The Fool and the Contract
Wednesday, November 5, Night
Sunset Shimmer wiped the sweat from her forehead, glancing at the clock. Finally, it was eight o'clock, she was done for the day. 'Actually, looking over everything, I think I'll be fully done in just another day or two.' She smiled at the thought. It turns out when you turn into a raging she-demon and try to take over another world with zombified teens, it seems the punishment of repairing the damage done takes quite a while. Ironically while the damage to the front of the school she herself caused was fixed by the end of the first week, she had spent most of the last two filling in the crater that had formed from the magic of harmony blasting the evil out of her. 'Ironic that the good magic those girls used to stop me caused more damage than I ever did.' Luckily the ground was almost level and compact enough for the work crews to put in the new sidewalk. Sunset was prety sure that Principal Celestia would have been happy to make her do that as well, but child safety laws wouldn't allow that.
As Sunset started putting her tools away for the night, she stretched to get the kinks out of her aching body. The only good thing that came from her defeat and seeing the light was that Princess Twilight's friends kept their promise and were helping Sunset be a better person, and learn about friendship. They weren't helping her with her detention, even though Dash and AJ had volunteered (for the crater part they caused at least), simply because VP Luna had forbidden it. In all honesty it was quite fair, making Sunset clean up the mess she had caused. She was just lucky this world wasn't used to the idea of magic, or she would probably have been in a lot more trouble. Then again, this world didn't have magic, so they had no frame of reference as to how bad anything Sunset had done really was. The student body in general though did hold a grudge against her. If not from the whole mind controlling demon thing, then from her years as a bully emotionally and even sometimes physically tormenting her fellow students mercilessly. That...wasn't something that gets forgiven quickly.
Using her reflection in the door glass to check herself once over to make sure she didn't look like a total mess, Sunset went over to the parking lot. Popping on her helmet, she got on her scooter and drove off. Scooters were great for intercity travel, as long as you stayed off the freeway or highways. Still, their engine was weak enough you actually didn't need a license to drive one, unlike a motor cycle. And no license meant a lack of a birth certificate and social security number didn't matter. Seriously, it was the things like that which made living in the human world long term not really viable. She knew she would have to go home to Equestria eventually, probably when the portal next opened. She just couldn't face Celestia then and there, only a couple days after stealing Twilight's crown, and minutes since her army of evil was defeated. Still, there was no way Sunset could stay hidden forever in this world. Once she was out of high school at the end of the school year, that was basically it. Her life here had never been intended to be forever after all. It had been a cover while she awaited her chance to return to Equestria in power. A plan that had, obviously, failed. Still, it should last long enough for her to hold out until the portal opens again.
****************
Parking her scooter, Sunset got off...knocking off something with her feet. "What the?" Looking down, she realized she noticed that she had knocked over some sort of box that had been sitting on her scooter. "How did this get here?" picking it up, she gave it a once over. It was small, made of black plastic, and about the size of a glasses case. "Did somebody lose their glasses?" Slipping it into her jacket pocket, she grabbed her backpack and headed up to her row house apartment, letting herself inside. Locking the door behind her, she dropped off her bag and took a look at the box.
It was pretty obvious at second glance that it wasn't a glasses case. While glasses cases were largely rounded and had a mid-swinging hinge, this box was a two piece rectangular prism, the top piece seeing as a cover for the contents. Oddly, there were words scratched on the cover. "Reject the Mirror, what is that supposed to mean?" She then facepalmed as she realized she was thinking out loud again. While humans found the idea of talking to yourself weird, it was socially acceptable to ponies who did it all the time. Sunset had tried to kick the habit to fit in with the humans more, but she was still a pony at heart, and had lived most of her life as a unicorn. At least she wasn't one of those ponies who thought out loud about everything.
Still, her curiosity gripped her, and so she carefully pulled the cover off, and gasped. Inside was what looked to be a quality fountain pen, red in color with a golden nib, cap, and band. However what really stood out was that her cutie mark was embellished on the upper area. Picking it up, she found that the pen had the feel of good quality plastic, but not the feel of genuine metal. So while this wasn't a cheap use and lose, this wasn't some two hundred dollar pen either. Her cutie mark, however left no doubt that this had been on her scooter on purpose, as a gift. "This is really nice. I wonder who gave me this? Is there a card?" Looking in the box, she did find a folded up piece of paper. But instead of being a card or well wishes, it was "A contract? "I the undersigned do hereby promise to take full responsibility for my own actions and choices from now on, and to act with the full knowledge that the consiquences are my own." Huh." It was a very odd thing to put in with the pen. "Then again, I already decided to be a good person from now on. Maybe putting it in writing will help remind me?" chuckling a bit and seeing no problem, she took her new pen and, placing the contract on her kitchenette's counter, signed her name. "Sunset Shimmer. Hey, the ink's got a golden color to it, that's neat." She took a step back to admire her handwriting, a very hard skill humans take for granted.
