The Witchblade EqG: War of the Trinity

by Michael_Ravencroft

Rating: mature
Tags: Other, Romance, Pinkie Pie (EqG), King Sombra, Adventure, Equestria Girls, Violence, Principal Celestia, Crossover, Sex, Sunset Shimmer, Profanity, Gore
Length: 205058

The events of Anon-A-Miss have been brought to a close, and the Wendigos have been vanquished. However, a new battle is about to start, one that will pit light against darkness, and Sunset will have to decide which side will prevail...

Life was better now, Anon-A-Miss was gone, and the Mystery Murders cases were finally closed with the destruction of the Wendigos. However, peace rarely lasts when it comes to Sunset Shimmer and her friends.

A gang war sprouts up in Canterlot City, one that threatens to burn the city to the ground, all at the hands of a man named Sombra King, who wields the primoridal power of The Darkness. Sensing an imbalance, another force awakens, a force of light called The Angelus. The Angelus seeks to bring order to Canterlot City, and end the plague that is the Darkness once and for all.

But, during the course of these battles, Sunset sees that the Angelus might be just as bad as the Darkness. Sunset and the Witchblade will have to summon all their power if they wish to end this war between good and evil, but can it be done without sacrifices? The War of the Trinity has begun!

This is a crossover with the Top Cow comic of the same name, "Witchblade".
All characters - unless otherwise stated in the story - are 18 years old.
Made the popular list 2/10/20. Thanks everyone!
Made the featured list 2/10/20. *bows* I humbly thank you all!

Published 2020-02-10 17:10:02 UTC
Last updated 2020-07-24 16:51:38 UTC

Setting up the Pieces: Part 1

Sunset Shimmer bounced excitedly in the seat of Shining Armor’s car, a giddy grin plastered on her face. Seeing her, Shining Armor was reminded of a kid about to be taken to an amusement park, or Twilight when they took her to the science museum. You see, since things had been settled with regards to the Mystery Murder cases and the Wendigos, Shining Armor thought he’d give her something in return. That something being her choice of vehicle from the police impound lot.

Shining Armor knew that Sunset lamented the loss of her motorcycle, so after talking with Celestia, she agreed that Sunset could get a new one, but she wasn’t exactly thrilled about it being one from a police impound lot, who knew what heinous things were done in some of those vehicles, or with them.

Personally speaking, Sunset didn’t care, she missed her bike, she missed the freedom it gave her, and right now, for all she cared, it could’ve been a bike ridden by a serial killer or a mafia boss, can’t fault the machine, it wasn’t like it could choose who rode it or not.

“And you’re sure this is okay? I thought you guys did like auctions or something?” Sunset inquired.

“Totally, sometimes we get a little overcrowded in there so sometimes we like to either donate or sell them for cheap, or just give them away,” said Shining Armor.

“And you’re sure they have bikes? Like nice ones?”

“I’m not a bike aficionado, but the ones at this lot looked cool to me.”

Sunset’s excitement levels grew when they reached the lot, Shining Armor flashed his badge and they were let through. After speaking with the sergeant in charge of the lot, they were given free reign and told to radio in when they found what they wanted. Sunset felt like a kid in a candy shop, they had a section that was dedicated to all the impounded motorcycles, some were large Harley-Davidson bikes, others were your typical speed types.

The former unicorn looked through a variety of them, mounting different ones as she got a feel for the bike. Since they were practically giving them away, Sunset wanted to make sure she got the right one. After about thirty minutes of searching, Sunset believed she found it, sitting by itself as if the bike sensed her coming and intentionally rolled out to meet her.

“Eeeee! A 2019 Honda Valkyrie 1800!” Sunset ran so fast that she might as well have teleported, because by the time Shining Armor bothered to turn his head, Sunset was gone and already at the bike.

“My last bike was a Honda, but I always like the way these looked, and it’s crimson colored!” Sunset looked the bike up and down, inspecting closely for any dents, missing parts, or broken ones. “And it’s in great shape, too!”

“Suffice to say we found your dream bike?” Shining Armor asked with a grin.

Sunset nodded vigorously.

Shining Armor unhooked the radio from his belt and pressed the “call” button. “Sarge, this is Armor, can you meet us in section 10-A, I think we found what we’re looking for.”

Ten minutes later a tow truck loaded the bike and brought it to the front. Shining Armor and Sunset filled out the necessary paperwork to release it to her, and they were nice enough to fill it with a full tank of gas. Sunset had brought a helmet on the off chance that she’d find something she wanted, and man was she happy she did.

Sunset mounted her new bike and turned it on, she missed the sound of the engine as it roared beneath her, like a steel dragon she had tamed and was going to ride into battle. Sunset twisted the throttle and listened to the roar a few more times before turning to Shining Armor.

“Would it be awkward if I hugged you?”

Shining Armor made a wavy motion with his hand.

“Screw it.” Sunset got off the bike and hugged the man. “Thank you, Shining Armor!”

Shining sighed and patted her on the back. “You’re welcome, but don’t expect me to fix any speeding tickets for you. I don’t want to hear about a girl with flaming hair doing a hundred in a thirty zone.”

Sunset rolled her eyes as she released Shining. “One time, and I wasn’t even caught.”

“Wait, what?”

“Uh…gee, I gotta go and show Pinkie my new ride cool okay thanks bye!” Sunset spouted as she mounted her new steed and took off down the road.

Sunset took the scenic route down the busy roads, enjoying the ride the whole way through. It allowed her time to reflect upon everything that happened, and how things changed drastically in the last three months. Going from bully, to hero, to persona non grata, and then back to hero again.

The mayor of Canterlot City announced that the Mystery Murder cases had officially been closed, and that the effort was thanks in large part to the CCPD and Witchblade. Fluttershy was apparently the descendant of someone who was basically a demi-god, Anon-A-Miss was found out and ended, and Sunset got herself an awesome girlfriend.

The month of February was coming close to an end, with one more week left in the month, and now too long after that, she and the girls would be planning out what they might do. Some had proposed they head to the beach, it was going to be nice weather – or so was predicted by the weather people – so it provided a good opportunity to just head out, do some surfing, work on tans, and barbecue, and just have a good time.

Sunset admitted, the beach did appeal to her. She hadn’t done a lot of swimming back in Equestria, although Princess Celestia did make it a point to have somepony teach her the basics, something that she did more of here in the human world since swimming as a pony and swimming as a human was very different.

Every so often, Sunset would find herself glancing at the bracelet that adorned her right wrist, the Witchblade. It had been instrumental in not only saving her life, but also saving her friends and ending the threat of the Wendigos. Now that they were gone, Sunset wondered what else she was to do with it? What was her purpose in this world?

}}} Those who bear me are destined for great things, Sunset Shimmer. {{{

That I believe. But, I’m also wondering what I want to do in this life. I mean, back in Equestria, I knew what my destiny was. But here, you’re kind of like a Blank Flank, free to try and do all kinds of things, and see where they take you. But…it’s also plagued with anxieties too. A cutie mark gives you a sense of security, letting you know what you are meant to do.

}}} I can see that, but I also know that you are not just strong, but brilliant, and together, there’s nothing we can’t achieve. {{{

Sunset smiled and continued her drive, heading towards Pinkie Pie’s home. When she first saw the place, Sunset thought she had the wrong address, as the house looked so drab and plain that Sunset didn’t think that this place could be Pinkie’s home. In the end, she was proven wrong. Pinkie’s mother and father, Cloudy Quartz Pie and Igneous Feldspar Pie, were once of the Amish faith, but when they got older, they broke away from that life.

They raised their family in the city, but kept to some of their teachings, knowing that the world wasn’t as black and white as some faiths had it. The hole that Sunset had made when she fought against the Wendigo that tried to molest and kill Pinkie, was pretty much fixed now, you could barely tell that it was once damaged at all.

The former unicorn pulled up to the sidewalk and parked, taking off her helmet, Sunset walked up and stood at the porch. She rang the doorbell and waited for someone to answer. The one who answered was one of the Pie sisters, Sunset learned quickly that Pinkie was one of four sisters, she had met Maud Pie, the second oldest, the youngest after Pinkie was Marble Pie.

The one who answered was Limestone Pie, the oldest of the Pie Sisters. She was a tomboy, and rough around the edges. She had short cut silver hair, a bluish-gray complexion, and piercing, lime colored eyes. She wore a loose fitting t-shirt that hung off her body, allowing her shoulders and collar bone to be seen. Below that she wore black boy shorts and no shoes. Size wise she was head smaller than Sunset, her eyes on level with her nose, but she was twenty-years-old, and despite her size, she was a strong and tough girl.

“Oh, it’s you,” said Lime.

“Y-Yeah, it’s me…is Pinkie home?” Sunset asked politely.

Limestone scanned Sunset up and down, she then turned her head and said, “Pinkie, your dyke girlfriend is at the door!”

Sunset’s left eye twitched, for some reason, Limestone did not like her very much. They went to different schools, Maud and Pinkie went to CHS, with Maud graduating last year. Marble was at CHS but as as sophmore, and Limestone was currently in college. Sunset’s reputation preceded her, having gone up through even the graduating seniors that she was not a nice person, but surely they knew she wasn’t like that anymore. Either that or Limestone just did not like her, and for some reason seemed offended that her sister was dating a girl.

Maud had somehow, stealthily, appeared behind Limestone and smacked upside the head.

“OW! Son of a bitch, that hurt, Maud!” Lime stated.

“Don’t call other people names, Lime. You’re basically insulting Pinkie when you say that,” said Maud in her monotone, but if one listened closely, they could hear a bit of irritation.

Lime glanced to Sunset and then frowned. “Not our fault she’s gay, she could’ve fallen for that rainbow haired chick – I kinda like her! But no, of all the gay girls in the city, she had to fall for the bitch queen of CHS – OW!”

Maud smacked her again, this time enough to make her stumble a bit. “I said to watch your language. Go upstairs.” The way Maud spoke, it was more of an order than a request. Lime grumbled and walked upstairs. “I apologize for my big sister, she’s protective of Pinkie. Come in.”

Sunset walked in and Maud closed the door. “I understand, you protect your family……How do your parents feel about it?”

Maud led them to the living room where they sat. “Pinkie’s always been the oddball in the family, I like to think that we represent extremes. Marble, shyness. Lime, aggressiveness. Pinkie, happiness. And me, I’m a riot.”

Sunset had to bite the inside of her lip to keep from laughing.

“But, in a way, we knew that Pinkie wasn’t one to be hindered by gender when it came to love. If she loved someone, it wouldn’t be because they were a boy or a girl, but whether they made her happy or not. So, just focus on making my sister happy.”

Sunset kind of worried about that, she didn’t want to cause a rift in Pinkie’s family. Both Maud and Sunset turned when they heard footsteps coming down the stairs, Pinkie hopped the last one and flashed them a bright smile.

“Sunset!” Pinkie greeted.

Sunset stood up and the pink bundle of energy zipped across the room, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend in yet another of her bone crushing hugs. After a few seconds, Pinkie released her and asked, “What brings you here?”

“Well, I finally got a new bike!” Sunset announced happily.

Pinkie gasped as she placed her hands against her cheeks. “Seriously?! I know your last one got totaled and that you’ve been wanting a new one since! Ooh, I hope it didn’t cost too much…”

Sunset shook her head. “Nah, I got it for a steal from a police impound lot!” Sunset realized how that sounded, she then glanced at Maud who arched an eyebrow. “Not that I stole it from a impound lot! Shining Armor said he’d help replace my bike with one from the impound lot!”

“You seem chummy with that police detective.” Maud mused.

Pinkie and Sunset chuckled nervously.

“Uh, well, you know, he’s helped out a lot! What with Pinkie’s case, Anon-A-Miss, you know, stuff like that!” Sunset explained.

“Y-Yeah! Plus, he’s super nice! I mean, he’s looked out for us since those monsters showed up!” Pinkie added.

Maud slowly nodded. “So long as you’re not having an affair with him. I’m fine with it.”

Sunset moved closer to Pinkie, wrapping her arm around the party planner’s waist as she brought her closer. “Trust me, that you don’t have to worry about that.”

Pinkie blushed.

A ghost of a smile formed on Maud’s face.

“So, I was wondering if you were up for a ride? I wanted to take to you to a shop so we can pick you out a helmet?” Sunset asked.

Pinkie Pie squealed with delight at the idea. “Yes!”

“Be careful while you drive there.”

Sunset nodded.

Both Sunset and Pinkie walked out of the house, while Maud made her way upstairs. She stopped before the door to her little sister’s room and let herself in. Limestone was at the window, she shared a room with Marble, but right now she was out with their parents running errands. Limestone was seated at her window, looking down at the front of the house as Pinkie and Sunset strolled towards Sunset’s bike. Pinkie zipped to the new vehicle and seemed to be talking excitedly about as Sunset chuckled.

Limestone didn’t even bother to look to see who it was as she said, “Ya ever heard of knocking?”

“Pinkie’s too nice to say this, but I’m not. Don’t insult her girlfriend like that.”

“Not like I’m lying,” Lime shot back.

“No, but you are lying to yourself.”

Limestone looked away from the scene down below and growled as she turned towards her little sister. “The fuck you say?!”

“You’re lying to yourself, Lime. You’re angry at your sister because she can more openly express how she feels. For Pinkie, gender never mattered, so long as the person she’s with makes her happy, she’s attracted to them. But, you, you’re unhappy because you feel you must maintain this hard as granite persona, when really, you’re softer than talc on the inside.”

Lime growled louder, her face turning red as she got up, cocked back her fist, and thrust it towards Maud. The second oldest Pie sister easily caught her smaller sister’s fist, Limestone kept pushing forward, trying to connect her punch to Maud’s face rather than using her other fist. Maud had always been freakishly strong, a fact that annoyed Limestone to no end.

“I’m not gay!” Limestone asserted. “And I just don’t like Sunset Shimmer! She’s the one who messed with Pinkie back in the day, and we’re just going to forget all about that and accept she’s changed?!”

Maud tightened her grip on Limestone’s fist, the pain that radiated from her grip made Limestone buckle. “I may not have been there to see all of it, but Anon-A-Miss tortured the school, tortured Sunset Shimmer and hurt Pinkie Pie. She was miserable when Pinkie Pie realized she abandoned Sunset when her friend needed help the most. I won’t say Sunset Shimmer’s a saint, but she’s trying to be a better person, and if there’s anyone who can make sure that that stays true, it’s Pinkie.”

Maud released Lime’s fist, Limestone backed away and massaged her sore hand and glared a little at Maud.

“And try not to stare at Sunset too much, I know she’s attractive, but it’s not right to lust after your little sister’s girlfriend.” Maud warned.

“Shut up…”

Maud nodded and left the room. Limestone walked back to her window and watched as Sunset and Pinkie mounted the bike, she had to admit, it was a nice bike. She then watched them pull away and drive down the road. Lime didn’t want to admit it…but she was, she was gay, she liked girls, but even she knew that her abrasive personality was a turn off, but Sunset, Sunset looked to be just the right amount of badass and loving at the same time. When she first saw her, Limestone felt a twinge of attraction towards her. The Anon-A-Miss fiasco kind of turned her off, but at the same time made her more attractive to her. Now, her big sister got her.

Not like you had a chance, you were too chickenshit to even try and ask her out, Lime thought. She did look hot on that bike, though…

Young Blood sat among his lieutenants, he hadn’t spoken much about what happened on the night of the sit down two days ago, but since then, the Russian mob and Italian mob groups that were trying to muscle in on Canterlot were being hit and hit hard. It was no mystery to Young Blood who was behind it, Sombra King. The power he displayed at the sit down, the savage brutality of his actions, the disturbing power her wielded, there was no way it wasn’t him.

The leader of the Blood Pack, Canterlot City’s local gang, informed his lieutenants of the events of the sit down, all of them looked at him as if he were crazy, and quite frankly he didn’t care, he knew what he saw, what he felt. He glanced about the room, a dingy little apartment, the manager of the place was on the take, and thanks to that they could use any room in the building to conduct a meeting in. It wasn’t the Ritz, the drywall was cracked, the carpet was shabby, and of course there was a musty smell of the place. To Young’s left there were four lieutenants, two men, and two women, and to his right, another four, all guys.

Young Blood sighed heavily and said, “We’re going to team up with ‘em.”

“Are you serious?!” one asked.

“Dead serious. ‘Cause that’s what we’re going to be if we don’t!” Young stated.

“Look, Blood, I know shit’s been weird around here lately, but that shit’s over! Those monsters haven’t shown up in three weeks now!” a female lieutenant said.

“This ain’t up for discussion, we formed the Blood Pack to drive out those bastards from our city, and in less than forty-eight hours, this guy’s hit them harder than we ever have, and if we’re not careful, he’ll do the same to us.”

“Right you are gov’ner!”

Everyone in the room shot straight up, guns drawn.

“Now, now, there ain’t no need for guns. Could ya be a chap and turn off some of the lights though?”

Everyone looked at each other wearily.

“C’mon ya bloody wankers, I ain’t got all night!”

Young Blood moved towards the light switches, turning off all but the one in the kitchen, giving them some light. Upon doing so, the shadows began to move around the couch, within a few seconds, a creature appeared, kicking back and smiling, toothily, at them. The creature hopped off the couch and walked over towards the group, all of them backed away and pointed their guns at it.

The creature black with gray veins around its body, a long nose, sharp teeth, long, sharp nails, and beady, glowing yellow eyes. The creature wore a tank top shirt emblazoned with the Union Jack flag, and a pair of grimy looking shorts. The creature hopped up and landed on the table.

“What…What are you?” Young asked.

“Somethin’ that ya don’t want to know too much about. Anyway, I was hearin’ you wanted to partner with Mr. King?”

Young Blood nodded. “Yes, you work for him?”

The creature gave him a deadpan look. “Really? I just appeared out of the shadows, and ya can’t figure that out?” The others looked nervous, but then the creature laughed. “Ah, just messin’ with ya!”

“O-Oh, cool…so, can you send a message to Mr. King? We want a meeting with him,” said Young.

The creature smiled knowingly. “Oh, you don’t ‘ave to worry ‘bout that, Mr. King already knows. In fact, he wants to meet with ‘cha. Right now.”

Young Blood straightened up. “Good, where?”

“Naw, gov’ner, I mean right here, right now.” A knock came at the door and Young Blood’s crew pointed their guns in that direction. “Well, go on then, answer it! Oh, and I’d put those away if I were you, else you’ll be haven those pieces shoved down ye throats or up your arses!”

Young Blood made a motion for his lieutenants to put their guns away. Reluctantly, they did as he said. The leader of the Blood Pack walked towards the front door, steeled himself, and then opened it. Just as the creature said, Sombra King was standing there. It took all that Young Blood had to not run, even without seeing his power, he could feel an air of intimidation around him, he was a killer, a true killer.

“Thanks for seeing me,” said Sombra.

“No problem, Mr. King.”

Young Blood stepped out of the way and walked in. Once inside, Sombra took stock of the eight others in the room, nodding to each of them. He then looked at the creature and asked, “Ya behave yourself?”

“As well behaved as I can be with this lot, had them scared shitless when I appeared!”

Sombra made a motion for the creature to get off, to which it did. Sombra pulled up an extra chair and motioned for everyone to set back down. Young Blood and his lieutenants did as he asked and waited to hear what Sombra had to say.

“If you join with me, you have to abide by these three rules: Respect, Honor, and Loyalty. Can anyone tell me which of these deserves the highest punishment?” Sombra asked.

The group glanced amongst each other as if silently discussing, after a minute, one of the male lieutenants said, “Loyalty?”

“You’re one-third right. The answer is, all of ‘em. Disloyalty begets disrespect, and disrespect begets dishonor. They all go hand-in-hand, break one and you’ve broken all three, so, the answer is: all of the ‘em deserve severe punishment. Tell me somethin’, what do you guys mostly sell and do?”

“Guns, drugs, that sort of thing,” said one of the female lieutenants.

“No pimpin’?” Sombra asked.

Young Blood furrowed his brow. “I got two little sisters, and a girlfriend. I don’t want to think about putting someone as young as them into that shit, but those mobsters have no problem with it. And that’s part of the reason we want them out.”

Sombra nodded in understanding. “I get it, I do. That’s good that you do that, ya have standards, I respect that, and I’ll honor that.” Sombra crossed his arms and looked each member in the eye. “As of today, you’re not the Blood Pack anymore, you’re the Blood Kings. You and I, Young Blood, we’re runnin’ this together. You want these other guys out, and I want to rule the city.”

“What are you suggesting?” Young Blood asked.

“We hit the Russians, hard, fast, and make it showy. I know where they’re shored up. I was plannin’ on attacking them myself,” said Sombra.

“Hit them?! All of ‘em?! You’ll get slaughtered! We’re big, but there’s a reason we don’t hit them head on! They got more firepower around their compound!”

Sombra smiled, at that moment, tendrils began to appear from behind his back, along with two larger ones that had snapping jaws and red glowing eyes. “I think I can manage.”

Celestia rested in a queen sized bed, the silken sheets caressing her naked body. The room she was in was a familiar one, it was the room of her lover, Maria Mare. It was a spacious room, with warm, mahogany wood walls, and a velvet red carpet. There was a bookshelf across from the bed that was built into the wall, and behind it a panic room. Maria had told her this just in case anything happened, she never believed anyone would be stupid enough to attack the Mayor’s Mansion, her private security wasn’t anything to sneeze at.

She and Maria had been on a date earlier that afternoon, and then somehow she let herself get talked into coming to the Mayor’s Mansion, and then one thing led to another and Celestia found herself having sex with her.

It wasn’t like this was the first time they had done it, in the year and a half that they had secretly been together, they’ve slept together at least a dozen or more times. However…Celestia couldn’t say that they were making love, there was affection between them, but…Celestia wasn’t sure if love was part of it.

Celestia glanced over her shoulder and looked upon the woman she slept with. Despite being seven years her senior, Maria was still a beautiful woman, she was physically fit, her arms had lean muscle to match her legs, her breasts were full and firm, all and all, she was quite a catch. Celestia winced a little when she looked at her left shoulder and noticed a “love” bite.

At least she remembered to do it someplace that I can cover up, she thought.

Celestia remembered, back when she was in college, it was then when she first met Maria Mare. She was running for mayor at the time, Celestia was moved by her words and actions, so moved that she joined the mayor’s campaign staff. She immediately made an impression on Maria, so much so that they became friends. That friendship would eventually blossom into infatuation, but Celestia never acted on it, and she was never sure of Maria’s orientation.

Years later, they still kept in contact with each other. On the day that she found Sunset Shimmer, Celestia knew that she needed to help this girl, it was as if a voice inside her was telling her that Sunset needed her. Celestia had asked Maria to look into Sunset’s identity, but could find nothing, not a trace of Sunset could be found anywhere in the city’s database.

Celestia didn’t want to have Sunset be thrown into the foster care system, when their parents died, Celestia and Luna were in it for a while until Celestia was old enough to take up responsibility. She asked Maria for help, practically begging her to find a way so that Sunset wouldn’t go through that and be under her care.

It was on that day that the deal was struck. Maria would use her power to forge Sunset some documents, good enough that no one would be able to tell that they were fake. The payment? Celestia was to be her secret lover. In truth, Celestia didn’t mind that arrangement, she still carried a torch for Maria.

For a while their relationship was fun, but then Celestia started to see how…aggressive Maria was. Maria never struck Celestia, but she was very domineering, almost controlling. For nearly four years their relationship stayed like this, and, to a degree, Celestia didn’t mind. Part of her craved to be controlled, she had always been the one to make all the decisions, all the hard choices, both as a big sister and as a principal. It just felt…nice to not be in control.

However, Celestia knew that that wasn’t a healthy relationship. She envied what Sunset and Pinkie had, although it was a new relationship, Celestia could tell that the two of them would be happy together. Which begged the question, was she happy?

Celestia thought she was happy. The school principal reached over to the nightstand and picked up her phone to check the time, it was eight ‘o clock. Celestia turned around and lightly shook Maria’s arm.

“Maria, I need to head back home, I got school tomorrow.”

Maria stirred awake and turned on her side to face Celestia. “When you say stuff like that, it makes me feel like I just sleep with a high schooler. Perhaps next time I should find a cute uniform for you to wear? Maybe a cheerleader?”

Celestia blushed. “Don’t start that, Maria.”

Maria smirked and laid back. “I’ll have them bring the car around and drive you back.” Maria played with a lock of her hair and grimaced a little when she saw patches of pink. “Guess I’ll need to have another dye job done.”

Celestia removed the blanket and started collecting her clothes to put back on. “I don’t get why you dyed it gray? Your hair color’s cute.”

Maria smiled. “Thank you, but, the people of the city trust the image of a refined older woman of power. Besides, no one’s going to take me seriously when I have neon pink hair, it was great when I was in high school and college, but now, no.”

Celestia shrugged, politics were always messy and confusing, not that Celestia was a stranger to it herself, having gone to many a school district meeting regarding budgets and the like.

“I was thinking, Celly, maybe it’s time we took this public,” said Maria.

Celestia stopped partway through putting on her clothes as she snapped her head in Maria’s direction with a shocked expression. “R-Really?”

Maria nodded.

“I…I don’t know what to say…what brought this on?”

“The shallow reason, elections are coming up, and I’m looking to score some points in the LGBTQ community by finally coming out of the closet.”

Celestia had a downcast look on her face as she turned away. “Oh…I see.”

Maria smirked, she got up from the bed and crawled her way over to Celestia. She then hugged her lover from behind and nuzzled her cheek against Celestia’s. “And because I’m kind of tired of the secrecy, I’d much rather show people how much I love you.”

Celestia shuddered when Maria switched from nuzzling and began kissing her gently on the nape of her neck, her kisses continued until she stopped around the bite mark she left. Celestia glanced at Maria and saw a look of contempt.

“It’s not that bad,” said Celestia.

“I don’t like that part of myself…getting too worked up and hurting you…”

“I know you don’t mean it,” said Celestia.

Maria leaned down and gently kissed the bite mark, she then moved up and gently kissed Celestia, the principal returned it, adding a bit of tongue as she did. A few more seconds and Celestia would find herself kicking off her pants and underwear again, but she had responsibilities, she had to go or Luna would start to worry. Celestia finished getting dressed and flashed a smile at her lover before leaving the room.

\\/// You don’t need her, she’s only using you. \\///

Please be quiet, I don’t want to hear you right now. As if there wasn’t enough going on in her life, now there was a voice in her head. Before it was like a whisper in the back of her head, more recently, it’s become a lot louder, to the point that it was as if someone was right next to her.

\\/// You know it, I know it. She says she loves you, but I can feel it. Her words are devoid of love, lust perhaps, but love? Don’t act as if you haven’t already thought it true. \\///

………Things can change.

\\/// Well, I will agree with you there. Things will change, and you’ll have to make a decision soon. \\///

Celestia stopped on the stairs. What kind of decision?

\\/// Which is more important to you, the love you think you feel for this woman, or the love you know you feel for your sister and Sunset. \\///

Setting up the Pieces: Part 2

Twilight awoke that Monday morning with trepidation. Last Friday, she met the girl who had been shot and survived, the girl whom she thought she failed, Sunset Shimmer. But something didn’t make sense, Twilight had called Shining Armor to inquire on Sunset Shimmer, he said she was doing great and that he helped her get a new motorcycle. He also confirmed that Sunset Shimmer was still attending CHS.

So who are you…?

Twilight contemplated this as she rose up and got changed. She was a smart girl, although that was an understatement, she was also very curious, especially when there was a mystery set before her. Like the mysterious energy signatures, and now, the appearance of this other Sunset Shimmer.

Although, Twilight mused, that’s not to say that the Sunset that Shining knows is in fact the original. But they could also be twins…no, that wouldn’t be right, who would give two identical twins the same exact name? Not even the laziest of parents are that inept.

Once Twilight was done changing, playing a little with Spike, and eating breakfast, she made her way outside and waited for her rideshare to arrive. Her parents offered to drive her several times, but Twilight said that that was unnecessary, she didn’t want to bother them with having to shuttle her to and from school. If all else failed at the end of the day, she’d just ask Cadence for a ride home.

Once her ride arrived, Twilight got in and was taken to Crystal Prep. The whole ride was filled with silence as Twilight gazed out the window and continued to think about the prospect of two Sunset Shimmers. Another theory that popped into her head was the existence of parallel dimensions, the “multiverse theory”. Being a fan of Sci-Fi and anime, the multiverse theory is a widely popular theory, used in entertainment media either as the main plot point or as a convenient plot twist. There are those in the scientific community that believe in it, and have gone through great lengths to prove it.

Twilight hoped to be the one to make the discovery, one day.

Soon, albeit too soon for Twilight’s tastes, she arrived at CPA. It wouldn’t be much longer before she graduated and said goodbye to the school and the people in it. She told herself she just needed to survive a few more months and then it would be over. With a sigh, she thanked the driver and exited.

Twilight made her long walk down the quad and into the viper pit. The moment she entered, Twilight could feel the oppressive aura push down on her, feeling the eyes of her fellow students falling onto her, as if they were wolves who had just smelt fresh meat being thrown to them. Twilight hugged her books tight to her chest and made herself as small as possible as she prepared to make her through the hall.

“Hey, Sparky!”

Twilight froze and then arched her eyebrow in confusion. “Sparky”? Twilight turned to her left and watched as Sunset Shimmer came walking towards her. She had a confident smile on her face, Twilight wished she could smile like that, but she had to admit, it made her feel better seeing it.

Sunset stood before Twilight and raised her right hand for a high-five, but the moment she did, Twilight flinched and brought up her books to act like a makeshift shield. Sunset’s smile faded upon seeing this and instead was filled with concern.

“Whoa…Sparky, you alright? I-I’m not going to hurt you,” said Sunset.

Twilight realized what she had done and cursed herself, it was just a reflex, but one that she couldn’t stop from happening. “N-No, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to react that way.”

Sunset’s brow furrowed a little. “Has someone hurt you?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, no, it’s nothing, really! I got hit in the face with a softball a long time ago, so I’m a little skittish whenever someone looks like they’re going to throw something my way.” God that was such a lame excuse! Could that be anymore flimsy?!

Sunset studied her a moment, her serious expression faded a little, but Twilight could tell that she wasn’t convinced. “Alright, if you say so.”

The two girls walked side by side down the hall, Sunset walked a little out in front like she did last Friday, acting like a shield to make the other students not shoulder check Twilight or make her stumble. Twilight admitted, she very much appreciated that, but she didn’t know why Sunset was doing it? What was her angle?

“Um, Sunset Shimmer?”

“You don’t have to say my whole name,” Sunset chuckled, “just call me Sunset, Sparky.”

“Okay, um, why do you call me ‘Sparky’?” Twilight asked.

Sunset sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. “Oh, sorry, I kind of have a habit of giving nicknames to people I like. I can stop if you want?”

For some reason, Twilight didn’t want her to. “No, that’s alright, you can call me Sparky, Sunset.”

Sunset smiled and they continued their walk.

“So, do you by chance have any siblings?” Twilight inquired.

“Nope, only child. You?” Sunset asked.

“I have a BBBFF.”

Sunset stopped walking and looked at her with confusion. “What now?”

Twilight blushed. “It stands for Big Brother Best Friend Forever…I-I know it sounds corny and…”

“Nah, I like it, it’s cute! So I guess you really like your bro?”

Twilight nodded excitedly. “He’s the best, he’s a detective with the CCPD homicide division!”

“No shit? That’s hardcore! You see any of his cases?” Sunset asked

Twilight blew a raspberry. “No, despite my offering to help him with his cases, but he always says ‘I don’t want you having nightmares about these things, Twily.’”

Sunset chuckled. “Geez, but it’s probably for the best, the shit he sees must be gruesome. Didn’t you guys have those Mystery Murders not too long ago?”

Twilight nodded. “Yes, he was working those cases, but they’re closed now, or so he’s told me.”

Sunset put her hands behind her back as they continued their stroll down the hall. “That’s good, I didn’t want to move to a new town just to find out it’s infested with demons.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “I don’t think it’s ‘demons’, perhaps some variant of a virus that causes mutation, maybe.”

“So you thinkin’ like mad cow disease or rabies? Both have been cited to be the catalysts to a potential zombie virus, or some variant of it,” said Sunset.

“Perhaps, but if Suri Polomare was anything to go off of, she seemed to have full cognition, completely aware of her actions, she was even carrying on a coherent rant. So perhaps–!” Twilight cut herself off. “I-I’m sorry, I was about to go into a long rant myself…”

Sunset grinned and the playfully flicked Twilight between the eyes, Twilight yelped a rubbed the spot she hit. “Don’t apologize for being a brain, I’m kind of one myself. It’s going to be nice having someone who can keep up with me.”

Despite the small stinging sensation, Twilight smiled.

“My locker’s down there, I’ll walk with you to yours,” said Sunset.

Twilight shook her head. “No, no, you don’t have to. I’ll be fine, just go on ahead and I’ll meet you there.”

Sunset shrugged and then nodded as she went on to her locker. Twilight took a breath and opened her locker, for some reason, she felt more tense when Sunset wasn’t around. She knew she should know better, Sunset may be acting friendly now, but Crystal Prep has a way of snuffing out that attitude quickly and without mercy. Soon enough, Sunset Shimmer would find some group of kids she wanted to be part of, and would subsequently do something to her that gets Sunset in their good graces. Twilight hated to be so cynical about it, but it was the truth she learned in these halls.

As Twilight finished changing out her books, she pulled away and her locker door slammed shut, making her yelp as she jumped back a bit. Standing next to her locker was Indigo Zap, Twilight tensed up even more, not only was Indigo very handsy, she was also physically far stronger than Twilight.

“Hey, Sparkle,” said Indigo.

“H-Hey…”

“Still helping out that new girl?”

Twilight nodded.

“So, you say something to her about not wanting me to show her around?” Indigo asked.

Twilight shook her head vigorously. “N-N-No! I-I didn’t! She surprised me as much as she did you!”

“Uh-huh, you looked real chummy back there.” Indigo began to circle Twilight, forcing Twilight to have her back against the locker. “You know that girl?”

“I swear, I don’t! She’s just…nice.” Twilight confessed.

“Ha! ‘Nice’, yeah, no one acts ‘nice’ unless they want something. What could she want from you?” Indigo moved forward and placed her hand against Twilight’s locker, just a few inches away from the left side of her head and leaned forward. “It better not be something I’ve already staked my claim on?”

Twilight trembled, she knew better than to struggle against Indigo, it was better to let her do what she wanted and walk away like nothing ever happened.

“Sparky!”

Sunset?

Twilight looked to her left at the same time as Indigo, Sunset came walking towards them, a confident strut in her step as if she was the queen or an unstoppable force waiting to be challenged by an unmovable object.

“Am I interrupting something?” Sunset asked.

“Nah, just a little talk between pals,” said Indigo. “I’ll see you around, Sparkle.”

Indigo moved away from Twilight, she then moved closer and shoulder checked Sunset as she whispered, “She’s mine bitch.” and walked on. Twilight watched as Sunset glared at Indigo Zap, and for a moment, she swore she saw a flicker of flames in her eyes.

Sunset’s glare faded when she looked at Twilight. “Are you alright?”

“I…I’m fine, it’s nothing.”

“That didn’t look like nothing. If she’s your girlfriend I’ll back off, I didn’t mean to intrude on you guys,” said Sunset.

Twilight hugged her books closer to her chest. “She’s not my girlfriend. I’ve never had one, or know if I’m attracted to girls, I’ve certainly never had any boys look at me with interest and – WHY AM I TELLING YOU THIS?!” Twilight clamped her mouth shut, red in the face at how she just rambled on like that.

Sunset chuckled at Twilight’s embarrassment. “Well, it’s their loss, ‘cause you’re pretty cute Sparky.”

Twilight blushed harder. Cute? Me?

“C’mon, class is about to start.”

Twilight couldn’t pay much attention to her teachers’ words – not like she needed to – if she was ever called on to answer a question she was able to answer it without any problem. A fact that annoyed her teachers and fellow students alike. Twilight never understood why? Just because she was thinking of something else, didn’t mean she wasn’t listening, and she often read ahead of the class to make sure she’d be able to answer any of the teacher’s questions. She was just being a prepared, good student. What was wrong with that? It was almost as if the teachers wanted her to flub up and not know the answer, just to make an example out of the student.

At this point it was becoming something like a game to them, “Who could trip up Twilight Sparkle, and make her look like a fool in front of the class?” That was fine, there were other students who were like that, but Twilight wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction of letting herself be one of them.

But that wasn’t important. What was important was Sunset Shimmer, Shining Armor never told her that Sunset was going to be transferring to Crystal Prep, she was very certain that he’d say something to her about that given that she helped with her case.

For all the good I did…she still ended up getting hurt because I wasn’t smart enough to get around another hacker…

Despite having been told by her big brother that it wasn’t her fault, Twilight couldn’t help but feel some level of guilt over it. Perhaps, even though the Anon-A-Miss thing was over, the events had caused too much damage for Sunset to stay at CHS and forced her to change schools?

There’s really only one way to do this. I have to ask her, I still feel guilty about it, and if there’s any way for me to ask for forgiveness, this would be my chance.

Twilight decided then that she’d confront Sunset Shimmer around lunch time and tell her she was sorry for what happened to her. She wasn’t sure if Shining Armor told her that it was her who helped with phone hacking, but either way, she was going to do it.

A couple of hours passed and lunch time finally arrived, luckily, Sunset had the same time as her, so she was able to have Sunset come with her. Twilight had been sitting alone for a while, so much so that she found a nice little spot where no one would bother her or eavesdrop

Once seated, Twilight would pick at her food, sparing a glance at Sunset once and a while.

“Penny for your thoughts, Sparky?”

Twilight tensed. “Uh, sorry?”

Sunset turned to Twilight and rested her chin in her upturned palm. “You look like you got something on your mind. You can tell me.”

Twilight sighed heavily, there was no putting this off any longer. The brainy girl turned and faced Sunset and then said, “Sunset Shimmer, I’m sorry. I was the one who helped Shining Armor when you asked for help to look into you and your friend’s phones getting hacked. I was also helping him look into Anon-A-Miss.” At this point, Twilight’s eyes started to water. “I tried my hardest to try and take down that webpage, but I just couldn’t…and you got hurt…got shot because of that! I…I know I didn’t pull the trigger, but I still feel responsible for not taking it down sooner to prevent that! I just want you to know how sorry I am!”

Sunset looked genuinely concerned by Twilight’s crying, she turned fully to Twilight and removed her glasses. She then gave Twilight a napkin to wipe her tears and clear her nose. After a minute, Sunset gave Twilight her glasses back and looked her in the eyes.

“Sparky…I…I really hate to say this after all that…but, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Twilight felt as if the world came to a grinding halt. “S’cuse me?”

Sunset rubbed the back of her head as she said, “I really don’t know what you’re talking about. ‘Anon-A-Miss’, ‘Shining Armor’, and what’s all this about me getting shot?”

Twilight began to stammer, she couldn’t have been mistaken, she looked exactly like the photo Shining showed her. The news didn’t show a picture of Sunset, but they did drop her name more than once. Twilight had impeccable memory recall, an eidetic memory – or photographic memory as it was commonly called.

“Sparky, are you alright?”

Twilight brought up her phone and searched the news report on the shooting. When she found it, Twilight played the video clip and let Sunset look and listen. Twilight noticed Sunset’s brow furrowing and then she arched an eyebrow.

“That’s what I’m talking about!” Twilight stated.

Sunset handed Twilight back her phone and said, “Sparky, I don’t know what to say, but…I’ve been out of the country for at least two weeks. The week after that was spent moving to Canterlot City and getting my stuff set up here at CPA. I’ve never been to Canterlot High School. But, I will admit, I did hear my name said several times, it could be an error?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, I know it’s you! My brother showed me a picture of you! He was helping you with this!”

“Why would your brother have a picture of me? Am I being stalked?” Sunset asked.

“No! Like I said, he is a detective with the CCPD! You were involved in some cases due to some unforeseen circumstances and he’s protected you!”

Sunset nodded and smirked. “Hmm, I never did ask, is he cute?”

Twilight blushed. “He’s in a relationship.”

Sunset snapped her fingers. “Shoot, that’s my luck.”

Twilight groaned as she rubbed her temples. “Please be serious! There’s something wrong here! Either you’re purposefully lying to me so that you don’t have to relive that trauma – which I can respect and if that’s the case I’ll stop talking about it – or…or…”

“Or there’s another me walking around out there.” Sunset finished. “Is that what you were going to say?”

Twilight didn’t want to completely delve into that theory, but right now there wasn’t much she could go off of. She had already been detecting strange energy readings coming from CHS, and during that hellish blizzard, the readings were near off the charts. Was it possible that there was a connection between the two?

“You’re thinking about something, what is it?” Sunset asked.

“It’s…It’s complicated, it’s also a side project I’ve been working on and I don’t want to come off as sounding…weird.”

Sunset placed a hand on her hip. “You mean weirder than people turning into monsters? Weirder than a bikini armored demon slayer? Or weirder than the possibility that I might have a doppelganger walking around?”

Twilight needed answers, she hated not knowing something, but contrarily, she liked it. The prospect of learning something new and exciting, something strange and possibly groundbreaking, it was like a drug that Twilight couldn’t get enough of.

“Wanna go to CHS and look around?” Sunset suggested.

Twilight fidgeted, like a child who knew the right answer was no, but their body said otherwise. “My brother said that it wasn’t a good idea right now, they’re still getting over what happened, and if there is another Sunset Shimmer there, then that could be bad for you if someone recognizes you.”

“What’s an investigation without a little danger?” Sunset asked.

Twilight couldn’t argue that too much, some scientific investigations had some degree of danger. “Okay…let’s go, today if possible.”

Sunset smirked widened. “Sweet, a little covert ops science investigation. I like it. Text me your address and I’ll pick you up.”

Twilight blushed. “Pick me up?”

“Do you drive?”

“N-No.”

“Then I’ll pick you up. By the way, what size helmet do you wear?”

“……Excuse me?”

Sunset Shimmer was loving Monday, which was weird because she normally hated Mondays, but she didn’t care, it was great. She rode to school on her new motorcycle and loved every second of it. Celestia had lamented a little about not being able to drive her to school anymore, but her guardian was happy that Sunset had a mode of transportation again.

Her ride with Pinkie on Saturday was very enjoyable, taking Pinkie helmet shopping was a bit of a hassle, as her hyperactive girlfriend wouldn’t sit still for too long and would try on every strange looking helmet that she came across. Not that Sunset didn’t like it, she wouldn’t have it any other way when it came to Pinkie Pie.

School had gotten back to a relative sense of normalcy. Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo were still suspended for the next two months from school, and even when they came back they were going to spend another three months in detention, even though that would run into Summer Vacation, their detention sentence would continue into the new school year.

Sunset wished she’d still be here, but the end of this year marked the end of her high school career, then it was off to college. She wanted to stay and help the girls as there was no doubt that those three were going to have hell to pay when they were back with the students, some of whom would still be there long after Sunset and her friends were gone.

In the sparse amount of time that she and Pinkie had seen the younger of their friends, Pinkie showed that she still hadn’t forgiven them for what they did. Yes, Sunset wasn’t dead, but the point was that something like what happened could’ve happened even without the Wendigos. And if Sunset did not possess the Witchblade, she would’ve died plain and simple, for that fact, Pinkie couldn’t forgive them, or at least not yet.

Throughout the past three weeks, and now into the fourth week, the students were still extremely apologetic towards Sunset. Each one offering some form of apology or the other, during this time she had been advocating forgiveness on the CMC’s behalf, and although many seemed reluctant, Sunset prayed that the mere act of showing that she forgave them was enough to sway the others into at least being open to it.

As the days passed, and even today, Sunset wondered what exactly she wanted to do in her life. Her cutie mark defined her as being adept in magic, much like Princess Twilight. But, here, magic was…scarce, not gone, apparently, but scarce. Sunset wondered even more what she was to do with the Witchblade. She thought that it had appeared just to help her take down the Wendigos, but something told her that the Witchblade wasn’t that simple, if anything, it seemed like she was stuck with it for life. Something that Sunset didn’t dislike in the least bit.

The school was abuzz with talks of the upcoming Friendship Games, and that Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna were already making a list of potential candidates for the twelve slots of the team. Sunset never saw much point in the whole “high school rivalry” thing, but she could understand not wanting to lose.

The day ran by swiftly as Sunset soon found herself at the end of the school day. Before the Anon-A-Miss fiasco, when she was trying to be a better person and looking for a way to get out her frustration, Sunset had joined the Fencing Club, and found she was pretty good with a sword. Naturally, However, when the fiasco started, she was banned from the club, but of course they reversed that decision shortly after it was over.

Currently, Sunset was standing in a designated lane, with six members of the Fencing Club on one side, and another six on the opposite side. Her opponent was feet away from her, left hand behind her back, and her flail pointed at Sunset.

Sunset narrowed her gaze as she assumed the same stance, steadying her breath as readied to attack. Underneath the faceguard, her opponent, Cloud Kicker, did the same, both holding their positions and looking for the slightest hint of movement. Cloud saw a slight twitch of Sunset’s hand and lunged forward with her flail.

Sunset parried the blade away and stepped forward to attack, Cloud backed up quickly and putting enough space between them so that she could thrust again. The gym filled with the sounds of metal smacking metal, the clacking of their flail swords echoing with each successive strike along with the loud stomps of their feet as the two girls would step forward and step back.

Sunset liked this kind of fight, her life wasn’t on the line, there was no one to protect, it was just pure sport and love of crossing swords with your opponent. Still, that didn’t mean that Sunset liked to lose either. Sunset stepped back as a feint, lowering her right arm just enough to give Cloud the idea that she miss stepped.

Cloud took the bait and lunged forward, her foot stomping down as she thrust her flail forward. Sunset smirked as she swiftly shuffled her feet to the left, throwing off Cloud’s interpretation of her actions. She then swept upwards and made Cloud Kicker lose her grip on the sword, making it fly backwards. The former unicorn then charged forward and stopped when the flat tip of her flail pressed against the neck guard of Cloud’s mask.

“Match over!” The referee announced. “Winner, Sunset Shimmer.”

Sunset smiled and pulled away, another of the club members went to grab Cloud’s flail and brought it back to her.

“Salute.”

Sunset and Cloud brought their swords up and then swiped downward. Both women took off their helmets and walked towards the center and shook hands.

“Damn, three weeks away and it’s like you got hella better! Did you do some secret training or something?” Cloud asked.

Sunset briefly glanced at her right wrist, where underneath the glove rested the Witchblade. “Something like that, I had a lot of free time during that whole mess.”

The rest of the club time was spent going over exercises, more matches, and a little sparring match between other students. After they were done everyone hit the showers, when they went back to their lockers to get dressed Cloud Kicker asked, “So how’s it going with you and Pinkie Pie?”

Sunset smiled. “Good, so far. I really like her, but we only just started dating though. How about you and Rainbow?”

Cloud chuckled a little. “We’re not really ‘going out’. We’re just friends with benefits.”

Sunset blinked. “Oh, wow.”

“Yeah, between you and me, I think she’s still got a thing for Lightning Dust,” whispered Cloud.

Sunset felt bad for the girl, she was still in juvie for the time being, along with Fleur de Lis. The former was used unwillingly in the killings of those people, while the latter was complacent with being used to kill people. According to the last update she got from Shining Armor, the courts were still not sure what to do with them. Demonic possession wasn’t exactly looked on as a valid defense, some who did claim such things were either mentally unstable or serial killers. But in this case, it was literal.

“They can’t acquit them because it would like they’re getting away with murder, and they can’t prosecute them because they technically weren’t the ones committing the crimes, the monsters inside them were. For now, they’re kind of stuck in limbo.”

If this was Equestria, such a thing would’ve been considered into the defense. With her knowledge of their laws, Sunset already knew the outcome. Lightning Dust would’ve been set free as her possession was coerced and unwanted. While Fleur would be convicted and sentenced due to her complicity in letting the demon take over her body and letting her commit murder.

But this isn’t Equestria…the laws here don’t take things like magic and monsters into account.

“Does that bother you at all?” Sunset asked.

“No, not really. Cap’s great in the sack, and a great friend, but as far as girlfriend…I don’t think I’m ready for that. ‘Sides, I don’t want to make her choose between me and Lightning. ‘Cause what happens if she’s released and wants to get together with Cap?”

Sunset finished getting dressed and patted Cloud on the shoulder. “You’re a good friend Cloud.”

Cloud looked down somberly as she put her shirt on. “I still feel like shit for putting Cap and you through all that…”

“We all make mistakes, Cloud, what matters is what you do going forward. So long as you’re there for Rainbow, then you’re on your way,” said Sunset.

Sunset left the gym and walked out into the crisp air. She took a moment to stop at the steps of the school, and as usual, the faint blot of her spilled blood was still there. Celestia said she was looking into getting that section of the stone steps replaced. Sunset sat at the top step and produced her journal and looked it over.

Since this Wendigo incident, Sunset hadn’t had that much time to message Princess Twilight, but when it was over and things settled down, Sunset filled the journal with a lot of pages about what had happened. And as expected, Princess Twilight was panicked and asking if she needed to come there and help. In hindsight, it might’ve been good to have here, but at the same time, considering everything that happened, she didn’t want to run the risk of Princess Twilight getting attacked by a Wendigo possessed person.

Thankfully she was able to assuage her fears and then peak curiosity about getting a look at the Witchblade.

}}} I would not recommend any kind of “examination” being conducted on me. {{{

Agreed, it was already a hassle to get Dr. Blueheart from doing that. Thankfully she was okay with me answering her questions and transforming in front of her.

Sunset took out a pen and began to write in the journal.

“Dear Princess Twilight,

How’s it going lately?

Things have quieted down a little since Anon-A-Miss, today will mark the fourth week of that horrible time coming to an end. But lately…I don’t know, I’m starting to wonder what I want to do.

Graduation will be coming around and I don’t know what I want to do? Now that you have a way to stabilize and maintain the portal, I can cross over and continue my studies in magic, I’m pretty sure there’s a lot more to learn in the years I’ve been gone.

Although, I’ll probably learn under you. I don’t think I’m ready to face Princess Celestia yet and ask her to take me under wing, but I wouldn’t mind being under yours.

That being said, I’ve been trying to figure out what to do if I do stay here? Science is really advanced here compared to Equestria, and it’s kind of like magic, and it’s really fascinating. I was thinking maybe becoming a scientist? But, I don’t know…

I made the decision to stay here and make a life for myself, so going back feels like I’m giving up. Anyway, whenever you can, write back. Or if you want, we can chat in person this weekend? Up to you, no pressure.

Your friend,

Sunset Shimmer.”

So wrapped up in her journal writing, the Sunset didn’t notice when two people showed up at the front of the school.

Twilight wasn’t sure about having Sunset Shimmer drive her to CHS, but it did sound fun nonetheless. However, Twilight was more than a little apprehensive about riding on a motorcycle. Even with the most cautious drivers, the death rate for people riding them was very high, higher when there was a second person riding with them. Even her parents were a little iffy about letting Twilight ride with Sunset.

Yet, somehow, Sunset was able to convince not only them, but also Twilight herself. She held onto Sunset for dear life, while she was afraid that she was crushing Sunset’s stomach and ribs, she was more afraid of getting thrown off. Although, Twilight would admit, she did like how warm Sunset felt.

After a few minutes of driving, Sunset and Twilight came up to the corner of the street that turned onto CHS. They both wore casual clothes, a pair of jean pants, light gray for Twilight and black for Sunset. While Twilight wore a black hoodie, Sunset wore a black shirt with a black leather jacket. Her helmet visor was mirror tinted, so neither her face or eyes would be seen, Sunset had also grabbed one for Twilight, one from when she was younger that fit Twilight perfectly.

“You ready, Sparky?” Sunset asked.

“N-Not really, b-but also yes!” Twilight answered.

Sunset turned onto the street and pulled up to the sidewalk closest to the school. Twilight hopped off and reached into Sunset’s saddle bags, pulling out a device that she quickly turned on. The device began to beep and emit sounds. Two long prong attachments began to wave up and down and blink depending on where Twilight pointed it. Sunset remained on the bike so that they could make a quick get away if need be.

Twilight looked upon the public school that was Canterlot High. On the surface, it looked like any other school building, maybe a little nicer than most public schools. The device in her hand beeped and beeped the closer she moved towards the school, the readings she was getting were off the charts, as if the entire area was saturated with the anomalous energy.

Twilight moved closer towards the school, when she pointed the device at the Wondercolt statue, the peeping increased more, but when she pointed it at the school itself it went up dramatically. Twilight so wanted to go inside and get more readings, but she knew she was pushing it by being on the grounds. With that in mind, she focused on the statue. The device continued to beep as the prongs shot upwards towards the marble horse statue.

The teen genius placed her right hand on the cool surface, and for the briefest of moments, saw a ripple, almost as if she had touched a pool of water. That’s not possible…it has to be some illusion, right?

Twilight went to touch it again.

“Hey?!”

Twilight froze, she quickly turned to her right and she gasped. There, sitting on the steps to the school, was Sunset Shimmer. Her mind raced as she looked back from the Sunset sitting on the steps and to the one sitting on her bike. It was impossible, and yet it was so, there were two Sunset Shimmers. A million different scientific theories popped into Twilight’s mind, her rational part trying to hurriedly sift through each one to make sense of what she was looking at. Of course that stopped when she saw the Sunset on the school steps get up.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Steps Sunset asked.

Twilight began to panic, she wasn’t supposed to be here, and if this Sunset knew her big brother and told him she was here – Wait, this Sunset doesn’t know who I am, Shiny never told her my name. Steps Sunset began to move towards her. Still, I can’t process this right now!

Twilight broke into a sprint as she ran towards Biker Sunset, she paused momentarily when she reached her, now she wondered who this Sunset Shimmer was, because this one knew nothing about Anon-A-Miss or getting shot, which meant the one behind her did, and in that case, who was she?

Biker Sunset glanced from Twilight and back to Steps Sunset. Biker Sunset narrowed her gaze and shouted, “GET ON!”

That seemed to snap Twilight out of her stupor as she finally mounted the bike and held onto Biker Sunset. With little time to waste, Biker Sunset revved the engine and took off down the street as her tires screeched and squealed. Twilight would’ve said something about how fast she was going, but right now speed was their friend and they needed to get distance from Steps Sunset Shimmer in case she decided to pursue them.

Ten miles later, both CPA girls stopped in front of a gas station. Twilight’s heart was pounding from both excitement and plain old confusion. Biker Sunset removed her helmet and released a deep sigh, turning to Twilight and flashing her a smile.

“You okay, Sparky?” Sunset asked.

“I…I…”

“Take off your helmet and take a deep breath, it helps.”

Twilight did as Sunset told her, removing her helmet and inhaling deeply, then exhaling. She did this for a minute until her heart rate slowed.

“Better?”

“Yes…Sunset…you saw her right? I know you did.”

Sunset knitted her brow. “Yeah…I saw her. Guess I do have a twin sister, huh?”

Twilight knitted her brow as well as she rose from the bike and stood before Sunset Shimmer. “Sunset, don’t lie to me, this is serious! You have a double, and she sounded and looked exactly like you! If anything, I’d say she was a clone! If you’re trying to hide something, then just tell me!”

Sunset flipped the kickstand, swung her legs around, and sat on her bike. “I’m telling you the truth, Sparky. I don’t know who she is, or why she looks like me. But there’s no denying that she did look and sound like. I’m an only child, I never had any siblings, much less a twin. I’m not part of any illegal cloning experiments either, I have money but I don’t have access to that level of tech. Whatever’s going on, I’m just as in the dark as you are…”

Twilight’s expression softened when she saw the same look of confusion as she had. The young genius clutched her left arm and said, “I’m sorry, this must be as much a shock to you as it is to me.”

“Oh yeah…but, what can we do? I’m not really up to seeing my other self, at least not right now.”

“Let’s just take some time to look this over, explore different avenues and theories as to why she looks and sounds like you. As the great detective used to say, ‘If you eliminate everything that is logical, whatever is left – no matter how improbable – must be the truth’.”

Sunset smirked as she nodded with that line of thinking. “Looks like we have ourselves a little project, Sparky.”

The Russian mob had sought to gain a foothold in Canterlot City, but the Lupos Family and the Canterlot Blood Pack were making it hard to keep it there. Problem was, they were so busy fighting each other that they barely had the time to peddle any of their illegal wares. Guns, drugs, gambling, and prostituting, all of it was being put in jeopardy due to their three-way war.

When the demon monsters showed up, it made it even harder due to people being afraid to come out at night, or stay out too late at night. Now though, something different was happening, they were getting attacked. They were struck by someone who was single handedly taking down their operation, and that was not good.

The leaders of the Canterlot Chapter of the mob had ordered a meeting of the top lieutenants, they were at war and they needed to fight back. They had all gathered at a compound in the upper eastside of Canterlot, it was filled with a lot of rich people, and typically had a strong police presence. The compound itself was on its own, isolated, plot of land. A brick and mortar wall surrounded the perimeter, a few guards walked the grounds, their hands resting in the inside of their coats, gripping their guns, prepared to fire on any intruders.

Sombra King stuck to the shadows, watching the movements of the guards. Ultimately it didn’t matter what their patrol patterns were, he just needed something to do as he waited for the rest of the Russian mob’s “generals” and “lieutenants” arrived. Once he was sure that there were no more coming, Sombra decided to make his move.

Young Blood had argued that he and the rest of their crew should come with Sombra and attack the mob head on. Sombra shot that down, he was sure that they could bloody up the mobsters, but truthfully, they would only be in the way. Sombra took a drag off a cigarette and blew smoke into the cold night air, he then dropped it onto the ground and stomp it out.

The guards at the gates watched as Sombra walked towards them, their hands were already reaching for their guns, unfortunately for them, Sombra was quicker. Sombra sidestepped to the left and pulled out a couple of Desert Eagles and gunned down both guards before they even knew what hit them.

Sombra was sure that was going to get someone’s attention, but that didn’t matter. What mattered was getting rid of any potential allies to the Lupos, and once they were gone…well…this was a nice city.

<^> We could easily wipe this place from the face of the Earth. Why make this tedious? <^>

It’s called savoring the moment, plus, gotta make sure that they send as many of their guys out as possible, we need to make it showy.

Sombra’s eyes shimmered red as black tendrils grew from his back. The sharpened tendrils shot towards the gate and wrapped themselves around the wrought iron bars. With one pull, tendrils ripped the gates off their hinges, sending mortar and brick flying. Some more men came from around both corners and were about to open fire, that is until the tendrils threw the gates at them. The gates sailed with such speed and force that they crushed their targets upon impact, turning them into bloody mush.

Sombra ran towards the main house, things like fatigue didn’t affect him, not with the power he had, he could run for miles without breaking a sweat or being short of breath. Automatic weapons fire sounded up ahead of him, and not long after that, several bullets flew his way. The tendrils moved to the front and acted as a shield against the barrage.

Once he was closer, Sombra began firing his guns. He wasn’t an impatient shooter, no, he made sure his shots counted, why waste ten bullets killing someone when you can do it with just one?

The first shot hit the first guard in his neck, piercing his carotid artery as blood filled his mouth and sprayed from his neck. The spray of blood distracted the second shooter close to him, which gave Sombra another clean shot as he fired two rounds and hit him in the heart. You always double tap the heart. The tendrils reached up and slammed down on the ground catapulting Sombra into the air and making the guards look on in shock.

Sombra took aim and fired multiple shots from his position in the air, each shot hit their targets, riddling their heads, shoulders and chest with bullet holes. Both guards hit the ground just as Sombra landed behind them. Two more guards emerged from the house, but Sombra merely produced two more tentacles, these had multiple, glowing, red slit eyes and mouths filled with razor sharp teeth. The two tentacles shot towards the men and with the force of a cannonball, punched a hole through their chests. On the other side, the creatures’ jaws had clamped down on their hearts, with their sharp teeth they ate them and swallowed them before retracting from their targets.

Despite having witnessed the gruesome deaths of their comrades didn’t seem to deter them from trying to kill him. Sombra stopped at the entrance, the lights were still on. The guards continued to open fire, Sombra made more tendrils of inky blackness appear and move rapidly to swat the bullets away. In his mind however, he was working.

Hey, what the hell are you doing? The fucking lights are still on!

~Keep yer panties on! I got tied up by some of these pricks and had to take care of business!~

On the far end of the compound, a hunched back creature stood before a large fuse box. He had a strange, metal backpack, with two tesla coils that emitted sparks of electricity. In both of his hands he held two electrodes that buzzed and crackled with the same electricity. Right beside the beady, yellow eyed creature were two men who were lying on the ground, both of them with charred skin and foam at their mouths, hair standing up on its ends.

The creature broke open the fuse box and smiled wickedly. The tapped the two electrodes and when he did, an arch of lightning ran between them as it crackled.

~Time to get a real buzz!~

The creature put the electrodes to the fuse box, and immediately after a huge surge of electricity was sent through the fuse box. The creature continued to cackle like a madman until it and the fuse box exploded in a shower of sparks.

Back at the front of the house, the lights all went dead, and darkness fell on the entire compound. Just like Sombra wanted. The shadows came alive as more tentacles rose, some sharp and barbed, others with eyes and jaws. Sombra put away his Desert Eagles as his eyes shined read in the night, and with a flick of his wrist, the tendrils went to work as he walked forward.

Screams of pure carnage and terror, along with the sounds of unholy hisses and screeches echoed through the compound, alongside gunfire that was drastically decreasing by the minute. Inside the house bodies laid strewn across the floor, over staircases, from chandeliers, and furniture. Some were dismembered, cut down the middle, or just generally ripped to pieces.

Sombra continued his slow walk into the building, his boots scattering the many bullet cases that littered the floor from the mobsters’ futile attempts to kill him. Some of his tendrils acted as his eyes and ears, slithering like snakes through the vents, along the floors, walls and ceilings, searching for the head honchos that were called to his meeting.

“They got a pretty fucking big house. Starting to think you had the right idea of just wiping this whole place in one whack,” said Sombra.

<^> Told you. <^>

Finally, one of the tendrils found his marks. Sombra followed it and arrived at a pair of large, wooden, double doors. The guards were already killed, and at least four of his hungry mouthed tendrils stood guard outside the door, making sure none escaped.

Sombra kicked open the door, he half expected them to open fire on him, but upon taking stock of the faces in the room, he could tell that they were more afraid of what he’d do if they tried to shoot him than if they just shot.

“L-L-Look, we’ll leave the city! We’ll pull out our whole operation! Just don’t kill us!” one of them pleaded.

“I appreciate that.” Sombra reached into his jacket pocket and everyone tensed. The gangster chuckled at their reactions as he pulled out a pack of cigarettes and then a lighter. He lit the cigarette and took a relaxing drag from the famed “cancer stick” and then exhaled a plume of smoke. “Thing is, I’ve been in the business, and I know only one thing gets the point across better than an order from up top. Fear. Being scared so shitless that even just thinking about disobeying puts someone into a panic attack.”

The tendrils began to move into the room, making the men practically wet themselves. “Just take some solace in the fact that I don’t hurt women and kids. Part of my code, unlike some of you…”

Setting up the Pieces: Part 3

{It’s a gruesome Tuesday morning as several are found dead in east side Canterlot City. Witnesses say it sounded like a battle had taken place last night with multiple gunshots going off. When police arrived on the scene they found several dead bodies, killed in the most horrific manner, some residents have described it as if a wild animal – several maybe – had broken in and attacked.}

{Among the victims are a few noteworthy names, some of which have been linked in the past to Russian controlled crime mobs they are–}

“Jeez that’s messed up,” said Rainbow Dash.

The reunited Rainbooms were in the music room, their unofficial hangout inside the school. They had just gotten through with practice and were taking a break. Rainbow had whipped out her phone and got a news alert about the incident last night.

“You don’t think…?” Rarity asked as she let that question hang in the air.

Sunset shook her head. “There’s no way it’s Wendigos, I destroyed them all.” Least I hope I did.

“Well, if it is, we got two badass demon slayers who can take care of them.”

Fluttershy blushed, Sunset patted her on the back. In all honesty, Fluttershy would rather not have to don her Magdalena attire and wield the Spear of Destiny unless she had to, otherwise she was content to let Sunset do the demon slaying.

“Still, it does sound similar. Has Shinin’ Armor contacted ya?” Applejack asked.

“Nope, and to be honest, he wasn’t too keen on me getting involved with the Mystery Murders in the first place, but, as he’s said, I’m a ‘weird shit magnet’, so I got involved whether I wanted to or not. But if he had it his way, he’d rather not see me put myself in danger.”

Rarity giggled upon hearing this. “I swear, if he didn’t have a girlfriend, I’d say he might be sweet on you.”

Sunset scoffed. “Doubt it, though in another timeline, had I met him first…I wouldn’t say I would’ve passed up the chance.”

Pinkie Pie gasped. “Please don’t leave me Sunny!” she playfully begged. “I beg of you!”

Sunset stifled a chuckle as she crossed her arms and looked away. “I don’t know, I might consider stealing him away from his girlfriend. He is dorky, but cute, or I could see if his girlfriend’s up to sharing?”

Pinkie Pie feigned hurt. “Am I not good enough for you? What does he have that I don’t?!”

“I can think of something,” Rainbow snickered.

Applejack elbowed Rainbow in the ribs making her release a low “ow”.

“Hmmm,” Sunset pretended to think. She then reached out and took Pinkie by the waist and kissed her button nose. “Actually, not much compared to what I like about you. So I guess we’re still together.”

“Yippy!” Pinkie chirped as she threw her arms around Sunset.

Fluttershy and Rarity quietly d’awed at the scene before them, they really were a perfect match for each other.

“That reminds me, yesterday I saw someone hanging around the Wondercolt statue,” said Sunset.

“Who?” Applejack asked.

“I don’t know, there were two of them. One was hovering around the statue, and another was sitting on a motorcycle like a getaway driver or something.”

Rainbow stood up and crossed her arms. “Did you manage to see who it was?”

“Sadly no, they were both wearing helmets with reflective visors so I couldn’t see their faces or eyes,” Sunset stated. “When I tried to confront one of them, the one near the statue ran towards the other and both of them got away.”

The girls shifted glances between each other, a knowing glance.

“It’s gotta be,” said Rainbow.

“Who the hell else,” said Applejack.

“Of course,” said Rarity.

“No doubts,” said Pinkie.

“It must be,” Fluttershy began.

“Crystal Prep,” the five said in unison.

Sunset looked at her friends and girlfriend with confusion. “Okay, I’ll bite, why do you think that it was Crystal Prep?”

“Because those snobby asswipes always fuck with the Wondercolts statue before the Friendship Games. Every. Single. Time,” said Rainbow.

Rarity crossed her arms in disdain. “Despite their winning streak and our…losing streak, they still feel the need to humiliate us further by defacing the Wondercolt statue.”

Sunset thought back to her freshman year at CHS, she remembered that statue getting vandalized one day, and that it happened after the Friendship Games. Honestly she didn’t really pay much attention to the games back then, but she was a bit worried by the vandalizing of the statue, seeing as how it was her only way back home when the portal opened again. Even though CHS had a few problem kids, they never went as far as to mess with the school like that. Now Sunset knew who was behind it, and she was glad that she stopped was able to prevent them from doing something to the statue.

“This year, we’re going to kick their asses!” Rainbow stated as she slammed her fist into her palm. “I can feel it!”

“Don’t psych yerself up too much Rainbow, we don’t even know who the team members are goin’ to be this year,” said Applejack.

“Heh, you’ll see.”

Celestia sat at her desk, going over Maria’s words about bringing their relationship into the public, and bringing that kind of media attention to her, her sister, and to Sunset. Her name was in the news due to the shooting, and with such an announcement, it wouldn’t be too long before the news found that Celestia was Sunset’s guardian and they’d hound her.

She loved Maria, but…sometimes she wondered about their relationship.

\\/// Trouble in paradise I see. \\///

And then there was this voice in her head. It didn’t come out until the day of Sunset’s shooting, at that point it was a whisper carried on the wind, then it grew louder as the weeks went by. Celestia self-diagnosed herself, believing that the trauma of her ward, her “daughter”, caused some kind of PTSD that created an alternate personality, or just a voice that was sometimes the sign of a psychotic break.

However, the voice, while sometimes condescending, wasn’t berating her, wasn’t talking down to her, nor did it encourage her to hurt herself or someone. It was just there. Like a passenger, sitting in the backseat of the car that was her mind and occasionally offering commentary and/or dispensing some advice.

“And what do you care?”

\\/// Just looking out for you. I don’t see that woman as doing something for the good of others, more as if what’s good for her. You’ve had doubts about your relationship, perhaps it is time you addressed them. \\///

Celestia did feel like giving the voice inside a leg to stand on, but it did have a point, she did need to talk to Maria about where they stood. While she did like the idea of their relationship not being a secret, she also had some reservations about making a show of it.

At that moment, Celestia felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She reached into it and pulled out the device, the caller ID read: Maria Mare. Celestia quickly answered it and said, “Hello, Maria?”

{Celly, how are you doing?}

Aside from my doubts and a voice in my head. “I’m alright, it’s pretty quiet over here today.”

{Well that’s good, you deserve those quiet days with all that happened not too long ago. Speaking of, I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind having dinner at my place, say six, Friday?}

“Oh, yes, that would be lovely.”

{And, if you don’t mind, I’d like you to bring your sister and Sunset.}

“Um…that sounds lovely, but – and I’m not complaining – but why do you want them to come?”

{Well we’ve been seeing each other for almost a year and a half and I thought it was time I officially met your family. I’ve only met with Sunset that one time, and Luna doesn’t know about us, correct?}

“That’s right, Sunset and, well, some of her friends know because of what happened. But they haven’t said anything.” Celestia felt a little giddy at the idea of introducing Sunset and Luna to Maria, in a more official manner than a haphazard way.

{If they aren’t able to that’s fine, but I just felt like it would be nice for all four of us to be together.}

“No that sounds great, I’ll talk to Luna and Sunset before the end of the day and see if they have plans.”

She could hear the smile in Maria’s voice. {Thank you, Celly, I love you.}

Celestia’s face turned red, hearing those words made her feel like a schoolgirl. “I-I love you too, Maria. Goodbye.”

{Goodbye.}

Celestia hung up her phone and sighed wistfully.

\\/// Don’t lose focus, you need to address your relationship. \\///

“Just let me have this.” Celestia ran her fingers through her hair and sighed heavily. “Maybe I need to see a therapist or something?”

A day had passed since that Tuesday afternoon when Sunset and Twilight went to CHS and investigated. It was still a shock to them that there was a second Sunset Shimmer, Twilight couldn’t get over it, although her Sunset seemed to be taking it more in stride. Twilight blushed, her Sunset, possessive noun, as in belonging to Twilight.

The young genius shook her head, she didn’t know where this was all coming from. She never showed any interest in either gender, so why did being around Sunset Shimmer feel so right?

Again, in the end, it didn’t matter. As interesting as things were right now, soon Sunset would get disinterested in their little project and move onto someone else worth her time.

Twilight roamed the halls, still getting knocked around, searching for Sunset. When she turned the corner, Twilight froze and then went back, hiding behind the corner. She peeked this time, seeing Sunset Shimmer, her back against the locker, arms crossed,. A couple of feet from her were the four girls she disliked most in the school.

One was Sunny Flare, the leader of the group, and the other was Sour Sweet. Along with them was a girl with a hot pink complexion, lemon-lime colored hair, and a pair of headphones, her name was Lemon Zest.

She was a music enthusiast, classical, punk rock, metal, rap, you name it, she loved it. CPA normally discouraged students from having headphones with them in class as they believed that it was a distraction. However, Lemon Zest’s grades never faltered, she always paid attention even if it looked like she wasn’t. In a way she was like Twilight. Why did Twilight dislike her? During a school function, Lemon and her band played, when they were breaking down their equipment, they asked for help from Twilight as far as technical expertise. While messing around with their soundboard, she didn’t notice that some of her bandmates were setting up an amp right behind her.

Lemon Zest broke out her guitar and struck a chord on her instrument. The subsequent concussive burst from the amp threw Twilight forward, making her tumble on the stage. When she landed, her head ringed and her ears hurt, but worse than that, was the fact that her skirt had flew up, giving all those in attendance a clear view of her underwear. Just as bad, she was like that for five minutes in disoriented state before she figured out why everyone was looking at her and laughing.

The third girl had a grayish-blue skin tone, her silvery hair done up in two pigtails and one ponytail, and wore glasses, her name was Sugarcoat. Despite her name, Sugarcoat did not, well, sugarcoat anything. She was blunt and straight to the point, she didn’t beat around the bush for anything. To her, tiptoeing around any subject was a waste of time, it was better to get to the point.

At one point, Twilight believed that she could be friends with Sugarcoat, she wasn’t a genius like her, but she believed someone was straightforward as Sugarcoat wouldn’t trick her or lead her on. Of course, that backfired spectacularly when she said, “I don’t see a point in associating with you. From what I’ve seen, although you’re at the top of the academic leaderboard, you’re also at the very bottom of the social ladder. Being around you would just invite the same amount of harassment onto me. I’d rather be in a higher state and away from dealing with such things. Also, you’re kind of a doormat, a pushover, and someone I could see getting taken advantage of. Either physically or emotionally. The word ‘weak’ comes to mind. Anyway, please leave me alone and don’t speak to me.”

Twilight wasn’t sure if she should have been grateful to have someone be truthful with her, or angry. But one thing was certain, it did hurt her to hear that so plainly and bluntly, she had cried in the bathroom for five minutes before she came back out. And of course, the fourth and final member of this group was Indigo Zap.

“You have three minutes, I have to be somewhere,” said Sunset.

Sunny Flare nodded. “This won’t take up too much of your time, we’re just here to make a proposal.”

“That is?”

“Hang out with us and dump Twilight Sparkle,” said Sugarcoat bluntly.

Sunset arched an eyebrow.

Sour Sweet stepped in and said, “What she means is, it’s not really good for you two to be seen together, sweetie. She’s…how do I put this…? The schools whipping girl.”

“That so?” Sunset asked.

Lemon Zest chuckled. “Yeah, she’s so easy to prank and mess with.”

“Mother always likes to tout how Twilight’s grades are bringing up the school’s reputation and such, and that we the students need to strive to be more like that, despite the fact that our GPAs are well above the average of the public schools in the city combined!” Sunny argued.

“I see.”

“Bottom line, hun, if you keep hanging around Twilight, she’ll just drag you down.” Sunny placed a hand on Sunset’s shoulder as she looked her in the eyes. “But if you’re with us, then that’ll change. I’ve seen your files, you’re pretty smart, I’d say as smart as Sparkle, and you’re loaded.”

Twilight gripped her backpack straps tight. She knew that Sunset was smart, but also rich? Of course she was rich, most of the kids at the school were rich. Twilight knew that she had no business hanging around Sunset Shimmer, she was beautiful, confident, and smart. And her? She was weak, nerdy, introverted, and had as much sex appeal as a Weeping Willow.

Sunset took out her cellphone and nodded. “Okay, times up.” The flame haired girl gently removed Sunny Flare’s hand off her shoulder. “This was a nice chat, but I’m running late and I need to meet Twilight.”

An indignant look crossed Sunny Flare’s face, at the same time, across the way, Twilight’s frown curled upwards into a small smile.

“Maybe we didn’t make it clear–” Sunny began.

“No, I understand perfectly. I figured this place had some issues, but damn, I was off. I’ve seen the way she hunches and makes herself small, people sometimes go out of their way to bump into her. She’s guarded, and flinches as if I’m going to hit her, and all I was doing was a high-five!”

Sunset grabbed her backpack and slung it over her left shoulder. “Fuck your little hazing shit, and back off of Sparkle.”

“C’mon, why are you so interested in her? You gay for her or something?” Indigo asked.

Sunset arched her eyebrow. “If I was, that a problem?”

Indigo blew a raspberry. “Hardly, straight up lesbo right here. I get that she’s cute in a nerdy way, and yeah, I kind of want to do her too. But c’mon, there are easier ways of getting that.”

Sunset’s eyes became dangerous slits, she then took a step forward and got right in Indigo’s face. “You seem like someone who likes sports, am I wrong.”

“No,” Indigo replied.

“Then I want you to think about this whenever you get the urge to ‘touch’ Twilight. ‘Is this worth having my arms and legs broken?’”

Indigo glared back at Sunset, but flinched when she saw something in Sunset’s eyes, something akin to a dangerous animal.

“Good talk,” said Sunset.

Sunset began walking in Twilight’s direction, she began to panic, she didn’t want Sunset to know she was watching that whole display just now. Twilight took a few steps back and slowly walked towards the corner just as Sunset rounded it.

“Oh, Sparky, there you are,” said Sunset.

“S-Sunset, hey, how’s it going?” Twilight asked knowingly.

“It’s okay, do you mind if we take the long route? I wanted to go over some theories with you.”

Twilight knew that the shorter route to their next shared class was down the same hallway that Sunset just came from, where she was sure those four girls were still there, probably glaring daggers at Sunset right now. Her heart fluttered a bit, Sunset was trying to protect her.

“Sure, that’s alright with me.”

As they began their walk, Sunset couldn’t help but glance at Twilight once and awhile. “Sparky, are you…do I worry you?”

Twilight left eyebrow rose. “What do you mean?”

“I mean…” Sunset ran her right hand through her hair as she searched for the right words. “We just saw another me not too long ago, I was just worried that…you might be a little freaked out by me. After all, you have no proof that I’m who I say I am…For all you know I’m the imposter and she’s the real one.”

Twilight couldn’t argue that point, it was true, she had no basis to believe that the Sunset Shimmer she was talking to was indeed the authentic – or whatever – Sunset Shimmer and the other was a fake. Then again, Twilight only knew of Sunset Shimmer through Shining Armor, and her brother was often a good judge of character. While Twilight couldn’t say she had the same ability that her big brother did, something told Twilight that this Sunset Shimmer wasn’t a bad person, at least, after what she saw, she hoped she was.

“I’m not worried. Until I see proof one way or the other, I’ll trust in you,” said Twilight sincerely.

Sunset smiled. “Thanks, Sparky.”

Three days had passed, and the news was filled with even more chaos than it was before. The police had confirmed that the Russian mob had effectively uprooted their operation in the city, and now the Italian mob had been hit even harder. The same carnage and destruction was left in the wake, making the police and citizens worry that another Mystery Murder was taking place in spite of the fact that the mayor and police announced otherwise.

But right now wasn’t the time for all that, as tonight, Celestia was nervous. She had asked Sunset and Luna if they would accompany her to Maria Mare’s home for dinner, just the four of them. At first she was worried that Luna would refuse, Sunset not so much, she was a teenager, and she did have her own girlfriend that she might want to go out with on Friday. But to her surprise, both were happy to come with her.

Celestia drove all three of them to the Mayor’s Mansion. She herself had been there a few times, but every time was still awe inspiring. The city of Canterlot took the position of mayor seriously, dating back to its founding. As a show of the people’s admiration and respect, the people built a mansion to house the mayor and their family, if any. Over the years it had been modified, added onto, and eventually became the near behemoth that it was now. A gate with ornate iron bars, and outside it were two guards dressed in black suits. They were a private security force that was hired by the city that looked after the mayors of Canterlot City, similar to the Secret Service, but with a bit more…freedom if you will.

Celestia pulled up to the gate and opened the window, the guard came up and Celestia said, “I’m here to see Maria Mare, we were invited to dinner.”

The guard nodded and waved towards another guard. The gate opened and allowed Celestia’s car passage. The road led to a paved circle driveway with a flower arrangement at the center. When Celestia pulled up two more guards came up and opened the doors. Sunset got out from the rear passenger’s side, she wore a magenta, short sleeve blazer atop a white blouse. A pink skirt that stopped just above her knees and then had black lace the finished it out and went past her knees, and it had her cutie mark emblazoned onto it.

Luna came out second, wearing a necklace with a moonstone gem cut into a crescent moon. Her dress was a deep burgundy color, like that of the night sky, and hung off of her right shoulder, exposing her neck and left shoulder and arm. Celestia was the last, and her dress was white as the snow, backless, and hung off of her neck. Both Luna and Sunset were a little surprised by the outfit, as it was beautiful, but also a little daring as it gave a somewhat generous view of her cleavage. Sunset figured Celestia was trying to look sexy for her girlfriend, not that she could blame her, she’d do the same if she was on a date with Pinkie.

The guards opened the door and Maria was already there waiting. She didn’t get dressed up, sticking to her mayoral attire, which was dressy in and of itself. Maria stepped out as three ascended the seven steps to meet her.

“Celly, I’m so happy you could make it,” said Maria as she gave Celestia a hug.

“Thank you, I’m glad we can have the chance to all meet each other, officially.” Celestia stepped back and stood next to Luna. “This is my little sister, Luna. She’s the Vice Principal of Canterlot High School alongside me, and the best partner in crime I could ask for.”

Luna smiled with a bit of pride and then reached out to shake Maria’s hand, the mayor accepted her hand and shook. “I must admit, when Tia said she was friends with the Mayor of Canterlot City, I thought she was full of it.”

“Luna!”

Maria chuckled. “I don’t blame you, but I’m glad you know so she can brag all about it to you.”

Luna sighed. “Great, now I have to keep hearing about for the rest of the night and moving forward.”

Celestia crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. “Oh please, Lulu, like you never bragged about your friends, or boyfriends!”

Luna shrugged. “True.”

Maria chuckled at the sisterly banter and then turned to Sunset. “And of course, I know who this brave girl is. I’m so happy to see you’re doing better after what happened, Sunset.”

Sunset chuckled nervously. “Yeah…it was a real touch and go thing, but I tend to bounce back pretty quickly. Tough girl and all that.”

“I can see, and you should know that Celly brags about you all the time. She’s very proud of you, Sunset,” said Maria.

Sunset and Celestia blushed furiously, a smile crept onto Sunset’s lips as she glanced over at Celestia. “S-She does?”

Maria chuckled. “Oh yes, she sounds like a proud parent every time.”

“Maria!” Celestia abashed.

Luna and Maria chuckled at how both women were embarrassed.

“Alright, that's enough teasing, come in, and let’s have dinner.”

Luna followed alongside Celestia’s left, while Sunset was on her right. Celestia glanced at her young ward and asked, “I’m sorry if it sounds like that…but, I am proud of you for all you’ve accomplished, Sunset.”

Sunset grinned as she glanced back at Celestia. “No, it’s okay…I-I’m happy you’re proud of me.” Although this Celestia wasn’t the Princess she knew and grew up with back in Equestria, hearing those words still filled Sunset with happiness nonetheless, for all she endeavored to do was make Princess Celestia proud of her, and even though this Celestia wasn’t a Princess, it was still nice to hear those words, even if it was another version of her former mentor/mother figure.

The four walked through a long hallway lined with pictures of past mayors of Canterlot City, each had a metal plate on their frames that was carved with the date they were sworn in and the end of their terms. It was like getting snapshots of the past as each mayor was painted with the image of Canterlot City as it was during that time, one showed the name of the city as “Ponyville”.

“Wait, this place wasn’t always called Canterlot?” Sunset asked.

“Oh no, it’s not known to many outside some of the historians and families who have lived here for generations, but Canterlot, when it was a rural town, was called Ponyville. The mayors of Ponyville all strived to make the town great, something to match the other growing cities in the country. So, over time, they developed the land, brought in businesses, and eventually it grew so big that it was a full blown city, and changed its name to Canterlot.” Maria explained.

Sunset had to admit, she did find it fascinating. From what she knew from Princess Twilight, the castle that the Princess of Friendship occupied was situated in the town of Ponyville, and was a somewhat rural town compared to the sprawling capital that was Canterlot. She wondered if Ponyville would change in the future since there was a castle there and a Princess lived there now?

Eventually they made it to the dining room, a table stretched the length of the room and could comfortably seat twelve people. At the far end of the room was a window that gave a nice view of the backyard garden and the rising moon. All four sat at the far end of the table, with Luna and Sunset on one side, and Celestia and Maria on another. The waiters brought in the appetizers and soon after the food, it was around this time that the conversations got a little more personal.

“Sunset, Celly tells me you’re seeing someone right now, how’s that going?” Maria asked.

Sunset blushed and shot a glare at Celestia that said, “Really?!” through her eyes. The older woman suddenly found her food very interesting to look at. “Y-Yes, I am. Her name’s Pinkie Pie, she’s great. Really funny, and she just brightens up the room whenever she’s around. And she was a big help in keeping from spiraling when…well…all that was going on.”

Maria’s expression fell a bit. “I’m sorry that you went through all of that, and I’m very happy that you’re alive. You’re such a bright young girl, and no one deserves what happened to you. On that note,” Maria turned to Celestia, “were the perpetrators ever caught?”

Luna decided to step in. “Yes, they were. Incidentally, it led to the strange event that occurred, that ‘Storm of the Century’ as the news called it. Thankfully, that woman, Witchblade, managed to stop it all. Apparently, it was a plot by those monsters manipulating three younger students into taking it further than they wanted or needed to. They have been punished accordingly.”

“With jail time I assume?”

Celestia shook her head. “I wanted to, believe me I did.” Her eyes fell on Sunset. “But Sunset convinced me to just leave it be and not press charges, since she was the victim in all this.”

Maria arched in an eyebrow in shock at hearing this. “That’s…noble, I suppose, but, their actions did lead to you getting hurt badly. Despite your remarkable recovery, if it weren’t for them, you wouldn’t have been hurt like you were.”

Sunset took a drink of her water and said, “What good would it do them and their families? They already regretted doing what they did, and were nearly killed by monsters for it. Hatred only breeds more hatred, the only thing to do is to start on the road to forgiveness. Trust will be something they’ll have to earn from me and everyone at school, but they have my forgiveness.”

Maria smiled and nudged Celestia. “Celly, you didn’t tell me that she’s also such a saint.”

“Oh, she wasn’t always, she was quite the little hellion before her reformation,” said Luna.

Sunset blushed in embarrassment. “It’s true…I was…”

Maria shrugged. “Weren’t we all at one point in our lives?”

“Tia certainly was, she was very rebellious back in our youth,” Luna stated.

Celestia coughed upon hearing that, having some of her drink go down the wrong pipe. “I-I wasn’t a troublemaker! Unlike someone I know.”

Luna gave her big sister such an innocent look, even batting her eyelashes. “Who, me? I was just precious little ‘Woona’.”

“Oh don’t ‘Woona’ me, every time you made that little innocent look of yours, you’d get out of trouble with Mom and Dad, hell, you did it to me whenever you got in trouble at school!”

Maria leaned over a little and whispered to Sunset, “I like these little sibling spats, don’t you?”

Sunset grinned and replied, “Same here, it’s like a rare sight to see these two not acting like school admins.”

“Humph! Well, I’m glad we’re sooo entertaining for you two.” Celestia pouted.

Sunset threw up her hands and said, “Hey, if there’s one thing I learned, it’s that you never get between two siblings – especially two older ones – things never go good when you’ve chosen a side.”

“That’s right,” Luna then grabbed Sunset by the shoulders and brought her closer and started petting her head as if she were a pet cat, “Sunset has learned that my side is the better one, Tia. I have stolen what’s most precious to you! Mwahahaha!”

Celestia crossed her arms. “Honestly, Luna.”

“Now, now,” Maria draped her left arm over Celestia’s shoulders, “play nice you two, I don’t want any bad blood between sisters, especially when I’ll probably be seeing more of you.”

Luna released Sunset and started to look at her sister and the mayor, really look at them. The way her big sister blushed and fidgeted, that goofy grin on her face, the way Maria was hanging off of her and invading Celestia’s personal space so casually and brazenly. Then it hit her like a runaway freight train, her eyes widening to the size of silver dollars.

“You’re not…?” Luna gasped, she then turned to Sunset who didn’t seem at all surprised. “Are they?”

Sunset nodded.

“We are, Lulu. Maria and I have been together for almost a year and a half now,” Celesita answered.

“Don’t be angry that she kept it from you, it was by my request that she did that. I didn’t want many people catching wind of it in case we didn’t work out, but I don’t feel that that’s a problem anymore,” said Maria.

Luna looked back to the couple and then proclaimed, “Finally! It’s about damn time you got someone!”

Celestia was confused. “You’re not angry that I kept this from you? And what do you mean by ‘finally’?!”

Luna smirked. “Tia, dear big sister, our work is good, but you can’t let it stifle your social life. I at least go out once and awhile.”

“Yes, I’m well aware of your little ‘one night stands’.” Celestia deadpanned and pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Hey, I offered you a chance each time to sow some oats! My partners were always up for a threesome.”

“LUNA!” Celestia exclaimed.

Sunset’s face was bright red and steam could practically be seen coming out of her ears.

“Granted I was inviting her before I knew you two got together, but now she has a legitimate reason to decline, I wouldn’t want her to cheat.”

Luna got a sadistic kick out of teasing her big sister, and Celestia knew it. Often times she didn’t let Luna get to her, but in this case it was. “Luna, please, Sunset’s right here!”

Luna glanced to her left, smiled and patted Sunset on the shoulder. “C’mon now, she’s eighteen, she can hear stuff like this. Who knows, you might even learn something to help you and Pinkie spice up your relationship.”

Celestia buried her face in her hands and Sunset wished she was invisible, and deaf, invisible and deaf to this conversation. Maria just enjoyed the show, she felt she should save her lover from this, but she was having too much fun watching Celestia and Sunset squirm, not a mean-spirited way mind you.

Luna then reached out over the table and took one of her sister’s hands into hers. “Really though, I’m happy that you found someone.”

Celestia’s smile widened. “Thank you, Luna.”

“Well then, I think desert is in order, don’t you think?” Maria asked.

}}} Sunset, I sense HIM! {{{

“Him”? Him who?

Before a reply could be given, the lights went out. Emergency lights kicked on, offering dim lightning within the dining room. Not long after that, the sounds of gunfire and small explosions rang through the mansion, forcing the four women to jump to their feet. Two guards burst in through the doors and locked it immediately upon entering, weapons drawn, and both with scowls on their faces.

“What’s going on?!” Maria asked.

“Ma’am, the mansion’s under attack!” the guard stated.

Luna and Celestia looked shocked upon hearing this, and their faces reflected the fear in their hearts. Sunset, however, had a knitted brow, anger filled her, the woman who resembled her mother figure, the woman who treated her like a daughter, was being threatened along with Luna, and Maria Mare. The teen quickly started to think of a way to leave the room so she could transform and begin dispatching the ones stupid enough to attack them.

However, her chance wouldn’t come as the doors were forced open by black tendrils. The guards opened fire, but it was no use, the weapons were snatched out of their hands, snapping their fingers off as they both tried to hold onto their guns. The tendrils whipped back, impaling them and pinning against the back wall like a couple of macabre decorations. The urge to scream filled Maria, Celestia, and Luna, but outright fear prevented them, as if by some primal feeling that noise would just draw the attention of the thing that killed the guards.

The tendrils retracted and returned to a man with a black leather coat, ashen skin, and red eyes that glimmered in the dim lightning. Three men rushed in behind him and entered the dining room, guns pointed at the four women.

“Your Honor, pleasure to meet you,” said the black coat man.

“W-W-Who or W-What are you?!” Maria asked.

The man in the black coat took a couple of steps forward and said, “My name’s Sombra King, new leader of the newly formed Blood Kings. And as of tonight, I’m declaring myself king of the city.”

Setting up the Pieces: Part 4

Sombra met with his newly acquired gang, his attack on the Russian mob, Canterlot branch, worked better than he had hoped. The Lupos Family mob was scared, and in the following three days, Sombra and his crew hit them hard. Some of the gang members from the ones they toppled even switched sides, and of course they did, they recognized power and wanted to be on the winning side. When you have a malefic, dark entity as your weapon and power, there was no choice, either join, die, or get the hell out of the way.

The Blood Kings had managed to wipe out all the competition in less than a few nights, leaving them the only gang left in Canterlot City. The regular members did mostly cleanup work, Sombra always took the lead. He would go in first, hit them hard, and the rest would bring up the rear, and if by some miracle someone managed to live through his slaughter, they’d finish the job. It was quick, clean – well, clean-ish – and efficient.

However, now Sombra was after something big, something that even his gang thought was too ambitious. Currently, Sombra was having a meeting with the number two of the gang, Young Blood. Sombra would designate their meeting spots, and it was always somewhere dark and always at night. Young Blood had a feeling that it was tied to his freaky power, but then again Sombra could just like being in the dark. Heck, at this point, Young Blood thought Sombra as freaking vampire. But what Sombra told him during this meeting, made his jaw drop.

“You want to off the mayor?!” Young Blood asked with disbelief.

“Did I stutter?” Sombra replied from his velvet armchair.

“You can’t be serious! The mayor’s guarded by some paramilitary private security! Mercs man! You know, the kind that go out into warzones and kill, and some of them just because they like it! We have nowhere near that level of firepower or skill to go up against them!”

Sombra took a drag off of his cigarette and looked Young Blood in the eyes. “You ever read up on history? How many of those wars in the past where people were up against armies that were twice as strong, twice as mean, and twice as many as them? Several. Shit, look at this country, buncha immigrants from England come here to get away and be free, only to have the country they fled come after them with an army when they said they would be free. All they were was an army made up of farmers and poor people, no training whatsoever, but they learned, and eventually drove out those who tried to take away their freedom.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

Sombra rolled his eyes. “Jeez, kids today don’t get it. Small groups can often make the biggest changes to the world! We may not have the numbers, none of the experience, but you have me. And, you have this.” Sombra reached into his pocket and threw something at Young Blood.

The twenty-plus-year-old grabbed it out of the air and looked at it. It was vial filled with something inky and black, almost like tar. “What the fuck is this shit?”

“A new drug, somethin’ that’ll make ya damn near fucking invincible. I’d use it as a last resort, for either when you’re backed into a corner or about to die, that sorta stuff,” Sombra explained.

Young Blood eyed the vial again, he thought he could see something shimmering along with the black tar, and with everything he’d seen thus far, he was dubious of whatever this drug was made of.

“We attack tomorrow night, a little birdie tells me that the mayor will have some guests, no big wigs, but that’s fine. All we need is the mayor. We’ll show the city that there’s a new leader, and what exactly we can do.”

Sunset was currently on her knees, along with Celestia, Luna, and Maria. The four of them had been moved into one of the meeting halls. It was spacious, round, no windows, and only one entrance in and out, and it was in the center of the mansion, which meant that anyone trying to get to them would ensure that they were going to meet up with Sombra first and foremost. Currently, the four women had their hands tied behind their backs with zip-ties, the table was moved out of the way so that the four of them could be placed in the center of the room, where everyone could keep an eye on them.

When they were captured, Sunset tried to ascertain just how many of these gangsters were here. So far, the count was up to ten, but she couldn’t be sure if there were more working the complex. But her biggest concern was Sombra, he had powers, dark powers. It was unlike anything Sunset had ever seen, it wasn’t magic, that much she could sense, but somewhere deep in her mind, she felt a primal fear of his power, as if her DNA was telling her that this power Sombra wielded was to be feared as any natural prey would their natural predator. Not only that, but the Witchblade felt antsy, agitated. It was on edge, like it was trying to keep itself restrained from attacking outright.

Do you know what that power is?

}}}………{{{

Hey, what’s wrong?! Why are you silent all of a sudden?!

Normally the Witchblade would chime in with its occasional encouragement, advise, or banter, but right now, if Sunset had anything to compare it to, it was like a child staring down a parent that had gone away for a long time and just popped back into their life. Despite the Witchblade’s silence, Sunset could tell that she was able to transform, but with Luna, Celestia, and Maria in the same room, she wasn’t sure if she could get to them fast enough with Sombra in the same room.

It didn’t take long for the police to arrive, sirens blared outside along with the sound of several screeching tires coming to a halt before the mansion. Sunset wondered if Shining Armor was among them? She hoped he was, it would make moving around when she armors up a lot easier. Faust, Pinkie, I told her I’d be here…she’s probably worried sick right now…

“What are you intending to do, Mr. King?” Maria asked.

Sombra turned around and looked down at the mayor. “I intend to make a public statement, your Honor. You’re going to hand the city over to me.”

Maria scoffed. “Do you honestly think the people of this city are just going to bow down to you just because you take me hostage?”

Sombra got down on one knee and smirked. “Oh, I’m not stupid, I know that. It’s not like you’re the president or somethin’. But you are highly respected and loved by the people, I gotta ask, how did you get to be mayor for so long? Politics is just another version of my racket, which leads me to wonder how many people you pissed off or had to bury to stay where you are?”

“Are you trying to blackmail me?” Maria asked with a furrowed brow.

“Not unless you think there’s something to blackmail, which, judging by your reaction, tells me there is. Depending on how tonight goes, I’ll have to look into that. Anyway, your surrender will be symbolic, it’ll show the people that the city isn’t there’s anymore,” said Sombra.

Just then, the shadows near the upturned table began to move, and from those shadows appeared a goblin-like creature with a tank top that had the Union Jack flag printed on it. “‘Ello gov’ner, we got the whole place locked up tighter than a virgin’s snatch!”

Sunset’s eye twitched at the British sounding goblin.

“Don’t be gross, man, we got a kid in here,” said Sombra.

The goblin looked at Sunset and his fingers tapped together. “Blimey, what a fit thing you are!”

“Touch me, and I’ll rip you apart,” Sunset warned.

“Ooh, I like her, feisty,” said the goblin.

Sombra stood up and closed his eyes, about ten seconds after doing so, he opened his eyes again and nodded. “Good, the cops are bringing one of those cellphones. Go snatch that up and bring it here.”

“Aye, aye!”

The goblin disappeared into the shadows, and a minute later, reappeared with the phone. Sombra took the cellphone and dialed the pre-programmed number and then placed it on speaker phone.

{This is Chief of Police, Hard Castle, what is the condition of your hostages}

“The hostages are fine, four of ‘em, not injured. How long that stays true is all up to you guys,” said Sombra.

{Very well, what are you demands.}

“I’m sure by now every news station in the city is out there, I want you to get one of their crews and bring them in here, I wanna make an announcement.”

{That’s…please understand Mister…?}

“You can call me ‘King’, for now.”

{Okay, King, you’re asking us to give you more hostages. At the very least you can trade one.}

“One hostage for a crew of two or four or more? And I only have four myself? That’s not good business Chief. But I’ll tell you what, in good faith, you send in a crew, and when we’re done, I’ll send out a hostage with ‘em. Good enough?” Sombra asked.

{……Very well……}

“Good, you got five minutes, for every second that you jerk me around, I’m going to shoot all of them,” said Sombra as he hung up the phone.

“Sir!” Celestia called out. “Please, at least let her go!” Celestia jerked her head to the right towards Sunset. “She’s just a high school girl, she doesn’t need to be involved in this.”

Sombra looked to Sunset and then to Celestia. “She your kid?”

“Yes!”

Sunset felt happy at how Celestia said that without the slightest bit of hesitation.

“I was an orphan growing up, I was taken in by the King family. I can respect that you don’t want her to be involved.” Sombra looked up at one of the gangsters. “Slim, take her into one of the other rooms and keep her there.”

“WHAT?!” Celestia shouted. Slim walked over and picked Sunset up by the zip-ties forcing her to stand as she watched Sunset get led towards the door. “DON’T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!”

“He won’t, right Slim.” The man in question stopped, a hissing tendril appeared in front of him, leering at him and hovering just inches from his nose. “You’re only watching her. If I find out you messed with that kid, I’ll cut your fuckin’ nuts off and feed them to you. Then feed you to it.”

The tendril snarled and gave him a look that said, “Please be stupid enough to mess with the girl so I can eat you!”

Slim gulped. “I-I-I won’t Mr. King, I promise!”

“Damn right you won’t, now go.”

“SUNSET!” Celestia yelled.

“It’ll be okay!” Sunset assured. “I promise!”

The doors closed, leaving Sombra, some of his crew, Celestia, Luna, and Maria in the room.

Sombra turned his gaze onto Celestia, who was now glaring at him with a seething anger that only a mother could muster. “You have a brave kid, like I said, I grew up an orphan, and it sucked balls. So, I’ll make this clear to you three, double for you your Honor. Don’t do anything to make me have to make that girl an orphan.”

Sunset was taken into the guest bedroom and thrown onto the bed itself. She quickly scrambled to get into a seated position, trying to appear as if she was afraid, she was, but more so for Celestia, Luna, and Maria. The man called Slim looked at her with sleazy eyes, she could see his intent in them, mentally undressing her and imagining all kinds of lewd things to do with her. He moved closer and pushed Sunset down onto the bed, he slung his automatic rifle over his shoulder and pulled out a pistol, Slim got closer and pressed the gun to her forehead with his left hand, while his right touched Sunset’s left breast.

Sunset gritted her teeth and glared daggers at the man.

“Damn it would be so easy right now…” Slim said as he moved that same hand to Sunset’s blazer, unbuttoning it, and then doing the same to her white blouse. He stopped about the third button, which allowed a generous view of Sunset’s black bra and cleavage. “But the last thing I need to do is get eaten by some demonic shit.”

Slim backed away, holstering his pistol as he pulled out a chair and sat down.

Sunset got up and continued to glare at Slim. “What’s wrong? Can’t get it up?”

Slim aimed his rifle at Sunset. “Watch it bitch, he said I had to keep an eye on you and not do anything to you. He never said I couldn’t at least enjoy the view.”

Sunset clicked her tongue dejectedly at this man, she looked forward to beating him into the ground when she transformed, but right now there was another matter that needed addressing.

Alright, real talk, why are you so edgy right now? Does that thing really scare you that badly?

}}} I don’t fear it, I just loathe it. {{{

Why?

}}} ……I suppose I should at least tell you. In the beginning there was nothing, nothing except the Darkness. The Darkness is a primordial entity, existing since before time was time. Then, God thrust light into the universe, and that light was the Angelus, another entity. Planets and life began to spring forth, and the Darkness hated that. The Darkness battled the Angelus, for eons their fighting raged, going back and forth, losses and wins on both sides. Until, one day, they stopped the fighting. Till this day no one knows why it was so, but it happened. They formed a truce – temporary as it was – and consummated it. The result of their union…was me. {{{

Sunset reined in her shock so that Slim didn’t see, but on the inside she was. Wait, you mean you were born of two entities that are both light and darkness itself?! It’s like…your dad or something?!

}}} Correct. My existence is meant to be the Balance between the forces of good and evil. The Darkness lives inside that man, it prefers male hosts, being passed down from one generation to the next. Its powers are formidable. Just as I can create bladed weapons, so too can the Darkness forge. It’s creations, however, aren’t just limited to weapons, it can create creatures called Darklings, some that look like that goblin we saw earlier, and others that can pass for human. {{{

Not to mention all the tentacles and snapping eels…So he can create an army if he wanted to…that’s great.

}}} It gets worse. {{{

Sunset sighed heavily. Of course, because why not?

}}} The Darkness does not like being controlled, it much rather use its host like a puppet to do its bidding. But…it appears that this Sombra has control over the Darkness and is aware of its capabilities. {{{

A guy who’s able to tame an entity of pure evil…Now Sunset knew why the Witchblade was on edge. Can we take him?

}}} Hard to say…in this case, it would come down to our hosts. The Darkness is powerful, but its full strength can only come out if the host is equally strong. You are a strong host, Sunset, and as such can draw on more of my power. But this man is ruthless, I can sense it, he’s killed many before. {{{

Sunset tensed, this was way different from when she fought the Wendigos. She wasn’t fighting someone who was possessed by a demon, Sombra had full control over an entity that had been around since the beginning. Sunset clenched her fists and narrowed her gaze. Even so, I won’t let him kill Celestia, Luna, or Maria! We’re getting out of here.

Sunset softened her expression and shot Slim a sultry look. “Slim, right?”

“What?” he asked in annoyance.

“Look, sorry for being a bitch earlier. I was scared and…well, guns and demons.”

Slim shrugged. “Yeah, that shit’ll get to anyone.”

“Scale of one to ten, how likely is it that I’m going to make it out of this alive?” Sunset asked.

Slim thought for a moment. “Hmmm…five. King’s good about keeping his word.”

Sunset’s shoulders slumped. “So…there’s a good chance he’ll come in and shoot me if they go over the time limit?”

“Probably.”

Sunset shook her head. “I don’t want to die like that…” She looked up at Slim again, holding his gaze. “Look, I won’t say anything, but…can you…I’m a virgin and I don’t want to die without at least experiencing that at least once.”

Slim fidgeted in his seat, she knew he was interested in her, Slim just needed some prodding.

“I…I…if he finds out he’ll kill me.”

Sunset shuffled onto the bed, she brought up one leg and bent it, lifting the skirt enough to allow Slim a look at her matching black panties. “I won’t tell ‘em. Just make it good enough that death is the last thing on my mind.”

Slim’s foot tapped the floor rapidly, his eyes darting to the door and back to Sunset, as if fearing that Sombra was going to walk in and see him. “Fuck it.”

Sunset smirked, Slim put his guns down on the dresser and moved towards Sunset. There was a light snap that made him pause.

“What the hell was that noise?”

“This.”

Sunset bolted from the bed faster than Slim could react. An obsidian colored, armored fist came flying at him from the right, striking Slim in the jaw and sending him slamming into the wall, whereupon he collapsed onto the floor completely unconscious. Sunset smirked again; her right forearm covered in the Witchblade armor.

Sunset walked to the dresser, she willed a four-foot-long blade to appear from her forearm and cleaved both guns in half, rendering them useless. She then moved to Slim who had extra zip-ties in his pocket, and used them to tie up both his hands and legs.

}}} Killing him would be much simpler. {{{

He’s not possessed, and not a Darkling. I’m not going to kill someone if I can help it. I may’ve accepted my dark side, but I’m not abandoning that rule.

}}} Very well. {{{

While Slim was unconscious, Sunset undressed quickly. Right after, the bracelet broke out and wrapped around her body, cladding her in the armor of the Witchblade. The ruby jewel shined as Sunset’s clothes were absorbed into it. Once that was done, Sunset hurried into the halls and began skulking about.

Celestia wondered how Sunset was doing, despite how Sombra spoke, she didn’t trust this man, nor did she trust the guy who took her. Several times Celestia had to stop herself from imagining what was happening to Sunset, wondering if that man was raping Sunset or just shot her.

Three minutes had passed and two more minutes until Sombra shot them. Her eyes glanced to Luna, she tried to remain strong and hard, it was just like her little sister. She had always tried to project this aura of a strong and stoic woman, but inside she was still the little precocious brat of a little sister she was back then, the same little sister who used to crawl into her bed whenever there was a thunderstorm or whenever she had a bad dream.

Their parents were long since dead, they were all the family they had left, even living together in the same house and taking up jobs at the school they once attended long ago. True, they had their fights now and again, but at the end of the day they still loved one another and would die to protect the other. Right now, Celestia was contemplating that very notion, perhaps she could make a deal with Sombra.

The man seemed laser focused though, she didn’t know what she could offer him. She wasn’t rich so she couldn’t bribe him, she had no political power to exploit, the thought of offering her body to him revolted her, but if it meant that Luna and Sunset could get out of this alive then so be it. However, she didn’t know if that would be enough to get Maria off the hook, Sombra made it clear he wanted her alive to make a statement, and he looked like a man that couldn’t be dissuaded from an agenda like this.

Celestia hated this, she hated not having the answers, hated not being able to help those she loved and cared about. She was powerless to save Sunset from getting shot, powerless to stop Anon-A-Miss when it mattered, powerless to put a stop to Sunset’s ambitious plans before she had the school in her iron grip. And at the end of the day, it was the very students whom she was supposed to look after and protect who ended up saving the day.

The cellphone that the police gave Sombra rang. He took it out of his jacket pocket and answered, “You’re cutting it close, Chief.”

{We’re sending the crew in right now, they’re at the door.}

Sombra closed his eyes, waited a moment and then nodded. “Alright, you’re telling the truth. I’ll send some guys at the door, if I so much as smell a setup, I’ll send the crew back in pieces along with the mayor’s arm. Understand?”

{You’re understood, King.}

Sombra ended the call and looked down at the mayor. “You might wanna start thinking about what you’re going to say.”

“I usually have a speech written up, or I could wing it unless you have something in mind?” Maria stated bitterly.

“Put whatever flourish you want to it, just so long as you make it clear that I’m in charge of this city now.”

“The people of this city aren’t just going to follow you because I say so. They’ll resist,” said Maria.

“Of course they will, who wouldn’t? But give enough time, and they’ll see which is the winning side,” said Sombra.

Some more of the gangsters opened the doors and in came a TV crew, one man holding a boom-stick, the second guy was holding a camera, and the reporter was holding her microphone that was labeled, “Channel 5: Action News Now!”

“Are you ‘King’?” the reporter asked.

“Yes,” said Sombra.

“Okay…how do you want us to proceed?”

“Why don’t you take a wide shot of the room, and then we’ll start with my announcement and the mayor’s speech,” Sombra suggested.

“Alright, give me a minute to focus this,” said the cameraman.

The reporter nodded and stepped behind him, while the man holding the boom-stick did the same. There were about four guards in total, and with Sombra that made five. The reporter looked at the mayor, she made eye contact with her and the reporter's head nodded ever so slightly. Maria seemed to understand what was probably about to happen, she glanced over to Luna and Celestia and mouthed, “Get down.”

Celestia and Luna bowed their heads slightly along with Maria’s. The cameraman pointed the oversized camera to his left and then, his left index finger squeezed around the hilt. The moment he did, the lens burst with automatic gunfire, hitting the two guards before they had a chance to retaliate.

Sombra was about to act, but the reporter turned her mike so that the soft foam was pointed at Sombra, she then smacked the butt of the mike with her right hand and immediately after, a gunshot fired from it, hitting Sombra in the chest and putting a three-inch hole in his chest.

The other guards were about to act, but the cameraman did the same to them, mowing them down with automatic fire. When it was over, the three women looked up and around, taking in the gruesome scene before them.

“W-What the hell was that?!” Luna asked.

“My private security force, am I correct?” Maria asked.

“Yes Ma’am, we managed to persuade the Chief of Police to let us try and attempt exfiltration of you and the hostages,” the not-reporter stated.

The not-cameraman and not-sound guy took a few of the gangsters’ weapons, and then handed a couple to the not-reporter.

“I hate to say this, but you’ll have to run with your hands like that, can you all manage?”

All three nodded as they got to their feet. The three mercenaries threw open the doors and shot the two gangsters standing sentry.

“Wait! We need to get Sunset! She’s still in here!” Celestia begged.

“We don’t have time! It’s now or never!”

Celestia didn’t want to go, she needed to save Sunset, if she was left behind then there was no telling what these gangsters would do to her once they found out their leader was killed. If she wasn’t afraid that they were going to do something to her before, she sure as hell was afraid now.

“Celly, they’ll get us out, and then they’ll go after Sunset! I promise,” Maria then looked to the Mercs, “right?”

The three Mercs nodded in unison.

Celestia wasn’t completely satisfied with that, but right now their window of escape was closing the longer she took to debate this. I’m sorry…

The Mercs led them as fast as they could towards the front, gunning down a few of the gangsters along the way. They were about halfway there before something got in the way. There was a rotunda area that separated the main entryway and the rest of the house, there wasn’t much time, it was now or never.

When they entered the rotunda, they stopped, suddenly feeling like they were being watched. Those fears were confirmed when two Darklings dropped from the ceiling and landed on top of the two male Mercs. The little assassin goblins produced large daggers and proceeded to stab into them multiple times, blood sprayed from their jugulars as they thrashed around in a desperate attempt to get the Darklings off of them.

The female Merc tried to aim her weapon to shoot the creatures, but was stopped when a eel tendril burst through her chest, her mouth filled with blood as the last thing she was able to see was a inky black creature protruding from her chest.

Celestia, Luna, and Maria stifled a scream as they watched as more black tendrils wrapped around the room, blocking their only exit. They moved towards the center and witnessed as Sombra came walking down the opposite hallway, the wound in his chest was completely gone.

“H-How?! S-She shot you!” Maria stammered.

“Yeah, that was a bitch.” Sombra narrowed his gaze at Maria. “I warned them not to screw with me, whether that was a plan of yours, your Honor, or your Chief’s, I don’t care. But I do care that you killed some of my men, and shot me. There are consequences to actions.”

The two Darklings chuckled wickedly as they brandished their daggers, while Sombra’s sharp tendrils hovered in the air, waiting for the order to strike.

<^> He’s here! <^>

Who’s here?

Suddenly, the sound of roaring flames caught Sombra’s attention. When he turned around, a torrent of fire was raging towards him. Sombra created a cocoon of tendrils around his body as the flames washed over the Darkness. The entity of evil hissed in pain, but was still standing. From that same hallway, something else appeared, or rather, someone else.

Sunset Shimmer dashed through the hallway, jumped up into the air, and landed in front of Celestia, Luna, and Maria. Only she was donned in the full armor of the Witchblade. There were no gaps in this armor, the Witchblade knew that this enemy was something to take seriously, so much like her battle against the Wendigos, the Witchblade covered all the exposed parts that were normally shown.

The helmet retracted a bit and showed her face, allowing Sunset to gaze about Sombra, the one who wielded the ancient entity, the Darkness.

}}} Father… {{{

<^> Son… <^>

Sunset cringed upon hearing the voice of the Darkness answer back. It was like a thousand cicadas, combined with the hissing of a thousand malicious snakes. She couldn’t imagine hearing this thing in her head twenty-four-seven, at least the Witchblade’s voice, while deep, was pleasant enough to hear.

“So, you’re the famous Witchblade I’ve heard about?” Sombra asked.

“I am, and I know what that power is. The Darkness,” Sunset answered back.

One of the dark eels appeared next to Sombra and he looked at it and asked, “You said ‘son’, but she looks like a she to me.”

<^> Fool! Just as you are a host to me, so too is that female a host to my wayward son! She takes the name, but that armor is Witchblade! <^>

Sombra nodded his head. “I see, guess we stumbled into some kind of family feud between these two, huh?”

“Cut the crap, these three are walking out of here with me, end of story!”

“Wait!” Celestia spoke. “My…d-daughter, Sunset Shimmer, she’s still in this house! She’s being held hostage!”

Sunset glanced over her shoulder, her heart once again filled with happiness from hearing Celestia regard her as a daughter. “I’ve already rescued her, she’s safe.”

The three women sighed in relief, but stiffened when they heard the Darklings behind them. Sunset formed two shurikens and threw them out to her right and left. The throwing stars spun and whistled as they cut through the air, eventually finding their homes in the skulls of both Darklings. The goblin creatures dropped their daggers and fell to the floor, their bodies turning into black ash.

Sunset walked behind them and cut their restraints before heading to face Sombra again.

<^> Use the armor! <^>

You serious? She can’t be that strong, she’s only a kid.

<^> Do not underestimate my Son! He is strong, and if by chance his host is strong, then you cannot afford to fuck around! Wear the armor and kill her! <^>

Sombra stared down Sunset, he could see a look of determination and unwavering strength in her eyes. It almost reminded him of his long since dead lover, she wasn’t one to give up easily for anything either.

“Alright kid, I make it policy not to kill kids, but seeing as you have that Witchblade, it tells me you’re prepared to kill or be killed, that right?” Sombra asked.

The helmet reformed, Sunset’s stance widened as she formed two broadswords in both hands. “Pretty much.”

“Alright then.”

The Darkness wrapped around his body, the air grew cold and the room began to feel oppressive and constricting. When the shadows faded away, Sombra stood before them, but clad in armor. The demonic armor was silver, the areas around the joints had crimson colored armor, segmented to allow for better movement. Red spikes protruded from the shoulders of the armor, and elbows, while the shadows of the Darkness created a black cape around his neck. Sombra’s face was covered in a mask, covering his ears as well, the face mask created a crown that had five small silver horns and one long red horn from the middle.

Sombra opened his clawed, armored hands, and into them formed two guns. The gun on his left had a rotating barrel that looked similar to a gatling gun, the one in his right hand had a large barrel, but both had four-inch blades coming out the bottoms of the grips. Snapping eel tendrils came out from the cape, hissing and growling as they looked upon Witchblade.

Oh shit…

}}} Shit indeed. {{{

Sunset jumped up, zooming from the floor to the far back wall, and landing with the boom. She looked towards Sombra and used it to springboard off the wall, her swords at the ready. Sombra raised his left gun and pulled the trigger, the rotating barrel spun rapidly as the supernatural weapon fired multiple rounds of black energy bullets that crackled with yellow electricity.

Sunset willed her metal wings to flare, allowing her to stop in midair as she used her swords to deflect the dark bullets. Each bullet that struck against her blades was jarring, making her arms sting from the impact of the small ordinance. While Sombra continued to barrage Sunset with the dark bullets of his left gun, he lifted the right one and pulled the trigger.

The second gun sounded like someone had just set off a cannon, a tiny shockwave rattled through the rotunda as a burst of dark energy sailed towards Sunset. The Bringer of Balance was too busy deflecting the other shots that she wasn’t able to block the second. The blast struck her in the chest, exploding against her armor and sending Sunset spiraling into the wall.

<^> Do not let up! Kill her! <^>

“Alright, alright, jeez,” said Sombra.

Sombra looked to his hostages who were still frozen in fear, he considered what to do with them for a moment, he certainly couldn’t just let them go after everything he went through trying to get the mayor, but then again, the Witchblade was a problem.

Speaking of which, Sunset burst out of hole in the wall and was upon Sombra. Her glowing turquoise eyes met his ruby colored eyes before she threw a right hook into his face, but she didn’t stop, she drilled her punch and flew right into him, taking both of them further back into the mansion as they burst through one wall after the next.

Sombra growled as he grabbed Sunset’s right arm with both hands, planted his feet into the floor, and, using her momentum, threw Sunset straight up into the ceiling. Sunset smashed through one floor after the other until she was now in the open air outside. She shook the daze from her head and prepared to fly back down, but stopped when she saw Sombra flying up to meet her.

Sunset flew around him, like a shark stalking its prey. The former unicorn dashed towards him, flying in with a spinning roundhouse. Sombra quickly blocked the kick with his left forearm, the blow reverberating the air and shaking the cars below. Sunset pushed off him, and came down with a right haymaker.

Sombra grabbed her fist with his right hand before the blow could connect, he pulled back, drawing her close, and threw a left uppercut into her stomach. The sound of thunder roared in the sky again from Sombra’s blow, and made Sunset cough hard from the pain in her abdomen. Sombra released Sunset and then gave her another punch across her armored face, followed by another, and another.

Sunset growled as she blocked a punch, and countered with one of her own, nailing him in the middle of his face, but Sombra didn’t let up. The two traded blows back and forth, with Sunset throwing in some kicks, elbows, and backhands. She was able to get a grasp on Sombra’s fighting style, he was not as versed in martial arts as she was, granted everything she knew was self-taught, but that coupled with experience on the streets made for a good foundation. Sombra’s style was like that of a street brawler, while not quite martial arts, it wasn’t bad either, especially if the person was experienced, and she could tell Sombra was.

The reverberations of their blows shook the sky and ground with each blocked punch and each successful strike. Sunset and Sombra cocked back their fists and roared as they threw them, the result was a cross counter, ending with both of them getting struck in the face at the same time. The force of their blows forced them apart, throwing them into tail spins.

Sombra was the first to regain his bearings, from his cape, five black tendrils rose and shot towards Sunset. When Sunset did regain her senses, it was too late, the tendrils wrapped around her neck, arms, and legs. Sombra spun once, taking Sunset with him, and with a flourish, threw her down towards the ground.

Down below, Celestia, Luna, and Maria were just about to exit the mansion, but then Maria looked up and saw what was coming. “MOVE!” Maria shouted as she pushed Luna forward, grabbed Celestia, and pulled her back into the mansion.

Luna didn’t know what was happening, not until something crashed into the ground behind her. The wind and force generated from the impact sent Luna flying away, rolling on the ground until she came to a stop. When she looked up, a second impact hit, clearing the dust away.

Sombra, standing over Sunset, reached down, and grabbed her by the throat. With a grunt of effort he tossed her straight towards the mansion, blasting the front door and walls down as she skipped on the floor and hit the staircase.

The armor around his mouth retracted a little and allowed Sunset to cough up some blood. Sombra was strong, the Darkness was strong, the two of them together, that was something else. We need to use second state…

}}} That form is too dangerous in your current condition. {{{

Weeks ago, Sunset had achieved a new form of power with the Witchblade in order to defeat the Wendigos. She thought it was only a temporary power, but it turned out she could use it again. After some experimentation, Sunset learned that form she dubbed “Second State” granted her immense power, but at a price. It burned through her energy reserves fast, it relied on a combination of the Witchblade’s power and Sunset’s, tapping into her latent magical energy. At most, they could go five minutes in Second State, they could go longer, but the Witchblade warned that her lifeforce could be tapped into it if they prolonged the form.

The blows from Sombra hit harder than the Wendigos ever did, this was the power of the primordial entity, the Darkness. Sunset knew it was a risk, but right now she didn’t have a choice.

However, Sombra burst into the room and willed a tendril that was morphed into a blade to attack her. The blade pierced through Sunset’s chest and nailed her to the wall, another followed suit, hitting her in the shoulders, and one more through her stomach.

“That’s enough out of you, kid.” Sombra glanced to his right and saw Maria and Celestia. “Your Honor, this wasn’t the way this was supposed to go down, but I think we can make do. You’re coming with me.”

Celestia watched Sombra come closer, like the grim reaper or the devil, hell, after what she’d seen, Sombra might very well be the devil. Without thinking, Celestia stood up and put herself between Sombra and Maria.

“Celly!” Maria called out.

“C-Celestia!” Sunset croaked.

Sombra stood five feet from Celestia. “I only want her. Just move and you’ll be alright.”

Celestia held out her shaky arms and shook her head, a fierce look plastered on her face. “I-I’m not moving! I won’t let you hurt Maria!”

“I will kill you.” A black tendril rose up and hovered like a snake ready to strike. “You don’t have to die here.”

“I won’t move! I…” Celestia glanced over her left shoulder and smiled at Maria. “…love her.”

For a brief moment, Sombra saw his lost love and his tendril hesitated. But then that phantom image quickly faded and she was Celestia again. The tendril snapped back and in the next moment, the sound of flesh being punctured echoed unnaturally loud in the room.

Maria looked upon the scene, seeing a dark tendril piercing through her girlfriend’s stomach, blood dripping down its sharpened end drop by drop. Sunset’s pupils shrank into pinpricks as her stomach dropped. The only sound that was heard immediately after that moment, was a cry of fury and sadness.

