Bulletproof Mirage

Chapters

In Which Legends Encounter Amateurs
The Inevitable
My Kingdom for a Dust Devil
Getting to Know You
Another Day, Another Airship
Confrontation
Adding to the Bestiary
Angels and Dragons
Riding Off with the Sunsets
Welcome to Sunburnt Equestria
The Chancellor and His Tempest

In Which Legends Encounter Amateurs

Rarity was pleasantly snuggled in her sleeping roll and pondering the idea of staying in it for another hour when she heard something slipping through the flap of her tent. It was not a quick motion, and the soft trilling sound alleviated all worry that might have otherwise filled her. Cracking an eye open, she spotted a large, scaled, white head, complete with two pale blue eyes staring at her.

Lazily, Rarity reached up to rub the lizard’s snout, muttering sleepily, “Good evening to you, too, Ophelia. I don’t suppose you’ll let a lady get her beauty sleep, will you?”

Ophelia sniffed curiously at the hand, eyes crossing in an effort to follow its motions. She let out a heavy grunt, frills opening and closing in sharp, swift motions.

“I’ll take that as a ‘no’.” With a good-natured sigh, the unicorn sat up and stretched, her palms pressing against the top of the tent. Her back let out a few quiet crackles. “Oh, my. I’m far too young to be making those sounds. I’ll have to find a proper bed soon.” At another trill from her lizard, she smiled and gave Ophelia a gentle push. She got the message and pulled back, allowing Rarity to escape the confines of the tent.

The world outside was all hills and green grass, the Eerie Cliffs rising like daggers in the west. The sun hadn’t quite touched the sharp tips of the mountain range yet, but it wouldn’t be much longer. Rarity had to give Ophelia credit; it was the perfect time to resume the journey. But first she had to tend to the needs of herself and her lizard.

Lizard first. Walking around to Ophelia’s side, Rarity reached for the large bag of lizard feed… only for Ophelia to make that grunting sound again and step away. Frowning, Rarity tried again, but the dust devil dodged a second time. Hands on hips, she turned to glower at the creature. “Come now, Ophelia. Isn’t this the entire reason you dragged me out of bed?”

The frills on Ophelia’s neck were opened wide. The lizard cast a slow look at Rarity, then faced east. The peculiar behavior was not unknown to Rarity. This time when she approached she instead went for one of the panniers, and Ophelia didn’t step away. Fishing out a small telescope, she used it to follow the Dust Devil’s gaze.

Riders. Eight of them, all heading directly towards the camp. They weren’t exactly moving at speed, but neither were they traveling at an easy pace. It could just mean they were running behind some timetable. It could also mean they were trying to catch up to somepony without tiring out their mounts. Rarity had been pursued by enough ponies to not assume the former.

Collapsing the telescope with a snap, she gave Ophelia another rub. “Well spotted, my sweet, and good job waking me. If I see a rabbit or something out here then you’re getting an extra treat tonight.”

There was no need to rush. The party was still a good hour away. While there was no question that Ophelia could stay ahead of them at the very least, Rarity decided she wasn’t in the mood to flee. Besides, there was no guarantee they were hostile, and it might be nice to have some company. Such thoughts didn’t stop her from making sure her weapons were loaded and extra cylinders prepared for Silver Lining. She went ahead and fed Ophelia and herself, munching on some chilled pears, then stowed the camp away. By the time she was done the ponies were still a good ten minutes away; nothing else to do but wait.

Soon she could make them out clearly. Five earth ponies and three unicorns. While their outfits weren’t uniform, they all sported purples and browns somewhere. Indicators of a common employer, perhaps. Rarity was perfectly willing to be cordial with them… at least until they surrounded her, not a one bothering to dismount.

The odds of them being hostile went up a few notches.

The pony directly facing her was a unicorn, sandstone orange in color and carrying a rifle that wasn’t pointed at her, but could be at a moment’s notice. The mare blew her brown mane out of her face and met Rarity’s gaze with the calm, neutral look of a professional. “Bulletproof Heart?”

Rarity took her time looking around at the ponies, ignoring how Ophelia hissed at the leader. They were all trying to look stoic and intimidating. Aside from the leader, only two looked like they knew how, and neither of them had their hands on their weapons. Overconfident. The others were squirmy, fidgeting in their saddles and failing to mask how unsure of themselves they were. The one of her right looked as though he were going to soil his saddle, the poor thing.

Sighing, she turned her attention back to the mare. “I’m assuming this is not a social call.”

Not a crack in the mare’s stoic armor. “I’m afraid not.”

Rarity placed her hands on her hips, which was enough to make most of them flinch. “Well then, are you planning to talk to me or shoot me?”

The leader sighed. “Nothing personal, miss. Just orders.” She started to raise her weapon.

Ruby Heart was out from beneath Rarity’s vest in an instant, the retort a crack of lightning. The mare had enough time for surprise to flash across her features before she fell off the saddle, blood pouring from her chest.

Exactly two ponies tried to take shots. Both bullets cracked against Rarity’s shield, which had been raised almost as quickly as her weapons. She turned a circle, guns shifting aim from pony to wide-eyed pony. “So,” she primly asked, “who wants to do this dance?”