Then the contract burst into blue flame. "Wha!" Sunset shouted, jumping back a bit. In less than five seconds the entire contract vanished in the flames, seemingly consumed by them if not for the fact that there was no ashes, nor even signs of heat damage on her countertop. Most people would not believe their eyes, thinking that such things were impossible or that there was some sort of trick. When you're a shapeshifted magical wizard unicorn from another universe, you tend to have a much more open mind. "Right, going to need to test this out, now." Grabbing a groceries receipt, she flipped it over. She then used the new pen to write the word "test" on the piece of paper, but it did nothing. Nodding, she held the pen upright to let the ink run back and unscrewed the top, checking it's ink well...which was empty with no signs if having ever been filled. Closing the pen back up, she then proceeded to write her own name on the receipt in the same golden ink. "Okay, a magical pen with unlimited golden ink, and it does not set things on fire, even when I write my name down as a trigger or trap or something. So the fire was probably the...contract I signed. Crap!" Grabbing a napkin, she quickly rewrote down the contract before she forgot anything so she could read it over for any traps. "I swear if I got tricked into signing away my soul or something, I will kick my own butt." Reading it over several times and trying to find any way it could be used to screw her ever, she let out a sigh of relief as she decided the thing wasn't a cleverly worded trap. "Even if it is magically binding, literally all it says is that I take responsibility for what I chose to do, and think before I act. Augh, I thought the human world didn't have any magic. Why do I have to deal with stuff like this? Augh, I'm getting a headache...I actually am, not just a saying." It was a pretty bad one too. Probably the result of a lot of physical exhaustion and mental stress. "Right, I'm not going to figure this out tonight. I'll talk with the girls tomorrow."
Getting dressed for bed, she found she was feeling the oddest sense of dread from her bathroom mirror, which made no sense. Blaming the feeling on her exhaustion, she curled up in her bed and quickly fell asleep.
****************
I am you, and you are me. We are one and the same thing.
****************
Sunset blinked as she looked around. She was in the sitting room of a high end mansion. There was an odd blue tinge to everything that wasn't outright blue, such as the walls, rugs, or the fabric on the Savonarola she was sitting in, though the hard wood had an odd blue tinge that somehow felt appropriate, even though brow wood should not tinge blue. Nor should the red pigment in the panting of a classical human fox hunt (a barbaric sport, though they thankfully stopped killing the fox at least). Red mixed with blue should make purple, not red with a blue sheen.
"Welcome my lady."
"Gah!" Sunset turned in surprise. She had been so busy studying the weird appearance of the room she hadn't notice somebody else come in.
"My apologies madam." the gentleman said. "It was not my intention to startle you."
Looking over the figure, Sunset saw he was a bit elderly with white, though full, hair and a matching thick white mustache that seemed to hide his mouth. He didn't look frail, and actually looked quite proper as he was dressed in a suit that matched that of a stereotypical butler, though colored a dark blue instead of black. In fact, with his white gloves, draped white towel, and calm but dignified air he was type archetype of the proper butler. "Alright, who are you?" She noticed he had that weird sort of peachy skin color that Norman had, which always looked really strange to her. Nobody else had that color after all.
"Ah, how rude of me." the man said, a small, but warm, smile creeping up on his face and twinkling in his yellow eyes. "My name is Ezekial, the batman to my master, Igor."
Sunset was a bit more on guard after that. Not only were the names weird, but this was a batman. While many humans here would probably make comicbook jokes, Sunset was from a culture where the term was still relevant: the personal attendant of a military officer. The higher the rank of the officer, the better the batman, and the better the batman's skills as a bodyguard. "I see...I admit I am confused as to what is going on right now."
"What is going on is that the master is ready to see you now. If you would follow me?" Ezekial asked, gesturing politely with his arm to indicate she should follow.