Setting up the Pieces: Part 5

Sunset’s heartbeat rang unnaturally loud in her ears, the scene before her playing in slow motion. The tendril winding up, and then whipping forward and impaling Celestia. The look of shock and pain on her face, the blood that spilled from her mouth, her shaking limps, all of it was happening at such an excruciating slow pace that Sunset thought time itself was torturing her.

The tendril finally dislodged itself from Celestia’s stomach, allowing her to collapse onto the floor before Sombra and Maria. Her mind tried to play it off as a trick, it had to be, this couldn’t be real right? But the longer she looked at Celestia’s lifeless body, the more it was becoming reality, she was dead.

“A brave woman, I respect that. But in all honesty, I don’t think you’re worth it, your Honor.”

Maria reached with a shaky hand towards Celestia, tears falling from her eyes as she took that same hand and clamped it over her mouth as if to stop the sobbing cries that threatened to escape it.

Sunset clenched her fists, her sharp teeth grinding as her eyes flared with anger. And then came the cry, a furious and sorrowful cry that grabbed Sombra’s attention, and the Darkness’ attention as well.

Crimson flames erupted around Sunset, burning the tendrils that kept her pinned to the wall. Her body and armor underwent transformation, the armor changing to a crimson color, the jewels becoming violet amethysts, hair turning to silver, and eyes becoming gold while yellow flicks of energy danced in the corners of her eyes. When the flames broke, Sunset stood now, a little taller, and a little more filled out, but far stronger than she was earlier.

“Okay, that’s different,” said Sombra.

<^> Be on guard, that wretch is stronger than she was earlier! <^>

“I’ll kill you…I’ll kill you…I’LL KILL YOU!!!!” Sunset roared as she disappeared from sight.

Sombra reacted just in time as Sunset appeared right behind him. The slayer of evil thrust forward with a forearm blade, but Sombra managed to dodge it. Sunset spun around and lashed out with a second blade from her left arm. The second attack grazed Sombra’s neck armor, making sparks fly from the contact.

Sombra created a mass of shadows and released it in a burst, slamming Sunset with shadowy dark energy. The beam carried her halfway across the room before she planted her heels and stopped. Crimson flames sprang to life around her clawed hands, and with a fury filled yell, unleashed a blast of crimson fire to counter his beam. The two attacks fought for supremacy as neither caster was willing to give an inch to their opponent.

}}} Sunset, you have less than a minute! {{{

SHUT UP! HE DIES TONIGHT!

Sunset jumped up and allowed the beam to crash against the wall behind her, resulting in an explosion that shook the mansion. Into her right hand, Sunset formed a dual edged sword, she swept her left hand over both ends and coated the blades with crimson flames. She spun once in the air and came down with a diagonal slash across Sombra’s chest.

Sombra grunted loudly in pain as the flames seared his flesh, even the Darkness hissed from the pain. The armor and wound mended themselves, but Sunset came in with a second attack, cutting him horizontally and leaving an angry red glowing gash on the armor. She then twirled the weapon around thrusted forward, impaling Sombra as she twisted the weapon in his chest. Blood spilled from his face plate as he was forced to cough up his blood.

“How does that feel you son of a bitch?!”

Sombra’s answer was grabbing the back of Sunset’s head, cocking his head back, and bringing his forehead and her head together, hitting Sunset right in the face. Sunset lost her grip on the sword, making it disappear, her nose had been crushed from the blow and blood poured from the nostrils. But that only lasted for a few seconds before the Witchblade healed her.

Sombra, now healed, attacked Sunset with a right punch. Sunset used her forearm to smack his arm up, she spun down to one knee as she brought her right elbow up, that same elbow formed a ten-inch, serrated blade that was laced with flames, and elbow struck Sombra in his right side, aiming higher so that it would hit his lung, and she did.

Sombra felt searing pain erupt within his body, his breathing becoming erratic as one of his lungs refused to inflate as he inhaled. Sunset pulled out from his chest, spinning around again as she brought her right fist in for an uppercut. From the gaps in her knuckles, three, six-inch long, claw-like blades came out. Her uppercut landed right into his diaphragm.

Using her supernatural strength, she lifted him up with that same arm and threw him into a wall, smashing through it. Sombra growled from the hole in the wall, busted out, and charged for Sunset. Both met in the center as they grappled with each other, the power they exuded clashing in the air around. Just then, Sunset felt her body straining, blood began to trickle from her mouth and her legs began to shake.

}}} Sunset, we cannot stay in this form any longer! {{{

Just a little bit longer! I can kill him! I can do it! I can – GAH!

Pain ripped through Sunset’s body, she could feel the strength winding down. She dropped to one knee just as the Second State disengaged, returning her to her First State. Sombra released his grip on Sunset and looked down on her, her gaze was still filled with vengeance and defiance.

“That was scary, but fun on a level,” Sombra panted. “But for once I agree with the Darkness, you are too dangerous to leave alive, kid.”

Sombra reformed his gun-cannon in his right hand, he aimed it right at Sunset’s head and slowly squeezed the trigger.

Celestia felt cold, she was floating in a sea of nothingness. She reflected on her life, all the decisions she had made in her life, all the missed opportunities.

She died, there was no way around that, she sacrificed herself to protect Maria. Did it make a difference? Against someone like Sombra, she doubted it amounted to less than a wasted effort. Witchblade was there, so, maybe she bought the hero enough time to recover and end Sombra?

Celestia still had some regrets. She regretted not adopting Sunset. Yes, she was a legal adult, and yes she’d soon graduate and leave the city to pursue whatever she wanted, and yes, she knew that Sunset had a life back in another dimension. But Sunset was the closest thing Celestia had to a daughter, and she treasured her like one, or at least tried to.

As a principal, she couldn’t show favoritism, and being a child taken from the streets and assigned to Celestia as a ward of the state, she thought that Sunset would never come to see her as someone who she’d regard as a parent. But after finding out more about her, she began to understand why Sunset kept her distance, it was due to the fact that someone bearing her name and likeness was someone that Sunset highly respected and loved like a mother.

Another thing she regretted, not spending more time with Luna. Yes, they lived together, but with all their work at school, and her dates with Maria, the two sisters never really spent that much time with each other. And what time they did spend was something that they treasured.

Finally, Maria. She never got to talk with her, and never would again. She loved Maria, and she knew – or hoped – that Maria felt the same way she did. The way their relationship had been going made her wonder where they stood. But now all that was a moot point. She was dead, and there was nothing Celestia could do about it…

\\/// I never pegged you for a quitter. \\///

A light shined in the darkness, making Celestia squint to see what it was. The light grew larger and then began to take form. In a matter of seconds it had feminine form, with large, light feathered wings coming out of its back. The being of light appeared before her, bathing Celestia in its warm glow and chasing away the icy cold of the nothingness around her.

“Are you…an angel?” Celestia asked hesitantly.

\\/// Oh, I am far higher than an angel, I am the light itself. You did a valiant thing back there, although I still don’t think that Maria was worth it. \\///

Celestia listened to its voice for a moment and then her eyes went wide. “Y-You’re the voice in my head! The one that had been speaking to me for the last three weeks!”

The angel put her hand over her chest, and Celestia could somehow feel the angel smirking. \\/// The one and only. But I’ll cut to the chase as we don’t have much time. You’ve seen it haven’t you? The Darkness? The evil entity that that man possesses? \\///

How could she forget, just remembering that thing made her shudder. “I do.”

\\/// The Darkness will consume the world if nothing is done to stop it, but that’s where you come in, Celestia. I am it’s mortal enemy, and I need a host with a strong spirit, and a just heart to become my host so that I might smite this evil from the world! \\///

Celestia looked upon the angel with astonishment. “And…y-you really want me to be a ‘host’? I don’t…I’m not special or anything, I’m sure you can find those qualities in anyone…” Her mind immediately brought up Sunset. “Sunset exemplifies that better than me.”

The angel nodded her head. \\/// I won’t disagree with you there. However, I know you don’t wish to put her in that kind of danger. \\///

“But I’m not a skilled fighter or anything of the sort! I’m not out of shape, but I’m not as athletic as I once was!” Celestia argued.

\\/// You’re plenty athletic enough, besides, once we are united, my power will magnify your physical abilities far beyond what a normal human is capable of. If the Darkness isn’t stopped, everyone you hold dear will die, so I ask you, Celestia, will you be one with me? \\///

The angel held out her hand, Celestia looked to it, feeling so unworthy of being chosen by an angelic being. However, the angel spoke the truth, if she did not do something, Maria, Luna, Sunset, the students of the school, everyone in the city, they would all suffer at the hands of the Darkness. Celestia was tired of sitting on the sidelines, tired of letting children fight battles that the adults should be fighting, it was time for an adult to step up.

With determination burning in her eyes, Celestia took the angel’s hand into her right. “I will become your host!”

A faint line formed on the being of light, something that could be construed as a smile. \\/// I knew I chose right when it came to you. Hear me, Celestia, for my name is–! \\///

~*~*~*~

Bright light engulfed Celestia’s body, causing Maria to wince. The light made Sombra pause as it burned his armor, making the Darkness hiss in pain. Sunset looked over her shoulder and gasped at what she was witnessing.

Within the light, Celestia’s clothes evaporated, and her tri-colored hair became pure flames. Golden armor around her forearms, shoulders, waist, chest, and finally boots that stopped just below her knee. The gaps were then filled with a white, chainmail-like metal, and the golden parts of the armor were etched with ancient enochian markings.

From her back, Celestia sprouted angelic, feathered wings, with a seven foot wingspan. A crown formed around her head, some of it slanting down to protect the sides of her face, while the rest protruded upwards, forming five, evenly length spikes, with a violet gemstone at the center of the crown. Did I forget to mention that the outfit hugged Celestia’s body enough that her generous curves were visible? When the light faded, Sunset and Maria beheld a transformed Celestia, both rendered speechless.

“C-Celestia…?” Maria asked timidly.

Celestia opened her eyes, which were now pools of white light. She placed a hand on her hip and spared Maria an over the shoulder glance. “Celestia is alive, but right now I’m in control. My name is Angelus.”

Sunset’s eyes widened, the Angelus, the polar opposite of the Darkness, the mother of the Witchblade.

Angelus walked up next to Sunset and said, “Nice to see you again, Son.”

Sunset could feel the Witchblade prickle, as noted by the glow from the ruby jewel. }}} I’d say the feeling’s mutual, but I’d be lying. {{{

Angelus put her hand to her chest, and rested her right wrist against her forehead in a “woe was me” fashion. “Oh, my dear Son, you wound me. After all these years we finally have a reunion you’re not even happy to see me? You don’t call, you don’t write, it’s very rude.” Angelus chuckled as she saw the armor around Sunset ripple with agitation. “But that’s in the past, it seems your father has found himself a strong host, and you’re in a bit of a bind.”

}}} Ha! Like you’re in any position to brag! It’s night time, or have you forgotten your power dwindles in darkness? {{{

“I swear, I feel like a fourth wheel in this little family drama,” said Sunset.

“Don’t worry about it. And no, I have not forgotten, which is why the two of us will fight against the Darkness together. Even he can’t beat us together.”

<^> VILE WENCH!!! <^> Sombra was still standing, but it was already noticeable that the light of the Angelus was hurting him. <^> I WILL BE RID OF YOU! <^>

“I take it that they know each other?” Sombra asked.

“My once-upon-a-time ‘lover’,” said Angelus.

Sombra slapped his forehead and groaned. “Jesus, it feels like I’m in the middle of some family feud shit.”

“Join the club.”

“That’s enough banter.” Angelus raised both of her hands up, and immediately created two golden swords. “Host of my Son, will you fight with me?!”

Sunset rose back up, her body still hurt, but her drive to take down Sombra was greater. The former unicorn summoned a claymore sword, twirling it around as she got into a ready stance, and with her left arm, she created a shield. “You saved Celestia, I owe you one. So, yes, I will!”

“Good girl!”

Sombra recreated his dual guns, and opened fire. Sunset got out front and used her shield to block the first barrage. Angelus flew up and charged straight for Sombra. The host of the Darkness aimed his gun-cannon at Angelus and fired one round after the other. Each blast hit the ceiling as the Angelus flew with great agility and speed, avoiding each round.

A battle cry caught Sombra’s attention as Sunset ran towards him with her shield pushed forward. The shield was cracking the closer it got to the barrel, but when it shattered, Sunset turned ducked under it and slashed upwards with her sword, knocking the weapon out of his left hand.

Angelus saw this and descended rapidly, bringing down her right sword and slashing through Sombra’s right arm. Blood spouted from the wound for a few seconds before the shadows wrapped around it. While Sombra stumbled, Sunset gripped the hilt of her sword and thrust forward, piercing Sombra’s chest.

Sunset released her grip on the sword and allowed it to disappear into ash. Both her and the Angelus stood side by side, Sunset raising her left hand and willing orange and yellow flames to ignite. At the same time, the Angelus’s right hand was wrapped in orange and white flames. Both women unleashed their flames at the same time, creating a spiral torrent of fire that slammed into Sombra and exploded.

Sombra was thrown back, but he managed to dig his heels into the floor and dropped to one knee. His right arm grew back, his flesh being rewrapped in the armor. We’re leaving.

<^> NO! KILL THEM BOTH! <^>

We will, but right now, however, we still need to make our point!

Sombra made his cape expand, creating several tendrils and eels. Sunset and the Angelus readied to fight, but then Sombra dashed towards the exit, busting through the front door, tearing most of the front down on his way out. When Sombra was outside, he hovered in the air, allowing the TV cameras to get a good look at him.

“To everyone watchin’ this tonight! I make this statement! Canterlot City, from this point forward, belongs to the Blood Kings! And I am their leader, you can call me, ‘King’! So know, that things that go bump in the night will be coming for you! Because I AM the thing that goes bump in the night!”

Having said his peace, Sombra flew away, vanishing into the darkness of the night. Inside the room where the fighting took place, Sunset dropped to one knee again, exhausted beyond belief from the battle.

“You did well, despite everything, Host of my Son.” The Angelus walked over to her and patted Sunset on the back, the armor visibly rippled with agitation at her touch. “I look forward to our next meeting.”

The Angelus was engulfed in light, and in the next moment, Celestia was back, not armored, no flaming hair, the wound was gone, but her clothes were visibly ripped from where Sombra had inflicted his wound. The older woman began to collapse, but Sunset hurriedly caught her before she could hit the floor. Maria snapped out of her stupor and rushed to where the two were, she knelt next to Celestia as Sunset laid her down.

“Is she…?” Maria asked.

“She’s alright, if it’s anything like what happened to me, she was saved from death.” Sunset looked up at her. “I have to go, but please take care of her, your Honor.”

“I will, and thank you!”

Sunset stumbled to her feet, flared her wings and flew out the front and into the sky.

The following day was met with chaos, the news ran and reran the footage of last night’s battle between Witchblade and a new monster, along with the new monster, hereto called “King”, announcing his reign over Canterlot City, along with the local gang called the Blood Kings.

Statements were taken from Sunset, Luna, and Maria Mare regarding the hostage situation, thanks to them they were able to get a description of the man behind the mask, it didn’t take long for the airwaves to be plastered with the name and face of King, who was now ousted as “Sombra King”.

Meanwhile, Celestia was in a hospital, with Sunset, Luna, and Maria. Celestia was admitted for the wound she received, but after careful examination, it was found that there was no damage, either internal or external, and that the only thing they could treat her for was for exhaustion, which given what had happened the previous night wasn’t unusual.

Sunset, however, was still worried about the whole thing. Even now, as she sat there in the room, watching Celestia sleep, Sunset couldn’t shake off what she saw. The Angelus, and the Darkness, according to the Wtichblade they were two of most powerful forces in the known universe, primordial entities that represent good and evil, light and darkness, the ones who birthed the Witchblade she now wields, and one of those primordial entities was inhabiting someone she cared about.

Sunset sat in her chair, fingers laced, and elbows resting on her thighs as she thought. How worried do I need to be about the Angelus right now?

}}} My Father is one side of a destructive spectrum. While my Mother is another, she’s a force of good, who seeks harmony and order, and smites disorder and sin. {{{

That doesn’t sound necessarily bad…

}}} On the surface, no. But… {{{

Just then, Celestia began to stir, Sunset bolted from her seat and went to her bedside. The school principal groaned as her eyelids fluttered open, she took a quick glance around, panic starting to fill her as she didn’t recognize where she was, that is until her eyes locked onto Sunset.

“Sunset…?”

“Yes?!”

Celestia reached out with her right hand and stroked her cheek. Sunset leaned down and hugged Celestia as best she could. “I was so scared, I knew Witchblade said you were alright, but after everything that happened, I…”

“I’m alright, seriously, I am,” Sunset assured. Sunset broke the hug and asked, “How do you feel? What’s the last thing you remember?”

Celestia took a moment to ponder that, her mind instantly flashed back to standing before Sombra, and then the pain that erupted from her abdomen. She quickly threw off the blankets and pulled up the hospital gown, deathly afraid she was going to find a gaping wound, but thankfully there was none, just smooth cream colored flesh.

“I was…I was killed…Sombra killed me, but then I saw an angel. She said she wanted me to help her stop him, to let me become her host. Strangely, I feel…stronger, healthier than I’ve ever been as a matter of fact! I mean, I was healthy, but now I feel as if could run a marathon and go right into a triathlon!”

\\/// That would be my influence. \\///

Sunset and Celestia paused.

“Did…Did you hear a voice, too, Sunset?” Celestia asked with worry.

“I did…”

\\/// I figured as much, I could sense it the entire time you were in this room. Since I hadn’t fully taken on Celestia as a host I wasn’t sure at first, but now I’m positive. You are the host of my Son, Witchblade. Come now, my Son, at least say hello to your mother. \\///

A low grunt was heard from the Witchblade bracelet, which also shimmered a bit in response.

Celestia looked to the bracelet and then to Sunset. “Sunset…she said ‘Witchblade’, are you…?”

This wasn’t how she wanted Celestia to find out, in all honesty she didn’t want her to. “Yes…I am. It’s the reason why I was able to survive that encounter when Pinkie and I were attacked, it was also due to this that I was able to fight off Lightning Dust and Gilda, and how I survived getting shot.”

A greater realization hit her, all the battles that had taken place in the city, the monster that tried to kill Pinkie, the bird creature that almost killed her, the fashion show, the incident at the Flim & Flam Inc. warehouse, the sex club, the storm that overcame the city and their school. During all of it, Sunset was the one fighting, even with the Anon-A-Miss stuff going on, she fought all those demons…and doing so in such revealing armor.

A small scowl formed on Celestia’s face that made Sunset tense up. “I wouldn’t put it past you to do something like fighting evil demons, but…do you really need to do so in such revealing clothing?”

Sunset’s face heated up. “T-That’s not my choice! It’s just how the armor comes out, I swear! I don’t like it, and plus, it tears through my clothes every single time!”

\\/// That crude nature is something you get from your father. \\///

}}} Oh, the last being in existence who should be commenting on crudeness is you, Mother! {{{

Sunset and Celestia glanced at each other.

“Do you–?” Celestia began.

“Feel like you're in the middle of an awkward family feud, oh yeah,” said Sunset.

The Angelus made a scoffing sound before continuing. \\/// Anyway, you know as well as I do that the Darkness presents a threat to not just this city, but the world as a whole. You need my help to stop him. \\///

Witchblade scoffed next. }}} There’s no denying that Father is a threat to the balance of this world, but I do not require your help to subdue him! {{{

\\/// The battle last night begged to differ. \\///

}}} Sunset used up some of her power during the battle, had we gone into second state immediately, the battle would’ve been over! {{{

\\/// The point is that you didn’t, and as a result, required my help. Plus, you know I have better resources in which to defeat him. \\///

Witchblade grumbled something that neither of them could understand.

“Look,” Sunset spoke, “Angelus, I understand you’re for order and harmony, so am I. The Darkness threatens everyone I care about, and I don’t want it to remain here. Can you promise me that all you seek is to end its reign?”

\\/// Well, that’s also up to Celestia here. She is my host, after all, and while I could take over, I’d rather we fought together instead of against each other. What do you say? \\///

Celestia gripped the blankets and knitted her brow. “I’m tired of children taking on the burden that we adults should be! It should be us protecting you, not the other way around! I’m through standing on the sidelines, Sunset, and letting you and your friends put yourselves in danger for our sakes. So, yes, I will fight alongside, Angelus, and you as well, Sunset.”

Sunset couldn’t help but let a smile creep across her face, it was almost like a dream come true. Back in Equestria, she imagined herself and Princess Celestia as alicorns, standing shoulder to shoulder against a great and powerful enemy, valiantly fighting to defend their home against impossible odds and at the end emerging as the victors, heroes to all.

\\/// Now that’s what I’d like to hear. And since the Darkness got to make a little announcement, I’d like to make one of my own. However, I will need Maria’s help with that. And speak of the devil, here she comes now. \\///

At that moment the door to the room opened, and in came Maria Mare, holding a bouquet of flowers. When she entered, her eyes widened with joy upon seeing Celestia awake. Quickly, she placed the flowers down on another chair and wrapped her arms around Celestia, then planted a kiss on her lips.

“Celly, I’m so glad you’re alright!” Maria exclaimed.

“Thank you, Maria, but, there’s something you should know.”

Maria broke the hug and looked upon her worriedly. “What is it? Did the doctors say something?! Sunset?”

Celestia took Maria’s hand into her own. “It’s nothing bad, it has to do with what happened last night. When I was killed, this being called the Angelus, pulled me back from the brink and asked me to house her inside my body. She saved my life, and she says she’s here to help us stop Sombra and the Darkness.”

“I…I don’t understand,” said Maria.

Celestia opened her mouth, but paused as if she had heard someone. “Actually, she’d like to speak to you herself.” She shut her eyes for a moment and went still, and when next she opened them, Celestia’s eyes were once again pools of white light. Her demeanor changed as well, she had a confident grin on her face as she put her hands behind her back, leaned back. “Hello, Maria Mare.”

Maria, and even Sunset, were taken aback by the voice. For Sunset, it was because that same voice she heard echoing in her mind was now coming out of her guardian’s mouth. For Maria, it was just plain strange, hearing someone else’s voice coming out of the mouth of someone she loved.

“H-Hello…y-you’re ‘Angelus’, I presume?” Maria asked.

“You presume correctly. You needn’t fear, Celestia is aware of our conversation right now, we’ve just switched places and now I’m in the driver’s seat. But I digress, I’m here to help you, all of you,” said Angelus.

Maria gave the entity a dubious look. “How?”

“Sombra King possesses an entity known as the Darkness, he’s a host similar to how Celestia is. However, unlike me, the Darkness will destroy all that is good and decent in the world, turning it into a world filled with blood, sin, and chaos. Unless we stop him. The Darkness can rule the night, but I rule the day. I can help in the defense of this city, but I need the peoples’ trust, and that’s where you come in.”

Maria crossed her arms. “You mean a public statement?”

Angelus nodded. “Sombra had the right idea, only instead of instilling fear, I will instill hope in the people of this city. I can’t imagine that your citizens are scared right now. After the Mystery Murders, and now someone who looks like the devil has declared himself king of the city, it’s a lot to bear.”

Sunset couldn’t deny that logic, despite the cases being closed, the people were still on edge, and Sombra’s attacks on the mobs were only helping in driving up that fear and anxiety. The former unicorn wondered if she should’ve put more effort into tracking down Sombra, to be the hope that the people needed, but her presence was a bit on the polarizing side, mostly because of her, ahem, choice of wardrobe.

Maria looked to Sunset and a raised eyebrow. “I see you’re not that surprised by this.”

“Considering what’s gone on at my school, this is like a Monday morning for me,” said Sunset nonchalantly.

Can’t argue with that. “I don’t disagree that the people of the city are growing scared. Perhaps you’re right…but I want you to promise me that you won’t endanger Celestia!”

The Angelus nodded. “So long as I am with her, she is practically immune to death.”

Maria still felt uneasy, but nodded in agreement. “Okay, then we can hold a press conference. How soon do you feel up to speaking?”

The Angelus shrugged. “Why delay? The longer we put it off, the longer Sombra and the Darkness have to instill fear, the better their chances are of getting the upper hand, and I don’t like it. So, perhaps later this afternoon. Noon, perhaps?”

“I can do that, I’ll make some calls now and get things set up,” said Maria.

“Wonderful. That’s all I had to say, back to you Celestia.”

The light in Celestia’s eyes faded, and her normal eye color returned. “Oh my…t-that was strange.”

Sunset bent down and placed her left hand on Celestia’s shoulder. “You alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine, it was just, it felt like I was floating right beside my body when she was talking, watching my mouth move and hearing someone else’s voice come out is a bit jarring,” said Celestia.

“I won’t disagree,” said Maria. She moved closer and placed a chaste kiss on Celestia’s forehead. “Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

Celestia nodded with determination. “I am, it’s time that we adults did something to protect everyone.”

Maria smiled. “Very well, I’ll go set it up.”

Sunset and Celestia watched as Maria walked out of the room and began to make some calls. When she did leave the room, Celestia released a breath she didn’t know she was holding.

“Sunset…I hate to ask this of you, but…can you be there? I don’t mean as Witchblade, just as you?” Celestia asked.

“Of course I will.”

Two hours later, Celestia was discharged from the hospital, with no visible injuries, mental or physical, they allowed her to go home. One hour later, Maria had several news stations ready at city hall, all eagerly awaiting an announcement in regards to Sombra’s declaration of war against the city itself.

Celestia and Sunset were brought to a private meeting room, orders were given for them to not be disturbed unless having been asked by either of the two occupants. A TV was on, showing Maria making a speech to the people. They had agreed on a cue for the Angelus to make her appearance and now they just waited for it.

“You sure you’re ready for this?” Sunset asked.

“Yes, I haven’t changed my mind, I will fight with you to stop him,” said Celestia.

She could tell that while Sunset seemed happy about the idea, there was also worry. It wasn’t like Celestia could blame her, she felt the same things too, now knowing that Sunset was Witchblade.

“She’s about to call on you, you’d better get ready,” said Sunset.

Celestia stood back, and in an instant her body was enveloped in light. The gold and white armor reformed over her body, her hair became fire, shimmering feathered wings rose from her back, and her eyes once again were pure white. She was now, the Angelus.

“Guess I better go and make my debut,” said Angelus.

On the screen, Maria Mare said, {Although the evils of the Mystery Murders were put to rest, we have now come to face a new evil. A man by the name of Sombra King seeks to rule our city with his dark powers. However, help has come to us. Last night, I was saved by not only Witchblade, but by another being. One who is the sworn enemy of this darkness Sombra brings to our city. And so, ladies and gentlemen, I’d like you all to meet…the Angelus!}

The Angelus winked at Sunset and then teleported away. The entity of light reappeared, but this time outside, in the skies above the people. She slowly descended and floated towards the podium, everyone who looked upon her gasped in awe, some even dropped to their knees and began praying and making signs of the cross.

The Angelus moved closer to the steps of city hall, several of the police officers and private security were on guard, hands at their weapons, ready to fire, but at the same time, some of them were hesitant in acting. For one thing, it was an angel, there was no denying what was before them was in fact an angel, and many were sure that the fastest way to get sent to hell, was to shoot an angel. The second thing, they could feel the power radiating off this being, it wasn’t oppressive, it was comforting, and warm, but powerful.

Maria offered her hand to the Angelus and she took it, several shutters went off, capturing that moment for all time as the Mayor of Canterlot City making contact with an angelic being. Maria guided the Angelus down until her feet touched the ground. Both women released the other’s hand as Maria stood back and allowed the Angelus to stand before the podium.

“Greetings to all of you watching this today. As the honorable, Mayor Mare, has stated, I am the Angelus. I am the light that God thrust into the universe, the light that helped to forge life. My task, as it has always been, is to help bring peace, order, and justice to the world. However, the one known as Sombra King, wields a power that I have long since been in conflict with. For this, I have awakened and returned to eradicate this evil!”

The people began to cheer, filling the air with a cacophonous roar. The Angelus waited a moment, but then raised her hands and bade the people to be silent. Their cheers quelled quickly as they waited for the Angelus to speak.

“Sombra King has declared himself the ruler of this city, well, I shall declare war on him! This city has seen its share of darkness and pain, now it is time for the light to shine upon Canterlot and bring hope to you all! For that, I will be establishing a fighting force to assist your fine law enforcers!”

The Angelus slammed her palms together and flared her wings. The light rose up and split into the seven, the seven orbs of light began to take on shape and form, four of them were male while the remaining three were female. They were completely made of light, until the light that covered them broke apart and revealed their forms.

Each of them had light-blue skin, and white hair. Each of them was garbed in golden armor, and had beautiful white feathered wings. Their eyes shined white, same as the blades of the swords in their right hands, and upon their left forearms was a round, golden shield.

“These are the first of, hopefully, many more to aid in the defeat of Sombra King.” The Angelus looked to Maria. “With the Mayor’s permission, of course.”

“I’m sure our police officers will welcome the help,” said Maria.

“And know this, Sombra is not my only concern. All crime is my concern, all misdeeds won’t end with just his defeat. So I ask you, help me make this city a beacon of hope, along with Mayor Mare, we shall champion justice!”

The people cheered louder, the Seven Sentinels of the Angelus descended to the ground, they stood in a perfect “V” formation in front of the steps, swords pointed down and wings folded. Despite their intense image, the Sentinels had kind and caring smiles on their faces. Some of the people backed away from the angelic beings.

“Do not fear them, they are not here to harm you. They are protectors just like me.”

From the crowd, a small girl broke from the crowd, much to the protests of her mother and some of the people in the crowd. She had light-purple hair, tied off to the side in a ponytail, and her skin was a pale yellow color. She wore a green sweater atop a white shirt, and pink pants. This girl stood before one of the Sentinels, the angelic being dismissed her sword and shield and bent down to look at her.

The Sentinel removed her helmet, showing off her slightly pointed ears, and shoulder length white hair. She looked youngish, well, as young as an angel could look. The Sentinel then asked, “What is your name?”

“Lilypad…m-my friends call me Lily,” said Lily shyly.

“That’s a nice name, my name is Ariel. How about we return you to your mother, shall we? Up you go!”

The Sentinel smiled and scooped up the young girl into her arms. Surprisingly, she didn’t feel fear or even anxiety, Lily felt safe, as if she were in her mother’s arms. Ariel walked down the steps and towards the crowd, Lily’s mother quickly moved to the front and held out her arms towards the Sentinel.

“You have a very brave daughter, ma’am,” said Ariel as she gently passed Lily to her. “Do not be harsh, for a child’s curiosity is a wonderful thing.”

“T-Thank you,” said Lily’s mother.

“Sadly, I cannot be with you all the time, my Sentinels will be my eyes and ears and will call upon me should the need be great. Be at peace, Canterlot City, for you are all under my protective wing.”

With those words spoken, the Angelus rose up into the air, and in a flash of light, disappeared from sight. A second later, she reappeared in the same room that she left. Sunset looked upon the Angelus with a small smile on her lips.

“That was a nice speech you gave,” said Sunset.

The Angelus ran her right hand through her fiery hair. “Practice dear, millennia and millennia of practice.”

Witchblade was still prickly at her presence, like a child who was angry at their parent and refused to look at them.

“I see my Son is still being stubborn.” Sunset looked at Angelus with a bit of shame. “Don’t worry, we haven’t always had the best of relationships, unlike you and Celestia. You two are more mother and child than he and I are.”

“So, what happens now?” Sunset asked.

“It’s Sombra’s and Darkness’ turn now. The Darkness is slippery and the shadows hide him from my sight, but don’t worry. He’ll turn up soon enough. That one could never resist a challenge, and neither, I suspect, can his host.

<^> IMPUDENT WENCH!!! <^> the Darkness hissed. <^> She thinks herself our better! I will snuff out her precious light and have her BEGGING me for the sweet release of oblivion!!! <^>

“Would you keep it down, your nails-on-a-chalkboard voice is even more irritating when you’re pissed,” said Sombra.

In a apartment off on the south side of Canterlot, Sombra watched the news conference with the mayor and the Angelus. His plan to make this city his own kingdom was going to be met with some resistance, but he hadn’t anticipated this.

“Question: did you know she would appear?” Sombra asked.

<^> A possibility, but she had long been dormant. I figured she’d be stirred, but to find a host this quickly is annoying…<^>

Sombra got up from the couch and walked over to the fridge, pulling out a beer and snapping the cap off with a small sliver of the Darkness’ tendrils. “Doesn’t matter, we’ll win in the end. What I’m worried about is that Witchblade.”

Sombra could feel the Darkness’ agitation upon mentioning it’s son. <^> It could be a problem down the line, even with Angelus moving about, it would be a matter of time to defeat her, but Witchblade can upset the scales. <^>

“And she’s obviously on her side,” said Sombra.

<^> Depending on how Angelus acts, their alliance might not last. <^>

Sombra’s brow arched. “Hmm, I like the sound of that, tell me more.”

Author's Note

Setting up the Pieces Arc: End

Drawing Battle Lines Part 1

Shining Armor stood among his fellow officers, having donned bulletproof vests and assault rifles as they stormed a hideout belonging to the Blood Kings. They were in the middle of a shootout, having cornered them in an abandoned three story building. The police had the entire structure surrounded, but the Blood Kings were proving to be harder to push out than they initially thought. They were determined and relentless. But that came with the territory, especially when they knew that their leader was practically the demon king, they felt as if they were protected from anything.

Criminals were already a desperate lot, but with someONE like Sombra King backing them, it only made them bolder and less afraid of death. It also didn’t help that some of the Blood Kings’ ranks were also filled with members from the other gangs that Sombra had decimated. Another survival mechanism of criminals, following the one who had the most power, and it didn’t get more powerful than a demon of darkness.

Shining Armor was in a hallway, about three Blood Kings members were unloading bullets down at him and five other officers. It was a narrow passage, making it almost impossible to advance without getting riddled with hot lead. Shining Armor returned fire, peeking down the hall as he fired. One of the rounds struck the drywall just above his head, making him get back around the corner.

“Where the fuck are those shields?!” Shining demanded.

“Coming up now!” Spearhead stated.

Thankfully that was true, two SWAT officers came through the doorway, armored up and wielding large, body length shields that were armor plated. A small window was placed on it, but made of Plexiglas and could take a lot of rounds before cracking, and even more before shattering.

“Took you guys long enough!” Spearhead stated.

“Bite me! You have any idea how heavy this shit is?!” the SWAT officer spat.

“Alright, let’s move, phalanx formation!” Shining ordered.

The two SWAT officers nodded, stood side by side, and moved into the hallway. The sounds of ricocheting bullets echoed in the hall, along with the splintering of wood and crumbling of drywall. Shining, Spear, and three other officers got behind the shield wielders, crouching low as they followed behind them. As they advanced, the officers returned fire, they could hear the gang members on the other side starting to yell in panic as they were getting closer to them. At around that time, more officers came up, taking up the positions that Shining and Spearhead had a moment ago and providing covering fire, allowing them to advance further.

The gang members decided that they couldn’t hold and scrambled to get away. One of the gang members tripped and fell, his gun sled to the far end of the next hall, leaving him completely unarmed. The gang member, a young seventeen-year-old, glanced over his shoulder and watched as the officers made their way towards him, guns trained and ready to fire.

“Put your hands behind your head and stay down! You don’t want to die in some rat hole like this kid,” said Shining.

The teen reached into his jacket and pulled out a vial, it contained a shimmering black liquid. He was told to only use it in emergencies, and right now, he could think of no better emergency than the one he was in right now. The teen popped the top and downed the concoction in one swig. He tossed the vial away and turned around to face the cops.

Almost immediately, his body began to convulse, the cracking of bones filled their ears as they watched the teen begin to mutate before their eyes.

“SHIT, HE DRANK THAT TAR!” Spearhead shouted.

“PUT HIM DOWN, QUICK!” the second SWAT officer yelled.

Reluctantly, Shining Armor opened fire along with the rest of them. The teen was pelted with several bullets, but they did nothing to stop the mutation, his body repairing the damage on the spot. His skin turned black as night, with gray veins that popped over his skin. The teen boy, who was a skinny scarecrow, now bulked up to look like a professional bodybuilder. His hair was gone as his forehead sprouted two crescent shaped horns that came out the sides, his teeth became sharp and gnarled, and his eyes were now pools of yellow light that shined in the dim lighting of the hallway. His fingers turned into razor sharp claws, along with his feet, what stood before them was no longer a human, but something else, a Blacknight.

The Blacknight chuckled, standing above the men, a staggering six-five. “Hell yeah! What you got for this you fucking pigs?!” The Blacknight thrust out with his right claw and grabbed the shield that the first SWAT officer had, and then tossed it right at them.

The other officers ducked just in time to miss it, unfortunately, the SWAT officer wasn’t. The shield’s blunt end struck him in the chest and carried him all the way to the wall at the end of the hall, burying him in the wall as he bent an angle the spine was not meant to. Before they could recover from that, the Blacknight transformed his left forearm into a bladed weapon. The second SWAT officer brought up his shield in a feeble attempt to defend himself, but the shield proved useless as the Blacknight’s blade pierced the shield and him, running him all the way through as the blade poked out of his back, covered in blood. With murderous glee, the Blacknight pulled upwards, splitting the officer in half. Blood and organs spilled out from the two halves, his legs stumbling about before finally collapsing onto the floor.

Everyone retreated as fast as they could back down the hallway they just came, but the monster was right behind them. Shining Armor reached for his belt and pulled out a flashbang grenade. Pulling the pin, Shining Armor counted down mentally, waiting until almost the last second.

Four…three…now! Shining Armor tossed the grenade over his shoulder and shouted, “DOWN!”

Spearhead, the officers running with them, the ones at the other end of the hall, and Shining Armor ducked as the grenade went off, creating a blinding flash of light and a loud “BOOM!” sound. The Blacknight screamed in pain as the light burned his body, making him collapse onto the ground as the dark ooze retreated off his body, revealing the teen underneath. Shining Armor recovered first, pulled out his pistol and stood over the teen.

The teen looked up at Shining Armor, fear in his eyes as he stared down the barrel of his gun.

“No way…I-I can’t die here…not like this…!” the teen cried.

Shining Armor squeezed the trigger, the hammer cocking back and ready to strike. But…he stopped and pointed his gun away from the teen. “Just turn yourself in, kid, this isn’t worth it!”

The teen boy saw that Shining wasn’t going to shoot him, and then he sneered. The black ooze returned to his body, transforming him yet again into the Blacknight. The creature punched forward, sending Shining Armor flying onto his back with a hard thud against the wooden floor.

“SHINING!” Spearhead called out.

“Stupid pigs, I’m going to fuck you all up!”

Just then, a loud roar tore through the building, making even the Blacknight stop. Shining Armor, although dazed, managed to get up. As he did, he saw a blue light coming from the door of the stairwell. From that door entered a creature. Its fur was a shimmering sky blue, with gold armor plating fastened to its body. The creature had faded white lines, and a small mane around its head and neck. This creature barely fit in the door as it walked on all fours towards them, its green cat eyes took a moment to look at each one of them before moving into the hallway.

Shining Armor knew this creature, it was one of Angelus’ Sentinels, one of the few beast types she created in the last two weeks. Its name was Gaghiel, which meant “The Beast of God”, to Shining Armor, it looked like a liger.

Gaghiel motioned with its head for the officers in front of it to move out of the way, Spearhead and the other three hurriedly did as Gaghiel asked. The Blacknight looked a little worried now that one of the Sentinels had arrived, but still, whether out of desperation or an overinflated sense of confidence, the Blacknight didn’t run.

“You stand before Gaghiel, be now judged by my fangs and claws, impure one,” said Gaghiel.

“You’re one of those Sentinels, Mr. King’s going to flip when he finds out I killed one of you!” the Blacknight exclaimed.

Gaghiel roared yet again, making the entire hallway shake from the force of his roar. The Beast of God charged for the Blacknight, both met in the center as their hulking bodies crashed into each other. The force of their collision made the floor crumble beneath their feet as they crashed straight down to the first floor. Gaghiel and the Blacknight rolled on the floor as Gaghiel bit into the tricep of the Blacknight. The Blacknight screamed in pain as its light infused fangs pierced through its flesh and burned him.

The Blacknight drew back its right fist and punched Gaghiel in the face, making the Sentinel roar with pain and release his jaws from his arm. They rolled again, allowing the Blacknight to push off of Gaghiel and get into a standing position, while Gaghiel jumped up and landed on all fours, his green slit eyes burning with a desire to destroy the evil before its eyes.

“You made a critical error this day,” said Gaghiel.

“What’s that?!”

“You needed to be more aware of your surroundings!”

Gaghiel charged the Blacknight, barreling into his stomach as he sent them both smashing through the wall and out into the open. They both stumbled about, making the police officers that were surrounding the building move out of the way. They eventually stopped when the Blacknight landed on a police cruiser, just as Gaghiel came down and slammed his front paws onto his shoulders, pinning him there and making the car cave in more.

Now in the light of day, the Blacknight’s body began to burn. Seeing his opportunity, Gaghiel opened his mighty jaws and bit down around the Blacknight’s neck. Blood sprayed from the Blacknight’s jugular as Gaghiel chomped all the way through, severing the head of the Blacknight from its body with a jerk of his head. He then spat the head out, letting it roll on the ground. The body jerked for a few seconds before going completely limp. The mutation that turned him into the monster dissipated, returning him to normal, the officers watched as the creature returned to being a seventeen-year-old body, the headless body splayed on the car and his head resting a foot away.

Gaghiel paid the body no mind as he turned his gaze upwards, seeing the multitude of gunshots that were taking place up there. The Beast of God roared as he began to transform, his hulking body becoming humanoid, with arms and legs. His back sprouted feathered wings, and on each of his forearms formed gauntlets with three light-blade claws. Gaghiel flapped his wings once, shooting him straight into the air. Once he was level with the third floor, he smashed right into the wall, kicking up dust from his entrance.

The occupants all coughed, but once they beheld Gaghiel, they stopped and stared at him with wide eyes. “Those who follow the Darkness…” Gaghiel crossed his arms over his chest in an “X” pattern. “…are enemies of peace and justice!”

The gang members opened fire, but their mortal weapons had no effect on a creature made from divinity. Gaghiel charged straight in, slashing through one gang member after the other with inhuman speed. Blood splattered the walls as screams of terror filled the floor. One by one they fell before him, dropping like the flies that they were. Soon the gunfire ceased, leaving only Gaghiel amongst a pile of corpses. That is until he spotted one that he – miraculously – missed. The gang member was at least sixteen, she was huddled in the corner holding her gun as a child would hold a teddy bear for safety. When his eyes fell upon her, she quickly threw the weapon away onto the floor, she took off her jacket, emptied her pockets, and then put her hands up.

“I-I-I WON’T RESIST! I GIVE UP! JUST TAKE ME TO JAIL!” she pleaded.

Gaghiel reverted back to his beast form and slowly stalked towards her as he gave a low, throaty growl. “Child, you turned your back on the light, and sided with the Darkness. You lost your innocence, if you are truly repentant then you’ll be judged when your soul leaves this mortal plain.”

The girl was crying, sobbing hard as the beast got closer. “P-P-Please…I have a little brother and sister…! I didn’t want to do this! I just needed money to help us get by!”

Gaghiel prepared to pounce, but then the door to the floor burst open, the Beast of God glanced over his shoulder just as Shining Armor and Spearhead Thrust entered the room with their squad of officers. They looked upon the area, seeing the many bodies that were strewn across the floor, limbs severed, walls smashed through, it was a regular slaughter.

Shining Armor looked upon Gaghiel and narrowed his gaze as he approached the Sentinel. “What are you doing?”

“I missed one, I am correcting my error,” said Gaghiel.

Shining Armor looked upon the shivering teen, her eyes pleading with him to let her live. He looked at the floor, seeing her jacket, gun, and some random stuff thrown on the floor. Shining noticed that her pockets were turned inside out, which made him realize, “She’s surrendering, it’s over.”

Gaghiel regarded Shining Armor for a moment, his emerald eyes locking onto Shining’s cobalt blue eyes. About ten seconds later, Gaghiel snorted and turned his back on Shining Armor and the girl. “Do as you please.”

Shining watched as the liger Sentinel walked away and rejoined his squad. The detective knelt before the shivering girl, and noticed that she had wet herself out of sheer terror, not that he could blame her, staring down a monster like that, anyone would.

“Miss, I’m going to have to arrest you,” said Shining Armor.

“T-T-Take me to jail! J-Just don’t let that thing hurt me!” the girl demanded as she presented her wrists to Shining Armor.

With a bit of pity, he helped the girl stand up and cuffed her hands behind her back. In an effort to preserve her modesty, Shining Armor got her jacket and tied it around her waist to cover her shame.

The girl looked up at the officer and said, “T-Thank you…”

Shining Armor nodded and led, possibly, the only survivor of this raid. Downstairs everyone was still scrambling about, when they walked down the steps of the building’s stoop, the girl paused. She saw a white sheet placed over a cop car, the outline of a body clearly visible, along with the bloodstains, but where the outline of a head should be, there was none. It didn’t take her and Shining long to notice the second sheet on the ground, and the distinct outline of a head. The girl felt bile fill her stomach, Shining Armor saw the signs and quickly moved her to the to a patch of dirt where she began retching. He held the girl’s hair back and tried to make her as comfortable as possible as she continued to throw up onto the ground.

After a minute, Shining Armor got her to an ambulance, he saw the signs of shock and requested the girl be taken to the hospital. Once that was done, he took a moment to look upon the building, it was a shabby place in a redevelopment area, one of the city’s projects that was put on hold and made into a small base of operations for local gangs, in this case the Blood Kings. It was flagged by two other buildings that were in the same shape, most of the block was like that.

To either side was an army of police and SWAT officers, and after that another army of reporters and cameras, all wanting to capture the bloody battle to show on six o’ clock news. This was their fourth raid in the last two weeks, and Shining Armor wasn’t sure if this was lessening or increasing the fighting force of the Blood Kings, but this Angelus was able to create more Sentinels to offset the limited number of officers.

Shining Armor had to admit, at first, he was glad to have them. His mind thought back to Sunset, placing herself in danger with the Witchblade, despite his wanting to not have her get involved with dangerous work, it seemed she was a magnet for it. When the Sentinels appeared, he thought that now she wouldn’t have to throw herself into the battle and just focus on being a school girl. However, his opinion of them was changing with each passing day.

The Sentinels were the soldiers of the Angelus, and could operate during the night and day, although they were stronger during the day, their strength at night would wane some. Which meant striking the Blood Kings in the light of day was the most optimal way of getting at them. But these things were ruthless in their endeavors. It was like the Crusades with these Sentinels, they showed little to no mercy to anyone they saw as a member of Sombra King’s gang.

Then there’s that other thing…Tar.

“Tar” the street name of a new drug that was rumored to give whoever took it some of the demonic powers that Sombra King has. The rumors were soon turned into fact as the police fell victim to the mutated people who took Tar. From what they were able to determine, the effects of Tar only lasted about twelve hours and then they turned back to normal. Still, twelve hours with a fraction of that demon power is more than enough to cause some havoc. Thankfully, it seemed to be only distributed through the ranks of the Blood Kings, for now.

This only added more fuel to the fire for the Sentinels, as it gave them the excuse – not like they needed one – to kill any and all of the gang members, arguing that more lives would be lost if they didn’t strike fast and hard. A good majority of the police force were behind this mindset of the Sentinels, making it so that a precinct had at least three or four different Sentinels assigned to it, and a squad of officers that were assigned to each one.

Shining’s squad was assigned to Gaghiel. The liger was polite for the most part, but he took his name seriously, tearing apart his enemies with his claws and fangs. Also, Gaghiel didn’t seem to care much for tact in his kills. While some of the other Sentinels made sure to at least make their kills clean and away from the public, Gaghiel didn’t. Just like now.

Shining Armor sighed as he heard the thudding paw falls of Gaghiel approaching from his left. “You’re handy work, right?”

The celestial liger stopped at his left and said, “I would think by now you recognize my style when it is presented.”

“Seriously, can you at least try to not kill them so brutally?! And out in the open?! People don’t need to see that!” Shining Armor stated as he pointed to the headless corpse under the sheet.

“On the contrary, it serves as a warning. To follow the Darkness means death. Tell me, Detective, do you believe in peace? In order?” Gaghiel asked.

“I believe in justice, due process, and innocent until proven guilty,” he replied.

Gaghiel smirked. “So too do your fellow officers, yet I don’t see them complaining about my methods. As far as they are concerned, they get to go home and see their families. Which, may I ask, is more acceptable to you?”

Shining Armor grimaced and huffed as he turned his gaze forward.

Gaghiel shook his head, but smiled a little as he gently placed his giant paw on Shining’s left shoulder. “In time, you will see the light, as well everyone.” With that said, Gaghiel walked forward, going to the field officers in charge of the operation to report.

Shining checked his watch and saw that it was already noon, at that moment, Spearhead came by and asked, “Hey, man, wanna grab a bite?”

“Sure, better than staying here.”

Later that night, Shining Armor returned to his home, exhausted, and frustrated. He plopped onto the couch and turned on the TV, news breaking about another fight between the Blood Kings and the Angelus’ Sentinels. He quickly turned it off and sighed heavily. Cadence walked over and began massaging his shoulders.

“As cliché as this is to ask…rough day?”

“Rough everything…these Sentinels are extreme! I was grateful for their help at first, but now…I don’t know, I just don’t like them,” said Shining Armor.

“I’ll admit…they don’t fit the idea of what I’ve known an angel to be. But…I guess…isn’t that how they’re supposed to act when in the presence of evil?” Cadence asked.

Shining Armor rubbed his face and then looked up into the caring eyes of his girlfriend. “Probably…but…” Shining’s eyes looked away as if he didn’t want to tell her what happened.

Cadence knew her boyfriend well, he was one to shield her from the evils he faced at work every day, keeping them bottled up inside because he didn’t want to burden her. The thing is, she didn’t mind, actually, she wanted him to burden her. It was much better than seeing her Shiny keep it all bottled up inside and letting it fester until there was nothing she or anyone else could do about it.

“Shiny, tell me what’s on your mind,” Cadence urged.

Shining looked back at Cadence’s eyes and exhaled slowly. “Gaghiel almost killed a girl who gave up. She threw her weapon down, emptied her pockets…hell, she did everything except strip naked to prove she didn’t have a weapon and was giving up. But Gaghiel…he was ready to just flat out kill her. Said some crap about followers of the Darkness needing to be exterminated, more or less.”

Cadence grimaced. “God…Shiny that’s horrible, is she alright?”

“I managed to stop him. I arrested her and had her go to the hospital. I’ll be amazed if she’s not the only survivor.”

Cadence stopped her massage, walked around the couch, and then sat next to Shining. She nestled herself in the crook of his right arm and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Have you talked to Sunset recently? Has she been…you know, fighting with you guys?”

“So far no, but I’d rather she didn’t. For one, I’m not sure how the Sentinels would react to her, and second, we’re not fighting demons, at least not all the time. We’re fighting normal people who have just taken a drug,” said Shining.

“Hey, are we…are we ever going to tell Twilight about CHS?” Cadence asked.

That was a tricky subject. How was he going to explain to his little sister that another version of her attendant Canterlot High School? Plus, with her wanting to go and investigate, he wasn’t sure what would happen if she did. Would they try and mob her and ask some impossible requests of her? Would she get overwhelmed and go into a panic attack? Did this other Twilight rub someone the wrong way and that someone was looking for revenge? Granted the only person that description fit was Sunset, but she no longer felt that way and actually respects the “Princess” version of his little sister.

“Twily’s going to keep on it until I say yes or no, but I’d rather ease her into it, same for Sunset. I don’t think she’s aware that there’s another version of the person she admires in this world,” said Shining.

Cadence fidgeted a little, earning a raised eyebrow from Shining Armor. “Well…ahem…there is a reason why I brought that up. Um…a couple of weeks ago Crystal Prep gained a new student…”

“Okaaay,” said Shining slowly.

“And…this new student…her name’s…Sunset Shimmer.”

Shining Armor’s eye twitched. “Y-You’re sure her name’s Sunset Shimmer?”

Cadence nodded. “She looks, sounds, and even acts a bit like the Sunset we know. In fact, I’ve noticed her and Twilight hanging out a lot at school.”

Shining Armor slapped his forehead with his left hand. Of course, there’s another Sunset Shimmer in their world, because why not? Oh that opened a whole new can of worms that Shining Armor wasn’t ready for.

“Do you think we should tell her? I mean, she’s bound to run into her other self. If not now, then when the Friendship Games start, it’ll be a certainty,” Cadence warned.

“There’s still at least a couple of months before that day comes around, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it…Although…I see your point, it is only a matter of time before those two meet up,” Shining pondered aloud.

Cadence snuggled closer to her boyfriend. “As morbid as this sounds, I kind of miss the days when all I had to worry about was just drug dealers, rapists, and murderers.”

“I’m right there with you, Babe.”

Meadowbrook was up late in the Priest’s office, both of them were watching a news report regarding today’s raid on the Blood Kings, along with the footage of one of the Sentinels ripping the head off of a Blacknight. The footage also showed how the body changed back into that of a human being, a teenager, probably no older than Fluttershy.

“This is gettin’ outta hand, Father. The Darkness is just gettin’ the city more riled up, and Angelus’ Sentinels are merciless,” said Meadow.

“Now, I understand their methods are…ahem…draconian, but Sister, we’re talking about a battle for the souls of this city. We can’t allow someone like this Sombra King to take over the entire city,” said the Priest.

“Precisely.”

Meadowbrook and the Priest glanced towards the open door of the office. Both stood to attention upon seeing a red robed man standing in the doorway. His hair was black and slicked back, with a neatly trimmed goatee. His complexion was a snowy-gray color, and his eyes were an intense turquoise. He carried himself with authority, and had a scrutinizing gaze that made your skin crawl.

“C-Cardinal Neighsay,” said the Priest.

“Father Huff Puff, Sister Meadowbrook,” he greeted.

Meadowbrook bowed slightly to Neighsay and said, “We’re honored to have one of his holiness’ Cardinals grace us. But, pardon, why are you here? Had you called ahead we could’ve met you sooner.”

“No need for that, I find it better to drop in when no one is expecting me. I don’t like fanfare, and I’d much rather see things in their natural state rather than see a dressed-up version of what someone wants me to see.” Cardinal Neighsay strode into the room and saw the news on the TV. “I see things are more complicated here than the reports suggested.”

Sister Meadowbrook looked to Father Huff, who nodded at her. “Indeed, there have been four raids done by the CCPD alongside the Sentinels, in between that, there have been some skirmishes taking place both in daylight and nighttime. So far, neither the man known as Sombra, or the Angelus, have confronted each other directly, at least not since that night when Sombra made his announcement.”

Neighsay hummed his understanding. “And the Magdalena, how have you been utilizing her?”

“Excuse me, your eminence, but what do you mean by that?” Meadowbrook asked.

“Have you been sending the Magdalena to fight?” Neighsay asked.

Father Huff started to sweat. “Um…well…Sister is the designated handler of the Magdalena so–”

Neighsay raised his hand, making Father Huff go silent. “I know full well she is the Magdalena’s handler. Which is why I’m asking why you haven’t sent her to fight against the Darkness?”

Meadowbrook stood up straight and said, “Well, your Eminence, I’ve been adoptin’ a wait-and-see approach for the time bein’. I’d like to get a sense of the Angelus’ motives before we completely side with her in this endeavor.”

Neighsay shook his head. “Sister, what is there to ‘wait and see’? The Angelus is the light that God Himself thrust into this universe to banish the likes of the Darkness. The Darkness is a demon, the king of all demons before Lucifer, and most likely will be long after. If there were ever a true enemy of mankind, then it is that creature, and the one who possesses its power. The Magdalena’s purpose is to strike down evil in all its forms.”

Well, on that Meadowbrook would agree on. The Darkness was an undeniable threat to the world at large, and if not taken care of, would swallow not only the city, but the entire world. However, something just didn’t sit right with her when it came to the Angelus. Yes, she did know the story of the two primordial beings, call it what you will, woman’s intuition, a gut feeling, sixth sense, whatever, something just didn’t sit right with her about the Angelus.

“I understand that, Cardinal Neighsay, but dependin’ on what happens, the Magdalena might be our only hope of turnin’ the tide should something unforeseen happen. She’s our trump card, and I’d rather play her when the time is right,” said Meadowbrook.

Neighsay narrowed his gaze. “Hmm. I see, well, I believe it’s time for a new approach. I’ve been authorized by the Pope to take command of this area.”

“W-What?!” Meadowbrook asked in shock.

The Cardinal reached into his robe and pulled out a letter, the wax seal on the back baring the official emblem of the Pope himself. Meadowbrook opened the letter and read it, unfortunately, Neighsay wasn’t lying, the Pope had authorized him to monitor the situation and take command of the use of the Magdalena however he saw fit during this time of crisis.

“I am the Pope’s eyes and ears, and as such, I say we take a different approach,” said Neighsay.

Meadowbrook put down the letter. “Such as?”

“A meeting with the Angelus, you, myself, and the Magdalena. This is nonnegotiable.”

Meadowbrook did her best to keep her disdain for this plan from showing, thankfully she had a good poker face. The Sister gave a slight bow to Neighsay and said, “As you wish, your Eminence. I’ll contact her tomorrow about our plan, and look into settin’ up a meetin’ with the Angelus.”

Neighsay smiled. “Thank you, Sister Meadowbrook.”

Things around CHS were…a little tense. For the past two weeks, the TV and internet had been riddled with news of the Sentinels and the Blood Kings, an attack here, a skirmish there, and at least four different raids had been conducted. All of which ended with blood, minimal in regards to the police, but heavy for the Kings. Of course, many of the students were on edge, not because they were part of the Blood Kings, but because of the Sentinels.

There was no way to get around the fact that they were angels led by a more powerful angel. Some students were worried, mostly because they feared their wrath, feared that the Sentinels might come to their school and meet out justice to all those involved in Anon-A-Miss. While the CMC were responsible for creating it, they all had a hand in making Sunset Shimmer’s life a living hell due to them.

So, Sunset wasn’t so surprised when the majority of the student body was acting real friendly towards her. Always saying “hi” or “hello”, giving her a compliment, offering to do random stuff for her, almost everything except offer their first born child to her. But Sunset feared that it wasn't far behind.

Lunch time was one of the few times she was able to relax, because at least her friends weren’t trying to kiss her ass to avoid getting sent to hell by angels.

}}} Feh, “angels”, while they may be imbued with the light and bare the name of actual angels, they are mere constructs, Mother’s servants. {{{

Yeah, but try and convince THEM of that. People see feathered wings on your back and think you're an angel, also doesn’t help that they have an angelic look about them.

Sunset groaned and let her head hit the table, earning her confused and concerned looks from her friends and girlfriend.

“Um, Sunset, are you quite alright, darling?” Rarity asked.

“Yes!” came her muffled answer. “And no.” Sunset raised her head and rested her chin in her right palm. “Everybody’s practically worshipping the ground I walk upon.”

Rainbow Dash chuckled. “Wow, back in the day, you’d have been eating that shit up. Now…hahaha!”

“Can’t say Ah disagree, somethin’ like this woulda put a pep in yer step, but now it’s feelin’ a little excessive,” said Applejack.

“Yeah! Do you have any idea how hard it is to surprise Sunset with something, when everyone in the school is doing that?! Because I DO!” Pinkie Pie huffed.

Sunset patted her on the back and gave Pinkie a smile. “True, the me in the past would be relishing in this. But honestly, it’s just wrong, especially when I know they’re doing it out of guilt. On that note, how are the girls?”

Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity all had despondent looks upon their faces.

Rainbow sighed and said, “Scoots’ aunts told me she’s so scared of those Sentinels that she won’t even come out of the house.”

Applejack rubbed the back of her head and gave her own sigh. “Same with Bloom, she’s watchin’ the sky every time we’re out in the fields, ‘fraid that they’re goin’ to fall from the sky and send her to hell…”

Rarity rested her left hand on her cheek as she recalled her sister’s plight. “And Sweetie’s too scared to sleep alone. She thinks the Sentinels are going to come in the middle of the night and spirit her away to the ‘Bad Place’ as it were. So, I’ve had her sleep with me in my room. I don’t mind, I love my little sister, and hate seeing her in such a state.”

Sunset felt genuine pity for those three, what they did was wrong, really wrong actually, but still, they didn’t deserve to live in such fear like this. She stole a glance at Pinkie and noticed that even she seemed upset by this news. Pinkie still hadn’t forgiven the girls for what they did, but even her good natured self didn’t like hearing how they were suffering.

“Um, maybe, if it’s possible, perhaps they could meet with the Angelus? Or speak to one of the Sentinels? It might reassure them that they aren’t going to be hurt by them,” Fluttershy suggested.

}}} HA! Father may be her focus now, but I guarantee you she’ll be coming for them after! If they do they’re practically offering their necks to her. {{{

“Not helping!” Sunset harshly whispered at the Witchblade.

“Sunset?”

“Uh, the Witchblade says it’s not a good idea. Period. Look, take it with a grain of salt, he’s not on good terms with either the Darkness or Angelus, there’s a family feud going on between them,” said Sunset.

Rainbow cocked an eyebrow. “Wait, ‘family feud’? They’re related?”

“The Darkness is the Witchblade’s father, and the Angelus is his mother. He was born from them.”

Everyone blinked at this news, and equally stunned.

Applejack was the first to speak as she said, “Well…shoot…that’s one messed up family.” And that’s comin’ from someone who slept (past tense, not anymore) with her big brother.

}}} Sunset, we have company. {{{

Sunset froze as she looked up to the ceiling of the cafeteria. A bird was perched on one of the light fixtures, it was fairly large, about half the size of a hawk. It had blue feathers, a gold breastplate, and a small helmet that covered the top half of its head. The bird’s green eyes rested on Sunset, and at that moment, she felt something resound in her mind.

\\ Be still, wielder of the Witchblade, I am Zofiel. I come with a request from my Mistress. ///

And that is?

\\ She would like to speak with you in the chambers of this establishment. She will write you a…“hall pass”. ///

Alright, but next time, have her text me. It is the twenty-first century.

Zofiel nodded, spread its wings, and then flew off, phasing right through the ceiling.

With the request accepted, Sunset excused herself from the table and made her way down the halls and to Celestia’s office. So far, the Angelus hadn’t made any moves to attack the Darkness, only the Sentinels have been doing so. Honestly, Sunset preferred it that way, she didn’t want to see Celestia in danger like that again. Seeing her mother figure die once was more than enough for her.

After a couple of minutes, Sunset found herself at Celestia’s door, she knocked and then let herself in. Despite all the chaos that was happening, Celestia didn’t look stressed out or tired at all. Sunset figured it was due to the Angelus’ power, constantly fueling her and regenerating her body to make sure fatigue would never find Celestia, even during her day job.

“Hi, Sunset,” Celestia greeted.

“Hey, I’m sure you know why I’m here.”

“Yes, although I told Angelus that texting you would be a lot faster, and simpler, than sending that bird.”

\\/// Some things are better done in a more clandestine manner. Zofiel cannot be seen unless he wants to be seen, and can pass through matter. He also has a great memory, I never have to repeat myself when giving him a message, and I can rest assured that he’ll get it to the intended person. These cellphones can be hacked, looked at, or anything else. Far too much hassle. \\///

Sunset and Celestia rolled their eyes.

}}} Well, we all know you’re one for secrets… {{{

“As you can see he’s salty as ever,” said Sunset.

\\/// Quite. Celestia, I’d like to talk in person. \\///

“Oh, of course.”

Celestia closed her eyes, and in a matter of seconds the atmosphere around Celestia changed dramatically, her eyes opened again, revealing pools of white light. “There we go.” Angelus stood up, walked to the front of the desk and then sat upon it. “So, getting down to the reason why I called you here. I was wondering if you could join in on a raid.”

Sunset blinked. “Really?”

“Yes, I’ve gotten reports from Zofiel that he might’ve found a sort of training ground for those Blood Kings, a place that is a training ground, there’s a chance that Sombra might be there,” said Angelus.

Sunset narrowed her gaze when she heard his name. “A chance, good. I owe him for what he did to Celestia.”

Angelus smiled. “That’s what I like to hear. Now I would be joining you, but I’m limited at night, and most likely Sombra and the Darkness will be there at night. While I’m not powerless in the dark of night, my power wanes considerably. I don’t want to engage unless we’re sure that he’ll be there. And unfortunately, my Sentinels are somewhat subjected to the same weakness.”

“Which is why you want me there, since Witchblade’s power doesn’t wane in the dark or light, I can fight at full power without worry. Right?” Sunset asked.

Angelus walked up to Sunset and gave her a small pinch of her cheek. “Clever girl. Yes, however, if you do confirm his presence, I’ll have some Sentinels and myself commence an attack. If not, well, you can do with them what you will.”

Sunset cocked an eyebrow. “Wait, what do you mean?”

}}} She means for you to kill them. {{{

Sunset backed away a little from Angelus. “Whoa, wait, I’m not going to do that! They’re not possessed by demons, they’re just taking some messed up drug that’s turning them into monsters!”

Angelus put her hands on her hips and cocked her head to the side. “And where do you think that drug is coming from? The Darkness. Just as I have the ability to create, so too, does the Darkness. It can create whatever its host wants, so long as they can envision it and have a good understanding of the thing they create. This ‘Tar’ is some of the Darkness’ essence. When they take that, they are tainted, but, do as you wish. I’ll leave it to you.”

Sunset nodded. “Thank you.”

Angelus walked forward again and gently placed her hands on Sunset’s shoulders. “Sunset, you come from a world steeped in peace and harmony. I wish to create that here, you are not human, you hail from another world. So I’m sure even you can see that humans are not exactly the best at making decisions when it comes to justice and peace. Tell me, why do you think that is?”

Angelus released Sunset and sat back down in the desk chair, while Sunset sat in the chair across from her. “Well…because humans don’t live long enough to learn from their mistakes, and end up repeating them, sometimes to worse degrees than their predecessors. Princess Celestia, the one from my world, she’s lived over a thousand years, and has seen all kinds of things.”

Angelus nodded as she brought her hands into a pyramid of contemplation. “Exactly, age brings wisdom, and wisdom brings clarity. The leader of your world can make sound decisions and decrees what is best for her people because she’s lived long enough to see the pitfalls and the promises. Humanity lacks that guidance, and I’d like to give it to them. Canterlot City will prove to be a good starting point, as soon as we rid it of the Darkness.”

Sunset couldn’t say that the Angelus was wrong. One of the biggest differences she’d seen between Earth and Equestria, was all the wars humans fought. They fought over land, money, political power, and even when a group of them united, there was always something that divided them further. Maybe there was a method to Angelus’ madness? Draconian measures aside.

Still…“I get where you’re coming from, but the ponies of my world, while some of us are capable of combat and war, the amount of it is far and few between, it’s mostly been matters of self-defense rather than fighting to claim something from another race. I guess you can say that kind of thing has made it easier for us to come together and set aside some of our differences.”

Angelus nodded. “I see, that is fascinating. Anyway, if you wish to do the surveillance, then I’ll give you the address, if not, I’ll just have Zofiel look into it.”

Sunset shook her head. “No, I’ll go and check it out.”

}}} Sunset… {{{

“We’re just going to take a look, we’ll call the police and tell them of the place to arrest them,” said Sunset.

Angelus smiled, took out a sticky note and pen, and wrote down the address with a flourish of her pen and handed it to Sunset. “Thank you, Sunset. Let’s work together to put an end to the Darkness.”

Sunset’s last class ended with Pinkie Pie, she was happy that it did, walking out with her girlfriend made her happy, but really, just being around Pinkie made anyone happy.

“So how’d it with Angie?” Pinkie asked.

Sunset sighed. “She asked me to have a look into something as Witchblade, tonight…”

“Oh…she hasn’t asked you to do anything for the last two weeks, I guess it was bound to happen at some point,” said Pinkie with a shrug.

“It’s just recon, I doubt I’ll need to get involved myself. I’m not exactly keen on fighting regular people. But, depending on how tonight goes, why don’t we hang out tomorrow, just you and me,” Sunset suggested.

Pinkie’s eyes sparkled. “Oooh, a date?!”

The former unicorn snaked her right arm around Pinkie’s waist and brought her hip close to hers. “Hmm, yeah, a date.”

“Yippee!”

When they got outside, Pinkie saw that Limestone was waiting for her at the curb. She wore a black leather bomber jacket, and gray jean pants, her face already had an irritated expression on it.

“Lime really doesn’t like me too much, does she?” Sunset asked.

Pinkie released a nervous chuckle. “She just needs time to get to know you better. Oh! I know! Maybe we could invite Limestone to hangout tomorrow! I know you said it would be a date, but I really want you and Lime to get along.”

Personally, Sunset had nothing against Limestone. The eldest Pie sister was just grumpy, and probably didn’t like her because of the crap she put Pinkie through before her little reformation, so her irritation towards Sunset wasn’t unwarranted, but family was important to Pinkie Pie, and Sunset certainly didn’t want to make Pinkie choose between her or the family she loved.

“That’s fine with me,” said Sunset.

“Yes! I’ll call you tomorrow!” Pinkie Pie zipped away to Lime, but then stopped and zipped right back. “Oops! Almost forgot!” Pinkie kissed Sunset on the cheek, making the former bad girl blush a little. “Okay, see you tomorrow! And be safe!”

Pinkie Pie entered Lime’s car, before the gray girl entered the car, she made a gesture with her fingers, pointing two to her eyes and then back at Sunset. Lime entered her car and began driving down the street. While she was driving, she could tell that Pinkie was excited. Well, she was always excited, but it seemed like she was in overdrive right now.

“You binge on cupcakes again? Cause you’re practically bouncing in your seat,” Lime asked.

“Well, since you’re here, I wanted to ask you! Do you wanna hang out with me and Sunset tomorrow?!” Pinkie asked with a happy tone in her voice.

“No.”

“Yes?”

“No.”

“No?”

“Yes.”

“Yes! You said yes!”

Limestone shook her head. “What?! No, I said yes to your no!”

“But I said no, and you said ‘yes’, I was saying no to your yes, and your yes to my no!”

“No! Cause I…wait, what?” Limestone shook her head again, knowing that if she kept going she’d be sucked into the rabbit hole that was Pinkie Pie. “Ugh! Forget it, the answer’s no. N. O. No!”

Pinkie Pie sighed. “C’mon, Limey, I just want you to get to know Sunset a little better! She’s really nice and smart, a bit perverted, but then again I have no room to complain, considering I’m one too.”

“Yes, I unfortunately know all too well about that. All you’re constant ‘Surprise Grope Attacks’ have made that clear!”

Yes, Pinkie Pie had made it a habit to grope her sisters, it was all done in playfulness, but still, it got annoying after a bit.

“Now that I know which way you swing, it makes total sense why you were feelin’ us up,” Lime commented.

Pinkie rolled her eyes. “Lime, please, I’m just playing around, I’m not doing it to get it on with you. Although, there are plenty of fanfics that have all four us doing the horizontal shuffle and the X-a-doble. And a lot of them really have you and Marble going at it, a lot!”

Limestone glanced at her second youngest sister with a twitching left eye. “Forget it, I’m not even going to ask where, how, or why you got something like that. Anyway, I still don’t want to. I’m heading out tonight.”

Pinkie Pie suddenly got worried. “Oh…r-really? Where?”

“Just some rave somewhere,” Lime answered.

“M-Maybe we can just have a sister hangout night instead? I just don’t think it’s really safe to go out at night, especially with…you know, all that’s going on,” said Pinkie.

Lime smiled, with her free hand she reached over and ruffled her little sister’s hair. “I’m a big girl, Pinks, don’t worry about me. ‘Sides, I’ll be fine, I promise.” Lime could see that she wasn’t completely satisfied with that. “Tell you what, I’ll call you when I get there, I’ll call you when I leave, and I’ll call you one last time when I’m halfway home. Deal?”

“Okay, just be careful, I love you sis…” Pinkie leaned over and brought Limestone into a haphazard hug.

Lime smiled back. “I love you too, Pinkie.”

Night had fallen upon Canterlot City, and even Sunset could feel the tension in the air. The day was when people felt safer, but night now carried with it an ominous promise of the shadows coming alive to claim the innocent. It hadn’t completely paralyzed the city into shutting down businesses that operated at night, but the citizens were told to use extra caution when traveling at night.

For Sunset Shimmer, she didn’t have much to worry about. When night fell, she donned the Witchblade armor and flew out to the spot where Angelus told her there was supposed to be a sort of training ground for the gang members of the Blood Kings. While Sunset wasn’t particularly thrilled with the idea of fighting normal people, she was sure she could take them down without killing them.

As she sailed through the night, Sunset stopped and hovered in the air. Before she left, Sunset did a search of the address online, normally a satellite image of the area wouldn’t help much, but given that Sunset was going to be flying, memorizing the shape and landmarks helped a lot. It was an abandoned steel mill, it was still maintained in case steel production needed to be kicked up again. But right now, it was supposed to be empty.

}}} I sense Father’s energy here… {{{

Looks like she was right, let’s take a look.

Sunset flew down and landed on the roof near the skylight. She peeked through the window and saw several people were gathered inside. Sunset looked around and found a large enough window to sneak in, she carefully slipped through the window and perched herself on the rafters, listening in on their meeting.

Inside a makeshift stage was erected, the inside was musty smelling, reminding Sunset of the warehouse that Ishtar had her underground sex club in. The building itself was nearly the size of a football field, with steel drums that were lined up against one side of the wall, and a host of conveyor belts and machines that would press and mold whatever metal was put onto them. A man with green skin and black hair walked up to the front of the stage.

“Listen up! You join the Blood Kings, you join for life! We’re not just going against the cops, or the government! We’re changing this city, molding it! With Sombra King we’ll get this done! And we’ll do it with this!”

The assortment of teen and twenty-something-year-olds watched as the man pulled out a vial of black substance, Sunset knew what it was from what Shining Armor told her about it, that was the Tar.

“It’s called Tar, take the whole thing, and you become a near unstoppable monster we call a Blacknight, just be aware that this shit only lasts twelve hours, after that, your ass better be somewhere else or it’ll be grass,” he said.

“Then why can’t we take more than one?! Make it last a whole damn day,” one of the crowd asked.

The leader, at least Sunset assumed as he was, stepped up and took out his own vial. He had blonde hair and blue skin. “Because this shit can jack with your mind. One vial, you’ll still be in control, take two, you might not come back, more than two…you’ll turn into a rampaging monster and you’re definitely not coming back. You’ll all be given one, and are to only use it when you’re backed into a corner by the cops or those flying bastards.”

A female member of the gang walked up next, neon pink in color, she had white hair and purple highlights, and said, “Listen up, those ‘Sentinels’ are strong during the day, and are kinda weak at night. Tar is sensitive to light, so keep that in mind when you take it, ‘cause you will be too. On top of that, you’ll be stronger when you’re in dark places and when it’s night. Beware of flashbangs and intense light as it can screw with your transformation.”

The leader took up after her, “With that said, if I or – god help you – Mr. King finds out you used the Tar for some petty shit like getting back at a friend, girlfriend, or to kill your family, you’re dead. I mean that literally, we will kill you. There’s no place for you here.”

Sunset had the Witchblade release her cellphone. She quickly grabbed and dialed Shining Armor’s number.

{Sunset, what’s up?}

“Yeah, you know how I might be helping out with this little Sombra King and Blood Kings thing…?”

{……Ah shit, you’re in the middle of something aren’t you?}

“Not yet, I’m hiding up in the rafters of an old steel mill, watching some Blood Kings recruiting new members and showing them how to use their vial of Tar. I need you to get some police to 5001 Hedgedale Lane, now!”

{Dammit, that’s too far for us. I’ll alert the local precinct and have them send backup ASAP. Is Sombra there?}

“Not that I can see, I think his right hand is here though, but I’m just guessing right now.”

{That’s better than nothing, if you can, try and capture him, don’t let those Sentinels kill him. He might know where Sombra is.}

“Got it, I’ll stand by until I hear sirens.”

{Sunset…be careful.}

Sunset smiled as she said, “Aren’t I always?” and then hung up. She watched as the leaders of the gang went on about the dangers and other things about joining the gang, which took all of five minutes, but then it was time to hand out the vials of Tar. It was here that Sunset fidgeted. If they got the vials then it would be bad news for the incoming police officers. At night, the Blacknights would be stronger and more difficult for the Sentinels to deal with as well.

}}} We may need to intervene now before that happens. {{{

I’m with you on that, but we’re not killing any of them.

}}} Killjoy… {{{

Sunset jumped off the rafters, performed one flip, and landed right in front of the stage. She stopped the guy holding the bag full of vials and smirked. From her left hand she shot out a chain with a spear tip that impaled the bag. The spear blade then morphed, letting four hooks spring from it and latch onto the bag itself. Sunset yanked on the chain, making the man holding it release it, and threw it into the air. Once out of reach, Sunset raised her right hand and released a jet stream of flames right at it, burning the bag and its contents into ashes.

The chain retracted back to her left gauntlet and melted into the armor. “Sorry, no Tar for anyone tonight! You’ll have to get your fix somewhere else!”

“What the hell?!”

“Is that a Sentinel?!”

“Fuck no! That’s Witchblade!”

“Damn she’s hot.”

“I don’t care if she’s with the cops or that angel thing, I’d do it her in a heartbeat!”

“Same!”

}}} You sure you don’t want to kill them? {{{

Some are pushing it right now…

Just then, the sound of wailing sirens sounded in the distance. The leaders picked up on the sound and so did the recruits.

“I’ll make this simple, just give up now and I promise you won’t be hurt!” Sunset announced.

The leader, with blonde hair and blue skin, reached into his jacket and took out a vial of Tar. But then a man with green skin and black hair took it from him.

“Give me yours too!” he demanded of the female subordinate. “NOW!”

She quickly handed it over, which made the leader nervous. “What the hell are you doing?!”

“Buying us time! Blood! Get out of here!” That same man opened the one that he got from the one called Blood and drank it, and then the one from the girl, and finally, he took out his own vial and downed it all.

“Dammit, Cliff…EVERYBODY GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!!” Blood shouted.

Everybody began to scatter, Sunset didn’t need to bother with them, right now, her focus was on the man who just took three vials of Tar. The man known as Cliff hunched over as he grunted and growled. His clothes began to rip apart from the expansion of his muscles and body. Demonic growls filled the inside as he raised his head, showing that his eyes were glowing bright yellow, with rows of dagger sharp teeth, and jagged horns the protruded from his head. Cliff’s entire body turned the color of night, with a blue sheen when the light hit his skin just right.

Sunset watched as Cliff continued to grow, stopping when he was at least nine feet tall. He had a long whip-like tail with an arrowhead tip, black tentacles, four in total, sprouted from his back and sharpened themselves to that of razors, large claws meant for rending metal and flesh in one go, and muscles that signified the strength that this Blacknight possessed.

“Oh shit…”

The Giga Blacknight roared strongly, shaking the entire building as he did so. Sunset summoned a scimitar and a khopesh sword into her hands and readied to fight the human turned monster.

The Giga Blacknight used his tentacles as they went straight for Sunset. The Bringer of Balance leaned back just as the tentacle came near her, letting it pass overhead. Sunset brought both her blades together and slashed upwards, cutting off the tentacle as she rose back up.

The creature paid it no mind as he jumped off the stage and charged for her. Sunset ducked to the right as he continued and crashed into a machine, crushing it with his size and strength. The Giga Blacknight used both of his claws and ripped off that piece of machinery.

When Sunset recovered, she watched as the Giga Blacknight chucked the damaged machine straight at her. Thinking quickly, Sunset merged the two swords together and created a giant sword that she used to slash the machine right down the metal. Sparks flew as the blade cleaved through the mortal metal like it was wet tissue paper, the flinging off in two different directions, hitting the back wall, and smashing right through it.

Sunset morphed the sword into a scythe, she twirled the sickle around and dashed for the Giga Blacknight. She slashed upwards, cutting a large gash in its chest, and then swiped again, cutting it horizontally across its abdomen. The beast roared in pain and began to bleed, but that didn’t seem to stop it from attacking again, using its tentacles to strike at Sunset like a cobra.

The former unicorn twirled the scythe around as she backed away, the ringing of the sharpened edges of the tentacles bouncing off her sickle rang out through the room as she rapidly blocked and parried each attack. The Giga Blacknight’s body began to heal rapidly, the gashes closing in a matter of seconds. The creature of Darkness’ claws began to glow, he raised them up above his head, and then slammed them into the ground.

The move created a shockwave of dark energy the slammed against Sunset like a freight train, throwing her into the wall behind her. The Giga Blacknight didn’t let up as he charged like a stampeding bull straight for her. The wall burst open as Sunset and the Giga Blacknight smashed through it and right into another building. He continued slamming her through one wall after the other, with no sign of stopping.

Sunset gritted her teeth and willed the armor to shoot out blade strands that sliced at the Giga Blacknight’s legs. The blades slashed at his Achilles tendons and the backs of his knees, the creature cried in pain as he fumbled and fell, allowing Sunset to get away as he continued to roll on the ground. Unfortunately, the creature’s regeneration was powerful, already getting back on his feet.

Just before the Giga Blacknight could attack, a column of fire shot down from the roof. When the flames faded, they revealed a being, another Sentinel. His body was orange, hair made of yellow fire, with golden armor like his brethren, and white glowing wings on his back.

The creature regarded the male being before him and then attacked with his tentacles. All four, however, never made it to their target as something blue sliced through them with ease. The Giga Blacknight howled in pain as the severed ends burned. Sunset looked to her left and saw another of the Sentinels appear right next to the fiery one.

This one was female, her wings were made of shimmering water, her skin was a deeper shade of blue than other Sentinels, the word “ocean blue” came to mind. Her hair was like a waterfall, her locks reaching down to her back. The Sentinel wore a white dress, kind of low cut around the neck, allowing for a peek at her cleavage, a gold belt was tied around her waist, fastening the dress, while two gold medallions did the same around her shoulders. Her right and left forearms had bracers, fitted with lapis lazuli gemstones, and golden boots that also sported the same gemstones.

“Ah, Witchblade, our Mistress said her son and his host would be here,”

“Yeah, and who are you two?”

The flaming Sentinel posed as he puffed out his chest. “I’m Israfil, the Burning One.”

The female Sentinel bowed. “I am Kutiel, his sister. I am the Bringer of Holy Water.”

Sunset looked back at the Giga Blacknight and the hissing sound that came from his severed tentacles. “Well that explains why he was hurt by your water.”

“Please inform us, I know this is a Blacknight, but I’ve never seen one this big, or this strong,” said Kutiel.

“He drank three of those Tar vials, so he’s a lot stronger than a normal Blacknight, so I guess we can call him a Giga Blacknight,” said Sunset.

Israfil chuckled. “I like the name, so, let’s get to it then!”

The Burning One summoned two fireballs into his hands and threw them at the monster. Both fireballs exploded against its body, causing its skin to sizzle and blister, but still, the Giga Blacknight didn’t seem to be deterred much. Israfil smirked and then fired off a stream of golden flames right at the monster, bathing it in fire. The Giga Blacknight cried out in pain, again, but this time it charged through the flames and swung his large arm.

Israfil was caught with a giant backhand, throwing him against the opposite wall and putting him in a daze. Kutiel summoned orbs of water into her hands and then slashed the air with them. The two water orbs turned into water blades as they sailed through the air and struck the Giga Blacknight on the shoulders, cutting into his muscles and making his arms go limp. The Bringer of Holy Water flew for the creature, coating her right forearm in water and forming it into a blade. Kutiel stabbed the creature, burying half her forearm in its thick neck. Blood sprayed from the wound as her water blade stuck out the other side, but the Giga Blacknight’s shoulders healed, allowing it to grab ahold of Kutiel and forcibly ripped her off of him.

Kutiel was tossed like a ragdoll across the large room, landing against a shipping container much like her brother. Sunset struck the great beast with a torrent of flames, but again, it powered through the attack and came right at her. The Bringer of Balance jumped straight up and around, dodging the attack as she landed elegantly. Kutiel and Israfil managed to peel themselves off from their respective places and hovered near Sunset.

“Okay, so, this one’s a lot tougher than we were expecting,” said Israfil.

“And it would be at night, our power is halved, we’d need at least two more to fell him,” Kutiel added.

Sunset tried to think of a way to bring this thing down, or at least depower him enough render his harmless.

}}} I have a crazy idea… {{{

We’re not exactly swimming with options, what is it?

}}} Absorb the Darkness. I was born from the Darkness and Angelus, in theory, I might be able to absorb and purify the dark essence of my Father. {{{

Sunset looked at her gauntlet with a bit of skepticism. Are you sure that’ll work?

}}} It’s only a theory, our only other recourse is to kill him. Which I know you’re not keen on. {{{

Alright, I’ll trust you with this. “Israfil, Kutiel, hold him still as long as you can, we have a plan.”

The two Sentinels nodded and went to work. Kutiel created a large sphere of water and threw it at the Giga Blacknight, the sphere popped like a bubble and splashed the creature with buckets of purified water that burned its skin. Israfil created fire whips which he used to wrap up the Giga Blacknight’s arms and legs. Kutiel created her own water whips, wrapping the monster’s torso in them, and preventing him from creating any more tentacles.

Sunset prepared to do her part, but stopped when she noticed the Giga Blacknight’s mouth open and fire off a beam of black light straight for her. Sunset ducked out of the way as the beam burned through the concrete and steel, continuing on to the back wall and piercing through it.

“SHUT HIS MOUTH!!!”

Kutiel hurriedly made her water snake up his neck and wrap around his head, shutting his mouth and cutting off the beam attack. With that accomplished, Sunset widened her stance and held out her right hand towards the Giga Blacknight. The ruby jewel of the Witchblade began to glow brighter and brighter, harsh whispers were carried on the wind that made Sunset’s skin crawl.

Suddenly, the Giga Blacknight stopped its thrashing about and went still. At that moment the black tar began to pull away from its body and towards Witchblade. It flowed out of his chest like sludge, and when it reached Sunset’s jewel, she winced in pain and dropped to one knee. She could feel the Darkness’ essence, it was hateful, destructive, even hedonistic, it called to all the negative thoughts and impulses in Sunset’s body.

“Don’t let something like this break you.”

Sunset glanced to her right and saw her dark half standing next to her, and she grinned smugly. I wouldn’t give you the satisfaction of saying I was beaten by this.

“Damn right, now get your shit together and let’s burn this sludge!”

Sunset gritted her teeth as she stood back up, her eyes glowing with renewed determination. She released a battle cry, focusing her magic and the Witchblade’s power to draw out the rest of the Tar. More and more flowed out of the one called Cliff, his size reducing with each passing second. The last of the Tar exited Cliff’s body, returning the man to normal, while Sunset summoned the Tar into her right hand, making it form into a ball. Once it was all out, she summoned her flames and burned the Tar so that not even ashes remained.

The Bringer of Balance sighed heavily, exhausted from the extraction process, but satisfied that she was able to do something like that. To Sunset this was good news, this meant that there was a way for her to fight the Blacknights without killing the person who turned.

“RAAAAAAGGGHH!!!”

Sunset quickly looked up and saw that Cliff was still wrapped in the water whips of Kutiel. Although, his eyes were darting around, and he was frothing at the mouth, growling like an animal and clawing at the air as he tried to break free and attack.

Kutiel pointed her left hand at Cliff, and then clenched it into a fist. The moment she did, several spikes made of blood erupted from Cliff’s body, turning him into a human porcupine. The grunting and growling ceased as Cliff went limp, Kutiel unclenched her fist and the blood needles disappeared. The Bringer of Holy Water released her water whips and let Cliff’s body fall, unceremoniously, onto the cold concrete floor.

Sunset looked upon the scene with eyes wide with shock, those same eyes then narrowed into slits as anger broiled within her. The Bringer of Balance marched her way to Kutiel and grabbed her by the collar of her dress. “WHY THE FUCK DID YOU DO THAT?!”

“His mind and soul were gone, he had been reduced to a mindless, soulless beast. There was no helping him,” said Kutiel calmly as if it was a matter of fact.

“I COULD’VE HEALED HIM! THE WITCHBLADE AND I HAVE THAT POWER!” Sunset argued.

Israfil stood next to Kutiel and crossed his arms. “Heal his mind, maybe, yeah. But you can’t bring back his soul. Even for Mistress’ son, that’s something he cannot do.”

}}} ……I hate to admit that he’s right…but he’s right…I cannot bring back a soul once it’s departed. {{{

Sunset released Kutiel and looked at ruby jewel. “Bullshit! You brought ME back to life!”

}}} Because you are my host, and I can do that for you, for others…I cannot…such power is only wielded by my Mother and Father… {{{

“Even if you did heal his mind, he would be a soulless husk. I ask you, which is cruller? Death or living as a corpse?” Kutiel asked.

Sunset’s anger simmered a bit, but she was still angry about it. “Fine…I’m leaving.” Sunset flared her metallic wings and shot up through the roof of the building and flew off towards home.

}}} I am sorry Sunset… {{{

Don’t be…I can’t be angry at you for something you’re not able to do…I heard about how the Sentinels just slay without mercy, but the way she did it…without even batting an eye…

}}} They carry out Mother’s will. Those who fight for the Darkness are no better than the demons that Father conjures, and will kill them without mercy. I fear more for when this over, and Father’s minions are no longer their targets…{{{

Sunset felt a cold chill, if they were this merciless to those who were “tainted” by the Darkness, when it was all over, how merciless would the Sentinels and Angelus be towards normal people?

A flash of lightning and the booming of thunder caught Sunset’s attention. She stopped in midair and looked into the distance. Around the warehousing district, storm clouds had gathered, roaring with thunder and crackling with lightning, and something else, flames.

}}} Sunset, I sense a strong power over that way! {{{

Is it the Darkness?

}}} No…something else…familiar, and yet not. {{{

Then let’s check it out!

It seemed that Sunset’s night wasn’t over just yet…

Author's Note

Chapter releases will either be on Monday or Friday depending on their availability. Thank you for your patience and stay tuned!

And for those of you wondering what Witchblade sounds like, I hear him as Venom from the movie
For Angelus, Salem from RWBY
The Darkness, go look up the video game

Drawing Battle Lines Part 2

Warning: The following chapter contains a rape scene. I and those of us here at Ravencroft Studios do not condone nor support such acts IRL. That being said, these are fictional characters, in a fictional world.

You have been warned. There's only one though.

It was the end of gym class, one of Twilight’s least favorite classes. Yes, she understood the need to keep her body in shape and healthy, and that exercise was a vital part of that, after all, what good was a brilliant mind if the body failed it? That being said, it didn’t mean that Twilight was cut out for it. Crystal Prep excelled in improving not only the students’ mental, but their physical ability as well.

Archery was a requirement at Crystal Prep, so there was no getting out of it. In her whole time at the school, she hadn’t made a bull’s eye even once, she was always a centimeter off here, or a inch there, and sometimes her arrows flew way over the target. It also didn’t help that the coach always looked down at her with a judgmental glare.

Twilight didn’t like to disappoint her teachers, even her Physical Education teacher, but every time Twilight missed she would blow the whistle and say “Again!” until her quiver was empty, then make her run out and get the arrows to do it all over again. There were so many times that she wanted to just yell at the coach that her teaching method wasn’t working for her, but that would mean talking back to a respected adult, a teacher, and despite everything, Twilight wasn’t one to disobey a teacher, nor talk back at them. No matter how much they deserved it.

When she was done, Twilight was released late. Thankfully it was the last class of the day. Sunset was waiting for her outside so that they could drive over to Twilight’s place tonight to go over a few more theories, the last two weeks have thrown her worldview into question recently. Angels, demons, strange metamorphic armor, a second Sunset Shimmer…it was a lot.

Twilight wasn’t a religious girl, but when you saw winged beings wielding swords of light and wearing golden armor, and then see a person donned in dark armor with demon like creatures coming from him, it was hard to not start thinking that there may’ve been more to those texts than she once thought.

Fortunately, being released late meant that Twilight could shower without having to watch her back. She tried to not use the showers when possible, not because she was shy or anything…okay, maybe she was shy and self-conscious about her body, but that was mostly due to the other occupants in the showers. Her female peers didn’t have any qualms about talking about how flat Twilight’s ass was, or how small her breasts were, or how mousy she looked.

They never missed a chance to take shots at her body image, and it seemed to just get worse as the years went on. Saying that she would never get a boyfriend, how the only way she’d get a guy was by going commando and spreading her legs, “Cause every guy likes an easy lay, Sparkle.”

Not that it mattered to her, the boys in CPA never appealed to her. They were as bad as the girls, and despite how many times the girls said she wasn’t attractive enough to draw a boy’s attention, the boys themselves had no problem leering at her with lecherous eyes.

But, Twilight found out quickly it wasn’t the boys she needed to worry about…

While in the showers, under the warm running water, Twilight didn’t hear the wet footfalls of someone approaching. It was while her arms were up and rinsing her hair that the unknown person slapped a hand around her mouth and pushed her against the wall.

Twilight released muffled screams as her heart pounded in her chest. The person behind her was pressing their body against her, and from what Twilight could feel, they were female. Right now, Twilight wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing, well, in her case, either way it was bad.

“C’mon Twi, don’t be scared, it’s me.”

Twilight froze upon recognizing the voice, it was Indigo Zap. The hand that had been placed over her mouth moved away, allowing Twilight to speak. “I-I-Indigo…w-what are you d-d-doing here?”

“Coach put you through the ringer today, so I thought I’d come and make sure you didn’t collapse from exhaustion in here,” said Indigo with a sly tone.

“I-I’m fine, r-really, Indigo, you don’t have to worry!” Twilight stated.

“Oh, but I do…” Indigo slid her right hand over Twilight’s taut stomach, bringing it to her right hip and slowly moving further down until she cupped Twilight’s right ass cheek in her hand, giving it a firm squeeze that made the teen genius flinch. “You’ve been hanging around that Sunset chick a lot…”

“S-Sunset’s j-just a…a…” It just occurred to Twilight that she never really defined her relationship with Sunset Shimmer.

The only person she could call a friend moved away a long time ago, but since then, she hadn’t really had anyone else to call “friend”. Sunset, well, she couldn’t call her an acquaintance, not with the frequent number of times she met with her over the past few weeks. Sunset defended her, got mad for her, weren’t those qualities of a friendship?

“Tell me somethin’, what does she do for you?” Indigo asked as her left hand moved down over Twilight’s neck, then her collarbone, and then finding its resting place atop her left breast.

Twilight hissed as she felt Indigo’s left hand knead her left bosom, and then used her thumb and forefinger to pinch Twilight’s now erect nipple.

Twilight had come to rely on a number of different methods to keep her mind occupied. One of them was reciting the Periodic Table of Elements, alphabetically, mentally naming them, their symbols, atomic numbers, and electronegativity, anything to keep her mind off of what was happening right now.

Actinium…Symbol: Ac…Atomic Number: 89…Electronegativity: 1.1…Aluminum…Symbol: Al…Atomic Number: 13…Electronegativity: 1.61…

“Does she make you feel good like I can?”

Americium…Symbol: Am…Atomic Number: 95…Electronegativity: 1.3…

Indigo stopped groping Twilight’s rear and slowly ran her right hand back to Twilight’s stomach, from there she traveled lower, making Twilight whimper and her body shudder in revulsion, but to Indigo, it was a shudder of desire. Then Twilight yelped, feeling Indigo’s right hand play with her flower. An involuntary moan escaped her mouth when Indigo brought her lips to Twilight’s neck, kissing her and nipping at her neck, making sure to do so in a place that wouldn’t be noticeable unless she undressed.

Antimony…Symbol: Sb…Atomic Number: 9…95…Electron-n-n-negativity: 2.05…Argon…Symbol: Ar…Atomic Number: 18…Electronegativity: None…

Twilight put her hands against the wall, feeling her core tighten up and her back beginning to arch. Indigo slipped a digit into Twilight’s slit, the teen genius felt her heart racing with fear as Indigo’s index and ring fingers penetrated her deeper and deeper, finally stopping just a few inches from the final barrier that marked her as virgin.

“What do you say, Twilight? Ready to give this to me?” Indigo asked in a sultry voice.

“P-P-Please…not here…not like this…” Twilight begged.

Indigo placed a kiss next to Twilight’s right cheek and smiled. “Just thought I’d ask, besides, I’d rather do this in a bed so I can have a better view of you. But for now…”

Twilight tensed as she felt Indigo’s fingers begin piston into her, doing so with practiced ease as Indigo managed to go in and keep from breaking her hymen, all while still managing to stimulate her girlhood with each stroke of the athlete’s digits.

Arsenic…Symbol: As…Atomic Number: 33…Electronegativity: 2.18…Astatine…Symbol: At…Atomic Number: 85…Electronegativity: 2.2…

Indigo was panting, and so was Twilight, she squeezed Twilight’s breast harder, causing Twilight to yelp again. The feeling of her wet cunt around her fingers, fucking in the school showers, it was like something out of a porno and it was turning Indigo on.

Beryllium, Symbol: Be, Atomic Number: 4, Electronegativity: 1.57! Bismuth, Symbol: Bi, Atomic Number: 83, Electronegativity: 2.02! Bohrium, Symbol: Bh, Atomic Number:107, Electronegativity: None! Boron, Symbol: B-B-B, A-Atomic Number: 5, Electronegativity: 2.04!

Twilight bit her bottom lip and kept her eyes shut, staring straight at the wall and just waiting for this to end. Her wish was granted when Indigo curled her fingers up and pressed against Twilight’s G-spot, and immediately, her body was rocked with an orgasm. Her girlhood released a copious amount of fluids onto Indigo’s hand as her legs shook. Twilight started to go slack a bit, making Indigo stop.

“Whoa there, easy girl,” said Indigo as she held Twilight up. “Little pent up there, weren’t you?”

Twilight said nothing, shame filled her, as it did every time this happened. Mentally, she knew it was just a physical reaction, achieving orgasm and “cumming” were two different things. When you cummed, it was done via mutual actions of both partners, an orgasm is just the body’s reaction to being sexually stimulated. That’s all this was, just sexual stimulation, she felt not an ounce of satisfaction in this. Emotionally, though, she still felt like shit for letting it happen. Her only saving grace was that Indigo never pushed too deep into her, allowing Twilight to keep her virginity. For how much longer was a different story.

“I’d like you to return the favor, maybe eat me out?” Indigo teased.

Twilight gulped, hard. Indigo never asked for that, did Indigo finger her to orgasm, yes, but never to go down on the athlete.

“Just kidding, I have somewhere to be, and it’ll look weird if we’re in here for too long.” Indigo propped Twilight against the wall and gave her a chaste kiss on her lips. “You’re my girl, Twilight. No one else’s, you understand?”

Twilight slowly nodded.

“Good girl. One day, I’ll make a proper woman out of you. Just you, me, my bed, and a wild night of mind blowing sex. Later.”

Twilight waited until Indigo left to release the tension in her body. There was no reason to cry about it anymore, she had done plenty of that before when it first started, but now she saw no need in breaking down. At this point, it was a fact of life for Twilight Sparkle, to be abused by Indigo in some fashion, but one thing that did worry her was what Indigo might do to Sunset. It didn’t matter if Twilight was or wasn’t in a relationship with Sunset Shimmer, so long as Indigo perceived she might be, that was enough.

Maybe…Maybe it’s time I just gave into her…I don’t want Sunset to get hurt because of me.

Twilight continued her shower, scrubbing a little harder than was necessary between her legs to the point that it hurt a little. When she was done, Twilight found Sunset waiting for her. Sunset had forgone her motorcycle, not wanting to scare Twilight every time she rode, so she switched red to a Corvette ZR1. Twilight was starting to notice a theme when it came to Sunset, one: she liked red, and two: she liked fast vehicles.

“Hey, Sparky, you alright?” Sunset asked.

Twilight stiffened. “W-Why do you ask?!”

Sunset blinked. “You just look a little flushed.”

“O-O-Oh, yes…” Twilight began playing with one of her bangs. “I-It was the hot shower I took, I was really sore after class so I just stayed under there a little longer than I should’ve.”

Sunset’s expression was neutral and hard to read, which only made Twilight more nervous. Sunset had already gotten into a stare down with Indigo not too long ago, if she found out what the school’s number one athlete was doing to her……well, Twilight wasn’t sure of Sunset’s physical ability, but she wasn’t about to take any chances when it came to Indigo.

“Okay, well, hop in and we’ll head to your place,” said Sunset.

Twilight breathed a sigh of relief, whether Sunset bought it or not, at least the subject wouldn’t be broached for a while. The teenage prodigy entered Sunset’s car, once inside, Sunset turned on the car. The engine whirred to life, she pressed on the gas and took a moment to listen to the engine roar.

“I like my bike, but I love my car,” said Sunset.

“You really do love your fast vehicles, don’t you?” Twilight asked.

“You bet, if it’s got less than eight-hundred horsepower, I don’t want that weak shit!” Sunset stated.

Twilight glanced to Sunset, and then the car. “Uh…Sunset, when you got this car…did you, uh, modify it?”

Sunset slowly turned to Twilight, and then smiled wickedly. “Oh no…I just bought the 1,200 horsepower version!”

Without another word, Sunset shifted gears and took off down the road, making Twilight shriek. A couple of miles later, Sunset slowed down and let Twilight catch her breath.

“Seriously though, Twi, what’s up?”

“W-Why do you think something’s up?” Twilight asked.

Sunset spared her a glance before looking back at the road. “Sparky, please, you were in there for a while, I’m just…worried is all. Sorry, if I’m being paranoid, but I just don’t like you being alone in that place.”

Twilight felt a lump form in her throat, forcing herself not to shed tears. Sunset was worried about her, even while waiting for her outside, she was worried about her wellbeing. “S-Sunset…may I ask you a question?”

“Anything, Sparky.”

Twilight wrung her hands and bit her bottom lip as she mustered up the courage. “Are…Are we friends?”

Sunset cocked an eyebrow at that as they came to a stop light. “Um…okay…were we not? I thought we were.”

Twilight’s eyes widened with fear. How could she ask such a question? Of course Sunset would get offended by that. “I’M SORRY, I’M SORRY, I’M SORRY! Please don’t be mad at me! I-I-I didn’t mean to offend you! I-I-I–!”

Sunset turned back to the road, turned into a parking lot, parked, and said, “Twilight calm down, breathe in and out, do it with me.” Sunset inhaled, and Twilight mimicked her, and then she exhaled, Twilight did the same. The two of them did this for about a minute before Twilight calmed down. “You good, Sparky?”

Twilight silently nodded.

“Okay…so, let me ask you something. Why did you not think we’re friends?” Sunset asked. “You won’t offend me, I promise, I just want to know.”

Twilight played with one of her bangs. A nervous habit she hadn’t managed to kick. “I know you see how everyone treats me at Crystal Prep. I’m just…skeptical whenever someone gets close to me there, every person whom I think would be nice and friendly, only ends up hurting me in some way. It’s like the unspoken rite of passage to pick on Twilight Sparkle, and if you don’t, something is wrong with you.”

Sunset’s blood was boiling as she listened to this, but made sure not let Twilight see just how angry she was for fear of Twilight taking it the wrong way.

“Everyday I’m afraid that you’ll wake up one morning and realize that I’m not worth it…you’re strong, beautiful, intelligent, it’s probably why no one’s come after you, but that won’t last. And when it starts…EEP!” Twilight yelped as she felt Sunset take her hand.

“Twilight, listen to me.” The bespectacled girl nervously looked at Sunset and was surprised by the sincere look in her eyes. “You are my friend, Twilight Sparkle. I know you have trust issues, and they’re warranted, but you never have to worry about that with me. You don’t deserve the crap those assholes pile onto you, just because they’re jealous, fuck ‘em! You are who you are, don’t ever apologize for being smarter than someone else! And it’s not like you’re flaunting it, right?”

Twilight shook her head in the negative.

“Well then even more reason to fuck ‘em then! I don’t care if the school picks on me, trust me, I know how to deal with assholes. But I won’t betray you to them…” Sunset released Twilight’s and brought up the amulet on her necklace. “I swear on this treasure of mine, you can trust me.”

Tears welled up in Twilight’s eyes, she tried to bite back her sobs, but it wasn’t happening. Twilight bawled her eyes out, and without thinking, she threw herself at Sunset the best she could, resting her head against the redhead’s chest. Sunset was stunned for a few seconds, but she quickly got over it and hugged Twilight, rubbing her hand down her back in a soothing motion.

It was strange, other than her family, she didn’t like it when others touched her, that unfortunately was due to Indigo Zap, but when Sunset held her, touched her, she felt safe, safer than she had ever felt before. All the doubt and worry melted away, she had a friend, someone who wouldn’t betray her, someone who wouldn’t harm her. She was so happy, so relieved that she couldn’t tell if she was crying because she was happy or sad anymore.

In Sunset’s mind, she felt great sorrow for Twilight, but also great anger. The kind of hell she endured in CPA, alone, with no one to help her, keeping it all bottled up inside and just taking it. Sunset held Twilight tighter, she didn’t want to let Twilight go, fearing that she might break if she did, but this girl in her arms, she needed her. But Twilight also needed to get some relief.

Once Twilight was done crying, Sunset asked, “Hey, why do you say we take a break from working on the mystery of my doppelganger and the energy, and just hang out tonight?”

“Oh…a-are you sure?”

“Positive, in fact, we’ll hit the town! I know of this great rave taking place tonight, and we’re going! No weaseling out of this, Sparky. You,” Sunset booped Twilight’s nose, “need to cut loose and relax, and a rave is perfect for that.”

Twilight knew of raves, underground gatherings of teens where loud music was played, consumption of alcohol and drugs was rampant, and…the occasional sexual encounter. “I-I-I-I-I-I don’t know…I’m not a good dancer…plus…I don’t drink or do drugs…”

“Who says you need to do all that to have a good time? C’mon, Sparky, you need this bad. I’ll be with you the whole time as well. Plus, you can stay at my place, we can turn it into a sleepover~”

The corners of Twilight’s lips turned up into a smile. “S-Sleepover? You mean, like a Slumber Party?”

Sunset blinked. “Well, yeah, we can make it that. Hell, you can stay over the whole weekend if you want.”

Twilight became jittery with excitement. The whole going to a rave thing made her nervous, but the prospect of having a Slumber Party for the first time excited her to no end. “O-Okay, yes, l-let’s do it!”

“Alright! First, we’re gonna need the appropriate wardrobe, call your folks and tell them you’ll be staying over with me!” Sunset stated.

“Okay.” Twilight took out her cellphone, but then paused when she realized that she didn’t know where Sunset lived. “…Um, what is your address exactly? I need to give it to them so my parents know where I’m at.”

“Oops, sorry, it’s at 311 Chestnut Ave, uptown.”

“Cool beans, I’ll just – wait…did you just say…uptown?!”

Twilight gaped as they rolled up to Sunset’s home. It was a lavish estate, far too big for one person. A black iron gate kept the property secure, along with a seven-foot-tall gate. When Sunset drove up to it, she pressed a button on the roof of her car and the gate automatically opened up. She drove up the mile long path into the circle driveway, which then led to a garage. Sunset pressed another button and opened it, allowing Twilight to see an assortment of bikes and cars, all of which ranked high in horsepower and speed.

Once she pulled in, both Sunset and Twilight exited the car. Sunset led Twilight through the door and into the house proper. When Twilight got inside, she was taken aback at just how huge the inside was, there were Romanesque columns that held up the ceiling, warm, mahogany wooden floors, with red wall paper and white molding at the top and bottom.

Sunset noticed how Twilights jaw had dropped and said, “You’ll swallow a fly if you keep it open that long, Sparky.”

Twilight shook herself from her stupor and blushed in embarrassment. “S-Sorry, it’s just…I didn’t know…”

“That I’m filthy stinkin’ rich?” Sunset finished.

“Yeah…”

“Don’t worry about it, as far as I’m concerned it doesn’t define me. It’s useful to get what I need. Now, let’s get you some clothes that’ll suit you.”

Twilight followed Sunset as they went up the dual winding stairs, and down a long hallway. The young genius stopped before a set of double doors that was labeled, “Lab II”. Sunset stopped and smirked, she turned around and opened the doors, and when she did, Twilight’s eyes nearly bulged out of her skull. The inside was filled with a plethora of scientific equipment, beakers, test tubes, a centrifuge, computers, an assortment of tools, gadgets, cataloged minerals and chemicals, and books for reference.

“Like my little wonderland?” Sunset asked.

“It’s…It’s beautiful,” Twilight whispered.

Sunset slowly closed the doors as she said, “Don’t go into the light, Sparky, or I’ll never see you again.”

Twilight turned to Sunset and grabbed her by the shoulders. “PLEASE LET ME SEE IT LATER?!”

Sunset chuckled. “Okay, okay, I’ll take you in there tomorrow. C’mon, we still need to get you ready.”

The two teens entered Sunset’s bedroom, it was the master bedroom, which meant it was huge. High ceilings, a fireplace set up to one side of the wall, a shelf with books, a big flat screen TV and an assortment of game consoles. And of course, a giant walk-in closet. Off to the back, next to the queen sized bed, was the doorway to the bathroom, which had a marble interior, a bathtub big enough for two people to bathe in comfortably, and a waterfall shower.

“I have a cleaning service come here at the end of each week while I’m at school. I have more than a dozen rooms in this place, so you can imagine how long it takes to clean it properly, now, let’s get down to business,” said Sunset.

“Um…‘b-business’?” Twilight asked.

“Well we’re definitely not going to a rave in our uniforms, I have some clothes that are some sizes smaller that I haven’t given out so we can see what fits you. First I’d like to get a sense of what I’m working with, so, if you don’t mind, you can strip down.”

Twilight’s mind suddenly flashed back to Indigo, remembering a separate incident where she was made to strip before her. She unconsciously gripped her vest as if to make sure that it wouldn’t come off of its own volition. “I-Is that really n-necessary?”

“Well, I want to get the right clothes for you. You don’t have to be fully naked, I just need to get a sense of what you look like without the uniform. There’s a robe in my bathroom, you can change into that and come back out if you want,” Sunset suggested.

That seemed like the safe enough option, Twilight headed to the bathroom and closed the door. Her encounter with Indigo had left her jittery and paranoid, like all their encounters did. She knew that Sunset wasn’t planning on forcing herself onto her, besides… “Who else but Indigo would want me…”

Twilight began removing her clothes until she was standing in her underwear. She looked at herself in the mirror and sighed in disappointment. She wasn’t the most voluptuous of girls, her bust only coming in at a B-cup, her hips weren’t curvy like Fleur’s were, and her rear…well…not to be vain, but Twilight thought she had a good rear end…Indigo seemed to think so. Twilight shook her head, trying to push what happened out of her head. She saw the bathrobe and put it on before coming back out.

Once Sunset saw that Twilight had come out, she took a moment to circle her and take in some mental measurements. “Okay…you actually have a nice figure without that uniform on, Sparky.”

“Don’t lie…”

“I mean it, I’m not lying. We are seriously going to work on that body image confidence, and tonight will be step one. As for your outfit…” Sunset disappeared into her closet, Twilight sat at the edge of the bed and awaited her return, about a couple of minutes later, Sunset came out producing two outfits. “I’m thinking we go in these!”

Twilight blushed. “Oh my…”

Night descended on Canterlot City, for most residents, during this time of danger, would avoid dark areas of the city and stick to the most lit places. Malls, shopping centers, anywhere where there was a large amount of people and a lot of light. However, there were those among the populace who – despite all warnings – weren’t going to let the threat of a dark demon king prevent them from having a good time in the shadows of the night.

The warehousing district was one of those places that people definitely avoided these days, which meant it was perfect for raves. Cars poured in at different times, parking in out-of-the-way places so as to not arouse the suspicion of cops or security that might be roaming around. The address was sent out via the internet, and only to those who were in the know of such events. One of those who were, was one Sunset Shimmer as she pulled into the district, cutting off her headlights. Her passenger protested that they wouldn’t be able to see where they were going.

Sunset smirked as she pressed a button on the dashboard and the screen that was set in the center switched over to a live view of outside through a night vision camera. Twilight had to admit, she was impressed. Sunset pulled into a small area, she took her black ZR1 so that it would more easily blend into the surroundings, and plus, the red one was her favorite and she wasn’t about to risk it getting scratched up or impounded. The rich girl excited her car along with Twilight, both of them walked until they reached the edge of the building where the light was more prominent.

When Sunset was underneath it, her outfit was on full display. She wore a sparkling, magenta crop top that seemed a little baggy, offering enough of a view of her cleavage and side boob, along with a pair of gray hip hugging short-shorts. She wore three gold bracelets on her right wrist that dangled, while her left bicep had similar rings wrapped around it. Her treasured necklace was still hanging around her neck, nestling itself just above the valley of her mounds. Her exposed midriff showed she had a jewel sun symbol on her bellybutton – cosmetically glued, not pierced – and to complete the look, a pair of lace-up, black strap heeled sandals, open toed and showing off her red nail polish.

(Reference Link: Sunset)

“C’mon, Sparky, we don’t want to miss the fun,” said Sunset.

“I…I don’t know about this…” Twilight whimpered from the shadows. “W-What if someone laughs at me…I-I don’t have the figure you do, Sunset…”

“No, you don’t. And that’s fine, because you’re you, and you’re cute, and if I may say so, hot as hell. Now get out here!” Sunset demanded as she reached into the shadows and pulled Twilight into the light.

Twilight was wearing a crop top as well, with two lacey straps going across her abdomen, exposing her midriff and shoulders, and her hair was still done up in its signature ponytail. She wore snug fitting jeans that accentuated Twilight’s rear nicely, with a looping chain belt that sported a magenta, six-pointed star at the end that hung loosely against Twilight’s left leg. Finishing this ensemble was a pair of black, platform heels, opened toed.

(Reference Link: Twilight)

“You look great, Sparky, just stick by me – Whoa-kay!” Sunset was startled a little when Twilight wrapped herself around Sunset’s right arm. “O-Okay, that’s taking it literally.”

“S-Sorry…I-I’m just a little scared,” said Twilight truthfully.

Sunset smiled and patted Twilight’s hand. “I’m with you, you have nothing to worry about. C’mon, let’s go and have some fun.”

The fiery redhead didn’t want to freak Twilight out, but given the way they were dressed and the way Twilight was clinging to her, she was sure that the people they met were probably going to think that they were girlfriends. Sunset had to admit, she didn’t really mind that misunderstanding, especially given how firmly her arm was pressed between Twilight’s breasts. Sunset mentally slapped herself for thinking about that.

Keep it in your pants Shimmer! This is about showing Twilight a good time! God knows this girl needs it…the last thing you need is to complicate this relationship.

Eventually they made it to the entrance where a buff guy was standing guard. When they reached the door he looked down at them, Sunset reached into her pocket and pulled out her cellphone, showing off an email that indicated that she was invited to this rave. The man nodded and opened the door for them. Sunset and Twilight walked down a long hallway, the closer they got to the opposite end, the more they could hear a rhythmic thumping noise.

When they reached the end, Sunset opened the door, and both girls were treated to a near ear destroying techno beat that assaulted their eardrums. A smoke machine let a thin layer of mist hang in the air, allowing the laser lights to shine brighter, and create crazy displays in time with the music. The room was at least twice as big as Crystal Prep’s auditorium, a makeshift stage was set up at the far end where speakers and an elaborate turntable was set up.

A large amount of the attending teens were clustered at the center of the room, dancing feverishly to the beat of the DJ. To one side of the room, Sunset could spot a slapped-together bar, serving various alcoholic beverages. As her eyes slowly adjusted to the dark interior, Sunset was able to catch more details. There was a second stairway that led to a second floor, it overlooked the downstairs and was no doubt furnished with either bean bag chairs, cheap couches, and probably a mattress or two.

The dance floor was raised, and divided into multiple squares that glowed different colors in time with the music, granting a bit more illumination, but not too much as to disturb the atmosphere. Speaking of the atmosphere, Sunset and Twilight could already pick up on the aroma of sweat, alcohol, and some other substances that she was sure weren’t legal. Many of the attendees had neon glow sticks in their hands and were waving them around like a tribal shaman calling for the spirits, and others were glow rings that dangled around wrists and necks.

“It’s loud!” Twilight commented.

“Yeah, great huh?!” Sunset asked.

Twilight offered a weak smile. “Sunset, we may run into Lemon Zest, these are the kind of places she likes to go to!”

“Fuck her if she is here! We’re here to have fun, forget CPA, forget those bitches, there’s just you, me, and this kickass music! Woooo!” Sunset cheered.

Twilight had to admit, Sunset’s carefree attitude was infectious, especially given the environment they were in. If her parents found out she was at such an event, or god forbid, her brother, she would be in so much trouble. But, at this moment, Twilight had to agree with Sunset, she needed to relax and have fun, she needed to do something that was outside her comfort zone.

“Whoa-ho, what do we have here?”

Sunset and Twilight turned to their right and saw five guys approach them, guys Sunset could tell were going to be trouble. The two on the right were a pair of twins, they did the typical twin thing of dressing similarly, they had a light skin tone, similar to Big Mac, with deep red hair and blue eyes. Sunset figured them for troublemakers, probably dressed alike to throw people off. The one on the far left was fairly muscular, wore a tank top, and was a mustard yellow color. His green hair was done up in a Mohawk and he wore a pair of shades, it was as if he couldn’t decide to go as a stereotypical tough guy or impersonate the Terminator. The second from the left was a tall, skinny beanstalk of a guy, with long gray hair, and an evergreen skin tone. The one in the middle – the leader, she assumed – wore a black overcoat, had a dark purple skin tone and black hair.

“S’up, name’s Dark, just dark,” said the leader.

“Uh-huh,” said Sunset in an unimpressed tone.

“These are my friends, Double and Trouble,” Dark pointed to the twins, “Mogar,” he then pointed to the big guy, “and last we have Crow.”

“Nice to meet you, well, see ya.” Sunset turned herself and Twilight in the opposite direction and were about to head further in.

That is until Dark cut them off. “Whoa, whoa, what’s the rush hotness? You and your cute friend should hang with us.”

Sunset felt Twilight grip her arm tighter, she released an annoyed sigh as she looked at Dark. “Look, I came here to have some fun with my friend, not to get hit on by some randos. Now I’ll ask nicely, please leave.”

Dark did not seem to take the hint as he approached Twilight. “Ah, c’mon, you’re not seriously going to think I’m buying that. As hot as you two are dressed, I know you’re looking for some company.” The lead teen gently placed his hand on Twilight’s right shoulder and her breath hitched at his touch. “I’m sure your nerdy friend here is looking for some action. I don’t mean that as an offense, I think nerdy looking girls are hot.”

His crew nodded in agreement.

It was at that moment that Sunset turned on her heel, and slipped her arm out of Twilight’s grasp. Once she did, she used her free right hand to grab Dark’s right wrist and squeeze down on it like vice. Dark cried in pain, but then cocked back his left fist to punch Sunset. Before he could land the punch, she released him, ducked down, and swept his legs from underneath Dark.

Dark went down like a town of brinks onto his back, and before he could recover, Sunset swiftly stomped on his manhood so hard that it made his crew cross their legs in empathic pain.

Sunset ground her right foot into his nuts, making the teen continue to cry in pain. “Get this straight shithead, when a girl says they’re not interested, that means they’re NOT INTERESTED!” Sunset raised her leg and then kicked him hard, now making the onlookers and even Twilight wince. She stomped on him yet again, and continued. “I better not see you or your boys around us, ‘cause I swear on everything that’s holy, I’ll make your mother cry when she’s seen what I’ve done to you!” Sunset gave him one more kick for good measure before backing away. “Someone get him an ice pack.”

“Y-You…b-bitch!” Dark whined in a high voice.

“Yeah, but I’m the bitch who kicked your ass.” Her eyes narrowed as she turned her steely gaze onto the four remaining boys, and they froze up, even Mogar. “That goes for you assholes too, only I’ll hang you from this ceiling by your nut sacks! Got it?!”

They nodded.

“Good talk.” Sunset confidently sauntered over to Twilight and draped her right arm over her shoulders. “Sparky, let’s go.”

Needless to say, Twilight was stunned speechless. Although she thought that was excessive as hell, she was also happy at how Sunset defended her.

After that commotion the rave went on. Twilight still didn’t feel confident enough to get on the dance floor, so she opted to sit close by to it and watch Sunset. The girl was a natural dancer, the way her body moved to the beat of music, as if she was becoming one with it, each movement made purposefully and without wasted energy, it mesmerized Twilight. Sunset’s fiery hair moved wildly as her arms went up and down her own body, and spinning around and continuing her motions again without a hitch.

Twilight could feel her face starting to get warm, along with a fluttering feeling in her stomach. The teen genius slapped herself mentally. Stop it, Twilight! Don’t think of Sunset that way…But what way was she thinking about her? Twilight would be the first to admit, she didn’t know the first thing about romance or being intimate. Her only intimate encounters were only ever with…Indigo Zap, and even then they were unwanted. Whether there was romantic motive behind them was another matter, but romance never crossed her mind.

When she hit puberty, she was told she’d start to notice boys more, and she did, but she also started to notice girls too. But that wasn’t her main focus in life, she was dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge, her dream of becoming a top scientist of renown was her goal, as well as to further the betterment of humankind. It was a grand goal and she wanted to pursue it fully. Things like romance and relationships tended to bog her down. Although the ones inside her family never did, and she always went to great lengths to maintain those bonds.

However, biology couldn’t be fought forever. When Twilight was younger, she thought she could fight the growing urges in her body to masturbate, but that attempt failed, so naturally she did, but only when it started to interfere with her work, which wasn’t often.

Now though…it seemed Twilight’s mind and body were trying to push her towards pursuing something else she had been avoiding. The thing of it was, she never questioned her sexuality, honestly, with what Indigo was doing to her, she thought the psychological trauma would force her to seek the touch of the opposite sex, like you get bitten by dog as a child and grow to hate them out of fear.

But she couldn’t…even if she wanted to give these growing feelings any attention, she couldn’t risk losing the only friend she’d ever had. On top of that, even if Sunset swung that way, why would she go for someone like her? Compared to Sunset I’m…

“Whew, that was fun!” Sunset exclaimed as she walked towards Twilight and sat in the chair next to her. “That DJ-PON3 is on fire! Sparky, you need to come up there!”

