Crisis of Infinite Trixies

A moan escaped Twilight’s lips, her head throbbing something fierce. How the hay did she keep getting into these situations? Her eyes blinked as she struggled to consciousness. Somepony spoke, but their words sounded muffled.

“Twilight, are you okay?” The voice asked again.

“I think so.” Twilight blinked in confusion, unsure where she was. A dank stench filled her nostrils as she noticed her surroundings. An abandoned factory? Then everything returned in a flash. She gasped, leaping to her hooves. Much to her dismay, she was missing her mask! Spider-mare was unmasked! After a quick glance around the room, she found her half-torn mask on a table. With a quick webbing, Twilight had it in her hooves and returned it to her face.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Spider-mare glared daggers at the pony and lioness in the room.

“Hey, it slipped off!” Trixie said, hooves up. “If Trixie had known, she would have been more careful!”

“How considerate.” It sounded odd coming from Trixie’s lips, but then Twilight remembered this wasn’t her Trixie. This Trixie came from some bizarre alternate universe. That took some getting used to. It was hard to separate the murderous Trixie who’d bonded with the symbiote and this Trixie her friends called Laughter. It was an unusual nickname, considering she didn’t seem very jovial. For whatever reason, the mare disliked Spider-mare in particular.

Laughter eyed Spider-mare with surprising tenderness, her voice full of concern. “Are you okay, Spider-mare? Have you recovered from Honey Do’s poison?”

Beyond a massive headache and some bruises, she felt otherwise fine. “I’ll live. Where are we?”

“An abandoned factory by the docks. Kassa found it. There’s a surprising amount of those. Business must be pretty tough in this version of Manehatten,” Laughter replied, humor entering her voice. “We fled here instead of the hotel because we ran into a group of the Kingpin’s goons. We didn’t want to lead them back to our friends.”

“They sure are relentless hunters.” The lioness said. “We’re hiding out here until you recover. I wanted to report to our friends, but Laughter refused to abandon your side. I didn’t dare leave the pair of you alone.”

That news surprised Twilight. Didn’t Laughter hate her? “What happened to Kraven?” She asked, worry entering her voice. The lioness possessed a rather homicidal hatred of the hunter, and Twilight feared the worst.

Thankfully, Laughter put her worries at ease. “Don’t worry. We left her alive.”

Kassa released a derisive snort. “It’s better than she deserves, but I’d rather avoid murder charges while visiting your universe.”

Twilight sighed in relief. Kraven, though a total maniac, didn’t deserve death.

“Trixie just hopes we don’t run into any more of these supervillain types. Trixie doesn’t want to meet any more evil versions of her friends,” Laughter said.

“What do you mean by that?” Spider-mare said, her curiosity piqued.

“In Trixie’s universe, Honey Do and Octavia aren’t murderous monsters, but good friends. We’ve had so many adventures together. We’ve even saved Equestria once or twice! You were there too, of course, Spider-mare. You’re the leader of our merry band of misfits!”

“Still a hero, eh?” Though, her being a leader of anypony surprised her. Twilight was more of a loner.

“Trixie’s sorry about how she’s treated you. It was uncalled-for.” Laughter said, surprising Twilight. Almost no one ever apologized to her.

“You’re welcome.” Twilight hedged, the words sounding odd on her lips. What was going on?

“Trixie was being stupid. She let her hatred of masks blind her to the pony beneath. It should have been obvious to Trixie that Spider-mare was her best friend!”

“Sure.” This sudden turnaround was odd, but welcome.

“Trixie’s curious about you. How’d you become a hero?” Laughter asked, staring at Twilight with intensity.

Spider-mare became more somber and looked away. “It’s not a good story. I messed up and somepony I cared about got killed. I’ve been trying to make up for that mistake ever since. Because I was a selfish jerk, her Uncle Spark Plug got murdered. He died because I didn’t care about stopping a passing crook, even when a security guard asked me to. I thought it wasn’t my problem.” Twilight’s voice cracked. “That same crook killed my uncle in a failed carjacking.” It was one of her hardest lessons. With great power came great responsibility.

“Hey, it’s okay.” Much to Twilight’s surprise, Laughter pulled her into a tight hug. “It’s not your fault. You couldn’t have known.”

“Yeah, but…” Twilight’s voice choked up, hugging the mare that shared the face of one of her worst enemies. “Thanks. I… thanks.” It was nice to unload all this. Usually, the only pony she talked to about her problems was Ralph the gargoyle.

