Author's Note

Apologies for taking so long with this one, I've been pretty busy, and I got a new project I've been trying to work on in my off time.

Thank you all for your patience and enjoy!

Brighten Up Your Day

The next day, sometime after breakfast, Sunset returned to her quarters to get dressed. When she returned, she was surprised to see laying out on her bed was a different set of clothes than her normal ones; instead laying there, was a civilian's casual shorts and shirt. Turquoise colored just like her normal jumpsuit she wore every day, and added with a casual white vest with orange outlining. On top of her clothes was a piece of physical paper, detailing a plan for the day that her friends had put together. Day one of vacation time had started for Sunset Shimmer, the civilian.

Stepping out in her new clothes, she went straight back to the cafeteria where she was requested. She walked into the small room, where Dexter Jettster was still busy cooking breakfast, along with the few other volunteer chefs and droids. Brushing past them, Sunset walked into the bigger kitchen behind the cafeteria’s walls, showcasing much more stoves, appliances, dishwashers and other assorted equipment on par with a five-star restaurant.

“Over here, Sunset!” Pinkie called.

Grabbing a spare apron and tying her hair back into a ponytail, she joined up with Pinkie Pie who also had an apron and her hair done as well.

“So what are we doing today?” Sunset asked.

“I thought after breakfast it would make sense to relax by doing something to make someone happy,” Pinkie explained as she grabbed a mixing bowl and a few spatulas. “I think you’ll feel a bit better if you bake something for someone, it’ll not only be fun, but you’ll feel good as well. Which means today, you and I are going to make…”

Pinkie slapped the instructions down on the countertop.

“A frosted snack cake!”

“Soo… a cake? What for?”

“It’s Masha’s birthday today, Vee asked me if I could make it for them!” Pinkie chirped. “And you are going to help me, come on, let’s get started.”

After reading the card carefully, Sunset got to work. The right amounts of flour, sugar, and baking powder were mixed together thoroughly, thanks to Sunset Shimmer being very jacked in the years she had worked in the Rebellion.

“Ooh, nice muscles, Sunset,” Pinkie complimented.

“Heh, thanks,” Sunset blushed.

“You’ve been doing a bit of working out, haven’t you?” Pinkie winked, flirtatiously.

“Maybe… S-So, um, how’s the pot looking?”

Pinkie checked on the pot, making sure the cocoa and butter were melted. “Almost! Just need a few more annnnnnd we are good!

“Okay, so I just mix it all up then?”

“Yep!” Pinkie chirped, prepping the pan for the cake. Sunset worked her arms to mix up the rest of the final ingredients up in the bowl, the whites of the salt and liquid vanilla meshing together with the rest of the chocolate to form a delicious looking bowl of chocolate batter. Even the smells were hitting her nose with the stuff, she kinda wanted to have a taste of it.

Once it was all mixed up, she turned to see Pinkie Pie holding a silver spoon, offering one to Sunset just to try. With a happy squeak, Sunset accepted and took a spoonful of the batter to try. Pinkie even got some herself.

“Mmm… that tastes… good,” Sunset cooed. “I can’t remember the last time I had something this sweet.”

“Really? Never?”

“I kinda stopped having sweets after… I don’t even know how long. Thought it would hinder my nutritional value if I had any.”

“Now that’s silly,” Pinkie waved her free hand. “Having sweets once in a while isn’t a bad thing. It isn’t all you eat after all.”

“This coming from the woman who I know has an insatiable sweet tooth,” Sunset sassed with a smirk.

“I burn all that energy,” Pinkie sassed back, giggling. “But seriously Sunset, it’s ok to have something once in a while. You work really hard, you’re still in shape, it’s ok to reward yourself with something nice.”

Sunset shrugged a little. “I guess so. But I just never thought I really…” her eyes saw a small glimmer of light flash, coming from Pinkie’s hand. “Hey, what’s that?”

Pinkie looked down, raising her hand up. “Oh, I’m married.”