Twilight fidgeted in her seat. “I don’t know…like I said, I’m not a good dancer.”

“You think anyone here can really dance?” Sunset asked.

“You seem to be able to dance, very well in fact.”

Sunset shook her head. “Sparky, it’s not about whether you know some kickass moves from a music video or whatever, just go out there and move to the music. That’s all anyone’s doing up there. And some of them look like they’re having muscle spasms rather than dancing.”

Twilight turned to Sunset with an unassured look. “But…you were dancing so good up there, you were…ahem…beautiful.”

Sunset blushed a little. “Thanks, Sparky…b-but, that’s just me.” The beat picked up as DJ-PON3 started a new song. “Okay, you’re dancing with me this time.”

Twilight watched as Sunset got up from her seat and stood in front of her. The flame haired girl took Twilight’s hands into her own and pulled her up out of the chair, Twilight protested as Sunset led her towards the dance floor. Yet, despite her protesting, Twilight found that she wasn’t resisting at all. Maybe it was the clasping of their hands, or maybe it was the confidence that radiated off of Sunset, but whatever it was, Twilight found her efforts to pull away futile.

Before the young genius realized it, she was on the dance floor among a plethora of teens. The music began to play, everyone began banging their heads to beat as the techno music thumped through the large speakers, the lights dancing in the air and down below their feet.

Twilight froze as she watched Sunset begin to slowly move to the grove of the music, she noticed that Sunset was keeping eye contact with her, her gaze only breaking for a short moment as she turned in place and gave a quick over-the-shoulder glance before turning and facing her again. Twilight didn’t know when it happened, but her head started to bob to the music, her foot began to tap to the rhythm, and before she knew it, Twilight was starting to move.

“That’s it, Sparky, don’t think about it! Just let your body flow to the beat,” Sunset instructed as a smile broke out on her face.

Twilight felt herself smiling as well, her body began to move and flow, she mimicked a few moves she had seen while watching Sunset and the other dancers, modifying them to work with her limited ability.

Sunset’s smile broadened as she watched Twilight start to dance for real now, to Sunset’s amazement, Twilight wasn’t as uncoordinated as she made herself out to be, she had rhythm, but lacked a descent repertoire, she could tell the nerdy girl was mimicking some moves and turning them into a kind of mixed version of her own. All in all, not bad for a first timer. The fiery redhead decided to get a little bold, Twilight had always been forced to follow someone else’s lead, she decided to let Twilight lead this time.

Twilight was starting to get the hang of this, and generally having fun. But then she noticed Sunset moving closer to her, for a moment, she thought Sunset was going to grab her. That was half true, Sunset did reach out to her, but only to take her hands and guide them to Sunset’s body body, starting at her hips. Sunset leaned close to her ear and said, “You lead, Sparky.”

The teen prodigy didn’t fully understand, but one look in Sunset’s eyes and that was enough to tell her, she wanted Twilight to take charge. Without thinking, Twilight gripped Sunset’s hips and began moving, and Sunset mimicked her. The two began a dance as one, running their hands over each other as they looked into the others’ eyes. Sunset turned around and slowly grinded against Twilight, all while Twilight rubbed her hand over Sunset’s exposed stomach. At this distance, she was able to catch a whiff of Sunset’s scent, it was intoxicating, her fruity shampoo, mixed with her natural scent made Twilight feel dizzy, but in a good way.

For Sunset, as ashamed as she was to admit it, she was enjoying how Twilight was touching her, and responded to her grinding by pushing back with her own body. Sunset didn’t know what kind of abuse Twilight suffered, but she was glad that it wasn’t so bad as to not allow her to get this close.

As the music was drawing towards its climax, both girls now faced each other, they were no longer pawing at each other and just dancing to the beat, eyes closed, but both keenly aware of the others’ presence. Twilight, in a rather impulsive move, reached out with her hands, cupped Sunset’s cheeks, and pressed her lips against the redhead’s.

One would imagine that Sunset would be shocked, but that wasn’t the case. Sunset responded to her kiss by throwing her arms around Twilight’s neck, parting her lips, and slipping her tongue into the bespectacled girl’s mouth. The music was coming to end as both girls were occupied with their makeout session rather than dancing. Twilight’s hands moved down from Sunset’s face and over her chest, going lower down Sunset’s stomach and resting on her tight rear, making Sunset moan into her Twilight’s mouth. Sunset had to fight to keep her hands where they were, even in her state of passion she was still concerned with scaring Twilight by touching her someplace she wasn’t ready to be touched.

When the music finally ended, and the beat slowed to a low thrum, Twilight and Sunset parted lips. A cliché strand of saliva connected them through the gaps as both girls panted heavily from both their passionate kissing and the dancing they had done. Something finally clicked in Twilight’s mind just then, as if the lights had been turned back on and she just realized where she was.

Twilight took in the scene before her, Sunset’s arms were draped around her neck, her hands were gripping Sunset’s ass, and their bodies were pressed together. W-What did I just…?! Twilight’s heart began to race as she realized what she had just done, she kissed Sunset, no, she French kissed Sunset, tongue and all. She felt Sunset up, and was groping her ass, right in the middle of the dance floor, in front of everyone. Her only friend…she had done this to her friend…

“Sparky…what’s wrong?” Sunset asked worriedly as she watched Twilight’s face morph with horror. “Sparky?”

Twilight tore herself away from Sunset as panic gripped her heart. She watched as Sunset moved towards her, but she quickly put her hand up and yelled, “NO!” Sunset froze in her tracks. “J-Just…I-I’M SORRY!!!” Twilight jumped off of the dance floor and ran into the crowd. She thought she heard Sunset call her name, but the music drowned out everything else.

Twilight had exited the building, ran further down and then stopped. She leaned against the wall and slid down, resting on her rear as she brought her legs up to her chest and cried hard. She couldn’t believe she had done that. She felt up her friend, groped her, and made out with her. Sunset Shimmer, the one girl in Crystal Prep who gave a damn about her, who actually cared enough to protect her, and she just threw that all away because of some hormone induced state of bliss and euphoria, getting caught up in the heat of the moment.

“Great work, Sparkle…you just f-fucked up the only real friendship you could’ve had…she probably hates me now…I…I forced my tongue down her throat and grabbed her butt! Hell, I groped her breasts on the way to her butt! I…I did the same thing as Indigo did to me…I’m so messed up…”

“Hey, Dark, guess who I found!”

Twilight ceased her crying and looked up, standing a few feet away was one of the twins she saw earlier, Trouble, or maybe Double? Whatever, the point is, it was one of Dark’s crew. And speak of the devil, he and the rest of his crew rounded the corner. Twilight slowly got back to her feet, realizing that she had just ran out into an unknown place without thinking.

The buildings were long and had fairly wide passages. She glanced to her right and saw her only chance at escape, the problem was, would she be quick enough?

Dark skulked towards Twilight, his eyes narrowed with malice. “Well, well, your that bitch’s girlfriend! Fuck, my dick is sore as all hell, but you know what, I’m willing to endure it for you!”

Twilight’s eyes widened with fear as she made a mad dash towards the opposite path. Dark’s crew gave chase as Twilight continued to run as fast as she could manage. But unfortunately, a discarded cola can was in her path, when she stepped on it, Twilight slipped and tumbled on the concrete until she slammed against the wall of the warehouse on her right.

Twilight cried as pain radiated from her left ankle, it was either broken or sprained, she couldn’t tell at the moment. The rest of her body hurt from the fall, her sides, and arms had abrasions from the rough ground that scrapped at her bare skin. Unfortunately, while Twilight was incapacitated, the rest of Dark’s crew caught up to her. Without a care for her injuries, Mogar and Crow grabbed Twilight by the arms and dragged her to meet Dark halfway. Twilight tried to fight back, but the pain from the fall and her busted ankle was making every attempt magnify the pain.

When they finally met up with Dark, Mogar and Crow repositioned Twilight so that she was lying on her back, with both teens pinning her to the ground. Twilight knew this position, this situation, she had been put in it more times than she cared to recall. Without even thinking, her eyes began to glaze over as Twilight mentally checked out and began listing the Periodic Table of Elements in alphabetical order.

Actinium…Symbol: Ac…Atomic Number: 89…Electronegativity: 1.1…Aluminum…Symbol: Al…Atomic Number: 13…Electronegativity: 1.61… Americium…Symbol: Am…Atomic Number: 95…Electronega–

*SLAP!*

Twilight was brought back to the waking world, her left cheek stung greatly, and it was then she realized she was slapped.

“WAKE UP! I’m not letting you check out! I want you here! ‘Cause when that dyke girlfriend of yours finds you, I want you to tell her everything that we did!” Dark stated.

Twilight began to cry, not even Indigo was this cruel, at least with her, she could focus on something else, but Dark and his crew weren’t going to allow her that luxury, they were going to make sure she was aware of everything they were going to do to her.

Dark stood back up and looked at the twins. “You two, get her pants off!”

A devilish grin passed between the two boys as they approached Twilight, hands at the ready to undress her. That is, they were, until a rock sailed through the air and nailed Double in the back of his head and made him fall to his knees, clutching the back of his head. Trouble looked around and then paused as he pointed towards the way they came.

Everyone, including Twilight, watched as Sunset Shimmer slowly walked towards them. Twilight wasn’t sure if it was a trick of the light, or if it was her mind creating some elaborate fantasy to explain what she was seeing, but…Sunset’s hair was on fire, actually, it would be more accurate to say that Sunset’s hair was made of fire, and her amulet was glowing a bright red color.

But this wasn’t a hallucination, no, this was real. Sunset’s eyes were narrowed into dangerous slits, her hands balled up into fists, and her hair raging like a wildfire. She had come to find Twilight, but when she saw this, she reached her breaking point, there was no need to hold back for these scum.

“You have about ten seconds to get off of her and run before I fucking kill…Every! Single! One! Of! You!” Sunset stated, punctuated each word with each step.

“Uh…Dark, m-maybe we should run?” Crow suggested.

“Fuck her!” Double shouted as he pulled out a gun from his waistband.

“SUNSET!”

Double fired five rounds towards Sunset, her body jerked as each round hit her body one after the other, making her stop dead in her tracks. The others grinned with glee at seeing how Double stopped her, but their joy was short lived when the bullet holes ignited and then, in a matter of nanoseconds, were completely healed up. Double couldn’t believe what he was seeing, and readied to fire again.

Sunset got into a runner’s stance and dashed towards Double, in a matter of seconds she was upon him, grabbing the gun with her right hand. Her hand glowed bright orange as the gun in Double’s hand turned into molten slag, melting into his hand and burning off his digits, indeed, his entire hand in one go. Double screamed painfully as searing heat cauterized the wound, preventing a bleed out. But that was the least of his worries as Sunset grabbed him by the face with her left hand, and then tossed him like a ragdoll down the opposite way. Double landed against some crates, smashing into them, his face baring a handprint.

Mogar released Twilight as he went in to punch Sunset. The flame girl merely sidestepped him and punched him in the gut, but her fist didn’t stop there. No, her superheated fist burned straight through him until Sunset’s fist was poking out of his back. She quickly retracted her fist as Mogar stumbled backwards, looking down at the arm sized hole in his stomach that was burned into him. The shock was enough to keep him silent as he fell onto the ground, dead.

Trouble took out a knife and readied himself to stab Sunset, but when he did, Sunset proved to be the faster. She struck his hand and made him release the knife as it fell from his hand. Sunset performed a spinning roundhouse kick that sent Trouble flying in the same direction as his brother, crashing right into Double and burying them both in the ruined remains of the crates.

Crow released Twilight and began to run away, but Sunset wasn’t having any of that. She dashed across the way and appeared in front of Crow. The skinny teen dropped to his knees and cried, “MERCY, PLEASE?!”

Sunset’s turquoise colored eyes changed to a burning gold color as she said, “All out of mercy, got plenty of fire though.” Sunset raised her right hand and snapped her fingers.

As soon as she did that, a pillar of fire erupted underneath Crow, his screams muffled from the roar of the flames. Twilight witnessed this massacre, and despite the terrifying things that were happening, she was relieved, Sunset…somehow, had come to save her, she was going to be saved–!

*CHLICK!*

Twilight felt pain erupt from her chest, but she couldn’t scream. When she looked down she saw that there was a knife in her chest. Her heart…it was slowly beating less and less, the strength in Twilight’s body was fading and her vision blurring a little.

Sunset dismissed the flames, but then gasped in horror when she saw Dark’s hand gripped around the knife she had disarmed from Trouble, that same knife was plunged into Twilight’s chest. Everything blurred at that moment, she watched as Dark reached into his jacket to pull something out, but she didn’t care, she needed to get to Twilight. With the same incredible speed, she dashed towards Dark and punched him right in the face, sending him flying ten feet away onto his back. Sunset knelt before Twilight, holding the young genius in her arms as she cried flaming embers.

“TWILIGHT! I’m sorry, I’m so sorry I wasn’t here for you!” Sunset sobbed.

“Sunset…” Twilight weakly groaned.

Sunset placed her right hand against Twilight’s cheeks as she looked into her eyes. “I need you to trust me Twilight, I know I look scary, but I promise you I won’t let you die! Just trust me, please!”

Twilight used what strength she could and spoke, “I…trust…you…”

Sunset gently placed Twilight back on the ground, she hurriedly removed the knife from her chest, making Twilight release a strained, painful gasp. Sunset brought her face to hover over Twilights, she then tilted her head back and had her mouth open as if performing CPR.

The fire woman placed her lips against Twilight’s, and in the small gap between their lips, one could see a stream of fire passing from Sunset’s mouth into Twilight’s. The heartbeat in Twilight was slowing down second by second, but Sunset wasn’t giving up as she came back up.

“C’mon, Twilight – Sparky, I need you to want to live! The flames can save you, but you need to want to live! FIGHT GODDAMMIT! COME BACK TO ME!”

Sunset went down and pressed her lips to Twilight’s again. Flames passed from her to Twilight, but something different happened. At the center of Twilight’s body, an orange glow began to pulsate through her. Sunset parted her lips, inhaled again, and then passed more flames into Twilight. The pulses grew stronger, in sync with her beating heart. The wound in Twilight’s chest erupted with flames, and in a matter of seconds, was healed as if nothing had happened. The pulses went over her body, healing the abrasions, and even her busted ankle. Sunset blew one more bit of flames into Twilight before parting her lips from Twilight’s.

Twilight’s eyes fluttered open, a comfortable heat filled her body, soothing all the pain she had earlier, actually, there was no pain at all. She looked up and saw Sunset, her eyes still crying embers as she smiled down at her. “S-Sunset, am I alive?”

“Yes, Sparky, you are!” Sunset exclaimed happily.

“H-How?” Twilight slowly sat up as she looked at her chest, the hole in her shirt where the knife stabbed her was still there, but her skin showed no signs of damage. Her heart was beating normally too, and the pain in her ankle was gone. “Why are you on fire?”

Sunset looked down at Twilight’s chest, Twilight followed her gaze as her eyes rested upon the amulet on Sunset’s necklace. “The treasure of mine, it’s the reason for my fire, and the reason I was able to save you. I know I may look like a monster, but–”

Twilight threw herself at Sunset, wrapping her arms around the fire girl’s neck as she sobbed in both sadness and happiness. Sunset tentatively wrapped her arms around Twilight, hugging her back and crying at how close she came to losing someone she cared about.

“F-Fucking…bitches…!”

Sunset and Twilight broke their hug and watched as Dark got back up. “I’ll kill you both! Fuck the rules, I’ll use it anyway!”

Dark reached back into his coat and produced a vial of Tar. He popped the top and downed the substance, tossing the vial and letting it shatter against the ground. Sunset got in front of Twilight, ready to protect her as her flaming hair rose up in response to her fury. Dark began to transform, his clothes tore apart as he fully transformed into a Blacknight right before them.

“You’re with the Blood Kings!” Sunset exclaimed.

“Yeah! Now you know how royally fucked you are!” Dark stated.

Just then, storm clouds began to gather overhead, thunder roared as lightning crackled and arced through the sky. The stone at the center of the amulet pulsated, warning Sunset that this wasn’t an ordinary storm. She had a good idea what this was and smirked. “Hope you brought an umbrella.”

“What?”

At that moment, a bolt of yellow lightning crashed down upon Dark, followed up by a blast blue thunder energy. Dark howled in pain before he completely exploded, ending his life. From the storm clouds, two Sentinels descended to the ground.

The first was female. She was yellow in color, with black hair that had yellow streaks in it, along with blue eyes. She wore the standard golden armor of the Sentinels, but in her right hand she held a javelin that was made of pure lightning.

The second one was male and taller than the female. He was bulky, and a light shade of blue. His hair was dark like hers, but had wavy blue highlights. His eyes were the opposite color of the female, yellow.

“Here I thought it was going to be a boring night, Ramiel,” said the female Sentinel.

“Indeed, Barakiel, but I do think that was overkill even for us. Only one attack would have sufficed,” said Ramiel.

Barakiel shrugged. “Eh, he’s vaporized, so who cares. On that note, what’s that?”

Ramiel looked to where Barakiel was looking and spotted Sunset and Twilight, his eyes narrowed in contemplation. “I haven’t heard of any of these Blood Kings being able to summon fire.”

Barakiel turned around and aimed her javelin towards the girls. “Just in case, best not to take any chances.”

“WAIT!” Twilight, against the protests of Sunset, got up and stood in front of her. “We’re not with those guys! They were going to rape me! Su – she saved me!”

Ramiel crossed his arms as he hummed in thought. “Perhaps we should take a moment to–”

“Nope, gonna zap ‘em!”

Lightning shot from Barakiel’s lance as an explosion went off right where Sunset and Twilight were.

Ramiel sighed heavily. “Really? They might’ve been innocent?”

Barakiel twirled her lightning javelin around and rested it across her shoulders. “You see the way those two were dressed? Even if they were telling the truth, they were probably a couple of sluts. The sin of lust is punishable.”

Ramiel thought about it and nodded. “You do have a point there.”

“Un-fucking-believable…”

Ramiel and Barakiel looked back at the dust cloud when they heard a voice. Just then, a torrent of flames erupted from the spot where Barakiel shot her lightning. The smoke burned away, and revealed Twilight in a protective flame aura, having collapsed to her knees from the surprise of the attack, but standing before her was Sunset, but she was different.

Sunset’s body was covered in obsidian black armor that hugged her body tightly, all except a small section on her chest which formed a V, allowing some of Sunset’s breasts to be exposed, along with her stomach, stopping just below her navel. The amulet was fastened to the armor just below her collarbone, glowing an angry orange-red. The armor continued upwards, covering her neck, chin, forehead, and sides of her face. Her wildfire hair continued to bellow as it whipped back and forth, releasing crackling embers every other second. The armor had cracks that glowed orange, as if molten magma was flowing through them.

“Well, I guess this confirms something for me. I thought you Sentinels were angels, but I was SOOO wrong. You’re no angels! Angels would be able to tell the difference between someone who was bad and someone who has suffered! You attacked Twilight, someone who hasn’t done a damn thing to deserve any kind of punishment! And you judge her like that?!”

Sunset’s fire aura flared as she widened her stance.

“You don’t have the right to judge anyone! I’LL judge you!”

Sunset called forth her flames. Twilight watched as the properties of the flames began to change, becoming solid and tangible. In a matter of seconds, Sunset had formed a katana from the solidified flames, twirling it around before getting into a runner’s stance and taking off towards Ramiel and Barakiel.

Barakiel hurriedly brought her javelin up to defend, blocking Sunset’s blade just in time. The strength and power of her attack caught the Sentinel off guard, forcing her to skid backwards. Barakiel dug her heels into the ground as she tried to stop Sunset, but it was proving difficult.

Sunset thrust out her left hand, summoning more flames. The flames solidified and transformed into another katana, she raised that sword and readied stab Barakiel. But just then, Ramiel fired a beam of thunder energy towards them. An eruption of fire formed behind Sunset, forming a barrier as the thunder beam struck against it and exploded. Barakiel charged her body with electricity and released a burst of it. Sunset gritted her teeth in pain as the sting of the lightning passed through her body, making her falter in her follow up attack.

This allowed Barakiel to slip away and gain some elevation, Ramiel flew up and joined her, both Sentinels now looked down at Sunset with a bit of shock.

“What is she?!” Barakiel asked.

“This power…to be able to match us…” Ramiel’s eyes widened with realization. “Could this be the power of an Artifact?!”

Barakiel’s eyes widened as well at the mention of an Artifact. “I-I-Impossible! How could another Artifact be here in the same place?!”

“YOU GUYS DONE WITH YOU’RE POW-WOW?!” Sunset asked indignantly.

The two Sentinels watched as Sunset summoned more flames around her. Those flames began to take form next to her, with each passing second, their form was becoming clearer until they had solidified into a motorcycle. Sunset hopped one, twisted the throttle, popped a wheelie and took off. The fire vehicle lifted off the ground as Sunset started to fly in the sky.

Barakiel growled in anger. “If she is using an Artifact, we’ll just kill her and take it back to Mistress! One more tool in the arsenal against the Darkness!”

The lightning Sentinel raised her javelin into the sky. The storm clouds above fired off several lightning bolts at Sunset, trying to snipe her out of the sky. But Sunset was quick, dodging the lightning easily and with minimal effort, which only further infuriated Barakiel. Ramiel clapped his hands together, creating a thunder energy wave that resonated through the air. The blast was powerful, making Sunset’s construct break apart and leave her hanging in the air, that is until her back sprouted flaming bat-like wings.

Sunset charged for Ramiel and delivered a fire boosted punch to his face, burning the side of his face as he went into a tailspin. She shifted her focus to Barakiel, creating fire construct bow and arrow, she notched three arrows at once and loosed them at the Sentinel. Barakiel twirled her javelin around, blocking the first volley, but Sunset wasn’t done. She fired more and more arrows, forcing Barakiel to go on the defensive.

Two arrows managed to hit Barakiel, but they only got stuck in the armor she was wearing. Sunset dismissed her bow and snapped her fingers, the arrows that were lodged in Barakiel’s armor exploded, making the lightning Sentinel bleed liquid-light ichor. Barakiel grunted in pain and fury as she loosed more lightning bolts and Sunset released more fire arrows.

While this exchange was going on, Ramiel assessed the situation. They weren’t fighting at full power, at best they were at half power due to the night, had this been day time, they might have a chance, a chance because this Artifact wielder was well versed in the use of hers, this wasn’t a novice who happened to pick it up off the streets, no, she had trained in its use. Ramiel needed something to turn the tide of this battle, he looked back to the ground and saw Twilight, her eyes glued to Sunset.

Ramiel nodded curtly as he decided to take Twilight as a hostage. The thunder Sentinel flew straight towards her, Twilight only now caught on that Ramiel was coming for her, but was already upon her before she could scream or call out to Sunset. Ramiel reached out to take Twilight, but the fire aura around her erupted into seven construct vipers.

The vipers each lashed out at Ramiel, snapping their jaws at him as they forced the thunder Sentinel to retreat from Twilight. Sunset saw this and wrapped flames around her right arm, she then thrust that same arm towards Ramiel, the flames transformed and turned into an Asian Long Dragon, its jaws opened wide and chomped down on his left wing, making Ramiel yell in pain. Sunset whipped her arm back and dragged Ramiel up into the air, reeled him in, and then threw him towards Barakiel.

Both Sentinels collided into each other, and Sunset used this opportunity to create a giant construct mallet. She hefted the construct up and then slammed it down on both of them at once, sending the two Sentinels into a nosedive straight into the concrete, both landing with a huge “BOOM!”.

Sunset landed on the ground where Twilight was. Her fury for these things was only intensifying. “Time for your judgement!”

Sunset’s body erupted with flames, those flames surrounded her and Twilight, and tore through two buildings next to her. Inside the flames, Twilight watched as Sunset’s body began to morph. The obsidian armor grew over her body, elongating her neck and turning her face into a muzzle. Her arms and legs grew out and now had claws, a tail formed behind her, and flaming wings erupted from her back. When it was over, Sunset was now thirty feet tall, and was a bipedal dragon. Her flaming hair was like a mane that bellowed with greater intensity, upon her head was a crown of four horns, each crescent shaped, her eyes were pools of fire, and her teeth were as sharp as sword blades. At the center of the dragon’s chest, the amulet shined even brighter.

Ramiel and Barakiel gazed upon the fire dragon with fear, for they realized now that they were in the presence of an Artifact wielder.

Dragon Shimmer inhaled deeply and then released a jet of flames upon the two Sentinels. Neither one had time to scream, yell, beg, or whimper as the great hellfire of the dragon bathed over them and erased their existence from this world. Dragon Shimmer snapped her jaws shut and gave a loud victorious roar that reverberated throughout the whole area.

Twilight finally managed to find the strength to stand up. When she did, she slowly walked towards Sunset, she stopped after ten steps and called out, “Sunset?!”

Dragon Shimmer got down on all fours and turned her body around so that she could face Twilight. The huge dragon lowered her head and looked upon Twilight with sad eyes. Twilight understood what those eyes were saying without Dragon Shimmer saying a word. The teen genius reached out with her right hand and placed it upon Dragon Shimmer’s muzzle, surprising her. “I’m not afraid of you…I could never be afraid of you, Sunset.”

Dragon Shimmer’s eyes began to cry blue flames as a smile formed on her muzzle.

Just then, Dragon Shimmer sensed something that made her turn away from Twilight and look up into the sky. It was then that she appeared, clad in black armor, hair red as blood with her bangs and ends tinted yellow, and turquoise colored eyes. Dragon Shimmer knew who this was, the news talked of her a lot in regards to the demons that possessed people. This was Witchblade.

“Who or what the hell are you?! What are you doing here?!” Witchblade demanded.

Dragon Shimmer’s eyes widened upon hearing the voice of Witchblade. No fucking way! M-M-My double’s Witchblade?! Shit! Dragon Shimmer glanced down at Twilight, she carefully used her fire wing to block Twilight from view. She didn’t know if she should respond to her, if Witchblade recognized her voice, what would Witchblade do?

One thing’s certain right now, I need to get Twilight out of here…we both need to get out of here…

Dragon Shimmer glanced about the area, it was then she spotted the space where she hid her car. I know it’s not my favorite one…but I still don’t like doing this. Dragon Shimmer opened her mouth and blasted a fireball right at that location, making it explode in a shower of flames.

“What the hell are you doing?!” Witchblade demanded as she sprouted blades from her armor.

Yeah, they don’t call her “Witchblade” for nothing.

Dragon Shimmer summoned a tornado of flames to surround her and Twilight. Once covered, Dragon Shimmer began to morph back into her human form.

“Sunset, what’s going on?!” Twilight asked.

“Witchblade is here!”

“Witchblade?! O-Okay, that’s good right?! She’s not like those Sentinels, she saved the city,” said Twilight.

“Yeah, there’s a chance that she’s actually my doppelganger and I’m so not in the mood to deal with that tonight. So hang on, we’re making a quick getaway!”

Twilight didn’t argue with Sunset, she just hugged her tight. Sunset used her flames to bore a hole through the ground and slipped down into it.

Up top, the fire tornado continued to rage until, suddenly, it stopped, petering out until it was only embers. Witchblade flew down to the ground and searched the area, but the concrete was too hot to land on, having melted into molten rock.

“It got away…was it the Darkness?”

}}} No, that was something else. Not only that, but I sense Mother’s Sentinels were here. Emphasis on were. {{{

Witchblade looked about the area, seeing the destruction that thing caused and taking it in. “That thing was powerful enough to take one of Angelus’ Sentinel’s?”

}}} From what I can feel, two actually. Heh. {{{

“Don’t sound too happy about it. Whatever that was can take out Sentinels…crap…great, we just got something else to worry about! As if the Darkness wasn’t enough.”

Author's Note

In case any of you are curious as to what Dragon Shimmer looks like, here's a LINK to the canon dragon form.

For Human Sunset's armor, reference this LINK and/or this LINK.

Drawing Battle Lines Part 3

Sunset groaned as she awoke, she felt like she had just fought someone and was sore all over. That’s when her senses snapped to full alertness as she remembered the fight from last night. Sunset sat up in her bed, but stopped when she saw Twilight sleeping beside her.

The flame haired girl released a sigh of relief as she slowly lowered herself back down on to her bed. Sunset saw that Twilight was holding onto her left hand as she slept, when she tried to pull it away, Twilight would whimper and hold on tighter.

Sunset used her free hand to gently stroke Twilight’s hair as she looked upon the girl whom she saved. Although Twilight said what she said last night, she was still afraid of what Twilight would say or do when she woke up. When they escaped and arrived back at her house, both girls were too tired to process or get into what had happened that night, so Sunset suggested that they sleep. She remembered Twilight curling up next to her as they slept, and how Sunset wrapped her arms around her.

Despite all that happened, she regretted nothing of what she did last night. Not the two of them dancing, not their kiss, and certainly not transforming in front of her. Still, part of Sunset worried that when the adrenaline wore off, and Twilight’s tired mind was able to think straight, would she still feel the same way? Sunset paused when she heard Twilight mumble, her eyelids fluttered a bit, an indication that she was soon to wake.

Well…guess I’m going to find out one way or the other…

Twilight finally stirred awake, her eyelids slowly rising until she beheld Sunset. She looked at her two hands clutching at Sunset’s left hand, and then followed the length of her arm up to Sunset’s face, which flashed her a nervous smile.

“Morning, Sparky,” Sunset greeted with a shaky voice.

“Sunset…? Where…?” Twilight took a moment to analyze her surroundings, she was in a bed, Sunset’s it seemed. They were still wearing the clothes from the rave last night…the rave. Twilight bolted upright as the memories flooded back to her. “HOLY SHIT!” Then she covered her mouth, slightly embarrassed at her cursing.

Sunset got up at the same time, her hands moved towards Twilight and then moved back, uncertain if it was alright to touch her right now. “T-Twilight, calm down, we’re safe! We’re back at my house! A-And just so you know, I-I didn’t do anything to you!”

Twilight touched her body, from her legs, hips, chest, and then head. Her eyes fell onto her chest, she slipped a finger under her shirt and felt around, and sure enough, it was there, the vertical cut in her shirt, the same place where Dark had stabbed her with a knife. “It all happened, didn’t it…me getting stabbed…and you saving my life?”

Sunset lowered her head and said, “Yes, it did.”

“You…You also turned into some kind of fiery being, and then into a dragon, and you killed two Sentinels that nearly killed us, right?” Twilight asked.

“Yes…again.”

Twilight blushed as another memory appeared in her mind. “We…We danced together, and…we kissed, didn’t we?”

Sunset fidgeted, her face blushing to match Twilight’s.

The bespectacled girl glanced to Sunset and narrowed her gaze. “Please, tell me that happened?”

The redhead sighed heavily. “Yes, we danced, got real handsy with each other, and we…kissed, no, actually we made out right there on the dance floor.”

Twilight’s blush intensified as she turned her attention towards her lap. “I…I see.”

“I’m sorry, Twilight. I don’t know all of what you’ve been through at CPA, but please, believe me, I didn’t do that out of some wanton need…” Sunset rubbed the back of her head as she let out a frustrated growl. “Dammit…why’s this so hard?! I…”

Twilight hugged her legs to her chest; her bangs kept her face partially obscured as she rested her head against her knees. “Sunset…do you…do you like me?”

Sunset felt her heart beating hard against her chest. She couldn’t really deny it at this point, without really planning on it, Sunset had found herself attracted to Twilight, first because she was cute and seemed like a nice person. The only nice person among the swarming viper pit that was Crystal Prep, but the more she hung around Twilight, the more she realized that she liked her for more than that, it only got stronger when she learned of the abuse of Twilight was being dealt by the other students. If it wasn’t for the fact that she’d be committing mass murder, Sunset would’ve used the Ember Stone to burn every single one of them to ashes. But, now was as good a time as any, now it could just all be laid out there.

“Yes, Twilight, I…I like you; I really do like you as…as more than a friend,” said Sunset in a serious yet soft tone.

“Why?”

Sunset blinked. “Say what?”

“Why do you like me?” Twilight asked, her face still hidden.

Sunset chuckled as if Twilight had told a joke. “What’s not to like, Sparky? You’re hella smart, you’re dorky in the cutest way possible, you’re kind, a bit introverted but so am I to a degree, not to mention you’re pretty hot.”

Twilight lifted her head just a bit and asked. “Do you want to have sex with me?”

Sunset was so taken aback by the question that it felt like she was just punched in the face. To emphasize the point, Sunset tried to stand up, but her quick action made her stumble and fall backwards onto the floor. “OW!”

Twilight took her head from her knees and hurried to the edge of the bed; her face filled with worry. “Sunset, are you alright?!”

Sunset groaned as she gently rubbed the back of her head. “Fine…Fine…If it was life threatening, I would’ve regenerated.” After picking herself up, Sunset stood at the edge of her bed with her hands on her hips. “Okay, Sparky, w-w-why are you asking me that all of a sudden?”

Twilight sat at the edge of the bed. “I’m asking you, because I want to know if that’s all you really want from me. If that’s all…then…you can do what you want, I won’t fight you.”

Sunset knitted her brow and sat next to Twilight. “Sparky, I would never force myself on you. Would I…ahem…would I like to do that with you? Yes. I mean, we are wearing pretty sexy outfits. But, not if you don’t want to, and why would you think that?”

Twilight hugged herself as she stared at the floor. “Because……that’s what Indigo does.”

The Ember Stone around Sunset’s neck released a small flare, at the same time, Sunset’s eyes blazed. “Excuse me? What did she do to you?!”

“She…” Twilight bit her lower lip.

“Twilight, tell me what that bitch did you?!” Sunset ordered.

“Please don’t make me…” Twilight begged.

The fire died out in Sunset’s eyes, as well as the Ember Stone, and it was replaced with a need to comfort the girl next to her. Sunset gently placed her left arm over Twilight’s shoulders and brought her close into a hug. Twilight didn’t fight it as she nestled into the crook of Sunset’s left arm without hesitation.

“Sparky, I will never do that to you. I’m not lying, I really like you. As…As absurd as it may sound, I fell for you on the first day. I know you probably don’t believe in love at first sight…but…there’s no other way for me to explain what I feel for you, Sparky.”

Twilight smiled as she listened to Sunset’s words, they comforted her in a way she didn’t know she needed. These words weren’t like Indigo’s, she could feel Sunset’s emotions behind them, even in her actions. She held her close in a way that was not too tight, but at the same time, gentle enough to express her feelings of protectiveness towards her. Twilight’s eyes began to tear up, finally realizing that Sunset meant what she said, she could trust her without expecting anything back in return, because…she liked her.

“I’m sorry…I didn’t mean to say you were like her…It’s just…”

“Shh, it’s alright,” Sunset nuzzled the top of Twilight’s head with her cheek. “I understand, but Twi, you can trust me. I won’t ever hurt you, and from this day forward, I won’t let anyone or anything hurt you again. I promise on this Ember Stone,” Sunset used her right hand to bring the necklace into Twilight’s view, “that I won’t break that promise.”

Twilight gently reached out and touched the pendant. This same crystal pendant, which glowed with an ethereal, blazing energy, was the thing that transformed Sunset into her fiery form and into a dragon. It gave Sunset the power to beat those gangsters and save her life. “I’m sorry I’m so weak.”

“You’re stronger than you think, Sparky.” Sunset leaned down and kissed Twilight on the forehead, causing them both to blush. “I could breathe the Flame of Life into you, but you had to want to live. Your strong will allowed the flames to revive you from the brink of death. And I’m so glad they did.”

For a long minute, both girls just remained there, seated at the edge of Sunset’s bed as one held the other. Twilight smiled and then looked up at Sunset. “So…I guess that means…I’m your girlfriend and you’re mine.”

Sunset smirked. “Uh, excuse me? You don’t own me, Sparky.”

Twilight spluttered as she said, “I-I’m sorry! I-I didn’t mean it like y-you’re my property, I-I just – ow!” Sunset flicked Twilight in the forehead, earning the redhead an annoyed growl. “What was that for?!”

“For being adorkable. And, I wouldn’t mind being owned, so long as it’s you holding the leash,” said Sunset in a suggestive tone.

Twilight, for the briefest of moments, imagined such a scenario, and it nearly made her have a nosebleed. “Um…well…there is one thing I want to do right now.”

“And that is?” Sunset asked.

“Can I see your lab?!”

Sunset busted out laughing when she saw the sparkling look in Twilight’s eyes when she asked that, not to mention the tone of her voice, it reminded her of a little kid wanting to get to their Christmas present. “Jeez, right to the point, ya dork. Okay, let’s go.”

After giving the grand tour of her lab, Sunset and Twilight decided to change out of their party clothes and into some pajamas, despite it being only ten in the morning. Sunset had decided to wear a baggy t-shirt, and, just to tease, a pair of black lacy panties. Twilight was a bit more conservative, wearing a dark purple t-shirt and blue pajama pants with white star patterns. When they emerged, Twilight blushed upon seeing what Sunset was wearing. The shirt was baggy, it would slide off to either side and give Twilight an unabashed look at Sunset’s shoulders, and part of her cleavage. And it was clear that Sunset wasn’t wearing any shorts.

They both convened in the kitchen where Sunset offered to cook a late breakfast. Twilight sat at the counter while she watched Sunset cook some eggs and bacon, the young genius couldn’t help but blush when she noticed Sunset shake her rear a little, no doubt giving her newly acquired girlfriend something to look at.

Twilight looked away a few times, but couldn’t help but look back and stare at Sunset’s hypnotic hips. It was still surreal to her, Sunset was her girlfriend, they were both each other’s girlfriend. She was in a real relationship with someone, and not because Sunset wanted anything from her, Sunset just liked her for herself. Suddenly a round of anxiety cropped up within her, her mind thinking of all the ways she could botch her new relationship up.

S-Should I be cooking? I-I guess we need to establish who is the…ahem…top and bottom, as it were. Twilight looked at Sunset again, she had all the feminine curves a girl could want, and had just enough lean muscle to indicate that while she wasn’t a bodybuilder, she wasn’t a pushover either. Okay, I’m definitely the bottom…Twilight blushed. I think I’m alright with that. But in that case I should be cooking! Crap, I already messed up and it hasn’t even been a day yet! M-Maybe I should try and act sexy for her? I mean, Sunset’s doing it, I should too, right?

Twilight looked down at herself and back at Sunset. Her girlfriend clearly chose that attire to show off to Twilight, meanwhile, her attire didn’t really show off much of her assets. I could go topless…but…Twilight hugged her chest. I don’t know if she’d get excited from seeing…me. Then again, we were all over each other during our dance…so, maybe, it's okay?

“Foods ready!” Sunset called as she put a plate in front of Twilight.

“I’m a bottom!” Twilight blurted.

Sunset blinked. “Uh…okay…?”

Twilight’s eye twitched. “Ugh…I’m an idiot…”

Sunset rolled her eyes and poured a glass of orange juice for Twilight. “Sparky, don’t concern yourself about that kind of stuff.”

“But…isn’t it important to establish who’s, um, on top?” Twilight asked as she blushed.

“Not to me, I don’t mind switching positions. You can take the reins or I can, just depends on the moment.” Sunset fixed her own plate and placed it beside Twilights. She then walked around to the bar area and sat next to Twilight. “But, personally, speaking, I wouldn’t mind being under you.”

Twilight couldn’t stop blushing, and smiling. She was flirting, or as close to flirting as she could get. The two girls began eating their breakfast, which now they realized how hungry they were after all that happened the previous night. Sunset got back up and decided to make more, but this time, Twilight helped. The two girls smiled happily as they worked together to make their breakfast, this time throwing in some pancakes.

When they were done, they moved to the table and ate there. About halfway through the meal, Twilight decided to address the elephant in the room.

“So…I need to ask, how did you do all that last night?” Twilight asked.

Sunset took a swig of her orange juice, put the glass down, and then reached into her shirt to pull out the necklace. “This is called the Ember Stone. It’s a mystical Artifact crafted a long, long, long time ago. It contains a powerful flame that embodies the undying flames of life itself. Only a chosen few can wield it, and to those who can, in bestows great strength, vitality, regeneration, fire creation and manipulation, and the ability to summon armor and turn into a thirty-foot fire breathing dragon.”

Twilight blinked. “So…it’s magic?”

“Yep.”

Twilight shook her head. “I’m sorry, but, y-you can’t tell me that that’s what it is? Magic doesn’t exist. It’s just a word ancient man used to describe scientific phenomena that they couldn’t explain during those times.”

Sunset let the Ember Stone rest against the chest. “I won’t lie, Sparky, I was the same way. But…the moment I took up this Artifact, my worldview was changed. I’m a woman of science, but even I can’t explain the power this thing has. I brought you back from the brink of death after you were stabbed through the chest, and your wound was healed.”

Twilight unconsciously rubbed the spot on her chest where the knife had plunged itself. She could also remember the feeling of the heat that rose in her body when Sunset breathed life back into her.

“I’ve been thinking, Sparky. What if these energy readings you’ve been detecting, what if they’re actually magic? Just hear me out, ‘cause we have demons, angels, and another me running around out there in skimpy symbiotic armor. What if all of this is connected? Magic, according to ancient texts, has existed since the beginning. I believe science came into existence to try and explain these phenomena away, but not all can be explained. I mean, my transformation into a fire breathing dragon defies all the laws of mass and energy.”

That, Twilight agreed, she could not deny. Neither could she deny that her body was healed, rapid cellular regeneration was not something easily done, medical science had not come that far, and yet Sunset was able to do just that in a matter of seconds with a flame. Not only that, she was shot multiple times, and yet she healed herself. The flames that protected her were able to harden into almost diamond-like structures, but still retained their fiery energy, also defying more laws of physics.

Twilight took a deep breath as she tried to settle her mind. “Okay, recent events in the last three months would suggest the existence of a supernatural force, magic. So, your Ember Stone was forged of magic, does that mean…that Witchblade’s armor is the same?”

Sunset shrugged. “Hard to say. I don’t know what my double’s weapon can do, but at the very least she’s using it for something good. Ugh…” Sunset rubbed ran her hands through her hair. “My double’s out there giving people a show with that skimpy ass armor! She’s practically flashing everyone!”

Twilight blushed at the thought. “Um, I-I’m sure she has her reasons. But maybe this is something we can use?”

“How so?”

“We have common ground now. She has a magical item, and so do you. Perhaps we should consider confronting her and getting some answers as to who or what she is,” Twilight suggested.

While Sunset wanted to get some answers regarding her double, she was also reluctant to see her again. The first time was shocking to say the least, when Sunset first laid eyes on her, she was stunned, if it wasn’t for Twilight being there, she might’ve gotten off her bike and approached her. But, she was afraid of what this other Sunset Shimmer might do to Twilight, so her choice was made. However, Twilight now knew of her powers, and was okay with seeing her in her stronger forms. If the other Sunset Shimmer tried anything, at least she wouldn’t have to hesitate about changing and protecting Twilight should it come down to that.

“You may have a point, we’ll just play this by ear right now,” said Sunset.

“That’s okay, I don’t want to rush you,” said Twilight.

Sunset nodded, but then her face grew serious. “Sparky, there is something I need to know. What has Indigo been doing to you?”

Twilight dropped her fork and stared down at her plate.

Sunset reached over with her right hand and gently squeezed Twilight’s left. “Please, tell me, I can’t protect you if I don’t know what’s happening.”

Twilight had been keeping this from her parents, Cadence, and her big brother. Indigo was from a wealthy family, like many of the kids in Crystal Prep, and was the star athlete of the school. Twilight had no doubts she was a shoe in for Crystal Prep’s Friendship Games team, but that kind of fame and adoration brought with it some protection. Honestly, who would believe that Indigo Zap, the star athlete of CPA, was secretly raping a mousy girl like Twilight Sparkle? Twilight glanced to Sunset, ready to see a look of anger to compel her to tell the truth, but when she did, all she was concern and worry.

“It’s…It’s been going on for at least two years now…Indigo Zap…she…she likes me. I don’t know why, but she does. I don’t feel the same for her, but that doesn’t seem to bother her. I’m not as strong as her, and with nobody really liking me, there was no one for me to turn to.” Twilight confessed.

“It started out small…a wink here, a shoulder touch there. Then it escalated…Pretty soon, she’d start slapping my butt at gym class during any team sports we did, but when she did it, her hand would linger on my rear for longer than I was comfortable with. She’d take any open spot next to me in the showers, she made it a point to show off her body to me, and expected me to do the same. I did…but only in the hopes that she wouldn’t do anything else. That changed quickly…”

Twilight squeezed Sunset’s hand.

“The first incident happened during study hall, I was in an empty classroom and Indigo tracked me down. She approached me, touched me, and then kissed me. I didn’t know what to do…I didn’t know how to react…I just let her do what she wanted, hoping that she’d stop, but it only encouraged her. She felt up my body, and touched me down there…she kept going until I reached orgasm and…made a mess on the chair.”

Sunset listened as Twilight recounted the numerous times that Indigo molested her, and with each telling, Sunset’s eyes burned brighter with hatred. But what really set her hair on fire, literally, was when Twilight recounted what happened when she was waiting for Twilight to come out that Friday. Sunset released Twilight’s hand, got up and began pacing, her hair was releasing small embers as she did, the Ember Stone glowing a little brighter.

“That fucking whore! I swear to god, I’ll burn that bitch alive in front of the whole damn school!” Sunset threatened.

Twilight shot up from her seat with fear in her eyes. “Sunset, please don’t do that!”

“Why not?! I’ll go full dragon and just burn down her house with her inside it! Tell me why I shouldn’t?!” Sunset argued.

Twilight walked up to Sunset and placed her hands on her shoulders. “Because I don’t you turning into a murderer!”

“I hate to break this to you, Sparky, but those guys from last night, I pretty much killed them!”

“That was different!” Twilight countered. “They were armed and dangerous! One of them was with the Blood Kings and turned into a monster! Indigo is just…she’s just a…a b-bitch! You don’t need to kill her! Please…Sunset, I don’t want that from you!”

Did Twilight dislike a large number of her peers? Yes, she did. Did she shed a tear when Suri died or when Fleur was sent to jail? Not in the least bit. In fact, as much as she hated herself for it, she was glad that Suri was dead. But, that was only because she turned into a monster, no, worse, Suri allowed herself to be possessed by a demon and killed because she wanted to. The same went for Fleur, both of them wanted to be monsters. But that was the difference, they became monsters in the literal sense of the word, Indigo was a monster, but only figuratively.

“Sunset, please promise me you won’t kill anyone at school. I don’t like them either, but they’re someone’s daughter, son, brother, or sister. I don’t want to be the one responsible for someone grieving for them,” Twilight pleaded.

Sunset’s hair returned to normal as the Ember Stone’s glow faded. The fiery redhead hugged Twilight close to her and said, “Okay, for you, I won’t do that. But I won’t let you out of my sight while we’re in that school, I’m going to make it a point to show them, you mess with my girlfriend, you mess with me.”

Twilight happily blushed. “Thank you, Sunset.”

To say that Fluttershy was not pleased would be an understatement, she was very displeased. Last night she had gotten a call from Sister Meadowbrook to come to the church early that morning, and was warned that Cardinal Neighsay was there and wanted to speak with her. Thanks to the released memories of her training, Fluttershy remembered Neighsay.

He would often oversee her training, always looking at her with a scrutinizing gaze, and upping the ante on her training. If she did well, he wanted her to do better, and if she did better, he wanted her to be greater. In a way, you can say that it helped her to get stronger as a Magdalena, but it was harsh. Now that Fluttershy was able to recall, she remembered the numerous times her body was roughed up, broken bones, lacerations, and bruises, gunshot wounds. If it wasn’t for her healing factor and the power of the Spear, she would’ve died a long time ago. And that’s just the physical portion of the torturous training he put her through, the mental was just as bad.

The training courses he made he go through drilled her in understanding how to pick locks, hotwire, break into simple security systems, rig traps, and various other things that a warrior for the Church needed to know.

The induced repression of her training also repressed her disliking of that man, so when Meadowbrook mentioned him, it brought it all back to the surface. Which was why her trip to the church was a lot slower than usual, she wasn’t in any real hurry to see the man. Unfortunately, Sister Meadowbrook didn’t give her any heads up as to what Neighsay wanted to speak to her about, but she already assumed it wasn’t good.

Before Fluttershy knew it, she was at the doors to the church, she opened it and made her way towards the back as the priest gave his sermon. She made her way to his office and then knocked on the door.

“Enter.”

Fluttershy flinched when she heard his voice. She steeled herself and opened the door, and there, sitting in the office chair was Cardinal Neighsay, and sitting in the chair across from the desk was Sister Meadowbrook. The Cardinal nodded towards her and said, “Please, have a seat.”

Fluttershy shut the door and sat down in the chair opposite Meadowbrook. “I was told you wished to see me, Cardinal Neighsay.”

“Indeed, I’m sure you’re aware of the situation the city is in, I’d like to hear your perspective of the matter,” said Neighsay.

Fluttershy glanced at Meadowbrook.

“Do not look to her for direction, I want to know your thoughts,” Neighsay stated sternly.

Fluttershy managed to keep herself from making an annoyed expression. She inhaled and exhaled calmly as she spoke, “Honestly, Cardinal, the city…it’s become dangerous. I’m afraid, not for me, but for my friends and their families.”

Neighsay raised an eyebrow. “That so? If that is the case, then why have you not requested to be dispatched to slay the minions of the Darkness? Or aid the Sentinels in their eradication of them?”

Fluttershy clasped her hands together. “Because…with all due respect…I don’t like how Angelus and her Sentinels are dealing with the situation. They’re…killing a lot of people, not just the ones who change into monsters, but also those who haven’t. I can understand the former, but the latter…with all their strength and power, surely they could easily disarm and detain them, rather than kill them.”

Neighsay nodded. “I see…so that is your position on the matter?”

“It is.”

Neighsay stood up and turned his back to look out the window of the office. “While you may have a point, the fact remains that these people have aligned themselves with an entity that is pure evil. The Angelus is a being of God, and as such, we have a duty to fight alongside her. Sister Meadowbrook knows this, as of last night, I am overseeing all operations in Canterlot City regarding your use.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened with shock as she turned to Meadowbrook. “Is this true?!”

Sister Meadowbrook nodded slowly. “It is, my child…Cardinal Neighsay has brought a letter with the official seal of the Pope himself. And as such…his Eminence wishes to set up a meeting with the Angelus to offer our aid to them, more specifically, to offer your services to her.”

“It is as she says, if the Angelus will have us, you will fight for her and hopefully, increase the rate of weeding out this evil from this city,” said Neighsay.

Fluttershy was at a loss for words, she still wasn’t sure what to do here. She knew through Sunset that Principal Celestia was host of the Angelus, but she wasn’t sure how much influence the kindly school principal had over the entity of light. She feared that the Angelus might ask Fluttershy to do something that she couldn’t do, to kill someone that she couldn’t kill. But…she also knew that she didn’t have a choice in the matter, neither did Meadowbrook, as Fluttershy could see the same dislike in her eyes.

“I…I understand…when will we meet the Angelus, if you don’t mind me asking?” Fluttershy asked.

“Hopefully sometime today while there is still daylight. Sister Meadowbrook sent a clandestine request to the mayor’s office, so we might soon have a reply,” said Neighsay.

At that moment, Fluttershy bolted from her chair and got into an attack stance. Neighsay and Meadowbrook looked at her with shock until she said, “Something’s here, I can feel a presence.”

“That is quite the uncanny power you have. Not many are able to sense me unless I want them to.”

Fluttershy looked at the desk, causing Meadowbrook and Neighsay to do the same. The air at the center of the desk began to distort, and in a matter of seconds, a shimmering, armored bird appeared.

“Peace, I am a messenger of my Mistress. I am Zofiel.”

Fluttershy released the tension in her body as she approached the bird, becoming fascinated by it’s plumage and beauty, her inner animal loving nature showing as she stared wide eyed at the bird.

Neighsay straightened himself and said, “We are honored to have an emissary of the Angelus come to meet us. Has your mistress heard our request?”

Zofiel turned to Cardinal Neighsay. “Indeed, she has, you are to come to the Mayor’s Manor this afternoon at two 'o'clock, there you shall make your case before my Mistress. And all three of you are to be there, in particular, the young one is to be garbed in her fighting attire and her weapon.”

Neighsay bowed. “It will be done.”

Zofiel nodded and then flew right through the walls.

Neighsay smiled. “Well then, it seems we must prepare.”

Fluttershy and Meadowbrook glanced at each other, wondering exactly how this meeting was going to go.

Last night was a bit heavy, which was why Sunset called ahead to Pinkie and said she was going to sleep in for a bit. At around eleven she awoke, recalling the events of last night, the ruthless way the Sentinels killed that gangster, and then there was the fire dragon.

“You’re sure it wasn’t something the Darkness made?” Sunset asked.

}}} Positive, it didn’t reek of my Father’s power. It was something else, I felt a connection to that power, a strange sense of familiarity. {{{

“Hopefully it’s not about to cause more trouble, we already got a gang war going on in the city, the last thing we need is a fire breathing dragon to torch the whole place.”

Sunset turned onto her left side and saw that Ray had awakened and was happily staring at her from his terrarium. “Morning, Ray, want to get some exercise?”

Ray nodded.

Sunset scooted to the edge of her bed and opened the lid, she stuck her left hand in and let Ray crawl up her arm and onto her shoulder. The little lizard nuzzled Sunset’s cheek, making her giggle from the show of affection.

“I probably don’t say this enough, but thanks, Ray,” said Sunset.

Ray tilted his head in confusion.

“I know I said that having Pinkie back helped me from up and leaving this place, but before her, you were here to listen to all my bitching and comfort me when I needed it.” Sunset used her right index finger to gently rub Ray under his chin. “So, thanks for being with me.”

The little lizard released a trill, sounding out his appreciation to her. Just then, Sunset’s phone vibrated, she reached for the device and saw that Pinkie had texted her. When she opened the text thread, she grew worried by the message.

[Uh, Sunset, don’t be alarmed…BUT LIMESTONE AND I ARE COMING AND SHE’S NOT LOOKING TOO HAPPY RIGHT NOW AND AS I’M WRITING THIS SHE’S LOOKING LIKE ME LIKE I’M A TRAITOR BUT SHE’S STILL DRIVING MAD! Oh, and…we should be at your place in ten seconds…heh, heh…]

“Uh…?”

A series of knocks came from her front door, forceful and angry. Sunset looked to Ray, both mirroring a hesitant look, with a sigh, Sunset got up from her bed and walked down the stairs and to her front door. Steeling herself, she opened the door and before she could utter a word, Limestone barged her way in, with Pinkie Pie waiting in the doorway.

“Uh…hi, Limestone?” Sunset greeted.

“Don’t ‘hi Limestone’ me! You got some explaining to do Shimmer!”

Sunset, Pinkie, and Ray, shared confused looks.

“Limey, I’m usually the one saying and doing random stuff, but this is random even for you,” said Pinkie.

“I’m with Pinks on this one,” said Sunset as she crossed her arms. “What exactly do I need to explain?”

Limestone glared at Sunset and stated, “The fact that I saw you cheating on Pinkie Pie last night with some skank!”

Pinkie’s eyes widened, and Sunset’s narrowed into a glare. The former unicorn took a few steps forward as she crossed her arms in front of her.

“Okay, I know you don’t like me, but don’t make up shit like that! I would never cheat on Pinkie!”

Limestone strode up to Sunset and stood in front of her, both tough girls stared each other down, daring the other to flinch first. Pinkie Pie was getting worried, she knew Sunset could handle herself in a fight, but she really didn’t want Lime to fight Sunset. Unfortunately, with the amount of tension in the air right now, it seemed that that might actually happen.

“I was out last night, yes, and Pinkie knows this, but it wasn’t to cheat on her. So, you better have some damn good proof to back up your shit, because, quite frankly, I’m tired of getting falsely accused!” Sunset spat.

At this, Limestone smirked. “Oh I got proof, Shimmer. I don’t go off spouting shit without somethin’ to back it up.” Limestone reached into her pocket and took out her cellphone. “I was at a rave last night, had a pretty good time, but while I was havin’ a drink, who should I spot but you and some – admittedly hot – looking nerd dancing together. Grinding on each other, and then having a make out session right there for all to see. Thankfully everybody was too busy with their own crap to pay much attention to you two. But, hey, don’t take my word for it, see for yourselves.”

Limestone swiped through a few files before pulling up the video file she needed. She handed the phone to Sunset and gave her a look that was daring her to delete it. Sunset wasn’t stupid, she was sure that Lime had a copy somewhere else on her phone, and deleting it would just prove that she was guilty. Not like Sunset cared, she was out fighting Blood Kings and a dragon, not something you forget doing. Without blinking, Sunset pressed the “play” icon. Pinkie Pie stood close to Sunset and watched the video play out.

The camera adjusted to the low light, but once it did, the screen clearly showed, among all the other teens, Sunset Shimmer, wearing an admittedly revealing outfit.

“W-W-What the hell?!” Sunset exclaimed.

But that wasn’t the only thing that shocked her, the girl whom she was dancing with was the spitting image of one Princess Twilight Sparkle, although this one had her hair in a ponytail and was wearing glasses, but there was no doubting that that was Twilight Sparkle.

Pinkie’s mouth hung open in shock as well, especially when they both witnessed how the two were dancing, grinding on each other, and holding each other. Then they watched as the two of them kissed and how Twilight pawed at Sunset’s body. The music was too loud to understand what they were saying, but it seemed bad as Twilight rushed out, leaving Sunset standing and stunned.

“I thought about getting up there and beating the shit out of you for that, but I thought it would be better to do this with Pinkie here. ‘Cause now she can see that you’re…uh…hey, you alright?”

Sunset looked pale, really pale, her legs were wobbly and the room felt like it was spinning. “P-Pinkie…catch me please.”

With that warning given, Pinkie hurriedly got behind Sunset just as she fell backwards, hooking her arms underneath her armpits. Ray looked upon his owner with worry as he placed his claw against Sunset’s cheek.

“Sunset! H-Hey, it’s alright, you’ll be alright!” Pinkie shot a piercing glare at Limestone that made her big sister flinch. “Help me get her to the couch, now!”

“Uh…y-yeah, sure,” said Limestone nervously.

Lime grabbed Sunset by the ankles and helped Pinkie lay her down on the couch.

“Get a cold dishrag and a glass of water, too!” Pinkie ordered.

“Y-Yeah!”

Limestone rushed into the kitchen and grabbed the requested items. When she came back, Pinkie took the dishrag and placed it on top of Sunset’s eyes, and placed the water on the table.

“W-What’s wrong with her?” Lime asked.

“I knew it…I knew there had to be another me here…but…but I never imagined…oh Faust…” Sunset mumbled.

Pinkie Pie took Sunset’s hand and gave it a light squeeze. “It’s okay, Sunny, it’ll be okay, just take some deep breaths a-and calm down.”

Limestone was starting to worry, she didn’t mean to make Sunset react like that, she just wanted her to tell the truth, not this. “H-Hey, Pinkie, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make her freak out like that…”

Pinkie Pie sighed. “Lime, I…I need you to go. I need to take care of Sunset right now. I’ll try and explain this to you later, but right now, you need to leave.”

Limestone hesitated, she really didn’t mean to do that to her. “I…I’m sorry.” Lime walked towards the door, she stopped for a moment to look at Sunset, who was still being looked over by Pinkie. “Sorry…”

Pinkie watched as Limestone closed the door and left. She then turned her attention back to Sunset, who was still having an existential crisis. “How are you feeling now?”

Ray had taken to perch himself on Sunset’s stomach, he watched with concern as his owner took up the rag from her face and placed it at her side.

“Not as bad as I was earlier…thanks, Pinkie,” said Sunset.

Pinkie Pie smiled at her girlfriend. “No problemo. But now what? That girl…it was you, or the human you.”

“And that girl was definitely this world’s Twilight Sparkle…shit…where has she been?! Where have both of them been?! Celestia told me that there was no trace of another me anywhere in town!”

Pinkie thought for a moment. “Maybe…Maybe she never lived in Canterlot City? She could be from another city, or another country!”

Sunset scooted up so that she was in a seated position. “That would make sense, if she was a continent away, there wouldn’t be any record of her being born here…but, another Twilight…” Sunset rubbed her chin as she thought. “Pinkie, do me a favor, go up to my bed and open the drawer under Ray’s terrarium and bring me the journal.”

Pinkie stood up and gave a salute as she rushed up the stairs, found the journal, and brought it back to Sunset. Ray crawled up Sunset’s arm and found his perch on her shoulder as she laid it on her lap. Pinkie took out a pen from her massive curly hair and gave it to Sunset.

Sunset opened to a blank page and began writing her message.

Dear Princess Twilight,

I…I know this is a strange question to ask, but you mentioned to me once that you have an older brother. Can you tell me his name?

Please write back as soon as you can.

Pinkie, Sunset, and Ray waited for a couple of minutes, but their patience was rewarded when the page began to glow and letters began to form.

Oh, I’m sorry I never told you! His name is Shining Armor. Although, sometimes I call him Shiny and he calls me Twily, sort of a thing in our family.

Sunset and Pinkie both had shocked expressions, Shining Armor, as in Detective Shining Armor. Sunset remembered when he mentioned to her that he had a little sister, and the pajamas that she borrowed that time were the same as what Princess Twilight wore during their sleepover.

Sunset, is there something wrong? Why did you need to know my brother’s name?

Sunset glanced at Pinkie and showed a devious smirk. Pinkie Pie returned the smirk and nodded.

Oh no reason, I was thinking of expanding into a herd and wanted to know how good Shining was before I tried to seduce him~

It took all of five seconds for a reply to come.

W-W-WHAT?! I…I…S-Sunset I know he’s not MY Shining Armor, but I-I don’t know if you’d be a good match for him…

Oh, Twilight, that’s not fair, I’m sure I can persuade him with my feminine wiles, if you catch my drift.

……You’re teasing me, aren’t you?

Boo, you’re no fun.

Ha, ha. But, seriously, why did you need to know?

Something came up and I’m trying to figure out what to do. I’ll tell you later once I get more information.

Okay…well…I’ll keep the journal close just in case.

Thanks, Twilight.

Sunset closed the journal and glanced at Pinkie. “Well, now I know what I need to do.”

“What?”

“I’m going to make a call.”

Sombra found himself walking through a village, it looked like one of those villages from a long forgotten fairytale, with armored sentries walking through the streets, and a main road that led to the imposing castle in the distance.

Sombra walked down the street, seeing the various people going about their business, hocking their wares, and some of the children were running around, giggling and laughing. However, Sombra’s attention was drawn to one young man, he wore attire that reminded him of a friar. Beige colored robes, tied by plain ropes around his waist, bowl cut blue-green hair, and aquamarine colored eyes. He looked to be about in his early twenties, at least that what Sombra determined.

For some reason, he felt compelled to follow this young man, and so he did. Sombra followed him along the long road to the castle keep. A pair of guards eyed the friar looking young man, but then stepped aside and let him pass.

Inside the castle walls was a different story compared to out. There was a small city, unlike outside, where the houses were made of cobblestone, mortar, wood, and straw, these houses were made of ivory colored stone and thick wooden roofs.

Haves and have-nots, thought Sombra.

At this point, Sombra wasn’t sure if he was dreaming or having a vision. No one acknowledged his presence, but he seemed to be able to touch the objects around him.

As they continued to walk, the young man stopped. His gaze seemed to linger on someone, Sombra followed his gaze and smirked when he saw what the young man was looking at. It was a woman, she seemed around the young man’s age. She wore a purple dress, a symbol of royalty, with a long purple cape with white fur fringing. Her skin was porcelain white, completely flawless. Her hair was a shimmering platinum color, and her eyes were like a pair of sparkling sapphires. All in all, Sombra had to admit, she was quite the looker, he couldn’t blame the young man for stopping to admire her.

The young man was then slapped upside the head, making him fall forward and nearly face plant onto the stone walkway. Sombra narrowed his gaze at a guard in silver armor, a cocky smirk was plastered on his lips. He had seen guys like this, musclebround dumbasses who were all brawn and brains, thought themselves big shots because they could down someone in one punch.

Sombra was no stranger to guys like this as a kid and when he was a teenager, but those guys learned quickly what happened when you underestimated a scrawny kid with more smarts.

“Oh, Stinky, you admiring the view are ya?”

The young man slowly got to one knee and cast an annoyed glare at the knight. “You know my name is Stygian, Gallant, although I can say that you’re not really living up to the name of which you were given.”

Gallant picked up Stygian by the collar of his robe, getting in his face. “You had better watch your tongue you little urchin! Just because you’re in the good graces of Master Star Swirl–!”

“More than his good graces, he is the young apprentice of Master Star Swirl.”

Stygian, Gallant, and Sombra turned to see the princess looking young woman appear, flagged by some of her handmaidens and a pair of royal guards. She had a cross look on her face as she stared directly at Gallant.

“Y-You’re Highness, Princess Platinum…I-I was just…”

“You were just gently releasing young Master Stygian, correct.” Princess Platinum’s tone was less questioning and more ordering.

Gallant did just that, carefully letting Stygian down until his feet touched the ground. Sombra crossed his arms and smirked as he looked upon the princess. “I like this chick, reminds me a lot of you, Hope.”

“Master Star Swirl does not take many apprentices, his last protégé, Clover the Clever, has already set out on his journey and has become quite the notable mage. So it stands to reason that anyone chosen by Master Star Swirl is warranted some respect, correct?” Princess Platinum asked.

“O-O-Of course,” he answered.

“Good, then you’ll understand why you’re going to be on the sundown to sunup shift starting today, on the castle wall.”

Gallant looked at Princess Platinum with incredulous eyes. “B-But your Highness, that’s a job for trainees, not a decorated knight!”

The royal guard to Platinum’s right glared dangerously at Gallant as he stepped forward. “Are you disobeying a direct order from the Princess?”

Gallant flinched under his gaze. “N-No I wasn’t I was just merely–”

“You were just going to bow your head and report to your post, isn’t that right?” the second royal guard finished for him.

Gallant could see that he was not going to get any support. In the end, he bowed to the Princess and took his leave, but not before giving a death glare to Stygian.

Princess Platinum turned to the guard on her right and said, “Make sure the Captain is aware of his assignment, and make sure that if he is not there for said assignment, then a worse punishment will await him.”

The grinned. “Happily, Princess.”

Once the royal guard was off, Princess Platinum turned her attention back to Stygian. “Are you uninjured, young Master Stygian?”

“I am, thank you, Princess,” said Stygian as he bowed to her.

Platinum rolled her eyes. “We can forgo formalities, Stygian, we’re friends aren’t we not?”

Stygian blushed as he rubbed the back of his head. “Well, um, yes Platinum, we have been since my apprenticeship. But, in all honesty, you probably shouldn’t do things like that too often. People may suspect that you favor me.”

Platinum placed her hands on her hips and gave a haughty “humph” as she said, “I am a Princess, I’ll show favoritism to anyone I choose. Especially cheeky little boys who didn’t know I was the princess and rough housed with me.”

Some of the handmaidens and one royal guard looked dubiously at Stygian.

Sombra chuckled as he shoulder tapped the young man playfully, only for his shoulder to pass through Stygian.

“W-Well, it didn’t help that you…ahem…dressed as a boy back then!” Stygian countered.

Platinum had a playful smirk on her face as she approached him. “Oh, yes, I do remember that. I also remember how you found out I was a girl, if I remember correctly…” Platinum leaned in close and whispered, “It was when your hands landed upon my budding royal bosom. Perhaps we should roughhouse again sometime in the future?”

Stygian turned bright red and Sombra was laughing, holding his sides as he watched and listened to this whole thing. “Kid, you know how to work! Hahahah! Oh man, you need to put a ring on this girl and quick!”

Stygian stammered and spluttered as he tried to come up with the exact words to reply to Princess Platinum, but that wasn’t happening any time soon. The young Princess pulled back and giggled impishly. “That really is a good color on you, Stygian. Do not be a stranger, though, I would like to hear how your lessons with Master Star Swirl are going.”

Stygian finally snapped back to his senses and managed to say, “Oh, yes, I-I can – I will – yes!”

Platinum clapped her hands together. “Wonderful! Just speak to one of the royal guards or flag down one of my handmaidens to relay the message to me.”

“U-Understood,” said Stygian.

With that exchange, Princess Platinum and her entourage left to go on about their day, leaving Stygian behind to wave his goodbye and continue to admire Princess Platinum’s retreating image.

“I see our young princess fancies you.”

Stygian jumped turned on his heel. Standing behind him was a tall, lanky old man. He wore blue robes, a cape that had stitched star patterns on it, a wizard’s hat, and bells that were sewn onto the hat and cape. He was light gray skin tone, with a long white beard and intense sky-blue eyes.

Sombra looked upon the man and asked, “Who’s this Gandalf-Dumbledore knockoff?”

“M-Master Star Swirl, I-I’m terribly sorry if I’m late – oh what am I saying, I probably am! My apologies,” said Stygian as he bowed before his teacher.

Star Swirl stroked his beard. “No need, I saw what happened. I must say, you exercised good restraint. I know I taught you a number of spells that would’ve rendered that of a weeping mess. Or at the very most broken a bone or two.”

Stygian cleared his throat. “As you’ve instructed me, Master, magic is not be used for petty vengeance, but only in the defense of one’s self when their life is in danger, or that of another’s life.”

Star Swirl nodded. “Very good. I know some in the court are not happy about my choosing you among some other ‘gifted’ young mages of the noble houses. But my choice is not made by who’s coffers are bigger, but by talent and potential.” Star Swirl leaned down and said, “And I see great potential in you, young Stygian.”

Sombra had to admit, he liked this Star Swirl guy. “Wish someone like this was around when I was in that orphanage.”

“Now come, let us go, we have much to learn.”

“Yes, Master!”

Sombra watched as Stygian and Star Swirl walked away, but then Sombra’s eyes caught sight of Stygian’s shadow. It seemed to wiggle, growing tentacles and then retracting them, along with multiple pairs of red eyes that would open and close at different intervals.

<^> Yes…potential…so much potential…Soon, Stygian…Soon… <^>

Sombra watched as Stygian glanced over his shoulder, looking back and forth for someone or something. The older man narrowed his gaze as he slowly started to walk towards Stygian.

“Wait, you heard it too?! You heard the Darkness?!”

The moment he uttered those words, the world around him started to get swallowed by the shadows, Stygian, somehow, seemed to be aware of what was going on, but didn’t flinch.

Stygian looked directly at Sombra and said, “Find me again, Sombra…”

“WAIT!” Sombra pleaded as he reached out toward Stygian.

But he would never reach him, as the world around him, and Stygian himself, were completely engulfed by the shadows…

~*~*~*~

Sombra awoke with a start, he looked to his right and saw his former girlfriend, Radiant Hope sleeping next to him. She was bare before him, sleeping soundly. Her hair cascaded down her back, a milky-blue color, like moonlight. Her flawless burgundy skin captivated him. Everything from the impressive swell of her mounds to the curves of her hips, she was perfect Well…not everything.

When Hope opened her eyes, instead of the bright aquamarine color that he remembered them to be, they were yellow, and shimmered in the dark room.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

Sombra ran his hand through his jet black hair and said, “Bad dreams.”

“Are you feeling stressed?” Hope took her left arm and ran her hand up and down Sombra’s muscular left arm. “Tell me about it?”

“Cut the crap, you’re not really her,” Sombra spat.

Despite the harsh tone, Hope didn’t recoil or get angry. “I am her, so long you believe me to be. Although…” Not-Hope stopped stroking his arm and sat up. “I have to ask, why don’t you change the color of my eyes?”

“To keep me from believing that you’re really her,” said Sombra.

“I see…”

Sombra and Hope turned their heads when they heard the knock at the door.

“Guess our time is up,” said Hope.

“Guess it is.” Sombra got out of bed and put on a pair of boxers. He took one last look at Radiant Hope and waved his hand.

Hope’s body changed to a dark version of herself, and then faded into nothingness.

It was the unfortunate setback of playing host to the Darkness. It granted you unprecedented power, and made you practically immortal. The only catch was that having sex with any woman would end up with you dying. Well, not so much sex in general. The Darkness was passed on from father to son, that’s how it continued to exist in the world. When the host bedded a woman and his seed took to her, that is the moment when the Darkness slips from the father and enters the unborn child. This process always ends with the previous host dying soon after, which is why previous wielders of the Darkness create constructs to, ahem, take care of business, until they find an adequate wife to produce a heir.

Sombra was no different, he could recreate any girl he saw on the street, even some from a few porno mags and movies. But…his heart still belonged to Radiant Hope, part of him hated himself for creating her with the power of the Darkness, but the nights he could spend with her, even as a construct, soothed him. Although he never changed the eye color, it was a way to remind himself that this wasn’t the real her. It may talk like her, sound like her, and yes, think like her, but it wasn’t her. And it never will be.

Sombra walked to the bedroom door and opened it. The blackout curtains kept a good amount of light from entering the room, but he still turned on a lamp or two as he made his way to his front door. He peeked through the peephole and then opened it.

“What’s goin’ on Blood?” Sombra asked.

“We were raided by Witchblade,” said Young Blood.

Sombra raised an eyebrow and let the young gang leader enter. Young Blood took a seat at the small dining table as he wrung his hands.

“Cliff took three vials of Tar last night so he could fight Witchblade.”

“Goddammit, I told you guys no more than two of that shit or you’ll go berserk!” Sombra growled.

“I know! But she torched the supply we were going to hand out to the recruits, and plus, it’s Witchblade! The one that saved this city from those demons! If Cliff hadn’t done that, we’d be dead or in handcuffs!” Young Blood slammed his fist on the table. “And now he’s dead. Sombra, the others are starting to ask me why you haven’t gotten into the fight, and I’m starting to wonder myself.”

Sombra took a seat across from Young Blood as he fixed him with a neutral expression. “For the same reason the Angelus hasn’t shown its face. We both know at what times we’re stronger, me at night and her in the day. I can’t use my powers except in a dark place, and she gets weaker in the dark. It’ll take something major to make her leave her ivory tower, the same for me to leave my dark hole.”

Young Blood couldn’t argue that logic, neither side had a clear advantage, one was stronger in the day while the other was stronger at night. If either one was caught out during the time that was disadvantageous to the other, it would be game over.

“What are we going to do about Witchblade? She hasn’t made a move against us in over two weeks, if she’s working with the Angelus and those Sentinels…it won’t matter if it’s day or night, she’ll tear into us!”

Sombra thought about that for a moment. Witchblade was a problem, he had hoped that she might not show allegiance to Angelus since the weapon itself didn’t seem to like either of its parents, but if the host was persuaded then that was a different story.

<^> There might be a way to drag my petulant Son into our grasp. <^>

What do you suggest?

Young Blood looked at Sombra his face would morph from one expression to the other, and give a nod every so often, as if he were having a conversation in his head. Finally, Sombra closed his eyes and then looked at Young Blood.

“I think I have a way to solve our Witchblade problem, but it’s a real gamble.”

Drawing Battle Lines Part 4

Celestia was getting ready for a meeting she was going to have at Maria’s place. According to Angelus, they were representatives of the Vatican, and that they were going to discuss working together to defeat Sombra and the Darkness.

Celestia was going through her wardrobe, laying out several different ones as she sat there and looked them over. “I’m really not sure what to wear to something like this?”

\\/// Don’t worry so much about it, Celestia, I can make us something for the occasion. \\///

“Oh, thank you,” said Celestia as she turned around and began brushing her long hair.

\\/// I can sense you’re feeling troubled, tell me what’s on your mind? \\///

“You’ve seen it through my eyes, the reports from the teachers, the students are afraid that the Sentinels are going to punish them for their hand in that incident.”

Angelus hummed as she thought. \\/// Well, I won’t say that it’s unwarranted. From what your memories show, the three most responsible for putting Sunset through that hell were punished as severely as you can be punished by a woman in your station. But it was Sunset’s decision not to press charges. \\///

Celestia smiled as she thought about her pseudo-daughter. “That girl’s made great strides since she first came into my school, especially recently, turning over a new life and striving to be a better person.”

\\/// I will admit, her behavior in the past does raise my ire, but her recent actions show that she has learned from her past. I guess my Son has chosen his host wisely. But you haven’t forgiven those three girls completely, have you? \\///

She hated to admit it, but it was true. It was thanks to those three that someone she loved had to suffer so much for no reason, was isolated from the only friends she had ever had, and then was nearly killed, twice, because of it. A dark part of Celestia wanted to put the fear of God into those three young girls, to make them truly understand that such actions had consequences. But, part of her felt that she shouldn’t think that way.

\\/// Don’t be afraid to feel that way, such transgressions against someone who is clearly repentant does deserve to be fearful of divine wrath. \\///

Celestia pondered a thought and asked, “You wouldn’t really set the Sentinels on them, would you?”

\\/// Celestia, please, I said they should be fearful, not dead. They are but children, and have time to grow and learn. \\///

“And what of the children that are in that Blood Kings gang? I know that your Sentinels have been very draconian in their attacks, hell, it reminds of the Crusades,” Celestia accused.

\\/// Alas, there are those that are sometimes beyond saving. They threw their lot in with the Darkness, we cannot take the risk that they’ll rise up and become followers. I have had to stamp out such cultists before, lingering dregs of the Darkness’ minions. The fight will not end unless all traces of the Darkness’ influence is gone from this world, that includes those who are willing to follow Sombra King. It is harsh, perhaps even cruel, but when weighed against the lives of the other innocent young ones, it is a far better thing than to have us do it, then to have Sunset sully her hands with blood. \\///

Celestia bit her bottom lip, Angelus had a point, compared between the two, she would rather have blood on her hands than on Sunset’s. The school principal looked at the clock, seeing that it read “1:50pm”.

“Guess we should be heading there now.”

\\/// Then let us dress for the occasion. \\///

A flash of gold and white light went off, and before Celestia knew it, she was adorned in a beautiful white gown. Golden bracers were affixed to her forearms, a gold necklace with an amethyst gemstone at the center, and a golden tiara with the symbol of the Angelus etched into it. Her hair had changed colors, once tri-colored, now it was shimmering like the sun, releasing small particles of light as it undulated, as if an ethereal wind was blowing through her hair.

“Oh my…” Celestia gasped.

\\/// I do have a knack for this. Now, do you wish to do the honors? \\///

Celestia had been given some instruction on how to use Angelus’ powers, specifically her teleportation. She envisioned the place she wanted to go, the image forming clearly in her mind. She willed herself to be there, and in a matter of seconds, Celestia disappeared in a flash of light.

Maria Mayor waited in the lobby of her manor. Thankfully the construction crew was able to get everything back to semi-normal, at least she had a front door again. A flash of light went off to her left, she closed her eyes briefly before opening them again, and before her stood her girlfriend, looking just like her namesake, celestial.

“Are you…you? Or Angelus?” Maria asked.

“Just me for now,” said Celestia as she walked over to her lover. “Sorry we haven’t been able to spend as much time together as we used to.”

“Well, that’s understandable. I’m the Mayor of Canterlot City, and you’re the host of a primordial entity of light and a school administrator. We’re both very busy people,” said Maria.

Both Celestia and Maria chuckled at their little joke, but in the end embraced one another.

“I hope to have some alone time with you, if the Angelus permits,” said Maria.

\\/// I never said you couldn’t be intimate with her, Celestia. I still think you can do better. \\///

Celestia rolled her eyes. “I’ll work on her. Are they here yet?”

Maria checked her phone and saw that the guard she sent to fetch them sent her an update. “They’re driving up now.”

“Then I guess we’ll switch now, go on ahead, Angelus,” said Celestia as she shut her eyes. When next she opened them, they were glowing bright white. “Okay, let’s see what the Vatican wishes to say.”

The doors opened and both Angelus and Maria were treated to the sight of three representatives of the Church. The tall man to Angelus’ left was dressed in red, she knew that signified him as a Cardinal, the one in the middle was obviously a Nun, but Angelus could sense some form of energy about her. And lastly…a young girl garbed in black, red, and gold. Angelus could sense a strong affinity towards the light and she could feel some divinity coming from this young woman. Not only that, but Angelus could definitely sense the presence of something else, an Artifact.

The tall man bowed to the Angelus, with the Nun and young woman doing the same. “Greetings, Angelus, I am Cardinal Neighsay. This is my assistant, Sister Meadowbrook, and our ward, for certain reasons her identity must remain secret, you may call her the Magdalena.”

Maria glanced to Angelus and then back to the three assembled Vatican representatives. Had such people arrived back before all this started, Maria would’ve treated them as religious fanatics, but given the circumstances, those fanatics may’ve had a point.

“Delighted to meet you, shall we talk more privately?” Angelus suggested.

As they walked towards the meeting room, Celestia asked, “Angelus, could you look at the young girl one more time?”

Angelus did as she asked and studied the young woman’s face. She kept her hood up, and wore a gold and black mask over her eyes, the eye holes were slit and had a white glow to them. Her skin was a pale yellow, and from what she could see, there were strands of pink hair.

“Oh my gosh, I…I think that’s Fluttershy!”

Fluttershy you say? She’s one of Sunset’s friends.

“What is she doing here?!”

Guess we’ll find out.

All five entered one of Maria’s many meeting rooms. They sat down, Maria and Angelus on one side of the table, Neighsay, Meadowbrook, and Magdalena on the other.

“From what Maria Mare has told me, you wish to offer your services to my war on the Darkness, please elaborate how you intend to help?” Angelus asked.

“Of course, well, it wouldn’t be the Sister or myself, but our young ward. The Magdalena.” Neighsay gestured towards the girl in question. “Do not be fooled by her youth, she has been trained for many years in the combat arts and in the use of her special abilities. And she has one other asset to bring to the fight.” Neighsay glanced at Magdalena. “Show her.”

Magdalena stood up and took a few steps back. She reached behind her back and pulled out a bronze weapon, it had a sharp blade that was about a foot long, and a hilt that was two-feet long. The young warrior held the weapon out in front of her, golden energy started to flare up from the weapon, and in a split second, the weapon extended out to become a bronze spear, three times the length that it once was.

Angelus raised an eyebrow and grinned, Maria had thought that nothing would surprise her anymore, but then she saw that. Celestia was feeling much the same way as Maria was, but her disbelief was compounded because she knew the person wielding that weapon was the kindest, most gentle girl in all of Canterlot High.

“As you can see, the Magdalena wields the Spear of Destiny. A powerful Artifact that can slay any magical entity, and is particularly lethal against creatures of the dark.”

“I see, and this Magdalena is proficient in its use?”

“Very much, yes,” said Neighsay.

Angelus glanced at the Magdalena again, who remained silent throughout this whole thing. “I would like to speak alone to the Magdalena.”

Meadowbrook seemed to finally find her voice. “With all due respect, Angelus, I don’t think–”

“That will be fine,” Neighsay interrupted.

Maria and Celestia watched as Sister Meadowbrook wanted to say something else, but bit her tongue and stood up ready to leave.

I don’t like this guy, Maria and Celestia thought at the same time.

Once the other adults left the room, only Angelus and Magdalena remained. Angelus studied the girl as she sat there, eyes focused on the table before her, hands folded on her lap as her Spear rested against the edge of the table.

“Calling you ‘Magdalena’ is starting to get real old real fast, dear. Let’s get on a first name basis, right, Fluttershy?”

Fluttershy’s head shot up as she looked at the coy smile of the Angelus. “H-How did you – oh…wait. Um, did Principal Celestia recognize me?”

Angelus nodded. “I’m sure I’m a little intimidating, do you wish to speak to her? I know she has some questions for you.”

“Y-Yes, please,” said Fluttershy.

“Such a sweet girl.” Angelus closed her eyes, her appearance didn’t change, but when she opened her eyes, they were back to being the eyes of kind school Principal. “Hello, Fluttershy, I wasn’t expecting to meet under these circumstances.”

“Neither was I, to be honest,” said Fluttershy. “You look beautiful, if you don’t mind me saying.”

Celestia chuckled. “Not at all. You’re looking rather heroic. If you don’t mind, could you remove the mask? I don’t think it’s necessary anymore.”

Fluttershy blushed at the comment, but then nodded and removed the mask, allowing her teal eyes to be seen.

“Is it true what the man said, that you’ve been training to fight demons?” Celestia asked.

“Yes…” Fluttershy went into the explanation regarding her training, her memory wipe/reset, her lineage, and of course, the part she played in saving Rainbow Dash, and helping Sunset in the battle that occurred over CHS. “Don’t be mad at Sunset, I asked her and the others to keep my secret, it’s not something that the Vatican wants to let out.”

“I see…I guess that makes some sense, you’ve always been quite the saintly person, Fluttershy,” said Celestia.

Fluttershy sighed heavily. “I honestly don’t deserve to be called that. Nor do I feel worthy of the blood that flows through my veins.”

Celestia raised a confused eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“I abandoned Sunset when she needed help the most. Instead of believing in her, I doubted her, I bought into Anon-A-Miss, and chose not to believe her. I chose to disregard all the good she had done, and her struggle to redeem herself. A true saint wouldn’t have turned their back on her, and I should’ve stood by her side no matter what the others said or did!”

Fluttershy slammed her fists onto the table, slightly startling Celestia.

“So please, don’t call me a ‘saint’, because I’m not worthy of a title like that…”

Celestia reached out a hand to Fluttershy, but stopped. Fluttershy was a sensitive girl, in all honesty it surprised Celestia to hear that someone as kind as Fluttershy shunned Sunset as well. But one couldn’t blame her completely, after all, during Sunset’s reign, Fluttershy received a good amount of attention from Sunset.

Angelus, can you say something to help lift her spirits?

\\/// You don’t want to? \\///

Fluttershy’s sensitive, and now after hearing about who she is, I don’t think my words will hold much weight. I don’t like that another child has to fight against evil, but she needs to hear from someone of divine light, someone like you.

\\/// I understand. \\///

Celestia’s eyes shifted back to glowing white, now with Angelus in the driver’s seat. Angelus got up from her seat, walked around the table and sat down in the chair next to Fluttershy.

“Dear child, you have nothing to worry about. Despite your divinity, you are still human, not an infallible god. Humans make mistakes, some learn from them, and others don’t. And that’s what makes the difference. Did you learn from your mistakes?”

Fluttershy looked to her right, the Angelus’ expression was like a mother trying to comfort their child. “I did, I learned that I should never doubt my friends, to trust before distrusting. I won’t ever make that mistake again.”

Angelus nodded. “So long as you learn, you can always better yourself. I know you’re probably not a fan of how I’ve handled the fighting between myself and the Darkness, correct?”

“I just wish that you weren’t so violent towards those who have strayed,” said Fluttershy.

“Hmm, Celestia asked me the same thing. As much as it pains me to do so, they are tainted, Fluttershy. The Darkness is an evil as old as the universe itself. Those who follow it might someday come back together and form a cult around the Darkness. I’ve seen it numerous times, and each one is harder to stamp out than the last. If this isn’t done then the next generation will be infected by its evil. But, with your help, that could be avoided, you could deal a death blow to Darkness.”

Fluttershy didn’t like fighting, but she also didn’t like the thought of others falling into the vices of sin that the Darkness would let loose upon the city, and then the world if left unchecked.

“I would like to help, but can I ask that I try my way of converting the tainted ones?” Fluttershy asked.

“Of course. I’m open to new methods to make this war end quicker. If you don’t mind, I’ll need to speak with your handlers, bring that unpleasant fellow, Neighsay in here.”

Fluttershy giggled. “Yes, Ma’am.” After putting on her mask, Fluttershy got up and walked towards the door, but stopped as she looked back at Angelus. “Angelus, Ma’am, there is something I’d like to ask.”

“What is my dear?”

“There are three girls, Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle. I’m sure Principal Celestia knows who they are,” said Fluttershy.

“Ah, yes, I’m very familiar with those three thanks to her.”

Fluttershy fidgeted. “Well…they’re afraid your Sentinels are going to kill them, or send them to hell. I know they made a big mistake, for a stupid reason. But they’re deathly afraid of even stepping out of their homes. I know you’re busy, but…is there anything you could do to assuage their fears?”

Inside, Celestia felt her heart ache, she didn’t know that those three girls were feeling such fear and terror. She felt ashamed for thinking that they needed to be more fearful about the retribution they could face, when right now they were feeling it, more so than she thought.

“I see, I will speak with Celestia about how best to approach the matter.”

Twilight and Sunset were in the living room, Sunset had put on a cheesy sci-fi movie that was pure rubbish, but it made them laugh and that’s all that Sunset really wanted. The two of them were sitting on the couch, with Twilight curled up next to Sunset, and Sunset draping an arm around Twilight’s shoulders.

This was such a natural state for them, it’s hard to believe that the two girls had only become friends, and now girlfriends, in little over three weeks. For Twilight, one whose life was ruled by science and logic, this was pretty illogical. The idea of falling in love so quickly upon meeting someone, she knew that it was only due to hormones and pheromones working in combination to produce a chemical reaction to induce feelings of attraction. But, after experiencing it firsthand, she was starting to see that there might be more to it than just a simple chemical reaction in the mind and body.

For Sunset, she never planned on falling for anyone. Much less this late in a school term. But the moment she laid eyes on Twilight Sparkle, it just clicked, she liked her. At first she became friends with her because Twilight seemed to be less uptight than the other students, but as she got to know her, she realized that was dorky, excitable and passionate about her love of science, and a general nerd like she was. However, when she learned of the abuse Twilight was getting, her protectiveness came out. Twilight was probably the one good thing in that school, and she’d be damned if she let anything happen to Twilight.

Turns out I was too late in that regard…fucking Indigo…the next time I see her I’m going to cunt punt that bitch through the roof!

Just then, Twilight’s cellphone rang. She reached into her pajama pants pocket and pulled it out. “Oh, it’s Shiny!”

“Your big bro? Something wrong?” Sunset asked.

“Well…I’m pretty sure my parents may have told him about you, especially since I’m staying over. That, and he’s probably worried since it is my first time since I was little that I was at someone else’s place. Oh boy…”

Twilight swiped the “answer” button and spoke calmly.

“Hi, Shiny,” Twilight greeted.

{Hey, Twily…listen, uh, there’s something I need to talk to you about.}

Twilight groaned inwardly, she knew this was coming. “What about?”

{Is it true that you’re with a girl named Sunset Shimmer.}

“Yes…”

{Can you put the call on speaker, there’s someone who’d like to talk to her, and you.}

Twilight got nervous, something that Sunset noticed right away.

“What’s wrong?” Sunset asked.

“I’m…I’m going to put the phone on speaker.” Twilight pressed the button on her phone’s screen. “Y-You’re on.”

There was some shuffling in the background, but then both Twilight and Sunset heard a voice that made them freeze.

{Hello…Twilight, and…well…Sunset.}

Twilight dropped the phone on the couch as both girls went to different ends. They looked at the cellular device as if it were possessed, and then cast looks at themselves. Sunset made a few gestures for the other to answer back.

{I’m pretty sure this is a bit of a shock for the both of you to hear my voice, but…this isn’t a joke. My name’s Sunset Shimmer. Another Sunset Shimmer. And I’m pretty sure the other me is sitting there wanting some answers.}

Sunset narrowed her gaze and scooted closer to the phone. “I do. But I don’t want them over the phone.”

{I figured as much. I just want you to know I’m not a threat to you, or Twilight. I consider her a friend, and if you give me time to explain you’ll understand why.}

Sunset glanced to Twilight. “Okay, but the meeting place will be somewhere neutral.”

{That’s fair, where do you want to meet?}

Sunset was really thinking on the fly here, she knew that she’d have to meet her doppelganger some time in the near future, but not right now.

Twilight could see that Sunset was having trouble picking a spot, so she blurted out, “The observatory and astronomy museum!”

There was light chuckling coming from the phone. {That’s good, we’ll go with that. How long?}

“In one hour, and…” Sunset glanced at Twilight, there was a look in the young genius’ eyes that told Sunset that Twilight wasn’t going to be left out of this. “…and I’m bringing Twilight along with me. You have a problem with that?”

{Nope, but if you don’t mind, I want to bring someone with me too.}

“Oh, who?”

{Me silly!} A new voice answered. {Hi, I’m Pinkie Pie! Wow, I still can’t believe that there’s another Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle! Double the hotness and double the adorkableness!}

Sunset and Twilight both had confused looks upon hearing the bubbly voice from the other end.

Wait, did she just call me hot? Sunset thought.

Wait, did she just call Sunset hot?! Twilight thought.

{Down, Pinkie. Anyway, yeah, Pinkie will be there. You’ll like her, trust me. Guess we’ll meet you there soon.}

“Right…see ya.” Sunset reached towards the phone and ended the call.

Twilight watched as Sunset stared at the device for a long moment. She scooted closer and placed her right hand over Sunset’s left. “Are you alright?”

Sunset sighed heavily. “I knew this was coming at some point…I just didn’t expect it so soon…”

Twilight gave Sunset a reassuring squeeze. “It’ll be okay, you know she’s Witchblade, but you have the Ember Stone, if she tries anything, you can fight back.”

The confidence in Twilight’s voice made Sunset smile. “I’m more worried about you, and this girl she’s bringing, she sounds…off.”

“Kind of, but…she didn’t sound dangerous.”

“Either way, I’ll protect you, but are you sure you’re up for this?” Sunset asked.

“Are you?”

Both girls thought a moment and then said in unison, “No.”

Sunset and Pinkie Pie waited in the parking lot of the observatory. Sunset wore a turquoise blouse, black leather jacket, and a pair of denim jeans. While Pinkie wore white leggings, a pink frilly skirt, and a white sleeveless top. Sunset was pacing back and forth as Pinkie leaned against Sunset’s bike, watching her go back and forth with her head.

“Sunset, relax, it’ll be okay,” said Pinkie.

Sunset didn’t feel that it was. “I want it to be…but…what if she gets super pissed at me?! I mean, I did so much bad shit, I might’ve ruined her reputation! Or screwed up her credit score, or something?! I’ve been operating for years under the assumption that I was the only Sunset Shimmer in this world, who knows how I’ve impacted her life?!”

Pinkie Pie got in Sunset’s path and made her bump into her to stop the pacing. “Okay, first, if you keep pacing, I’m pretty sure you’re going to bore a hole. Second, she didn’t sound angry. So it might be okay.”

Sunset loved that optimism, and honestly she hoped that she hadn’t negatively impacted this world’s Sunset Shimmer, too much at least. Her wondering would soon come to an end as both girls heard the noise of a car coming up towards them. Sunset immediately recognized the car and gasped.

“That’s a Corvette ZR-1! And it’s red!”

The ZR-1 pulled up in the spot next to Sunset. The roar of the engine died as the car turned off, Sunset flinched when the doors opened, and then she froze.

Human Sunset wore a leather jacket, a different style from Alter Sunset. She had black, fingerless leather driving gloves on, ripped jean pants, and a magenta tank top. While Twilight wore a blue blouse, and a purple skirt speckled with stars and a six-pointed pink star.

Both Sunsets looked at each other, the air filled with tension as neither one knew what to say or do at a time like this. Twilight didn’t know what to do either, it felt like just the snapping of a twig might set something catastrophic off.

Pinkie decided to fix that. She slipped in between both Sunsets and took Human Sunset’s hand into her own, shaking it and Human Sunset. “Hi! I’m Pinkie Pie! I’m this Sunset’s,” she thrust a thumb towards Alter Sunset, “girlfriend!”

Human Sunset’s hand was finally released, and after the world stopped shaking, she replied. “O-Oh, uh, nice to meet you.”

“Wow, I know my Sunset’s hot, but so are you! But I guess that’s a given since you’re both Sunsets, and I guess it’s a general rule that all Sunset Shimmers are hot!” Pinkie spouted.

Both Sunsets blushed from the compliment, Twilight blushed as well, but at the same time, there was a twinge of jealousy.

Alter Sunset decided to shift the conversation. “S-So, is that a Corvette ZR-1?”

Human Sunset smiled. “Yeah, it is. This bad boy’s got about a thousand horsepower under the hood. I sprung for the extra speed. And I guess speed demon is a trait we share, that’s a Honda Valkyrie, right?”

Alter Sunset smiled as she rubbed the throttle. “Yep! I just got her too, and I’m loving every second of it! My last ride became a mangled mess…”

Human Sunset cringed. “Ouch, looks like you managed to get out of that without a scratch.”

“Heh…not quite, but I guess we can talk about that further inside, it’s a story.”

Human Sunset nodded and both counterparts moved towards the entrance, lagging behind them were Pinkie Pie and Twilight. Pinkie was humming a happy tune as she kept her hands behind her back. Twilight kept hers held out front, her head tilted downward just a bit, every so often she’d glance at Pinkie, making sure she wasn’t up to something. Although, unlike the kids in CPA, she didn’t get a bad feeling around this girl, it was almost similar to how she felt around Sunset, different, but similar.

“Guess we had the same idea, huh, Twilight?” Pinkie asked.

“W-What?”

Pinkie giggled. “You know, letting our Sunsets walk ahead of us to give them space while we hang back and watch them.”

“Oh…! Yes, I guess we did have the same idea…”

“Well, while they’re getting to know each other, why don’t you I learn about each other?! I mean, I know about the other you, but I don’t about you you.”

Twilight cocked an eyebrow. “Wait, what do you mean by ‘other you’? You’ve seen me before? Wait!” Twilight rounded on Pinkie and grabbed her by the shoulders. “Are you telling me there’s another me walking around the city, too?!”

Pinkie blinked and then smiled. “Nope, she’s back home in her own dimension.”

“A-A-Another dimension?!” Twilight gasped.

“Hey, you okay back there, Sparky?” Human Sunset asked.

Twilight and Pinkie looked ahead and saw both Sunsets were staring at them. Human Sunset looked worried and a little on edge.

“We’re fine! But I think I need to talk to Pinkie Pie!” Twilight reached into her skirt pocket and took out a notepad and pen. “Come with me, you’re going to explain some things to me!”

Before Pinkie Pie could reply, Twilight grabbed Pinkie by the wrist and began dragging her off somewhere. “Okay, guess I’m being kidnapped! Have fun Sunset!”

And then they were gone.

Human Sunset glanced to Alter Sunset, seeing her double had an amused smile on her face.

“You don’t seem too worried that Twilight just dragged off your girlfriend,” Human Sunset observed.

Alter Sunset shrugged. “If she’s how I think she is, I have nothing to worry about when it comes to Twilight. And you don’t have anything to worry about from Pinkie. All that girl wants is to make people happy, I mean, she broke the tension between us.”

Human Sunset smirked. “Okay, I’ll admit, I like her.”

“She’s mine though, just remember that,” Alter Sunset replied.

Human Sunset put her hands behind her head as she continued walking along. “Cool, just remember that Sparky is mine and we’ll get along fine.”

Alter Sunset blushed. “W-Wait, y-you mean you and Twilight are…a couple?!”

Human Sunset stopped. “There are problem with that?”

“Not so much a problem, as it is kind of awkward.”

“Guessing there’s a story.”

“Oh there is…”

The two Sunsets walked through the observatory, stopping by different little exhibits. When they did, Alter Sunset explained her past to her human counterpart. It was the typical stuff Alter Sunset expected Human Sunset would want to know, where she came from, why was she here, what had she been doing all this time. Of course, Alter Sunset told her everything.

From her time as a filly in Equestria’s Canterlot, to her apprenticeship under the ruler of the land. To her arrogant act of rebellion against her teacher by crossing over into this world. Then came her time as the school’s bully, her fall from grace, her rise to redemption, and the story of how she wrecked her bike.

After the third or fourth exhibit, both Sunsets sat on a bench while Human Sunset processed everything that Alter Sunset said.

“I’ll understand if you don’t believe what I’ve told you, I know it’s pretty out there,” said Alter Sunset.

“If it weren’t for the demons and angels running around I’d probably think you were insane, well, that and other reasons why I can’t dismiss what you’ve said.” Human Sunset leaned back against the wall and sighed. “Honestly, one of the parts of your story I’m having a hard time grasping is that Mom and Dad became assholes.”

Alter Sunset shrugged. “They weren’t always like that, we were just a poor family of unicorns, and when I became the protégé to Princess Celestia, we got instant status and money. They pretty much left me in the hooves of the Princess. I spent more time there than I did at my real home, and Mom and Dad would often try to get me to marry some noble’s son or daughter.”

“Total opposite of my parents. Guess it’s my turn to share?” Human Sunset asked.

“If you want, I didn’t expect you to give me any info on you, I came here with intention of full disclosure to you,” said Alter Sunset.

Human Sunset smiled. “Well, Mom and Dad were rich, but neither of them were like snooty or made fun of people who didn’t have it as good. They were pretty down to Earth. I was an only child so they dotted on me, a lot. We used to take trips around the world, visit exotic places, and get souvenirs from whatever country we were in.”

Alter Sunset didn’t like how her human counterpart was speaking of their parents in the past tense. “Su – uh – jeez, how should we, you know, address each other?”

“Not to sound vain or anything, but, can I call you Shimmer and I’ll take up the first name?”

Shimmer nodded. “That’s fair, you were here first. Anyway…the way you’re talking about Mom and Dad, are they…?”

Sunset nodded solemnly. “About a year and a half ago, we were in an accident. They died and I survived…” Sunset placed her right hand over her chest, feeling the Ember Stone that was tucked under her shirt. “Since you told me you’re Witchblade, I’ll tell you something about me.”

“Okay…”

“Last night, you came across a dragon that torched a couple of warehouses and fought some Sentinels, right?” Sunset asked.

Shimmer’s brow knitted a little. “Yeah…but I didn’t tell you that, yet. I know you were there during the rave, did you see me?”

“I did, but I was the dragon.” Sunset pulled on the necklace until the Ember Stone was now on display, resting against her chest outside of her shirt. “It’s called the Ember Stone, a powerful Artifact that grants me the power to control and create the Flames of Life. It’s also how I survived the accident that killed Mom and Dad…Last night was only the third time I’ve had to go full beast mode, and I did it to save Twilight.”

There was a pregnant pause between them, with Shimmer thinking and Sunset waiting to hear her reply. After a minute, Shimmer unknitted her brow and said, “Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re not going to challenge me to mortal combat or something?” Sunset asked.

“Why? For saving someone you care about? Why would I fight you for that?”

Sunset shook her head. “I just thought you might be on Angelus' side. Those Sentinels I fought, they tried to kill me and Twilight.”

“WHAT?!” Shimmer exclaimed louder than she had meant to.

“I might’ve killed a group of gangsters who were going to rape Twilight, one of them changed into one of those Blacknight things, and got blasted by two Sentinels. Then they turned on us and killed us cause they thought we were a couple of hookers or something. They didn’t even bother to listen to us!”

}}} Typical of Mother, strike first, ask questions never. {{{

“Witchblade and I have a…stable-ish relationship with her, but after this, I’m not so sure how stable it will be after I have a talk with her,” said Shimmer.

“On that note, do you have to wear such revealing armor?” Sunset asked.

“You wanna argue with him?” Shimmer brought up her right wrist to show her bracelet. “Go on ahead, I’ve had this conversation a dozen times.”

}}} I make no apologies. {{{

Sunset sighed as she said, “So, it’s not your choice to go around in that skimpy armor.”

“Not at all.”

“That’s good, the last thing I need is for another me to go around flashing people. I don’t want to kink shame or anything, but…”

Shimmer blushed. “I’m not a flasher!”

Sunset chuckled at her double’s reaction, but then remembered she had to check in. “Hang on a sec, I need to check on Twi.”

Shimmer watched as Sunset texted Twilight, about a few seconds later, she replied that she was fine and that she was having fun with Pinkie. Sunset smiled and put her phone away.

“You really care about Twilight don’t you?” Shimmer asked.

“I do, she’s…she’s put up with more than she’s willing to admit at CPA, and she doesn’t say anything to her family because she doesn’t want to bother them,” said Sunset. “But now that I’m here, I’ll protect her.”

Shimmer held out her fist to Sunset. “That’s something I can relate to, I’ll fight to protect Pinkie, and all those I love.”

Sunset smirked and fist bumped Shimmer, acknowledging their mutual feelings of protection.

“Look, I know you’re probably worried that I want you to go back to where you came from, but then I’d be the biggest bitch in the world to do that to you, especially when you have a cutie like Pinkie. So don’t worry about it,” said Sunset.

Shimmer looked at Sunset uneasily. “You sure? It might get weird when someone sees us, we can get away with being twin sisters, but having the same name?”

“Separated at birth, and a filing error, you know how people can be when entering important documents, sometimes things get botched up. That, and I have enough money to make it true,” said Sunset. “You know, why don’t you and Pinkie stay over at my place tonight, that way we can get to know each other better?”

“I don’t mind, but are you sure?” Shimmer asked.

Sunset smirked and threw her right arm over Shimmer’s shoulders. “Totally, ‘Sis’, I’ve always wanted a sister, why not make it official?”

Shimmer mirrored her smirk, she wouldn’t deny that she did always want a sibling, and apparently the universe had given her the best kind. “Okay, let’s do it.”

With that decided, both Sunsets headed towards where Twilight said she and Pinkie were sitting. When they arrived, they saw that the bench was littered with note after note of paper that Twilight had scribbled on, she had apparently now run out of paper and was now using her cellphone to jot down everything that Pinkie had told her, and running theories and equations in her cellular device.

Twilight’s head snapped up and she cried out, “SUNSET!” The teen genius got up and swiftly made her way to Sunset, bouncing on her heels like a child on a sugar rush. “You have to tell me what Alter you told you! Pinkie gave me so much information, we need to compare notes!”

Both Sunsets glanced at each other as if expecting something like this to happen.

“Well, you’re in luck, ‘cause I invited them to my place,” said Sunset.

Pinkie Pie zoomed up next to Twilight, acting in the same sugar high manner that Twilight was, but then again, Pinkie was always like that. “Are you saying we get to have a Slumber Party at Human Sunset’s house?! Double Sunset Slumber Party?!”

“Yes, Pinkie, Double Sunset Slumber Party,” Shimmer confirmed.

Both Pinkie and Twilight jumped around repeating “yes” over and over again. At one point they held hands and jumped around in a circle.

“Thanks,” said Sunset.

“For what?” Shimmer asked.

“For helping me to get Sparky to smile.”

To say that Shimmer and Pinkie were surprised to see Sunset’s mansion of a house would be a huge understatement. Their jaws nearly broke through the asphalt upon riding up to the main gates.

Shimmer parked her bike in the garage and was led inside by Sunset and Twilight. Pinkie Pie immediately began zooming around the house.

“This house is soooooo big!” Pinkie exclaimed as she threw her hands into the air.

Twilight giggled at the pink girl’s childlike demeanor.

Sunset crossed her arms and smirked at her double. “She must be a handful.”

Shimmer shrugged. “Eh, sometimes, but most of the time, I love her energy.”

Sunset tapped Shimmer’s shoulder and said, “I’ll bet you do.”

Shimmer blushed playfully shoved Sunset. “Not like that you perv!” Shimmer slapped her forehead as she chuckled. “Oh damn, now I know what it’s like on this end of it.”

Both Sunsets chuckled just as Pinkie arrived. “Where’s your room?”

“Upstairs, c’mon, let’s all get more comfortable, can’t have a Slumber Party in these clothes,” said Sunset.

Sunset and Twilight led Shimmer and Pinkie upstairs to Sunset’s room. Once inside, Sunset, with a playful smirk, took Shimmer by the wrist and dragged her into the walk-in closet, shutting the door behind them.

“What’s up?” Shimmer asked.

“I got a lot of clothes here, along with sleepwear. We look alike, but I wonder how similar our proportions are,” said Sunset as she flexed her fingers.

Shimmer covered her chest as she shot a glare at her twin. “Oh no, you aren’t feeling me up!”

“Yoink!”

Sunset reached up and Shimmer hugged her chest tighter, but it was a feint as Sunset aimed lower. She managed to hook her thumbs into the waistband of Shimmer’s pants and pulled them down. Shimmer’s face blushed furiously as her lace panties were on display for her double.

“SUNSET!” Shimmer growled.

Sunset laughed so hard her eyes teared up. “Oh man, I’ve always wanted to do that if I had a sibling. Hey, it could be worse, I could’ve done this in front of other people!”

Shimmer lunged for Sunset and knocked her to the floor, once on the floor, Shimmer grabbed for the hem of Sunset’s tank top and began to pull up. “If that’s how it’s going to be, let’s see if your girls are as big as mine!”

“Good luck! You ain’t getting it off!”

“Oh I beg to differ, ‘cause if you’re the same as me, then your weak spot is riiiiiiiiight…here!”

Shimmer’s hands released Sunset’s shirt and began tickling her sides. Instantly, Sunset was sent into a laughing fit that had her writhing on the floor.

“S-S-Stop! Mercy! Mercy!”

“Say, ‘Shimmer’s the best sister in the world’!”

“S-Shimmer i-is th-the – I’ll die before I admit it!” Sunset forced out.

“If you insist.”

Shimmer continued her tickling, all the while, she worked her hands under Sunset’s shirt, and right when Sunset’s arms went up, Shimmer grabbed the hem and pulled straight up, removing Sunset’s tank top in one go and revealing her double’s lacey black bra.

Sunset panted heavily as she tried to catch her breath. “Y-You…ch-cheated…”

“You pantsed me, I think we’re even, ‘Sis’,” said Shimmer with a smirk.

“Oh, I’m getting you back for this,” Sunset replied.

Just then the door to the closet opened up.

“Sunset, we were getting worried when we heard that thump, are you…all…right?” Twilight squeaked.

Pinkie and Twilight took a moment to look over the scene before them. Shimmer, sans her pants, was straddling Sunset, sans her tank top, and Sunset was panting heavily. Both Sunsets blushed heavily as they looked at each other and then back to their respective girlfriends, understanding exactly how this might look to them.

“Uh…Uh…W-We can explain…” Both Sunsets stated nervously.

Pinkie Pie didn’t wait for an explanation, she just took out her cellphone and began snapping pictures as fast as she could. “If this was one of those anime shows, I’d have passed out from a nosebleed! Thank goodness I didn’t ‘cause then I’d totally miss out on snapping these pics!”

Sunset glanced to Twilight. “S-Sparky, I swear I’m not doing anything weird!”

Twilight took out her cellphone and began typing away as she looked from the phone, back to them, and then back to her phone. “Fascinating, Sunset, when did you begin to feel sexual attraction towards your double?”

“IT’S NOT LIKE THAT!!!”
“IT’S NOT LIKE THAT!!!”

Shining Armor went into the station that night, although his thoughts were lingering on how his little sister was doing, as well as Sunset Shimmer. It was still surreal to learn that there was another Sunset Shimmer walking around, heck, it was still surreal to know that there was another Twilight who was just a portal jump away, one who was older and more well adjusted than his little sister. But, in a way, that also gave him hope. If that alternate universe version of Twilight would be okay when she was older, then there was hope for Twilight.

Currently, the young detective was typing away at his computer, filling out reports and sifting through tips about possible Blood Kings hideouts. Shining looked up from his computer and took notice of the Sentinels that walked about the station, Gaghiel was there, taking a catnap in the middle of the office. The others that were walking about was a female Sentinel, she looked as old as his little sister, but was obviously older than everyone in the building combined. Her skin color was bright green, a toned body with lean muscle, with golden armor fitted around her forearms, chest, and shins. The Sentinel’s eyes were a bright emerald green, with long green hair to match, her name was Araquiel, the “Earth Tiller”. She was apparently popular with the male and female officers, often cracking a joke and lifting their spirits, kind of like a big sister.

The third was a Hadriel, the “Bringer of the Winds”, he was lithe and learned Sentinel, he often gave advice to the officers and was more approachable than Gaghiel. Hadriel had silver colored skin, white hair, and white eyes.

The fourth and final of the four who were assigned to their precinct was Ayil, she was…an angelic centaur, and “Archer of the Stars”. Her lower half was that of a mare, dark brown color, while her upper, human half, was a lighter shade of brown. Her eyes were an amber color and her hair was bright shade of autumn. Her mare half and human half were fitted with golden armor, and slung over her left shoulder was her bow. She didn’t need a quiver as upon the moment she pulled on the drawstring an arrow of light would appear. At first many didn’t think the archer centaur would be that fast on the draw, but they were proven very wrong when they first saw Ayil loose forty arrows in less than a minute. Despite her height, she was quite demure in her actions.

It was hard to believe from just watching them that these beings could so ruthlessly cut someone down without batting an eye. Gaghiel he could see, but the other three, didn’t strike him like that. Until he saw them in action.

Shining Armor didn’t know whether to be disturbed or suspicious of how his fellow officers so readily accepted them, sure, he did initially, but as time went on, Shining could see that their methods were too draconian, but his fellow officers didn’t seem to mind too much.

I hate to admit it, but Gaghiel had a point. They’re not going to complain so long as they get to come back to their families and live another day…

While Shining Armor was typing up a report, his cellphone went off. He looked down and saw that it was Cadence, with a smile, Shining answered the call. “Hey, Cady.”

{Hey, Shiny, how’s it going?}

“‘Bout as well as it can get, provided there isn’t any crazy shit, I should be home soon.”

{Don’t go jinxing it now!} Cadence admonished.

“Sorry.”

There was a sigh from the other end, and Shining could feel that his girlfriend was smiling. {So, are you worried about Twilight?}

Shining switched to a Bluetooth headset and continued working as he talked. “A little…I mean, this is all so weird…What were the odds that my baby sister would run into the Sunset Shimmer of our world? God, that’s so strange to say.”

{Tell me about it…When I first saw her, I nearly bolted from my office chair. But, I’m not worried. The Sunset we know is a good person, even you know that. But Twilight seems to trust her, so I think we should too.}

Shining hummed a little. “I do trust her, but you know Twily, sometimes she doesn’t get a lot of social things, and I don’t want her to be used.”

{If she was, I’d like to think she’d tell us. God, I don’t want to imagine that she’s going through something like that and not telling us.}

Shining Armor stopped typing and asked, “Do you think she is?”

{You know how CPA was even when we were going here. I’ve tried to stem some of that, but…}

“But what?”

Before Cadence could answer, an explosion went off outside of the precinct, after that, another went off, and then another, each one shaking the building and making the officers get down with their weapons drawn.

The Sentinels inside all rose as a look of anger appeared on their faces, and not long after that, all four rushed out of the main room of the precinct.

{SHINY, WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!}

“I…I think that was an explosion, a lot of them!” Shining Armor got his gun out and hurried to his window to look down and see what was happening. “Oh shit…”

Drawing Battle Lines Part 5

It was about nine at night, and the four girls at Shimmer Manor were having – oddly enough – a great time. Sunset was wearing a red tank top with orange pajama shorts, Shimmer was wearing the same thing, but the colors were reversed. Pinkie wore an oversized shirt, and just her underwear underneath it, and Twilight was in the same pajamas from earlier today. The two Sunsets hadn’t stopped blushing from their little episode earlier, Pinkie had snapped several pictures and was cycling through them, and it didn’t help that Twilight was looking at them too.

“For the last time, we were not doing anything…sexual…” Shimmer clarified, the last word making her cringe a little.

“Seriously, why in the world would I get it on with someone who’s practically my twin?” Sunset asked.

Twilight pulled at the collar of her shirt, “Well…statistically speaking…while Shimmer resembles you physically, even I can tell that there are some differences between you both mentally. Differences that could be enough to not see the other as the same person, but as an individual.”

Both Sunsets glanced at each other and raised an eyebrow.

“Well for me, I just thought it was HOT,” said Pinkie.

“Saw that coming,” said Sunset.

“Well, there’s only one thing to do,” said Shimmer.

“Oh, oh, are you two going to make out in front us to replace the thing we saw in the closet?! If you are, I need to set up my camera to record it!”

Twilight blushed as the very idea of both Sunsets engaging in French kissing was, much to her chagrin, making her feel excited inside.

“Nope, we’re just going to beat it out of your heads with my pillows,” said Sunset.

Twilight and Pinkie paused when they saw both Sunsets wielding pillows in both hands and wearing identical smirks.

“Twilight, RUN!”

“Why?”

The answer came when Pinkie got smacked in the head with a pillow, sending her to the floor. “Oh…this is a pillow fight, isn’t it?”

“Yep,” Shimmer answered.

“But it’ll be more like a slaughter,” said Sunset. “Sorry, Sparky.”

Twilight took a deep breath, screamed, and then ran around the room like a chicken with its head cut off. Sunset and Shimmer tossed one pillow after the other to nail Twilight, strangely enough, Twilight was quite nimble and dodged most of the pillows that were tossed at her. But then both Sunsets managed to corner her, literally, they cornered her in a corner of the room.

“No more running, Twi,” said Shimmer.

“Any last words, Sparky?” Sunset asked.

Twilight’s eyes darted between the two Sunset Shimmers. “Um…just a few…Donec tandem assumptis adversario victus spiritus trahitur!”

Shimmer looked at Twilight with confusion. “What did she say? It sounded like old Ponish.”

“That’s Latin, basically she just said, ‘Never assume your opponent is defeated until their last breath is drawn…’ Oh hell…”

Sunset and Shimmer noticed a shadow looming over them, and that’s when they turned around. Pinkie Pie was holding two large pillows and bearing a grin that would make the Mad Hatter proud. Before either of the Sunsets could turn around, Pinkie pelted them with both pillows right to their faces. She then whirled her arms around in a windmill fashion as dozens of pillows flew at them. The two Sunsets were powerless before the near unending barrage of Pinkie’s assault, flailing about until they fell to the ground and were subsequently buried in a mound of pillows.

Twilight sighed in relief as she walked towards Pinkie with her hands behind her back. “Thank you, Pinkie.”

“No thanks necessary, all’s far in love and war…” Pinkie Pie slowly held up another pillow.

“P-Pinkie…y-you’re not going to hit me with a pillow, are you?” Twilight asked.

“You were the perfect distraction to get both our Sunsets in one spot, but now…sadly…I must end you, only one shall stand, and one shall fall!” Pinkie Pie proclaimed as she held the pillow aloft in the air.

Twilight lowered her head. “Yes…one shall stand, and one shall fall…” Without warning, Twilight whipped the pillow she was holding behind her back and swiped Pinkie across the face, sending the pink girl onto the floor. The same pillow that Pinkie had been holding was thrown into the air, and then landed right over Pinkie’s face. “I stand, and you fall!”

Sunset and Shimmer managed to dig themselves out of the hill of pillows they were buried under, just in time to watch Twilight deck Pinkie with her pillow surprise attack.

“Damn, Sparky, that was hot!” Sunset stated.

Twilight squeaked as she turned around and bashfully smiled. “I…I may have gotten caught up in the heat of the moment…heh, heh.” The young genius turned around and looked down at Pinkie with concern. “Pinkie, a-are you alright? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

Pinkie sat up quickly, sending the pillow flying to the side, she looked up at Twilight and gave her a wide grin. “That was super sneaky, and totally cool, Twilight! I mean, honestly, I should’ve suspected that you had a pillow behind your back, but I was too wrapped up in my victory high.” A low grumble came from Pinkie’s stomach. “Now I’m hungry! Sunset, how do you get pizza up here?”

Sunset stood up and chuckled, “Please, ordering delivery up here? My home unfortunately falls outside the delivery mileage they’re willing to go. I’ve got some frozen stuff in my fridge.”

Pinkie Pie stood up and gasped. “WHAT?! Uh-uh, we are not doing frozen for this special occasion! To the kitchen! C’mon, Twilight!”

“Who, me? WHA!”

Before Twilight could ask why, Pinkie gently took her by the wrist and whisked her away out of the room. Sunset and Shimmer blinked, the former looking to her double.

“Your girlfriend is way random, you know that?” Sunset asked.

“Yep, and I wouldn’t change a thing about her,” said Shimmer.

Sunset smiled as the two of them followed after their girlfriends. “I’m just glad that Sparky’s becoming more comfortable around her, I thought for sure she’d be skeptical of other people.”

Shimmer raised an eyebrow, she could hear the level of concern for Twilight in Sunset’s voice, and it made her wonder. “Has…Has Twilight been hurt or something?”

Sunset faltered a moment. “W-What makes you ask that?”

“You’re me, I can tell. You seem almost protective of her, I know you guys go to Crystal Prep, and I have heard things about that place, but is it really that bad?” Shimmer asked.

Sunset balled her hands into fists, her jaw clenching a bit. “It’s not my place to tell you, I’ll leave that to Twilight if she wants to tell you. But I’ll say this, I wish I was there sooner.”

Shimmer was worried now. When they got downstairs, they spotted Pinkie Pie in the kitchen, already getting out ingredients to make homemade pizza. Shimmer’s eyes fell on Twilight, the teen genius was smiling as she spoke to Pinkie Pie, occasionally giggling at something Pinkie said. All the while, Shimmer wondered exactly what kind of hardships this Twilight went through, what pain was she hiding under that smile?

While Pinkie Pie was tossing up some dough, Twilight felt her cellphone buzzing in her pajama pants pocket. She took out the phone and saw that it was Cadence calling.

“Who is it?” Sunset asked.

“Cadence, she’s probably calling to check up on us,” said Twilight.

“Tell her we’re in the middle of a big orgy and to call back later!” Shimmer suggested as they began to aid Pinkie in the pizza making.

Twilight blushed and shot a glare at Shimmer. “I’m not telling her that! What will she think?!”

Sunset slid up next to Twilight hand wrapped her arms around Twilight’s waist. “That she’s happy you’re being showered with love from three sexy girls?”

Twilight shivered delightfully under Sunset’s touch. “Jeez, are all of you horny or something?”

“Yep,” Pinkie answered.

“Totally,” Shimmer replied.

“For you, always,” said Sunset.

Twilight rolled her eyes, but smiled, nonetheless. She quickly answered the phone and said, “Hi, Cadence.”

{Twilight is Sunset Shimmer with you?! The one from CHS!}

Twilight’s brow furrowed with worry when she heard the almost desperate tone in Cadence’s voice. “Y-Yes, she is, Cadence what’s wrong?”

{Put me on speaker phone!} Twilight did as she said. {Sunset, you have to go and help Shining Armor, right now!}

Shimmer cleaned off her hands and rushed to Twilight, Sunset released Twilight and put on a serious expression.

“I’m here, what’s going on?!” Shimmer asked.

{Shining’s precinct is under attack by the Blood Kings! I couldn’t hear much before he hung up, but the news is reporting that the entire city block around the precinct is in total blackout!}

Shimmer knew what that meant, the Darkness grew stronger in the shadows, and with an entire city block now blacked out, the Blacknights would be stronger and the Sentinels would be much weaker. “This is bold, Sombra’s never launched an attack against police precincts before, why is he doing that now? Never mind, I’ll head out!”