Her supposed opponents all exchanged uncertain expressions. One of the unicorns, visibly shaking in his saddle, aimed his pistol at her. “W-we outnumber you seven to one!”

Silver Lining aimed at his head. It was to his credit that he didn’t accidentally pull the trigger considering how he jumped. “Are you volunteering to go first?”

Still, none of them fired. Rarity was starting to feel sorry for them, not that she would show it. Real bounty hunters would have just started firing en masse in an attempt to overwhelm her defenses. They’d have all died, but they’d have at least tried. But this was a good thing; maybe she’d get out of this without having to kill every last one of them. She just had to up her own intimidation factor a little.

“Alright, fillies and colts.” She lowered her guns, continuing to turn in place so as to make sure they could all see her serious expression. “This is going to go one of two ways. First option: You all will put on the big pony pants and attack. I then kill you all and go about my day. It would hardly be the first time, so you’ll forgive me if I don’t bother to mourn.” She would, actually, as none of these ponies looked as though they actually deserved a bullet, but no point letting them know that.

“Second option: You tell me who sent you, then be on your merry way. Nopony else dies. A happy ending for everypony.” She cast a glance at the former leader’s corpse. “Well, almost everypony. So.” She stopped her turning to glare directly at one of the less fidgety stallions. “What’s it going to be?”

Silence. Long, tense, anxious silence. Rarity held the stallion’s gaze, ignoring the bead of sweat sliding down her temple. He stared right back, wide-eyed and still, through the pale blue barrier. In her peripheral vision, the others fidgeted in their saddles. Just a little more pressure; she started to raise her weapons.

“Screw this!” The unicorn mare on Rarity’s left holstered her revolver and raised her arms high. “I didn’t sign up for this crap.”

“Jewel,” hissed the stallion next to her. The poor fellow looked like he was on the verge of a panic attack.

“Stuff it, Hayfry,” the mare snarled. “I signed on with the chancellor because I thought I was going to be helping ponies. How the hay does getting killed by the Bulletproof Heart help anypony? We don’t even know what we’re doing here!”

“B-but…” The male unicorn from earlier struggled to summon his courage. “We have orders!” He let out a feminine squeak when Silver Lining pointed his way yet again. Rarity tactfully managed to avoid chuckling at the sound.

Turning her attention back to the mare, she said, “The chancellor. I faintly recalling having overheard that title.”

The mare kept her hands high despite neither Ruby Heart nor Silver Lining being aimed her way anymore. She shrugged. “He’s some big wig lawmaker up in Manehattan. No idea what he wants you dead for.”

“A-actually—” Rarity turned to face the mare who spoke. The pony jerked back as if she’d been shot, dropping her rifle completely as she did. It took another ten seconds of sputtering before she worked up the courage to say, “Our o-orders came from some new hire! Somepony called The Mirage.”

Great, more new names for ponies who wanted her dead. Rarity heaved a sigh and muttered, “Why are so many creatures trying to kill me?” Then, louder, “Fine. ‘The Mirage’. Any information you can offer me about him?”

“I think it’s a ‘she’?” One pony timidly offered.

“I heard she’s an alicorn.”

“That’s lizard dung and you know it.”

“They say she has hair like a living flame!”

“It’s red.”

“No, it’s yellow.”

“Rumor is she got into a bar fight and single-handedly took out fifty ponies with her bare hands!”

“I heard she was sent from Elysium by the princesses themselves.”

“Well I heard she’s Princess Celestia’s daughter.”

Rarity would have facepalmed were her hands not otherwise occupied. Clearly, she’d never get anything useful from this lot. Alicorns and living flames, for Luna’s sake. At least the situation had been diffused. She holstered her weapons and casually mounted Ophelia, largely ignored by the now-arguing band of would-be bounty hunters. She noticed that only one had not joined the frackas, a unicorn who had dismounted and was looking over their leader’s body.

Rarity rode Ophelia next to the mare. “Did you know her?”

The young unicorn shook her head. “I mean, she was my boss, but we didn’t talk much. Still, she deserves a proper burial.”

“Well, I apologize anyway.” Rarity looked to the other ponies, who were still arguing amongst one another. She was starting to think she could just ride away and they’d never notice. “This ‘Mirage’ pony. She’s the one who told you to come after me?”

The mare stood to face Rarity, giving a grim nod. “We were camped a couple miles out from a town called Barren Wood when we got a letter with the orders. No reason given, just instructions to find and kill you. A third of us quit on the spot.”

Rarity eyed her curiously. “And you didn’t?”

The mare heaved a long, slow sigh and closed her eyes. “I came close. Guess the thought of losing my job scared me more than the thought of facing you, at least until…”

“Until you realized precisely what that meant?”

The mare shivered and turned away. “Until I saw how easily you took down Copper. Then things suddenly felt… real.”

Rarity understood perfectly. There was a time, seemingly so long ago, when feelings like that kept her awake at night. She turned Ophelia away. “I’m moving on, now. Please inform your boss, whether it be the chancellor or the Mirage, that I’d really appreciate not having to kill anymore of his employees.”

And so the Bulletproof Heart continued her trek west, hoping this would be the last she’d hear of this ‘Mirage’. Experience told her not to bank on that possibility.

