The darkness of the dismal night did little to conceal the shame of the trio of defeated souls as they ran, legs pumping and chests heaving, through the vast suburbia that sprawled outwards from Canterlot High like branches from a lively tree. The air was cold and bitter, mimicking the feelings coursing through the blood of those three as they dashed around empty street corners illuminated by dim, sickly yellow light from lampposts standing at regular intervals. The gray light of the moon could not pierce through the city lights, drowning in that cacophony of electric powered machines. A chill breeze wafted occasionally from the north, freezing the bones of the Dazzlings further as they desperately fled with nothing but the clothes on their backs and the tears in their eyes.
The taste of defeat was a new, sour flavor that permeated every aspect their senses. It brought the feeling of bile and the smell of disgust. The hideous aroma masked any essence of success, of victory, of adoration, that might've survived their most recent encounter with fate. Moreover, it was accompanied by physical feelings of anguish, of loss, of helplessness, and of fear. Worst of all, it brought despair, a most unwelcome feeling, to their previously untroubled lives. Years of dominion over the natural laws that bound the individual creature came at an ultimate price: their reliance on magic to provide their every need. Seduction only serves the temptress when she is permitted to control it. For sirens, it is this skill on which their lives are gambled, often for great risks and greater rewards. The Dazzlings had cast their die one too many times.
Their breath came in crystalline, icy puffs as the Dazzlings continued to sprint along winding streets and past stumpy houses. Among the activities they were not used to performing due to the nature of their prior lifestyle was indeed running. They could only tiredly slide their feet along the rough pavement so long until Sonata finally called out in raspy, desperate tones,
"Guys, wait up...can't keep running..."
Sonata skid to an abrupt halt a few feet behind Aria and Adagio, resting her hands upon her knees in an attempt to gain back the air she had lost from her lungs. Her breathing was harsh and forced, filled with the groans and wheezes of a non-athlete. Tears fell through the misty, cool air as a result of her physical anguish and mental despair in a combined front, plopping onto the dry ground with small splashes.
Aria and Adagio halted, their physical states just as marred as Sonata's. For a few moments, none of the the unfortunate souls were able to utter a word to one another as they recovered their breaths feebly. Aria attempted to conceal her weakness, facing away from her mutual sisters as tears flowed down her lavender cheeks in rivers of exhaustion and helplessness. Adagio fell to her hands and knees upon the rough, cold, asphalt road, her breathing interrupted by erratic bouts of coughing as her lungs protested the sudden stress they were put under.
The loneliness of the dismal night encompassed the defeated trio as they recovered whatever strength remained in their sorrowful frames. After a few moments, Adagio slowly pulled herself to her feet, her tender hands scrapping across the hard, black pavement. She looked at her vanquished companions in disappointment and despair. She clasped the neck of her mauve hoodie, feeling only an empty space where her crimson, magic supplying pendant once proudly hung. Her face contorted from exhaustion to disgusted ambivalence as she addressed the reeling pair in hopelessness,
"Our pendants...gone. Our voices...nothing. We're completely powerless."
"Well, that was kinda obvious, Adagio! Tell us something new, for a change." Aria's voice rivaled Adagio's in frustration and despair.
Sonata straightened her racked frame to its full height, her breathing somewhat normalizing as her lungs recovered the air they had spent. Tears still twinkling brightly in the spectrum of lights surrounding her being, she asked her dismayed sisters is a heartbreaking voice,
"So, what do we do now? We have no music, we have no home, and we have no friends."
Her voice cracking with emotion, Aria stormed over to where Sonata stood weakly, shouting within a few inches of her stunned frame,
"We never had any home, and we certainly never had any friends, Sonata! It's only been us for as long as I can remember."
With this chilling remark, Sonata broke down even further into tears, her hands lifting to her eyes to hide her anguish from her only allies, her voice a sad, childish whimper. Adagio's eyes misted as she pondered the situation before them, her gaze not focused on anything. She simply stood in place, a leader cast down, a siren with no voice.
