Crisis of Infinite Trixies

“Not even a ‘how do you do’? How rude!” Spider-mare said, dancing through her attacker’s energy beams with a ballet dancer’s supreme grace. Razzle watched the display, spellbound. Even the usually stoic Jade seemed impressed.

Despite the thugs’ best efforts, every laser slipped past the acrobatic arachnid adventurer. Razzle noticed the mare had a horn peeking out, hard to notice amongst the red web pattern of her mask.

“Gah!” The head thug grunted as something white and sticky shot from Spider-mare’s hoof and stuck him against the wall. Despite his remarkable muscular strength, he couldn’t break himself free of the webbing. Another thug of similar bulk tried punching Spider-mare from behind, only for the superhero to disable him like a small foal after catching his blow. With little effect, the superhero dismantled the thugs’ defenses, and they were either webbed against a wall or knocked unconscious.

“Amazing. She made that look easy!” Guard said, eyes wide.

“No kidding.” This mare’s powers were beyond belief! As an insult to gravity, the superhero sat crouched horizontally against the wall above Razzle.

“Are you okay, Trixies?” Spider-mare said, her voice hesitating. Huh? This mare somehow knew Trixie? “And you too, Miss Lion?”

“Fine. Thanks.” Much to Razzle’s confusion, Laughter wore a deep frown on her muzzle. “We didn’t need your help. The Great and Powerful Trixie can assure you we had the situation well underhoof.”

“That’s gratitude for you,” Spider-mare replied. “And what’s your deal, anyway? You’re not a bunch of clones, are you? I hate clones.”

“Thanks for your help, Spider-mare.” Razzle sent the Element of Laughter a warning glare. What was her problem? The moment Spider-mare had entered the scene, she’d become instantly hostile. “About us? That’s a long story. A crazy story, honestly. But you know Trixie? This is perfect!”

“We’ve been looking for her. She’s in terrible danger.” Kassa hesitated, knowing how insane her next words might sound. “It’s well…”

“Trust me, I’m used to craziness. Heck, you’re talking to a mare with radioactive spider powers!” Spider-mare said. “I doubt there’s much you could tell me that’d surprise me.”

“Okay, these are Trixies from another reality. We’re tracking down your universe’s Trixie to bring her to safety. An evil villain called Proto is trying to destroy all Trixies across the multiverse!” Kassa said, getting to the long and short of their dilemma.

“That’s definitely a new one. And genocidal Trixie hater is after Trixie of all ponies?” Spider-mare spoke this last part reluctantly. “I suppose if they’re after her, I’ll have to help her.” No doubt, her version of Trixie was another pain in the neck.

“Another version of us came here to rescue her, but she disappeared,” Guard said. “Have you seen her, by any chance?”

“Actually, I suspect this pony is connected to my Trixie’s disappearance,” Kassa produced a newspaper, showing them the front page. It showed an overweight bald earth pony stallion in an immaculate white suit. The headline read, “Billionaire Philanthropist Bayou Runner Announces Charity Ball.”

“Bayou Runner?” Spider-mare said, confused. “What’s he got to do with anything?”

“Who?” Razzle asked. Should this name mean something?

But Kassa’s expression hardened. “It does to my Trixie. Bayou Runner killed her parents.”

This comment earned a startled gasp from the assorted Trixies. Even Jade seemed surprised. Razzle could hardly believe her ears. It filled some gaps about Shade she’d been wondering about.

“But wait, this isn’t her Bayou Runner,” Guard asked. “Why should she care?”

“I doubt she’d see it that way,” Kassa replied. “This isn’t her first encounter with an alternate Bayou Runner. Long story. She worked with that universe’s Elements to stop his criminal activities. The apple didn’t fall far from the tree, cosmos wise.”

“Look, I understand completely, but my Bayou Runner isn’t like that!” Spider-mare said, indignant. “I’ve met him before. You’d never meet a more outstanding guy anywhere!”

“Yet, thugs working under some mysterious boss attacked us.” Jade plucked her laser gun from its holster and pointed it against the forehead of a thug webbed to the alley wall. “Who sent you? Bayou Runner?”

The thug tensed but stayed resolutely silent. With a stubborn tilt to his chin, he dared the other pony to fire. But something in Jade’s expression broke his resolve, and he cracked. “I work for the Boss. No clue who he is. That knowledge is unhealthy in my profession. He hired us to track a mare of your description. Much to my surprise, we found four of ya!”

“You’re holding out on me.” Jade pointed her weapon harder against the stallion’s cheek. Much to Razzle’s dismay, she actually looked ready to fire. “Who is your Boss?”

“No need for that,” Spider-mare said. “I’ve got a strong suspicion who sent them, the Kingpin.”

“Who’s that?” Kassa asked.

