The Great and Horrible Trixie looked down on her nemesis, as she walked blithely through Ponyville toward her home. A smile played on her muzzle as she envisioned the things she wanted to do to the clever purple filly. The screams would be exquisite. The pain, the blood, the look of utter defeat as her victim saw the last of her friends turned against her, and knew it was her greatest adversary that had brought about her fall. Yes, Trixie would savor every moment of Twilight’s pain, before taking her life, and giving her the gift. She would then have her greatest enemy as her own personal servant for the rest of time.

But not yet. The Great and Horrible Trixie was a smart pony, and learned from past mistakes. She had underestimated this small, backwater town, and it’s adorkable, lavender librarian once before. She would not be fooled again, and she would get her revenge in her own sweet time. Twilight Sparkle may be a powerful mage, but Trixie now had limitless power at her command, and could control the minds of countless minions.

Turning to her side, she frowned at her first attempts. She had foalishly fed too heavily, still in the grip of her first blood frenzy, and not understanding the consequences of drinking too deeply of any one victim. Draining them too far damaged their minds, and left them as shallow mockeries of the ponies they once were. They were ghouls, with a need to feed, but no intelligence or control, save to follow the orders of their queen. They had a tendency to tear their victims apart and feed indiscriminately, rather than just drain the blood. The vermin had their uses, but were the lowest of her creations so far. Her scowl deepened as the two started to fidget and fight with each other, making swipes and hissing like feral animals. She would need to keep a closer leash on them in the future.

In her distraction, the quarry had slipped away. She turned back to find the unicorn out of sight. No matter. She was not yet prepared to attack the mare, and could always find her again. She needed to collect her army, increase her power, and ultimately, strip away everything that gave her enemy strength. She would take Twilight’s friends, and make them her own, before using them against her, and them destroying her utterly. But for now, she grew hungry, and feeding time was at hand.

“Come, my minions. Your Queen grows hungry, and we shall feast this night.” She motioned to the snarling pair, who immediately stopped and focused their attention on her.

Their wide grins showed the bared fangs they possessed, looking more like dragon maws than anything that would grace the muzzle of a pony. Sharp and pointed teeth made short work of ripping apart any prey they came across, but made for messy feeding without the proper control that Trixie possessed. Usually. For now, the jackal-like predators had eyes only for their queen, and they snickered happily in anticipation of the nightly feeding.

Ignoring the stares, Trixie lept from the rooftop, landing on the next building as lightly as any pegasus. Not needing to fly, when she could easily leap over any building in the town, she traveled soundlessly and fast. Quickly she tracked down her next unsuspecting victim, she paid no heed of her escort, moving just as silently behind her. She spotted a light green unicorn, slumped in an uncomfortable position on a nearby bench, alone under a street lamp, and looking rather bored. Gently gliding down in the shadows surrounding the bench, the Queen smiled warmly, and put on her most bedeviling air. She motioned for the two ghouls to stay out of sight, and slowly sauntered up to the unicorn mare.

“So, what are you doing alone on such a beautiful night, my dear?” The Great and Horrible Trixie practically purred as she stepped into the light.

The green mare jumped, looking around. “Bonbon?” Spotting the strangely dressed pony, she relaxed. “Oh, you aren’t Bonbon. I’m sorry, I am just waiting for a friend. She was supposed to meet me, and she’s late, as usual.” Looking down at her lap, she crossed her forehooves over her chest and sighed.

“That is so sad, being left to wait alone, at night. Such a beautiful mare as yourself should not be kept waiting, especially not a Unicorn!” The vampire queen slid smoothly onto the seat next to the other mare, still smiling warmly. “Us unicorns are a gifted lot, and we deserve to be given the respect we deserve. You should not have to wait for anypony; rather they should be waiting on you, and basking in your power and beauty.”

Startled, the green unicorn turned to stare at her new guest. “What? Y-you think I’m beautiful? I mean, Bonbon always talks about how beautiful my music is, but she never calls me beautiful anymore...”

Taking up the other mare’s hoof, Trixie purred softly. “All unicorns share a beauty, unequaled by any other ponies. You have an artist’s gift as well, and deserve to be worshipped for your power and grace. Come, follow me, and I shall show you how a unicorn deserves to be treated. And then you can share with me your musical gift.” She tugged, and beckoned the other mare to follow her into the shadows of the nearby ally. Mesmerized, Lyra followed her wordlessly into the darkened path. Her eyes were glassed over, as her mind was enraptured by the power of the vampire queen. Her will was no longer her own, and she gave herself willing to the power.