Intrinsically, Aria and Sonata looked upwards to where Adagio stood in a dazed stupor. Without even consciously realizing it, they had become so reliant on their leader for the answers, for provision, for devious plots, that they knew no other independent fall back plans. For a few quiet, tense moments, none of the defeated Dazzlings uttered a word or moved a muscle. Then, Adagio's distant mind seemed to suddenly return to the world, her body stiffening as her face set in a resolve none of the others had been expecting. Without uttering a sound, Adagio turned fully around and began to step slowly away from her dumbfounded companions.
"Where are you going, Adagio? You'd better not be leaving us, not again!" Aria's voice faltered under the intense feelings of rage and loss coursing through her veins. Her hands clenched into tight fists as she willed herself not to pursue her leader.
Adagio neither responded with words nor with any visible change in movement. She simply walked, slowly and decisively, towards a maroon red Coltswagen buggy resting a few feet away from her. The small, stumpy car was covered in scratches and irregularities, a sign of the years of use and abuse it had attained.
Galvanized by the dire situation before them, Sonata called out to her leader in a desperate, cold voice,
"Adagio, please don't go...we're family, remember?"
Adagio came to a sudden halt, standing motionless in place for a moment. Her eyes gazing downwards, her voice laced with factual and defeated tones, she replied to a fearful Sonata,
"Family? We were never family, Sonata. We were just three sirens who happened to share the same talent."
Sonata's tearful face curled in disheartened rage as she uncharacteristically questioned her leader through clenched teeth,
"How can you say that? We've known each other for so long...most normal families don't get the chance to spend as much time together as we have."
Adagio didn't respond to this comment, continuing stand as still as a stature, her expression of loss etched into her face. Aria no longer could remain silent, her anger boiling her blood as water in a cast iron pot.
"As much as I hate to admit it, she's right, Adagio! We might not get along, but we're all we've got left."
A gust of wind blew from down the street, the green leaves upon gray trees moved in a natural dance. Old, brownish plastic grocery bags wandered across the pavement, their destiny as unsure as the power moving them. Without uttering a sound, Adagio retrieved a small, silver key from her left jean's pocket, holding the object before her sad eyes for a long moment. Afterwards, she inserted the device into the slot in the driver's side of the swindled car, opening the door with a click. Sonata, fearful of the pain of loss, attempted to stop Adagio before she could split the divide within their group further. Before she could reach her, Aria grabbed a fistful of Sonata's hoodie, effectively chaining them to their fate.
"Let her go. She's made her choice." Aria's voice was cold and pungent, like the smell of death over the chill tundra. After a few exacerbated moments, Sonata halted her attempt to break free of Aria's iron grasp, allowing herself to slide down to her knees in utter resignation and defeat.
Without looking directly at the her betrayed companions, Adagio climbed into the leather driver's seat of the small car, inserting the key into the ignition. With a lurch, the engine sputtered to life, the two front beams of light erupting from the hood of the car temporarily blinding the bedazzled Dazzlings. Pressing her foot firmly on the gas pedal, she accelerated the car swiftly to the left of the helpless pair, its worn tires screeching on the asphalt with an ear piercing scream. Within seconds, the buggy sped past Aria and Sonata, leaving them to stare in abject horror and fear as their only leader abandoned them to a hostile world.
Adagio sat bolt upright against the stiff, worn leather seat, her hands fixed tightly on the black steering wheel. Her eyes gazed directly ahead, focusing on nothing and everything all at once. Her expression was quite unreadable, some ambivalent mixture of fear, anger, determination, and loss. The sharp smell of assorted food items strewn across the small car caused her face to contort further and her posture to straighten as a steel rod.