“W…wait, you’re… Pinkie that’s great,” Sunset smiled warmly. “What’s their name?”

“Lemon Zest. I met her at the end of the war, and we met up when the Empire was rising. One thing led to another and well, we’re partners,” Pinkie cooed. “And we have a son.”

“Oh, Pinkie, congrats!” Sunset complimented. “I-I didn’t know, I… I guess I should have asked.”

“No biggie,” Pinkie shrugged off.

“No, really, this is a big deal, I wish I knew, I… I should have noticed that ring when we all joined up again.”

“Wellllll it’s not like I made it super obvious I had it,” Pinkie said, pouring the cake batter into the pan. “I had gloves on most of the time.”

“Do you have a picture?”

Pinkie reached into the void that was her hair and pulled out a surprisingly clean and fresh printed photo to show Sunset. As the baker put the batter into the oven, Sunset took a moment to look at the photo. Pinkie Pie and Lemon Zest standing on a warm summer beach with swim-wear, standing above a little boy who had made a sandcastle, decorated to the base. To her surprise, the little boy was a Trandoshan.

"Wow. Did you adopt him?"

"Mmmhmm. Poor guy was all alone, some bounty hunters wanted to kill him before he had a chance to grow. I know Trandoshans are scary, but I couldn't resist taking him in, he's so adorable," Pinkie gushed. Sunset looked at Pinkie for a moment, seeing the content look in her eyes before they closed, now turning sad. "It... it was hard, after Lemon and I went incognito. We were always on the run, we could never find a place to settle down for our own. Living with the Empire breathing down our necks, it... it wasn't easy."

Sunset frowned softly before giving her friend a reassuring hug.

"That's why I fight them. So that you, your wife, and everyone else out there can live without fear," Sunset answered. She reached for her side, pulling out a small pad with some notes written in Aurabesh. "There was an operative from long ago, I was friends with. He helped me whenever I was feeling doubtful of whether or not we would make it to the next day."

"Yeah? What'd he say?"

"Well.. he always said, freedom is a pure idea. It always happens spontaneously without anyone knowing it. One small act that we do, even the tiniest action, makes another step for the Rebellion's effort. The Empire's desire to control all is desperate because, it's just unnatural. They need constant eyes to oppress everyone, and by getting more desperate, they're only pushing more people to join resistance movements, protests, and investors from giving more to the Empire's machine. And maybe it won't be tomorrow, Pinkie... but there'll be a day when we will finally breathe, and we won't have to worry. So don't think it'll never come. Just keep holding onto that hope, and don't just do or do not. Try."

Pinkie smiled at her, looking at the photo again with that same face before tucking it away. "I will. I have a child that wants to know when I'll return... and I'm not going to raise him in a universe run by these jerks," the baker confirmed.

Just then, the timer on the oven went off, making both heads turn.

--

The icing didn't take long to do, what with Pinkie having taken the butter out to soften up. By the time it was evening, they had finished decorating the cake; black and red frosting to give a dark and mysterious vibe, with a few candles on the top of it. And just in the nick of time, as the two of them brought the cake over to where the party was being booked.

One of the guests, a changeling named Vee, looked to the two bakers with a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, it was getting hard to keep them distracted."

"Sorry for the wait, we had to make sure the icing was nice and fluffy, just the way Masha likes it," Sunset apologized.

"They're here!" One of the guests called.

"I'll get them in, just wait," Vee paused.

Everyone waited for a second, and watched as Vee guided a blindfolded Dathomirian into the hall. Their robes were black, to offset their pale gray skin color. Their build was feminine with some muscle in their arms, from years of training and practice in the field.

"Alright, and..." Vee removed the blindfold, allowing her enbyfriend to witness the loud 'SURPRISE!' from all their friends.

"Oh my goddess, you all did this for me?" they squeaked, trying not to freak out.

