Chapter 3

Western Equestria

No amount of shaking- telekinetic or physical would wake the sleeping performer. For the time being, I had moved Trixie into the shade of the tree, and now was trying to wake her up with little avail. This Hypnosis seemed to have put her into a deep sleep, with no movement save for snoring and rise and fall of her barrel.

In my recollection of Pokémon moves, I was sure that Elgyem was not able to learn Hypnosis through any methods overall. Despite this, the sleeping unicorn mare in front of me proved that fact wrong. Thinking again, I try to remember when the sleep effect wears off; either after a certain amount of time or when the victim is knocked out. With the damage option being out of the question, I would just have to wait. I decided that better use of my time would be trying to move- or hopefully fix Trixie’s carriage. Then maybe- hopefully she would wake up before nightfall and be able to help- or offer someplace to sleep.

Looking around, I ensure that no ponies are in the vicinity. All clear, now I just need to find a way to lift and move the broken carriage without damaging it. If possible, then reattaching the wheel would also help the situation. Looking over the wreck, I see the extent of the damage. The right rear corner is slightly cracked from the impact. Not to mention the spokes of the wheel are completely shattered.

”Now… how do I do this?” I ponder aloud.

Focusing on the shape of the carriage, I try to hold the target in my mind. Trying to replicate the same telekinesis I had used many times before, I zero in on the carriage and pour my willpower into lifting it.

Something in the back of my mind flexes as a green sheen surrounds the edges of the broken carriage. I push more power into the target as the sheen begins to glow with a shining light. A small headache begins at the back of my neck and slowly creeps forwards. Then, a low creaking fills the air as the carriage and the broken wheel are slowly lifted by the psychic force. Shifting my focus to moving the object, I try to move it to the edge of the road. By then, I am sweating and struggling now as the hold becomes more difficult to maintain. A jolt of pain in my skull causes the glow to falter and the wagon to nearly crash. All I try to do before I black out is catch both myself and the falling carriage.

[Trixie]

Oo~h That’s going to be another headache… I think as I roll over. What had happened before I was knocked out? All I remember is a wheel to my carriage snapping, trying to find shelter under the tree I woke up under, and...

A strange prolonged tone from the road causes my ears to swivel to follow it. It sounds like… something humming? Slowly opening my eyes, I lift my head and try to will the oncoming headache away. Looking towards the source of the noise, I see a strange creature hovering in front of my carriage. Its egg-shaped head and small body is illuminated by a green glow is coming from the carriage. With a pause, the creature raises its head and the aura solidifies. This looks like a type of telekinesis, anything a unicorn learns from an early age. But I doubt even I could lift my stage alone. I pause as its humming increases in volume and the aura around the carriage brightens. With a loud creak, the wreckage is lifted off of the ground and suspended at a half-hoof distance.

After moving the carriage closer to the tree, the glow falters and the small creature nearly falls out of the air. Why it had helped me was no mystery, but the least The Great and Powerful Trixie could do was help her newest acquaintance. Time to get up, I rise and pick my hat from the ground where it had fallen. Dusting it off with a hoof, I turn and canter over to the carriage’s new position with a pause to scoop the creature out of the air. Setting it on my back to rest, I further survey the damage to my stage and home. The few bits I might be able to earn from a performance would have to be sacrificed to fix the wheel, a brace for the corner woodwork would have to be fitted, and the nearest town is a day’s travel away by hoof. Hopefully, everything would not be too disorganized inside.

Opening the door, I set my little oddity down by the steps and trot inside.

[William]

I need to stop waking up like this; a killer headache and in an unfamiliar location.

I look over at the wall that I had been leaned against. I had succeeded in moving the carriage at the cost of what felt like a migraine. Hopefully, this feedback will pass soon, I need to be awake and thinking clearly in order to talk to Trixie. As for now, noises of the carriage’s contents being shifted around are heard. Rising to my elbows, I slowly float and level out at a reasonable distance from the ground. Basic levitation seems feasible. Turning, the door stands in front of me. The problem now is, how to open said portal. Focusing, I try to get a grasp on the door handle. My focus is promptly broken as another sudden spike of pain makes me falter. Psychic feedback, telekinesis would be a bad idea unless a splitting headache is a viable option.

How do I know what psychic feedback would feel like? Shaking my head, I decide to wrap my arms and hug the doorknob into submission. Ensuring my grip is secure, I twist in the air and pull away from the door, swinging it open.

The inside of the carriage is… Surprisingly larger than I had originally thought. A hammock is suspended next to the wall, opposite to boxes of performance paraphernalia. Rainbow ribbons are hanging from the ceiling, smoke bombs are in a box in the corner, and a strange box of creepy looking stars collectively stares me down from another corner. All of this most likely has been accumulated over the years of Trixie’s performances. Currently, said performer was boxing up items that had fallen and storing them on the few shelves near the ceiling. Seeing the pony once more gives me pause, accepting this will have to do for now. Steeling my resolve, I knock on the doorframe to get Trixie’s attention.

