private Pony Mystery Theater: Exit Trixie, Stage Right.

[Key Gear 6,663]

Magic. It was a tremendous gift, but it was also a curse. It was the reason that she had done everything that she did. It was her special talent in life. It was also the very element of her undoing. Trixie shook her head. She was sitting on the stage, waiting for her own show to start. She was still facing away from the audience, and, at this point, she was completely absorbed in her own world. In her mind, she could see it all over again. Ponyville, the site of her failure.At first, things had gone so well. The crowd was completely enthralled with everything that she did, and in their eyes it seemed as though she could do no wrong. But then things did go wrong, horribly wrong. She was challenged by some members of the audience. Using her wit and, of course, her skill, she was able to quell the hecklers. But then, later on, some of her more overly enthusiastic fans brought a disaster upon the town in an effort to test her abilities.She failed the test. Now, looking back, it was obvious that she was taking the wrong approach at that time. However, how could she have done otherwise? Magic was commonplace in Equestria. In order to entertain her audience, she couldn't just use normal magic and get away with it. Instead, she had to use words to weave a story, a tapestry that she could wrap some small magic tricks in to make them seem as though they were more than what they really were.Back in Ponyville, the ponies that had given her a hard time believed that her technique was boasting. However, Trixie didn't think of it as boasting. To her, that was just a good show. The problem was that the good show had taken on a life of its own. She was so intent upon putting on a "good show" that she lost control over her own perceptions of reality. Trixie smiled at the thought of how she was back then. She called herself the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria, and she had believed it.That's why she had failed the test. She failed to deal with the Ursa Minor, because she had been nowhere near as powerful as she could have been. She could've gone in search of the artifact earlier. She could've found it earlier. She could have become more powerful earlier. Because really, power was the key. In this show, the one that she would do on this train, there will be no stories - only power.But how much power? Trixie frowned. Her increased abilities might actually be a problem. The last thing that she wanted to do was to end up injuring a pony in the audience. It would be bad publicity. She also didn't want to blow the train car into pieces or anything else like that. Of course, she could always alter perceptions of the room or... Perhaps even altering the very space that the room existed in. Of course, she would still have to be careful. She had already seen what happened when she lost control of her newfound powers. She was not interested in seeing it again.Returning her thoughts to how to work within the limitations of the space, Trixie turned her head slightly and looked out into the crowd. She instantly regretted the decision. It was demoralizing. She had not expected to find cheering and wild enthusiasm, but she had at least hoped to feel some type of positive energy or expectation from the audience. Instead, she saw that the ponies in the audience all looked vaguely uninterested. One of them was even reading a book while waiting for the performance.Trixie's face reflected her complete and total disbelief. Far from the show being one to remember, it appeared as though the audience had already forgotten. Adding insult to injury, the crowd was not only vaguely disinterested, it was also somewhat smaller than she had expected. Some of the ponies that she had seen earlier, in the dining car, were not present. Apparently, they had decided to skip our show.Despite herself, Trixie could feel herself becoming disappointed and rather frustrated. For just a moment, she wondered if she would ever be able to overcome her damaged reputation. But as quickly as the moment had come, it was gone. This wasn't the first tough crowd that she had ever faced. It probably wouldn't be the last either. In fact, perhaps this tough crowd would make excellent practice for the upcoming show in Los Pegasus. And what wonderful practice this would be...She would practice. She would practice with a display of power. That was the key. If she could impress this crowd with her power, then she would have no need for ridiculous stories. There would be no more allegations of boasting. There would only be tales of her glory. The crowd with either cheer or they would sit in awe, but they would not dismiss her. She would not allow them to dismiss her. Certainly, not after all that she had gone through to get to this point.@, @, @,It was time for the show to start.Her eyes started glowing with a faint white light. She wheeled to face the crowd and all of her meandering thoughts faded into gray. This was her moment. She would make this a show to remember. She would do it by making it a show that these ponies would never forget. Trixie concentrated and her horn glowed with a dim white light. Suddenly, some of the other ponies from the train materialized into empty seats - a unicorn and a pegasus that had been standing in the dining car, a blue unicorn that had been in his room calmly reading, and a rather confused looking Vim.Standing triumphantly on the stage, Trixie's voice boomed out with its characteristic loudness. "The Great and Powerful Trixie is ready! But not to put on a magic show. Trixie will not bore you all with something nearly so trivial. Instead, Trixie will amaze you with a demonstration of Trixie's power. The Great and Powerful Trixie is now the most powerful pony in all of Equestria!" Unable to contain himself, Springer cheered from the audience.Trixie raised her front hooves into the air and her glowing eyes and horn were now plainly discernible - a brilliant white light emanated from them both. "Watch and be amazed at magic that is beyond your imaginations!" While Trixie was speaking, something began to happen to the room that the ponies were in. Somehow, it began to seem much larger than it hard originally. Like a funhouse mirror, the room began distorting in various ways. Some areas seemed to move closer together, other areas began to move further apart.After a few moments of the room going through mystifying visual contortions, things appeared to have settled. Fascinated with her own work, Trixie smiled confidently. The room was now, literally, nearly twice the size. She had managed to pull off the complicated spell without even breaking a sweat. Her confident smile became a grin. Speaking loudly, but not yelling as she had been earlier. Trixie spoke again, and her voice projected throughout the room. "Ponies. Have you ever seen a unicorn more powerful than Trixie? This is only just the beginning."Trixie's horn began to glow brightly again and the stage filled with wild psychedelic patterns and colors. For few moments, the array of color on display was incredible that the shapes remained abstract. Finally, out of the abstract shapes appeared a myriad of wildly colored flying creatures - birds, insects, even a few flying squirrels. The only sign of the creatures illusionary natures was their strange silence. In every other way, they seemed strangely real.As all of this was happening, something else began to happen that went completely unnoticed by Trixie. The temperature in the room dropped by just a small amount. It was not nearly enough to cause a pony to shiver, but it was undoubtedly beginning to be quite noticeable by the members of the audience.On the stage, Trixie was still only using a fraction of her power. She was completely unaffected by the efforts that her show had required so far. In fact, she was growing almost bored with her current act.

---

When Trixie had started her show, Key Gear had been quite skeptical. She didn't know much about Trixie, and she had never really been interested in stage magicians. She had expected to see a rather uninteresting start of the show. Instead, she had both seen and experienced something that wildly shattered her expectations.Trixie had effortlessly teleported a handful of ponies from wherever they had been on the train. Trixie hadn't even needed to know where they were, she had merely dropped them into seats. Key's heart sagged as she realized that this particular magic trick held worrying implications for her plans for the evening.Then Trixie had somehow changed the dimensions of the room. While the room had been going through its distortions, Key had been staring wildly around. She had a strong dislike of enclosed spaces, so every time that her view had become distorted, she had felt a distinct tinge of panic. When things finally settled, Key felt vaguely nauseous. Her worry increased.Finally, there were the psychedelic colors and the weird illusions. Key had avoided looking at the psychedelic colors because she was afraid that they could possibly be some strange kind of hypnotic illusions. Because of this, she had completely missed the weird creatures. She only took notice of them when a massive red and black butterfly landed right on her nose. The moment the bug made contact, Key quickly shrank back into her seat. She hated bugs. All of them.The show was not going the way Key had expected it to go. It was going horribly. It wasn't so much a show as it was some type of weird demonstration of a variety of magic, and all of the demonstrations so far had been either irritating or worrying. Key began to think. What if all of this was leading up to a freakish final act. What if ponies were going to get hurt. What if Trixie could read minds? Key's eyes shot wide open.Key looked at the stage. Even with all of the things going on, Trixie seemed completely nonplussed. She really was a powerful unicorn. Key decided that she needed to act immediately... Before she completely lost her chance, or, worse, before Trixie discovered her plan.Key stepped calmly out of her seat. The proportions of the room had been altered, but she hoped that it was still possible to get out. Doing her best to appear completely nonchalant, she walked to the exit that led to the dining car and left the parlor. She then made her way down the hall, towards Trixie's room. She only hesitated for one moment when she realized that there was still a danger that Trixie's room was guarded by something.She couldn't very well drag the honest Detective Daylight on an expedition of thievery, but she did wish that she had managed to drag Electrobolt along with her. Electrobolt was not nearly as intimidating as Daylight. She had told Electro all about her past, and he had offered to help her. If she had remembered to ask him, then he would have probably joined her. Instead, she had been distracted by asking him a silly question. Key groaned internally and continued on her way, hoping that she didn't run into any trouble.

---

Back in the parlor, Trixie allowed the illusions to frolic around the room for a few more minutes before, in an instant, she made them vanish. It was time for a new trick. Becoming more and more confident by the second, she spoke out to the crowd. "Now, The Great and Powerful Trixie will show a few of you your true talents." With her horn glowing slightly, Trixie walked to the edge of the stage and surveyed the crowd.Trixie quickly noticed that the young blue filly she had seen earlier had left the room. For just a moment, Trixie was irritated, and she thought about teleporting the disrespectful filly right back into the room. However, she decided against it. She was not going to get stuck with babysitting the impetuous little foal with her magic. Certainly not in the middle of her show. Instead, she would extract her irritation on the young filly's friend.@@Electrobolt,It was trivial to use a spell to discern the colt's name. Smiling slightly, Trixie pointed at Electrobolt from the stage. "You there! Trixie has uncovered your true talent! Are you interested in knowing what it is, Electrobolt?" She waited a few moments for his answer and then used a spell to materialize a small cloud right over him. Trixie smiled innocently as a bolt of weak lightening sparked from the tiny cloud and made contact with the colt's fur.Trixie looked concerned as she spoke with the rest of the audience. "Trixie is still working out the details of this spell. Well..." She raised her hooves and her voice boomed out into the crowd. "Would anypony else like to have their true talent revealed by Trixie? Trixie promises that it will be worthwhile!"(OOC: Yup, this is a bit long. Sorry about that, but I hope it was decent reading. Also, ignore these weird hr things, something is broken and they won't go away...):[/hr][/hr]

[Electrobolt 2,069]

As Electrobolt was awaiting for the show to start, he got a bit concerned. The cook would tell Daylight what she thought was going on between him and Key Gear, when it was all really just a misunderstanding. However, once Trixie turned around, the young colt noticed and looked up to the showpony. Upon looking at her eyes, however, he was slightly confused. *Wait... Her eyes... Are they...?* pondered Electro, before dismissing the idea. *No, that's silly... Just one of her tricks, most likely...* However, the next thing that happened caused his eyes to shoot wide open: some ponies have been teleported into the show, all at once!

 

*What... How did... When did...???* Electrobolt was extremely surprised at the whole thing. Trixie had just teleported a few of the ponies riding the train into the room at once! *She really did get more powerful...* It was just then that Trixie started speaking out, saying that she wasn't going to put on a show, but instead demonstrate some of her powers. If teleportation is one of these powers, then... What would the rest of her newfound abilities be? He had to admit, this slightly caused the lime-green colt to be both interested and concerned.

 

Just then, Trixie's eyes and horn both began to shine a brilliant white, which caused him to be quite startled again. Why were her eyes glowing white anyways? What purpose would that serve if she wasn't going to put on a show? Before he could think of anything else, the room suddenly began to shift. *Wha... What's going on??? The room...?* were his thoughts as the parlor car began to shift and move, stretching out until it was twice as large. However, what happened next quickly shoved the room out of his mind, as Trixie began to perform her next trick.

 

It was just then that the showpony began to emit strange lights and shapes from her horn, seemingly filling the room with the shapes which then turned into birds, insects, and so on. The whole scene was completely entrancing, yet somehow eerie. But he couldn't keep his eyes off the entire scene. The young colt was completely entranced by the colors and seemingly-real creatures that flooded the room. *Whoa... This... This is unbelievable... How is she... Doing all of this?*

 

However, once Trixie finished the trick and dismissed the colors and creatures, Electrobolt shook his head and blinked for a while. "Whoa... That was... Just weird..." he whispered to himself, before leaning in closer to Key. "Um, you enjoying this so far?" he asked the filly in a hushed tone, before not getting an answer from her. Curious, he looked over to see the chair was empty. Confused, he looked over and noticed she wasn't there. Where did she go, and why did she leave? Before he could think of any answers to the questions, Trixie had spoken out to him.

 

 

Smiling slightly, Trixie pointed at Electrobolt from the stage. "You there! Trixie has uncovered your true talent! Are you interested in knowing what it is, Electrobolt?"

 

Absolutely startled at how the showpony knew his name, his attention was directed immediately at Trixie. *Wait, how did she know my name???* was the first question that popped into his mind. *And why did she pick me??? Also, my true talent...?* Before he could answer her question, Trixie began to concentrate, conjuring up a small cloud that hovered just over him. Looking up, he was confused. *What does this have to do with my true talent...?* he thought, stumped. Just then, however, the cloud suddenly zapped him with lightning.

 

Even though the shock was weak, it still caused his coat to stand on end as a small stream of smoke rose from where the lightning bolt struck him. "Wh... What did that... Have to do with my 'true talent'...?" Electro questioned silently. He didn't want to stick around, lest he get struck by another bolt of lightning. Looking around, and hoping nopony noticed him leaving, Electrobolt silently got out of his chair and made his way out of the room. Once outside, he sighed. "Trixie sure seemed different... But... How...?" Clearing his head, he started to go through the dining car to head into his room...

 

However, he stopped as soon as he saw Key Gear on his way. *Hmm? Why is she here...?* thought the confused colt, as he was deciding whether to go to his room and get fixed up, or just see what she was going to do. He then eventually decided not to go back to his room, at least for the moment, as he decided to see what she was up to. "Hey, Key...?" he called out to her, hoping not to freak her out. "I, uh... I noticed you weren't back there at the show a minute ago... So um... Yeah..." He sighed, still feeling a bit of heat from where the lightning struck him. "Anyways... What's up?"