“What a terrible burden,” Kassa said. “But you’re a brave pony. Most people try to hide away from their past sins.”

“Huh, I suppose that’s true.” And Spider-mare sensed no accusation from the pair in the room, only sympathy. Dang, why wasn’t her Trixie like this? Of all the rotten Sparkle luck to be stuck with the wrong Trixie. “But really, Octavia’s a good guy?”

“Indeed, she’s the spirit of kindness, always willing to give a helping hoof!” Laughter said. Okay, now that sounded hard to credit. Few ponies were as selfish as Doctor Octavia, but Laughter continued to sing her version’s praises.

“I’d like to meet your friends someday,” Spider-mare said. They sounded like a refreshing change from the murderous supervillains she was used to.

Laughter’s mood soured. “If we can stop Proto. He’s hellbent on destroying all Trixies.”

“That’s his plan?” Twilight said, mystified. So his goals went beyond destroying Laughter and her friends? Why would somepony bother genociding one person across the entire multiverse? What? Did a Trixie cut him off in traffic one day, and he swore eternal vengeance? It seemed so petty.

“I can attest to this,” Kassa said. “He sent an endless army of invincible robots against my Trixie. But the boss is slippery. She hid in a pocket universe she’d prepared for just such an emergency. After the Collector incident, she’s been more alert about interdimensional criminals.”

“Trixies sure get into their share of multiversal adventures,” Laughter said ruefully. “Trixie has met another version of myself once before. She came from this bizarre universe where Celestia turned evil, and Luna became the sole protector of Equestria.”

“Really?” Kassa said, baffled. Spider-mare hadn’t a clue what this meant, but it sounded serious. The lioness peered out the window she’d been sitting across to keep watch. Her expression of seriousness turned to puzzlement. “Huh?”

“What is it?” Laughter asked, her body wound tight for any trouble. While Spider-mare’s spider-sense hadn’t flared yet, she stood straight, watchful for danger.

“Someone’s approaching.” But the lioness’s posture relaxed as a familiar face came into view. It was Iron Will, the minotaur. He wore a trench coat to disguise his unique visage.

“Good, you got my message,” the lioness said, returning to a lounging position.

“Message?” Twilight asked, curious.

“Just a coded message sent with a delivered pizza. With an extra tip, the delivery pony didn’t even question adding a coded slip of paper to his delivery.”

“Thanks for that. We were getting a little hungry. Still, we were worried when you didn’t come back,” Iron Will said.

“Yeah, we ran into the Kingpin’s goons, but we’re otherwise fine,” Kassa replied.

“Spider-mare got real hurt, so we needed a nice hiding spot,” Laughter said, adding more details to the story.

“She looks roughed up. Did you defeat Kraven, at least?” The minotaur asked.

“She’s dealt with,” Kassa replied, giving nothing away. “What has your group been up to?”

“Well…” Iron Will’s voice trailed off.

“Iron Will, what happened?” Kassa asked, her voice going firm. It wasn’t difficult to tell the minotaur was hiding something. Twilight straightened, her instincts screaming that it wasn’t anything good.

“Fine.” Iron Will grumbled about his rotten luck in pulling the short straw. “Good news. We got Venom to join our side!”

“Huh?” Twilight blinked at this news. “You got the murderous, vengeful, parasite-infected pony to listen to reason?”

“And better news!” Iron Will continued like Twilight hadn’t spoken. “Shade has the perfect plan to help bring down Bayou Runner!”

“What?” Laughter said, incredulous. “After the beating she got? And the almost-failed rescue attempt? Wouldn’t it be smarter to keep our distance from him?”

“Of course,” Kassa said, rubbing her temple with a paw. “She hasn’t let go of her little quest for vengeance, has she? I can understand her desire for revenge against her kin’s killer. Believe me. But this seems unwise. The Kingpin’s position of wealth and power makes him a difficult opponent to topple. She’s talking about a mission that will probably take years. And this isn’t her quest. She’s already long avenged her mother. This isn’t her Bayou Runner.”

“You know the boss. She’s stubborn that way,” Iron Will replied.

“But if this universe’s Trixie has joined our side, we should return to A.R.M.O.R headquarters. Mounty Max is likely worried about us! We should spoil Proto’s fun by not allowing the Kingpin to use whatever surprise he left for him,” Laughter said bluntly, and Spider-mare agreed. Playing into your enemy’s hoof wasn’t the greatest plan. She should know, she’d done it enough.

