Sunset Shimmer followed Onyx as he led her through the industrial district, that old musty smell of deteriorating drywall and rusted steel lingering in the air. When they had stepped out of the department store earlier she noticed a trail of dark spots leading from the door to the stairs. There was also damage to the road and a pile of ash she didn’t remember seeing last night. It was pretty dark, so she just must not have seen it. Thinking back to when she woke up and saw the newer injuries Onyx had, she wondered where he had gotten them. ‘Hopefully he didn’t get into another fight,’ she thought. He’s already done so much for her, if he put his life on the line again while she was sleeping, she couldn’t think there was any way to repay him.

Walking under the overpass she had a strange sensation in her feet. The nerves had gone cold and her toes went numb. She stumbled slightly in her boots, but the feeling suddenly passed as she stepped out from under the overpass. Onyx looked back with a slightly raised eyebrow out of concern.

“Are you alright,” he asked.

Sunset blinked a few times and brushed her hair behind her ears, trying to understand what had happened. It was a little strange, but after what has happened the past few days she chalked it up to a weird occurrence. “Yeah, I’m fine. My feet just fell asleep for a few seconds is all,” she said.

Onyx gave a short nod. “I felt it as well. It happens when crossing under this overpass. I’ve looked into it, but still not quite sure what causes it. I think it’s a barrier of some sort. Placed there sometime when the district was abandoned. Oh, one more thing before we go any further,” he added.

Bringing his hands up to Sunset’s head, she stepped back for a moment, then moved closer to him. Onyx unwrapped the bandage around her head and examined the gash she had. The bleeding had stopped and it appeared to have healed considerably in the short time he patched her up. Last night, the wound was a bit bigger and would have taken weeks to heal, but now it was much smaller and almost closed completely. There wasn’t even any scar tissue left behind. He was a bit surprised, but it was the best thing to happen in the few days he has known her. He gave her a smirk and tossed the dirty bandage in a nearby trash can.

“You heal up pretty quick,” he said. “I’m a bit envious, as you know I’m pretty beat up from the last few days.” The envy was true. If he wasn’t in the condition he was with no magic in this world, his more serious wounds would heal in a couple days, no problem. Unfortunately, he would just have to wait and hospitals were out of the question. He never did like the smell of hospitals.

“I think you're forgetting something as well,” said Sunset, gesturing to her face. Pulling out her phone, she held it up.

Onyx looked at his busted reflection on her phone screen. He brushed under his right eye with his fingertips and felt the rough tissue. Silent words came from his mouth as he mumbled a chant and crossed his hand over his face. Such a simple illusion shouldn’t have taken as much effort as it did. Small visible waves of transparent energy emanated from his hand and danced around his head, surrounding it in a loose web of energy. The web then tightened down on his head and came undone, spreading another wave before evaporating. When he was done, the artificial complexion he had yesterday had returned. Sunset’s eyes were filled with amazement and shock as she watched him. She liked this clean, handsome look more than the rough visage he held.

“Whoa! That’s amazing! What did you just do,” she asked.

Rolling his eyes, Onyx turned and started walking. “Don’t act so surprised, Sunset. It’s not the first time you’ve seen me do something… inhuman. Before you get all excited and shit, I’m not doing any magic tricks for you,” he chuckled to himself. The thought of being a magician with no real magic but extreme skill at sleight of hand amused him. It would be an easier life for sure.

Catching up to him, Sunset wanted to ask so many more questions. While he was right, calling it inhuman didn’t sit right with her, but after what she’s seen what he is able to do maybe it was. All of the acts of magical feats she has seen transformed its users into dark manifestations of them themselves. When they met outside the school, he seemed like he would have been trouble; another problem for her and her friends to fix. She didn’t think that was the case anymore. Onyx had saved her life twice now, and she was grateful for it. She just wished he was a bit more friendly. At least she wasn’t his enemy. The thought made her shudder.

“Onyx, what was that? I didn’t think anything like it was possible,” exclaimed Sunset.

Onyx scratched behind his ear while thinking. It was a long walk to the high school and it only seemed right that she got some questions answered. She already promised to keep quiet and he was gonna risk it. He didn’t exactly expect her to stay quiet on the matter and he was counting on it. Maybe getting closer to her would bring answers to his own questions, like why that demon was sent to kill her. It didn’t make sense to him. He was the one so used to being hunted by them that it flipped his whole thinking. It didn’t make sense. If she was the target then her friends could be too.

“It’s simple. What I just did was cast a simple illusion spell, nothing special.” He brushed it off like it was nothing, but to Sunset it changed everything she knew about magic in this human world.