As she passed into the shadows, another pony approached. Cream colored, with a two-tone mane, the earth pony managed to see her paramour slip into the shadows as she approached. The streets were deserted, and she quickly ran after her disappearing lover.

“Lyra! Lyra, wait! I’m sorry I’m late... where are you going?” She put on a burst of speed, as the mint green unicorn vanished into the shadows and behind a building. Rounding the corner, she skidded to a halt at the sight before her. Draped over her fillyfriend's body was a figure in a bizarre pointed hat and cloak, which flowed with arcane symbols that seemed to glow in the gloom. The pony holding her friend was a pale blue, with a silvery mane that seemed to shimmer in the wan moonlight. She gasped in outrage, as she realized her beloved was in the embrace of another pony, but her outrage quickly turned to horror as the unknown pony looked up from the embrace.

Far from nuzzling, the other pony had been feeding on the pale unicorn. A wet darkness covered her muzzle, and ran down her victim’s neck, and the eyes glowed a fierce red that pierced the gloom. The eyes flared briefly, and then she returned to her feeding. Bonbon tried to back away, but the signal had been given, and the two ghouls silently coalesced from the shadows behind her. Still grinning, they began to giggle like hyenas as their victim turned to flee.

“No! Who are you? What do you want?” The panicked mare tried to negotiate her freedom, panic paralyzing her body.

From behind her came the answer, smooth as always, and sounding just a little too toothy to be coming from the mouth of a pony. “Just a few moments of your time. About the same duration as the rest of your life.”

As she turned to face the voice, she tried to scream. Before the sound managed to leave her throat, a set of fangs sank into it, silencing her. She was dragged down by the pair of ghouls, and one tore into her flank, as the other clamped her throat. She tried to kick out, but the strength and life ebbed away as her air and blood were cut off by the vice-like grip on her jugular and windpipe. As she fell to the ground, she saw her lover’s limp form in the hooves of the vampire queen, still breathing, but paler than she had ever been. The last thing the earth pony saw was the cutie mark fade from Lyra’s flank, just before a second set of jaws closed on the base of her skull, and a blinding pain ended her world forever.

Looking down at the remains of her pet’s feeding, The Great and Horrible Trixie shook her head. Her army would not grow very fast if they were torn apart before she could resurrect them with the gift. Sighing, she looked down at the pale form at her hooves. The unicorn mare had been fed on just enough to sate her own thirst, and was now slowly dying from The Change. As her body weakened, she shook violently, and her breathing came in gasps. The blood had stopped flowing from the small wound on her neck, and her cutie mart had vanished along with all color from her mane and tail. She now was a uniform grey, with a darker grey mane, and her eyes rolling in her sockets showed flashes of the red that began to infect them.

Suddenly the thrashing stopped, along with her breathing. The queen’s own breath was held as she anticipated her latest creation’s birth. Like an expectant parent, she looked over her new child, and tried to block out the tearing and chewing of the nearby feeding.

Finally, with a gasp, the newest addition to her army awoke, her eyes shot open and the telltale reddish glow flowed forth. The new unicorn vampire looked up at her mistress, and smiled happily. Getting quickly to her hooves, she stepped forward to nuzzle her queen, and even placed a kiss upon her bloody muzzle. With a lick, she tasted the lifeblood, her own, and smiled.

The hunger of her first feeding was upon her already, and she turned to see the carcass of her former mate being picked over by the ghouls. With a hiss like a giant cat, she leapt onto the body, and scattered the two vermin. Baring her newly formed fangs at the two lesser undead, she enjoyed their submissive reaction as they backed away to let her have the kill. With a smile, she lowered her head to lap at the still flowing blood from the neck wound. She began to drink thirstily as the last remaining drops flowed out, before lifting her muzzle to lick it clean.

Looking down on her newest minion, The Great and Horrible Trixie smiled. “So, my dear, how do you feel now that you have been given your rightful place at my side?”

In response, the newly undead smiled hugely, showing all of her newly grown fangs. “I feel more alive than I have ever felt, my Queen. And I thank you for the new life you have given me.”

Pleased that the new vampire still had her mind intact, yet was still as loyal as her other two failures, the queen threw back her head and laughed. The sound caused ponies that heard it to quickly hurry home, and others to lock their doors and windows.

The new herd of the night was growing, and soon they would spread to all of Equestria. But not before The Great and Horrible Trixie had her revenge. All things would come in time, and she had all the time in the world.