“She argues the artifact is too dangerous in the Kingpin’s hooves,” Iron Will replied.

But Laughter only rolled her eyes. “She has an answer for everything, doesn’t she? Fine. And let Trixie guess. The last bit of bad news is that we’re working with Venom to defeat the Kingpin?”

“Good guess, you’re right.” Though, Iron Will didn’t seem too keen on this plan.

“You can’t be serious,” Spider-mare said, floored. That was like bathing yourself in gasoline and running into a burning building.

“This just gets better and better.” Laughter rubbed her forehead with a hoof.

“This sounds like a terrible plan!” Twilight feared nothing would dissuade the headstrong Shade from this action. Why were all Trixies so stubborn? “And you expect me to play buddy-buddy with Venom, too? Fat chance of that happening. If you haven’t noticed, she hates my spidery guts!”

“We’ll have to work around that. Venom doesn’t exactly know we’re friends with you,” Iron Will replied.

“Fine.” Twilight already felt her throbbing headache worsening. “What’s Shade’s plan to expose the Kingpin?”

“Glad you asked!” As Iron Will explained the plan, Twilight became even less eager. But she’d play her part as back up, keeping everypony safe while staying out of Venom’s sight. It sounded easy! What’s the worst that could happen? RIght?

“I see him.” Shade said, perking up as a pink earth pony stallion with a brass-colored mane exited the police station. Another stallion with a fancy suit exited with him, his attire clashing with his shabbier client. Shade had no doubt the fancy lawyer was the Kingpin’s toady. After sharing some words and a hoof shake, the pair parted paths. After calling a taxi, Crooked Path slipped inside.

“I’m following.” A gruff voice said, making Twilight wince. With Venom involved, this could only end badly. All hell would break loose if her Trixie learned about her arch-nemesis’s involvement. But Spider-mare would weather that storm if it meant taking down the Kingpin.

“What a dump,” Twilight commented as they approached a rundown warehouse in the outer district of Manehatten. For whatever reason, Crooked Path had taken them to another abandoned warehouse. Seriously, were they like catnip to bad guys or something?

“Uh, why’s this the first place he’s going after his release? Is he doing a shooting today or something?” A wary Razzle asked over the radio. Twilight rather liked the actress. She seemed to be the only Trixie without some ridiculous chip on her shoulder.

But Shade only dismissed his concern. “Makes it easier for us to nab him. Better yet, we might catch him in some criminal activity!”

Spider-mare, however, wasn’t so convinced. She’d also sensed something amiss and crept closer, getting caught by Venom be damned.

“I’ll sneak around back to see if anyone’s at home,” Kassa said.

“I’ll join her.” Northern Lights said. “She’ll need backup.”

“Good thinking.” While Shade was eager to catch her prey, she didn’t plan on being sloppy. “Keep in touch.”

Moments passed in tense silence as they waited for Kassa’s team’s report. Crooked Path slipped out a keychain and opened the door to the chained fence surrounding the building. After a surreptitious glance around, he slipped inside. The entire building was like a ghost town, not even a scurrying rat bring the dreary place some color. Minutes passed, but Kassa remained silent on the walkie-talkie.

“Get ready. I’m about to go in,” Shade said, worried about her friends.

“Good, We were getting bored! We’re coming too!” Spider-mare watched as Venom web-slung onto the roof. The other Trixies nodded their agreement and joined Shade at the fence’s door. With a bolt cutter, they broke the lock and slipped inside.

“It’s been fun watching, but it’s time for some action.” Spider-mare thought, not needing her spider-sense to sense trouble was brewing. With a quick web swing, she clung onto the warehouse’s south side wall. As Twilight crept along it, her spider-sense buzzed for real. She leaped away, the spot she’d been occupying erupting in bits of broken concrete.

“Excellent reflexes, as always, Spider-mare.” A familiar voice said, rising on her tentacled legs. “I’ll enjoy this dance.”

“Doc Ock!” Spider-mare cursed. This was a trap! Somehow, the Kingpin had caught wind of their plan!

Well, Spider-mare, real mess you’ve gotten into this time. With Doc Ock distracting her, the Trixies were on their own. She just hoped they could hold out until she arrived.

