. What's worse is that they seemed to be of no direct help. They were too terrified to openly rise up against their masters, and seemed to have no memory of a life before them. But they did assure Eris that:

"Everything anyone knows is in the Library."

The Library was towards the back end of the town, only a few blocks away from the main street. Built into a giant dead tree, it wasn't too hard to find. Eris tugged down her cowboy hat and tapped gently on the door.

A woman opened the door. She was young, in her twenties, with a worn-down and disheveled look to her. But what stood out to Eris and Trixie were the purple streaks in her hair. "You. What do you want?" She asked, glaring at them suspiciously.

"You seem to know us." Trixie stated. "But we don't know you. That seems unfair."

"Everyone knows you. You're a thief. The sheriff said so himself. To all of us. You want to take this town away from us. Well, we won't let you! Help! Heeelp!" The librarian shouted.

Eris barged in and muffled her with force. "I'm sorry, but you're not leaving me with much of an option." She punched the librarian in the face.

She rubbed her cheek, a stunned expression on her face. "You hit me! I should have known. Thieves like you have got no respect for women!"

Trixie shut the door behind her, giggling. "She's got you there."

Eris glanced down at her fists. "Oh, yeah. Dude hands. Look..." Her voice faded as she got a good look around the Library. It looked dilapidated and uncleaned, and many of the books were falling apart. "Just tell me your name."

"Twilight Sparkle." The woman spat defiantly in a very un-Twilight manner. Eris and Trixie exchanged glances of mutual confusion and concern. "You can do what you want with me. I won't obey you, never."

"I never thought I'd have to say this..." Eris sighed. "But I'm not looking for a purple-haired geek slave. Amusing as that might be."

"Trixie wouldn't be opposed." The unicorn commented.

Eris threw a pebble at her. "Shuddup."

Twilight had a manic shine in her eyes. "This town's only big enough for one sheriff, and that's Anon." She dashed off, pushing a bookcase down and creating a domino effect that caused the entire library to collapse around Eris and Trixie. The two ran out to safety, but it was too late - the town's law enforcement had arrived. Trixie noticed ponies running around their feet like loyal dogs. "Traitors!" She hissed. Twilight was already with Sheriff Anon, pointing at the two strangers.

"They asked me questions about you! The leader punched me! Look, my lip is bleeding!"

The sheriff patted her on the head paternally, in a manner similar to the real Anon. "Now, that's just goddamn rude. You best get Nurse Redheart to check that out for you, Lavender." Twilight meekly ran along, and the sheriff's posse faced Eris and Trixie. Anon smiled cruelly. "I think we've had a bit of a misunderstanding here." He fingered his revolver. "This is my place. The people here do what I tell them. It's a way of life we've developed. With me as its brain."

Eris ducked behind a barrel, pulling out her revolver. She didn't know who or what this version of Anon represented... but she was still no killer. She'd have to try to defuse the situation. Trixie ran back into the library to hide. "The Great and Powerful Trixie retreats valiantly! See ya!"

"Charming..." Eris grunted. She jumped up and fired two warning shots. For the briefest moment, glee surged through her as she saw him clutch his shoulder in pain. Perhaps that might ward him off? Her joy was short-lived, though. Searing pain passed through her own shoulder. Eris collapsed, grabbing her bleeding arm. What surprised her wasn't the pain or the fear, but the knowledge that no bullet had hit her. The wound she'd given to Anon had simply been transplanted to herself, somehow. What sort of magic was this?! "Discord... if this is a game of yours... it freaking sucks! At least gimme a chance."

She could hear Anon's laughter on the other side of the street. He and his posse had taken cover behind some wagons. "Discord isn't here." He grunted at her. "It's just us. You've haunted this town long enough, girl."

Another bullet whizzed over Eris.

"Leave! There's only one sheriff, and that's me! Besides, by my reckoning you only have four bullets left."

"I don't want this town. I never did! I just have nowhere else to go!" Eris screamed. "It's only desert out there!" She turned and fired another shot from the right side of the barrel. "Just go away!"

"Look..." Sheriff Anon forced himself to sound reasonable. "This place is falling apart! I don't have the time to run it properly with thieves like you running around taking all we have!"

Suddenly, the doors of the local saloon crashed open, and a woman in a dark nightgown ran out. "What is all this racket?!
People are tryin' to sleep!"

Anon rolled his eyes. "Well, what do you know, you thievin' jackass, you woke the missus. LUNA!" He roared. "Get back inside and lock the doors. I got business here to take care of!"

The humanised version of Luna seemed to have no interest in following orders. "Oh, ya do, do ya?" She planted her hands on her hips. "Now, you look here, sheriff, you may run these boys, but you don't tell me what to do." Luna grabbed Anon's revolver and tossed it onto the wagon.

"What'd you go and do that for?" Anon whined. "You've seen what's happening. It has to be one or the other of us. Nothing I can do about it. Law of the jungle."

