Garou surged to his feet, pushing his shield up and forward, crashing it against the crowd in a sudden reminder that it was uncomfortably hard and was not pleasant to have smashed against various body parts. With a great roar, he let the shield fade away in time to catch a creature on the shoulder with sharp claws, a new shield coming into being on his arm in a more mobile version.

An equine bellow seemed to reply to him as combatants fell away into darkness. There was the pillar, Rockhoof, charging with his trusty shovel and dropping people into a ditch he was digging with supernatural speed. It surely was not killing them, not even removing them from the battle, but it was a welcome reprieve nonetheless.

A creature came in towards Rockhoof from the back and side away from the ditch, but the old fighter wasn't entirely focused on the ditch, swinging about with such force that the blade being brought to bear was caught and smashed in an instant with a loud ring of metal on metal. "What the--" was all the creature got out before Rockhoof smashed him with the flat of the shovel, knocking him bodily into the ditch.

"'Tis good to see you." A heap of forms suddenly propelled in all directions like an especially lazy grenade as luna roused from beneath them, her form shaking despite the resolved look in her eyes. "Shall we put an end to this?"

"M'lady, yer lookin' especially haggard. Please, retire from the field." Rockhoof ducked under a sword swing even as he spoke, ramming his entire body against the great bear and sending the creature back a few inches only to come back at him the moment there was room. "I'll press the fight."

Emerging from the darkness, Garou's fingers closed in around the bear's throat from behind, clenching cruelly. His sharp claws dug into sensitive flesh even as the crushing began. The bear flailed, trying to reach him in great lumbering motions, but the blood ran and it ran freely. His motions were already slowing with every desperate lunge. At the apex of one such swing, Garou shoved him in time with the motion, sending him sprawling, bleeding, and dying. "This is a mess."

"Wolf Friend." Rockhoof didn't have much time for other words, bringing his shovel around to dash a dagger intended for his side.

"Glad to be here." Garou seemed to understand the sentiment. "Where's Celestia and Trixie?" He grabbed a small long-tailed creature and threw them forward like a projectile, sending a wave of assailants tumbling to the ground with his form following shortly behind to press the advantage.

Removed from them, a figure watched the attack without motion. Arms crossed, they tapped a foot slowly with just a small measure of a scowl. "They should have won by now, or lost quickly enough... At least that magician is out of the way."

Their helmet suddenly tilted forward dangerously, covering their eyes completely and smashing into their snout. "As if the Great--"

"--and powerful," continued a second, though identical, voice as the figure's hands were grabbed in magic.

"Trixie!" they finished together, gesturing for the figure to collapse.

But it did not, instead roaring with a strange flare of not-unicorn magic, their grips faltering and allowing the attacker to spin on them, hurling the helmet away. "How?!" Then they could see, two Trixies. "I ripped you in half."

One Trixie raised a hoof. "You ripped us in two."

"Easy mistake to make," allowed the other with a soft nod. "But still a mistake."

"And mistakes get punished," finished the first. "As if you could out-magic us!"

Their horns glowed with unified purpose as fireworks erupted from seemingly nowhere, launching at the spell-caster that had attacked them so cruelly not long before.

The figure danced back, swatting one of the larger fireworks out of the way, but many more were behind it, detonating in bursts of flame and color. Some of their armor burnt away in the flashes, revealing a female figure. "Damnable witch," she hissed, thrusting a glowing hand forward as one of the Trixies were shoved back several feet in a burst of the same color.

"You'll need to do better than that," chastised the other. "Have a seat and we'll show you how it's done." A chair came flying out of the darkness, crashing into the mysterious creature-magician's head.

She staggered forward even as she waved it away, sending fragments flying at the standing Trixie. "Do me a favor and die."

"We don't do--" Trixie leaped to the right, dodging the sharp shards of wood that peppered the space she had just been occupying.

"--requests." The other Trixie was behind the creature. How she had gotten there was unclear, magic seemed likely. She was straddling an immense rocket, the fuse already almost burnt down. "It was an honor working beside the Great and Powerful Trixie."

"I could say the same." The other Trixie saluted with a wry smirk just in time for neither to see anything anymore. The firework exploded and all became colors and fire. The screech of the she-magician they were cooking could be dimly heard, but even that was brief compared to the full fireworks show that had been condensed into one great rocket.

Trixie blinked the spots from her eyes as things settled. The enemy magician was a lump on the ground, collapsed and still on fire. There was no second Trixie in sight. "You were the best," allowed the remaining Trixie. "But there's only room for one Trixie in the world." She trotted forward to inspect what was left of their enemy.

Even further from the action, a heavy form touched the ground with grace despite her size. "What do you want?" demanded Celestia in firm tones. "Are you the one--" A flying dagger interrupted her question and she ducked to the left as her magic pushed it to the right. it flew past her, but by the time she looked back, the creature she had spotted was already gone. "This isn't right..."

A small chinchilla of a creature jumped for Rockhoof, only to crash into an unseen wall, sliding to the ground. This was good, as Rockhoof was heaving for breath, needing that moment of solitude that Garou's shield had allowed. Garou had no shield for the time, doing his best getting out of the way of sharp weapons and returning with his claws. Nicks and red lines showed that he wasn't always successful at this.

