Hollow Mask

"When did I approve of this again?" asked Hunter. She stood on a small podium in the middle of Carousel Boutique while Rarity dashed all over the place.

After they had met up in the Sugarcube Corner, Rarity almost fake-fainted at the sight of Hunter's attire. She immediately offered to make her a new and better outfit. Hunter had tried to stop her by all means but at the end she had to comply.

Sunsat sat beside the podium on a small chair to observe the torture the cyan girl had to endure. She produced an almost inaudible muttering but Sunset understood parts of it, which involved insanely large amounts of gasoline and explosions. A part of Sunset was reliefed the local gas station only sold up to 200 liters gasoline per customer.

Hunter looked unhappy. Even that was an understatement. She looked ready to kill if somebody would even mention this outside the Boutique.

"I simply don't understand why you are so reluctant, Hunter. You will look absolutely lovely in your new attire," commented Rarity while measuring tapes were flying through the air. Sunset was sure that even the human Rarity was able to do magic as she observed the dance of tools in front of her.

Hunter grumbled before she responded, "I'm not used to such things. Also my current clothes are fine. I picked them because they're sturdy not because they're pretty and girly."

"Hmmm. I will certainly be able to make something like that, although a tad more harmonic with your appearance."

"Sunset, can we please just go to some random shop in the mall or something," begged Hunter.

Sunset smirked, "Oh. Just a few more minutes. I'm just having the time of my life."

The cyan girl sighed. Without any warning she suddenly reached out behind one of the clothes rack and pulled out Pinkie Pie. The pink party planer looked partly surprised by her sudden reveal and partly amused at the strange girls antics. She began bubbling out words, "Hi.Youwannabefriendsnow?" Her eyes went wide with a pleading look.

"No. Stop following me," demanded Hunter. She let go of Pinkie, who sat down besides Sunset after she pulled out a chair from nowhere.

"Okay, then I'm just going to watch Rarity making you fabulous," she bubbled.

Sunset smirked and nodded, "I think I agree. Let's make you suffer a bit more, shall we?"

"Oohh, come on," Hunter sighed, "This is just no fair."

Rarity demanded attention again, "Stand still, you don't want to get any needles anywhere, don't you?" She looked slightly resentful, mostly due to Hunter's attempts of regaining her freedom and Pinkie Pie rocking on her chair out of boredom.

"I feel like I have been mind-raped," sighed Hunter as the three left the Carousel Boutique.

"It wasn't that bad, wasn't it?" inquired Sunset with a smirk. The trio, consisting of Hunter, Sunset and Pinkie, continued to slowly walk down the street.

"Well, first thing the day, the pink monster appears - no offence Miss Pie - and threatens to make me her friend and then I'm forced to endure this torture of being made a tailored dress. My dignity has been raped and thrown into a dark alley to rot away."

"It was not that bad," commented Pinkie, "We had great fun."

"Shut up. NO. It wasn't fun for me," yelled Hunter.

Sunset frowned, "No reason to freak out like that. It's just a dress. Even I, as a rather unsocial unicorn from the pony-planet, have worn dresses in this world."

"Big reveal time, Sunshine; I was not a woman before I came to the 'pony-planet' so could you please respect this?" asked Hunter impatiently.

Sunset Shimmer and Pinkie Pie stopped dead in their tracks. Pinkie smiled, as if she just played along with Sunset. The former unicorn however stared at Hunter.

"You know, it's impolite to stare at somebody so long," stated the cyan girl. She crossed her arms and shifted her center of mass on one foot, "What? Are you in shock or something because I've slept in the same bed as you? For your information, there was only one and I didn't plan on sleeping on the couch after moving you to your bed. So could you please close your mouth? It begins to look like your jaw has been detached or something."

Sunset blinked and then whispered almost inaudibly, "Well, that explains a lot."

Pinkie broke the awkward conversation, "I knew it all along." She squeaked like a rubber duck and smiled a big grin that certainly exceeded the ranges a normal person would be able to achieve.

Hunter facepalmed, "Yes, I know that the pink nightmare knows all things irrelevant." Sunset remained frozen in place. When Hunter noticed this she smiled, "Don't worry, the part of my brain that was male has been swaped out. I don't know which way I'll swing but I promise I won't do anything creepy." As she noticed that Sunset still didn't move she laughed.

