The Witchblade EqG: The 13 Artifacts

Twilight banged against her icy prison yet again, but just like her previous efforts, all it amounted to was sore hands. Indigo had affixed Twilight to a pillar of ice, so that she would not roll around during the battle, and so that both her and Sunset could see where she was at all times. A rare agreement that the two of them made halfway through the battle when they both were losing track of her during their throw down. Still, this didn’t make the situation any better for her, all she could do was watch from her perch as her girlfriend and her stalker were battling like savage beasts. Literally, they had become savage beasts.

Dragon Shimmer roared mightily as she flew into the air, inhaled deeply, and bellowed out a torrent of flames down at Titan Zap. The ice giant stomped the ground and forced a giant wall of ice to manifest in front of her, the flames parted around it, keeping the brunt of Dragon Shimmer’s attack from reaching its target. Titan Zap crouched low, placing her left hand against the ground, and a moment later, a pillar of ice formed beneath and launched her straight for Dragon Shimmer. The fire avatar quickly cut off her flames, but it was too late, the ice avatar had barreled into her, sending both falling back down in a powerful impact that shook the entire ground.

People ran as far as they could, some managed to get away, while others were, unfortunately, caught in the crossfire. Normally, Sunset would be more focused, but right now, a primal urge was compelling her to fight on, to focus on the enemy before her. Some of it stemmed from her hatred of Indigo, for all that she had done to Twilight. Another part of it came from her drive to collect all Thirteen Artifacts. This was fuel for the fire of the Ember Stone, for it was destiny.

For Indigo, it was much the same way. The heartache of not being able to woo Twilight into loving her, the pain of losing her fights to Sunset and knowing that she was the weaker, and the pain of denial…this energized the Glacier Stone, allowing it to further influence Indigo into battling the draconic being before her. This was the true curse of the Ember and Glacier Stones, the curse of a never-ending rivalry, a battle that would not truly end until one of them had been rendered silent.

Titan Zap drew back her fist in preparation to punch Dragon Shimmer, but the fiery lizard used its tail, wrapping it around Titan Zap’s neck and squeezed hard. The ice giant gagged as she reached for the tail and tried to pry it off, but the fire dragon flung the ice giant right off and into a few stalls, crushing the stands and their contents in mere seconds upon coming to a rolling stop. Titan Zap quickly recovered, standing upon both her feet just as Dragon Shimmer ran towards her. The blazing beast raised her right claw and slashed Titan Zap across the face, forming four long gashes on her face, Dragon Shimmer came in again with the left claw, gouging four claw marks into the giant’s chest.

In retaliation, Titan Zap created an ice sword and stabbed it right through Dragon Shimmer’s chest. The burning beast roared in pain and thrashed about, but at that moment, Dragon Shimmer lurched forward and clamped her jaws around Titan Zap’s neck, the burning fangs sinking into her cold, icy flesh, and causing dark blue blood to come dripping down her neck. In response to that, Titan Zap’s left hand formed another ice sword and thrust it into Dragon Shimmer’s stomach. However, this only reinforced Dragon Shimmer’s resolve to chomp further into Titan Zap’s neck. Neither one budged as they tried to gain supremacy over the other, but at the last second, their dueling energies won out and forced them to break apart.

Dragon Shimmer skidded on all fours, digging her claws into the ground to stop her momentum, her stomach and chest bled red hot lava for a few more seconds before the wounds closed. For Indigo, she used her twin swords, stabbing them into the ground to bring herself to a halt. Her dark blue blood froze the ground beneath her, she couldn’t cry out or make a sound due to the damage to her throat, but the Glacier Stone’s healing power quickly mended the wounds on her face, neck, and chest.

“We could go at this for hours,” said Indigo.

Dragon Shimmer smirked and spoke mentally, “You’re right, hate to admit it, but with our increased stamina, durability, and power, this could take all day and night. Fortunately, I’m still going to win.”

Titan Zap rose to her feet and growled, enraged. “And just how do you figure?!”

“Again, time. How many times have you used that primal form since you got the Glacier Stone? I’m guessing not that much since you didn’t bust it out in our first fight.”

“Then why didn’t you?!” Titan Zap inquired.

“Easy, I didn’t think you were worth the effort. But since you had the balls to bring that out, it seemed like the polite thing to do to show you my primal form,” Dragon Shimmer replied.

“OH, JUST FUCKING DIE ALREADY!!!”

Titan Zap dismissed her swords and brought her hands together, when she did, the ice giant fired a column sized beam of cryo energy straight for the fire avatar. Dragon Shimmer responded in kind by unleashing her own column sized burst of dragon fire straight for Titan Zap’s attack. The two elemental blasts struck at the center, creating a steam explosion that flattened what remained of the stands, game stalls, and rides in their area. However, this didn’t stop either of them as stomping footsteps came thundering through the cloud of steam, along with the powerful beating of draconic wings as the remnants of the steam cloud were blown away. Both behemoths were about to meet each other once again, but suddenly the stopped when they sensed an ominous sensation coursing through the air.

Dragon Shimmer and Titan Zap looked up into the sky, hearing thousands of blood red cicadas filling the sky, blotting out the sun and casting a red hue over everything down below.

“What the hell is that?!” Titan Zap asked.

“I don’t know…” Dragon Shimmer sniffed the air, her snout immediately crinkled up as the stench wafted into her nostrils. “UGH, what the crap, the air smells like blood?!”

That’s when it clicked for Titan Zap. “Oh fuck, Suri, that psycho bitch! This wasn’t part of the plan!”

Dragon Shimmer turned her head towards Titan Zap, her glowing eyes narrowing into dangerous slits as she asked, “What the hell do you mean, ‘not part of the plan’?! What did you do?!”

“Look, bitch about it later, we need to guard Twilight!”

Dragon Shimmer growled at the ice giant, but of all the things they hated about each other, they agreed on one thing, protecting Twilight was of vital importance. “I’m so going to kill before this day is over.”

“Same to you, now c’mon!”

The Titan and Dragon rushed over to the pillar where Twilight was kept, and it seemed she too was worried upon seeing the massive swarm of cicadas hovering overhead. She did seem somewhat relieved when she saw both Indigo and Sunset finally stop their death match.

“What’s going on?! They sound like cicadas but we’re nowhere near an area where they could be active,” said Twilight.

“It’s apparently someone that Indigo brought with her,” Sunset replied through her mind.

Twilight blinked as she held her head. “Did…Did you just talk to my mind?! You’re telepathic now?”

“More like I’m communicating my emotions and thoughts through your life energy, and your mind’s interpreting them as sound and words.”

Twilight shook her head and then turned her attention to Indigo, giving her a stern glare. “What did she mean by someone you brought, who did you bring?!”

Titan Zap rubbed the back of her head as she said, “An old classmate of ours, Suri Polomare, she has an Artifact like me and Sunbitch over here, she calls it the Blood Sword.”

Twilight and Sunset’s eyes widened with shock at the mention of that infamous Artifact, “The Blood Sword!!!”

“You know about it?”

Before either of them could reply, the cicadas started to move, coming down like a demonic tidal wave of pestilence that was about to devour every single living being in the area. Both Titan Zap and Dragon Shimmer assumed defensive stances, prepared to protect the one they both cared about. However, something happened, a yellow fire flare shot up into the sky and met the tidal wave head on. With Sunset’s draconic vision, she was able to spot none other than her older sister/interdimensional twin.

“Sis…?!”

“That’s, Sunset?!” Twilight exclaimed.