The ponies were still arguing about this mysterious new pony by the time she was out of earshot.

Mirage stood atop the small chapel's tower, facing west. Father Feather had been kind enough to give her an idea of where she was, generally speaking, while she had indulged him with a story dating back to when she was a filly studying under Celestia.

Things were edited a bit but, once the rest of town had headed to sleep, the kindly priest had delighted in listening to the softer side of Celestia as she had consoled and cheered Sunset up one time after a particularly bad explosion had resulted from her experiments.

Over here people rode what was called 'sand lizards' that took the place of horses. As fun as that sounded, she didn't have the time to try and learn how to ride one, especially after learning they came in three very different types.

Right now she needed speed. Well, she had wings. Her one sure way out of this world was heading further away by the second. She had no idea how the Isekai worked, but the chances of it randomly saving her were probably very low. There was a reason a card was needed to return.

And so she took flight, leaving the small town in seconds with the citizens none the wiser. Although pegasi existed in this world, she’d been told it was very unusual to see one, and thus most of the inhabitants did not look up as often as ponies back in Equestria would.

For most of the first and second days that seemed to be her luck. She was noticed, once, by a group of riders who stopped to watch her fly by, but as darkness fell it became more difficult to get her bearings. There were no familiar stars to navigate, after all. With some annoyance, she landed in a clear spot and stretched. Her current body might be much more powerful than her normal one, but exhaustion was not just related to being physically tired.

She sighed, looking around the immediate area to prepare a small campfire, which she lit with a quick spell. She checked her item bag and, curious if it would work, pulled out a tent. The tent was a purchasable GGO item intended to work as part of a 'base camp' setup for long raids with a team, giving bonuses for the party members for every eight in-game hours of rest. In this world, it looked the same: a simple green polyurethane-coated nylon canvas in an 'A' shape with a similarly durable floor and a single sleeping bag inside.

She dragged a rock large enough to serve as a seat over to the fire and sat down, sighing as she stared at the flames. "We really need to stop these magic experiments." She raised her head – her hat staying in place thanks to her horn keeping it steadily stuck – and stared at the moon. "Luna, I swear I'll make it up to you."

It was several hours later that she heard the lizards approaching. She closed her eyes and sighed, cursing under her breath as her visitors slowed down to a halt in a half-circle around her camp. They kind of looked familiar. Maybe it was the group she had spotted while flying earlier? If so, they had ridden all night to catch up with her, and that couldn't be good.

She glared at them. People didn't usually approach her camp in GGO with good intentions unless they were merchants, and if she drew a parallel here, these guys didn’t look like the type to trade stuff.

There were about ten of them. It didn't matter. "Yes?"

The leader smirked. She was a tall, lanky mare with a missing front tooth. "Yer the one called Mirage, right? Headin' due West from Barren Wood?"

Mirage studied them. A fidgety lot. Three unicorns, all looking like they couldn't read a word, much less cast advanced magic, and several male and female Earth ponies, all armed with shotguns and revolvers. Their lizards hissed threateningly at her.

Mirage sighed. "What about it?"

"We were sent by the Bulletproof Heart." The mare chuckled. "She says to tell you that she has what she needs, and that Equestria will be a better place without you." She shrugged. "I usually don't get to ride in the name of Justice, but hey…" She aimed her gun at Mirage. "Justice does pay after all."

"So that's how it is, huh?" Mirage asked as all the others raised their guns as well.

"Ain't personal."

"Sure isn't."

The flashbang grenade took them by surprise. The lizards reared and tossed, managing to dismount at least three of her attackers, but Mirage concentrated on the three unicorns first, deeming them the most dangerous of the group if they managed to distract her. As they all fired wildly, she took out her guns, letting her instincts kick in. Right now, she wasn't Sunset Shimmer. She was Desert Mirage, and that name was on top of GGO's official PK ranking for a reason.

Two long strides and a flap of her wings for speed had her between the three unicorns. She slapped her hand onto the chest of the first, freezing him in place. The other was blinking away the flash and never even saw her fist coming until he was knocked out. His lizard took off with his leg still caught in the stirrup. The third one's horn was already glowing for some sort of spell, so she didn't hesitate, snapping out her trusty Mateba Model 6 Unica (aka Luna), and putting a round in his chest.

She was in full battle mode now. A grin spread on her face as she felt her magic and skills interacting with each other as if she was back in the game again. A leap and a bounce had her somersaulting over the heads of two Earth Ponies, who each received a shot, toppling them down from their rides.

The others were panicking. Three took off in a desperate ride to get away from her while the last one blasted in her general direction with a shotgun, accidentally hitting one of the lizards. Mirage shot him in the leg, then, as he fell, two more shots went into his back.

The leader of the band had dismounted her own ride and was snarling something, taking a couple of shots at her. Mirage dodged, barely feeling the burn as a bullet scraped her arm. In a second she had her Desert Eagle under her chin and Luna aimed at her chest.

The mare stared, fear flashing in her eyes as time seemed to stretch. And then the silence was interrupted by the sound of cracking ice, like a rock splitting at the same time as glass as the frozen pony literally fell to pieces, and reality settled once more.