“Only the nastiest mob boss in Manehatten. He runs almost all the criminal activity in the city and beyond. Not a guy you wish to mess with. Who is he? Nopony knows. But I’ve tangled with his goons on numerous occasions.”

From the goon’s expression, the superhero’s guess had hit the mark. Well, dang it. Their situation had shifted from bad to worse in a heartbeat.

“Well, if the Kingpin’s after you, your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-mare is happy to help.” The superhero said. Much to Razzle’s confusion, she tensed as she noticed the watch on the trapped goon’s leg. “But I’m afraid I need to get going. I’ll keep in touch. It shouldn’t be too hard to spot several Trixies. Later!”

A web shot from the superhero’s leg and struck a nearby building. With astonishing speed, the mare launched into the air. With another web, she stuck to another building, using it to propel her across the Manehatten skyline. In a span of a couple breaths, the superhero vanished into the horizon, disappearing from sight.

“What was that about?” Kassa asked, annoyed at their ally’s sudden disappearance. “Doesn’t she realize the seriousness of the situation?”

“She seemed the unreliable sort. Did she have a doctor’s appointment or something?” Laughter sighed. “Whatever. I suppose we’ll see her again soon enough. At least we’ve gained some handy intel.”

“And plenty of leads to investigate,” Kassa said. “We better get some disguise, lest we draw more unwanted attention.”

She had a point. It was hard to ignore four identical mares and a talking lioness.

A burning question came to Razzle’s lips as they retreated from the cramped confines of the alleyway. “Why don’t you like Spider-mare, Laughter? It seems to me you two should get along like a house on fire.” They both had a flare for the dramatics and loved cracking dumb jokes during serious situations.

Laughter released a derisive snort. “Trixie doesn’t like ponies that wear masks. It means they have something to hide. It means they have secrets.”

“But she’s a superhero. Doesn’t that come with the territory?” Guard asked.

“A true hero shouldn’t be afraid of showing their face. They shouldn’t have to hide who they are.”

“But she saved our lives,” Razzle pointed out reasonably.

“We could have handled it.” Laughter replied, her demeanor haughty.

Razzle sighed, shaking her head at her friend’s stubborn unreasonableness. At least Spider-mare hadn’t taken offense at Laughter’s cold behavior. She was their only lifeline in this strange alternate universe. “Let’s find a hotel room. I fear we might be stuck here for a couple of days.” Thank Celestia Director Max had the foresight to provide them with plenty of bits.

“Good thinking,” Kassa said, nodding. “We’ll need a base of operation for our investigations.”

“Spider-mare knew this universe’s Trixie. I wonder what that means.” Razzle’s instincts told her it meant nothing good. The superhero’s reaction to the presence of multiple Trixies hadn’t been a positive one. Was this universe’s Trixie a costumed baddie?

“That’s what I intend to find out,” Kassa replied. They followed Razzle to a local hotel she knew about. She’d attended a Friendship is Magic convention here. Much to her relief, it existed in this universe, too. She had a feeling they’d spend many days there.

“More Trixies, how strange.” A figure lurking in the shadows of an upper catwalk said. And that hateable Spider-mare was friendly with them. Her scowl deepened like she’d tasted something rotten.

She tapped her chin, considering what this might mean. Somehow, the Kingpin was involved. His ponies had foolishly tried assaulting her, much to their misfortune. Whatever was happening, he was behind this mystery.

“Well, whatever.” She’d follow these Trixie impostors, learn what they knew, and then destroy them. There could be only one Trixie Lulamoon. With a leap that should be impossible for a normal pony, she jumped to another nearby building and stalked her prey.

“This isn’t a bad place,” Laughter said, flopping onto the bed, shedding her tan trench coat and wide-brim hat costume. Their room spanned a decent distance, with two queen beds and a comfortable-looking couch. They’d agreed to rent two hotel rooms, joined by a door. Razzle opted to use the first room as their meeting place.

Kassa curled up on the couch, already taking her preferred sleeping spot. While the others were out investigating, Razzle bought the hotel rooms and procured supplies. It’d be folly to continue their work on their investigations on an empty stomach.

Jade peered out the window. “This gives a good vantage point across the city.” They overlooked Central Park with a rather spectacular view.

“I’m glad we found someplace comfortable, but look at this,” Guard said as she entered, dropping a collection of newspapers on the room’s only table. She’d gone to the local library to inquire into their mysterious rescuer. Much to Razzle’s puzzlement, the internet still remained in its infancy in this universe. The goon had attacked them with laser weapons, but they only had rudimentary internet access?

Prominent on the papers, particularly from one venue called the Daily Bugle, were headlines declaring Spider-mare a menace in bold lettering.

“Hardly surprising,” Laughter said, pleased with herself.