“Yeah…but…her armor is a different color and…and a different form…” That wasn’t the only thing different. Sunset could also see something strange with her Life Fire vision, she could see her older sister’s flame of life, but mixed into it was the flame of another, as if two souls were merged. As she continued to look on, Sunset felt a deep pain inside of her, the familiar pain of loss. “Oh god…”

Twilight looked up and saw that Sunset’s dragon form’s eyes were crying liquid fire, as if she was crying. “Sunset, what’s wrong?! You’re crying!”

“……Sis…she’s in pain, I can feel it in her life energy, she’s…she’s crying…”

Sunset watched as her older sister danced through the air, a savage grace about her as she slashed through the swarm with one masterful sword stroke after the other. She moved faster than she had ever seen before, and the way she wielded that katana, it was as if she was a completely different person. Then she saw it, the moment when her big sister cut down the person responsible for the swarm, and the moment when her big sister paused in the air and let tears stream down her face.

“Oh…Sis…” Sunset spoke in empathy for what she as feeling. A growl escaped Sunset’s muzzle as she turned her hate filled gaze upon Titan Zap. “I don’t know who that was, but something tells me they just hurt someone important to my big sis, and you’re responsible for that!”

“Hey, this was supposed to be a simple in and out! If anyone was getting hurt, it was YOU! Suri went rogue! That’s not on me!” Titan Zap shot back.

Dragon Shimmer flared her wings and gave a quick roar of anger. “Don’t split hairs! All of this wouldn’t have happened if you would just leave Twilight alone!”

Titan Zap gave her own savage roar and backed away in preparation to fight. “As if I’d ever leave Twilight in your hands! You don’t really love her, admit it! You just want her as your plaything!”

“FUCK YOU, THAT’S YOUR SHITCK!!!”

“I’LL RIP YOUR HEAD OFF!!!”

“FROST-BITCH!!!”

“FIRE-WHORE!!!”

“Ladies!” Both Dragon Shimmer and Titan Zap looked down and watched as a teen girl with curly goldenrod colored hair came walking towards them. “Why don’t we calm down for a minute here.”

“Adagio?! What are you doing here, I haven’t gotten Twilight yet, but give me a few seconds and I’ll kill this fire spitting slut!” Titan Zap stated.

Adagio shook her head as she slowly approached the two beasts. “No, no I don’t think that’ll be necessary anymore. I just found out that the Sunset Shimmer I want to kill, is also Witchblade. Knowing that, I am far outclassed as I am now. However…” The eldest Siren raised the box high above her head and presented it to the two behemoths. “Pandora’s Box has spoken to me, there is a way for me to finally get my revenge on her! And all I need…” The Box started to glow an eerie purple color as the same energy coated Adagio’s eyes. “…ARE YOUR KEYS!!!”

Sunset’s mind suddenly recalled her research, the name Pandora’s Box, it was one of the Thirteen Artifacts. Dragon Shimmer was about to charge Adagio and take the Box from her, but before that was even a possibility, both Sunset and Indigo’s gemstones glowed brighter. A sudden surge of pain wracked their bodies as both women were brought to their knees.

“What…What are you doing?! You’re…You’re double crossing me!” Titan Zap accused.

“Double crossing entails that I considered you a partner, you were just a pawn, a tool I needed to set up the board for my victory! And everything for that victory has been brought before me! Now I can finally kill Sunset Shimmer, and with the full power of Pandora’s Box, I will be unstoppable! No magic in Equestria will be able to match me!” Adagio proclaimed.

The gemstones of Dragon Shimmer and Titan Zap dislodged themselves from their hosts, however, their primal forms did not disappear. Twilight watched all this and once again resumed her banging against the ice prison as she cried out, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO THEM, STOP IT!!!”

“THERE’S NOT STOPPING WHAT’S ABOUT TO HAPPEN!!!” Adagio declared.

The Ember Stone and the Glacier Stone fitted themselves into their designated slots, and the moment they did, it began. The air quaked as a heavy, overbearing, ominous feeling befell the entire area and beyond. Adagio’s clothes suddenly burst away as Pandora’s Box fully opened, shooting a beam of pure chaotic energy into the sky. Strips of purple light flowed from the box and wrapped around her body, adorning it in old Grecian clothing, like that of a priestess. Adagio began to sing the accursed song, the song that ushered in the beginning of unfettered chaos and mayhem.

As the song continued, the effects were already starting to make themselves known. The ground began to rumble and shake as pillars of twisted metal and earth rose into the sky like jagged spikes. The rollercoasters and remaining rides began to deform into twisted structures, the skies continued to darken as purple lightning arced across the skies, and the effects didn’t just go to the environmental. The few people who were lucky, or unlucky, enough to have survived the brawl between the dragon and the titan started to have purple light tint their eyes. Afterwards, they all began to attack anything and everything in sight, some attacked each other, others became deformed monstrosities that roared and bellowed. Some were amalgamations of a human, dog, and insect, others were of aquatic creatures and avian. Only one word described this horror, chaos.

Twilight looked around herself, watching this abomination unto existence spread. Somehow, she was untouched, she didn’t know why, but she didn’t really care so much, because it was better than losing her mind or turning into a monster. However, there was one thing that she worried about more than this, and that was the state of Sunset and Indigo. When they lost their gemstones, Twilight expected them to change back into their normal states, but they didn’t, instead, Sunset transformed into a full living fire dragon, while Indigo had become a living ice giant, both becoming pure elementals.

“SUNSET!!!” Twilight shouted to the fire dragon, but the beast didn’t even tilt its head in her direction. The teen genius couldn’t believe she was about to do this, but this was a desperate situation. Twilight turned to Indigo’s direction and shouted, “INDIGO, CAN YOU HEAR ME?!!” Once again, no reaction. “What’s…What’s happened to them?!”

Outside the park, the Sirens’ RV came to a screeching halt in the parking lot. Police cruisers had surrounded Equestria Land, trying to corral the insanity that was taking place inside, but Sonata, Aria, and Tempest knew full well that that wasn’t going to happen. All three jumped out of the RV and gasped upon seeing the dark storm clouds over the theme park, Sonata and Aria suddenly felt a chill go up their spines, a familiar chill of dark magic.

“Oh no…” Sonata whispered.

“She did it…Dammit, Adagio!” Aria cursed as tears began to form in her eyes.

Tempest clenched her fists as she looked upon the scene and gritted her teeth with frustration and worry. No, I was too late…

Suddenly, Tempest spotted something the air, a metallic object flying overhead. Wait a minute! “HEY, WITCHBLADE!!!” The metallic object stopped in midair and then quickly descended towards the trio. A moment later, all three witnessed Witchblade land before them, with Rarity Belle in her arms, and wrapped in metallic tentacles was the body of Applejack Apple. Tempest looked upon the dead body, and then the forlorn faces of both Rarity and Witchblade. “Is she…?”

“She’s…She’s dead…I healed her wounds so that, at the very least, she’d be whole,” she answered. That’s when Witchblade noticed two of the three Sirens. “YOU!” With her inhuman speed, Witchblade practically warped in front of Aria Blaze and hoisted her up by the collar of her shirt. “YOU AND ADAGIO! IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT! APPLEJACK WOULD BE ALIVE IF IT WASN’T FOR YOU!!!”

Aria’s eyes widened when she heard Witchblade speak. “Y-You’re Sunset Shimmer! You’re Witchblade! Shimmer, listen to me, we didn’t want it to go this far! We came here to try and stop Adagio!”