{I’m sorry to be asking you this of you, Sunset, but I don’t know who else to turn to or ask! Please, please be careful!}

“I will.”

Cadence hung up, leaving Twilight to shake in fear of what she just heard. Her big brother’s place of work was under attack by monsters, and they were in the dark, literally. Pinkie Pie came up behind Twilight, catching her before she could collapse.

“Don’t worry, Twilight, I’ll save him,” said Shimmer.

Shimmer prepared to leave but was stopped when she felt her left wrist getting grabbed. The former unicorn looked over her shoulder and saw that Sunset was staring at her right in the eyes.

“Not without me you’re not,” said Sunset. “The odds of saving Sparky’s big bro and those people go up more if we fight ‘em together.”

Shimmer turned around and said, “Sunset, you don’t have to get involved in this fight. What happened last night was because you were protecting Twilight and yourself, that was self-defense, but this is different. You’re going to go in and engage in a fight. This is my responsibility, not yours.”

Sunset shook her head. “If it involves Sparky’s family, then that’s more than enough reason to get into the fight for me. I promise I’ll follow your lead in this.”

Shimmer looked at Pinkie, she could tell she was worried, but more so for Shining Armor, but there was a glimmer of hope that Shimmer would allow Sunset to fight beside her. When she looked at Twilight, she could see the same thing, Twilight obviously knew how strong Sunset was when she used the Ember Stone, and Twilight also knew of Shimmer’s power due to her exploits as Witchblade, so the two of them working together, in her mind, doubled the chances that her sibling would be saved.

With that thought in mind, Shimmer nodded to Sunset. “Alright, you follow my lead. We get in there and take down the Blood Kings and save the officers under attack. The faster we take them out, the faster we can save Shining Armor, got it?”

“Got it,” Sunset replied.

“By the way, are these your favorite pajamas?”

Sunset shot Shimmer a confused look. “Uh, no, I got tons of different sleepwear.”

“Okay, good, sorry in advance anyway.”

Shimmer took a few steps back. The crimson gemstone on her bracelet began to shine as the metal strands exploded outward. The strands shot towards her body, ripping apart the clothes that covered her body and replacing it with the supernatural armor that was the Witchblade. When it was over, Shimmer stood before her double, Twilight, and Pinkie, the shredded remains of her clothes lying on the floor as she flexed her clawed digits.

“Huh, I see what you mean. You and I are going to go clothes shopping this weekend,” said Sunset.

“Thanks,” said Shimmer.

“Guess it’s my turn, let’s do this out in the backyard, I don’t want to set off the fire alarms,” said Sunset.

Shimmer nodded and followed Sunset out to the backyard, with Pinkie Pie and Twilight following behind. Despite the situation, Twilight couldn’t help but stare at Shimmer, the way the armor hugged her body, and revealed other parts made her blush hard. She knew that that wasn’t the Sunset she fell in love with, but it was hard to differentiate the two without listening to them.

Pinkie leaned in close to Twilight and asked, “You sneaking glances at my Sunny’s rear?”

“I…I…!”

Pinkie giggled, “Heh, heh, it’s alright, I am too. But no touchy unless given permission.”

Twilight cleared her throat and said, “Y-Yes, understood.”

When the four girls entered the backyard and, once on the patio, Sunset took out her Ember Stone. The ruby colored gemstone glowed a bright red color, and instantly, Sunset was engulfed in raging flames that swirled around her body. In a matter of seconds, the flames died out, revealing Sunset in her own armor and flaming hair.

Pinkie and Twilight blushed now seeing the armored-up forms of their girlfriends, side by side, they were quite attractive.

“Alright, follow me, I know where the precinct is.” Shimmer’s armor sprouted two bat-like metal wings from her back. “Can you keep up?”

Sunset scoffed, her flames erupted around her, solidifying and changing into the form of a motorcycle construct. Sunset mounted the bike and twisted the throttle, making the construct’s engine roar as more flames spewed from the tailpipes. “I should ask you that question.”

Shimmer smirked as she leapt into the air and flew in the direction of the city. Sunset made a few donuts with her bike before shooting off into the air and following right beside Shimmer. From the ground, Twilight and Pinkie could only stand by and watch their loved ones fly off to battle against monsters, but they were comforted by the fact that the Sunsets were both wielding powerful Artifacts, and secondly, that they were both strong women who wouldn’t give up until they won.

“Let’s head inside, maybe the news is reporting on it,” Pinkie suggested.

“Yes, let’s do that.”

Tonight was not a good night for Precinct 17, not only were they getting attacked by the Blood Kings, but an entire city block, their block, was now pitch black. The officers knew enough that nighttime was the time when the Blacknights were at their strongest and when the Sentinels were at their weakest. But that’s with normal Blacknights, what was attacking them was far worse than just Blacknights.

Gaghiel was currently in a standoff with a demonic leopard. The large cat had yellow eyes that shined in the dark, its legs and body were donned in black armor that had wispy shadows wafting off them. Its fur was a dark red, with violet spots, black fangs and claws that gleamed in the dim light that Gaghiel radiated.

“Vile beast! Creation of the Darkness, I, Gaghiel, will end your existence in the name of my Mistress, the Angelus!”

The jaguar chuckled at the liger and replied, “That so? Then let’s play! My name is Flauros, just so you know!”

Gaghiel and Flauros charged and slammed into each other, primal roars echoed in the street as they raked their claws against the others’ armor and biting at any opening they could get. The two beasts rolled on the asphalt until they slammed into a parked car, Flauros kicked off Gaghiel, backed up, and then rammed into the liger’s side, crushing the door and shattering the SUV’s windows from the impact. The SUV t-boned and wrapped around Gaghiel, trapping him. Flauros jumped back again, his body was wrapped in crimson and black shadows, and with a flourish, the demonic beast had transformed.

Flauros had achieved a bipedal form, a man-beast creature with lean muscles rippling under the crimson fur. The armor had adjusted to fit his new form, but now he sported a black cape, and a skull helmet in the shape of a sabretooth tiger’s head, shadows covered his face, allowing only his fierce yellow eyes to be seen. In both hands, Flauros wielded a six-foot, flamberge sword. Flauros scraped the blades of his swords together, producing sparks before he raised them up to cut down Gaghiel.

The Beast of God roared loudly as his body shined bright with light. In less than a second, Gaghiel had achieved his own man-beast form, blocking both of Flauros’ blades with his claw blade gauntlets.

“Good! This’d be boring if I just killed you fast!”

“I’ll bite off your head!”

While this battle was going on, Araquiel was engaged in her own battle, the earth beneath her feet rumbled as she thrust her arms forward. Upon doing so, the ground erupted with two giant spikes made of concrete and rock, both of which aimed right for the Darkness’ servant. The two spikes struck against its chest, pushing it back for a few seconds until the Servant flexed its muscles and shattered the two spikes.

The Servant was at least seven feet tall, all muscle, with four arms that each bore a black armored gauntlet. Its skin was beige in color, with a black helmet that had two curved horns, his mouth was covered by a black face plate, but his yellow eyes were able to be seen. Around his waist was a chainmail skirt, held by a black leather belt, and upon his legs were black greaves.

“Little girl, your elemental power will not make the mighty Guison bend,”said the Servant.

“All things bend to the elements! Only God and the Angelus are above them! You are neither, so you will fall!” Araquiel proclaimed.

Araquiel slammed her right hand against the ground, and immediately after, dozens of rock fists jutted out from the street and began striking at Guison. The brute lashed out with his fists, hitting the fists head on with his own. Despite his great bulk and size, he wasn’t slow, his fists were flying fast in the air. When Guison smashed another of the rock fists, he was caught by surprise. Araquiel had flown through the barrage and was now right in front of him. The Sentinel cocked back her right fist and slammed it against Guison’s face, making the brute of a Servant stumble backwards for a few seconds before he stamped his feet into the ground and regained his balance. Araquiel flew in again and struck him in the gut, sending a shockwave roaring through him and nearly lifted him off the ground.

Guison flexed his muscles and forced Araquiel back, a smirk forming under his helmet. “It seems I underestimated your strength.”

“My strength is the strength of the Earth! My fists carry the full might of the earth itself! Can your fists stand up to that?!” Araquiel asked as she assumed a fighting stance.

Guison chuckled as he knocked both sets of his fists together and said, “It’ll be fun to find out!”

Meanwhile, Ayil was doing her best to provide cover fire for her fellow Sentinels, but her opponent was making it difficult to do so. The Servant she fought bared a three horned crest on his black helmet, the Servant’s gauntlets had long claws, but that didn’t seem to impede his use of his weapons. The Servant was about five-eleven and hunched over, its body was silver colored, with black armor covering its chest, legs, arms, and head. On its back was a whip-like tail that had a sharp blade at the end. In his right hand it wielded a large claymore sword, while his left hand he held a cudgel.

Ayil notched an arrow of light and shot it at the Servant, the Servant, who was surprisingly swift, dodged the arrow and charged for the angelic centaur. Ayil transformed her bow into twin swords, as the Servant came down with its claymore, fortunately, Ayil was able to block it with just her one sword, but she had to jump back as there was no way her sword could block his club.

The Servant sighed as he rested his club on his left shoulder. “You’re really quick for someone with four legs.”

“I am the Archer of the Stars, swiftness, power, and accuracy are my stables! Servant!” Ayil replied.

“Hmm, well, I was thinking this would be quick, but I guess not. My name’s Barbatos, by the way, what’s yours?”Barbatos asked in a neutral voice.

Ayil reformed her bow and notched another light arrow. “I-I have no need to give my name to a Servant of the Darkness!”

“Oh well, doesn’t matter.” Barbatos’ whip-tail launched from his back, slashing the ground as it snaked its way towards Ayil, the angelic centaur ran and fired arrows at Barbatos, forcing him to back away, but he was not deterred.

While this was going on, Hadriel was battling it out with several Blacknights, he used his command of the winds to slice and slam them, but due to the darkness around them, their wounds were healing fast, and Hadriel was getting weaker. While the Sentinels didn’t necessarily grow weaker in darkness, their reserves of energy were depleted faster, and without the light to rejuvenate them, it would only be a matter of time before the Darkness’ forces overwhelmed them.

The officers were held up inside, the Sentinels relegating them to the last line of defense, but right now, that wasn’t much of a comfort. If the Sentinels died, then they would be quickly slaughtered. Shining Armor marshalled some of his fellow officers to create barricades and round up all the flashbangs that they could find. The emergency lighting had already kicked on, but as dim as it was, there was no chance that it would give them an edge over the Blacknights.

Just then, high in the sky, an orange light shined above. That orange light exploded and transformed into a giant fireball that shined bright in the night sky. Barbatos, Flauros, and Guison hissed in pain from the light that was bearing down on them. From that sphere of fire, two beings plummeted down to the ground below, causing a shockwave that ripped through the streets. The Servants and Sentinels ceased their battle long enough to see who it was that dropped in on their fight.

Both Sunsets rose to their feet, one clad in obsidian colored armor and wielding two katanas, and the other donned in fiery armor, her hands still aglow with flames.

“Sorry for the wait,” said Sunset.

“We were trying to figure out the best kind of entrance to make, and it looks like we nailed,” said Shimmer.

“Host of Mistress’ son! Wait, who is that?!” Gaghiel asked.

“Oh, I’m not really your ally. I’m more Witchblade’s, but you can call me Ember,” said Sunset.

“Ember, I got the beast, do you mind taking on the big one?” Shimmer suggested.

“I could use a workout, let’s do it,” said Sunset as she held up her fist.

Shimmer held up her fist and bumped it before both teens dashed off for their opponents. Shimmer clashed swords with Flauros, forcing the man-beast away from Gaghiel as she got into an attack stance.

“This one’s different from a Blacknight,” said Shimmer.

“He is not a Blacknight, he’s a creation of the Darkness!” Gaghiel corrected.

Shimmer looked upon this monster with more scrutiny, this was the first time that Sombra sent out a monster that was created from his own power, unlike the Blacknights who used Tar, which was a piece of the Darkness, to transform into monsters, these things were literally spawned from the primordial being like the Sentinels.

“Fall back, I’ll take him,” said Shimmer.

“I will not disgrace my Mistress by letting a Servant of the Darkness best me!” Gaghiel fumed.

“I honestly don’t care who’s going to fight me, I’m still going to kill you all!” Flauros declared.

Flauros dashed across the street and slashed in a wide arch. Gaghiel and Shimmer jumped in different directions and managed to avoid the attack, Shimmer dashed across the street and began her attack on Flauros. The Servant and Keeper of Balance clashed blades, sending sparks flying with each strike of their swords, the air humming with the ring of metal hitting metal. In a way, Shimmer was grateful that this wasn’t a Blacknight, because it meant she didn’t need to hold back against it.

Shimmer smirked as she dug her heel into the ground, causing it to fracture and buckle under the force of her power. Just then Shimmer shot two chains from her waist that struck the asphalt, the force from their quick deployment sent Shimmer into the air, she released those chains and tossed her swords at Flauros. The Servant deflected the blades but was too slow to dodge Shimmer’s next attack. While Flauros was busy deflecting the two swords, Shimmer formed her giant greatsword and brought it down on Flauros.

The beast warrior tried to block it with his left blade, but the weight and power behind the strike shattered his flamberge and cleaved through his left arm. Flauros’ cries of pain were drowned out when Shimmer’s blade impacted against the ground, sending a shockwave that buffeted and threw Flauros through three lampposts before rolling onto the ground. Flauros felt his black blood oozing out of his wound, he looked to a patch of shadows underneath a car, he concentrated on that shadow and immediately, the shadows rushed to him, accelerating his healing.

“That’s not happening!” Shimmer shouted.

The bearer of the Witchblade jumped into the air, she formed a spear in her left hand and channeled her flames into it, setting the blade on fire. Keeping her eye on her target, Shimmer tossed her spear right at Flauros. The burning weapon pierced through the air as it struck him right in the back. Shimmer pointed her right fist at the spear and shouted, “BURST!”as she flexed her hand.

The spear released a fiery explosion, causing Flauros to disintegrate from the intense heat and light that was emitted from the attack. Shimmer landed next to her spear, satisfied that she had destroyed Flauros. She turned her gaze to Gaghiel and said, “Defend the precinct! We got this!”

Guison was currently in a fist fight with Araquiel, and Araquiel was having a hard time keeping up with his quadruple armored fists. As Guison readied to deliver a powerful punch to the Earth angel, a torrent of flames struck Guison in the chest, pushing the Servant backwards as he tried to weather the flame storm bearing down on him. Once he was backed away, Sunset landed on the ground and readied to attack Guison.

“Ember, is it? Thanks for the assist,” said Araquiel.

“Don’t thank me just yet. I’m not doing this to save you a-holes, I’m here to save the cops! Mostly because a couple of you guys almost killed me and one of my friends!” Sunset spat as her flame hair rose. “For now, these things are my enemy, so step back.”

Flames swirled around Sunset as her body began to change. She grew a tail, flaming wings, claws, a long neck, horns, and rows of razor-sharp teeth. When the roaring flames ended, another roar erupted, one that emanated from the maw of the great fire dragon that stood before them. Unlike Sunset’s previous transformation, she scaled down the dragon form to allow her to match the height of Guison.

“That’s more like it! C’mon big guy, let’s rumble!” Sunset taunted.

Guison cracked his neck and charged without a second thought towards Sunset. The fire dragon roared again as she flapped her wings. The result created an ember laced wind that slammed into Guison, momentarily stopping him, and a moment was all she needed. Sunset cocked back her right fist and drove it into Guison’s face, the blow was strong, but what really hurt more was the light that Sunset’s body was giving off due to her flames. Sunset attacked again, striking Guison right in the stomach with a left uppercut, the flame dragon spun in place and whipped her tail, slamming it into this side and sending the brute into the side of an adjacent building

Guison flexed his muscles and burst free from the concrete, he growled when he felt the sting of the damage that Sunset’s flames did to his face, with his cheek exposing the bones of his jaw and fangs. Still, Gusion charged for Sunset and landed a double punch with his right fists to her midsection. Sunset coughed up smoke from the painful blow, but before she could recover, Guison came down with both his left fists across the right side of her muzzle, sending Sunset to the ground.

The fire dragon growled up at Guison as he prepared to come down with a quadruple hammer fist, but her long tail shot out like a cobra and wrapped itself around his left leg. Sunset’s muzzle angled upwards into a cocky grin, with a flap of her mighty wings, Sunset shot straight into the air, taking Guison with her. Sunset roared mightily as she whipped Guison upwards, and then turned and opened her maw to release a forceful deluge of burning flames right at the brutish demon. The flames impacted against Guison’s chest and propelled him upwards higher and higher.

Guison tried to fight against the flames, but his strength was waning the closer he got to the giant fireball in the sky. The Servant of the Darkness yelled as the light of the fireball and the column of flames destroyed his body, turning him into ash. Sunset huffed out a plume of smoke and polished her claws on her chest.

Araquiel crossed her arms and said, “No one likes a showoff.”

Sunset dismissed her dragon form and smirked at the Sentinel. “Don’t hate ‘cause I’m a badass.”

“AAAAAAAHHHH!”

Sunset, Araquiel, Shimmer, Gaghiel, and Hadriel all watched as Barbatos managed to get in close and stab Ayil through her chest with his claymore. The centaur Sentinel dropped her bow as white ichor flowed from her wound, hands trembling at the sight before her. Barbatos only stared blankly as he pulled back and withdrew his sword, jumped up, and swung down his cudgel, crushing Ayil’s head into her chest. The Sentinel’s body fell over into a white bloody mess on the ground before her body transformed into particles of light.

“Well, that’s one down.” Barbatos glanced to the Sunset and Shimmer as they came walking towards him. “Hmm, I sense part of the Master coming from you. His son, Witchblade. The other, I don’t know what you are.”

Sunset and Shimmer glanced at each other, their eyes meeting for a brief second before they locked onto Barbatos. The twin Sunsets bolted for Barbatos, at the same time, Barbatos took off to meet them head on. Sunset channeled her flames into her right arm and created a giant fist construct, while Shimmer formed a ōdachi. The heroines and demon met at the center, with Shimmer’s blade clanging against Barbatos’ sword at the same time as Sunset’s giant fist impacting against the cudgel. The result from their impacts sent a shockwave that shook the ground and air, and nearly sent a few parked cars into the air.

Barbatos’ stinger tail rose up and launched itself towards Shimmer. The Witchblade armor reacted by shooting out an arrowhead tipped chain from her left shoulder, the chain and stinger struck as their clang resonated in the air, Shimmer pushed Barbatos back with her ōdachi, allowing Sunset to create a second giant fist with her left arm. The two Sunsets began their tandem attack on the Servant, Sunset came in swinging with her fists, the nimble Barbatos dodged her punches, but when one got too close, he struck back with his cudgel, causing Sunset to rebound. But the moment that happened, Shimmer tagged in and swung her long sword in a sweeping motion. Barbatos jumped back as far as he could to avoid the slash and narrowly did as the tip of the ōdachi scratched his chest armor. Shimmer immediately jumped up into the air and then spun rapidly in midair as she descended, turning into a Buzzsaw. Barbatos swung his sword at the incoming Buzzsaw, the moment he made contact, his muscles tightened and his teeth grit, the silver warrior’s feet dug into the asphalt as Shimmer’s attack pushed him back, despite his best efforts, strangely enough, Barbatos’ expression remained neutral, neither showing distress, anger, or glee in this exchange of blows.

Sunset jetted in from the left, making flames erupt from the soles of her feet to accelerate herself towards Barbatos. The wielder of the Ember Stone thrust her right fist forward, that same fist swiftly transforming into a fire serpent as it quickly wrapped itself around Barbatos’ left arm, sinking its fangs into the shoulder armor. Shimmer ceased her attack and changed the ōdachi’s blade into a large chain that snaked around Barbatos’ right arm, with the end turning into a sharp hook that buried itself into Barbatos’ right shoulder pauldron.

“Oh…”

“TIME TO GO FOR A RIDE!” Sunset and Shimmer shouted at the same time.

Shimmer spread her metallic wings and Sunset rose into the air with her jet flames to match Shimmer’s height. Both women released loud cries as they heaved and pulled Barbatos up off the ground and into the air. The twin Sunsets yelled yet again as they threw their arms forward, whipping their chains in that direction and sending the Servant of the Darkness over their heads and plummeting straight down into the ground. Barbatos landed with a loud “BOOM” into the street, making a crater at least three feet deep.

“READY?!”

“YEAH!”

Shimmer and Sunset stood side to side, with Shimmer’s right hand thrust forward and Sunset’s left hand right beside it. Their hands ignited with flames, those flames mingled with the others and transformed into a fireball that grew bigger and bigger with each passing second. Barbatos stood up from the crater and looked straight up to see his enemies preparing to strike, but he had no intention of dodging their attack.

Both Sunsets shouted their battle cry as they fired their combined fireball. The swirling mass of fire crackled and roared as it blazed, hurtling itself right for the crater. Barbatos met the fireball with its sword and cudgel, the resulting explosion shook everyone off their feet, making even the Blacknights stop their assault. Sunset and Shimmer hovered in the air and waited to see if that attack was enough to fell Barbatos.

Suddenly, the howl of a wolf shattered their confidence in his demise. Barbatos rose up, his left arm was missing, his armor cracked, parts of his body were burned, and others were trying to reform but remained as wispy shadows. The silver Servant still had his helmet and stinger tail, but his yellow eyes shifted to a blood red color, the quick movement of his head to look up at the Sunsets created red streaks in his wake.

“Looks like this one’s made tougher than the others,” said Shimmer.

“I can get tough too! Just let me–!”

Shimmer raised her right hand in a stopping gesture. “I’ll take care of it. Ready, partner?”

}}} You’re asking if I’m ready to cut down another of my Father’s creations? Is that even a question? {{{

Shimmer smirked, her red gemstone shined brighter as she released a loud battle cry. Sunset backed away as she watched Shimmer’s body burst into crimson flames, and when they died down her armor had changed, turning to a crimson red color, the gemstones became violet, Shimmer’s hair changed to silver, and her eyes shifted to a gold color with wisps of golden energy coming from the corners of her eyes. And, on top of all that, she couldn’t help but notice that Shimmer’s womanly proportions were given more definition, even her height was increased a little. Her metallic bat wings transformed, becoming metallic feathered wings, Shimmer smirked as she got ready to attack Barbatos.

Shimmer briefly eyed Sunset, noticing her surprise over the transformation. “Like what you see?”

“Uh…I…how’s that fair?! I change and become a dragon, you change, and you become a bombshell!” Sunset grossed.

“Don’t hate ‘cause I’m hot.”

Barbatos howled and jumped into the air with amazing speed, the red streaks of his eyes were the only thing that could be seen as he appeared before Shimmer. His clawed right hand shot forward and grabbed her by the throat and then took her further into the air and away from the battlefield.

Sunset and Barbatos landed a few meters away, crashing through one building after the other before finally stopping in the middle of the road. They were further away from the fireball that was acting like a makeshift sun, the area around them was covered in shadows, something that Barbatos needed. His wounds weren’t healing as fast, but that didn’t bother him. Sunset’s armor produced three metal claws from each arm, she raked both claws together, causing sparks to fly that lit up the area around her. In the shadows, most of what could be seen were their glowing eyes, one pair red as blood and the other golden.

The street beneath their feet buckled as they took off, streaks of red and gold following close behind in their wake. Barbatos leaped into the air and used his stinger tail to strike at Sunset. But like a baseball player, she slid against the asphalt, causing sparks to scatter about as she dodged the tail. Sunset vaulted off the ground, spun in the air and reformed her metal wings. With a single flap, dozens of knife-like feathers showered Barbatos, the demon used his tail to whip the feathers out of the air before they could reach him, but that was merely a distraction as Sunset flew in and thrust her left arm towards him.

Three blades pierced through Barbatos’ damaged chest armor and came out the other end. Despite this, Barbatos didn’t seem to care about his injury, or the ones he sustained earlier due to the combined fireball attack. Barbatos wrapped his clawed hand around Sunset’s forearm and tore her tri-claws from his chest, another loud wolf howl rang through the air as Barbatos whipped Sunset up and threw her straight to the ground. The impact created an earthquake that shattered the windows around them, however, when Barbatos landed the ground shook again.

Five crimson chains burst forth from the street like demonic sandworms, each one fitted with an arrowhead blade that was burning with crimson flames. The first two zipped along the ground and wrapped themselves around his ankles, the third coiled around his right forearm, and the fourth around his neck. The fifth was currently engaged with Barbatos’ stinger tail, the blade tip and the chain clashed in the air until the arrowhead morphed into a pincer, that same pincer clamped itself at the base of the blade. All five chains were pulled taut, anchoring Barbatos to one spot.

Sunset emerged from her crater with a bow in her left hand. She entered an archer’s stance as the drawstring formed by her mental command. As she drew, an arrow formed from the armor, and was coated in the crimson flames. “You were a tough one, but it’s over.”

“Yeah…that’s too bad. I was having fun,” said Barbatos in his neutral tone.

}}} SUNSET, HE’S HERE! {{{

Before Sunset could launch her arrow, a black mass formed beneath her. Tendrils jutted out from the mass, each one was eel-like, displaying razor sharp teeth and glowing red eyes. Sunset dismissed her bow and formed two bastard swords, she spun in place and slashed the air, sending out a wave of crimson flames. The flames cut through the tendrils, making them hiss in pain. Sunset took this chance to jump out of the mass, but another eel tendril sprang out of the shadow and sank its teeth into her left leg. The fangs pierced the armor, sending pain shooting up Sunset’s leg.

The tendril whipped her to the left, slamming her into a parked car, and then to the right, through the wall of a brick building. That same tendril tore her out of the building and prepared to slam her down again, but Sunset willed the armor around her leg to produce dozens of spikes, and on command, the spikes sprouted, twelve inches long. The spikes pierced through the head of the eel tendril, making the light in its eyes go out as it released her. Sunset dismissed the spikes and landed on the street, going down on her right knee as she waited for her leg to heal.

However, it seemed that Sombra wasn’t going to allow her the chance to do that. The host of the Darkness jumped straight up from the mass of shadows and fired his hand cannon at her. The mass of black and gray energy sailed through the air and struck Sunset in the chest, exploding in a warbling, thunder-like sound that threw her further back.

Sombra chased after Sunset, using his gatling pistol to fire multiple shots at her. Sunset formed a shield with her left arm as the pellets of black and yellow energy impacted against it. She flipped around and planted her feet against the street, cutting grooves into it as she came to a halt. Sunset released a jet of flames with her right hand down the street, Sombra saw this and jumped away from the flames, but at that moment, Sunset had propelled herself into the air and readied to deck Sombra. The Wielder of Darkness used his armor fist to meet her own, the impact caused a more powerful shockwave to erupt throughout the block as father and son clashed. Both of their hosts grunted as they pushed against the other’s fist, their auras raging around them, creating sparks of electricity in the air.

“This ends tonight Sombra! This war! Your corruption! ALL OF IT!” Sunset declared.

“I may be bad kid, but at least I’m upfront about it! Can you say the same about the Angelus?!” Sombra asked.

“Right now, I’m more focused on you!”

The Balance Bringer and Darkness Wielder broke off and landed back on the street. Sunset summoned a fantasy sword-like weapon, which was oversized but weighed as much as a feather. Sombra created a large battleax, the metal around the flat looked deformed as if it had grown veins. The two hosts met at the center as their weapons impacted against each other, a flurry of slashes took place as Sunset and Sombra crossed blades.

“Do you think you can trust that broad?! You’ve seen the way she kills my guys! Hell, her ‘angels’ kill the ones who surrender!”

Sunset and Sombra’s blades crashed against each other, both locking in place. “I don’t like it! But this will all end when the Darkness is beaten!”

“Kid don’t be naïve; I can tell you’re smarter than that! Do you honestly think that Angelus will stop when I’m dead and the Darkness is gone? Hell no! She’s me, but she knows how to win people’s trust and make ‘em like her, convince them that her way is the only way! She’s like a fuckin’ politician on steroids!”

Sombra pushed Sunset back, raised his left fist, and struck the ground. The street buckled and exploded upwards, sending a plume of dust into the air. Sunset jumped up and landed on the rooftops, she scanned the area quickly, not wanting to let Sombra get away. Her chance to end this bloodbath was tonight and she was not about to let it slip by.

Sunset’s eyes narrowed as she jumped up, just as Sombra’s black ax slashed in a wide arch. The Bringer of Balance flipped around and landed a few feet away from where Sombra was, entering an attack stance as she readied to charge him again.

“Listen kid, at the end of the day, we’re not so different,” said Sombra.

Sunset scoffed. “Please, we couldn’t be more different! I’m not some scumbag gang leader looking to upend a city to rule as their own personal kingdom!”

Sombra turned around, and, for some reason, Sunset could feel that he was smirking under his face mask. “That true? ‘Cause I can feel it, you weren’t always the righteous hero. Nah, not with that aura about you. Tell me the truth, you were a bad girl or somethin’, right? Probably did some really bad shit.”

Sunset flinched. “H-How…?”

Sombra’s eyes glowed. “The Darkness gives me some other neat abilities. For instance, allowing me to see into your soul. I wasn’t paying attention before, but I can see it now, you’re not completely human.”

“What of it?”

Sombra shrugged. “Nothing, but I can also sense emotions, like regret. There’s a lot of that wafting off ya, along with pride and anger. Like I said, we ain’t that different.”

Sunset growled and yelled, “THE HELL WE ARE!!!” Sunset raised her sword and slashed forward, sending a crimson fire crescent straight for Sombra. The Darkness Wielder slashed the air as well, sending his own dark crescent to meet hers. The two crescents struck each other and exploded, caving in the roof.

Sombra and Sunset burst forth from the debris and squared off. “Look, kid, I don’t want to kill you. ‘Cause at the end of the day, Angelus is going to kill us both. Hell, I’m pretty sure she’d be happy if we kill each other. Work with me kid, you can’t trust Angelus.”

“And I can trust you?!”

“At least I’m more honest about what I’m doin’ and what I want, unlike that fake angel of mercy,” said Sombra.

“Even if I wanted to, there’s someone important to me who’s acting as her host! I can’t run the risk of going against the Angelus until I can figure out a way to make sure she’s safe!”

Sombra raised his left and flexed his digits as a somber look appeared on his face, or at least what could be interpreted as one due to his armor. “I feel ya kid, but…she’s too dangerous to everyone, includin’ you and me. So…forgive me.”

Suddenly everything went black, and followed shortly after that, a massive explosion went off, destroying the building and making the entire structure crumble down to the ground. A fiery comet raced across the sky and flew down to the street across from the demolished structure.

“Oh shit…WITCHBLADE?!” There was no response. “Shit!” She rushed towards the pile of debris and started making constructs to dig.

However, her efforts were stopped when the flames erupted from the center, burning a hole through the debris. From that hole, Shimmer emerged, her armor had changed back to its standard obsidian color, no longer in its crimson state.

Sunset ran towards her double and threw her arms around her, hugging her interdimensional twin. “Fucking hell, you scared me! I thought you were dead!”

Shimmer chuckled. “Well, I did die twice, technically, so a third time wouldn’t be off the table. But don’t worry, I’m alright. Are Shining and the police okay?”

Sunset released Shimmer and surveyed the damage. “Yeah, after that last demon dragged you away, I made them run away when I turned into my dragon form again. But wow, you really did a number on this place, did that wolf demon thing give you that much trouble?”

Shimmer’s eyes widened when she remembered she was fighting Barbatos before Sombra arrived. She moved past Sunset and back into the streets, and unfortunately, Barbatos was gone, the remnants of the damage her chains did was still evident. “Dammit!”

“You didn’t kill him?”

“…Sombra appeared.”

Sunset’s gasped a bit from hearing his name. “That guy who has the Darkness! He showed up?! You fought him?!”

“Yep.”

Sunset fumed. “Son of a bitch, I knew I should’ve come to back you up sooner! That’s it, next time, I’m not leaving you alone!”

Shimmer placed her hands on her hips and cocked an eyebrow. “Wow, someone’s acting like a big sister. Y’know, we never really established who is the big sister.”

“Well that’s obvious, I am. This is my world, so I was born first.”

Shimmer chuckled. “Well, technically, I was. Back in Equestria, before I leaped through the portal, I was a fully grown, twenty-one-year-old mare.”

Sunset shook her head. “Yeah, I’m calling bullshit.”

“Let’s go check on Shining Armor, and then I’ll make you eat crow after,” said Shimmer as she summoned her wings.

“Ha! If you’re telling the truth, I’ll go commando for a week,” said Sunset.

“Make it two weeks and you’ve got a…whoa…” Shimmer stumbled a bit, feeling dizzy.

Sunset hurried to her twin’s side and asked, “Hey, you alright? Maybe we should head back to my place instead?”

Shimmer shook her head in the negative as she smiled. “Nah, I’m alright, just tired. It happens whenever I use that form, drains me a lot. C’mon.”

Sunset and Shimmer flew into the air, with the former keeping an eye on the latter. What Sunset didn’t notice was that there was a faint black spot in the center of Witchblade’s red gemstone.

Author's Note

Drawing Battle Lines Arc: End

In case anyone was wondering, I used actual demon and angel names for the Sentinels and Servants. Well, another Arc down, it's getting exciting now. And it only it gets crazier from here! Anyway, I'll be working on the next arc and should have something up by next week. Sorry for the late update. Stay safe out there!

Dark Truths / Light Lies Part 2

Sombra was once again in the strange medieval land. And once again he was relegated to an observer as he followed Stygian and Star Swirl down into the old mage’s workshop. Inside numerous beakers were lined up along a table, each one filled with unknown substances, some bubbling, some sparkling, and others frothing at the top. On another table were open books, magic circles drawn with chalk and different minerals strewn around it. There was a whole side of the room that was filled with tomes on magic, magical creatures, alchemy, medicine, astronomy, astrology, and mathematics.

Stygian knew that there were many in the kingdom that thought Star Swirl was a bit “out there”, making deals with devils in exchange for arcane information that was not meant for mortal men. But Stygian knew different, Star Swirl was the greatest wizard of all time, and those who studied under him were almost guaranteed to become great sorcerers themselves. Like his former pupil, Clover the Clever, his use of magic was, well, clever, weaving spells in ways that threw other wizards off kilter, dark and light alike. However, Star Swirl’s magical prowess was only matched by his intelligence. Mapping the stars and giving names to them, as if plucking the information from the future and jotting it down for the people of this world to only dare grasp.

Star Swirl often acted as the advisor to King Coal, he was a merry old soul, but did require assistance from time to time. The old mage stopped before one of his workbenches and took out some scrolls.

“My young Stygian, tell me, have your dreams still been troubled of late?”

Stygian flinched at the mention of those dreams. The young lad had been having some nightmares, they weren’t terrible, not at first. But they had been getting stronger as the years went by, the worst of them only occurred during his birthday, which was to come at midnight tonight. “Not as much, not since you provided me that charm, what did you call it again, Master?”

“A ‘Dreamcatcher’, I traveled across the sea to another land, and found the native shamans to be very in tune with the spirits of nature. I spent a great deal of time learning their ways, and one of them was the crafting of a Dreamcatcher, the web of strings is meant to catch the nightmares and negative energy, preventing it from entering your sleeping mind,” said Star Swirl.

<^> Hehehehe, old fool. Strings and wood cannot keep me at bay…<^>

Stygian briefly glanced over his shoulder and found no one. That voice, that dark, hissing voice had been getting louder as of late. It was at first a murmur, then a whisper, until it finally started to get louder, it was like each year it was getting closer and closer to him, at first far away, but now, now it sounded as if the voice was hovering just mere inches from his ear. Stygian had more often than not glanced over his shoulder, during the day the voice didn’t speak up as much, but whenever he was in the dark, it got louder, especially at night.

Sombra crossed his arms as he watched Stygian and Star Swirl go into their lesion, he was mildly interested in what was going on, ever since learning about the Darkness, he also learned that magic was real, so seeing it being taught from authentic wizards was kind of a treat. However, something was bothering him about all this.

“Okay, so this kid can hear the Darkness. A past host like me then? So, why now? What is it that you’re trying to show me, Styg?”

Hours flew by in a matter of seconds, to Sombra it was like watching someone hit fast forward on a remote control. Before he knew it, Stygian and Star Swirl bid each other farewell, Stygian noticed that it was already night, and that the moon was a waning crescent. He knew that he should probably head home, but something urged him to stay, a feeling, a crawling feeling, like a warning. Without thinking about it, Stygian managed to flag down one of Princess Platinum’s handmaidens and asked to send the Princess a message to meet her at the northwest parapet. It was a place they used to often meet as it gave a beautiful view of the forest and mountains.

Stygian made the trek through the castle and up some stairs until he was at the northwest parapet. He gazed out into the distance, he gained some peace in the view and in the night. Even though night was the time when the voice was loudest, he felt safe in the shadows. Stygian hoped that this wasn’t a sign of his affinity, he remembered a lesson from Star Swirl that all mages’ magic had an affinity for different elements, fire, earth, wind, water, lightning, metal, light, and…darkness. Some mages could command multiple elemental powers, others just one, Stygian took a test that should’ve shown him his affinity.

It consisted of placing your hands on a crystal ball that was imbued with multiple elements, when a new mage placed their hands on the crystal ball, the orb would glow either one or multiple colors to show their affinity. When Stygian did it, it remained gray, whenever he cast a spell, it wasn’t weak, but neither was it overly strong, just decent.

“Did I keep you waiting long?”

Stygian turned around and watched as Princess Platinum walked towards him, still dressed her royal garb. “Not at all, I just got here myself, it was quite a long journey.”

Platinum giggled as she joined him at the railing. “Liar, how many times have we come here? You know all the shortcuts to this spot, as do I. You’re just being polite, as always.”

Stygian rubbed the back of his head. “Is that a bad thing?”

Platinum turned her head towards him and smiled. “No, it’s quite endearing.”

“Still, probably not the best thing to call you out in this late hour, it’s nearly midnight, I wouldn’t want your guard to throw a fit,” said Stygian sincerely.

“Forget it, it keeps them on their toes you know.” Platinum reached into her robe and pulled out a ring. “Actually, I’m glad you asked me out, I wanted to give you a present before tomorrow came around.”

Stygian looked at the ring, it was sterling silver, with a finely cut ruby gemstone at the center of it, the young mage’s eyes widened with shock at the piece of jewelry. He wasn’t a jeweler, but even Stygian could tell that the ring would be worth a small fortune.

Sombra whistled when he saw the ring. “Damn kid, that’s a nice rock. She definitely likes you.”

“Platinum, thank you, but what do you mean before tomorrow?” Stygian asked.

The young Princess walked up to Stygian, she took his hand and slipped the ring over his ring finger on his right hand. “We’ve been getting reports of movement on the eastern border. The Kingdom of Swarel is threatening to go to war with us, unless we give up the land.”

Stygian furrowed his brow. “That’s ludicrous! That kingdom is run by a bunch of barbarians! There are many villages on the eastern border, if we give it to them, they’ll…they’ll…!”

“Rape, murder, pillage, and plunder as is their way. They will enslave our subjects, my father is suggesting negotiating with them for just the land and to allow us time to relocate our people, but it seems like they’re itching for a fight,” said Platinum with disdain. She turned away and glared out in the general direction of Swarel. “I wish they would burn.”

Stygian raised his hand to place it on Platinum’s shoulder but hesitated and pulled back. “I understand your anger, I don’t particularly hold any fondness for them. But we can’t damn all their people, surely as is with most, they are following the ways of those who are in power.”

Platinum stroked her chin as she began to think. “Then, perhaps it is time for a change in regime? Show their people a better way of living that doesn’t involve so much death?”

<^> But death is fun…especially when you’re the one bringing it to their wretched heads…! <^>

Stygian had to stifle a groan when he heard the hissing voice.

Platinum glanced over her shoulder and smiled coyly. “Stygian, I saw you hesitate to touch me.”

“Oh…um…”

The Princess turned around and placed her hands on her hips. “Are you afraid that your hand’s going to fall off if you do? Am I plagued?”

“W-What? No!” Stygian stated quickly.

“Then touch me, you’re one of the few people in this kingdom, the world quite frankly, that I trust enough to place their hands on me,” said Platinum honestly.

Stygian didn’t know what to say, or what to do as he tried to digest her words.

Sombra nudged him, which passed through him, and said, “I think she’s giving you the green light, kid.”

Still holding her coy smile, Platinum turned around and gently grabbed both of his wrists. She then guided those hands right atop her breasts, making Stygian lock up his body, freezing himself in place as his brain tried to process what was happening right now.

“These should be familiar to you, but I’m sure they’ve gotten bigger since the last time your hands were upon them,” said Platinum as she stared into Stygian’s eyes.

Stygian could only stutter and babble nonsense as he tried to form a coherent thought about what his hands were feeling right now, even through her clothes, Stygian could feel the curves of the Princess’ generous mounds. Yes, he indeed remembered that time long ago, as embarrassing as that is to admit, when he accidentally fell atop of the Princess and his hands landed on her budding chest. Since then his hands hadn’t forgotten the feeling, but now that moment in time was rapidly being replaced with this current sensation.

“P-P-Platinum! Y-You shouldn’t do that! Y-You’re a Princess and I’m just some apprentice mage from the slums!” Stygian argued.

“An apprentice mage, and a boy whom I trust very much with all my heart, even my body,” said Platinum. “In all my life you were and are the only one who sees past my royal airs, that moment in time when we were young was one of the happiest moments in my life. Because for that time, I could play like any normal child, and you treated me like one.”

Platinum released his wrists.

“I love being a princess, I love serving my people, but more than that, I want to be with someone who isn’t a prick of a pigheaded man, and you fit that description quite well. So, now, the choice is yours, Stygian, how do you want to proceed. Because right now, the only thing that’s keeping your hands on my chest is you.”

Stygian took a moment to look down at his hands and realized that Platinum had indeed removed her hands from his wrists. The young mage swallowed hard as his mind raced, trying to figure out what his next move should be. Platinum was essentially confessing her love for him, and Stygian would be lying if he hadn’t at least entertained the thought of being with Platinum, not just in a sexual way, but as possibly more if she’d have him. But he’d managed to keep all that buried and stay as a friend to her, believing that that was all he could be to her, a friend. As it turned out, she did want a friend, and for that friend to be Stygian, but another level of friendship.

“Y-You would…you and I?” Stygian asked.

Platinum leaned forward pressing his hands harder against her soft bosom. “Only you and me. However…if a night is all you wish; I am not opposed to that. I’d rather know a night with someone who cares about me, than one who only cares about their own pleasure.”

Stygian shook his head vehemently at that suggestion. “No! I’d never do something so boorish as to bed you! I will…I will be with you, Platinum…I…I love you.”

Sombra nodded his head and smirked. “Good choice kid, she’s quite the catch. Oop, good part’s comin’ up.”

Stygian and Platinum started to lean forward, their eyes closing slowly as their lips gently pressed against each other, a chaste kiss at first, but then evolved into something more passionate. The young mage released his hands from the Princess’ chest and wrapped them around her waist, while the Princess looped her arms around the mage’s neck. The two were lost in their own world, feeling years of pent up affection for the other finally coming to the surface and being released.

<^> Death approaches…! Be on guard! <^>

Be silent you malevolent voice, this is a moment I wish to cherish, and I will not let you sour it!

<^> The insect who threatened you, he is close! There are others nearby, run, buy time…! <^>

Insect…? Gallant?!

Stygian abruptly ended their kiss and scanned the area, when he turned around he saw the knight from earlier that day, Gallant, slowly approach them. Platinum took notice as well and fixed the knight with an annoyed glare.

“Heh, heh, what do we have here? Forcing yourself on the Princess? That’s grounds for execution little slum mage, you really fucked yourself this time,” Gallant accused.

Platinum put herself in front of Stygian and said, “Stygian did no such thing! I initiated this! I wanted Stygian to kiss me! And for that matter, why are you here, Gallant?! If I recall correctly, you’re to be guarding the wall and the Captain should’ve kept you there!”

Gallant stroked his stubbled chin. “Oh, yes, you did Princess. You see, he and I had a little talk, told him my talents were wasted on that wall.”

Platinum crossed her arms over her chest and fixed him with a death glare. “Oh, and what did he say?”

Gallant smirked and stepped forward, allowing what torch light and moonlight that was shining to illuminate Gallant. In his left hand was a dagger, and the blade was coated in red. “Let’s just say that he won’t be saying much of anything anymore.”

Both Stygian and Platinum froze in place, eyes wide with fear as they noticed that Gallant’s dagger was covered in blood. Stygian began muttering under his breath, starting a spell. Platinum could hear his faint muttering and knew that he was going to do something, the only thing that kept his actions hidden was her position.

Gathering her courage, Platinum stared angrily at the murderous knight. “How dare you! You killed your own captain?! What madness has befallen you?!”

Gallant chuckled. “No, Princess, not madness, clarity. I know about the invasion from Swarel, and that they seek to take our lands, but I know their ambition is greater than that. They will forge a path all the way to this stronghold and take all of us! Despite their barbarous ways of fighting, they are efficient in the art of killing. So efficient, that they know how to battle even mages, and know how to sneak into a stronghold.”

A whistling sound cut through the air, Stygian felt something sink into his right shoulder, causing pain to erupt through that point and down his arm. The force of the blow made him stumble forward, Platinum turned around and gasped when she saw a crossbow bolt penetrating his right shoulder, warm blood spilling from the wound and staining his tunic.

“Stygian!” Platinum cried.

At that moment, multiple explosions took place on the far end of the castle. Both teens watched as flames erupted from those points, creating dim, orangey light.

“Heh, heh, a distraction, all our forces will be heading to those points, which are far away from us, you can scream all you want, but there’s no one coming to save you,” said Gallant.

Stygian glared at Gallant, but with few simple words, Stygian’s left hand glowed bright with violet energy. He lifted his hand up quickly, prepared to launch his spell at the traitorous knight, but another crossbow bolt was loosed, this one striking him in the lower back, sending greater surges of pain to spread through his body. The pain, unfortunately, made him lose his concentration and with it the violet glow of his spell. Stygian was forced onto his knees as blood seemed from the wound on his back, but what was worse, he knew from the location of the pain, that the bolt must’ve hit a vital organ inside as he could feel something wrong inside.

“Yeah, I’m willing to wager that an experienced mage like Star Swirl might’ve been able to fire off a few spells before that happened, hell, probably might’ve had a ward around his body. Enough pain will make any man lose their concentration, only if they’re not strong of mind, which, apparently, you’re not, Stygian!” Gallant mocked.

Platinum went down on one knee and tried to prop up her dear friend and lover. “Stygian, stay with me, you’ll be alright!” The Princess looked over Stygian’s shoulder and watched as five men came walking towards them, one was armed with a crossbow, two with drawn swords, one with claw gauntlets, and another with a Morningstar. They were clothed in black robes and hoods that obscured their faces, but they all had a golden eye symbol emblazoned onto their cloaks.

<^> Just a little more…<^>

Stygian’s vision was getting a little blurry, but he could see that Platinum was right in front of him, trying to keep him awake. But the moment his vision came back into focus, Gallant came up behind Platinum and hooked his arm around her neck, jerking upwards to make the Princess stand up as he squeezed his arm tighter around her. Platinum struggled as she was forcefully stood up, feeling the armor press against her neck and coming close to cutting off her air supply.

“L-Let me GO!” Platinum demanded.

“Oh, I will, once we get to Swarel, and stop your squirming!” Gallant raised his dagger up with his left hand and pointed it at Platinum’s face, making the Princess go still. “That’s right, hey, slum mage!”

Stygian, weakly, raised his head up. The assassins gathered around and readied to kill him, but Gallant gestured for them to wait.

“I’m not as terrible as you think, I’ll at least give you something good to see before you die,” said Gallant with a vicious, devious grin.

Gallant lowered his blade to where Platinum’s cleavage was barely visible. The traitorous knight ran the blade downwards, piercing through fabric like a hot knife through butter, and with one swift stroke, he sliced open her dress. Gallant sheathed his dagger and used his free left hand to pull at the tear, exposing Platinum’s chest and stomach to the men before her. Her face went red with embarrassment, shame, and anger at what was happening to her and Stygian.

“Get a good look pissant peasant!” Gallant brought his left hand to Platinum’s left breast and groped it hard, earning a hiss of pain from the Princess. “This is probably the only pair of tits you’ll ever get to lay eyes on!”

Sombra’s mind flashed back to the night his family was killed, when the love of his life was taken from him; he couldn’t take this anymore Sombra yelled with absolute fury, he dashed towards Gallant and threw a punch, but just as before, he passed right through Gallant and Platinum. He stumbled for a minute but doubled back to try and take out the assassins. Again, it was no use, he was a phantom observer, and nothing he did would change these events. “Goddamn bastards! Not again…!”

Stygian’s fear of death was quickly being replaced with rage, and a fervent wish to kill these men, more so, to eviscerate Gallant for even daring to touch her.

<^> Do you wish to save her? <^>

YES!

<^> Then…happy birthday, Stygian…! <^>

At first, Stygian felt cold, but then that cold was replaced with invigorating power. The pain was erased, the fear was erased, the anger was gone, replaced by a cold fury. Sombra watched as Stygian raised his head, his eyes shining aquamarine as he was then engulfed by shadows, making the assassins and Gallant back away from him.

Sombra knew what this was, he was wondering why he was seeing this kid, but now it made sense, he really was a host of the Darkness.

The shadows rose until they were about the standing height of Stygian, those same shadows melted away from his body, revealing Stygian, but not as he once was. The young mage was clad in armor, rune marks were carved along the arms, legs, and chest, in the middle of the chest was a raven design, the slanted eyes of the avian creature were replaced with amethyst gemstones. A cloak of dark shadows rested over his shoulders and draped all the way down to his ankles, while a hood made of shadows was pulled over his head. When Stygian looked up, Gallant and Platinum gasped, his face was covered by an armored mask, the eyes were glowing, and for some reason, Gallant knew those eyes were looking right at him.

“S-Stygian…?” Platinum asked.

“Don’t worry, Platinum, everything will be fine now.”

Gallant sneered at the young mage, and redoubled his hold on Platinum, this time grabbing the knife and holding it close to Platinum’s heart. “Very nice spell, but no matter what illusion magic you use, it won’t scare me or them!”

“You’re wrong, Gallant, this is no illusion. I assure you.” Stygian’s voice was distorted as he spoke, focusing his attention on Gallant. “I’ll give you a chance to let her go, or else.”

“Or else what?!”

“Or else I’ll make you. Your friends can leave or die, let’s make that their choice.”

“FUCK YOU!” Gallant yelled.

Stygian nodded. Gallant raised his hand to stab the Princess, but a black tendril shot out of Stygian’s robe and latched itself around his hand, forcing Gallant to drop the knife. Another one lashed out and wedged itself between his right arm and Platinum. The tendril forced him to release her, allowing Platinum to fall to the ground, coughing as she held her sore neck.

“Platinum, please, close your eyes. I don’t want you seeing what happens next.”

Without any hesitation, Platinum shut her eyes tight and kept her head down. The assassin with the claw gauntlets charged forward and stabbed Stygian in the back, however, something was wrong. The assassin didn’t feel any resistance, the typical feeling of when a blade pierces flesh and bone, no, it was like he was stabbing air. That’s when he noticed that half his arm had disappeared into the shadow cloak. Stygian glanced over his shoulder, and in the next moment, a crunching sound was heard as the man screamed in pain. When he pulled back, the assassin found that half his arm was gone.

The assassin didn’t have much time to contemplate about his missing arm before an eel tendril exited the cloak and struck like a cobra, clamping its jaws around his throat and holding the assassin aloft in the air. Gargled cries of help came from the assassin, but were silenced when the creature bit down harder, piercing through the carotid arteries and spraying the man’s blood into the air. Stygian threw up a barrier around Platinum, keeping the blood from ever touching her.

The assassin with the crossbow fired a few of his bolts at him, but like the previous assassin, the bolts only seemed to disappear into the dark cloak, as if it wasn’t cloth at all, but rather, a void. A razor-sharp tendril snaked out of the cloak and impaled the crossbow assassin through his stomach. The two assassins with swords realized that attacking him from the back wasn’t safe, so they slipped around and began striking from the front. The first assassin slashed with his sword, but the moment his blade impacted his armor, it cracked and chipped. The second assassin thrust forward, but the sword broke in half upon contact.

Stygian summoned two more eel tentacles, both of which shot towards their opponents and pierced through their chests. The creatures came back out, beating hearts clinched between their jaws. The assassins managed to stay alive just long enough to watch the eels chow down on their beating organs before falling to the ground, dead. The last assassin tried to strike with his Morningstar, but the moment he swung it, Stygian caught the spiked ball in his right hand, causing the assassin to freeze in fear. Stygian crushed the ball of iron as if it was paper, ripped the iron ball off its chain and smashed it into his face, caving it in.

All the assassins were dead, save for Gallant. Stygian walked up to him, the glowing eyes narrowed to slits as he looked him in the eyes. “You betrayed our kingdom, and you were going to defile Platinum.”

“S-S-S-Stygian, please! I-I-I was forced to do it! They were going to kill me if they didn’t! I’m sorry! I had to make it convincing! P-Princess Platinum–!”

“SILENCE!” The tendrils around Gallant’s arms constricted until the bones snapped, making Gallant cry out in pain. “You are never to speak her name! Do you know what the punishment is for traitors? Beheading. But for you, I’ll grant you a far worse death that’ll make you long for the blade of the executioner!”

Several more eel tendrils rose from the cloak, all of them hissing and snarling as their red eyes locked onto Gallant, they could smell his fear, and it made them salivate. Gallant’s eyes grew as wide as saucer plates as ten eel tendrils surrounded him. A single bead of sweat fell from Gallant’s chin, that drop fell down, down, down, until it splattered against the stones below. That single drop was like a dinner bell to them, the eels began tearing into Gallant, tearing out chunks of his flesh, taking great care to not nick any arteries, they wanted him to feel every moment of his painful, agonizing death.

When they were done, the eels were fighting over his heart, tearing it to pieces between all ten of them until one finally got the whole of it and swallowed it. What remained of Gallant was a bloody mess of shredded organs and broken bones. Stygian released the barrier around Platinum and kneeled before her.

With a quivering voice, the Princess asked, “Is…Is it over?”

“Yes…it is…although, it’s probably best that you keep your eyes closed until we move away from here, and…I don’t want to frighten you.”

Platinum steeled herself and slowly opened her eyes, Stygian turned away, afraid to have Platinum see his armored face. But the Princess reached out and gently placed her right hand on his left cheek and turned his head so that she could look upon him. When she did, Platinum did not startle, she cried. She threw her arms around Stygian, surprising the young mage for a moment before he wrapped his arms around her.

“I could never be afraid of the person who saved my life! I love you, Stygian!” Platinum declared.

Stygian felt his heart swell with love for Platinum, holding her tight, but making sure not to hurt her with his newly formed armor.

Sombra smiled wanly at the scene before him, part of him wishing that the Darkness had appeared sooner, or that time had gone by quicker so that he could get it before they killed Hope.

“The Darkness always seems like a godsend, at first.” Sombra jumped when he heard Stygian’s and saw that he was standing next to him. “That’s how it lures you.”

“What are you trying to tell me, Kid? Why are you showing me this?” Sombra asked. “I get you were a host to the Darkness, but why are you reaching out to me?”

“You don’t have control, Sombra. Not like you believe you do.”

Sombra scoffed at that. “Says you, I worked for years to rein in the Darkness, and I have.”

Stygian shook his head as he chuckled. “You think you do, as did I. But you’ll see…and as far as why I am reaching out to you, our lives are more intertwined together than just the bond of being a host to the Darkness.” A rumble came across the world and shadows began to engulf it. “Better that I end our story time now, the Darkness doesn’t always see everything, so we’ll meet again, sooner than you think.”

Before Sombra could inquire further, the shadows had swallowed everything…

Sunset was nervous today, she was going to talk to Limestone, one on one. Their last encounter was when she came in and accused Sunset of cheating on Pinkie with another girl, before that there was the animosity she felt from her when Sunset came to their house to pick up Pinkie and show off her new bike. Now, this would be the third time they’ve met, if they met. When Pinkie came to Sunset that morning saying that she managed to talk Limestone into talking with her, she was conflicted. There were some things she wanted to clear up or at the very least get answers.

Sunset had decided to meet her at a restaurant with a bar, Limestone was twenty, although something told Sunset that Lime had probably had a few even before she was of legal drinking age. Sunset looked at her bracelet and asked, “What do you think my chances of this going well are?”

}}}……{{{

Sunset sighed, Witchblade had been silent since the night they battled against Sombra. To be honest, she didn’t blame him. Ever since the appearance of the Darkness and Angelus, Witchblade has been on edge, but then again, if Sunset saw her mother and father for the first time after so many years, she’d feel the same way too. In a way, they were both estranged from their parents, Sunset’s mother and father had, at one time, just been normal unicorn ponies, yes they were scrimping by and on the fringes, but they were doing alright. But then she got into Celestia’s school and became Princess Celestia’s protégé, and they became less like the ponies they once were, and more like the nobles that they had disliked. For Witchblade, it was worse, his parents have always been like this, only coming together once just to birth him into the world.

“If you feel like talking, you know I’m here,” said Sunset sincerely.

Just then Sunset spotted Limestone, she was wearing ripped denim jeans, and a gray shirt that had the word’s “Hardcore” written in red on it. Sunset found that ironic, for Limestone it worked on two levels. Limestone walked in with her typical grumpy expression, but when she spotted Sunset, the grumpiness lessened, she seemed more awkward now. The eldest of the Pie Sisters continued walking until she was at the booth where Sunset was seated.

“Hey,” Sunset greeted.

“Hey,” Limestone replied.

The older girl sat down across from her; the atmosphere was tense as Sunset thought of a way to start off their conversation.

Damn, she may not have a rack like Pinkie, but she’s still hot!

What is with these weird thoughts?!

“Shimmer.” Sunset snapped out of her thoughts and looked directly at Limestone. “How’re you feelin’? Last time you had an episode or something…”

“Oh, yeah, don’t worry about it,” said Sunset as she waved it off. “I actually do owe you an explanation. How much has Pinkie told you about, well, about where I come from?”

Lime sighed and leaned back against her seat as she crossed her arms. “She told me you were some horse thing that came out of a portal that’s apparently in that statue at her school. Although Pinkie Pie usually spouts random crap, there’s usually a straight answer if you dissect it. But, honestly, I can’t dissect it, it doesn’t’ make sense either way you slice it.”

Sunset chuckled. “Well, that’s because it’s true, I am from another dimension filled with magical talking equines, or in layman’s terms, ponies. And I was a unicorn, the best in magic.”

Limestone raised an eyebrow as the corner of her mouth rose. “Okay, you and Pinkie are dating, but you don’t always have to back up her batshit crazy stories.”

“She’s not making it up, I am a unicorn, from a different – somewhat parallel – dimension.”

Limestone still wasn’t convinced. “Okay, Shimmer, you said you’re a ‘unicorn’. Those weeb shows say that unicorns can use magic, so do some magic. And none of that quarter behind the ear, sleight of hand BS. I mean real magic, like…” Limestone looked around, trying to think of something that Sunset could do to prove that she could use magic. Her eyes fell on the glass of water in front of her and said, “I know, make this disappear.”

Sunset rubbed the back of her head, “Well…that’s a little difficult. I mean, here, in your world, I don’t have much magic, and what I do have doesn’t let me do stuff like that – as much as I want it to…” As she said that, an idea struck her. “But I can do something else that might convince you.”

Limestone smirked. “Show, don’t tell.”

Sunset gripped Limestone’s cup, while she didn’t have full access to the magic of her unicorn form, she could, however, use the magic that was in the Witchblade to summon enough heat to make the water boil. The flame haired girl concentrated, feeling the power of the Witchblade without causing it to transform. Soon, the water started to ripple, and Limestone looked confused. There was an increase of heat around the glass, enough that Limestone noticed the distortion of the air around the top of the glass.

“What the…?” Limestone whispered.

The water in the glass began to bubble, slowly, but then it rapidly bubbled and then…

*crack*

Sunset looked at the glass and noticed that it was cracking, “W-What’s going–?”

In the next moment, the glass shattered in front of them, making Limestone quickly get out the booth along with Sunset. Of course, this drew the attention of some of the people in the restaurant, which only made the situation more awkward. Limestone went to touch the water but hissed in pain as she swiftly retracted her hand; it was boiling hot.

“Shit…!” Limestone gasped. “That water’s scalding hot!”

Sunset looked at her hand, she didn’t mean for that to happen, she only wanted to make the water boil, not heat it up until it shattered. “Well…does this convince you anyway?”

Limestone looked to Sunset and nodded. After the waiter came by and wiped off the booth, both girls sat back down, only now Limestone knew that Sunset wasn’t kidding, and at this point, she was probably going to start paying more attention to the stuff Pinkie said from now on.

“So…you’re some kind of alien then?”

“Heh, technically yes,” Sunset smirked and added, “why, going to report me and have me deported?”

“Ha, ha, funny. You look human enough, so that’s fine, but if you want to let me give you a more thorough exam, I’m down,” Limestone shot back.

A small blush appeared on both of their faces, but Sunset chuckled at the dirty undertone. “Maybe, but only if Pinkie’s there watching, I’ll make it a show.”

Limestone felt a slight heat rise inside her at the thought and decided to change the subject. “So, I saw your bike outside. Valkyrie, right?”

“Heh, damn right it is, and I practically got it for a steal! It’s my new baby, and I’ll be damned if anything happens to it!” Sunset declared. “You like bikes too?”

Limestone shrugged. “I’d like to ride one, they look cool. But Mom and Dad won’t let me, too afraid of me getting into an accident and having my skull bust open on some godforsaken highway.”

Sunset nodded her head in understanding. “I know what you’re talking about, the first time I said I was riding, Celestia freaked. But, in the end, she helped me get my first bike – may it rest in peace.”

“Pssh, at least your ‘rent helped you get one. I’m twenty, a legal adult, but guess I can’t complain too much, I mean, they are helping me pay on my car while I’m going to college. ‘Rents, right?”

Both girls chuckled at the direction this conversation was going, but nonetheless it seemed like the awkward tension was leaving the air, if nothing else. But when it lulled, Limestone decided to get back on track. “Okay, so, I think we need to talk about what happened at your place.”

“Yeah, we do. Do you still have that video on your phone?” Sunset asked.

Limestone reached into her pants pocket and took out her cellphone, she went through a few of her files and opened the video. She turned the phone around and showed it to Sunset. “I do, I haven’t deleted it yet because I still need to figure out what’s going on and whether or not I should show this to Mom and Dad yet. So, what’s going on?”

Sunset took a deep breath and then exhaled. “It’s like this…” The former unicorn mare went into a truncated version of last weekend's events. She didn’t mention the Witchblade or Ember Stone, but she did mention that the girl in the video was Sunset Shimmer, but it was the Sunset of their world, and that the other girl was Twilight Sparkle. Limestone seemed to know that name through Pinkie Pie, but Sunset told her that the Twilight Pinkie was friends with was a denizen of her world, and that the Twilight in that video is the Twilight Sparkle of Lime’s world. Then came the sleepover, and that’s about where she ended it, you know, other than the monster battle. “So, yeah, that’s what’s going on.”

Limestone looked back at her phone, and then back at Sunset. She had to admit that was a tough pill to swallow, alternate dimensions, two Sunset Shimmers – admittedly she found the notion hot as hell – and apparently magic was real. Then again, so were demons and apparently angels, so why not this too? Limestone put her phone away and ran her hand through her hair as she sighed heavily, “I need a drink…” Limestone flagged down their waiter. “Hey, get me a Tres Equis.”

“I’ll need to see some ID,” said the waiter.

Limestone reached into her wallet and pulled out a card, after a couple of seconds, the waiter nodded and went to grab her drink. A minute later, the waiter returned with the beer bottle and left it for Lime. She took the bottle, popped the cap, and took a swig. “Just so you know, I’m not making a pun by drinking this, I just happen to like it, and I need something to help me make sense of all this.”

Sunset leaned in and whispered, “Was that a fake ID?”

“Yep, and I kinda needed this after hearing all that. Do you drink?” Limestone asked.

“Uh…kind of, but not really. I have at parties, but only because I was obligated to. I mean, I’m essentially in an alien world, I couldn’t afford to let myself get shitfaced and drunk, I had to stay alert, a lot. At least back before I changed,” said Sunset.

“Sorry to hear that. Sounds like it sucks to have to be on edge twenty-four-seven,” said Limestone. “That being said, you really like Pinkie?”

Sunset nodded her head in earnest. “I do, during that whole Anon-A-Miss thing, when she finally saw that it wasn’t me, she helped me keep my spirits up when everyone around me was against me. If she wasn’t there, I probably would’ve run back home…of course, that has its own complications, so, really, it was a lose-lose situation no matter what happened. The only benefit I could see going back home would bring would be letting me use my magic again. Other than that…”

Limestone took another swig of her beer. “Well, guess it’s a good thing that you didn’t. I mean, Pinkie likes you, and–” The silver haired girl stopped talking, almost letting her feelings slip out. Limestone looked around for something else to talk about, and thankfully that something was on the TV. “Oh, look, they’re playing the news from earlier today!”

Sunset glanced towards the wall mounted TV, the news showed footage of Maria Mare giving a speech alongside Angelus about increasing the number of Sentinels that would be patrolling during the day and night. It left a bit of a sour taste in her mouth, especially after finding out that the Sentinels almost killed her interdimensional sister and Twilight, not that the other stuff they were doing before that was good either, but still.

Fucking Sentinels, if that angel bitch wasn’t inside Celestia I’d tear her apart!

……Not going to argue with that one.

Limestone noticed the grimace on Sunset’s face and asked, “Not a fan of that angel?”

“Let’s just say, I’m dubious of ancient entities who wield a whole hell of a lot of power. When you live in a magical world, you learn to be cautious of those who wield great powers and are slowly looking like they’re taking over the city,” said Sunset.

“You think that Angelus thing is trying to invade?” Lime asked.

“…I don’t want to say that, it’s just my paranoia talking is all,” said Sunset.

Limestone looked around and slid her bottle over to Sunset. “Take a swig, looks like you need it too.”

Sunset glanced about the room, and quickly took a swig. Her grimace deepened as the drink went down her throat. “Ugh, now I remember why I don’t drink much,” she said as she slid the bottle back to Lime.

Limestone took her own drink. “I don’t blame ya, not for everyone.”

“You know, if you want, we could talk a bit more at my place. I have a few unopened beers there,” said Sunset.

Lime raised an eyebrow. “What kind?”

“Tres Equis…” Sunset sheepishly smiled.

“…Pinkie told you what kind of beer I like, didn’t she?”

The former unicorn could only nod.

Limestone laughed as she said, “Typical Pinkie, I’m not even going to ask how you got those.” Lime finished off her drink. “Alright, let’s do that!”

Hours later, Sunset and Limestone were at Sunset’s home. To Sunset’s surprise, they had a good time just talking and cracking inappropriate jokes, Limestone drank most of the beers Sunset had procured, with Sunset herself only sticking to one just to be polite and not let Lime drink alone. Unfortunately, this did lead to Lime getting too drunk to drive home, and at Sunset’s insistence, she stayed over. Fearing that it would be bad for Limestone to take the bed, which was on a platform that was only accessible by stairs. And if there was one thing that Sunset knew, stairs and drunks do not mix.

“Mind if I make myself comfortable,” Limestone asked as she swayed a little.

Sunset moved to her closet and found an extra blanket and pillow, when she turned around, she blushed. Limestone had removed her pants and was sitting on the couch, pretty much spread eagle. “Oh, uh, heh, you made yourself real comfortable, huh?”

“Sorry, heh, my jams are at my house, you don’t mind, right?” Lime asked.

“N-Nope! N-Not all!” Sunset answered as he made her way over to her and placed the pillow at the end of the couch.

Limestone smirked when she saw the blush on Sunset’s face. “Checkin’ me out, Shimmer?”

“N-No! I promise!”

The eldest Pie Sister gave a bubbly chuckle. “That’s okay, I don’t really mind. You’re hot yourself, Shimmer.”

“T-Thanks.” Sunset finished opening the blanket and stepped back. “Okay, so, I’ll head up to my bed. If you need anything just yell, I don’t want you going up my stairs.”

“Ah, what’s the matter?” Limestone asked as she laid down and gave her a coy smile. “Afraid I’m going to jump you in your sleep?”

Sunset scoffed. “No, I’m afraid you’re going to fall and break your neck. Now get some rest.”

Limestone laid back with her hands behind her head and gave a little shrug. “Eh, your loss, Red.”

Sunset rolled her eyes, apparently Limestone was a pervert when drunk, but something told her that Limestone was like that normally but didn’t allow her defenses to go down for just anyone. She was surly and hardheaded from what Pinkie told her, but she also cared for her sisters, even if she said they annoy Lime to a level. Sunset started to wonder if she and her interdimensional twin would eventually become as close as they did, they were already on a similar wavelength, the only thing they lacked were the years of growing up together. Hopefully they could change that.

Once Lime was settled, Sunset got herself ready for bed. Sunset turned out the lights, ascended the stairs, and fed Ray before laying down in her bed. Sunset took a quick glance at her bracelet, Witchblade still hadn’t spoken to her all day, and then there were those intrusive thoughts. At first she thought it might’ve been Sunset Satan, but ever since their merger, she hadn’t come out to speak to her unless she was wavering in something, or needed a “kick in the ass” to get her to do something. What she didn’t like about these thoughts was that some of them had a layer of truth to them. As much as Sunset didn’t want to admit that Pinkie’s big sister was hot, she couldn’t deny that part of herself that found Limestone attractive.

And those thoughts about Lyra trying to steal Pinkie away, jealousy wasn’t a new emotion to Sunset, but wanting to break Lyra’s jaw was extreme. Granted, she hadn’t had a marefriend/girlfriend in a few years, the last relationship she had was with Flash Sentry, and she didn’t particularly like him. Appreciative of his understanding and willingness to put up with her bullshit, and teach her how to play guitar, very. She actually wished him the best in finding a girlfriend, although she hoped he wasn’t holding out for Princess Twilight because Sunset didn’t see that happening anytime soon, a crush was a crush, but there was no way Princess Twilight was going to leave all her friends and family behind, all that she achieved, to come to this magicless – chaotic – world to be with a boy she practically just met.

Likewise, if Flash had the foresight, there was no way he’d just forsake his friends and family, to give up living as a human, to live in a magical world filled with talking ponies. It wouldn’t just be culture shock; he’d be in a completely different body. Sunset had just gotten used to having hands, going from that to just hooves, and if his pony form wasn’t a unicorn or pegasus, his ability to pick things up would be limited.

But then again, people and ponies have been known to do some silly and stupid things in the name of love. Even give up their identities, but I can’t see Twilight – as much as she likes the guy – allowing him to give up his life here. She’s a grown mare, and he’s just a kid by comparison.

Plus, she’s probably getting enough pussy from her friends, and probably just as much dick from those farming ponies in Ponyville, why the hell would she settle for one? Faust knows I’d be face deep in ALL my friends, and if I’m feeling gracious enough, I’d give Flash a ride! Hell, I wouldn’t mind diving into Lime right now!

Sunset shook her head as the intrusive thoughts sounded off again, she growled in frustration and then pulled her covers over her head, closed her eyes, and willed herself into falling asleep…

~*~*~*~

Sunset was panting, her body felt hot, and her loins stirred. She didn’t know what was causing this or why it was happening, but she kind of liked it. Her eyes fluttered open and standing next to her bed was Limestone Pie. She made to open her mouth to ask why Limestone was there, but Lime swiftly brought up her right index finger to her lips and gave a slow, “Shhhh…” Sunset stayed quiet, watching as Limestone walked until she was at the end of her bed. For some reason, the blankets were gone.

Limestone removed her shirt, throwing it off the side of the platform, revealing her braless, B-cup breasts to Sunset. The former unicorn swallowed a lump as her eyes drank in all of Limestone Pie, her body was tight, slender, and had lean muscle. She learned from Pinkie that Lime enjoyed MMA fighting and working out in gyms to work out her frustrations, and it looked like all of that was paying off in the best ways possible. In a tantalizingly slow striptease, Limestone hooked her thumbs into the waistband of her panties. She turned around to show off her butt to Sunset, bending over, she removed her underwear, giving Sunset an abashed view of her pussy and ass.

Sunset gulped even harder, her face becoming redder as she realized that she was leaking a bit of arousal. Limestone got onto the bed, crawling until she was looming over Sunset. The fiery redhead’s heart was pounding in her chest, it had been a long minute since she had been with anyone, or anypony, so one could hardly blame Sunset for feeling highly aroused right now. Limestone gave a cocky smirk as she shot out her right hand and grabbed a handful of Sunset’s left breast, giving it hard squeeze. When Sunset yelped, Limestone took the initiative to slam her lips over Sunset’s mouth, shoving her tongue into the former unicorn’s mouth.

Sunset squirmed at the forceful foreplay that Lime was engaging in, but at the same time, she didn’t dislike it. If anything, it just got her worked up even more. Sunset reached behind Limestone and grabbed two handfuls of her tight ass, squeezing them just as hard as Limestone was to her, and even giving one cheek a slap loud enough to echo in the room. Limestone growled with satisfaction as she broke the kiss for a moment to grin.

“That’s it, Shimmer, don’t go easy on me!”

Sunset quickly met her lips with Limestone’s, this time shoving her tongue down Lime’s throat. The room was filled with their moaning kisses as Lime grinded her lower body against Sunset, but in a dramatic move, Sunset took her hands from Limestone’s ass and wrapped them around her waist, locking her in place. Limestone had barely a split second to register what Sunset was about to do before the world spun around and the eldest Pie Sister found herself looking up at Sunset instead of down.

Limestone’s smirk grew. “That’s what I’m talking about!”

Sunset panted harder as she sat on her knees and removed her pajama top, letting her C-cup breasts jiggle from the quick motion. Without really knowing why, when Sunset looked down, she saw that her pajama pants were gone as well, leaving her completely naked. She looked back at Limestone who was still shooting her a sultry grin.

“C’mon, Shimmer, give it to me! I’m way hotter than Pinkie, and I’m willing to put out! C’mon, fuck me! You know you want to…!”

“Wait…Wait, this…this isn’t right,” said Sunset as she put her right hand to her head. “W-Why am I doing this?! W-Why are you letting me do this?!”

Limestone propped herself up on her forearms as she continued to gaze into Sunset’s eyes. It was then that the whites of Limestone’s eyes began to fade into darkness, allowing only the emerald green of her iris’ show. “Just give in…give into your darker desires, Sunset…You want to fuck me, you want to have Pinkie all to yourself, and you want to kill Angelus for everything she’s putting Celestia through, and this city!”

Sunset was about to get off the bed, but Limestone crossed her legs over Sunset’s waist, keeping her locked in place and unable to get away.

“Just do it, stop trying to just be good all the damn time! Let it all out, all the bad you’ve had to bottle up, all the restraints you’ve had to put on yourself!”

Suddenly, black tendrils rose from under the bed, two wrapped around Sunset’s ankles, while two more wrapped around her wrists.

“Give in, give into your darkness, Sunset…!”

“No…NO…! NOOOOOO!!!!!!!”

~*~*~*~

Sunset’s eyes snapped wide open, she was back in her home, but not in her bed. She was standing before the couch, a defenseless sleeping Limestone Pie was in a deep, drunken sleep, lying sprawled out, the blanket having slunk off onto the floor. The fact that she had somehow made it from her bed to the couch in her sleep did creep her out, but what terrified her was the Witchblade. The metal strands were extending from bracelet like coiling vipers, some wrapping around her body, while others were slowly creeping towards Limestone, as if threating to violate her, dozens and dozens of them.

The gemstone of the Witchblade was glowing red, but the center had a dark spot, as if a black hole had formed. What’s more, the metal wasn’t its normal obsidian color, it was pitch black, as if the shadows had been given physical form. Sunset was panicking, she didn’t know what was happening. Why was the Witchblade acting like this? Why did she have that dream? Why was this happening at all? If she didn’t stop this, either she or the Witchblade were going to end up doing something irreversibly bad to Limestone.

Go back! Sunset willed the Witchblade to retract. It flinched for a second, but then continued slithering towards Limestone. Go BACK! She ordered it again, the strands shaking as if trying to heed her command. GO BACK RIGHT NOW!!! Sunset yelled her mental command as loud as she could, even going so far as to use the magic inside her to aid in her attempt. A red glow shot through the strands, instantly, the metal regained its silver coloring and all the strands slinked back into the bracelet, as if nothing had happened.

Sunset panted hard and nearly collapsed onto the floor. She looked at the bracelet again and saw that the black spot was still there, whatever was happening with the Witchblade wasn’t over. Sunset looked from the Witchblade and then to Limestone, she couldn’t stay here, if she did, there was no telling what would happen to Limestone. Sunset managed to wake herself up this time, but if it happened again and she didn’t…

“S-Something’s wrong with Witchblade, that has to be it, S-Sombra must’ve done something to me, to Witchblade! I-I need…Angelus!”

Sunset dashed up the stairs, pulled open her drawer, and took out her keys. She didn’t even bother to change, too panicked about what might happen if she stayed there any longer. With her mind made up, Sunset decided to go see the one person – rather, entity – who could help Witchblade, she just hoped the ancient Keeper of Balance wouldn’t be too pissed at her afterwards. She ran to the door, stopped for a moment, and glanced at the still sleeping Limestone, still unaware of how close she came to…

“No, don’t think about that, just go, now!”

Sunset threw open the door, locked it, and mounted her bike. The tires squealed as she peeled off down the road.

Dark Truths / Light Lies Part 3

Luna groaned with annoyance, she could hear the doorbell being rung several times, followed by several pounding hits against the front door, loud enough to reach the upstairs. The Vice Principal of CHS didn’t know why Celestia hadn’t heard all that racket, then again, Luna was always the night owl of the family. She reached into the drawer of her nightstand and pulled out a gun, Celestia wasn’t exactly pleased with her purchase of the weapon but given everything that had happened in the last few weeks, better safe than sorry. Luna made her way downstairs, holding the gun in a ready position as she neared the door. She didn’t turn on any lights, not wanting to alert the potential threat outside her door. When she got to the peephole, she looked through it and gasped.

“Sunset?”

She quickly put the gun in the drawer next to the door, flipped on the porch lights and living room lights, and quickly opened the door. Sunset was standing there, hugging herself, eyes wide with fear and anxiety. She was dressed in her pajamas and her bike was parked in the driveway, which meant that Sunset drove all the way to their house in her pajamas at this late hour.

“Sunset, what’s going on, are you okay?!” Luna asked.

“Vi – err – Luna, c-can you go and get Celestia, I-I need to talk to her right now,” said Sunset.

Luna ushered Sunset inside the house, took a quick glance outside to make sure she wasn’t being followed, and then locked the door. The Vice Principal of CHS guided Sunset onto the couch, seated her, and looked her over to make sure she wasn’t injured. “Sunset, I’ll get Celestia, but tell me what’s wrong first. Why did you drive all the way here, at night, in your pajamas? Are you in some kind of trouble?”

Sunset just hugged herself tighter. “Please, Luna, I appreciate that you’re trying to help me, but this is something that only Celestia can help me with! So, please, go and get her!”

Luna got up and was halfway towards the stairs before she stopped and asked, “Just to make sure…you…um…you aren’t pregnant, are you?”

“Unless Pinkie Pie managed to grow a dick in the last couple of days – NO!!!” Sunset yelled.

It was probably not something a woman of her age and official position should think about, but if there was one student who could defy logic enough to make that possible, it would be Pinkie Pie. Luna dashed up the stairs and hurriedly made her way into her big sister’s room, Celestia was sprawled out on her bed, the blankets kicked off and slumping onto the floor.

“How dignified,” Luna muttered as she approached her sister’s bed. “Tia, wake up!”

“Mmmm…middle of the night Luna…let me sleep,” Celestia groaned.

Luna shook her big sister until she managed to get her to open her eyes. “This is serious! Sunset Shimmer is downstairs, in our living room, and she looks scared!”

Those words were like a lightning bolt to Celestia’s senses, instantly sobering her up, and making her shoot straight up into a sitting position. “Sunset’s here, at our house?! Why?!”

Luna shook her head. “I don’t know, she won’t tell me! She’ll only talk to you.”

\\/// I sense something amiss, there’s traces of the Darkness in this house. Make haste Celestia! \\///

Not wasting anymore time, Celestia jumped out of bed and rushed down the stairs with Luna hot on her tail. Celestia spotted Sunset sitting on the couch and quickly embraced her in a tight hug. “Sunset, are you alright?”

“No…No I’m not alright! Something’s wrong with the Witchblade and me!” Sunset confessed.

Luna paused for a moment.

Celestia broke the embrace a little and looked at Sunset with surprise. “Sunset, Luna’s here, are you sure this is–?”

“YES! I don’t care if she knows right now, we need to deal with what’s going on with me and Witchblade!” Sunset insisted.

Luna moved closer and asked, “Tia, what in the world is she talking about?”

“Luna, I’ll explain everything to you later, I swear, but right now, I need to concentrate on Sunset! Okay?!”

Luna didn’t press it, she knew that Celestia was in her “mother hen” mode and that it was best to stay out of her way when that happened. Still, she was also Sunset’s guardian, and for some reason, Luna felt as if she had been left out of the loop on something very important right now. However, now was not the time to nitpick, the main thing right now was to help Sunset.

“Tell me what happened, Angelus said she sensed traces of the Darkness,” said Celestia.

“I…I think he might’ve done something to Witchblade, infected it somehow during our fight last weekend! I was talking to Limestone Pie, Pinkie’s big sister, I wanted to smooth things over due to some misunderstanding we had a few days ago. Anyway, w-we came back to my place, I might’ve bought a few beers…”

“Sunset!” Celestia and Luna admonished.

“I only had one! A-Anyway, she got too drunk to go home so I had her stay at my place overnight! But…that’s when the bad stuff happened! I…I started having this vivid dream about Limestone seducing me! Then…Then she started to ask me to act on my dark impulses, and when I finally snapped myself out of it, I was standing next to the couch and Witchblade’s metal strands were extending out towards her, blacker than night! What’s happening!”

“Angelus?” Celestia asked.

\\/// Let me see my Son. \\///

“Give me your wrist, Sunset.”

Sunset did as she instructed, allowing Celestia to place her right hand over it. Immediately upon making contact, a violent, electrical surge went off and shocked Celestia’s hand away as she gave a loud “OW!”

“I’m sorry! I-I didn’t mean to do that!” Sunset apologized. Just then, the metal of the bracelet began to react. “Now what?!”

Upon uttering those words, the Witchblade exploded outwards with numerous razor-sharp metal strands. Celestia quickly got off the couch and backed away from Sunset, putting Luna at her back. With a wave of Celestia’s hand, a barrier of light formed around them, protecting Luna from whatever was happening to Sunset. The two older women could only stand by and watch as the metal strands began to rip Sunset’s clothes apart, enshrouding her in the armor of the Witchblade. A cocoon was formed, made of the shadow metal, a couple of seconds went by and the cocoon opened to reveal a transformed Sunset. Her right arm was covered in the shadow metal, creating an oversized claw gauntlet, with dagger sharp fingertips, and the red gemstone resting atop the hand. Sunset’s left was covered in armor, but each knuckle had an arrowhead spike, along her arm was a row of spikes, and the left shoulder pauldron extended outwards like a curved blade. The armor wrapped around Sunset’s thighs, creating a slight blade curve to them that carried all the way down to her spike tipped boots. Her shoulders and neck were covered in armor, from which two strands went down her body, forming a “V” pattern that covered the nipples and her crotch, while simultaneously covering her rear and connecting with the thigh armor. The yellow streaks in Sunset’s hair were gone, replaced by black streaks, and her eyes were now just pools of darkness with shadow wisps coming from the corners.

“What…What happened to Sunset?!” Celestia asked.

\\/// My Son is born from light and darkness, the Darkness must’ve infused its essence into our Son, throwing off the balance inside him. And in so doing, has corrupted the bearer, Sunset. \\///

“Do you think Sombra knows that Sunset is Witchblade?”

\\/// No, if anything, I suspect Sombra believed that at some point Sunset as Witchblade was going to encounter us, in this case it was just dumb luck. However, we do have a problem. The longer this corruption stays with her, the more likely she’ll become a minion of Sombra and the Darkness. We must purge it from her, now.\\///

Luna looked from her sister and to Sunset, who was somehow covered in shadow armor that was a bit reminiscent of when she became a demon, and now Celestia was creating barriers of light. “Celestia what in the FUCK is going on here?!”

“Lots of things that I can’t go into detail right now! Angelus!”

A flash of light went off around Celestia, when it faded, she was donned in her golden armor, flaring her white wings as her fiery golden hair flowed down her back. Luna fell onto her rear as she stared up at her big sister with a gaping mouth, unable to form the words needed to accurately express what she was feeling in this moment.

“T-T-Tia?!” Luna stammered.

Celestia glanced over her shoulder, her eyes hadn’t shifted, indicating that Celestia was currently in control. “Again…later.”

“That’s what I was waiting for! ANGELUS!” Sunset bellowed as she jumped straight for her.

Before she could reach her another flash of light went off, blinding Luna for a moment. When she opened her eyes, both were gone.

“Wha…W-Wha…WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON???!!!”

The great deserts of Somnambula, a hot, arid environment that was hostile to most life that hadn’t adapted to the near endless sand dunes, intense heat, and blustering winds. A flash of golden light went off over one of the dunes and from it plummeted Sunset, she rolled around in the sand for a few seconds before she struck the sand, flipped into the air, and landed with a flourish. Celestia’s wings were flared as she slowly descended into a hover a few inches off the sand.

“Where are we?” Celestia asked.

\\/// I brought us to a desert, I figured it was better that we try and fight her here. A barren desert is a better battleground than a populated area. Now, allow me to–\\///

“I’m sorry, Angelus, but let me try and reach her at the very least,” Celestia pleaded.

\\/// Very well, try and reach her, I’ll be formulating a plan in the meantime. \\///

Celestia nodded her head and glared intensely at Sunset as she spoke, “Sunset, I need you to try and fight this! You’re stronger than the Darkness, stronger than your impulses!”

“HA! I’ve been fighting my impulses ever since I went all goody-goody! Do you have any idea how much work it is to be a ‘good person’?!” Sunset stuck out her tongue and brought her left hand to her face, she ran her tongue over the index finger, and slowly glided her hand over her body. “Do you have any idea how much I want to bathe in the love and passion of some of the hottest girls around me and make them all mine?! No, you wouldn’t, but now I have a chance to! The Darkness’ power that’s inside me is telling me how to make it all mine! And I’m sorry, Celestia, but Angelus needs to die! Not just for my sake but the world’s!”

Sunset raised her large gauntlet and slammed it against the sand. The impact kicked up a dust cloud that obscured the entire area. Celestia got on guard and formed a battle mask over her face, gold colored with magenta glowing eyes. Thanks to this creation she didn’t have to worry about the sand getting in her eyes or her nose and mouth, thankfully this quick thinking paid off. Sunset appeared before her at rapid speeds, she raised her right hand and swiped at Celestia. The host of the Angelus formed a light shield construct in her left hand just as Sunset’s claw came down, the impact blasted away the sand cloud and the sand beneath them.

Despite this, Sunset’s sadistic, gleeful smile didn’t leave her, she raised her left hand and into it formed a katana. Celestia opened her right hand and summoned a medieval light construct sword. Sunset brought down her sword while Celestia slashed with hers, the two blades ringed in the air upon contact, creating yet another shockwave that dispersed another ten feet of sand.

“Sunset, you’re stronger than this! You’ve beaten your own darkness, so fight against this one,” said Celestia.

“Or – here’s a thought – I don’t fight it and I just enjoy the hell out of it!”

The shadow metal coalesced around her back, and from it sprouted two long dragon heads. Their eyes shined red as their metal maws opened and roared with fury, the dragon head tendrils were twice the size of Sunset and Celestia and looked about ready to tear Celestia in half. Upon seeing them, Celestia immediately retreated a few steps, putting some distance between herself and Sunset. The twin dragon heads roared as they charged straight for Celestia, the winged warrior dismissed her sword and shield and brought her hands together, golden light swirled between them into a sphere and then burst forth in a beam of energy. The dragon heads weaved around the beam and continued to dog Celestia, but then Celestia redirected the beam and fired it at the ground.

A sand plume shot into the air and hid her presence; however, this did not deter the dragon heads as they went straight through the cloud of sand and emerged on the other side with nothing. The dragon heads looked confused, wondering how they could’ve missed their target. Their answer was given when Celestia appeared in the sky having teleported away, the host of the Angelus slashed the air with her right hand and created a crescent energy blade that sailed downwards towards the sand plume. The blade sliced through the trunks of the dragon head tentacles, melting the metal and making the dragon heads release a metal shredding screech of death.

Celestia shifted her focus back to Sunset, which turned out to be a mistake as Sunset had taken off into the sky. Sunset zipped through the air, becoming a dark streak as she slammed herself into Celestia. She grabbed her by the neck with her left hand, squeezing tightly to crush her throat as they flew, the wind rushing past their ears. Sunset closed her right claw into a fist, and from the top of it a ten-inch-long blade formed. With little hesitation, Sunset drove the blade right through Celestia’s stomach, the face mask disappeared as she began to cough up blood. The pain was slightly familiar from when Sombra stabbed her, but it wasn’t like she was used to it.

“Sunset, try and think! Show me that you’re at least trying to fight in there!”

“Oh, would you just shut up! I told you I’m – Celestia…!” Sunset’s right eye returned normal, showing her original turquoise colored iris. “Celestia, I’m sorry, the Darkness is creeping deeper into me! I can’t fight it for much longer! AAAAHHHH!!!” Sunset’s right eye returned to the blackness that it once was as she shook her head. “Whoa, well, that was annoying. Where was I? Oh, getting back to killing you!”

Celestia gritted her teeth as she slammed her left palm against the blade and released a burst of golden energy. Cracks formed in the blade as it broke in half, with that same hand, Celestia pressed it against Sunset’s chest and discharged another energy burst. Sunset cried out in pain as the golden light burned at her skin, jettisoning her in the air and making the corrupted hero release her grip on Celestia’s neck. With Sunset pushed away, she gripped the broken half of the blade and pulled it out quickly, giving a hiss of pain, but thankfully the wound closed.

“She’s still fighting in there, we have to save her,” said Celestia.

\\/// This is good, I know a way to do it, but you’ll need to fight her more seriously. I can take over if you wish. \\///

“No, I’m tired of being on the sidelines, I’ll fight her. Sunset’s been fighting to protect her friends, me, and everyone! It’s time that I did something, it’s the adults who should protect the children, not the other way around!” Celestia declared.

\\/// Hmm…very well, we’ll do it this way then. \\///

Celestia froze in midair, her body felt a surge of power coursing through her veins, in a matter of seconds, Celestia’s body was outlined in a golden aura, and when she opened her eyes, the normal magenta color had been replaced with a golden one.

\\/// I’ve granted you more access to my power so that you can fight her. Can you see my plan now that I’ve done this? \\///

“Yes, we just need to weaken her, right?”

\\/// Yes, that means no holding back. Normally the light would make the Darkness wilt away, but since my Son has the aspect of light, he’s immune to that. So, the only option is to bear down on them relentlessly. \\///

“Then let’s do this!”

Sunset’s black aura flared as she stared down Celestia, with her right claw she unleashed a black fire jet stream straight for her. Celestia responded with a golden inferno blast right back at her. The two flame attacks met at the middle and exploded upon contact, Celestia warped from behind the explosion and appeared on Sunset’s left, brandishing a light construct sword. Sunset sensed the attack and countered with the shoulder pauldron, the blade extending outwards and clashed with Celestia’s sword, Celestia summoned a second sword into her left hand and began dueling with the pauldron. The sound of each strike resounded in the air like thunder, making the dunes bellow rattle with each successive hit. Sunset broke away and willed multiple shadow metal tentacles to come out of her armor and begin an assault on Celestia. The thunderous rings continued, but at much faster speeds as Celestia managed to parry and counter each attack that came her way. Ten of the tentacles had her cornered, but at the last second, she teleported away just as the blades went to skewer her.

Sunset clenched her right fist and went for a backhand strike, sensing that Celestia was going to appear from the back. She did, but only for a split second as a warp shadow appeared in Celestia’s place. Sunset’s fist passed right through the warp shadow, making it turn into particles of light. That feint allowed Celestia to reappear overhead and come down on Sunset with a spinning ax kick. Sunset looked up just in time to see Celestia’s right leg hit her on the left shoulder. The former unicorn released a cry of pain as she felt and heard her bones breaking like snapping toothpicks from the harsh blow. Sunset fell from the sky like a lead weight in water and hit the sand with a dull thud.

Once on the ground, Celestia raised her right hand and summoned twelve dozen spheres of light. The spheres discharged one energy blast after another, barraging the area that Sunset landed in a hailstorm of destruction. Sand and smoke were sent straight up into the air with explosion after explosion going off in a seemingly never-ending assault. While those were firing, Celestia, with her still raised right hand, was gathering more and more light energy. A large ball of golden light formed overhead with each passing second, waiting for the right moment to fire it.

An explosion of black fire erupted from the barrage point, making Celestia stop her attack. The sand was on fire with black flames, as Sunset stood in the center. Her left arm was hanging limp and useless at her side for a moment, but then the bones began to mend, her bruised and bloodied flesh returned to its original state as Sunset regained feeling and control of her left arm. However, her moment was short-lived when Celestia threw down the sphere, Sunset raised her right claw and created a tornado of black fire that rose to meet Celestia’s attack. The two elemental attacks clashed in the air for a few seconds, until Celestia pointed both hands at it and willed more energy into the sphere. The golden orb doubled in size and speed as it pushed through the flames and hit its mark.

A giant explosion went off that could be seen for miles, flattening whatever sand dunes were in the vicinity and the next two miles. Celestia was still on guard, but waited for the dust to settle, when she did, the whole area had become glass and Sunset was at the center of the crater from the explosion.

“She’s fighting it from within, that’s the only reason we’ve been able to stand a chance,” [/b]said Celestia.

\\/// …Admittedly, I must agree. Her attacks are wild, acting more on instinct than forethought as per Sunset’s normal modus operandi. \\///

“Is everything ready?”

\\/// She’s in position, you do realize that this might hurt Sunset. \\///

“Will she live, and will the Darkness’ corruption leave her?”

\\/// Yes. \\///

“Then let’s get it done and save my…my…” Celestia so badly wanted to call Sunset her daughter, but she knew that Sunset wasn’t sure how she saw her, however, in this moment, Sunset needed a mother and a warrior to save her. “Let’s go save my daughter!”

Sunset hurt all over, but she broke herself free from the glass as she stood back up. Shadow metal demon wings flared out of her back as she shot up into the air, Sunset threw a punch for Celestia, but the winged light bringer caught the punch in her left hand. That’s when Celestia smirked, catching Sunset off guard. A flash of light went off again and both Celestia and Sunset vanished from the desert. Sunset blinked and when she opened her eyes, she realized that the bright desert sun was gone, replaced by the bright moon and burgundy night skies of Canterlot City.

“What’s the matter, got tired of the desert scene, or did you just want an audience for when I rip your wings off?!”

“No, I just needed to get you in position!”

“What?” Celestia teleported yet again, but when she did Sunset’s eyes widened. In the air was a black cloaked figure wielding a shimmering spear, it took about a second for Sunset to realize that that figure was in fact Fluttershy as the Magdalena. “Fluttershy?!”

“Percutiamus!” Fluttershy cried out as she tossed the Spear of Destiny right at Sunset.

The Spear flew like a guided missile, but at five times the speed, appearing like a golden streak of light. Sunset tried to bring up a shield, but it was no use, the corruption of the Darkness made the shadow metal useless against the holy weapon. Sunset gasped as the blade of the Spear sunk into her stomach, golden electricity arced from the spear and into Sunset, making her cry out in excruciating pain. The corrupted hero fell out of the sky, plummeting until a flash of golden light enveloped Sunset, and quickly after, the same thing appeared around Fluttershy.

On a nearby roof, another golden light flashed, and from it emerged Sunset, Fluttershy, and Celestia. Sunset was paralyzed on the ground, writhing in pain as the holy weapon attacked the Darkness’ essence.

Fluttershy put her hood down and said, “I’m glad I got your message in time.”

“It was a long shot according to Angelus, but this was the best way to help Sunset,” said Celestia.

Angelus had contacted Zofiel, her bird Sentinel, and through him, she conveyed her plan to Fluttershy. The plan was that Fluttershy would wait at a determined point in full gear, knowing that Spear of Destiny would be the best way to immobilize Sunset, but that was only part one of the plan.

“Angelus told me that your light and mine can purge the Darkness’ corruption from Sunset. Are you up for this?”

“If it’s for Sunset, then I’ll do whatever I can to help her!”

Celestia smiled, “Alright.”

Fluttershy held out her right hand and Celestia did the same. The two women called to the pure divine light within them, Sunset shouted in pain as the white light of Angelus and Fluttershy illuminated the area, the dark strands of the Darkness tried to cling onto Sunset’s body, but in the end it was a futile attempt as the excess remnants of the Darkness was burned from Sunset and the Witchblade. When the light faded, the metal of the Witchblade no longer had the shadow quality to it and returned to its normal obsidian color. The armor retracted until it was back in its bracelet form, which incidentally left Sunset nude. Fluttershy carefully removed the Spear of Destiny from Sunset, allowing the wound to fully close.

Celestia knelt before Sunset and picked her up into her arms. “Thank you, Fluttershy, for helping me save Sunset.”

Fluttershy shook her head as she smiled. “Like I said, if it’s for Sunset, for my friends, I’ll do whatever I can to help. What will you do now, Principal Celestia?”

“I’ll take Sunset back to my house where I can keep an eye on her. She most likely – no, she won’t be at school tomorrow. You don’t have to go tomorrow either, after tonight, I’m sure you’re tired.”

“No, I’ll go, I should tell them what happened in person. Um, but I wouldn’t mind a lift home, if that’s alright?” Fluttershy asked.

“Not at all.”

“Wait, what happened to Shimmer?!”

Sunset Shimmer had excused herself to go to the girl’s room, having received a text from Pinkie Pie that Shimmer, her interdimensional twin, had been infected with some of the Darkness’ power and that said twin had a brawl with the Angelus last night. Sunset growled angrily as she raised her right hand, balled it into a fist, and struck the mirror in front of her. The mirror cracked with pieces of the glass falling into the sink and further shattering, Sunset withdrew her hand and saw several tiny shards of glass embedded in her flesh. The stinging only lasted for about a second before her wounds were engulfed in flames and healed instantly.

“Dammit, I knew something was wrong after that fight! I should’ve put my foot down or something,” said Sunset, chastising herself.

{Sunset, it’s not your fault, not even Shimmer realized what was happening until it happened.}

Sunset sighed heavily, exhaling all the frustration in her body as much as possible. “How is she doing right now?”

{Well, after I told the girls I called you. She’s resting at Principal Celestia’s place after they had their fight.}

Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Wait, she was well enough to have a fight with your principal?”

{Oh, guess she didn’t tell you that part…well…um, Principal Celestia is the host of that Angelus thing.}

Now Sunset was more worried. “And you think that’s it’s okay for her to be there? What if she tries something?!”

{No, no, it’s alright, really! Principal Celestia is like Shimmer’s pseudo mom. A-Anyway, me and the girls are going to stop by and see how she is doing. Principal Celestia is with her right now and Vice Principal Luna’s been put in charge for now. Did you and Twilight want to come and see her? I mean, you don’t have to if you don’t want to, but I know she’d be happy to see you.}

“Like that’s even a question, of course I’m coming to see her! And I will bring Sparky, this wasn’t exactly the way I wanted her to meet all of Shimmer’s friends, but I guess that slumber party plan’s out the window.”

There was a faint sound in the background as if Pinkie Pie was clicking her tongue in disappointment. {Now, Sunset, you should commit this to memory. There’s no stopping a Pinkie Slumber Party, or any party. Ever. If nothing else we can have it at Principal Celestia’s house, you wouldn’t mind, would you?}

Sunset couldn’t help but chuckle, she could see how her pony twin could fall for this girl, if she wasn’t already hot for Twilight, Sunset would’ve scooped up Pinkie for herself. “No, I wouldn’t mind. Thanks for looking out for her. Text me the address when you can so we can head over. I gotta head back to class, see you soon.”

{Okie-dokie-lokie!}

Sunset pressed “end” on her cellphone and looked back at her reflection in the mirror. You almost let someone who’s your family die and suffer…never again. With that resolved, Sunset headed back to the classroom and sat back down, she was already anxious to begin with, this was one of those days with one of those few classes that she and Twilight didn’t share. In fact, Twilight was halfway across the building, which meant that her girlfriend was fair game for any of Crystal Prep’s assholes to mess with. The point of her display a couple of days ago was to instill a sense of fear in the student body, make them believe that if in any way Sunset found out that they hurt Twilight Sparkle, she would rain down fire and brimstone upon them. That wasn’t a joke, she would literally rain down fire and brimstone. Still, there were at least five girls in the school who she knew might test her. Indigo, Sour, Sunny, Sugar, and Lemon, out of those five, the one that she worried about the most attempting something was Indigo Zap.

It still burned Sunset that the person she loved had been violated and abused for so long, psychologically, and physically, the worst of which could be attributed to Indigo Zap’s obsession with Twilight. Why did she target Twilight out of all the girls in the school? Okay, maybe that was a rhetorical question, Twilight wasn’t a confrontational girl, nor was she particularly athletic or physically strong like Sunset or Indigo, she was vastly intelligent and studious, and in high school, that was often grounds enough to get your ass picked on. But Crystal Prep was a place that made sure every student excelled in academics as well as sports, the real problem was that Twilight was showing them all up without even trying. However, Sunset believed that Indigo’s obsession with Twilight was more than just petty bullying like the rest of the school. Could it be that Indigo was in love with Twilight in a twisted way?

Whatever, I’ll deal with her later, I got other important things to deal with. For one, getting to Sparky as quickly as possible, and then heading over to see Shimmer.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the bell rang. Sunset collected her things into her backpack and made her way to the door, when she exited, she paused, and a scowl formed on her face. Right across from the door, leaning against some lockers, was Indigo Zap, the star athlete of Crystal Prep had her arms crossed over her chest and shot Sunset the biggest shit eating grin she had ever seen. A grin that made the hairs on the back of Sunset’s neck prickle with anger and edginess.

“Shimmer, fancy meeting you here,” said Indigo.

“Please, I knew you were a rapist, but now I’m definitely adding ‘stalker’ to that list. Whatever dumbass threats you’re about to spit out, you can save them, I have somewhere to be,” said Sunset as she turned to leave.

“I know, you’re heading to meet up with Twilight in the English Lit. class halfway across the building, am I right?” Indigo asked.

Sunset stopped mid step, whipped around, and flashed Indigo a suspicious glare. “And how the fuck do you know that?”

“Think you said it yourself, I’m a ‘stalker’. But the problem is, she never made it to that class.” Indigo pushed off the lockers and began walking towards Sunset. “It’s in your best interest – and Twilight’s – to follow me right now.”

Sunset shot her hand out and grabbed a handful of Indigo’s shirt and stared into her eyes. “Indigo I swear to god if you’ve done anything to Twilight, I’ll make you regret it for the rest of your life, both seconds of it!”

“Come with me, I’ll show you where she is,” said Indigo in a calm manner.

“Don’t fuck with me Indigo!”

“Look, either come with me or not, it’s up to you.”

Sunset growled angrily at Indigo, but in the end released her, the star athlete of Crystal Prep smoothed out the wrinkles in her clothes and began walking down the hall, with Sunset right behind her. Their walk eventually brought them to one of the gymnasiums, the inside was dark save for the strands of light that cut through the shadows from the windows up above. A single light kicked on, illuminating the center of the court, the sound of footfalls echoed loudly in the gym as someone stepped into the proverbial spotlight, Lemon Zest.

Indigo broke away from Sunset and joined her friend in the light, Sunset released her backpack, letting it hit the floor with a loud “thunk!” as she stomped towards them. “No more fucking games, Indigo! Where’s Twilight!”

“Don’t know,” she answered.

“What the fuck do you mean you don’t know?!”

“She means neither of us know where she is. Sour, Sunny, and Sugar have Sparkle somewhere on campus, but they didn’t tell us where they are just when they got Sparkle, which was, like, right before her class started,” said Lemon.

“So just to be clear, you could fight us and maybe beat us, but even if you did, you’d be running around the school like a decapitated chicken before you even came close to finding her,” said Indigo.

Sunset’s fists tightened up, micro embers exploded around her hands, but she managed to keep her flames under control, at least for now. “What do you want?”

Indigo stepped forward and said, “Simple, you’re going to stand there and you’re going let me kick the crap out of you. And after, you’re never going to hang around Twilight ever again. Now, either you do what I say, or the girls will do something much worse. Lemon?”

Lemon Zest took out her cellphone and switched to a video call, she flipped the phone around and, on the screen, appeared Sunny Flare.

{Sunset Shimmer, looks like you did show up. I’m sure Indigo told you what she wants but is leaving the consequences explanation to me. So, what will happen if you don’t do as she says? First, have a look at this setup.}

Sunny Flare pulled her face away and turned the camera around, and what Sunset saw nearly made her ignite into an inferno. Twilight had her hands tied up over her head with zip ties, which were looped through a rope that hung high above her. Duct tape pressed against her mouth, one lying horizontal and the other two on top of it formed an “X” pattern. The look of fear in Twilight’s eyes was evident, as well as the tear marks from her crying. The camera panned and showed Sour Sweet standing by something that looked like a table to Sunny’s left, and to her right was Sugarcoat, with a camera in hand.

{Every time you show us that you’re resisting or generally, not doing what Indigo says, we’re going to strip Sparkle and make her the star of her own porno, which we’ll then be uploaded to the internet for everyone to see. Good luck getting into any reputable college, or just in general walking around without wondering if the people you pass recognize you, or if the guys are fantasizing about what was done in the video. If you end up beating up Zest and Zap, we’ll just go full throttle on Sparkle in here, and since you don’t know where we are, good luck getting to us in time to stop this.}

“You MOTHERFUCKING BITCHES! I’m going to tear your heads off!” Sunset threatened.

{Oh, a threat? That’s a no-no. Sour, take off Sparkles panties to start.}

Sunset’s heart sank. On the screen, she watched as Sour Sweet walked up to Twilight, the bespectacled girl tried to move around and fight back as much as she could to keep Sour from her mission. But that’s when Sour’s left hand latched around Twilight’s throat and squeezed, making her stop her thrashing, the bipolar girl pulled out a pair of scissors from her skirt pocket and held them up to let Twilight see them.

{Either you stay still and let me take them off, or I’ll just cut them off and possibly cut you in the process! One way or the other, they are coming off, so what’s it going to be?!} Sour asked.

Twilight ceased her movements and lowered her head in defeat. Sour put the scissors away and removed her hand from Twilight’s throat, she reached under Twilight’s skirt, feeling around until she found the waistband and slowly pulled them down until they were at Twilight’s ankles. Once there, Sour lifted Twilight’s legs out of them one at a time until they were now in her hands.

{Thank you, sweetie.} Sour looked at the pair of cotton white panties and scoffed. {Ugh, trust a girl like Sparkle not to wear anything interesting, plain as fuck.}

The screen flipped and now Sunny Flare was on it. {That’s just to show how serious we are.}

Sunset was really starting to want to burn the school down right about now, but they were right, they had her by the metaphorical balls. Without knowing where Twilight was specifically, there was no way she was going to be able to save her in time before those three did all they wanted and left her. She took a quick glance at Indigo who was taking off her uniform, when she was done, she was in her sports bra and sports shorts.

“Didn’t want to get any blood on my uniform, hard to explain that away,” Indigo explained. “Plus, I can move more freely like this. Now that you know the score, let’s get to it.”

Indigo dashed towards Sunset and reared back her right fist for a haymaker. Without thinking, Sunset reached out and caught Indigo’s fist just before it landed, the thudding impact resounded in the cavernous-like architecture of the gym. Indigo went wide eyed, no one had ever caught her punches like that, she didn’t even react to the pain that she was sure that followed stopping a punch like hers. For a moment, Indigo flinched, she saw something orange and glowing in Sunset’s eyes that made her fall back.

{Well, that’s not good. You already resisted. Take off the jacket next?}

{What?! The jacket?! How about the SKIRT? Y’know, cause I just took off her panties?!} Sour argued.

{I think this is a rhetorical question, but have you ever watched a porn video before? It’s called ‘build up’ and ‘teasing’! Just get the blazer off!}

{Shoulda done that before we tied her ass up…} Sour grumbled.

The camera flipped and showed Sour Sweet walking up to Twilight, the latter of which flinched when she saw the pair of scissors coming out again. Thanks to Twilight’s current position, the only way to get the blazer off was to cut it off. Sour made quick work of cutting from the side of the blazer and working her way up the arm and to the cuff, she repeated this process on the opposite side and pulled the blazer off as if it were a poncho, letting it rest on the floor.

{The next time you resist, her shirt goes next, and well, we’re getting down to the good stuff after that.} Sunny Flare threatened.

“Fuck…” Sunset muttered.

Indigo took this time to rush in again and threw a left hook at Sunset’s rips. This time around the blow landed, Sunset grunted, feeling her rips crack from the sheer force of Indigo’s punch.

Dammit…she may look lithe, but she’s got power behind her punches!

Indigo smirked, realizing that Sunset wasn’t going to counterattack, she came in with an uppercut and clocked Sunset in the jaw. The power of Indigo’s punch lifted Sunset off the ground by about five inches before she fell backwards onto the unforgiving wood floor. Sunset could taste blood in her mouth, she rolled onto her side and spat, there was a clattering when she did that and realized she just spat out a few of her teeth as well. The Ember Stone could heal her, but if she healed too much, she would only make Indigo angry that there wasn’t any real damage being done.

Concentrate on the internal damage, anything serious on the inside needs to be healed, external injuries can be healed later, she thought.

As she thought this, the damage to her rips was mended. Sunset had two advantages to this situation, one was the Ember Stone, the second was the fact that Sunset had subjected herself to various forms of pain and injury in order to get a good idea about how strong the Ember Stone’s healing power was. Thankfully, this allowed her to gain a bit of a high pain tolerance, allowing her to think more clearly even when injured. However, that didn’t negate the fact that it still hurt, the Ember Stone could erase the pain, but if she did, Indigo would only get frustrated and maybe have Sour do something else. For now, she needed to–

Indigo swiftly kicked Sunset in the stomach, making the flame haired girl roll on the floor. “Get the hell up, Shimmer! NOW!”

Sunset got onto her knees, heaving as she spat out more blood. With shaky legs she got onto her feet and stared down Indigo defiantly. “T-Tell me something…w-why Twilight…? Why her…?!”

Indigo smiled a little as she walked towards her. “Because I like her, Shimmer. Nah, I guess you could say I love her. You can say what you want, but that girl’s hot to me, she’s smart, reserved, and she could give two shits about my athletic achievements.”

The star athlete of Crystal Prep grabbed Sunset by the collar of her shirt, with her right fist, Indigo began punching Sunset in the face, repeatedly. Blood splattered onto the gym floor and onto her face and body with each successive hit.

“Everybody wants to dick ride me in one way or another! Because I’m the best, because I can become their meal ticket! I’m fucking tired of it! If all I wanted was an easy lay, I could pick a random girl and just take her to the locker room! But Sparkle, she’s different!”

With a growl, Indigo tossed Sunset towards the light, letting her fall unceremoniously onto the floor again. The spikey haired girl walked into the light with Sunset and when she was close enough, lifted her foot and brought it down over Sunset’s right kneecap.

“AAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!” Sunset yelled, feeling her leg dislocate.

“I dropped a lot of hints, and she picked up on each one. I let her see me in the locker room, and touch me, and she responded back to my touch!”

Indigo placed her feet on either side of Sunset’s body and then let herself drop rear first onto Sunset’s stomach. The sudden impact and weight caused Sunset’s eyes to go wide as she coughed, throwing up a little to the point she had to turn her head to keep from choking on it.

Sunset took in raspy breaths and responded, “S-She…She did t-that b-because…because she was afraid of you…! T-This school…e-everyone…she doesn’t trust a-any of you…!” Concentrate Shimmer…find Twilight…

“I could’ve protected her! She just needed to finally say she was mine and I could’ve given her anything! Protection from everyone! Love, affection, all of it!”

“S-She never wanted you t-to touch her…y-you raped her…!”

“I didn’t! She wanted it! She never once told me to stop!”

Throughout this beating and conversation, what neither Indigo Zap nor Lemon Zest knew was that Sunset was trying to locate Twilight. The Ember Stone was forged from the fires of life, and because of that, it was able to breathe life into those who were near dying and sense the embers of life that existed in everyone. Everyone’s flame was unique, it had a feel and glow that was all their own. She didn’t need Indigo or Lemon to tell her where Twilight was, she just needed time.

In her mind, she saw dozens and dozens of flickering embers. Each one a different color and each one feeling different from the last. One of them was Twilight’s, and all she needed to do was find it. She was drawing closer, she could feel it, more than half the school was eliminated from her search, she just needed another moment to zero in on Twilight, but Indigo wouldn’t give her that moment, at least, not of her own free will.

I’m sorry Twilight, I promise this is the last piece of clothing you’ll lose!

Indigo leaned forward about to say or do something, but that’s when Sunset lurched forward and smashed her forehead into Indigo’s face. The blow sent the star athlete shooting up to her feet as she howled in pain. “FUCKING HELL, YOU BITCH!”

{You either just don’t care or you want to see her naked or something. Oh well, more fun for us. Sour, the shirt.}

On the screen Sour Sweet used her scissors to repeat the same process she used to cut off the blazer on Twilight’s shirt. Once it was pulled off, the only things left preserving Twilight’s dignity was her white bra, and her plaid violet skirt.

{One more time Shimmer, and we’ll get to the main event.} Sour threatened

“HEY, YOU DON’T TOUCH THAT UNLESS I SAY SO! SHIT THAT HURT!” Indigo swore.

Now that she was off, Sunset poured all her thoughts into searching for Twilight. An orange-red flame cut through the dozens of other flames in the school, moving like a heat seeking missile until it found its target, a lone magenta flame, a familiar feeling magenta flame. Sunset opened her eyes and gave a little smirk.

“Found you…”

The flame haired girl rolled onto her left side, grunting in pain with each action she took. On shaky arms she propped herself up and used her good knee to get herself up a little.

Indigo wiped the blood from her nose and glared daggers at Sunset. “I’m going to break your fucking arm next, and after that I’m going to – what the hell?”

Suddenly, small embers began to rise from Sunset’s body, and soon after, her entire right leg was engulfed in flames. Lemon and Indigo jumped back in shock from the spontaneous combustion, both looking at each other with fear and confusion.

“Dude, what the hell?! We never said we were going to set her on fire,” said Lemon Zest.

“Shut up! Do you see any fucking matches or gasoline on me?!”

More flames ignited on Sunset, some from within, and the rest around her face. Sunset began to stand up, her right leg stamped hard against the floor, making the flames scatter away into particles. With a wave of her hand, Sunset removed the flames that had surrounded her face, revealing to Indigo and Lemon that all the injuries she had sustained during the beating were gone, as if someone had gone back in time and stopped the beating from ever happening.

“Good news, bitches, I know where Twilight is now,” said Sunset. “Bad news, you lost your advantage.”

Indigo’s right-hand shook, she quickly balled it into a fist and rushed in to punch Sunset again. But Sunset bolted for Indigo, intercepting her at such a great speed that Indigo barely had time to react. Sunset ducked under the punch and delivered her own punch to Indigo’s stomach. The blow made Indigo bend at the middle as her mouth opened in a wordless cry of pain. When Sunset retracted her arm, Indigo fell to her knees and clutched at her stomach experiencing a pain that she hadn’t felt in a long time.

Sunset swiftly wrenched Indigo’s right arm from her midsection and held it up. Indigo looked up with one eye, still trying to recover from the pain in her stomach, Sunset had a tight grasp around her forearm, a grip that was steadily getting tighter and tighter by the second.

“You should thank Twilight right now, Indigo, she made me promise not to kill your sorry asses, so I’m just going to leave you with a reminder of how easily I can end your piece of shit existence!”

Sunset doubled the force of her grip, and in so doing, caused an audible crack to echo in the gym, and a scream of pain to come from Indigo. The flame haired girl released Indigo’s broken arm and let her collapse into a heap, she then turned her attention to Lemon Zest, the quickness of her head turning caused a streak of orange to appear in her wake from her eyes when she laid them on the party girl.

Lemon Zest’s legs were shaking, her arms having lost strength, letting them dangle to the sides and cutting off the visuals for Sunny Flare and her group. Sunset walked towards Lemon Zest, her hair instantly ignited into flames, lightning up the room with its glow. The party girl collapsed onto her rear as she watched Sunset approach her, now standing over her with a look of pure hatred and death, fear and terror was evident in Lemon’s eyes as she beheld the image of a girl who was pissed off beyond all reason, a girl who would and could kill her without a second thought and not lose a wink of sleep over it. Lemon Zest couldn’t help it, as embarrassing and humiliating as it was, she peed herself.

“I-I swear to god – on my life – I-I don’t know where she is, Sunset! Y-You gotta believe me! It was all Indigo’s plan! S-She told them not to tell us where they were taking Twilight so that way you couldn’t get it out of us even if you did beat us up! I SWEAR IT’S THE TRUTH!” Lemon Zest pleaded.

Sunset sneered at Lemon Zest and then held out her right hand. “Phone, now.” Lemon Zest did as instructed and handed over the phone and looked into the camera. On the other side, she saw a confused and slightly scared Sunny Flare. “You have a few seconds to get the hell away from her before I come there and bash your skulls in. Sparky, I’m on my way, just wait.”

With that, Sunset crushed the phone in her hand, and then set it on fire until it was nothing but ash. Sunset stared down Lemon Zest for a little bit longer before she made her hair flare up, this, as it turns out, was enough to make Lemon Zest pass out on the floor out of fear.

“Hang on, Sparky, I’m coming.”

Sunset crouched low and shot up straight through the ceiling, she hovered in the air for a second and turned her head in the direction of the track field, more specifically, the equipment shed.

Sunny Flare stared at her phone, Sour Sweet and Sugarcoat were stunned as well, having seen and heard Sunset’s message. “She’s…She’s bluffing, she doesn’t really know where we are!”

“Dammit! Alright, whatever, Shimmer broke the rules, so now we go all the way!” Sour stated as she glared at Twilight. “You’re fucking cunt of a girlfriend just fucked you over, Sparkle!”

Sour Sweet took a good look at Twilight, before she had a look of fear on her face, but something changed, there was…confidence in her eyes. This only served to enrage Sour Sweet, she grabbed a large object, black and riddled with large bumps, as she advanced on Twilight. She grabbed Twilight by the hair and waved the object in her face in a threatening manner.

“Indigo made us promise not to shove anything up your cunt, said she wanted your first time to be with her! But you know what, fuck her! This was originally going up your ass, but now, I have a better place to put it!” Sour stated.

Sugarcoat’s eyes widened when she heard that and warned, “W-Wait, you can’t do that! She’s a virgin! If you do that you could seriously hurt her!”

“Who cares!” Sour Sweet replied. “This isn’t a vanilla porno thing we’re shooting here! Or, y’know what, I just thought of something better!” Sour Sweet threw the object on the floor, reached into her pocket, and pulled out the scissors she had been using. “Maybe I use these instead!”

Sunny Flare seemed to snap out of her daze long enough to register what Sour Sweet just said. “What the hell – are you fucking crazy?! You’ll kill her, you idiot!”

“We’re holding her against her will, stripped her, and threatened her with sexual violence, and we’re filming it! At this point, we’re fucked if she talks! Might as well turn this into a snuff film!”

Sugarcoat looked to Sour Sweet, she had a manic look in her eyes. That’s when she realized what was happening, Sour Sweet forgot her meds. Sour Sweet was off-balanced, and so took some medicine to keep her from going too far off the deep end in her thinking, when she was on them, she’d just make snide remarks and maybe throw a punch. But when she was off them, Sour Sweet could get real…dark, under the right circumstances, and right now was the perfect circumstance. Sugarcoat may not have liked Twilight Sparkle, but neither did she dislike her, she just wanted to avoid winding up in the same situation as Twilight.

She was smart, but not as smart as Twilight, aside from Sunset Shimmer, no one was. So Sugarcoat decided to advance her popularity in other ways, providing “favors” to her fellow classmates, and excelling as best she could in her academics while also doing more in athletics to the best of her ability, compared to Twilight, she was practically an Olympic competitor. Sugarcoat’s “favors” managed to avoid the hazing and general vitriol of Crystal Prep by becoming an under-the-table-slut. All she was concerned with was getting through Crystal Prep and making it to college to get into an ivy league school to become a lawyer, but now…

“Sour, did you forget to take your meds today or something?!” Sunny Flare asked.

“I needed to think clearly and that shit will throw me off!”

Despite the addition of the scissors, Twilight’s confident gleam didn’t diminish in the slightest, she knew…she knew in heart and mind that Sunset didn’t say what she said just to keep her calm. Sunset knew where she was, and she’d be rescued.

“Hope it’s good for you, Sparkle,” said Sour Sweet as she readied her scissors.

“SOUR SWEET!”

“NO!” Sugarcoat yelled as she charged for Sour Sweet.

The tri-tailed girl slammed into Sour Sweet, rolled on the ground for a few seconds before hitting a shelf and making various baseballs, cones, and other things fall on top of them.

Sour Sweet groaned as she propped herself up and growled, “Sugarcoat, what the fuck are you…do…ing…? Oh shit…”

Twilight, Sunny Flare, and even Sour Sweet stared in stunned silence when they saw that the scissors had pierced Sugarcoat’s stomach. The normally stoic girl looked down at herself, her face morphing into one of sheer terror as she saw the scissors lodged deep into her abdomen, her sense of pain was dulled as her brain worked to process what she was seeing. Sour Sweet got off Sugarcoat and clasped her hands around her mouth as she shook her head back and forth, as if trying to deny what was right before her eyes but failing to do so.