"I surrender!" the mare screeched, dropping her gun on the floor and raising her hands. "See?! No weapons!"

Mirage kept her eyes on her. She dared not look around. "Where. Is. The. Bulletproof. Heart?"

"W-we were supposed to meet her at the chancellor's airship!" the mare gasped. She bent her left index finger and shook her hand down a little. "I-I can show you the meeting place! J-just let me live! I— We didn't know you were really an alicorn! I'm sorry! I'm sorry your highness! I-I promise to go to church from now on and be a good mare!"

Mirage didn't dare speak, so she nodded.

The mare carefully lowered her hand to her belt, and rummaged through her bag before gently and slowly raising her hand with a rolled up piece of paper on it. She nodded rapidly, a desperate smile on her face. "See? See? It's here, Princess!"

"Don't call me 'princess'," Mirage muttered, snatching it from her hand and stepping back. "Get the hell out of here."

"Y-yes, your highness!" The mare babbled as she quickly chased after one of the lizards that had lingered nearby, got on, and hightailed it, leaving Mirage behind with the carnage.

Gulping down the bile already rising in her throat, Mirage turned slowly as the sounds of the injured lizard reached her ears. Its desperate wailing tugged at her heart as she took in the state of those she had… killed.

"It's okay," she whispered to the lizard, making placating motions with her hand. "I can heal you… I have spells and items—" Something was rising, and she abruptly dove behind the rock she had dragged earlier that night and started throwing up for the first – but not the last – time that evening.

She could not longer afford to question whether or not this was a video game.

Sundown Valley. Rarity had passed through it more than once going through the Eerie Cliffs. It was a lot of rugged terrain, treacherous for wagon caravans, but a single pony on lizardback? Not a problem at all.

It had been three days since the incident with the chancellor’s ponies, and Rarity was feeling a bit more relaxed. Attacks like that were hardly common, despite what the more adventurous-minded might think. Even so, that didn’t stop her from keeping an eye on her surroundings. The tall cliffs and sharp ridges were perfect places for ambushes, provided a pony could figure out how to get up them in the first place.

It was this due diligence that allowed her to spot the airship. As she’d never seen one before, that was enough to give her pause. She’d always heard of the things. Supposedly they were very common in Seaddle, both for trade and for pleasure cruises among the wealthy. That’s what the books she read as a filly told her anyway. Many ponies questioned if they even were real, but she supposed she could finally put that argument to rest.

The airship’s hull was a sleek thing, much longer than it was wide, and dangled beneath a trio of… lifting bags? Balloons? She couldn’t imagine what filled them. The ship was all browns and purples, looking much like one of the ships that might be moored in Manehattan harbor. Such a fascinating structure.

A fascinating structure that was turning towards her. She felt a moment of tension as the airship began to drop altitude, its heavy-looking keel seeming far too close to the rugged ridges beneath it. “I can’t believe this,” she muttered. “First it’s earth ponies, then it’s pegasi, then it’s diamond dogs, the list goes on. I never thought they’d start coming at me with Luna-be-damned airships.” Not that she knew they were ‘after her’.

But she doubted that color scheme was a coincidence.

Could these ponies attack her from the air? She had no idea. All her fillyhood romances never involved that kind of thing. She wouldn’t have trusted the source even if they had. She checked her weapons, feeling silly for doing so. It wasn’t like Silver Lining and Ruby Heart could bring down an airship, even if she aimed for the balloons. Maybe with a fire-enchanted bullet?

Running away was preposterous. Hiding was… possible, given the terrain, but she’d just as likely end up in a corner fighting for her life. No, best to wait and see what they wanted. Still, she made sure Ruby Heart was loaded with some ruby-tipped bullets, and added some enchanted bullets to one of Silver Lining’s extra cylinders too as a precaution. She didn’t know how effective they’d be in this situation, but it was worth a try.

It took a good twenty minutes for the airship to get close, and to her relief there was no firepower sent her way. Instead the ship dropped into a wider part of the valley, landing on a quartet of ‘legs’. Seeing no point in wasting time, Rarity guided Ophelia forward.

It took a good ten minutes to reach the ship, by which point a gangplank had been lowered on its side. A stallion in an immaculate suit and tie, his coat and swept-back mane a greyish blue, was waiting at the bottom all alone. He was looking right at her, and even gave a friendly wave.

Either they’re way overconfident or they aren’t a threat. Heaving a sigh of relief, Rarity let the tension ease in her shoulders. She waited until Ophelia was standing before the stallion – all the better to let her look down on him – before speaking up. “Good sir, I get the impression that you’re looking for me.”

“That I am, miss.” He flashed her the kind of smile that probably made most mares weak in the knees. She barely resisted the urge to scoff at it. “Waxton, at your service. And this is the Berrytwist, belonging to my good master, the chancellor.”

There went Rarity’s smile. “The chancellor,” she replied in a monotone. “The same ‘chancellor’ that just sent some thugs after me?”

Waxton’s charming expression faded, replaced with contrition. “Oh, they found you, did they? I must apologize, Miss Heart. It seems there have been some problems. My immediate supervisor is here to explain the situation as best she can. Would you be willing to join us?”

