It is here at last! The long-awaited sequel to the ever-popular Princess Trixie Sparkle series. There are a couple of things you should know:

1. This is a SEQUEL which means you will NOT understand what is going on unless you have read the first story

2. While the first story was somwhere in the G to PG rated area, this one is somewhere between PG and PG-13. NOT for language or sexual content, but there is some violence and some themes that might be a little harder for younger readers to grasp.

3. This story focuses a lot on Astelle, both the past and the present and will jump from one to the other frequently. Be sure to check for such cues as "2000 years ago" and "modern day" so that you don't get confused.

4. Trixie, Twilight, and the gang are still a part of this story but they actually don't come into it for a little while, there is a lot that needs to be told and explored before then.

5. This story /should/ be updated every Friday so keep an eye out for that. (but bear with me if I have to be late from time to time)

So without further ado, I present to you: Princess Trixie Sparkle 2: From the Shadows

Chapter 1: Broken

The Everfree forest was silent when Astelle regained consciousness. She found herself curled on the ground like a frightened filly. Every muscle in her body ached having gone through an intense transformation. Being the focus of that kind of magic had really taken its toll on Astelle. She felt a cold and unfriendly emptiness inside as she realized the absence of magic in her body. She put a hoof to her forehead and discovered she no longer had her horn. Feeling along the skin, there was not even a scar to indicate that it had ever existed in the first place. Astelle then tried to fan out her wings; knowing full well they would not respond to her. She could almost feel the wing muscles stretching, but when she looked at her sides they were bare.

Astelle fought back the urge to cry out in both frustration and anguish. She attempted to pull herself up off the ground too quickly and stumbled backwards from dizziness. Her heart was still pounding and her vision was blurred; though that could have been from the tears now cascading down her cheeks. She had felt an emptiness of this magnitude once before and it was a memory she did not like revisiting. She fought the nausea and the splitting headache as she forced herself back up onto her hooves. Her legs shook and threatened to give out from under her and she let a whimper of pain escape her lips. She took the first step away from the Tree of Harmony and was met with another surprise. Her hoof had come down on something sharp and she backed away in pain. When she looked to see what it was her heart sank even lower than it had before. There on the ground was the remains of her alicorn amulet; the source of her power. The ruby center of the amulet had shattered and its shard remains were dull. The once beautifully intricate band that held the ruby was now misshapen, burnt, and in pieces. Astelle looked up at the Tree of Harmony with more tears careening down her cheeks. She wished she could scream and tear the tree apart with her bare hooves from frustration, but she saw the unconscious figures of Twilight Sparkle and her friends not too far away from where she was standing. All she could do now was retreat.

Astelle took to the forest and didn't look back. She allowed herself to cry out every moment of anguish and despair that she felt; her voice cracking from want of water. The sting of this failure destroyed the walls she had built in her mind and she could no longer keep the harmful memories from invading. This was the second time she had had to retreat into the forest with a broken heart and spirit. Once she felt she had obtained a safe distance, she collapsed beside a boulder and wept… and wept… and wept…

2000 years ago…

The sting of unrequited love was more than Queen Astelle could bear. She had fallen hopelessly in love with her mentor, Starswirl the Bearded and had dreams of living an eternal life at his side, ruling Equestria in goodness. But he rejected her affection, and revealed that he wanted her to end his immortal life at last, leaving her to be the only immortal magical leader in Equestria. Even when he tried to appeal to her, calling it her destiny, her mind refused to acknowledge it. In a panic, she fled from the castle with a promise never to fulfill her mentor's request. Perhaps in time he would see what he meant to her and could appreciate the thought of an eternal life by her side. No pony had ever loved him the way she had. She couldn't understand why he didn't see that, or why he couldn't open himself up to the possibility of love. After several minutes of crying and running, her legs began to ache; weak from the shock of the rejection. She felt like crumbling beside a gentle stream in the forest but did not want to be seen in this pathetic weakened state by any of her subjects. She did, however, pause to take a drink; hoping it would allow her to gather enough energy to press onward. When she saw her reflection in the water she noticed her wings fanned out awkwardly behind her; she forgot about those. It was easy to forget she was an alicorn. Having been born an earth pony she did not grow up knowing magic or flight. Of course, her time as Starswirl's apprentice had given her substantial magical power, but it wasn't until she was crowned Queen that she ascended to this winged form as well. She was supposed to be a representation of all ponies: earth, unicorn, and pegasus. Now, however, she felt like a timid earth pony invisible to the world around her. Although learning to fly had been a challenge, she was able to lift herself up off the ground and take to the skies. Tears continued to stream down her cheeks as she struggled to see the path she was taking deeper into the forest and more importantly, away from Equestria.