[Magicon 468]

Magicon carefully watched Trixie as she began her show. She started off with a dim white light and suddenly additional ponies from the train were seated next to Magicon and the other guests on board. He nearly jumped out of his seat from the surprise and looked around frantically, making sure they weren’t hallucinations. But the other guests were looking around in bewilderment too, a clear sign that this was not a trick. He calmed himself with a few deep breaths and felt a small twinge of envy. ‘Teleportation spells of ponies against their will? That’s invasive! That’s breaking privacy! That’s just wrong!’

 

But Magicon didn’t have time to think about her first performance as Trixie jumped into her next act.  He had to cover his eyes from her blindly white light and when the light faded Magicon noticed that the dimensions of the Parlor had been changed. The room looked larger than it previously had been and Magicon couldn’t help but feel a growing envy of her. ‘She better have more than dimension spells. I’ll admit, those aren’t exactly easy, but there’s a lot harder stuff than them. Let’s see what else she has in store.’ Fortunately, Magicon didn’t have to wait as Trixie began the next part of her act, confident and arrogant as ever.

 

Then her horn began glowing and a barrage of colors and odd shapes flooded the stage that quickly transformed into colorful insects that fluttered about the room. Magicon immediately felt the pangs of a headache coming on. Bright colors never pleased him and a barrage of them only further angered him. The insects were also annoying, tiny little creatures buzzing around the room with their bright colors. As Trixie continued her performance Magicon crossed his hooves and lowered his gaze, becoming more and bitterer with every passing second. He wasn’t jealous of her, just very much annoyed.

Once she finished that act, which took too long for Magicon, he took a deep breath and tried to ease the headache now engulfing his mind. ‘Darn her for this! This is why show magic and I don’t mix. We’re exact opposites.’

 

But Magicon didn’t get much time to think as Trixie singled out the young colt Magicon had seen in the dining car earlier and strike him with a bolt of lightning. That was the final straw for Magicon. He may not know the boundary between light and dark magic, but he knew better than to inflict any magic on ponies who did nothing to deserve it. Trixie was breaking so many rules about magic and its usage and it was time he put her in her place and obey the laws of the magical arts.

 

His time quickly came when Trixie asked, 

"Would anypony else like to have their true talent revealed by Trixie? Trixie promises that it will be worthwhile!"

 

Magicon rose and called out, “I will!” and proceeded to the stage, determined to show Trixie true magic and how to properly use it.

 

[Flow 1,628]

@, 

 

While sitting down, Flow looked around the room gazing at the decorations of the room and while doing so, she spotted Lapis motioning at her to sit with him "Oh, it's Lapis, it would make sense to sit with him," She quietly gets up and moves to a seat next to Lapis, then greeting him "Hey Lapis, great to see you again, thanks."

 

Next, she saw Trixie begin her show by teleporting the other passengers into the parlor car, "Wha....What just happened?  Did she teleport all the other passengers into the car? That's really cruel of her, just why?" Next, Trixie looks at the audience and points out to a green earth pony, telling him to come up on stage, Flow immediately recognized him as one of those ponies on the other table, "Woah, it's him!" And she heard Trixie call out his name Electrobolt, "Is that his....name? If so, then how does she know? Gosh she is starting to scare me,"

 

Trixie claimed that she can uncover anypony's talent with ease, but Flow thought, "Uh...I'm sure we all can determine anypony's talent by just looking at their cutie marks, but then again it's hard to tell mine. I mean, my talent is making sonic booms, but does this mean she uses her magic to read minds in order to find out their talents? I wonder, and all this thinking is giving me a headache!"

 

Flow watched her try to do some spell on the nervous volunteer, where it resulted in the colt getting struck by a bolt of lightning, Trixie claimed that it was an accident, but Flow questions it, "Is this really an accident or an act of cruelty?!? Boy is she really getting on my nerves."

 

Afterwards, she asks for another volunteer, to which a red unicorn accepts, Flow clearly wasn't enjoying this "Great, what is the witch planning to do now?"

Edited December 1, 2012 by Narutardedscum!!

[Bari 7,023]

As Flow took her seat next to him, Lapis nodded imperceptibly. He turned towards her briefly and replied. "Yes, it's nice to see you again as well." Hopefully, after the show, Lapis could convince Flow to help investigate Dusky's disappearance. If luck would have it, he'd be hiding out somewhere on the train. Perhaps he had fallen asleep in one of the passengers' rooms just as dinner was starting. And then, they could see what exactly was going on with Trixie. Things seemed to be going rather smoothly despite the fact they'd made little to no progress.And then the show started. Trixie faced the crowd, her eyes glowing very dimly. Then her horn followed suit. Nothing too spectacular. She was probably going to do a neat trick to open up the act. But suddenly ponies who hadn't been there before materialized in the empty seats. And among them was Vim. This got Lapis's gears turning. If Trixie had teleported all the ponies on the train into the parlor, including Vim, would that mean Dusky would have been as well? Lapis made a mental note to ask Ambrosia when the show was over. Trixie's eyes and horn grew brighter after she addressed the gathered ponies. Lapis was a little put off by her boastful statements, but remained focused. He needed to watch closely to see if anything was odd or off.The room started to distort as if through a lens, then back again. Not something easy to describe. It was unlike anything he had seen before. And then the occurrence ended. The blue pony's eyes darted around for a second. The parlor car appeared to be larger. Lapis was impressed. Such mystifying feats were a novelty to him. Perhaps her boasts of being powerful and great were not too hard to believe. But any good unicorn could pull off something strange and intriguing. It would take a bit more to convince him.The bright lights that the stage pony summoned next were truly incredible. Creatures made entirely of light. Definitely something of interest. The air seemed to change during the performance. The temperature had seemed to drop ever so slightly. Like a cool breeze. He wondered if a window had been opened. But he thought nothing more of it.Lapis noticed the blue filly in front of him had gotten up. Very curious. Clearly, she wasn't impressed and wished to leave. No matter. Lapis couldn't follow after her to find out what was the problem. He needed to keep an eye on the show for anything out of the ordinary. Despite the marvelous feats being performed, it seemed rather standard. And yet, Trixie did not seem to be all that strained by the magic she was casting. Usually there would be evidence of something. Like a little sweat, or a look of exertion. It was as though this was nothing to her. Very interesting.After the light show was over, Lapis gave all his attention to the mare on stage. Sadly, he let the little display distract him. Hopefully nothing had happened, no matter how insignificant.

 

Trixie pointed to the green colt, whose name was apparently Electrobolt. Unless they knew each other, or Trixie was guessing, she had somehow discerned his name. Perhaps that meant she could read minds. This worried Lapis a little. It would be embarrassing if she could and chose to read his. He watched even more intensely.

 

She shocked the green colt. Lapis was appalled. What kind of performer assaulted her audience? His opinion of her began to worsen. Even though she was clearly talented, her attitude needed much improvement. Hopefully, when he questioned her later on, she'd be at least somewhat cooperative. Otherwise, he would learn nothing, and that could certainly make investigation all the much harder. Electrobolt, if that truly was his name, left the parlor car, seeming to be after the blue filly. His gaze quickly returned to the stage just in time to see a red unicorn approach Trixie offering to volunteer. Clearly Trixie wanted to assault another pony. Or maybe she had honestly messed up the spell and wished to make amends by doing it right this time. He could only wait and see. 

 

But then he remembered that he wanted to ask Ambrosia a question. He racked his brain, and then it came back to him. Leaning over to her, he whispered in Ambrosia's ear. "Do you see Dusky? I would seem like Trixie has teleported all the ponies on the train into here, even Vim. If Dusky was to be found, I'd think she would have made him watch the show like Vim. Do you think something truly awful happened to him? What does he look like anyway?"

Edited December 1, 2012 by Berry Pie

[Key Gear 6,663]

"Do you see Dusky? It would seem like Trixie has teleported all the ponies on the train into here, even Vim. If Dusky was to be found, I'd think she would have made him watch the show like Vim. Do you think something truly awful happened to him? What does he look like anyway?"

Ambrosia jumped a little bit. Lapis had unintentionally surprised her. Having never quite seen anything like it before, Ambrosia was nearly put into a hypnotic state by Trixie's display of power. Shaking her head to clear the haze, she ran Lapis's question through her thoughts again. Craning her neck, she scanned the audience looking for the familiar tall, lanky unicorn. However, he was nowhere to be found.

 

Lapis was right. If Vim was there with the rest of the crowd, then it really would have made sense for Dusky to be there as well. Yet, he was gone, which would mean that they were possibly on a train with an engine problem and did not have an engineer on board. Ambrosia felt a sudden dryness in her throat, and as she leaned over to reply to Lapis, her eyes were wide with worry and concern.

 

"No, I... I don't see Dusky in here. I just don't know what could have possibly happened to him. Unless, well..." She gulped. "Maybe he isn't on the train? It could be why nopony has been able to find him. Maybe that's what happened... You know he is really hard to miss when he is around. He's quiet, but he is really tall and thin. He's a unicorn. He..."

 

Suddenly, Ambrosia had an eerie feeling. Glancing at the tall goldenrod unicorn that had spoke to her earlier, she realized something. This unicorn was similar to Dusky in size, build, and even things like hair and demeanor. The primary difference seemed to be that this unicorn's talent and color scheme were light-based, while Dusky's were more true to his name. Stunned by this realization, she tried to recall if she had ever seen both unicorns in the same place. She couldn't. Whenever she had seen this unicorn, Dusky had been out of sight.

 

Ambrosia stared at the goldenrod unicorn for a few moments, before finally snapping out of her reverie. She turned back to Lapis and opened her mouth to continue, but she was interrupted by a sudden drop in temperature that caused her to shiver violently. Suddenly, something remarkably shocking happened that completely distracted her from her thoughts.

 

 

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The hall was empty, so the faint sound of hoofsteps behind her seemed frighteningly loud. Key tensed, but she kept walking. Her ears were already acutely sensitive to the noise of hoofsteps coming up behind her. Being aware of her surroundings, especially of being followed, was a skill that she had developed when she was living homeless in Manehattan.

 

However, as she listened to the steps behind her, it didn't seem as though she was actually being followed. Whoever this pony was, it sounded as though they were going about their own business. Judging by their sound compared to her own, Key figured that the hoofsteps probably belonged to a stallion. She figured that it was a member of the train crew or another passenger going to their own room, but she didn't have long to think about this new theory before a familiar voice spoke up behind her.

 

 

 

"Hey, Key...?" he called out to her, hoping not to freak her out. "I, uh... I noticed you weren't back there at the show a minute ago... So um... Yeah..." He sighed, still feeling a bit of heat from where the lightning struck him. "Anyways... What's up?"

Key was both surprised and relieved to hear Electrobolt's voice. "Hey! Bolt! What are you... Wha?" Key started to greet Electrobolt, but she stopped talking as she took in the sight of his appearance. His fur was all standing on end as though he had been hit with a bolt from some kind of spell. Key was confused for a second, but then she had to fight to avoid breaking out into her normally loud laughter.

 

The halls were so quiet. The last thing that she wanted to do was to make so much noise that everypony on the train could likely hear it - maybe even Trixie. After a few, long seconds of holding her breath, she managed to contain herself, but the effort had made her eyes water and she was still smiling broadly. Not trusting herself, Key took a few more moments to wipe the smile off her face and restore a neutral expression.

 

After taking a deep breath, Key deadpanned. "Well... Your fur seems to be up. So, Bolt, were you bolted? Is that how you got your name?" Key's eyes twinkled with hilarity, but she dared not risk the chance of explosive laughter by slipping her self-control. She paused only for a moment before deciding to take Electrobolt into her confidence, yet again. She would tell him exactly what she was doing. The change in topic would also help to decrease the risk of noise. She would ask him about his new fur-style later.

 

"Yeah, well... Anyways... I'm going to go break into Trixie's room and take back whatever it was that she stole. You saw her back there? Is she the same pony that you saw in Ponyville? That stuff that she did back in the Parlor... I haven't seen many unicorns like that. To me, she seems dangerous. I don't want Daylight or anypony else to get hurt if she finds out what we are doing on this train and decides to try and stop us. So..."

 

While talking quietly, Key had turned back around and continued calmly walking towards Trixie's room. She was confident that Electrobolt would follow her. When she finally finished talking, she shrugged. She had reached Trixie's room, room 8. It wasn't very far from where she had started, so it had only taken a few moments to get there. Now, standing in front of Trixie's door, Key unfastened the pouch from her right-hind leg and removed a few curious looking instruments - her lock pick set.

 

With the calm focus of one that is well-practiced in their craft, Key went to work. A quick inspection of the lock revealed it to be a standard pin and tumbler lock with a few well placed security pins to make her life more difficult. Key sighed and then grabbed a small tension wrench and her best lock pick. This would be an easy lock to pick, but it would require some care.

 

She placed the tip of the wrench into the lock at the base of where the key would have rested. With a slight turn to the left and then the right, she was able to determine which direction had the greater amount of give - this was the way that the key would normally need to be turned. Slowly and carefully she used the wrench to put a very light pressure in the same direction that the key would be turned, and she placed the pick in the opposite end of the keyhole.

 

Using the lock pick, she was able to quickly locate the pins for the lock. Because of her experience, she didn't need to bother with "raking" them. She simply went straight into setting them one by one, starting with the pin that was at the far end of the lock. As she lifted the pins, she applied just slightly more pressure on the lock using the tension wrench. As she worked, she was rewarded by the sound of a series of slight clicks indicating that a pin had been set.

 

To an outside observer, the entire process was seamless. There had been 6 pins in the lock, and all six were set in short order with a flurry of gentle clicking noises. The entire process took just a few seconds. Then, Key Gear turned the tension wrench and the lock was opened. She stashed her lock picking set back where it had come from, and turned to Electrobolt with a triumphant smile. "So, you wanna help me look around in here?"

 

 

 

 

 

 

-----------------------------------------------------

 

 

Magicon rose and called out, “I will!” and proceeded to the stage, determined to show Trixie true magic and how to properly use it.

Trixie immediately recognized the sight of the pony that had been sitting at her table during dinner - Springer's friend. She immediately tried to read him using the same basic spell that she had used to discern Electrobolt's name. She was rewarded with nothing. As Magicon made his way onto the stage, Trixie's horn glowed as she tried a much more powerful discernment spell. Again nothing. Trixie suddenly felt tremendously disconcerted. What kind of pony was this? Why was he volunteering?