“That’s honestly pretty amazing! You’re talking about a real spell, real magic. I never thought I’d see something so amazing in my life.” Sunset gave herself a mental high-five. Finally some answers. She felt guilty not being entirely truthful knowing magic truly existed, but she would have to wait and see how he acts. The fact he was able to harness magical energy was mind blowing. If he was able to, were there other people able to as well? And if it’s possible was it Equestrian magic or something else entirely? Everything she knew about magic affecting this world was blown out of the water. After talking to her friends about this, maybe they will tell him about what happened at the Fall Formal, Battle of the Bands, and the Friendship Games. She didn't see any harm in it since he was familiar with the concept.

“What else are you able to do,” she asked, her eyes beaming with curiosity.

Onyx thought about what to tell her. There were lots of things he could do with his magic; not currently with his reservoirs so low. Rest was the best thing to recharge mana as his body would naturally pull the magic out of the air, but it wouldn’t help here. There were other methods such as elixirs, brews, and vapors specially made to restore mana, however none of the materials he needed to craft them existed. At this moment, his options were extremely limited. The mana deprivation also put more strain on his body than he expected, even for the fundamental steps needed to start a spell.

“Well, you’ve seen a little bit,” he stated. “Casting a veil helps keep my identity hidden when I’m, uh, working, and I can throw and amplify my voice. Much like what you heard with my whistling when we first met. Call me crazy if you want, but with your firsthand experience with events recently I doubt you would.”

Sunset stifled a small chuckle then sighed. “Yeah, it’s been an interesting week. I never expected to be caught up in so much craziness.”

He grunted in response. A long pause followed, making Sunset a bit uncomfortable walking in silence. Onyx wasn’t very talkative, with what she’s seen she wasn’t surprised. To be as young as her and have a body so battered it was astonishing he hadn’t dropped dead yet. It had to come with a mind just as wounded. To wonder what led him down this path in life had to be painful for his heart.

Sunset nervously shifted on her feet, hoping to shift the topic of conversation, she asked, “So, how do you know Joe?”

The question kind of caught Onyx off guard. He had expected to be asked about his scars, as that is what people usually want to know. Perhaps he has spent too much time around warrior types. “Uh, it’s a long story,” he said. “I met him through a mutual friend a while ago. I’d rather not get into it.”

The thought of meeting Joe for the first time brought a small smile to his face. Joe was the only person in the whole city he would call a friend and ally. He’s helped Onyx so much in the past that he would lay his life down for Joe, and he knew Joe would do the same for him. The memory quickly turned sour and Onyx grimaced. It was something he wishes he could forget, but to him it was still as fresh in his mind as the day it happened. It bit at his heart. He knew Joe didn’t blame him for it, but Onyx couldn’t let it go.

The contacts he has around the city wouldn’t qualify for his definition of ally, never coming close to a friend. They all owed him favors, and he them. That was just how it was in his line of work.

Sunset noticed his expression turned sour and felt bad for maybe bringing up something that still hurt. “I didn’t mean to bring up anything-” she started, but Onyx cut her off.

“You’re fine. It’s not a big deal. Let’s pick up the pace.” Onyx slowly sped up and Sunset followed closely behind. The rest of the walk went by fairly quickly. The high school was brought into view as the two turned a corner. Buses and cars were lined up along the sidewalk dropping students off. The parking lot was full and students hung around their cars waiting for the bell to ring. Stopping at the curb, Onyx turned to Sunset for one last little chat.

“Hey, I want you to know you did good last night. For the circumstances, you were pretty brave,” he said with sincerity. He knew it was a wild night for her, but she came out mostly unscathed and seemed pretty okay with how things turned out. Well, the killing obviously didn’t sit right with her.

She looked down at her feet, the praise meant a lot to her. Bringing her head up to face him, she smiled. “Thanks, Onyx. I don’t think I would have gotten through it without you, though. Being shot at isn’t normal for me. I have to admit, maybe I had the wrong impression of you. You’re not such a bad guy.” She rubbed her shoulder, a bit nervous saying that.

The thought of the monster from the alley and the inescapable sense of dread faded into the back of her mind like a forgotten memory. There was no longer a reason to be afraid of him, she was sure of it. If there was then why is she alive? Onyx’s first impressions weren’t the best, looking like he was constantly irritated and a bit rude, but he turned out to be someone she hoped to call a friend in the near future.

“I felt responsible, that’s it. Don’t think about it too much,” he grumbled.

“Are you going to be okay? I know you’re pretty tough, but I think you should see a doctor.”

The concern in Sunset’s voice was genuine, even her eyes brightened to where he could see it in them. Onyx wanted to bite and tell her to worry about herself, but he needed help finding out what was going on at this school. She was a sweet girl too. He felt a little guilty only wanting to use her as a tool for his investigation. It needed to be done nonetheless. A job is a job. Letting emotions get in the way would only make things difficult. Maybe having a beer with Joe later would help. He’s been so busy, he hasn’t been able to sit down and see how the donut lover was doing.

