Sunset caught her breath, her brain sorting information now that she was not being assaulted by the darkest, most malevolent ward scheme she had ever encountered. It was a completely alien form, made of magic that felt nauseating and warped almost beyond recognition, but she could see, inside the dizzying, almost putrid darkness, spellforms that were similar enough to some of the oldest Equestrian wards to be identifiable, even if she couldn't decipher all of what they were designed to do. Although, given how she had been assaulted and Vice Principal Luna had not, it probably had something to do with her SET level.

She was certainly thankful for her SET level now—had it not been as high as it was, she would have been unlikely to be able to counter the wards’ violent assault. More than that, her reaction had…broken…some kind of illusion that had been able to fool her senses. Not entirely—she was now subjected to two overlapping viewpoints that seemed to phase in and out, making her stomach churn and her bones burn hotter.

Swallowing bile, she forced her gaze to take it all in. The first image was the illusion she had seen before, of pristine, expensive, if tacky buildings and overpriced paths, precisely manicured lawn and deliberate and tended decorative plants only just starting their spring growth…an epitome of wealth and privilege in architectural form. The second, underlaid visual, one that fritzed in and out of being like an outdated recording format…it was like the Nightmare had infected the place. Gone was the carefully kept grass, replaced by an eerie, damp, and dying moor-like terrain, the pretty trimmed trees now crooked, aged, but sick things in the twilight of their lifespan, heavy with fungal shelves and lichens. It felt like a place that had not seen summer or the sun properly in decades.

Then her eyes found the buildings, and her head swam, vision confronted with geometry that didn't quite match what was possible, angles and curves and joints that should never have stood, with too small windows and slanted doors…the clean brick structure replaced by stones that had no business being so old in this place, ancient in a way Sunset was familiar with, a way that was physically impossible in a mere century or two, and required maintaining a structure for millennia against the elements. Her Canterlot had buildings like that—most of the Upper Terraces were that way, having been built more than four thousand years in the past when Princess Celestia and her sister had set the seat of governance there for the new Equestria built following Discord’s defeat. Breathing out in a shaky way, Sunset wondered for the first time if she was in far over her head.

“Are you alright?”

Taking a breath, Sunset forced herself to straighten, knowing that she had tripped the wardline and that anyone who was tied to them would be searching for the intruder. The last thing the former unicorn could afford to be was weak or vulnerable. “I’m fine,” she said, forcing her expression into the one she had practiced for years as the student of the princess. “…but this is bad, Miss Luna. The school grounds are warded, and they attacked me. They’re dark, very dark…this whole place is…and…” Sunset swept her gaze around again. “It’s under an illusion.” She described what she could see, in quick, brisk detail.

Arching a brow, the woman glanced at Sunset then back at the building, reciting something in another language from memory.

“‘Per me si va ne la città dolente,

per me si va ne l’etterno dolore,

per me si va tra la perduta gente.

Giustizia mosse il mio alto fattore;

fecemi la divina podestate,

la somma sapïenza e ’l primo amore.

Dinanzi a me non fuor cose create

se non etterne, e io etterno duro.

Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch’intrate’.’”

Sunset blinked. “Um…what?”

“Dante Alighieri’s Inferno. Canto III, in the original Italian. It's an inscription the titular author describes as being engraved upon the gates of Hell when he and the character Virgil arrive there. It describes Hell as a city of woe, a place of eternal suffering for those eternally lost to the goodness of a…greater light…I suppose…and entreats one to ‘Abandon all hope, you who enter here.’” She paused, thoughtful and concerned. “It came to mind with your description of the reality of this place, and I could not help but make the comparison. Which I must freely admit unsettles me.”

A shiver crawled up Sunset’s spine. “…that’s…not something I would call inaccurate, Miss Luna. This place is wrong. Twisted to the point where even the magic is in agony…” She hugged herself. “Something bad has happened or is happening here. I didn't know any place in this world could feel like this…there are places, sometimes, in Equestria that feel this way, but they're always old ruins, from the Warring Tribes Era, ancient places where something terrible happened and magic was used in hate and anger by creatures driven mad by the Windigo…” Exhaling slowly, she set herself to be prepared for anything. “…maybe you were right when you called it evil magic.”