 

She was confused. She had intended for a normal member of the audience to come up on stage for some amusement, but this was clearly not a normal member of the audience. Her mind went back to the dinner. Magicon had clearly not been interested in the show. That had seemingly been Springer's idea. In fact, Magicon's discomfort had been one of the motivating factors in her acceptance of the idea of a show. Now this same pony was apparently going to challenge her. Was this... A setup? Springer...

 

Suddenly, Trixie looked out into the crowd at Springer. He was sitting there, looking strangely reserved and vaguely confused. Trixie turned her attention back to Magicon. Magicon was confident, and his confidence disturbed her. What did he know? She looked back out at Springer. What had he told Magicon? She looked back at Magicon. Somehow, she was certain that Springer had some kind of convoluted plan. She wasn't sure of exactly what it was, but she knew that she would not stand by and allow it to succeed.

 

Trixie gathered herself and held her head high. This pony wasn't here for entertainment, but she intended to make the most of his demeanor and keep her show going. Speaking with confidence and even tones she addressed Magicon. "Trixie was not able to determine your true talent. Perhaps this is because you have none? Is this why your cape obscures your cutie mark? Because perhaps you don't have one? Or it illustrates a talent so worthless that you would prefer for us to use our imaginations? You think too much of yourself Magicon. You should not have wasted Trixie's time by coming onstage and not even having a talent for Trixie to find."

Afterwards, she asks for another volunteer, to which a red unicorn accepts, Flow clearly wasn't enjoying this "Great, what is the witch planning to do now?"

Magicon was the same pony that had doubted her abilities earlier. Now he had seen just a glimpse of her power and he thought he knew what she could do. But she knew nothing about him... Trixie decided to take a risk. She needed an easy way to determine exactly how powerful this unicorn was. After that, she would know more about what she was dealing with. Surveying the audience, she spotted a young pegasus that seemed, clearly, to not be enjoying the show. Trixie smiled. This young pegasus would do nicely, and she would probably not be in very much danger. Her feathers would make wonderful insulation.

 

"Well... Magicon, perhaps Trixie will give you an opportunity." Trixie braced herself and focused her magic tremendously. Her horn began to glow with a bright light. Behind her, a small, strange disturbance seemed to be taking shape. The light of her horn continued to grow in intensity and sparks started to fly from it due to the effort required. This was among the more difficult spells that she had learned, and it was also one that she was still quite unfamiliar with. Her concentration distracted her completely. She completely didn't notice that the temperature in the room was now dropping quite noticeably and a strange staleness seemed to be gripping the atmosphere.

 

The disturbance behind her continued to develop. At first, it was a spherical shape that seemed to ripple as though it was made of some type of liquid, but, as she continued, it grew more and more consistent. As Trixie continued to concentrate, the shape revealed itself to be some type of portal, and within it, a landscape began to form. At first it was barely visible, but soon a vast frozen tundra was evident through the portal.

 

And, Trixie was finished with the spell. Staggering from the effort that the spell had required, she then took a deep breath and spoke loudly. "Behold! A gateway to the frozen north!" Now, quickly, before anypony could stop her, Trixie levitated the grumpy, cream-colored pegasus into the portal and dropped her. The gateway closed. Trixie stole a glance out into the crowd just in time to see Springer's reaction. He was stunned and horrified. Just the reaction that she had intended. Springer needed to understand that there were no challengers, no subterfuge, no room for his machinations. There was only one Great and Powerful Trixie.

 

Of course, Trixie thought to herself, nopony was really in danger. She could reopen the portal at any time. However, could Magicon? Turning to the red unicorn, Trixie addressed him calmly. "Well, Magicon. Since Trixie was not able to discover your talent, perhaps you could illustrate it for the audience? Can you do what Trixie just did? Can you open the portal? Hmmm?"

 

(OOC, read this:)

 

 

OOC:

 

It is time to really get things rolling, reveal a few secrets, hint at a few others and generally make a giant freaking mess of things.

 

Naru, please don't kill me, but Flow is in the frozen north at the moment - very far into the frozen north. Feel free to make snow angels while freezing to death. Seriously though, help is on the way. Hopefully from Magicon, but... If not, I've got backup plans for your rescue well before anything unfortunate happens.

 

Magicon, the stage is set for you at the moment. Like with the locked door, feel free to do what you feel best fits your character's attributes - strength, personality, abilities. (Don't you love repeating patterns... I wonder if there'll be a third test sometime down the tracks and who is behind all of this? Hmmm.... I dunno.)

 

Just one thing to keep in mind, and this is something that Trixie doesn't know... It takes less effort to open this particular portal the more times it is actually performed within a certain amount of time. This is the second time on this train, so yours would be the third time.

 

(The light that the train crew saw was the first time somepony did this particular spell. See, Trixie doesn't know that either though, because the first pony to use this spell on this train was not her.)

 

By the way, to all observers... If this seems randomly dramatic, keep in mind that there are lots of moving parts here and that there are things that are not quite known by the passengers yet. Things that will be revealed, somewhat, over the next sequence of events. Just depends on what happens.

 

 

[Electrobolt 2,069]

Key was both surprised and relieved to hear Electrobolt's voice. "Hey! Bolt! What are you... Wha?" Key started to greet Electrobolt, but she stopped talking as she took in the sight of his appearance. His fur was all standing on end as though he had been hit with a bolt from some kind of spell. Key was confused for a second, but then she had to fight to avoid breaking out into her normally loud laughter.

 

As Electrobolt saw Key turning around and responding to him, he was confused. *Bolt? What happened to calling me Electro...? And... Why did she--- Oh...* He looked at himself and noticed his coat was still standing on end from when he had been zapped by Trixie. Sighing again, he noticed that Key was trying to keep herself from laughing. *Oh geez... Here it comes...* he thought, as he awaited the next words to come out of the filly's mouth, expecting some sort of joke to be played on him.

 

After taking a deep breath, Key deadpanned. "Well... Your fur seems to be up. So, Bolt, were you bolted? Is that how you got your name?" Key's eyes twinkled with hilarity, but she dared not risk the chance of explosive laughter by slipping her self-control.

 

*Yep... I thought so... Ugh...* the young colt scowled in his mind. Rolling his eyes, he dryly said, "Oh, ha-ha... Quite the comedian, aren't we, Key..." He sighed once more, this time with a hint of annoyance, as he saw Key turning around and moving again, explaining to him what she was planning to do. Apparently she was planning on breaking into Trixie's room to take back what the showpony had stolen from her. Thinking that this might be a good chance to get payback for having been electrocuted, he listened on. Just then, however, Key questioned Electrobolt on Trixie.

 

"You saw her back there? Is she the same pony that you saw in Ponyville? That stuff that she did back in the Parlor... I haven't seen many unicorns like that. To me, she seems dangerous. I don't want Daylight or anypony else to get hurt if she finds out what we are doing on this train and decides to try and stop us. So..."

 

Clearing his throat, he spoke up, "Well... Although she looks the same, her attitude seems to be a bit different from before... That's... Really the best I can explain..." Closing his eyes, he began to reflect on the show in Ponyville. "Back in Ponyville, she used simple show magic to wow the audience. But all of that... That was all completely different... It looked like magic on a whole different level..." He then pondered on whether this object that Trixie stole was to blame for her different attitude and the advanced spells she was casting.

 

She had reached Trixie's room, room 8. It wasn't very far from where she had started, so it had only taken a few moments to get there. Now, standing in front of Trixie's door, Key unfastened the pouch from her right-hind leg and removed a few curious looking instruments - her lock pick set.

 

Once they arrived at the room, Key had stopped to reach her right-hindleg as Electrobolt looked confused. Why was she reaching there? Just then, he saw the filly detatching a pouch that matched her coat as he looked surprised. The bag blended in rather well, so he didn't expect this. And the next thing surprised him more - a set of lock picks. Electrobolt looked at her, surprised, but didn't say anything as he watched the filly get to work on the locks. He thought it would be rather hard to use lock picks with just hooves, but his eyes showed otherwise.

 

As he watched Key Gear get to work on the lock, he noticed that she seemed rather experienced at the whole mechanics of the lock picks, as she kept going. Eventually, she had finished and twisted the picks, with the lock now undone. His mouth was open wide at the whole thing, as he witnessed the filly successfully undoing the lock on the door. However, he quickly closed his mouth, keeping the surprised look on his face when Key looked back to him.

 

"So, you wanna help me look around in here?"

 

Shaking his head to clear the shock off of his face, he looked at the door, then back to Key. "Oh, um... Yeah, of course." Although he was still in shock at how Key was able to do what she did with the lock picks, he recalled how he could handle video game controllers. But still, he would have to talk with her about this one day, in private. As Electrobolt approached the door, he looked down the hallways once, twice, and then three times to make sure nopony was around. Once he was confident that it was just the two of them, he slowly lifted his hoof up and reached for the doorknob, before slowly twisting it and then slowly pushing the door open.

[Dave247 568]

Daylight looked back and forward between Electrobolt and Key. They both stuttered answers and were looking very uncomfortable. It was clear he wasn't going to get any answers from then so he turned to look at the cook instead. He had seen her before at dinner and although he didn't pay to much attention to her then he could clearly remember that she was no longer wearing her chef's hat. She was a older mare who looked to be around his age with lemon coloured fur and plum coloured mane and tail. She looked well kept with her mane in a headband which is something he assumed she much of put a lot of effort into considering she worked in the Kitchens a lot. There was something about her that he found... distracting that he couldn't help to stare at her. It wasn't until that she started talking that caused him to snap out of it.

"Yes, there is something you should know about, but I think we should talk about it after the show."

And that was all she said. He had temporally forgotten the reason that he had originally looked to her was, and only just noticed that the two ponies that he had seen sitting with her at dinner were now sitting next to her in the parlor. "How could I have missed them?" He thought to himself, bewildered, as he sat down on the cook's other side behind key and Electrobolt. "And what is it that I should know about?" He thought. For some reason his mind felt all... fuzzy and he found it hard to think straight. He took the few moments before the show started to try and clear his head. He would think more about it after the show.

Day shook his head. He needed to be able to concentrate now of all times when the show started so he could colsely observe Trixie. He looked up to see her horn glowing then several ponies just appear in the empty seats. He was taken aback by the teleportation spell as it was not something he was expecting. "Other then it being a breach of free will she can't have known exactly where they all where on the train." He thought, frowning. The show was only just about to begin and already Daylight was concerned of exactly what Trixie was capable of.

With a booming introduction that only further concerned him, the show started. He watched Trixie as as she raised her front hooves with horn and eyes glowing a bright white when something strange began to happen. He tore his eyes away from Trixie to look at the room around them. The room seemed to be distorting by moving closer and further away which made him feel queasy so he instead tried to focus on looking at Trixie which didn't help so he shut his eyes until it was over. When Trixie spoke again, he assumed the ordeal was over so he opened his eyes to see the room had now doubled in size. "I'm sure it's just an illusion" He thought, blinking and rubbing his eyes. "But it looks so real..."

He then quickly looked back to Trixie who's horn was glowing again preparing her next act. A wide arry of light of different patterns and colours filled the room that started off as abstract shapes, then changed into flying animals. Watching the animals fly around the room, he was perplexed how she was able to manipulate light like that and wished that he was skilled enough to be able to do the same.
When it finished he felt disappointed. He was rather enjoying the light show as anything to do with light fascinated him as it was his own talent. He looked back at Trixie who's horn was still glowing slightly as she walked out to edge of the stage. When he heard her say she can discover their true talents he frowned again. "There is just some magic that just shouldn't be messed with and this is one of them." He thought. He was rather surprised to hear her call out to Electrobolt and even more so when a cloud materialized above his head and saw a weak bolt of lighting zap him. "How did she know his name I wonder... I doubt the two of them have conversed before..." He thought.

Looking back at Trixie she was now offering anyponyelse who was brave enough to reveal their true talents. This gave him a bad feeling that it was not going to end well. Day took the few moments of silence to look back at Electro to check on him, only to discover that he had disappeared, and so had Key! Frantically looking around, he couldn't see them in the parlor anymore and worried that maybe Trixie had done something to them. "No, she couldn't have. I would have at least noticed that if she had" He thought, pondering their whereabouts. "So it must mean that they both snuck out... but to where? If it where me there would only be one place I would go right now and that would be..." The realization hit hard and panic and worry filled him. "I have to follow them!" He thought hurriedly.

 

As he was about to get up he heard Magicon call out and answer Trixie's offer. "This complicates things..." He thought as he watched him get up and walk towards the stage. "If I go I might miss learning something important about Trixie or Magicon... but if I stay then I might be putting Key or Electro at risk." After much deliberation he decided he would stay, for now, as they were most likely together hopefully they would protect each other. It wouldn't stop him from worrying though.

Edited December 5, 2012 by Dave247

[Key Gear 6,663]

Once he was confident that it was just the two of them, he slowly lifted his hoof up and reached for the doorknob, before slowly twisting it and then slowly pushing the door open.

Key breathed a sigh of relief. Even though she had made a joke at his expense, she was extremely happy that Electrobolt was there with her. She had spent so much of her life living in dangerous circumstances, by herself, and walking into dangerous situations, all alone. As Electrobolt pushed the door open, she realized that this was the first time in her life that she didn't have to rely exclusively on herself for protection. Somehow, no matter what was on the other side of the door, Key knew that everything would be fine.

 

The door opened soundlessly. Cautiously, Key peered around Electrobolt and into the room. Inside, it was rather dim, but Key could see no guards and no obvious signs of any traps. She stepped into the room to have a better look around. The room was disturbingly neat, nothing at all like she would have expected from the boisterous stage magician. There was a bed that looked like it had never been slept in. There was a desk that was intriguingly empty. There were other items of furniture in the room as well, all of which looked as though they had never been used. Among the items in the room was a number of locked chests.