Sunset’s left arm transformed into jagged blades that slowly crept towards Aria, a look of hatred burned in Sunset’s eyes. “Give me one good reason why I should even THINK that you’re telling me the truth, or that I should spare you, Adagio, or HER!” The last part of Sunset’s threat was punctuated with a nod towards a cowering Sonata Dusk.

Tempest walked up to Sunset and placed her hand on Sunset’s right arm, forcing the enraged teen to glare at the agent. “Because I can vouch for them, they were on their way to stop this, and I managed to verify that they weren’t totally onboard with this scheme of Adagio Dazzle. They want to save their sister, but…” Tempest looked up at the looming storm cloud, and the haunting song that was slowly filling the air. “I’m not a hundred percent sure that that is impossible at this point.”

“Please, let her go! We’re sorry!” Sonata pleaded as she dropped to her knees in a begging position. “Dagi’s being manipulated by Pandora’s Box, it’s making her angrier than she used to be at you! All we really wanted to do was go home to Equestria!”

Sunset growled and threw Aria at Sonata’s feet. “I looked for you three after the Battle of the Bands, I wanted to see if I could help you! To see if you might be willing to change your ways, to give you the same chance that was given to me! If all you wanted to do was go back home, then you could’ve just asked, Princess Twilight might’ve given you that opportunity! BUT NO! You disappeared, and now when you come back, all of THIS happens! Because of your selfishness one of my best friends is dead!”

The two Siren sisters glanced at the lifeless body of Applejack Apple, who was being held by Rarity Belle, her eyes were red from crying, and hollow. Somehow, seeing the death of Applejack drove it home, made it more real. This wasn’t what they really wanted, hurting them was one thing, but…killing them…

Sonata started to cry as she looked back up at Sunset. “We’re sorry…I mean it, we’re so sorry.”

Sunset growled, she was about to lay into them again, but stopped when she saw Aria’s eyes water, her gaze still locked on the image of Rarity and Applejack. Even she could tell that the arrogant and abrasive Siren was saddened by this loss of life, a fact that she couldn’t deny.

“Sunset, we’re running out of time here, the longer that Box remains open, the worse this chaos will become. It won’t just affect this area, it’ll spread out across the world, it’ll literally bring about the end of the world! We have to go back in there and stop it, however we can!” Tempest stated.

The Keeper of the Balance sighed as she glanced to Tempest. “I know, don’t ask me how right now, but I got the low down about Pandora’s Box, I might be able to stop it, but we need find out where Adagio and the Box are, but first thing I want to do is find Twilight and Pinkie and get them out of here before anything else happens!”

Just then, Sunset’s gemstone began to glow. A light was emitted from the Witchblade and her cellphone appeared. Sunset took the cellular device into her hand and retracted the armor around it to get a good grip. A shocked expression appeared on her face when she noticed the name on her caller ID. “PINKIE!” Sunset immediately answered the phone. “Pinkie, are you alright, are you hurt?! Where are you?!”

{Well…right now I’m not hurt. Not so sure how long that will last because everything in here is turning into a Lovecraftian nightmare! Oh, and I can see Twilight, she’s okay!} Pinkie stated.

“Seriously?!”

“What is it?” Tempest asked.

“Pinkie says that Twilight’s okay!”

That seemed to get Rarity’s attention. “Twilight’s there?! Does…Does that mean your sister is, too!”

“Yeah, they were having a date, me and Pinkie were…spying on them, just to make sure everything went well. Where are you right now, can you get to Twilight?!”

{Uh…well…that’s going to be hard to do. Because Twilight’s trapped in a pillar of ice, she looks alright though. But…I can also see Adagio Dazzle, and she’s singing this creepy song, and there’s a dragon that’s made of fire and a giant that’s made of ice that are standing on either side of her.}

“She’s at ground zero! How the hell is she not being warped by that thing?!” Tempest asked.

{Oh, yeah, I also ponied up somehow! I think that’s why I’m not going all crazy like the rest of the people are around here. That or plot convince. Anyway, we’re close to the west side of the park, there are these big spikey pillars around it, you’ll probably see it if you fly!}

“Okay, I got it, just stay hidden and I’ll be there as quick as I can! ……Pinkie Pie…I love you, you know that right?” Sunset asked.

{Of course I do, and I’ll be careful I promise.}

The call ended just then, Sunset quickly put the phone back into the Witchblade’s gemstone and looked at Tempest. “Tempest, I need your help on this one! I don’t want to lose another of my friends!”

“You’re not.” Tempest took out the Wheel of Shadows, the moment she did, Tempest transformed into her Shadow State. “I’ll extract Pinkie Pie from the battle and Twilight Sparkle. You just concentrate on Pandora’s Box.”

“Wait!” Tempest and Sunset looked down at Aria. “I don’t know what you’re planning on doing, but please, try and save Adagio! She’s a bitch, but everything she’s done was to keep the both of us safe! Despite everything, she loves us! She’s the only family we have, please, I’m begging you!” Aria got on her hands and knees and bowed her head to the asphalt, prostrating herself as best she could to Sunset Shimmer. “Save my big sis!”

Sunset glared down at the Siren, the anger and hatred inside her wanted to tell the Siren to go to hell, however…all this sorrow was brought about because of revenge, what good would it do her to kill Adagio out of spite? It would only begin another cycle of hatred from these two Sirens. “I’ll do what I can, I can’t make you better promise than that at the moment.”

Sonata answered for Aria and said, “That’s…That’s all we ask. A-And there's something you should know about the other girl who uses ice...”

Pinkie Pie said she wouldn’t do anything, but right now, she couldn’t just stand back do nothing. Twilight was in the middle of that chaos storm and needed help. Sun was out of commission from what she could tell, she was still in her dragon form, but it was different from the times that she had seen it. It was made of pure fire, not the metal and fire combo that it normally was. The other one, she didn’t really know, but Pinkie assumed it was probably the same for her.

I know Sunset doesn’t want me to do anything…but…I can’t just leave Sci-Twi alone in the middle of all that! Pinkie thought.

Pinkie looked at her hands and then her body, she didn’t know why her magic was really active, perhaps it was in response to the chaotic stuff happening around her? Sunset and Princess Twilight said that their magic was the Magic of Friendship, and that Princess Twilight’s crown was called an “Element of Harmony”, the opposite of chaos is harmony, so perhaps it was the harmonious magical power that she and her friends still possessed within them that kept the harmful affects of Adagio’s magical box from causing Pinkie to go insane or turn into some kind of monster.

“Or, you know, plot convenience,” she commented.

Unfortunately, while she contemplated, one of the transformed people approached her. Pinkie turned her head around and gasped upon seeing the amalgamated humanoid approach her, gargling, and scratching its talons against the pavement as its five eyes trained the on pink, plump, party girl.

“Oh…h-hey there! I, uh, I was just standing here, watching the mayhem! How are you doing?!” Pinkie asked the creature.

The creature growled back her and just continued to come closer. Pinkie Pie backed away as she bumped up against a snack cart. The teenage party planner quickly reached behind her and produced…a churro…well, you know what, a churro it is.

“Back up!” Pinkie warned. “I have a churro and I’m not afraid to use it!” The creature continued to sloth its way towards her, opening its mouth impossibly wide and showing off rows of sharpened teeth and a barbed tongue. Pinkie Pie gulped as her legs and hands shook. “O-Okay, don’t say I didn’t warn you!”