Luna stared up at the building and the gates before slipping her fingers up to her neck and freeing a necklace hidden previously in her shirt, the gold cross now hanging openly. As she did, she uttered something that might have been a prayer, and seemed to gather her own courage, as if Sunset’s words had shaken her. “Once more unto the breach then?” She made to step forward.

“Miss Luna, wait.”

She hesitated, long enough for Sunset to say what she needed to. “If…if I tell you at any point, to leave, I need you to do just that. Turn around and walk out. Don't look back, and don't run--it would attract attention you don't want--come to your car, go back to CHS, and tell the girls they need to contact Princess Twilight immediately, that it's an emergency, and the Elements are needed. Do not try and wait for me, don't try to help me, don't question me, just…go.”

The vice principal stared at her hard, before nodding. “I do not like it…but under those circumstances, I…understand. My lack of magic would be a detriment, and I would better serve getting help.”

Sunset met her gaze a moment, and nodded. “…yes…and be careful here. Take nothing, touch nothing. Not food or drink or objects. Watch yourself. Anything could be imbued or enchanted…” She could still feel the darkness all around them, pressing in, trying to crush her, even as her magic pushed back and burned it away again and again like a cleansing flame. Idly, Sunset wondered if pure sunfire would destroy the darkness. The radiant golden flames were normally the purview of Princess Celestia, but she had figured out as a teenager in Equestria how to cast them herself, albeit, not efficiently or without risk.

So warned and alert, the two of them continued on the way to the front doors, and Sunset watched as the shadows seemed to pull away like living things, leaving a trail behind them…it reminded her uncomfortably of some of her nightmares, and she wondered, distantly and not for the first time, if this is what she had been dreaming of. It made sense, since Twilight had to go here daily, and it even matched with the dark, insidious power that had affected the family on several occasions…and why it seemed to keep coming back on her girlfriend. She’d only ever been to a location that felt like this one time in Equestria, a year or two before she ran away through the mirror. It had been a very carefully supervised expedition for students seeking their Archmagus certifications, a form of cautionary tale on what unscrupulous magical actions could cause if a spellcaster was careless or ignored warnings set forth by the Thaumic Ethics Board…and they’d been hit with some strong monitoring spells before going in, their duration in the border zone of the ancient ruins very short to avoid the risk of the magic affecting them negatively. Everypony knew extended exposure to dark magic had consequences…

The unknown factor was whether or not this was like those half buried ruins northwest of Canterlot, a place where the darkest of magic had left its eternal mark, thrumming through forgotten wards that only targeted those with a significant amount of their own magic, or if this was an active site, overseen by a practitioner darker and more vile than any Sunset could have imagined. Eyes darting around the dim hall with its harsh yet somehow weak fluorescent lighting, the former unicorn kept her head high and shoulders back, intent on giving no sign that her bones were so hot they felt like they were melting.

Luna steered her down a hall and up a flight of stairs to the office…though the hand on Sunset’s shoulder served more to keep her at the dark skinned woman’s pace than anything. Her own stride kept trying to speed up as the pulsing need to get to Twilight tried to override anything else. They entered the office and garnered the attention of a rather pinch faced secretary who started violently when the door shut behind them. “Ms. Solare, what is the meaning of this? You don't have a scheduled meeting with Principal Cinch this week…and certainly not one in the middle of the school day. And who is this…riff raff…with you? Not one of ours—we have standards here…”

“I will get to that in a moment,” Luna said firmly to the secretary, before addressing Sunset. “The nurse’s office is down that hall there, fourth door on the left. If you reach a left hand turn in the hall, you have bypassed it.” Then her flinty gaze turned on the receptionist. “As for the purpose of my visit, get Abacus down here from her ivory tower, NOW, if she does not want the police to show up and start investigating her staff for criminal negligence and her students for a potential felony.” Her voice was positively glacial, and though she never raised the volume of her voice, it held all the authority of her sister’s solar aligned counterpart. Sunset briefly wondered if this was what Princess Luna sounded like.

Only briefly. The directions to the nurse were a dismissal that she had been needing, and she stopped fighting the need to get to Twilight. She broke into a run, her boots thudding loudly on antiquated wooden floors and leaving more than a few black marks behind in her haste. Sunset counted doors in her head and charged through the fourth one, finding herself in a sterile little exam office, blue-green eyes searching.

The woman who was obviously the nurse was arguing with a blue haired teen that could only be Indigo. The girl looked about the same age as Sunset herself, if an inch or two shorter, with wild hair that looked frazzled and windblown. She was still wearing a gym uniform and had an athletic build that hovered somewhere between Rainbow’s wiry frame and Applejack’s sculpted physique. Her hands were clenched as she stared daggers at the nurse, a plump, older middle aged woman with cherry colored skin and hair that was graying despite desperate attempts to dye it back to a dark brown. “I must insist you return to class,” she hissed, and Sunset could just barely feel the dark energy that hovered around the woman like a miasma—it was hard to pick up anything other than that in the foul magic of the environment itself.

“And it'll be a cold day in Hell before I’ll do that,” Indigo sneered. “I’m not moving until Twilight’s family gets here. What are you gonna do? Expel me? At this point you’d be threatening me with a good time!” She settled herself more firmly in the doorway he was blocking.

“When Principal Cinch—“ the woman shrilled, only to abruptly stop mid-sentence as Sunset stepped into her space bubble from behind. She whipped around to glare at Sunset. “Who are you? You can't be in here. What do you want?”

Sunset was as polite as she could be under the circumstances, as the dark magic trying to press in from all sides, the fiery burn of her own magic, and the agony of her scarred psyche’s reaction to this dark magic vied for supremacy in her awareness. “I’m here for Twilight Sparkle,” she said, her voice level and even. “I was closer than her parents and I have some of her medication for emergencies.” She dipped a hand inside her jacket to retrieve the small pill bottle.

Glowering, the nurse raised a hand to point at either Sunset or the pill bottle. “I have never—”

What it was she had ‘never,’ Sunset would never know, not when dark eyes with irises that were far too large met hers squarely. In that moment, her own magic flared defensively, just like it had when she’d gotten between Shining and Velvet…and the nurse went just as ashen as he had, reeling like the redheaded teen had physically punched her. Sunset took advantage of the sudden deathly silence. “I am here for Twilight Sparkle,” she said, putting every ounce of authority and conviction she had into her tone, just like she’d learned from Princess Celestia, unable--or unwilling--to stop the magic leaking into her voice. “Unlike you, I called her mom to tell her what was happening. Unlike you, I care about her well being. Unlike you, I’m going to go in there and help her…and I will not let you stop me.”

The power she was fighting to control pulsed with her words, washing over the nurse and the room, driving the skittering darkness away to writhe and undulate just out of sight, and when Sunset took another step forward to go around the nurse, the woman broke and bolted for the door like a pack of ravenous timberwolves was howling at her heels. “Principal Cinch will deal with you!” she called out as a parting shot.

Sunset snorted. “Bring it on,” she murmured, then looked at the somewhat awestruck and bewildered Indigo. “…Indigo, right? We talked on the phone. You…mind letting me by now?”

“Holy fucking shit,” Indigo managed. “What did you do? I've been trying to shut her up since we got here. That was amazing.”

Shrugging uncomfortably, Sunset made a vague gesture. “I was in the right, she was wrong, and I am here with more than a little authority from people who have a bigger say about Twilight than a school nurse. And I was serious—she wasn't going to stand between me and Twilight, not when Twilight needs me.”

Indigo shook her head. “No wonder Twilight’s been fighting back this year. With a best friend like you, I’d do the same thing.”

Flushing, the former unicorn did her best to deflect. “I’m nothing that special,” she said as she slipped past the other teen. “I’m going to get her these and see if I can calm her down. You…good to keep standing guard or do you need to get back to class?”

“Are you kidding? After that, I’m here 'til this wraps up—I kinda wanna see if you can do that scary face thing to Principal Cinch!”

…which was really the last thing Sunset wanted, all things considered, especially if Cinch was as affected by the dark magic as everyone else seemed to be…even Indigo, though she as she checked the other girl over she could see where her magic’s touch had burned away the dark tendrils just like it did for Twilight’s family…and possibly the nurse. “Right…then…keep an eye out and let me know if anyone else shows up?”