Astelle continued onward despite the ache she felt in her legs and wings. She closed her eyes for only a moment attempting to clear her vision and accidently clipped her left wing on a tree branch. In surprise she cried out and plummeted for the forest floor. Fortunately, she had flown close enough to the ground that the crash did not seriously harm her.

Astelle curled up and let the sadness encompass her. She heard a soft thud and looked up to see her crown had fallen off her brow and was now resting beside her. Astelle glared at the crown, seething anger rose in her heart. It was a representation of everything she had lost and everything she never wanted in the first place. After all, no pony asked her if she wanted to be Queen. Royalty was bestowed upon her as was the gift of immortality; neither of which she had wanted or asked for.

Immortality. What a contradiction that was! How could Starswirl have chastised her so much for meddling in aging magic when he himself was bestowed the power to live forever? He had tried to explain the difference but it never made sense to Astelle. She could recall the conversation clearly

"It is not of this magic. The root of our magic is based upon elements of harmony; those that would bring goodness to the world."

What did he mean by that anyway? Does that mean there is magic that does not have its roots in harmony? If so… was she able to access something greater?

Astelle stood up with a determined look on her face. If she was to be banished by her own will awaiting Starswirl's change of heart, she might as well make good use of her time. Perhaps tapping into a new source of magic could be helpful to her. If she could manipulate age, maybe she could manipulate love. It might seem artificial at first… but his love for her would be real eventually and he would see the light.

Knowing this, Astelle could finally cease her crying and a glimmer of hope flickered in her heart. She turned to the forest around her looking for something to practice on. She saw the cracked and broken remains of a fallen tree and smiled. She believed she had perfected the age spell and could bring this tree back to its former glory; regardless of the chastising of her mentor for meddling in such magic. Now the magic Starswirl had demanded that she suppress was finally able to break free and she focused her energy on the tree. She expected the spell to work immediately because it had been done countless times before to the little rose she practiced with. However, at first glance the tree did not appear to respond to the spell she was casting now. When she looked a little closer, she could see little magical veins of life winding into the roots of the tree unable to reawaken it on its own.

Astelle pondered for a moment, recalling the lessons Starswirl had given her on the elements of harmony. He had said they were actual magic relics; gem-like in nature. They were a center for magical power, like a focus point. Perhaps for this new magic to flourish she too would need something to focus her magic with. Looking around her, she once again spied her crown resting on the forest floor. Using magic she brought it up to her face to examine the exquisite ruby at the center.

Astelle smiled darkly; this would make a perfect magical focus. A perfect amulet.

Time passed by but Astelle was mostly unaware of its passage. To her, the days and weeks blurred together in her time spent alone. The progression of new magic was slow, but that was to be expected. Still, the magical feats she could perform were awe inspiring: even to her. Once and a while she wished she had an audience, someone to marvel in her work and understand her plight. She often thought of returning to Equestria, but never felt adequately prepared.

The age spell was mastered quickly; in fact, it was substantially improved. Once the object had been aged, it was finally able to retain that age and continue on as if nothing had happened. Trees that were aged to the point of death remained that way, and trees that were turned back into saplings began the aging process anew. Learning that spell gave her even greater hope as she delved deeper into love magic.

There was no recipe for love, nor any real guidance for how to begin. She realized after a time that whatever progress she made would need to be tested; and that meant finding somepony to experiment with. However, making herself known to pony kind was out of the question. She was not yet ready to be discovered or to face Starswirl. She could only hope that he was missing her and paying for his act of betrayal. Regardless, she knew that mastering this spell would ensure her happy ending. Without a pony to test her love spells on, she had to use the forest. Thus far her attempts had been unfruitful, causing her to descend into depression.

One particularly uneventful evening Astelle decided she had had enough. She felt the new magic coursing through her frame banishing the traces of elemental magic but it still did nothing to assist her. She was reminded of the rose, the stubborn unchangeable rose that had nearly driven her mad in her studies with Starswirl. Using elemental magic, she could not turn the rose into the tulip. However, with this new magic and the amulet she had formed from it, performing such a spell was so easy that it seemed effortless.