 

The only source of light in the room was a small candle on the corner of the desk that was burning with a curiously dim light, casting unnatural shadows on the walls. Key didn't notice, but the candle looked as though it had just been lit, the wax was completely untouched by the heat of the flame. The flame itself seemed curiously static, lacking in all of the normal vibrancy and dance of fire. Instead, it burned with a remarkable precision - cold, methodical, and precise.

 

Key blinked. There was too much furniture in this room. The room seemed much larger on the inside than any of the other rooms in the train. In fact, the room was easily quadruple the size that it should have been. Key recognized the effect from earlier in the parlor car. Now it seemed that, Trixie had used her magic to make her own room larger, and possibly much more. Letting her curiosity get the best of her, Key opened a drawer. It was empty.

 

She whispered to Electrobolt. "Woah... What... What in Equestria is all of this? This room isn't really what I expected." She opened another drawer, and not only was it empty, but it was the same drawer that she had first opened. Somehow, she had opened the same drawer twice. Key tried another. The same thing happened. Once again, she was staring at the same drawer. Frustrated, Key started to try all of the drawers. Eventually, she managed to get two open at the same time but opening a third reset the entire sequence.

 

Key muttered something under her breath that was quite possibly unsuitable for a filly to say, and shook her head. "Bolt... I think that this room is one big illusion or some kind of puzzle. Look, I'm going to go pick the locks on those chests. If you are lucky, you can try figuring this stupid thing out. We really need to hurry though, because who knows how long the show is going to go on for."

 

Key immediately made her way over to the chests and, using her lock pick set, she rapidly began opening them all and checking their contents. The first one was empty and the lock was simple, but the remaining chests required increasingly greater skill to open. Opening the third chest finally yielded a small reward. The was, apparently, where the stage magician kept her belongings. Key tore through them, looking for anything of any particular value but she found nothing in particular. The fourth and final chest required all of her concentration. So much so that she completely didn't notice the room starting to darken just ever so slightly.

[Electrobolt 2,069]

As Key Gear walked into the room before him, he looked around outside and saw that nopony had followed them. Sighing out of relief, he followed Key into the room, leaving the door open thinking it wouldn't take them too long to do what they were here for and then dash out. As he entered, he took this time to glance around the room, noticing that it was rather dark, though there was also a light in here. He noticed the chests, a neatened bed, and a desk that was rather well-kept. This confused him, as he would have thought that Trixie would have at least left a few things lying about, and not clean her own room before leaving.

 

The next thing that wound up catching Electrobolt's attention was the source of this room's light. As he looked at the candle, he noticed the flame seemed as if it was lifeless, unlike any flame he had seen before. He also took note that there was no wax buildup on the sides of the candle, giving off the impression that it was lit relatively soon. This gave Electro a slight bit of concern, as he figured somepony had recently been in this room earlier, but his concern was shortlived as he heard Key speak up to him.

 

She whispered to Electrobolt. "Woah... What... What in Equestria is all of this? This room isn't really what I expected." She opened another drawer, and not only was it empty, but it was the same drawer that she had first opened. Somehow, she had opened the same drawer twice. Key tried another. The same thing happened. Once again, she was staring at the same drawer. Frustrated, Key started to try all of the drawers. Eventually, she managed to get two open at the same time but opening a third reset the entire sequence.

Key muttered something under her breath that was quite possibly unsuitable for a filly to say, and shook her head. "Bolt... I think that this room is one big illusion or some kind of puzzle. Look, I'm going to go pick the locks on those chests. If you are lucky, you can try figuring this stupid thing out. We really need to hurry though, because who knows how long the show is going to go on for."

 

Electrobolt looked over to the filly as she was trying to open the drawers with very little success. As he observed what she was trying to do, he noticed the drawers would simply reset and reveal the same drawer as the first. This caused him some confusion, as he looked at the drawers himself. When Key had said this room was most likely a puzzle or something, he looked at the drawers with intrigue. *Hmm, a drawer that is a puzzle in and of itself, huh?* mused the colt, as he approached them, looking over them calmly.

 

Sliding all the drawers shut, he started with the one on the bottom. This one seemed rather empty, as they did for Key when she tried. When he opened the one above it, he noticed it was the same. *Hmm... Let's try something else here...* He then closed the drawers before grabbing two different drawers and pulling them open. This caused them to stay open, as he looked in them. *Hmm... If I open only one drawer at a time, the whole thing will just show the first drawer... But if I open them at the same time, they both remain open... Perhaps that is the key...?*

 

While Key Gear was focusing on the chests of the showpony, Electrobolt was trying to crack the mystery of the resetting drawers. Although he ran through a number of trials and errors on the process, he never gave up as he kept trying to open them all. However, after numerous failed attempts, he struck gold. He managed to get all of the drawers open somehow, and within the final drawer, he noticed something inside. Peeking inside, he saw there was a small, rather ornate box. Pulling it out and trying to open it, he found that it was held tight. Upon taking a closer look at the box, he noticed there was a little lock set on it. "Hey, Key...?" Electrobolt finally called out. "I think I found something, but it's locked... Think you could check it out?"

[Flow 1,628]

As she watched Trixie's show, Flow gets really bored with it every minute, "Sigh, Is this really a magic show or a just a dumb excuse to hurt ponies? I really am not liking this, and I don't like Trixie's attitude, It's almost like it's gone worse than the time she came to Ponyville, It's like she's taking her anger on us,"

 

@,

 

Minutes later, She felt something strange, She felt like she was floating, "Huh? Why do I feel like.....What the-!? I'm floating!! What's going on?!?" Flow was floating in the air, soon she found out that it was Trixie "Hey!! What are you doing?!? P-Put me down!! HEEEYY!!" She wobbled around in the air struggling to keep her balance, the next thing she sees Trixie doing is create a portal "What are you doing? Please!! What is this??"

 

Soon the portal materialized to show a cold and freezing place, and to Flow's horror, Trixie levitated her onto it "W-..WAAAAAAAIIIIT!" Before being taken inside, she looked back at the audience, the last thing she saw was the green pegasus employee's horrified face.

 

"AAAAHHHHHHH......Ouch!" The next thing Flow sees is snow, "Cough...cough...Why....." her mind began to erupt in anger "IS THIS WHAT YOU CALL ENTERTAINMENT?"She cried out loudly, and her voice echoed throughout the frozen wasteland.

Edited December 4, 2012 by Narutardedscum!!

[Magicon 468]

As Magicon made his way onto the stage he saw Trixie trying to work her magic to do whatever it was supposed to do. He chuckled to himself when she was unable to do anything to him and figure out his true talent, but then she said something that made his blood boil.

"Trixie was not able to determine your true talent. Perhaps this is because you have none? Is this why your cape obscures your cutie mark? Because perhaps you don't have one? Or it illustrates a talent so worthless that you would prefer for us to use our imaginations? You think too much of yourself Magicon. You should not have wasted Trixie's time by coming onstage and not even having a talent for Trixie to find."

 

Magicon’s jaw dropped and he looked at Trixie with bewildering astonishment. ‘How dare she say such a thing! Has she no heart? No of course not, she’s Trixie. She already electrocuted another pony. Who else will she victimize?’ He felt seriously insulted and wanted to prove to Trixie just how foolish she was with her magic and her boasting.

 

“Maybe my talent is just too hard for your simply tricks. I’ll show you my cutie mark, but you’ll never understand what it means.” With that statement he unfurled his cape and let it fall to the floor, exposing his silver impossible triangle for all to see. He never liked to be without his cape, but as long as Trixie harassed him over it, he would do without it, even if it did make him feel uncomfortable.

Yet he hid his slight discomfort behind his determination that quickly morphed into astonishment as Trixie opened a portal to the frozen north. Magicon could feel the cold air form the portal and realized that this was not an illusion, but an actual portal spell. Opening a portal was quite a feat of magic but what Trixie did next horrified Magicon. Shee levitated a member of the audience, a young pegasus actually, and threw her into the portal and sealed it. The young pegasus yelled and resisted yet was no match for Trixie.

 

Magicon’s jaw dropped in horror at Trixie’s actions. He couldn’t believe that somepony would do something like this. He shivered, but whether that was from the portal or the room was unknown to him. The young pegasus did nothing to deserve such a treatment and he refused to let Trixie have her way. She invited him to reopen the portal and he knew he had to, not only to scold and beat Trixie but also to save the young filly.

 

He knew he was no hero, but he certainly wasn’t a villain like Trixie. He had to do the right thing, even if he didn’t know exactly the way to open a portal. ‘Portal Spells are difficult even more so, with another pony on the other side, but…no, I won’t fail. I must do this!’

 

“Fine, Trixie, you want me to play your little game? I’ll play and win too!”

 

With those words he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and concentrated. His horn slowly began illuminating its magenta aurora and he began concentrating. He felt his magic course through him and only hoped what he had learned and knew would be sufficient. As his magic grew more intense Magicon began applying it. He began creating an oval that Trixie had done before. He began trying to connect it with one in the frozen north. He knew the oval was before him, but he refused to open his eyes because it would diminish his magic at a time when he could ill-afford to do so. 

 

With the oval created Magicon’s horn grew brighter as he began pushing for a connection to the frozen north. He imagined the ice and snow, the endless cold and the poor pegasus who was probably freezing up there. He couldn’t let Trixie win; he had to put her in her place. Sweat dribbled down as he exerted everything he had to open the portal. He felt himself nearing his limit but he couldn’t stop. He imagined Trixie’s reaction to his success: the shock on her face would be priceless. Better yet, he imagined her being the pony trapped in the frozen north, experiencing the freezing cold and suffering she deserved.

 

With a final push he felt the portal cave and give way to his magic. He instantly felt the cold wind and snow against him. He barely opened his eyes, only enough to see the cream-colored pegasus sitting in the snow sobbing.

 

Yelling through the wind Magicon hollered, “Get in!” and reached in and grabbed her and pulled her back into the train as his horn’s magic collapsed and the portal disappeared. Magicon collapsed on the floor from exhaustion with the young pegasus saved. 

[Bari 7,023]

Lapis felt a bit ashamed when he startled Ambrosia. She had been so deeply enthralled with the show. But his question was an important one. The only reason they'd left the dining car was because a chain of events led them to it, with trying to find the missing Dusky as the latest task.
 

"No, I... I don't see Dusky in here. I just don't know what could have possibly happened to him. Unless, well..." She gulped. "Maybe he isn't on the train? It could be why nopony has been able to find him. Maybe that's what happened... You know he is really hard to miss when he is around. He's quiet, but he is really tall and thin. He's a unicorn. He..."

 
Lapis wasn't that surprised by the fact that Dusky might not be on the train after all. And that would mean Springer had been telling the truth. Lapis still didn't want to trust him though. And Dusky was a tall and thin unicorn, which seemed to be a description of the goldenrod unicorn nearby. And when Ambrosia had turned towards the stallion, Lapis realized that the same idea must have occurred to her as well.
 
When she turned back to him, he hoped what she was going to say next would be about the possible connection, but unfortunately something awful happened that stopped the cook in her tracks.
 
Up on stage, the red unicorn and Trixie were conversing or something, but Lapis had been more focused on Ambrosia. So when Trixie had opened the portal and sent Flow away, he was very surprised. Any respect he had for the show pony had completely disappeared at that point. Flow had seemed like a nice mare, practically harmless. There a huge difference between shocking a member of the audience and sending them through a portal to who knows where.
 
He had caught that it was up to the red unicorn, who's name was Magicon judging from what Trixie had said, to reopen to potal and rescue Flow. Lapis hoped that the stallion could do it. The fact that Trixie meant for this as a test was disgusting. If he couldn't do it, would Trixie reopen the portal herself?
 
He watched as Magicon worked up a sweat as his horned glowed. It looked like it required a lot of effort. But it didn't matter because he succeeded. Lapis breathed a sigh of relief as the red unicorn pulled the young pegasus back into the train.
 
With Flow saved, Lapis took the opportunity to ask Ambrosia what she was going to say. He turned back towards the cook and asked, "Well, that was rather unusual. But more important now is Dusky, yes? What was it you were saying before you got interrupted?"

Edited December 5, 2012 by Berry Pie

[Key Gear 6,663]

“Fine, Trixie, you want me to play your little game? I’ll play and win too!”

 

 

Trixie sneered. She knew that she had possibly endangered her reputation with her stunt, but there, in that very moment, she wanted nothing more than to see Magicon's failure. She had gone beyond suspicion of this red unicorn and of the scheming pegasus that had put her up to the idea of performing a show on this train. She knew, she just knew that these ponies were out to stop her, they were going to try to ruin her one chance to justify all of the sacrifices that she had made.

 

Trixie watched it. She watched the entire scene. This unicorn, that she was so sure had never even practiced the higher forms of magic like she had... He was going to try to open the portal. At first, she couldn't believe his arrogance, but then... As the the portal began to form, her confidence melted away into sheer disbelief. Magicon was succeeding. She was losing control.

 

Yelling through the wind Magicon hollered, “Get in!” and reached in and grabbed her and pulled her back into the train as his horn’s magic collapsed and the portal disappeared. Magicon collapsed on the floor from exhaustion with the young pegasus saved.  

 

 

Magicon had opened the portal, and he had saved the pegasus. Again, the gateway closed. Magicon collapsed due to the incredible exertion required. Looking at him there, Trixie suddenly felt such unnatural hatred. In her mind, it was Ponyville all over again. This time though, she had been promised that she would truly be the most powerful unicorn. The promise was broken, because here was one that could match her strongest magic. 

 

Standing there with these thoughts going through her mind, Trixie had no inhibitions. In her subconscious mind, she realized that, quite possibly, her current loss of control was one of the side effects of what had happened to her earlier, when she had pushed too far into the deepest depths of magical knowledge. Those thoughts wouldn't help Magicon or the pegasus though. Her earlier exhaustion was seemingly overcome and Trixie's horn was now glowing with an increasingly bright light. She aimed herself squarely at Magicon and continued charging. 