Rarity eyed the stallion’s suave expression, then looked up at the airship. As fascinating as the idea of taking a ride in one sounded, his manner was rubbing her in all the wrong ways. Ways that made her… itch. “I’m not sure I’m willing to do that just yet. All I have is your word that I won’t be immediately set upon.”

“And my charming good looks,” he added cheekily.

The look Rarity sent him must have been spectacular, because it wiped the smile off his face in an instant. “Sir, you have no idea the kind of fire you’re playing with.” Watching his Adam’s apple bob with his swallow was satisfying in guilt-inducing ways.

There was a spark of magic, pulling her attention to the top of the gangplank. There stood an orange… mare? Rarity squinted, taking in the odd horn and curly mane. The pony stared right back, cool and collected, no expression visible on her face. It reminded her, fondly, of one Maud Pie.

Waxton tugged on his tie and let out a little cough. “Erm, yes. Apologies. May I introduce my supervisor, the lady Autumn Blaze.”

At least the mare was willing to make an appearance. Rarity gave her a nod, which was returned with solemnity. “A pleasure, I’m sure. Might I ask what the lady wants from me?”

“She would like to provide you some fair warning,” Waxton replied, gradually getting back into his smooth tone. “And to perhaps procure your services.”

“Warning about what?”

“She—”

“She can speak for herself,” Rarity snapped, not breaking eye contact with the mare above her.

After a moment’s hesitation, Waxton timidly said, “Begging your pardon, Miss Heart, but she can’t.”

Rarity blinked. “No?” Autumn Blaze, as collected as ever, shook her head and ran two fingers in a circle around her throat. “Oh. My apologies.”

“Think nothing of it,” Waxton offered with a warm smile. “Happens all the time. I am acting as… Let us call it a ‘translator’. Anything she wants to communicate to you goes through me.”

“I see.” Rarity allowed herself a moment to get over her embarrassment. “And what, pray tell, does the lady want with me? I must warn you, I have no intention of being a hired gun.”

“The lady wouldn’t dream of such a thing,” he cheerfully replied. Even as he did, Autumn Blaze gestured invitingly. Well, as invitingly as one could when her face appeared to be made of stone. “Please, join us. You and your lovely lizard. We’ll take you the rest of the way across the mountains. Or even to the next town, if you wish.”

That would indeed save her a lot of time. Rarity cast a long look around at the rocky terrain. If memory served, it would be another four days of this if she declined. At the same time, she still wasn’t sure that she trusted these ponies.

Then again, she was the Bulletproof Heart. Not that she liked getting into dangerous situations, but the ship wasn’t exactly big. She doubted it could hold more than a dozen crew, and Rarity liked those odds. Especially given that a vessel like this was bound to have plenty of defensible positions. A risk, but…

Flying in an airship did have its appeal.

Author's Note

At this stage in the story, WD and myself frequently traded the keyboard (so to speak), sometimes going no more than a sentence or two before handing off the writing to the other person. It felt important at the time to recognize that we each knew our own characters best and to let the character's owner handle their dialogue, just for example. Our plan was very "seat of the pants" in terms of the writing, and I can say for certain that sometimes Mirage would respond to things in ways I didn't anticipate and needed to react to.

There was very little of going back to "correct" actions and behaviors at this stage as we bounced our writing off one another freeform. Readers familiar with our individual writing/storytelling styles may even be able to recognize who was controlling the keyboard at any given moment. Or not. I don't know how obvious it is to the casual observer. But to me, the differences were stark.

However, once it was all said and done I did come back to make tweaks. If felt that the story would best be served by having a unified and consistent formatting. I didn't change wording much at all, but I was very focused on punctuation and my own grammatical preferences.

The Inevitable

Sunset Shimmer lay in the grass, staring at the sky and the few clouds slowly making their way far above her. She had chosen to go back to her more mortal form for now, trying to process the choices that had brought her here… and the choices she had made since.

There was a slight breeze that managed to cool her down, just a little, but that was the last thing on her mind. She kept replaying the firefight she'd had earlier in the morning over and over again.

How eager she had been for it. How callous. How quickly she had allowed herself to fall into the Desert Mirage persona. She had spent almost an hour after throwing up just digging holes to dump the bodies in. Trying to give them as proper a burial as she could under the circumstances.

That had never been an issue in GGO. It just wasn't something that they'd put in a game. But what choice did she have here? She wasn't just going to leave them to decompose out there. These ponies were someone's child, someone's lover, maybe someone's parent.

Her only real comfort was that she hadn't started it. That they had sought her out in order to kill her and she had no choice but to fight back. Still, this was something that the girls would not understand. Luna… maybe. Twilight and the others? She pressed her lips together and bumped her head gently against the grass. "Some things are better left unsaid."

She remained there in silence, arms and legs spread, staring at the sky, until she sighed. "Celestia, what the hell am I supposed to do here?" She felt like she was actually praying to the local Celestia, the goddess of this world, rather than addressing her mentor in her head. "I guess I could've used regular magic, but… against bullets? Other than a shield and maybe a stun spell, I don't think anything is really useful without resorting to something that might kill someone."