Desperate for something to dilute the vile concoction of emotions within her soul, she jabbed her finger against the radio's power button. Instantly, the car filled with the fuzzy and indecipherable noise of static. Frustrated, she rapidly pressed the station arrow, shuffling through more and more wavelengths filled with static nothingness. Swiftly, she cycled through every station in the vicinity, all of them seemingly broadcasting nothing but endless static.
Adagio pounded her fist on the steering wheel, enraged by the technical predicament facing her.
"Whenever have any of the stations been so filled with static, let alone all of them?" She physically expressed her annoyance to the stillness surrounding her frame.
Giving up on her attempt to locate a suitable station, she refocused her attention on the road in front of her. She was banking down a long suburban road dotted endlessly by middle class housing and lush, green yards. The yellow beams erupting from her hood lights painted the black pavement and illuminated much of the darkness around and ahead. The air inside the car was quiet. Only the droning hum of the engine and the constant crunch of the rough asphalt under her tires provided evidence of the car's movement to her ears.
Do you understand the implications of what you've just done? You may never see those beings ever again.
Her own consciousness was an unexpected intruder in the silence. Groaning to herself, she attempted to ignore the small voice within her own mind.
You hurt them. They trusted that you would bring them to prosperity, that you would lead them through thick and thin. Now look at where you are.
Her face curled in rage at the own mind as he physically called out to herself,
"None of this was my fault! It was the Rainbooms; they defeated us, despite my best efforts."
Your best efforts alone? The Dazzlings followed your every command, no matter how insane or morally reproachable it seemed.
Her mind flashed back to their last performance. She saw herself, the queen of the world, in total control of the mindless droves of high school students listening to her hypnotizing music in awe. In that moment, she had everything. In that moment, the world was her oyster, the possibilities of future conquests and achievements infinite.
"I had the world in the palm of my hand. Hundreds of years of survival, of careful planning, for what? To let it slip through my fingers just like that?"
Is the world really what you wanted?
Adagio was caught off guard by the thought entering her mind. She replied to the emptiness quickly and decisively,
"Of course it was. What else?"
If the entirety of the riches of this universe is truly what you desired, you would have simply manipulated the person in charge of it all.
She shook her head in denial, attempting to throw the unwelcome voice within her own subconscious away from her being.
No, you desire something much simpler, yet often more difficult to find than great wealth.
She pounded her fist on the radio's dashboard, furiously trying to find anything other than static to banish her conscious thought. No frequency emitted through the device.
Adoration. That is what you want, what you've always wanted. Just to be known, just to be loved.
"You don't know what you're talking about," Tears began to well in her eyes as she fought the bursts of negative emotions exploding within her soul.
When was enough going to be enough? You already possessed the adoration of your fellow sirens, what more did you want? Your greed has hurt not only them, but countless other innocent souls.
"..."
What have you gained through your desire? Nothing. You've lost everything instead. Your gifts, your friends, your reputation...just wisps in the dark.
Tears flowed freely down her face as she turned her vehicle onto a main highway, the small car jolting sideways due to its high velocity. There was not another soul on that entire freeway in sight.
She was enraged by the silence. She wished that something, anything, would fill the quiet void allowing her consciousness to speak freely for the first time.
"I just wanted to be adored. I didn't mean for any of this to happen." Her voice was flimsy and cracking as she spoke into the silence.
...
The road was surrounded on both sides by long trails of sickly, yellow tinted grass, long since desiring some liquid to moisten their parched roots. The moon overhead was bright and full, bathing the dark highway in dull, gray light. Within the small, red vehicle, Adagio's breath came in forced, emotion laced bursts. The cold of the night penetrated through the lacking infrastructure of the swindled vehicle, chilling the bones of the lone Dazzling.
"I can't go back now. They'll never forgive me for what I've done; not the Dazzlings, not the Rainbooms, not anyone."
That might be true, but haven't you done enough running already in your long life?
"Maybe. Probably. I don't know."
Adagio's voice came in short clips as she pondered her situation thoroughly. A neon green sign suddenly came into focus, illuminated by the bright head lights of the vehicle. It read that the next exit to Canterlot City was half a mile away.