 

Just then, there was a flash of green and Trixie was knocked over backwards by something that had seemingly fallen sideways. Staring down at her, with a cheerful expression, was Springer. "Sorry Trixie, friends don't let friends blast friends, you know?" The pegasus laughed softly, and he locked eyes with Trixie. The unicorn's face was both confused and furious. The pegasus's expression betrayed nothing more than amusement. Amusement and complete confidence.

 

Vim had wasted no time as well. He was now onstage. With a hoof, he gestured at the passengers in the audience and spoke loudly. "Alright everypony, this show is over." Looking back at Trixie, Vim spoke fast and just as loudly as he had addressed the passengers. His red eyes seemed to be positively on fire. "That's it. You think you can come on board my train, abuse my passengers, and then do whatever you thought you were about to do? Well. I don't really care what you think. That's it. Your show is over and you're over. When we get to Los Pegasus, I'm going to have a word with the show coordinators, and you can forget it. Until then. I want you in your room and nowhere else. You. Are. Nuts."

 

Vim turned back around to speak to Magicon, but he had to do a double-take. Looking back at Springer and Trixie, seeing them both staring each other down, he noticed something that he hadn't seen before. The pegasus and the unicorn had the same, exact eye color. Vim blinked... He couldn't remember if that had always been the case. With another glance, he trotted over to Magicon. He didn't care about Springer's eye color, so he had never noticed it before. Now, so long as the pegasus help the pesky stage magician in place, he still didn't care.

 

Speaking to Magicon, Vim was calm, yet firm. "Thank you for that. Me and my crew. We're just a couple of earth ponies, a pegasus, and a unicorn that never uses magic. There's no way that we could have brought Flow back. However, I'm not exactly sure what's going on here right now, and I don't think that it is safe for you, in this condition, to be in the same area as Trixie. Get clear, and we can deal with her." Vim picked up Magicon's cape and draped it over him. "You'll want this, I'm guessing. Nicely done." After what he had seen the unicorn do, Vim was certain that Magicon would be more than capable of getting to safety.

 

Speaking to Flow, Vim was apologetic. "Words really can't express just how upset I am that this had to happen to you, but if you can walk, then you need to clear out of here. If you can't walk, then maybe Magicon can help you." Now Vim turned to address the remaining passengers. "Please, everypony, this show is over and I suggest that you go to your rooms or..." He was going to mention that they could go to the kitchen for a snack, but Ambrosia was nowhere to be seen. Vim shook his head.

 

OOC: Holy heck... I just read this sequence of posts again... Magicon is a badflank...

 

----------------------------------------------------------------

 

With Flow saved, Lapis should ask Ambrosia what she was going to say. He turned back towards the cook and asked, "Well, that was rather unusual. But more important now is Dusky, yes? What was it you were saying before you got interrupted?"

 

 

Ambrosia watched the entire scene unfold on the stage, but her mind wasn't on the disaster unfolding in front of her. All she could think about was Dusky. While she had kept it to herself, this was not the first time that he had pulled this type of disappearing act. Glancing over at Daylight again, she wasn't quite sure what, if anything, she could say to Lapis, so she said nothing and hoped that the stage would be a suitable distraction.

 

When she spoke, which was right after Springer had flown into Trixie, her words were measured. "Lapis, I will tell you, but I have to tell you later. I really don't think that this is the right time. You see..." As covertly as she could, Ambrosia gestured towards Daylight, hoping that Lapis would understand her meaning. To disguise her gesture, she spoke about something completely different. "So this is what Springer meant by having an experiment. I hope that Flow is alright, she's way to young to get caught up in this kind... of... situation..."

 

Ambrosia blinked and then looked around. She had been so distracted that she had completely not noticed the departure of the young colt and filly that she had spoken to earlier. Thinking back, she had remembered that the both of them had seemed to spend quite a bit of their dinner talking about the stage magician. She hadn't really paid much attention to the exact things that they had discussed, but she had a terrible suspicion. Excusing herself, Ambrosia headed towards the door.

 

If the two young ponies wanted to get into some kind of trouble, this was the perfect time to do it. The rest of the train was practically empty. However, if they had wanted to get into trouble with anypony but Trixie, they could have easily waited until nightfall. Instead, they had chosen to leave in the middle of the show. Ambrosia wasn't a detective, but her folks had always said that she had a sixth sense when it came to younger ponies.

 

If she were a gambler, she was willing to bet that the filly and colt had managed to get themselves into trouble. She took a quick look around the dining car, didn't see the two and decided to act on her worst suspicions. She broke into an even faster trot and went straight for Trixie's room. She hoped that she would get there before a furious Vim arrived on the scene. Break-ins would be the last thing that Vim wanted to hear about.

 

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Peeking inside, he saw there was a small, rather ornate box. Pulling it out and trying to open it, he found that it was held tight. Upon taking a closer look at the box, he noticed there was a little lock set on it. "Hey, Key...?" Electrobolt finally called out. "I think I found something, but it's locked... Think you could check it out?"

 

 

Key looked over from what she was doing. Her eyes widened. Electrobolt had managed to solve the puzzle that had stumped her just a few moments before. With a smile, she realized that he was quite possibly as good with puzzles as she was with picking locks. Key made a note. After this little adventure was over and the train finally reached its destination, she would do what she could to keep in touch with this pony. He was useful to have around.

 

Key stashed her lock pick set and wandered over to Electrobolt. From her time as a thief, she had learned that ponies tended to put items of extreme value in containers that were equally valuable. She took a look at the box that Bolt had found. It looked remarkably solid, very well made. It was covered in rather intriguing patterns. Key didn't recognize the designs, but she did recognize the value. Her eyes sparkled, and the lock pick set was back out in a second. If what she was looking for was anywhere in this room, it would surely be in this box.

 

The lock was a tiny thing. It was far too small for her to use her tension wrench, not that it would have been of any value. The lock seemed to have neither rhyme nor reason to its design. The pins that required setting were seemingly in impossible places, and it took the application of force in strange ways for each pin to be set. Using two of her smallest picks, it was still nearly impossible to set each pin. After the first minute of fiddling with the lock, Key could feel her frustration beginning to rise. The room, almost as if reacting to her frustration, became darker.

 

Yet, somehow, the lock seemed just as familiar as it was strange. As she continued to fight the lock, it seemed more and more like this was something that she had done before. By the time the second minute had passed, she was making steady progress, even if she no longer had any clue what she was doing. She was operating on pure instinct. The room continued to darken, and a curious dark haze seemed to be rising from the candle. Far darker than the normal smoke from a candle of such small size.

 

Sweating due to the frustration and tedium of her ordeal with the lock, Key breathed a deep sigh of relief when she finally heard the last click and the lock came undone. Her sense of triumph was palpable  and her eyes were still sparkling curiously as she put the box down and turned to Electrobolt. "Whatever it is, it's in this box. I just know it!" Without waiting to hear from him, she used her hooves to try opening the container. The top seemed to be jammed shut, so it took her a second try to actually get the top open.

 

The top of the container flew open. Key's eyes opened wide as she caught a glimpse of something completely otherworldly, but a glimpse was all that she was able to catch because that was when the room went dark. So complete was the darkness, that it seemed to take on a life of its own. Key felt like she was under water or in some type of dense swamp mist. It was hard to breathe, harder to move, and it was next to impossible to see.

 

In the darkness, Key thought she saw something that looked like a hoof and she felt the container being snatched from her. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out in the void. She tried to turn around and see Electrobolt, but she was rooted into place. She couldn't even move her head more than a few inches in any direction. Suddenly, out of the darkness, she heard a voice. It was familiar, but it seemed like it was from another time and it struggled to be heard over the distortion of the mist. "Key Gear?"

 

Energized by the familiarity of the voice, Key forced herself to fight back against the strange mist. Frantically searching the darkness with her eyes, she called out. "Electrobolt?! Where are you?" The voice spoke again. "Electrobolt? I don't know who that is. Key Gear, it's me, your father... Travel Gear." Key was completely stunned. There, standing immediately in front of her in the darkness was her father. It had been so long since she had heard his gentle voice, seen his smiling face. She was overwhelmed with emotions, and she opened her mouth to say something, anything.

 

She stopped herself though. Her father was no longer smiling, and he spoke again. "Key Gear. Why are you trying to steal something that doesn't belong to you? You know that stealing is wrong. Yet, here you are. Nothing more than a common thief." The voice was no longer gentle or even vaguely comforting. It was cold, heartless, and lacked even the smallest trace of sympathy. Key shook with a combination of disbelief and frustration. This wasn't the same pony that she remembered. She wanted to say something, to defend herself, but she couldn't speak. 

 

Suddenly, out of the darkness, her mother appeared, also frowning. "Key Gear. You've disappointed us. Disappointed me. Do you know why we went to the frozen north? We went there to get away from you. We always knew you would be a disappointment. That you would dishonor the family. You are a disappointment, and you have dishonored the family. If you only knew how ashamed we were of you. Key Gear? Do you know why we're here? We are here to disown you." 

 

Key had heard enough and seen enough. She felt an insane rage beginning to broil within her. She knew that this was an illusion and that these... Things... Were just poorly made facsimiles of her parents. Her real parents were still either trapped in the frozen north or dead, and Key was certain that either fate was better than them being the soulless monsters that were in front of her. That something would disrespect her parents in this way... It was more than she could take. 

 

Shaking with fury, Key took a deep breathe of the darkness and shouted as loudly as she could. This time, her words could clearly be heard over the muffling darkness. "Lies! You aren't real! None of this is real! This was a trap! You are not my parents!" Key staggered and nearly fell due to the exertion. It felt like her lungs were on fire, and the darkness now seemed to be closing in around her. Her "parents" faded back into the mist. Ignoring her growing sense of claustrophobia, Key took another deep breathe and managed one last shout. "You think I'm afraid?! I'M NOT AFRAID OF YOU!"

 

A gust of cool air blew through the mist as it spoke. Key shivered, both because of the cold and because of her growing weakness. A new voice spoke. It sounded distant, powerful, and cold. It answered her dispassionately. "Really. Well. That is good to know. But then. I already knew it. But, tell me. What do you think of these though?" Just then, a freakish chattering could be heard and what seemed like thousands of insects rushed wildly at Key from every corner of the blackness. With an ear-piercing shriek, Key fell beneath the teeming hoards.

 

----------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

 

The same darkness that had enveloped Key Gear had also enveloped Electrobolt. However, something about it seemed different. It was still the same thick, choking cloud. However, an unnatural cold breeze accompanied the darkness, the area immediately around the young colt immediately began dropping in temperature. For a few, long, tedious moments there was nothing. Then, finally, a sigh and a voice. The voice seemed to be calm but exasperated. With the smallest hint of menace, it spoke conversationally.

 

"Interesting. Are you really so boring that you have no fears? No darkness within you? Nothing. How disappointing  Very. Disappointing  Not even the smallest hints of a deeper fear? It figures. You know that this is the second time you have disappointed me with your uselessness? When you were first born, and I suspected you talent. Well. Games? Artificial constructs designed to bring pleasure to idle minds. That was really quite the discouraging realization for me. I had hoped that you would be something more... Useful. Like your parents were. Strange. How I feel so famished right now."

 

As the voice continued to speak, and in direct contrast to its calm, measured tone, the darkness and the cold surrounding Electrobolt began to become increasingly more intense, bitter. "But, still. Maybe you are not entirely without value. Maybe I did cast you aside prematurely. After all, regardless of how questionable your talent is, there is always value in having some degree of control over your thoughts and emotions. And luck. Luck is good too. You seem to have lots of that. You know, she had all of the advantages, but you were the one that found a home." The voice laughed, a harsh laugh for a voice that seemed so calm. "Despite your abandonment  here you are. Well. Maybe I did make a mistake. Skipping a meal is generally a mistake."

 

The darkness intensified even more. The voice sighed again. "You need to know fear, Electrobolt. Electrobolt? Is that what you call yourself? You know that is, I think, only a small improvement over your old name. But back to the topic at claw. Electrobolt, you need to know something. You need to know that you can not know true strength without first knowing weakness. Key Gear knows this. She was so pathetic when I took her under my wings. She still is. But, the spark is there. With you, there's nothing. Just emptiness. You haven't seen as much of life as she has. If you are to be useful to me, then you will have to grow. Though you seem to be a good size already."

 

In the background, faintly, the sounds of Key's shouts could be heard. The darkness seemed to intensify even more as if to crowd out the noise. The voice continued to speak unabated. "Electrobolt, I am an observer. I have seen so much in my time... My long years... I could teach you. You could be useful to me yet. I think you are teachable, after all. Look at you here. Stealing? I would have never guessed. Yes, I could... Teach you. I could always do something else though. Let me... Think about it." The voice became silent, and a nebulous mass of some strange shimmering liquid wrapped itself around the hooves of Electrobolt began pulling him down into itself.

 

 

OOC: Argh.... So much typing.... I think I broke myself.... I hope y'all enjoyed. This is the last epic post from me until the finale. The die is cast. Now to get the mystery going full throttle from here.

 

Edited December 7, 2012 by Scootacool

[Flow 1,628]

Meanwhile, Flow was shivering in the middle of nowhere, it was a place of nothing but cold, harsh, snow. Despite her optimism, Flow was really angry, but also sobbing at the same time "Sigh...W-hy, T-T-Trixie......What...I-In..Cel-l-lestia's name....are you....th-th-thinking?" Even her wings didn't provide enough warmth against the freezing terrain.

Soon, Flow was on the brink of losing her life, her body couldn't hold out much longer, she braced herself for death's clutches by closing her eyes slowly.......till she sees a portal opening up.

@@Magicon,

The next thing she sees out of the portal is the same red unicorn she saw on stage "Get in!" He yelled while reaching out to her, Flow didn't have the energy to speak, so she just grabbed his hoof with hers and used the limited amount of energy she had to hold on and propel herself a bit with her wings into the portal, at last she finds herself back on the train inside the parlor car. She was panting hard, struggling to regain her strength.