"Does this look like the fuckin jungle do to you?!" Luna roared. Anon seemed to shrink a little. "Get back inside, git!"

The sheriff begrudgingly conceded and wandered off. The crowd, in turn, dispersed without their leader. Eris released a deep breath of relief and watched with some amusement as Trixie emerged from the ruined treehouse. "My hero." Eris said stoically. "Thank you, um... miss Luna. Maybe now we can get some law and order around here." She shivered as Luna's piercing eyes turned on her.

"Don't be stupid, girl. I've only bought you a little time. Sooner or later - most likely sooner - he'll kill ya. Now let me see about that shoulder." She brought Eris and Trixie into the empty saloon, lit a candle and brought out a tin of emergency supplies to stitch up the wound. "Anon isn't usually like this, you know. He's got his flaws, but who hasn't? And it's not like he's got anything against you personally."

"So why does he want me dead? This thieving thing... it's a complete lie!"

Luna snorted. "Oh, is it? Could've fooled me. Half our supplies have vanished this past few months. You've been stealing them faster than we can import them. The sheriff does what he can to keep Humanville running, but we're on our last leg here. He's too hungry to think anymore. Now his instinct runs him, and that instinct's only telling him to shoot."

Not even pretending to understand what she and Eris were talking about, Trixie trotted behind the counter and poured herself a stiff drink. She looked up. They were still talking. Ah well. Might as well go for two or three. They were apparently thieves anyway.

"What do you think I should do?" Eris asked.

Luna shrugged. "I think you have to come to terms with the fact that you're gonna kill him."

"No way. I know where I am now. And I'm pretty sure that if I kill the sheriff, my dad goes too."

"But the town doesn't." Luna leaned back on her chair, a hint of a smile on her face. "Besides... what's really the alternative? You're gonna gallop out into the desert on the back of that upjumped children's entertainer?"

Trixie burped. "The Sober and Upjumped Trixie resents that remark." She mumbled, trying very hard to stay still.

"You'll just die of thirst out there." Luna continued. "I know you love your dad, but really think about that. Total non-existence. Your mind will blip out in favor of his."

"Maybe it's for the best." Eris said sourly. "I'm only really a clone to begin with. I was never meant to exist."

Luna stayed silent, waiting for her to gather her thoughts.

Finally, Eris said: "You're right, though. I want to live... I want it so badly!"

"Trixie, bring that bottle here." Luna ordered. The wobbling unicorn tried her best, but tripped over her hooves on the finish line. The whiskey bottle flew through the air and Luna caught it. She offered it to Eris. "Of course you do, sweetie. And your dad, deep down, wants to go out in a blaze of glory. You know he does, because you created this place."

"I... did? I thought it was Discord?"

Luna laughed. But it wasn't the real Luna's sweet giggle. It was a fake, like everything else in this place, and reminded Eris more of Nightmare Moon. "No, Discord's had nothing to do with this since he left you and Trixie behind. Your own power of chaos brought you here, to set you free. Like a caterpillar, ready to burst free from her cocoon, to become a true draconequus."

Realization set in. "Is this what happened to Discord? Did he kill his human?"

"How should I know? You created me." Luna said. Eris gave her a sharp look, and watched with awe as the illusion melted away.

Her jaw dropped. "It really is me... I have power!" She turned to Trixie. "You! Sober up!"

Trixie immediately hopped to attention, her eyes wide as saucers. "Whoa! Did the Great and Powerful Trixie just have three espressos or what?!"

Eris looked outside of the window. Dawn. She thought she could hear whispers beyond the saloon doors. People gathering... to watch her kill the sheriff. Or to watch the sheriff kill her. Whichever she chose. It had to be now. She picked up her black cowboy hat. "Show time, Trixie."

"Okay, but Trixie wants it put on record that she is still totally impartial in this conflict."

The draconequus girl smiled to herself. "Sure thing. Just wish me luck."

"Um... good luck?"

"Be seeing you. Thanks for keeping me sane." She placed the cowboy hat on her head, tugged on it and snapped her fingers. Trixie disappeared in a flash. Eris knew that, somehow, she'd been returned to Equestria.

A crowd had gathered on both sides of the streets. The only person standing in the middle was the sheriff. The sun was directly to his back, leaving him as a dark silhouette. Eris strutted out. An irony only just occurred to her - that her physical appearance was identical to that of the sheriff.

"Let's get this done fast." Sheriff Anon called out. "Mayor's still asleep. He'd be very antsy if he knew what was gonna happen to his little girl. But I gotta do my job, see. Someone has to keep this town running for him. I promise it won't hurt."

"I'm not the one dying tonight." Eris promised, teary-eyed. "I'm not ready to go. Dad understands."

The sheriff grinned wolfishly. "You sure about that? You sure that he doesn't feel just the same as you do? You sure that ain't his terror you're feeling right now? After all... you are Anon, deep down."

"No. I'm Eris."

She drew her revolver and fired.

Author's Note

This chapter was inspired by this music: