Chapter 1 - A Shadow of Yesterday
OPENING MESSAGE FOR MAC_BIGRED
MESSAGE RECEIVED 2200 05012032
SENDER UNKNOWN
I wasn’t quite sure what they’ll think afterwards. They probably thought I am dead and probably have a memorial for me. What am I thinking? Let’s begin.
Let me tell you my specifics first. My name is Sunset Shimmer, and I have escaped both curse and Equestria. I’ve waited for 32.5 years for this. I am born in Canterlot, Equestria. I grew up as Celestia’s first student until I discovered the portal to Earth. That’s when I became obsessed and you may know where it leads. Yes, I rebelled and ran towards the portal. I told Hasbro about more details soon after they planned to release that tacky movie with colored humans with a tacky plotline. I guess most of the bronies who turned pony never noted the comics for signs of truth.
I actually applaud that. Those comics are way off course from what really happened. Except that Reflections arc. That’s where I got the idea of breaking the mirror.
Now, I only have few things here, so I’ll wrap it up instead.
You already know who this person is. Sunset Shimmer. Equestrian citizen. Ran off towards Earth. Grew up as a human, influencing things.
Apparently we can influence the history of this controlled chaotic world. Keep that in mind!
Anyways… so I grew up as a human with a love for horses. So, finishing in that high school with fake identities created by the school itself and hacked seamlessly into the American system, I travelled around the world. I never forgot the mirror so I would do some visits. During one of those visits, I met Twilight.
BestPrincessEver.
So I met Twilight… a long time ago at the Crystal Empire. I was doing one of my visits and she and Celestia spotted me, forcing my visit to cut short as I struggled towards the portal/mirror. When I arrived in the room where the mirror was hid, I was cornered by the guards who thought I was a thief. Due to my training with Princess Celestia, I got through the guards with Princess Celestia’s voice saying something.
I could still remember it.
“Sunset! Be careful what you wish for!” she had shouted, probably the last thing I’ve ever heard from the old Celestia.
Fast Forward, May 1st of the year 1995. I felt something odd from the air as I was travelling through a few towns towards the nearest airport to my home in the Asian Southeast. I knew something was wrong, so I delayed my flight and hurried over a hotel near the warehouse where the portal was. To my horror, it was closed. I panicked.
One of my friends asked what was wrong. I was about to answer with a lie until I felt it would be the time to tell ALL of my friends about who I really was.
“My name isn’t Roxanne Evans,” I began. “My true name is Sunset Shimmer. This may sound ridiculous, but I am a unicorn. I came from a place called Equestria. Before I came here was a student of a princess. I was never supposed to be here. Please forgive me.”
Every word was like a knife slowly slicing through my skin, until it reached a point where there was no pain left. I expected that they would take me to the authorities.
The irony of it? I was actually a CIA Agent due to a witness seeing me enter the portal. Coincidentally, it was the same time I had to leave early.
So, I was accepted by them faster than I expected. Not really the same speed on how us ponies would forgive (I did send this to Big MacIntosh, brother of Applejack, right?).
Fast Forward to just after I sent that message. I didn’t have much time and I was shocked to find out what had happened. I quickly cast a temporary cloning spell and commanded that clone to destroy the portal and get caught soon after I got back. So, I came back. First thing that I saw afterwards were government agents and my dress. Heh.
I began to explain everything as I got dressed up. They then decided to keep the existence of the actual Equestria secret. Denied the mystery of the place. Heck, tried to move the mirror away but I said they’ll have to lose their only non-local agent for that. Heh.
And finally, Fast Forward to 2020. You guys came back. I was happy about it. I didn’t notice that there were some volunteering humans, most of whom were from other places, and I think I saw the President’s daughter too. Was it just me, or did I see a pony who looked like my pony self? Anyway… I was looking through a hidden camera by the abandoned school, —which was retrofitted to be my home— privately. I was actually pretty much having a time looking at you.
For now… I want to go home.
See you on the other side.
-Roxanne Shimmer
~~~[]~~~
7.5 years after Battle of Ponyville…
I blinked soon after reading my email that I had sent a long time ago, which was 2 and a half years ago, to be exact. I haven’t received anything else, even from the government after I had learned that they were taking ponies for examination. Of course, having been one myself once, I had to interfere. I got to free them during the night of the mirror portal opening, and I could just see the look of Twilight’s face during that time.
Shaking my head, I headed towards my room in my dorm found in New York. Inside my room was a small computer connected to a satellite dish beside it. I approached the computer and tried to triangulate the location of the mirror portal ever since someone, or somepony, moved it from the warehouse. After a few clicks, it beeped and the computer showed a small research facility. I picked up my phone and called my boss. After he picked up, I began.
“Boss, found the portal under a facility,” I reported. “I’m heading alone. I think the government knows about this.”
He was silent for a few seconds. “You’re leaving,” he noticed.
I sighed. “Ever since I had to close the artifact on the other side I always dreamt about going back,” I explained. “Besides, I heard about that government project for the transformed that you launched. Good luck on handling them.” I prepared my thumb to hung up.
“Wait, stop! You can’t leave yet! They need the co—” Clicked.
“Oh, sorry, did I click something?” I sarcastically replied.
Those words I said made me remember the last time I was back. It was… chaotic for a pony to handle.
“Well, you were and always will be, Sunset,” I told myself as I packed my items. “But will they even recognize me?”
I never thought those were my last words as Roxanne S. Evans.
~~~()~~~
Arriving at the entrance of the facility well-hidden, I was immediately greeted by someone who looked unusually familiar…
“Moondancer?” I asked, gasping.
She took a step back. “How did you know? Are you a pony?” she asked defensively.