“Sour Sweet, what did you do…?”

“I…I…”

Just then the door to the storage room was ripped off its hinges, everyone sans Sugarcoat turned their heads towards the entrance and saw Sunset Shimmer, her flame hair was gone, but really, she didn’t need fire power to deal with these three. However, when she looked inside, she spotted Sugarcoat on the floor, stabbed, and Sour Sweet with a bit of blood on her hands.

“S-S-Shimmer?! W-Wait, I can explain–!”

Before Sunny Flare could finish her sentence, Sunset decked her with a right hook across the face, knocking out Sunny Flare immediately. Sour Sweet out of pure instinct got up and readied herself to fight Sunset, but that was a futile effort as Sunset swiftly came in and kneed Sour in the gut, making the bipolar girl hunch over in pain, but then came a quick kick that sent Sour flying towards the wall, slamming against it and knocking her out as well.

Sunset hurried over to Twilight and carefully removed the duct tape from her mouth. “Sparky, I’m so sorry I couldn’t protect you! I promised I wouldn’t let anything happen to you…and I failed…”

Despite the situation, Twilight smiled, a happy relieved grin. “You came for me. You saved me; you didn’t fail Sunset…but I need you to save Sugarcoat.”

Sunset glanced down at Sugarcoat, who was passed out. “But, she…”

“She stopped Sour Sweet from using those on me, and in the struggle got stabbed!” Twilight explained. “She helped me, Sunset, please don’t let her die!”

Sunset looked back at Sugarcoat and then sighed, “I’ll let you down in a second, okay?”

“I’m fine, just help her.”

The bearer of the Ember Stone knelt next to Sugarcoat, examining the damage. The scissors had punctured right through her stomach, and more than likely cut through the intestines and was hemorrhaging blood internally and releasing stomach acid into her system. “You helped Sparky, I don’t know if you came to your senses or if you’re not as bad I thought you were. But I’ll pay it forward.”

Sunset used her blazer to grab the scissors, pulled them out, and chucked them to the far side of the storage shed. She moved her head closer to Sugarcoats and tilted her head back, summoning the Flames of Life from the Ember Stone, Sunset inhaled, opened Sugarcoat’s mouth, and breathed in the flames. Unlike with Twilight, she wasn’t shot in the heart and on the brink of death, the wound was serious, but she wasn’t going to die right away, which meant the healing power of the flames would work immediately. And just as she thought, fire erupted around the wound, and in a matter of seconds, it was closed, along with all the damage it had done inside.

Sunset released Sugarcoat’s head and let it lie gently against the floor. Once she was done, Sunset whipped her hand across the rope that held Twilight, using her flames to cut it. Twilight’s arms were released, she let them dangle in front of her, strained and tired from holding that uncomfortable position for so long. Sunset lit a small flame to cut the zip ties and release Twilight’s hands from their confinement, she looked around the room and blushed for a moment as she grabbed Twilight’s panties.

“H-Here, go ahead and put them on,” said Sunset as she turned her head to give Twilight privacy.

Twilight blushed and took her underwear back gratefully. “I…I wouldn’t mind if it was you looking…just so you know…”

Sunset blushed harder, she took off her blazer and handed it to Twilight. “Here, you don’t want to go out looking like that.”

Twilight took the blazer and put it on, she glanced down at Sugarcoat who was still unconscious. “Will she be alright?”

“Thankfully her injuries weren’t as bad as yours were that night, so it wasn’t a touch and go thing, but she’ll be alright,” said Sunset as she wrapped her left arm around Twilight. “C’mon, let’s get you out of here.”

As Sunset and Twilight made their way out of the door, they stopped, watching as someone approached them at a running speed. When they got closer, both girls froze, realizing that that person was Dean Cadence. She stopped a few feet in front of them, catching her breath and panting hard for a few seconds.

“D-Dean Cadence, what are you doing here?!” Sunset asked.

“I…I saw a streak of flames heading towards the storage shed, then stop right in front of the door and ripped it off,” Cadence explained. “I ran out here to see what was going on and…and now I need to know why you two are out here instead of in class, and…” Cadence took a moment to look over Twilight and Sunset, Sunset’s blazer was gone, and there was some blood splatter on her shirt, not only that, but Twilight was wearing a blazer instead of her usual vest, and…was that cleavage? “Twilight, what’s…why do you look like that? Are you even wearing a shirt under that?!”

Twilight hugged herself, she had been trying so hard to keep everything that had been happening to her at Crystal Prep over the years hidden from her family, now, with the unconscious bodies of three of her abusers in the shed, and possibly two more in the gym where Sunset fought them, and given her current state of dress, there was no way for her to spin this or brush it off. Now, it was as if fate had decreed that this was the moment the lying ended, no more hiding the pain, it was time to let it out.

“No…I’m not…” Twilight answered. “I…I’m sorry…I’m sorry…”

The strength in Twilight’s legs left and she began to collapse, thankfully Sunset managed to catch her and gently guide her down to the ground. Cadence rushed over and knelt before her soon to be sister-in-law, her heart ached when she saw Twilight crying, but it hurt more not knowing why her little “ladybug” was hurting.

Sunset glanced at Cadence and said, “There’s something you should know, Dean Cadence.”

Dark Truths / Light Lies Part 4

“CINCH!”

The door to Principal Cinch’s office burst open, and behind it was Dean Cadence. Cadence was professional in her work, she was never prone to outbursts and handled the students with respect, caring, and a degree of big sisterly love. She was practically the students’ big sister figure, and if there was anyone they didn’t want to disappoint or hurt, it was Dean Cadence, yet another unspoken rule among the students, mostly because she actually gave a crap when they did something stupid.

However, that big sister visage had evaporated in place of a woman who was beyond pissed off. Sunset had informed Cadence of the degree of abuse that Twilight had been enduring at the school, on top of the sexual abuse that she had been put through at the hands of Indigo Zap. Twilight confirmed everything, with no way to deny anything, especially after what just happened, it was better that it was all said now, and Cadence was glad she did. Cadence knew that given how everything looked, one could pin Sunset as the aggressor, but with this information, she could make sure that Sunset didn’t get expelled.

However, right now, she had a bone to pick with Cinch. Speaking of which, Principal Cinch was sitting at her desk looking over some paperwork. She had an air of sophistication about her, with perfectly coiffed dark fuchsia hair, gray-blue skin, and calculating opal colored eyes, she was the law of the school. Principal Abacus Cinch knew how to make your life comfortable at Crystal Prep so long as you played ball, but if you cross her, that comfortable life can turn into a nightmare. Even after Cadence’s bursting into her office, Cinch didn’t even bat an eye, she merely put down the papers in her hand and looked up.

“Dean Amore Cadenza, to what do I owe this – out of character – intrusion?”

Cadence walked until she was standing in front of the desk and glared daggers at Cinch. “Twilight Sparkle was just found in the storage shed and held against her will.”

Cinch rolled her eyes. “Really, Cadenza? It wouldn’t be the first time the students engaged in some hazing.” Then Cinch paused as a thought crossed her mind. “Oh, please don’t tell me she was raped?”

“Came damn close! Sour Sweet, Sugarcoat, and your daughter, Sunny Flare!” Cadence exclaimed.

Cinch breathed a sigh of relief, “Well, thank god for small favors, the last thing I need is for our top student to wind up as another pregnant teen case.”

Cadence’s left eye twitched when she heard that Twilight was just taken against her will, threatened with sexual harm, and Cinch was only worried about the fact that it didn’t end up with Twilight getting pregnant? “I’m sorry…but are you FUCKING KIDDING ME?! I just told you that your own daughter was involved!”

“I’m not deaf, Cadenza, I heard you, I’m just counting my blessings. So, tell me what’s going on before you get worked up too much to tell me.”

And so, Cadence did, she told her everything. Not just the recent incident, but also the incidents regarding Indigo Zap and the constant hazing by the students at Crystal Prep. All of which culminated the events of today, and how Sunset Shimmer had been protecting Twilight these last few days. When she was done, Cadence took a seat and released a heavy exhale of frustration as she ran her hand down her face.

“We need to call the police, make a report…”

Cinch leaned forward and laced her fingers together. “Tell me, Cadenza, why ever would we do that?”

Cadence raised an eyebrow. “Why do you think?! What they’ve done alone is a crime! I think you forget that Shining Armor, an alumnus, my boyfriend, Twilight’s older brother, is a detective with the Canterlot City Police Department! So, I know that those girls are at least guilty of kidnapping, unlawful detainment, threatening harm with a deadly weapon! And that’s just what Sour, Sugar, and Sunny did! Assault, rape, and sexual molestation for Indigo Zap, and for Lemon Zest, accessory to it all!”

“I think it’s best that we keep this…in house, as it were,” said Cinch.

Cadence took a good hard look at Cinch, after everything she had just said, Cinch didn’t look the least bit fazed by all this. “Why do I get the feeling that you’ve done this before.”

Cinch adjusted her orange colored glasses. “Cadenza, running a school of such renown reputation requires a certain level of…discretion when dealing with situations like this. I do regret saying this, but this is not the first time we’ve had an incident occur at Crystal Prep.”

Cadence crossed her arms. “I should be surprised, but ironically, I’m not. How many?”

“More than I’d care to admit right now, but we’ll speak to the family’s involved. I’ll also be speaking to my daughter, personally, as well, and we’ll figure out the best disciplinary solution for all five of the students, rest assured that Sunset Shimmer will not be among them,” said Cinch.

Cadence rose from the seat and slammed her hands on top of Cinch’s desk. “You’re damn right she’s not, and neither is Twilight! You may not be willing to do anything, but I’m sure as hell going to call the police and Shining Armor!”

“Cadenza, make sure that is a route you’re willing to go.” Cinch rose from her chair and walked around her desk until she was standing at the right side of it. “As I’ve mentioned, we’ve managed to sweep many incidents under the rug, Crystal Prep caters to some powerful, wealthy, well connected families. So long as we ensure that their children are getting the best education, then they’re willing to look the other way, and that kind of prestige, that kind of power, can either make your life wonderful, or a living hell, and that also goes for one’s career.”

Cadence stood from her chair and stared down Cinch. “Are you threatening me?”

“No, Cadenza, I’m merely asking you to do what you’ve always done. Remain blissfully unaware as you always have been, I’m sorry this one hit so close to home, but because of that I’ll ensure that this incident doesn't happen again. You have my word.”

Cadence didn’t like this, she knew that Crystal Prep did have a lot of students who came from influential families, not all of them were just there due to their grades or physical ability. Still, with what Cinch said, about this going on right under her nose the entire time…how many other students were getting the same treatment or worse? Although, if anyone was getting the worst of it, it was Twilight.

“Tell me something, did you know that Twilight was getting hazed in this school, everyday? And don’t lie to me right now!”

Cinch walked to a case filled with awards, some from her days back during her tenure as a student at the school, and others from her current tenure as Principal. “Understand, in order to achieve what we have, the students need to be pushed and challenged, not just physically but also mentally. It does no good to improve their physical skills if their mental skills are lacking, same goes for the reverse. That kind of pressure needs to be…released…”

Cadence balled up her hands into fists. “So, you did know!”

“I made sure to keep tabs on it, clearly I ‘dropped the ball’ as it were, otherwise I would’ve obviously stopped it from getting this far. Twilight Sparkle serves as a great asset to the school and to motivate the students to do better. Of course, the constant hazing is to be expected, but it served its purpose, if at anytime I saw Twilight’s grades slipping I would’ve put an end to it, I can’t have my prized student getting seriously hurt.”

Cadence rushed towards Cinch and grabbed a handful of her blouse, she pressed her against the case filled with awards and raised her right fist in preparation to punch the older woman. “Twilight isn’t just some ‘asset’, ‘tool’, or whatever! She’s a person! A girl who’s endured hell because you’ve allowed it! That all stops now!”

Despite this action, Cinch didn’t bat an eye. “Go on ahead, Miss Cadenza, and if you do, I promise that you will never be able to get work in any administration or teaching job anywhere in this city. Personally speaking, Dean Cadenza, I believe that you can better help Twilight in the school, than fired.”

Cadence knew that she was justified, at least in her mind, to punch the ever-loving-hell out of Cinch. But what would that accomplish? In the short run, it would feel good, in the long run, it would just destroy her career, and it would also take away someone who could help protect Twilight. Cadence knew what she had to do…she lowered her fist and released Cinch from her grasp.

“You made the right decision, Cadenza,” said Cinch.

“I’m only staying here to protect Twilight, don’t expect me to be all that helpful from now on. The moment Twilight graduates from this place, we’re going to revisit this conversation, and it will have a very different outcome. From this moment forward, I will be protecting Twilight from you, the students, and those five.” Cadence began walking towards the door but stopped and glared at Cinch from over her shoulder. “Do you believe in God, Cinch?”

Abacus Cinch straightened up her clothes and said, “I was never a religious woman, you should know that.”

“Well, we do have angels flying around. I wonder if they’ll be forgiving of your actions. A lot of people do bad things because they don’t think they’ll be punished in this life or the afterlife. But now we have Angelus and her Sentinels, just ruminate on that for a minute,”

Cadence opened the door and slammed it shut, she hoped something broke inside the room when she did that. After that little session, she made her way back to her office where Twilight and Sunset were waiting for her. When she arrived at her office, she paused. What was she going to say to them? She just found out that Principal Cinch had known – had always known – that Twilight was enduring hazing and allowed it to continue, just to allow the students an outlet for their frustration. Not only that, but there would be no legal action taken against them, beyond what would be done “in house” as Cinch said. No police, no arrests, no justice…

Twilight’s suffered so much now…if I tell her this…I…I don’t know what it will do to her…

With a heavy, emotional sigh, Cadence opened the door. Inside her office, Twilight was sitting next to Sunset, the latter having her arms wrapped around the former. Thankfully, Cadence was able to find a spare uniform shirt for Twilight to wear, but Twilight kept Sunset’s blazer, at this point it was like a security blanket for the genius teen. Both girls turned towards the door and saw the look on Cadence’s face, whatever happened, it wasn’t good.

“So, what did Principal Cinch say?” Sunset asked.

Cadence’s gaze briefly fell on Twilight before shifting to Sunset. “Nothing…productive…at least in the way we want…” The pink colored woman made the slow walk to her seat, the afternoon sun’s rays pouring through the window behind her. “Cinch is going to take care of this…in house.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow. “‘In house’, wait, is she going to sweep this under the rug?!”

“She said there will be disciplinary action taken, but essentially, yes, she is. No cops, no reports, no nothing,” said Cadence, the last part spoken with venom.

“B-B-But she can’t do that!” Sunset shot to her feet and slammed her hands on Cadence’s desk. “Fuck it then, I’ll call the damn cops, I’m not afraid of that old bitch!”

“While I share your sentiment, I’m afraid that won’t work. Cinch threatened to use her influence to make sure that we don’t prosecute…” Cadence looked directly at Twilight, “…but I’ll leave it up to you, Ladybug. If you want to, I’ll fight alongside you, no matter what happens, no matter what Cinch throws at us.”

Twilight clasped her hands as she thought hard on what she should do, she had kept this secret for so long that she never contemplated going to the police, because doing so would get her big brother involved. She knew he’d feel guilty about not noticing any signs that she was being hurt, and she knew that Cadence was feeling the same way too. Either way, Shining Armor was going to learn about this, and that was a bridge she’d have to cross soon, but for right now…

“Can she…Can she promise me that they won’t do anything else? That they’ll leave Sunset and me alone?” Twilight asked.

Sunset looked at Twilight with confusion.

“I can, but to be safe…Twilight, I need you to do poorly on at least a couple of assignments,” Cadence suggested.

“W-What?! You mean, purposefully get a bad grade?!” Twilight exclaimed. “W-Why?!”

“Because she wants Twilight’s grades, right?” Sunset asked. “Twilight’s grades make the school look good, and if her grades slip, say because of this recent event, then Cinch will have to make sure that the ones responsible get the message to leave her alone. Tell me I’m wrong.”

Cadence rubbed her right temple as she said, “No, you’re right. It’s the only leverage we have right now. Just do enough to drop it by one point, once Cinch understands we can play hardball, then I’ll talk to the teachers about getting you extra credit work to boost your grade up higher.”

“Well, that part won’t be too hard…the first part though…” Twilight shivered at the idea of getting a bad grade, on purpose. Still, this whole thing just made her more aware of how twisted everything was in Crystal Prep, not just the students, if anything, Principal Cinch was at the heart of this twistedness. “If it’ll keep them from doing anything again, then I’ll do it.”

“I’m pretty sure they won’t, not after what I did,” said Sunset.

“About that…” Cadence turned her attention to the flame haired girl. “Can I assume you have some kind of magical item like the other you at CHS?”

Sunset sighed, there was no point in hiding it, plus, she’d need help in explaining away the fact that she went all fire hair during her fight with Indigo. She opened her collar, reached in, and pulled out the Ember Stone necklace. “This is the Ember Stone, it grants me power over fire, the Flames of Life. I can create, manipulate, and even form constructs made of fire, and I can transform into a fire breathing dragon at will. I can also heal rapidly from any injury, which is what I used to help me get the edge over Indigo.”

Cadence smiled as she shook her head. “I should probably be surprised, but after seeing the other you, and with everything that’s gone on, I can’t really say that this is wrong. Well, in the meantime, you don’t need to be here after what happened. You’re excused.”

“Um, I don’t think that’s a good idea, Mom works from home, if I go back this early, she’ll know something’s wrong,” Twilight pointed out.

Cadence cursed under her breath, she forgot Twilight Velvet was a work-from-home editor. She knew that Mrs. Velvet and Mr. Night Light needed to be told about this, but after everything that happened, Twilight was sure that that was something she wanted to do personally, most likely much later down the road.

“Well…I could always drive you to mine and Shiny’s place. Although…I’ll have to come back, and I don’t want to leave you alone…”

“She can crash at my place.” Sunset stated. “Not saying you have to, but you could excuse me too. That way, she’s not alone, and you’ll know she’s somewhere safe.”

Cadence looked to Twilight for confirmation on the suggestion, Twilight gave her former babysitter a smiling nod. “Alright, you’re excused too, but call me when you get there so I know you arrived safely. I’ll get your work together for the day, and we’ll mark today as you leaving for medical reasons.”

“Thank you, Cadence,” said Twilight.

Cadence watched as Sunset and Twilight left her office, when they did, she sighed heavily. There was a lot to do, and she needed to make a call.

Meadowbrook didn’t like not knowing what was going on. She didn’t like that Cardinal Neighsay was here in Canterlot City and running roughshod over her handling of Fluttershy as the Magdalena. She was given the authority to be Fluttershy’s handler, and she fought for it, mostly because she actually gave a damn about the young girl, unlike some of the other Vatican officials who saw Fluttershy, the Magdalena, as a just a tool, a weapon against anything that would threaten mankind, or the Vatican itself. Personally speaking, Meadowbrook never understood that last part, Fluttershy had the blood of the Savior running through her, and could wield the Spear of Destiny, her talents and abilities were better used to keep others safe from evil.

Unfortunately, Neighsay didn’t see it that way. Teaming up with the Angelus did not sit well with her, especially after seeing how brutal the Sentinels were with killing the members of the Blood Kings. For the ones who transformed into Blacknights, those methods were one thing, but for those who were only armed with guns, she was sure that a Sentinel could easily overpower them without resorting to killing.

When Fluttershy called Meadowbrook last night, she almost thought she was joking when she said that the Angelus needed her assistance. She feared for what exactly that meant, but thankfully it was to help Sunset Shimmer, who had somehow been infected with some of the Darkness’ evil. She was glad that Fluttershy was able to save Sunset, but there was no telling what the next request would be.

With all this going on, Meadowbrook decided to do some investigating. She was in her modest home that was set up across from the church, being a Nun, she didn’t need much, that is if she was a normal Nun. Inside the one-story home was a small kitchen, two bedrooms, two and a half baths, a small backyard, and a secret room that she paid some contractors to keep quiet about. The thirty-five-year-old woman walked about her secret room, sporting a tank-top and pajama shorts, and her curly red hair tied up into a rather tall stack. Her computer sat on a desk, while on a board she had written down notes regarding the Darkness, the Angelus, Witchblade, and even Cardinal Neighsay.

While she didn’t consider Sunset Shimmer a threat, it was still a good idea to keep an eye on her, there was no telling what might happen later on down the road after all. But right now, Neighsay took up much of her research time. Speaking of which, Meadowbrook decided to place a call to the Vatican to get some information.

“Hello, I’d like to speak to Cardinal Neighsay,” said Meadowbrook.

{I am so sorry, but Cardinal Neighsay is not in at this time. Is this an urgent matter?}

Meadowbrook raised an eyebrow, surely, they knew that he was in the States and in Canterlot City, why not say something like “You can’t go ask him yourself?” “Not particularly no, I was tryin’ to see if he had an opinion on whether or not we should adopt a wait-and-see approach in regards to the Angelus, or if we should make contact on behalf of the Vatican?”

{Oh dear. Well, that certainly is something that the Cardinal should weigh in on, possibly his Holiness as well. Sadly, Cardinal Neighsay is taking a small sabbatical back in his home in England.}

England? Meadowbrook thought. “Oh, I see, well that’s alright. I’ll continue on our current path and adapt as the situation befits. Rest assured; we’ll make sure that the Darkness’ influence does not spread across this world.”

{Very well, good luck Sister Meadowbrook, and go with God.}

Her phone call ended then; Meadowbrook took a seat in her swivel chair as she pondered this information. According to the letter, the Pope had ordered Neighsay to come to Canterlot to oversee Fluttershy’s use in the battle against the Darkness, and to ally with the Angelus. If that’s the case, then surely the officials within the Vatican would know that, at the very least those in the inner elite should know and relay that information to her. The fact that they didn’t tell her off or react meant that they didn’t know Neighsay was here, and what was this about a “sabbatical”?

With that being the case, Meadowbrook used her laptop to video call someone she could trust to look into something for her. The screen was blank for a little bit before it came alive with an older man, he was a bit round, tan colored, had a bushy blonde beard, and a brown top hat.

{Well if it ain’t my favorite cousin, May-May. How y’all doin’?}

Meadowbrook chuckled. “Eh, kinda good, kinda meh, but if you can help me out, Cattail, then I’ll be doin’ a whole lot betta.”

The portly man crossed his arms and smiled. {Lay it on me, Cuz.}

“Ah need you to do some diggin’ on somethin’.” Meadowbrook brought up a file on her computer. “I got my hands on somethin’, it’s encrypted, and I can’t quite crack it. But I know you have the skills to do it.”

{You gettin’ yourself inta trouble?}

“If I’m right, gettin’ myself and a friend out of it,” said Meadowbrook.

{Send it.}

Meadowbrook opened a secured email and sent it to Cattail. She managed to use her admin privileges to get as far as she could into the Vatican data files concerning Neighsay, she found a few emails but they were encrypted, luckily she managed to use her own computer skills to snag them, but it seemed the emails themselves were doubly so. Cattail had certain skills to get around almost any computer security. There was something that Neighsay wanted to keep secret, and she was going to find out what that was.

{Okay, heh, your Vatican buddies need better security, Cuz, it’s only marginally better than the Pentagon’s, but that’s not sayin’ much. Here ya go.}

The email was sent back, but now with the files opened. She looked through them and raised an eyebrow, one was a research file on the Darkness and the Angelus, particularly regarding the cults that were formed around them. Then there was some shipping information. “Looks like Neighsay had somethin’ sent to Canterlot ahead of when he first arrived.”

{Probably a sex doll considerin’ how much it cost ‘em to send it priority,} Cattail joked.

“He did always strike me as the kind of person who’d find ya in a dark alley. I got an address, okay, I’m gonna pay it a little visit and find out what our dear Cardinal had sent here.”

{Hey, take care of yourself, Cuz. Don’t go doin’ somethin’ crazy now.}

“Not without reason, Cattail, not without reason.”

Celestia had laid her head down on the bed, having watched Sunset most of the night, having battled Sunset in her possessed state had exhausted her. Technically, Angelus’ power had already burned off her fatigue hours ago, with the light entity’s power, Celestia found she could go on for hours without sleep if she needed to, but mentally, she felt she needed to rest, and so she did. The older woman stirred a little, groggily she raised her head and looked upon her surrogate daughter, Sunset was still asleep, unfortunately Celestia didn’t have any spare clothes for Sunset to wear, at least none that would be too big on her, same went for underwear.

I should probably text Luna to stop by Sunset’s home to pick up a few clothes for her to wear, thought Celestia.

Nevertheless, Celestia had one of her work shirts laid out just in case Sunset needed to move about. Part of her still couldn’t believe what happened, what she did, how she fought, it was – she guiltily admitted – exhilarating. Having such power was freeing, the laws of physics were her playthings during their battle, but as much as the battle was exciting, she still didn’t like the fact that she had to harm Sunset so badly. Even though the Witchblade would heal Sunset’s wounds, feeling and hearing Sunset’s bones break under her kick was horrible. Even now, Celestia still had some phantom feeling around her right heel from where it landed against Sunset.

\\/// It was horrible, but it had to be done. You did a good thing, Celestia, you saved her from the vileness that is the Darkness. \\///

Celestia clenched her fists just thinking about Sombra and the Darkness. They did this to Sunset, they hurt her, almost made her hurt someone else against her will! I’ll never forgive them for this!

\\/// That’s right Celestia, you see how evil they are. This is the kind of thing you can expect the Darkness and Sombra to bring about onto the world if they are allowed to prevail here. We must strike them down swiftly before the eclipse or we’ll lose our advantage. \\///

I understand…I only ask that you let me be in control when we deliver the final blow.

Celestia ceased her conversation with Angelus when she noticed Sunset begin to groan and squirm. She stood up quickly, watching Sunset closely. The fiery haired teen opened her eyes slowly, blinking them a few times as she groaned loudly.

“Sunset?” Celestia called out.

Sunset turned her head to the right and saw her guardian standing next to the bed. “C-Celestia…? What…Where am…What happened?”

“You’re in the guest room of my house, I brought you back here after our…our fight when you were possessed by the Darkness’ essence,” said Celestia.

Sunset’s eyes snapped all the way open as she bolted upright, an action she soon regretted as the room started to spin and Sunset found herself plopping back onto the bed. “Oookay…not a good idea to do that so fast…oh…”

“Are you okay?!” Celestia asked in a panicked tone.

“Yeah…Yeah, I just got dizzy…sorry to worry you, again,” said Sunset.

Celestia sat back down on the chair she had brought into the room and sighed in relief. “Don’t be, worrying is what a parent does no matter how old a child gets…” Celestia realized what she had just said, her cheeks burning with embarrassment, but still, she didn’t make any attempt to take it back.

Sunset wasn’t too out of it to understand what Celestia had just said, she really did regard Sunset as her daughter. It was ironic and bittersweet at the same time. When she was a filly, she had parents that loved her, but then grew distant and disinterested the moment they came into some wealth. Of course, Princess Celestia saw this and while the ruler of the nation didn’t see any scenario where a lecture would help, nor would it help if she had threatened them with prison, they weren’t endangering Sunset, nor where they mistreating her, they were just neglecting her, only coming to see her when it suited them. Sunset understood this, but it didn’t make it any better.

She noticed that Princess Celestia had started to become not just a mentor, but also a second mother. Which only made what she did to that second mother all the more painful when Sunset took the time to think about it, she betrayed her, someone whom she looked at as a daughter, gave her attention and love to, and spurned it because she acted like a spoiled, prideful brat that believed she deserved the world on a silver platter. Then there was this world’s Celestia, someone who took in a girl who was homeless and knew nothing of this world without question, gave her an identity, and a home of her own to live in.

The very same person she spurned was also the same one who was helping her and caring for her. Sunset didn’t know if the universe was giving her a second chance or not, but Sunset wasn’t about to make the same mistake as she did back then, not now.

“Is that…how you really see me? After everything I did before the Fall Formal?” Sunset asked, her voice shaky with concern.

Celestia rubbed the back of her head and said, “Perhaps if I took more than a passing interest in your activities, maybe that wouldn’t have happened. You’re so independent, strong, and intelligent, I saw myself as more of a hindrance to you than anything. Now I think I should’ve meddled more, perhaps your plans would’ve changed? Perhaps this whole Witchblade and Anon-A-Miss thing wouldn’t have happened? We’ll never know, but the one thing that hasn’t changed for me, is how I feel about you Sunset. I’d be proud to call you my daughter…if you’d be okay with a mother like me?”

Sunset turned her head a little as her eyes began to water, those were the words she wanted to hear from Princess Celestia, not just the words that would tell her she was destined for greatness, but those words that she wanted to become a mother to her, an actual mother. Sunset had long ago decided she was going to make this world her home, to start fresh, so why not start fresh with this relationship with Celestia?

“If you’re sure you want a girl as stubborn, headstrong, and bratty like me for a daughter…then…I’d…I’d love to have you as my mother…”

Celestia began to cry, hearing such words made her heart swell with happiness. “I’d hug you, but since you’re naked under there I’d rather not make this awkward.”

Sunset chuckled through her happy tears. “Aww, but mommy, don’t you want to hold your baby girl?”

Celestia barked with laughter as she said, “S-Sunset, that is so inappropriate!”

“Sorry, sorry, bad joke,” Sunset replied.

}}} Compared to a certain entity that shan’t be named – Mother – I’ve no doubt you’ll be an excellent mother. {{{

Sunset raised her right arm up and saw that the black spot on the gemstone of her bracelet was completely gone, and she could hear Witchblade’s voice again. “It’s good to hear you again partner. And, sorry I didn’t catch on sooner.”

}}} Think nothing of it, Father’s essence was strangling my consciousness, silencing my voice from you. But no more. {{{

\\/// And as per usual, his first words are a barb against me. At least Sunset’s more caring about her mother, unlike a certain ungrateful child who shall not be named – Son. \\///

Sunset and Celestia sighed, it seemed like they were back to the awkward family feud between Angelus and Witchblade.

“Anyway, your friends will be coming over after school, I’ll go and get you something to eat, just rest up,” said Celestia as she rose from her chair and began walking away.

“Thank you…Mom,” said Sunset.

Celestia paused at the doorway and glanced over her shoulder, “You’re welcome, Honey.”

Sunset and Twilight drove to the address that Pinkie Pie had texted them, but also asked for her to bring some of her clothes and underwear as well. Apparently her twin was completely naked, as per the usual when it came to the Witchblade, and had no spare clothes at Celestia’s house, and since they were practically identical, grabbing a few clothes from her closet would be just as good as if someone had gone to Shimmer’s place.

The one thing that did worry Sunset right now was Twilight, she had just gone through a rather traumatic event earlier today, and yet she insisted on going back out to see a group of strangers, well, a few of them were strangers, two of them were well known.

“Sparky, are you sure about this? Maybe I should take you home?” Sunset suggested.

Twilight clasped her hands together as a determined look appeared upon her face. “No, I’m not going to let what they did define and limit me! Being with you, seeing Shimmer and Pinkie, spending some time alone with Pinkie, I’ve realized that I can’t keep being distrustful of new people. Especially after what Sugarcoat did for me.”

Sunset still didn’t like that girl, she helped in Twilight’s kidnapping, but according to Twilight, when Sour Sweet was about to go psycho on her, the girl with no filter tackled Sour Sweet and ended up getting severely injured for her good deed. So now she was confused on how to feel about Sugarcoat, she was grateful for what Sugarcoat did and at the same time she seethed with anger. Sunset wasn’t sure if she was going to thank the girl when she saw her or punch her.

“When I think back to when I first met her, she wasn’t particularly mean to me, she just spoke her mind a lot and said she didn’t want to associate with me because she didn’t want to suffer like I have been…” Twilight rubbed her left arm as she recalled the memory. “Honestly, I can’t blame her for thinking that way, I mean, who in their right mind would want to make friends with the school’s whipping girl?”

“Ahem?” Sunset chimed in loudly. “This chick, right here.”

Twilight smirked, “Like I said, ‘in their right mind’.”

Sunset chuckled and playfully punched Twilight’s left arm. “Very funny, Sparky, I’m rubbing off on you.”

“I’ve noticed. But, yeah, that’s my thinking.”

Sunset couldn’t help but smile proudly at Twilight, her fear was that this event might break her mentally, after enduring years of abuse, and now a kidnapping, she was sure Twilight would become an emotional wreck and never want to be near anyone other than Sunset and her family. But it seemed that Twilight was willing to overcome today’s ordeal and rise above it.

“Alright, Sparky, just remember that I’m here, and so is Pinkie. Don’t forget that they may be a little friendlier than usual since you look like the other Twilight, but Shimmer and Pinkie should’ve explained to dial it back a bit,” Sunset assured.

It wasn’t long before Sunset and Twilight pulled up to the house the GPS directed them to, parking next to the sidewalk. They exited the car, with Sunset grabbing the clothes she was requested to bring. Admittedly, Twilight wasn’t the only one who was nervous, Sunset was about to meet Shimmer’s friends, and her guardians. They strode down the walkway until they were at the front door, Twilight pressed the doorbell and the two of them waited for someone to answer. About half a minute later, the door opened and before them was an older woman, midnight blue skin, and hair that was the colors of the night, with teal colored eyes. Eyes which were currently bugging out.

“S-Sunset?! T-Twilight Sparkle?!”

“Uh, y-yeah, that’s us,” said Sunset.

“B-But you’re…?!” The older woman pointed towards the stairs, her head following that direction, “How did you – A-And when did Twilight get here?!”

“Uh…” both girls uttered at the same time.

Just then Pinkie Pie appeared next to the older woman. “Sunset, Twilight, you came, yay!” Pinkie turned to the other woman and said, “Sorry, VP Luna, I forgot to tell you that our world’s Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle were coming over to visit Shimmer.”

Luna glanced between Pinkie and the two girls standing at her doorstep, she then threw her hands up into the air and said, “I’m done, I’m just going to accept whatever happens from this point forward. My ward is Witchblade, my big sister is Angelus, demons, angels, and magic exist! Just, done!”

All three girls watched Luna walk into the living room, plop down on the couch and turn on the TV. The couple entered the house and closed the door behind them, looking worriedly at Luna.

“Is she…alright?” Twilight asked.

Pinkie giggled a little. “She’s just trying to wrap her head around the fact that her big sister – Principal Celestia – is the host of the Angelus, and that Witchblade is in fact our Sunset Shimmer. And now she’s dealing with the fact that you two are here and are the originals of our world.”

Both girls blinked.

“Oh good, you brought Shimmer some clothes!” Pinkie chirped happily.

Sunset snapped herself back to the current situation and said, “Y-Yeah, I did, is she upstairs?”

“Yep, follow me! The girls are already up there!”

Twilight and Sunset followed Pinkie Pie up the stairs, both adjusted their uniforms a little to make sure they were presentable halfway there. Once they made it to the door, Pinkie Pie entered first and said, “Hey guys, we have some visitors!”

Pinkie stepped to the side and presented Sunset and Twilight. The girls had nervous smiles on their faces as they took stock of Shimmer’s friends. Shimmer had been kind enough to show them a picture of the girls in a group photo and they started to pick out the girls based on that. The girl with the purple and beautifully done hair and fashionable clothes was Rarity, the one who looked bashful and had light pink hair was Fluttershy. On the other side were a couple of tomboyish looking girls, the one with the rainbow hair was obviously Rainbow Dash and standing next to her was a slightly muscular girl in a cowboy hat, which meant that was Applejack. There was a fifth person there, a tall, beautiful woman, whom they assumed must have been Principal Celestia, Luna’s older sister.

Twilight meekly raised her hand and gave a little wave to the girls, “H-Hi, m-my name’s Twilight Sparkle – oh, but you probably already figured that out since I look like the other me who came from another dimension…” She glanced at her girlfriend. “T-This is Sunset Shimmer – oh wait, you know that already too…um, we’re together, s-she’s my girlfriend and…and…oh man I’m terrible at this…”

Shimmer decided to throw them a lifeline. “Well, now that the awkward intros are done, those clothes for me, Sis?”

Sunset smiled and said, “Yep, but the bra may be a bit too big for you.”

“Uh-huh, you wish you had a rack like mine,” Shimmer shot back.

Twilight and Pinkie blushed at their banter.

“Why don’t we give Sunset – er – Shimmer some time to dress,” said Celestia.

Celestia ushered Shimmer’s friends out, except for Sunset, Twilight, and Pinkie. When they were gone, Sunset threw the clothes at the end of the bed and rushed to Shimmer, wrapping her arms around her interdimensional twin and hugging her tight.

“Goddammit, don’t you ever scare me like that again!” Sunset exclaimed. “It’s all my fault, I should’ve done something when you felt off that night after fighting Sombra!”

Shimmer was taken by surprise by the sudden embrace and from what Sunset said. But her surprise only lasted a moment before Shimmer returned the hug. “It’s not your fault, Sunset, this is on me for not noticing it. So, don’t blame yourself.” Shimmer felt Sunset release her and paused when she saw actual tears in her twin’s eyes, she was really worried about her. “C’mon, I’m fine, I’m alive. It’s certainly not the first time I’ve gotten myself nearly killed.”

Sunset wiped her eyes. “Yeah, well, that’s not happening from here on out. You have me to back you up now, so no more of that. You’re family to me, the only family I have left, so don’t take too many risks. Alright?”

Shimmer nodded. “Got it.”

Twilight couldn’t help but cry too from seeing the display, it amazed her really. Neither of the two girls knew the other existed until a few days ago, and now that they’ve found each other, they’re as close as any two sisters could be, it reminded Twilight of her own relationship with Shining Armor. Pinkie Pie felt the same as Twilight, seeing the two Sunsets together reminded Pinkie of her three sisters, and how she’d feel if anything ever happened to them.

“Okay, let me get changed so we can all have a good talk,” said Shimmer.

As she said this, Shimmer threw off the blanket and stood up from the bed, albeit more slowly, and exposed herself to the others. This in turn caused both Twilight and Pinkie to turn their backs.

“Oh c’mon, it’s just us girls in here, plus you’ve seen me in my Witchblade armor, pre and post transformation,” said Shimmer.

“Yeah, besides, it’s just me,” said Sunset.

“Y-Yeah, but you’re you, and looking at you is essentially looking at Sunset n-naked, a-and I’m not ready for that yet,” said Twilight.

Sunset crossed her arms and smirked. “Seriously? You were groping me not but a few nights ago.”

“That was different!”

“S-Same here, bedroom, you naked, context!” Pinkie agreed.

Both Sunset’s couldn’t help but laugh at their girlfriends’ weird sense of modesty.

Abacus Cinch was in her study at home, calling Mayor Mare to make sure she had her bases covered. The phone rang for a few minutes before it hung up, with an irritated growl, Abacus dialed the number again. She hated the fact that Mayor Mare regarded her as little more than a nuisance, after all the money she put into her last campaign, and the stellar reputation that she had cultivated at Crystal Prep to help convince Mayor Mare’s future and present constituents to keep her in office, you’d think that the Mayor would be more grateful.

Finally, after the fifth call, someone picked up. {Ah, Cinch, what is it this time?}

“Hmph, you sound like you’re in an even worse mood than the last time we spoke,” said Cinch.

{Well let’s see, I’m currently the mayor of a city that’s in the middle of a crisis! I have a gang that’s being led by a demon king, I have an angel and her army patrolling around the city, two scantily clad women who are fighting said gang, it’s a regular shit show here!}

“Indeed. Well, I just called to inform you of a potential problem,” said Cinch.

{Oh great, what did one those little sociopathic brats of yours do this time?}

Cinch gave her the bare details, excluding the names as she didn’t want to give enough for Mayor Mare use it against her.

{Christ, Cinch, do you have any idea how big a fucking bullet you just dodged?! There was no way I could sweep that under the rug, you’re damn lucky today, and if I were you, I’d get those brats in line before you end up with a dead body! Ugh, at this rate, the Sentinels will come in there and clean house……not a bad idea actually.}

Abacus gripped her cellphone tight but managed to maintain her composure. “Yes, it was a gross oversight on my part. Rest assured I will take care of this, I just thought you should know should something arise.”

{Fine, but I mean it Cinch, if something like that happens again, I’m not going to be able to protect you. No amount of money will! Now get your house in order!}

The call ended with that, Abacus put the phone down and sighed heavily. She took off her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose, annoyed by how badly things spiraled out of control. Sitting across from her was Sunny Flare, her left eye and cheek had dark bruises, and she had a look of shame. On the desk between them was a camera, not just any camera, but the one that was used to film what they were doing to Twilight Sparkle.

Abacus put her glasses back on and reached for the camera, she opened the side panel and pressed “play”. The miniature screen on the panel began to show the events of earlier today, Twilight Sparkle strung up like a piece of meat on a hook, her mouth duct taped, and hands bound. The scene played out, the camera never moved to the side, but you could hear Sunny Flare’s voice, along with Indigo Zap and Lemon Zest through the phone. Sour Sweet appeared from the left side of the screen and moved to remove Twilight’s panties, then she threatened her with the scissors. Abacus’ eyes briefly glanced up at her daughter, her brow furrowed, causing Sunny Flare to flinch under her mother’s gaze.

Abacus continued to watch everything, Twilight wasn’t touched for a little after her blazer was removed, and then her shirt. That’s when she heard the commotion from the phone, Indigo shouting and swearing, and Sunset Shimmer’s voice saying she found her. That’s when things seemed to get crazy, not long after that, Sunset declared that she was coming to save Twilight, which caused the others to panic. She heard Sugarcoat and Sunny protesting Sour Sweet’s action, and then the camera fell to the ground and all she could see was a wall. The distinct sound of a short scuffle came next, and then there was Sunny Flare's shaky voice, she presumed this was the moment that Sugarcoat was stabbed.

The next sound was that of the door getting ripped off, followed by Sunny Flare pleading and then the sound of a punch striking a face. The camera did capture the moment when Sour Sweet was sent flying and hit the wall the camera was positioned. There was a brief orangey glow inside the room, that’s about when Abacus turned off the footage, put the camera down, and glared at her daughter.

“I don’t know which part of this is the most disappointing. The fact that you let this get so far out of hand. The fact that you didn’t inform me of Indigo Zap’s sexual misconduct with Twilight Sparkle. ALL of it, quite frankly, is EXTREMELY disappointing!” Abacus declared as she struck the desk with her fist, startling her daughter.

“I-I-I’m sorry, Mother…I just…it’s just Sunset Shimmer’s messed everything up! She humiliated me in front of the rest of the students and made a powerplay showing that she was the top dog! Everybody knows that Twilight Sparkle is the school’s whipping girl, she’s not someone to be desired, she’s just someone to beat and beat down! Then that bitch of a redhead comes in and just turns all that on its head!” Sunny Flare ranted as she gripped the hem of her skirt and accidentally ripped it a little.

“And because of this, you entertained Indigo’s little plan? For the love of god, this is sloppy work! I can clearly hear your voices in the damned video, even if I can’t see you, it’s distinct! Not only that, but Sour Sweet is in the video as well,” said Abacus.

“W-We were going to edit it out all that! Alter our voices, blur out Sour’s face, I mean we did need someone to do the deeds…” Sunny explained.

Abacus hit the desk again, causing Sunny to jump for the second time. The older woman got up from behind her desk and slowly walked towards her daughter. “I gave you the simple task of monitoring Twilight Sparkle, because I needed her to be the object upon which everyone foists their frustrations onto, which meant the rest of the student body had less time to do such things to themselves and others. While at the same time, I wanted her to be functioning enough so that she didn’t leave the school and could keep the school’s overall GPA above all the other academic institutions in the city! And yet, here we are, Cadenza knows what I’ve been doing, and will most likely inform Twilight and her girlfriend, if not already, and she has us over a barrel, but thankfully so do I.”

“I-I-I’m sorry, Mother, I-I promise I’ll keep a better eye on them,” said Sunny in a fearful voice.

Abacus stopped before Sunny Flare, and swiftly struck Sunny across the left side of her face, in the exact same spot that Sunset had struck her not too long ago. The blow sent Sunny Flare straight to the floor, the pain in her face was magnified by the fresh, hard blow she just received, making blood trickle from her mouth.

“Doesn’t really matter anymore, does it, my dear Sunny? The only saving grace I have is that I can bury Cadenza, Sparkle, and Shimmer if they decide to come at me. The camera’s footage is the real evidence, now I need to know how much of a liability Indigo Zap, Sour Sweet, Lemon Zest, and Sugarcoat are?”

Sunny Flare’s left hand hovered over the newly bruised area, feeling the heat radiate off it. “L-Lemon Zest won’t say anything…she’s got a crush on Indigo and won’t betray her. Sour Sweet just lost it because she didn’t take her meds…and Sugarcoat…”

Abacus raised an eyebrow when she noticed her daughter pause. “What about Sugarcoat?”

“I don’t know…she stopped Sour Sweet before she could do anything…but that was the first time she’d ever spoken up and did anything…” Sunny Flare mentioned.

“This is the first time? So, you think she might do it again? Might become a liability to us?” Sunny Flare searched her mind, trying to think, but Abacus was already impatient and annoyed at her daughter’s incompetence. “TELL ME NOW, YOUNG LADY!”

Sunny Flare winced and said, “I-I don’t know! She’s not like the other kids! She just wants to keep her head down and get through the school without making any waves or getting into a situation like Sparkle! In fact, Sugarcoat went out of her way to tell Twilight Sparkle that when she didn’t want to be friends!”

Abacus brought her hand to her chin and thought for a moment. Sugarcoat’s family had some political power, as well as some pull in law enforcement, Mayor Mare was already on edge and might not back her up. If Sugarcoat decided to tell her parents or inform police of what transpired, it could go very badly for Crystal Prep, and Abacus Cinch herself. “She’s a neutral party for the most part…however, this event might’ve put her over the edge in terms of her loyalty. Only time will tell. Now more than ever, I need you to keep a tight leash on that jock lesbian, and that psychotic girl as well!”

“Indigo Zap’s strong and relentless, I don’t think she’ll stop pursuing Twilight Sparkle even after all this! S-She’s practically obsessed with her for some ungodly reason! She won’t listen to me!” Sunny Flare managed to get herself back to her feet before continuing. “Sour Sweet I can handle…she’s usually never like that, she just forgot her meds is all…I’ll keep her in check. She listens to me.”

Abacus gave a soft snort upon hearing that. “Do so, or I’ll make sure she’s committed. Sour Sweet’s family is influential as well, but I don’t need potential psychopathic loose cannons like her flying off the handle like that again.”

Sunny Flare shot her mother a brief glare while her eyes were off her but switched to a neutral one when Abacus’ eyes were on her again. “I’ll take care of it, I promise.”

Dark Truths / Light Lies Part 5

It was late in the afternoon, when Meadowbrook arrived at the location that the email spoke of. Something wasn’t right with Cardinal Neighsay, and Meadowbrook wanted to learn what that was before it blew up in her face. It seemed that the delivery was made to a storage space that was used by the Saint Pureheart Church, which meant that it wouldn’t be hard for her to get access as she was on the registry of allowed persons to enter and exit the storage. She arrived at the storage unit, unlocked it, and opened the door, sliding it up and took a cursory glance.

From what she could see, it was just the normal assortment of things for, Easter, Christmas, plays, extra chairs for events, and a variety of other knickknacks. Still, somewhere inside this unit was the package that Neighsay sent to the city. Meadowbrook started navigating her way through the large space, with only the humming of a few fluorescent lights illuminating the dark space. She knew that whatever it was, it had to have been fairly big as the amount of money that it cost to send it overseas was in the double digit thousands.

Deeper and deeper Meadowbrook went, searching high and low for whatever it was that was put in the storage unit. There was so much clutter, however, that it was nearly impossible, like finding a needle in a haystack. “Shoot…he could’ve hidden it under somethin’…under a tarp or some other boxes to disguise it.” Meadowbrook was growing frustrated, she needed to find out why he was there, and if Fluttershy was in danger. “God, please, lend me a hand down here, would ya?”

Meadowbrook kicked a box, but as soon as she did that, she started a domino effect that made some other boxes begin to wobble.

“Oh…fudge.”

Meadowbrook ducked out the way as several boxes fell over, triggering a few more to topple down right after it. The Cajun Nun rolled on the floor, missing a few incoming objects, when she stopped, she gasped as a wooden standee of a lamp came falling towards her. Meadowbrook rolled the opposite way and narrowly missed the wooden cut out slamming onto her and instead hit the floor. The frizzy redhead panted as her heart thumped in her chest from the near close call, but when she got up to dust herself off, her eyebrow rose.

There, right behind the Nativity props, was a wooden crate. Meadowbrook walked towards it and found that the crate itself had Customs stickers and a shipping address stamped onto the side, an address that showed it was from the Vatican itself. Meadowbrook smirked upon finding it and offered thanks to God for answering her prayer. Of course, it was nailed shut.

“Come too far to stop now, Neighsay.”

Meadowbrook reached into her pocket and pulled out a vial, on top of being good with computers, she was also a great chemist. So, she brought one of her special concoctions, it was acid that dissolved certain organic material, like wood for example, but left the skin unscathed. Meadowbrook popped off the cork and splashed a few drops around where the nails were. She watched as the acid ate at the wood around the nail and then stopped after a few seconds, she repeated this process on the rest of them, and once she was certain that they were fully dissolved, Meadowbrook pulled up on the lid.

Thankfully, it came off with little to no effort at all, inside it was some packing straw, which forced Meadowbrook to dig through it. She tossed it out with each handful, trying to get to whatever it was that was hidden inside, and then stopped when her hands hit something, two somethings. With her right hand, Meadowbrook picked up one object, and with her left the second.

The one in her right hand, it was overall a dark bronze color, with golden plates that had ornate and intricate shapes made with it, giving the object some flare. The handle was about four feet in length and had a sharp point to the bottom, at the top was a cylindrical object that was about two feet tall and one foot wide, the object itself almost resembled a torch. The second object was flashier than the other, it was made of pure gold, at least it looked like it was, it was about three feet in length, with four legs that formed a cross and were claw-like. The top of this object was round, with strands that came out that mimicked rays of light. The center of this object had a pearl-like jewel at the center, and eight emerald gemstones circling the pearl.

Meadowbrook placed the objects on the floor and broke out her phone, she remembered seeing something about these items when going through Neighsay’s research files, but she didn’t pay them much heed, but if these were important enough for Neighsay to sneak here to Canterlot City, then they must be important for some reason. She sifted through a few of the saved documents on her phone until she found the one that had the picture of one of the objects, the documents even had a file number.

Item#: 888-50-994

Section: 31

Classification: Container

Hazard Type: Omega

Meadowbrook read on, and as she did, her eyes grew wider with each line she read. “No…” Meadowbrook hurried to another document that had the second object’s picture.

Item#: 888-51-995

Section: 31

Classification: Container

Hazard Type: Omega

Meadowbrook read some more, and what she read did not fill her with any sense of relief. “Pardon me Lord but…SHIT!”

After a change of clothes, everyone convened in the living room, whereupon Luna sat in just to get some clarity on everything that was happening. Celestia and Luna brought in some extra chairs from the kitchen so that everyone had a place to sit, Twilight and Sunset took one side of the couch, while Shimmer and Pinkie took the other, with the two Sunsets in the middle. Rainbow and Applejack sat on the floor around the coffee table, Rarity and Fluttershy sat in two chairs from the kitchen, and Celestia took the armchair while Luna sat in another of the dining room chairs.

“Wow, you weren’t kidding, you two do look alike, even Twilight looks like Princess Twilight, except for the glasses,” said Rainbow Dash. “And Sunset is dating Twilight, and she’s rich?”

“Yes, Rainbow Dash, Sunset is rich and dating Twilight,” said Shimmer.

The rainbow haired athlete snickered and said, “Wow, you must feel like you got shafted.”

Applejack elbowed Rainbow in the side and made Rainbow give an “oomph” in response. “Dash, c’mon now!”

Sunset shrugged and then threw her left arm around Shimmer’s shoulders. “Well, I’ve pretty much adopted Shimmer here as my twin sister, so, technically, she’s rich too. But that doesn’t grant you permission to date Sparky or kiss her. Got it?” Sunset poked Shimmer’s cheek with her right index finger for emphasis.

“Hey, she’s all yours, I have my own pink ball of happiness over here,” Shimmer replied as she threw an arm over Pinkie’s shoulders.

“Aww shucks, Shimmy, you flatterer you,” said Pinkie in a giddy tone.

Rarity couldn’t help but “d’aww” at the banter between them. “I must say, you two are simply precious, and you and Twilight together are adorable, just like our Shimmer.”

Twilight fidgeted in her seat, she didn’t know how to react in this situation, and part of her was a bit afraid. After what happened, being a room full of semi-strangers was putting her on edge, she didn’t know these girls very well, but neither did she want to distrust them. Twilight promised herself that she wasn’t going to let what happened to her define her potential relationships with other people, and, if she was being honest, upon looking at these girls, the atmosphere that they created in the room was leagues above what those other girls made her feel when in their presence.

Sunset took notice of this and gently took Twilight’s left hand into her right. “Hey, you alright, Sparky?”

“I-I am, I’m just…a little nervous is all,” said Twilight.

“Oh…um, I can understand how you feel, being in a room of unfamiliar people can be a bit nerve wracking,” said Fluttershy in her demure and kindly voice. “But you don’t have anything to worry about, everyone’s real nice.”

Hearing Fluttershy’s calm and soothing voice, strangely enough, made Twilight less nervous. When it came to such sincere kindness from another person her age, Twilight was dubious of their intent. She had been burned far too many times, but thankfully she allowed herself to trust Sunset Shimmer.

“Thank you, um, Fluttershy, right?” Twilight asked.

Fluttershy nodded in response.

“Sorry, I just have a hard time trusting others…my circumstances at Crystal Prep Academy haven’t exactly made it easy for me to do so…”

Applejack crossed her arms and sneered at the mention of the school. “Ah heard Crystal Prep was practically a viper pit, but Ah never thought they could mess with someone so much to make them distrust other people. Well, Ah’m glad yer able to at least enjoy our company.”

Twilight smiled a little more upon hearing that. “Thank you, Applejack.”

“I’m sorry, I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that my sister is Angelus, and that Sunse – Shimmer is Witchblade,” Luna chimed in. “And the fact that there are now two of her here! You’re saying that you were fighting those demon things two months ago?”

“Yeah…” Shimmer confessed while rubbing the back of her head. “I was…all while that Anon-A-Miss thing was going on. I’m sorry for not telling you.”

Celestia decided to interject. “If it makes you feel any better, I didn’t know anything until about three weeks ago…that’s about when Angelus appeared.”

“I mean, it’s so weird that we never even saw you. I mean, wouldn’t the police or something realize that a rich girl was going to a public school, or that there would be two sets of school records or something?” Rainbow inquired.

“Well, that’s mostly because I don’t live in Canterlot, my family’s originally from Manehattan, we only keep a home here because my Mom was originally from Canterlot,” Sunset explained.

“Oh, Manehattan!” Rarity gushed. “I’ve always wanted to go there, it’s home to all the most famous fashion boutiques and design studios in the country! Not to mention it’s home to one of the premiere fashion schools in the country!”

“Didn’t you apply fer that fancy schmancy school?” Applejack asked.

“Yes, Prim Hemline’s Institute of Fashion, I sent them some of my best works, but I haven’t heard from them…at least not yet…” Rarity kept a small smile on her face, but it was mostly to hide her nerves about her application.

Sunset rubbed her chin as she thought about what Rarity said. “You know, if you want, I could probably pull some strings to make sure you’re at the top of their selection.”

Rarity shot up from her seat and stared wide eyed at Sunset. “Y-Y-You can?!” The fashionista quickly shook her head to dislodge the notion. “No, no, I-I couldn’t possibly accept that, I don’t want to be given any special treatment, I wish to get in on my own merit.”

“Nothing like that, I’m just saying I could make sure you get through the front door, after that, it’ll be all on you,” Sunset explained.

Rarity’s head began to spin, Sunset was offering to make sure that she could get her foot in the door of P.H.I.F. “I think I need to sit down for a minute…” The fashionista plopped back down onto the chair feeling giddy at the idea.

Shimmer lightly elbowed her sister and grinned. “Jeez, Sis, you trying to win over my friends with bribes?”

Sunset merely shrugged.

Twilight’s eyes locked onto Rainbow Dash, if she was being honest, she reminded her of Indigo Zap just a bit. Both were star athletes of their respective schools, both were tomboyish, and both were boisterous. The teen genius could feel her heart rate going up a bit, images of past abuse by Indigo Zap being recalled as she imagined what would happen if she got too close to Rainbow Dash and ended up in a similar situation. Twilight flinched when she noticed Rainbow Dash look at her, the athlete seemed to have an awkward expression on her face as she rubbed the back of her head. Rainbow Dash carefully inched her way closer, only adding to the anxiety Twilight was feeling while her girlfriend was carrying on a conversation with the others.

“Say…um…Twi – can I call you Twi?” Rainbow asked.

“O-Oh, um, y-yes,” Twilight replied.

“Cool, so, uh…this may be a bit of an odd, weirdo question…but…do you like Daring Do?” Rainbow asked in a hushed whisper.

Almost immediately Twilight’s eyes bulged, and a happy grin spread across her face. “YOU LIKE DARING DO?!” Her exclamation drew the attention of everyone in the room, causing both Twilight and Rainbow to blush in slight embarrassment. Twilight cleared her throat and leaned forward to reply, “Yes, I do like Daring Do, which ones have you read?”

Rainbow Dash scoffed, “Which ones haven’t I read. ‘Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Statue’.”

“‘Daring Do: The Riddle of the Sphinx’.”

“‘Daring Do and the Marked Thief of Marapore’.”

“‘Daring Do and the Eternal Flower’.”

“‘Daring Do and the Forbidden City of Clouds’.”

“The Chronos Sword?!”

“Yep! The Temple of Shadows?!”

“Oh yeah! And don’t forget–!”

“A. K. Yearling’s secret novel–!”

“That was released under a pseudonym–!”

“And showed off her slightly more romantic writing style–!”

“Daring to Love!” both girls said at the same time.

Twilight practically had stars in her eyes, she had long hoped to find someone who had the same passion for the Daring Do series as she did, while she was in love with Sunset and would never give her up for anything in the world, she hadn’t inquired or thought about how to get her girlfriend hooked on the Daring Do series, but all through her high school career, she had longed to find someone who shared that passion for good storytelling, and now she did. Without thinking, Twilight took Rainbow Dash’s hands into her own and squeezed them.

“R-Rainbow Dash, you have no idea how long I’ve waited to find someone who loves Daring Do, too!” Twilight stated.

“Heh, to be honest, the others aren’t as much of a crazy super fan like I am, but now I found someone who is!” Rainbow declared.

Sunset watched the exchange and had become extremely happy and relieved; she wasn’t the only one who noticed that Rainbow Dash had similar mannerisms to Indigo Zap and had been keeping an eye on her the whole time. She was ready to lunge at Rainbow Dash should she display any actions that would trigger Twilight into going into panic mode. But then both girls geeked out about a book series and Sunset released the tension in her shoulders.

Shimmer noticed what was going on the whole time, Sunset had gotten really tense, almost on the level of bolting from her seat. She glanced at Pinkie and it seemed even she noticed what had happened.

For a couple of hours the girls and two older women enjoyed the stories of CHS as told from the others’ perspectives, Celestia and Luna were also intrigued by this information, never realizing how much their students were doing behind the scenes to protect their world from the supernatural dangers that had come to threaten it. As time went on, Sunset and Shimmer gravitated towards the kitchen, leaving Twilight alone with the girls. From there, they watched as Twilight interacted with each of them, and were growing content in how she was smiling and laughing about this and that.

“Hey, did something happen?” Shimmer asked.

Sunset looked at her twin. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you’ve looked kinda tense since we all sat together in the living room. I thought you were about to throw yourself at Rainbow Dash the moment she got close to Twilight,” Shimmer explained.

A frown appeared on Sunset’s face as she crossed her arms. “Yeah…something happened today, to Twilight.”

Now it was Shimmer’s turn to tense up. “What? What happened?!”

“Look…I don’t want to talk about it here, with everyone. Sparky’s having a better time here than I could’ve hoped for. So, for now, I’d like for her to enjoy this without having to think about it, but I promise I’ll talk to you about it later,” said Sunset as she raised her right pinkie finger. “Pinkie swear?”

Shimmer smirked, “Nuh-uh, Pinkie Promise.”

Sunset cocked an eyebrow. “What now?”

“It’s a promise that you cannot – absolutely cannot – break.” Sunset still looked confused. “It’s a Pinkie Pie thing. But seriously, don’t break it.”

“Ah, proceed.”

Shimmer made the motions of the Pinkie Promise ritual and followed up with, “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. And make sure to close your eye when you do it.”

Sunset snorted.

“Shut up! It only happened once!”

The human double rolled her eyes and began the motions of the Pinkie Promise. “Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my – OW!” Sunset shrieked as her left index finger accidentally poked her sclera, hard. All while Shimmer burst out laughing, holding her sides.

“Shut up!” Sunset retorted.

“Told you!” Shimmer mocked.

In the living room, Pinkie went rigid, the long bang around her forehead moved like an antenna and pointed in the direction of the kitchen. Twilight noticed this strange phenomenon and asked, “Pinkie Pie, are you okay?”

“A Pinkie Promise has been made,” said Pinkie in a solemn voice.

“Is that a good thing?” Twilight asked.

Pinkie turned back to Twilight and smiled. “So long as you don’t break it, then yep!”

Fluttershy giggled, but then paused when she felt her phone vibrating in her pants pocket. The shy girl pulled out her cellphone and knitted her brow when she noticed it was Meadowbrook texting her. Fluttershy read the text, her expression morphing from shock, and then back to normal. “Um, sorry, but I need to get going, my Mom texted me to say that dinner was ready.”

“I suppose it is late, you all should head back home,” said Luna.

“Oh, it is?” Twilight looked up at the clock and hissed when she saw the late hour. “Oh my, I need head back, I don’t normally stay out this long.”

Celestia stood up and asked, “Does anyone need a lift back to their homes?”

“Nah, we’re good, Principal Celestia,” said Applejack.

“I’ll take you up on that ride, Ray’s probably worried about me,” said Shimmer.

With everyone having exchanged goodbyes, Fluttershy got into her Volkswagen beetle and texted Meadowbrook back.

[I’ll gear up and meet you at the church in twenty minutes.]

[I’ll see you then.]

Cadence slumped in her couch, a glass of whisky in her sitting on the coffee table in front of her. The Dean of Crystal Prep hardly drank, and when she did it was a glass of wine, but when something really bad happened, something really stressful, she would dip into the hard stuff, which was why they always kept a bottle of whisky in their liquor cabinet. Thankfully, it was always full, and never touched by Shining Armor, he didn’t drink much either, only for special occasions. All day Cadence had been working over how she was going to break what happened to Twilight to him, she knew her boyfriend was protective of his little sister, hell, so was she.

If not for the threat that Cinch made, Cadence would’ve happily bashed the old bat’s face through the glass case, and then methodically strike Cinch with each and every plaque she had in that case, going in order from lightest to heaviest, and finishing it all off by pulling down the case and letting it fall on top of her. Would it crush her? Maybe. Would it cause some extensive internal damage and possibly get some sharp glass shards to impale her? Oh, most definitely.

I’m going to entertain that scenario, ‘cause I just might still do it, thought Cadence.

But back to the original problem, how was she going to tell Shining Armor? In truth, Cadence felt like a failure, she hadn’t once picked up on Twilight’s suffering, she was the Dean of Students, it was her job to make sure that the students were not just physically healthy but also mentally. She had a degree in child psychology for God’s sake, and yet she couldn’t see the signs?

To be fair, neither did Shiny, and he’s possibly the closest person to Twilight, plus, he’s a cop, he’s trained to spot these things.

Pointing that out made Cadence feel a little better, but it also spoke to the fact of how good Twilight was hiding her pain from them. She hated it, all of it, herself, Cinch, those girls, Twilight didn’t deserve to go through all that. She was such a sweet girl, incredibly intelligent, and painfully introverted, Cadence hoped that Twilight could make some likeminded friends in Crystal Prep, kids who strove to improve their intellect as well as their physical ability, at best Cadence hoped that Twilight would be able to make one, maybe two friends. But no, she remained isolated, through no fault of her own, by design her suffering was orchestrated right under her nose.

Cadence took a swig from her glass and clenched her left fist as she felt the burning liquid flow down her throat and into her gullet. “Shit, that burns…!”

Right about then, Cadence heard the garage door opening. She released a heavy sigh, knowing that the time was nigh. The door to the garage opened and right about then Shining Armor entered and said, “Hey Cady.” As Shining Armor walked towards the living room, he paused, noticing the open whisky bottle on the coffee table, and a glass in Cadence’s hand. “Oh no, what happened?”

Cadence grinned a little. “You know me too well, Shiny.”

“Yeah, whenever you break out the whisky, it means something bad happened.” Shining Armor took off his jacket and threw it over the couch before sitting next to his girlfriend. “What’s going on? Something happen at work?”

“Yeah…something…but first, take a swig of this, you’ll need it.” Cadence handed him the glass she was sipping from, to which he unhesitatingly took from her and gulped down some of it. She watched as his face contorted into a grimace as hers did not a moment ago. “Been awhile since we opened that bottle.”

“Yeah, and I remember why now…ugh. Anyway, what happened?”

Cadence sipped from her whisky glass again and began. “A girl at the school was taken against her will to the outdoors sports equipment shed near the track field. She had her hands bound and was strung up by them, the ones responsible were five girls three of which were in the shed, while two others were enacting another part of their goddamned plan.”

“Cadence, what the fuck, why didn’t you–?!”

Cadence raised her hand in a stopping motion to cut him off. “Wait until I’m done, please.”

It was less a question and more an order, she wanted to get this out and didn’t want to repeat it. Steeling himself, Shining Armor nodded for her to proceed.

“The other girl was the secondary target, and the kidnapped one’s girlfriend – her lover – and the other two girls used the kidnapped one as a hostage to exact revenge on the girlfriend. The overall plan being that if the girlfriend resisted against her coming beating, that the kidnapped girl would be stripped and filmed, ending with the kidnapped girl being sexually assaulted and the footage thrown onto the internet when it was over. Thankfully, the girlfriend got the upper hand on both the ones fighting her and beat them into the ground.”

Shining Armor couldn’t help a smirk from forming on his lips, hearing a bad guy’s plan fall apart was always fun.

“One of the kidnappers, who was apparently off their meds, threatened to use a deadly object to sexually harm the kidnapped girl. One of the kidnappers either grew a conscious or something, but whatever the case was, she tackled the other kidnapper and prevented the deed from happening, but was……” Cadence wondered how to explain this, it was Sunset after all, and Shining Armor already knew about both girls’ powers, “…stabbed. The girlfriend came and knocked out the other two and saved the third from dying. I came in late and saw both leaving the shed.”

Shining Armor had crossed his arms and was tapping his left bicep with his right index finger. “Cadence, why the hell haven’t you called the police?! This isn’t something that you can write off as kids just messing around, every one of those things are criminal felonies! Forget juvie, they’ll go straight to jail!”

“Don’t you think I know that?” Cadence asked bitterly as she sipped more whisky.

“And why are you keeping the victims' names a secret? This isn’t a time for privacy, you need to tell me who they are, the victims and the suspects, now!”

Cadence closed her eyes and gave a long exhale. “The perpetrators are Sour Sweet, Sunny Flare, Indigo Zap, Lemon Zest, and Sugarcoat, arguably the popular girls of the school. The victims are……Sunset Shimmer, the one they were targeting…and Twilight Sparkle, the one they kidnapped…”

The room went deathly quiet, as if time had stood still, even color was becoming muted to Shining Armor as a lone ringing resonated in his ears. His little sister, his innocent, intelligent, dorky little sister, was kidnapped by a bunch of popular girls and about to be sexually abused and humiliated. All for revenge against her girlfriend…her girlfriend…?

“Wait…you said this was for revenge against the ‘girlfriend’, and you mentioned that the other victim was Sunset Shimmer…Twily and Sunset are together?”

“Yes, they are.”

“W-Was this some kind of homophobic attack or something?!” Shining asked.

Cadence went into more detail regarding the whole incident, at least based upon what Twilight and Sunset told her and what they speculated was the reasoning. The abuse that Twilight had been enduring all these years in Crystal Prep, the sexual abuse she had been suffering from Indigo Zap, Sunset Shimmer’s rising to become Twilight’s guardian and eventual girlfriend. How such an arrange went against everything the students knew as normal, and how Sunset practically declared war on anyone who dared to lay a finger on Twilight – something that Shining Armor reminded himself to thank her for when he saw her next time – and how Indigo Zap had some obsession with Twilight and was angered by this, wanting revenge on Sunset.

“I repeat…why the fuck haven’t you or the school called the police?!” Shining asked again.

Cadence should’ve sniped at him for that angry tone he was taking with her, but it wasn’t like she could blame him. She was angry too, Twilight was more or less her little sister as well, her family, and she had just learned her family was being hurt right under her nose. “Because Cinch threatened not just me, but Twilight’s academic career.”

“WHAT?!”

“Cinch has connections, and the families of those five girls have connections not just to the schoolboard, but law enforcement, your profession, Shiny. If we go against her, she could find a way to get you fired and make it look legit, even worse, she could destroy all of Twilight’s achievements, she has pull outside of the school, and if she wishes it, she could make sure that Twilight can’t get into any school in this city, outside of Canterlot may be another story, but I have no doubt whatever bullshit she comes up with will stain Twilight all the way to another school, regardless if it’s made up, just the suspicion alone can make any Ivy League university turn you away…”

Shining Armor got up from his seat, pacing around as he grumbled and swore up and down. “And you made the decision not to fight!?”

“I didn’t, I left it to Twilight.”

“……And she said she didn’t want to?”

“I said I’d make sure that those five won’t ever come near her again. And I’ll make damn good on that promise, believe me. They’ll face punishment, our only saving grace is that Cinch doesn’t want to lose Twilight because she’s a ‘benefit to the school’. Which means we have some leverage over her, and after what Sunset did, I’m sure they’ll be thinking twice before trying anything again, if at all.”

Shining Armor walked back to the couch, picked up the bottle and took a big swig from it before putting it back down on the table. “Okay…Okay…Has Twilight told Mom and Dad yet?”

“Not that she’s told me. Although she’ll probably won’t say anything for right now, maybe when me and you are there.” Cadence placed her hand on his left shoulder and looked at him with the most comforting expression she could muster. “Shiny, right now, she’s going to need us more than ever. Sunset has helped her so much already, but it’s unfair to make her take on all that burden by herself, same for Twilight.”

Shining Armor placed his right hand over his face, a feeling of shame and disappointment building inside of himself. “I’m the worst officer, detective, and big brother…I’ve taken so many courses on how to spot signs of abuse, and yet…I missed them all when it came to one of the most important people in my life!”

“Shiny…I know how you feel…” Cadence moved closer and wrapped her arms around him, trying to hug him the best she could. “But Twilight was hiding it from us, and she was doing a damn good job of it. She didn’t want to burden us with what was happening to her…she was more afraid of disappointing us than what was happening to her…”

“But Mom and Dad, me, you, we never foisted any high expectations onto her! Mom and Dad never, like, pushed her to the brink or whatever! Twily’s always been like that, she strives for more and more, broadening her own knowledge,” said Shining Armor.

“That’s true, but I think somewhere in her mind she didn’t want to disappoint us because of all she’s achieved. Crystal Prep isn’t easy to get into, you know that, I know that, and if she made complaints against the students, who – let’s face it – some are rich and influential, they could cause problems for your family, in her head, she was protecting us by enduring it, plus with graduation so close, she must’ve thought it was better to suck it up until she was out those doors permanently.”

Shining Armor could understand what she meant, but still, it didn’t make the situation any better. So many emotions were churning inside Shining, like a raging tempest. Anger, shame, sadness, rage, and a small thirst for revenge, but he knew better, as a cop and as a person, if he took action against these people they could bury his family and make Twilight into a social pariah for the rest of her life, killing any chances that may come up in her adult life. Still…

“The way Cinch told you all that, it sounds like there’s other things that were going on, right?” Shining asked.

“I’m pretty sure she’s swept a lot of different incidents under the rug, not just Twilight’s, why?”

“How can that many incidents go on and there not be a paper trail? I’m going to look into it,” he said with conviction.

“Shiny, be careful, Twilight needs you in her life, and the last thing she wants is to make you lose the job you love most,” said Cadence with concern.

“They don’t just get to hurt my little sister and get away with it, Cady, plus, I’ll be low key about it. With the Blood Kings and the Darkness, there’ll be too much attention on that to worry about a detective digging into old cases.”

Cadence didn’t like the idea, if Cinch was right, Shining could be putting himself in danger of stirring up a hornet’s nest. Then again, her line of thinking was the same as his, no one hurts Twilight and gets away with it. “Okay, but keep me in the loop, I may be able to get some more information from my side to feed to you.”

Shining Armor smiled and gave Cadence a chaste kiss on her lips. “Now…we just need to figure out how to tell my parents.”

“That’ll be fun…”

Saint Pureheart Church was closed early that night, and Father Huff Puff had headed home early as well, in fact most places were closing early at night after the police precinct attack, many were afraid that another super brawl would take place, but thankfully the Angelus made good on her promise to increase the amount of Sentinels that would be patrolling the city. One couldn’t look up without seeing a glowing being flying by every twenty or so minutes.

Inside the church, Meadowbrook stood at the head of the aisle, dressed in her habit and some white gloves, with the altar right behind her. Neighsay came in from the side door and began his long walk down the aisle, already having a cross look on his face.

“Nice to see you, Neighsay,” Meadowbrook greeted.

“That’s Cardinal Neighsay, show some respect,” he scolded.

“That’s quite the thing to say when you’re disrespecting Him already.”

Neighsay stopped halfway and gave her a confused look. “What are you on about?”

Meadowbrook took a step to the left, allowing Neighsay an unobstructed view of the altar behind her. Upon the altar were the two objects she had discovered earlier today, and when Neighsay saw them, his body language changed, going from angry and annoyed to calm and calculating.

“And what, pray tell, are those doing here?” he asked.

“So, you know what they are?”

“Perhaps I do.”

Meadowbrook rolled her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. “Pardon my French but cut the bullshit! I did a little diggin’ and found out that the Vatican doesn’t know you’re here, in fact, they think you’re on a sabbatical to England right now.”

“Obviously, someone is mistaken, someone must’ve not relayed to one of the inner circle agents,” Neighsay explained.

“You know, I was gonna give you the benefit of the doubt, but just to be safe, I called at different times throughout the day to make sure that maybe someone didn’t’ get the memo, but that’s not the case. I even managed to get ahold of Cardinal Lexicon, a young Cardinal, but knows his stuff, and even he says the same thing.”

At this Neighsay’s flinched.

“So, I’m gonna ask you this question again, why do you have these items, that are from the secured vault in the Vatican underground facilities, and why are you really here?” Meadowbrook demanded.

Neighsay uncrossed his arms as he slowly approached Meadowbrook. “Sister, you stepped too far past your station, all you need to do is keep your mouth shut, praise God, and never question those higher than you! If you cannot do that then–!”

Just then, from the rafters above, a cloaked figure dropped down between them. With a flourish of her cloak, Fluttershy, the Magdalena, brandished her Spear of Destiny and pointed it right at Neighsay. “Sir, please stay right there, and I’d like for you to answer Sister Meadowbrook’s question.”

“You’d defy the Church, Magdalena?” Neighsay asked.

“Cardinal Neighsay, from what I’ve seen so far, it seems that you have defied the Church. You’ve lied long enough, now, please, answer her!” Fluttershy demanded, her spear gleaming in the soft light from chandeliers above.

Neighsay looked to Fluttershy, then to Meadowbrook, and finally to the two objects on the altar. After a few seconds, he released the tension in his shoulders and adopted a more relaxed demeanor. “Very well, I know when I have lost the upper hand. The Siphon of the Angelus, the lantern looking object, was crafted by the Angelus itself ages ago as a means to imprison the Darkness.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened, she then glanced to Meadowbrook and asked, “Is that true?”

Meadowbrook nodded. “Accordin’ to the archives’ notes, it is.”

“And the ornate one next to it, is the Prism of the Brothers.” Neighsay held up his hands and began walking forward, Fluttershy backed up slowly and allowed him to exit the aisle and move closer to the altar. “During one of many confrontations the Angelus had with the Darkness, she realized that their battle was eternal. Both were primordial beings of light and darkness, and are forever, with that being the case, and with the Darkness jumping from host to host, and each host being harder to kill than the last, she knew her best chance was not in eliminating the Darkness, but in imprisoning him.”

Neighsay grabbed a hold of the Siphon, making Fluttershy put Meadowbrook behind her as she readied her spear.

“Relax, it’s harmless. Anyway, this Artifact can effectively kill the host of the Darkness and send their soul straight to Hell and has the added bonus of absorbing all the essence of the Darkness and trapping it inside for all eternity.”

“With something like that, we can end this whole entire war! We can exorcise the Darkness from Sombra King and bring him to justice, and lock the Darkness away forever,” said Fluttershy with hope in her voice.

“Somethin’ tells me that there’s more to this story, right?” Meadowbrook asked.

Neighsay put the Siphon down and answered, “Correct.” He moved on to the Prism and brought up for them to see. “There were followers of the Darkness, the Brotherhood. They wanted to use the Siphon to take the Darkness for themselves, but ultimately failed. So, they shifted their focus onto the Angelus, and so they created this object that does the same thing as the Siphon. But, and here’s the fun part, both objects have one other thing in common. Once the Darkness and Angelus are absorbed into them, whoever wields the objects can wield their power freely, without being controlled by the entities themselves, the person who wields these two artifacts can become a god upon this world.”

Meadowbrook narrowed her gaze and glared at the Cardinal. “You want to use them to take the Angelus and Darkness for yourself?! Why?!”

“Because this world is sorely lacking in leadership. Look at what we’re dealing with you two. Incompetent world leaders all around, only looking out for themselves and their power! People further delving into debauchery, turning this world into a modern-day Sodom and Gomora! The sinners continue to sin without fear of the consequences of their actions wrought in this world, or what fate awaits them in the next! Blasphemies of all kinds, and others worshipping false gods! No, this world, on its current path will only end up leading to its own destruction.”

“And you think you have the right to change it all? Are you saying you’re above God Himself?!” Meadowbrook asked.

Neighsay scoffed at this. “I don’t see myself above Him. He has done much for us and we spit in His face. No, I mean to be the shepherd that will guide this world, so that people who live it can be guided to paradise. God has enough to deal with managing the cosmos, I’ll deal with things here on Earth. Maybe having a living deity will finally make the fools of this world understand their place in it!”

Fluttershy couldn’t believe what she was hearing, a man of the Church, a Cardinal, was planning on taking over the world. She may not like Cardinal Neighsay, but she at least believed in his faith and his dedication to God, but this…this went against everything God stood for. “Getting us to join forces with the Angelus was just a way for you to get closer to her, correct? Close enough to use the Prism?!”

Neighsay tapped the side of his head and smiled. “Right on the money, my dear. But that’s not the only way, I’ve been…how shall we say…working both sides.”

“WHAT?!” both girls exclaimed.

“I’ve been helping Sombra, well, actually, I’ve been speaking to his second-in-command, but the little mongrel has been feeding my information to Sombra. The attack on Precinct Seventeen? My idea. Before that, the raid on their large recruitment facility for the Blood Kings? Information I fed to her little bird, and he confirmed it.”

“So, you’ve been workin’ as a double agent, and she knows this?” Meadowbrook asked.

“Indeed, Angelus looks favorably upon those who assist her in her endeavor to end the Darkness, which is why I’m going to be having a meeting with her soon, and you’re going to help me steal her power, Magdalena,” said Neighsay.

Fluttershy glared at Neighsay and proclaimed, “Cardinal Neighsay, in the name of his Holiness the Pope, and in the name of the Almighty, I will stop you! Now, do you have anything to say before we take you into custody?”

Neighsay put his hands behind his back and grinned. “I do. Magdalena Project command: It was you who broke my Meissen plate.”

Upon uttering these words, Fluttershy went still, her eyes widened for a few seconds and then they went blank. Fluttershy twirled her Spear of Destiny, struck the butt of the Spear against the floor, and knelt before the Cardinal. “The Magdalena is ready to receive your orders, Cardinal Neighsay.”

“Fluttershy…? Hey, Fluttershy?!” Meadowbrook shook Fluttershy’s shoulder, but she remained unresponsive, as if she didn’t even hear Meadowbrook. “What did you do to her?!”

“Since I oversaw the Magdalena’s training, I inserted a command phrase that would make her completely obedient to whomever speaks that phrase. It was a failsafe should the Magdalena ever go rogue. She’ll only listen to my commands, so don’t try and give her any or try and say the command phrase, it only works once, but once is all I need.”

“Damn you, Neighsay!” Meadowbrook shouted.

“No, damn you, Sister. Magdalena, Sister Meadowbrook has strayed from the path of righteousness. Eliminate her, immediately,” Neighsay ordered.

“So ordered, Cardinal Neighsay.”

Fluttershy stood up, making Meadowbrook take a few steps back. The teen warrior turned around and stared directly at Meadowbrook, her eyes still glazed and blank, her expression neutral, not a hint of emotion in her voice or on her face.

“Fluttershy, you gotta fight this! Don’t let Neighsay turn you into a killa!”

Her words fell on deaf ears as Fluttershy twirled her Spear around and thrust forward. Meadowbrook took a step back, her shoe caught on the skirt of her habit, just in time for the Spear to slash her left arm, grazing her as she fell to the floor. Meadowbrook clutched at her now bleeding wound, feeling the crimson warmth seep from it and on to her hand, she looked up and watched as Fluttershy twirled her Spear around and readied to skewer Meadowbrook. The Cajun Nun closed her eyes and began reciting a prayer in preparation for her imminent death. However, nothing happened. Meadowbrook dared go crack an eye open and saw the Spear of Destiny hovering just mere inches from her torso.

When Meadowbrook looked up, she saw Fluttershy’s hands trembling, her neutral expression breaking a little and her glazed look faltering, as if the real Fluttershy deep inside was fighting to break free, or at the very least stop herself. Meadowbrook wasn’t going to waste this opportunity, she reached into her habit and pulled out a vial, without missing a beat, she threw the vial against the floor, causing a large smoke plume to rise into the air. Fluttershy coughed and sputtered as she backed away quickly from the cloud. Her eyes stung and skin burned, making the Magdalena disoriented and unable to see where Meadowbrook was.

Meadowbrook managed to hold her breath and close her eyes the moment it broke, and thanks to her habit, most of the toxic cloud got on her clothes and gloves and not on her skin. The Cajun Nun ran as fast as she could, crashing through the front doors, down the stairs and dashing down the sidewalk. She found an alley and quickly removed her habit, tossing it into a dumpster before continuing her getaway.

Meanwhile, Neighsay cursed as he walked up to the Magdalena, the toxic effects seeming to wear off. “Status report!”

“The…The cloud is an airborne version of pepper spray. The effects will wear off in a couple of minutes with my healing factor,” said Fluttershy.

“And in the meantime, she’ll get away and go underground…” Neighsay swiftly slapped Fluttershy across the face, leaving a red mark on her cheek. The satisfaction of the act was lost since, in her current state, Fluttershy was emotionless. “Do not hesitate like that again, do I make myself clear!”

“Yes, Cardinal Neighsay,” replied Fluttershy.

Neighsay growled with irritation, there was a fifty-fifty chance that Meadowbrook would alert the Angelus to his plan, which meant that he either had to do an emergency meeting with the Angelus right now or go after Sombra directly. Both had their risks, but with every second that went by it meant that his chances of getting the Angelus’ essence was dwindling. After weighing his options, Neighsay knew what he had to do. The crooked Cardinal reached into his robe and pulled out a cellphone, in it was the number of the mayor, the one who was best able to get into contact with the Angelus’ host.

The phone began to ring, and ring, and ring. Neighsay bit his left thumbnail, he needed her to answer, he needed to get this done soon or else the entire plan would go down the drain. Finally, the ringing ended and Neishsay heard the mayor’s voice.

{Hello, Cardinal Neighsay. Is there something I can do for you?}

“Yes, Mayor Mare, I need to move up that meeting with you and the Angelus from this Friday to tonight.”

There was audible sputtering on the other side of the phone. {I’m sorry, tonight?! Why is that?}

“I happened to find some information, a possible location of Sombra and the Darkness, and a possible means to end this little war for good. Tell her I have found the Siphon, I’m sure she’ll want to meet immediately, I’ll be by your manor around nine.”

{Hold on, are you certain it’s a sure thing? A true means to end this war?}

“Madam Mayor, I guarantee it, on my word as a man of the Cloth, and in the name of the Lord,” said Neighsay with sincerity.

It wasn’t hard to reassure that he did have the means to do it, after all, it wasn’t a lie, he did have the means to end the war, just not in the way either the mayor or the Angelus believed.

{Okay, I’ll call you as soon as I’ve gotten confirmation.}

“Please make haste, I fear the Darkness might know of my discovery and I need to get this to Angelus as soon as possible.” With that, Neighsay ended the call and sighed heavily. “I’ll secure the Angelus first before the traitorous bitch of a swamp rat gets to her first. With control of the Angelus I’ll have command of the Sentinels, and I’ll have a bigger advantage over the Darkness when the time comes.” Neighsay glanced at Fluttershy. “Magdalena!”

“Yes, Cardinal Neighsay,” Fluttershy replied as she stood at attention.

“We're going to execute an operation tonight, I need you to listen very carefully…”

Author's Note

Dark Truths / Light Lies Arc: End

How's that for a twist? We're reaching the end folks, and shit's about to get real.

To War: Part 1

The drive back to Sunset’s home was pleasant, mostly because the dynamic had changed between Celestia and Sunset, it was less a guardian driving her ward, but instead a mother driving her daughter back home. When they arrived at the sidewalk, Sunset facepalmed herself and groaned.

“Dammit, I forgot!” Sunset griped.

“What did you forget?”

“My bike! I drove it to your place and I just spaced out and left it there! I just got it too…” Sunset lamented her own forgetfulness, her precious Valkyrie was left in Celestia and Luna’s driveway, thinking about it made it feel like she just left her pet out in the cold rain.

“It’s probably for the best, you’re still recovering, and I don’t want you getting dizzy like you did earlier today while riding that thing. God knows I worry enough knowing you’re riding that bike, but add this on top of it, oh hell no,” said Celestia.

Sunset grinned, hearing the way Celestia said that, it was like she had gone into full mom mode. “Okay, fine, point taken.”

“That reminds me, you should stay home tomorrow too, just to be safe. I’ll drop by after school and take you back so you can pick up your bike, but I’m going to be following close behind you the whole way back, alright,” said Celestia with finality.

Sunset rolled her eyes playfully and responded in a whiney voice, “Yes, Mom.” The former unicorn exited the car and smiled at Celestia. “I’ll see you tomorrow…I…I…”

“Hey,” Celestia broke in. “You don’t have to say it now, only when it’s natural. I know what you mean, just go and get some rest in your own bed. Just don’t get used to me letting you get away with playing hooky, I expect you to come in on Friday, no excuses.”

“Got it,” said Sunset, “Goodnight.”

“Night,” Celestia replied.

Celestia waited until she saw Sunset enter her home and then began her drive back home. The principal of CHS felt happier than she ever had been in the last couple of years. She and Sunset had finally begun to advance their relationship to mother and daughter, and now she had the means to help Sunset fight against the forces of evil.

\\/// I like this feeling from you, Celestia. I’ve noticed that you have particularly strong maternal energy, is that why you became a Principal at the school? \\///

“Can’t you look into my memories? We’re one, aren’t we?” Celestia asked.

\\/// Well, I could, but it’s better to listen to you. Tell me your motivation. Do you see yourself as a mother figure to your students? \\///

“It’s not exactly like that…I kept thinking I would have children, at some point. I discovered my orientation early, and I did date a few girls back then, but nothing serious. Then when I turned twenty-one and Luna eighteen…our parents died. Of course, she took this hard and started acting out, in many ways Sunset and Luna have a lot in common with being bad girls, Luna even created a ‘street name’, Nightmare Moon. At that point I had been trying to keep us together, and with Luna’s constant troublemaking, I finally had enough and confronted her. Needless to say it turned into a brawl that destroyed half the living room, but afterwards Luna came to her senses and realized that we were all we had left, and she understood how much I wanted to keep us together.”

\\/// I see, this eventually led to you two becoming the administrators of Canterlot High School, correct? \\///

“We both loved CHS, it was a place where we created many good memories and made many friends. But, again, I never really had time to fully date and find a girl I thought I could spend my life with,” Celestia lamented. “I’ve had a few one-night-stands, a night of…ahem…carnal passion. But in the end, it meant nothing, just a way to fill the hole in my life that I was too busy to fill. That is until Sunset came into my life…I remember it well.”

~*~*~*~

Celestia had spent a night with a new woman, it had been a particularly stressful day at work that Friday, so a little unwinding was called for. Celestia tried to remember the names of the women who took her to bed or let her take them to bed, it only seemed polite to remember, but after a while, the only thing that Celestia remembered was the sex and the woman she had it with, not the name. She hated herself for that, it was becoming more apparent to Celestia that she was becoming apathetic about her nights, and that was bad in her eyes.

The Principal of CHS had walked down from the apartment of the woman she had just slept with and was heading down the sidewalk to her car. Honestly it wasn’t the best neighborhood, she was skittish about coming here, it was closer to the east side of Canterlot City, a part of the city that was seeing some resurgence, but there were some unsavory people who preferred it that way and were fighting cops and workers to keep it from getting better. As a result, there were muggings, rapes, and carjackings. Right now, all Celestia was focusing on was getting to her car and leaving.

All things considered; it was probably better if I had just stayed the night with her. Celestia looked from the apartment building and to her car, she was at least at the halfway point between them, and could easily head back. Then again, that’ll be an awkward conversation to have…

Just then, Celestia felt something press against her back, making her entire body go stiff as a board. Ever so slowly, Celestia tried to turn her head.

“Don’t you fucking look at me!” the man hissed with venom.

Celestia kept her face forward, she wasn’t sure if the object at her back was a gun or not, but she wasn’t about to tempt fate. “P-Please, I’ll give you what I have, but I don’t have m-much money…”

“Get in the fucking alley!” he ordered.

Celestia did as he told her, carefully walking into the alley, and standing there waiting for more direction. Before Celestia could ask what he wanted her to do next, she was thrown against the brick wall, front first. The sudden impact scraped her face and made her whole front sore as hell. The mugger ripped off Celestia’s purse and began rifling through it, trying to find anything of monetary value. The principal of CHS glanced over her shoulder briefly, noticing the crazed look in the man’s eyes, Celestia recalled memories of a seminar she took on how to spot someone who was high, and from the looks of it the man was definitely high as a kite and probably coming down from his fix. That was bad, as it meant he was willing to do whatever he needed to get more of whatever it was he was taking, even if it meant killing her.

“Shit, shit, SHIT! UGH!” the man growled as he threw the purse to the ground. “Is this really all you got?!”

“Yes, I promise I don’t have much else! I-I can give you my cellphone, my credit cards or–?”

“Shut the fuck up! You think I’m stupid?!” the mugger pressed the muzzle of his gun to Celestia’s head, making the older woman’s heart race with fear. “I take your phone; you just have them cut it off! I take your cards; you’ll just have them cancelled!”

“No! No! I swear, I-I won’t! I-If you want, you can take me to the nearest ATM, I’ll withdraw all the money I can and give it to you!” Celestia tried to barter with the man, money can always be replaced, but her life…she wasn’t ready to die. “Please, I swear to god I’ll empty my whole bank account, just please don’t kill me!”

“SHUT UP you fucking BITCH!” the mugger raised his gun and struck Celestia upside her head.

Celestia felt pain erupt from the back of her head as she slumped against the brick wall, her legs went wobbly as stars danced in her eyes before she fell to the ground. She thankfully had just enough of her senses to fall onto her hands and knees, but that didn’t last long as the pain and dizziness from the strike made her fully collapse onto the ground and blacked out for a second. When she came to, Celestia found herself rolled onto her back and staring up into the night sky, the mugger was still there, his gun hovering over her face while he used his free hand to unbutton her top.

“N-No…P-Please…” Celestia begged.

“Yeah…you may be an older bitch, but you got a damn good body…yeah, yeah! I know some guys who’d pay for you!” the mugger muttered.

“NO…A-Anything but that! Please, I’ll get you whatever money you want…! Someone…anyone, help me!” Celestia cried in desperation.

“Heh, how many times do you think someone hears that in this part of town?! No one’s gonna come help you, ‘cause people don’t give two shits about helping anyone else, ‘cause they know if they do, they’re gonna get dead!”

“HELP!” Celestia cried without all her might.

As if answering her call, a trash can lid flew through the air like a Frisbee disk. The lid struck the mugger square in the temple, completely disorienting him as he tried to stand up, his vision was blurry, making it hard for him to see who had thrown it. All the mugger knew was that it came from right behind him when he turned his head, the mugger wouldn’t get the chance to retaliate. A young girl of about thirteen to fourteen years of age came rushing down the alley, brandishing a rusty, discarded pipe and swung it straight for the mugger’s right wrist.

The metal pipe struck his wrist, snapping the bones inside and causing pain to erupt in his hand, making him release his weapon onto the ground. The mugger tried to punch her with his left hand, but she was too nimble and easily dodged his attack, sidestepping to his left. The young teen quickly struck him again, nailing the mugger’s left kneecap upon impact. The mugger wailed in pain as he felt the bones in his knee break, forcing him to go down on all fours. The teen raised the pipe high into the air and then brought it down with a fierce battle cry over his head, the man went quiet and completely fell upon the ground.

The moment that the mugger was down, Celestia got up, getting into a seated position as she put her back against the wall, clutching at her blouse to keep her chest from being too exposed. Part of Celestia was grateful, and yet the fear still hadn’t left her, wondering if she just traded one bad situation for another. When she managed to calm her nerves a moment, Celestia took in details about her possible savior. It was definitely a girl, at least thirteen, at most fourteen, she had on raggedy, pants that were marred with dirt and stains. The girl wore a teal colored shirt, which had a few holes in it, but thankfully not where it mattered the most. The girl had red and gold hair that flowed down her back and over her shoulders, it looked similar to fire, but it was unkempt and equally dirty.

The girl’s face had dirt spots on it, and but still by all accounts cute even in such a disheveled state. Her eyes were wide, if Celestia didn’t know any better, she would’ve thought the girl was afraid. The girl’s hands were shaking badly, most likely from the adrenaline that was still coursing through her body from her actions. She looked down at the man she just attacked, and then back to Celestia.

“Did…Did I kill him…?” she asked with a shaky voice.

Celestia understood now, she really was afraid, this girl attacked with such ferocity that it seemed to scare her as much as it did Celestia. The older woman edged herself closer to the mugger, a small part of her hoped that he was dead, but for the sake of the young girl, she hoped more that he was alive. Carefully, she placed her fingers against his carotid artery, the tension ebbed from her, but only a little when she confirmed that the mugger was still alive.

“No, he’s not dead…he’s alive,” Celestia answered.

The young girl felt the strength leave her legs as she fell onto her rear and smiled a little as she hugged herself. “T-Thank Faust…I…I just heard your voice and then…I saw what he was doing and heard what he was going to do…I just…I just reacted…” The young girl hugged herself tighter and began to sob hard.

Celestia felt her heart breaking for this girl, she risked her life to save hers, doing so despite how afraid she was. The older woman didn’t even think, she just slowly approached the young girl and readied to hug her, but surprisingly, the girl threw herself at Celestia and hugged her tightly, burying herself in Celestia’s bosom as she continued to cry. Celestia felt her hot tears seeping into the fabric of her shirt, and her shaking sobs with each breath, it broke her heart. How long had this girl been living on the streets? How long had she been forced to see things that a child shouldn’t see? Live in conditions that no person should have to? And yet, in spite of all that, she came to her rescue.

“Thank you, you’re such a brave girl,” Celestia cooed as she stroked the young girl’s long fiery hair. “Can you tell me your name?”

The young girl looked up at her with wide turquoise colored eyes, and then smiled, it was such a warm smile, as if she had found someone she had always wanted to find, it carried a sense of familiarity and happiness. “My…My name’s Sunset…Sunset Shimmer.”

~*~*~*~

\\/// I see, she saved your life. \\///

“I understand why she did it now, I looked like her mentor from back in her world, she couldn’t stand by and let me get hurt,” said Celestia. “But I know now she can see me differently from the woman – or mare as she puts it – that’s from her world.”

\\/// Still, it lends credibility to the kind of person my Son chose. She may’ve been prideful, envious, and even a bit wrathful, but it seems she crawled her way out of the literal hole and found redemption and salvation. Seeing such a young human child find her way gives me hope for your kind. \\///

Celestia had just pulled into her driveway and gotten out of the car, she spotted Sunset’s bike and sighed with a smile. She didn’t like her riding that thing, it scared her a little everyday knowing how easily Sunset could get into an accident and get herself killed. But now that she had the Witchblade, Sunset could heal herself from even the most fatal of wounds, aside from getting her head removed that is. Celestia was about to unlock her front door, but just as she did, her cellphone rang. When she took it out, Celestia was surprised to see that it was Maria.

“Maria, it’s pretty late, is there something wrong?” Celestia asked.

{There might be, that Cardinal we met last week, he called me not too long ago and said that he had information that could end this war with Sombra and the Darkness.}

\\/// I’ve heard that before, tell her to tell him that our meeting will remain as scheduled. I have no time to entertain his groveling. \\///

“Uh…Angelus says she’d rather wait until Friday to have a meeting, the scheduled one,” Celestia paraphrased.

{Cardinal Neighsay also said he had something that could stop the Darkness, he said it was called the ‘Siphon’?}

Celestia felt Angelus go completely silent, she was stunned, she could feel it, Angelus, the Entity of Order, was genuinely stunned. “Angelus…?”

\\/// We’re going – tonight – now – immediately! \\///

“Uh…wait, you just said that–”

\\/// CELESTIA I SWEAR, I WILL TAKE FULL CONTROL OF YOUR BODY AND MAKE YOU GO! WE NEED THAT SIPHON! IT IS THE KEY TO ENDING THIS WAR! TO ENDING SOMBRA’S LIFE AND TRAPPING THE DARKNESS AWAY FOR ALL ETERNITY! THIS IS THE OPPROTUNITY THAT WE NEEDED AND WE CAN’T PASS UP! \\///

Celestia’s eyes widened to the size of saucer plates. “You mean…this Siphon thing can kill the Darkness?!”

\\/// No, like me, the Darkness cannot be destroyed. But eons ago, I forged an item that had the power to not only kill its host, but also absorb all the essence of the Darkness from the host! With that we can rip the Darkness from Sombra and render him as weak as any normal human being! \\///

Celestia liked the sound of that, she wanted to make him pay for what he put Sunset through, for killing her, and holding all four of them hostage. “Let me set my purse down and we’ll go. Maria, we’ll be there in a few seconds.” Celestia quickly entered the house, finding Luna on the couch and playing videogames on the TV while drinking a can of CrimsonSteer.

“Sister, you’re back, I ordered a supreme pizza for you, I already had my pepperoni pizza for myself,” said Luna. “OH, c’mon, stop your camping ya noob! Heh, alright, let’s see how you like an RPG right up your ass!”

“I have to go to Maria tonight,” said Celestia as she put her purse on the table.

“Oh, a little late-night booty call with the Mayor dear sister?” At that moment a flash of light went off and shocked Luna to the point that the game controller flew out of her hands. When Luna looked to her right, she saw Celestia, but donned in her Angelus attire. “W-What the hell?! Why are you like that?!’

“I told you, Maria called and it’s urgent,” said Celestia.

Luna sat up and asked, “Do I need to call Sunset Shimmer?”

“No, she’s still recovering, but we might finally have a way to stop the Darkness once and for all–!”

\\/// Enough with this! We need to go, NOW! \\///

“Sorry, sorry, we’ll go! Luna, don’t wait up, I’ll see you in a minute.”

After that, Celestia disappeared in another flash of blinding light, leaving Luna alone in their house. Luna sighed heavily and sat back down on the couch, crossing her arms.

{Hey, Nightmare_Knight, you finally give up? I knew a chick couldn’t hack it in an FPS.}

Luna’s eyebrow twitched, she found her controller, and made her avatar switch out her weapon for an RPG, she then pressed the “R1” button and launched the ordinance right for where her opponent’s avatar was hiding with his light machine gun. The rocket flew across the map and hit the spot where her opponent was hiding and exploded magnificently. Not only did her attack take out the one trash talking her, but also two of his teammates at the same time as her HUD displayed the names of the three she just killed.

“Bite me.”

Maria Mare waited for Celestia in the center of her home, ironically, it was the same one that was repaired after the skirmish between Witchblade, the Darkness, and Angelus, their debut trinity battle. The Madam Mayor of the city was pacing the floor, feeling anxious about what was going to transpire, but her anxiety left the moment a flash of light erupted in the room. When the light faded, Maria put on her more mayoral, stoic expression. She could immediately tell that the being floating in the air was her girlfriend, but it was the white glowing eyes that told her that she was in the presence of the Angelus.

“Where is Neighsay?!” Angelus demanded.

“He’s coming, Angelus,” Maria spoke in a placating manner.

Angelus floated down to the floor and stood before Maria. “And is what he says is true? Does he have it?!”

“See for yourself, your Grace.”

Angelus and Maria glanced in the direction of the front door, and from it entered Neighsay. The man was dressed in his Cardinal trappings, and within his right hand he held the fabled item of the Angelus’ creation, the Siphon. Neighsay slowly approached the Mayor and the Entity of Order, a look of pure rapture appeared upon the latter’s face.

“I thought it lost all these centuries! How did you find it?”

Neighsay had a humble look on his face as he stood before Angelus and presented her with the artifact. “The Vatican has a few supernatural artifacts stored away in order to keep them from the hands of those with wicked intent, or to prevent the items themselves from causing harm to the people. I rooted through the archived artifacts and found this, when I realized what it was, I rushed it over to the states and voila.”

Angelus carefully took the item from his hands, grasping it tightly and admiring one of her finest works, a weapon that could finally end the wretched existence of the Darkness once and for all. “Neighsay, your contribution to the war will not be forgotten, I will ensure that you are greatly rewarded!”

“Ah, funny you should say that your Grace. Because I do wish to make one small request,” said Neighsay.

“Speak your request, dear Cardinal,” said Angelus in a chipper tone.

Neighsay’s diplomatic demeanor changed just then, his lips curling into an almost sinister smile. He reached into his robe, and from it he produced the Prism of the Brothers, and once Angelus saw it, her feathers immediately ruffled like a scared bird. Her eyes practically bulged from her skull, and her body visibly trembled.

“What – Why do you have THAT accursed thing?!” Angelus demanded.

“Angelus, what’s wrong?! Why are you so scared?!”

\\/// That thing is the Prism of the Brothers, it does the exact same thing as the Siphon I made, but instead of imprisoning the Darkness, it imprisons me! \\///

“As I said, the Vatican has various items under lock and key, the Siphon and the Prism.”

Angelus jumped into the air and formed a ball of light into her right hand and proclaimed, “You shan’t imprison me you insolent little man!”

Before Angelus could attack a cloaked being smashed through the skylight, getting everyone’s attention. The cloaked being, the Magdalena, spun in the air and slashed downwards with her Spear of Destiny. The Spear easily cleaved through Angelus’ exposed bicep, cutting off the entity’s arm as white light ichor came splashing out. Angelus cried out in pain as she released the Siphon and let it hit the ground, using her now free hand to clutch at her injured arm. The Magdalena landed on the floor, without missing a beat, the warrior woman took her attack stance. Angelus concentrated and immediately, her severed arm evaporated into particles of light, unfortunately, instead of returning to her, those particles zoomed towards the Prism and were completely absorbed by the artifact. Angelus’ eyes widened again with fear, having just watched her own energy being absorbed by the Prism.

“You bastard how dare you! You seek to imprison me?! Are you – a man of the Cloth – in league with that wretched abomination?!” Angelus asked as her arm regenerated.

Neighsay picked up the Siphon and held it in his left hand as he kept the Prism pointed at the Angelus. “Hardly, although I have been playing double agent for the last couple of weeks. However, that’s not the case, but it will hardly matter what my reasons are after you’ve been trapped inside.”

Magdalena twirled her Spear around and tossed it straight for Angelus, the being of light channeled her power into both hands and fired it at the Spear of Destiny, but Neighsay raised the Prism and the artifact immediately absorbed all the energy that Angelus was firing. Now unimpeded, the Spear of Destiny sunk itself right through Angelus’ chest, carrying them with its momentum until both hit the wall, pinning her like a macabre butterfly on display. Fluttershy put her hands into a prayer position, and at the same time, the Spear of Destiny glowed as Magdalena muttered her chant.

“In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te.”

The Spear of Destiny released arcs of golden lightning that spread across Angelus, creating chain constructs that wrapped around her arms, legs, body, and neck. Angelus tried to fight against it, but every action she took only caused a surge of pain to shoot through her and disrupt her powers.

“What have you done?!”

“So long as the Magdalena continues that chant, the Spear of Destiny will bind you and keep your powers disrupted. Which is more than enough time for me to take the rest of your essence,” Neighsay explained.

The corrupted Cardinal raised the Prism again, immediately the artifact began to absorb the power of the Angelus. Particles of golden light flowed out of her body and right into the object. Angelus could feel her power quickly draining, despite her efforts, every action she took only caused her more pain and further disruption of her powers, and her powers were already decreasing at a rapid pace. Her eyes shot to Maria, who had been standing by and watching as this all transpired.

\\/// Celestia, I’m switching with you, get that woman to do something! \\///

The white eyes switched back to magenta, signifying that Celestia was back in control. The school principal gritted her teeth as the pain continued throughout her body, but in spite of this she managed to address Maria Mare. “M-Maria, please help! I-I can’t move! Maria!”

The Mayor of Canterlot City looked upon the scene before her, and for a moment Neighsay’s glance diverted to her. His plan was factored upon whether or not Mayor Mare would interfere. Was her loyalty to Angelus or her affection for the one who was playing host stronger than her fear of what Neighsay or Magdalena could do to her? Maria glanced at Celestia, she knew she had to save her lover, but at the same time, she knew that inside her lover was the wolf in angel’s clothing.

Angelus made it clear to Maria that when the Darkness was defeated, and his followers killed, that the Entity of Order would set her sights on Canterlot’s citizens, using the same draconian methods to weed out the supposed “sinners” among the populace, and leaving only those who followed the rules, those who walked the fine line of morality. Should anyone veer off that path, Angelus and her Sentinels would swiftly kill them without mercy. In that scenario, what could constitute sinful in her eyes? Simple white lies? Cheating? Graffiti? If Angelus was going biblical then surely homosexuality was considered punishable in her eyes, which meant soon enough or possibly as a first act, dependent on the situation, Maria herself would be among those whose life would be brutally ended. The only reason Celestia would be spared is because Angelus needed a host, and what of Celestia’s young ward, Sunset Shimmer? Losing a girlfriend was one thing but losing someone you considered a daughter would devastate Celestia.

So, Maria Mare, Mayor of Canterlot City, made her choice. “Angelus, consider this karma for what you had planned for my city and its citizens.”

Celestia didn’t have a chance to reply before Angelus switched out, her eyes blazing with white flames as she gave the Mayor the most hate filled expression she could muster. “YOU FUCKING, CONNIVING WHORE! I’LL KILL YOU SLOWLY AND TORTURE YOUR WRETCHED SOUL UNTIL I’VE GOTTEN BORED WITH IT, AND THEN SEND IT TO OBLIVION!”

Maria crossed her arms and smirked. “And there’s the tyrannical bitch behind the warm smile. You may be a being of order, but you’re just as bad as the Darkness and Sombra! Now I’ll have Celestia back and you’ll be a prisoner!”

Neighsay’s smile broadened, he had cleared the last hurdle, now there was nothing stopping him from taking the rest. The corrupted Cardinal focused back on Angelus, he could feel the power of the Angelus seeping into him through the Prism, and it was quite intoxicating. The glow of the Angelus was getting dimmer and dimmer, and pretty soon all of her would be trapped inside the Prism.

However, a powerful roar cut through the moment. Neighsay and Maria looked up and watched as Gaghiel, the Beast of God, jumped through the same skylight that Magdalena had a moment ago. The giant liger transformed himself into his humanoid form and attacked Magdalena. With no choice given, Magdalena stopped her chant and jumped backwards just as Gaghiel’s claw blades crashed into the floor where she once stood.

“Ad me!” Magdalena spoke as she reached out with her right hand.

The Spear of Destiny dislodged itself from Angelus and flipped through the air like a Buzz saw towards her. Gaghiel got out of the way just in time and landed at his Mistress’ side. Something was wrong though, when Angelus looked up, her eyes weren’t glowing white, instead, they were magenta.

“Mistress, I heard your call, are you alright?!”

“We need…need to get out of here!” Celestia stated.

Gaghiel didn’t ask why it was Celestia and not the Angelus herself giving him orders, but regardless, he needed to follow her command. The Beast of God muttered an apology as he wrapped his large left arm around her middle, flared his wings, and shot off straight through the skylight. Once away from any obstructions, Gaghiel took off through the air in a random direction.

Neighsay looked up and growled in anger, he was so close to getting all of the Angelus’ power. The corrupted Cardinal looked upon the Prism and smiled despite the situation. While it wasn’t all the power he wanted, it was a good chunk of the Angelus’ power, enough to command the Sentinels and more, but he still needed the rest if he truly wanted to make his plan come to fruition.

“I’m sorry, Cardinal Neighsay, I am unable to pursue the target,” said Magdalena.

“No matter…”

Neighsay concentrated and immediately felt the power of the Angelus seep from the Prism and into his body. His red Cardinal robes broke down as a transformation was engaged. From his back sprouted two feathered wings made of scarlet light, a layer of armor formed over his body, crimson in color, and atop of that formed heavier armor. Around his forearms formed bracers that were white and gold, emblazoned with the image of an angel holding a sword and pointed down. The greaves formed next, the same image was upon them as well, but around the outer ankles were golden metal wings.

The chest plate appeared next, a golden sword symbol was molded onto the center, with gold wings flaring from the guard. The shoulder pauldrons were golden, the bits of the red robe reformed and connected to the pauldrons, creating a crimson cape that covered the back and sides. Some of it reached upwards and formed a hood to cover his head, while his face was adorned with a white and gold metal mask, with emerald crystal-like eyes.

“My God…so this is the power of the Angelus! And at only a mere seventy percent at that! I can scarcely imagine it at full power!”

The Magdalena got on one knee and bowed to Neighsay, while Maria could only look upon Neighsay with shock, it was then that she realized that maybe letting him suck out Angelus from Celestia with that gaudy looking thing wasn’t the best idea in the world.

“W-What are you planning on doing…?” Maria asked.

Neighsay looked to the Mayor. “For now, it’s business as usual. No one needs to know what happened here tonight, the Sentinels will do as I say, and will continue to patrol for the Blood Kings and the Darkness, but they will also be hunting down Angelus’ host. Seems only seventy percent grants me control of all but one of her Sentinels. That might be a problem, but for now, the people will continue to believe that Angelus is still around.” Neighsay walked towards Maria, his new form towering over her as his emerald eyes shined. “Make no mistake, Madam Mayor, if you step out of line, I will not hesitate to kill you. Nor will I hesitate to kill the host of the Angelus, you seem to care about her, am I right?”

Maria wanted to deny that, but it seemed Neighsay saw through her. “Don’t hurt Celestia…”

“The host is not my target, so long as she comes in without a fuss no harm will come to her. On that note, I need you to tell me who she is, where she works, where she lives, anything that I could use to help make this search a lot shorter.”

To War: Part 2

Sunset awoke to the frantic sounds of someone banging at her front door, with an irritated, groggy groan, she dragged herself out of her bed, put on some pajama pants and walked down the stairs, grumbling the entire way.

“I swear to god, whoever’s behind that door has a death wish after the crap I’ve been through,” said Sunset.

}}} Shall I skewer them for you? {{{

“Oh no, you deserve a rest too…I’ll just punch ‘em.”

The former Equestrian looked through her peephole and paused at who it was. She quickly opened the door and was greeted to the sight of Sister Mage Meadowbrook at her doorstep. Sunset took a moment to look her over, she was wearing a beige tank top and green denim shorts, her left bicep was bandaged up, with some bloodstains on them. Meadowbrook looked quite disheveled, like she had been up all night.

“Um…wow…uh, Sister, what brings you here? Fluttershy’s at home right now,” said Sunset.

“No, she ain’t…I’m sorry, but may I come in, it’s not safe out here?!” Meadowbrook asked urgently.

“Uh, yeah, come in.”

Sunset stepped aside and let Meadowbrook in, the Nun of the Church hurried inside and made her way to the kitchen, whereupon she turned on the faucet, cupped her hands, and began taking in gulps of water. To say that this was strange would be an understatement, but right now, Sunset had to ask what she was talking about with regards to Fluttershy.

“Sister,” Sunset spoke.

Meadowbrook stopped her gulps and said, “Just Meadowbrook or any of those other nicknames I told ya about.”

“Sorry, Meadowbrook, but what happened to you?! And what was that about Fluttershy?!”

Meadowbrook sighed heavily and walked to the couch. She sat down upon it, her haggard features becoming more prominent to Sunset now that she seemed to relax a bit. “Somethin’ bad has happened, Sunset, and I’m afraid that we don’t have much time before things get much worse.”

Sunset sat on the table and looked worriedly at Meadowbrook. “Worse than what we’re dealing with now?”

Meadowbrook nodded slowly. “Unfortunately, yes. It would seem my ‘boss’ – for lack of a better term – has gone completely insane! Neighsay, he wants to take the power of the Angelus and the Darkness to become some kind of god on Earth!”

Sunset shook her head in disbelief at the notion of one man doing that. “Meadowbrook, that’s – how the hell would he even do that?”

At that moment, the Witchblade’s gemstone glowed. }}} Stupid mortal fool! The Siphon and the Prism! {{{

Sunset looked to her partner and asked, “What are those?”

}}} Ancient artifacts, the Siphon can extract the essence of my Father, while the Prism does the same for my Mother. What makes them dangerous is the fact that whoever holds those items can wield the power of my Mother and Father, without being subjected to their control. {{{

“Oh, you got to be kidding me?! How did someone like Neighsay get ahold of something like that?!” Sunset asked.

Meadowbrook raised her hand. “The answer is the Vatican. There are a number of artifacts in a highly secured vault deep underground, items that, in the wrong hands, could cause a lot of trouble for humanity, either due to someone usin’ ‘em or one of ‘em activatin’ on their own.”

“And how the hell does he have access to them if they’re highly secured?”

“He’s a Cardinal, and one of the top Cardinals who has access to such things. He had them sent here ahead of his arrival, waitin’ for the moment when he could use ‘em. Like he most assuredly did last night,” Meadowbrook explained.

Sunset’s mind began to race, she stood up quickly and her hands began to tighten up into fists. “Tell me everything that happened to you last night.”

So, she did, Meadowbrook explained how she tracked down Neighsay’s mystical items, and then how she and Fluttershy confronted him that night to put an end to whatever scheme he was planning. As well as how it all backfired spectacularly, ending up with Fluttershy under Neighsay’s control and more than likely going after one of the two hosts of the entities of order and chaos.

Sunset sat back down on the table and placed her hands upon her head. “Fuck…Fluttershy…is…is there any way we can save her?!”

“I’ve been tryin’ to think of somethin’ this whole night, but also who he’d go after.” Meadowbrook rubbed her face as the stress of last night was catching up to her. “He wouldn’t go after the Darkness, during the night is when Sombra’s at his strongest. So that only leaves…”

Sunset’s eyes flew wide open. “CELESTIA! Son of a bitch!” The teenage girl readied to bolt for the front door, but Meadowbrook managed to block her path. “What are you doing?! I need to go and help her!”

“Sunset, ya need to calm down! If he did manage to get the Angelus’ powers, then that means Neighsay has control of the Sentinels, he may not know that you know and that gives us the advantage, we just have to–!”

Another series of knocks were heard from the front door. Sunset and Meadowbrook went quiet and waited a moment, more knocks came, and Meadowbrook tensed up.

“You weren’t expectin’ anyone, were you?” Meadowbrook asked in a low whisper.

“I wasn’t’ expecting you…but no,” Sunset whispered. “Who is it!”

“Sentinel Patrol, Ma’am, we need to ask you some questions.”

Shit! Sunset looked around and pointed to her bed. “Go up there, get under the blankets!”

Meadowbrook nodded and quickly, but quietly, went up the stairs and got under the blankets. Sunset, meanwhile, ran her hands through her hair, making it as messy as possible, she pulled down on the sleeve of her baggy shirt to expose her left shoulder, and took off her pajama pants. After tossing them towards the kitchen, Sunset headed to the front door and put on a groggy, but happy expression.

When she opened the door, Sunset greeted the two armored Sentinels, leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed, and said, “Oh, hey, what’s up guys?

The female armored Sentinel spoke, “Sorry, but we’re on the lookout for someone. We received word that someone who pretended to be our ally has turned to the side of the Darkness. She is a Nun, going by the name of Mage Meadowbrook.”

Sunset acted shocked. “What? Seriously?! But Fluttershy knows her, my friends and I met her…I…I thought she was on our side, but she’s been with the Darkness this whole time?! Dammit and I let her fool me!”

The male Sentinel raised his hand in a calming motion. “Easy, she fooled us all, she disgraces the name of God for her turncoat ways and will be dealt with. We were wondering if she had come by here at all?”

Sunset shook her head in the negative. “No, I haven’t seen her at all.”

“Mind if we come in and just do a quick search?” The female Sentinel asked as she began to move towards her.

Sunset thrust her arm across the doorway and said, “I do actually mind, my girlfriend’s upstairs right now and she’s not decent. We kinda had a wild night, if you know what I mean?”

“Sunset, babe, who’s that at the door?” Meadowbrook called out, but somehow managed to keep her Cajun accent from slipping through.

“Just a couple of those Sentinels,” Sunset answered.

“Tell ‘em to come back later, I want to get back to business~”

Sunset turned back to the two Sentinels. “As you can see, she’s insatiable, and I’m not the kind girlfriend to keep her waiting. You guys are free to look around, so long as you don’t mind getting a free show in the meantime.”

The male and female Sentinels looked at each other with a small amount of disgust.

“No thank you, but could you possibly wait for a minute to resume your…activities? We promise it won’t be long.”

}}} I don’t think it wise to interrupt my host and her lover. Both of us were made into my Father’s puppets the night before last, and quite frankly, we’re both too tired to deal with this. We shall assist in the hunting down of this rogue Nun, but in the meantime, I suggest you leave us. Or shall I speak with Mother about this? {{{

The Sentinels glanced at each other again, as if having a silent conversation.

“Very well, Son of our Mistress, we will leave you both.”

Sunset stayed where she was, watching as the two Sentinels spread their wings and flew into the sky. She closed the door, leaned against it, and released a breath she didn’t know she was holding. “Damn, I didn’t know what I was going to do if they actually came in!”

Meadowbrook removed the blankets and sat on the edge of the bed with a smirk. “Glad they weren’t a couple of sleazy Sentinels, not sure if I was ready to dust off my old moves.”

Sunset looked up at Meadowbrook with a raised eyebrow. “You…uh, you swung that way? Or do swing that way?”

“Let’ just say I was a bit of a wild child back in the day. I won’t apologize for liking who I liked. I also dabbled in chemistry.” Meadowbrook saw the look Sunset was giving her and added, “Not that kind of chemistry, the kind that involves mixing concoctions together to create something new, kind of like a scientist. I got a real knack for it too.”

Sunset chuckled, but only for a moment before her expression grew serious. “I’m pretty sure we know who Neighsay got to first.”

“Makes sense, he must’ve done it last night, probably afraid that I was goin’ to snitch to Angelus before he could do anything. I wish I had, maybe I coulda stopped him,” Meadowbrook lamented.

“No,” Sunset scratched the back of her head as she paced the floor. “If you had, I’m not sure if Angelus would allow Fluttershy to live if she’s gone full Holy Assassin.”

}}} Wielding the Spear of Destiny grants your friend a good amount of power, it’s possibly one of a small number of mystical weapons that can kill a host of myself, Father, and Mother. {{{

Sunset got even more nervous, Fluttershy wouldn’t kill Celestia to get to Angelus, but the Magdalena…Sunset shuttered with fear at the thought that Celestia, the woman whom she just started to call mother, might’ve been killed by one of her friends. And just as bad, if Fluttershy was still in there, and if they managed to get her back, the poor girl would have to live with the knowledge of killing Celestia.

}}} Do not lose hope, Sunset. My Mother is a lot of things, but she is not one to give up so easily. We need to confirm if they’re still alive. {{{

“Y-You’re right, we need to think of a plan. First things first, we need to hide you somewhere the Sentinels won’t find you,” Sunset thought out loud.

Meadowbrook leaned back and laid on the bed as she put her hands behind her head. “Well, it’ll have to be somewhere that would be the last place that Neighsay would look. Fluttershy is under his control, and thanks to that, he knows whatever she knows. That’s probably why the Sentinels came here, he knows you’re Witchblade. Wherever ya stick me, I’ll need access to a lab if at all possible.”

A lightbulb went off in Sunset’s mind as she was about to give voice to that thought, then a third round of knocks came from her door, again.

“Putain de merde! Again?!” Meadowbrook swore as she quickly ducked under the covers again.

Sunset facepalmed herself and grumbled as she marched her way towards the door and threw it open as she yelled, “FINE, IF YOU GUYS REALLY WANT TO LOOK INSIDE, THEN C’MON IN AND ENJOY THE SHOW WHILE I BANG MY GIRLFRIEND!” Only after spouting out those words did Sunset realize who she said them to, which in turn made her blush.

Her interdimensional twin was standing outside the door, looking a bit confused as to how to respond to her Equestrian double’s words. “Um…I, I didn’t know you were down for watching…? I mean, I don’t mind, but I don’t want this to get too freaky…so, soft pass?”

Sunset slapped her forehead again, without a word, she grabbed her twin by the wrist and pulled her into her home. Before closing the door, Sunset took a quick look around, street, roofs, and sky, nothing. With the coast clear, she shut the door.

“Shimmer, what’s going on? I thought Pinkie and the girls were at school, did you talk her into playing hooky for a hookup?” Sunset asked with a pervy grin and wiggling eyebrow.

Shimmer sighed as she said, “No, Pinkie is at school, but we have a problem. Hey, Meadowbrook, it’s cool, it’s just my…uh…twin sister.”

Meadowbrook threw off the blankets and looked down the stairs, she blinked a few times and then tilted her head. “Wait, I thought you were from another world, how is – ya know what, never mind.”

Sunset glanced to Shimmer with a suspicion. “Uh, Sis, you gonna tell me why you have an admittedly attractive woman in your bed? I came here to check up on you since Twilight’s calling in ‘sick’ for today, at least until we hear about what’s going on with those five, and here I find you in bed with another woman?”

Shimmer put her hands-on Sunset’s shoulders and looked her twin in the eyes. “I promise to explain everything, but first, can my friend stay in your place, and can use your lab?”

Indigo Zap felt like she was marching towards the gallows right now, and the woman in front of her was the warden. Dean Cadence had found Indigo, although, with the swiftness that she did it, Indigo believed that she was being followed by the older woman, but that might just be her paranoid side talking.

“Uh, Dean Cadence…?”

“What, Miss Zap,” Cadence asked.

“Do you know what Principal Cinch is going to do?” Indigo asked with a tinge of trepidation in her voice.

Cadence stopped walking and gave an over the shoulder glare at the teenage sports star behind her, causing Indigo to wither under her gaze. “Understand this, Miss Zap, you hurt someone I love very dearly. Someone who hasn’t done a single thing to deserve such pain and misery in her life.”

Her tone was even, but no less fierce and venomous. Indigo had never seen Dead Cadence angry before, rarely had any student in Crystal Prep, so when she was, it was serious. “D-Dean Cadence, I-I–!”

“Save it!” Cadence cut off Indigo, she was not in the mood to hear the teen’s excuses. “If it were up to me, all five of you would be in jail right now awaiting trial!” At the mention of this, Indigo tensed up and wondered if she should start running. “…Unfortunately, it’s not up to me, but know this…” Cadence turned around and stood before Indigo, using her height to her advantage, and loomed over the spikey haired girl. “I won’t be living in my world of blissful ignorance anymore, I’m going to keep my eyes wide open, and my ears listening closely, even if that means I have to take time out of my day to watch you five! I swear to god, Indigo Zap, if you ever so much as brush up against Twilight Sparkle…so help me god, you’ll wish Sunset Shimmer had gotten to you first!”

Indigo Zap gulped, she could see the fires of hatred in the Dean’s eyes, the kindly big sister that everyone knew was not here at this moment. What stood before her was a big sister who was pissed off and ready to tear the throat out of the ones who dared to harm her family. This was a side that the students at Crystal Prep rarely got to see, and rightfully so, it was damn near terrifying. Cadence was a big proponent of love and understanding, but still, there was always a breaking point, even for the most kindhearted of people, and Indigo just now realized that she had unintentionally found it.

“O-Okay…” Indigo whimpered. “B-But Dean, I-I’m not the one who’s really dangerous! Sunset Shimmer is! She…She did something, she made fire appear out of nowhere, and–!”

“I think your concussion has had some effects on your memory, Miss Zap. Maybe you should go back to the doctor to double check.”

Indigo shut her mouth as Dean Cadence turned around and continued walking, with Indigo following in lockstep. It hadn’t left her mind since that day, Indigo caused some serious injuries to Sunset, she knew she did, she felt the bones snap when she struck at Sunset’s leg, and the feeling of her fist against Sunset’s face was still fresh in her mind. But, after that girl was engulfed in flames, there was no damage, as if nothing had happened. Then there was that unnatural strength, it was as if Indigo found herself fighting against a monster, even now her stomach still hurt from that punch. Indigo unconsciously rubbed the cast on her right arm, remembering how Sunset so easily broke it with just her one-handed grip. It angered her and made her shutter, knowing that Sunset Shimmer had that kind power this whole time. This made one thought repeat in her mind over and over again.

Twilight’s not safe around her…

Before she knew it, they had arrived at the door to Principal Cinch’s office. Dean Cadence opened the door and more or less shoved the sporty girl into the room, she didn’t bother to announce Indigo, she just simply closed the door with a light slam. Indigo gulped again, she hadn’t been to Cinch’s office in a long while, and she remembered why. There were no windows in the room, and Cinch often had low lighting, some students rumored that Cinch was secretly a vampire and that’s why she liked it dark in her office. Dean Cadence’s office had a window which let in sunlight, making it feel warm and inviting. Cinch was the opposite, low lighting, near darkness, and a single spotlight around where the students, or any visitor, would sit. It was like Cinch was going out of her way to show you that this was her domain, and you were nothing more than an invited guest in it.

Indigo squinted and made out the silhouette of the school's Principal, and dared to speak, “Uh…Principal Cinch?”

“Please sit down, Miss Zap.”

Indigo did as she was told and sat in the armchair before her.

“I’m sure you know why you’re in my office today, correct?”

“Y-Yes, Ma’am.”

“Then tell me, why are you in here?” Cinch asked as she leaned forward.

Indigo rubbed her cast again. “I…we…did something to Twilight Sparkle…”

“Oh, for the love of – you’re an eighteen-year-old for heaven’s sake not an eight-year-old! Spit it out girl, you know what you did, so say it like an adult!” Cinch admonished.

Indigo flinched under her harsh words, but in the end steeled herself and said, “I had my friends help me make a plan to…get back at Sunset Shimmer. I had them get Twilight and hold her somewhere, I honestly didn’t know where they took her, because I didn’t want to risk the chance that that fucking slut, Sunset, might beat me and try to make me tell her where Twilight was…I had the others threaten to strip Twilight and record the whole thing to throw onto the net if Sunset resisted while I beat the crap out of her.”

“Humph, well thought out, and yet it failed so spectacularly. Tell me, were you really going to film my top student getting raped and show it to all the students? And don’t lie to me girl, you’re already in too deep to do that now,” said Cinch.

Indigo used her nondamaged arm to beat the arm of her chair as she countered, “NO! I mean…ugh…that was a last resort thing! I figured Shimmer would just stand there and let me kick her ass if she knew that Twilight was in danger! She wasn’t in any real danger!”

Cinch raised an eyebrow, the sound of her drawer opening made Indigo flinch as she saw the Principal reach in and take something out. On the desk she laid out three items, one was the camera that Sugarcoat used to record the event, the second was the dildo, and the last thing was the scissors, the scissors were kept in a baggy, with dried blood on the blades.

“Given these pieces of evidence, I find that hard to believe.”

Indigo bolted from her chair and put her left hand on Cinch’s desk as she looked at the older woman with wide, frantic eyes. “No that wasn’t how it was supposed to happen! Maybe a little something with that dildo, but nothing that would hurt her! I made them promise me to not go too far!”

“And yet, Sour Sweet threatened to shove these very scissors into the genitalia of Twilight Sparkle, an act that would most certainly cause her serious pain, injury, and if left untreated, possibly death.”

Indigo slammed her fist against the desk as she gritted her teeth. “That psycho bitch went off the rails! That was not part of the plan, she fucking panicked and went mental! I don’t want Twilight hurt!”

Cinch leaned in closer and asked, “Then what do you want from her? Answer me that, Miss Zap. You fixate on her more than any other female in this school of mine. While I’m not particularly fond of homosexuality, I can understand attraction, and I’m not so out of the loop that I don’t know that there are a number of female students who have professed to having a crush on you. It seems you have your pick of the litter, so why Twilight Sparkle? A girl who hasn’t shown the slightest inkling that she’s a lesbian, well, aside from now. But before that, she had shown no interest in pursuing romantic relationships, and yet you seemed to continue pursuing her yourself. The question is begged, why?”

Indigo sat back down and lowered her head, a feeling of embarrassment finally coming over her. “Because…I love her…okay! I love that fucking nerd, she’s different from everyone in this school, she doesn’t fawn over me, she’s not looking to ride my coattails or whatever! She’s just her, smart as all hell, and cute…sure, she may not have curves like Fleur, or a rack like Sugarcoat, but she’s cute to me, and I like what I see in the locker room.” The teenage sports star rubbed her face as she sighed heavily. “I want her to love me, only me, and I…I can’t stand that she’s with that twofaced slut Sunset Shimmer!”

Cinch nodded and said, “Classic stalker mentality, just as Dean Cadence assumed.”

“I’m not a stalker!” Indigo protested as she shot to her feet. “I don’t follow her to her house after school! I don’t break into her house or steal her panties! I don’t have a fucking shrine room to her whatever! That shit is what a stalker does, and I ain’t no stalker!”

Cinch reclined in her chair as she interlocked her fingers. “And yet I have it on good authority that you know the movements of Twilight Sparkle in this school, and have on more than one occasion, forced her into committing sexual acts on you, and forcing some on her. We can also add rapist to that.”

Indigo furrowed her brow and struck Cinch’s desk as she yelled, “I’M NOT A RAPIST EITHER! Twilight wanted it! She’s just too in her head to understand how hot she is! All that I did was to show her what she could do, and what I could do for her!”

“Also, classic rationale of a rapist, and if you strike my desk again, Miss Zap, I’ll have you thrown out of this school, permanently.”

Indigo calmed down, taking in deep breaths and exhaling slowly. Once she had slowed her heartrate, she sat back down in the chair and asked, “What’s going to happen, to me, to the girls?”

“I think you know what should’ve happened by now. Correct?” Cinch waited while Indigo nodded in response. “Bearing that in mind, you’re still here, and not in jail. Count your blessings Miss Zap.” Cinch stood up from her chair and began walking around Indigo, like a shark circling its prey, or a vulture over a rotting carcass. “Crystal Prep has a reputation to uphold, and I will not allow you, my daughter, or your acquaintances, to mar that. Do you understand?”

“Y-Yes, Ma’am.”

Cinch stopped her circling, standing to Indigo’s right as she looked down at her through her sharp pointed glasses. “Here’s what’s going to happen, Miss Zap. From this point forward, until after graduation, you are not allowed to speak to Twilight Sparkle unless spoken to. You are not allowed to touch her unless it is to help her or if she gives you permission to do so. Your interactions in the locker rooms will be restricted to changing and bathing, no banter, no ogling, no suggestive gestures. You are not to follow her, at all, either on school grounds or outside of said grounds.”

“B-But I have a few classes with her, I can’t not follow her if we’re going to the same classroom?” Indigo asked.

“Then you will arrive later, Miss Sparkle is a punctual girl, so I know she’ll arrive early to the classroom, all you need to do is make sure you’re a minute or three behind her. Keep this in mind, Indigo Zap, Twilight Sparkle is my crowning achievement for Crystal Prep, you know as well as I do that that young girl is going to be a great scientist, and if she does, whatever great discoveries she makes, it will all lead back here. People from inside and outside the city will flock to Crystal Prep, just for the privilege to study at the same school where the brilliant scientist Twilight Sparkle spent her high school career.”

Indigo bristled a little at hearing how Cinch was talking about her Twilight, as if she was some project, or grand trophy she could tout and show off to everyone. Sunset was dangerous, but so was Cinch, especially now that she knew what her plans were for her. Indigo wasn’t just some stupid jock, she was smart, she knew Cinch had influence that could reach outside of Crystal Prep, and there was no telling what Cinch could do to Twilight’s life should her love cross the old hag.

“I get it…I won’t go near Twilight, if I can help it,” said Indigo.

“I believe you,” said Cinch as she placed her left hand on the girl’s right shoulder. Her eyes glanced briefly to Indigo’s cast. “Tell me, how long will that take to heal?”

“Doc said about two weeks. Said I was lucky that it didn’t break any further or I’d be worse off, but I’m a fast healer anyway.”

“Very good, then until that cast comes off, you’re suspended starting tomorrow.”

“WHAT?!” Indigo balked.

Cinch removed her hand and went back to her chair. “You didn’t think I was going to let you off that easily. Sour Sweet can only continue coming so long as her parents make sure she’s taken her meds, even if it means forcing them down her throat. Sugarcoat, in light of her actions to stop Sour Sweet, will continue to attend as normal, same goes for my daughter and Miss Zest as their roles were minor. However, as the orchestrator of this scheme, I have to make an example out of you. And Miss Zap, failure to adhere to my rules will result in a harsh penalty.”

Indigo raised her eyebrow and leaned forward. “What kind of ‘penalty’?”

Cinch turned her computer monitor on and flipped it around to show Indigo’s grades. “As the Principal I have full access to the grades of every student, including yours, Miss Zap. I know your family is quite well-off, but all these honors that you received, all these earned grades, it would be a shame if they all disappeared along with all the scholarships you received. A quick phone call can make your sports prospects vanish, like dust in the wind.”

Indigo tried to make a fist with her right hand, but her efforts earned her a surge of pain that made her wince and clutch at her cast. “Fine, I get it, I won’t go near her!”

“I’m glad we have an understanding.”

“Just so you know, if you think I’m dangerous, then I’m nothing compared to Shimmer! She’s not normal, I saw her set herself on fire after I beat her, and when the flames died out, all the damage I did was gone! Lemon said her hair turned into literal fire! What if she’s with those Blood Kings?!” Indigo accused.

“I’m well aware of that, Lemon Zest and my daughter confirmed such an event when Miss Shimmer saved Twilight Sparkle, but nonetheless, whether or not she’s affiliated with that gang of terrorists is speculative. Unless you have some proof?”

Indigo looked down at the floor and said, “No…”

“Then drop it. So long as she doesn’t harm this school or the students that don’t provoke her, then all will be fine. If it turns out that is the case, we’ll just have the Sentinels take care of her. Now, finish up your classes for the day and don’t return until you’re healed, and the cast is removed, I still need you for the Friendship Games,” Cinch ordered.

Indigo nodded, got up, and headed towards the door.

“Did Miss Cadenza threaten you before coming here? She looked quite perturbed.”

“Yeah… she did, said I hurt someone she loved…does she like Twilight or something?” Indigo asked.

“No, she’s dating Miss Sparkle’s older brother, Shining Armor. An alumnus of this school, and a decorated detective of the CCPD. As I understand it, Miss Cadenza was also Twilight Sparkle’s babysitter when she was younger and attending Crystal Prep in her teen years. So, in a sense, Miss Cadenza sees Twilight Sparkle as much a little sister as I’m sure Miss Sparkle sees Cadenza as a big sister. You’d do well to heed whatever threat she made to you.”

Indigo began to tremble, now it made sense as to why Dean Cadence was so pissed off at her. It wasn’t the normal kind of pissed, it was the real kind of pissed off when someone hurts another person’s family member, and now it made perfect sense as to where that anger was coming from. Dean Cadence was practically family to Twilight and vice versa, and to top it all off, her big brother was a cop. If he knows about what she did to Twilight, there was no telling what could happen later down the line, if not sooner.

“You needn’t worry about the police getting involved,” said Cinch as if reading Indigo’s mind. “Cadenza and I have an understanding regarding that matter, so do not fret about it. However, if you attempt such a thing again, I won’t be able to help you, this is your one and only ‘get out of jail free’ card, and you just used it up. Anything after this, is on you, Indigo, and I’ll happily wash my hands of you. Now, off you go.”

Indigo left Cinch’s office, many thoughts were racing through her mind, but one thing was for sure, Twilight needed protecting, from Cinch, and from Sunset Shimmer. But what could she do? She was strong and fast, but Sunset outclassed her with whatever voodoo witch magic she’s got going on, and Cinch had influence that could crush any career that Indigo wanted to strive for, turning a potential sports start into nothing.

Somehow…I will protect you Twilight…Somehow…

Sombra found himself in the dream again, quite frankly he was getting a little annoyed by these random trips down Stygian’s memory lane. Nevertheless, he was stuck in it so all he could do was suck it up and watch the movie. Compared to the last dream, some years had passed by, Stygian was no longer the lanky beanstalk, now he was a man in his mid-twenties. He was definitely more muscular than he had been before, but not so much to make him look like a one those bruiser thugs his family used to have on the payroll. No, Stygian had lean muscle, showing that not only did have strength, but also speed to back it up.

It was nighttime, the moon was a waning crescent as he ran towards a castle in the distance. He was clothed in Darkness Armor, the shadow cloak’s hood pulled up and obscuring most of his face as he swiftly made his way through the trees of the forest. Stygian had spent a great deal learning all he could of the Darkness, it had much to teach. He learned when fully armored he didn’t need to rest, drink, or eat, in addition to his augmented speed and strength, making him move with inhuman speed across land, and even the sky.

Once Stygian reached the tree line, his cloak sprouted bat-like wings, he then jumped straight into the air and began flying the rest of the way towards the castle. Now, he was over the castle keep, where the last remnants of the Swarel Resistance resided, he would end their existence. They lost the war three years ago, and yet pockets of them still wished to continue their old ways and mount attacks on their kingdom. Such wretched beings, they would raid villages, taking what they could, murdering the men, and taking the women and children to do unspeakable things. What was worse, they made sure that it was out in the open, that way whenever help did arrive, they would be able to fully look upon their good work without anything obstructing it.

It was meant to demoralize and frighten them, a warning of what will happen to everyone as vengeance for their fallen kingdom. But it had the opposite effect, it only enraged the people further, and Stygian took it upon himself to become the avatar of their rage. He could see the torches, Stygian smiled, of course they knew of his power, figured putting up so many torches would render his power useless. However, they had no imagination. The wings on Stygian’s back grew larger, big enough to be compared to a dragon’s wings. With a moonless sky, he practically blended into the night itself. Stygian, with a mighty beat of his wings, created a downward gust of wind, no, more like a whirlwind.

The gale washed over the castle, making many of the guards stationed on the walls or on the ground get thrown to the ground or off the wall to fall to their deaths. While it wasn’t his intention to do that, it was a happy, unintentional effect of his tactic, but the desired effect was achieved nonetheless as every visible torch was snuffed out like a candle stick. The only light that was visible came from inside but wouldn’t be an issue once he got started.

Stygian dispelled his wings and let himself go into free fall, landing outside the castle walls with thunderous impact that shook the land and caused a shockwave that upheaved most of the dirt and sediment. A crater had formed from his landing, but not long after that, a giant serpent came rushing out of the hole, its hide had scales as black as night, with a silver underbelly. The eyes of the serpent shined a bloody scarlet, becoming two beacons in the night. Inside the serpent’s maw were four large, ivory fangs, and two rows of smaller fanged teeth within. The serpent had flared sides, making it appear like a cobra, but its back bore several razor sharp spines that ran from the base of its head all the way to its tail, which sported a blade like appendage at the end. This creature Stygian called Leviathan, it had carried him into many a battle and never failed to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. Man feared serpents on a primal level, and surely a giant one was far more terrifying.

The next thing that Stygian created was a horde of Darklings, two army’s worth of them, all armed with various weapons. Demon-like Darklings took to the skies on their leathery bat wings, releasing unholy shrieking as they filled the sky. From a distance, it appeared as dozens of glowing red and yellow dots were on the horizon, some might mistake it as torches, but they’d soon find out how wrong they were. With little more to do, Stygian gave the mental command to his minions, the Darklings all released gleeful profanities into the air as they charged towards the castle. Leviathan slithered across the plains taking its time as it knew its main duty was to act as the steed of its master, whatever little scraps were left over to play with were all his, the Darklings knew that.

The Swarel Resistance didn’t know what hit them, the Darklings scaled the walls of the keep easily and set to slaughter all who dared to try and attack them. Some of the Darklings were killed, lucky shots, but they returned just as quickly as they were killed. Soon Leviathan was upon the keep, drawing the attention of the remaining Swarel soldiers, Stygian raised his hand and the Darkling stopped their attack, keeping the men surrounded while Stygian floated down to the ground before them.

“Gentlemen – and I’m using that word sparingly – I’m obligated to give you all at least a chance to surrender peacefully,” Stygian proclaimed.

“Surrender?! That’s a joke, surrender and then be executed later! We’d rather die,” said their leader.

Stygian smiled under his helmet. “Oh good, I wanted to spare the kingdom the tediousness of executing you and just get it done myself.” Stygian raised his right hand as he gathered dark energy into it, in a matter of seconds, black flames erupted in a circle before the barbarians, and with a snap of his fingers, the remaining soldiers of the fortress were incinerated.

Sombra glanced to his left, and standing there was the Stygian of old, the scrawny thing he was before he became the warrior who was standing a few feet away. “Not that I don’t like watchin’ a good fight, but is there a reason why you’re showing me all this?”

“Indeed, there is, Sombra. I’m reaching out to you, so that you may know that despite what you think, you do not control the Darkness.”

Sombra laughed at that notion. “Please, kid, I didn’t spend the last ten years just jerkin’ around. I learned all I could about it, and now I can use its power without taking control.”

“I thought that way once too, but the ultimate deception is making believe that the person you are deceiving is in complete control, when really, you aren’t.”

Scenes played out before Sombra, one after the other as Stygian spoke of each one. The first to appear was Platinum and Stygian arriving in the throne room, and on that throne was the body of King Coal.

“On the night that I saved Platinum, we found out that King Coal was also targeted…and was successfully killed. They coronated her as the new Queen, and not long after that, Platinum decided to make our love for each other official, and asked me to marry her. Before I knew it, I was now the king to her queen.”

Another scene appeared, showing Stygian and Platinum getting married before the people of their kingdom. Like wisps of smoke, the scenery changed again, this time displaying Stygian at the head of an army of knights, and alongside those knights were Darklings and Servants, all of whom charged straight for an opposing enemy in the dead of night.

“I led an army of Darklings and Servants in the night, and our knights fought during the day. They never feared while they slept, knowing they were under my protection. I would devastate our Swarel enemies, and our knights would mop up whatever was left when daybreak came.”

Stygian stood atop his Leviathan, with the army of Darklings and Servants down below, marching onto other battles. Castle after castle, army after army, all fell before Stygian and the Darkness.

“I wasn’t done with just Swarel, we had gotten our revenge, but I feared that other threats might come for our kingdom, so I set out to conquer others, more and more, I brought them to their knees. I became a hero to the people, and they proudly sung my praises. However…not all were happy with my achievements…”

Stygian and Star Swirl were in the workshop once again, the old wizard didn’t seem like he aged a day, but he seemed agitated.

“Stygian, you have to end your use of this entity’s power.”

The new king gave an exasperated sigh as he looked to his old master. “Not this again, we’ve been over this, the Darkness is working with us, with me.”

Star Swirl rolled his eyes. “That thing reeks of chaos and destruction, we don’t know where it comes from, or why it is here. Or more importantly, what it wants from you.”

Stygian crossed his arms and glared at Star Swirl. “What does it matter? It wants what I want, and that’s that! I’ve quite literally conquered our enemies singlehandedly, I will not be sorry for doing that, for making our land safer.”

<^> The old man is jealous of your power, Stygian. <^>

“You're just jealous of how much stronger I am than you, aren’t you? I’ve grown much stronger than you, and I am not the weak little thing that I once was! My eyes have opened, Star Swirl the Bearded, and I have grown!” Stygian stated.

Star Swirl released a burst of magical energy that made the bells on his hat and cloak rattle, Stygian didn’t flinch, for his power was equal – if not stronger – to Star Swirl. “I don’t seek to antagonize you, my young apprentice, I seek to help you. I wish to see you live your life, with the one you love, for my apprentices, all I strive is to see them grow strong and live a life that they are happy with, but are you truly happy, Stygian?”

Stygian made ready to answer but stopped with his mouth open. Was he truly happy? He was with the woman he liked since he was a young boy, he obtained power beyond what a mortal man could comprehend, and he was the leader of a kingdom, so…why did it feel somewhat hollow?

“I am…I am…”

“But I was not, I quickly found out that the power of the Darkness was not something that was my own. The Darkness hates control, it will twist your ambitions to something that wasn’t yours. Tell me, did you really want to conquer the city? Or did you want something else?”

Sombra started to think about what this meant, what it meant to him. Why did he really want to take over Canterlot City? Was it for him? To start a new empire that his family lost? For revenge against the people who killed his family?

“And… eventually…I lost it all…the Darkness doesn’t care about what you want, only what it wants.”

The last thing that Sombra saw was the image of a burning kingdom, and a sorrowful Stygian, holding the dead body of Queen Platinum, with only the silhouettes of the Darklings and Servants around them.

To War: Part 3

Pinkie wasn’t the worrying type, but when it came to Sunset and Fluttershy not being at school, it was kind of grounds for worrying. After getting possessed by the Darkness, it drove the point a bit further to Pinkie that Sunset wasn’t as safe as she, or the rest of them, may have believed. Sunset was absent today, but perhaps that was due to Principal Celestia telling Sunset to stay home? That was a possibility, but then again, Principal Celestia was absent as well. The girls had been texting Sunset all day, but there was no reply, so, finally, Pinkie decided to try and call her. They had been sending a few to Fluttershy, believing that the duo might be doing a mission together. However, none of their texts were answered by either of the two girls.

Pinkie waited in the lobby area of the school; after thinking it over, she decided to just call Sunset and see if she would answer. The phone rang a few times before Sunset’s voicemail message answered. {S’up, this is Sunset Shimmer, leave a message, and I’ll get back to you. Or not, just text me.}

We ALL have been! Pinkie thought. “Hey, Sunny, it’s me! We’re kinda getting worried that you haven’t replied to our texts. I didn’t know if you knew, but Principal Celestia’s not at school and neither is Fluttershy, I figured Principal Celestia probably told you to rest up today, but I just wanted to make sure that’s the case. Either that or you and Principal Celestia are having some mother-daughter time together and I’m totally interrupting it with all these texts and calls, so if that’s the case then just text us back and we’ll stop!……” The bubbliness in her voice faltered as she continued. “Sunset, please call me back, I really am worried about you, you know? It doesn’t have to be a long message, just something short to tell us you’re okay. Okay, I’ll call you later…bye.”

Pinkie hung up and sighed with dejection, she knew that Sunset had responsibilities as Witchblade, and with Sombra and the Darkness still moving around in the city, she could hardly blame her girlfriend for going radio silent if she was on a mission. Just then, Pinkie’s cellphone rang back, without bothering to look at the caller ID she swiped to answer and said, “Sunset?!”

{Uh, no, sorry lil’ Sis, but it’s just me,} said Limestone.

“Oh…”

{Wow, don’t sound too disappointed.}

Pinkie shook her head and gave herself a light slap across the cheek to snap her out of her funk. “No, no, sorry, I am happy you called! But why are you calling in the middle of the day? You usually don’t call me unless it’s an emergency or wait until I get to the house…IS IT AN EMERGENCY?!” Pinkie’s question was loud enough that it made a few of the students stop and look in her direction as they saw the wide bug eyes of Pinkie Pie, along with her holding of her phone as if she was trying to shake the person who was on the other end. And as per usual, the students walked on, chalking it up to another of Pinkie’s random moments.

{Jeez, calm down Pinkie. No, it’s not an emergency, I just wanted to talk for a sec. Or is right now a bad time?}

“I have a free period right now, what’s on your mind?” Pinkie asked with a chipper voice.

{I, uh, just wanted to make sure that Sunset was alright. You said she was crashing at her guardian’s place and I thought I might’ve messed up the night before last.}

Pinkie, in an attempt to lighten the mood, put on a devious smirk. “Oooh, Big Sis Limey, you didn’t by chance try and steal Sunset away by trying to have a wild night of passionate sex behind my back, did you?”

There was a loud sputtering on the other end, followed by some coughing, and ending with a light wheezing intake of air. Most likely Lime was drinking something the moment Pinkie said that. She always had a knack for knowing when people were doing that and saying something to make them spit it out.

{The hell – No – No I did NOT fuck your girlfriend! I-I wouldn’t ever do that to you! A-At least I don’t think I did that. Oh, shit I did, didn’t I?! I got so shitfaced that night that I fucked Sunset, didn’t I?! Shit, shit, Pinkie, you gotta believe me, I didn’t mean for it to happen!}

Pinkie was slightly taken aback by how vehemently Limestone was apologizing for something she didn’t do. It was just a joke, but Limestone seemed to have taken it seriously, very seriously at that. “H-Hey, it’s okay, I was just–”

{Okay, maybe I did want to do it with her! Maybe I do have a small crush on the girl! And maybe I fantasize about burying my face between her legs and making her cry out my name! I mean, can you blame me? She’s hot as hell! Ugh that’s no excuse or apology…I’m sorry Pinkie, I’m a shitty big sister, but I swear I’ll do anything to make it right! I-I’ll–!}

“LIME!” Pinkie shouted. When her sister stopped her rant, Pinkie spoke, “Lime, I was just kidding, you didn’t really do anything to Sunset that night.”

There was a long and heavy silence that followed, the tension was so thick you could cut it with one of Sunset’s Witchblade blades, the BIG ones. Limestone wasn’t playing along with her joke; Limestone had fully believed she had slept with Sunset and that that was the reason why she wasn’t there that following morning. To hear that her eldest sister had a crush on Sunset was a little jarring, to say the least. Limestone had never outwardly shown that she liked Sunset, in fact, most of the time, up until now, Limestone had been abrasive towards her.

“Um…wow…I…I didn’t know you felt that way towards Sunset, Limey. But to be fair, Sunset is really hot,” said Pinkie, attempting to lighten the mood again.

{Pinkie…I’m such a shitty big sister…}

“No, you’re not, at least you said something.”

{Yeah, only after I thought I did something wrong…I’m sorry…}

Pinkie rubbed the back of her head as she tried to think about how to defuse this situation. “Hey, w-why don’t we talk later? Just clear the air, huh?”

A heavy sigh emanated from the other end, but then Limestone replied, {Yeah, I let’s do that. I’ll go ahead and go…sorry again, Pinks.}

Limestone hung up the phone before Pinkie could reply to her, out of everything that probably was going to happen today, that wasn’t on her top ten. To say that wasn’t a shock would be underselling it, her own sister had a crush on her girlfriend, yeah, that was still not an easy thing to comprehend. Could you have made this more convoluted?!

– I’m sorry what? –

You just had to make my big sister, Lime, have the hots for Sunny! Like I said, I know she’s hot as hell, but what are you trying to do?! Give her a harem?!

– Well if you’re up for that… –

Don’t push it mister! I’m still trying to figure out how I can swing a fourway with Twilight, me, and both Sunsets, this isn’t a Clop story!

– Sheesh, excuse me for trying to squeeze in a little side note conflict. Oh, by the way, Luna’s about to talk to you. –

At around that time, Vice Principal Luna came walking up to Pinkie Pie from behind, but just before Luna could speak, Pinkie whipped around with a broad smile and said, “Hi Vice Principal Luna! What’s up?”

“Gah!” Luna exclaimed as she jumped back a bit. “My god, sorry, I just – how did you know I was back there?”

Pinkie Pie gave a little wave. “Eh, the author gave me a heads up.”

“The…‘author’?” Luna pinched the bridge of her nose and decided not to probe further. If there was one thing that she learned in her tenure at CHS, it was not to fall down the rabbit hole that was Pinkie Pie. “Anyway, I needed to ask you if you’ve heard from my sister?”

Pinkie raised an eyebrow. “No, I mean I know she’s gone today.”

“Yes…well…” Luna glanced around to make sure that there were no eavesdroppers. “Last night, my sister had to go to the Mayor’s place because there was something that the Angelus needed. She transformed, and then teleported away. She told me not to wait up for her, but I ended up doing so and, needless to say, I am very tired.”

Pinkie could tell, there were bags under her eyes, and she looked a little drunk, but that’s more than likely due to not sleeping the whole night.

“So, I was wondering if Sunset said anything to you about Celestia? I’m sure my sister told her to stay home to get some more rest after her ordeal, but…”

Pinkie shook her head sadly. “No, I haven’t, and Sunset’s not answering me, or any of us. I’m getting kind of worried too…”

Luna sighed and then smiled a little as she placed her hand on Pinkie’s shoulder. “I guess we both have people who make us worry. If you wish, I could excuse you to go and check on her. I don’t make this a habit, but considering the circumstances…”

“No, I need to trust Sunset. She wouldn’t be ghosting us for no reason, she’ll talk to us, and when she does, I’m going to yell at her for making me worry!” Pinkie proclaimed in her normally bubbly tone.

“Indeed, and I’ll do the same to my sister.”

Shining Armor had a lot on his mind today, he just found out that his little sister, his LSBFF, was being abused and sexually harassed by the student body of Crystal Prep, and on top of that, five of them kidnapped her and tried to film her getting raped. If it wasn’t for Sunset – the human world one – then they would have succeeded and Twilight would’ve been irreparably damaged, both physically and mentally.

What he said to Cadence was true, he was going to find out as much as he could about Crystal Prep. There was no way that Twilight wasn’t the only instance of something happening in that school, maybe not to the level of what happened to Twilight – at least he hoped so – but there had to be something someone was hiding. However, that was going to be an issue, if these things were getting buried, then there might not be any record of such things in the police files. That wasn’t the only thing on his mind though, there was also the fact that the Sentinels were acting strangely. They seemed on edge, Araquiel, who was probably the most popular and fun loving of the Sentinels stationed at their precinct, was a little quieter, not as boisterous.

Not only that, but Gaghiel was MIA. Of the four, well, three now, Gaghiel was the one who was most orderly and uptight. To see that the big cat wasn’t here in the station was surprising to say the least. Not that Shining minded at all, out of the lot that were assigned to them, he liked Gaghiel the least. Araquiel he kind of liked, Hadriel was quiet and did give advice, and before that attack, Ayil was pleasant enough, but Gaghiel, nope, didn’t miss him one bit.

Apparently, they weren’t the only ones, he called a few other stations to find out if it was just their Sentinels or others, but it seemed this was going on all around. The whole lot of the Sentinels were on edge, as if they were being forced to do something they didn’t want to do. If Shining was being honest, that made him a little edgy, it made him wonder if the Sentinels were gaining independence from Angelus or something. He wasn’t sure if that was worse than having Angelus in control, honestly, he still didn’t trust that angel.

While Shining was ruminating, his partner, Spearhead, couldn’t help but notice his dower mood. “Dude, you alright. You look down. Did Cadence dump you or something?”

Shining rolled his eyes. “No, Spear, she didn’t dump me. It’s something else, with Twily.”

At this Spearhead raised a concerned eyebrow, he knew how devoted Shining was to his little sister, so to hear that something was up with his brainy little sister was concerning even to Spearhead. “What’s up with Twilight? Did she hurt herself or something?”

Shining Armor’s brow furrowed. “No, someone hurt her.”

“Seriously?! Dude, if you need to put a scare into someone, just tell me, I’ll back you up. You’re like family, bro, and no one hurts my family,” said Spearhead with all due seriousness.

Hearing that made Shining Armor smile a little, knowing that his best friend since high school considered Twilight family and was willing to get worked up for her sake was heartening. “I may need to call that in, but not right now. I need to do some more investigating.”

“Armor, Thrust,” called out the voice of Captain Broadside. The old grizzled police captain entered their office and looked to the two young detectives. “Need you to go out and look into a possible Blood King hang out, we got an anonymous tip so check it out.”

“Got it,” they both responded.

Both of them went to the locker room and changed out of their detective attire and into more street worthy clothes, a hoodie, some ripped jeans, and a t-shirt. They kept their guns, considering the part of town they were heading, it wasn’t that unusual for someone to be carrying, especially if they looked like possible gang members.

Once they were changed, the duo made their way towards south Canterlot where the tip was called in. When they arrived, it was an abandoned business building, about four floors, some of the windows were boarded up, and others were broken. It could’ve been a law office, or a boarding house. Whatever it once was, it was dilapidated, the kind of place no person with good sense would bother going inside unless they were doing something that they didn’t want others to see. Perfect for criminals.

“How do you want to do this?” Spearhead asked.

“I’ll head in through the front,” said Shining.

“I’ll get the sides and go in from there, we’ll meet up in five.”

Shining nodded and proceeded through the front, of course it looked as if it had been purposefully broken into, but around here, if anyone did see anything, they stayed silent, not wanting to get involved and possibly receive retribution from the criminals they reported on. Shining carefully looked around, it opened up to a lobby area, with a staircase that led up to the first floor and split off into two directions, right and left, an out of commission elevator, and about two hallways that led to rooms and offices. Despite it being almost midday, the sun’s rays barely penetrated through the windows, just perfect for Blacknights.

Shining stuffed his hands into his pockets, trying to look as tough and standoffish as any potential or wannabe gang member. He was about to look around downstairs when he thought he heard movement up above. With caution, he went towards the stairs. Shining took the left staircase and proceeded upwards. There was a long corridor, not the best set up, it basically made him a setting duck if someone wanted to shoot him. Steeling himself, Shining slowly walked down the hallway, gently twisting the knobs of the doors to see which ones were open in case he needed to duck into one of the rooms.

As he walked down further, he heard another noise behind him. Shining quickly turned around but saw nothing. Slowly, he drew his gun from the waistband of his pants and held it at the ready as he steadily walked to the far end of the hall. Once there, he proceeded to the third level, which, thankfully, was a bit more open. There were cubicles on this floor, apparently the building had seen several different businesses over the years, and they left some things behind. Shining went down the aisle but paused when he saw movement.

“Hey, who’s there!” Shining called out.

There was no response.

Shining was getting a bad feeling, like he was being stalked, hunted. There was a good chance this was a trap set up by the Blood Kings, he wouldn’t have put it past them, not after their attack on their police station. Regardless, if it was a trap, he was going to make sure he made as much noise as possible to alert his partner and have Sentinels drop out of the sky and onto this place. Not that he planned on sacrificing himself, he still needed to make those girls and Cinch pay for what they put Twilight through.

A low growling caught Shining’s attention, a growl that emanated right behind him. Shining, carefully, slowly, cocked the hammer of his pistol back, and readied himself to duck away and shoot. However, he was robbed of that chance when whatever it was that was behind him, lunged and knocked him to the floor. Shining Armor rolled onto his back, but that was when the attacker pinned him, slamming its hands onto his forearms, preventing him from rising or fighting back.

“Be calm, Detective!”

Shining stopped struggling and looked up, the creature that pinned him started to release a bright glow, allowing the detective to recognize who it was. “Gaghiel?! What the fuck?!”

“Are you alone?”

“What?!”

“Are! You! Alone?!”

“No, my partner’s outside looking around,” Shining answered.

“No other Sentinels came with you?” Gaghiel asked.

“No.”

Gaghiel scoffed. “That’s just stupid on your part, and on my Sentinel brethren. No matter, it works our favor.”

“Yeah, yeah, can you get off me now!” Shining demanded.

The Beast of God did as Shining asked, the liger sat on his haunches as he waited for Shining Armor to stand back up, the police detective rubbing his forearms from the forceful takedown.

“Why the hell are you here? I haven’t seen you at the station at all.”

“Before I answer that, tell me, how have my brethren been acting?” Gaghiel asked.

Shining Armor wasn’t sure where this was going, but he answered, “They seem…on edge. I’ve been getting the same answer whenever I call some other police stations and ask how their Sentinels are acting. And you seem even more on edge than they do, what’s going on?”

“Realize that the only reason I’m speaking to you is because the host of my Mistress believes you to be trustworthy, and because you have ties to her Son’s host.” Gaghiel looked around, his ears twitching to and fro, trying to pick up on any possible intruders. When he was satisfied that there was no one around he began, “Last night, a mortal tricked my Mistress and ended up stealing most of her power from her.”

“WHAT?!” Shining Armor shouted in shock. “Was it Sombra or one of his Blood King guys?!”

Gaghiel shook his head. “Neither it was a mortal by the name of Neighsay. A man of the cloth, a follower of God. However, it seems he has his own agenda, he promised to help us in this war against the Darkness, but instead, he is using it as an opportunity to seize the power of my Mistress and the Darkness! He has stolen enough power to command the Sentinels, but not all of it. I was able to stop him before that happened, and as such I am not under his control. My brethren however…”

Now that explained why they were on edge, the Sentinels knew that Angelus wasn’t in charge anymore, and they’re more than likely under this Neighsay’s command to not talk about it. “Wait, I thought Angelus was an angel or something, you’re saying Angelus is inside someone?!”

“That is the case, yes.”

Shining Armor whipped around and watched as someone exited the corner. He whipped up his gun, readying to shoot, but stopped when she realized who it was.

“Ms. Celestia?!”

“Hello, Detective Armor, I wish we were meeting under different circumstances,” said Celestia.

Shining Armor released his left hand from his gun and facepalmed himself. “Sunset Shimmer is Witchblade, and you’re the Angelus, why not? So…you’re not Angelus anymore?”

Celestia concentrated, and immediately her body flashed with light, forming armor, flaming hair, and white wings. “I can still use her power, but at best, I’d say it’s twenty percent of her full power. Neighsay took a good majority of it last night.”

“He will seek out my Mistress and try to claim the rest for himself, but right now, we need to focus on getting my Mistress somewhere safe, somewhere that neither my brethren, nor Neighsay, would think to look for her,” said Gaghiel.

“You managed to escape, why didn’t you head to Sunset’s?” Shining asked.

Celestia released her armor form and said, “I didn’t want to bring this on her so soon after her ordeal.”

“I feel like I’m missing something.”

“A little bit, yes. But regardless, I need you to contact Sunset – my Sunset – and ask her if it is alright for me to hide out at her…twin sister’s house?” Celestia asked, not sure how to explain it.

Shining Armor could tell she was struggling to figure out how to tell him there were two Sunsets, so he spared her and said, “Don’t worry, Cadence and I know about them, but why not call her yourself?”

“Because I know Sunset will come here to get me, and if she does…”

“She might bring Sentinels with her, there is no doubt Neighsay is probably tracking her movements to try and find out where my Mistress is,” said Gaghiel.

“But I don’t think they’re tracking the other Sunset, so…as much as I’d hate to put you out…could you possibly give me a ride to where she lives? And call my Sunset to let her know I’m okay?” Celestia asked.

Shining Armor rubbed the back of his head, if it was only himself then he’d be up for it, but with Spearhead, that would take a lot of explaining and Shining wasn’t sure he wanted to bring his best friend and partner into something like this. This was next level stuff, and while Shining himself possessed no supernatural powers or weapons, he had somehow found himself in the middle of this stuff.

It all started when you picked up a naked girl from an alley and brought her home…ugh, sounds like the beginning to a bad porn movie, thought Shining. Still, the other Sunset helped save Twilight from those bitches at her school, and the one I know saved my ass and our collective asses a few months ago. And if what they’re saying is true, then we have a bigger problem than Sombra.

“Alright, I still have Sunset’s cell number, I’ll give her a call. My partner’s walking around outside, so don’t kill him, Gaghiel.”

Shining took out his cellphone and put in the call. He waited for a few seconds, hoping that Sunset would answer. Thankfully he didn’t have to wait long.

{Shining Armor? What’s up? I don’t usually get a call from you unless something bad is happening…is something bad happening?!}

“Jeez, guess I’ll make a note to make more social calls. Anyway, I’m not sure if you know this, but your guardian’s here with me.”

{WAIT, WHAT?! CELESTIA’S WITH YOU?! How is she, is she okay, is she hurt, is–?!}

“Whoa, whoa, calm down, she’s fine, she’s with one of her Sentinels, apparently one that isn’t under the control of this ‘Neighsay’, guy. I’ll take it you know what’s up?” Shining asked.

{I do know. Thanks for finding her, just tell me where she is, and I’ll head there.}

Shining shook his head, as if thinking Sunset could see the gesture. “Not a good idea, she said that you might be followed by the other Sentinels. It’s probably better if I bring her to you, she also thinks it’s better if she hides out at your twin’s place.”

There was a brief pause before Sunset replied. {That’s probably for the best, I haven’t noticed any Sentinels following me, and Witchblade hasn’t sensed anything either. But you’re probably right about doing it yourself. I’ll text you Sunset’s address so head there as soon as you can.}

“Got it.” Shining Armor hung up the phone and looked to Celestia and Gaghiel. “We’re good, I’ll take you to the other Sunset’s place once your Sunset sends the text. God, that’s getting a little annoying to say.”

Celestia chuckled in sympathy. “I know, it was a little confusing when I first found out myself.”

“Hey, Shining, you up here?! It’s been five minutes dude, sound off if you aren’t dead!” Spearhead called out as he rounded the corner. “There you are, dude, what are you doing? I just about called in–” It was then that Spearhead noticed not only Gaghiel, but also Celestia. The young detective straightened himself up and tried to act suave. “Hey, Shining, who’s the lovely lady. And…is that Gaghiel? I haven’t seen you in a minute.”

Shining Armor rolled his eyes at his friend’s attempt to hit on Celestia. “Okay, one: keep it in your pants, and two: there are some things you need to know.”

Twilight didn’t like lying to her parents about why she didn’t want to go to school, despite what awaited her at Crystal Prep, she always went to school, the few times she didn’t was when she was really sick and her parents made her stay home. But now, she was pretending to be on Cadence’s advice. She knew that, eventually, the truth about what happened at Crystal Prep was going to be told to her parents, but Cadence left it up to her when she was going to tell them.

Last night she had a short nightmare about what happened to her two days ago, Twilight awoke with a start, a cold sweat, tightness in the chest, and panting, the classic signs of a panic attack. Twilight hugged herself, patting her body to make sure her clothes were still on her. This also brought on a bout of anger, she had made the decision that she wasn’t going to let what happened define her or how she did things. But it seemed her psyche hadn’t quite caught up to her will just yet. About the only thing that dispelled the bad thoughts was focusing on Sunset.

Thinking of that amber skinned girl, with fiery locks of hair, in her flaming Ember form, made her look like the definition of a hero. Not only that, but she was damn sexy on top of that. She was reading some articles online when she awoke, but at some point, thanks to her broken sleep due to her nightmares, she was starting to get groggy. The more Twilight’s thought’s lingered on Sunset, the easier it became to fall asleep as her mind conjured images of her girlfriend in her mind.

~*~*~*~

In one of her dreams she saw Sunset walk towards her, flames danced around her body, carefully covering up the more private and intimate parts of Sunset’s body. Twilight found herself on her own bed, gulping at the display of her girlfriend walking towards her bed, with the dancing flames around her.

With a wave of her hand, Sunset released a stream of fire towards Twilight, but she wasn’t afraid. The flames washed over her body, feeling her with a comforting warmth, and in the process, she found her clothes completely burned away. Reflexively, Twilight covered her breasts with her right arm and her crotch with her left hand, her face went flush at this revelation as she looked at Sunset with a nervous smile. Sunset put on a devilish grin as she approached her lover, with a flick of her wrist the flames that were covering Sunset’s body dispersed, allowing her own naked form to be displayed.

“S-Sunset…?” Twilight stammered.

The pyromancer crawled atop the bed, slowly, like a predator stalking its prey, her eyes locked onto Twilight’s, staring deeply into them. Twilight found herself mesmerized, not only by her girlfriend’s body, but also by her eyes. There was a small glow in them that made Twilight quiver with excitement. As Sunset approached her, Twilight gradually lowered her arm and moved her hand away from her crotch. Sunset was now within a hair’s breadth of Twilight’s face; she placed her hand on Twilight’s right breast and gently pushed her until Twilight’s back met the mattress. Without hesitation, Twilight parted her legs just a bit to allow Sunset to come closer, the pyromancer straddled Twilight’s right leg and lowered her own body until they were pressed together.

This sensation was so different from when Indigo forced her to open her legs, with Indigo, there was barely any build up, if any, she just threw herself at Twilight and penetrated her womanhood with her fingers until Twilight had her orgasm. But now…

“I won’t hurt you Twilight…I won’t do anything you don’t want,” said Sunset, her tone was king and yet sultry at the same time.

“Thank you, Sunset…Sunset…”

~*~*~*~

“Sunset…”

“That’s not my name, sweetie.”

Twilight snapped her eyes open and saw that her mother, Twilight Velvet, was leaning against the doorway. Despite being middle aged, Velvet looked quite young, at most in her late twenties, her husband’s friends often joked that Night Light was a sugar daddy to Velvet, to which Velvet would always roll her eyes and scoff at such things.

“Looks like you nodded off a little there.” Velvet walked in and sat on the edge of Twilight’s bed, the young genius brought the covers up to try and hide her blushing face. “So, the way you were calling out Miss Shimmer’s name…that’s, um, that’s not how I used to call out my friends. Then again, I never used to call my friends’ names out while I slept either.” Twilight kept silent. “Twily, you can talk to me, you don’t have to be embarrassed.”

“How can I not be embarrassed by the fact that my Mom just heard me moan someone’s name?!” Twilight exclaimed.

Velvet rubbed the back of her head as she said, “Yes, well, I can understand how that’s embarrassing. But you don’t need to be, we’ve all had one of those dreams at least once in our lives. But, just let me say this, I’m happy for you.”

Twilight peeked from behind the blanket and asked, “Are you…? I…w-we’ve never discussed things like…me liking…the same gender…”

Velvet moved closer and patted the spot where Twilight’s knee was. “Sweetie, all your father and I ever cared about, is yours and your brother’s happiness. We only wished that the person that our children chose to be with made them happy and are good to them. Cadence is that for Shining Armor, and it looks like you’ve found someone like that in Sunset Shimmer. I had a feeling that you and she were closer than normal, you haven’t really connected with anyone since Moondancer.”

Twilight lowered her blanket shield until it was resting at her waist. “That was grade school, Mom, and we were less friends and more work colleagues. I blame myself for that, I think she wanted to be friends with me, but I never really paid much attention to that. I just liked that she was into the same things I was and that she liked reading and science as much as me. I just didn’t put the effort in to make it more of a lasting friendship.”

Velvet smiled. “But Sunset’s different, isn’t she?”

Twilight couldn’t help her face breaking out into a grin. “She’s amazing…She’s as smart as me, she’s strong, not just in a figurative sense, but literally, she’s physically strong. She’s gone out her way for me, protected me, and even found something worth loving in someone as broken as me…”

Velvet raised an eyebrow as she listened to her daughter talk about herself. Protected you? Broken?

“I don’t deserve to be with her…sometimes I can’t imagine why she’s with someone like me. I mean, I wouldn’t blame her for finding someone else who’s less of a hassle…”

“Twilight Andromeda Sparkle, stop talking about yourself like that!” Velvet ordered. “If Sunset thought that way, she wouldn’t be with you in the first place! You’re not broken and you’re not a hassle!”

Twilight gripped the edges of her blanket until her knuckles turned white. “I am…Mom…there’s something I need to tell you, but I want Dad to be here, and Shiny and Cadence too.”

Velvet was getting a little concerned about the way her daughter was talking. Her motherly instincts told her to push her daughter and find out what she meant, however, whatever it was, it was important enough that she wanted their whole family together. “Alright…I’ll call Shining and ask if he’s free. Are you hungry at all?”

“A little, yes,” Twilight answered.

“Then I’ll make you a little something,” said Velvet as she got up from the bed. “By the way, how long have you two…?”

“Oh, not very long, at most we’ve been an official thing since…? Last week.”

“Oooh, so right around when you stayed over at Sunset’s house. Did you two get up to anything explicit?” Velvet asked with a teasing tone.

“MOOM! NO!”

Velvet put her hands up in surrender and chuckled a little, “Ok, all I ask is that you be safe when you do, and don’t do anything too wild. And don’t be afraid to experiment a little, goodness knows I did a little during my college days.”

Twilight cringed a little, she did not want to know what kind of things her mother did when she was younger. “You know, most parents would discourage their children from directly engaging in sexual activity, same or opposite gender.”

“How else do you learn about yourself? But like I said, be safe, and remember, NO means NO.”

Or in Indigo’s case, “no” means “more”. “I know, thank you.”

When her mother left, Twilight took out her cellphone and started texting Sunset.

[Sunset, I…I’m going to tell my parents today, about what happened to me, and everything else. I don’t know if you're busy right now, but if you can, could you please come over? I…I could really use your support. I hate sounding so needy, anyway, if you can’t that’s fine, I’ll just change the date to this weekend or something when it’s less inconvenient to everyone. I–]

Twilight was about to type “I love you” but stopped. Did she love Sunset Shimmer? Yes, yes she did. But Twilight also knew that dropping the L-bomb this soon into a relationship might scare Sunset into breaking up or make her think she’s even more pathetic than Twilight thought herself to be. Twilight shook her head, she had to stop thinking like that, like her mom said. She was not going to let what those girls did define her own self-worth or confidence. With that in mind, instead of typing “I love you”, Twilight just stuck on a heart emoji and sent it off. Twilight heard the pitter patter of paws running towards her room and Spike immediately jumped off the floor and onto her bed.

The purple dog began lapping at her face as he panted and licked her some more. “Spike, quit it!” she giggled. “Okay, I’m up, I’m up!” Spike calmed down as he sat in her lap, letting Twilight pet him. She glanced at her cellphone again and noticed the time. “Ugh, already three? Guess I dozed off longer than I thought.” Twilight’s stomach growled, which made Spike poke at her belly curiously. “Okay, I should probably go down and help Mom, and after, why don’t we go for a walk, huh boy?”

*Bark* Spike replied.

“I knew you’d like that.”

To War: Part 4

Sunset checked her cellphone and saw the message that Twilight left her; a worried expression befell her. This was a conversation that she wasn’t looking forward to, mostly because she feared how her parents would react to the fact that their daughter was getting sexually abused and harassed by the student body. However, she knew that this was coming sooner or later, and it was better to rip the band-aid off now instead of later, she just hoped Twilight and Cadence would be able to convince Twilight’s parents not to pursue charges, at least for the time being. That or they could ask Sunset to clandestinely kill the bitches responsible for the suffering they put Twilight through. Can’t convict if all the evidence is burned to ashes, and then have the ashes burned into nothing.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Sunset looked up from her phone and saw her twin, Shimmer, approaching her. “You look a little upset, what’s up?”

Sunset didn’t answer, she just flipped her phone around and showed Shimmer the message. The Equestrian turned human read over the text and furrowed her brow at what she saw. “Sunset, I think you need to tell me what’s going on. ‘Cause this text is kind of unnerving.”

Sunset sighed, not like there would be a good time one way or the other. So, she told her, everything. The day she came to Crystal Prep, the moment she met Twilight, and the day Twilight broke down and confessed everything Twilight had been going through at Crystal Prep. When Sunset was finished telling Shimmer everything, what happened next was what she was expecting. Shimmer got angry.

“THOSE BITCHES!” Shimmer shouted.

“Yep, that’s what I said, too.”

“I know your Twilight isn’t my Twilight from Equestria, but that doesn’t make her any less my friend! And those whores think they can hurt my friend then they have another thing coming to them!” Shimmer threatened.

“And that too.”

Shimmer glanced at the Witchblade and asked, “Hey, you up for a little homicide?!”

}}} Not normally what I do, but then again, my previous wielders have gone after people like she has described. So, nothing out of the normal for me. {{{

“Good! We’ll hold a bloody – fucking – carnival!”

Sunset decided to calm her down before Shimmer ended up claiming the heads of her classmates, not that she wouldn’t mind. “Okay, dial it back a bit, Sis. I wanted to do that too, believe me, I wanted to incinerate them right on the spot! But Twilight asked me not to, despite how much they hurt her, she doesn’t want them dead. Even though I could easily do it and not leave a bit of evidence that I did it, it’d be like they just went poof.” Sunset crossed her arms and sighed. “She’s a freakin’ saint, sometimes I don’t think I deserve her.”

Shimmer smiled and gently placed her hand on her twin’s shoulder and said, “I thought that way when I first started dating Pinkie, but sometimes you need to stop thinking of ‘why is she with me’ and more ‘I’m so glad I’m with her’. Otherwise you’ll just start looking for reasons to not want to be with her, focus on the positives, not the negatives, Sis.”

Sunset smiled as well and chuckled. “Well, guess that settles it, you are the ‘big sister’ between the two of us. Because that was some big sisterly advice.”

“Well, I’m glad you finally admitted it. C’mon, let’s go see if Shining’s partner has finally had enough time to absorb all this,” Shimmer suggested.

The twins exited the kitchen and entered the obscenely large living room, where sat Celestia on one of the sofase, flanked by Gaghiel, on the opposite sofa was Shining and Spearhead, and in the armchair was Meadowbrook, having returned from the lab on the second floor. When they came back and sat down, Spearhead turned his head away from the girls as a light blush tinted his cheeks.

“What’s up with him?” Shimmer asked.

Shining Armor, with a smirk, said, “Oh, he just realized he was perving on a girl that was practically jailbait.”

“Shining, dude, seriously!” Spearhead exclaimed.

“You know I’m eighteen, not jailbait, legal age. And it’s not like he’d be the first guy perving on images of me as Witchblade,” said Shimmer.

“Can you blame them? I mean, we are stupid sexy,” Sunset commented.

“Ahem!” Celestia cleared her throat loudly, making the two Sunsets go silent. “I would not like to talk about my daughter being ogled by strangers. Although, I strangely find that slightly more comfortable than what we do need to talk about.”

Meadowbrook leaned forward and rested her elbows on her knees. “Mainly, what’s Neighsay’s next move?”

Spearhead stood up and said, “I’m sorry, but is this for real? Some Cardinal from the Vatican is trying to take the power of a demon and an angel? Pardon my French, but this shit sounds like something out of a comic book!”

“Welcome to my life,” both Sunsets stated at the same time.

Celestia transformed before them, clad in armor, with wings and flaming hair emphasizing this was real. “This is very real, as hard as it may be to believe.” She shifted back to her normal form and continued. “But, back to Miss Meadowbrook’s question. What is Neighsay’s next move.”

Sunset crossed her arms and leaned back. “Going after Angelus seems like the obvious bet, so long as Miss Celestia stays here, she’ll be safe.”

}}} That’s certain. About how much of your power was taken, Mother? {{{

\\/// Roughly…seventy percent if I had to put a number on it. Even with that, that insolent cur wouldn’t dare try and fight us. With my Son here and that Ember Stone, even with that one girl wielding the Spear of Destiny, he’s not strong enough to face off against them combined. \\///

}}} Oh, so are you saying that I am stronger than you dear Mother? {{{

\\/// Do not start with me, Son! \\///

Shimmer and Celestia shook their heads, prompting Spearhead to ask, “Something going on?”

“Just a family squabble between Angelus and her Son, Witchblade. Be thankful you can’t hear it,” said Celestia.

Meadowbrook chuckled a little before she said, “I think I know what he may be up to next. Before I discovered his plans, Neighsay was probably planin’ on going after Angelus first. But when I did discover his plans, he accelerated his timetable and went after Angelus. He most likely assumed I was goin’ to warn her, with that being the case we must assume he’s goin’ to do the same thing.”

“Then that means he’s going after Sombra and the Darkness, right?” Shining Armor asked.

“That’d be the logical conclusion. We mustn’t allow that! Having my Mistress’ power is one thing, but to add that vile creature’s power together with my Mistress’ will spell disaster for us all,” warned Gaghiel.

“W-Wait, can he do that?! I mean, can he use both?” Spearhead asked.

“With the Prism and the Siphon, he can easily wield both of their powers without any consequence, since his body is not acting as a host but instead usin’ two artifacts made specifically to hold their power, he won’t be under any strain,” said Meadowbrook.

Shimmer was thinking hard about what their next move needs to be, unfortunately, the more she thought about it, the more she was coming to the one – if not only – solution to their current conundrum. So, with great reluctance, Shimmer spoke up, “I hate to say this, and I mean I really hate to say this, but we need to find a way to warn Sombra. Or at the very least, see if we can…form an alliance.”

“SERIOUSLY?!” Spearhead, Celestia, Shining, and Sunset shouted together.

“That guy’s leading a gang that’s tearing up the city,” said Spearhead.

“He attacked our Precinct, and before that his guys have killed several cops!” Shining Armor added.

“He killed me and used you as a weapon!” Celestia growled.

“This is not a good idea, Sis,” Sunset stated plainly.

Meadowbrook sighed and chimed in, “I think it’s our only option. If I had known he was going to do that to Angelus, I would’ve headed straight for you. If we have a chance to at least warn Sombra, maybe we can convince him to leave town before Neighsay realizes it. Or at the very least, see if he will fight alongside us to stop him.”

Sombra had left a sour taste in everyone’s mouth, so the idea of fighting alongside him, let alone helping him, was unthinkable. Then again, if they didn’t do something, then Neighsay would get his power, and the rogue Cardinal would become extremely powerful and even harder to defeat if he managed to get ahold of the Darkness.

Shining Armor ruffled his hair as he growled. “Dammit, I hate it to admit it…but she’s right. All else fails we can track Sombra down when it’s all over, keeping Neighsay away from him is top priority.”

Spearhead crossed his arms as he sat back down, not bothering to hide his displeasure, not that anyone could blame him. “Fine, but that’s easier said than done, any CIs that we had before this shitstorm went underground. No one wants to snitch on a guy who can summon demons, so we don’t have anyone that can set up a meeting with him or get a message to watch out for a power-hungry Cardinal.”

“And if we do send some kind of public message, Neighsay will just move quicker to attack Sombra and get the Darkness,” said Sunset.

“Guess I’ll have to do something,” said Shimmer. “I’ll head out in the night and kick over a few rocks and see if that gets Sombra’s attention, or at the very least I can get one of his cronies to send him a message.”

Meadowbrook nodded and stood up, “In the meantime, I need to go through Neighsay’s files and see if I can find some way to get Fluttershy back. If we can do that, it’ll bolster our fightin’ power, and give Neighsay one less card to play. Thankfully I kept the data with me.”

“Guess we’ll head back, and see what we can dig up,” said Shining Armor.

“Meanwhile you can rest up in one of the guest rooms, Miss Celestia,” said Sunset.

Shimmer took out her cellphone and gawked at the ungodly amount of text messages and voicemail. “Oooh, I better talk to the girls, they have been blowing me up.”

Nighttime descended on the city, thankfully, Sunset had finally replied to everyone, putting them a little at ease that she was okay, but nonetheless, worried when she said that something worse was happening and that she’d give them more details come tomorrow. Pinkie was just happy that her girlfriend was alive and okay, now that just left one other issue to deal with at home, Limestone.

Honestly, Pinkie was still trying to wrap her head around the fact that her big sister had a crush on Sunset, her girlfriend. She didn’t want to feel irked by it, this was her big sister, and she loved her, so the last thing that Pinkie wanted to do was be mad at her or hate her. And it wasn’t as if Limestone had tried to make a move on Sunset, if anything she was being kind of hostile towards Sunset. Now that she thought about it, that might’ve been her way of keeping Sunset away from her, be as off putting as possible to make sure that Sunset wouldn’t ever come near her or at least be too afraid to do so.

If Sunset wasn’t wielding an ancient demon slaying weapon and wasn’t already an ass kicking machine, then that would work, but Sunset wasn’t one to be intimidated that easily, and would just take it as a challenge to try and make a connection with Limestone, which would eventually backfire on Limestone, ending up with the two alone and having hot, passionate sex in Pinkie’s room, and then Pinkie eventually finding the two of them doing the dirty on her bed, to which point Sunset and Limestone drag her into the bed, ending up with all three of them in a threeway and–

Pinkie slammed on the mental brakes. Okay, that went a little too far into the gutter…but we’ll just keep that in the back pocket.

When Pinkie arrived at her home, by way of Rarity, she went through her normal routine. She greeted her family, Marble first, then her mom and dad, her big sister Maud, and, well, it was a little awkward when she got to Limestone. The two sisters stood before each other, with the elder sister chuckling awkwardly, knowing that she had just confessed to having impure thoughts about her little sister’s girlfriend. Pinkie opened her arms to show that she was okay with hugging her, Limestone smiled a little and took a step forward to do just that, but then an icepick of guilt stabbed her in the heart and she turned away and walked on.

Pinkie Pie sighed, she knew it wouldn’t be that easy, but she hoped it would be less awkward later. Things went on as normal, well, normal-ish in regard to Pinkie and Lime. The family enjoyed dinner together, with their father leading them in grace, from there they spoke about their days. Maud had received high marks in the geological and petrological studies courses and was asked to be a junior assistant in the Museum of Science’s Earth Sciences wing. Marble didn’t speak much, but overall, she had a good day. Lime just said college was fine and that there was nothing new. Pinkie just regaled her family with her normal tales of craziness, at this point they had become a staple of their family dinners, there always seemed to be something happening at her school one way or another.

After dinner was done everyone was left to do what they wanted to until it was time for bed. Pinkie tried to talk to Limestone, but her big sister had gone outside to workout, there was a little area where she would practice her mixed martial arts fighting. Pinkie knew that her big sister secretly wanted to enter the world of MMA but hadn’t gotten around to telling their parents yet. Of course, they expected their daughters to pursue something they were proud of, Maud’s was geology and petrology, Marble wasn’t sure yet, but she still had time to figure that out, Pinkie…well…she knew what she wanted to do, to make people happy, but, what kind of career is that? Anyway, Limestone wanted to fight, she was always a fighter, not once would anyone call her a “girly-girl”, and sometimes, according to Maud, some people mistook her for a boy.

Pinkie watched from the window as Lime took to jabbing at the punching bag that was set up outside, once she was done with that, she would go to the dead tree in their backyard and start kicking it. High kicks, low kicks, doubles to the top, roundhouses, and other variations as she imagined different scenarios for the imaginary opponent she battled. Their mother didn’t like it, since Lime didn’t wear much in the way of padding around her shins, preferring to hit it with her bare legs, of course this ended up with her getting scratches and bruises. But the payoff came later, because when she kicked someone, it was like getting hit with a steel bat, and of course she didn’t feel pain there much anymore. She would do the same with her fists, Lime swore that one day she’d get strong enough to where the dead tree would fall over from her strength alone. Although, if she was being honest, it looked like Lime was going harder at the tree than she normally did, most likely thinking that it was a form of punishment to endure whatever pain she was feeling.

It was some hours later when most of the family was asleep, Limestone headed back inside and decided to take a shower, when she was in there, she winced when the hot water washed over the scratches on her fists and on her legs, trickles of blood flowing down her skin and into the running water of the drain. Limestone slumped her back against the wall of the shower, she still didn’t know how to approach Pinkie, so the best option was not to. She was, in her words, “A piece of shit”, she had feelings for her little sister’s girlfriend, and she hated herself for it. Limestone was the oldest, it was her job to protect her little sisters, being tough on them was one thing, but doing something like that was just really shitty in her book.

“Fuck it, just…just leave her alone – leave both of them alone. The less you’re around Sunset and Pinkie, the less you’re tempted to do something stupid,” said Limestone to herself.

Limestone finished washing up and exited the bathroom, a towel wrapped around her svelte body. When she opened the door, Limestone yelped, Pinkie was sitting cross legged on her bed, her face plastered with that same happy-go-lucky smile that she normally had on.

“P-P-Pinkie, what the hell?!”

“Sorry, Limey, you’ve kind of been avoiding me, so I thought I get you in the once place you need to come to after a shower,” said Pinkie.

Lime scowled as she said, “Well get out! I need to change!”

Pinkie crossed her arms and shook her head in defiance. “Nope, I said we were going to talk about this, and we are.”

“Fine, we can talk! Just let me dry off and get changed first!”

“You can do that right here,” said Pinkie.

Limestone gave her little sister a deadpan expression. “I’d like some damn privacy.”

“Yeaaaaaahh…no. ‘Cause I don’t trust you to lock the door the moment I get out.”

Limestone growled, one because she was right and she would, and two, she just wanted to dry off and get into her pajamas. “Pinkie, seriously, leave. I’m not getting naked in front of my little sister, don’t make this weird.”

Pinkie Pie rolled her eyes. “Lime, did you suddenly sprout a dick in the last couple of hours?”

Limestone’s eyes widened as she stated, “NO!”

“So, then you have the same things I do, two titties and a kitty, so, what’s the big deal? I change in the locker rooms at school and see plenty of both every other day! And I’m sure you do at the gym!” Pinkie argued.

Limestone pinched the bridge of her nose in irritation, it wasn’t like she was wrong, but still…

Pinkie was getting a little irritated at her big sister’s stubbornness and decided to speed things along. The pink haired party planner reached for the hem of her pink polka dotted shirt and pulled it up, exposing her breasts to Limestone.

“Pinkie what the fuck are you doing?!” Limestone asked as she blanched.

Pinkie Pie stood up and hooked her thumbs into the waistband of her similarly decorated pajama pants, and without missing a beat, pulled them down before sitting back down on Limestone’s bed completely naked. “There, now we’re both naked in your room. So, go ahead and get dried up.”

Limestone’s left eye twitched. “I swear to God, Pinkie, you – you just – ugh!”

At that exact moment, Limestone felt a presence behind her, slowly, she turned her head and – much to her dismay – saw Maud standing right behind her. Seeing her stoic sister made Limestone yelp again and jump back from the fright, of course this action made her lose her grip on the towel, allowing it to fall to the flower, exposing herself to both her little sisters.

Maud looked at Limestone, then Pinkie, and then to Limestone. “I don’t support incest, but so long as you two are just fooling around and not doing anything romantic, and it’s consensual, I won’t tell Mom and Dad.”

“WHAT?!” Limestone practically shouted. “H-How did you think THAT what’s happening right now?!”

Maud shrugged. “Technically speaking, experimentation between siblings is not uncommon, especially given how close the four of us are.”

Limestone facepalmed herself as she tried to get her temper under control, before it alerted their parents and led to an awkward conversation so epic, that Limestone would rather go out into the night and fight one of those Blacknight monsters of the Blood Kings. “Let me be clear, we are not – repeat NOT – ‘fooling around! Pinkie Pie’s just been trying to talk to me, and…I’ve been avoiding her. She apparently waited for me in my room, and when I said I wanted her to leave so I could get changed, she stubbornly refused. And when I said I didn’t want to get naked in front of my little sister,” Lime pointed to the still naked Pinkie sitting on her bed, “she stripped!”

Maud blinked slowly, hummed, and said, “That makes more sense.”

“And yet, sibling sex was the first thing that popped into your head and out of your mouth?!”

“Again, not uncommon, but that stuff usually happens when you’re way younger. But to be clear, I didn’t think you were the instigator,” Maud explained.

Limestone turned back to Pinkie Pie, she was trying not to look too long at her naked little sister, so her eyes darted from Pinkie and then to the ceiling. “And you’re okay with her thinking that you were trying to convince me to bang?!”

“Eh, I have a lot of weird thoughts, and that may’ve crossed my mind a couple of times in the past, and a little bit in the present too.”

Limestone threw her hands into the air and said, “My sisters are insane, it’s official.”

“More to the point, put some clothes on before you catch a cold. Goodnight.” Maud began to walk away but stopped and turned around. “Next time, please close the door if you’re going to have awkward conversations like this. I don’t want Boulder to see this, thanks.”

“Thank you, please leave!” Once Maud left the room, Limestone closed the door and locked it, not wanting anyone else to walk in on this. Limestone glanced back at Pinkie who just grinned back at her. “Ugh, goddammit, and people call me stubborn as shit.” Limestone picked up the towel and began drying herself off, at least what was still wet, during that talk with Maud most of her body dried. All the while, Pinkie just sat there and waited. Limestone blushed heavily and said, “I want to fuck, Sunset! There, I said it!”

Pinkie Pie blushed as well. “Oh, well, I guess I can’t blame you too much for wanting to do that, I mean, Sunset is stupid sexy, right?”

“Yes, but that’s not the point! I’m…ugh…I’m not supposed to feel this way for someone my sister obviously likes and is in a relationship with!” Limestone finished drying off and went to her dresser, pulling out a pair of boxers and tank top. As she dressed herself, she could hear Pinkie doing the same. “I don’t know why I feel that way, well, I kinda do, but…fuck, I don’t know, I’m messed up and the worst sister in the world.”

Once Pinkie got her shirt back on, she walked up to Lime and placed her hands on her big sister’s shoulders. “You’re not the worst sister in the world, it’s not like you did anything with Sunset.”

“But somewhere inside I want to! And that’s the part of myself I hate! I mean…you do so much to make sure other people are happy! And sometimes I wished there was someone like that for you! Someone who would just make you happy!”

Pinkie Pie smiled and placed her right hand over her heart. “Limey making others smile does make me happy.”

“That selfless attitude is what makes me worry about you sometimes,” said Lime.

Pinkie Pie released her big sister and sat back down on the bed. “I’m not completely selfless…if I was, I would’ve believed Sunset when she said she wasn’t Anon-A-Miss, instead I sat by and watched the school hurt her, and left her alone when she needed us the most, needed someone to make her smile…”

“Enough with that, Pinks! You screwed up, you’re human, you’re not some god or something, you can make mistakes! What matters is that you make up for them, and from what you've told us, you have,” said Limestone.

Pinkie smiled a little. “Yeah…but the guilt is still there.”

“Fine, let it be there. It’s a good thing, it just means that the next time something like that happens, you’ll remember that guilt and you won’t make the same mistake again.” Limestone sat next to her little sister and threw her right arm around her to give Pinkie a hug. “Even I know Sunset’s been good for you, you’re definitely a lot happier than you’ve ever been.”

Pinkie’s smile grew. “Yeah, I am, she’s just so…so great! I love everything about her, and she’s artistic!” Pinkie glanced about as if they were going to be overheard. “Did you know that she’s a graffiti artist?”

Lime raised an eyebrow. “No, I didn’t. She any good?”

“Ya ever heard of Flanksy?”

Lime’s mouth dropped, she had seen Flanksy’s work in different parts of town, they always drew a crowd for how artistic they were. Some were elaborate murals, others were just bombastic images, and occasionally they were just serene. Limestone visited a few of the artist’s works and took pictures before the city came and washed them away, although not all of them were taken down, some were left because either the community liked them too much to want them gone, or they drew such a big crowd that it actually helped the businesses around there. However, during the winter, people were noticing that Flanksy’s work was sad, depicting emotions like isolation and anger. Now it made sense, that was Sunset expressing how she felt.

“Oh damn, I can’t believe she did that! Does that! She’s a freakin’ artist!” Limestone exclaimed.

“I kinda suspected it when we had art class together, she was really good, but when she showed me her sketches of what she had done and what she planned on doing down the road, it brought it altogether,” said Pinkie.

Limestone didn’t believe it, but now she just found Sunset Shimmer even hotter. “Wow, now I need an autograph. Well…tell me something, why aren’t you mad at me? I just told you I want to bang your girlfriend.”

“Again, it’s not like you did anything with Sunset, and, also, I trust Sunset to do the right thing and give you a nice punch in the face if you did.”

Limestone laughed at that. “You know, I wouldn’t blame her for doing it.”

“And I trust you,” Pinkie “booped” her big sister on the nose, “not do that. I love you, Limey, and I know you love me. So, I can trust you not to act on those feelings. It’s okay to have them, believe me, I’m sure you’re not the only girl around who has the hots for Sunny. Heck, I know there are a few boys at school who do!”

Limestone used her left hand to rub the back of her head. “I guess, if I did do anything, you know where I live.”

“Yep.” Pinkie gently removed herself from the half hug of her big sister and stretched a little. “I guess I’ll head to bed then, I think we’re good!”

“Ya sure?”

“Positive!” Pinkie Pie leaned down and hugged Limestone, then gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “See you in the morning!” Limestone watched as Pinkie unlocked her door and skipped down the hallway. The eldest daughter of the Pie family felt relief that her sister didn’t hate her, it was going to be awhile before she could forgive herself, but hopefully she’d get over her feelings. “Oh, and Limey!”

Limestone nearly jumped again at how Pinkie appeared in her doorway. “Gah! Y-Yeah, what?”

“No touching Sunny in any naughty places without my permission or hers. Or I’ll let Sunset turn you into a human pretzel!”

The oldest sister rolled her eyes as she chuckled at the threat, but then took a moment to think about it. “She…She can’t really do that, right?”

“If you’re willing to find out, you’re welcome to try!” Pinkie dared as she skipped back to her room.

Yeah…hands to myself. Got it.

Twilight fidgeted in place; she was starting to have second thoughts about this. Maybe I should hold this off until this weekend…Twilight shook her head. No, I have to do this, it’ll only make Mom and Dad more worried if I do. It was right around that time when she heard the sound of a familiar speedster car, the ZR-1, which meant Sunset was already here. Well, it really is now or never…

She waited in her room and eventually heard knocking from her door. Spike perked up his ears and began barking happily as he went for the door, and just about that moment was when the door opened, and Spike went flying in the other direction. Sunset heard the thud and quickly poked her head inside.

“Oh shit, Spike, are you okay?!” Sunset asked as she opened the door fully.

The little dog shook his head and then got back to his paws, panting and running up to Sunset as he jumped up wanting to be held.

“He’ll be fine, unfortunately I’ve done that a few times as well. He just keeps getting too excited whenever someone comes to the door and ends up getting hit on the head,” Twilight explained.

Sunset scooped Spike into her arms and let the purple furred canine leg her face, she gently kissed his forehead and made cooing sounds as she said, “Spikey, you really need to stop doing that or you’ll get a concussion!”

*Bark!*

Sunset brought Spike over to the bed where she let him go, allowing him to sit between them. He could sense that something was wrong with his master, and the scent in the air reeked of sadness and hurt, and fear, and it was coming from Twilight. It was times like this that Spike wished he understood human speak better, or better yet, could speak it himself so he could talk to Twilight and help her. But unfortunately, he couldn’t, so the best he could do was just nuzzle her, lick her, and just be there. Which was why he was glad when Sunset appeared, she was able to help Twilight in a way he couldn’t. He could also smell the familiar scent of attraction and…arousal? Yep, Twilight wanted Sunset as her mate, and it seemed Sunset wanted Twilight for a mate too.

“Hey,” said Sunset.

“Hey,” Twilight replied.

“You sure you want to do this, Sparky? I mean, I know we have to tell them, but you don’t have to do it so soon.”

Twilight clutched at the hem of her skirt. “No, the longer I put this off, the harder it will be, and I’ll just bury it. I’m tired of hiding this, tired of tiptoeing around what’s actually been happening. I need to tell them the truth. And I’m sorry, I just don’t feel strong enough to do this without you here…”

Sunset held Twilight’s left hand and gazed at her with a furrowed brow. “You’re stronger than you think you are, Sparky. Enduring all that for so long, speaks to your strength. Telling your parents and Cadence, just shows you’re stronger than you think. But even strong people need help, just look at me and Shimmer. We kickass on our own, but together, we’re the baddest motherfuckers around.”

Twilight grimaced, she didn’t like it when Sunset used foul language like that, but she couldn’t help but giggle at her show of bravado. “Thank you,” Twilight took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as she put on a determined expression, “okay, let’s go.”

Downstairs, Velvet and her husband, Night Light, were sitting on the couch, while Cadence was sitting in the armchair, Shining Armor stood next to her, the two having a knowing and worried look upon their faces. Something that did not go unnoticed by the two adults in the room.

“Shiny, do you know what’s going on?” Velvet asked.

Shining Armor remained silent.

“Son, your mother asked you a question, do you know?” Night Light repeated.

“I do…well, we do,” Shining answered.

Velvet fidgeted in place, anxious as to what the topic of this meeting was about. “Can you give us a heads up at least?”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Velvet, but we promised Twilight that she’d be the one to tell you what is, I’m not about to take that away from her,” said Cadence.

Everyone went silent when they heard footsteps from the stairwell, along with the jingling of Spike’s dog tags. All eyes shifted to Sunset and Twilight, the latter of whom was feeling even more nervous than she did a moment ago. Twilight felt Sunset squeeze her hand, reassuring her that she was right there and would not let her do this alone. The two continued walking down the stairs, entering the living room, and sitting down on the loveseat.

“I guess I should go ahead and tell you why I asked you to come here. Shining Armor and Cadence know what this is about, so…I’ll mostly be addressing you, Mom and Dad,” said Twilight.

Night Light leaned forward and rested his elbows on his thighs as he waited. Velvet was feeling even more anxious, especially after what Twilight said about her being broken.

“It’s about Crystal Prep, over the past three and a half years now, I’ve hid something from you with regards to my time there.” Twilight squeezed Sunset’s hand as she readied herself. “The students at Crystal Prep have been…bullying me, hazing me, putting me through all different manner of humiliation.”

Night Light’s hands clenched into fists, “What?! Twilight why–?!”

“Dad!” Shining interrupted. “Let her finish.”

Night Light looked at his son, noting the serious expression on his face. Reluctantly, he held his tongue and allowed his daughter to continue.

“I could go on about what I’ve been subjected to, but…we’ll just focus on one part in particular. The…uh…The sexual abuse…” Twilight’s voice hitched as she dredged up the memories of her abuse at the hands of Indigo Zap. “One of the female students, Indigo Zap…she’s…obsessed with me. For what reason I don’t know, and honestly, I don’t care to. For a time, it wasn’t anything, just staring, some awkward glances. Then she started to get bolder, during P. E. classes, when we showered, she’d make sure that we were alone and start touching me…”

Velvet’s heart was breaking as she listened to her daughter, at the same time her anger was rising, this was reflected in Night Light, but they both held their tongues. Twilight was confessing about what happened to her, and to stop now would only hinder their daughter.

“The touching shifted to other things, she started to grope me…and…and put her hand down my skirt…” Twilight’s eyes watered, but she pressed on. “Things escalated from there, she would…she would take me to classrooms that were empty and…performed oral on me…and…made to do the same for her…” Tears were streaming down Twilight’s face, she thought she was stronger than this, but her tears wouldn’t stop. “This…This has been going on for a while now but…when Sunset showed up, it started to get better.”

Twilight took a moment to look at Sunset, there were tears in her eyes as well, she knew that Sunset wished she had come to Crystal Prep sooner, maybe then Twilight wouldn’t have had to endure all of what she did, but that didn’t matter, what did matter was Sunset was here now, and that things were getting to get better.

“When Sunset came, she stopped it all, she made a grand show of it and made sure that everyone knew that if they messed with me, she would deal with them. I don’t like to encourage violence, but it was really nice to see Sunset make one of the girls who was picking on me squirm in fear of her.”

Night Light and Velvet looked at Sunset, who was now blushing from the attention.

“But…it seemed that wasn’t enough. About a day or two ago, Indigo Zap, along with her friends, kidnapped me and took me to the outdoor equipment shed. They were going to record me, strip me, and violate me, this was done to threaten Sunset into not fighting back while Indigo Zap beat her up, but Sunset turned the tide on them and found me, beating Indigo up, along with the girls who captured me. Cadence found us and…I broke down…I broke down and told her everything. So, don’t blame Cadence for not helping me! She didn’t know, because I didn’t tell her! Because I didn’t want to burden her with what was happening to me, not her, you two, or Shiny! I knew that my time at Crystal Prep was almost over, and that I only had to stay there for just a bit longer and I would never have to go back there again. But now I realized that I’ve lived in silence too long, and I’m sorry for not speaking up sooner…t-that’s all I wanted to say…”

Velvet couldn’t wait any longer, she bolted from the couch and hugged her daughter fiercely, crying into her shoulder. Twilight couldn’t hold back anymore either as she wrapped her arms around her mother and cried into her shoulder. Night Light stood up slowly and approached them, more specifically, he approached Sunset Shimmer.

“Miss Shimmer, could you please stand up.”

Sunset did as he asked, nervous as to what his response would be.

To her surprise, the older man hugged her. It was a little awkward for Sunset as she wasn’t expecting this response.

“Thank you, thank you for protecting my daughter Sunset,” said Night Light. He pulled back a little and looked her in the eyes. “Are you and my daughter together?”

“Um…yes, yes we are, Mr. Night Light, sir,” Sunset answered.

“Then welcome to the family.” Night Light patted her on the shoulders and then turned to his son and his – potential – daughter-in-law. “I believe Twilight when she says that you didn’t know anything about this, Cadence, had you known, I assume you would’ve more than likely executed the ones responsible, jail be damned.”

Cadence chuckled and said, “Hahahahahaaaa – without hesitation, yes.”

Velvet parted from her daughter and addressed her son, “Shining Armor, I want you to go and arrest the bitches who would dare to harm my daughter! I want to press full charges on them!”

Shining Armor crossed his arms and scowled. “Oh, I’d love nothing more, but it’s more complicated than that.”

“How is it complicated?! They raped and hazed your little sister! It’s clear enough to me that they need to go to jail!” Night Light argued.

Cadence decided to step in. “I’ll explain, and believe me when I say, I don’t like this either.” Cadence told them what she did after Twilight told her about what the young genius had endured, her meeting with Cinch, and the threats the old hag made about making sure Twilight’s future would be ruined if she brought this to light. “She isn’t making idle threats, she has the resources and pull to make that possible, plus, some of the kids’ parents have ties to law enforcement. Meaning she could have them make life hell for Shining or make him lose his job, same with me, but honestly, if it meant taking that hag down, I’m all for it. But Twilight is another matter, I won’t kick up a hornet’s nests if it means Twilight’s going to get stung.”

Night Light and Velvet couldn’t argue with that, their daughter has suffered enough, the last thing they needed was to bring down Cinch’s wrath upon Twilight.

“So, what, those girls just get off scot free?! What’s stopping them from attacking Twilight again?!” Velvet asked incredulously.

“For one thing, me,” Sunset stated. “Second, Cadence said she’s going to be keeping a closer eye on them.”

“And since Cinch considers Twilight her prized – ugh – possession, we can leverage that, now that I know what’s going on. She assured me that Twilight won’t be bothered by them anymore, and I made sure to put Indigo Zap on notice.”

“Meanwhile, I’ll be looking into Cinch from my end. No way Twilight’s the only one she’s covered up,” said Shining Armor.

Velvet turned back to Twilight and cupped her little girl’s cheeks in her hands. “Twily, you don’t have to go back there, you can stay home from now on.”

Twilight rested her hands on her mother’s and gently pulled them down. “No, Mom, I have to. I’m not going to live in fear, plus, Sunset will be there with me.”

Velvet turned to Sunset and hugged her tight. “I know I’m asking a lot of you, but please keep my little girl safe.”

Sunset, still feeling awkward, returned the hug. “Believe me, Mrs. Velvet, I intend to.”

The moon was half waning as Neighsay hovered over the sleeping city of Canterlot. He was in his armored form, surveying the land and enjoying a view that only God Himself could. The power of the Angelus coursed through his body, making him incredibly strong, stronger than he had ever felt in his youth. Ever since he was a child, the word of God was all that guided him. Some say he took it too far, and maybe he did, but he was just so sick and tired of the world not heeding His word. For years the people below had been scoffing at His name, committing atrocities in His name, and proclaiming to know His will. The hypocrites, the liars, and the blasphemers, for too long have they done whatever they want, but now they would have to answer to someone. They feared no retribution of the divine, but now, with the power he was soon to possess, Neighsay would put the fear of God into them all.

Some might see his acts as trying to become God Himself, but no, that was far from the truth. He wanted to become His enforcer, a swift and terrible sword, a beacon to light the way for those who were lost in their sins. With the powers of light and darkness, Neighsay would do this, would become someone that the people could look to in both hope and fear, to know that a true instrument of God’s wrath was ready to deliver swift justice.

Neighsay summoned an orb of light, he weaved his fingers through it, enjoying the feeling of the power. Thankfully, the voice of the Angelus was silent while inside the Prism, if its consciousness was in there that is. The Prism sucked up a good amount of the Angelus’ full power, not all of it, but still it was a lot of power for an entity of light and order to lose, and he suspected that she’d be hiding out. Unfortunately, the places that the Magdalena had specified Celestia to be at came up short. Her residence was not visited, nor was her ward aware of her disappearance. However, with the knowledge of the ward being Witchblade, this posed another problem. As powerful as he was, if Witchblade found out about what he had done, at his current level, Neighsay believed he might lose.

But this was all a moot point unless he got the rest of the power of the Angelus. Although, until she surfaces, I’m left with few options. I must accept that, by now, she is hidden away by her allies. Neighsay placed his hands behind his back. Perhaps I should target the Darkness and Sombra? Although…Neighsay raised his right hand and formed an orb of light, which then took on a vague silhouette of Sombra in his Darkness Armor. Against someone like Sombra, I haven’t had enough time to master all of these powers, slowly, the knowledge is coming to me. But I’m not ready for a full-blown battle against him. That’s when an idea struck the man and made him smile. Although, who says I have to be stronger, sometimes, it’s better to be smarter.

Neighsay snapped his armored fingers, and instantly, a Sentinel appeared behind him. “You summoned me…My lord?”

The Cardinal was growing irritated by the reluctance of the Sentinels being displeased with him. However, so long as he had the power, they had to do what he said, whatever he ordered, his word was law to them now. “Yes, I’m planning on attacking the Darkness.”

The Sentinel seemed to perk up at this knowledge. “I-I see, that is good to hear! How do you wish to do this?”

“We’re going to need lights, lots and lots of lights.”

To War: Part 5

Sunset had picked up Twilight for school that morning, deciding – with the approval of her parents – that she would shuttle Twilight to and from school. Upon arriving back at Crystal Prep, both of the girls could tell that the air was different as the eyes of the students fell upon them. Sunset glared at some of them, putting everyone on notice that they would assuredly meet the same fate as the five girls who dared to hurt Twilight. How much of what happened to Twilight and Sunset was unknown to them. Was the full account told to them? Was some version of the truth told to them by the five girls? Or were they just making their own speculations?

Honestly, Sunset didn’t care, and neither did Twilight, they knew what happened and that’s all that mattered. Twilight was a little nervous when she had a couple of classes without Sunset in them, of course one of them had Indigo Zap. Twilight tried not to look at her, but she could feel the girl’s eyes on her. She had noticed the cast on Indigo’s right arm, a souvenir from Sunset for her earlier scheme and a testament to what more her girlfriend could’ve done to the jock had Twilight explicitly asked Sunset not to kill them. In hindsight, breaking her legs and arms would be just as effective, but Twilight wasn’t cruel like them.

Later on, lunch came around and Twilight was happy to see Sunset again. The two girls embraced in a hug, and much to Sunset’s surprise, Twilight leaned up and kissed her on the cheek.

“Whoa, okay, what brought that on?” Sunset asked.

“I just missed you, and, well, I think it’s established that we’re a couple. No need to hide it, or our…displays of affection,” said Twilight with a blush on her face.

Sunset smiled and cupped the young genius’ left cheek. “Well, good, ‘cause I’ve been wanting to kiss you. But only if you want me to.”

“I do. I mean, I do right now. If you want?”

Sunset chuckled and kissed Twilight light lips, it was chaste kiss, nothing deep and passionate, she didn’t want to embarrass Twilight after all.

With their affection affirmed before a few passersby, Twilight and Sunset went through the lunch line and headed to an unoccupied table. Sunset immediately took notice of four of the five girls who had threatened her lover, her eyes became dangerous slits as she glared at them. Sunny, Lemon, and Sour had the good sense to look away at that moment, but Indigo held Sunset’s gaze with her own steely glare. It seemed that the jock hadn’t learned her lesson and was probably still thinking about how best to get Twilight away from Sunset. That was fine with Sunset, she was looking forward to breaking Indigo’s legs next.

About a couple of minutes after they sat down and began eating, Sunset and Twilight noticed someone approaching, Sunset immediately shot up when she saw the person was Sugarcoat.

“Um…can I sit with you?” Sugarcoat asked.

“You got a lot of balls coming over here after what you and your friends did to Twilight!” Sunset growled.

Sugarcoat winced at the venom in Sunset’s voice, not that she could blame her. “I know…I’m sorry. This was a mistake I’ll just–”

“Sugarcoat.” Twilight’s words froze the pigtailed girl in place as she looked upon the victim of their crime. “Please sit down.”

“Sparky!”

“She stopped Sour Sweet from hurting me, if she hadn’t…” Twilight shuddered at the thought of what might’ve happened had Sugarcoat not stopped the bipolar girl. Sure, Sunset would’ve been able to heal the damage with her powers, but that doesn’t mean it would’ve healed the psychological scars. “Besides, I’ve been wanting to talk to her.”

Sunset huffed and sat back down next to Twilight. With the okay given, Sugarcoat sat down across from the couple, the air was understandably awkward as all hell.

“You don’t seem to be afraid of me or resent me for my part in what happened. Is that because of what I did to stop Sour?” Sugarcoat asked.

“Part of it, but, truthfully, I don’t think you’re like them. Mostly because of what you told me on the day that we first met. You said you didn’t want to be targeted; you didn’t want to be put through what I was being put through just by being associated with me. You were pretty blunt about it,” said Twilight.

Sugarcoat rubbed her arms as she sighed. “I…I have a kind of condition. You know how most kids don’t have a filter on when they’re talking and just speak their minds, but later on they learn how to not say everything that pops into their heads? That’s kind of what’s up with me. My ‘filter’ doesn’t work right, and as a result I just spit out whatever’s on my mind when it pertains to the truth, no matter how harsh it may sound to the person I’m talking to. Call it Tourette Syndrome or whatever. I try to catch myself before I say what I say, and sometimes I try to make up for it, but it doesn’t always work out. So, I’m sorry if what I said hurt you back then.”

Twilight shook her head. “Actually, you were probably the first person in the entire school to be honest with me, aside from Sunset being honest about how she feels about me. I figured we could’ve been friends had I not been reduced to being the school’s whipping girl, and I get it. If our roles were reversed – I’m not proud of it – but I think I would’ve done the same thing to avoid what was happening to me.”

Sugarcoat smiled a little. “I wouldn’t have blamed you either……are you – I mean – did you mean it when you said you thought we could be friends? You would want to have a friend like me?”

Twilight rubbed the back of her head as she said, “I’m new to having friends, especially girlfriends.” Sunset smirked at her. “But, I know you’re not a bad person, Sugarcoat, you just did what you could to not suffer the same fate as I have here, and I can’t blame you for that. And what makes me sure of that are your actions on that day, you’re not.”

Sugarcoat felt tears begin to form in her eyes, no one had ever said they wanted to be her friend, not without a motive or something to gain. However, before she could get too sentimental about it, she looked to Sunset and asked, “And, Sunset Shimmer, what do you say?”

Sunset crossed her arms and as she closed her eyes for a moment. “I owe you for protecting Twilight, and if Twilight’s willing to trust you, then I will. But, if you do anything that will get her hurt or cross paths with those four bitches, I won’t hesitate to toss you through a wall. Understood?”

Sugarcoat nodded her head. “I do, and, you don’t have to worry about me associating with them…after that day, I’ve cut my ties with them. I just…I couldn’t be around them anymore after what they did, and after what almost happened.”

Twilight pulled at the collar of her shirt as she said, “Um, Sugarcoat, there is something I wanted to know.”

“Okay,” Sugarcoat dabbed her eyes with her napkin. “What is it?”

“Um…well…I’ve heard that you’ve been…ahem…performing certain ‘favors’ around the school to avoid my fate, which have also apparently propelled your popularity. So, I’m just going to ask, are those rumors true?” Twilight asked awkwardly.

“Oh, if you’re referring to the rumors about me performing sexual favors for some of our classmates, then yes, I have,” said Sugarcoat without any hesitation.

Sunset and Twilight blinked.

“Um…wow…I didn’t think you’d own up to that,” said Sunset.

Sugarcoat shrugged. “It is what it is. I’ve performed multiple sexual acts with different students to elevate my status and to keep from being subjected to the same hazing that you’ve been subjected too. And if you’re wondering, I’ve performed for both the male and female students as well.”

Twilight was blushing bright red; she wasn’t expecting Sugarcoat to straight up just say she was doing the other students in the school. “Okay, thanks for being honest. I just want you to know, neither Sunset nor myself will ever ask you to do something like that to us.”

“After what you’ve been through, I can’t imagine sex is on your mind at all. That and given how new your relationship is, you’ll want to take the time to become intimate with each other first,” said Sugarcoat plainly.

Sunset and Twilight blushed in unison as their eyes met for a second, the thought having crossed their minds once or twice.

“If you want any tips or tricks, let me know, I’ve performed for enough girls to know how to spice up your sex life current or future.”

“GETTING ONTO ANOTHER SUBJECT!” Sunset quietly yelled. “There is something I want to know. Do you know what’s up with Indigo and why the fuck she’s obsessed with Twilight?!”

Sugarcoat played around with the food on her tray, she knew this question was coming, and really, Twilight was owed that much. “I’m not a doctor or a psychologist. If anything, I’m an amateur in the latter. But if I had to make any kind of guess, she’s displaying all the classic signs of a stalker. The obsession, the romanticizing of your encounters, the twisting of the facts of your encounters. Her affection seems to stem from the fact that you don’t care about her status, and that you could see her as more than a jock or star athlete.”

Twilight figured that was the case, but having it confirmed helped. As much as she hated what Indigo did to her, she wanted to know why, and thanks to Sugarcoat, Twilight had gotten a little peek through the window. “Thank you, Sugarcoat.”

“You’re owed more, unfortunately, I tried to keep my distance from her to keep from being targeted by Indigo. Close enough to be considered an acquaintance or ‘friend’, but not so close as to be the target of her…ugh… ‘affections’. I’m sorry I can’t give you more insight into her mental state.”

Twilight shook her head and gave a small smile. “No, what you’ve told me is more than I had.” She glanced to Sunset and asked, “Sunset, I know you said you’d protect me, but…would it be possible for you to protect Sugarcoat as well?”

“Stop.” Sugarcoat raised her right hand in a stopping motion. “Don’t do that, I don’t want that. I can still coast on my…ahem…other ‘skills’ to keep from getting targeted. You need Sunset more than I do.”

Sunset shrugged a little. “I wouldn’t be that much of a problem.”

“No, seriously. Because I know, despite the warnings Indigo was given, she’s not done trying to get you back, Twilight. And right now, she needs you around more than I do. Even if it means I get half of what you were getting hit with, I am willing to take it. Probably long overdue.”

Sunset sighed. “Let’s stop talking about this depressing shit, our food’s getting cold.”

The three girls ate their food while also talking about other subjects, for Sugarcoat, it was nice to just talk to people without having to plot and scheme for once or have some kind of ulterior motive. Inside, she was feeling sad, she could’ve had this kind of relationship with Twilight a long time ago, but she was a coward, and because of it she lost out on a good number of years to solidify a friendship, especially with how close they were to graduation at the end of this school year. But perhaps it wasn’t too late, there was nothing saying she couldn’t try and still be a friend later on after high school was done. Plus, she was curious to see where Sunset and Twilight’s relationship went.

Sunset flew through the air on her metallic wings, feeling the wind in her hair as she searched the city. It had been several hours since she had started her patrol, and unfortunately, the pickings were slim tonight. Ever since the Sentinels stepped up their patrols and numbers, it seemed like criminals and the Blood Kings had been laying low. Sunset had flown by a few of the Sentinels on her flight, and some had asked her if she needed assistance, but she respectively declined, stating that she was trying to find the Darkness and get some payback for turning her into a puppet earlier. The Sentinels sympathized with her plight and left her alone.

She had to be careful if she acted too guarded then she could tip off Neighsay. Unfortunately, she couldn’t find anything, and it was a Friday night at that, this was the time for things to go down. With little else to do, and the hour approaching midnight, Sunset made her way back to Shimmer Manor. She had to be discreet, taking the long way as she weaved through the forest in the distance and then backtracked to throw off any potential pursuers. After a quick check to make sure that she wasn’t being followed, Sunset landed at the back porch of the mansion.

The ruby crystal on the Witchblade glowed as it produced the keys that her twin had made for her. Once she unlocked the door and entered, she spotted a red silk robe draped over a coat rack. Sunset smiled, wondering who it was who put it there, between her interdimensional twin and surrogate mother, it was a tossup. Sunset closed the door and locked it, once she had, the Witchblade retracted its armor back into the bracelet form, leaving Sunset – as per usual – nude. She took the robe and put it on, enjoying the feeling of the smooth silk fabric against her skin. Back before she left Equestria, her bed at the castle had silk sheets and they felt amazing against her fur, but against bare skin it felt even better. There were also a pair of slippers on next to the rack, which Sunset put on.

She made her way down the hall and noticed that there was a light on in the living room. Sunset made her way towards there and leaned against the archway when she saw who was there. Celestia was asleep, her head tilted downwards as her chest rose and fell with each breath, and her dimensional twin, Sunset, had her head resting on Celestia’s lap, like a mother letting her child use her as a pillow. All in all, it was an adorable sight to look at, but it still made Shimmer sigh as she shook her head.

“Hey guys, I’m home,” said Shimmer.

Celestia and Sunset slowly woke up, their eyes locked onto Shimmer to which both gave a sigh of relief.

“Hey, Sis, how’d it go out there?” Sunset asked.

“Not great, all the rats are hiding tonight, I couldn’t find a single criminal! Although that might have something to do with the Sentinels stepping up their patrol, they’ve been active a lot tonight,” said Shimmer as she thought about her patrol.

Celestia lowered her head in disappointment. “I’m sorry, if Angelus had a little more power, we could at least tell you what’s going on in their minds.”

“It’s not your fault, it’s Neighsay’s. For now, let’s just head to bed.” As Shimmer made her way towards the stairs she stopped and said, “You know, you guys don’t have to wait up for me.”

“After what happened last time?! Forget it!” Sunset replied.

“I’m your mother now, Sun – uh – Shimmer, so of course I’m going to wait up for you!” Celestia stated.

Shimmer chuckled a little at their overprotectiveness, but it also warmed her heart to know that she had a family like this that worried about her. The trio made their way up the stairs and into their rooms, Celestia’s room was just a couple of doors down from Sunset and Shimmer’s room, with Gaghiel laying down and guarding the door. Sunset and Shimmer decided to share the bedroom, it was mostly at Sunset’s insistence, the Earthly double was still paranoid after the Darkness took control of Shimmer.

After a quick change into some pajamas, Shimmer and Sunset laid down in the latter’s oversized bed. The two of them just lied there awake, staring at the ceiling.

“Can’t sleep, Sis?” Sunset asked.

“Not really…I can’t help but feel like something bad is about to happen,” said Shimmer.

“Don’t overthink it, and if it turns out that’s the case, then we’ll handle it together.”

Shimmer turned onto her left side and looked at Sunset. “So, what’s going on at CPA? How are things after…you know.”

Sunset turned onto her right side and sighed. “It was okay, not sure what kind of rumors are being spread about what happened, but it hasn’t seemed to impact Twilight or me. Oh, right, one the girls who kidnapped Sparky sat with us at lunch.”

“WHAT?!” Shimmer asked with shock and anger.

“Relax, she’s actually not as much of a bitch as I thought she was. Mostly trying to keep the heat off herself, she’s blunt as a bat when she talks, and bonus, she’s the one that saved Sparky from getting stabbed with a pair of scissors.”

Shimmer calmed down a bit, she did recall Sunset telling her that one of the girls did get seriously injured in saving Twilight from getting hurt, so this girl must not really be all bad. “I’m still considering burning down CPA at some point.”

Sunset playfully shoved Shimmer’s right shoulder as she said, “Not without me you’re not!”

Both girls laughed at their dark joke – at least for now it was a joke – and just stared at each other for a little bit.

“It’s weird, when I look at you, I see myself, but at the same time, someone different,” said Shimmer.

“Same here, I’ve always wanted a sibling, never thought I’d get a twin sister, even if it confuses the hell out of the people around us when they try and talk to us.” Sunset reached out with her left hand and gently wrapped it around Shimmer’s right. “Hey, Shim, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Promise me something…” Sunset squeezed a little harder as a pensive look appeared on her face. “Can we…Can we stay sisters? Can we stay family? I mean…I know we’re not from the same dimension, and our experiences are completely different from each other, but…ever since Mom and Dad died, I haven’t had anyone to call family in a long time.”

Shimmer raised an eyebrow in concern. “What about grandma and grandpa? Our aunts and uncles?”

“Not sure if they’re alive in your world, but Grandma and Grandpa are gone. My aunts and uncles, heh, all they wanted was a handout when they found out I was going to be the sole heir. You…” Sunset looked into Shimmer’s eyes, and the former’s were leaking with tears. “You’re the only one I can call my family, the only one I can trust…and I know we don’t know each other that well, and that soon we’ll be off to college and doing our own thing, but…will you still stay my sister? No matter what happens?”

Shimmer squeezed back and smiled at Sunset. “Of course, I will, we are family, I will always be there for you.”

Sunset moved closer to Shimmer and lowered herself to rest her head below her “big” sister’s chin. Shimmer reciprocated by hugging her “little sister” closer to her, both twins felt content in this moment, felt safer than they had ever had in their lives, and it was great. The door to their room was cracked a little, on the other side was Celestia, checking on them as a mother would. She listened to their conversation and felt her heart swell with emotion, Celestia had declared Sunset – her Sunset – as her daughter, and as far as she was concerned, she considered this second Sunset just as much her daughter, and swore to watch over her if she would allow.

“Sleep tight, my dear Sunsets,” Celestia whispered as she gently closed it and went back to her room.

It was a nice Saturday morning, the rays of sunshine broke through the curtained windows and began to illuminate the room with its orangey yellow glow. It seemed that not being a morning person ran in the family, as both Sunset’s tried to avoid the sun’s light. Shimmer was laying out sprawled on the bed, the two of them someone having kicked off the blanket. Sunset was still sleeping next to Shimmer, but somehow managed to lay her head on Shimmer’s ample chest, and she was drooling on them.

On the nightstand, Shimmer’s cellphone buzzed. It continued to do so again and again, to the point that it was hard to ignore. Shimmer awoke, blinking the sleep from her eyes as she groaned and looked down at herself, spotting her twin sleeping atop her dirty pillows. It would be sweet if Sunset wasn’t drooling all over them.

Gross, thought Shimmer groggily. The buzzing got Shimmer’s attention again, her eyes lazily drifting to the nightstand and groaning in annoyance. Okay, okay…Faust, I swear it better be good…

Shimmer leaned up a little, and in so doing, making Sunset’s head slide down and hit the mattress. She started a little but then crawled up some to rest her head back on Shimmer and went back to snoring. Shimmer groped for her cellphone and pawed the nightstand like a drunk until her hand finally grasped something. She brought the phone to her face, squinting at the light that the device emitted as she read the caller ID.

Shining Armor? Shimmer swiped the icon to “answer” and said, “What’s up…it’s early, y’know?”

{Sunset there’s something big going on!}

Shimmer shook her head, trying to sober herself as she took in Shining’s words. “Whoa, wait, what’s going on?”

{We’ve been put on notice that there’s an operation going down, tonight. They’re not saying much, but there are rumors going around that we’re making a move against the Blood Kings!}

Shimmer sat up right so fast that it tossed her twin off her chest and onto the other side of the bed. Sunset snapped awake as she looked around with frantic eyes.

“Huh, who, what??! What’s happening?!” Sunset sputtered.

“Are you sure?” Shimmer asked.

{Like I said, only a rumor, but we have to take what we can get.}

“Do you know where it’s going to happen?”

{They’re keeping it pretty tight-lipped right now, no details, time, place, it’s all top secret. Apparently, they don’t want any potential leaks getting to the Blood Kings before its time. I’ll try and get some details if I can.}

“Okay, just be careful,” said Shimmer as she ended the call.

“What’s going on, Sis?” Sunset asked.

“Hope you’re in the mood to train hard, ‘cause we might be in for some bad shit tonight.”

Sombra had closed his eyes, thinking hard about what Stygian showed him. Was it really true? Was Darkness in control of his actions up until now?

“The deception of control is believing that you’re in control, Sombra.”

A ghostly image of Stygian appeared before him, Sombra stood up and asked, “Why do you care so much? I don’t see any other of the past hosts comin’ to give me some sage-like advice.”

Stygian smiled a little. “Perhaps we’re more entwined than you are led to believe.” With a wave of the phantom’s hand, the entire room warped into something else, another vision was playing out before Sombra.

They were no longer in the kingdom that Stygian hailed from, if Sombra had to venture a guess it looked more like Italy based on the housing and the people. Stygian was older now, about middle aged, and he was dressed in a dark cloak. He had been wandering for ages, trying to find a way to kill himself, but every attempt ended the same way. The Darkness would not allow him to die, no matter how severe the injury. He once threw himself off a mountain side, bashing his skull and reducing his body to a bloody mess at the bottom, but it didn’t matter. The Darkness just stitched him back up, like nothing ever happened.

He tried to starve himself to death, no food or water, but again, the Darkness prevented this. It just activated the armor and used it to keep him alive, forcing him into dark places so that it could heal him again and again and again. It became painfully clear to Stygian that the Darkness would never allow him to die, to allow his soul to leave his body and rejoin his lover Platinum.

“Why don’t you just give up…I won’t stop trying to kill myself…” Stygian weakly proclaimed.

<^> Heh-heh-heh, you think yourself the first one to try and out last me? Oh, little Stygian, you’re hardly even the hundredth. Each host eventually realizes that it’s futile, you can keep trying to kill yourself, but it will end the same way, you’ll succumb to my will and do as I say. So, I’ll allow you to meander as long as you wish, I’ve existed for eons, if there is anything in existence that knows of patience, it’s me. A few years is but a drop in the vast ocean of time. <^>

“Bastard,” Sombra cursed.

Unfortunately, it was starting to wear on Stygian, eventually he just gave up on trying to starve himself and just ate when he was hungry, still trying to think of different ways to off himself so that the Darkness wouldn’t have the last word. That is until he met someone in that small town called “L’incrocio”. He would just occupy space in the alleyways, a vagrant nobody cared about, which was fine with him, they didn’t need to know that he was once a king, that he was a sorcerer, that he harbored an entity of destruction and evil.

There was one person that would always come to him, a young girl that reminded him much of his long since dead wife and love of his life. She had violet hair, but her complexion was closer to his, a light ashen gray. This girl would always come to him, carrying a basket of violet lilies, and offer him some bread. He would take it and thank her, then she’d go on about her day selling flowers. She’d soon start having conversations with him, and as much as he tried not to, he was enjoying their talks. Stygian had cast a spell on himself that acted as a universal translator, allowing him to understand her and she him.

“I learned that this young girl’s name was Giglio Cuore Re. She preferred Rei. I grew to care for her, and eventually, love her…”

The scenes changed to a night when Rei was assaulted by two men, unfortunately for them, Sombra roamed the night, and he made them disappear. Literally, he opened a black hole and had them sucked into it, Stygian thought it would be better than having the girl he was fond of watch him eviscerate the men. Of course, this only deepened their affection and eventually got them to marry. Although, before they said, “I do” Stygian told her about the Darkness, how it would be impossible for him to sire a child and live to see it grow up.

“She said to me, ‘I can see it in your eyes. You’ve lived through so much and bared so much pain. If it is for only one night, I will release you from this burden.’ I warned her that it would only be a burden passed onto the child, the Darkness would just haunt him. And she replied, ‘Then I will find a way to help our child, there is magic in my homeland too, different from the one you practice. Perhaps fate has brought you here for a reason.’ And so, we consummated our love, and in so doing…I died.”

Scenes fast forwarded, showing the child of Stygian growing up and eventually having the Darkness awaken in him, the years continued as this family made it its duty to keep the Darkness under control, to keep it from destroying the world, a great sacrifice that was never told, heroes that were never sung of. All of whom, Sombra felt an eerily strong connection with. The scenes kept flying by, showing one host after the other, until it stopped with Sombra’s father. He had never even laid eyes on the man, Sombra was given up for adoption the moment he was born, never knew his mother or father’s names or what they looked like, but now he saw them clear as day. That’s when it struck him, his head snapping in Stygian’s direction as the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

“No way…y-you’re–?!”

“Her name, in translation, was Lily Heart King, and I was once King Stygian. You are my descendant, Sombra King. Kind of ironic that you would be adopted into a family bearing a similar last name, wouldn’t you agree?” The stunned expression was all the answer he got from Sombra. “I know this is a shock, but you have to understand what we’ve been through in order to try and stop what’s happening. The Darkness has twisted what you wanted, and it’s time to take the blinders of my son, or grandson as the case may be.”

Sombra took a moment to process all this, Stygian was right, he never wanted to rule a city. At least not in this way, using kids as weapons against cops, turning them into monsters, fighting a war against the Angelus, it wasn’t his way, it wasn’t his plan. He still wanted vengeance against Lupos family for slaughtering his family, and the love of his life.

“Okay, I get it, we’re shuttin’ this shit down, no more!” Sombra declared.

<^> You act as if you have a say in the matter. <^>

The scenes were drowned in a sea of black, the tar-like inky dark started to undulate and writhe as several eel tentacles arose and stared down the former host and the current host.

<^> I am in charge, Sombra, you are my puppet. <^>

“Says you!” Sombra declared.

<^> Feh, I should’ve done this from the start. <^>

Several black tendrils whipped out at Sombra and wrapped themselves around his arms, legs, torso, neck, and head. Stygian rushed towards Sombra, but a great force threw the spirit of the former host far away until he was gone. Sombra struggled against the Darkness’ hold, his will was strong, but the creature before him was stronger.

“FUCKING DEMON SHIT! I’LL MAKE YOU PAY!” Sombra shouted.

<^> Not in this lifetime, I’m afraid. Now, why don’t we see what’s happening outside? <^>

A large portal opened, inside the portal it showed a room, Sombra was sitting on a chair, although he was looking from his point of view.

~*~*~*~

Young Blood came running into the room, panting heavily as he stopped before the makeshift throne that was made for Sombra.

“What do ya want?” Sombra asked.

Young Blood gulped down some air and then looked up, he gasped when he saw that Sombra’s eyes were pitch black. “Y-You okay, Boss?”

“I am, now what is it?”

Young Blood shook his head and straightened up. “Yeah, we got a call from that priest dude I told you about, says he wants a meeting with you. Says he has something that you want that could win the whole war for you!”

Sombra rolled his eyes. “Tell that priest he can shove whatever he’s sellin’ up his ass.”

“But, Boss, Mr. King, he said it was important! He said to mention it was called the uh…uh…ah shit, what did he call it…the – the Prism! Yeah, he said he has the ‘Prism’! Whatever the fuck that is.”

Sombra practically jumped out of his throne when he heard this. “Where and when?”

“What?” Young Blood asked.

With great speed, Sombra dashed from the throne and appeared right in front of Young Blood, startling the young man. Sombra reached out and gripped Young Blood by his shirt and hoisted him up as he glared at him. “Where and when does he want to meet?!”

The night drew upon the city, the sun had finally set, and the plans of the man known as Neighsay were about to come to fruition. Maria Mare stared out of her office window, knowing full well what was about to happen tonight, and the hand she had in making it come to pass.

Looking back on it, Maria wished she had done things differently, but really though, what were her choices? Neighsay had said that the girl known as the Magdalena couldn’t attack or do anything while she was reciting that prayer, she could’ve attacked Neighsay and made him drop that object, or pushed Magdalena down to make her stop reciting the prayer long enough for Celestia to get free and take Neighsay out. But then what was the alternative? Angelus was planning on taking over the city, no, not just the city, further beyond, she wanted to bring the whole world under her vision of what “order” was.

She recalled her earlier conversation with Neighsay, just before this whole operation started.

*~*~*

“Look, instead of telling me how you can’t do it, figure out how to make it happen!” Maria stated before hanging up the phone. She exhaled in frustration as she rubbed her temples.

“Problems?”

Maria looked up from her desk and glared at Neighsay, who saw fit to wear his “Sunday Best” when meeting her. “It’ll get done by the time you want…”

“Excellent,” said Neighsay. “Your contributions will be looked favorably upon when this is over.” The Stealer of Light turned around and prepared to leave.

“Wait!” Maria called out, making Neighsay pause as he turned around. “There’s something I need to know. I have to look out for the people of this city, you say once you get your power, you’ll be some agent of the divine or some crap like that. I need to know, what are your plans for this city?”

Neighsay took a moment to consider this, he had been so focused on obtaining the powers of the Angelus and the Darkness that he hadn’t considered what he was going to do with the city. “Huh, well that certainly is a question. I’ll most definitely need a base of operations, won’t I? As for the citizens, they’ll serve as an example to the rest of the world. A testament to what I can bring to everyone.”

“I’m familiar with some religions, I know that there are certain ones that don’t look favorably upon such things as same sex relationships. So, I want to know what you’ll do to the citizens of my city that are of that orientation,” Maria explained.

Neighsay rubbed his chin, the sound of metal scraping made Maria cringe with irritation of the noise. “A conundrum, the holy writ does say that those of that nature are committers of sin. However, I’m also aware that there those who follow the word of God despite their knowing of sinning. Hmm, my best answer will be to eliminate them all.”

Maria’s eyes practically bulged from her skull, her heart raced, and her body shook. “Y-You can’t!”

“I am not without mercy, if they repent their ways, they will be safe. If not, I will also do all in my newfound power to ensure that they pass on to a good afterlife for following His will.”

*~*~*

Maria looked around the room, making sure she was alone. She opened the door and looked around to ensure that most of her staff was gone as well. Once she was assured of this, Maria went back into her office, she pulled out her cellphone and found Celestia’s cell number. Maria had fibbed to Neighsay that she had contacted Celestia, but her call history showed that she hadn’t made one call to her girlfriend since that night. Thankfully, Celestia didn’t try to call her either. Taking a deep breath, Maria dialed her girlfriend’s number and waited, it took all of three seconds for Celestia to answer.

{Hello, Maria?!}

“Yes, Celly, it’s me…it’s good to hear your voice,” said Maria with a smile.

{Oh my god, are you alright?! Do you need help?!}

“No, I just…I just wanted to say that I was sorry.” Maria sat in her mayoral chair and stared out towards the city. “I wasn’t the best girlfriend I should’ve been, and truthfully, I wasn’t the best mayor this city deserved.”

{What are you talking about? Yes, you were a little aggressive in some things, but it was something we could’ve worked on. And what do you mean you weren’t the best mayor? You’re the best one that Canterlot City has had in years! And I’m not just saying that because we’re lovers and that I voted for you.}

The two women shared a chuckle over the line. “You’re right, there are things we need to work on, mostly me. But I should’ve stopped that girl when she had you pinned on the wall that night.”

{Maria, you weren’t in a good position to stop it, there’s no telling what Neighsay had up his sleeve! He could’ve had a knife in his robe or something that could’ve killed you. Or worse, my student could’ve killed you.}

Maria raised an eyebrow. “Wait, you know who that Magdalena girl is?”

{She’s a student at my school, I just found out that Neighsay did something to her, brainwashed her. She would never side with someone like him, I swear, Maria, we’ll make him pay, and stop him from whatever he’s planning.}

Maria tapped the armrest of her chair and looked out towards the night sky. “I am the mayor of this city, I’ve done things that I’m not proud of in the shadows, things that…I wish I could take back, but I don’t know if I’ll get the chance.”

{Don’t talk like that, we’re going to make it through this.}

“Listen, Celly, Neighsay’s planning to attack Sombra and get his demon thing. It’s going to happen tonight.”

{I heard about that, but we don’t know where it is Witchblade and…uh, Ember, are out there right now trying to find out where this is happening.}

“The Metroscape Mall, the new one that's being constructed around west Canterlot!”

{What?! Are you sure?!}

“Yes, but that’s not the only thing, you have to warn Witchblade that that’s only – GAH!”

Maria felt pain erupt from her chest, when she looked down, she saw that a hole had appeared, something phantasmal was covered in her blood, painting the invisible weapon in crimson and giving it the form of a curved crescent. The weapon shimmered and then took on physical form. It was a black and gold crescent that had stabbed her, the blade was then pulled out with a wet “shlick” sound. The chair was turned around and revealed another of the Sentinels. His body was silver in color, bearing black and gold armor, his wings were black as night, with tinges of gold in them. He wore a cowl that was connected to his armor, and from it were strands of silver hair. His eyes were pools of tar with white dots for the pupils, and in his right hand he wielded an ornate scythe.

“Who…Who are…?”

“I am Azrael, the Bringer of Death. Lord Neighsay told me to keep an eye on you for fear of you tipping off his enemies. I take no pleasure in this, I detest him, but we are without the ability to fight against him. If you wish, I can make sure that you feel no pain for these last moments,” spoke Azrael.

Maria nodded, with a wave of the Sentinel’s hand, he released a silver aura that did as he said, numbing the pain enough for Maria to speak with Celestia.

{MARIA?! MARIA WHAT HAPPENED?! WHO’S THAT TALKING?!}

“Looks like…I got careless, Celly. Neighsay had a Sentinel here hiding…I – he stabbed me, it’s bad…”

{NO! Just wait I can make it to you! Just hold on–!!!}

“CELLY!” Maria shouted, making Celestia quiet down on the other end. “It won’t matter…and even if you did get here, this guy will just try and take you to Neighsay.” Maria glanced back towards Azrael. “Am I right?”

Azrael nodded.

“Could you turn me around, I want to look at my city.”

Azrael walked towards the chair and gently turned it around so that Maria could face the window and look out into Canterlot City, her city, her kingdom.

“Celly…I love you…don’t let this fucker win…Win and live…find someone who will treat you better than I did…someone who can love you from their very soul…”

Maria could hear Celestia’s heartbreaking sobs on the other end of the phone, she wished she could hug her or see her face one last time.

“C’mon, Celly, say something, I don’t have much more time…”

{I love you, Maria Mare, I love you so much! I’m sorry…I’m so sorry…!}

“The last…part…is in…downtown…goodnight.” Maria ended the call.

With her last bit of strength, she searched her phone for a picture of herself and Celestia, she found one that she was particularly fond of. It wasn’t at some elaborate date, it was just the two of them sitting down on her sofa and watching some movie, they looked and acted like a couple of teenagers that night, but it was so much fun that it was hard to not feel happy about it. She looked one last time towards the city, the lights dotting the skyline and making it look like a city made of gemstones. It was nice…

Author's Note

To War Arc: End

The Final Showdown: Part 1

Shimmer and Sunset were flying through the skies of Canterlot City, both of them trying to figure out where this plot that Neighsay was about to unveil was going to take place, but unfortunately, Shining Armor hadn’t contacted them at all in the last couple of hours, so either they imposed a communications blackout for the duration of their operation, or he was found out. Shimmer hoped it was the former and not the latter, the last thing she wanted was for Twilight to hear that her big brother was killed, not after everything she had been through.

Both girls hovered in the air above the city, Shimmer with her metallic wings, and Sunset with her flaming dragon wings. They decided to stay at this position, figuring it would give them the best position to jet off in whatever direction they needed to in case something happened.

“Dammit, Neighsay’s going to get what he wants, and we’re up here twiddling our thumbs!” Sunset complained.

“I feel the same way, but we can’t just go off and get outmaneuvered when it counts, we’ll have to keep an eye out.” Shimmer looked at her ruby crystal. “Do you feel anything?”

}}} I feel a stirring in this city, my Father is on the move. But I cannot pinpoint him, it’s incredibly frustrating. {{{

The Sunsets kept their eyes open, scouting the area from their vantage point, looking for any sign, any little thing that could give them a hint as to where to go. Just then, Shimmer’s cellphone went off, she quickly brought it up and raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t Shining Armor like she was expecting, it was Celestia. The armor on Shimmer’s index finger retracted so that she could touch the screen, once she swiped it, Shimmer immediately answered, “Hello?”