She barely waited for the confirmation of her request, before she turned to where she could practically feel Twilight’s anxiety and panic and knot of thoughts that never seemed to let up. There, in the darkest corner of the already dim room, she could see her girlfriend huddled in a ball of misery, sobbing and hiccupping, dark magic latched into her like parasitic roots.

Blue-green eyes narrowed, and Sunset let her magic have more free reign, faint flickers of red and the crawling sensation of her ears not staying entirely human tickling her skin. It rolled through the room, and the dark, slimy pressure on her body pulled back even further, away from not just her, but Twilight. For a fleeting moment, she would have sworn she saw a reflection of glowing eyes in a bit of crystal, but by the time she focused on what she thought she saw, it was gone.

Pulling the magic back under her skin, Sunset scanned the room with her senses once more, grunting in satisfaction when she determined this room, at least, was free of the dark magic entirely, even if she could still feel it around her, smothering and claustrophobically close. Her feet carried her to Twilight’s side, and she sat on the uncomfortable cot next to her, one hand gently reaching to touch dark hair. “Sparky?” she murmured. “I’m here.”

In an instant there was a sob of relief and a body clinging to her for dear life. She pulled the younger girl into a full body cuddle, humming the princess’ lullaby into dark hair, in between affectionate nuzzling and soft words just barely loud enough for Twilight to hear. Twilight, for her part, was burrowing into her until she was practically inside Sunset’s jacket, repeatedly mumbling, “You're here…you came…” in between ragged breaths.

Sunset gave her a minute or two to relax enough to be able to hear her words before she sought to accomplish what she came to do. Getting one of the pills into her hand without letting go of Twilight was quite the exercise in creativity, but she managed, finally tugging Twilight’s face out of her boobs. “Sparky?” the redhead entreated, voice firm. “I have your meds. I need you to open your mouth for me. Can you do that?” There was something like a short, jerky nod, and Twilight opened her mouth, reminding Sunset of when she had taken care of the hatchling Philomena. Deftly, she popped the quick-dissolve tablet under her girlfriend’s tongue. “Okay, Sparky. We just have to let it work now.”

The other girl returned to pressing her face into Sunset’s shirt. She had stopped sobbing and her breathing didn't seem like it was as much of a struggle, but the former unicorn suspected that she wasn't going to be much in favor of doing anything or interacting with much of anyone for the rest of the day. Not that she was too bothered by that—she personally wanted to get Twilight away from the grounds of her school and go over every inch of her essence with her own magic to purge any lingering darkness. Until Twilight’s parents got there, though, all she could do was hold her girlfriend close and protect her from the darkness.

Time crept by, and eventually it felt like Twilight dozed off in her lap, her breathing finally slow and even, the trembling in her limbs abating in favor of the little movements Sunset knew from when she was asleep. She smiled faintly and kissed her forehead. “Just like I promised,” she whispered. “You needed me, and I’m here. You're safe with me…” She fell back into humming, working her way through Friendship Through the Ages, Shine Like Rainbows, and even through a piece or two of her own design that were incomplete, hovering just at the edge of a Pony-Up and letting her magic fill every inch of the room.

“…catchy tunes,” Indigo’s voice broke the shell of near-quiet.

She glanced up from Twilight’s hair, seeing the Crystal Prep girl in the doorway, looking their way now. “My friends and I have a band,” she offered as a way of explanation. “It started out as part of a fundraiser thing, but it's…turned into kind of a group hobby.”

“That’s…pretty cool. Is Twilight part of it?”

Sunset adjusted Twilight’s position in her lap to be somewhat more comfortable. “I haven’t introduced her to the girls yet—they can be…kind of a lot…and I’m not sure she’s ready for the ‘hundred and fifty percent friendship a hundred and fifty percent of the time’ vibe they emit. So I’m trying to ease her into meeting my friends…slowly. Eventually though? I think they’d be good for her, just like they’ve been good for me.”

Indigo watched her for a long time, before nodding. “…Sparkle could really use some better friends,” she said quietly. “This…this is my fault. Some friend I am.”

That made the redhead raise an eyebrow. “How is this your fault?”

“I told her our stuff would be safe if we left it in the librarian’s office. It's my fault something happened to it. I should have known somebody would want payback after the Polaris thing.” The girl’s shoulders slumped.