"We've been planning this all day, that's kind of why we kept dodging you. Heh, s-sorry for not saying something sooner, but--"

"It's okay, Luz, it's okay," the Dathomirian reassured. "Oh my gosh... I don't know what to say, thank you."

--

The party was in full swing, and despite her uncertainty, Sunset and Pinkie were given the okay to say and enjoy it. And Pinkie could tell, Sunset needed it. Even if she didn't interact with every single person, she could tell how much she was calming down and relaxing by hanging out with people she worked with on a more casual basis.

"Thank you both again for the cake, it's amazing," Masha expressed as she took another bite.

"Thank Sunset, she's the one who made it," Pinkie shrugged.

"You? General, you... you made this?"

Sunset blinked. "Um... y-yeah, I guess I did."

"I... thank you," Masha smiled at her. Sunset just simply smiled and winked at them, letting the witch go back to having fun with the others. And for the rest of the night, the general relaxed among friends, happy to enjoy the party.

Bracca

Work on the Venator had progressed much more than before. Most of the exterior damage they were able to reinforce with plating that would suffice enough for them to stay together while they took off, but they also worked on patching up any other holes or closing off halls that could potentially leak oxygen if they took off. Time was everything, and on everyone's minds; the important factor was making sure it was safe enough to travel when they took off with it.

Almost everyone had taken their lunch break by now, and very few had taken theirs, mainly from not being hungry or just wanting to get work done. The Changeling hadn't taken her break yet, despite orders to do so. It took a lot of hands to intervene and finally getting her to take a mandated break, leaving her skulking by the edge of one of the dwellings, near their camp.

Ocellus kicked her legs as she sat on the edge, gazing off at the abandoned yards of ships, walkers, and many other forms of outdated technology. The sea of rust, dust, and worn out bolts continued to stand still as winds whistled accompanied by the aching moans of bending metal. The insectoid continued to sit and watch, needing space to be alone before she could rejoin the group.

Although the fresh smells of cooking meats, vegetables, and spices rolling together were mulling her to come over. But she didn’t leave. Looking behind her, she let one of her wings unfold, getting a look at her lower one; still showing a sizable chunk gone from her fight with Lightning Dust. Sighing, she looked back ahead, hearing some footsteps come behind her. The Griffon came over with some food in pottery bowls, sitting down next to her as he held a tray with her food.

“Lunch is ready if you want some,” Gallus offered.

Ocellus looked down at her offered tray; a small assortment of harvested vegetables sitting next to a steak cooked medium rare; accompanied by an added welcoming sight of milk, and a freshly baked cookie. The bug beamed to see her meal, and happily accepted it from her companion.

Gallus sat down next to her, reaching for his tray and digging in as well.

“So what's on your mind?"

Ocellus took a bite of her lunch before talking. “I’m upset with Flurry. Why didn’t she just come talk to us, we could have talked to her! Or she could have come to us, why did she run away like that?”

“I don’t know. But, she did lose her mom, that’s not easy… at least, I assume it would be,” Gallus replied, unsure himself.

“Ugh! But she ran off without telling us! We could have done something to help her!” Ocellus groaned. “And now she’s out there in the hands of the Empire."

Gallus patted the Changeling’s shoulder, softly and making sure his claws didn’t dig into her skin.

“I… I wish I knew how to help her, and I just don’t. Not if she doesn’t trust us.”

“Maybe she just needs to be alone for a little, I’m sure she’ll come back,” Gallus thought.

“I hope so,” Ocellus weakly bit into her meal. "I just hope she knows what she's getting herself into."

"You and me both," Gallus nodded, letting his pawed feet kick back and forth against the ledge. "You said those troopers wiped out... um, pardon the, uh, I didn't--"

"--It's fine, Gallus," Ocellus reassured. "Yeah, they did. ... and she was with them."

"Really? You saw her? Up close?"