That didn't matter, none of it mattered. If she couldn't cast the love spell on Starswirl than this new magic had no purpose. When the sun set she ignited a fire and turned it the color black loving the contrast of the darkness and the light. This too was a magical feat that could not have been performed easily with elemental magic. As far as she knew, something of this magnitude was mastered by only one other unicorn, Clover the Clever, and it had taken her a lifetime to conjure. Now, Astelle could change the color of fire like it was nothing. Perhaps this was a little tribute in Clover's honor; she was one unicorn who actually understood what it was like to be in Astelle's position. However, it also served as a reminder that Clover's passing was difficult for her, even more so now that she was truly alone.

Thinking of Clover stirred up more memories and emotions that she had buried. She realized she missed her parents and little Celestia. She did love seeing that filly's face light up when she would visit. She would have made a wonderful princess for Equestria. She knew better than to think her family would remain in power now that she had abandoned her throne. She silently promised herself to make amends to her family once she returned and set everything right. Though she had few friends, she missed all the ponies that she had met along her journey to power. The ache of being alone was now beginning to outweigh the pain she felt for Starswirl's unrequited love.

It was then that Astelle happened upon an idea. Perhaps she did not need somepony to experiment loves spells on at all. Perhaps she could experiment on herself. She knew that casting a spell to create love would be futile, but maybe she was going about this all the wrong way. What if she needed to draw out the love from herself and give up on the future she so desperately wanted? The idea stung, and part of her subconscious recoiled at the thought of any sort of future where Starswirl was not present. However, being alone for so long was also a terrifying feeling of emptiness and rejection was far more unbearable. If she could banish her feelings for Starswirl then she could go back and rule Equestria as a confident and powerful leader. Starswirl would get his wish and she would move on. The idea certainly had merit, but her heart still pined for him.

She decided to give it one try; one attempt. If it was fate, than the love would be extracted from her and she could move on in peace. If it didn't work, however, she would know that meant to continue her magical pursuit of finding a way to spend her life with him.

Astelle looked up at the flame and used her magic to turn it into various colors. This new magic was not born from spells in a book but by emotional effort. It was a potential that had to be unlocked from within, and something she felt only a unicorn… or alicorn… of her skill could master. She remained very still, drawing the magic within her to attack her memories of what she called love. She enveloped them, holding them together in her mind and her heart and attempted to draw them out of her. She wondered if she might end up erasing her own memory in the process, but she was too far into the spell to turn back now. Whatever it took not to feel this pain anymore would be worth it. Keeping her eyes closed she willed the magic to draw the memories and the emotion from within her out through her horn. Although she wasn't sure what was happening, she did feel a strange new sense of emptiness that was left in place of where this 'love' had been. The more she drew it away the colder she became. Emptiness was far more frightening than loneliness or despair and Astelle realized she might have gone a step too far. She feared that she was attempting to remove all love from her heart. She couldn't do that! That would mean she would not love her family, herself, or anything else for that matter. What was life without love? The presence of the emptiness acted as the sign she was looking for. The sign that told her removing Starswirl from her life was not the answer. Now she just needed to abort the spell.

Astelle opened her eyes and gasped a little in awe. Although it was night, the forest was lit up with a brilliant white light emanating from her horn. She could feel the magic pouring something out from within her and she cried aloud to make it stop. When her first few attempts at willing the spell to end failed, she tried to physically extinguish her horn, but the light was too strong. Now she was truly frightened of the power she was wielding.

"Please!" She cried out to no one. "Please no! I'll make him love me! I'll MAKE HIM LOVE ME!" She stamped her front hooves in both fear and frustration. The moment her hooves touched the ground, Astelle was thrown backwards and her horn finally extinguished. She panted softly and cried silent tears searching her heart and finding pain there. Pain was good, pain meant there was something to be hurt about. He was still there in her heart which meant she still loved him. Whatever that spell would have been, it was avoided.

Although the spell had failed, the impact it took on her was taking hold. She could feel herself slip into unconsciousness at an alarming rate. The light that had lit up the forest was now beginning to dim, long after her horn had extinguished. Astelle believed it was slowly being called back into her as she hoped it would. What she didn't see was the path of light flowing somewhere else entirely. Through blurred vision and the threat of unconsciousness she saw only the colorful flame she had created and her shadow dancing across the way.