“I’ll be fine. I’m not the one you should be concerned about. Just keep your head down for a few days, alright?” Onyx stepped off the curb and crossed the street to the school. He could feel another episode coming on and he needed to get away from Sunset so she wouldn’t keep asking if he was okay. His head was now pounding with a brain splitting headache and he could taste the blood in his mouth.

As she watched Onyx walk away, Sunset said to herself, “Well, if there’s one thing to say about him, he’s tough. And he’s really bad at saying goodbye.” She chuckled to herself. She would probably never get used to that, but if that is what she had to deal with she was fine with it.

The buses had cleared out now and she crossed the road. Stepping onto the school’s property she quickly spotted her friends standing in front of the statue. They looked worried and were constantly turning their heads, hoping to spot their friend among the crowds. Rarity and Rainbow Dash also had their phones out, typing furiously and putting them to their ears every couple seconds. Sunset noticed and thought they must have been trying to reach her all night as well. She felt horrible at the thought, but there was no cell service in the industrial district and her phone had died shortly after waking up.

Pinkie had spotted her and shouted, “She’s over there!” Everyone quickly rushed over and Sunset met them in the middle. They all hugged her tightly enough to break something if she hadn’t tried to push them away. She was glad to see them all after having yet another near death experience, but their hugs were going to kill her before anything else got the chance to.

“What happened last night, Sunset? We were all worried out of our damn minds when AJ told us you called her,” Rainbow sternly yelled, her voice squeaking. “We all kept trying to get a hold of you all night, but you never picked up! What happened?”

Struggling to get her breath back after being squeezed, Sunset put her hand up to make some space. “Look I know you’re all probably angry at me, but my phone’s dead. I thought I saw something in my room last night. It was just a bad dream.”

She hoped that lie would save some face and calm everyone down. “Not buyin’ it,” Applejack scowled. “You can’t lie to us. What really happened?”

Well that failed. Sunset hoped that would work, but after making a promise to Onyx she didn’t want to lay everything out right then and there. She’d have to ease everyone into it to not stir them up more. “Alright, alright,” Sunset paused, thinking how she should continue. “Did you hear about Joe’s Diner last night?”

“Oh good heavens, you weren’t there were you, dear,” Rarity asked. Her eyes widened with shock as she covered her mouth. Everyone else had gasped and began asking if she was hurt, if she saw what happened.

“I’m fine, girls. I wasn’t inside when it went up in flames.” That calmed everyone’s nerves. “I’m sorry if you couldn’t reach me, I couldn’t get cell service where I was after.”

“So where were you? I went to your place last night and you weren’t home,” said Applejack, her scowl had stayed, unwavering.

She didn’t want to go back on her promise so soon after making it, but Sunset had to tell them at some point. Making a promise was a serious endeavor when it came to her and her friends. She made a promise to never keep anything from them after all they have done for her, however she couldn’t tell them just yet. She had to go over it in her head and get facts straight first. The bell had rang and students began heading inside.

“Let’s talk about this later, okay? I promise I’ll tell you everything.” Sunset then set off towards the front doors, waving back at her friends as she went.

Everyone was a bit annoyed and peeved that Sunset had run off without telling them anything, but they all agreed to confront her later. They soon dispersed and headed to their classes.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash began walking to the locker room to get changed for their gym class and talked on the way. They were the angriest and most worried about Sunset. If something happened to her and they weren’t there to help or stop it, they’d never forgive themselves. It weighed heavily on their shoulders and their hearts beat hard. They may have been overthinking it, but it didn’t matter to them. She was their friend and after what happened in the alley, they resolved to work harder than ever before to protect those they cared about.

They dressed down into their workout clothes; skin tight shorts and plain white t-shirts. Ready to put their all into an intense workout they had planned, they headed to the weight room, prepared to put their all into the weight training that was assigned today. The weight room resided above the gym with a track wrapping around the length of the gym and held numerous exercise machines, benches, bars, and weight plates. A row of treadmills sat along the far wall where a restroom was and two water fountains were installed next to the door. A couple students were already warming up on the treadmills and Rainbow Dash wanted to get some cardio, but Applejack reminded her they planned on just strength training for the day. With a few mandatory stretches out of the way they prepared to get to work.

The door to the restroom opened and an uneasy feeling washed over the two, their fired up muscles became drained and tensed, like an icy wind blew straight through their bodies. When they saw the person they knew as ‘Oslyx’ step out, in his dark clothes and heavy boots, the hair on the back of their necks stood up. Goosebumps covered their arms. Any confidence they held had been replaced with anxiety, urging them to cower away. Thoughts of despair and dread took over their minds. The two were too stubborn though, and they quickly kicked those thoughts away and stood their ground in the face of his intimidating aura.

