Chapter 1
Mirage sat quietly in his home, looking up at the old pictures of his daughter. They had collected dust after a few years of not being moved around at all. The old cabinet that they were safely placed on top of had almost collapsed the other day, luckily Vinyl had caught it with her magic and held it up long enough for him to place something under it for stabilization.
He sighed, he hadn’t seen his daughter in four years, Luna had been tight in having her stay at the castle for her training. Even the rest of the Six had to give their children for her some years at a time since they were just toddlers. No matter how hard it was to see them go, each parent knew it was for the best, someday they wouldn’t be around to protect Equestria and it would be up to them, and their children after that, and again.
After years of scientific investigation, Luna had discovered that the source of the families powers had been from a genetic mutation in our DNA. The trait had a one hundred percent chance to pass on to relatives, so it would pass down through generations of their family to come. Some time after the discovery, a group of ponies asked to weaponize the trait to use in the soldiers of Equestria, but it was eventually denied from fear that it would fall into the wrong hooves.
A memory popped up in the ash grey pony’s mind, making him grit his teeth in anger. His father was a perfect example of why it could never be weaponized, he almost succeeded in becoming the King of Equestria and beyond. He could only hope his daughter knew what she was responsible for with such power.
Vinyl Scratch wrapped her arms around the quickly aging stallion, kissing him on the cheek and following his gaze to their daughter’s picture when she was sixteen. She had a bored look on her face and her electric blue and rose red mane was grown extremely long, put back into two pigtails for the picture. Vinyl smiled when she remembered how much of a fight the pouting teenage girl put up when she was putting her hair back in such a ‘girly’ way.
“Mooooom!” She cried, attempting to pull the bands out of her hair when she saw just how ridiculous she looked. “I look like a filly!”
“I think it makes you look cute!” Vinyl said, securing the bands despite her daughters strength.
“It doesn’t, my normal hair is just fine!” She argued, giving up and putting her hooves down.
Vinyl chuckled like any mother would, “Your mane is dragging on the floor half the time, sweetheart.” She explained, “You need to at least look decent for this picture.”
“We’ll see her soon.” Vinyl said, making her way out of the little memory.
“Yeah.”
The couple stood for a few minutes, looking at each of the pictures that showed how their daughter had grown.
“I wonder how Serenity is doing.” Mirage said, looking at the object that was in every picture that had been taken after the young mare’s first training session when she was just a filly.
Vinyl scoffed, “Hopefully the damn thing is broken by now.” She said, also looking at the object and remembering how long she had scolded Luna the first time she learned her five year old filly was given a sword five times her height.
“She hasn’t hurt herself with that thing in years, Vinyl.” Mirage deadpanned, turning to his wife.
The unicorn scrunched up her face at the topic. “She almost killed herself with that damn thing when she was six.” She said, refusing to forget such a scary time.
The story wasn’t as scary to Mirage as it was just a learning experience for the girl, she had lightly cut herself across her cheek when she was still learning how to use the blade, her mother went on and on how it would leave a scar on her cute little face, even though it wouldn’t at all. It only bled for a few minutes before it was patched up.
“Yeah... ‘killed’” Mirage mocked.
Suddenly, a strong vibration caused the pegasus to turn his head towards the door,staring at it with narrow eyes and a serious look on his face.
Vinyl followed his gaze again, trying to figure out what in Luna’s moon he was looking at.
“What are you looking at?” She asked, waving her hoof in front of his face.
The stallion opened his mouth but felt the same feeling, like something was vibrating inside of his chest, although he couldn’t pinpoint what or where it was coming from.
“Do you feel that?” He asked.
Vinyl checked her body like something was crawling on her, then turned back to her husband with worried eyes, “No... are you feeling okay?” She asked, putting her hoof to his forehead, he didn’t feel hot.
Mirage cocked his head sideways, taking a few steps towards the door. “What is that?” He asked, sweat rolling down the side of his head. The vibration was shaking his core now, even causing a little bit of pain.
All of the sudden, the door opened and the vibrations stopped. A mare stood there, a childish little smile plastered on her face. Her long pink hair blew to the side lightly in the wind and the golden brown fur on her body shined brightly in the outside sun. A long pink staff stood from the ground and rested in the crook of her neck, a lollipop at the top where a gem would normally be. The innocent and pristine looking mare’s bright pink eyes sparkled to life when she saw the two ponies before her.
“Good morning, my Candies!” The mare chirped, giggling at her own silly name given to the ponies who had never seen her before.
Mirage stood up straight, despite being called such a name, he decided to introduce himself.
“Uh, hello there... Miss.” He said, looking back at Vinyl and then back to the girl. “My name is-”
The girl giggled again, interrupting the confused stallion. She took a lick of the lollipop on her staff and smiled brightly. “I know who you are, Mirage.” she said, her bright pink eyes shining at the mention of his name.
She pointed her staff over at the retired DJ, giggling again. “And I know that’s Vinyl!” She said, laughing loudly as if she’d made a joke.
If Mirage didn’t know better, he’d chalk this pony up to be related to Pinkie Pie, but she only had a sister and that was Vinyl’s friend Octavia.
“So who are you?” Mirage asked, wondering how she knew where they lived.
The girl’s eyes sparkled, “My name’s Sugar Sweet, and I’m here to fight you!” She suddenly said.
