THE MAGIX: PROLOGUE

The two ponies met on a dark street. One was hidden in a pitch-black alley, perched on a fire escape. Her black attire blended almost seamlessly with her surroundings. A thousand thoughts raced across this pony's mind as she waited for the other in painful anticipation. At last the second pony appeared, slinking silently through the fog of darkness, his black trench coat trailing in the night mist behind him. He stopped, looked to either side of himself, and slipped unseen into the alley's shadows.

"I've been waiting for you, Horus." The mysterious, musical voice came out of nowhere. The stallion simply smiled and shook his head.

"I knew, Amber. I knew."

A split second later, the other pony landed before the first. Though she was no pegasus, her landing was as silent as if she had drifted down on wings. She stood in front of the stallion, an unmistakable look of relief on her face. After all, this pony was her friend, mentor, and captain. "How has our subject been faring?" he asked.

"She's been doing well," the other pony, a unicorn mare, replied. "No problems have come up just yet. I'm not sure if the agents have located her, but I wasn't going to take any chances. As for her, she hasn't made any attempt to contact us. I don't think she knows about us at all. In fact, she seems suspiciously...average."

"Amber, my friend," the other pony said, "This is still only your first shift watching the subject. You haven't seen her completely. Remember what I told you. She lives a double life. This is only one side of her. She changes, trust me."

Amber sighed, crestfallen. "But Horus, I can't now. I've been here for too long. If I stay here any longer, my real body will start wasting away."

Horus nodded. "You've been jacked in for nearly two days, Amber. It's about time you returned home."

"Thank you so much. You're the best." Another thought rose up in Amber's head. "Wait," she said. "If I'm not here, who will contact the subject?"

Horus thought for a moment. "Neon is the only one who hasn't seen her yet," he reasoned. "He's been waiting long enough. He'll do it."

"Will he know how to handle the subject? She's a bit feisty, to say the least."

"I'm sure you'll fill him in. After you've recovered, of course." Amber smiled at Horus. She always knew she could trust him. Even when they'd met, seven years earlier, she'd never doubted him.

Suddenly voices sounded from somewhere down the darkened street, startling both ponies. They quickly hid back in the shadows. A group of seven ponies stumbled drunkenly down the street, no doubt returning from a night of extreme partying. They arrived at a small house to the left of the alley where the two rouge ponies hid. After what seemed like hours of drunken laughter and slurred conversation on the house's front steps, the group said their goodbyes. Two entered the house, the others went on their way. The hidden ponies in the alley finally let their guard down.

"We can't stay here much longer,"Horus whispered. He pulled a black cell phone out of one of his trench coat's many pockets. He dialed one of his contacts. "Spiro, I found her," he said into the microphone. "Take us home."

A few feet away, a pay phone sat, still and quiet. As if by some fluke in the system, it began to ring. The rogues took notice of the malfunctioning phone and moved over next to it.

"You first," Horus told Amber.

Using her telekinetic magic, she carefully lifted the phone off of its cradle and held it to her ear. In seconds her form began to pixelate and glow. With a flash of icy blue light, she was gone. The phone dangled limply at the end of its cord. Horus carefully replaced it. The phone immediately began to ring again. He did the same as Amber had and soon, he too disappeared. Then the streets were silent.