"I'm pretty sure it was her. It was a dark night when it happened, I saw a figure in dark clothes and a red saber, leading the charge with the flamers behind her. I... I don't even know if there's anyone else left of my kind. I know Changelings like the Clawdites exist, but I mean... me," Ocellus's wings ruffled slightly, one of them opening behind her, the one with a sizable cut in it. Looking behind it, she frowned a little, seeing her wing that would never heal. "For all I know... I could be the last of my kind."

Gallus patted her shoulder, and the poor bug could only lean her head against Gallus's shoulder. The Gryphon was taken back, but he slowly adjusted and let his arm wrap around her, providing her some comforting affection as they oversaw the Venator continue being built.

Exegol

Flurry continued to push and struggle against her cuffs, but to no avail. She tried slamming them against a table, a wall, a desk, a pole, nothing would break them. She tried to use one of her hidden tools, none of them were working, every act she tried only shocked her. All the while Luster Dawn just sat at her desk, reading on her datapad as if she wasn't there.

"Not gonna work. Just stop already," Luster said without a care in the world.

A soft ding was heard on Luster’s door. “Enter.”

The door slid open and a Midnight trooper walked inside. “Luster. Lady Midnight requires both you and your new roommate's presence in the dinner hall.”

“Okay, thank you,” Luster said, graciously.

Luster stood up and gestured Flurry to follow, with the latter refusing. Groaning, Luster gripped Flurry by the cuffs, yanking her to come along, despite not wanting to. A few Midnight troopers were posted at some doors as they walked through the halls, and most of them gave small nods to Luster as she walked past them.

“Where are you taking me?” Flurry asked.

“Dinner. Though that's weird, usually we just eat separately, we don't always eat in the same room,” Luster corrected. “Just uh, just keep walking.”

Flurry wanted to fight back, but she had no choice. She kept following Luster who kept a tight grip on her (not too hard, thankfully) and brought them in front of a set of doors. Flurry looked around some more, more dark hallways with a few lights in between.

The doors slid open, revealing a massive dinning table, something you’d see in someone’s mansion or something of the like. It looked like you could seat as many people as you desired, but there was only one occupant in the room; Darth Midnight.

The leader of the entire Empire, sat all the way at the end of the table, standing there, as if she was waiting.

“Luster Dawn. Flurry Heart. Welcome,” she said, rather openly.

Flurry felt her heart stop beating. Darth Midnight was going to be here for dinner? The supreme leader of the entire Empire, the scary woman who chased her from hell and back during several missions, and the same woman who kicked her behind not too long ago, AND killed her mother… was waiting for them to have dinner?

“What do you want?” Flurry asked, not wanting to start any conflicts.

“I am inviting you to come eat with us. Usually, I eat alone, and so does Luster. But you are my guest here on Exegol, and after some consideration, I realized Luster and I don't always spend much time outside of teaching. So, I am remedying this by inviting both of you to come eat with me. In fact, I'll be making this routine for all mealtimes."

Flurry yanked her cuffed wrists away from Luster’s grip in a fit of anger. "You killed my mom, killed Bee, and you expect me to sit with you, and be grateful that I'm getting dinner? Hell with you, I'm not eating. I'm not giving a monster like you the satisfaction."

Midnight was quiet for a long, tense moment. Flurry glared defiantly at her, while Luster is frozen in place with barely contained fear at what her master might do... And then, suddenly, to both girls' surprise, the Sith Lord reached up and began to disconnect her mask. The back piece of it opened up with a click, and then she removed the entire helmet with a careful tug and sets it aside... revealing a pale purple face, framed by short-cut dark violet hair, marked by some cybernetic pieces on one side, an old burn, and a faded scar running across her face. But her eyes are still a vivid green with red Sith pupils.

Darth Midnight does not say a word, but calmly takes a seat at the table, with a plate set before her and she primly begins to carefully eat.

"..."

"..."

Midnight’s voice was quiet, a little raspy without her mask, but she sounds a bit amused as she asked, "Not what you expected?"

Luster and Flurry gulped.

“N-No.”