“I’ve never forgotten the first friend of the Princess of Friendship, even if I have so many friends,” I answered, winking.
She was so taken by my answer she seemed to freeze at what I had said.
“Don’t let my old looks deceive you, Moondancer. I am Sunset Shimmer after all,” I proclaimed. “Former student of Princess Celestia. Blah blah blah, to the comic backstory and so forth.”
She still was frozen. I snapped.
“Snap out of it!” I shouted.
She immediately looked at me and raised her eyebrow. “Is that really you?” she questioned.
“Yes,” I answered.
“Prove it,” she demanded. “Prove it, or I’ll tell Mac we have an intruder on the loose.”
I sighed as I took out my purse from my school backpack I held on since… forever. Inside the purse I pulled out a small school identification card and handed it to Moondancer. She checked it just a little too long, since I already am behind her running in.
Just a second late, the alarms rang when I was past the… I looked back and noticed some clothes. What?
I shrugged and ran towards the mirror, which was in the middle of a SG-1 like lab. Looking around, I unholstered my pistol from my suit I was wearing the whole time and shot the horse statue.
*plonk*
“Gah! Blasted enchanted statue!” I began to limp towards the portal due to my self-inflicted actions. “Blasted America! Blasted pistols! Blasted—”
I threw my backpack to the mirror and froze as soon as I heard a voice which I would forever remember even in my dreams. I looked back only to feel a thousand volts over my body.
They tazed me!?
The last thing I saw was Moondancer holding the tazer. Should’ve given them my map of Equestria, which was in the backpack on the other world.
I simply sighed as I struggled to remove the electric darts. Then I blacked out.
~~~{}~~~
At first, I saw darkness, then I saw light. Soon after, I saw that I was in what looked like a standard interrogation room. Opposite of me was a man holding a tablet. I also see my purse and its contents, which is actually just a pistol, an old phone, a bunch of pictures, and a watch locket with intricate Equestrian writings.
“You’re CIA,” he began. “Why are you here? Are you here to take the mirror away? Why does this locket of yours have Equestrian?”
“I’m here to head home,” I answered. “The writings just mean ‘Two worlds intertwined due to one soul’ which I made up. Never thought Discord would do such crazy thing and dump all Equestrians and supporters here too.”
“Okay… How are you alive? We found a body back in Equestria that matches your DNA,” he reasoned.
I chuckled. “I mastered a cloning spell, which has a little side effect of completely losing one’s magic until the body is re-discovered,” I explained. “Totally not going to release it to the public.”
“Cloning spell?” he clarified. “You’re joking. Nopony in Equestria can make such a thing!”
I placed my hands on the table. “I was here since I was 8, and have been visiting since.” I was unusually calm. “I made up the spell for my 10th birthday and furnished it here and Equestria until I was 17, a cycle before I got back to find the bad news. 27 years later, I was 46, when I noticed some of my friends had turned pony. Then Fast Forward here, 7 years and 6 months later and… you know the drill.”
He stood up, looked towards the room’s one-way window and sighed. “Why now? Why not seven and a half years ago, when you appeared?”
“I did appear.” I watched him look at me in confusion. “How else can you chalk up the one car that passed suddenly when Twilight and her friends sneaked by?”
He seemed to have concluded something bad. “The CIA were watching us.”
“Not them, just me. I watched you all,” I answered with confidence. “We just wondered what happened to the mirror afterwards when somepony shipped it off.”
The room was finally silent. Well, it was until a minute later when he opened the door.
“I guess I’ll have to tell you, ‘welcome back, Sunset Shimmer’,” he greeted.
“I’d rather be called Roxy Shimmer now, but thanks.” I stood up, took all of my items, and headed outside.
I think I heard him comment about my name. Oh, well.
~~~()~~~
One thing I hated about the mirror portal was that if you wear clothing and you go through, the clothes get left behind unusually. I now look like an old traveller who dropped his saddlebag since I saw my bag untouched. It also felt good being a four-legged horned cutie too. Breathing in, I immediately noted where I was and went to let everypony take it all in. I also noticed the change of scenery; they had placed the mirror portal in the middle of what seemed to be Ponyville.
“Is that Sunset Shimmer?”
“Impossible! We had a body of her!”
“Maybe she’s her twin.”
I simply waved, before I realized I had lost enough blood to make me lose consciousness for the second time. Stupid.
~~~{}~~~
“Stupid, stupid, stupid,” I repeated as I found myself on a hospital bed with a bandaged leg. “Into the half of my life and my first impression back home is me fainting. I should’ve called Jimmy for escort… I’m too old for this.”
My words seemed to have minor effect as two ponies entered here. I recognized one of them from the show as Nurse Redheart and the second one being my old friend. I tried to smile.
“Hello, old friend.” I looked around. “Wondering who I am, I guess? Still me. Well, the actual me. The body you found was a sentient clone from a cloning spell I made. You are wondering, right?”
“No, I mean, yes or… gah!” I chuckled as she did one of her frustrated faces. It was soon replaced by a curious face. “A cloning spell? Really?”
I lit up my horn and I began to feel my magic returning from the clone of the body. “Well, it has a little disadvantage though.” I dimmed my horn soon after it had stopped. “It drains the magic of whoever does it.” I then cast a beautify spell on myself, making me look a bit younger.
Just a bit.
“Age always catches up with time, unfortunately. An old CIA agent against the world when it was rocked by humans turning into ponies,” I whispered. “Heh, I just remembered about my family. What luck.”
I then remembered that I had a tracker connected to my family in case for this too.
“Uh… Twilight?” I called.
She looked at me. “Yes?”
My thought began to disrupt what I was supposed to ask, but I continued anyway.
“Does Equestria mind some few more citizens to permanently live here?”