Unbeknownst to Pinkie, something strange was happening. Her right hand, which was currently holding the cinnamon confection, was glowing with pink tinted energy. That same energy flowed into the churro, which coated in the same pink color, but also had sparkles going off around it. In desperation, Pinkie threw the churro right at the monster’s mouth. The creature swallowed the churro, then paused, and in the next moment, it’s body completely exploded from the inside out in a shower of pink smoke and yellow and blue sparkles.

Pinkie Pie blinked in confusion, that was weird, even for her. She turned around and grabbed another churro, but this time she watched as the mystical energy that was protecting her flowed into the churro. Out of curiosity, Pinkie tossed that churro into the distance and then watched as it exploded like an industrial firework. A devious grin appeared on Pinkie’s face as she realized that she was not in this chaos zone without weapons. Pinkie rooted through the debris and found a couple of sashes, along with a belt.

The teenage baker hurriedly gathered all the churros that the cart possessed, sticking them through the loops of the sashes like a soldier would slot bullets, she then placed more in the hoops around her belt, and strapped a few more around her wrists and ankles. And for good measure, she stuffed a bag full into her long, puffy, curly hair. Pinkie, now armed to the teeth with churros, decided to make her way towards pillar of ice. Thanks to the many spiral stalagmites rising from the ground, it made it a little easier for her to hide behind them and get closer to Twilight’s prison.

Once she was closer, Pinkie got her breathing under control and looked about to get an idea of what she was working with. Adagio was still singing her eerie, haunting song, floating in the air with eyes glowing purple, and of course, there was the huge fire dragon and ice giant standing guard. Pinkie needed a distraction, so she took out five churros and tied them together into a makeshift shuriken. She backed away from her hiding spot to get some room, and then, after taking aim, Pinkie tossed the churro shuriken into the air. The confection twirled in the air, going straight before turning to the left.

A quintuple explosion went off in that direction, catching the attention of the ice giant, which, thankfully made the ice giant turn its head stomp its way towards where the explosion went off. Pinkie quickly capitalized on this and made another churro shuriken, tossing it with freakish precision to her right. When the second explosion went off, the fire dragon growled and quickly headed in that direction. With her distraction successful, Pinkie Pie hurried to the ice pillar and stopped at the base.

“TWILIGHT!” Pinkie called out.

Twilight, who had huddled into a fetal position, perked up upon hearing the familiar, friendly sound of Pinkie’s voice. The teen genius looked down from her icy prison and called out, “Pinkie Pie!” then her joy turned to fear as she looked around. “No, no, Pinkie you need to get out of here! It’s too dangerous! Sunset and Indigo aren’t themselves! They’ll definitely kill you, along with the other monsters that are roaming around here!……Are those churros that you have strapped onto you?”

“Yep! Apparently, the magic I have can make sweet treats turn into bombs!” Pinkie exclaimed.

Twilight blinked. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Well, they’re more like industrial grade firework explosions, but those can hurt, a lot. Anyway, just sit tight and I’ll get you out that ice cube!” The pink teenager hurriedly took off one of the sashes and slapped it against the ice pillar. She then touched every churro that was on it and made them all glow with her pink magical energy. “Hold on, Twilight, it’s going to be a bumpy ride!”

“WHAT?!”

No sooner had Pinkie Pie said that did the sash explode about thirteen times in a row, ending with a huge explosion that cracked the ice pillar. Fissures formed that snaked all the way up to where Twilight’s ice prison was, at the base of the pillar, a huge chunk of it had been blown away, leaving a ten by twenty-foot gap. Fortunately, with the added weight of the prison above, it made the pillar too top heavy, and as a result, the pillar slumped forward, falling until it slammed against the pavement and snapped the prison part off it.

Twilight’s ice shell rolled off the pillar and came to a stop, the teen genius rubbed her head as the world around her continued to spin around, once everything came back into alignment, she found Pinkie Pie kneeling beside her icy prison. “Pinkie Pie…? What…What did you just do?”

“I used magic churro bombs, duh, I told you before, didn’t I? Or were you too high up to hear me? Sorry if you were!” Pinkie apologized.

“No…you did, but…I guess I shouldn’t be so taken aback by something like that, considering everything I’ve seen in the last couple of months,” said Twilight. “What are we going to do?”

Pinkie took out another churro and infused it with magic. “Well, first off all, I’m going to break you out of that ice cube. Second, we’re going to find a safe place to hide until my Sunset can get here and get us out!”

Twilight’s expression quickly changed from relief to scared, but her eyes weren’t focused on Pinkie’s churro bomb, they were focused on something else behind Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie didn’t bother to look over her shoulder to realize that there was something really bad standing behind her. “Is it the giant or the dragon?”

“D-D-Dragon…Sunset…!” Twilight replied.

The snort of heated air from behind Pinkie confirmed that Sun the Fire Dragon was behind her, and ready to either roast Pinkie alive or snap the party girl in her jaws and chew her up like a piece of bubblegum.

“Well…this kinda sucks…” Pinkie slowly turned around and looked up at the fire avatar, its glowing orange eyes narrowing as it growled at Pinkie. “Hey, Sun! Uh…want a churro?” The Fire Dragon inhaled and let out a long, threatening roar that made Pinkie Pie sweat from the heat that it put out. “Okay, don’t bite my head off! Here you go!”

Pinkie Pie threw the churro at the Fire Dragon’s mouth, which landed right inside. For few seconds, the Fire Dragon didn’t react, but then the churro exploded in its mouth, despite the fiery nature of the explosion, whatever magical power the churro was infused with seemed to hurt the fire avatar as it reared up and roared in pain, whipping its head back and forth from the pain that radiated in its mouth. With the Fire Dragon distracted, Pinkie hurriedly got on top of the ice prison and straddled it.

A shiver ran up Pinkie Pie’s spine the moment her rear made contact with the ice prison as she exclaimed, “COOOOOLD!!! COLD, COLD, COLD – SUPER COLD!!!” Unfortunately, Pinkie was wearing a skirt, and no leggings, not that they would’ve helped in this case. “

Twilight blushed as she got an unobstructed view of her friend’s undercarriage, when she got over seeing Pinkie’s plot pressed against the ice, Twilight asked, “What are you doing, Pinkie?!”

Pinkie pulled out two more churros and yelled, “SLEDDING!!!” as she threw both churros behind her. The explosive force of the two confections propelled both Twilight and Pinkie forward, the smooth ice allowing the prison to act as a bobsled. Pinkie took out more churros and threw them with perfect timing as they exploded and generated enough force to push them from one direction to the other. The two teens continued moving faster and faster, and with each bit of distance gained, the more they believed they were getting further away from the center of chaos. However, those hopes were dashed when a wall of ice rose from the ground ahead of them.

Thinking quickly, Pinkie took out more churros and tossed them at the wall. Several explosions went off, but she only managed to make a dent in the wall. The party planner hurriedly reached for another churro, but when she patted herself down, Pinkie realized that she was out of ammo.

“PINKIE, JUMP OFF, HURRY!” Twilight urged.

Unfortunately, the speed at which they were moving did not allow for a safe ejection, either way, Pinkie Pie was about to get splattered, whether it was against the upcoming ice wall or the unforgiving ground beneath her.

Pinkie shut her eyes tight as she waited for the inevitable. Say a prayer for ‘ol Pinkie Pie!

Before Pinkie could meet her maker, she suddenly found herself in a weightless state, and warm. Pinkie opened her eyes and found herself in the warm embrace of her half-naked girlfriend. Although that was of less importance. “SUNSET!” she exclaimed as she hugged her girlfriend tight. “I KNEW YOU’D MAKE IT!”