There was no immediate answer, but Shimmer could hear sobbing on the other end.

“Celestia, what’s wrong?! Are you hurt?! MOM, ANSWER ME?!” Shimmer blurted out in a panic.

“Sis, what’s wrong?!” Sunset asked.

“Mom – Celestia – she called me and she’s crying! Please say something, you’re scaring me right now!” Shimmer pleaded.

Sniffling could be heard on the other end, along with shaky breaths as if Celestia was trying to muster up the strength to speak. {S-Sunset…s-she’s dead…}

“Who’s dead?!”

{M-Maria…s-she’s…she was killed…!}

A stone dropped into Shimmer’s stomach, her heart sinking with it. Maria Mare, the mayor of Canterlot City, Celestia’s girlfriend, was dead…

“Hey, Sis, what’s wrong, you’re pale?” Sunset asked.

“Maria Mare…she’s dead…she…she and Celestia were girlfriends…”

That was all Sunset needed to hear to understand just how bad it was, she may not have known Celestia as well as her pony twin, but Celestia was a kind person, and she was nice to be around, so she felt an ache in her heart for Celestia.

“I’m…I’m sorry, we’ll head back to you,” said Shimmer.

{Don’t you dare! Listen, Maria managed to tell me, right before she died, that Neighsay’s plan is going to happen at the Metroscrape Mall, it’s being newly constructed so I don’t know if you know where that is, but it should be in west Canterlot. She also mentioned something about downtown, but…she couldn’t finish…Don’t let her sacrifice be in vain, Sunset…}

Shimmer’s left hand tightened into a fist, shaking with rage for what Neighsay had done, and vowing within her mind that she would make him pay for everything he had done. “I won’t, you can count on us. We’ll take him down.”

{……Just…Just be safe, come back alive. That’s all I ask, both of you.}

“We will.” The line went silent, Celestia had hung up. After a quick internet search, Shimmer was able to locate where the mall was. “We’re not that far away, twenty miles at best!”

“Then let’s hightail it!”

Without wasting a second, the twin Artifact wielders blasted across the sky, creating a dual sonic boom as they raced to the location where Neighsay was, and hopefully, the Darkness and Sombra wouldn’t be there.

Then again, since when is my luck ever that good?

Unfortunately, it seemed that fate wasn’t going to be kind to her. The lights throughout the city went dark, and in the distance a flare went off. After that, several lights kicked back on, but not all of them, it seemed as if they were switching specific ones on, each of them in sequence like a trail towards the city proper.

“Shit!”

A few moments ago…

“Yeah…Yeah…Look, I’m sorry, I’m busy tonight…you know I can’t tell you! J-Just – sheesh – you sound like Mom used to. ‘Where are you going, when will I be back’, damn!”

Sombra, or rather the Darkness, sat in the back of a sedan, Young Blood was sitting in the passenger’s seat while another of their team was driving the car. There were two more behind them, each carrying a member of the Blood Kings, Sombra ordered his strongest to come with him, he anticipated a double cross, as the Darkness, a creature of treachery and chaos, it would be quite stupid if the demonic entity expected trustworthiness from a man of the cloth.

“Okay…Okay…I love you guys too…Order a pizza and I’ll see you later. And don’t wait up for me…” Young Blood chuckled. “‘Cause I know you two will, so I better not catch you passed out on the couch like last time. Alright, ‘night.”

“Girlfriend? Girlfriends?” Sombra/Darkness asked.

Young Blood glanced over his shoulder as he put the phone away. “Nah, my sisters, I’m kinda the only adult in the house, so doing this has made it somewhat easy to keep us afloat and from keeping the cops from separating us.”

“Hmm.” Sombra/Darkness grunted. <^> Perhaps I will show Young Blood the pleasures of what his family can offer? <^>

“You fucking bastard! When I get loose, I’m going to choke the shit out of you! I’ll make you my bitch!” Sombra shouted from the depths of his mind.

<^> Really? Because it looks like you’re my bitch in this case. Heh-heh-heh! <^>

The cars approached their destination, the Metroscape Mall was halfway constructed, with concrete walls devoid of any markings of what outlets were going to occupy the spaces within. The group pulled into a space that was used for the workers to enter, situating themselves by the foreman’s office. Once there, all three cars emptied, revealing Young Blood, Sombra, and nine other members of the Blood Kings. Without fear of anything, Sombra walked towards the building, the rest of his crew had their vials of Tar ready to drink, just in case things went south.

The moment they entered the building, Sombra went full Darkness Armor, startling his “minions”. He could feel through the shadows of the unfinished structure that there was only one person inside, the Darkness wasn’t sure if this was stupidity or strategy, either was possible right now.

“Hey, do we need to take the Tar now?” Young Blood asked.

“No, there’s only one. I don’t sense anyone else…” The Darkness took a moment to think a bit more, something wasn’t right here. But, still, he couldn’t pass up the chance to obtain the Prism of the Brothers, this could be his only chance of ending his battle with Angelus once and for all. “Come, we’re wasting time.”

The Darkness led the group further in, the older teens hadn’t ever been inside of a mall that wasn’t fully constructed, it was really creepy. The emptiness, the long corridors, and the unnaturally loud echo of their footsteps, it made it feel like an army was wandering around inside. If this was a horror movie, this would’ve been about the time where the monster comes out and tries to kill them, however, the one leading them and subsequently protecting them, was by far the scariest and strongest monster on the face of the Earth, so if there was a monster, then Sombra would scare it off, or kill it.

Then again, we all got somethin’ that can turn us into monsters, so, win-win? Young Blood thought.

The group continued walking until they made it to about the center of the mall. It was built like a rotunda, there was a large hole where the roof or some kind of topping was to be placed, so it gave a nice view of the night sky. And right below that was Neighsay, dressed in his Cardinal robes, hand clasped in front of him and looking as calm and cool as ice.

“Young Blood, is he the one?” The Darkness asked.

“Yeah, that’s him,” Young Blood confirmed.

Young Blood and the rest of the crew got into a semicircle to surround Neighsay and walked up towards the man. “Cardinal Neighsay, we finally get to meet in person.”

“Indeed,” said Neighsay, “I’ve heard much about you from Mr. Blood, so it’s wonderful to see that you value my information enough to come personally.”

The Darkness crossed his arms and narrowed his glowing gaze at him. “Do not patronize me, I came here because you know you have something that I want. My only question is, how a mortal like you got their hands on it.”

Neighsay raised an eyebrow at the odd way he spoke, as if Sombra was saying he wasn’t mortal either. That’s when it hit him. “I don’t think I’m talking to Sombra right now. I feel as if I’m speaking to the Darkness.”

“You are, I’m through playing the obedient creature. I’m taking command of everything.”

“Wait, what?!” one of the Blood Kings stated.

“Hold on, what’s he talking about?! Does that mean that Sombra’s gone?!” another asked.

Young Blood looked at Sombra, all this time he thought he was dealing with a man, but he was really dealing with a monster. “You mean…that you’re alive?! That ‘the Darkness’ stuff, it isn’t just some freaky power, you’re alive?!”

“Of course, I’m alive you peon! Did you honestly think a mere mortal like Sombra could wield such power?!” The Darkness glared at the rabble around him. “And if you want a place in my new world, you’ll keep quiet and do as I say.” The entity of chaos and evil turned his attention back to Neighsay. “Now that you know who you are dealing with, what do you say now?”

Neighsay smiled. “I say this is good, get the middleman out of the way. Now, I think there’s something here that you want.” The Cardinal reached into his robe and pulled out the Prism of the Brothers for all to see, holding it out for the Darkness. “This is what will turn the tide in your war against the Angelus, correct?”

The Darkness’ eyes were glued to the Artifact, he was practically drooling at the sight of it. “Yes, at long last I can put that wench out of her misery and seal her for the rest of time!”

The Darkness reached towards the Prism, but Neighsay drew back. “There is something I need from you though, before we end our transaction.”

The Darkness’ eyes shined with malice. “Mortal, do you think you’re in any position to bargain?!”

“Oh, I think I’m in the best position to bargain oh great entity.” Neighsay reached into the other side of his robes and pulled out another Artifact, one that the Darkness had not seen in many millennia and wished he would never see again. “I assume you know what this is?”

“T-THE SIPHON!!!” The Darkness practically shrieked as he jumped back like a scared cat. “HOW DO YOU POSSESSES THEM BOTH?!!!”

“Oh, I have more than that, much more.” The Prism shined in Neighsay’s hands, bathing him in golden light until he was fully transformed into his armored form. “I possess the powers of the Angelus herself. Now why don’t you be a good monster, and get inside your prison?”

The Darkness raised his right hand and unleashed a torrent of dark energy towards Neighsay. The Stealer of Light raised the Siphon up, and as if sensing that which it was meant to contain, sprang open and began absorbing the energy of the Darkness. The Darkness quickly cut off his attack, realizing that this mortal was going to suck up all his power before he had the chance to land a fatal blow.

The Darkness looked to the members of the Blood Kings and shouted, “KILL THAT MAN BEFORE HE KILLS US ALL!!!”

All of the Blood King members quickly took their Tar, and almost immediately, the ten were transformed into Blacknights. However, Neighsay wasn’t fazed by this, the Stealer of Light raised the Siphon up and the Artifact activated. Before they realized what was happening, the essence of the Darkness that was used to transform them was ripped off their bodies and absorbed it into the Siphon. “I think now’s about the right time. Send the signal!”

From the edge of the rotunda’s roof, a lone figure rose, the Magdalena. She pointed a gun-like object into the sky, and immediately pulled its trigger. The weapon fired off a glowing round into the air, when the flare reached a certain height, it burst into a bright white glowing orb. A couple of seconds after the flare went off, all the lights in the mall switched on at the same time, flooding the insides of the hollow temple to consumerism with light. The Darkness hissed, the armor disappeared and left his host completely bare of its best defensive and offensive weapon. With a flick of Neighsay’s wrist, several bright lights went off above him, and much to the horror of Blood Kings, the lights transformed into generic Sentinels, five in total.

“Kill the lost ones, leave the Darkness to me,” Neighsay ordered.

The Blood Kings immediately whipped out their pistols and opened fire on Neighsay and the floating Sentinels. Of course, their efforts were futile as the weapons of mortals had no effect on beings like Neighsay and Sentinels, the bullets just harmlessly bounced off their bodies. The angelic warriors brandished their glowing swords and took off for their individual targets. Without any mercy, two of the Blood Kings were cut down, one slashed in half right down the middle, the second was cut twice, once down the middle and again across to form a cross, neither one had the chance to even utter a scream.

The third fired their gun multiple times, trying to slow down or even wound the Sentinel. But it was just wasted effort as the Sentinel sliced off her head, the fallen cranium found itself staring at her feet before the lights in her eyes dimmed. While the fourth was getting eviscerated, having their stomach torn open and letting their entrails spill onto the floor, Young Blood rallied to Sombra, all of whom were looking for some way out. That’s when Young Blood spotted it, a hallway which was dark, the lights hadn’t switched on.

“THERE!” Young Blood shouted as he pointed. “They must’ve not finished that part!”

They needed no more words, only action, five Blood Kings ran behind Sombra – rather, the Darkness – and the moment they got into the shadows, the Darkness was able to tap into its powers. Once the Sentinels were done killing their comrades, they began their pursuit of the remaining Blood Kings and Sombra down the unlit corridor. The angelic warriors were the only source of light in the hall, which made them easy targets. The Darkness summoned its pistols, time seemed to slow for a second as the entity of destruction turned around and began unleashing a barrage down the narrow hallway. The Sentinels scrambled to dodge, but they had little to no room to move around, allowing the Darkness’ hand-cannon pistol’s dark bullet, upon striking one Sentinel, made its subsequent explosion all the more impactful. Once the dark bullet struck, the detonation destroyed three Sentinels at once, reducing them to golden particles.

The smaller rounds pierced through the heads and bodies the last two, eliminating them on the spot. The Darkness stopped for a moment and dismissed his guns, he held out his right hand and created four balls of inky black substance. The entity of chaos and destruction floated spheres towards the remaining Blood King members.

“What’s this?” Young Blood asked.

“Concentrated version of the ‘Tar’, either take it now or die at their hands!”

The others looked to each other, reaching a consensus that if they were going to live, they needed to take it. All five of them popped the balls of Tar into their mouths and nearly threw it up. However, the essence of the Darkness worked, transforming them into five Blacknights, now they had to escape.

“Hey, what was that back there?! Was that the Angelus?!” Young Blood asked.

“No, that mortal used the Prism to steal the Angelus’ powers, and now freely wields them! With that Siphon, he can do the same to me and imprison us both!”

“Doesn’t sound like a bad thing right now if you ask me! You trapped Sombra inside his body and are using him like a fuckin’ puppet!” Young Blood accused.

The Darkness stopped, turned towards Young Blood, and with a tentacle, lashed out at him. The tentacle wrapped around his neck and forced him against the wall. “Listen here, mortal, ALL OF YOU!” He shouted. “If that so called ‘Cardinal’ gets my power – yes, he will imprison me as he has the Angelus, but with BOTH of our powers, he’ll become an unstoppable, all-powerful being!!! So, for the sake of your world, and all the mortals you hold dear, we must prevent this at ALL COSTS!!” The Darkness released Young Blood and glared at him, and then to the others. “Do you understand that much?!”

Reluctantly, they nodded. They didn’t like the fact that they were helping this demonic being, not after what they heard he did to Sombra, but right now, he was right. If they didn’t help the Darkness, then everyone in the city, indeed the whole world, would fall under the control of that rogue priest. With that established, Sombra readied to open a shadow portal to get them out of there, but the hallway immediately lit up, once again diminishing the Darkness’ powers.

Down that same hallway, Neighsay was flying towards them, taking his leisurely time to get to them. The group ran down the hall, coming to a dead end, at least it would be for anyone else. The Darkness brought out its hand-cannon pistol and fired a charged shot right at the wall, blasting a hole in it ten feet wide.

As soon as they exited the wall, they were flooded with light. Their eyes hurt as their bodies hissed from the intense brightness that was hitting them. From what shade they were able to create with their arms, they were able to see what was making all that light. There was a line of cops, each one armed with a modified riot shield. The shields sported lights and a reflective surface, allowing for more like to be reflected towards their target. To the sides and behind the police were large searchlights that were pointed right at them, the police were in a phalanx formation, ready to hold the line despite their being clearly outmatched.

The Darkness and his minions didn’t take the time to assess what was going on and instead charged forward recklessly. Three of them came close to the police line, however, just before they could raise their claws to the police, something shining gold pierced right through one of the Blacknights, hitting them right where their heart would be. The weapon that struck the Blacknight was impaled on the ground before them, a bronze spear, the Spear of Destiny. That same spear floated up and spun as it flew upwards, the second Blacknight looked up as well, just in time to witness the Magdalena grasp her Spear of Destiny, she twisted around in midair and came down with an overhead slash, landing before the Blacknight.

The Blacknight howled in pain as a bright red gash appeared across their chest, spewing blood like a fountain. The divine weapon made it near impossible for the wound to heal quickly, so the damage was severe. However, what resolve the Blacknight had left spurred them on as they tried to attack the Magdalena. But before they could get the chance, the Magdalena thrust upwards with her Spear of Destiny, piercing the lower jaw of Blacknight as the point of the spear exited at the top of their head. Magdalena retracted her spear and twirled it around to shake the blood from it as the hulking creature collapsed onto the asphalt. Without missing a beat, the Magdalena thrust out with her spear, the weapon glowed and immediately extended forward, like a snake, coiling and winding, the spear tip found its home right in the brute’s head. Magdalena whipped the weapon around, the extended portion returning to its original length.

“What the hell?! How did she do that” a female Blacknight asked.

“The Spear of Destiny! They have that, too?!” The Darkness exclaimed in genuine fear.

“Oh, sounds like you’re afraid.” Sombra snarked.

<^> That weapon can kill you! I won’t be able to heal you if that woman lands a fatal blow! <^>

“After all the shit you put me through, sounds great!”

“UUUGGGHH!!!” The Darkness grunted as he slammed his fist into the ground, creating shockwave that disrupted the line, lessening the amount of light that was being reflected at them.

With the opening created, the two remaining Blood Kings and the Darkness took off down a street, a street that was oddly dark. In fact, as they continued, they realized that the city itself looked dark.

“I don’t like this! Something’s not right, why is the city blacked out?! That’s, like, giving us home field advantage or somethin’!” Young Blood commented.

The Darkness had to admit, this was foolish, the shadows made him stronger, gave him the advantage. Why would they intentionally make it easy for him to gain power and, if he so wished, pull the city into a blackhole. No one would be stupid enough to do this unless…

“IT’S A–!!!”

Just like inside the mall, the lights for the entire block were turned on. Streetlights, store lights, every light bulb that was plugged into a socket was shining bright and lighting up the entire area. The Darkness tried to create a portal, but it wasn’t going to happen, from the rooftops, Sentinels appeared, as if lying in wait, further adding to the suspicion that this was a trap. The Sentinels created bows and arrows of light and rained down death upon the Darkness and the Blacknights. The denizens of the shadows danced like their lives depended on it, dodging one deadly arrow after the next. With little recourse, they ran, bounding from car to sidewalk, doing all they could to avoid getting hit with a light arrow.

They arrived at one end of the street, showing that it was dark down that way. The Darkness knew this had to be part of their plan, but what choice did he have? All the Darkness needed was a few moments to create a portal to get them out of there and then they could plan their next move now that they knew about Neighsay and his scheme. Once they hit the shadowed area, that block was turned on as well, forcing them to continue to find a shaded area. Young Blood spotted an alley and pointed to it, silently telling them to go that way.

However, when they were about to divert towards the alley, Sentinels would rain down arrows of light that would block their path, making them go the way the Sentinels wanted them to go. Up above, on the roof tops, there were cops, each one had a radio in hand and once their targets got in range of a shadowed area…

“Targets are at block C-7, hit the lights!”

The moment he said that the block lit up. This was how they were able to get the lights on just as the Darkness and his team got in range, with the Darkness’ powers reduced by the light, it made it hard for him to even try and break through the street so that they could get into the sewer, and with the Sentinels firing light arrows down on them, they weren’t giving them a chance to think about how else to get away, they just needed them to think about running, keeping them in a state of panic and confusion as they tried to get away and cut off each of their ways out.

Shimmer and Sunset had to change their direction when they saw the trail, whatever was happening they were too late to stop it at the start, but hopefully they could prevent the final part of Neighsay’s plan from taking hold. Before either of the Sunset twins could get to the edge of where the lights were turning on, they were stopped by a line of Sentinels. About ten of them were generic ones, but at least three of them were unique, and two of which Shimmer recognized.

Israfil, the Burning One, his hands blazing with flames, and Kutiel, the Bringer of Holy Water, had spheres of water surrounding her the size of baseballs. The third was one that was, after a second to think, was familiar, he was at the Precinct 17 incident. His name was Hadriel, the Bringer of Winds, and the air was already getting a bit turbulent thanks to his power.

“I remember you three, what are you doing?!” Shimmer asked.

“Sorry, but we’re on orders to keep anyone from interfering with this operation,” said Kutiel. “Please wait a moment until we are done.”

“I think you know we can’t, we know that Angelus’ not calling the shots! You can’t be alright with what Neighsay’s going to do! He’s going to take the Darkness’ power for himself, he has no intention of just locking it away!” Shimmer stated.

A look of irritation formed on all the Sentinels’ faces.

“We know…” spoke Hadriel.

“Doesn’t mean we like any of it,” said Israfil in disdain. “Look, we can’t go against him with the power he has from our Mistress, he hasn’t given us the order to kill you, so go back and protect our Mistress from having anymore of her power taken!”

“Yeah, and in the meantime, Neighsay gets the Darkness and becomes way too powerful! Sorry, we’re not letting that happen!” Sunset’s hands caught fire as her eyes glowed. “So, move or we’ll go right through you!”

“If you must…”

Israfil unleashed a torrent of flames towards the duo. Sunset smirked as she got in front and used the power of the Ember Stone to take the brunt of the flames, and with a single move, dispelled the flames into embers. Kutiel fired off her water balls but Shimmer came in with her own flames, creating a shield out in front of her that evaporated. It was right around there when they realized that they were now surrounded by the Sentinels.

“Sunset, I think it’s time to get draconian on their asses,” said Shimmer.

“Way ahead of you, Sis!”

A pillar of flames erupted around Sunset, and from those blazing fires emerged a mighty dragon, roaring its fury into the air and buffeting all around her. That moment of disruption was enough for Shimmer to create two katanas and jetted for a generic Sentinel, with single swipe, she cut down the angelic being, reducing it to particles of light. Without missing a beat, she tossed her left katana at another one, nailing it in the head and killing it as well. Shimmer morphed the katana into a claymore and lobbed off the head of third.

Dragon Shimmer whipped her fiery tail towards one of the generic Sentinels who were trying to attack her from behind and wrapped it around him. With a flick of her tail she smashed the Sentinel she had trapped into another one that was coming at her left, and with another flick she smashed him into another on her right.

“I’m gonna beat a motherfucker–” With a flap of her wings, Dragon Shimmer flew up, somersaulted, and threw the Sentinel she had at another, knocking both out of the air. “–with another motherfucker!”

Dragon Shimmer inhaled and exhaled a huge fire blast, she whipped her head around and bathed the area in intense flames. Thanks to Dragon Shimmer’s power, she could command the flames to not harm those who she saw as a friend, which allowed Shimmer to fly through the flames and cut down the few that were too busy trying to back away from the fires instead of her sword. When they were done, only three remained, Hadriel, Israfil, and Kutiel. Dragon Shimmer floated behind her twin sister, growling and snorting flames from her nostrils.

“You sure there isn’t any way for you to go against his orders?” Shimmer asked.

“Unfortunately, no” Hadriel answered dejectedly.

Shimmer sighed with contrition, these beings were only doing what they were ordered to do, well, more like forced to do. The Keeper of Balance dashed towards the trio, Hadriel commanded the winds to spin around them, creating a thick wall of wind that managed to stop Shimmer’s blade from getting closer to them. Dragon Shimmer came up behind her, cocking back her right claw into a fist, and setting it on fire. The draconic beast slammed its large fist into the wind barrier, she ignited her left fist and began bashing at the barrier with it as well. Twin flaming fists were striking against the wind sphere, creating thunderous sounds with each hit.

Kutiel raised her hands, commanding the water in the air to solidify, when she was done, five dozen water blade constructs floated in the air around them. With a wave of Kutiel’s hands, the shards descended upon the twin Sunsets. A few of them landed in Dragon Shimmer’s back, piercing her black, leathery hide and making her roar in pain. She quickly bathed her body in flames to evaporate the water blades, Shimmer was a smaller target, so she had a slightly easier time dodging or deflecting the water blades.

Hadriel waved his hands to and fro, and in so doing, a tornado formed around them. The wall of wind rose high into the sky and down to the ground, causing damage down below. Dragon Shimmer and Shimmer glanced down and watched as some houses and businesses were getting torn up and tossed like pebbles.

“STOP, YOU’RE GOING TO KILL THE PEOPLE DOWN THERE!!!” Shimmer yelled.

“Our orders were to prevent anyone from interfering, no matter who it is, no matter what we had to do,” said Hadriel.

Dammit, this is taking too long! Shimmer thought.

}}} Sunset, I know you wanted to wait and use that form for when we faced Neighsay, but if we don’t use it now, and power our way through, we won’t be able to stop Neighsay! {{{

Shimmer gritted her teeth, Witchblade was right, but if she used it, that would mean leaving Sunset behind. She looked up at her draconic twin and locked eyes with her, it was strange, perhaps it was because they were growing closer, perhaps it was due to some interdimensional energy that linked them, or perhaps it was Shimmer’s magic? Whatever the case may be, Dragon Shimmer nodded to her twin, and Shimmer nodded back.

Intense crimson light enveloped Shimmer, in an instant, her armor and physique had changed into her Crimson Form. Shimmer entered a kind of runner’s stance and aimed for Hadriel. A spark of crimson lightning ran up her body, the only warning sign the Sentinels got before Shimmer took off, faster than a bullet, blurring until she was nothing more than a crimson beam of light. Hadriel tried to react, but he was a second too late. Shimmer pierced through the Sentinel, appearing behind him and holding two bastard swords.

Israfil and Kutiel hovered where they were, wondering what she had done to their Sentinel colleague. As if by delayed reaction, several red lines appeared over Hadriel’s body, the lines then caught fire and separated, showing that Shimmer had slashed the Bringer of Winds multiple times. The pieces caught fire and turned into ashes, canceling the tornado, and saving the people on the ground any further harm. Shimmer dismissed her blades and took off straight for downtown, putting a great amount of distance between her and the two Sentinels.

“How did she–?!”

“We have to–!!”

“Do nothing!” Dragon Shimmer announced as she slammed her fist into Israfil, sending him plummeting downwards. She rounded on Kutiel and unleashed a deluge of hellfire onto her, forcing the Bringer of Holy Water to create a shield of water. Go on, Sis, I can take these guys!

The Darkness and his remaining Blacknights were driven into the one spot where Neighsay wanted him to be, downtown. To be more precise, the middle of downtown, right where city hall was. Several lights kicked on from different angles, from the rooftops of the skyscrapers, to the helicopters flying in and shining even more light. Multiple officers lined up and shined their lights as well, cutting off any exit down the three different streets, all of them convinced that this was the land stand against the vile Sombra and his Blood Kings.

A few of the officers threw flashbangs towards them, causing their morphed bodies to forcibly revert to their human forms. The Darkness was still trying to hang onto its armored form, but the effort to keep it on was preventing him from using his other powers, but even if he could, the constant exposure to light had severely weakened him, the Darkness doubted he could even dive into a shadow to escape.

From the sky, the Magdalena appeared in a flash of light. She landed on the ground in a flourish, her cape flapping in the air. Young Blood and the last remaining member of their entourage pulled out their guns and began firing at the holy assassin. Magdalena dashed towards the two, to the assassin, the bullets were flying at half their speed as she nimbly moved out of their way, for the ones she couldn’t dodge, she used the Spear of Destiny to swat the bullets away. Unfortunately, they had to reload, giving Magdalena more than enough time to close the distance. She used the butt of her spear to knock the Blood King bodyguard off his feet, that split second he was airborne, she flipped the spear around and plunged it into his heart, slamming him and the blade of her weapon down into the asphalt all at once.

Young Blood, to his horror, watched his comrade die in less than a second. He quickly snapped out of it, reloaded his weapon, and began firing again. The bullets flew and Magdalena deflected them again and again as she approached, she charged for him, but either by luck or cosmic fate, he tripped over his feet and fell backward, narrowly missing Magdalena’s lunging thrust at the last second. The holy assassin was thrown off balance and stumbled to a stop, granting Young Blood enough time to pull out a second gun and fire again. The bullets hit Magdalena in her right thigh and left shoulder, with a third hitting against the armor on her chest. The next shot hit her in the head, but the mask she was wearing prevented the shot from being a fatal shot but did succeed in dazing her from the impact.

Young Blood raised both guns in preparation to end at least one of the threats to his life. However, he didn’t get the chance as Neighsay teleported behind him and impaled the young man with a glowing sword of light through his chest. Young Blood looked down in shock at the glowing sword, dropping his guns as his body grew weak. Neighsay dismissed the weapon and let Young Blood fall, unceremoniously, to the ground.

“That was sloppy, Magdalena,” said Neighsay.

“Apologies, Master Neighsay, I shouldn’t have overextended like that,” said Magdalena.

“Indeed, don’t let it happen again. Now then…” Neighsay turned to his head to look straight at the Darkness. “We have some unfinished business.”

“Mortal fool! I will not be imprisoned and used! Sorry, Sombra, but it looks like I won’t be exclusive to your line and anymore!”

“YOU SON OF A BITCH!!!”

The Darkness concentrated all his power to form his armor around his right arm, creating razor sharp claws and leaving the rest of his body exposed. The entity of destruction and chaos readied to tear Sombra’s head off, a host of either Angelus or the Darkness could regenerate their host’s body from almost any severe injury, but if their head was taken off by a supernatural weapon, such as the Spear of Destiny, the Angelus’ power, the Witchblade, or the Darkness himself, then it was game over, and that’s what the Darkness was after. It would mean finding another host and waiting another twenty-one years to reemerge into the world, but it would be worth it, hopefully by then Neighsay would be dead.

Before he could enact his desperate attempt, Magdalena tossed her Spear of Destiny into the air and put her hands into a prayer position. “In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te. In nomine Domini: Adiuro te.” The Spear of Destiny released bolts of lightning that snaked its way towards the Darkness. The lightning twisted around his arms and legs and transformed into construct chains.

“DAMMIT!!! WHAT IS THIS??!!!”

“A spell to keep you bound, and while that holds you, I can finish the job.”

A flash of light went off in Neighsay’s left hand, when it faded, the Siphon of the Angelus was in it. He held the Artifact up and the device immediately opened upon sensing the Darkness. The black essence of the entity within Sombra was quickly being drained by the second, to the police who were holding their protective line, Neighsay could imagine this as being a moment of triumph, and they were partially correct, it was a moment of triumph, for Neighsay anyway. More and more of the Darkness’ essence was being absorbed, the armor flickering into shadows before falling apart.

Deep inside Sombra’s mind, the shackles that the Darkness had placed on him were snapped and he could finally regain control of his body. The blackness in his eyes was gone as his regular eye color returned, finally back in the driver’s seat, Sombra took stock of what was happening and frowned a bit. “I should probably thank you.”

“Oh, and why’s that?”

“‘Cause you just helped me get free of that asshole of a demon,” Sombra answered.

“Huh, well, you’re welcome. Do you wish for me to kill you when this over, you’ll only be put in jail after?”

Sombra looked around at the police and then to Neighsay. “You really goin’ to use the Darkness and Angelus’ powers? For what?”

Neighsay walked closer so that the officers in attendance couldn’t hear what his true plans were until it was too late. “Indeed, I am, I will bring about a world that will be free of sin, will be freed from the idiocy of people not fearing God’s wrath. Well, I will be His instrument, I will manage this living world and He can worry about their souls once they pass! Repent or be judged, those are the only choices I’m afraid.”

“You can’t take people’s right to be assholes away! Even I know you can’t have too much order; you mess things up! Gets borin’ and it gets stale! It won’t work!” Sombra argued.

“Well, with the power to control the night and day, that won’t be a problem. And in a little bit, you’ll see what that’ll look like.”

A sonic boom echoed through the sky, making many of the officers look up, wondering what that was. Neighsay knew what it was, and he cursed inside his mind, figuring out that his Sentinels weren’t able to stop Witchblade. Although, realistically, he doubted that they could, but he had hoped that would stall her long enough to finish the job.

I won’t be stopped like last time; I’ll finish it here and–!

At that moment, a crimson fireball exploded next to Magdalena, throwing her to the ground. The moment that happened, the Spear of Destiny’s construct chains disappeared as the weapon dropped and stuck itself in the sidewalk.

“NEIGHSAY!!!”

The next thing that happened was Neighsay getting punched in the face, the blow sent the Stealer of Light flying into the front doors of city hall and away from Sombra.

Shimmer’s eyes were glowing an intense color of gold, her anger boiling over. She only managed to punch him, but it was extremely satisfying, Shimmer glanced to Sombra who was a little wobbly as he stood, but then she narrowed her gaze.

“Just so you know, I haven’t forgiven you for turning me into your goddamn puppet,” said Shimmer.

Sombra shook his head and grinned a little. “Yeah, in hindsight, that was really shitty, sorry.”

Shimmer raised an eyebrow at that. “Wow, wasn’t expecting an apology from you.”

“Let’s just say I discovered that I might’ve not been in total control of my thought process…” Sombra admitted. “But we can’t let this guy get anymore of the Darkness!”

Shimmer and Sombra watched as Neighsay burst out of the front doors of city hall, the Siphon glowing with eerie black and purple light, showing that it had absorbed a good amount of his power.

“For real though, how much power did he take from you? Can you armor up and everything at least?”

Sombra concentrated, and immediately the Armor of the Darkness appeared over him. “Yep, although, not gonna lie, I’d say I got about twenty percent of my power left over from that.”

Shimmer stared at him with eyes wide with shock. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! SHIT!” Shimmer glanced towards where Magdalena, or rather, Fluttershy, had been thrown from her attack, but now was getting back up. “Double shit…”

Magdalena raised her right hand, the Spear of Destiny shook, lifted into the air, and spun towards the holy assassin and landed perfectly in her hand. The brainwashed warrior walked until she was standing at the foot of the steps to city hall, where Neighsay began to rise into the air. There was no more need to pretend now, that much she could tell.

“It’s not all the Darkness, but considering what I have of the Angelus, it’ll be good enough for now.”

The Siphon opened completely, and the dark power flowed into him. Neighsay roared out as he felt the infusion of light and darkness mix within his body. An orb of black and white wrapped around him, the ground and air shook, it was as if the Earth itself was trembling at what such an unholy union was about to bring forth. The police, who were at first wondering if Witchblade had defected to Sombra’s side, were now thinking she had the right idea about attacking Neighsay. More and more power built up around the orb, which now unleashed bolts of black and white lightning all around the area, burning grooves into the buildings before it and the roads around it. Shimmer had to create a shield with the armor to block most of the indiscriminate bolts, Sombra had to do the same, both wielders of Artifacts standing firm as best as they could. The orb of swirling monochrome stopped releasing lightning and was now an orb of one-half white and another half black. The two halves slowly split apart, revealing the reborn man underneath.

His cardinal cloak was still prominent, now becoming a full cape and hood that draped over his shoulders, fringed with gold trimming and stitched with the gold sigil markings that formed a cross. His face was covered with a white mask, there were swirling, glowing crimson lines were carved into the mask, making it have a look similar to molten lava on the Earth’s crust. Around the eyes were feathery patterns of gold, purple, and red, arranged in such a way that it mimicked stain glass windows. The eyes were no longer crystal, now the sclera were black, with golden eyes that were made of light. Going further down, the armor had changed. The chest plate was primarily black, going down the middle it was bright white with golden edges that separated the black from the white. At the center of the chest was a triangle, the tip had an orb that showed a generic image of a man, to the right orb was a the symbol of the Angelus, and the left orb had the symbol of the Darkness, the lines leading straight to it. Around the waist was a ruby medallion that acted like a belt buckle, around the waist was a golden chain connected to the medallion, which was also black. The boots were white as snow, with gold greaves, around the ankles were two different wing sets. On the right were gold feathered, metal wings, and on the left were bat wings. The armor on his right and left arm were black, with red sigil marks on the sides, the armor around his hands were claw tipped and both colored white, with the knuckles sporting golden studs. The two halves of the sphere finally disappeared and revealed to all his wings, upon his right side, five white wings flared out made of white light, releasing feathers of light as he did so. On the left, were five bat wings made of dark matter, which released shadow embers. Neighsay had become the embodiment of order and chaos, light and darkness, he was beyond a normal human being, he was a demigod.

}}} What madness is this…! {{{

<^> The kind that I don’t like! <^>

}}} Oh, Father, I had hoped at least that much of you was absorbed by the Siphon. {{{

<^> Don’t get uppity with me, Son! Besides, we have more pressing matters to deal with! <^>

Shimmer and Sombra rolled their eyes at their banter, but the Darkness was right, this was a pressing matter. Neighsay placed his hands behind his back and floated towards the two Artifact wielders, it was hard to tell with the mask on, but they were no doubt sure that he had a smug look on his face right now, on top of all that, they were kind of scared right now, although neither one was going to admit it.

“I will give you a choice. Sombra, you can willingly give me the remainder of the Darkness that resides within you, and I’ll let you live, for a time. Witchblade, if you kneel before me, I will make you one of my enforcers, you will have command second only to me.”

“And, let me guess, you’ll kill us both if we refuse?” Shimmer asked.

Neighsay shrugged. “It doesn’t need to end in death, that is up to you.”

Shimmer looked from Neighsay, to Fluttershy for a minute, and then back to Neighsay. “Release her,” Shimmer pointed a clawed finger at Fluttershy, “from your control, and I’ll kneel before you.”

Neighsay raised his right hand, wagged his index finger back and forth and clicked his tongue. “Tsk, tsk, now you know I can’t do that. Having the Magdalena at my side, along with the Spear of Destiny, will ensure my prosperous rule. I’m afraid that’s nonnegotiable.”

Shimmer wasn't sure if they could get away easily, and right now fighting him was probably out of the question. “Got any ideas?”

“Unfortunately…no,” said Sombra.

“Time’s up. Magdalena!”

The holy assassin twirled her spear around and dashed straight for Sombra. The Wielder of the Darkness summoned forth his twin guns and parried the attack with the blades at the bottom of the grips. Magdalena came in for another strike, but Shimmer dashed straight between the two, created a forearm blade, and deflected her friend’s attack. Neighsay sighed heavily and raised his right hand, pointing it right at Shimmer and Sombra as black and white energy swirled into a ball.

“Must I do everything myself?”

Before demigod could attack, a huge fireball roared out from his left and struck him. The ball of burning power carried him all the way into a skyscraper and exploded on impact. Shimmer and Sombra looked to where the attack came from and watched as Dragon Shimmer came flying in, right before she landed, the wielder of the Ember Stone transformed back into her human state, making a three point landing on the sidewalk.

“Sorry, I’m late, those last two were surprisingly slippery to pin down, but I got ‘em!” Sunset stated.

The Magdalena spun her spear and prepared to attack Sunset, but Sombra chuckled as he said, “Right on time.”

Just then, the howl of a wolf echoed through the streets. The searchlights were destroyed one after the other, a pair of red eyes zipped about as it went from one and to another, smashing them, and reducing the amount of light that was bathing the area. The being jumped high and took out the ones that were on the roof, and then threw something at the helicopters overhead, taking out their lights next. That same being jumped off one of the roofs and landed before Sombra and Shimmer. Sunset and Shimmer recognized the creature, one of the Servants of the Darkness that fought in the Precinct 17 Assault, Barbatos. The Servant let the whiptail from his armor shoot out and wrap around Magdalena’s legs, with a swift flick, the tail tossed her in the opposite direction of where Sunset’s fireball had sent Neighsay. She smashed into the side of car and left a body sized dent in it, if it weren’t for the fact that Shimmer knew the Spear of Destiny would heal her friend, she’d have taken Barbatos’ head right then and there. But right now, there was one question that needed answering.

“What the hell?! I-I thought I destroyed you?!” Shimmer exclaimed.

“Oh yeah…no, the Master opened a portal at the last minute and had me drop into it. Good to see you again,”said Barbatos. “I took out the lights like you said, you should be able to open a portal now.”

“Great work, Barb! Kid, other kid, get over here, quick!”

Sunset looked at Sombra incredulously, but a quick glance to Shimmer told her that this was their only chance and that they were now on the same side. When Sunset got close, Sombra and Barbatos looked at her with a bit of annoyance.

“What?”

“Could ya turn down the fire a bit, too much light!”

“Son of a mother…” Sunset mumbled as she willed her flames to dim a little more. “There, good enough?”

“Good enough.” Sombra took a quick, but mournful glance at the body of his second in command, Young Blood was just a kid too, and he was providing for two sisters. Now he was dead, and it was his fault, more specifically, it was the Darkness’ fault. “Sorry…”

“Sombra, let’s go,” said Shimmer.

No sooner had she said that did a pool of shadows open below them. All four occupants suddenly fell into the blackhole, vanishing from the area, and away from Neighsay. In the very back row of the police line, two officers quietly ducked out, knowing – hopefully – exactly where the group was heading.

Neighsay released a burst of energy that blasted a bigger hole than the one he made going in. The demigod floated out of the hole and returned to the spot where he was before being so rudely interrupted. He glanced about the area and his eyes narrowed with annoyance, that was when he noticed the Magdalena limping over to him.

“Can I assume they got away?”

“Sorry, Master Neighsay, a Servant of the Darkness ambushed me and took out the lights, allowing the Darkness to open a shadow portal. Forgive my negligence,” said Magdalena.

Neighsay was wondering how much of that negligence was her lack of training, or if Fluttershy was trying to fight his control in some small ways here and there. He figured it would be a problem, but in the long run, it was better to have the spear fighter with him, more to the point, it was better to have the Spear of Destiny close to him, and not in his enemy’s hands. On that note, there was something he had to take care of.

“Guardians of Canterlot City, enforcers of the law, do not fear me. I am neither the Angelus nor the Darkness, I am a man, a man of the Church who has subdued their power and now wield it as my own. Rejoice, for this is the dawn of the new world, and this city will serve as a shining utopia, a testament of what will be! Now, good men and women, kneel…”

The police that were witnessing this, they knew just by looking at Neighsay that there was no way they could defy him, if they even dared try, they knew that he could destroy them on the spot.

“Please…” Neighsay flared his dual sets of wings and radiated a powerful aura that bathed the area in his ethereal light. “KNEEEEEEEEELLLLLLL!!!!”

Without a way to fight back, and out of fear for what this man could do to the city and the people they loved, the officers were left with no choice, they all kneeled before the demigod that was Neighsay.

The Final Showdown: Part 2

Fair warning. This chapter contains a sex scene. Viewer Discretion Advised.

Celestia paced the floor in the living room, the news was reporting how the city was blacked out, and that there was fighting going on downtown. This, of course, didn’t help her nervousness about what was happening, and it didn’t help that she was in a heightened emotional state thanks to finding out her lover had been murdered. At around the twentieth walk by, Gaghiel, who was laying down, shot straight up to his feet. The Beast of God’s fur stood on end as he growled threateningly.

“What’s wrong, Gaghiel?” Celestia asked.

“I sense the Darkness!”

Right around that time a pool of dark shadows opened a few feet away between the TV and where the couches were. From that black spot, four individuals rose. Celestia readied herself to transform and fight, but paused when she saw both Sunsets emerge, along with Sombra, and Barbatos. When they fully emerged, Sombra hunched over and placed his hands on his knees, panting with exhaustion. Both Sunset’s shook as they hugged their bodies after coming out of the dark space.

“Yeah, never do that again,” said Shimmer.

“That place was too creepy, ugh, makes my skin crawl,” said Sunset.

“Heh, well, it was either that or we all die at the hands of a psychopath,” Sombra countered.

The Sunsets glanced at each other and then said in unison, “Good point.”

“SUNSET!”

The girls in question looked at each other and then back to Celestia in confusion. “Uh, which one?” they asked.

“BOTH OF YOU!” Celestia rushed towards them, Sunset dimmed her flames so that they wouldn’t hurt Celestia, and Shimmer had the armor smooth itself so that it wouldn’t stab. That’s when Celestia wrapped her arms around both of the girls, holding them tight as she cried happily. “I’m so happy you’re both alive, so, so happy…!” Celestia cried as she held them both in her arms, she didn’t want to let them go, for fear that in doing so they would disappear, and after losing her love, no one could blame her.

Shimmer felt her heartache, she cried as well and hugged Celestia back, knowing that she was hurting because of Maria’s death, and wanted to comfort her as much as possible. For Sunset, it was shocking. No one had hugged her like this since…since her mother died. It was strange, she didn’t know Celestia as well as her twin did, but she couldn’t help but feel Celestia’s motherly aura washing over her, reminding her so much of her late mother. Sunset couldn’t help it, she cried as well and hugged Celestia back.

Sombra dismissed his Darkness Armor and rubbed the back of his head as he watched the emotional exchange between the women. Barbatos just watched with indifference, but then he glanced over to Gaghiel who was already in an attack stance. The bestial Servant raised his right hand and said, “Hi.”

“Creature of the Darkness, you do not have the right to greet me!”

That snapped Celestia out of the moment as her eyes glanced upwards and spotted Sombra, who smiled awkwardly. Relief and happiness were replaced with anger and rage as Celestia released her surrogate daughters, pushed between them, and punched Sombra right in the face, sending the gangster straight to the floor.

“YOU BASTARD!” Celestia shouted.

Sombra rubbed his jaw as he stood back up. “Yeah, yeah, I deserve that. Damn, you got a hell of a right hook Miss.”

“How dare you, I–!”

“Celestia!” Shimmer put herself between Sombra and her surrogate mother. “Don’t, he’s on our side!” Her eyes shifted to the gangster. “As hard as it is to believe, apparently not all of his actions were his own. But he’s the same as you now, drained of most of his power.”

Celestia’s rage quelled little by little, she took a few deep breaths and finally settled down. “Is that true?”

“I’ll give you the full details about how I was a puppet later, but bad news right now is that Neighsay’s got the Darkness’ power, and he’s combined it with the Angelus.” Sombra looked to Shimmer and asked, “On a scale of one to ten, how fucked are we?”

“Good question,” said Sunset as she looked at the ruby gemstone. “Well, how fucked are we?”

}}} …Unfortunately, it’s grim. This is the first time, aside from my birth, that the powers of my Mother and Father have been combined in such a way. I had assumed that the combining of those powers in a single body would kill a mortal being. But perhaps the Siphon and the Prism are compensating. {{{

\\/// It would make sense, those two Artifacts were created to hold our powers, but just letting the power flow through him, instead of remaining inside him, is probably what’s saving his body and soul from being torn apart. \\///

<^> More importantly, what are we to do now?! There’s no way we can hide in this hovel forever! Eventually, that mortal will forget about subtly soon enough and just start tearing the city apart looking for us. <^>

“Hey y’all!” Everyone turned towards the stairs where they saw Meadowbrook coming down them. “I think I might’ve found a way to break Neighsay’s control over – Oh merciful Lord in heaven!” Meadowbrook exclaimed as she jumped and pressed herself against the wall upon seeing Sombra and Barbatos.

Sunset dismissed her fire form and hurriedly said, “It’s alright! He’s…ugh, we’re all on the same side now.”

Meadowbrook looked between both groups and deadpanned. “Let me guess, Neighsay got the Darkness?”

“Not all of it,” said Sombra.

“Well, thank God for small favors.”

Shimmer ran her hand through her hair as she sighed heavily. “Look, we’re all drained, physically and emotionally, so why don’t we all just get some rest while we can, ‘cause I don’t think any of us are in the mood for a debrief right now.”

“I think that’s a good idea,” said Celestia. “Gaghiel, why don’t you keep watch.”

“Good idea, hey Barb, you too. Keep watch tonight,” said Sombra.

“Okay.”

“Out of the question!” Gaghiel protested. “I will not work with a creature spawned from the Darkness!”

}}} You seem to tolerate my presence. {{{

The Beast of God snorted and stated, “You are born of my Mistress, and that is the only reason I do ‘tolerate’ your presence, Witchblade. However, that creature is another matter!”

Celestia shook her head in frustration and then glared at the liger. “Gaghiel, we’re all in this mess together! We need all the help we can get; I don’t like working with this man either, but if it ensures that Neighsay doesn’t get the drop on us, then so be it!”

Gaghiel flinched at the sternness in Celestia’s voice, and like a child having been denied permission from one parent, he sought it from another. “Mistress, surely you cannot condone–”

\\/// There isn’t a thing about this ENTIRE situation that I condone! However, Celestia is right, if we are to survive this ordeal, we must ally ourselves with the Darkness and his Servant. I order you to work with the Servant to watch over us all during the night. Understood? \\///

<^> That goes for you as well, Barbatos. Our forces are low as it is, do not kill the Sentinel. <^>

Barbatos shrugged. “I wasn’t planning on it, but okay, I won’t.”

“Good, that’s settled.” Celestia took hold of her two “daughters” and began leading them upstairs. “We’re sleeping in the same room tonight; I don’t want to hear any arguments.”

“Uh…yes ma’am?” they answered.

“And you,” Celestia eyed Sombra with slit eyes. “We’ll take you to a guest room, but if I catch you anywhere near our room, I’ll kill you.”

Sombra raised his hands and chuckled a little. “Relax, I’m a lot of things, but I ain’t no rapist. I give you my word, I will not approach your room. Unless somethin’ happens.”

Celestia scoffed. “The word of a gangster, I’m honored.”

“You should be, a King’s word is as good as gold, I keep my word, Miss.”

Strangely, Celestia believed him, there was something about his demeanor and eyes that spoke sincerity, but that still didn’t mean she would let her guard down. “Fine, let’s all head up. And that goes double for Sister Meadowbrook.”

“Of course, I won’t come near anyone’s room.”

Gaghiel and Barbatos watched as their respective masters, along with the twin girls and Sister, walked up the stairs to rest in their rooms. Barbatos and Gaghiel looked at each other, the Beast of God glared at the wolf-like demon creature, the latter still wearing that look of indifference.

“I’m Barbatos, hi.”

“……Gaghiel.”

Canterlot City woke up to a whole new way of life that day. Before Shimmer went to bed, she sent a mass text to each of her friends, explaining what had happened that night, and what was possibly going to happen when the morning came. And just as predicted, Neighsay didn’t waste time in getting things rolling with his new “utopia”. For one thing, everything from the city to its outskirts were completely closed off by a large forcefield. There were entry points that were guarded by a new breed, neither Sentinel nor Servant, they were dark angels, loyal only to Neighsay, they were the Sworn.

Many activities were cancelled, and people stayed in their homes, for the most part anyway. Occasionally one would see a Sworn flying overhead, patrolling the skies, keeping an eye on the public, and more importantly, scouting for the hosts of the Angelus and the Darkness. One such resident was about to take off into that mess, Rainbow Dash, she agreed that they all needed to meet up and talk about what needs to be done, but her parents were kind of against it. Rainbow was in the middle of changing out of her nightwear when her phone went off.

Rainbow went to her dresser and checked the caller ID; it was a number she didn’t recognize. The phone kept ringing, so in the end, Rainbow relented and answered. “Hello?”

{Hey, Rainbow Dash, what’s up?}

The prismatic haired girl instantly made a face of disgust and annoyance, she knew that voice. That annoying, overconfident, wannabe playboy voice, it could only be one person. “Zephyr…Breeze. How the hell did you get my phone number?”

Zephyr scoffed. {Oh, Rainbow, I got my ways.}

“Zephyr, how?” Rainbow asked in a stern tone.

{Okay, okay, I…I may’ve scoped out Big Sis putting in your cell number into her phone and put it into my phone.}

“I’m hanging up now.”

{Wait – Wait, Dash, I swear I didn’t call to hit on you!}

Rainbow held the phone away from her ear for a few seconds, weighed her options, and then sighed as she put the phone back to her ear. “What is it then?”

{Look…I wanted to ask if you knew anything about Big Sis? She hasn’t texted or called…Mom and Dad are worried, but not as much since, apparently, she’s with the folks at the church. But with all this mess goin’ on, we haven’t been able to see her. And each time they call, we just get his ‘assurance’ that Sis is alright. I’m sorry, but I personally think they're full of shit!}

You don’t know the half of it, thought Rainbow. “No, Zeph, she hasn’t called me either, any of the girls. I’m sure she’s alright, Fluttershy can be timid, but I’m sure you know that when push comes to shove, she’ll do what she has to.”

{……Y-Yeah, I know…I see it, a lot, at home. She doesn’t let me get away with any guff. She can be shy and timid outside of the house, but when it comes to me, she goes into full “Big Sister Mode” and lays down the law on my ass…heh…I never thought I’d miss that. I’m just worried is all…I love my Big Sis, Rainbow. I know she can be tough when she needs to, but…I still worry about her…she’s so kind and trustin’, I can’t help but think that someone’s gonna take advantage of her one day! And now she’s been gone for, like, days! I…I just miss her…}

Rainbow Dash had to bite her lip, she was honestly surprised, she had never thought Zephyr could sound so sincere and caring. The guy was always a tool, and his constant attempts to date Rainbow had gotten on her nerves. Still, beneath all that, he was a caring guy, but then again, she’d be the same way if it was Scootaloo. Part of her wanted to tell Zephyr the truth of what was happening to his big sister, but if he was worried right now, then knowing that she was a brainwashed assassin for the megalomaniac that was currently controlling the city would just be worse.

“Look, Zeph, I promise Fluttershy will be back soon.”

{Do you know somethin’?}

“I can’t get into any specifics right now, but I want you to know that the girls and I are working on helping her with something. It’s magic related, so just keep it to yourself and trust us,” said Rainbow.

There was a pause on the other end of the phone for about a minute, Rainbow thought that Zephyr may’ve hung up, but then she heard a sigh on the other end. {Only ‘cause it’s you, Rainbow, and ‘cause I know you and Big Sis are best friends. I’ll trust you.}

“Thanks, Zeph. Look, I gotta go, if I hear anything, I’ll let you know.”

{Cool………So, what’re ya wearin’?}

*Beep*

“Yep, didn’t take that long for him to switch back into that.” Rainbow pinched the bridge of her nose as she shook her head. “Maybe I should just finally tell ‘em I’m gay and that he has a snowball’s chance in hell of going out with me.” Rainbow looked outside her window, spotting a few of the Sworn flying by. “And if we don’t find a way to take down Neighsay, hell is what he’s going to turn this place into.”

Shimmer Manor had become an impromptu headquarters of the small resistance group, or what could be called a “resistance”. In truth it was a gathering of eight teenagers, four adults, one Sentinel, and one Servant. Twilight had asked to be a part of the meeting, her parents weren’t exactly thrilled with her leaving the house with the situation as it was, but with Shining Armor and Sunset assuring that she would be safe with them, they were alright with it.

The tension in the room was palpable, the girls were eyeing Sombra like they wanted to kill him, considering what he had done to Sunset and the hell he had brought onto Canterlot, it was understandable. Celestia didn’t bother to look at him, her anger was well known, and she didn’t need to waste the energy giving him a dirty look. Shining Armor and Spearhead’s fingers were practically twitching, waiting, and wanting some excuse to shoot the man before them, the one responsible for so many of their police brethren getting killed over the past few weeks.

Twilight was, noticeably, afraid, before recently, things like angels and demons, magic, symbiotic armor and the like, were all the stuff of anime, sci-fi, and fairy tales. Now they were all assembled in the same room, she was living one of those anime/comic book stories, and she had a super powered girlfriend to go with everything else.

Meadowbrook had her own reservations when it came to Sombra and the Darkness, but right now, they needed to work together to stop the real threat that was Neighsay. “Okay, so, why don’t we just air our grievances and get that out of the way?”

Spearhead shot up from the couch, prompting Barbatos to flinch in preparation to attack. “Yeah, I got some grievances, that bastard and his crew killed at least a hundred plus good cops! Some of them friends of mine! Not to mention all the innocent people that got caught in the crossfire!”

Rainbow Dash stood up next and said, “Also, you stabbed our Principal, and made our friend into your personal puppet assassin!”

Sombra crossed his arms as he heard their words, he then looked to both of them and said, “Look, I know I fucked up, a lot. Part of that has to do with the Darkness, it was messing with my head, making me think what I was doing was what I wanted to do, but it wasn’t. I’m not making any excuses; in the end it was still me doin’ that shit. However, that demon can kiss my ass after the hell it put me through, too.”

<^> Fuck you, Sombra. <^>

Same to you, thought Sombra.

Spearhead sat back down and huffed in agitation, Rainbow Dash did the same, although she kind of had a little more sympathy for the man now that she heard that. It reminded her a lot of what happened to Lightning Dust when she was possessed by the Wendigo.

“Well, now that that is out of the way, let’s start with the good news. I’ve found a way to get Fluttershy back,” said Meadowbrook.

“Really?!” Pinkie Pie asked.

“Yep, seems Neighsay had a command not only to bring her under his control, but to also snap her out of it.”

Rarity raised an eyebrow and asked, “Pardon, but that seems a bit counterproductive. Why make it so that your own command can be undone?”

“Usually subliminal programming like this needs both an ‘on’ and ‘off’ switch,” Meadowbrook made air quotes as she said this, “Thankfully, after sifting through all Neighsay’s files, I found the right command.”

Shimmer thought about what she said for a moment, especially since Meadowbrook said the words “good news”. “Wait a second, you said ‘good news’, that usually precedes bad news. Is there?”

Meadowbrook tensed; this was the part she was dreading to bring up. “Yeah…there is…you see, Neighsay has to be the one to say the command…if any one of us says it, it won’t work…”

And just like that, their little hope to get their friend back was taken down a few notches. There was no way in hell that Neighsay was going to say the words that would snap Fluttershy out of her trance. Twilight looked around the room and saw the low spirits of the girls, she wasn’t sure if it was her place to talk, but she had an idea and thought she should voice it, if for nothing else than to offer an option.

Twilight raised her hand up as if she was in class, “Um…excuse me, but…I…I think I might have a way to help.”

“Really?!” Applejack asked.

“We just need Neighsay’s voice to say the words needed, not Neighsay specifically, correct?” Meadowbrook nodded in confirmation. “Then I might be able to create a mockup of Neighsay’s voice. I just need a voice sample of his to work with and I can string the words together.”

Sunset smiled and gave her girlfriend a one-armed hug and kissed her on the cheek. “That’s my Sparky!”

Twilight blushed from the kiss but found that she was getting more comfortable with displaying affection in front of people. The rest of the girls found it adorable, and Shining Armor was still trying to get used to seeing his little sister in a relationship, but it was still good to see her happy.

“Well that takes care of one problem, she’s pretty badass so having her on our side will give us one more weapon in our arsenal,” said Sombra.

Meadowbrook gave a sideways glance, “She ain’t no weapon, she’s a person, understand?”

Sombra raised his hands in a motion of surrender. “I didn’t say she was, just sayin’, the Darkness was freakin’ out about that Spear of Destiny of hers.”

Celestia nodded in agreement. “Even Angelus is afraid of the Spear of Destiny, so that much we can agree on. However, the real question is, how do you defeat Neighsay?”

That was the question of the day, even if they got Fluttershy back to normal, they still had the obstacle of fighting him directly. With his new Sworn, there was no way they were going to get close to Neighsay. And with the powers of Angelus and the Darkness, Neighsay was strong no matter what time of day it was. Shimmer crossed her arms as she thought about how best to go about this, the city was closed off, so there was no way they could sneak out Sombra or Celestia, that’s the only reason why Neighsay did it, and the only reason why he wasn’t rushing, he had the city under his control so it was only a matter of time.

Celestia had an idea, one that she didn’t like, but neither did Angelus. “The only real threats to Neighsay right now are Shimmer and Sunset…and if we can get her back, Fluttershy. And we know that he wants me and Sombra, so…I say we do just that.”

Everyone looked at Celestia as if she had gone mad.

“Uh, Principal Celestia, far be it from me to question my elders, but…THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT WE DON’T WANT YA TO DO!” Applejack exclaimed. “Neighsay wants what’s left of Angelus and the Darkness!”

Sombra nodded carefully, understanding what Celestia meant. “No, I get what she’s sayin’. Miss Celestia and I make a ruckus somewhere in the city, and while Neighsay’s got all his little minions coming after us, the twins take him on.”

Rarity looked to their school principal and asked, “Principal Celestia, that can’t be what you mean?”

Celestia sighed heavily, which was all the confirmation that was needed. Sunset placed her hand on her surrogate mother’s shoulder, knowing how hard the decision was for her to make. “It’s fine, Sunset and I are the only ones who have a chance of beating Neighsay, and when Twilight’s plan works, we’ll have Fluttershy back on our side and definitely take him down.”

“But what would be the best time to do it? I mean…not for nothin’, but Sombra, you’re pretty much useless during the day. And the way I understand it,” Shining Armor turned his attention to Celestia, “Angelus isn’t as strong during the night either.”

Pinkie’s head poked up as she said, “Oh, there might! There’s going to be a solar eclipse tomorrow! I know because I was going to hold an Eclipse Party!”

<^> That might actually work, in the twilight of the eclipse, our powers will be about even. <^>

\\/// Yes, not even Neighsay will be unaffected by the eclipse. The only time when night and day are one and the same. \\///

}}} Well that’s good, but for how long? Eclipses don’t last. {{{

“Witchblade just brought up a good point, does anyone know how long it’ll be like that?” Shimmer asked.

Twilight brought out her cellphone and typed in a search for the solar eclipse over Canterlot City. Thankfully, Twilight knew where to look since she had planned on observing it herself before all this chaos was brought forth. “Okay…according to NASA, the solar eclipse will reach its apex at twelve noon tomorrow, local time. And according to this information, we’ll be able to see the total eclipse of the sun, and…oh my…It’s going to last for almost one whole hour.”

A heavy mood fell upon the room, the date and time were set, the fate of the world would be decided tomorrow at noon, and they only had one hour to defeat Neighsay while Sombra and Celestia battle it out against a swarm of Sworn to get Neighsay alone, and on top of all that, they needed to break Neighsay’s control over Fluttershy’s mind.

Spearhead ran his right hand through his hair as he tried to wrap his head around all this craziness. “We have a high noon showdown tomorrow…this is…this is just insanity; I feel like I’m in one of Shining’s anime shows!”

“Welcome to our world,” the Sunsets and the Canterlot High Five said in unison.

“Well, I guess the first thing that needs to get done is the voice print mockup,” said Twilight.

“The computers in my lab have everything we need for that, so help yourself to whatever,” said Sunset.

Shimmer stood up and looked at everyone in the room. “Well, everyone, go and relax and get ready, because tomorrow determines the fate of the world.”

Canterlot Juvenile Detention Center, Site Z. The world was mostly going to hell, and with that in mind, Rainbow Dash went to this place first after leaving Shimmer Manor. The facility was minimum security, mostly non-violent offenders, and it was here that someone in particular was incarcerated. Rainbow went through her usual routine upon entering the facility, she greeted the guards and they greeted her back, she checked in with the receptionist’s desk and was told to wait while they moved the person she came to visit to the visitor’s room. It was about a five-minute wait before Rainbow was told by the guard to come with him. A short walk later, the guard brought her to the visitor’s room.

“How’s she been doin’?” Rainbow asked.

The guard made a wavy hand motion, Rainbow grimaced a little, she figured this most recent development would make her worry. The guard opened the door and Rainbow smiled, sitting at the bolted down metal table was Lightning Dust, she was wearing an orange jumpsuit, the top half was hanging around her waist while she wore a white t-shirt. The moment Lightning saw Rainbow her face lit up, and so did Rainbow’s. The guards left the room, standard protocol said to have one in the room, but Lightning Dust had been given leeway for good behavior. It wasn’t like she was looking to get in anymore trouble or give anyone a reason to think that she may still be possessed by a demon.

Both girls sat at the middle table and smiled at each other, it was always an awkward meeting with these two. Despite having acknowledged that they had feelings for each other, they were still trying to figure each other out.

“Hey, Dusty,” said Rainbow.

“Hey, Dashie,” said Lightning.

“How are things in here?”

Lightning ran her hand through her spikey hair and sighed, “Well, probably just what you’d think it would be with everything that’s going on. Angels and demons, and now some nutjob’s got the power of both and is holding the whole city hostage. It’s got a lot of the girls in here on edge, wondering if this is judgement day. Heh, if it was, I know where I’m going…”

“Hey!” Rainbow spoke sternly as she wrapped her right hand around Lightning’s left. “Don’t talk like that, you’ve done some stupid stuff, but you’re not a bad person.”

Lightning chuckled. “The whole ‘getting possessed by a demon’ thing kind of says otherwise.”

“Dust, don’t, most of that was your dad, he messed you up, but he has no control over you anymore. And that demon only took control of you because of what he put you through, it made you vulnerable to that monster.” Rainbow remembered when they got the news from Lightning’s court appointed lawyer, after what Lightning told the police, Wind Rider was charged with abuse and assault, and lost any and all of his rights as a parent to Lightning Dust, it helped that she was eighteen already so there was no emancipation paperwork to deal with. “So, don’t think about it.”

“Y’know, some of the girls who found out about what happened to me come and ask me if I can swing them so favors in hell,” said Lightning.

“Bitches…you didn’t kick their asses, did you?” Rainbow asked.

“Nope, I wanted to, but I didn’t.” Lightning squeezed Rainbow’s hand as she looked into her eyes. “Cap, listen, I know I sound like a broken record by now…but, this time, I mean it. Please, just find someone else.”

Rainbow dragged her left hand down her face as she groaned in annoyance. “Oh, jeez, not this again Dust!”

“I’m serious!” Lightning narrowed her gaze, giving Rainbow as serious a look as she could muster. “It makes no sense for you to be waiting for me! You could’ve already had another girlfriend by now! Fuck, I mean, you could be with Cloud Kicker or something!”

Rainbow snickered at the mention of her teammate and friend’s name. “Actually, we’ve kinda become friends with benefits.”

Normally, if any other girlfriend would yell and call their partner unfaithful for admitting to something like that. However, Lightning Dust just smirked and nodded. “Good, see, that’s what I’m talking about! I always thought Cloud swung that way, is she good?”

“Heh, if you’re trying to ask if she’s better than you…well…we were interrupted our first time, right?” Rainbow blushed at the memory. “So, I’m not going to say that she’s better or worse, I don’t have much to compare to. But something tells me that you’d probably blow her out of the water. On that note, stop asking me to, I’m not going to change my mind. When the day comes that you get out of here, I’ll be waiting for you, not just as your friend, but your girlfriend.” Rainbow leaned forward and kissed Lightning on the forehead, catching her off guard. “I’m loyal to those who are my friends, and even more loyal to my girlfriend, that won’t change even if the world’s ending!”

Tears began to well up in Lightning’s eyes, the droplets made little splattering sounds as they hit the metal surface with each fall. After everything that has happened in her life, Lightning had resigned to the idea that when she got out, there would be nothing left for her to return to. Despite the numerous times that Rainbow visited her, no matter how many times Rainbow said she would wait, Lightning didn’t want to be someone that tied Rainbow down, or hold out hope that the girl she had a crush on was going to still be with her.

“Rainbow…” Lightning whimpered.

The Canterlot High sports star stood up and walked around the table to stand beside Lightning, she then brought her girlfriend into a hug, letting Lightning cry against her stomach. “I’ll never abandon you, Dusty, never.”

“Thank you, Dashie…”

Sunset (human) walked through the halls of her house, her mind was firing off as she started to think of the numerous things that could go wrong when tomorrow came, but all in all, she was just mainly focusing on keeping her newly obtained sibling safe from Neighsay during the battle to come. Sunset stopped and leaned against the wall, she took out her cellphone from her pants pocket and flipped through some folders. After a few seconds, she found what she was looking for. It was a picture of Sunset, along with her mother and father. Sunset was a bit younger, about thirteen, when it was taken.

She was beaming happily, nestled between her parents. Her father, a tall, stoic man, he never smiled when he was conducting business or in the office, but at home, or on vacation, he always smiled, especially in front of his wife and daughter. Not many got to see that gentle side of him, and many accused him of being a hard-ass at home as well as work, but Sunset knew the truth, he was a good man with a good heart, full of love for his family. And despite his hard exterior at work, he never left anyone hanging.

Her mother was kind of a goofball, as seen in the photo making rabbit ears behind Sunset’s head. In some ways, she was a mixture of Pinkie and Miss Celestia, joyous and motherly, excitable but sensible when needed. A refined woman she could be when at social events or working on her different charity organizations, but she knew when to have fun and play hard. Sometimes Sunset wondered if it was her mother who made her father the way he was, because according to her relatives, the ones she bothered to keep in touch with, he was a mostly serious guy until he met her mother, and that seriousness seemed to lessen when Sunset was born.

As I recall, they said Dad didn’t want me to think my Daddy was a scary man, Sunset thought as she chuckled.

Never in a million years would she ever think that of her father, sure, she wasn’t always the perfect child. They got into fights here and there, what parent and child didn't, and yes she’d seen his angry face before when she did something wrong and he was disciplining her, but at the end of the day, they loved each other. Thankfully, between her mother and father, they made sure that Sunset didn’t grow up to be some affluent, snobby, “the world exists for me” kind of rich kid, they made sure to beat that out of her little head from day one. Were they rich? Oh yes, obscenely so, but that didn’t mean they had to lord it over everyone and be assholes about it.

Sunset returned to the home screen and put her cellphone away, she wished they were alive right now, because she could really use a hug from them, considering what awaited her and her newly obtained big sister. The thought of Shimmer made her smile more, she loved her dimensional double more than she thought she would. At first she was afraid that Shimmer was going to try and take over her life, or that she was someone who got really expensive plastic surgery in order to get at her money or something, but a pony turned human from a parallel dimension, that was not on her list at all.

Still, after talking to her, she found that she liked her. And no, it wasn’t for anything shallow like the fact that they looked and sounded the same, it was deeper. Sunset wished that she had another sibling, she even asked her parents if they could give her a little brother or sister, but as much as they probably did want to, they said that they wanted to focus on Sunset and were afraid that with their lives the way they were, that they’d end up not giving as much attention to either or too much to one and not other. Which was fair, Sunset admitted, they were busy people, with organizations to run, and they went out of their way to make time for Sunset, even when it was inconvenient for business, she couldn’t ask them to sacrifice more than they had already.

Even so, having Shimmer around made her feel, strangely, whole, to a degree. And now, after having Miss Celestia around, Sunset realized just how much she missed having someone motherly in her life. Sunset blinked and surprised herself when she felt a tear slide down her cheek, she wiped it away and then wiped her eyes, she didn’t want to look sad where she was going.

Sunset walked further down the hallway to her laboratory doors, when she opened them, she found what she expected, Twilight hunched over a work desk, vigorously typing away as she blazed through different programs and worked on the project that would save someone’s life and grant them an edge. Sunset walked inside and said, “Hey, Sparky.”

There was no response.

“Sparky?” Sunset asked a little louder.

And again, no response.

Sunset rolled her eyes, figuring that Twilight was in the zone right about now. The rich girl walked up behind her girlfriend, leaned down a bit so that her head was level with Twilight’s, and then positioned herself right behind Twilight’s left ear. With a bit of mischievousness, Sunset blew on Twilight’s ear, the reaction was instantaneous as Twilight yelped and jumped up in her seat as she whirled around and glared at a snickering Sunset.

“Sunset!” Twilight whined.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, but it was too good an opportunity to pass up,” apologized Sunset.

Twilight pouted and then turned around to go back to work. Sunset approached her and draped her arms over Twilight’s shoulders, leaning down to rest her chin on Twilight’s head. “Ah c’mon, Sparky, don’t be mad, it was just a little joke.”

“Humph!” Twilight replied.

“Please, I said I was sorry?”

Twilight huffed again.

Sunset sighed and brought her hands up until they rested on Twilight’s shoulders, with graceful dexterity, Sunset began to massage Twilight’s shoulders. Her ministrations already had an effect on the young genius as she moaned in delight.

“Wow, Sparky, you’re really stiff, no joke,” said Sunset with concern.

“Can you blame me? The fate of the world is going to be decided tomorrow, and my girlfriend and new and – possibly only – friends are going to fight against a man with a religious complex and enough power to wipe the city off the map and then some. And if I don’t get this right, one of those new friends could end up killing my girlfriend, or my girlfriend’s newly obtained sister. Not to mention, that same person, if she’s aware, will be trapped inside her mind with the knowledge that she killed those who she held dear to her. So, yeah, my shoulders are stiff, I’m worried!” Twilight explained.

Sunset frowned, she knew Twilight was worried, but she didn’t think she was feeling pressured. “Twilight, you didn’t have to say that you would make the fake voice thing, no one expected you to do it.”

“Well, I wanted to. I’m tired of not contributing. You have the Ember Stone, Shimmer has the Witchblade, and those girls have some kind of magical power inside them. What do I have? I’m a genius, but how much does that help when you’re fighting against magic and monsters? Logic seems to just vanish in the face of such things!” Twilight stopped her typing, leaning back so that she could look up at Sunset. “I saw a chance to help, because this seemed like the one thing where my abilities as a scientist could benefit those I care about and come to care about. Those girls accepted me, not just because I look like someone they know, Pinkie accepted me even though I’m different from this ‘other Twilight’. They’re people I can truly call my first real friends.”

“Oh, ouch, just gloss over the fact that we started off as friends why don’t ya,” said Sunset in mock hurt.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “You became my girlfriend, there’s a difference. But that’s how I feel, and I just don’t want to let them down. That’s why I have to do all I can to make sure that we can get Fluttershy back, I won’t lose a new friend so soon after obtaining them. Plus, it’ll improve your odds against Neighsay, I hope.”

“You and me both.”

Twilight placed her right hand on top of Sunset’s left, making her stop the massage for a moment. “Promise me…Promise me you’ll come back…I can’t lose you…”

Sunset kissed the top of Twilight’s forehead and hugged her from behind. “You won’t lose me; I won’t just come back. We’ll come back with a win, count on it.

Sunset (pony) lied down in one of the guest rooms, staring straight up at the ceiling as she thought about all that had happened to her in the past few months, and in general, looking back on her life. Growing up as a filly, in a family that had little to their name. Becoming the protégé of Princess Celestia and gaining a second mother, while also losing her own parents to the high life of mooching off her success as a mage. The petty, arrogant, and prideful mare she became, spurning the teachings and breaking the heart of the one pony in Canterlot who gave a damn about her. Her tyrannical reign over Canterlot High, her verbal, and, sometimes, if necessary, physical abuse of the students.

Her reckoning at the hands of Princess Twilight, and gaining friends, real friends for the first time in her life. Defeating the Sirens and feeling like she finally belonged in this world, and with her friends. The heartbreak of the Anon-A-Miss incident, her gaining the Witchblade, all of it was something that Sunset never thought possible. When she was a filly, she wanted to help her family and become a great mage. When she became Princess Celestia’s personal student, her ambition shifted to becoming somepony worthy of such a title, and to never embarrass the Princess. When she became the best mage in Canterlot and learned of the return of Nightmare Moon, she wanted to become an alicorn, believing that together they would repel the evil Mare in the Moon as mother and daughter.

But if you told filly Sunset that she was going to go to a world filled with hairless apes and wield an ancient, powerful weapon that made you wear armor that was basically a skimpy metal bikini, she’d have called you insane and had the Royal Guard send her to the loony bin.

“I never thought I’d be embroiled in this many world saving things…”

}}} There is a reason why I chose you, Sunset. You have a great destiny about you, and your heart has balance. {{{

“Now, maybe, you probably wouldn’t say that of me back before I got rainbow laser blasted in the face,” said Sunset.

}}} From what I’ve seen of your memories, you’re probably right. But the point is, fate has brought us together. Do not fear our coming battle, I will shield you with everything I’ve got. {{{

“Thank you, partner.” A knock came from the door, prompting Sunset to turn her head towards it. “It’s open.”

The door slowly creaked open, and from the other side Pinkie emerged. The party girl was fidgeting slightly, her cheeks rosy red, as if she was embarrassed. “H-Hey, Sunny, can I come in?”

Sunset smiled. “Sure.”

Pinkie entered the room and closed the door behind her, there was a subtle clicking sound behind her that came after the door was fully closed. “Big day tomorrow, huh?”

Sunset breathed out heavily as she placed her hands behind her head. “That’s an understatement. But, yeah, it is.”

“Are you nervous?”

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t. Compared to fighting those three Wendigos, this is probably going to be the most dangerous fight of my life…”

“I figured…so…”

Sunset raised an eyebrow and slowly turned her head towards her left, “So wha – holy shit…”

Pinkie slid down her pink, fluffy skirt until it pooled at her ankles. After stepping out of it, she immediately pulled off her white tank top and threw it to the floor to join the other article of clothing. Sunset was stunned at what she was seeing right now, her body unable to voice the questions her mind was frantically asking. It seemed that Pinkie Pie wasn’t done, she reached behind her back, and, after a couple of seconds of fumbling, she managed to unhook her bra, allowing her generous endowments to bounce free from their confinement. Pinkie didn’t cover herself, although her arms were fidgeting as if she wanted to, but still, she kept going. She deliberately turned around so that her back was facing Sunset, afterwards Pinkie hooked her thumbs into the waistband of her panties and pulled them down as she bent over.

Sunset felt her throat go dry as she was given an unabashed view of her girlfriend’s shapely rear and womanhood, a sight that was eliciting a response from her own. When Pinkie’s panties were all the way down, she kicked them off to join the other pieces of clothing. Now the only thing that Pinkie had on was a pair of white stockings that ran up her legs and hugged around her thighs, she turned around and covered her impressive bust with both arms as she smiled nervously at Sunset.

“H-How do I look?” Pinkie asked.

Pinkie Pie was curvy, her hips were wide, she had just a bit of pudge going on, compared to the rest of their friends, Pinkie didn’t think she was the sexiest of their group. If she had to pick, that would go to Rarity, Fluttershy, and Sunset, not that Applejack and Rainbow weren’t hot themselves, but Rarity was seductress sexy, Fluttershy was innocent sexy, and Sunset was bad girl sexy. She had joked about herself, saying she had some “cushion for pushin’”, but she never thought that someone might want to be with her, intimately, because she wasn’t a bombshell like her friends. But right now, the only opinion that mattered to her was Sunset’s.

“You…Y-You’re,” Sunset gulped, “r-really hot…”

Pinkie giggled a little as her eyes darted from the floor and to Sunset. “O-O-Oh, good, I didn’t know if you wanted me to keep the socks on, I know some guys get off on girls having them on when their doing it, like in some of those hentais, but I didn’t know if that’s something that…ahem…gets you off.”

Sunset gulped again, “I-I don’t really have a preference, but…w-what are you doing?”

Pinkie Pie slowly approached Sunset, standing about a foot away from the edge of it when she stopped. “I…I just thought that maybe…maybe now was the time for the two of us to…y’know…?”

Hearing that sobered Sunset enough to swing her legs over the edge and get into a seated position. “Pinkie, please tell me you’re not forcing yourself to have sex with me because you’re afraid I’m not coming back tomorrow. Because if it is, and if you still want to do it, then we’ll do it after the world is saved.”

Pinkie shook her head vehemently. “NO! That’s not it! Maybe a little, but that’s not why!” Pinkie removed her arms from her chest and walked the rest of the way towards Sunset. The pink party girl carefully straddled Sunset, setting gently on her lap as the fiery haired girl watched Pinkie drape her arms over the shoulders of the girl before her.

“I want to have sex with you because I’m ready. I know you’re going to win, that’s obvious. And when you do, we’re going to have crazy hot victory sex to celebrate!”

Sunset couldn’t help but chuckle.

“But I want to have this moment with you, while the craziness outside is calm, and you don’t have anywhere to be until tomorrow. I want to make love with you, Sunset Shimmer, my girlfriend, my best friend…Please?”

Sunset smiled as she understood what Pinkie was saying. This wasn’t a “last night of love” kind of thing, this was more like a “you have this waiting for you when you get back” kind of thing. And honestly, Sunset wasn’t sure how much longer she could keep herself from ravaging Pinkie, not after everything she just saw, and definitely not while Pinkie was sitting on her lap naked. The former bully smirked as she gently placed her hands on the smooth skin of Pinkie’s back, she let her hands slide down the curve until they rested on Pinkie’s butt. Sunset gave them a firm squeeze, making Pinkie release a cute squeak of surprise.

“I get it, I understand. Just one thing though.” In a surprising display of strength and swiftness, Pinkie Pie suddenly found herself flipped around, instead of straddling Sunset, she was now on her back, with Sunset lying on top of her. “Who said we only had to have crazy hot sex after the victory?”

Sunset locked her lips with Pinkie’s, her tongue immediately invaded the insides of Pinkie’s mouth, tasting the sweetness of her girlfriend. Pinkie moaned in delight from the passionate kiss, but even more so when she felt Sunset’s left hand rest upon her right mammary, Pinkie placed one hand on the back of Sunset’s head while the other was resting on the middle of Sunset’s back. Sloppy wet kisses were exchanged as their moaning filled the room, Pinkie’s growing louder from the slightly rough manhandling of her breast, something that she was steadily growing to like.

Their kiss broke and both girls panted for air as they gazed into each other’s eyes. Sunset removed her hand from Pinkie’s breast so that she could lift herself up. Pinkie watched as Sunset began to take off her shirt, before she pulled up, Sunset nodded to Pinkie and said, “Care to give me a hand with my pants, Babe?”

Pinkie gulped as she looked down just as Sunset pulled up her shirt and revealed her breasts, covered by a black lace bra. The party girl glanced back down to her girlfriend’s midriff, and with shaky hands she reached out and undid the button. The zipper came down, allowing Pinkie to see the matching black lace panties, once that was done, Sunset tossed her shirt onto the floor, her bra following it shortly after. Sunset wiggled out of her pants and panties, letting them slide off her legs and down to the floor at the edge of the bed. Now both girls were completely naked before each other, bare for all their eyes to gaze upon. Pinkie had to take a moment to admire Sunset’s physique, she could see the lean muscles that had developed thanks to Sunset’s own workouts and her battles against the Wendigos and more recently the Darkness. She was the perfect mixture of feminine and masculine, like fire itself, beautiful and dangerous, powerful and warm, and if you weren’t careful, the fire could swallow you whole and burn you. But right now, Pinkie was willing to get swallowed by Sunset.

After their moment of admiring each other’s bodies, Sunset went back to work, this time she attacked Pinkie’s left breast, wrapping her lips around Pinkie’s perky pink nipple and gave it a gentle nibble. Pinkie Pie continued to release cute squeaks and squeals as Sunset moved from nibbling to licking, and from licking, to full on suckling.

“Ah~ S-Sunset – Aaaah~! I-I know I have big milk jugs, but…I don’t think you’ll get any milk out of those…!” Pinkie stated between pants.

Sunset released the nipple and gazed into Pinkie’s eyes with a seductive glint. “Huh, that so? Guess I’ll need to suck harder then.” And harder she did, practically gobbling Pinkie’s tit as she sucked upon Pinkie’s udder, eliciting more ecstasy filled moans from her lover, this was only made better with Sunset’s left hand squeezing on Pinkie’s right tit, making motions that were similar to one milking an animal. After about a minute of this, Sunset relented and said, “Guess you’re right. That’s a shame, I would’ve liked having a taste of your milk, Pinkie.”

Pinkie panted but managed to say, “M-Maybe…when I have…a baby…I-I’ll…I’ll let you have the first round that comes…”

Sunset gave the nipple she was sucking on a quick lick and replied, “Ooh, tempting me with pregnant sex? Kinky. But I think I’m more in the mood right now for something a little sweeter.”

“Meep!”

Pinkie watched as Sunset slowly lowered herself, she trailed kisses as she did, making the anticipation grow more and more inside Pinkie as both felt and saw Sunset getting closer to her glistening honey bot. Sunset kept her kisses gentle and light, but as she got closer to Pinkie’s pubic mound, she started to trail her tongue a little. The former Equestrian opened Pinkie’s legs a bit more, allowing her to see the hidden flower that was her girlfriend’s pussy. It was already slick and puffy with arousal; Pinkie’s clit was erect and awaiting the stimulation that it knew Sunset would give it.

Sunset kissed Pinkie’s inner thighs, while using her right hand to rub gentle circles on Pinkie’s stomach. Pinkie squirmed as she felt Sunset’s kiss get close to her pussy, but then she would change direction and go to her other thigh and kiss there. “Oh, Sunset…please…do it already!”

“If that’s what you want, I’ll give it to you,” said Sunset with a husky voice.

The flame haired girl brought her lips to Pinkie’s lower lips, she gently pushed her tongue into Pinkie’s sopping wet hole and reveled in the sweet yet tangy taste of her girlfriend’s juices. Pinkie gripped the bedsheets as she felt Sunset’s tongue enter her inch by inch, she had played with herself a few times, but this was on a whole other level. Sunset went to work on Pinkie’s pussy, eating it out in earnest as her tongue rolled around the insides of Pinkie’s inner walls, she would then switch to Pinkie’s clit while using her right index and ring fingers to pump in and out of Pinkie.

“S-Sunset…S-Sunset! I…I’m gonna…gonna…!”

With that warning given, Sunset reversed her actions, shoving her tongue back into Pinkie’s snatch while using her thumb to rub circles around her clit. Pinkie Pie came hard as she put her hands on Sunset’s head and pushed Sunset closer to her spasming sex, all while she cried out in blissful ecstasy as she felt herself squirt into the waiting maw of her girlfriend. Sunset hummed in delight as she tasted the full deluge of Pinkie’s essence, but even in the throes of Pinkie’s orgasm, Sunset didn’t stop thrusting her tongue or rubbing her clit, intent on making this orgasm last as long as possible. After a full minute, Sunset stopped her ministrations and sat on her knees as she licked her chops. Pinkie was panting hard as she lied there, sheening with sweat.

“S-Sunset…t-that was…wow…!” Pinkie exclaimed.

“Hmm, and it’s not over yet, I still need to cum, and since you’re in that position, there’s something I wanted to try here that was kinda hard back in Equestria,” said Sunset.

“W-What’s that? Is it some kind of weird pony sex position?”

“For a pony it’s kinda weird, but for humans it works.”

Pinkie held out her arms towards Sunset as she smiled happily, “Please, go ahead, I trust you.”

Sunset leaned down and gave Pinkie another passionate kiss before she started her next phase. The former Equestrian slid closer to Pinkie, she picked up Pinkie’s left leg and draped it over her left shoulder, allowing Sunset to push her hips forward and press their sexes together. Pinkie, still sensitive from her earlier session, squeaked as her back arched a bit, Sunset jerked her hips forward, thrusting into Pinkie. Their lower lips met in a wet slap as Sunset began rhythmically humping Pinkie Pie, the flame haired girl was mesmerized by the sight of Pinkie’s jiggling breasts with each successive thrust.

“Sunset…oh…!” Pinkie moaned. She had seen this kind of thing on the internet and heard some girls talk about it, but Pinkie never thought she’d experience it firsthand.

Sunset increased her speed, becoming more aggressive as she gyrated her hips and grinded against Pinkie’s pussy. Pinkie leaned up and Sunset met her, they held onto each other as Pinkie matched Sunset’s thrusting, intent on giving her girlfriend as much pleasure as possible. Sunset drew Pinkie into another passionate kiss, and Pinkie was getting even more turned on, because now she could taste herself on Sunset’s lips and tongue. Sunset and Pinkie continued to trib, faster and faster they pressed and thrust, each action bringing them just close to the edge. The girls broke their kiss and pressed their foreheads against each other, their heavy breaths mixing between them.

“S-Sunset…I’m gonna cum, again!”

“I’m about to cum, too!”

The girls moved faster, but in the end, Sunset managed to push more against Pinkie, making her lie on her back as Sunset continued to thrust against Pinkie until they reached their peak. The former Equestrian, upon reaching her climax, pressed her pussy against Pinkie’s just as the party girl came. Their love juices splattered between them as they practically drenched the bedsheets below them. Pinkie’s back arched as her second orgasm of the night hit her hard, for a second she saw stars and thought she was going to pass out, but it was Sunset’s mouth wrapping around her right breast and giving it a light bite that brought her back to the moment.

When they were done, Sunset slid Pinkie’s leg off her shoulder, and afterwards, she laid on top of the curly haired cutie. Sunset placed her left hand into Pinkie’s right, interlocking their fingers, craning her neck, Sunset gave Pinkie a chaste kiss on the lips as she looked into her girlfriend’s eyes.

“That…was great…Babe,” said Sunset.

“Y-Yeah…but…it’s not fair that…I came twice…and you only got to once,” Pinkie replied.

“We still have the rest of the night, when you’re ready, you can eat me out,” Sunset suggested as she nestled herself atop Pinkie’s breasts.

Pinkie Pie wrapped her left arm over his lover’s back, stroking her long red and gold hair. “Oh, that’s a treat I want to taste. But do you mind if we just lie here for a second?”

“Not at all.”

This wasn’t a farewell, this was a promise, a promise to come back, a promise to enjoy this moment again when all the madness was over. And Sunset was determined to make that happen, for the sake of the people she cared about, for the world that had become her new home, she needed to put an end to Neighsay, or even – Faust forbid – Neighsay’s evil bleed into Equestria.

The Final Showdown: Part 3

Author's Note

Whew, sorry for the long wait guys, but this was a long one. Anyway, I appreciate your patience and I hope you enjoy this epic battle!

The Final Showdown: Part 3

Neighsay floated over city hall, having essentially adopted it as his base. The empowered Cardinal had taken the liberty of having his Sworn remove Maria Mare’s corpse from the office on the night that he came into power, afterwards he brought her body to the police outside so that they may give her a proper burial, he may’ve been an all-powerful being, but he wasn’t so cruel as to not allow the deceased body of someone who – although forced – assisted him to be left out for the crows to feast on.

It was truly exhilarating to have this power, he could feel all things around him, those who dwelled in the shadows, and those who walked amongst the day. The spirits of the dead were clear for him to see as well, some were lost souls that were taken abruptly from this world, either through criminal acts of violence or from the killings during the demon takeover of the city months ago.

Now I have the power to right the wrongs of the world, and save the souls of the righteous, but I am far from complete, thought Neighsay.

While he had a great amount of power thanks to taking the Angelus and the Darkness’ essence, it still wasn’t all their power. And thanks to that small percentage that remained, he was unable to track their locations in the city. However, with a barrier that stretched all the way to the outskirts of the city, there was no way they could escape. Neighsay looked up into the sky, watching as a natural phenomenon was happening before his eyes. The sun was almost eclipsed by the moon, he remembered hearing news of this happening today, but paid it little mind. Although, now that he thought about it, ancient people saw eclipses as ill omens, but Neighsay saw it differently. It was indeed an omen, but an omen of a new age that was about to come.

More and more, little by little, Neighsay witnessed the total eclipse of the sun, creating an odd twilight throughout the sky and turning the sun black as bands of light rippled around it. Neighsay noted an odd feeling the moment this happened, his powers felt…odd, somewhat weakened and somewhat strengthened. This is a strange feeling…

“My lord.” Neighsay turned around and spotted his newest Sworn creation, he had a torso that was black as night, with white claws on his fingers. His head, however, was that of a white lion, with yellow eyes, and his lower half was covered in white fur was black wings sprouted from his back. The Sworn stood at seven feet tall, but currently he was kneeling before his lord and master.

“Ah, Mastema, I’m glad you’ve arrived. Tell me, what have you found?”

“Unfortunately, nothing, but I promise, if it takes us tearing apart the city, we’ll find them,” said Mastema.

“I know you all won’t let me down.”

Suddenly, a large explosion went off towards the northwest of the city. Mastema and Neighsay flew higher and saw multiple explosions take place over in that area as more and more of the Sworn swarmed. Neighsay glared towards that direction and smirked behind his helm, he knew who it was that was causing that noise and he was glad that they had spared him the trouble of searching for them.

“It would seem our quarry has decided to stop hiding. Mastema, go forth and bring me the Angelus and the Darkness, but DO NOT kill them. If they die, then the last remnants of their power will flow into another host and it could be years before I find them again,” Neighsay ordered.

“As you command!” Mastema flared his wings and took off swiftly towards where the commotion was happening.

Neighsay smiled broadly, they must’ve been desperate to initiate an assault now, but he could hardly blame them. They were low on options and had no chance of beating him with the power he now wielded, who else could possibly stand against him?

His answer came in the form of a massive fireball hurtling towards him. Neighsay turned around at the last second and released a burst of black and white energy that dispersed the fireball into embers. Hovering in the air a few feet away from Neighsay floated the ones responsible for firing at him. The two Sunsets, one bearing the Witchblade and the other the Ember Stone. Both girls were glaring at him with great disdain and anger, fists clenched and power flaring.

“I see, a diversion, was it? I assume that the Darkness and Angelus hosts are over there, but your real goal is to get me alone and fight me together.”

“We don’t need to explain anything to you,” said Sunset.

“The only thing you need to know is that you’re going down, and you’ll never get your hands on the power you seek,” Shimmer proclaimed.

Neighsay wagged his right index finger back and forth as if scolding the two teens. “Now, now, you simply can’t just stand in the way of fate.”

Shimmer scanned the area, knowing that Fluttershy wasn’t far away, there was no way that Neighsay wouldn’t keep her close by. She floated a little closer to her sister and asked, “You remember the plan?”

Sunset nodded. “Yeah, just be careful. Don’t get dead.”

“Same to you.”

Shimmer readied to attack, but at that moment a streak of gold came rushing towards her. Sunset unleashed a flame shield that encircled the both of them. The thick wall of flames proved effective in keeping the streak from hitting them, but while Sunset was defending, they could both see that the one behind the attack was none other than Fluttershy, wearing a white face mask. Sunset made her flame shield release fire serpents that sprouted out and lashed out towards Fluttershy, rather, the Magdalena. Magdalena saw what was happening and cancelled her attack as she allowed herself to go into freefall to avoid getting attacked by the fire serpents. Seeing this, Sunset brought down her shield and took off after her. Now only Shimmer and Neighsay remained.

“I see, divide and conquer. But you should know that I am the only one who can disable the command that I have on your friend, if you kill me, she’ll never be freed and will just keep attacking you and anyone I deemed an enemy to the Church. Unless, of course, you’ve resigned yourself to killing her?”

Shimmer created a claymore and katana and assumed a fighting stance. “You talk too fucking much, you know that?!”

Neighsay created a golden khopesh sword in his right hand, the blade taking on a feathered design, and in his left hand he formed a dual sided black ax, the ax blades were shaped to look like bat wings. With little more to talk about, the Bringer of Balance and the Usurper of the Balance rushed towards each other, when they met in the middle, a flash of light went off as a powerful shockwave erupted through the area.

To the northwest of Canterlot City, thankfully, it seemed that Neighsay had evacuated the city proper. Whether that was because Neighsay saw this coming, or because Neighsay didn’t want to be bothered, that was unclear, but it was a great relief for Celestia as she didn’t want innocent people getting caught in the crossfire.

Celestia and Sombra walked down the street, and flanking their right was Gaghiel and on their left was Barbatos. The Sworn littered the air and ground, all armed with black fire swords and obsidian colored shields. Both hosts were already donned in their armor and ready for battle, along with the Sentinel and Servant.

“We just need to keep these things occupied while the girls do their thing. We don’t need to get swarmed,” Sombra reminded.

“I know, but that’s not stopping me from tearing them apart.” Celestia glanced at Sombra with a narrow gaze. “Just know that at the end of this, you’re going to answer for everything you put us through.”

“Probably, and I said I was sorry already! I told you most of that wasn’t my idea! Well, kind of, but the Darkness was doin’ some kind of mind trick on me. I’m still pissed about that by the way.”

<^> I will not apologize for doing what I needed to do to get what I wanted! <^>

“You’re so going into the Siphon when this is over.”

The first wave of Sworn charged straight for them, Sombra summoned his Darkness Pistols and began opening fire on the multitudes before them. His aim was true as one after another of the Sworn were shot out of the air, pierced by the smaller rounds of the gatling pistol, while many more were blown away by the explosive power of the hand cannon pistol. Celestia slammed her palms together and formed a claymore sword, the blade glowing a bright white. The Bearer of the Angelus dashed towards the closest Sworn and slashed it down the middle, not losing momentum, Celestia sped towards the next one, slicing it horizontally around its stomach before throwing a roundhouse kick to another that was coming up behind her.

Another one tried to attack Celestia from her right, but Gaghiel roared and charged for it, clamping his powerful jaws around its throat and tearing it out, letting golden ichor spray out from the wound before the Sworn disappeared. Two more closed in to attack Gaghiel, but the Beast of God transformed into his humanoid form and used his left claw gauntlet to skewer the first one in the stomach, he spun around on his left heel and slammed it into the one that was attacking from the right. The second Sworn was thrown to the ground and pinned there thanks to the body of its dead alley, Gaghiel took advantage of this, jumping into the air and coming down with his right claw gauntlet, piercing through the both of them at once.

Some of the Sworn tried to attack Sombra, but Barbatos made them regret that. Using its stinger tail to pierce and slice the foes that tried to attack it from behind, while in front, Barbatos used his long sword and cudgel to slice and smash a few of them. Barbatos’ natural combat prowess allowed him to feel the area around him, this was shown when four of the sworn attacked him from different directions. The wolf demon threw his long sword at the Sworn in front of him, piercing the Sworn in the chest, Barbatos dashed towards it while at the same time launching his stinger tail. The wolf demon appeared before the impaled Sworn and said, “I’ll take this back now.”

As soon as Barbatos grabbed the hilt of the sword, the stinger tail found its home in the chest of the Sworn that was behind him. Using it like a grappling hook, Barbatos reeled himself back and held out both his sword and cudgel out at arm’s length. The two other sworn were about to attack, but before either of them could do so, Barbatos struck them both in the head as he passed them by, cleaving one Sworn’s head off while bashing the other into a pulp. Barbatos dug his clawed feet into the asphalt and anchored himself there as he let his stinger tail reel in the remaining Sworn, once it was close enough, Barbatos slashed with his long sworn, lobbing off its head and making it disappear into particles.

A couple of Sworn came after Sombra while Barbatos was busy, but he wasn’t exactly helpless. Blades appeared below the grips of his pistols and Sombra went to work. He used the gatling pistol and took aim at the first Sworn, forcing him to raise his shield to defend himself. Sombra launched his Darkness eels from the shadow cape, one wrapped around the Sworn’s forearm while the other widened its jaws and chomped down on the Sworn’s right shoulder. The sharp fangs of the eel pierced the armor, shattering bone and rending muscle and tissue, the eel tentacle thrashed about and ripped the arm right off the Sworn’s body. The creation of Neighsay cried out in pain as its golden ichor sprayed outwards. Sombra got up close to the Sworn, put the cannon pistol’s barrel in the Sworn’s face, and pulled the trigger. The shot blew off its head with one shot, the second Sworn tried to avenge his fallen alley, but Sombra whipped around and thrust the butt of his left gun into the side of the Sworn’s skull, using the knife to pierce through its temple and into its brain. The second Sworn went still and fell to the ground when Sombra removed his blade.

Another of the Sworn was coming for Sombra, but a golden light spear hit the creation from behind and killed it instantly. The thrower, Celestia, walked towards him, still looking displeased with him. Sombra chuckled and said, “Thanks for the assist.”

“Dying isn’t part of the plan, and despite everything, your death wouldn’t help us,” Celestia explained as she formed her claymore and stood beside him.

Sombra scoffed and reloaded his pistols with dark energy. “Whatever ya say Miss Celestia.”

“Just ‘Celestia’.”

Sunset (human) was having a bit of trouble fighting Magdalena, the goal was to get their friend back and make sure she was strong enough to fight against Neighsay, if she was willing to after everything that has happened to her. That being said, the Magdalena, on the other hand, had no trouble trying to kill Sunset. The holy assassin tried to pierce Sunset with her Spear of Destiny, but thankfully Sunset managed to narrowly avoid a fatal blow each time, that’s not to say that she didn’t get some hits in.

Both girls were in the middle of the street, Sunset’s body had glowing scars on it, some were almost closed while others were slowly healing, a testament to the power of the Spear of Destiny. Magdalena twirled her spear around and dashed towards Sunset, the flame wielder unleashed a dozen pyro snakes from her right hand. The flaming serpents hissed as they zigzagged through the air and closed in on their target, Magdalena stopped in her tracks and assumed a defensive stance.

The first pyro snake lunged for her arm, but Magdalena snapped her spear upwards and cut its head off, two other pyro snakes wrapped themselves around her ankles and lifted her up into the air, another two lashed out and wrapped themselves around her arms, completely immobilizing her.

“Fluttershy, please sit still and we can end this nightmare!” Sunset stated.

“I am the Magdalena; I am the chosen warrior of the holy Church. I have no identity, I have no ambitions, I have but one purpose. To eliminate all those who defy the will of God and the will of Cardinal Neighsay. You, bearer of hellfire, will be punished in His name,” spoke Magdalena.

The holy assassin released the Spear of Destiny and let it hit the ground. She made a fist with her right hand and stuck other middle and index fingers out, and with a flick of wrist, pointed them at Sunset. Suddenly, the Spear of Destiny had gold light outline its form as it rose and hurled itself straight for Sunset. Panicked by this development, Sunset released Magdalena and dodged to the right, avoiding the flying spear as it whizzed past her. Magdalena landed on her feet and turned to face her foe, using her two fingers, Magdalena began making more gestures, and in so doing, made the Spear of Destiny attack.

Sunset was forced to dodge; Magdalena wasn’t giving her a moment to recover as the spear came flying in from different directions. It came from the left and made her spun in place to avoid it, but then it doubled back towards Sunset, she fell onto her back and had the weapon miss her, but then it flipped up into the air and plummeted down to impale her. Sunset rolled away just as the spear struck the asphalt and made a crater five inches wide and five inches deep. Sunset rolled to a stop and got back to her feet as she panted heavily from having to dodge again and again. “Okay, that’s new! I didn’t know you could control it with your mind!”

Magdalena flicked her wrist towards herself, the Spear of Destiny rose and flipped around in the air until it was floating next to her. “The Spear of Destiny isn’t just controlled with my mind; it’s controlled by my power as well. But that is not the only power it possesses, allow me to demonstrate. Spear of Destiny, Second Form: Unum Milia Nostre Gladii!”

The Spear of Destiny glowed a bright gold and then broke down into several hundreds of light particles that littered the area. The light particles soon took shape and then took physical form, transforming into a thousand golden swords, and each one bore a Knights Templar cross at the end of the pommel and on the tips of the cross guard.

“Oh, you have got to be shitting me…!” Sunset groaned.

“You should feel honored, heathen, not many beings have forced a Magdalena to reveal another form of the Spear of Destiny. Now, fall before the holy blades of the knights of the Church!”

Magdalena swiped her hand in front of her, giving the command for the Crusaders Swords to fly at Sunset. But the wielder of the Ember Stone wasn’t about to go down that easily. Sunset widened her stance, held out her arms in front of her to form a loose “X” formation, small fire pillars began to form all over her body, as if her armor had made holes and was venting the fire inside her body. When the swords got close, Sunset ignited her flames and spun rapidly, the motion created a spinning dome of fire that generated a powerful shockwave of heat that buffeted Magdalena and made the swords struggle to get close to her. A low rumble shook the ground beneath Magdalena, her danger sense alerted her to something, and she immediately jumped up as high as she could go. Her senses were proven right as a giant flaming maw crunched the ground beneath her and turned it into molten rock, that mouth rose, showing that it was a flaming eastern dragon.

Sunset appeared inside the fire construct’s head and lashed out with a claw, the swords flew towards the claw and pierced it from several directions, disrupting the construct’s claw and breaking it apart. The disruption was only temporary as the construct reformed its arm and attacked with its left claw, more of the blades attacked, but this time they combined into a circle and spun towards the construct’s head like a buzz saw. The golden ring cut off the construct’s head, but before it did, Sunset had dropped low into the construct’s chest, from there she changed the construct’s form, making the body bulky and stronger, and from that severed part, two more heads sprouted out.

Magdalena furrowed her brow in annoyance and willed more blades to cut down the heads. But as soon as she did that, four heads appeared, again and again, she cut down the heads, but each time another head regrew until there were at least a dozen heads.

“It’s a hydra, sweetie, you cut one head, two more grow back! I can do this all day!”

The Magdalena growled in frustration and willed all the swords to attack at the same time. A thousand swords rained down on the hydra construct, each one turned into a golden streak of light as they rained down on the hydra at the same time. Sunset burst forth from the hydra construct’s chest and used her flames to give herself a speed boost, closing the distance between herself and Magdalena in less than a few seconds. The wielder of the Ember Stone barreled into the holy assassin, causing both of them to roll around on the ground. They came to a stop with Sunset on top of Magdalena, pinning her there.

“Dammit, Shy, you’re not making this easy!” Sunset stated as she let the armor around her hip open and revealed a device.

“Spear of Destiny, Third Form: Virtutum Armis!”

The swords all turned into light and joined together into a single ball of golden light. That light shot towards Magdalena and layered itself over her body, forcing Sunset to back off her. When Magdalena rose to her feet, she was covered in golden armor, which Sunset was going to wager was trying to compete with Witchblade in the skimpy armor department. A pair of golden gauntlets covered Magdalena’s arms from her shoulders all the way to her hands. Her upper body was covered in armor but allowed a small window of cleavage to show. Her midriff was visible, but her crotch and rear were covered in what could only be described as metal panties. The lower half of Magdalena’s legs were covered in armored boots, and lastly, her head was completely encased in a golden helmet, with only two emerald eyes looking right at Sunset. The armor pieces each had a symbol engraved on them, on the gauntlets it was on the tops of the palms, on the chest armor there was one located over the heart, another was on the crotch armor, and two more were on the boots for a total of seven.

“Okay…what the hell is that?”

“This is the Armor of Virtue. My right fist is Patience, my left is Humility. My heart is protected by Kindness, and of course my purity is guarded by Chastity. My left leg bears Temperance while my right bears Charity, and lastly, my helm defends me with Diligence,” Magdalena explained.

Sunset eyed Magdalena up and down and said, “Yeah, you do know that that armor doesn’t cover all of you, right? You’re more or less wearing a bikini.”

Magdalena huffed. “Of course, only a person whose mind is steeped in lustful thoughts would only see such things, my armor is powered by the divine, not by pagan magic!”

“Okay, first off, I just call it like it is, you’re wearing sexy armor! Second, if I do have ‘lustful’ thoughts, they’re only about my girlfriend!”

Magdalena got into a runner’s stance and took off for Sunset, her sudden bolting caused the ground beneath her to crumble and shatter from her power. The holy assassin was upon Sunset and drove her left fist into Sunset’s stomach, the pyromancer let out a harsh cough as pain erupted from her abdomen. The blow sent Sunset flying backwards down the street, skipping like a stone on water until she landed, back first, into a parked car, leaving a body sized dent in it.

Sunset peeled herself off the car, and then just threw up onto the ground. She wiped her mouth, realizing that she had vomited blood, Sunset wasn’t too surprised, the blow hurt like hell and she was sure that she heard the sounds of ribs breaking and some organs popping inside her. Thankfully, the flames of the Ember Stone had already healed her and was beginning to nullify the pain.

“I’m sorry, Sis, but Fluttershy’s playing for keeps.” Sunset briefly took out the device that Twilight had given her from her armor. A rectangular device with a pause, play, stop, and record button.

“It’s done, Miss Meadowbrook and I were able to create an exact facsimile of Neighsay’s voice. However, for it to be one-hundred percent effective, you’ll need to play it right next to her ear.”

“The only way I’m going to get her to hear this is if I get serious…Sorry, Fluttershy, this will hurt, but I’m going to get you back, for Sis, for your friends!”

Sunset put the device away, her entire body erupted with flames, turning her into a walking wildfire. Magdalena was rushing towards her, intent on killing Sunset, but Sunset wasn’t dying, not with a family and girlfriend to go back to. Sunset made flames ignite beneath her feet and gave her a boost, both girls cocked back their right fists and punched, their blows met in the middle and created a powerful explosion that shattered the glass of the buildings around them.

The skies above Canterlot City were alive with the sounds of blades clashing. Sunset (pony) and Neighsay dueled ferociously, the former unicorn was proving to be a match for the empowered former Cardinal. Despite having the powers of the Angelus and the Darkness, Neighsay’s combat experience was nowhere near the same level as Sunset’s. She had honed her body in the absence of magic, as well as her mind, and when she obtained the Witchblade, her fighting abilities only got better thanks in part to her fighting the Wendigos, and more recently the Darkness, the Servants, and the Blacknights.

Even still, Neighsay wasn’t a slouch either, he was learning as he fought. The powers of Angelus and the Darkness did grant him some combat knowledge and ability, but Neighsay wasn’t a fighter, he hadn’t ever been in a fight, preferring to outwit and ensnare his enemies in whatever clever ploys or traps he had set up.

Sunset and Neighsay flew at each other and clashed their blades, both struggled against the other, grunting and growling as they glared at one another. The Witchblade had gone into full armor mode, instinctively knowing that Neighsay was a real threat to his host, but at the same time, the weapon of light and darkness knew that his host had a chance of beating this mortal fool.

“I must say, Sunset Shimmer, you’re more of a handful than I gave you credit for,” said Neighsay.

“That supposed to be a complement?!” Sunset snarked as she batted him away and put some space between them.

“It is, you deduced that this time, the time of the eclipse, would be your best opportunity to defeat me. A time when it is neither day nor night, when my powers would be slightly dampened due to this unique time of twilight. You used the hosts of Angelus and the Darkness to lure the majority of my Sworn forces away, and had your twin take on my ward while you come and deal the killing blow.” Neighsay took on a more laid-back demeanor as he continued. “Do you think that last part was wise though? I am the only one who can undo the command that makes Magdalena obey me, if you kill me, there won’t be any way to break the mental command.”

Sunset scoffed. “Let me worry about that, you worry about yourself!”

The former Equestrian dismissed her swords and formed a bow in her left hand. She pulled on the drawstring which instantly formed arrows, in a matter of seconds, Sunset loosed three arrows towards Neighsay. The stealer of light and darkness easily dodged them, letting the arrows fly by him with little effort, however, what he didn’t realize was that those arrows had very thin, very fine metal wire connected to them. Sunset pulled on the wires and made the arrows explode; the strands weaved together to form a giant metal net behind Neighsay. The Bringer of Balance pulled back on the net and made it envelop Neighsay, much to his surprise.

Now ensnared, Sunset summoned her fire power and released that energy through the net. The metal heated up rapidly, and inside the net, flames ignited until it turned into a blast furnace, exploding into a raging ball of flames that completely surrounded Neighsay. Sunset cut off the wires and smirked at her good work, however, her smirk didn’t last long as a wave of light sliced through the fireball. The sphere of flames broke apart into embers and revealed an unharmed Neighsay, his khopesh sword held outwards to his right side.

“That was impressive, Sunset Shimmer, very clever. I can see why you were able to gain control of your fellow students at your school so easily,” Neighsay commented.

Sunset rolled her eyes. “Great, you know about my checkered history at CHS, big deal.”

The Usurper of the Balance chuckled. “Oh, I know a great deal more about you than that. The Magdalena told me some interesting things, like, for instance, that you are not in fact human, but a sapient equine creature from another world.”

Sunset flinched upon mention of her little secret, but she maintained her composure. “So what?”

“I also know that you were quite the personification of some of the seven sins. Prideful in your abilities, Envious of one whom you believed robbed you of what was yours, Greedy for more and more power, never satisfied with your station, and lastly, your Wrath was brought down on any that would deny you your perceived rightful place.” Neighsay dismissed his weapons and placed his hands behind his back as he began to move in a circle around Sunset.

“I know the sins I’ve committed in the past, but my past doesn’t define me! Who I am now, and who I become in the future is what I’m looking towards! And I’ve atoned for what I’ve done!” Sunset shot back.

“Hmmm, have you? You ran from your homeland and came into a world that is not yours to commit more sins, to try and achieve that which you demanded from someone who is like a living god in your world. You haven’t atoned for anything; you’ve simply ran away from the consequences. True atonement is facing your past, come what may.”

Sunset created two arm blades and readied to attack. “You do well to remember those words when I cut off your head and take the Siphon and Prism from you!”

Neighsay stopped a few feet in front of Sunset and said, “But you should know that I cannot allow this.”

“Allow what?”

“Allow a world that is filled with creatures that God himself deemed unnatural, unicorns, pegasi, and all manner of creatures from ancient times. They must all be eradicated, and to hear that there is a being there that dares to control the heavenly body that is the sun is an affront to God himself, a false god!” Neighsay’s aura flared black and white as he summoned his two weapons again. “I will slay this false deity and bring the truth to these paganistic beings!”

The world seemed to slow down in that moment, Neighsay had just threatened to invade Equestria, to bring harm to the ponies, and to kill the one mare in that world who gave a damn about her. With the powers Neighsay possessed, Sunset had no doubts that he could be more than a match for Princess Celestia, even with Princess Luna, Cadence, and Twilight fighting together, heck, she wasn’t even sure that the power of the Elements of Harmony could bring Neighsay down. And that’s not considering if he defeats all of them in this world and obtains the full powers of the Angelus and the Darkness. She couldn’t let that happen – she wouldn’t let that happen.

Partner…give me everything you’ve got!

}}} I shall make it so! {{{

Sunset’s body erupted with crimson light, her body and armor changed to that of the Crimson Form, but instead of Sunset’s normally confident, sultry look, pure anger was plastered on her visage. “You WILL NOT step one foot in my homeland! I’ll end you here and now!”

Neighsay cut the air in front of him with his batwing ax and created a black gash before him. That gash released dozens of Darkness eels that hissed and slithered towards Sunset. The former unicorn slashed three of the eels in one swing, five more were attacking her from behind, but Sunset formed a blade on the tip of her right foot and threw a roundhouse kick, slicing them all in one move. More and more eels tried to attack her, but this time Sunset created two chain swords in both hands. She set them both on fire, crimson flames licked the bladed whips as she began lashing the air around her, cutting them down and making it hard for even one of them to get near her.

Neighsay raised his right sword up, and as soon as he did his body shimmered. From his single body, four other copies appeared next to him, creating a total of five Neighsays. Sunset ceased her attack and glared at the multiple enemies before her, she shifted the two whips into swords and assumed a fighting stance.

“You’re determined to annoy the hell out of me, aren’t you?!”

Gaghiel and Barbatos were fighting back to back, the number of Sworn had increased in direct correlation to their threat. Apparently, they underestimated just how strong one Servant and Sentinel, and two hosts at twenty percent power could be. The four of them were slaughtering Sworn by the droves, unfortunately there still didn’t seem to be any end in sight.

“A Sentinel and a Servant fighting side by side, that’s something you don’t see every day,”said Barbatos.

“Don’t get used to it abomination! When this battle is over, I will come for your head!” Gaghiel replied.

Barbatos shrugged and cut down a Sworn about to attack Gaghiel from behind, Gaghiel, in turn, used his claw gauntlets and sliced two Sworn that were about to do the same. Despite the two creatures being born from two different forces of good and evil, they were, surprisingly, in sync with each other as they fought their enemies. The same could also be said for their masters.

Celestia and Sombra were in the air, fighting with even more of the Sworn. Sombra let loose more of his Darkness shots from his pistols, while Celestia continued to cut them down. Sometimes she would break away and barrel into a flock of the Sworn and begin hacking away at them, Sombra gave her cover fire, blasting away any of the ones that tried to close off her escape route. Some of the Sworn saw this as an opportunity to attack Sombra, but he made them regret that when he summoned his Darkness eels and tentacle spears. The hissing creatures would wind around their foes and snap their jaws around the jugulars of the Sworn, while the tentacles pierced through them and tore them apart, painting the air gold with their blood.

Celestia summoned swords of light and fired them straight for the flock of Sworn, hitting them in their heads, torsos, and clipping their wings. She decided to get a little creative when she formed a large, four bladed shuriken. Celestia flew higher, spun in the air to build up momentum, and then hurled the shuriken at the Sworn. The spinning blade sliced through several of Sworn at once, mincing them and making the sky rain down their body parts before they turned into particles of light. Celestia summoned another sword to her left hand, but then turned it around to combine it with the pommel of her right sword, creating a double-bladed sword. With her new weapon, she charged the blades and slashed the air before her, sending a crescent wave of light that cut down more and more.

Celestia retreated to Sombra’s position and asked, “How many of these things are there?!”

“What’s the matter, Celestia, gettin’ tired?” Sombra joked.

The school principal chuckled. “Heh, no, just annoyed! We need to get to Sunset and help her fight Neighsay!”

Sombra blasted a few more Sworn out of the sky before he replied, “That’s not the plan. If we go there, we’ll give ‘em what he wants and then it’s game over for everyone! The best thing we can do is stay here and just keep these rats with wings occupied! The less those kids have to worry about the better!”

Celestia knew he was right, if anything, the two of them being there would make them a liability, and Sunset wouldn’t be able to go all out if she was too worried about protecting her. Still, that didn’t mean she worried less about what was happening. This was her idea, but it was the Sunsets that were executing the most dangerous portion of it.

Suddenly, the Sworn stopped their movements and just hovered in place. Gaghiel and Barbatos looked around, just as confused as their masters. The Sworn parted themselves as two Sworn, different from the rest, flew in. The biggest Sworn by far, and the most bestial, Mastema, hovered before Sombra and Celestia. The second was female, she had similar wings to Mastema, but wore no armor. She instead wore a black and white dress with gold accents, her skin was a dark violet color, while her hair was pure white. Contrasting this was a pair of striking red, ruby colored eyes, and a fanged grin, she also sported curvy hips, and a generous bust. She was, to say the least, quite the sight.

“Okay, I’ll bite, who the hell are you two?” Sombra asked.

“We are Master Neighsay’s elite, I am Mastema,” spoke the man-beast.

The female Sworn giggled and said, “And I am Lilith, pleased to meet you, hosts of the Darkness and Angelus.”

“I see Neighsay’s decided to stop screwing around and take us seriously then!” Celestia stated.

Lilith gasped and shook her head. “Oh no, no, no, don’t take it like that! Master Neighsay does take you seriously! He very much wants you both! So, of course, he sent the two of us!”

“Uh-huh, so, which one you want?” Sombra asked.

“Depends, are you going to get distracted by that one’s chest?”

“Really?”

Lilith giggled again. “I honestly don’t care who my partner is.” The Sworn Elite ran her hands over her chest and down her hips before licking her fangs and smiling deviously at the two hosts. “Man or woman, fun can be had with either.”

Celestia and Sombra shivered at the way Lilith put that.

“Ooookay, I’ll take the whore and you take the beast,” said Celestia.

“Whatever floats your boat,” Sombra replied as he reloaded his pistols.

The two hosts quickly took off towards their respective foes. Celestia wasted little time in driving her double-bladed sword straight through Lilith’s chest, carrying her higher into the sky as she did so. But, instead of anger or painful cries, which Celestia expected to hear from Lilith, the Sworn did something else that made Celestia cringe hard.

“Oh, yes, that hurts so good!” Lilith cried out in bliss. “Deeper, push that sword deeper into my chest!”

“W-What the–?!” Celestia pulled her sword out of Lilith’s chest, and the moment she did Lilith made a pleasurable moaning sound.

Lilith clutched at the wound on her chest, staining her hands with the golden ichor that flowed from it. The wound healed quickly, and Lilith licked the blood off her fingers. “Hmm…more, please, hurt me more!”

What in the hell is wrong with her?

Celestia decided to not think about it too hard as she flew towards Lilith again, this time, instead of stabbing her, she cut off the Sworn’s right arm, followed up with another slash, cutting off her left leg. However, just like before, instead of wails of pain, Lilith only made shrieks of pleasure.

“OH YES! HURT ME MORE! STAB ME, CUT ME, BURN ME! DAMAGE ME!!!”

“I’m sorry, but you’re really freaking me out right now!” Celestia dismissed her sword, breaking it down into light particles. She reformed them into a mass of energy into both of her right hand and fired it all in one shot. The beam of light bathed over Lilith and flung her all the back down to the ground. The moment she and the beam impacted, an explosion went off, burning a hole at least five feet deep and three feet wide. “There…”

Unfortunately, it wasn’t over. From the smoldering crater, Lilith stood up. Her skin was burned severely, some parts had bone exposed, even her hair was singed off. And yet, despite this, she was smiling, as best as she could with a half-melted face. The damage didn’t last as the injuries she sustained were completely healed in a matter of seconds, and to make matters worse, about the only thing that did get damaged and destroyed were her clothes.

“Hmm, host of Angelus, you’ve given me such ecstasy with that last attack!” Lilith, in an extremely lewd act, placed two fingers between her legs and brought them up to show clear strands of fluid on them. “See, you made me have an orgasm! I thank you dearly for that!”

Angelus…what…what is she?!

\\/// I am…just as disturbed as you are right now…\\///

“Now…” A red halo appeared over Lilith’s head as she widened her stance and smiled menacingly up at Celestia. “It’s my turn to give you the same pleasure you’ve shown me!”

Lilith bent her knees, causing the ground below her to buckle. The Sworn Elite jumped high into the air, destroying the ground beneath her from the sheer force of her take off. Lilith closed in on Celestia and drove her knee into her stomach, causing the air to leave Celestia’s lungs. Lilith put her hands together and brought them down in a double hammer fist to Celestia’s back, sending the host of Angelus plummeting into the streets below.

Celestia coughed and took in a deep, raspy breath, she didn’t have time to stay down, she needed to get back up. Thankfully, it was just in time as Lilith formed a red construct energy whip with her right hand. Her left hand formed claws on her fingers made of the same red energy, all the while, Lilith’s eyes shined red with sadistic glee. “We’re gonna have so much fun!”

Meanwhile, Sombra wasn’t faring too well either. Mastema was vicious and relentless. Sombra tried to shoot the man-beast Sworn, but it seemed as if the shots weren’t registering when they hit Mastema. When the Sworn Elite got close, Sombra dismissed his guns and went for hand-to-hand combat. Mastema swiped with his claw, but Sombra managed to dodge the attack, allowing him to throw a right hook into Mastema’s left side. The impact seemed to register as Mastema noticeably grunted from the impact. Sombra smirked and went on the offensive, throwing one punch after the other, landing body shots before hitting Mastema with an uppercut to the man-beast’s lower jaw.

Mastema skidded backwards but managed to stop himself. The creature grinned as he spat some of his gold blood, a red halo formed over his head and for some reason, the air seemed to change around him. The man-beast roared at Sombra and charged straight for him, Sombra chuckled with a bit of bloodlust fun as he did the same. The two fighters threw a punch, both fists collided against each other and created a shockwave that blew both of them back. Mastema recovered first and flew towards Sombra, he grabbed him by the left ankle and threw him against the side of a building.

Sombra let out a gasp of pain, gritting his teeth, he summoned four tentacles that lashed out towards Mastema. One of them pierced through Mastema’s right shoulder, pain surged through the Sworn’s arm, making Mastema release Sombra. The tentacle retracted and quickly wrapped itself around Mastema’s neck, while the other three tied up his left wrist and both ankles. The wound that Mastema received hissed as it quickly healed and allowed him to use his right claw to tear the tentacles apart. Sombra summoned his hand cannon pistol into his right hand, and with his left he formed a shadow sword.

The host of the Darkness stabbed Mastema in the thigh, causing the Sworn to roar in pain. While Mastema had his mouth open, Sombra shoved the barrel of the hand cannon into the Sworn’s mouth, causing Mastema’s eyes to widen as he coughed in protest. Sombra smirked underneath his face mask and narrowed his eyes as he said, “Chew on this kitty!”

Sombra pulled the trigger and immediately a powerful explosion went off in Mastema’s mouth, shrouding his head in smoke as he was sent flying backwards onto the street. The host of the Darkness twirled the gun around on his index finger and brought it to his mouth, he lowered the armor around his mouth and blew away the smoke coming out of the barrel.

