Mistress (Adagio's Big Comeback)

“And that, Dr. Wave,” Twilight says, “is what we call a job well done.” She holds out her hoof.

“That we do, Twi. That we most certainly do.” You hoof-bump her and appreciate your work. It took far less time than Sonata and Aria's stones, what with you having two gem repairs of experience. Twilight was also well briefed on the method, and needed little guidance.

Adagio's stone is complete, if still not perfect. It's less crude than Sonata's and Aria's when they were first completed, though still has extra gemstone material jutting out of the previous broken edge like a short tailed, angular comet, but it's whole again. In fact, you've even had a chance to grind down Aria's stone in the meanwhile as Twilight undertook some of the more tedious work. Sonata and Aria's stones are now just as they were before they were broken.

“Not to put a dampener on things,” you say, “but how are we going to comprehensively test the stone if it's not fully repaired? It takes a good six hours at least to finish hardening and aren't we due to leave for home at that time?”

Twilight beams a smile as her horn sparks to life. “I've come prepared! Observe.”

Like Starlight's overnight barrier spell, the stone is wreathed in a pink sphere that swirls and crackles with power as it grows in intensity.

“This, Radian, is a time-quickening field. The stone will be ready in an hour, which should-”

You both freeze and gasp as the stone falls from the clamp, bounces on the table, and skitters dangerously close to the edge. Twilight snags it just as it falls off, and the time field vanishes.

Twilight exhales slowly and says, “sweet Celestia, that was close! Did the clamp break?”

You take a close look, but see nothing amiss. You then take the loupe and give the stone a deep study, and thankfully, it seems undamaged. “I have no idea. Can the stones move by themselves?”

“I don't think so,” Twilight says as you loosen the grips with your magic, and she places it back inside. “It could be a side-effect of it being Adagio's stone. We're still dealing with a lot of unknowns, but all the more reason to get it finished and start testing.”

You tighten the clamp, and Twilight re-applies the field. She then continues, “anyway, as I was saying, in an hour, this stone will be ready for grinding down, which should be enough time for you to go and get your fillyfriend and bring her here. I'll add some safeguards to the field to stop the stone from falling loose again, then I'll get Princess Celestia and the others together for the final tests. With Adagio's input, we'll see if she can get a response from her stone while we grind and polish the stone. Then, we restore her to her former glory, and then take it from there.”

It's actually going to happen. You've succeeded! And without treading on anyone's hooves in the process. You suppose Adagio might not necessarily be okay with this friendship (or alliance), but everything you know about her will likely see it as an opportunity at worst or, at best, perhaps allow her previously mentioned respect for Twilight to make them get along in some way.

“Just one question,” you say. “Any idea where Adagio might be? I know she stands out, but I'm assume your friends had plans?”

Twilight taps her chin with her hoof. “I think Rarity was planning to show her the rest of the city, then hit the Crystal Empire spa. I'd imagine she's there at this hour. Head out, follow the road left towards the palace, then left again at Spike's statue.”

“Spike? Not the most auspicious name for a guy with a statue.”

Twilight looks just slightly annoyed, but she quickly smooths her expression with a grin. “I'll have you know that, just as Adagio, Aria and Sonata are your family, Spike is part of mine. He's a young dragon who saved the Crystal Empire a few times, helped usher in peace with a whole race known as the Changelings, personally helped the current Dragonlord rise to power... the list goes on.” Her pride is palpable.

For a geek about to fade into nothingness as a nobody and exploited for his PhD, you're rubbing elbows with a lot of important folk these days.

Elbows? Front knees? Technically those back-leg knees are hocks and- never mind!

You answer, “hay, sounds like someone I should meet.”

“I'm sure you will, the next time you visit! But we're getting off-track. Left at his statue, follow the signposts and you'll find the spa, you can't miss it!”

“Okay. See you in an hour!”

You trot outside then break into a canter as you follow the path as instructed, and reach the plaza outside the palace. You realise you'd seen the statue of Spike before, but was so filled with wonder at, well, everything that it didn't exactly stand out any more or less than the crystal buildings, the sheer number of ponies and other races, or even the fact you were properly meeting Twilight at the time.

A short-limbed, somewhat round-bodied but bipedal dragon holding a crystal heart aloft in one hand (claw?) does seem odd, but you have a girlfriend to restore to siren-hood.