What's happened in the past is behind you. Your actions now cannot influence what you've already done, but they can change your future.
Within a few moments, the exit ramp for Canterlot City came into view. It veered to the right, away from the main highway and towards an expansive metropolis of shining skyscrapers and yellow lights.
Choices in life are rarely as simple as this.
"You're right."
Her tears dried upon her cheeks as she resolved her next action.
o._0_.o
The light emitting from within the small, pleasant diner warmed the soul of any passerby. It gave a sense of comfort, of security, to all who entered into the content establishment resting the corner of the road. It was the one of the most popular areas for people of all tracks of life to gather to celebrate, to mourn, to relax, to excite, or simply to eat a hearty meal.
It is no surprise, then, that the remaining two Dazzlings found themselves back where they began, the last vestibule tying them to existence in the world. It was a familiar place; their greatest plots and ultimate desires had been hatched at the rectangular table and red leather seats of the fine restaurant.
Sonata and Aria, equally emotionally downcast and physically exhausted, sat together at their usual place next to the table, their eyes gazing downwards at the smooth, tan surface. They had not the strength to utter a word to one another, nor anything to truly discuss beyond the superficial or hypothetical. Their fate, at that moment, was dismal and unknown.
A small, silver bell breaks the silence enveloping the small diner. The glass door opens swiftly behind the sound. A few of the adults enjoying their meals look up for a moment at the source of the sound, only to look down again to avoid the gaze of the odd person. Sonata and Aria, consumed deeply by their thoughts, fail to notice the ephemeral being as she strode slowly towards their table, her expression downcast and apologetic. She sits down at her usual place next to the table, observing the state of the two Dazzlings before her. Even then, they fail to notice her, to even look up and observe the being before them.
For a few moments, the person said nothing, analyzing the pair with deep, sorry eyes. The silence was abruptly broken as Adagio spoke to the unaware Dazzlings with a nonchalant, shaky voice,
"Fancy meeting you two here."
Startled, the pair shot their gazes towards the recognizable voice. For a few dazed moments, neither of them were able to utter a word. Their faces became etched in a confused and somewhat angry expression as they wondered if the person sitting directly in front of them was genuine.
"Indeed." Aria broke the awkward silence with a quick, cold remark.
"We thought you'd left us forever, Adagio. Aria said that you weren't coming back." Sonata's childlike innocence laced her tones as she tearfully explained this to her.
Gesturing dramatically with her hands as she was accustomed of doing, Adagio replied to the comment with genuine sorrow and thought,
"I didn't think that I ever would as well. I suppose something inside my mind convinced me otherwise."
Aria's eyebrows lifted in suspicion. Sonata sat in hopeful expectation, leaning slightly forwards as she hung on every word channeling out from Adagio's mouth. Smiling, Adagio explained to her companions in a sincere voice,
"I know it sounds odd, but I just couldn't bring myself to abandon you. You're my sisters. No matter what happens next, no matter the consequences that our past actions bring, I am proud to know that I'll be facing them along side my family."
Aria's face set in a look of confusion and wonder at her leader's sudden change of heart. For centuries, she had seen only iron resolve and sheer determination mark the expressions of the siren. This was a new, entirely welcome switch.
Instantly filled with tears of joy upon hearing these words, Sonata leaped forwards from her sitting position with a happy squeal, enveloping an unsuspecting Adagio in a bear hug. She recoiled slightly at this sudden display of sisterly affection, but she allowed Sonata to finish this first act of true kindness she was ever able to express.
"It's good to have you back, Adagio. What's next?" Aria, her usually grumpy expression now breaking under the delight of the occasion, allowed a smile to slip past her guard. Her face etched for the first time in sincere determination and good will, Adagio excitedly replied to her sisters,
"Beats me, but I know we'll face whatever challenges come our way as a family."
