Knocking at Death's door (Edited 18/12/2022)
The Battle of the Bands ended days ago. Canterlot was beginning to return to normal now that the massive amounts of magic released during the event were finally calming down. The students of Canterlot High spoke of it to no one outside the student body, of course. There was no way someone who wasn’t present would believe them anyway. Some of them still couldn’t believe it, having seen it with their own eyes. Instead, the school simply celebrated another victory thanks to the Rainbooms chasing off the Sirens.
Said sirens were now sitting at the back of a fast-food restaurant, keeping to themselves. From anyone passing by, they appeared sleep-deprived. Bags hung beneath their eyes and their hair fell limply down their backs. Their usually glowing skin now looked lackluster and somewhat sickly. If one were to look at them more closely, though, it was clear something was… off.
Sonata held her head in her hand, forcing herself to take deep, even breaths. Aria leaned back against the seat in exhaustion, periodically grabbing a napkin to wipe the sweat accumulating on her brow. Adagio seemed the most put together since she merely rubbed her fingers against her temples, as if driving off a minor headache. None of them were anywhere close to being put together; all three Sirens were in excruciating pain.
Death was not something beings like sirens ever needed to contemplate before. They were beings of Equestria, having lived over a thousand Equestrian years in this miserable world without aging a single day. To make matters worse, time moved differently in this world than in Equestria, so they were this world’s equivalent of three or four thousand years old. Clearly, death wasn’t something they needed to worry about.
But that had been because of their nature as sirens. Their pendants, assigned to each siren at birth, kept them living. The pendants kept them healthy and allowed them to gain the energy they needed to keep going. The gems helped them eat. With the jewels’ absence, eating was borderline impossible, survival turned into a waiting game, and death became eminent. So here the trio sat, in silence and each other’s company, waiting for their final hour to end.
“Dagi, I don’t want to die yet,” Sonata murmured softly as she laid her head down on the table. It was the first thing any of them had said in several minutes. It wasn’t the first time Sonata was expressing her feelings on their predicament, but the further they spiraled, the more afraid she became.
Adagio’s heart sank at the light innocence in her sister’s voice. She gingerly patted the blue hair and fought down a well of guilt. They had argued over who was at fault for the ordeal the day after the Battle. After much screaming, Aria and Adagio had nearly come to blows before Sonata broke in and finished the fight for them.
“It doesn’t matter whose fault it is!” she had screamed. “We all chose this path and we’re all going to die because of it!”
That had allowed the situation to fully crash on the sisters. They had all tenderly touched the hollows of their throats where their gems once were, like they were currently doing. Feeling the skin rise to meet their fingertips as they fought to breathe properly, the sisters couldn’t stop the pang of loss at the emptiness.
“When we get reincarnated, I’m going to kill those rainbow freaks,” Aria snarled lowly.
Adagio shook her head sadly. “We’re in a different world, Aria. There’s no guarantee siren reincarnation will work. It didn’t for… them…”
They grew quiet, thinking of the sisters they had lost long ago to the Purge of their kind. They had been too small to know what was going on then, but with time, they understood and had grown bitter at becoming the last of their kind. Their rage at knowing why they were alone had solidified in their maturity and had been the prime reason their jewels only absorbed negative energy. Not that any of that mattered now. Equestria would be completely free of a siren problem soon. The last of them were about to take the species to the grave.
The trio lapsed into silence once more. Sonata’s breathing frequently broke into staccato beats and Aria leaned forward to help her get it back on track again. Adagio handed the violette napkins to wipe her cold sweat with whenever she finished helping Sonata. There was nothing the other two could do for Adagio, though. Her head felt ready to implode and only her constant rubbing eased a portion of the pain. It was only a matter of time now.
Footsteps came closer and the sirens glanced up slightly in confusion. They were at the back of the restaurant. They had chosen the area that would keep them away from the crowds so they didn’t bother anyone in their last moments. Who could be coming in this direction when there were plenty of other open seats near the doors?
A familiar voice spoke up nearby and the sirens resisted the urge to groan. The last thing they needed was one of their enemies finding them like this. At least if they were going to die, they would rather do it naturally rather than at the hands of those who put them in this position in the first place. Unfortunately, fate was in an unforgiving mood tonight as the voice only drew closer.
“Yeah, I’ll meet you after school tomorrow,” Sunset Shimmer murmured as she said a quick farewell to Applejack and hung up her phone. As she was storing it into her bag, she bumped into a table and heard an aggravated groan. Turning quickly to apologize, Sunset paused and cocked her head.
“Adagio?” she asked slowly, taking in the three sisters. “Aria? Sonata?”