She shook her head, thoughts going back to just how dangerous she could be in-game, and now here. Sure, she was also risking her life to some extent, but her alicorn body worked under different laws. She could be killed, but it would take far more than a couple of shots to do so, and even then she'd be healing. If those were real mercenaries, which generally speaking were supposed to have some training, she had demonstrated that she was completely out of their league and thus the league of just about everyone here.

That and death was permanent here. A downed opponent stayed down. There was no respawning in a safe location, and she didn't want to go around killing ponies. Maybe more general spells? An image arose of the pony she had frozen solid cracking to pieces. She felt the bile rise in her throat before forcefully pushing it down.

She needed to get out of here.

The longer she was in this… this weird Equestria, the more likely it was that she'd end up killing the ponies that came after her. And even if they were trying to kill her, she didn't want to go back home with more blood on her hands.

She pulled out of her pocket the papers she had found on one of the mercs. "Sundown Valley…" she muttered. She leaned to the side so she could reach her pouch and pulled out the map Father Feather had provided her, then spread it on the grass as she sat cross legged to try and figure out where the hay that was relative to her current location.

Gazing up at the sun, then at her watch which she had tried to attune to the local time as best she could, she glanced in the direction she should be going. She could barely see something that might be mountains or cliffs in the distance. "If that's where you were supposed to meet your boss, I guess that's where I should go."

Sunset took a deep breath and let it out slowly, thinking of her options.

"I can't just show up. These guys are trying to kill me for some stupid reason. But they have the card, or at least know the mare that stole it. I can't go home without it." Tapping her finger on the map, she grimaced. "This so-called Bulletproof Heart… Why is that so familiar?" She shook her head. "Back to the present, Shimmer." She slapped herself gently on both cheeks and cleared her throat.

She glanced at the sky, then down at her hands, making fists. "There's no other way. I have to get back. Even if I have to get into another gunfight. The longer I'm here, the worse it will be for everyone." With a thought and a rush of magic that started at the tip of her toes then traveled all the way to the tip of her horn, she was back again as Desert Mirage. "Suck it up, Sunset. One more fight and then we're out."

Her wings picked up the breeze with ease, feathers ruffling and the delicious call of the sky beckoning. "Good thing I took Rainbow Dash's offer to learn to fly." She glanced at her watch again and sighed. "Time to face the music."

Rarity took a sip of the jasmine tea. It was a good blend. The kind she would expect from some wealthy aristocrat. Which, in truth, was how Autumn Blaze struck her. Except one that was patient and eternally calm. The mare’s expression hadn’t changed once so far.

The two of them sat at a table, white linens and solid oak chairs. They were in a cabin of the airship, which now sailed due west. It was an ostentatious space, to say the least, with bookshelves and navigational equipment that was clearly intended more for display than actual use. There was even a chandelier over their heads, although her talented eye noted that its gold finish was only a bit of plating and probably not even real gold. All in all, it spoke of somepony who wanted everypony else to know they were wealthy while only expending enough bits to fool the unawares and unobservant.

But none of this translated to Autumn Blaze – a kirin, Rarity now knew – who sat across from her sipping her own tea. The mare’s eyes never left Rarity’s, and there was an intensity to them that made her feel like she’d been judged and found… acceptable. But only barely. Waxton stood to the side of the room, relaying the meaning of the sign language Autumn occasionally threw out.

“So let me see if I’ve got all this straight so far,” Rarity said as her teacup clacked against the table. “This ‘Mirage’ wants to be the greatest gunslinger ever, and views me as direct opposition. She managed to get the chancellor’s backing, which is why the ponies normally under you decided to come after me. If they fail, she’ll likely come for me herself. Is that the gist of it, then?”

Aumun Blaze nodded, then began making some hand signs. Waxton helpfully spoke up. “The Lady is opposed to the chancellor’s decision, but wouldn’t dream of openly challenging it. Her position is sensitive, you understand. It was fortunate that we had good information on your whereabouts and were already using the chancellor’s airship, otherwise we’d have never been able to warn you.”

Rarity let out a sniff of disdain. “‘Warn me’, you say. Right after some of those ponies already made an attempt on my life.”

“We tried,” Waxton countered, although he seemed a touch ashamed. “It’s a big continent, miss.”

“I suppose I appreciate the attempt.” Rarity sat back in her seat and crossed her arms, considering the situation. “This mare. The Mirage. Is she good?”

Autumn Blaze gave a slow nod, then waved to Waxton.

“There haven’t been many stories yet,” he admitted, “but what we can confirm suggests that, yes, she’s a force to be reckoned with. A pegasus with superb melee skills and strength. Her actual shooting skills aren’t so well known.”

Rarity had no intention of taking chances. She would assume this mare was good enough to rival her. Or perhaps Applejack, who she knew was better than her on the draw. And if the mare was a pegasus, she’d have no trouble catching up to Rarity no matter how fast she tried to flee. What she wouldn’t give to have Little Lightning right about now…

Once more, Autumn Blaze began signaling. “We know she’s coming for you right now, so it would be best to prepare. We intend to drop you off soon, in whatever local township you’d prefer. We apologize for being so short about all of this, but if it is found that we aided you?”