Sunset, deciding she probably wasn't going to get any answers if she didn't play along at least a bit, got up and started to follow. It was then that she noticed something. "I'm wearing my pajamas."
"Of course you are, you arrived wearing them." Ezekial stated as he lead her through a blue colored hallway, iron candelabras set into the wall, the blue tinged wax candles burning with soft blue flames. Going to the room right across, he knocked quietly. "Master, I have brought our guest."
"See her in Ezekial." a slightly creepy voice from within called. "I am very interested to meet our newest client."
Feeling nervous as the batman opened the door and gestured her within, Sunset never the less walked into the room, which proved to be an office study of sorts. It had large blue shelves, filled with books of all sizes and shades of blue. Sunset was starting to get a little sick of all the blue. Thankfully, her host sitting behind the desk didn't have a scrap of blue on him. Short, balding with white hair, that peach skin, bug eyes...constantly grinning teeth...a nose as long as an arm..."Oh, I get it now, I'm dreaming."
"You are hardly the first to decide that." the guy with the long nose said. "Nor will you be the last. Still, the truth is a far stranger thing to swallow." Sunset noticed that despite him talking, his mouth didn't seem to move at all. "Welcome to the Velvet Room. It is a space between reality and fantasy. Only those who have formed a contract may enter here."
"Contract?" Sunset's eyes widened as she considered the implications. "Wait, you don't mean-"
"You signed one earlier." the man replied, confirming Sunset's suspicions. "My name is Igor, the master of the Velvet Room."
"I doubt a manor can be properly called a room." Sunset quipped.
"A manor? Interesting, that is a good guess." Igor said, somehow giving the impression of a smug smile. "However, it is wrong. This is a castle. But that is not what matters right now. We are here to offer our services to you."
Sunset was not comforted by the notion. "What sort of services? And at what price?"
Gesturing for her to sit, Igor waited until Sunset had done so before answering. "We offer to lend aid on your journey. Though we cannot walk it with you, we can give you a place of rest, provide advice to a degree, and keep track of various important records. As for services, it is mostly free, though some higher end ones will cost you a bit of cash. Ezekial will of course handle most of the work."
Ezekial bowed slightly at that. "I am at the lady's beck and call."
"Hold on, I never agreed to this." Sunset pointed out.
"True true true." Igor said, 'smiling'. "However, I do not think you will refuse. There is much transpiring, and you will need our help if you expect to survive intact."
Sunset's eyes narrowed. "Is that a threat?"
"No my lady, my master is just offering his honest opinion." Ezekial stated. "We aren't the ones you need to worry about."
"We can focus on that later, for now, a free sample you might say." Igor said, pulling out a deck of cards...by having the cards fly into his hand individually. Once the deck was assembled, he then started to rapidly shuffle it. "For every new guest of the Velvet Room, I provide one very basic card reading to serve as a starting point in their journey."
"So card reading actually works in this world?" Sunset asked, sounding skeptical. "I thought it didn't work with humans."
"Yes, humans cannot perform genuine card readings." Igor said. "Unless they have magic of course." Taking the top nine cards from the deck, he spread them out in a three by three grid. "And now we shall see your past." Flipping over, from Sunset's point of view, the middle left card he revealed "The Devil. You made a horrible choice for all the wrong reasons, letting the darker parts of yourself define you."
Sunset snorted. "That's a no brainer, I tried to take over the world with an army of brainwashed teenagers after turning into a raging she-demon."
Ezekial smiled. "My, that certainly is an unusual tale. I can see why the master takes such an interest in the outside world if such things may occur."
Igor ignored them both as he flipped over the central card. "The Hanged Man. You suffer from a guilty conscience and seek to repent for what you have done. This is not wrong, but that it is the card representing the present shows that it has consumed your life."
"Just for now." Sunset argued. "I mean I'm still repairing the damage I caused, but once that's done-"
"And now the most important card." Igor continued, again ignoring her, flipping over the last card in the middle row. "Your future, The Judgement. You will have to make a decision, a truly important one. Whatever you chose, you must make the right choice or many will suffer." Igor sighed as he leaned back s bit. "It seems your life is one full of hardships. If it were up to me, you would not have been burdened by this contract."
"You didn't send me the contract that burst into blue flame?" Sunset asked, highly skeptical.
Ezekial shook his head. "None of the Velvet Room may issue contracts. All we may do is offer our aid to those that have received them."