Motioning her into the otherwise empty room, Sunset said, “That’s not your fault, Indigo. You didn’t advertise where your stuff was, did you?” When she shook her head, Sunset sighed. “Then it wasn't your doing. I don't blame you and neither will Twilight. You're only responsible for your choices and actions. Today? You didn't fail. You were the friend who was there for Twilight when no one else was. You messaged a stranger on her behalf, you risked trouble for yourself to protect her against adults, and you care enough to feel guilty that it happened in the first place.” She could hear the echo of her own friends’ advice in her mind, different moments in her own friendship lessons where they had soothed doubts just like Indigo’s. “That makes you a really good friend from where I’m sitting.”

A snort of laughter escaped her. “Wow. You really are her best friend. She gets the cheesy friendship speeches from you.”

“Hardly,” Sunset countered with a dry chuckle of her own. “I can assure you that the ‘you can't stop me, we’re friends now’ thing? That's all Twilight. I learned all my friendship lessons from her and the girls.”

Quiet resumed, before Indigo reached for a familiar backpack. “Don't panic…I want to take pictures of all Twilight’s vandalized stuff to send to you, so there's proof. Things like this have a weird habit of disappearing here.” She started laying all the torn paper and broken things on the cot, spreading them out so she could take pictures with her phone from different angles. “Who’s the woman you brought with you? She’s out there tearing strips off Principal Cinch and the nurse so loud I could hear it.”

“My vice principal. She’s not the biggest fan of this school.” Sunset couldn’t help but smirk at the thought that Miss Luna was giving the other principal a serious dressing down.

“Well, she’s not happy, and the weirdest part is that it's working. I’ve never even heard of anyone taking Principal Cinch down like that, and she’s just fucking swallowing it like Suri Polomare on a Friday night!” Indigo’s expression was one of delight as the flash from her phone camera went off repeatedly.

It took Sunset a minute to realize what Indigo meant, and she made a face. “I've never even seen what your principal looks like, and that was still a mental image I could have done my entire existence without.” Then she frowned. “…and if you think my vice principal is bad, I’m actually more concerned about what’s going to happen when Twilight’s family gets here. Her mom and dad are really upset lately with this school, especially after your principal suspended Twilight.”

Indigo was repacking Twilight’s bag, and she looked up at Sunset. “…you think they're going to pull her?”

“…they want to, I think.”

The other teen frowned. “Would they send her to your school?”

Chewing on her lip, Sunset hesitated. “…that's very likely,” she hedged. “I’m already there, and so Twilight wouldn't be alone.”

Running a hand through her hair, Indigo asked, “You…think CHS would be interested in taking on one more Shadowcolt washout?”

She chuckled, shoulders shaking enough that Twilight grumbled softly. “I don't see why not—they let me stay, after everything I did.” Indigo looked at her curiously, and she explained, “I used to be Queen Bitch of Canterlot High. Then I got knocked off my pedestal last fall at the Fall Formal. Totally and completely humiliated myself, almost got myself and others killed in the process. They’ve forgiven me enough that they fought the principals on my being included in the Friendship Games. So…I think you’d be more than okay.”

Silence again, thoughtful more than anything, and then Indigo said, “…I think I need to talk to my dad. I don't know if it's worth going to this school any more…especially if Twilight leaves. I’ll stay while she’s here…I don’t want to ditch her here…but if she leaves, I don't wanna stay.”

Sunset smiled. “For what it's worth, Indigo, I think you’d make a great Wondercolt.”

Author's Note

Obviously, credit for the two stanza's from 'Cousin Donny's Furnace' go to Dante. Yes, Luna's in dialogue citation is correct.

Yes, Luna speaks Italian. So does her sister. Funtimes.

Luna's also fucking pissed off...might actually be a toss up on who is angrier right now. Luna or Sunset.

In regards to the nurse, I'm going to quote a character I once played. "Hey, anyone else just hear the sound of an asshole clenching at the speed of light? I sure did."

Truth be told, this is one of the chapter blocks I've been eagerly awaiting the chance to post since...goddess....about 2.5 years now? Its gone through several iterations, but...I'm super pleased to show it to you all! :P

Next week promises to be an even better chapter. BRUHAHAHAHAHAA.

See you kids next week! Same horse time, same horse channel. :P