“In the flesh,” Adagio huffed softly. For however much longer…
“I can’t believe I’ve found you,” Sunset said excitedly. “I’ve been looking for you three since the end of the Battle. I wanted to check how you were doing. Y-you ran off before I could talk to you. By the time we got off the hill, you were long gone.”
Sonata opened an eyelid and rasped, “Thanks for the worry, I guess…”
“We’re not interested in that whole ‘friendship is magic’ thing, though,” Aria grumbled, accepting another napkin from Adagio. “So if you’re here to ‘convert’ us or whatever, you can leave now.”
Sunset stared at the three women in confusion. It had only been a few days since the Battle of the Bands, but the sirens looked much worse for wear than they had then. Their usually-vibrant hair was limp and dull, and their complexions looked unhealthily gray. Their eyes housed large bags underneath and their voices sounded beyond exhausted. While these indicators were usually a sign of some sort of sickness, nothing else seemed to be physically wrong. They just looked like sleep-deprived teens.
Despite that, Sunset Shimmer could feel something… wrong coming off the trio. Their lackluster expressions and labored breathing told a different tale than what their appearances were giving off. Sonata’s chest fought to rise and fall, and Aria was sweating more than normal for… anybody. She and Adagio oozed fatigue and Adagio’s eyes had lost all the mischievous light they once had. The sirens looked… broken.
Her staring didn’t go unnoticed and Aria glared up at her. Mustering up the strength, she snapped, “Can we help you?”
Sunset blinked at her for a moment and bit her lip. “What’s happened to you three?” she asked quietly. “Something’s not right…”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Aria growled hoarsely, fighting to keep the menace in her voice. “We’re dying, you moron.”
“Dying?” Sunset repeated in dawning horror. No one could go from perfectly healthy to dying in just a few days unless something drastic had happened to them. “Wait… y-you mean… your pendants didn’t just give you power, they kept you healthy?”
“Without the ability to feed on emotional energy, we will starve to death,” Adagio explained wearily. “Human food prolongs our lives, but even that won’t stave off the hunger much longer. We will end up wasting away.”
This made Sunset swallow thickly. She and her friends hadn’t even thought about the implications of what the jewels breaking could have meant beyond stopping the sirens from hypnotizing people. Once again, not thinking about the effects of her actions on others had caused someone to get hurt.
“I-I’m sorry,” she breathed, wringing her hands anxiously.
Aria scoffed and lowered her head to the table like Sonata. “Just leave us alone,” she grunted as she closed her eyes tiredly. Please… just go away…
“We understand your compassion,” Adagio sighed to the standing woman. “But we would prefer our enemy not see us at the point of our demise.”
Sunset bit her lip again and slowly nodded, deciding to honor the request. Reaching into her pocket, she laid a small box beside Adagio’s hand. “I-I got this the day after the Battle,” she murmured forlornly to the lead siren. “When we first met, I noticed your nervous tic, so I bought this to help you.” Sunset turned away but paused and whispered, “I’m so sorry.”
As she strode away, Adagio stared at the box curiously. “Let’s open it,” Sonata prompted, drawing a faint nod from Aria.
“Can’t hurt at this point,” the violette agreed.
Cautiously, Adagio opened the small red box and gasped at finding a shining, purple, octafaceted gem nestled in the yellow fabric. Shaking fingers lifted the little jewel that was just smaller than her palm. Sonata and Aria watched curiously as Adagio gently clipped the gem to her neckpiece. Suddenly, a jolt shook through the trio and identical gems appeared on Aria and Sonata’s neckpieces.
With the jewels came a sudden boost of energy. The sisters felt their fatigue melt away, though the hunger was still present. “We… we can feed again,” Adagio breathed, her usual smirk slowly spreading over her lips.
“B-but we can’t sing,” Aria pointed out even as she gently rubbed the new gem on her neck. “How are we going to get the energy we need?”
“It doesn’t matter,” her leader stated softly. “We’ll figure that out, but I want to know why that ordinary gem gave us a new burst of power.” Looking at the exit, she rubbed her gem speculatively. “I think we should watch Sunset Shimmer a bit more closely.”
Her sisters nodded and the three of them stood, stretching and cracking their joints. Their bodies slowly started restoring themselves now that the sirens could feed again. Sonata took a few deep breaths to test her lungs. Aria cleaned up the last of her sweat and tossed all of the napkins into the nearby trash. Adagio took a moment to breathe as her headache receded. They were going to be okay.
Hips swaying, Adagio led her sisters from the restaurant and out into the clear night. There wasn’t a breeze, but the air was moderately warm. Amethyst eyes turned up to the moon, followed by violet and magenta. The three sirens took in their second chance with their usual smirks and set off in the direction of their home.