Sunset’s happy smile turned into a guilt-ridden frown as she hugged her girlfriend tighter. “I’m glad I was……this time…”

“WAIT, TWILIGHT!!”

“She’s fine, Pinkie. Look down.”

And look down she did, on the ground, a shadowy figure had Twilight’s ice prison wrapped in shadow tendrils, preventing it from hitting the ice wall. “W-Who’s that?!”

“That would Agent Tempest, she has an Artifact like Sun does. She’s here to help us out.” Sunset flew down to the ground and landed next to Tempest and Twilight. “I can get her out.”

“No need, I got this.” Tempest offered as she formed a Time Acceleration sphere and pressed it against the ice. Years passed by in nanoseconds as the ice disintegrated into water vapor, Tempest continued with this method, opening the top half of the prison to allow Twilight enough room to crawl out on her own. “There you go, kid. Hop on out.”

Twilight happily crawled out of the ice prison and looked to the shadow woman with a bit of trepidation. “T-Thank you!” she then turned to Sunset and said, “Sunset, you have to help Sun! She’s been transformed into a giant fire dragon!”

“No offense, but how is that different from what she normally turns into?”

“No. she’s right, I saw it! When Adagio used that weird music box, Sun’s gemstone was taken from her and it slapped itself onto the box, and then that other girl with the ice powers had the same thing happen to her! I think it’s turned them into, like, bodyguards for her!” Pinkie explained.

“The Glacier and Ember Stones, they really were the keys. And it’s forcing them to be Adagio’s protectors as she continues to sing that song,” said Sunset.

Just then, the Fire Dragon that was her little sister and the Ice Giant came stomping towards them, and behind them, in the middle of the earthen glaives that rose from the ground, was Adagio Dazzle.

“Looks like you ponyed up too, just like Rarity…” Sunset turned her attention to Tempest and said, “Tempest, take Pinkie and Twilight to where the others are, I’ll take care of Adagio and my little sister.”

“Not that I don’t think you can, but it’s three against one, as badass as you are, I don’t think you can take on all three of them on your own,” Tempest commented.

Sunset looked at the gemstone on her gauntlet and said, “I’m not alone, not really. If you’re that worried, then hurry back.”

Tempest chuckled and wrapped a tendril around Pinkie and Twilight. “I’ll be back as quick as I can, Sunset.”

Before either girl could voice any kind of protest, or ask a question, Tempest dragged them both in her shadow and vanished from sight. Now Sunset stood before the Ice Giant and Fire Dragon, two powerful elementals that stood in her way of stopping the chaos of Pandora’s Box before it spread out across the globe.

“I need to get past these two, but I doubt they’ll allow me that.”

“I have the speed to get us there, but the Guardians won’t give us the time to even attempt to close it,” said Atalanta.

“Then that will require you to use both of our expertise to, at the very least, incapacitate these two behemoths,” spoke another wielder.

“Ugh-Uhh!”

Sunset was now flanked on both sides by the two newest wielders. One of them was of Asian descent like Tomoe, but her outfit was that of black scale armor that was not Neighponese, if Sunset had to guess, it was Chinese. Her hair was jet black like Tomoe’s, and her eyes were orange colored. To her left was a bulky woman, she had a hunched posture, muscular, with animal skin clothes, one that wrapped around her chest and another that acted as a skirt. Her hair was unkempt, and she had a wild look about her. If she had to guess, this wielder looked like she was from an age that was much, much older than either Tomoe, Atalanta, or even the other Asian wielder.

“Okay, who are you two?”

“My name is Mulan, I have a particular skill set when it comes to dealing with dragons, so I can assist you in subduing your younger sister. The other over there is Fang, you stand in the presence of the first wielder of the Witchblade. She’s, what you would call, a cavewoman, one of the first humans to walk the Earth.”

“What?!” Sunset turned to look at the nearly six-foot tall woman. Now she understood why this wielder only seemed to talk in grunts, she was from a time where speech had yet to be invented. However, despite that, Sunset was able to feel what this wielder was trying to convey to her. “It…It’s an honor to meet you.”

Fang nodded her head as a grin split her face. A stomp drew their attention and caused Fang to growl at the ice giant before them. Sunset was able to feel that Fang wanted to take on the ice giant, and something told her that Fang’s strength and animal ferocity would be needed to deal with the giant.

“Okay, Fang, let’s fight together!”

A golden-brown aura wrapped around Sunset, and already she could feel her soul and that of the cavewoman, Fang, merging into one being. Her muscles gained more definition, and even Sunset’s height increased by about three inches. The shoulder pauldrons disappeared, and in their stead Sunset’s gauntlets doubled in size, the fingers turned into huge five fingered, ten-inch claws, while thinner plates of armor covered the rest of her arms up to the shoulders. Thicker armor, much like her forearm gauntlets, doubled in size, and had three ten-inch talons on both feet, and just like her upper arms, Sunset’s thighs were covered in a thin layer of armor that connected to her hip, leaving her inner thighs exposed a bit.

Around her waist was a metal bikini bottom, with a metal lion’s tail whipping about back and forth from behind her. A boney metal strand went up her middle and created a metallic bikini top, both of which left little to the imagination, as per the usual with the Witchblade. Sunset’s head was adorned with a helmet that resembled a sabretooth tiger’s head, her mane was on fire and flowed freely down her back like that of a lion’s mane, and her teeth had a sharpness to them like a predator’s. Just like with Tomoe, the pupils of Sunset’s eyes glowed golden brown to match that of the armor, signifying that the two warriors were one.

“Aria said that the one who used the Glacier Stone was after Twilight, I take it you must be the person that has been abusing my friend?!” Sunset/Fang inquired.

The response of which was a bellow from the Ice Giant.

“That sounded like a ‘yes’ to me!” Sunset/Fang got on all fours and returned the bellow with a roar of her own that sounded like a cross between a lion’s roar and a primal human war cry.

The Ice Giant stamped her foot to the ground and created an ice wave with several jagged glaives rushing towards Sunset. The Keeper of the Balance dashed straight ahead, fracturing the ground from where she took off. When the ice wave came, she jumped into the air and landed on the other side with a primal grace that lost no momentum as she charged ahead. The Ice Giant raised her right hand and fired off several ice spikes that rained down on Sunset, however, her reflexes and instincts were sharpened, thanks to Fang, her many years of survival in an era where it was kill or be killed, hunt or be hunted, such a life in a prehistoric world honed one’s everything.

Sunset nimbly weaved her way through the ice spears, and for the ones that she didn’t manage to dodge, she smashed with her monstrous gauntlets. One after the other, the sound of shattering ice filled the air as she quickly approached the thirty-meter-tall creature, once at the base of the Ice Giant, Sunset jumped straight up into the air, coated her right fist with flames, and delivered a searing uppercut to the Giant’s jaw. The frosty guardian stumbled backwards from the impact, but Sunset wasn’t done, her left gauntlet opened a vent and from it a blast of fire exited it, propelling her forward as she brought down her left fist right into the Ice Giant’s stomach. The force and strength of the attack made the Giant cough up its dark blue blood and made several fissures form beneath it.

Sunset readied to deliver another punch, but her heightened instincts told her she was about to be attacked. Without bothering to look, Sunset used the Giant as a springboard to launch herself into the air, avoiding the fiery tail of the Fire Dragon. Now in midair, Sunset could see that her little sister, who was still being controlled, was starting to get into the fight.