Once she does, she looks at the red unicorn, who was down on the floor, "Thanks, I owe you my life" she told him

@,

Next, she shoots a glare at Trixie, who was down on the floor too, she wanted to kick her with her hind legs, but she restrained herself and instead had a word with her "I was forced to come here to watch your show, I actually expected you to change after that fiasco in Ponyville, but instead, you've grown into something worse. Are you insane? If it's fame that you want, then do it like what other magicians do! Not risk someponie's life for some stupid trick! What would you do if I actually got killed? Sigh, forget about doing your stupid shows, you'd be better off rotting in the dungeons, It'd be for your own good so you wouldn't hurt anypony else, you disgust me."
 

Speaking to Flow, Vim was apologetic. "Words really can't express just how upset I am that this had to happen to you, but if you can walk, then you need to clear out of here. If you can't walk, then maybe Magicon can help you."

Afterwards, she turns to the conductor of the train, "It's okay, I can manage on my own, and you haven't done anything wrong, thanks." She said softly.

Lastly, Flow left the parlor car for her room.

Edited December 6, 2012 by Narutardedscum!!

[Electrobolt 2,069]

While Key Gear was working on picking the lock on the box, he started to get worried that somepony could walk past the open door and see what they were doing. Fortunately, the show seemed to still be going, but his paranoia wasn't eased yet. He kept glancing back towards the open door as he wished he had closed it behind him instead of leaving it wide open, but then the room started to grow darker and darker. This left the young colt to be rather confused. If the door was wide open, why would the room be getting darker? Not just that, but wouldn't there be some light coming in from the halls?

 

His thoughts were just then cut off when he heard Key Gear speaking up. Apparently, she had managed to unlock the bindings on the box, and was planning on opening it right there. "Um, Key...? Perhaps we should---" he started to say, trying to suggest that they take the box and leave Trixie's room, before she had already opened the box. Just as soon as she opened it, however, the room suddenly grew completely dark. This darkness was so deep, so intense, that he couldn't see anything around him. He tried to call out to Key, and move around, yet found it hard to do so, as the darkness had made it hard to breathe, let alone move. And the cold breeze that accompanied it didn't help.

 

"Interesting. Are you really so boring that you have no fears? No darkness within you? Nothing. How disappointing  Very. Disappointing  Not even the smallest hints of a deeper fear? It figures. You know that this is the second time you have disappointed me with your uselessness? When you were first born, and I suspected you talent. Well. Games? Artificial constructs designed to bring pleasure to idle minds. That was really quite the discouraging realization for me. I had hoped that you would be something more... Useful. Like your parents were. Strange. How I feel so famished right now."

 

After several moments of nothing but the heavy darkness and winds giving the young colt trouble, a voice suddenly spoke up. The voice sounded rather calm, yet had a hint of exasperation in it. Being unable to move, let alone say anything, all he could do was listen... As he listened in, he clearly heard this voice saying this was the second time that he was disappointed. *Wh... What...? Second time...?* he thought, clearly confused. But the confusion didn't end there, as he kept speaking, saying that he hoped the young colt would be more useful, like his parents.

 

"But, still. Maybe you are not entirely without value. Maybe I did cast you aside prematurely. After all, regardless of how questionable your talent is, there is always value in having some degree of control over your thoughts and emotions. And luck. Luck is good too. You seem to have lots of that. You know, she had all of the advantages, but you were the one that found a home." The voice laughed, a harsh laugh for a voice that seemed so calm. "Despite your abandonment  here you are. Well. Maybe I did make a mistake. Skipping a meal is generally a mistake."

 

As the voice continued to speak, the darkness and the winds suddenly grew more intense, causing him to stagger on his hooves while trying to keep himself upright. He was finding it hard to stay up, yet he continued to persist, listening to the voice. There he went, continuing to talk about Electrobolt as if he knew him. Yet, one thing confused him: how he knew Key Gear as well. The voice clearly said that he was lucky, how he found a home while Key Gear had all kinds of "advantages". Just how much does this voice know about him and Key Gear?

 

The voice sighed again. "You need to know fear, Electrobolt. Electrobolt? Is that what you call yourself? You know that is, I think, only a small improvement over your old name. But back to the topic at claw. Electrobolt, you need to know something. You need to know that you can not know true strength without first knowing weakness. Key Gear knows this. She was so pathetic when I took her under my wings. She still is. But, the spark is there. With you, there's nothing. Just emptiness. You haven't seen as much of life as she has. If you are to be useful to me, then you will have to grow. Though you seem to be a good size already."

 

As the intensity grew more and more, Electrobolt could barely stand on his hooves, as he was just about to collapse. Shivering, he listened on again, only for his eyes to pop wide open - not like it would matter in the dark. *How did this voice know my name???* he thought, bewildered as the voice resumed, adding on. *Wait... "Is that what you call yourself"??? What does he even---* It was then that he said he thinks it's only a small improvement over his old name. This caused his mind to run wild. *WHAT???!! My old name??? What does he know about me? For all I can remember, I lived in Ponyville, and I never heard this voice before! So who is this pony???*

 

As the voice kept speaking, he heard mention of several things, most importantly that he said claw, that he "took Key Gear under his wings", and that if he were to prove useful to this voice, he'd have to grow more. The voice then added that he already seemed to be a good size already. Electrobolt was freaking out now. How does this voice even know him, AND Key Gear??? The way this voice spoke, it sounded as if he knew them both at the same time. But if he lived in Ponyville, that would have been impossible. But then, his mind recalled one specific line that the voice said: "When you were first born, and I suspected your talent."

 

In the background, faintly, the sounds of Key's shouts could be heard. The darkness seemed to intensify even more as if to crowd out the noise. The voice continued to speak unabated. "Electrobolt, I am an observer. I have seen so much in my time... My long years... I could teach you. You could be useful to me yet. I think you are teachable, after all. Look at you here. Stealing? I would have never guessed. Yes, I could... Teach you. I could always do something else though. Let me... Think about it." The voice became silent, and a nebulous mass of some strange shimmering liquid wrapped itself around the hooves of Electrobolt began pulling him down into itself.

 

That one specific line could only mean that this voice, whoever it was, had seen him since he was born. Yet, no matter how much he tried, he just couldn't recall who or where the voice was from. Just then, he heard a shriek that sounded as if it came from Key Gear. Worried that something might have happened to her, he tried to find the strength to push himself up and move, but as soon as he tried, the darkness intensified once more, causing him to stagger again and fall to the ground. The voice then spoke up once more, stating that he could teach the young colt, and that he was stealing. *Not stealing... Getting back something that belongs to Key...* he thought weakly, failing to get back on his hooves.

 

Just then, he felt something surrounding his hooves, something liquid-like. This caused Electrobolt to get worried and tried to pull himself out of the fluids and to freedom. Yet the mysterious darkness and the liquid having a hold on him caused the young colt to instead squirm around hopelessly. *Is this it...? Is this how it's going to end...?* he thought, as he continued to struggle. He then remembered Key Gear, how she screamed in terror, and what might have happened to her. He couldn't give up, as he kept struggling to free himself. As he kept struggling, he only found himself slowly sinking, unable to free himself.

 

Seeing how it was seemingly hopeless for him to get freed, he took one deep breath, even though his lungs protested to the heaviness of the murky darkness. After he inhaled all that he could, he screamed out as loudly as he could, "Somepony!!! Anypony!!! H... HEEEEEEELP!!!!!!" Whether or not the scream could pierce the mysterious properties of the darkness, he found himself unable to do any more speaking at the moment. He was barely even breathing, as his struggles slowed down, making absolutely no progress to freeing himself.

[Dave247 568]

Daylight watched Trixie as Magicon neared the stage. Trixie's horn was glowing again as if she was casting a spell yet there were no noticeable effects. Her face then changed to betray her confusion and uncomfortableness. "That looked like... she was trying to read him... like she must have done to Electrobolt." He thought piecing his thoughts together slowly. "But... she discovered something she wasn’t expecting this time..." When Trixie regained herself what she said next confirmed his suspicions.

"Trixie was not able to determine your true talent. Perhaps this is because you have none? Is this why your cape obscures your cutie mark? Because perhaps you don't have one? Or it illustrates a talent so worthless that you would prefer for us to use our imaginations? You think too much of yourself Magicon. You should not have wasted Trixie's time by coming onstage and not even having a talent for Trixie to find."

"Well, that would explains that. Could she have said it any more rudely though?" he muttered shaking his head. He looked over at Magicon for his reaction and sure enough, he clearly looked very shocked and offended. Magicon then went on to do something Day did not expect, he removed his cape to show his cutie mark. Daylight got the feeling that this was not something he would do without good reason by the uncomfortableness he could see from Magicon standing there with his flank exposed. He took the opportunity to get a good look at his cutie mark as he doubted he would get a chance to again later. It was a silver triangle but... he rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him at first but he then realised what Magicon's cutie mark really was. "An impossible triangle..." He said under his breath. "There is much mystery behind this stallion after all." He thought.

 

Daylight then looked back to Trixie who was preparing yet another spell but this time it was no ordinary spell. Trixie was focusing profusely with sparks flying from her horn and the light from her horn continually intensifying with each passing second. Behind her, a strange shape was starting to form. It started off as a mix of light and ripples then evolved into a spherical object that ripped apart the space around it.  Daylight was amazed. He had never seen a portal before but he had heard of them. The temperature then dropped suddenly as a gust of cold wind and snow came though the portal. Looking into it looked like it led to the frozen north. "Why would Trixie open a portal to the frozen north though?" he wondered. "Unless she planned on... no, she wouldn't, would she?" Daylight watched on to see his fears come true. He was horrified when Trixie took the Pegasus that was sitting three seats away from him, drop her though the portal and closed it.

 

When he realized it was all just a test for Magicon from what Trixie said next he was outraged. "How could she do such a thing!?" he thought. "Does she not care at all what could happen to her!?" The smug look on Trixie's face only infuriated him. He would of liked to have done something but... what could he do? He didn't have the power to open the portal again himself so all he could do was hope that Magicon did.

It was all up to Magicon now. Daylight watched as he strained himself and his horn began to glow. The portal once again, began to open. Looking back at Magicon is was clear the spell was taking its toll on him. He looked as if he wanted to collapse and keep going at the same time.
With a final burst of energy the portal open and the cold from the north seep into the parlor once again. With the last of his energy, Magicon reached in the portal, pulled the Pegasus though just as the spell failed and the portal collapsed with Magicon collapsing on the floor of exhaustion.

Trixie looked absolutely furious that she began to charge a spell that looked as if it was aimed at Magicon. Lucky though, Springer dashed forward and knocked Trixie backwards causing her to lose focus which made Daylight breathe a sigh of relief. The conductor he remembered passing earlier when he boarded the train was then suddenly on stage taking control of things and as it was his job to. He announced the show was over then proceeded to converse with those involved with everything that had happened. Daylight just sat and thought about what had happened at the show while looking off into the distance. It defiantly wasn't what he was expecting but that was because his expectations were based off everything he'd read about Trixie's past actions. There was no mention anywhere of her doing something as complex or cruel as this. Due to a pause in his thoughts he then overheard the cook say something.

"So this is what Springer meant by having an experiment. I hope that Flow is alright, she's way too young to get caught up in this kind... of... situation..."

"Yes... much too young... Hang on, what's this about an experiment?" he thought, still looking off to the distance. Suddenly he remembered the conversation he overheard the cook and Springer have earlier in the parlor, as well as there being something that the cook was going to speak to him about. He whirled around to look next to him, only to discoverer that she had already left. "Well scratch talking to her then..." he thought as he looked glumly at the two empty seats in front of him.

 

If felt as if he almost had a heart attack when he remembered the two young ponies who was supposed to be sitting there. Day quickly jumped up out of his seat and ran to the parlor exit but stopped to take one last look at Magicon first. He would have liked to have had a word with him and to check he was OK but he was probably not in the best state after what he did but as exhausted as he was he was sure he would be fine. Despite whatever it was that motivated him to perform such a feat Magicon had done a good thing and earned some of his respect. Day then dashed out of the pallor and into the dining car using his magic to open and close the doors connecting the carriages to save time.

In the next carriage, he passed the cook who was strangely heading in the same direction as him but at a slower pace. He would have wished he could have stopped to talk with her but there was no time as he had to check on Electro and Key as soon as he possibly could. He kept galloping though the passenger car and into the next one.

As soon as he entered he came to a halt facing room 8. The door was open and looking into the room he was horrified to what he saw. A thick, black darkness filled the whole room, but something about it didn't feel right to him. This was no ordinary darkness as there should of been some source of light coming from somewhere inside the room instead of just a pitch blackness. Suddenly, he heard a young filly's ear piercing scream as well as a young colt's voice calling out for help but even thought it was muffled he could still distinguish who's those voices they were which was what he was afraid of. Panic started rising in his chest.

 

"I have to do something, and quickly! But what..." he thought. "All I know are light spells and all that's good for is... Darkness" He then stopped and immediately started charging up his horn which began to glow a bright white. Time was running out and he had to make this one shot count. The longer he held the spell, the more sparks would fly from his horn and the brighter it would glow. It was beginning to feel too much for him to hold as his felt as if his head would explode so when he could no longer contain the spell he released it into the room knocking himself against the back wall of the carriage where he hit his head. Lying on the floor of the train and feeling weak, Day opened one eye a little to see the blackness fading inside the room and with content of a job well done, he passed out.

[Magicon 468]

Magicon remained on the floor, trying to catch his breath and regain his strength. He barely was able to open his eyes and raise his head ever so slightly to see a horrified and angered Trixie preparing to cast a spell oh him. Magicon knew what the spell would be and prepared himself for it. ‘Well, I hope it’s quick. At least Archie will be happy to know I used my magic to do some good in the world.’ He closed his eyes and prepared himself for the worst.

 

Yet it never came. Rather than hearing silence Magicon heard the sounds of a scuffle and he opened his eyes to see Trixie knocked over and Springer looking down on her with a smile. He heard him say, 

"Sorry Trixie, friends don't let friends blast friends, you know?"

‘Dear Celestia! Not the friend again, ouch!’ he winced at the searing migraine in his head. His entire head hurt from the spell, and he needed to rest. Trixie had pushed him to his limit and he was barely able to manage it. He had never pushed himself like that before, but he couldn’t help but feel a slight feeling of joy at his success.