Author's Note
This is a series I started before I even found this site. I've got about five installations of it planned out, so I hope you're ready.
I know I should be writing for Packed Crowd and One in the Same Thing. I'm so sorry. 
New Beginning (Edited 19/12/2022)
Sunset picked at her lunch as her friends chatted around her. She hadn’t told any of them about her run-in with the sirens the night before, fearing they may not have the strong feelings on the matter that she did. Admittedly, her own feelings about the ordeal were confusing her a bit. The sirens had been brainwashing people. People were arguing and just short of coming to blows because of the sirens’ songs. The group had stopped them to save people.
That’s what Sunset kept trying to tell herself, at least. In order to save the student body and probably the world, she and her friends broke the sirens’ gems. The chain reaction of that was sacrificing three lives for everyone else’s, but they had been doing the right thing.
The problem was that Sunset didn’t think so anymore. She had been willing to fatally hurt people plenty of times before, but it didn’t seem fair that those three had to die when she didn’t. She had brainwashed people, too. She had been willing to hurt people. She had nearly killed Twilight. It just… didn’t feel fair for her to live and get a second chance when the sirens had mostly been trying to gain adoration and eat.
Fluttershy glanced at her silent friend and gently asked, “What’s wrong, Sunset?” The others turned their attention to their friend as well, realizing something was wrong.
Sunset sighed and pushed her tray away. It was probably best to get this out of the way, now that they had asked directly. “Uh, last night… I saw the sirens.” Rainbow Dash stiffened but Sunset waved down her worry. “I actually kinda just came across them. They looked… weak. And sick. When I asked them about it, Adagio told me…” Sunset dropped her face into one of her hands as she fought back tears. She couldn’t bring herself to utter the words.
Thankfully, she didn’t have to. “She told you those pendants weren’t just for letting them brainwash people, but they were also the only way they could feed on emotions, and without them, the sirens are doomed to starve to death, right?” Pinkie stated in a slightly calmer manner than usual. Her cheerful voice contrasted eerily with what she was saying, but it got the point across regardless.
The group’s jaws dropped and all eyes found Sunset, who nodded sadly. Rarity’s hands flew to her mouth in horror as Applejack removed her hat in shock. Rainbow Dash stared between Sunset and Pinkie as she tried to think of something to say in response and Fluttershy gently placed a comforting hand on Sunset’s back. None of them really knew how to move forward from that kind of information.
Once again, Pinkie came to the rescue as she chomped a cookie. “Don’t worry, Sunset. They discovered a new way to feed last night. They probably needed to rest for a while so their bodies could heal, but they’re okay now!”
Everyone breathed sighs of relief and Sunset’s head shot up. “Seriously?” she asked, hope shining in her eyes. “H-how do you know that, Pinkie?”
“I bumped into them this morning while they were taking a walk around the park,” the pinkette responded. “They wanted to be sure whatever new way of feeding they have wasn’t temporary and they weren’t going to drop dead out of nowhere.”
“That’s a relief,” Applejack muttered, pressing her hat to her chest. “I was scared we’d done even more damage.” Her friends murmured agreement as Pinkie ruffled Sunset’s hair affectionately.
Just then, the cafeteria doors opened, and the sirens strode in, glamorous as always. The students glared at them and ignored their entrance, but unlike with Sunset Shimmer, none of the trio seemed to care. They took a bit of pleasure in the animosity, which only served to aggravate the student body. The six people near the back of the room were far too relieved to care about their peers’ irritation, though.
Sunset Shimmer stood and trotted over to the three women with a massive grin. “You’re okay!” she cheered, pulling Adagio into a hug.
The lead siren’s eyes shot wide at the contact and Aria and Sonata stared in surprise. Could she do that? No one touched Adagio. They barely touched Adagio. As Sunset pulled back, Adagio felt warmth flood the areas the orange woman had made contact with, wonder coloring her expression. Only her sisters made her feel similar to that…
“I was so worried last night,” Sunset murmured, rubbing her arm nervously. “I didn’t know how to help, and I felt so bad leaving you there like that. I should have stayed-.”
“We’re glad you didn’t,” Adagio cut in smoothly as Sonata and Aria stepped forward to flank her. “We’re not very good with thank yous. The gem you gave me is exquisite, Sunset Shimmer.”
“I-it’s not,” Sunset said softly. “It’s not even the same color as your old one.”
Adagio laughed softly and purred, “Which only makes it that much more special. Thank you.”
Sunset nodded with a wide smile, a small blush creeping up her neck. “So, you’re going to be okay, then?” she asked.
“We can pick up the energy in the air now,” Aria told her as she glared at some students nearby. “So, the pendants just suck up whatever is there. Though, I don’t remember something this… sweet in the air before.”