“You’ll need me to bring her in line,” spoke Mulan.

“We’ll have to make this a tag team, switch back and forth! You good with that Fang?!”

“Uh-huh!”

With that noted, Sunset’s body was surrounded with orange light. The Fire Dragon roared as it took a wing assisted lunge up to attack the orb of vermillion light. However, before it could do anything, the orb shattered, and the Fire Dragon was treated to the fiery construct of an Eastern Dragon, the flaming mythical beast coiled around the other dragon like snake, while using its claws to wrestle with the more Western styled dragon. The Fire Dragon was put on its back, and now was able to see the one who conjured the construct, who was currently standing inside the construct’s head.

Sunset’s armor had changed once again, her pauldrons were now designed in the shape of dragon heads, with sharp spines that ran about halfway to the back. Her upper arms were exposed, but her lower forearms and hands were covered in thin armored gauntlets and bared the crest of the former wielder Mulan. Upon her chest was full body armor which hugged her figure nicely, with the image of an Eastern dragon and in its mouth, it heled a pearl with the same family crest. An armored skirt surrounded her waist, plated, and segmented to allow for free movement. Her legs were covered in thin armor that went from her feet to about halfway around her thighs, both etched with oriental cloud designs. Sunset wore a full armored helm that covered her hair, and a face plate that obscured her face a bit, in keeping with the ancient legend of the female warrior hiding her identity. Her pupils shined orange to match the color of the armor, showing that she was one with Mulan’s soul.

The Fire Dragon inhaled deeply and bellowed forth a large jet of flames, Sunset saw this coming and made the construct’s head move out of the way of the blast. However, that granted the fire avatar time to use her tail and wrap it around the construct’s neck, and with a powerful tug, managed to force its Eastern cousin to loosen its grip enough for her to thrash her way out. Once out of the coils of the construct, the guardian spread its wings and released dozens of flaming serpents that all aimed straight for Sunset/Mulan. The merged warrior didn’t worry as she summoned a jian sword to her right hand, taking her stance, Sunset dashed out of the construct’s head and began heading right for her little sister.

With martial grace Sunset/Mulan sliced through one serpent after the other, practically dancing in the air as she cut them down. The Fire Dragon inhaled again and released another jet of flames right at Sunset/Mulan. The merged warrior twirled her sword around and ran her two left fingers from the base of the guard up to the tip of the blade, as she did this, orange flames gathered and merged with the sword.

“Cì chuān! Tiānshàng de lóng yá (Pierce! Heavenly Dragon Fang)!”

In a burst of speed, Sunset pierced through the flames, angled downward, and struck through the chest of the fire avatar, reappearing on the other side as she skidded to a halt on the pavement. A gaping hole in the Fire Dragon’s chest made the beast stumble as it dropped to the ground. Sunset glanced over her shoulder and watched as the hole she had caused was healing, although it would probably take a minute before her little sister was back up and running. Unfortunately, the Ice Giant got back up and came in with a giant ice hammer.

“OH SHIT! FANG!” Sunset/Mulan called out.

Another flash of light and Sunset was once again merged with the cavewoman Fang. With her brute strength, Sunset/Fang raised her arms and caught the hammer as it came down on her. The impact made the ground shake violently, sending fissures spider webbing throughout the area and even upheaving the earth. Sunset/Fang gritted her sharp teeth, growling with primal fury as she pushed back against the icy weapon that wanted to crush her. Just then, the Ice Giant’s weapon glowed, and not long after, the flat of the hammer produced dozens of spikes that turned it into an oversized meat tenderizer. One of the spikes appeared where her hands were and pushed her back more into the ground, making a crater form beneath Sunset/Fang.

Ice started to creep along the ground, growing closer to encasing Sunset/Fang in its cold grip. With an enraged roar, Sunset/Fang’s gauntlet vents opened and released a burst of fire that acted as jets that allowed her to take off like a rocket straight up, sending the hammer and the Giant flailing backwards as she tried to regain her footing. Sunset/Fang repositioned the vent on her left fist, causing Sunset/Fang to spin out as she approached the Ice Giant, with her momentum built up, Sunset/Fang channeled all of it into her right fist as she slammed into the Ice Giant’s face. A resounding “BOOM” echoed in the air as the ice avatar fell to her knees in a daze.

Sunset/Fang landed on the ground and turned her head towards the Center of Chaos, the song was growing in power, she could sense it better with Fang’s animalistic instincts. She turned her head skywards and watched as the raging storm cloud seemed to be getting larger and spreading out further, promising that if this continued, the city would be enveloped in chaotic mayhem and not soon after, the world.

“We mustn’t linger any longer, we have to close Pandora’s Box before the world tears itself apart. Or a meteor falls from the sky.”

THAT CAN HAPPEN?!! Sunset exclaimed in her mind.

“It’s chaos, anything can happen. So, before it comes to that, we have to hurry!”

Sunset agreed with the past wielder and prepared for a merger, but unfortunately, a blast of fire and ice caught her attention, making her jump into the air to avoid the attack. However, upon doing so, the Fire Dragon intercepted and swiped her claw at Sunset/Fang. The blow sent the Keeper of the Balance straight into the ground, where the Ice Giant waited and slammed Sunset/Fang with her ice hammer again, this time making full contact as she was beaten, repeatedly. The Witchblade’s healing factor allowed Sunset/Fang to recover, unfortunately, the elemental forms of her sister and the stalker allowed for faster recovery since they weren’t entirely physical.

“I hate to point this out, but nothing short of killing them will stop the avatars from attacking,” Atalanta suggested.

I am NOT killing my little sister!……The one that hurt Twilight I’m not completely opposed to…But even then, they’re both under the Box’s control, it’s not their fault!

The warrior maiden managed to get out of the crater that she was smashed into by the fire and ice tag team. Now both stood at the ready, hellbent on preventing Sunset/Fang from getting to the Center of Chaos, and nothing short of death would keep them from their duty.

Before Sunset could contemplate such a thing, a pool of darkness opened beneath the Giant as multiple shadow tendrils rose and began wrapping themselves around the ice avatar. Tempest rose from the shadows and grunted as she tried to hold the Giant in place.

“Spear of Destiny, Fourth Form: Vincula Divina Subjugatio!”

Several golden chains phased through the ground and began attacking the Fire Dragon. The fire avatar spewed flames at them, which forced them back, but only momentarily, forcing the beast to take to the skies as it tried to get away from the snake-like chains.

Sunset/Fang looked behind her and saw that the chains came from Fluttershy, the Magdalena. “FLUTTERSHY?!”

“I heard something was happening here in Equestria Land, the moment the news reported a fire dragon fighting here, I knew it had to be your sister, and that you might be here too!” Fluttershy explained. “So, I rushed here as fast as I could!”

“How much do you know about what’s going on?!” Sunset/Fang asked.

“I only know that Adagio Dazzle opened Pandora’s Box, literally. And that Agent Tempest is helping us! Sunset, if you can stop this, then go ahead! We’ll keep them busy!”

Sunset/Fang’s heart ached, that meant that she probably did not know about Applejack’s fate. First thing’s first…The Keeper of the Balance turned her attention to the Center of Chaos and narrowed her gaze. You ready, Atalanta?!

“Indeed, I am, Sunset Shimmer!”