"None, meaning there is more than two of you." Sunset deduced. "Otherwise you would have just said "neither of us", especially if you were trying to trick me."
"We have a sharp one this time." Igor said, smiling. "For the others it usually comes more as a shock that I have other clients and servants."
"I get it. You run the show, but with how many "guests" you have you can't see to them all personally." Sunset said, smirking. "Guess you're not that powerful after all."
"Careful my lady," Ezekial said, worry creeping into his voice, "those that underestimate the master are in for a rude surprise. But as you deduced, yes, I will be the one assigned to your case. It will be my pleasure to aid madam upon her journey."
"And where exactly am I supposed to be going?" Sunset asked, suddenly quite nervous.
"The journey is life. A truly harsh road." Igor explained. "Now then, a great power is stirring within you. It shall awaken soon, when you need it you will understand. Help us see the way your power will grow. Chose one of the remaining cards."
Sunset, nervous, reached for the card closest to her just to get it over with...and paused. She wasn't sure why, but she felt a very strong tug from the top right card. Knowing that with serious magic like this it was probably better to go with such feelings, she grabbed that card instead, turning it over. "The Fool...well that's just insulting. I'm not an idiot."
"The Fool represents no such thing." Igor said. "It represents beginnings, journeys, and innocence. It is the number zero, and is at both the start and the end of the tarot. Like zero itself, it is empty but unending, full of infinite potential."
"It is the power of The Wildcard." Ezekial added. "Such powers have shaped the fate of this world more often than those of the mundane world could ever imagine. When one appears, great things are destined."
Sunset looked rather uncomfortable with this. "I don't think you guys should give me that power. I don't handle power very well."
"We didn't give you your power, it was always yours." Igor replied. "We are just seeing what shape it will take so we can better aid you in the future."
"Master, she will be waking up soon." Ezekial said, frowning slightly. "I believe we shall regrettably have to save the rest for later."
"It seems you are right." Igor said with a sigh. "Fair well Sunset Shimmer. We will not be able to see you again until your power truly awakens."
And then an alarm clock went off.
****************
Thursday, November 6, Early Morning
Bolting upright in shock, Sunset looked around worried. "Oh thank goodness, just a dream." She would have liked to have dismissed the pen and burning contract as just a dream too, if not for the fact that the pen was sitting right there on the nightstand where she had left it. Yawning, she got up and fixed herself some breakfast, some fruit flavored cereal and milk, and thought about what to do today. She knew she had to share the pen and paper incident with the other girls, but she also knew she wouldn't be able to figure out what was going on that way. The girls knew nothing about magic, and this very clearly wasn't Equestrian magic. As far as she had known, there was no magic in this world.
As she took her shower, her thoughts hit an interesting turn 'What if there is magic, but it is hidden and secret, like in those fiction books people read? It would explain why it was such a common idea. If some secret society wants to induct me because of this stuff, I will scream. I do not need the extra pressure of some sort of secret society of sorcery.' Setting out of the shower and drying off, she used her hair dryer to defog the mirror, a handy trick, and....screamed.
****************
Morning
"Sunset, why do you have an umbrella, winter coat, sun hat, and gloves on?" Rarity asked, concerned, as her newest friend walked into school dressed quite oddly. "And sunglasses and a scarf, why are you bundled up like that?"
"Oh my gosh, what I'd she's now a vampire and has to hide from the sun or be reduced to burning ashes?" Pinkie Pie sugested.
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "I'm pretty sure that's not the case Pinkie."
"Um, would you girls follow me into the bathroom?" Sunset asked. Seeing the others confused, she added "I need to show you something." The others nodded and followed her in.
"What happened? Did you get a rash from something while working last night?" Fluttershy asked. "Because I have ointments and the like that work great for people who work down at the shelter and have reactions..."
"No, it's not that." Sunset said as she quickly removed her coat, hat, scarf, and gloves, leaving her looking quite normal. "This is, weirder."
"Uh, sugarcube, you look normal to me." Applejack observed. "You don't look different at all."
Sighing, Sunset pointed to the long mirror over the row of sinks. Not bothering to look, she waited for all of the girls to look and let off their little gasps and "no ways" and other little exclamations of shock.
Sunset Shimmer did not have a reflection. All that was vissable of her in the mirror was her cloths, which seemed to be floating there empty.