 

He lowered his head and closed his eyes, trying to soothe the unbearable pain in his head. He then heard Vim scold Trixie and then trot over next to Magicon. He could hear his hoofsteps and Magicon managed to open his eyes and look up at the conductor as he spoke.

 

"Thank you for that. Me and my crew. We're just a couple of earth ponies, a pegasus, and a unicorn that never uses magic. There's no way that we could have brought Flow back. However, I'm not exactly sure what's going on here right now, and I don't think that it is safe for you, in this condition, to be in the same area as Trixie. Get clear, and we can deal with her." Vim picked up Magicon's cape and draped it over him. "You'll want this, I'm guessing. Nicely done." After what he had seen the unicorn do, Vim was certain that Magicon would be more than capable of getting to safety.

 

Almost instinctively Magicon snuggled under his cape and barely managed the words, “Thank you. But I’m…exhausted. I…can barely move…maybe some help, please?” He then lowered his head and rested his eyes, trying to manage the searing migraine.

[Key Gear 6,663]

As Electrobolt continued to sink, slowly, the darkness and the bitter cold continued to persist. As the colt struggled, the voice remained silent, but a strange rhytmic rumbling could be heard in the distance. It sounded almost like a large creature breathing, but it was sporadic and unpredictable in its patterns. To a casual listener, the sound might have sounded like a strange discordant symphony being played in an abyss.

 

After he inhaled all that he could, he screamed out as loudly as he could, "Somepony!!! Anypony!!! H... HEEEEEEELP!!!!!!" Whether or not the scream could pierce the mysterious properties of the darkness, he found himself unable to do any more speaking at the moment.

 

 

The voice spoke again, but this time it was completely different. It sounded earthen, hoarse. It also sounded distant, as though it was whisper being carried on the cold winds that now filled the room. It spoke approvingly of Electrobolt's struggles. As it spoke, the very fabric of time seemed to slow down and the area surrounding the young colt seemed to bend as though it was refracting through a polished crystal. Electrobolt stopped sinking.

 

"Wonderful. Simply wonderful. So you are capable of fear? What about paranoia? If I release you, will you be haunted by me? Will you see me, Electrobolt? Perhaps in your dreams and your nightmares?" As the voice spoke, a form, massive and terrible, could be seen to take shape. Despite the small size of the room, the shape seemed to manifest itself at a great distance from the colt. Shrouded in a haze, it seemed to be made from the very darkness that it manifested itself from. 

 

"Or maybe I won't release you. I do, after all, only need one pony to fulfill the quest. To bring me what is mine. One pony is... I think... So much easier to control. I made that mistake once before. I don't know... If I can afford another. Electrobolt, this world... Equestria... It needs me. I can save it. Surely you see this truth?" The shape began to move towards the colt. It took massive steps. 

 

With each step, it became easier for the shape to be discerned, but what could be seen would have made no sense to even the wildest imagination. Even as it moved, the shape seemed to flicker between two completely different visages. The smaller form of the two much resembled the rotting remnants of a statue from a bygone era. With a head held high on an elongated neck, It strode powerfully. What could have been wings now dragged horribly by its side. Its body seemed to be filled with thousands of holes, and its frame was, while vaguely dragonesque, massively deformed. 

 

With every second step, the rotting monster would, just for a moment, appear as something that was considerably larger, but was nearly entirely indescribable. This second form had no head, or even any perceptible appendages. It shambled across the ground with a slow, winding serpentine motion that made it resemble the shifting sands of a desert. Suddenly the shape, both shapes, were gone entirely. The voice spoke again, and the hoarse whisper was filled with a deathly, irrational menace. 

 

"I'm still here. I have only hidden myself because I would like for you to... Remain sane... As I devour you. It is only fair, I think. But... I am finding it so hard to think right now... About anything... I just need to know. What do you taste like?" After this, for a few long seconds, there was nothing. Then, finally, a tremendous gaping jaw opened, slowly, in front of the young colt. Inside, was rows and rows of jagged, misshapen  and decaying teeth. As the jaw opened, a blast of bitterly cold air hammered the colt with fury, and a low rumbling sound, like laughter, could be heard. Yet, even as this was happening  a single, narrow beam of light pierced the darkness. It's resting place was barely perceptible within the vast breadth of the gaping mouth.

 

"I have to do something, and quickly! But what..." he thought. "All I know are light spells and all that's good for is... Darkness" He then stopped and immediately started charging up his horn which began to glow a bright white. Time was running out and he had to make this one shot count. The longer he held the spell, the more sparks would fly from his horn and the brighter it would glow. It was beginning to feel too much for him to hold as his felt as if his head would explode so when he could no longer contain the spell he released it into the room knocking himself against the back wall of the carriage where he hit his head. Lying on the floor of the train and feeling weak, Day opened one eye a little to see the blackness fading inside the room and with content of a job well done, he passed out.

 

 

Suddenly, the narrow beam of light grew incredibly, in both size and breadth. As the monster lunged forward to snap up the colt, the light enveloped the world of shadows. All around the young colt, the air was alight with a whirlwind of colors as the light and the shadow seemed to dance like the light of a mighty fire.

 

Electrobolt was bathed in both the radiance and healing warmth of the light. The light seemed to form a wall of protection around him, and as the shadowy monster lunged forward again, it acted as a shield against the attack. The beast hit the wall of light and then recoiled as though it had been struck by the force of a mountain. As it recoiled, fragments of shadow falling from its damaged face, the wall of light narrowed to a beam and struck its twisted frame. Like a lance, it tore through the shadowy monster. 

 

The world of shadows, fractured and twisted as though it was a snow globe that had been dropped. Finally, as the monster came crashing down onto the ground, the shadows exploded into light. The world around the young colt seemed to shift wildly, much as it had earlier, and Electrobolt was, once again, standing in Trixie's room. The candle on the desk was gone. The small box that Key Gear had unlocked was also gone.

 

Not too far from Electrobolt, Key Gear was lying on the ground shivering wildly with her eyes closed. Feeling the sudden warmth of the room restored, she opened both eyes hesitantly and looked around. The room was just as she had remembered it earlier. There was no trace of the illusions or of the teeming masses of insects. She closed her eyes again and took a deep breath. Exhaling heavily, she tried to stand, but her hooves betrayed her and she fell with a thud. Lying where she had fallen, eyes still closed, Key spoke shakily. "Bolt. You there? ... Well. If you are. I don't think we missed the magic show after all." Key passed out.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------

 

As the stallion rushed by Ambrosia, using magic to open and shut the doors in his way. Ambrosia did a double take before breaking into a gallop herself. She arrived just in time to see Daylight send an awe-inspiring blast of light straight into Trixie's room and crash against the opposite wall. Not even caring about her earlier suspicions, she rushed to look into the open door. She could see the darkness melting away into light, and she could also see the two young ponies. 

 

The young ponies were starting to move around, so she went to the one that seemed to be in the worst condition at that moment. Trotting over to where Daylight had fallen, Ambrosia poked him with her hoof and asked a question that probably had an obvious answer. "Are you okay?" She wasn't much of a medical pony, so she hoped that he was still conscious.  

 

--------------------------------------------------------------

 

Almost instinctively Magicon snuggled under his cape and barely managed the words, “Thank you. But I’m…exhausted. I…can barely move…maybe some help, please?” He then lowered his head and rested his eyes, trying to manage the searing migraine.

 

 

Vim stopped in his tracks and immediately went to help the fallen unicorn. Without a moment's hesitation, he hefted Magicon up on his back, being as careful as he could, and headed towards the parlor car exit. He was old and tired due to the long day, but he certainly wasn't weak. Carrying the unicorn was not very much of a burden to him. Pointing at Trixie, he said one final thing before leaving. "When I get back here, I don't want to see you."

 

Vim already knew that Magicon's room was room 16, and it didn't take him long to reach this destination. Along the way, he didn't say anything to Magicon, because he didn't want to trouble the weakened unicorn, but he did have a question that was bothering him. Vim's thoughts were interrupted though by the sound of the door to the caboose opening. Turning his head, he saw Dusky standing there. The dark, lanky pony looked sleepy, as usual.

 

His curiosity overriding his annoyance, Vim squinted and, tiredly, asked the question that so many ponies had been trying to answer all evening. "Dusky, where have you been?" Dusky answered without hesitation. "Taking a nap." Vim squinted even harder and a tinge of disbelief could be heard in his voice. "Really? You sleep?" Dusky nodded and then pointed at Magicon with a hoof. "What happened to him? Too much cider?"

 

Vim blinked. "No. If you want to know what happened, ask Springer. Speaking of which, he said he checked the caboose and you weren't there?" Dusky shook his head and spoke calmly and dismissively. "Well, obviously... He didn't check." Vim was tired of this conversation already. He was rather disturbed that his crew seemed to be falling apart. "Dusky, when you've walked off your nap, please check the train engine." With that final statement, Vim opened Magicon's room door, took the unicorn inside, and placed him on his bed. 

 

Vim turned to leave but stopped at the door, and decided to chance a question. This unicorn had, with his brave and prudent actions, earned the silent respect and admiration of the grizzled earth pony. Vim glanced down for a moment, and then back up as he decided to ask his question. "Magicon, what exactly is your cutie mark and what does it mean? Or... Is this something that you can't say? If so, then I respect that."

 

--------------------------------------------------------------

 

Dusky continued walking. He entered the parlor car just in time to see Trixie making her way out of the other exit. His eyes widened as he took in the sight of the stage and the area for the audience. Shaking his head as if to wake from a bad dream. Dusky's face clearly expressed his confusion. He spoke softly to himself. "What is all of this?"

 

A cheerful voice piped up behind him. "It was a magic show! A disastrous one!" A quiet laughter followed the voice. Dusky spun around to the sight of Springer grinning. Dusky's soft voice carried just a hit of irritation as he stated. "Springer. There was a show. What? That... Wasn't part of the plan." Dusky licked his lips absentmindedly. Springer walked over to the stage and leaned on it as he answered. "Well, no, it wasn't. It was my idea. I wanted to show you something."

 

Dusky raised an eyebrow. Something didn't seem right. "Show me... What?" Springer pulled out a hoof, waved it around and a roll seemed to materialize out of nowhere. He took a bite before talking again. "I wanted to show you a trick. You see. I know you. You think that we are both alike, but that isn't really true at all. See, here's the thing." 

 

Springer took another bite before continuing, and Dusky rolled his eyes. "Yeah, so, here's the thing. We aren't the same. One of us has a little something called self-control and wisdom. The other doesn't. So, yeah, you messed up." Springer continued talking while munching his roll. "Yeah, you really messed up. See, I kinda know what's going on in this train, and... I'm not sure I like it..." When he was done eating the roll, he dusted the crumbs off. 

 

Dusky licked his lips before speaking. "Hmm... Hmmmm... What are you trying to say, exactly?" Springer grinned an held one hoof out towards Dusky. "Nothing." Dusky's sleepy eyes sparkled aggressively and a smile formed on his face. "I see. Well, perhaps we should go share some of your nothing with Vim, hmmm? I bet he would be tremendously interested in hearing what I have to tell him about... Some of the goings on in this train, yes?"

 

Springer's face dimmed into a concerned expression and he lowered his hoof. "Heeyyyyy! That's a pretty good idea, Ducky! Let's go talk to Vim. Yeah. We can tell him everything." Dusky frowned at the silent mockery. An innocent smile suddenly appeared on Springer's face. "So. Duster. What were you doing in the caboose anyway?" For just one moment, a look of supreme irritation appeared on Dusky's face before his sleepy facade was in place yet again.

 

Dusky spoke calmly. "I was taking a nap. Now... Springer. What were you doing when you were supposed to be checking the caboose for my presence?" Springer was grinning again. "I was enjoying the show." Springer laughed. "Yeah, well, you wouldn't believe it, but I was enjoying the show before the show. My own little show. Magicon was the star. You should watch him... He's powerful. Dust Bunny, you should watch him carefully. You should also watch me, but I guess you know that. Hrmmmmmm?" Springer imitated Dusky's characteristic hum with amusement.

 

Dusky smiled to match Springer's grin. "You're having too much fun Springer, but, really... Nothing you've said makes any sense to me." With a rather calm laugh, the unicorn made his way towards the front of the train at a leisurely pace. Behind him, Springer smiled absentmindedly. While he did his best to hide it, Dusky was confused, at best. Something was not making any sense. Suddenly a realization hit him. Dusky stood stock still. Suddenly something was making sense, but... He was certain that he didn't like what it was.

 

This is several posts bunched into one, so don't mind the length. Lots of hints. More drama. Nicely done Detective Daylight...

[Electrobolt 2,069]

Electrobolt, although feeling weakened, continued his strugglings against the thing that was trying to drag him to his demise. Just then, the darkness and bitter winds intensified yet again, causing him to cease his struggles as he instead shivered violently. His pathetic attempts at freedom only served to tire him down, as he could only look on in front of him, at the barren darkness. It was then that the voice had spoken to him again, while the surroundings seemed to twist and contort into something completely different, no longer sinking into the dark abyss.

 

"Wonderful. Simply wonderful. So you are capable of fear? What about paranoia? If I release you, will you be haunted by me? Will you see me, Electrobolt? Perhaps in your dreams and your nightmares?" As the voice spoke, a form, massive and terrible, could be seen to take shape. Despite the small size of the room, the shape seemed to manifest itself at a great distance from the colt. Shrouded in a haze, it seemed to be made from the very darkness that it manifested itself from. 

 

"Or maybe I won't release you. I do, after all, only need one pony to fulfill the quest. To bring me what is mine. One pony is... I think... So much easier to control. I made that mistake once before. I don't know... If I can afford another. Electrobolt, this world... Equestria... It needs me. I can save it. Surely you see this truth?"

 

Electrobolt could only listen on to the voice, as it was saying he was capable of fear. If he paid attention to the tone of the voice, he would have thought that it was praising his capability of fear. Then it spoke of paranoia, wondering if it would be seen in his dreams or nightmares, when a form started to seemingly take shape. He tried to see what the form was, but was incapable of doing so, seeing at it was a far distance off.