A flash of emerald light surrounded Sunset as she felt herself merge with yet another ancient wielder of the Witchblade. When the light faded, Sunset was once again draped in different armor. Its color was as green as the deepest forests, the armor around her legs had an aerodynamic design to them, sleek and smooth, with small wing-like frills positioned on the outside of each ankle. The armor around her chest formed an open “V” shape in the middle, allowing for some of her bust and stomach to be seen. A cape formed on her back, kept in place by a clasp around her right shoulder, on her left shoulder was a pauldron that was in the shape of a boar’s head, the armor around her left arm was also thicker and slender, while only a thinly armored gauntlet was on her right arm.

Around Sunset’s head was a headband, her hair was tied into a ponytail, and her pupils shined green. Tempest and Fluttershy stared in shock, Sunset/Atalanta didn’t understand why, but then remembered that this was the first time they had laid eyes on her transformation. “I’M HEADING IN! JUST KEEP THEM RESTRAINED UNTIL I CAN CLOSE THE BOX, THEY’LL RETURN TO NORMAL AFTER!”

An affirmative nod was given.

Sunset/Atalanta got into a runner’s stance and smirked as she asked, “A race to the finish!”

Time slowed down around Sunset/Atalanta, emerald energy flowed from the Witchblade’s gemstone, through the armor, and down into her legs. And before the avatars, Tempest, and Fluttershy realized it, Sunset/Atalanta had teleported, a second later, a shockwave erupted like a sonic boom, fracturing the ground and surrounding structures from the sheer amount of speed that was used. Sunset/Atalanta was fast, but this was different, it was a speed that was close to that of a god.

Atalanta…are you…were you a goddess?

“No, I was not, I was born a girl, thrown out by my father, and left to fend for myself. It was the goddess, Artemis, who saved me in the wild by having a bear nurse me and defend me.”

Memories flashed in Sunset’s mind of a young Atalanta and a tall, divine woman teaching the young hero to be. “Artemis taught me the ways of the hunt, of the forest, and the value of swiftness of foot, and strength of body. The goddess was a maiden goddess, and therefore never sired any demigod children, but to that she would bestow those women whom she deemed worthy with her blessing, and my blessing was that of strength and speed that was half as fast as Hermes. I gained the power of the Witchblade later on, and with its power, I was practically a demigod, if not stronger.”

So, getting the Witchblade just made your already ridiculous speed even faster. You know, We’re a bit similar.

Sunset felt the heroine smirk at her as she said, “I sensed that the moment you were chosen by the Witchblade. Take heed, we’re almost there!”

Sunset/Atalanta approached the Center of Chaos, bouncing between the pillars with ease as she perched herself atop one of them, giving her a bird’s eye view of Adagio. Her clothes had changed from what she last saw her in, and for some reason, her eyes were glowing, and she was just singing. Pandora’s Box continued to vent a beam of pure chaotic energy into the sky, making it radiate in every direction with each passing second. The song was haunting, speaking of destruction and torment, Sunset/Atalanta’s hand crushed part of the glaive she was on, anger rising within her as she remembered that this was the woman who brought Suri here.

If it weren’t for Adagio, Suri might not have ever gotten that close to Rarity and Applejack, and if she did, Sunset/Atalanta was certain that she would’ve been able to stop her sooner. Sunset searched the memories of the demigod, she could see how the previous owner, Pandora, was killed by Atalanta to stop the chaos. The armor shot grappling hooks that kept Sunset attached to the glaive, within her left hand, a bow formed, and in Sunset’s right hand, an arrow. Sunset/Atalanta notched the arrow, the tip of which ignited with emerald flames. Thanks to the demigoddess’ eagle eye vision, she was able to zoom in and lock onto Adagio’s head, with one arrow all of this would end.

Justice would be served for Applejack, the world would be saved, and…

“Save my big sis!”

Aria’s words echoed in her mind, but she didn’t promise to save her, she promised she’d do what she could. Sunset/Atalanta drew back on the bowstring, this was the only way to save the world, and to save Adagio from the fate of Pandora’s Box. The Keeper of the Balance drew back more, gritting her teeth as she growled angrily at her hesitance. But then she saw something that snuffed out her need for revenge, tears. Adagio was crying, neither was she smiling as she sang. Sunset/Atalanta dismissed the bow and arrow, her decision made.

“We’re not killing her, are we?”

Not if we don’t have to. Is it possible to close the Box with the host still alive? Sunset asked.

“I did what I had to do back then. Pandora asked me to end her life if the Box’s influence eroded her willpower. I did it to spare her the fate that the goddess Eris had thrust upon her, but…a goddess was not the cause of this. Nor do I believe that that creature knew what forces she was meddling with. To answer your question, it may be possible, but as you are aware, the Box will not allow it without a fight.”

Then let’s fight!

Sunset/Atalanta used the glaive as springboard to launch herself towards the Center. The Box must’ve sensed her, as the moment she got close to it, the container of chaos released a shockwave of energy that forced the heroine back. Sunset/Atalanta came to a screeching halt as ger boots dug into the pavement. The sky above rumbled and roared, and not a moment later, purple lightning blasted down from the skies. The Keeper of the Balance called upon her god-like speed and dodged the first lightning bolt, and then the second, and then the third.

A cascade of lightning bolts kept raining down on Sunset/Atalanta’s position, trying to strike her down. Another wave of chaotic energy released from the box, this time hitting the ground. In an instant, Sunset watched as the pavement liquified and became as sloshy mess. Before the slosh could take her, Sunset/Atalanta focused more of her power into her legs. She quickly changed direction, aiming upwards instead of forwards, the moment she took a step, a small shockwave was released from the bottom of her foot. That shockwave acted as a propelling force that allowed Sunset/Atalanta to ascend as if she were climbing a flight of stairs.

And just like that, Sunset/Atalanta was running on her. In response to this, the Box called down a tornado from the sky that wrapped itself around Adagio’s position, purple lightning began blasting around the tornado, acting as a secondary defensive wall against her. Sunset/Atalanta decided to get above the clouds and ascended higher and higher. Chaos lightning continued attacking her, Sunset/Atalanta’s speed allowed her to dodge the lightning, but once inside the clouds, the effort was greater as she was being attacked from all different angles, forcing Sunset/Atalanta to erect a barrier of emerald flames a couple of times to prevent a direct hit.

The Keeper of the Balance focused more of her power into her legs, and with a single burst, she shot straight up, and like a whizzing arrow, pierced through the clouds. However, when she did manage to get above the storm, Sunset/Atalanta was greeted by a horrible sight. Thanks to her eagle vision, Sunset/Atalanta saw far into the sky, and what she saw was a huge meteor slowly approaching Earth. Slow in astrophysics terms anyway.

“You’ve gotta be shitting me! That thing is huge! It’ll level the city and then some!”

“It seems the Box remembers it’s previous encounter with me, and doesn’t want a repeat, so it’s decided to destroy the whole area to kill us.”

Sunset/Atalanta repositioned herself in midair, with the same demigoddess speed, she launched herself straight for the eye of the tornado down below. As she approached, the chaos lightning coalesced around the mouth of the tornado, combining, and building up power. Sunset/Atalanta reformed her bow and arrow as she too charged her weapon. With a powerful thunder crack, a huge bolt of chaos lightning shot straight for Sunset/Atalanta. In response, the Keeper of the Balance, fired her arrow, it sailed like an emerald shooting star down to meet the gigantic bolt.