Pinkie's response was immediate. "I told you girls! Vampire!" Nobody questioned where the wooden cross or garlic necklace came from. It was Pinkie Pie.
****************
"So we can conclude from these tests, that I still have trouble believing we needed to do," Rarity said with a sigh as they sat down to lunch, "that Sunset is in fact not a vampire and therefore will not eat us all to create an army of the undead. Nor will she burst into flames and crumple to ash if she steps out into sunlight."
"Well that is a relief." Sunset said. "Seriously, do you know how paranoid you get thinking that the sun might kill you? Not fun."
"That still don't explain how you don't have a reflection though." AJ pointed out. "That just don't make a lick of sense."
"It probably has something to do with that magic pen and piece of paper." Pinkie said, nodding. "Too bad the only one of us that knows magical stuff can't figure it out."
Sunset sighed. "Yeah, but whatever it was it wasn't magic from my world. I never bothered researching magic in this world because it's not supposed to have it. Now what am I supposed to do?"
"Well, um, you could always talk to Trixie, if you think that would be a good idea." Fluttershy mumbled.
"Trixie?" Sunset asked, confused. "What does the walking ego have to do with anything?"
"She's a pretty darn good magician and can do all sorts of tricks." Pinkie explained. "What's more, she spends a lot of time reading up on weird stuff, so maybe she has an idea of what's going on. Who knows," glancing around, she dropped into a dramatic stage whisper "maybe she's part of that secret magic society you think is out there."
Sunset sighed. Trixie was...annoying. But she was a talented magician, and was the only human Sunset knew who was into the idea of magic and the occult. "I probably should ask her, if only because she has probably read about this or something similar. I highly doubt she's part of some secret mage society. She'd be bragging about it too much." Getting up, Sunset walked over to where Trixie was sitting with her flunkies...or friends, it was hard to tell at times. "Hey Trixie."
Trixie looked over, glaring a bit. "And what does Sunset Shimmer want from the Great and Powerful Trixie?"
Sunset fidgeted, nervous, "I uh, I need your help."
Trixie cocked an eyebrow. "And why would Trixie ever help you?" Her friends nodded in agreement, shooting small glares at Sunset.
Sunset shuffled nervously in place. "Look it's kind of personal and um," leaning in, she quietly whispered "and it involves what might be real human magic and I know you like that stuff."
Trixie's eyes widened. "Trixie will take pity on you and render aid. Wait for Trixie girls, Trixie will be right back."
Smiling slightly, Sunset lead Trixie to the bathroom to show her.
****************
Trixie was not impressed at Sunset's lack of a reflection. "It could be a trick mirror for all Trixie knows."
Sunset sighed. Well, she did want an opinion, so dispelling doubt would have to come first. "It's the school's mirror, not my own."
"Precisely, the mirror in a school you are the last to leave." Trixie stated. "Trixie will be examining this mirror. The only other explanations that Trixie can think of is that you are now a vampire-"
"Already tested and disproven." Sunset interjected.
Trixie glared as she walked over to the mirror and began tapping on it, clearly unhappy at the interruption. "Or your doppelgänger is loose...this is not a trick mirror. Amazing."
"Doppa-what-er?" Sunset asked, confused.
"Doppelgänger." Trixie repeated, leaning back on the sink counter. "The you inside the mirror, it is a person's own reflection. There are supposed to be spells and charms for summoning them. One important thing Trixie recalls is that if you meet your doppelgänger without a protective charm, you are supposed to die."
"Oh that is a cheery thought...something feels wrong here." Sunset had a vague sense of dread, like when you know you have forgotten something but can't remember exactly what, but you know it was important. And it was getting stronger. "Trixie, get away fom the mirror, now!"
Trixie rolled her eyes. "Relax, Trixie doubts your doppelgänger would be-" Whatever else she was going to say was cut off with a scream as black, clawed hands reached through the mirror and pulled Trixie in.
"Trixie!" Rushing over, Sunset tried to grab onto Trixie, only to arrive to late as the magician had been fully pulled in and vanished. Not thinking, Sunset tried to dive in after her...and it worked. The effect was a lot like falling through a swirling whirlpool of light and silver, crushing in on her.
****************
Sunset flopped out of a large mirror, set on the ground in what looked like a ruined town. "Ow, well at least it worked."
"Let go of Trixie you...things!"