A great horn sounded in the distance and the attackers began to withdraw in unison, any that were capable of moving. Garou felt a momentary urge to chase them, but thought better of it, instead slumping forward as he became entirely a wolf on all fours. "Are you alright?"

"I'll be fine, lad." Rockhoof tapped at the invisible wall. "Mind letting this down?"

Luna was holding a badger-person over her head. "Tell us everything you know and I will be gentle!"

"I don't know nothin'!" he swore, limbs flailing. "Just doin' my job!"

"Your job of bandit--" She staggered to the side, her vision swimming and head swaying a little. her magic dimmed, threatening to drop the badger. "That is... no employment... Speak!"

Rockhoof quickly closed with Luna, the wall banished. "Easy there, lass. I'll take the interrogation over from here."

Garou loped at his side. "Yeah, we can handle this. You look like shit."

Luna blinked at Garou, stunned at his course language. "I look like... what?" The distraction was enough to ruin her concentration, dropping the badger with a soft thud as he slapped into the ground. Rockhoof was on him an instant later, pinning him with a heavy hoof. "Thank you." Luna turned away slowly. "Where is mine sister?"

Garou snarled at the fallen form before looking to Luna. "We don't know, but she was already in the air, so she's probably alright."

"And Trixie," added Rockhoof. "That was a fiercer fight than I expected. I'd hate to think our showmare got hurt."

"Destiny forfend," bitterly grunted Luna, collapsing onto her belly. "I am... more tired than I first reckoned."

"Rest." Garou moved just beside her. "I'll keep watch. They're gone now."

"Yes... watch." Luna collapsed fully, eyes drifting closed. "Find my sister..." She didn't get out any more words than that, consciousness fleeing her ravaged form.

"Is it safe?" called out a voice. A few of the merchants were starting to drift back towards the wagons. "Are they gone?"

Rockhoof looked around. "Besides their fallen and battered, we appear to be rid of them." He snorted softly. "That was far more intense than I would have liked... Too much for casual bandits." He stomped over around to be in front of Garou. "Ye doin't need that many creatures to waylay a random pony caravan. Half as much woulda still been too many!"

"It's been... a lot of trouble." Garou half-closed his eyes. "I think Luna has the right idea."

"Don't go slipping off on me." He nudged the wolf with the flat of a hoof. "I'll fetch the doctor fer the both of ya. Ya fought well today."

"Where's Trixie, and Celestia?" reminded Garou. "Neither of us are dying. Find them."

"We are touched by your concern." Trixie came trotting towards them with a smug smile on her face. "I was just taking care of their spellcaster. Their defeat seems to have reminded the rest just how outmatched they were by the Great and Pow--"

"Yer back to normal," cut in Rockhoof, taking note of Trixie's returned equine form. "Good on ya, lass, but how'd ya manage it?"

"Don't interrupt!" Trixie thumped him lightly with a hoof, not that it seemed to phase the larger stallion much. "They tried to rip me into two parts, so I let them. Then they had to face two Trixies and their fate was sealed."

Rockhoof glanced left and right. "I only see one Trixie."

"We finished the magic trick, finally." Trixie rolled a hoof softly. "If I have to explain each trick as I do it, it takes the magic out of it. Where's Celestia? She's the only one I don't see here."

"You're still here." The caravan master was returning, glancing around and swerving around fallen forms. "Though it looks like you took almost as much abuse as they did. This has been the most hazardous trip I've ever taken! Now, don't get me wrong, I appreciate your work. You've kept our things safe and our people are in one piece, so thank you... but this really can't be a coincidence."

They glanced away and looked towards Luna's sleeping form. "I thought having the princesses around would be a morale boost, but I think it's attracting trouble..."

Garou sat up despite his aching everything. "Are we being fired?"

"Honorably, for what it matters." The Caravan master drew out a pouch of jingling coin. "Take it. You earned it, but I think we may be safer without you around."

Trixie scowled at the bag even as her magic grabbed it. "Are you so certain all the trouble will go away the moment we're gone?"

"No, but a pony can hope, and my hunches usually aren't so far off." They brushed at a shoulder with a hoof. "Again, sorry. But half of you are more magic than ten average ponies. I feel sure you can get back to a town, probably faster without us around. Speaking of that, where's Celestia?"

The named former-monarch gently touched down with a frown. Garou nodded towards her with a chuff. "There you are. Good to see you safe, but we've been fired."

Trixie pocketed the pouch of coins. "At least being paid wasn't withheld. Welcome back. Your sister could use your company."

"Lulu?" Celestia forgot everything else she had on her mind, hurrying over to Luna's side to offer what aid she could to her battered and bleeding sibling. "I'm so sorry..."

The doctor approached with a serious expression. "I'll not send ya forward without seeing to you first. Let's keep your insides on the inside where they belong."

Author's Note

What exactly is going on around here? The caravan decides to cut ties with our heroes. A wise move?

Written early for patreons who got this ahead of everyone else. Want to get early chapters, or even your own story written? atreon!

Join my discord to chat!