The teal unicorn turns at the noise and nods, “Good, you’re awake. I was beginning to think that you wouldn’t wake up before nightfall.”

Well isn’t that a familiar thought.. I snark internally. At least we are both awake, communication is difficult when unconscious.

At the mention of that, time to try communicating, I begin with the most cliché line possible; “Can you understand me?”

My target raises an eyebrow and turns her head slightly. It didn’t seem that she understood me, which is another hurdle to overcome in this world. Of course Pokémon cannot be understood, all they seem to be able to say are their names, how jolly a predicament. With a frown, I try to flash the red light on my left hand in a Morse Code-like pattern.

Trixie's head pops up and she looks over at me. Her eyes light up as she realizes something and nods at my hands.

On cue, unicorn hesitantly begins to speak, “If you can understand me," She pauses and mutters under hear breath. "Flash your lights twice.”

Complying, I illuminate the small room with two successive flashes of light. In retrospect, I should have thought about ways to elaborate on this true- false method of communication. For now, though, Trixie’s eyes light up as she thinks of another question.

“Where.. are you from?” She questions further.

In response, I point in the general direction of the Whitetail woods. That should be a loose enough answer for now. Despite wanting to tell the truth, being feared by ponies overall would be a sour start to this adventure. Not to mention I had no way of talking yet.

Trixie nods and continues, “Would you be able to help me fix my wagon?”

I nod. Then again, most creatures seem intelligent here…

“Alright,” Trixie interrupts my train of thought, “I need to travel to the nearest town in order to buy supplies to fix my wagon. Tomorrow morning, of course. Is there anything you could do to disguise the wagon to prevent any looting?”

In response, I gesture for her to follow me outside. Setting down a half-filled saddlebag, Trixie follows my lead and closes the door behind her. Ensuring that I had her attention, I then point to the forest and mime dragging the wagon over to the tree line to conceal. I believe that Trixie understood better than I thought because she looks at me worriedly.

“Are you sure you won’t injure yourself again?”

I shake my head as I put one hand over the other in what I hope to be a symbol of ‘help’.

“You want me to.. help you?” Trixie asks with a raised brow.

I nod vehemently and she seems to understand.

“We should sleep here tonight though, it will be around a day’s travel from here to the nearest town. It already seems to be rather late too.”

Looking up at the sky, I realize that Trixie is indeed correct. The sun is heading duskwards, estimating at around late afternoon. I nod again to confirm that I understood.

“We should go to find some branches for a fire. Do you have any more magical branch gathering powers that you haven’t told me about?” Trixie asks with a wry smirk.

I shake my head and begin to float towards the forest, gesturing once more for her to follow me.

A fire was glowing in a patch of cleared grass near the wagon. It had taken a good while to find some suitable branches for the fire, but it helped against the oncoming chill. The door to the wagon was open, with a lamp providing some illumination as Trixie moved about within. She had found an extra cloth that could be used as a makeshift hammock for me. Despite it being itchy, I was grateful, it was better than a tree. Speaking of trees, whilst in the forest, I had found some more of the blueberry-like fruits for us to share. As another bonus, the headache from earlier had also subsided, allowing me to carry a great number of berries and fuel for the fire.

The steps creak as Trixie exits the carriage, sans cloak or hat. Her saddlebags have been packed for the trip tomorrow and are hanging inside. The sun had set a while ago, making the shadows at the edge of the firelight dance. A wolf howls in the distance as Trixie shivers and steps closer to the fire.

She watches the flames for a while before speaking, “We should probably sleep earlier, we’ll need to start early if we want to be able to reach the town before nightfall.”

I nod and funnel some dirt into the fire with a twitch of my mind. The flames sputter and the surrounding area is darkened further. Ensuring that all of the embers are extinguished, I float over to the door. Thankfully, the light shining through the windows allow me to see as I float inside after Trixie. Being careful to close the door after myself, I lock it and float over to my hammock. I extinguish my candle with a flick of air. Pulling a blanket over myself against the slight chill, I wave goodnight to Trixie. I still have not relaxed entirely, but a review of today’s events should do wonders for sleep.

Trixie rolls over in her hammock and mutters something as my eyes drift shut. My thoughts begin to wander and weariness overtakes me soon after.

Author's Notes:

This chapter was… longer than expected. Truth be told, it began to fight me near the end. I hope that this was released in a reasonable time frame, with a delay due to another prolonged power outage. Thankfully, I wrote the majority of this chapter on my phone, despite not having a sound enough connection to submit it until much later.

I hope that you enjoyed reading! Point out any mistakes and be sure to leave feedback. My proofreading may have missed something, I wanted to have this chapter published as soon as I possibly could.

Thank you

-Melodiac