The three of them locked eyes and stared at each other for a moment before Onyx wiped his nose and gave a curt nod, walking over to a bench and weight rack he had claimed with several energy drinks sitting in front of it. He sat down, opened one and chugged it, crushing the can and tossing it into a trash can across the room. With a successful swish he pumped his fist and opened another drink, this time sipping at it.

The sour flavor green apple drowned his tongue with a savory fizz. Hopefully the caffeine would kick in quickly and give him a much needed boost to get through the day. Fatigue wrecked his body, making it hard to keep his eyes open. The inescapable pain that restrained him from his full strength would keep him from training his body to the limit he preferred, but he thought it good to take it easy and at least do something to keep his body from withering. The shoulder he stapled together would be a hindrance too. It wouldn’t be pleasant for anybody if the staples snapped and his shoulder tore open again. He rubbed it, hoping to relieve some of the pain.

Applejack gave Rainbow a solemn look, and she shared it. They were positive he wasn’t a threat, but he still made them feel uneasy. They had to find out for themselves. Rainbow was the first to move, walking over to him with a brisk pace. He hadn’t seemed to notice her standing in front of him yet, so she made herself known. “Hey, nice shot,” she said, a hint of ice in her voice.

Onyx looked up with tired eyes and took another sip. “Thanks,” he replied, his tone lazy and unmotivated. Being tired was an understatement. The two stared at each other for an awkwardly long time. Onyx blinked and layed down on the bench, readying himself to start on his bench presses. “If you don’t need anything, I’d like to get back to my workout.”

Rainbow noticed the bar he was using was stacked with heavy plates to the end, bending it like a wet noodle. ‘He’s not seriously going to lift that, is he,’ she thought. ‘No way, he’s doing it like nothing! That’s over six hundred pounds!’

Onyx wrapped his fingers around the bar and lifted it off the rack, slowly bringing it down to his chest. His muscles tensed and strained, pushing it back up with so much explosive power that it almost flew out of his hands. Attempting to do another, he grunted in pain as the gash on his shoulder threatened to open; skin tearing and blood slowly seeping out. The staples attempting to keep it together, rather pitifully. Five more reps were done then he placed the bar on the rack with a satisfying clink and sat up, rubbing his shoulder to soothe the pain flaring up inside. That was it for the day, any more and it wouldn’t heal properly. Not that anything did anymore.

“Holy shit, dude!”

“Rainbow, language!”

A comical smack was heard and he looked up to the two girls standing in front of him, watching in dismay. He raised an eyebrow at Rainbow’s comment and looked back at the bar, then back to them. He probably overdid it by trying to fulfill his own needs and forgot to keep a low profile. Lifting that much weight would draw a crowd, one he didn’t need. Remembering people in this world were not as strong as him always escaped him. If his shoulder wasn’t busted he’d throw a couple more hundred pounds on, but he doubted the bar would hold any more weight.

Rainbow jumped in his face, almost startling him. “Hey, Oslyx, could you spot us today? We want to go hard,” she enthusiastically exclaimed with a fire in her eyes.

Seeing him lift so much weight, made her forget all about the small grudge she held against him for beating her obstacle course time by two minutes. She felt silly for the pouting she did over something so trivial. Now, her feelings shifted to the excitement of a potential new rival or trainer.

Onyx reared back and his lip twitched, irritated since she does not know what personal space is. Though he had to admit, seeing that bright fire in her eyes gave him some solace to know she was ready to push her limits. Whether she was doing it for herself or to help protect her friends, it almost made him get pumped up himself. He thought about declining, but realized it may help his own interests. Afterall, if he solely focused on Sunset, her friends may end up thinking something was going on between them. Standing up he towered over them with a stone cold face and piercing eyes.

“Alright, why not? I’m not able to do much more today. Shoulder got busted last night,” he said.

Rainbow jumped in the air and pumped her fist. Wrapping Applejack in a friendly headlock she hooted, “You hear that AJ? We’ll be able to pump iron until we drop with this guy spotting us! I’m gonna go until I can’t feel my arms!”

As Applejack wrestled out of her friend’s arms, a large grin appeared on her face. Seeing Rainbow instantly overcome her minor grudge with a show of exceptional strength made her laugh. Out of everybody she knew, Rainbow Dash could hold a grudge like nobody's business. She was honestly relieved by it. Rainbow had been upset all week about her obstacle course time. If she was okay with ‘Oslyx’ then so was she. But she wasn’t about to let her rival beat her. “Oh yeah, we’ll see about that. I’m gonna kick yer butt, Dash,” challenged Applejack. “Come on, sugarcubes, let’s get a claim on a new rack.”

As Onyx followed the girls, he looked back at the rack he was using and saw the coach drop his jaw and clipboard.

“Who the hell is mistreating my equipment?!”

Author's Note

Swallowed a Zynny on accident when I wrote this. Heart burn here I come