“Not at all, M-Master. I um… I thought, well, um…”

Midnight’s demeanor remained calm as she sat down. “Yes, Luster? Finish your sentence.”

“Um… I heard someone say they saw your face and claimed you were… um…”

“—Had a face of a roasted mynock, spat on by a dewback and a rancor and thrown into the fiery lavas of Mustafar?”

Luster’s skin fell cold, but Midnight still looked slightly amused. “I’ve heard it already, Luster. And at first, hearing that from that officer, really struck a nerve with me… especially right after I killed him.”

Luster and Flurry blinked.

Well this is going to be delightful, Flurry grimaced.

Hesitantly, Flurry sat down at the table, with Luster across from her, and Midnight sitting on the end, close by. Flurry wasn’t sure what to really say right now. On one hand, she was a little thankful to have something to eat, but on the other, it was really uncomfortable to sit here with her madwoman of an aunt. Especially when brought to the table in handcuffs.

Midnight however could sense her unease and she waved her hand up, unlocking Flurry’s wrists from the restraints.

“I believe these are not necessary for one to eat.”

Midnight cut into a roasted chicken-like animal, cutting a few pieces and passing some over to Luster, and over to Flurry much like a parent naturally would. But it was still awkward. Flurry slowly dug into her food, tasting the chicken for a brief second, and then starting to eat more and more like a hungry animal.

“Sheesh, how hungry are you? Don’t they feed you at the rebellion?”

Flurry looked at Luster with a ravenous glare, as if to say ‘do not test me while I am eating’. Luster stopped talking and just continued to focus on her own food. “Um,” she cleared her throat, “M-Master, this food is um… delicious. You uh… you cooked it, or was it the chefs?”

“Thank MC-11866 for that,” Midnight replied, taking a bite of another assortment of the food that had spread.

Flurry’s fork sat down momentarily. “Okay, I wanna know. Why did you give everyone just letters and numbers? Doesn’t that make it hard to tell them apart? What ever happened to names?”

Midnight’s eyes slowly blinked, but she spoke. “Admiral Tarkin suggested the idea; citing it’d make more sense to have numbers instead of name, better for categorizing, keeping track of every citizen under the Empire’s protection.”

“Again, what is wrong with names? You’ve had over millions of clone troopers in the war who all had names, didn’t they?” Flurry asked.

“We did… and truth be told, their names did help us differentiate them from one another,” Midnight admitted.

“Clones?” Luster asked.

“They were soldiers who fought in the old Republic. Modeled after a deceased bounty hunter, Jango Fett, who provided the DNA to create the line of soldiers to fight for them, with the addition of growth acceleration to be able to fight on the field,” Midnight explained to her student. “In fact… that helmet that you’ve always seen in my throne room?”

Luster nodded, understanding her teacher/master’s words.

“That belonged to my old clone commander in the war; Commander Shockwave. But alas, he is no more. Growth acceleration doesn’t do well for a clone, and so, he just died off.”

“Which is why you created the Midnight Trooper Corp,” Luster concluded.

“Exactly.”

Flurry grumbled. “Still think names are better…”

“And just how many names can you remember?” Luster asked.

“Easy. Just from conversations with an actual clone, I’ve learned names of a few of his brothers: Fives, Echo, Hevy, Jesse, Hardcase, Kix, and all from one of the best troopers in the army; Captain REX.” Flurry moved herself back in her seat a bit, folding her arms. “You were saying?”

Luster blinked twice. She didn’t know who any of them were. Of course she wasn’t around or involved in this war to begin with, so of course this was foreign to her. But how the hell she remembered this was beyond her.

“I… don’t know who any of them are.”

“Well neither do I!” Flurry said with a straight face. “But I learned anyway!”

Not wanting that conversation topic to continue, she picked at her food, just going back to eating like an animal. She never acted this way with her parents or in the mess hall, she was taught better. But she was starved, and extremely upset. She did not care what any of them would say.

“So, um,” Luster cleared her throat. “H-How goes the recent project, Master?”