“Yes, your position under the chancellor would be in jeopardy.” Rarity sighed and nodded. She couldn’t blame them for their caution. Besides, having someone inside the chancellor’s organization might prove incalculably valuable later on. “But what of this chancellor? Am I going to have to ‘deal’ with him too? I’d really rather not go on another crusade against a corrupt organization if I can help it.”

The kirin tilted her head. Her hands began to move. “Deal with The Mirage, and the chancellor will likely leave you alone.”

That certainly made things easier. She only had to defeat a single powerhungry mare. It wasn’t like Rarity hadn’t put down a few of those in her time. She grimaced, recalling the cost of doing so. And this time she might be going at it solo. Perhaps a visit to some friendlier places was in order… if she could justify risking innocent lives. In that case, maybe not. “So be it. You can drop me off at—”

The door to the cabin flew open. A stallion in a crisp officer’s uniform bounded into the room. “My Lady! The Mirage is in front of the ship!”

Rarity blinked. “She is? Already?”

Autumn Blaze finally gave off something that might be considered emotion. It was little more than a tiny widening of the eyes. A less observant pony might have missed it. To Rarity, she may as well have been in a full on panic.

The room lit up a bright orange as something outright pierced the room, and Rarity was left momentarily blinded. She leapt to her hooves and backed away from the intense heat of… whatever that was. When the roaring sound faded and she was able to blink the world back into her vision, she discovered that the table between herself and Autumn had disappeared. In its place? A hole.

A hole that ran through both floor and ceiling.

The sound came again, distant and alarming, and suddenly the entire room shook. Rarity tumbled sideways, somehow managing not to bang her head against the wall. Her stomach tried to fill up the space in her throat, but couldn’t seem to squeeze through.

Falling. They were falling.

I don’t think I’ll be riding in another airship after this. She tried her best to ignore the little pony running in panicked circles around her head. Air whipped through the holes above and below. There was a sense of weight in her side, like something was trying to shove her, and she realized the whole airship had to be spinning. Trying to keep calm, she focused on the others.

Waxton lay in a heap in the corner, blood pooling from a nasty wound on his head. It looked like he’d slammed right into one of the ornamental globes. Autumn Blaze was holding on to a beam, eyes clenched tightly as her mane billowed in the rush of air all around. There was no sign of the officer, and she didn’t have time to look for him.

Think, Rarity, think! Ship going down. No time to escape. Spinning, oh Luna, so much spinning. When we land that’s going to jar something fierce. And if that happens… She took another close look at the room, seeking something, anything she might use for—there!

With effort, Rarity began to cross the room, letting the forces pin her to the wall as she crept her way to Autumn Blaze. It seemed to take an eternity, the winds threatening to hold her down or pull her in random directions. Gritting her teeth, she threw a shield across each of the two holes. Instantly, the wind died.

Wasting no time, she charged forward, grabbed Autumn, and dove into the tight confines beneath a desk against the back wall. She made sure Autumn was between her and that wall, hoping the lack of range to move would prevent them from being thrown about by the impact. She let the shields drop and clutched the mare close, eyes closed and teeth gritted. Autumn grasped right back, arms wrapped firmly around her waist.

The world was noise and wind and chaos. An eternal breath of wild abandon, the work of pony engineers foiled in a matter of seconds. Rarity thought of Ophelia, hidden somewhere in the ship’s stables, and prayed to whoever would listen that the dear lizard would make it out of this alright.

Why are so many ponies trying to kill me?

There came the sound of shrieking metal and shredding wood. Rarity and Autumn were slammed against the wall and the insides of the desk with painful force, and she thought she heard Autumn whimper. Maybe. Amidst all the explosive noise.

Everything became still. Still and quiet. Rarity remained in place for some time, breathing in slow gasps and taking note of the pains in her arms and legs. Nothing broken. She was alive. She blinked her eyes open, unable to see anything but Autumn’s shocking head of orange hair pressed against her chest. A few short gasps, a few swallows to moisten her throat. “Miss Blaze? Are you alright?”

The arms beneath her moved, rubbing gently against her sides. That was all the reassurance Rarity needed. Slowly, groaning, she let go and crawled out from under the desk.

Hiding under it had been the right move. The other side of the room was a solid thirty yards away, attached to the other half of the ship. Smoke rose into the starry sky, the crackle of fires coming from various directions. Wood and metal and bits of furniture littered the area.

And bodies.

Rarity stared at the nearest one. Waxton. Somehow, he’d landed not far from the edge of their part of the wreckage. He was lying face-down, deathly still. She had no desire to try and see what the parts that hit the ground looked like.

A shadow passed over. Rarity looked up to see a lone pegasus darting amongst the smoke. Orange coat, fiery red and yellow hair. A perfect match to a certain description. As the black clouds began to coalesce and blanket the area, she felt the fires begin to boil her blood. That… That selfish creature. Who was she to cause all this just for a stupid title Rarity didn’t even want?

She’d expected this to take place in the open. No casualties, no fuss, just two ponies and a few guns. This? This was unforgivable. She pulled out her weapons with a snarl and stalked through the smoke.

“Fine,” she hissed under her breath. “You want to be the best? Let’s see you earn it.”