Looking up, Sunset saw what was going on, and her blood froze. Three huge blobs of black...something with human face masks carved from some sort of blue stone were grabbing Trixie. One of them lifted its claws, clearly intent on slashing down the girl before it-
Which Sunset interrupted with a tackle. Kicking a second one in the side of its 'head' Sunset helped Trixie up. "Let go of her you things!"
"That's what Trixie said!" Trixie shouted as she kicked the last one several times to no effect. "These things are tough!"
Kicking the monster once, Sunset was surprised to find it was flung back. "Okay let's get out of...aw crap." The two creatures from earlier were now standing in front of the mirror that probably led home. Looking over, she saw the third one was up as well, hardly phased by their assault. "Great, they're smart enough to plan. Come on, this way!" Grabbing Trixie's wrist, she began pulling Trixie down a side ally, fleeing for their lives.
"Don't drag Trixie! And why are we going this way?" the blue girl asked in confusion.
Not slowing down or letting go, Sunset made a few more turns. "Because we are going to get them to chase us as we circle around back to the portal. You learn how to do this stuff when you are from a world filled with monsters and magic. You ever read up on anything like those creatures back there?"
"No...sort of." Trxie said between gasps. "Trixie...has seen...the masks...on...web sights...on...the...super...natural. People...recently...see...stop!" Wretching her wrist free, she panted for a bit. "Trixie can't keep going this fast. Trixie needs a break."
That was when they heard a sound that made their blood run cold. The voice of a little girl screaming.
"Buck." Sunset bemoaned, letting out an old pony curse in her distracted state. "Stay here I'll be right back!" She then ran off towards where the voice was comming from.
"Wait, it could be a trap!" Trixie called after her, but to no avail.
Rushing into what looked like a ruined store of some sort, Sunset saw what was going on. One of those mask things had a little girl cornered. She was wearing a fluffy yellow dress which complimented her white skin and pink hair. Her big blue eyes were filled with terror. However, she was clearly not human. She had what looked like tiny white feathery wings sticking out from where her ears should be, and there was some sort of glowing ring over her head.
Not bothering to think too much about this, Sunset wasn't one to get hung up on species, Sunset body checked the creature into the empty shelves and scooped up the child. "Come on, let's go!" Rushing out of the store in a hurry, she was happy to see Trxie waiting for her. What she was not happy to see was the first three monsters starting to close in. "I've got her, let's move Trixie! They're almost here!"
Looking behind her, Trixie yelped in fear and soon they were running for it. Taking a good look at their new member, Trixie almost stopped in shock, but her self preservation instincts put the kibosh on that plan. "Sunset, is that a halo on that girl's head?"
"Is a halo the shiny ring thing or the wing ears?" Sunset asked, trying to work out a route to get back to the portal.
"The glowing ring! Do you mean to tell Trixie you have no idea what it means?"
"From another world here, not up on absolutely everything." Sunset retorted.
"It means I'm an angel." the little girl responded from where she lay in Sunset's arms. "Thank you for saving me humans. That shadow intended to kill me."
"Shadow?" Sunset asked, dodging around a pile of rubble.
"Shadows, a reflection of humanity's darker impulses." the angel explained. "Just as angels are reflection of your species' goodness and light."
Deciding not to correct the kid on her species, Sunset led the group down a side street...only to have a massive hand drop down in front of them. It pulled along a giant shadow monster that seemed to be the upper torso and masked head of a giant, with only one arm to move around. Still, as immobile as it seemed, it still sealed off that side of the street as the four shadows from earlier closed in from the other side.
"No." Sunset said, putting the little angel down as she looked for a way out, but saw none.
"Well, it was nice while it lasted." the angel said sadly. "We have nothing to fight them with."
"Trixie is too pretty to die!" Trixie screamed. "Trxie still has to find a girlfriend and get married and become famous!"
"You're gay?" Sunset asked, surprised.
"Trixie hardly thinks this is the time!"
Shaking her head, Sunset tried to regain focus. "Right sorry. Okay, we have no chance of beating any of these things, but we might be able to barrel through the small ones just enough to make a run for it."
"Trixie's legs are tired, Trixie isn't sure she can run enough." Trxie said, grabbing her shaking legs.
"Even if we escape these shadows, there will probably be more that attack us." the angel sighed. "I guess it was hopeless."
Refusing to give up, Sunset felt something grow warm in her pocket. Reaching in, she pulled out her pen, which was faintly glowing. Sunset's headache came back with a vengeance.