“Very well, thank you. I just received word not too long ago they were nearly finished. A few more weeks for completion and it will be ready to be unveiled,” Midnight said, taking a bite of her food.

Flurry, curiously, raised a brow as she took another bite of her food. “What project?”

Midnight, looked back at her with an amused look that said ‘oh now you’re interested?’. “It’s something The Storm Empire used to have in their vault for a backup plan. But with them gone, I decided to put their plan into good use.”

“And that is what?”

“Something that will protect the galaxy for good,” Midnight answered.

“You’re not giving me a straight answer.”

“And it is not ready yet,” Midnight sassed back. “I don’t discuss business at the table, we’re off duty.”

“Yet you answered your student’s question,” Flurry sneered, taking a sip of her drink.

Some more uncomfortable silence followed.

“So. … okay I’ll be honest I’m really struggling for conversation topics right now,” Luster admitted, sinking in her seat. “It’s one thing talking to you, but I barely know Flurry.”

“Which is why I insisted on the both of you joining me. If Flurry’s going to be spending time here, I think it would be best if all of us interacted a bit more,” Midnight explained. “I must admit… I haven’t had a dinner like this in years.”

“Can’t imagine why,” Flurry rolled her eyes. There was another quiet pause from the group, especially from Midnight as she sat there, thinking.

“You sound like your mother. Your birth mother, I mean.”

Flurry’s attention was completely taken. “You… knew my birth mom?”

“Yes. Cadence,” she said, her raspy voice turning into a solemn tone. “She was my babysitter when I was a little girl. She was full of love and kindness, and believed in peace whenever it was possible. My brother married her, and from their love… that’s when they had you.”

Even Luster’s attention was now drawn to the new topic at hand.

“I was there when you arrived… you were the most precious thing I laid my eyes on,” Midnight wheezed.

Flurry sunk a bit in her seat. The fact the dark lady herself was saying these words was a little too weird for her to hear.

“Sooo… how many times did you see me as an infant then?” Flurry pressed on.

“I saw you three times, during the whole war. I made the assumption that I would see you again… little would I know it wouldn’t be until seventeen years later. The last time I made a visit, I soon saw what had become of them. Chrysalis, she drained Cadence, assimilated her, replaced her, brainwashed her husband, my brother into following her… and she used Cadence’s image as a mask to carry out attacks on the innocent. All of this happened while I was too busy with wasted wars over lands that didn't bring the Republic any closer to victory.”

Flurry and Luster looked at each other in confusion. Whoever this person was that Midnight described, they could feel the raw hatred emanating from her metallic arms.

“Who is Chrysalis?” Luster asked.

“She used to be the Changeling queen... now she's a husk in the bottom of the ocean on Alveare. Along with every last changeling that ever harmed anyone."

Flurry had dropped dead silent, you could hear a pin drop. Her ears started to ring when those words hit, and she felt her heart pounding against her chest. Now, she wasn't stranger to learning about the horrible things Midnight had done, she heard and learned them all. And maybe her words weren't true, she couldn't be. No one could be that thorough in the death of an entire species... could she?

Could one of her best friends truly be the last of her own kind?

"Do those bugs infect people and assimilate them?"

"No, nothing like that. They feed on your energy, absorb it. It makes them stronger. And if they truly want you gone... they cocoon you. Until so much energy is taken from you that you become limp. A shell of your former self."

Flurry Heart hadn't even listened to anything else in the conversation. She was desperately trying to not faint or panic from the new information that had just been levied onto her. And she hadn't said another word for the rest of that night...

--

Eventually the dinner was finished, but Flurry had zero words for the rest of the night, much to the annoyance of Luster. Midnight however took notice of this but remained silent; her niece was already being defiant against her, she wasn't about to push her luck by forcing her to speak.

And even when they went back to their quarters, Flurry remained locked up. She had fully processed it by now, but only objective remained in her head.

I need to get the hell out of here.