“Now that that’s done, guess I should give Celestia a hand.” Sombra took a moment to watch the fight between Celestia and Lilith. The gangster cringed as he watched the angelic warrior fight against a naked Sworn who was laughing maniacally. “Yeesh, she’s a freak. Guess I picked the lesser of two evils.”

“I wouldn’t say that.”

Sombra turned his gaze back to Mastema’s body and watched as the Sworn rose from the ground, the smoke that concealed his head finally lifted and revealed that his head was completely intact. “What the hell?! I shot you in the mouth, with a cannon!”

Mastema slammed his fists together and growled as he approached Sombra. “Fighting only makes me stronger, the more aggression the better! And with each punch thrown, with every blow taken and dealt back, my body adapts, and my power grows. As opposed to Lilith, she revels in receiving and giving pain, it’s a form of lustful energy that she enjoys. So, the more you try to hurt her, the more she enjoys it, and the more she enjoys, the more powerful she becomes.”

Sombra face palmed himself as he dragged his armored hand down his face. “Goddammit, what, was Neighsay fucking high when he made you two?!”

Mastema vanished from sight, making Sombra create a sphere of shadows around himself to protect against Mastema’s inevitable attack. The attack did come, Mastema smashed his fist through the shield and right into Sombra with the force of a wrecking ball. However, Mastema didn’t stop there, he continued driving his fist into Sombra’s chest and carried him upwards through the building, smashing through one floor after the other until they burst through the roof and into the air. Mastema vanished again and inhaled deeply, red light began to build up in the back of Mastema’s throat, growing brighter and brighter. The man-beast Sworn released a powerful roar that accompanied a column sized beam of crimson light that washed over Sombra and carried him all the way down to the street where it exploded.

Celestia paused in the air when she saw what happened and called out, “SOMBRA!”

Lilith took advantage of this little distraction; she lashed her whip towards Celestia and wrapped it around her. She pulled the whip hard, making it go taut and completely immobilize Celestia. Lilith reeled Celestia in like a fish and brought her close to her body. “Hmm, you are incredibly beautiful. You know, I am not beyond being convinced to spare you if you agree to be mine. What do you say, host of Angelus? All my Master wants is the remnants of Angelus that dwell within you, after that he could care less what happens to you. But if you are with me, I can promise to keep you safe and show you pleasures that you could only dream of.” As if to punctuate her point, Lilith licked the side of Celestia’s helmet.

“I’ll pass you glorified nympho!” Celestia barked.

Lilith shrugged. “Oh well, worth a shot.”

The sadomasochist Sworn stabbed her construct claws into Celestia’s abdomen, forcing Celestia to drop the helm as she coughed up blood. Lilith removed her claws and whipped Celestia towards where Sombra was, and with a twist of her wrist, sent a bolt of energy along the line straight to Celestia. Another explosion went off, throwing Celestia right beside Sombra. The host of the Darkness was lying on his back, while Celestia was face down, both in great pain.

“…Just checking…but we’re screwed right?” Sombra asked.

“…Kind of…I think…” Celestia replied.

The two hosts rose to their feet, Celestia’s wounds were already healed, along with Sombra’s. The wielders of light and darkness were not in a good place right now, at this rate, Neigshay’s Sworn were going to beat them down enough to drag their unconscious bodies to the psychopath. Just then, above the city, a sphere of light shined in the sky, a dark sphere followed right behind it and merged with the white one, creating a bigger sphere of the two dual energies of light and darkness. It was right about then that they, through the Darkness and Angelus, felt something, a feeling of danger and of pain, not theirs, but someone else’s.

\\/// Witchblade! \\///

<^> Something is happening to him! <^>

Celestia’s eyes widened with fear as she looked upon the swirling mass of white and black with new horror. “Sunset’s in trouble! We have to help her!”

“I’m with you there, but those two aren’t going to let us get by them…” Sombra noted with annoyance.

Angelus and the Darkness went silent for a moment, their hosts could feel that they were thinking about something, but what exactly they didn’t know. Finally, after a few more seconds, they felt that their entities had come to an accord.

<^> Sombra. <^>

\\/// Celestia. \\///

<^> Send us to our Son. \\///

\\/// We will release our consciousness and become pure power. Our minds will be sent to the Siphon and Prism. \\///

<^> But we will send our essence, our power, to our Son. He was born of us, but if he is given more of our power, he may stand a chance of defeating Neighsay. <^>

“And what about Sunset, will she survive something like that?!” Celestia asked.

<^> Hard to say, there was only one instance thousands of years ago, when a host of mine was able to take my Son from his host and merge our powers together. One of the only times I was not in control. The merger granted my host untold power, which was predictable since we are family. <^>

“But what happened to your host?” Sombra asked.

<^> He was able to devastate what he wanted before his body gave out and I was forced to find a new host. <^>

\\/// It is a gamble, a great risk. But Sunset is not a normal human being, she was originally from a world that is permeated with magic, and she was once a being who wielded great amounts of magical power, and still does to a degree. So, she might have a chance of being able to contain the merger of our three powers. \\///

“And if you’re wrong?! She dies and Neighsay wins!” Celestia argued.

Sombra placed his armored hand on Celestia's shoulder. “Either way, she’ll die, at least our way she’ll get a fighting chance.”

Celestia didn’t like it, there was no option that didn’t involve risking Sunset’s life, but Sombra was right, either way, they all would die by Neighsay’s hands once he got what he wanted. The school principal looked higher up into the sky and saw the eclipse, the sun was becoming somewhat more visible. Time and circumstances were not on their side, and that only left one option.

“Okay…”

“Let’s do it.”

Celestia and Sombra began to glow, golden light enveloped Celestia’s body while Sombra was covered in dark, inky shadows. The two hosts felt the consciousness of Angelus and the Darkness fade away as they became pure power, they only had one shot at this, and they needed to make it count.

“Uh, Mastema, what are they doing?” Lilith asked.

“I don’t know, but I don’t like it! Stop them!”

Before Mastema and Lilith could act, Barbatos appeared behind them. His eyes blazed with red light as he held his long sword and cudgel aloft. Barbatos slashed Lilith across the back, cleaving her through in one stroke and severing her into two parts, with his cudgel, he slammed it on top of Mastema’s head, caving the Sworn Elite’s head in. But Barbatos wasn’t done yet, as he skidded to a stop in front of the two bodies and made sure that they stayed down a little longer. The wolf demon slammed his cudgel repeatedly against Lilith’s body until she was golden mush splattered onto the street, and once that was done, Barbatos quickly sliced up Mastema until his body was laying in parts strewn all over the ground.

“Good work, Barbatos!”

“One last thing I could do before I go,” said Barbatos.

Sombra and Celestia’s armor began to fade away as they channeled the last bits of their power into their hands, forming two orbs of gold and black. Unfortunately, Barbatos’ onslaught didn’t slow down the two Sworn Elite long as they began to pull themselves back together. Mastema was the first to reform, following right behind him was Lilith, who looked like she was in pure bliss.

“Hmm~ Now that was savage, please hurt me mo – humph!”

Before Lilith could finish her sentence, Barbatos tossed his sword at Mastema, lodging it in the beast’s heart, he dashed with great swiftness and clamped his right claw over Lilith’s mouth. “You’re too disturbing to allow to live, and I’m saying that as a demon.” Lilith made more noises, but Barbatos paid them no heed as he instantly clenched his claw into a fist and crushed her head.

Mastema growled with anger as he pulled the sword out of his chest and used it to cleave Barbato’s right arm off. The wolf demon was not deterred as his eyes continued to blaze red, he whipped himself around and bashed Mastema in the head with his cudgel. But Mastema caught it in his jaws and crushed the weapon between his jaws. Barbatos had no fear of death, he was a Servant, a construct of the Darkness, an aspect of his Master. And the one aspect he embodied was Sombra’s savage determination and ferocity. Undeterred by the destruction of his club, Barbatos threw a kick at Mastema’s head, sending the man-beast flying into a building. However, just as he did that, Lilith came up from behind him and impaled him with her claw construct.

Barbatos launched his stinger tail and returned his impalement with one of his own. The bladed tip transformed as it produced four hook prongs that latched themselves onto Lilith’s body. The tail jerked backwards and pulled her away, along with her claw construct. Barbatos whipped his tail around and threw her into the same building as he did Mastema. Lilith was sent flying until she struck against Mastema, sending the both of them back to the ground. Barbatos widened his stance as he lowered his upper body, his stinger tail whipping back and forth as he opened his maw and bared his fangs. Black energy wafted off his body as his eyes shined brighter, releasing arcs of red lightning. The wolf demon took one last glance as his master and Celestia, and then to Gaghiel who was fighting off the other Sworn. For a moment, an understanding passed between them, this was the one and only time a Sentinel would acknowledge and respect a Servant of the Darkness.

Barbatos released a loud and mighty howl as he charged straight for both the Sworn Elite. Building up more and more power until he reached critical mass, the wolf demon reared back his good left arm and thrust forward, piercing Lilith’s chest and continuing until his whole arm was through her body and into Mastema’s. Barbatos’ claw felt something hard, a bone of some kind, whatever it was, he grabbed it tight and held on.

Lilith coughed up golden blood as she said, “Oh, wolfy, you hurt me so good! Please take me now!!”

“You stupid whore, get him off of us!” Mastema ordered.

“You two aren’t going to live, this is the end for the both you…Die.”

“Wait wha–?!!!”

“You son of a–!!!”

A pillar of black and red light shot up from inside creating a powerful explosion that leveled the entire building, bringing it down in a massive heap of twisted metal and melted cement.

“I think we’re good!” Sombra stated.

“Gaghiel!” Celestia ordered.

The Beast of God charged his claw gauntlets and released wide crescent energy blades in every direction, clearing a wide berth for himself. Celestia and Sombra fired the twin spheres right at him, and like a pro dodgeball player, took hold of both spheres in both hands. Gaghiel channeled his energy into his wings, making them glow gold. He gave them a strong flap and shot towards the black and white sphere in the sky. The Sworn looked from the retreating Gaghiel and back to the now entity-less hosts.

“Sorry, but what you’re lookin’ for just went off that way,” said Sombra as he pointed in Gaghiel’s direction.

Celestia crossed her arms and added, “You wouldn’t want to disappoint your master by bothering with us instead of getting what he wants, right?”

The remaining Sworn looked to each other and realized that they were right. Without even giving it a second thought, they ignored Celestia and Sombra and chased after Gaghiel, but it was obvious that the Beast of God was already miles ahead of them and only getting further away, their attempts to reach him were in vain, but the two humans thought that it was probably a better option than incurring the wrath of their master.

Celestia finally lost strength in her legs and began to collapse, but Sombra quickly caught her and gently guided Celestia down and propped her up against a car. Sombra took a seat next to her and sighed in exhaustion.

“It’s all up to the kids from here on, this is fucked up,” said Sombra. “They don’t need to be doin’ this kind of crap.”

“I agree, they don’t. They should only have to worry about normal things, dates, school, social events, parties, college, their careers, but instead, they’re fighting to save the world…and we’re here sitting on our asses,” Celestia lamented.

“Guess this is the universe’s way of sayin’ we’re not meant to keep the world safe, it’s in the hands of the next generation, right?”

Celestia sighed and nodded slightly. She turned her gaze back to the sphere and prayed that Sunset was alright.

(a few moments ago)

Fire erupted everywhere as Sunset and Magdalena continued to duke it out. Sunset knew the only way to stop Fluttershy and get her to listen to the device was to put her down long enough to play it, and of course, Fluttershy – or rather, the Magdalena – wasn’t making it easy. The Armor of Virtue was proving to be a lot tougher than it looked, despite the obvious gaps in the armor, it seemed that the armor created an invisible layer of light armor that only appeared when something hit the exposed area. Sunset believed it was probably done that way on purpose, to lure the enemy into thinking they had an easy spot to stab or shoot her, but only to find out too late that that wasn’t the case.

Sunset spun in the air, turning into a fire wheel for a few seconds before shooting forth with a flying, flaming kick towards Magdalena. The holy assassin brought her arms up in an “X” formation, letting Sunset’s kick strike the center of the “X” block. Sunset ignited her hair and turned it into a jet of flames that propelled her forward, driving the kick further and pushing Magdalena back. The Church’s Secret Soldier dug her heels into the asphalt, but it did little to slow her down as she cut grooves into the street. The symbols on Magdalena’s armor began to shine, and in a second, created a bubble of golden light that pushed back against Sunset’s kick.

The wielder of the Ember Stone was successfully pushed back as the barrier expanded to a good five-foot radius. But Sunset wasn’t done, she summoned a giant fire claw and brought it down over the barrier in a hammer fist attack. The blow caused the street to buckle as the barrier pushed against the ground below Magdalena, each impact creating fissures that reached the sidewalk and up the walls of the surrounding buildings. Sunset created a second claw and joined both claws together for a double handed hammer fist. Magdalena took advantage of this moment and dashed towards Sunset, barreling into her stomach, and sending the both of them pinballing against parked cars, lampposts, and building walls before they smashed through the window of a high-rise building.

Magdalena began punching Sunset in the face over and over again as she straddled her stomach, each impact made the floor shake violently, threatening to fall apart at any moment. When Magdalena cocked back her fist for another punch, Sunset opened her mouth and bellowed out a stream of flames. Magdalena was forced to back off Sunset, allowing her to get back to her feet as she charged the holy assassin. Sunset released a jet blast of fire from her left fist, propelling her elbow into Magdalena’s stomach. When Magdalena bent over from the impact, Sunset ignited the sole of her right foot, sending her knee rocketing for the bottom of Magdalena’s armored jaw.

Clearly dazed, Sunset grabbed ahold of Magdalena’s arm and spun her around rapidly before tossing her with all the strength she had. Magdalena smashed through several walls before ending up smacking back first into a brick wall, she shook her head from the daze, and quickly peeled herself off the wall and took off into the sky. As predicted, Sunset took off after her, both women ended up on the rooftop of the second building and squared off for another round.

“Fluttershy, I know you’re in there! Try and fight the control! I can get you back, but you need to fight and give me a moment to do what I need to do!” Sunset pleaded.

Magdalena’s right hand began to shake, she looked at it in confusion, but growled and clenched her fist. “I am not ‘Fluttershy’! I cast my identity away to become the right hand of judgement for the holy Church! For his holiness, Cardinal Neighsay!”

“No! You’re not just the Magdalena! You’re Fluttershy! The kindest, sweetest, most gentle person I’ve ever met! I may not have known you long like Sis, but even I can tell that much just from the way you talked to Sparky and made her feel better about being around other people! That kindness, that person deep inside, is still there and she’s trying to fight her way back!”

Magdalena’s hands still shook, her head was starting to hurt as well. As if something was pushing from deep inside her mind itself, trying to break through to this moment. The holy assassin snarled in frustration and anger as her armor glowed. “No more of your mind games! I’ll end this now! Spear of Destiny, Fourth Form: Vincula Divina Subjugatio!”

The armor released from Magdalena’s body, returning her to her original clothes. Behind her formed a large gold, metal halo, the halo’s center glowed gold and from it shot forth dozens of golden chains. Each one was tipped with an arrowhead that whistled as they cut through the air. Dozens and dozens more poured out of the portal in a seemingly endless stream, and all of them floated in the air as they awaited the command of their summoner. “These chains are a variation of the ones I used to bind the Angelus and the Darkness, two big differences though. One: they don’t require me to recite a chant to make them bind my target, and two: they can cut through almost anything.”

“Fuck me sideways, how many forms does that spear have?!”

Magdalena swiped her hand through the air, giving the command to attack. The chains rained down on Sunset, but Sunset hurriedly dodged them, running around the rooftop to avoid getting skewered by them. When she dodged another round, a chain rose from the roof and slashed her across the chest, causing blood to spray out into the air. Sunset yelled in pain and backed away. The wound was slow to heal as usual, but what caught her interest was the fact that the chain that attacked her didn’t break through the roof, in fact, it looked as if it was phasing through it.

“What the hell is that about?!” Sunset asked as she pointed to the chain in question.

“Oh, did I forget to mention one thing. These chains can pass through any physical object that I deem an obstacle to my target,” Magdalena explained.

“UGH! That spear is really starting to annoy me!”

Sunset released an infernal burst of flames that blinded Magdalena for a moment, and that moment was all she needed as Sunset dashed towards the holy assassin. Channeling the Ember Stone’s flames, Sunset coated her right fist with fire as she readied to put Magdalena down. But just before that happened, four chains phased through Magdalena’s body, one pierced Sunset’s left shoulder, the second pierced the right, and the last two anchored themselves in her thighs. Sunset grunted in pain from the attack, feeling the spear tips release barbs into her flesh to keep themselves secured.

“Well…that’s bullshit…they can even go through you…!”

Magdalena made a gesture with her hand and the chains moved until they were no longer passing through her and were angled around her body. The holy assassin walked towards Sunset, looking her right in the eyes. “They can, and you’ll also find that your powers are effectively sealed so long as they are touching you.” Sunset tried to ignite her flames, but it was becoming clear that Magdalena’s claims were true. “No need to struggle, it’ll all be over soon enough. Do you wish to pray before I execute you, or do you have any last words to speak?”

“Just a few…” Sunset smirked. “Breakfast is served with a silver spoon.”

Magdalena raised an eyebrow in confusion. “What is the significance of those words?”

“This.”

{Breakfast is served with a silver spoon.}

Magdalena’s eyes went wide as her pupils shrank to pinpricks. She glanced to her right and saw a creature made of flames, it looked like a little fairy, and in its hands, it held the voice recorder that Sunset had brought with her. Upon realizing that she was found out, the fire fairy pressed it again.

{Breakfast is served with a silver spoon.}

Magdalena held her head as she walked backwards away from Sunset, the halo behind her began to spark and then it became unstable. In a flash, all the chains disappeared as the Spear of Destiny transformed back to its original form. Sunset fell to her knees, the wounds in her shoulders and thighs throbbed from the puncture wounds, but thankfully her power was healing her, but again, not as fast due to the effects of the Spear. Magdalena continued to hold her head, something was happening, and Sunset was worried that Neighsay may have foreseen something like this and tricked them with a different command phrase.

After a minute, Magdalena was on her knees as well, panting heavily as she brought one hand to the ground. Sunset gulped, not sure if the person before her was the kind and caring girl she got to know, or the assassin. “Fluttershy…?”

The Magdalena pulled back her hood and slowly raised her head. She removed the mask on her face and revealed the distraught, yet happy look on her face. “S-S-Sunset…?”

Sunset smiled in relief, the coldness in Fluttershy’s voice was gone, replaced with her familiar soft tone. “Welcome back.”

“Oh my…my God…what…have I done?!” Fluttershy whimpered as tears fell from her eyes. “I…I killed people…I hurt Principal Celestia…I tried to kill you!…I…I’m so sorry…!”

Sunset stood on shaky legs, mostly from pain, and managed to set on her rear next to Fluttershy. She placed a hand on Fluttershy’s shoulder and rubbed it comfortingly. “I’m sorry…I know you must’ve suffered while trapped in your own mind. That wasn’t you. None of that was you, and if Sis was here, she’d say the same thing. You were being controlled.”

“But…” Fluttershy sat on her knees and looked at her hands. “My hands…these hands have killed people…I was trapped, but I saw everything…it was my body, my actions…”

“Yes, it was your body, and your body’s actions, but not your intent. Fluttershy, there’s only one person to blame for this, one person at fault, and that’s the son of a bitch who’s up there in the sky fighting my sister!”

As soon as Sunset said those words a sphere of light appeared in the sky, followed behind that was a dark sphere. The two spheres merged together and formed into a ball of pure chaotic power, black and white light swirled around the surface as the dual powers of light and darkness mixed and thrashed about.

Sunset got back to her feet, the wounds were closed now, and she was ready to battle. “Speak of the devil.” The wielder of the Ember Stone looked down at Fluttershy and held out her left hand. “Fluttershy, I know you’ve been through a lot, but we need you. If you think you need redemption, then here’s your chance! Fight with us and help us take down Neighsay, otherwise, he’ll make innocent people suffer all over the world!”

Fluttershy glanced to the swirling mass of energy in the sky, and then to Sunset’s hand. The shy girl narrowed her gaze and picked up her mask, placing it on her belt as she took Sunset’s hand and stood up. Fluttershy opened her left hand and summoned the Spear of Destiny, and instantly, the Artifact rose into the air and went directly into her hand.

Fluttershy made the sign of the cross before twirling the Spear of Destiny around and readying herself. “For my friends, and the innocents who suffered, I will punish Neighsay in the name of God!” Fluttershy paused a moment as she saw something fly towards the sphere. “Wait, what’s that?!”

(A couple of minutes ago)

Sunset (pony) was getting exhausted, and her body was in pain, she had maintained the Crimson Form for longer than what she should’ve. The amount of strain it put on her only got worse the longer she stayed in that form, but it was the only edge she had over Neighsay, but even that didn’t seem to be enough.

}}} Sunset, if I tap into any more of your magic, I’ll have to draw upon your lifeforce. You have to end this form now! {{{

I know…I know…but at this rate, we won’t be able to win! We can’t let Neighsay beat us, the last line of defense is right here, all of us! If we fail, then two worlds are going to suffer!

Neighsay had returned his clones to his body and held his hands behind his back, floating above Sunset in a show of superiority. “You don’t look as fiery as you were before my dear. Perhaps you’re losing steam? I, on the other hand, still have power to spare. I’ll show you my graciousness and give you one last chance to end this and join me in my reformation of the world. If you do, I swear to you, I will not touch your world, Sunset Shimmer. They will continue to live in their own peaceful existence. So, what is your answer?”

Sunset panted and formed her huge, “dragon slayer” sword, which was basically an oversized single edged sword. “You can take your offer and shove it! I won’t forsake this world! It’s my home now, and I’ll defend it with everything I have from the likes of you!”

Neighsay sighed and shook his head. “Valiant, and worthy of praise, Sunset Shimmer. I assure you, when the record of this battle is written, I will make sure that you’re written as a noble warrior. But now it is time we brought an end to this. The hour grows late, and I have a world to change. By now my Sworn have either surrounded or captured the two hosts, so I no longer need to play along.”

Neighsay brought his hands forward, his left was ablaze with dark energy, while his right was coated in white light. Sunset prepared herself, not knowing what Neighsay had up his sleeve now. With a wave of his hand, Neighsay unleashed a wave of black lightning. Sunset slashed the air with her sword, releasing a crimson fire crescent at it, but the flames were overpowered by the lightning, destroying Sunset’s attack as it kept coming for her. The black lightning surrounded and struck her, causing pain not only to her, but to Witchblade as well. Neighsay teleported out of sight and reappeared right in front of Sunset, with wicked glee, he thrust his right hand forward and pierced Sunset in her chest.

Sunset gasped in pain and loss of breath, Neighsay retracted his hand and let her fall back as her Crimson Form switched back to the Witchblade’s normal state. As Sunset fell, Neighsay concentrated his light power into his right hand and fired off a giant sphere of light energy, the sphere dropped until it hit Sunset, but it didn’t explode, it merely engulfed her and held her at the center. With his left hand, Neighsay formed a sphere of equal size, but made of dark energy. He released this sphere and let it collide with the light sphere, the two spheres merged together and became a swirling mass of light and darkness, two contrasting powers waging war with each other, and at the center was Sunset, who was in great amounts of pain. The dual powers were tearing her apart, or at least trying to, but the Witchblade’s protection wasn’t going to last, and even it could not withstand his onslaught for long.

“The more you struggle against it, Sunset, the more pain you will endure. Release the armor and I promise it will be over quickly.”

}}} Sunset! {{{

Don’t you dare release! I’m not giving up!

}}} Never even crossed my mind! I will die with you if that is to be our fate! {{{

Neighsay leisurely watched all this unfold, enjoying the sight of his foe squirming in pain. However, something caught his attention, a blue and gold streak of light was heading right for them, followed closely behind it were several of his Sworn creations. Neighsay raised a curious eyebrow and focused more on the object, upon looking more closely, he noticed that it was actually one of the Sentinels, the one that managed to get Celestia out of his grasp. “What in the world is he–?” The Sentinel was heading for the sphere, and in both of his hands he held two spheres of his own, something about them resonated with Neighsay, they were pulsing familiarly to him. Too late, Neighsay understood what this feeling was as he lashed out with a dual light and dark energy beam for the Beast of God screaming, “NOOOOO!!!!”

Gaghiel saw the beam coming, but didn’t alter his course, he held out both of his arms with the spheres still clutched between his fingers and sped up. The beam struck the liger, but only managed to destroy his lower half as he slammed both spheres into the side of Sunset’s torture confinement.

Sunset turned her head in the direction of the Sentinel, eyes wide with shock. “Gaghiel?!”

“MAKE THE USURPER PAY! RAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHH!!!!”

Gaghiel called on all the power he had left and pushed himself into the sphere. The rest of his body was destroyed, but the essence of the Darkness and Angelus remained.

“W-What is that?!”

}}} It can’t be…! {{{

The essence homed in on Witchblade and immediately flew towards the ruby gemstone on Sunset’s gauntlet. When they entered the gemstone, Sunset and Witchblade roared as one when they felt the influx of power coursing through both of them. The sphere that Sunset was kept inside of was shattered like fragile glass before the three great powers that were now inside of Sunset. Neighsay shook his head as he witnessed this, he couldn’t believe the power that he sought was now inside of Sunset Shimmer, but it seemed like he wouldn’t have to wait long, as it looked like her body might not be able to withstand it.

The Witchblade armor was behaving erratically, taking on different shapes and colors as if confused about what it wanted to be. Sunset, in the meantime, was crying out in pain as she felt the three powers in her body try to fight for supremacy, her mind and body crying out for it all to end.

Rainbow Dash had gotten onto the roof of her house through her bedroom window, she knew she couldn’t be there for Sunset and her twin, so the best she could do was watch from a distance. And during these long minutes, she could hear all manner of explosions, and see lights flashing in the distance, knowing that her friends, and school principal were in the middle of that chaos. Now though, now she felt something was off, a light was shining in the skies above Canterlot City, and that same something was telling her Sunset was in trouble and that she needed help.

“Sunset, I left you alone when you needed me, you needed loyalty and I wasn’t there for you!” Rainbow Dash clenched her fists as she stared at the strange light. “But that’s not me now! I’m with you Sunset, I’ll be there with you ‘til the very end!”

When Rainbow Dash uttered these words, she felt a power surge through her, it was a familiar surge, the power of magic, the Magic of Friendship. Rainbow’s back sprouted feathered wings, her hair was redone into a ponytail, and atop her head she grew pony ears. Rainbow Dash reached up with her right hand and pointed it towards the glow in the sky, as if the magic inside her was guiding her actions. From her right hand, a beam of cyan light shot forth and flew towards the greater light in the sky.

“I’m here with you, Sunset!”

Rarity held her little sister close, she had become very frightened during this whole ordeal, thinking that this was it, that this was the moment that she and her friends were going to be punished for their role in Anon-A-Miss.

“I’m going to die…I’m going to hell for sure…!” Sweetie whimpered as she buried her face in Rarity's chest.

“Shh, shh, no you are not Sweetie.” Rarity consoled. “You all made a mistake, and you have to live with the consequences, but you can work to redeem yourselves, just as Sunset has.”

Sweetie sniffled as she looked up at her big sister with teary eyes. “Are you sure…?”

Rarity stroked Sweetie’s hair gently and smiled down at her, “Of course I am, even now, our dear friend is out there, fighting to keep us safe. To protect us from a true monster…” Rarity’s gaze drifted towards the window, it was perfectly positioned to look towards the city, and she knew that a great battle was going on downtown.

Suddenly, Rarity began to glow, making Sweetie Belle release her big sister as she crawled backwards. “R-Rarity, what’s going on?!”

Rarity looked at her body with confusion, she wasn’t afraid, mostly because the sensation behind this glow was very familiar. But then she felt it, a cry for help that echoed within her soul. Rarity, by guidance of her magic, got out of the bed and rushed towards the window. “Sunset’s in danger…” A purple aura outlined her body, her long violet locks shimmered and transformed into a long ponytail as pony ears formed atop her head. “I have to help her!” Rarity raised her right hand, and from it a stream of magic shot from it and towards the city.

Pinkie Pie was at Shimmer Manor, Sunset had wanted her to go back home to be with her family, but Pinkie Pie was unrelenting in her commitment to stay at the manor and wait for Sunset’s return. Before Sunset left for the final battle, she had written to Princess Twilight in the magical journal she brought from her home. She looked over the words that were exchanged between the two, and it was clear that Princess Twilight was equally worried.

Princess Twilight, I’ve been keeping you up to date with what’s been happening, but not the most recent bit of news. A man named Neighsay has taken partial control of two powerful forces of light and darkness. My dimensional twin, Principal Celestia, this world’s Sombra, and myself are going to enact our plan today to stop him. I’m not sure what will happen between now and then, but I thought it best to let you know in case the worst-case scenario happened.

Sunset that’s terrible! Do you want me to come there and help?! I’m sure if we pull our magic together, we might be able to stop him if we unite together!

Thanks…but no, this…I’m not sure if our magic is strong enough to stop this. Neighsay is wielding the power of two entities that have been around since the beginning, they are – for all intents and purposes – the very embodiments of light and darkness, of order and chaos. And the only thing that has a chance of defeating him is the Witchblade I possess, of which was born of that same power. At the very least, I’m hoping that I wound him greatly enough that, if it comes down to you needing to come over, you’ll have a better chance of defeating him then. But that doesn’t mean I’m planning on losing.

I understand…please be careful.

I will…and Twilight, please tell Pinkie Pie (my Pinkie), if I don’t come back, that she’s the best thing to have come into my life. If it wasn’t for her, I don’t think I would’ve been able to endure those last few months of Anon-A-Miss, nor that time after you left. She’s been the light that’s kept me from the darkness, and I love her for that.

I won’t, because you’re going to tell her yourself when you come back.

I get it. Alright, it’s almost time. The eclipse is going to start soon, our window is an hour to defeat Neighsay. If you don’t hear back from me or one of the girls by then…

I understand, good luck.

Pinkie had reread that line many times over, she held the journal close to her chest as she sat in the bed that they made love in. Part of her wanted to go outside towards the balcony to see what she could see of the battle, but another part of her told her not to go, to wait here in this bed for her lover to return. So that when Sunset did come back, they would make love again, a celebration of their being alive, and to enjoy the comfort of the other’s embrace.

“Sunset, you’ve been through a lot, you’ve suffered, and risen above so much. Yourself, the accusations, the Wendigos, dying, and I know you’ll rise above this too!” Pinkie proclaimed into the empty room. “I love you Sunset Shimmer, and when you come back, I’m going to say it to you as many times as I can!”

Suddenly, Pinkie Pie felt a pain inside her, it wasn’t so much a pain coming from her body, but more like she was sensing it. It didn’t take the party girl more than a second to know what this was, to know who it was from.

“Sunset!”

Almost immediately, her body glowed pink, her long curly hair wrapped itself into a ponytail, her human ears disappeared and were replaced by her pony ears. Pinkie’s face scrunched in determination as she raised her right hand into the air.

“Fight, Sunset!”

A beam of pink magical energy shot out of Pinkie’s right hand, passing through the ceiling until it reached the outside and angled itself straight towards the city.

There was much chaos going on in the city, and people she cared about were in mortal danger. So, Applejack, in this moment of crisis, turned to the only thing she could to focus her mind on and keep it off the troubles brewing around her, the apple orchard.

She kicked the tree next to her, causing the fruit bearing plant to release its spoils. Multiple soft thuds hit the ground, littering the area with many bright red apples. Applejack bent down and started picking up the ones that hadn’t fallen in the baskets she set up around the tree. She had been at it for most of the hour, she knew this because she would sneak glances at her phone every couple of minutes. Despite all she was doing, having harvested at least five trees worth of apples, AJ wasn’t feeling any less de-stressed.

She had taken to beating on a tree when it had clearly been relieved of all its fruit, punching, and kicking it repeatedly until she was drenched in sweat and forced to remove her shirt. Of course, she had a sports bra on, she wasn’t crass, and even if she didn’t, she was on her own property in the middle of the orchard, and it wasn’t like anyone aside from her family was going to see her anyway.

“Dammit, dammit, dammit!’ Applejack grunted with each punch. She eventually relented and sat at the base of the tree. “My best friend and Principal, along with her twin, are out there fightin’ to save the world and we’re sidelined! Not to mention Shy’s been brainwashed and they’re probably fightin’ her too!”

Applejack was not one to just sit back and let things happen, she was a woman who, if she saw a problem, would do what she could to fix it. If a friend was in trouble, she would go to them and help. She was a woman of action, but right now, even she knew that their presence, herself, and the rest of their friends, would only serve to hinder Sunset from doing what she needed to do.

Most of this frustration stemmed from the Anon-A-Miss incident. Even if Sunset had forgiven them, Applejack hadn’t forgiven herself for abandoning her friend when she needed her the most. And even more so because the one who was responsible for igniting that firestorm, was her own flesh and blood little sister. Applejack loved Apple Bloom and always would, but she breached the trust they once shared, and the honesty that built the Apple Family.

Applejack chuckled darkly at that thought, talking about honesty when she and her big brother were having sex, while Big Mac was still dating Sugar Belle. They had stopped when the incident with the Flim Flam brothers happened, but they had both agreed to just relegate that as a distant memory and never bring it up. She knew someday she and Macintosh would have to answer for that, and Applejack was hoping she could show near the same amount of strength for that trial as Sunset had shown in hers.

“Sunset…Ah wish Ah could help ya…somehow…some way…”

It was at that moment that Applejack felt a sensation within her, something that drove her to stand up quickly. She could sense that someone was in pain, that someone needed help, and it was becoming all too clear who that someone was.

“SUNSET!”

Orange magical energy shimmered around Applejack, her long blonde hair twisted around until it was in the form of a braided ponytail. The human ears on the sides of her head disappeared and were replaced by the magical pony ears that accompanied their magical pony ups.

“Don’t worry, sugar cube, help’s on the way!”

With that declaration, Applejack thrust her right hand into the air, releasing a beam of orange magical energy that soared high into the sky and aimed itself right towards the city.

Fluttershy and Sunset watched as something collided against the giant sphere, but then something broke free from it. Neither girl needed to see it clearly to know that it had to be Shimmer.

“Dammit, we’re too late!” Sunset lamented.

“No, something else is happening, I can feel it,” said Fluttershy with determination. “Sun – Shimmer’s in pain, but she’s not gone! There’s a way to help her!”

Sunset looked upon Fluttershy as her body glowed yellow. Fluttershy pulled back her hood, allowing her pink hair to transform into a ponytail, wings flared from her back, and pony ears appeared on her head. Sunset blinked at the transformation and asked, “What the actual hell is happening to you?! Is…Is this something else your Spear of Destiny can do?”

“No, this is something else. Something that my friends and I could wield before we obtained the weapons we have; this is the Magic of Friendship!” Fluttershy and Sunset watched as beams of light shot by, colored blue, purple, orange, and pink. “And right now, Shimmer needs it!” Fluttershy reached up with her right hand and channeled her magic towards the light in the sky.

Sunset was still yelling, the pain she was feeling was excruciating, it didn’t just feel as if her body was being torn apart at the atomic level, but her very soul too. Thoughts were hard to form in her mind, and every nerve ending was on fire with pain. She could also hear the screams of the Witchblade as even he had trouble trying to bring the influx of the two powers under control inside them both. A moment of clarity allowed Sunset to wonder if this was the end, if this was the way she was going?

However, that thought was cut off when she saw five beams of different colored light come flying towards her. Those five beams united into a swirling aurora that collided with Sunset and wrapped her in a ball of multicolored light. In that light, there was no pain, there was no agony, there was peace. Sunset panted as she clutched at her chest, the Witchblade armor was still in a state of flux, not sure what form to take. Just then, five beings appeared before her, they were her friends, each one a construct made of their individual light.

“Girls…?”

“We’re here with you, Sunset.”

“You don’t have to face this on yer own sugar cube.”

“We may not have the power to fight that beast of a man, but we can at least give you the strength you need.”

Sunset looked to Fluttershy, seeing her brought tears to her eyes. “Fluttershy…y-you’re alright?! You’re back?!”

The Fluttershy construct nodded. “I am, and I will be there soon to fight by your side.”

Sunset glanced at her girlfriend. “Pinkie…”

“I’m here, Sunny, we’re all here! You can do this!”

The constructs all came closer to Sunset and gave her a hug. Sunset felt the warmth of their embrace, it seeped into her being, into every fiber, connecting to the magic within her. The Witchblade seemed to resonate with this power as well, its fluctuating state finally calming until it was at peace.

}}} Sunset, I am ready. {{{

“So am I.”

The sphere of light became a pillar of aurora light that stretched high into the heavens and all the way down to the ground, smashing through the barrier that confined the city and its outskirts. The power it generated sent a shockwave that shook the air and land, causing the Sworn and even Neighsay to pause and gaze upon the phenomenon before them. Neighsay shook his head, he couldn’t believe it, no, he wouldn’t allow this to happen. The Usurper of the Balance, with a wave of his hand, dismissed his legion of Sworn, drawing in all that power for himself. His right hand shined white, while his left bellowed with black light, Neighsay brought both hands together and fired a massive beam of both powers towards the pillar of rainbow light.

From that pillar of aurora light, construct bat limbs broke through the sides, flaring the digits wide. However, instead of a membrane, the gabs bloomed with a full plumage of feathers. The wings folded forward, acting as a shield as the beam struck against them. Neighsay released a loud battle cry as he shunted more power into his attack to break through the wings. But it seemed to be a losing battle as the wings flexed and flared, sending a shimmering wave of aurora particles that broke down the attack into nothing.

The pillar finally broke apart, the pieces transforming into feathers of aurora light that cascaded all around the city. From the pillar emerged a new form of the Witchblade. Black pauldrons adorned Sunset’s shoulders, segmented into three parts, the biceps were covered in white armor that transitioned into black as it reached her forearms, changing again to white for the fingers and bottom of the palms, atop the forearms was a small white wing-like protrusion with metal feathers. Sunset’s chest armor had changed as well, over her right bosom was a node with a gold colored gemstone, surrounded by white metal. Over her left bosom was a violet colored gemstone, surrounded by black metal. Around her naval was a red gemstone, this one was covered in one half white metal and the other half black metal.

The two nodes over her chest formed strips of metal of their white and black coloring that followed a “V” pattern down to the third node to show the two halves merging. Two more strips of metal went upwards, connecting to the armor that covered most of her neck and shoulders. This left most of her front exposed, as the armor usually does, but going lower, it covered her groin with a piece of the dual colored metal. Her thighs were wrapped in black metal, which transitioned into white metal below the knee, and finally back to black around the feet. The outsides of her ankles sported small black bat wing protrusions to contrast to the white wings on her arms. The armor continued onto her back, forming a long, rigid spine that followed the curve of her back and mostly covered her rear, but just above where her tailbone would be, the armor created a seven-foot long tail that whipped back and forth, the tip of which was a white arrowed head. The armor covered her shoulder blades, allowing her wings to flare out majestically. They bore the same design as the construct wings, but these bat-like appendages were made of black metal, but with white feathers filling the gaps between them, and each feather had a thin aurora line outlining them. Between the gaps of the armor on her arms, legs, hands, and feet, where the joints would be, they were filled with aurora light, even in the segments in the tail.

Sunset’s head was adorned with a crown, a white tiara, with two black horns rising from the sides of her head, and a third, white horn, coming out of the forehead. Her hair had changed completely, taking on the aurora colors of violet, pink, blue, yellow, orange, red, and white. When Sunset opened her eyes, they were pools of shining light as black and gold lightning arced out of the corners of her eyes. Sunset had become the embodiment of light, darkness, and magic unified into one being, she was order and chaos, harmony and discord, this was the perfect union of father, mother, and son, her new form, Trinity Form.

Sunset turned her head to the left and watched as a large dragon flew towards them, she smiled upon seeing her “little sister” flying towards her, and riding on Dragon Shimmer’s back was Fluttershy, her hood was down and her mask hung on her belt beside her, allowing Sunset to see the pony ears, tail, and wings. When the two women arrived, they both gasped in shock upon seeing Sunset’s newest transformation.

“Sunset, are you alright?!” Fluttershy asked as she jumped off Dragon Shimmer and flew towards her.

“I’m alright, actually, better than alright.”

Dragon Shimmer changed back to normal and looked like she wanted to hug her “big sister” but wasn’t sure if that was a good idea right now. “Are you sure?! What happened to you?!”

“I think Celestia and Sombra sent their remnants of Angelus and the Darkness to me, to give me and Witchblade more power, and believing that it would magnify within him since he’s their son. It almost didn’t work,” Sunset’s gaze turned towards Fluttershy. “That is until you and the girls sent your magic to me, it managed to bring the chaos under control and allowed Witchblade to unify the powers inside him.”

“YOU INSOLENT, INTERFERING WHORES!!!!” Neighsay shouted at the top of his lungs, gaining the girls’ attention. “HOW DARE YOU TAKE WHAT IS RIGHTFULLY MINE!!! I’LL TAKE GREAT PLEASURE IN TEARING THAT POWER FROM YOUR BODY! AND YOU MAGDALENA, HOW DARE YOU DISOBEY ME!”

Fluttershy glared at Neighsay, spun her spear around, and assumed an attack stance. “I am no longer your pawn, Neighsay! I am my own person now, and I’ll fight to protect my friends, my family, and this world from people like you!!!”

Dragon Shimmer’s body flared with bellowing flames. “You’re going down, here and now, your ambitions end!”

“Neighsay, your sins will not be forgiven! Not in this life or the next! No…not even then, because I’ll send you to the same place I sent the Wendigos, to Oblivion!” Sunset declared.

“I WON’T LET YOU!!! MY CAUSE IS RIGHTEOUS, AND THOSE WHO GET IN THE WAY OF THE RIGHTEOUS ARE DOOMED TO FALL!!!”

Neighsay unleashed a blitz attack of white light beams and black lightning that were all aimed towards the three girls. Dragon Shimmer released jet streams from her feet, propelling her at great speeds to avoid the attacks, while Fluttershy flapped her wings, nimbly and gracefully dodging each of the attacks, and for those that she couldn’t she deflected with the Spear of Destiny. Sunset moved like a mirage, she left an afterimage of herself wherever she went, making it hard for Neighsay to tell if he was hitting the real Sunset or her afterimage.

Dragon Shimmer sped towards Neighsay, getting high above him as she transformed into her full dragon form and coming down on him with a powerful tail whip. Neighsay focused his energy upward and formed a light shield that absorbed the impact of the blow, creating a powerful rumble through the sky like that of thunder. While he was distracted by this, Fluttershy hurled the Spear of Destiny and called upon its Second Form. The Spear of Destiny transformed and became a thousand golden swords, all of which aimed themselves right for Neighsay.

The Usurper of the Balance saw the attack coming at him from all sides and released an explosion attack of black and white energy, forcing Dragon Shimmer to back off and preventing the blades from hitting their target, but that didn’t prevent them from pressing against it, essentially forcing Neighsay to keep the explosion of energy going or else he’d get skewered by a thousand holy swords. Sunset had gotten some distance and took a runner’s stance as aurora, white, and black light wafted off her body. With a flap of her wings, Sunset dashed across the sky, creating a sonic boom that echoed for miles. The Trinity Warrior spun rapidly, creating a tornado of light that came roaring at Neighsay’s explosion attack. Fluttershy made a motion with her hands to make the blades retreat just in time as Sunset’s attack smashed against the side of Neighsay’s attack.

The tornado grinded against Neighsay’s bubble, with the latter pouring more power into the attack to keep her from getting at him. But Sunset would not be denied. She flipped around and dove in with a flying kick, piercing through Neighsay’s attack and nailing him right in the gut. The two attacks cancelled each other out as Sunset’s attack carried the two of them across the sky, further and further out of the city proper and close to the mountain range in the distance.

Before they could collide, Neighsay teleported at the last second and appeared above her, channeling his dual power into his hands, and firing a burst of it at Sunset. The blast hit and sent Sunset flying down into the rockface of the mountain range. Neighsay didn’t get a moment of reprieve as he was assailed by a blazing storm of hellfire raining down on him. Neighsay created a physical shield and an energy shield with his left hand to protect himself from the blaze, but Dragon Shimmer didn’t let up. She bellowed harder and harder, focusing on the flames to burn hotter and harder. The effort eventually transformed the flame into a pure red and yellow plasma beam that doubled in size and engulfed Neighsay.

An explosion went off in the middle of the beam where Neighsay was, sending him spiraling upwards into the air. The Usurper growled in frustration and summoned a spear of light and hurled it at Dragon Shimmer. The spear hit its target, but only succeeded in embedding itself in Dragon Shimmer’s left shoulder, still the draconic warrior roared in pain as she staggered to keep herself airborne. However, Neighsay wasn’t done, he hurled two more spears, one hitting Dragon Shimmer in her right hind thigh and one piercing her left side. Neighsay launched a fourth light spear, but when it flew, the spear was intercepted by the Spear of Destiny. The construct spear and holy weapon clashed in the air until the construct couldn’t withstand the power of the holy Artifact any longer and shattered like glass.

Fluttershy flew in and willed the spear back to her hands as she prepared to enter close combat. Neighsay formed his ax and sword and readied himself, well, as best as he could. Fluttershy thrust forward with her spear, making Neighsay back up to avoid its edge. He wasn’t a fool, there was a reason why he wanted to make sure that Fluttershy was under his control, because the Spear of Destiny was the only other weapon that posed a very real threat to him. That was, of course, before he knew of the Ember Stone, the man wasn’t stupid, he knew he was on the bad end of a four way, with Witchblade’s recent transformation, and now the addition of these two Artifacts, the odds were not in his favor. Still, he refused to back down, refused to let his ambitions, his goals, all his planning to be undone by three teenage girls.

Neighsay roared with fury as he counterattacked, slashing with his ax, but Fluttershy spun her spear to deflect, but Neighsay didn’t relent as he attacked with his sword, and yet again, Fluttershy deflected. The two traded blows back and forth, when Fluttershy thought he was getting too close, she would swing the Spear of Destiny in a wide arch to give her some breathing room. Neighsay tried to go in for the kill again, but Fluttershy thrust with her spear rapidly, filling the airspace between them with dozens upon dozens of streaking bronze lights. Neighsay backed away and cut the space between them with his ax, opening a shadow portal, and allowing hundreds of Darkness eels to come slithering forth.

Fluttershy ceased her attack and transformed the spear into its Fourth Form. The golden halo appeared on her back, and the divine chains shot forth, it was a war of striking vipers as the chains and eels went at it in the air, piercing, biting, winding, and weaving, each eel doggedly trying to get to Fluttershy and tear her apart, but the halo continued producing chains upon chains to either entangle the eels or kill them outright. Neighsay cut more gashes in the air before him, making more Darkness eels pour forth, and making Fluttershy have to summon more chains to kill them all.

Neighsay teleported until he was behind Fluttershy, he raised his ax and sword, ready to cleave the traitor to his cause. That action was not realized as Sunset burst forth from the mountainside and roared up to meet Neighsay face to face. The Usurper was startled for a moment when he suddenly saw the teenage girl appear in his field of vision, causing him to back away quickly. Sunset raised her left hand, calling on the metal to shift and transform. When it was done, Sunset was now sporting a large cannon arm, the barrel glowed with violet and black light, as Sunset charged it. With a mere thought, Sunset fired the cannon, the head of the beam took on the form of a Darkness eel as it hissed on its way towards Neighsay.

The column sized beam opened its great maw and chomped down on Neighsay, the beam wound through the air like a serpent until it finally struck the mountain peak, exploding on impact and creating an avalanche in the process. Neighsay laid in a smoldering crater and began peeling himself out of it but stopped when he saw Sunset floating high above his position. Sunset’s right arm transformed into a gatling gun with eight rotating barrels. The cannon and gatling gun charged up and then fired, the gatling gun rained down white and gold energy bullets while the cannon fired huge beams of violet and black energy down on Neighsay. Sunset yelled loudly as she barraged the Usurper of the Balance, not stopping until the peak of the mountain itself exploded into rubble.

Sunset knew better than to think that that had taken him down easily, which was why her tail shot backwards. At that moment, Neighsay teleported right in the path of her tail, and was pierced through the chest. The former Cardinal looked upon himself, seeing the appendage lodged in his chest and then looking back at Sunset. The Trinity Warrior paid Neighsay no heed as she reeled his body in, with a flick of her tail she threw his body towards her right. Just as she did that, another Neighsay appeared and collided with the first Neighsay. Sunset teleported behind the second Neighsay and formed a large forearm blade to pierce the two of the in one move. Sunset retracted her blade and watched as the sky was littered with dozens of Neighsay clones.

Sunset crossed her arms, looking unimpressed by this show of force. All twelve dozen Neighsays slashed their air in front of them with their swords, creating light crescents that headed right for Sunset. The Bringer of Balance didn’t even avoid the attack as all the crescents hit her at once, exploding on her position. The clones readied for another volley, but stopped when they saw the dust clear, seeing Sunset in a bubble of aurora light, completely unscathed. Sunset wagged her finger and then pointed upwards with the right index finger.

When she did that, hundreds of fireballs came raining down from the sky above them. Sunset teleported away, allowing Dragon Shimmer’s attack to take the stage, the Neighsays flew around wildly, trying to avoid the fireballs, some failed as they exploded before they reached the ground below, but their situation quickly escalated. The thousand holy swords of the Spear of Destiny swarmed the air space, attacking from all different angles and making it impossible for the clones to avoid any of them. Some were destroyed by fireballs, others by impalement, not a single one of them survived the double attack, but the real Neighsay was not among them.

Fluttershy, Dragon Shimmer, who had assumed her humanoid form, and Sunset looked around, but quickly found out where he was. High above them, Neighsay had been gathering power, condensing it so that they wouldn’t notice, and now it was too late. He would destroy everything, scorch the Earth, wipe the mountains and city off the map, it wouldn’t matter in the long run so long as he obtained the power he sought. Neighsay funneled all that power into his right hand, he gripped his right wrist with his left hand to stabilize, and then unleashed the power he had gathered into a small, marble sized orb. The orb broke open and unleashed a beam of monochrome light that nearly consumed the sky as far as the eye could see.

Sunset gathered the power she had, the three nodes glowed at the same time, resonating with her command. Into her right hand, that power formed a sword, the hilt was black, with the pommel featuring two ivory fangs. The guard was that of a silver, upward facing triangle, with white wings coming out the sides, the guard had the same three gemstones as the nodes on Sunset’s chest. Sunset nodded to both Dragon Shimmer and Fluttershy to take hold of the hilt. Dragon Shimmer gripped it with her left hand while Fluttershy held it with her right, all three girls lifted the sword into the air and pointed it at the coming attack.

The Ember Stone on Dragon Shimmer’s chest shined along with the Spear of Destiny in Fluttershy’s right hand. The gemstones on the sword and on Sunset’s chest glowed as well, resonating with each other on a level that felt strange and yet somehow familiar. With a united battle cry, the sword unleashed its own beam of light, a flaming, golden, aurora beam that formed a blade, cutting straight up towards Neighsay’s attack. Compared to the giant beam coming down towards them, it looked like a toothpick was about to take on a skyscraper. But when the two attacks struck each other, the thin beam actually held the opposing attack back.

Neighsay couldn’t believe what was happening right now, he was pouring his all into this attack, so why, why was such a small attack, from those three girls, matching him? That’s when he figured it out, that’s when he realized his mistake. This wasn’t just the power of three Artifacts being united, no, this was the power five in one. The girls roared their defiance even louder into the air, the beam of light the Trinity Sword fired answered their call and grew enormously huge, eclipsing Neighsay’s attack as it roared towards him. The beam was too big to dodge, and he was locked into his own attack, so there was no way to move. The Usurper of the Balance cried out in pain as the beam of light struck him, sparks of lightning within the beam attacking him from every different angle as the attack raged on around him.

Dragon Shimmer and Fluttershy released the sword and stopped the attack, the three girls all flew high into the sky following right behind the tail end of their beam.

Neighsay floated there for a moment as the attack had ended, but it wasn’t over. Dragon Shimmer and Fluttershy appeared in the distance, Dragon Shimmer fired another concentrated fire beam towards Neighsay, and at the same time, Fluttershy hurled her Spear of Destiny. The Spear and beam combined together, becoming a fiery comet that became faster with each passing second. Neighsay created a multilayered energy shield in front him, trying to keep the attack from hitting. But that proved to be an effort that was in vain as the combined attack pierced through one layer after the other, moving faster with each breakthrough until the blazing comet finally pierced through its main target.

The Usurper of the Balance coughed as his face plate fell away to spit up blood, he looked down and saw a large gaping hole in his chest. The power of the Spear and Ember Stone prevented the wound from closing quickly, leaving Neighsay stunned. Above them, Sunset gathered all the power she had left, changing into a being of pure power and light as feathers and sparkling particles fluttered around her. She dove down toward Neighsay, he had no more defenses, he was weakened, his army was gone, this was the end.

Neighsay looked up at the last second and witnessed what he believed in that moment, to be the embodiment of God’s wrath made manifest.

Sunset brought down her Trinity Sword, the action leaving a streak of blue light in its wake. There was a delayed reaction as Neighsay hovered there in the air, but then one side began to slant, and shortly after that, a grand explosion erupted in the skies above the Earth. Fluttershy and Dragon Shimmer had to close their eyes from the sheer intensity of the light that was being emitted from the detonation. Within the explosion, while still in her light form, Sunset witnessed as Neighsay’s body evaporated, shortly thereafter, she saw an outline of his soul, and that too, was evaporated, erased from existence. She also saw the two objects that gave Neighsay his power. With her right hand, she grabbed the Prism, and with her left, she took hold of the Siphon. Sunset released another war cry as she focused the power that was inside her, the power of Angelus and the Darkness, and poured them into their respective prisons. The gemstone on the Prism glowed gold while the Siphon opened and absorbed the Darkness’ essence.

When the explosion finally died out, Dragon Shimmer and Fluttershy flew towards where Sunset was, they stopped once they were a foot away and watched as Sunset turned around. Sunset was no longer in her Trinity Form, the Witchblade had resumed its original form, and in Sunset’s hands she held the Prism and Siphon and smiled at her “little sister” and friend.

“It’s over guys…it’s…it’s finally over…”

Sunset began to drop in altitude, Dragon Shimmer and Fluttershy hurried to Sunset and caught her before she could fall from the sky. Witchblade seemed to pass out too as the armor retracted from Sunset’s body and returned into its bracelet form, leaving the former unicorn completely bare.

“Oh my,” Fluttershy gasped as she blushed.

“Guess they’re both out of it,” said Dragon Shimmer as she chuckled.

The “younger” Shimmer used her flames to cover up her “big sister”, and to keep her from getting frostbite at the high altitude they were at. Despite being unconscious and exhausted, both girls noticed that Sunset held a firm grip on the two Artifacts, even knocked out, she wasn’t about to let go of the things that caused so much trouble to everyone she cared about, she would hold onto them, and prevent anyone from getting them.

“My Sis sure is something, isn’t she?”

“Yes, she’s the best friend any of us could ask for.”

The Final Showdown Arc: End

Fallout

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Epilogue: Omens

Sunset awoke with a start, sitting up in the bed as she inhaled deeply and panted as if she had just run a marathon. It took a moment before the young rich girl came back to the moment and realized that she was in her home, in her bed. Her brow was wet, and her hair was a bit matted from sweating, her tank top and shorts clinging to her body. Sunset shook her head, she had a nightmare, but unfortunately, it was also a memory.

She threw the blankets off and swung her legs out over the edge of the bed. Sunset stood up and decided that she needed to clear her head, or rather, get it focused. She exited her room and made her way down the hall but stopped a moment to peer into her big sister’s room, she smiled in content knowing that at least one of them was having a good night’s sleep.

Sunset continued her walk, passing her upstairs laboratory and heading down the stairs. She turned to her right and kept walking until she stopped at the wall next to the stairs. Ever the cautious one, Sunset glanced about the area, when she was certain it was clear, she reached under the molding and found the spot she needed. Sunset pressed her two fingers against the molding, and as she did, two sections moved, pushing deeper until a light “click” sound went off. Part of the wall slid away seamlessly, revealing a passageway towards the basement level. Once Sunset got in, the door closed behind her and bathed her in darkness. Lights kicked on and illuminated a stairwell that led downwards.

Sunset walked the length of the stairs all the way until she reached her destination. What she hadn’t told her big sister, or Twilight, was that there was in fact another lab, the first lab. There was a basement that she showed everyone, where she stored the Prism and the Siphon, but that was for show. That same night, she went down to the vault and removed the two Artifacts, moving them to the subbasement. Above the doorway to the subbasement there was plaque that read “Laboratory I”.

When Sunset entered, the contrast between the one upstairs and the one down here was vastly different. While Lab II was set up for more scientific pursuits, Lab I was set up for more supernatural studies. There were computers that were lined up against one wall, one big desktop and several laptops that were running different programs at once, a table that had different books on ancient items, old grimoires and tomes on magic, all in an effort to decipher and learn the secrets of not just her own Artifact, but the others.

Further back in the lab, she had a circle of thirteen ballistic grade glass cases that stood at least four feet tall. In one of them was the Prism, in another was the Siphon, and a third housed a strange looking gold coin. Sunset sighed and moved back to where her research was. She took up a tablet and opened a program, mirroring it to a large monitor that took up a whole wall. On the screen it displayed multiple symbols, and each symbol had a name correlated to it.

“The Angelus, the Darkness, and the Witchblade, the so-called, ‘Trinity’ that make up the core.” Three symbols lit up at the center. “The Spear of Destiny, wielded by Fluttershy, aka the Magdalena.” Another symbol glowed. “My Ember Stone.” A fifth symbol glowed. “And…” Sunset glanced over her shoulder towards the gold coin. “The Coin of Solomon.”

Sunset placed her right hand on her hip and stared intensely at this image.

“I’m sorry Sparky, Sis, but I’m so close. After all this time, it’s about to happen. That bastard said it, ‘They will gather, they will awake’. Coming to Canterlot City proved to be the best gambit I’ve taken, because now there are six Artifacts in this one city, and many more will come…even now…”

Manehattan, it was a large city, but it paled in comparison to the older civilizations, that’s what Adagio Dazzle thought at least. It had been some months since she and her sisters suffered defeat at the hands of the Rainbooms, more specifically, at the hands of Sunset Shimmer. While she harbored anger towards those five human teeny boppers, and the alicorn princess, she harbored nothing but wrathful vengeance for Sunset. Had she not been there, had she not interfered, she and her sisters would be ruling this world and every pathetic human that dwelled in it. They should be adored, she should be adored by everyone, and loved.

Instead, she was loved and adored in another way, a way that she hated, loathed, but in contrast to the alternative…as degrading as it was…it was a necessary evil. Even now, she was in the middle of doing that necessary evil, or rather, it was doing her. Adagio was on her back, legs splayed wide as a man – she had forgotten his name and honestly didn’t care to remember – was rapidly thrusting into her womanhood over and over again.

She was in a seedy motel, as cliché as it was. The room was an ugly tan color, with brown carpeting, and a bed that was lumpy and was no doubt not cleaned properly, so she was more than sure that, in addition to her own secretions, she was lying in the leftovers of several other whores and johns that had used this room before. The man looked like he was in heaven right now, no doubt he was, after all, what man didn’t take pleasure in defiling an eighteen-year-old high school girl?

Despite how much she hated this, Adagio wasn’t a slouch, she played her part will. She moaned loudly and sweetly, her velvety voice was like honey to him whenever she released a sexy gasp or moan of “ecstasy”. In truth, she found little pleasure in this, hell the only reason she was able to get wet at all was because she fantasized about what she was going to do to Sunset Shimmer when she got her alone. She was going to torture her, but not before she had her fun with the pony turned human’s body.

“Oh yes, sweetie, that’s it! Harder, do it harder!” Adagio moaned.

“Fuck yeah, yes!” he replied.

Adagio’s perky breasts jiggled with each thrust, sweat licked her body as her breaths came quicker. She could tell the man was close, and it was around this time she started to think harder about how she was going to torture Sunset, the words “hate fuck” wouldn’t do what she had in mind justice. The more she thought about it, the more she imagined seeing Sunset Shimmer’s face contorted in a confusing, chaotic mixture of pain and pleasure, the closer it brought her to her own climax. And thankfully it always worked, both her and her client had climaxed at the same time, Adagio filled the room with her beautiful singing voice while the man atop her filled her womb with his seed.

It had taken her and her sisters a lot of practice to get their voices back to their former glory, and thankfully luck was on their side. However, without their amulets, their voices had no power to sway people to do their bidding, all they did was sound beautiful. Her voice alone was what brought her the big money, not to say her hypnotizing hips, curvy figure, and perky B-cup breasts weren’t nothing to sneeze at either, but to hear her moans, it wasn’t just experienced physically but also auditorily.

When they were done, Adagio cleaned herself up, dabbing away the cum from her slit before she put on her clothes. A purple tube top, a purple leather jacket with gold spikes around the shoulders, a black mini-skirt, violet see-through panties, no bra, and purple, slip on boots with gold plates running along the sides. Adagio looked around on the floor until she spotted her gold studded hairband and slipped it back onto her head. Normally, most girls in her position would have their clients wear a condom, but Adagio and her sisters seemed to have been altered, or maybe it was something that was always with them.

It seemed their biology made it impossible for them to have children, to be honest, this wasn’t the first time that Adagio, or any of the Sirens, had had sex with humans. A thousand years of roaming this world, their urges did need to be satisfied, and it wasn’t like they could have sex with each other…………okay, so they did, but that was over three hundred years ago, and they hadn’t done it again. Except only when they were really low and needed comfort with each other, those were the only times it was allowed between them. Anyway, they took a risk to see if they could sire children here and potentially create a line for themselves, but it seemed that their Siren biology carried over to a degree, for no matter how many men they took to bed, none of them could get pregnant.

It was a little disappointing, but it also meant that they didn’t need to worry about having to carry a child when they didn’t want to. Of course, back then, there wasn’t any medicine for the various venereal diseases that ran rampant and untreated in ancient times, but it also seemed that their amulets were keeping them safe from getting sick, allowing them to survive many different diseases that had cut down so much of humanity’s population over the centuries. Now though, it seemed they still were immune to disease, whether this was due to their biology, or their biology being altered by the amulets, none of them knew, but they weren’t going to complain about it.

“That was great, you were definitely worth every penny,” said the man.

Adagio gave a lilting chuckle and said, “Thank you, I hope you become one of my regulars.”

“Ya know, we could keep it goin’, I got extra. How much for the whole night?”

When it came to her night job, Adagio had a few rules. One: always get paid upfront, two: don’t let the client dictate the spot where they conduct their “business”, and three: don’t ever stay with a client the whole night. For those clients who wanted her all night to themselves, Adagio had her ways of making them say no. “Hmm, I don’t think you could afford it, hun. For an all-nighter, it’s three times my rate.”

As expected, when Adagio told a client the price, they practically paled. And right now, the man was almost as white as a ghost.

“Tell you what, if you have enough, we go another round, or you can save up and we can have at it again next week? You can make this a treat for yourself, if you want?” Adagio suggested as she stroked the man’s hair and gave him a sexy half-lidded look.

The man nodded eagerly. “Y-Yeah, that actually sounds good to me. I guess it’s not special if I get it every day. Right?”

“That’s the ticket,” said Adagio as she gave the man a quick peck on the forehead. “Ta, ta, hun.”

Adagio waved a goodbye as she left the room, the moment she did she spat onto the asphalt and concrete. She hated acting like that for a human, but right now, neither she nor her sisters could afford to be picky about what or who they did to get money.

Upon their defeat at the Battle of the Bands, the Sirens could no longer remain in Canterlot City, not when their amulets were gone. They felt weaker now, their amulets didn’t just give them vitality and longevity, it also strengthened them. Albeit, ever since this new century and finding their way to Canterlot City, their power was drastically reduced, so they weren’t able to show off their more impressive feats of strength. It hardly mattered now, they were as weak as any human now, Aria was probably the only exception, she liked keeping her body in shape and was a natural fighter.

They again took to roaming around, trying to find ways to earn money, since they couldn’t control people anymore, no one would give them what they wanted. They managed to get as far from Canterlot as they could, Manehattan, a place where anyone can make a fresh start, and where people didn’t ask too many questions about where you lived or what you did so long as you paid the rent. Unfortunately, none of them really developed skills that could be used for monetary value, considering that they were trying to find ways to get back home or control these hairless apes.

Sonata took up cooking as a hobby and was pretty good, but she never devoted enough time or studied with the masters to become a master chef. Aria just liked to get rough, she found fighting was a good way to get out her frustrations, she became an excellent street fighter and could take on any man who tried to start something. However, her skills weren’t refined enough, had she taken the time to learn from the different martial arts masters and styles that had developed over the last thousand years, Aria could be a world renowned MMA fighter, a champion. Adagio, well, she learned about technology, as much as she could and as much as she wanted to. In retrospect, as the leader and eldest of the Siren sisters, she had a duty to learn more and push her sisters to do the same so that they had skills to fall back on should they ever need them. But they only learned enough just to get by, they relied heavily on their voices and magic. Something else that she hated Sunset Shimmer for, that pony was a unicorn and lost her magic, so she honed her mind and body instead, and did more for herself than either of them did in a thousand years.

So, with little else to work with, they used the only thing that they had at their disposal, their bodies. Out of the three of them, Adagio worked longer hours and more nights than her sisters did, a personal choice. For one thing, Aria was often too aggressive with her clients, some guys like that and wanted her, but not every client liked paying for a girl who looked like she could snap their neck and leave them to die. Sonata, bless her, still managed to maintain her innocence to a degree, that combined with her airheadedness, brought in a number of different clients who wanted to sleep with her. But those qualities that made her popular, also made her a liability. There were times when she was scammed into sleeping with clients and not getting paid at all.

So, more often than not, Adagio was forced to do more than her fair share to keep them afloat.

Adagio made the long walk back to their hovel of an apartment, passing by several shops along her way. It was degrading on all levels, they were once proud and powerful creatures, they were feared, they were adored, but now they were reduced to common street whores. Adagio growled and kicked a mailbox with all the strength she had, she hated this, she hated everything that was done to them, part of her wanted to just break down and bawl like a foal who wanted to go back home, and deep down that’s what they really wanted, they wanted to go back home.

Adagio sighed as she stopped before one of the thrift shops windows. She didn’t know why, but something compelled her to always come by this one rundown shop and just look at an item that was displayed there. It was a small box, just big enough to store a lot of trinkets or jewelry. It appeared to be wooden, what type she didn’t know, with gold plates forming ornate shapes. For some reason, looking at this box filled her with a sense of calm, like it was promising her that everything would be alright. From what she could see, the box’s top had an infinity styled loop, with two empty spots in the gaps of the symbol. Adagio often wondered what was once there, in a way, it reminded her of herself. Beautiful and yet incomplete.

~ “For some, they will be found by pure happenstance…” ~

The former Siren decided that it was time to stop looking at it, she could afford to splurge on a little something. Adagio entered the thrift shop, she grabbed the jewelry box and brought it up to the cashier and said, “Excuse me, I’d like to buy this.”

Indigo Zap was not happy, her parents had decided to take her to the Alps for Spring Break, when it was usually tradition for teens to head to the beach and party like it was their last day on Earth. But, after all the supernatural weirdness that had happened over the last few days, Indigo’s parents had decided that they needed to spend some time away from Canterlot for a little bit, and just be a family. Her arm had healed up, mostly, she had the cast taken off but was told by the doctor to only do light work with it for at least another week to make sure everything healed up.

Even on the plane ride over, there was one thing that continued to plague Indigo’s mind, Twilight Sparkle. She knew what she saw that day, she saw Sunset Shimmer using some kind of freaky fire power, her hair was on fire, hell, her whole body was on fire for a few seconds. Lemon Zest had confirmed that much about what happened after she was knocked out, and the rest of the girls confirmed that Sunset did indeed have hair that was on fire, and somehow found them when even Indigo and Lemon didn’t know where they were holding Twilight.

Sunset was dangerous, she had fire powers, maybe that was why Twilight was sticking by her? Sunset must’ve threatened Twilight into being her “girlfriend” or else she’d burn her alive. It made sense, why else would Twilight not want to be with Indigo? Okay, she did come on strong, and yes, maybe she did take things a bit too far. But she just really loved Twilight, she wanted to be with her, to love her, to see only her.

But now that was impossible, Sunset had the power to keep Twilight all to herself and kill anyone who tried to get too close to her.

“Indy, sweetie, don’t look so discontented, we’re on vacation,” said her mother.

“Yeah, I know, sorry. I just got a lot on my mind Mom,” said Indigo.

“Honey,” her father spoke, “I know things are bad back at home, but they’ll get better.”

The three of them were in a mountainside resort, sitting in front of the large fireplace and enjoying the warmth of the cozy setup. Indigo’s father walked towards the chair that Indigo was sitting in, he had his hands behind his back and smiled a little as he got closer.

“What’s with that look, Daddy?” Indigo as in suspicion.

“Okay, I know you’re not a big fan of jewels, kiddo, but…” Indigo’s father brought his hands out from behind his back and showed off a necklace. “Ta-da!”

It was simple, but ornate. There was a sapphire stone encased in silver with bands around it, all hanging off a silver chain to match. Indigo paused when she looked at the pendant attached to it, in a way, it looked similar to Sunset Shimmer’s necklace, but the metal bands holding the sapphire in place looked more rigid as opposed to the more loose flowing ones that Sunset had.

“Where did you get this, Dad?” Indigo asked.

“Funny story, I actually found it on this one business trip I took to Norhay last winter while we were hiking near some mountains. It was just buried there in the ice.”

Indigo raised a curious eyebrow. “Wait, it was in the ice, not on it like someone dropped it?”

“That’s right, it’s probably some jewelry from way back in ancient Viking times,” her father suspected. “Okay, so I didn’t have it carbon dated or anything, but it was just stuck in the ice! I had to use a shovel and icepick to get it out.”

Indigo had to admit, that was interesting, and she really wasn’t the type to wear fancy jewelry like her mom, despite the older woman’s best efforts. But this time, she was going to make an exception, mostly because it felt right to have a necklace that contrasted Sunset’s, and also because her father went through that much work to get it for her.

~ “For others, they will themselves into finding their perfect wielder…” ~

“Alright, Dad, I’ll wear it,” said Indigo as she took it from her father. She put the necklace over her head and let it rest on her chest. “Huh, that’s weird.”

“What is it, Indy?” her mother asked.

“Don’t know what it is but having this on just feels right. Is that weird?” Indigo asked.

Indigo’s mother squealed happily as she rushed over and gave her daughter a hug. “No, no, my little Indy~ As I’ve said before, there’s a perfect accessory for every girl! And it looks like fate has brought you together with yours! I’d never thought I’d see the day when you’d wear a piece of jewelry!”

“Okay, Mom, stop getting all overexcited, jeez!” Indigo chuckled.

While all this merriment was going on, neither one of the Zap Family members noticed the faint, blue ethereal glow coming from the stone, nor the subtle two degree drop in room temperature.

“Shut up! Shut up!”

You should’ve cut that little nerd bitch’s cunt while you had the chance! Instead, you let yourself get put down by another nerd who fucks half the school!

“Goddammit do you ever shut up!”

Sour Sweet was not having a good night, she had taken her medication as her parents, and doctor strongly urged. And by “strongly urged” she meant that they watched her like a hawk and checked her mouth to make sure she wasn’t tucking the pills into her cheek, even stayed with her for an hour to make sure that she didn’t go to the bathroom and vomit them up. While they did help in keeping the voice at bay, it wasn’t always effective, the voice was strong and for some reason, Sour believed it was getting louder and stronger.

“I didn’t want to hurt Sparkle like that! I was just threatening her! I wasn’t ever going to do that to her!” Sour argued as she sat awake in her bed.

Oh please, we both know deep down you wanted to cut her up, to violate her with those scissors and watch the crimson flow down her like a heavy period!

Sour shuddered as she hugged herself. “That’s fucking sick!”

Please, you’re thinking it, I am you, after all.

“No, you’re not! You’re just some fucked up part of my brain! I won’t listen to you again; I won’t let you hurt anyone!”

Sour sat up in her bed and gazed straight ahead towards the far wall of her room, and on that wall was an impressive collection of swords. What some didn’t know was that Sour Sweet had a passion for sword collecting, it wasn’t due to watching anime or movies or whatever, she just liked collecting them. There was something elegantly savage about the sword, it symbolized so much, the dawning of a new age of warfare, a time of honor and valor, when people didn’t just shoot each other from a distance, but got right up in their faces and fought head on. She also liked the duality of the sword, a symbol that invoked the images of justice, peace, and heroism, but it was also a weapon of cruelty, death, and oppression.

In a way, the sword was like a physical manifestation of her current disorder. Good-ish one moment and bad the next, sometimes she wished she was like one of the single edged blades of her collection, like the katana. An elegant weapon, crafted by smiths who didn’t see their forging of a sword as just a weapon, but a work of art, even if that art was killing people.

Sour could feel the voice roll its eyes at her. Oh, come off it, we both know who you’re really afraid of me hurting. You just don’t want to admit that you’re fucking gay for Sunny Flare. And I already promised I wouldn’t hurt her, so long as you let me out once and awhile.

“My little ‘mood swings’ aren’t enough for you!” Sour scowled.

“Nope.”

The voice, that time it didn’t sound like it was coming from inside her head, it sounded like it was coming from inside her room. Sour blinked for a moment and gasped, she watched a double of herself materialized right by one of her swords, ironically, a katana. She was dressed similarly to Sour, a magenta bath robe, and her hair flowing down. Although the double had one notable difference, its eyes were blood red.

“I want real freedom, I want carnage. I want to taste blood again, to feel bones splinter, muscle and sinew tear, and to hear the howls and throes of my victims fall before me!”

The copy ran its hand over the sword sheath, it was black as night, with a single tear drop on both sides of the sheath that was red, and the bottom of the sheath was coated in red as well, but with a wavy ripple effect, as if the drop was actually a drop of blood. The hilt of the katana was golden colored, the guard was square shaped, and the hilt was wrapped in a durable black cloth that, despite its age, looked absolutely brand new.

“Just give me a taste Sour, just a little?” the copy asked.

“Fuck you, no! I’m not a murderer!”

“Ugh, you can just kill a damn dog, cat, any animal! I just want to kill something! And I know you like that rush, the rush of holding the life of someone else in your hands! You can’t tell me you didn’t like it when you had Sparkle like that?!”

Sour began to rock back and forth as she hugged her legs to her chest, her eyes wide and moving erratically as she muttered. “I’m not a killer, I’m not a killer, I’m not a killer, I’m not a killer–!”

“Boo.”

“AAH!”

Sour jumped back, and when she did, the copy pounced, pinning Sour to the bed as it smiled wickedly down at her. “I’m waking up more now, Sour. Whether you like it or not, you won’t be able to deny me, and on the day that I do wake up, you’ll have a choice to make.” The copy leaned her head down and hovered next to her left ear. “Will the first person to fall be someone you love, or a complete stranger? This is the one thing I guarantee you have control over, so you had better make the decision before that day comes…”

With that warning given, the copy evaporated, leaving Sour alone, she could even feel it in her head, the bad part of her went to sleep, or rather, went dormant for now.

~ “And then, there are those who are very close, and even closer to waking up…” ~

Sour Sweet curled up into a ball and cried softly as to not wake up her parents. She knew what the copy said was true, as much as she didn’t want to admit it. One day soon, she would no longer be able to keep her cruelty at bay, and it would come exploding out and hurt someone she did care about. It was like a pressure valve, the longer she waited to relieve it, the closer her bad side came to exploding out of her. That is…unless she relieved that pressure…but…how…?

Sunset placed the tablet back on the table and slammed the table with her fist. “It won’t be long, all of the Artifacts will converge here in one way or another, including yours! On that day, I’ll make you pay for what you did, and right the wrongs you committed against me!”

Sunset breathed out heavily as she glanced upwards, looking past the layers of concrete, steel, and drywall to the bedroom of one of two people she had come to cherish.

“Sis, when it starts, you’ll probably hate me. But I promise you, when it's over, we’ll be a family again, probably better than what we are now, I’ll make sure of it…”

Author's Note

This is it, events are set in motion, and the ancient items are descending upon Canterlot City. Sunset, her friends, indeed everyone she knows, will soon be drawn into this cataclysmic event. The third and final installment in the Witchblade EqG Trilogy is on the horizon...

WITCHBLADE EQG: THE 13 ARTIFACTS

What are you willing sacrifice to save those you love...?

Prologue: A New Student

Twilight Sparkle was happy when Shining Armor told her that Sunset Shimmer was alive and well again, and that the person behind Anon-A-Miss was dealt with once and for all. Of course, that was about three weeks ago.

For Twilight, everything that had happened, from the appearance of these monsters, to a warrior woman, and even a freakish blizzard that just popped into existence and then was a rainbow light that just – and she hated using this word – magically made it all go away. Her instruments picked up a lot of energy during that time, a lot of the same energy that she had been tracking for the past few months, and yet again it was all centered around Canterlot High School.

Twilight so badly wanted to go to that school and investigate it further, but Shining Armor still said that it wasn’t a good idea to do that, and to let that place cool down since they were still recovering from the storm, and the issues that were caused by Anon-A-Miss. The young genius was annoyed, but understood his reasoning, but still, it was just so close and yet so far. Twilight wondered if her big brother could set up a meeting with this “Sunset Shimmer”, she was a student of CHS, so surely she should know something about the strange energy that permeates her school?

“Out of the way, Sparkle!”

Twilight hurriedly pressed herself against the lockers, letting Indigo Zap speed through the hallway, she was probably off to the gym, but Twilight didn’t care. The school was once again put in the spotlight due to another of their students being caught becoming a monster, and even worse, she was the head of some cult sex club. Several eyewitnesses placed Fleur de Lis as the ringleader of the club, and reported many of her partners who disappeared into the back room didn’t often come back out.

Her family was hounded, and once again Crystal Prep was asked some hard questions about the students. First Suri admits to killing on live TV, and now Fleur, another tormentor of Twilight, admitted to being the leader of the sex cult and to killing several people through her followers, as well as killing people herself.

Twilight didn’t like how she thought, but she honestly couldn’t feel any pity for those two. As far as she was concerned, they got what they deserved. Twilight often wondered if the students who did take time out of their day to bully her went to any other school, would they still be bullies? Or would they actually be nicer? A lot of what ifs, and no answers. But this was reality, and what has happened has happened.

The genius often didn’t visit a classroom, her grades were high enough – which was a great understatement – that she didn’t need to attend many classes, if anything she did so because she wanted to, that or see if the teachers would assign some extra credit work for her.

Twilight made her way into her homeroom class, she noticed that Fleur’s seat was empty, no surprise as to why. Twilight sat behind the girl, she wanted a seat in the front row, but the teachers were in charge of the seating assignments, and Twilight wasn’t one to disobey a teacher.

When the bell rang, the students took their seats. The teacher adjusted her glasses and said, “Okay, today we’re getting a new student joining the class.”

The students began to murmur, a new student, so close to the end of the senior year?

“You may come in now.”

The door opened and the eyes of the classroom drifted towards the doorway, well, except for Twilight. She didn’t really care as she kept her gaze trained on a textbook on her desk. As far as she was concerned, it would be another person who would no doubt join the “Let’s mess with Twilight Sparkle” Club, at this point, picking on Twilight was becoming a rite of passage for new students.

Twilight sighed in sadness, she hated this place, but she couldn’t deny that it had it’s academic advantages, and it did help her advance her own studies and would prove helpful in getting into the Everton Independent Study Program. That, and she didn’t want to let Cadence, Shining Armor, or her parents down. While they weren’t super rich like a lot of the students, they weren’t exactly poor either, they did alright for themselves, with a astronomer father and a mother who was once an archeologist and now book editor/writer.

Twilight got in because Cadence recommended Twilight to Principal Cinch for her brilliant mind, and Abacus Cinch was more than happy to wave the normally high tuition fee to allow Twilight to attend, honestly, her parents weren’t sure if they were going to send Twilight to Crystal Prep after Shining Armor got out, but with the offer they got from Abacus Cinch, they saw it as a chance to give Twilight the best. She loved her parents, her soon-to-be Sister-in-Law, and her big brother, and didn’t want to disappoint them…still…

“Please introduce yourself,” said the teacher.

“Hey guys, I know what you’re thinking. ‘A mysterious transfer student coming in so late in the school year!’, it’s like some kind of cliché anime thing happening right now, but hey, it happens.”

Apparently, the new student was female, judging from the voice. Twilight had to admit, that was funny, it did sound like a cliché anime troupe, she even chuckled a little.

“At least I got a laugh outta someone, jeez, I was afraid I swung and missed!”

Twilight blushed from being singled out, but it didn’t sound like the girl was being mean to her, more like she was appreciative. And she had to admit, she liked the girl’s voice.

“Anyway, I’ll be with you guys until graduation. My name’s Sunset Shimmer.”

Twilight nearly shot out of her desk upon hearing that name, her head quickly snapped up to see the new girl. She had hair that was like fire, red and yellow, cascading down her back, while one strand draped lazily over her right shoulder. She wore the standard uniform for girls, but the dress code allowed for some modifications to be made, so long as they weren’t outlandish. The lapels of her jacket had bronze colored studs put in, her sleeves were rolled up past her elbow, she her had the collar popped up a bit, and she didn’t wear the bowtie, and left the first two buttons of her uniform shirt open, giving just the slightest view of her cleavage, but only if she intentionally bent over or if someone was a bit taller than her could they see more.

Hanging around her neck, was a necklace that had a bronzy color to it. A ruby gemstone hung from the chain and rested upon Sunset’s chest, a golden, shield-like pattern was formed around it, along with what looked like a dragon, it was woven so that the center of the jewel looked like a dragon’s eye.

Twilight had to blink for a few times, but no matter how many times she did it, there was no denying that this girl was the same girl from the photos, from the news report, but that wasn’t possible, Sunset Shimmer went to Canterlot High School, unless she transferred schools due to the goings on back at CHS, which was a real possibility.

“Okay, Miss Shimmer, you’ll be sitting there. Twilight Sparkle,” said the teacher.

“Y-Yes!”

“Since you have some free time, I’d like you to help Miss Shimmer with the school work.”

“Y-Yes, ma’am.”

The teacher then turned to Sunset. “I hope you understand, but we can’t afford to wait for you to catch up, I’ll have you assigned the same homework and projects as the rest of my students, is that acceptable to you?”

Sunset smirked. “Oh yeah, totally. I didn’t get into CPA just because I look sexy as hell, I have brains to go with this beauty.”

The teacher spluttered, the students chuckled, and Twilight blushed for some reason.

“Please take your seat, Miss Shimmer.”

“Can do.”

After class was over, Sunset got up from her desk and faced her neighbor. “So, you’re Twilight Sparkle?”

Twilight didn’t know why, but she was at a loss for words, and her face felt warm. “U-U-Um, y-yes, I am…”

“Cool, sorry that you had to get saddled with me. I promise that I won’t slow you down,” said Sunset.

“T-That’s okay…C’mon, the school allows for first day students to be given a tour of the campus, I can take you to the office so they can assign–”

“There you are!” Twilight froze upon hearing that voice. She looked towards the doorway and saw Indigo Zap. “You’re Sunset Shimmer, right? I was given the okay to give ya a tour of the school.” Indigo’s eyes fell on Twilight and she shot her a sultry smile. “Hey, Twi.”

“H-Hi, Indigo…”

Sunset arched an eyebrow at the response.

“Anyway, let’s get started.”

“Hmmm…actually, if it’s all the same to you, can I have Twilight give me the tour?” Sunset asked, although the tone in which she said it sounded less like a question and more like she was telling her it was going to be Twilight.

Twilight was surprised by that, she was never chosen for touring duty, and not many wanted to be around her once they found out how smart she was, afraid or angry that they felt intellectually inferior to her.

“Uh…well, I mean, she’s technically on the roster for it, but real talk, you’re better off with me, I know all the cool spots around here,” said Indigo.

“Well, that does sound like fun, but since I’m new here, I need someone who can help me catch up quick, and Twilight here looks like a brain,” said Sunset.

Indigo crossed her arms. “Oh yeah, she’s got brains alright. Fine, but if you change your mind, just swing by the office and ask them to pull me from class.”

Sunset and Twilight watched as Indigo Zap walked away, but not before flashing Twilight a predatory smile that made the genius shiver with fear. With that settled, Twilight and Sunset began walking through the halls, as they walked, Sunset noticed how Twilight kept herself small, squaring her shoulders and keeping her hands forward, as if she was guarding herself.

“I’m not that scary, am I?” Sunset asked.

“I-It’s not that…”

One of the students bumped into Twilight, hard, making her spill her books onto the floor. The student didn’t stop at all and kept on walking, Sunset turned towards the retreating student and yelled, “Hey, watch where you’re going, asshole!”

The male student turned around and said, “What did you say to me Spar – oh, who are you?”

“Not important, get your ass over here and apologize, you just ran into her!” Sunset stated.

Twilight glanced about the hallway and saw that several of the students were looking their way. “S-Sunset, please don’t, it’s alright.”

“Damn right it is,” said the student as she walked away.

“Hey!”

“It’s alright, please, you don’t have to do that,” said Twilight as she bent down to pick up her stuff.

Sunset gave an irritated growl as she got on her knees and helped Twilight pick up her stuff. As she did, she noticed the sad look on Twilight’s face. “That happen often here?”

Twilight looked at Sunset for a moment, she didn’t know why, but she felt like answering that. “Kind of…but it’s okay, I’m used to it.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not.”

“Give it some time…” Twilight whispered.

Sunset looked intimidating, but she seemed like a nice person. But Twilight knew better than to hold onto that kind of hope, eventually, Sunset would find a clique in school that liked her, and then she’d come back and torment her like all the other students in the school.

Once they got Twilight’s things off the floor, they resumed their walk, but this time, Sunset walked in front of Twilight, acting like a shield. Twilight was surprised by this action, but appreciated it nonetheless. This continued until the halls were clear and Twilight could relax and walk alongside Sunset. Twilight fidgeted as she walked and then found herself looking at Sunset’s chest, her gemstone in particular.

“See something you like?” Sunset teased.

Twilight gave a small yelp. “I-I-I’m sorry! I just…I was looking at your necklace, it’s quite unique, and I thought it was pretty…sorry.”

Sunset looked down at her necklace and wrapped her thumb and forefinger around it, and played with it fondly. “Yeah, I like it too. It’s a keepsake of mine, one of my most treasured possessions.”

“It must mean a lot to you.”

“Saved my life.”

Twilight blinked. “…Sorry if that’s a sore subject.”

Sunset shook her head. “Nah, maybe I’ll tell you someday.” The flame haired girl then threw her right arm over Twilight’s shoulders and said, “So, what’s there to see around here?”

Twilight normally shied away from physical contact of this sort, as it reminded her of how Indigo would get physical with her and invade her personal space. The only people she ever let get this close to her were Cadence, her parents, and Shining Armor. For some reason, Sunset Shimmer didn’t give off that same vibe as Indigo, she felt strangely comfortable.

“Um, well, I must confess that I really only know where the computer science rooms, labs, and library are, along with the cafeteria, gym, and offices. That’s about it…”

“Huh, well, it’s an adventure then! Let’s just explore together!”

Before Twilight could protest, she was swept along, and, again, strangely, she was okay with this.

Dark Truths / Light Lies Part 1

The following Sunday after, what had been dubbed, “Assault on Precinct 17”, the police and firefighters were busy with the cleanup of the aftermath. The streets around the station were completely unusable, the front opening of the station was wide open, and other portions were blown away due to the attack from the Blacknights and the Servants. Still, with all that, there weren’t any casualties, a lot of injuries, some major and minor, but other than that, no one was dead. People attributed this to the fact that the Sentinels were there, but those on the frontlines knew that had Witchblade and her new partner, Ember, hadn’t showed up, the Sentinels would’ve been overrun and that fight could’ve turned into a slaughter.

Understandably, Sunset and Shimmer slept in that following day, both were exhausted from their battle with the Servants and agreed to compare notes later. Cadence had called Twilight later that morning to thank both Sunsets, but Twilight told her that they were sleeping and that she would pass on her thanks to them.

Pinkie and Twilight had decided to let their lovers sleep in the bed, it was quite adorable to see both their Sunsets sleeping in the same bed, like watching twin sisters snuggling against each other. Twilight and Pinkie Pie went downstairs to the kitchen and made themselves a little breakfast, as they ate, Twilight glanced at Pinkie Pie here and there as she ate, a question nagging at the back of her mind.

“You can ask me anything,” said Pinkie.

Twilight stammered for a moment. “W-What was that?”

Pinkie looked up from her plate of pancakes and smiled at Twilight. “I can tell you want to ask me something, so, go ahead. We’re friends, so you don’t have to worry.”

“Well…about that, I mean, I’m not the Twilight you’re friends with. From what you’ve told me, my other self is much more confident and, well, a ruler of her people. I can understand your wanting to be friends with me because I look like her–”

“Hold up!” Pinkie interrupted. “I’m friends with you because I want to, not because you remind me of Princess Twilight. Well, yeah, you look like her, sound like her, and even smell like her –!”

Twilight blinked and mouthed, “Smell like her?”

“–but you’re both different from each other. It’s like you said before, there are differences between you that make you your own you! And the you I’m friends with is the you right here, not the you from another world who I’m also friends with, but I just have two different yous to be friends with!”

Twilight’s brain tried to keep up with what Pinkie said, but lost track halfway through. “Uh…basically you’re saying that we’re friends because you want to be friends with me, right?”

“Yep!” Pinkie chirped.

Twilight let a small smile grace her lips. “I’m sorry, I have some trust issues with others who aren’t my family…there are reasons behind that.”

Pinkie wasn’t as much of a ditz as people thought, even though she acted like it, she could tell when someone was hurting and right now, she could see it in Twilight’s body language and her smile. The pink party planner scooted her chair closer to Twilight and gently placed her hand over Twilight’s. “You don’t have to tell me anything, but you can trust me. Especially since we’re part of the Secret Superhero Girlfriends Club!”

Twilight snorted as she chuckled. “‘Secret Superhero Girlfriends Club’?”

“For those of us who are in romantic relationships with secret superheroes, like Shimmer and Sunset.”

“That’s the other thing I wanted to ask you, how do you do it?” Twilight asked.

Pinkie tilted her head. “Do what?”

“How do you cope with knowing that your Sunset is willingly putting herself in danger? I mean, I know my big brother does the same thing everyday before all this angel and demon stuff started! And I’m even more worried about him because he doesn’t have some mystical item that gives him powers!”

Pinkie thought for a moment and then shrugged. “I honestly just accept it. The first time I faced down a monster was when Sunset turned into a demon after absorbing all the magic from the Element of Magic, she nearly killed me, my friends, and Princess Twilight.”

Twilight was still wrapping her head around that, thanks to Pinkie, she knew now that the strange energy spikes her equipment was sensing was in fact caused by the Sunset Shimmer of CHS, along with Pinkie Pie’s friends and her Princess counterpart. That part about Shimmer almost killing them did worry her a bit, it seemed to greatly contrast against the current version of Shimmer.

“Then there was the Battle of the Bands competition when the Sirens came to the school and nearly took over the entire city by absorbing our magic because we were fighting a lot. But it was thanks to Shimmer that we were able to stop our fighting, and it was with her help that the seven of us stopped them. So, you could say that I’m used to fighting monsters and since I’ve seen how Shimmer can handle it, I’m not as worried. But I still get worried.”

Twilight thought back to the first time that she saw Sunset use her power. She took out those gangsters, fought two Sentinels, and turned into a fire breathing dragon. Seeing how she dispatched those threats so easily eased her worries, and the fact that Shimmer would be there to help, and the two of them together would be nearly unstoppable, as evidenced last night.

“I’d be lying if I said that it gets easier, I’m always going to worry about her. But that doesn’t mean I can stop her. If I did, then someone’s going to die that didn’t have to. I know that my Sunset feels like she needs to fight to make up for all the stuff she did before, honestly, I think she’s done enough. But at the same time, the Witchblade chose her because she has a good heart and wants to help people.”

Twilight nodded. “That I can see, she didn’t hesitate for a moment to say yes to Cadence. You have a good girlfriend, Pinkie.”

“And so, do you, she really cares about you, I can tell,” said Pinkie.

Twilight blushed. “I know. I kind of wish this weekend would continue for a while, I’m not really looking forward to going back tomorrow.”

“Why not?” Pinkie asked.

“I…”

“Morning…”

Twilight and Pinkie watched as both of their Sunsets came shuffling into the kitchen, their hair was a complete mess, the definition of a “bedhead”.

“Ah, we were going to let you two sleep a little longer,” said Pinkie.

“Smelled food,” moaned Sunset.

“Got hungry, couldn’t go back to sleep,” groaned Shimmer.

Twilight giggled. “I’ll bet, you two did a lot last night, all your fighting must’ve burned off an enormous number of calories. Pinkie, let’s make them some breakfast.”

“I’m not it!”

“Thank you,” they both moaned in unison.

Unfortunately, the weekend did come to an end, and both couples had to go back to their respective schools. For Twilight, she was more nervous than she had ever been, because she knew what Indigo might do to Sunset if they walked into the school together, as more than just friends, which was what they were now. Not only from Indigo, but she feared what the school might do to her. The students were already vicious towards her, the last thing she wanted was for them to turn that viciousness onto someone she cared about.

She couldn’t stop thinking about this whole way to school, Twilight had stayed over on more night, having grabbed a uniform from home when they stopped by at her house that one time. Sunset pulled into the student parking lot and sat there a moment, she could see Twilight’s hands wringing themselves, and she knew that her girlfriend was nervous. Sunset was sure that Twilight was feeling anxious, for herself or Sunset’s sake, she didn’t know, most likely both.

Sunset reached out and placed her right hand over Twilight’s hands, forcing her to stop her wringing. “It’s going to be alright; you know how strong I am, and I meant it when I said I wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”

Twilight sighed. “I’m more afraid for you than myself…”

“Figured.”

“I know you can take care of yourself, I’m just…I can’t help it,” said Twilight.

Sunset smiled, leaned forward, and kissed Twilight on the cheek, causing her to blush. “It’s sweet of you to worry about me, Sparky. But if you have to worry, worry about those asshats in there if they try anything with me or you.”

A small smile crept onto Twilight’s face. “Just promise me you won’t kill anyone.”

Sunset rolled her eyes and huffed. “Fine, I swear I won’t kill anyone. Way to take the fun out of my day, Sparky.”

Twilight chuckled and sighed. “Okay, let’s do this.”

Both girls exited the car, Twilight looped her arms through the straps of her backpack, while Sunset slung hers over her left shoulder. Before they started for the entrance, Sunset offered Twilight her right hand. Twilight looked at it, knowing that Sunset wanted to walk inside holding hands, a physical display that would tell everyone around them that they were together. It had the dual edge of granting Twilight the feeling of protection, and at the same time, drawing the confused looks of the students and the ire of Indigo Zap when word got to her.

But, inside, Twilight was tired. Tired of being afraid, tired of being alone, Sunset was possibly the best thing to happen to her, and she wanted others to know that despite all they said about her, there was someone who loved and cared about her. With a determined look, Twilight reached out with her left hand and took Sunset’s right.

Sunset smiled at Twilight and nodded. With their resolve affirmed, the new couple walked through the doors of Crystal Prep, as they did, the reactions were immediate. Unlike before, when everyone went out of their way to bump into Twilight, they gave her and Sunset a respectable berth, it was just too hard to believe right now. Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle were holding hands, together, out in the open, like a couple. Twilight was blushing under all the attention she was getting, was it really that noteworthy that she had a girlfriend?

“What’s this?” Twilight and Sunset stopped when they met Sunny Flare and Sour Sweet, the former asking. “What are you two doing?”

“I…w-we’re together, Sunny, Sunset and I, s-she’s my girlfriend,” Twilight answered.

“Aww, isn’t that precious,” said Sour Sweet. “At least it would be if it weren’t so pathetic.”

Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Oh, how’s it?”

Sunny haughtily flipped her hair and said, “If you wanted a girlfriend, you shouldn’t have gone to the bottom of the barrel. Although, if this is something else…”

The tone in Sunny Flare’s voice gave Sunset a good idea of what she was indicating. She thought that this was an elaborate setup to humiliate Twilight in front of the entire student body, to make her think that she was desirable and then dump her after making her do a lot of either menial tasks and probably embarrassing things on top of that.

Sunset smirked as she released Twilight’s hand, she gave a side glance to Twilight before stepping in front and said, “Yeah, you’re right, I’m just screwing around with her.”

Twilight held onto the straps of her backpack, she had to trust Sunset.

“I mean, what other reason could I have for walking in like this with her, right?”

Sunny and Sour began to laugh, and so did the students around them, yet another in the long list of ways to mess with Twilight Sparkle, some of them had to admit, Sunset had some real guts to run the risk of her reputation getting trashed by hanging around a girl like Twilight.

“Wow, Shimmer, I gave you too little credit, that was a long con, but I applaud it!” Sunny Flare stated as she placed her hand on Sunset’s shoulder. “I really underestimated you.”

“Yeah, I mean it’s not like I actually care about her, because that would be totally fucked up, right?” Sunset asked.

“Completely,” Sour agreed.

Sunset’s expression darkened a bit, she then swatted Sunny’s hand off her shoulder and grabbed Sunny Flare by the collar of her shirt. “How screwed up are you guys, really?!”

“W-What?” Sunny stammered.

“Only a complete and utter piece of shit would do that to someone, but the people who actually get off on that like the rest of you fucking, cackling hyenas is even worse!” Sunset stated as she jerked back and then thrust her right arm forward, releasing Sunny Flare.

Sunny stumbled before she ran into Sour Sweet who tried to catch her but ended up falling to the floor with her. Sunny looked up at Sunset, who was looming over her, Sunny had always been at the top of the food chain, mainly because she was the daughter of the Principal, but right now, she felt like a small mouse who was corned by a lioness.

“I am with Twilight, we’re girlfriends, no tricks, no ulterior motives, nothing! I like her!” Sunset then turned her gaze on the students around her, and a good number of them had the good sense to look worried. “And if anyone has a problem with that, they can talk to me directly!” Sunset looked back down to Sunny Flare and said, “And if anyone tries any bullshit with her, well, let’s just say that accidents happen.”

Sunny gritted her teeth as she tried to get back up. “You bitch, who do you think you are?!”

Before Sunny could fully rise, Sunset shot out her right foot and pressed the sole of her show against Sunny’s chest. “I’m the bitch who’s got you under her foot right now.” Sunset leaned forward and dug her foot into Sunny Flare’s chest and made her go back down, pinning both Sunny and Sour Sweet. “So, do we have an understanding that no one messes with Twilight Sparkle?”

Sunny still glared up at her in defiance, but Sunset merely ground her foot into Sunny’s chest harder, making the teenager wince and grit her teeth from the pain.

“Do we have an understanding?” Sunset asked again.

“Yes, dammit, yes!” Sunny finally caved.

“Good.” Sunset pushed Sunny back with her foot, making her flop off of Sour Sweet. “Do we all have an understanding?!”

The students around them nodded vigorously, now seeing for the first time how strong Sunset Shimmer was, not just physically either. Twilight couldn’t help but let a smile appear on her face, because now she saw, now everyone saw, that Sunset Shimmer would be there to protect her, that today marked the end of her torment, and that anyone who tried to defy that would see the fury of the sun, so to speak.

“Sunset, I think we should go, we’ll be late for class if we stay any longer,” said Twilight.

Sunset blinked and looked over her shoulder. “Oh, sorry about that, Sparky, let’s get going.” Sunset held out her hand towards Twilight, waiting for her to take it.

Twilight walked to Sunset and took her hand, the two of them walked down the hallway, with the students parting like the Red Sea for them.

“Sorry for making that into a spectacle,” said Sunset.

Twilight pressed herself closer to Sunset and rested her head against her right shoulder. “I could honestly care less that it was, that…that was – while a little violent – the most heartfelt thing anyone’s ever done for me. Thank you.”

Sunset smiled at her girlfriend and rubbed her thumb against the crook of Twilight’s hand. “Any time, Sparky.”

Maria Mare was tired after yesterday and was getting tired now. The battle that occurred at Precinct 17 had been a wakeup call to a lot of the officials, they weren’t prepared for a direct assault on their police stations. Out of the battle there was only one casualty, one of the Sentinels, while that was a great loss, Maria was thankful that it wasn’t any of their police officers or civilians. That might be a bad way of thinking, but she didn’t care, this war was taking its toll on the people of the city, and it had only been three weeks at the most. She wasn’t sure how long this would last, but she shuddered at the idea of this dragging on into a whole month, or more.

A flash of light went off to her left, she didn’t bother to look, Maria knew who it was, there was only one person who could pop in and out of her office like that. “To whom do I have the pleasure of addressing? Is it Angelus or Celly?”

“Sorry to say, you have the pleasure of addressing the former,” said Angelus.

“I’m sorry that your Sentinel was killed,” said Maria.

Angelus strode over to Maria’s desk and sat on the edge, her golden light hair fluttering in an ethereal wind as she shrugged and dressed in Celestia work attire. “A loss, but not a great one. I can always create more Sentinels if need be.”

Maria bristled a little at the indifference in Angelus’ voice, but she supposed that only made sense. A being as old as time itself, that could create and destroy at will, probably didn’t see the loss of her troops as something to grieve over. Especially when you had the power to create hundreds more if she so wished.

“This was a first, the Blood Kings attacked a police station, how long will it be before they attack another?” Maria asked as she laced her fingers together.

“I think we need to look beyond that. I was told by Witchblade that Sombra was present, and that she fought him.”

Maria’s eyes shifted toward Angelus, surprise evident on her face. “Why the hell was he there for that?!”

“Not only that, but among the Blacknights, there were also Servants.”

“Pardon, what are ‘Servants’?” Maria asked.

“Servants are creations of the Darkness that have a higher intelligence and stronger abilities, they’re a step above his goblin creations, Darklings. The Darkness and Sombra are getting bolder, which means he may be getting ready to attack in full,” said Angelus.

“And why would that be?”

Angelus waved her hand in the air and teleported a small planner, she opened it and showed it to Maria, a date was circled along with the words “Solar Eclipse”.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“A solar eclipse, the one time when the sun is black and the light fades from the day. My power will be dramatically reduced, while the Darkness’ power will be increased. If this Sombra is any kind of strategist, they’ll attack at night, make it last as long as possible and exhaust our resources, then fallback just before daybreak. Then they’ll attack again when the eclipse happens and will decimate us as we try and regroup.”

Maria could see it in her mind, a long night of battling against the demons and Darkness, only to be allowed a very short reprieve before the sun was blotted out and the death blow would be delivered soon after. If that happened, then the city would fall, the city would fall and become a haven for the lawless, a place where the depraved could revel in their sin, and Sombra would be the king of it all, the only voice whom the criminals and depraved would listen to, because to defy the man who wielded the Darkness, would mean utter, certain death. Maria shook at the thought, not even wanting to wonder what he and others like him would do to the law abiding citizens of the city, rape, murder, and theft, all of it happening on a daily basis, out in the open.

The mayor of Canterlot City hugged herself. “My precious city is getting ripped apart from the inside out, and you’re telling me there’s no real way to stop it?! We…We can’t let that happen! What about that girl, the Magdalena, Witchblade, and that new girl I’ve heard about, Ember! Couldn’t they turn the tide?!”

Angelus thought for a moment and hummed. “They could, my Son and the Magdalena have the highest chance of defeating Sombra. Magdalena due to her Spear and divine inheritance, and my Son because, well, he’s our Son and has the power to do so as the Keeper of the Balance. I’m not sure about the third girl. But there may be a better way…”

Maria calmed herself down as she glanced at Angelus. “And what would that be?”

Angelus turned around and smirked at the young woman before her – relatively speaking. “Allow me to take command of the protection of the city. Right now, I have a few of my Sentinels stationed at police stations, no pun intended. But they could be more efficient if I were to make more and have them all around the city. I haven’t yet done that because I didn’t want to scare you all, but after the events of two nights ago, I don’t think the public would mind some extra protection.”

Maria raised an eyebrow to that. “I don’t think they’d disapprove too much, but there is one thing I’d like to know.”

Angelus raised one of her own. “And that is?”

“When the shadows of the night have finally gone and the light of day is able to shine again…will you depart Celestia, when your mission is complete?” Maria asked.

There was a very pregnant silence that filled the room, Maria saw something on Angelus’ face, an expression that she had seen many a time, but normally it was one that she wore. It was the look of a woman who had the advantage, who held all the trump cards. A cat that had its mouse cornered, that was what this was like, huh, Maria hadn’t been on this end of it in ages.

“Would that be a problem?” Angelus asked.

“In a manner of speaking, yes. I don’t see a need for an omnipotent entity of light when the greatest evil is finally vanquished,” said Maria.

Angelus chuckled, finding Maria’s logic funny. “Oh, little one, you don’t get it. When I manage to purge the Darkness from this world, it doesn’t mean that there still isn’t darkness in this world. I meant what I said almost four weeks ago. I intend on turning this city into a utopia, free of sin and vice. And that Canterlot would be the first of many to be changed like so.”

Maria seriously wasn’t liking where this was going. “And what does Celly think about all this?”

“Oh, she’s asleep right now, in fact, she doesn’t even know that we’re having this conversation. I know you didn’t get to where you are in life, Maria Mare, without burying a few bodies and keeping a few skeletons in the closet. Politicians are all the same, no matter what century.” Angelus turned around and walked until she was standing before the window that overlooked the city. “You have a choice to make Mayor Mare. Either you can you walk in lockstep with me, or you can stand in my way and you’ll see what happens to those who have given into their sins.”

Maria didn’t turn around, she just stared straight ahead, jaw tightening and hands clenching. It wasn’t like she had a choice in the matter, not really. Angelus was far more powerful than any creature on the planet, with the exceptions of the Darkness and this Witchblade, and possibly the Magdalena. Angelus could play the part of the politician better than her, because she can get results almost immediately, and she was a freaking angel, even the atheists and agnostics of the city couldn’t dismiss that fact. And given that a literal devil was among them, people would flock to an angel’s embrace if it meant that they’ll be saved from Hell and getting killed by demons. But what was Maria to do? She had no superpowers, no leverage, no nothing. All she could do was play along until something happened.

“I understand,” said Maria.

“I knew you would. And, Maria, this goes without saying, but should you tell Celestia of our conversation, I’ll deny it. I did save her life after all and have given her the means to fight back against the evils that plague this city. She is very grateful.” Angelus stood next to Maria and placed a hand on her shoulder. “For whatever reason, she loves you. Whether that’s out of naïveté or blind optimism, I’ll leave it to you to decide. But know that I could dig up all your dirty little secrets and expose them to her. I wonder what she’d think of you then?”

“I’ll make an announcement sometime tomorrow to inform our officers and the city that you’ll be increasing the number of Sentinels,” said Maria.

Angelus giggled softly and then ruffled Maria’s hair, as if she was a young child. “Good girl. Now we should be heading back, don’t want Luna or anyone getting worried about our absence.”

Angelus walked until she was in Maria’s field of vision, the Entity of Light released a burst of light and disappeared from the room. Leaving Maria with her thoughts. Canterlot City was her domain, her kingdom, she fought long and hard to keep the crown, and to ensure that the citizens of the city were kept safe, by any means necessary. Was she perfect? No. Did she make some questionable decisions? Yes. Sweep some things under the rug? Yes. Dirty Dealings? Oh yeah. But it was all for Canterlot’s sake, and what the people didn’t know allowed them to sleep peacefully at night, and it was that thought that allowed Maria to do the same.

This Angelus, while appearing as a godsend, was something else. While she seemed genuine in her motives to purge the city of the Darkness and to end sin, Maria had a terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach that her method of doing so would not be as simple as a town hall meeting or rally.

“Whatever her real goal is, I need to stay on my toes…I can’t let Celly be taken by her…”

It was lunchtime at CHS and the students hadn’t stopped talking about the “Assault on Precinct 17” incident, especially because the news managed to capture the footage of the fighting between Witchblade, the demons, the Sentinels, and a new addition, Ember. When the girls met up at their usual table, Sunset and Pinkie Pie told them about their encounter over the weekend, confirming with their friends that there was in fact another Twilight Sparkle in their world, as well as another Sunset Shimmer.

“Okay…that’s freakin’ weird as all hell! And they both go to Crystal Prep! That’s, fucked up, honestly, it is,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Well…I’m certainly not looking forward to this year's Friendship Games,” said Rarity sadly. “It’s bad enough that we’ll be going up against Twilight, but another you as well…”

Fluttershy nodded. “I agree, I don’t think it’s right that we have to face two of our friends in the Games like that…”

“How were they?” Applejack asked. “Mosta Crystal Prep’s people are a bunch of assholes – pardon my French. Ah hate to find out that those two are the same.”

Sunset waved off their concerns. “No way, they’re actually really cool. Of course, this is me we’re talking about.”

The girls rolled their eyes playfully.

“Plus, this Twilight Sparkle’s all shy and super smart too! She’s got a bit of trust issues though…” Pinkie informed. “She never really told me why, and we never got around to why that was.”

Sunset noticed that too, something her double was keeping secret, probably for good reasons. She hoped it wasn’t anything too bad, but Sunset felt that it might be.

If someone hurt Twilight, I’ll fucking kill them!

“Whoa…” Sunset shook her head. “That came out of nowhere.”

The girls looked at her.

“What came out nowhere?” Fluttershy asked.

“Uh, nothing.”

Rainbow Dash decided to change the topic a bit. “So, what happened after you met up with them? Did you guys get into some kind of duel, like, ‘There can only be one!’” Rainbow stood up on the table and pretended to hold a sword in her hand as she raised her fist towards the ceiling.

“No, Rainbow, we didn’t have an epic duel. But I did find out she has a magical Artifact.”

“Equestrian?” Rarity asked.

“No, something close to Witchblade, or Shy’s Spear.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened as she leaned in close. “A-Are you saying that the dragon girl who fought with you, that was the other Sunset Shimmer?!”

“Yep, and I got these to prove it!”

Pinkie Pie whipped out her cellphone and showed the girls pictures of both Sunsets in their supernatural armor. A round of blushes overtook their faces.

“Damn, that’s hot,” said Rainbow.

“Wow,” Applejack spoke.

“Oh my, y-you two sure seem to have a thing for form fitting, curvaceous attire,” Rarity noted.

Fluttershy didn’t say anything, but she did mumble something under her breath.

Sunset panicked a little. “Pinkie, be careful, don’t let someone see that! And when did you take those?”

“That’s my little secret. And it’s okay, no one can recognize you when you transform. Which is weird cause you sound the same even when you’re transformed, but even then, people can’t figure out it's you,” said Pinkie.

“Yeah, been meaning to ask about that, how in the heck does that work, ‘cause–?”

“Oh, then there’s this one!” Pinkie interrupted.

Pinkie swiped to the left and showed off the picture of both Sunset’s, on floor, both half naked, with the Equestrian Sunset on top and straddling Earth Sunset.

“OH MY!” Rarity blanched.

“SHIT!” Rainbow exclaimed, a trickle of blood coming from her left nostril.

Applejack was speechless, but there was a small trickle of blood coming from her nose as well. Fluttershy’s face was redder than an apple, in a glass of tomato juice, in the middle of the Grand Canyon. The cream-colored girl squeaked and then fell to the side, luckily Applejack was next to her and managed to catch Fluttershy before she could hit the floor. The remaining three conscious girls looked at Sunset, questioningly.

“Uh…Sunset, Darling, is there…is there something you need to tell us…? N-No judgement, mind you, just…um…w-why are you – ahem – half naked and straddling your interdimensional twin?” Rarity asked.

Sunset’s face matched Fluttershy’s, she let her head hit the table, trying to let her long fiery locks cover her face and avoid eye contact with her friends. “It was a misunderstanding! That’s all! We were just messing around – not in that way! We decided to become something like sisters, and she ended up pantsing me, and so I tickle attacked her and stripped her top off…”

Rarity gently ran her hand over her face and said, “Sunset, Darling, you’ve never had a sibling before, have you?”

“Nope.”

“Very well, and I assume the other Sunset doesn’t either?”

“…Correct.”

“I see.” Rarity folded her hands onto the table and said. “I’ll just take this as you two exploring your newly found sisterhood. So long as that’s all this is.”

“It is!” Sunset answered.

Pinkie Pie put her phone away and shrugged. “I don’t know what the big deal is, I grope my sisters and sometimes pull their pants down, only at home though. Limestone usually chases me around the house and yells at me when I do. It’s fun!”

Rainbow Dash lightly struck the table with her right fist, gaining the others’ attention. She then gazed seriously at Pinkie Pie as she said, “Pinkie…how much do you want for that picture?!”

“OH, HELL NO!” Sunset exclaimed.

After much convincing, they Sunset managed to talk Pinkie out of sending that picture to Rainbow Dash and threatened to beat Rainbow Dash to within an inch of her life if she somehow found out that that picture ended up in her phone. Whether or not she was serious or half serious was up for debate. Eventually the bell rang, and the girls departed, with at least four of them still having that image burned into their minds for a good while. She also promised to ask her double if they could all meet sometime soon, honestly Sunset liked that idea. Perhaps her twin could give her more information as to what Twilight had gone through, and maybe meeting them might help her.

“Sorry for showing them that…I didn’t mean to make you upset,” said Pinkie.

Sunset sighed as she smiled. “It’s alright, embarrassing as it was. It was bound to be shown at some point, either here or at one our future slumber parties.”

“I hope we do a big one soon! I think Twilight could use it, she was really happy with all four of us together, so maybe having all of us would make her happier,” said Pinkie.

Sunset reached out and wrapped her right arm around Pinkie’s shoulders, bringing her closer so that she was able to give her a kiss on the cheek. “That’s why I like you, Babe. Always thinking of how to make someone feel better.”

Pinkie giggled from the show of affection, as they walked, Sunset couldn’t help but notice Lyra and Bonbon, the former giving a smile and wave to them. Pinkie returned the wave, but Sunset’s mind echoed something.

That fucking whore! She’s not satisfied banging Bonbon, now she’s trying to hit on Pinkie! Fuck that bitch, if she even tries to touch Pinkie, I’ll bust her mouth up so bad that they’ll have to wire it shut! Try eating out your girlfriend or Pinkie after that!

Sunset shook her head again. Okay, seriously, where in the hell did that come from? Lyra’s not like that.

“You okay, Sunset?” Pinkie asked.

The former unicorn showed a crooked smile and said, “Yeah, I’m good. I just remembered; we need to address something.”

Pinkie tilted her head in confusion. “Really, what?”

“Your sister, Lime. When we last saw her, I kind of had a freak out and you told her to leave my house,” said Sunset.

Pinkie deflated a little. “Oh…I forgot about that.”

“Pinkie, you can tell me, does Limestone really hate me that much?”

Pinkie squirmed a bit, she knew the answer to that, but she didn’t want to lay it on Sunset, not with everything she had gone through with the whole school hating her. Sunset gently used her right hand to tilt Pinkie’s head up to look at her.

“Hey, it’s alright if she does,” said Sunset.

“But it’s not okay, not to me. You don’t deserve to be hated, she knows what I went through here, even the Anon-A-Miss stuff, but she thinks that you’ll just end up hurting me. That’s why she rushed all the way to your place with that video, I guess she wanted to show me how you’re not good for me or something,” said Pinkie.

Sunset could understand the protectiveness of Limestone, with her track record, it wasn’t like she had much of a good start in the rep department. “Maybe I should just, I don’t know, talk to her. One on one, just me and her? Maybe if we just talk, I can convince her that I’m not the tyrannical bitch that I once was?”

Pinkie seemed to perk up from that idea. “That would be good – actually, I think that’s great! I’ll talk to Limey tonight and ask if she’d be up for it! And to also explain what happened.”

“I can’t wait.”

If that bitch doesn’t accept us, I’ll beat it into her!

Sunset and Twilight were sitting at their usual table, all the students were giving them looks, it was such a strange thing to see. Twilight Sparkle, with someone, was such a strange thing to see that it was a sideshow. The genius of Crystal Prep was the unspoken whipping girl of school, it was practically a rite of passage to pick on Twilight Sparkle in some shape or form, and it was a sadistic contest to see who could up the ante and outdo the last person.

In the short time that Sunset Shimmer had been here, she had become somewhat popular. She was practically as smart as Twilight, but she was way more attractive, and had a confident attitude and strong aura that it was hard not to see her as part of the top ten most popular girls in Crystal Prep. Of those top ten, five of them were sitting at a table not too far away, two of which were fuming as they glared at the couple from across the room.

For those wondering, Sunny Flare held the number one slot, her charm, smarts, attractiveness, and status as the Principal’s daughter, gave her a lot of leeway in how she moved about the school. Indigo Zap was the second, being the captain of every sports team in Crystal Prep, she was definitely popular with the jocks of the school, able to get rowdy with the boys, and flirt with the girls, her orientation was widely known, and even the straight girls were swooning over her.

Lemon Zest was number three on that list, she was known as the party girl of the school, throwing wild parties and being connected to a lot of different indie bands and official ones, and occasionally supplying some questionable substances at some of her parties. Sour Sweet was number four on that list, she was hot, and if you caught her on her good days, she was extremely fun to be around, but on her bad days, she could be a real terror if you crossed her. Sugarcoat ranked in at number five, although she had the nerdy look like Twilight, there were rumors going around that she did certain “favors” for some of the students, and her straightforward, no nonsense and to the point way of talking made it easy to know what she was thinking about you and whatever situation she was in, plus she was quite intelligent herself, but not nowhere on par with Twilight Sparkle.

Sad part of this ranking system – besides the fact that there was one – was that Sour Sweet and Sugarcoat were actually six and seven respectively. The only reason why they went up in said rank was due to the death of Suri Polomare who occupied the fifth spot, and Fleur de Lis who held the number four spot, was currently in jail. The word had gotten out about Sunset’s declaration of love to Twilight Sparkle and her warning to anyone who tried to harm her, this had, instead of lowering her rank, bumped it up, now Sunset Shimmer was at number six in the school, with Upper Crust leading seventh.

Indigo’s fists were clenched as she glared at Sunset Shimmer, the two of them were sitting side by side, their shoulders touching and both sharing a laugh about something. “That fucking bitch, I warned her to stay away from Sparkle!”

“I honestly don’t know why you’re so hung up on Sparkle?” Lemon Zest asked. “I mean…there are other girls in this school that would give their right tit for a night with you, both just to be your girlfriend.”

Indigo rolled her eyes at the question. “Because of that fact is why I want Sparkle! Yeah, I could walk up to any hot girl in this place and they’d instantly say yes to me, but Sparkle doesn’t want to be. She could care less about my sports wins and shit like that! That’s something I want, someone who won’t dick ride my success! Plus, she comes with some fringe benefits.”

Sugarcoat lowered her phone and said, “If that’s how you feel, then you probably shouldn’t have been sexually molesting and raping her over the past two years, kind of goes against your goal of getting her to be your girlfriend. Is it any wonder why she sought solace in Sunset Shimmer, the only girl who’s actually given a damn about her?”

Indigo grabbed Sugarcoat by the collar of her shirt and brought her close so that she was looking her in the eyes, the latter growing worried by the anger that was burning in those orbs. “I wasn’t raping her and wasn’t molesting her! She wanted it, she loved it, she never once told me to stop or to go away! Although, if you really want to show you the difference, I’m more than happy to take you into the janitor’s closet right now!”

Sugarcoat gulped hard, sometimes she hated the fact that she barely had a filter, it was a condition that she was trying to manage, but more often than not, she couldn’t help but spout out what she was thinking, even if it pissed someone off. The only reason no one had laid a hand on her was due to her family’s connections in the police and their legal team. However, Sugarcoat found that didn’t always scare someone away, especially when it came to someone like Indigo Zap. Her threat wasn’t empty, they may have been “friends”, but that didn’t mean she was above following through with that threat.

Sunny Flare pinched the bridge of her nose and released a frustrated sigh. “Indigo, cool it, alright! You know Sugarcoat can’t help that!”

Indigo glanced to Sunny Flare, and then back to Sugarcoat. With a growling huff she released Sugarcoat and turned to face Sunny and Sour. “Next time try to clamp it. Alright?”

“Y-Yeah, s-sorry,” said Sugarcoat with a shaky voice.

“Well, this is just fucking peachy. In one day those two have screwed up the pecking order around here, if this goes on things are going to get messy around here,” said Sour.

“Just say the word Sunny, and Dean Cadence’ll find some ecstasy, oxy, and maybe a little LSD in Shimmer’s locker,” said Lemon Zest.

Sunny thought about that for a moment, planting some drugs would be a good way to get rid of Sunset Shimmer, and without Twilight’s knight walking with her, she’ll be fair game. Depending on how much they find in Sunset’s locker, her mother could suspend or even expel her altogether. Sunny Flare spared a glance at Sunset and Twilight’s table, when she did, her eyes widened when she saw that Sunset was glaring right in their direction. Both held the others gaze for what felt like several moments, Sunny could almost hear Sunset’s mind sending her a message that if she even dared try anything, she would be one step ahead. The smirk that formed on the fiery haired girl’s lips confirmed as much.

Sunny turned around, her heart rate went up as it beat against her chest. “Fuck! No…No that won’t work, I can tell, she knows we’ll try something. She’ll be careful…” Sunny Flare had never been in a position like this, she was always on top, always a step ahead of her quarry, but this time was different. Sunset had the smarts and the strength, and the cunning to know that Sunny Flare was going to try something and was probably formulating contingency plans to deal with whatever Sunny and her group threw at her.

“Fuck plans,” said Indigo. “Let’s just get this done, straight to the fucking point.”

“How’s that?” Lemon asked.

“Shimmer can’t always be around Twilight, there are some classes where they aren’t together, and I know which ones,” said Indigo.

Sour raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. “Wow, Zap, stalker much?”

“Watch it schizo,” Indigo warned.

“You watch it you lesbo-stalker,” Sour shot back.

“Enough!” Sunny nearly yelled, making Indigo and Sour stop their squabbling. “What were you thinking, Indigo?”

“I’m going to need one person to record, and another person who’s not afraid to get dirty.”