 

And then the voice spoke again, saying it may not release him. This caused his eyes to shoot wide open, filled with terror. This creature's rambling continued, as it said one pony would be all it would really need, and that another pony might be extra baggage. He thought back to when it mentioned Key Gear, and thought that she was who the thing was talking about. But that left him wondering: what was this being's plans, and what all did it need Key Gear for? Then he recalled that he might not get released, that he would most likely die right here and now.

 

Just then, this creature started approaching the young colt, as its details were slowly becoming clearer. Yet, something was off... It seemed to be shifting between two completely different appearances as it moved. Even though one of them seemed to be dragon-like, it appeared to be rather ancient. It had holes all over it's body, it's wings were dragging, and it appeared to be in horrendous shape. The other form, however, was completely indescribable. The whole thing was just spooky, and he couldn't really wrap his mind around it, before it suddenly vanished.

 

"I'm still here. I have only hidden myself because I would like for you to... Remain sane... As I devour you. It is only fair, I think. But... I am finding it so hard to think right now... About anything... I just need to know. What do you taste like?" After this, for a few long seconds, there was nothing. Then, finally, a tremendous gaping jaw opened, slowly, in front of the young colt. Inside, was rows and rows of jagged, misshapen  and decaying teeth. As the jaw opened, a blast of bitterly cold air hammered the colt with fury, and a low rumbling sound, like laughter, could be heard. Yet, even as this was happening  a single, narrow beam of light pierced the darkness. It's resting place was barely perceptible within the vast breadth of the gaping mouth.

 

At this moment, Electrobolt was shivering immensely - not because of the freezing cold air, but because he was purely terrified. This was how his life was going to end, eaten by some vile monstrosity. When the beast revealed it's enormous maw, he saw several teeth, all jagged, misshapen, and decaying. At this point the young colt was breaking out in a cold sweat. Just the thought of being food to some unknown beast made him nearly pass out. Yet, out of nowhere, as he was going to close his eyes, he caught a glimpse of what seemed to be light...

 

Just as he saw the light, it began to expand, swirling around him as if it was protecting him. The creature tried lunging out at him, yet the light would only serve to send the beast back. The young colt suddenly found himself no longer quaking, as the light began to provide him with warmth, and seemingly energizing him some. Looking back to the creature, the light suddenly took the form of a beam as it pierced through the monster, the darkness surrounding the area seemingly falling apart. Once the vile beast crashed into the ground, the entire area began to light up, as everything twisted and distorted around, before finally returning to normal.

 

As soon as the room returned to normal, Electrobolt found himself standing on his legs. Just what was all of that, and where did that light come from? Looking around the room, he could see everything as it was before, except the candle was missing, and the box that Key opened was no longer there. As soon as the box entered his mind, his eyes shot open. *Key!!! Is she okay???!!* he thought, worried, before hearing her voice speaking up.

 

"Bolt. You there? ... Well. If you are. I don't think we missed the magic show after all." Key passed out.

 

Looking over to the filly, he saw that she had fallen over, most likely out cold. This caused him to freak out, as he moved as quickly as his hooves would let him to check on Key. As soon as he had leaned down next to her, he checked to make sure she was still breathing. Thankfully for him, she was in fact breathing, signaling that she was still living. Sighing out of relief, he looked over to the door, seeing Ambrosia and Daylight, the latter having been knocked out cold.

 

*Was it Daylight who saved us...?* he mused, a little concerned about how he was currently positioned. The unicorn seemed as if he wound up knocking himself out. Even though he wanted to make sure he was alright, he recalled the cook was there. Surely she would be able to take care of him. No longer worrying himself about the unicorn who quite possibly was responsible for saving their lives, Electrobolt turned back around to Key Gear, before lifting her onto his back, being careful not to drop her. Slowly, he turned around before carefully walking out of the room, taking the filly over to her room.

 

Because he wanted to be careful with Key Gear, the young colt took his time going to the third car of the train. He was dead set on making sure Key would be safe as he carried her back to her room. Once he entered the third passenger car, he looked to his right. He was considering letting the filly rest in his room, but decided against it. He then looked to his left, seeing room nine. It was then that he noticed his room and Key's room were directly across from each other. Shaking the thought off for now, he opened the door to room nine as he entered, before approaching the bed.

 

Slowly working his way to the bed and opening it up, he then slid the filly off his back and into the bed. After positioning her properly, he slowly pulled the covers over her and then left the room. Closing the door behind him as quietly as possible, he let out a yawn. Apparently, that whole thing had left him completely drained. So Electrobolt trotted into his own room, closing the door behind him just as quietly, before getting himself ready for bed.

Edited December 7, 2012 by Electrobolt

[Bari 7,023]

Lapis was disappointed. Here he thought he'd get to hear what Ambrosia had thought. Was there a connection between the goldenrod unicorn and Dusky? Whether there was or not, he would probably have to wait for some time. But he saw her gesture to the unicorn, confirming his suspicions. He looked up to the stage to see Trixie pinned to the ground by Springer. Very curious.

 

As Ambrosia left for who knows where, Lapis resisted the urge to go after her. He felt like watching Trixie was more important. And even though Vim instructed them to go back to their rooms, Lapis remained where he was. Something important might happen, and he needed to be there to see it.

 

As Flow left the parlor car, once again Lapis had to keep himself from leaving. He was worried about the young pegasus, but he could not leave just yet. She'd probably be fine. Flow looked like a tough mare, and it might just waste time seeing if she was alright.

 

The unicorn who'd been sitting next to Ambrosia left as well, determination in his eyes. He looked like he was going after those two foals. And that might have been what Ambrosia had been after as well. She had looked worried as she left. But those two seemed capable enough, so he continued to watch the stage.

 

As Vim carried off Magicon and Trixie left, Lapis had all but given up. It looked as though little more could be learned. But just then, a tall lanky unicorn entered the parlor car. But he was grey, not goldenrod. Perhaps it was the missing Dusky? He watched intently as the new pony spoke with Springer.

 

What transpired was very peculiar. Clearly there was something much stranger going on here. Something involving Springer and Dusky. Lapis's mind whirled. Whatever was going on, he couldn't just leave it be. A thousand questions were springing to his mind. He could go after either Dusky or Springer, and Dusky seemed less dangerous. He knew not to judge a book by it's cover, but some times you had to take a risk to get what you wanted.

 

Without hesitation, Lapis Lazuli trotted after Dusky. He suddenly didn't like the parlor car. It had begun to give off strange vibes. And he definitely didn't want to be in there with Springer. By the time Lapis had caught up with the grey unicorn, he found him just standing there, deep in thought. "Excuse me sir, my name is Lapis Lazuli. I do believe I have some questions for you. Perhaps you'd like to accompany me back to my room?"

[Opalicious 799]

Water Opal seemed drawn to the action, no sound coming from him even if he wanted to speak, probably because of the shock of being teleported to the show. That out of his way, and over the shock, as well with the extra fact that everypony returned to their room, Water Opal stayed behind. He had finished his book anyway, and he was rather more interested on how Ambrosia seemed to put that fantastic tinge of something into the water, even though it still tasted like water. Not even he could manipulate water like that, as he had not learned any cooking spells.

 

He continued down the cars to the kitchen, but decided against talking to her, as she was probably busy, as part of the staff of the ship. He decided to continue on to look around, only to confront two ponies, one that she had overheard a conversation from, which lead her to know his name was Dusky, but she didn't recognize the other two.

 

"Well, hello there, you two." Before he could say something unimaginable sarcastic, like, "Fine trip we've had so far, aye," he quickly bit his tongue, only to breathe out heavily, the taste of blood in his mouth. "The, uh, weather's great today." He glanced out the window to approve this statement, before looking back.

[Dave247 568]

Darkness. It was all around him. No matter which way he looked, there was a thick blackness in every direction. He tried to cast a light spell but, for some reason he just wasn't able to. He then decided to slowly and cautiously star walking in one direction, often stopping and feeling the area around him with his hoof to make sure he didn't bump into anything. He had no idea where he could be and not being able to see where he was going unsettled him.

 

Suddenly, he heard a young filly's scream followed by a young colts coming from somewhere in front of him he thought. He quickened his pace while still being cautious so to not trip over anything. When he heard it again, he panicked, and broke out into a full gallop, only caring about getting there in time to save them. The third time he heard the screams, it sounded more distant, despite the fact he was galloping as fast as he could. Because of this he lost his concentration and because it was dark he tripped over his own hooves and fell flat on his face. Grunting, he picked himself back up and tried to cast the light spell again but to no avail. When he heard the screams again this time even more distant, he once again broke out into a gallop, but then stopped when he realised it was foolish to do so again as no matter how fast he went he couldn't seem to catch up to the screams and he would probably just end up tripping over again. He sat down and sulked. He didn't want to lose them now... but there was nothing he could do.

 

Again, he heard the screams, but this time very close. He looked up to see the shadow of a young filly and colt struggling in the darkness. He tried to get up but... he found that he was unable to and seemed to be stuck to the ground. All he was able to do was watch the two figures struggle endlessly. "No... There must be something I can do!" he thought, trying again to get up with all his might and failing. He also tried to cast a light spell for a third time but for some reason his horn was just not reacting.

 

All of a sudden, the was a beam of light that appeared in front of him and went through the shadows of the two figures, causing the screams to stop and the shadows to vanish. The light expanded and kept on expanding as if it was eating up all of the darkness. As the light neared him, it became too bright for him to look at it so he closed his eyes and covered them with his hoof. He then felt a warmthness pass over him as the light seemed to be at its brightest then... nothing. He was once again looking into darkness.

 

---

 

But this time it was different. He felt himself lying against a hard floor and could feel movement all around him. He then felt something prod him and a familiar voice say "Are you OK?”. He slowly opened his eyes and raised his head to find he was lying on the ground of the train outside room 8 with a lemon mare looking concerned down at him. At first, he didn't realize who it was until he opened his eyes fully and blinked a few times. It was the cook. His heart then skipped a beat to think that she, of all ponies was concerned about him.

 

"I'm... OK... I think." He said as he got up slowly. When He stood up he felt a sharp pain in his head, which was from when he hit his head. "Ugh, My head..." he said. Raising a hoof to his head and rubbing his temple. "What... happened?" he asked looking at the cook. "The last thing I remember is casting the spell... then hitting my head and passing out. Is Key OK? What about Electro?" He finished hurriedly then looked into Trixie's room. He saw Electro tending to Key who was lying on the ground. He could see her chest still rising and falling so she was still alive which was a good sign. He then looked back at the cook who was still looking concerned at him. "Really, I'm fine." he said again. "Although I could do with a coffee right about now..." He couldn't help staring into the cook's eyes, who he noticed were a similar shade to his. There was something about her that the longer he stared at the he began to feel calm and relaxed.

 

He managed to tear his eyes away from her for a moment to check on Key and Elecrto again. This time he saw Electro had picked up Key on his back and began to walk out with her taking her to, her assumed her room. He gave him a nod of approval as he passed him.

 

Day then looked back at the cook and now with the two of them being alone, felt rather uncomfortable. Every time he looked at her he couldn't help staring into his eyes so he quickly looked away in a different direction. Looking past her he asked "Umm... I'm sorry but I don't know your name..."

[Magicon 468]

His head still throbbed and his body ached as Vim carried him out of the parlor and back to his room. Magicon was in a daze, only somewhat able to see and figure out what was occurring. It didn’t matter to him anyway; he couldn’t concentrate with the migraine. He needed a long rest. He was drained of all strength and energy and he had to sleep. Fortunately Vim didn’t take too long to get there, Magicon thought he spoke with few ponies along the way, but he wasn’t sure. He was just too exhausted.

Vim put Magicon to bed and he collapsed into it. The soft mattress and sheets were exactly what he needed. He had already closed his eyes as Vim had carried him through the train, but now he could seriously rest and feel better. But before sleep could occur he managed to hear Vim ask,

"Magicon, what exactly is your cutie mark and what does it mean? Or... Is this something that you can't say? If so, then I respect that."

 

He opened his eyes and slowly turned toward Vim, aching all over. He took a deep breath and tried to clear his mind and ease the pain with limited success. “It’s from…well, actually…let’s just say something very bad happened in my colthood…and I tried to fix it. I always thought of solutions to try and fix it, but none ever worked…I started learning better magic…and spent hours reading, practicing, and thinking. My cute mark came to me then, as a reminder…that I am always a thinker and analyzer…but never willing to concede defeat.”

 

With those words he attempted a small smile at the conductor and winced from the pain. “Ah, sorry Vim, but…I need to rest. Thanks for everything you’ve done.” He turned his back to the conductor and pulled the sheets over himself and prepared for a nice long rest.

[Alex Night 870]

Before Alex could get an answer from Clarity, he was already in a seat inside the parlor car and saw that Clarity was in a seat next to him.  He took a look in front of him and saw that Trixie was on stage performing her magic, but it was nothing like he had seen back in Ponyville all those years ago.  *Did she just...  How did she know magic like that?  I thought she only knew illusions...*  Alex thought to himself as he looked on at Trixie.  He looked on as Trixie performed different feats of magic from creating technicolor insects to distorting the proportions of the Parlor Car they were in.  He saw that Trixie had performed cruel tricks like sending a bolt of lightening at the green Earth Pony colt to his left, who left the show shortly after.  He heard a pony called Magicon be called up on the stage by Trixie and she used her magic to send a mare through a portal to the Frozen North, which Alex was shocked at what she was doing with this magic.  Luckily, the unicorn, Magicon, was able to get the mare back from the Frozen North with his magic.

 

At this point, he saw Trixie get taken down by the Conductor and his assistant and they gestured to the audience to leave the Parlor Car.  Alex looked towards Clarity.

 

@, "Let's get out of here, Miss Clarity...  That is, if you still wouldn't mind me accompanying you."  Alex said to the ivory unicorn.  *Okay...  That was a stupid thing to say, Alex.*  Alex thought to himself as he stood up looking at the mare, offering a hoof to her.