“We’re picking up on more than just hatred and anger,” Adagio explained quietly to a puzzled Sunset Shimmer. “We have to learn to differentiate the tastes in the emotion to understand what will be healthiest for us.”
Sunset nodded in understanding and gestured to where her friends were waiting. “Since you three haven’t fully figured out the new diet, maybe you can grab some human food to keep your strength up? Would you like to join us for lunch?”
Aria and Adagio shook their heads as Sonata nodded enthusiastically. “We’ve got a few things to attend to,” Adagio stated. “We just wanted to come relieve you of your worry.” Placing a finger under the slightly shorter woman’s chin, she cooed, “We’ll see you soon, dear.” With that, the trio sauntered back out of the cafeteria, winking and waving to those they passed.
Once they stepped out of the cafeteria, Aria crossed her arms at her big sister. “Alright, so what’s the plan?”
Adagio shrugged slightly. “I’m not certain yet, to be honest.” Both of her sisters raised eyebrows at her in surprise. That was a first. “However, returning to school allows us to keep an eye on her. An odd phenomenon has occurred with our pendants and I want to find out as much as I can about it.”
“This is going to be fun!” Sonata beamed at her sisters excitedly as they all strode down the hall. “I mean, yeah, we gotta go to stupid classes and all, but we still get to watch sports and join clubs and go to prom-!”
“Prom is for juniors and seniors, dummy,” Aria grunted. “We enrolled as sophomores.”
The blunette blinked. “Well… I’m sure there will be other things to happen! We always find some way to have a good time!” She pulled the other two sirens into a quick hug. “And besides, in the meantime, we can have some fun with the humans, right, Dagi?”
Adagio chuckled as she patted Sonata’s head. Her sister’s child-like enthusiasm was always a pleasure to behold. Looking forward as she led the way, Adagio allowed her signature smirk to slide into place. “Yes, Sonata,” she responded calmly. “While we gather info, you can have all the fun you want with the humans.”
There was a squeal of happiness behind her as Sonata jumped and did a fist pump. Adagio cast a last glance to the cafeteria, her fingers rubbing idly at the violet jewel adorning her choker. Perhaps, going to this school wouldn't be as boring as she had initially thought.
Back in the cafeteria, Sunset’s blush crept over her cheeks and she fought not to think too hard about it. Adagio touched everybody that way, even back when the Sirens had riled up the cafeteria. Shaking her head to clear it, the orange woman went back to her table as the students around whispered about the sirens’ return.
“How are they?” Rarity asked once Sunset took her seat. “Are they still…?”
Sunset shook her head with a small grin. “They said they can feed again. Even better, they can feed on more emotions now, not just hatred and anger.”
“Thank goodness,” Fluttershy breathed. “I was worried.”
“I hear ya,” Applejack added, using her hat to fan herself. “I wanted to stop’em, but I didn’t sign up fer killin’ anybody.”
“Agreed,” Rarity nodded. “Especially considering they still have the potential to change.” Her eyes glinted mischievously as she added, “They seem quite fond of you, Sunset.”
“Huh?” The woman in question raised an eyebrow in confusion. “What do you mean?”
Rainbow Dash shrugged as she explained, “The second we stood up to follow you over, the purple one glared at us real hard and told us to stay where we are.”
“I didn’t see that,” Sunset murmured.
“It was while you were huggin’ the yellow one,” Applejack told her. “Speakin’ of, I didn’t know you were that close with’em.”
Sunset gave a quick shake of her head. “I’m not. I was just so relieved that we hadn’t killed them, I didn’t really think before acting.” She blushed slightly at the memory of her arms wrapping around Adagio’s waist. Sunset ignored how nice it felt and instead focused on what Rainbow Dash had said.
“I guess they have to warm up to us a little at a time. I think all of us going over to check on them would have made them really uncomfortable.” Her friends nodded and went back to their lunch.
Sunset dug into her own lunch as she thought on the interaction. She really was glad the sirens were alright. She wanted them to have the same chance to become better people that she received. Remembering back to those months before the Battle of the Bands, Sunset glanced at her arms nervously. She rubbed them gently to ebb some of the anxiety at the memories of isolation and bullying she had endured. Perhaps the sirens didn’t need the exact same chance she received…
Thankfully, the hostility of the student body didn’t appear to have that big of an impact on the sirens. With any luck, they would be able to walk on a new path to being good with less bumps than she endured. The most any of them could do for the moment was keep an eye on the trio. CHS would be more interesting with them around, that was for sure.
Author's Note
And there's the end of the first one! Hope you enjoyed that. I'll try to have the next first chapter of the next installment posted before the end of the week. Now allow me to run from the masses coming after me for not working on my other two fics.