The helpful signs advertise and give directions to the spa, and after a few minutes running, you reach the establishment just as Rarity and Fluttershy exit, looking extremely well groomed.

You skid to a halt, accidentally kicking up a cloud of dust over them, which make the beautiful pair reel back. They really are a pretty couple of mares, and compared to Rarity's slim figure and average height, Shy's taller and willowy. Rarity then gives you an evil squint.

“Uh... sorry,” you say and sheepishly grin as you cautiously pluck a few stray pebbles out of Rarity's mane with an amber glow of your horn, but she shoos your attempt with a wave of her hoof and takes care of it herself, light blue taking over. As much as a hurry as you're in, you can't help but sheepishly wait for Rarity to finish clearing both her and Fluttershy's manes, afraid to pressure them.

“Ahem,” Rarity painstakingly enunciates, “why, hello again Radian. What can we do for you?”

“Hi, Rarity. And good to meet you, Fluttershy. I don't suppose Addy's with you?”

“Sadly not,” she says, looking worried. “We were having a splendid time with Sunset Shimmer joining our group, but they chose to break away after some unpleasantness started taking root.”

Fluttershy nods, and says, in a gentle, hushed tone, “I had trouble approaching her yesterday, and I felt awful for not giving my best to make her feel welcome, so I decided to get to know Adagio this time. She seemed really nice, but then over time, Adagio and Sunset started to argue. Um, excuse me, I don't mean to pry, but do they have a lot of tension back home?”

You lick your teeth. There's no easy answer to that. “That's a bit of an understatement, but it's complicated. Do you have any idea where they went?”

Shy continues, “oh, well, when they started getting into an argument, Applejack and Rainbow Dash suggested they go somewhere to let off some steam. Of course, Dashie suggested the jousting grounds-”

Rarity huffs. “And Dagi accepted! I feel like she was goaded into something of which she didn't wish to partake, but I hadn't the stomach to convince her otherwise, so we decided to continue with our plan of a relaxing spa treatment.”

“Right, tsk,” you grumble and look around. “How do I reach the jousting grounds?”

Fluttershy points up with her wing. “If you head for that flag, you'll find it.”

You follow her gesture to a flag gently billowing in the breeze, featuring two stylistic ponies facing each other with crossed lances, then look to the pair again. “Thanks! Hopefully we get to say goodbye properly before we head home, but it's been a pleasure meeting you both!”

You race off without another word, and wind your way down the streets in pursuit of the flag. Four legged locomotion really is something else; you'd be out of breath by now, but having your whole body pump away makes it far less strenuous. Even so, you're breathing hard when you reach the jousting grounds, where armoured ponies of all shapes and sizes are competing in duels where they race towards each other with padded lances.

You see Applejack, half-dressed in armour, and she waves you over. She's with a hovering Rainbow Dash, who lands as you approach. You see her rainbow-lightning and cloud cutie mark sticking out of her jousting armour.

AJ says, “howdy, Radian! What're you doin' here?”

“Yeah, hey. I didn't think this would be your scene,” Dash says. “I'm not gonna argue though! You want in on this? The way AJ described you, you seemed more of an egg-head than- ow!” Dash yelps as Applejack bumps her with her flank. She then corrects with, “uh... you're more Twilight's speed than the rest of us. It's kinda why I didn't wanna cramp Rarity's style when it looked like she and your fillyfriend got along yesterday.”

Considering your wishes to move here, normally you'd be happy to engage in small-talk, but right now, you redirect the conversation. “I heard Adagio and Sunset came here with you. Any idea where they are?”

Applejack's expression sinks. “Yeah, about that. I'm reckonin' they don't exactly see eye-to-eye back in your neck of the woods, 'cause before they could even get outfitted for joustin', Dagi was getting' all kindsa kinda fired up.”

Dash snorts at AJ. “Fired up? That's the understatement of the century.” She turns to you. “Adagio was flat out bullying Sunset. Saying stuff like how she 'needed to settle the score' with her. We tried to get them to calm down, but eventually, Sunset teleported them both somewhere.”

You wince. “Damn it, I knew it was a bad idea to let Sunset join you girls.”