Mirage’s face contorted into a look of confusion, this young mare wanted to fight him?
“Wait, what?” He said, “I can’t just fight you!”
The bottom metal piece of the mare’s staff was suddenly against Mirage’s neck, staying there for a moment before sliding down his chest, the girl smiling the whole time. “Didn’t you feel that rumbling in your tummy?” She asked, the bottom tapping against his stomach before resting there again.
Mirage didn’t answer, he was suddenly intimidated by the mare, wondering just what she had up her sleeve.
Without breaking her smile, she continued. “I get that feeling when I feel somepony strong in the area!” She explained, “And you’re the strongest pony in this whole town!”
“What does that have to do with anything?” Mirage growled, slowly charging up his energy.
The mare held a hoof to her chin, letting out a long ‘hmmmm’ as she thought how to explain. “Well, I like to see who the strongest ponies in towns are, and fight them until they tell me where another strong pony might be, then I find the next!” She explained, closing the door behind her and putting her staff back at her side.
“The last pony in Appaloosa, oh what was her name, Applejack?” Instead of a smile, a sinister grin appeared on her face for a split second before going back into the cute smile. “When she was bleeding out yesterday, she told me all about you!”
Mirage’s eyes widened with fear. This little mare hurt Applejack? By how she looked, she hadn’t been hurt at all. Applejack was even a good match for Mirage without using his powers.
“You hurt Applejack?” He asked, purple electricity generating around his forelegs, running up his arm before disappearing into his body.
“Not hurt, Sparky.” She said, her innocent smile never changing but becoming more wicked after every word left her lips. “Killed.”
The stallion reared his hoof back, pushing all of his power into the hoof he would use to strike the mare who supposedly killed one of his best friends.
Before he could even begin to push his hoof forward, the mare tapped him with the bottom of her staff on his chest, throwing him backwards with such force he couldn’t even register what happened before he had been launched through the side of his home, rolling on the ground and kicking up dirt behind him.
The mare hopped out of the hole in the wall, the smile on her face as she walked towards the injured stallion calmly.
Mirage took no chances to let her get close and let loose a wave of electricity powerful enough to power Canterlot that directly impacted the mare. The light of the energy covered her figure, blocking sight of her as the power struck and arced around the mare.
All the electricity suddenly fell out of the air, shocking the ground and not even moving the mare’s hair.
Without warning, Mirage rushed towards her fast enough to make Rainbow Dash gaze in awe, smashing his hoof into her face and stopping her in her tracks.
A grin spread across his face, just as he went to make another hit, the girl tilted her neck to the side, her face still as perfect as before and her mocking smile still there.
“You disappoint me, Sparky.” She said, headbutting Mirage and making blood pour from his nose. The power of the hit should have sent him flying, but the mare held him in place, headbutting him again and again, sending pressurized blasts of air tearing up the grass and dirt around them.
Her power was incredible, Mirage stared in disbelief as she merely touched his chest with her hoof, cutting into it like it was a knife on butter. He yelled in pain as the mare moved her hoof around in his chest, feeling around like it was some kind of game.
“Got it!” She suddenly chirped, sending him flying backwards into the side of Sugarcube Corner, tearing a hole in the building as he passed through it, blood pouring from the wound in his chest and damaged face.
The mare was standing over him, holding his beating heart in her hoof.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” She asked, staring in wonder at the heart that was completely detached from the pony who owned it, but still managed to keep him alive.
Mirage’s electricity suddenly wrapped a small dome around the two, he looked in immense pain and horror that his own heart was on display in front of him.
“Go on, kill me.” Sugar Sweet said, looking up at the purple dome around the two.
This was the same kind of attack Mirage used in Zephyr to combat his counterpart, Black Mirage.
Mirage absorbed all the electrical components in Ponyville into the inside of the dome, pulling it into his body and beginning to discharge outwards, he looked up into the eyes of the still smiling mare, his eyes glowing purple.
“Die!” He shouted, letting all of the energy cause an explosion inside of the dome, tearing up the ground beneath them and throwing his body around like a ragdoll.
When all the energy had finally disappeared, Mirage was standing, the mare grabbed her head with her free hoof in pain.
“Heh,” Mirage chuckled weakly, looking down at the pained mare, “looks like I found your weakness.”
“Kidding!”
An explosive punch on the top of Mirage’s head sent him back to the ground, the mare above him laughing wildly at her own joke.
“Okay, time’s up, Sparky.”
Mirage looked up at her with disbelief in his eyes.
“Wh-what?”
A pink aura enveloped Mirage’s heart, which was still in Sugar Sweet’s hoof. Then with only a puff of smoke, it had turned into a purple candy heart which the girl popped into her mouth, suckling on it.
All the light in Mirage’s eyes disappeared and his body fell limp on the ground, laying dead beneath the mare who killed him.
“Mmm!” She said, chewing on the last bit of her candy. “Spicy...”
Vinyl slowly walked towards Mirage’s side, staring in disbelief through tear-filled eyes.
“N-no...”
Sugar Sweet looked down at the broken mare with giddiness in her eyes and a smile on her face. “Why don’t you go on to Canterlot, Vinyl?” She laughed, “Tell Wispy that I can’t wait to meet her!”
Vinyl stared in horror as the mare floated off the ground and flew away without the help of any wings, doing flips and barrel rolls as she flew away, laughing the whole time.