The laugh caused Sunset to frown, "Sorry." The group began to move along the street again. Hunter looked interested into each shop they walked by. Some people they walked by stared at the large and heavy weapon on her back but she didn't mind.

When they walked by a fencing club Hunter stopped. She stared through the large window, looking at the fencers inside fighting and smiled, "Well, if that isn't Octavia."

"Who?" asked Sunset.

"Are you an owl? The one in the middle with the black hair. She looks quite good at fencing. Shall I test her, Miss Pie?"

Pinkie grinned fiendishly and tapped her fingers against eachother in a crude display of a stereotypical villain, "Yeeesss. But don't hurt her, I need her alive."

Hunter laughed and entered the shop. She stood aside the main training ground and watched Octavia fence with her opponent, a younger boy with green hair. Her movement was fluid and she always found another hole in the poor boys defence. He didn't even get to attack.

When the boy finally gave up, Hunter clapped slowly, attracting Octavia's attention. She had a british accent that sounded like upper-class to Sunset. "Tell me, can you do better?" she inquired angrily.

"Easily."

"Prove it!" Octavia yelled. The whole room was watching them. The members of the fencing class feared Octavias skill. A few bets were placed for and against her.

Hunter pulled out her large two-handed sword and smilled. Sunset wondered why the transformation didn't happen but apparently Hunter wanted to hide it. The view of the dull blade made Octavia laugh, "With that one? You will not be very fast with this blade and it looks like it would shatter at the slightest impact. Did you get it from a giftshop?"

"No armor?" inquired Hunter as if Octavia hadn't said anything. They had moved to the centre of the training grounds. Both presented their blades. Octavia nodded.

Without any warning Octavia made the first move. She moved the blade to her left and attacked Hunter in one fluid motion. To her surprise the blade of the broadsword blocked the attack. She looked in Hunter's face only to see her smirking. "That's all?" scoffed Hunter.

Rage pulsed through Octavia and she attacked. Her blade almost became a silver blur as she attacked with the blade. Hunter blocked each strike with ease and laughed. Sunset noticed that she never attacked Octavia and just blocked her attacks.

After minutes Octavia retreated. She smiled, "You're good. I'll admit that. One the other hand, you have a broadsword so it may be not a fair fight after all. Let's see how good you will be against another broadsword."

She turned around and walked calmly into the locker room. After a minute she came out accompanied by a girl with a hoodie drawn over her head and a broadsword on her hips. She had cyan skin like Hunter. She walked until she was in fighting distance but her face was still hidden by the hoodie. "So, you think you're more awesome than me?" asked the girl with a raspy voice.

Sunset recognized the voice, "Rainbow?"

"Hi Sunset," greeted Rainbow Dash as she pulled back the hoodie, "does she belong to you?" She took her sword out, which shimmered slightly in the colors of the rainbow as the light traveled along the mirror polished surface.

The fight lasted now for over 40 minutes. Both girls were panting and sweating heavily. Hunter had the speed and reaction advantage but lacked the skill Rainbow possessed. Hunter's sword was fine, except that it had lost color and was almost black. Rainbow's sword had gotten a few minor cuts in the blade but she didn't seem to mind.

Both combatants drew away from the fight. They both dropped the tips of their swords to the ground. A large crowd had assembled in the club, although they remainded silent as if not to disturb the harmony of the fight.

Hunter put her sword back in it's sheave, "You won Rainbow. I'm out of energy."

The rainbow-haired girl smirked while she was panting loudly, "Let's call it a draw. I couldn't continue either." She put her sword back and bowed to her opponent, which did the same. They both stepped forward and shock hands.

"You now a friend if you know how she fights, am I right?" asked Hunter, which Rainbow answered with a silent nod.

The crowd in the club groaned loudly. Noone had bet on a draw, so everyone had lost.

"Hey, Hunter, it's getting late," yelled Sunset, "If you still want to crash at my place we should go now."

Hunter looked out of the club and noticed that the day was really approaching it's end. "Tomorrow, same time, same place?" she asked Rainbow.

Dash smiled and nodded, "Yeah. Never had anyone that could match my awesomeness."

"Fiive moore minutes," slurred Hunter. Sunset had tried to wake her up for over an hour now. She decided to intensify her attempts.