“Y'all can blame me if you want,” Applejack says. She scrapes her hoof on the ground as her ears flatten back. “I just thought they needed to have it out, y'know, get it out in the air? I always felt honesty's the best way to get these things fixed, so I told Dash not to bother'em. Sorry, Radian. D'you need any help lookin'?”

Dash flaps her wings and begins to hover again. “You say the word! It'll take no time at all. Big mare like Adagio'll be super easy for me to spot.”

You nod. “Yes please, Rainbow Dash, and thanks. Don't get involved, though. Just find them and let me know. I'll take it from there.”

Dash flaps a few times, lets herself drop, then springs skyward, launching faster than anything you've witnessed before and billowing you and Applejack's manes. Your emitter beeps from the surge of magic; small victory as it feels, that definitely looks good for your pegasi power theory, because clearly Dash is a firm example of the raw magic they use to actually fly. She's out of sight in moments.

You turn to Applejack again. “So, you're saying Adagio was pushing Sunset?”

AShe nods, and says, “'fraid so. Compared to how sweet she was bein' yesterday, it was like Dagi was a whole 'nother pony. Sunset may not have started it, but they were goin' at it like a couple'a starvin' hogs with only one apple.”

You ignore the comparison of your girlfriend to a pig as just Applejack's particular flavour of speech, but can't help but feel conflicted. Breaking these two up when Adagio's the aggressor isn't going to be fun, not the least of which because your girlfriend may be the instigator, and trying to calm her down when she's several times stronger than you, plus-

You hit the deck as something lands beside you. It takes you a second to notice it's Rainbow Dash, standing proud and smirking.

She chimes, “found'em! They're on the outskirts of the city. Just follow the road south and...” Dash then snorts and stifles a laugh. “Heh, you okay there?”

You clear you throat and stand up. “Uh... just a little on edge, that's all. You were saying?”

She continues to struggle to not deride your reaction (and subsequently remember what Adagio almost called her before). “Right, so head south, just follow the yelling and all the ponies getting out of their way, I guess. You can't miss it.”

“Thanks again. Good meeting you both!” You race off once more.

Between your rough sleep since arriving and all this running, you're starting to feel stretched thin. Then realise you can literally energise yourself, so you project your own positive unicorn signal and laugh as you start running faster, the fatigue just washing away.

You dare to think what the positive signals could do to the other pony types in this world compared to the overall feel-good sensation back home. Another experiment for another day.

You reach the road and bolt south. The bigger homes begin to give way to smaller, more spaced out properties. You pass a couple of ponies looking behind themselves and gossiping, then a few outright fleeing, and brace for the worst.

Your emitter beeps. Strange, but you'll check it in a second.

You turn a corner and see them.

Adagio looms high on her hind legs over Sunset and slams her hooves down, causing the ground to shatter as Sunset teleports out of harms way.

Sunset blinks in behind Adagio, and blasts her in the side with a beam of magic.

Adagio yelps, then charges at Sunset, who teleports again and evades the charge, sending Adagio into a skid that ends with her crashing into a wall and cracking it.

You yell, “stop! Stop this!”

Sunset turns to you and gasps. “Radian?”

The distraction lets Adagio kick the wall, completely breaking it. She then deftly digs a rear leg into the ground and kicks a pile of dirt and broken wall at Sunset, who gets smashed by the debris, knocked down as Adagio charges in for the killing blow.

You get between them! “STOP! STOP!!”

Adagio stumbles and skids to a halt an inch from ramming into you, and pants for breath as she gives you a furious stare. “It's what she deserves! For what she did to me! What she did to you!!”

Sunset groans, dazed, as she struggles to get free of the pile.

“Maybe she did,” you say, “but this isn't right! You know that!”

Adagio laughs and says, “if you won't do it, I will! Get out of the way!”

All that power, all that presence that you found hot is absolutely terrifying as she looms over you. The flex of her chest muscles and legs as she snorts, little wisps of steam emerging from her nostrils like a bloodthirsty dragon.

This is your Addy, damn it! She'll listen to you!

“Addy, please! You have to stop! I've got good news if you'll just listen for a second.”

“Out of my way,” she growls and pushes against you. You try to resist, but she soon loses her patience, raises a foreleg, and shoves you in the side. Or it resembles a shove, but with hooves and when she's several times your weight, and almost all muscle?