“She certainly has a varied career.” Razzle noticed one headline stating that Spider-mare was wanted for murder, only for another to declare her innocent because somepony had used illusion technology to impersonate her. Somepony actually got framed for murder? Razzle thought that only happened in silly crime dramas. The Daily Bugle seemed quick to declare her guilty of anything, regardless of how far-fetched it sounded.

“I still say we can trust her,” Razzle’s gut told her the superhero was a friend, regardless of what Laughter and the Daily Bugle argued.

“Agreed,” Kassa added. “I’m good at reading people. She smells like a good pony to me.”

“I sensed nothing untoward about her either,” Jade said.

“But if this universe’s Trixie is Spider-mare’s enemy, I can’t be sure,” Guard grunted, annoyed with herself she hadn’t found more. “Her rogues’ gallery is huge, with a colorful variety of characters. Would you believe one’s a guy in a literal rhino suit?”

Guard also produced other articles about other superheroes, including a famed and beloved group called the Avengers. It was like they’d entered the pages of a literal comic book.

“Maybe that’s why Proto is holding off using his robot army,” Razzle said, considering. “He doesn’t want undue attention from all these heroes.”

“It’s possible. My research on Trixie Lulamoon wasn’t exactly conclusive, though.” Laughter said, switching the topic of conversation to her line of inquiry. “There are five Trixie Lulamoons in Manehatten. One of which I couldn’t even find a home address for.”

“This is Manehatten. We shouldn’t be surprised to find other ponies named Trixie.” Heck, Razzle knew four ponies who shared her name back home.

“It’s a start, at least. Allow me. I’ll track them down without much difficulty.” Apart from being a smuggler, Jade had claimed to possess some expertise in bounty hunting, too. Living on the fringes of society, the mare took whatever job was available, regardless of its tastelessness.

“As for this Kingpin, there are plenty of nasty rumors,” Kassa said from her reclined position. “He’s one nasty customer. Spider-mare wasn’t kidding about how far his greedy little tentacles stretched. Even invoking his name sends a spike of fear through the spine of even the more hardened criminal.” She suppressed a shudder. The gesture appeared odd on such a usually lackadaisical cat, heightening Razzle’s already fraying nerves. Considering how many corrupt baddies she’d gone after with Shade, this Kingpin wasn’t somepony to underestimate.

“And Shade’s got herself entangled with him,” Guard said, suppressing a scowl. “What about this Bayou Runner?”

“Clean as a kitten’s bottom.” Kassa narrowed her eyes. “Too clean, one might say. I’m not automatically saying he’s the Kingpin, but he warrants deeper investigation.”

“How about you, Jade?” Razzle asked. “Find anything on Shade and her team’s whereabouts?”

“I have,” Jade replied. “She was asking unwanted questions in places where that’d be considered unwise. A minotaur matching Iron Will’s description was last seen perusing Hell’s Kitchen.”

“Oh dear. That’s a dangerous part of the city,” Laughter said, worry creeping into her voice.

“Really?” This must be the old Hell’s Kitchen before the city’s gentrification efforts. Heck, didn’t Star Power live there?

“As for Northern Star, nothing yet,” Jade concluded.

“It’s something,” Razzle said, hoofing over bottled water and some pre-made sandwiches. Exhausted by their efforts, their crew feasted with relish. “What next? It’s getting late.” It was already 8 PM. Razzle didn’t relish prowling around at night in a more dangerous Manehatten.

A slight smile played across Kassa’s muzzle, showing her sharpened teeth. “Don’t worry about that. The night is when I thrive. Get some rest. We won’t be helping anyone running out recklessly. I’ll see about locating Iron Will. He’ll be the easiest to find.”

“I suppose.” Laughter said, obviously not eager to run around Manehatten’s darkened streets at night, either. “But there’s nothing for it. Best allow the pros to do their stuff.”

“It’s not ideal, but we’ll have to wait till tomorrow to continue,” Guard said, flopping on the nearest bed. “I only pray Shade and the others last that long, if they’re even alive still.”

“If you don’t mind, Kassa, I’ll join you.” A wicked smile grew across Jade’s muzzle. “I thrive in the darkness, too.”

“Thanks. I’d prefer not going on my lonesome, anyway.” Kassa paused, noticing the slight change in Jade’s expression. “Is something the matter, Jade?”

“I thought I heard something,” Jade said, peering through their door’s eyehole. Her eyes widened and leaped back as it suddenly exploded, chunks of wood flying everywhere. Razzle winced as pieces lodged into her back leg.

“Finally found you, Trixie Lulamoon.” An unfamiliar voice said. The pegasus wore a tight yellow and black suit with a quilt pattern running across the yellow parts. Electricity gathered around her hooves, blindingly bright. “You had me running all around the city. But now it’s over. Best surrender or else feel the wrath of the Shocker!”