Hunter was awoken as a ice-cold cup of water was emptied on her face, which Sunset had moved over so the couch wouldn't get wet... again.

"First day at school, you need to be awake. Care for a coffee?" she inquired.

"But a strong one," mumbled the cyan girl, "I'm not a morning person. Why do I need to be at school again?"

"You don't say," deadpanned Sunset as she moved to the kitchen, "Also, what are you going to do otherwise?" That shut Hunter up.

Five minutes later the cyan girl sat shivering at the counter and clinched her cup of coffee. She took a sip every few seconds. Sunset leaned on the opposite side of the kitchen and observed her. 'Definitely not a morning person,' she tought. Hunter looked like she had been pulled straight from a grave, the only thing that set her apart from an actual zombie was her quiet breathing and her shivering.

When Hunter had finished her coffee, Sunset gathered the few things she needed for school and Hunter her sword. With the half-sleeping girl in tow she left the apartment. "If Hunter had been a bit more asleep I would need to drag her on the ground to school', thought Sunset and frowned.

Hunter was more awake when they reached school, although Sunset wasn't sure if she already qualified for 'conscious'. The cyan girl leaned against a random locker and almost dozed off before she jumped, "Whoah, I'm awake. I'm awake." - She rubbed her forehead - "No need to give me that kind of a slap though."

"I didn't do anything," responded Sunset and scowled at her. The cyan girl looked at her for a few seconds, then her eyes seemed to focus on something miles away. She frowned.

"Shit," exclaimed Hunter and she looked down, bitting on her lips.

Sunset was puzzled, "Huh?"

"It has breached. Didn't know it would get here that fast," Hunter mumbled before she looked up again, "Who's the local conspiracy theorist?"

Sunset crossed her arms, "And what could she do to help you anyway?"

Hunter smiled, "Well, mostly she will believe me more than anyone. So, who is she?"

Sunset sighed and pointed down the hallway towards a minty colored girl, "Lyra. Don't tell her you're a pony, she will fangirl around the rest of the day. I learned that the hard way and I was lucky she forgot it after all the partying and drinking she did later that day."

Hunter zipped off towards the minty girl, "Hi, you're Lyra, correct?" Lyra was accompanied by a pink and blue haired girl with slightly yellow skin. She turned around and inspected Hunter for a few seconds.

"And who are you?"

Hunter paired her fingers, except her thumb, in twos and said, "Live long and prosper." Lyra's eyes became huge and she copied Hunter.

She squeaked, "A fellow conspirator and nerd. Yes! Aaaanyyyways, what can I do for ya?"

Hunter hesitated for a second, "Well, I need to know anything suspicious in the area, we might have aliens at school. There is a job waiting to be finished and it would help greatly."

Lyra tapped her chin a few times before she nodded, "Under one condition. I need to help me decipher something." She pulled out a notepad from her bag and gave it Hunter.

"It's from a number station I discovered. Unlike the others I and my fellows discovered so far this one sends a clear message. It consists of a short preamble and then the message. I can only get a few numbers before the message disables my amplifier. Couldn't decipher it so far but a second pair of eyes sure will help," she said as she pointed at the notepad, "I reckoned that they are paired in twos, like the preamble."

Hunter looked at the notepad, "I will look over it, make a copy and give it back to you after school. I hope it isn't anything too fancy, my crypthography skills are a bit rusty. May I ask what the preamble was?"

Lyra nodded, "Sure. 4, 8, 15, ..."

"...16, 23, 42," interrupted Hunter and nodded.

"You know this code? Shiny."

"No but I have heard the numbers before, I'm not sure where though. The meaning is Lost in my memories," Hunter stuffed the notepad in one of the pockets of her sword belts and turned around, "Thank you, for helping me."

"You're welcome. Now, Bony, we have to learn new math stuff and be minty!" exclaimed Lyra and pointed her hand towards the ceiling. The two-color-haired girl wheezed and followed her minty roommate with a deadpanned look.

After Lyra and Bon Bon had vanished from view, Hunter fist pumped, "Universal and Super Secret Conspirator and Nerd Greeting for the win!" She walked off to search and find the next computer lab. She made a quick mental note to refresh her programming and cryptography skills if she found the library. "No code will elude me!" she whispered with a manically grin.