All the air escapes from your lungs and you drop like a sack of potatoes.

“You shouldn't disobey me, Ray! Look at what you made me do!” She leans down and gives you a glare, then blinks and frowns, wincing and then hissing through her teeth. Her eyes brighten, and suddenly this terrifying brute once more looks at you with gentler, raspberry eyes. “R- Ray!? What? Oh buck! What am I doing?”

You'd be proud of her for fighting against her dark side if you weren't in crippling pain.

It takes a few moments to inhale again, even as Adagio gently covers you in a gentle hug and frets, “I'm so sorry! Ray, talk to me! Are you alright!?”

You weakly gesture with your hoof and cough. “You slipped... further into the other you,” you finally say and start catching your breath.

Sunset finally pulls free of the debris, but remains slumped on the ground. “She went crazy is what you mean! She kept poking me and insulting me all day and...” she pauses and looks ashamed. “I let it get to me. I shouldn't have done that, but she wouldn't let up!”

“It's not your fault. It's... complicated, but being here and being full of 'the magic of friendship' has been messing with my head.” She then sits and holds you gently in her forelegs as you finish recovering.

“Let me try and explain,” you say, then give Sunset the brief overview on Adagio's odd reaction to Equestria as Sunset finally manages to get back on her hooves.

As you do, you get a chance to take in the scene: they both look worn out, battered and bruised, with their manes, tails and coats in disarray. There are a large number of Adagio-sized hoofprints in the crystalline road , complete with spiderweb cracks around them where it looks like she's stomped the ground with all her massive strength. Besides the wall Adagio just flat out kicked down, there's damage to a several other buildings that you suspect was made by a errant blasts of magic, since it's above even Adagio's lofty height. They've clearly been fighting for a while.

Sunset sits wearily down as you finish telling her about Adagio's friendship poisoning. “Well, now I feel even worse. I didn't realise you didn't have control over yourself. Sheesh, this whole thing's been a mess.”

Adagio rubs one foreleg with the other. As big as she is, you've never seen her seem so small as a pony. “Yeah, no kidding. And it's not like I made it easy. Plus, I was aware of what I was saying, but they were my true feelings, just raw and untamed. I just couldn't filter it at all.”

“So that's how you really feel about me?” Sunset bows her head and sighs. “I shouldn't be surprised, I guess. I get you've hated me for a while, but I suppose I was hoping we'd get past that. I know I've always had a lot of smug satisfaction in seeing you brought down like you had. That was never fair, but especially after I saw what that did to you, what with your... incident at that alleyway. I'm sorry, Adagio. Once we go back home, I think it would be best if we just parted ways. I'll... find a way to let you contact Twilight, but-”

“Wait a second.” Adagio bites her lip, gulps as she releases you, and approaches her old foe, and simply rests a friendly hoof on her shoulder. “I do still have some... issues with you, Sunset, but I've always respected you. You were one of the girls who bested me and my sisters, after all. We challenged you, we belittled you, and you fought back. Those are the facts.” Adagio releases her and returns to your side. “Look, I'm not saying we're going to be friends or anything, but I could use a few less enemies. We've both done and said things that aren't exactly doing either of us any favours, but from one buck-up who lost to Twilight to another? You're alright...”

Sunset smiles up at the bigger mare. “Really?”

Adagio rolls her eyes, but puts on a familiar, dark grin. “Yes, really. Just... don't go spreading it around. I say we just abide each other and see how it goes. Associates?”

Sunset breathes a huge sigh of relief and closes her eyes. “sounds good to me. The last thing I wanted was to be part of the reason for any more strife between everyone.” She glances at you but can't maintain eye contact. “At this point I'll take any olive branches.”

It almost feels unreal to see these two at least building bridges. You can't help but continue to struggle against your old bias, but say nothing; you're still processing what Twilight said not that long ago about handling your issues with Sunset.

Adagio' smirk dampens a little as she flicks you a glance and no doubt notices your conflict, but she keeps focused on Sunset. “I've certainly met worse humans. Or ponies, or... whatever. And at least we have some common ground. We both come from here, for one thing.”