The arrow struck against the lightning both, both fighting to overtake the other. But Sunset/Atalanta wasn’t done yet, in the blink of an eye, she notched and fired off twenty more arrows. All twenty-one arrows combined into a giant fireball the broke the lightning bolt apart. Sunset/Atalanta shot several more arrows, and each one blasted through the storm cloud, hitting around the tornado to form a perfect circle. With a clench of her fist, all the arrows surrounding the tornado burst into flames and created a pillar of emerald fire the dispersed the tornado and kept the storm clouds from reforming near Adagio and the Box. Sunset/Atalanta flipped in midair and landed before the Siren, kicking up debris.

Without wasting a second, Sunset/Atalanta gripped one part of Pandora’s Box and with her other hand, the lid. With great effort, Sunset/Atalanta pushed against the lid to try and close the Box, but she could feel the container of chaos protest, releasing waves of energy that buffeted her, trying to shatter her bones or throw her away to stop her actions. Despite the pain that she was being put through, Sunset was not going to stop, not until the Box was closed.

“CLOSE YOU LITTLE BASTARD!!! FUCKING CLOSE!!!”

Another blast from the Box force Sunset out her Legacy form and returned her to her the default state.

}}} Sunset, if you hang on any longer it will break you down into nothingness! {{{

If I don’t do this, the entire city and the world will be reduced to nothing! Sunset argued. Guys give me a hand; I need your strength!

The ghostly images of Tomoe, Atalanta, Fang, and Mulan appeared beside Sunset, each of them looked to one another and then focused on the Box. With a collective battle cry they pushed on the lid, and little by little it was closing. The light of chaos was diminishing, the chaotic effects lessening as the glaives of twisted earth returned to normal, the rides and stalls that remained standing unwound and were once again the whimsically designed structures they once were.

Further away, Fluttershy and Tempest noticed a change in the two avatars, they seemed to be struggling, growling, and roaring as if in pain. The hold of Pandora’s Box on reality was starting to ebb away and return things back to their natural state, however, Sunset looked up and was starting to see the faint image of the incoming meteor. “DAMN YOU, CLOSE!!!!”

More and more the Box closed until it was an inch from shutting. The energy waves came stronger and harsher, threatening to rip Sunset apart on a molecular level. With one final burst of united strength, Pandora’s Box was shut. Upon the closing of Pandora’s Box three things happened, first an enormous shockwave blasted out in all directions, leveling the remainder of the structures in the area, and quite frankly, throughout the entire park. The second thing was that the Ember and Glacier Stones were jettisoned from the top of the Box, both gemstones streaked through the air and found their homes in the chests of their rightful owners.

The third thing showed itself when Sunset looked up, the giant meteor suddenly changed course and streaked past the Earth. Sunset rose to her feet and looked down at the box that contained pandemonium itself, and to the now naked woman who sought revenge. With a sigh, Sunset walked over to her enemy and picked her up, cradling Adagio in her arms, and with her Witchblade armor, she created chains that wrapped themselves around Pandora’s Box.

The eldest Siren stirred awake, she looked weak and drained, so much so that she didn’t really care that she was without clothing, or that she was in the arms of her most hated enemy. Tears flowed down the Siren’s eyes as she wept at what her actions had wrought. “I’m sorry…”

Sunset clenched her jaw, she wanted to berate Adagio, call her a fool, tell her that she was the worse thing to ever exist. Instead, she released a heavy sigh through her nose and asked, “Do you still want to go back to Equestria?”

Adagio looked up at her archenemy, eyes wide with shock and disbelief at what she heard. “You…You’re not serious, are you? After everything that’s happened…w-why?”

“What good is hating you going to do, I could’ve killed you. I wanted to kill because your actions cost the life of one my friends.” Adagio had a look of shame on her face the moment she heard that. “But what good does that do me, does anyone? I kill you for revenge, then your sisters will want revenge on me, they end up killing another of my friends, and then I in turn kill them. It’s a cycle, and it only stops when someone let’s go. So, better that you face justice in Equestria than rot here on Earth in a jail cell.”

Adagio, for her part, smiled pitifully at Sunset’s words. “That’s fine…I just…I just want to go home…”

Tempest and Fluttershy were still restraining their targets, however, when the saw the light diminishing, and that the avatars of fire and ice were struggling less and less against their efforts to subdue them, they backed away to see what would happen. Unfortunately, that’s when the shockwave started to roll on towards them.

“Oh no!” Fluttershy exclaimed.

“Hang on!” Tempest stated as she wrapped Fluttershy in her tendrils and dove straight into her shadow.

The ground was upheaved and broken from the shockwave, fracturing several parts of the pavement, and causing a great deal of destruction all around. However, the two behemoths still stood. When the gemstones were reunited with their original wielders, Sunset and Indigo were stripped of their elemental forms and were returned to their primal forms, but soon after they reverted to their powered forms, and after that, they were back to their normal states.

Sunset and Indigo were on their hands and knees, panting from their experience of being controlled by Pandora’s Box. After a few seconds, Indigo and Sunset got back to their feet, staring at one another, but Indigo had a more panicked expression on her face.

“WHAT THE FUCK WAS ALL THAT???!!!” Indigo shouted.

Sunset put her hand to her head, still reeling from the effects. “What’s it look like?! We were controlled by Pandora’s Box, we became its defacto guardians to keep its chaos from being stopped! Thankfully, it looks like Sis managed to stop it all…thank god.”

“This is crazy! I didn’t sign up for this shit! All I wanted was to break whatever fucking spell you have over Twilight, not be some dark magic monster!” Indigo looked at her Glacier Stone and with a growl took it off. “HERE!” Indigo held out the Glacier Stone towards Sunset. “Take the damn thing!”

Sunset raised an eyebrow as she approached Indigo. “Just like that? You’re giving up your magical trump card? The only thing you have that could possibly make you a match against me, and you’re just giving it up?!” Indigo glowered at Sunset, but her expression spoke of great displeasure fear of the item. Sunset carefully took the Glacier Stone from Indigo’s outstretched arm with her left hand and examined the Artifact, feeling a bit of elation that she had just gotten her hands on yet another piece to the puzzle. “So, I take it that you’re also giving up on Twilight?”

Indigo gave Sunset and indignant glare as she retorted, “FUCK NO! Just because I’m handing over that cursed piece of jewelry, doesn’t mean I’m giving up on the person I love! I don’t know how, or when, but somehow I will get Twilight back from you!”

Sunset sighed heavily as she shook her head in pity. “I was really hoping you wouldn’t say that………Oh who the hell am I kidding, I was totally hoping you would.” Sunset’s right hand was wrapped in flames, and with it, she swiftly stabbed her whole arm through Indigo’s chest.

“GAAGGH!!!” Indigo managed to get out as she stared down in shock at what Sunset had done to her. “You…You…bitch…!!!”

“I told you I would kill you before this day was over, Indigo. You’re a threat to Twilight’s mental and physical health, I can’t allow someone like you to continue to torment her.” Sunset leaned forward until she was in Indigo’s face, looking her right in the eyes. “You’re a monster to her, with or without this Artifact, you’ll always be a monster!”

“……If……I’m a monster……what does……that……make……you…?” Those were Indigo’s last words before her life finally slipped away and her body went limp.

Sunset removed her arm, letting the body fall to the ground unceremoniously. The wound was cauterized so no blood flowed from the hole in Indigo’s chest, she looked down upon the body of the, now, former abuser and star athlete of Crystal Prep and answered her dying question, “What am I? I’m just a girl who wants to make everything right, and in the process……will do anything she has to do to see her wish come true…even become a monster.”