I am You and You are Me. We are One and the Same Thing. Call upon my power, your power, the power.
Sunset somehow knew what to do. "Per," she uttered, dragging the pen through the air as if writing, and it did indeed leave a golden trail in the air where she wrote, creating a ) in mid air. "So" Sunset continued, writing out a slash that connected to the curve from earlier, creating a highly stylized and slanted P. "Na." she finished, using her pen to somehow spin the air writing around one eighty so that instead of facing her, it faced the world.
Suddenly a golden runic spell circle of sorts expanded outwards and began rotating around the P. A miniature blue whirlwind swirled in the center, creating a spinning card. On the back was a two tone mask of some sort. On the front of the card was a very familiar image, The Fool. Spinning a couple of times it then shattered, creating a burst of light. Out of that light came a figure. What looked like a stereotypical Native American, with dark skin, black braided hair, and deer hide clothing with "medicine bags" hanging from his waist stood before Sunset Shimmer. What set him apart were his heavily slanted and narrow eyes, small yet notable fangs, his yellow furred cloak with the large gray spot on the back, and his staff which had a perpetual flame upon its end, with no sign that the wood was actually burning.
Somehow, Sunset instinctively knew who this was. "Coyote." she said, full of confusion and certainty at the same time.
Trixie was no less confused, but didn't have Sunset's magical reassurance. "What the hell?"
The angel seemed confused. "Wait, you're like them?"
And the shadows started to close in...
"Agi!"
...only for the closest one to catch fire as an ember shot from the tip of Coyote's staff, smashing it in the face. The shadow let out an inhuman screen before dissipating into dark smoke. The other shadows rushed in, only for the first to get smacked away by a seeping move from Coyote. The second takes a swing at the infamous trixter, only for Coyote to dodge by leaping upwards, using the staff as a pole vault. Coming down, Coyote slammed it hard onto the third shadow, making it dissipate from the attack. The second shadow tried to attack, but Coyote just pivoted with the staff held at his waist, smashing in that shadow's mask and causing it to fade. The first shadow, recovered, charged, apparently uncaring for its own safety.
"Agi." Sunset said again, the strange word feeling right as it caused Coyote to blast out another plume of flame, destroying the last shadow...besides the huge one behind them that was roaring in anger like something out of one of Pinkie's giant monster movies. Grabbing Trixie and the angel by the wrists, she pulled them back down the way they came. "Right, not sure if we can fight that big thing. Move it people." As the group ran past him, Coyote turned into solid gold light that seemed to spiral into Sunset's heart as they ran.
"Wait, if you're like them why are you helping me?" the angel asked, clearly confused.
"Like who? You know what, this can wait until we're out of here." Sunset said, taking the group back to where this all started, the mirror. The sound of dragging could be heard following them, and closing. Somehow, the thing was faster than in appeared.
"We're not going to make it!" Trixie shouted, panting and slowing down.
"Like Tartarus we aren't hang on!" Sunset said, actually picking the two of them up under her arms and running as fast as she could, yelling loudly as she made an adrenaline fueled flying leap through the portal.
****************
The group of them fell to the bathroom floor with a large crash. "Is everypony alive?" Sunset groaned.
"Trixie is alive...and not a pony." Trxie replied.
"I am. Is...is this Forwards World?" the angle asked, amazed.
"I have no idea." Sunset said, sitting up...just as a giant shadow hand reached through the mirror. Screaming, she instinctively wrote at high speed with her pen, causing Coyote to appear in less than two seconds. "Agi!" At the order, a small fireball smashed into the hand, causing it to retreat in pain. After a couple of seconds, Sunset blinked. "The mirror feels...different now."
"That's because it's closed." the angel said, getting up and dusting herself off. "Thank you for saving me."
"You're welcome." Sunset said, smiling as she dismissed Coyote. "Now then, if it's not too much trouble you could explain-"
"What the hell was that?!" Trixie shouted. "Who are you? What are those shadow things? Where were we? Why can Sunset summon that thing? What is going on!?"
"-all that, yes." Sunset said, smiling nervously.
"My name is Haniel. Like I said, I'm an angel, a reflection of the light of humanity, the other resident of the Reflection World beside shadows, the reflection of the darker parts of humanity." The little girl turned to Sunset. "The power you wield is called Persona, and it may be the key to saving both of our worlds."