Sunset laughs. “True. Not to mention we both have a savage temper, the ability to rock a good leather jacket and... strange taste in pet names.” She gives you another, more mirthful look. “I think Applejack was on the money about us; we just had to let it all out, though...” she bites her lip, and says, “sorry for the whole 'energy sucking whore' thing. That was way out of line.”

Adagio chuckles. “And I guess I'm sorry for calling you a self-righteous, stuck up bitch, (however true),” she mumbles, and you're not sure Sunset caught it. She then says, louder, “and almost... you know, squashing you like a bug.”

“Hey, I shot you with my magic! I mean, you're tough, even for an earth pony, but still... damn, girl!”

They share a laugh.

You get another beep from your emitter.

Adagio tilts her head. “Ray? Something wrong?”

“It's nothing, I'm sure,” you say and set up a full strength siren signal; you need to double check Adagio's opinion on Sunset. If they've really made peace, then you hope you can ride the good vibes. Maybe it'll soften the blow into you doing the same with your old nemesis.

The second you unleash the energy, the device crackles and the screen cuts out for a moment.

“Oh, what the hay? Don't die on me now!”

Then you gasp as a purple spark sputters out of the device, and a flash hits the air. Like watching a gas filled room catch aflame, it spreads through the area, and fills a hemisphere around your group in a thick, green fog. Curiously, it flows and roils, then suddenly draws off towards the city. You try to scan it now, but can't get a response, so you quickly restart your emitter, and thankfully it seems undamaged. The fog's like a long streak in the air, pointing to your group.

Sunset walks next to you and watches the green fog float. “Strange, that almost looks like that stuff the sirens absorbed back when they had their stones.”

It hits you like a bolt of lightning. The stone moving had to coincide with Adagio's fight, and with the owner of a stone here? Involved in a conflict, which has a type of energy you couldn't create, nor scan? Combine that with how your device absorbs magic to power itself, and apparently that includes dark magic and, just like in the workshop, that magic just ignited that conflict. You hadn't been using especially strong signals since then wormed its way into the magic-receptive battery of your device, so it may not have tapped into the larger capacity power cells.

Oh... that can't be good.

Twilight suddenly teleports in. “Radian? Did you take the stone? I was about to go get Princess Celestia, then when I checked to make sure the field was still intact, it was gone... then I felt a weird surge of magic in this area.”

A chime from your emitter distracts you about another magic surge. You check the read out. A familiar, almost siren-based signal, and it's getting stronger. And stronger. But it's not from Adagio. You narrow down the scan... it's the stone's signal!

You look up just as a bright red spark shines in the sky, growing in size and speed as it hurls towards you like a comet, following the green trail.

“Look out!” You dive for cover, as does Twilight.

Sunset panics and stumbles as it rushes past her, knocking her aside, and she hits the ground, hard.

The red light strikes Adagio square in the chest. It knocks her clear off her hooves and punches her clean through the already damaged building.

You scramble upright, and watch in horror as the damaged structure collapses on your girlfriend.

“Oh shit! Adagio!!” You run up and begin to pull the rubble away, by magic and digging with your hooves, only for an explosion to launch you, and the remains of the building, away.

Adagio hovers, surrounded in a sphere of red energy as she remains slumped, unconscious for a moment, then opens her eyes, as they glow red, then turn golden. She screams in pain as she writhes in the air, then looks down at her chest. The stone's embedded in a bleeding wound, misshaped from the way the stone was still imperfect and still not hardened. She scrapes her hoof across it, trying to dig it out of her, but it begins to crackle with energy, making her writhe and cry out again. Then she begins to rise as an aura of red surrounds her.

She continues to struggle and wriggle in pain as the hooves on her forelegs split in the front, now cloven. Her mane shines and bunches together, flattening, forming a large crest and a splay of smaller, antenna-like fins out of the front. Her pupils constrict, then become vertical slits, and her flat teeth crack and sharpen. Her coat flattens and forms a flowing mesh of hard, armour-like fish or reptilian scales.

And as the energy begins to glow so bright, that it hurts to look at, Adagio reaches for you and screams, one last time.

“Ray! Help me!!” Pleading, raw fear and panic and pain as she vanishes from view. The sphere expands as it rises into the night sky.

Then another sound. Not even a cry, nor a scream.

But a bestial roar of pure, violent rage.

* * *