“Okay, he’s entering a side door.” Shade said, creeping her head up to peer through the muddled, dirty window. Razzle peered over her, eyes peeled for any trouble.

The building they surveyed was your typical rundown warehouse, dilapidated from years of disuse. Graffiti lined its walls, and the windows were long since broken. The building had once housed paper products until the company went under. An eerie silence permeated the place, like the living didn’t belong here.

“Roger. Be careful. Something about this doesn’t smell right,” Laughter said from beside them. They huddle inside some thin, skeletal brushes, hidden in Laughter’s cloak of invisibility. It amazed Razzle she could hide so many people at once.

“She’s right,” Jade said, breaking her usual stoic silence. “Something’s wrong.” And that clinched it. The bounty hunter had amazing sharp instincts with a real nose for danger. Razzle cursed, hating they were about to face trouble again.

Already, their adventure to this universe had proven far more perilous than Razzle had ever expected. But she swore she’d stick by her friends and see this through. Still, if anything happened to her… No, Razzle refused to entertain such a thought. She was going to return to her daughter. They were going to defeat Proto and go home!

“Just one step at a time, Razzle.” She thought. Still, how would the Kingpin know they’d trail this particular pony? Something wasn’t right here. Was this a trap somehow?

“Iron Will, Jade, cover me. Guard, Razzle, Laughter? Stay in reserve and back us up if anything goes wrong.” Shade whispered, slipping out from behind the bush, cloaked in her own veil of invisibility.

“Not sure what you expect me to do, but okay,” Razzle replied, her tone dry.

Minutes passed as they waited for Shade to infiltrate the building. Laughter argued to go, but their leader had argued her myriad of special skills would make her the better choice. Razzle guessed it was because their leader hated putting anypony in danger and would rather take the full brunt of the risks first. It was an admirable but annoying habit.

Iron Will and Jade followed their leader’s instructions, taking hiding spots behind whatever cover was available. The bounty hunter leaped into a tree with surprising ease, while the minotaur hid behind a stone sign that once marked the place as Warehouse 4. Minutes passed as they waited for the signal.

“We have trouble. He’s here!” Shade said as Razzle’s walkie-talkie crackled to life. “The mission has been compromised! I-I can’t seem to contact Kassa!” Shade said, her voice becoming more frantic. “You!” The device crackled before going dead.

“Shade! Can you hear me? What happened?” But Razzle’s pleas met nothing but silence.

“I’m going in!” Laughter said, mouth tight with determination. “Let’s go!” Her teammates nodded, rushing out of the bushes. Iron Will joined them, eager to join the fight. Jade stayed hidden in her hiding spot, laser gun at the ready.

Laughter reached for the warehouse’s side door, but she yelped in pain and surprise when the door exploded into wooden shards. Wooden slivers flew into Razzle’s face. Thankfully, she pulled up a leg in time, only getting a few scraps on her cheeks. Behind her, Iron Will groaned, blood oozing from where he’d stuck the concrete street hard.

“Well now, it seems we have uninvited guests.” Bayou Runner said with fake civility as he exited the broke doorway.

“The Kingpin!” Laughter coughed up dust, her body bruised and battered from the hard impact of the explosion.

“So welcome you could join us! Now I can eliminate all the irritants to my operations in one fell swoop.” The Kingpin said. Razzle gasped. Struggling in Bayou Runner’s grip was a battered Shade. Amused by her efforts, he tossed her aside like a broken toy.

Their leader sputtered in pain, but her expression turned fierce. She refused to give up. “Kassa, Northern Lights, if you can hear me, attack now!”

“Asking for your friends? Never fear, they’re right here!” The Kingpin gestured. Razzle gasped as her pegasus friend entered the scene with an unconscious Kassa, a knife to her throat.

“Northern Lights, what are you doing?!” Shade demanded.

Impossible. This couldn’t be happening! Northern Lights, a traitor? Everypony gasped as the pegasus’s visage faded away, revealing an earth pony with a blank, white face. It contained no features, not even a nose, unsettling Razzle.

“Ponyfeathers! Of course! Northern Lights was the one who suggested tailing Crooked Path!” Shade said, voice full of self-condemnation. No wonder the enemy knew all their plans!

Everyone gasped in surprise as the Kingpin suddenly floated in the air, cracking energy sparking around him. Then Razzle noticed the crown sitting on his bald head.

“And now, none of you are leaving this warehouse alive.”