Mirage watched with wide eyes as the airship dipped, then started spinning as the captain tried to regain control. Fires erupted all over the deck and ponies screamed as they were flung all over the place, holding on for dear life. Then the whole thing split in two, the keel below letting out a hideously loud cracking noise and the airbags above ripping away in the winds. She had waited until the ship was closer to the ground, but…

The bow-half crashed first, then the stern. A scan of the wreckage found many ponies pushing themselves up and others… Well. Most she could see were still breathing. She cursed her stupidity under her breath. So much for not killing anypony else. Maybe if she'd used a less powerful beam...

She gulped down her self-directed anger, reminding herself that this was the way out. That staying here was dangerous for everypony, not just herself. That… That… She bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. "Stupid. Stupid. That stupid mare and that stupid mercenary! I could be gone by now and nothing... Nopony would be dead!"

Although the flares from the fire hurt her eyes a little while using her night vision goggles, she concentrated on the moving ponies. She didn't want to have to kill them so spells would have to do. She shot one, then another with a stun spell, watching them slump to the floor, then pushed them away from the fires with her telekinesis.

Thankfully, as far as she could see most of the ponies had survived, and she spent some time clearing the area with her telekinesis so that they would not be in the way of the wreckage as it burned. She could still spot a few moving bodies here and there, although most were doing their best to help other survivors.

This had been a stupid plan.

She spun in place, studying the pieces of ship that survived, but she couldn't see the pony she was chasing. Presumably the Bulletproof Heart should be around. Best not to take things for granted. If she was competent at all, she'd not let a good chance fly by, and Mirage wanted to make it home alive.

So, hovering in place, she slowly turned around while her horn cast a protective spell around herself. "I'm Desert Mirage! And nopony else here has to die for this Bulletproof Heart gunslinger of yours. Give me what I want, and I'll be on my way!"

After shouting that, she slowly flapped her wings so she could land on the deck of the stern-side wreckage and raised her arm to cover her snout. Now that she was closer to the fires, it was much hotter. The smoke made things worse, she could barely see past it.

She was just thinking about removing her goggles and casting some water and wind spells to clear the area when something cracked against her shield with enough force to make her flinch.

Rarity spotted the pegasus at last as she landed on the stern-side of the wreckage. She considered, if only for a moment, trying to talk her way through this. Then she realized that somewhere in that wreckage the blasted mare stood upon was a stable, and in that stable there might be a dead Ophelia. Grinding her teeth, she took aim with Ruby Heart. “I’ll give you what you want, all right,” she hissed, firing a lone shot.

The last thing she expected to see was a shield. Her .45 round pinged off it with a flash, and suddenly Rarity understood. The ship had been taken down by a magical beam. Several of them. And right now there was a bright aura glinting off that ‘pegasus’s’ forehead. Alarm and horror filled her as she leapt aside, falling behind a chunk of wreckage just as a teal beam zapped past her.

An alicorn. The Mirage was a Discord-be-damned alicorn! “Oh, you have to be joking.” She clutched her weapons close and took a few sharp breaths. “Okay, Rarity. You can do this.” Could she, though? This mare had just taken down an airship with a couple beams. What was to stop her from doing that right now? Realizing her cover was woefully inadequate, she jerked to her hooves and started to move.

The Mirage was still on top of the wreckage. Overconfident? Confused? The smoke was obscuring the view, but Rarity fired a few more shots from both weapons, just for the sake of cover, and made for the area with the most smoke. If she was having trouble seeing through it, perhaps her opponent would as well.

The Mirage gave her wings a mighty flap, the smoke swirling about as she dodged Rarity’s shots with what appeared to be enviable ease. She disappeared behind some iron slag just as Rarity slid to a stop next to her own bit of wreckage.

Now she faced all new problems. The acrid smoke filled her nostrils as she tried to get a good look at her opponent, but The Mirage seemed to have disappeared entirely. Not that Rarity bought such an idea. She began to move slowly, drifting from cover to cover, watching for any sign of movement. Aside from the crackling flames and the moans of the nearby crew, all was quiet. Rarity reloaded without looking, not wanting to face this mare without a full clip in Ruby Heart.

The smoke surged, and there was the Mirage! Rarity only got a glimpse, leaping to the side as bullets ripped through the air where she’d just been. By the time she tried to get a bead on the mare, she was gone.

So, that was her game. The Mirage, indeed. Why blast Rarity with a big spell when she was trying to earn a title as the world’s best gunslinger? At least now Rarity knew the mare wouldn’t try anything big. Yet. She wasn’t sure her stealth game was up to the task, especially when this mare seemed so skilled at it. That said, if it were her trying to get the jump on somepony—

She whipped around and aimed just as a body burst through the smoke. There was a flash of an amber face and fiery red hair before her shots rang out and the alicorn yelped, disappearing back into the darkness. No hits. At least, Rarity didn’t think so. Cursing, she decided to get out of this open area and find someplace more cramped. If the mare wanted to fight like that, then Rarity would cut down on her options for approach.

“You want the Bulletproof Heart? Come and get me!”

Mirage slid to a stop, back against an outcropping as she spied her target dashing into the wreckage. Smart. She had to hand it to this mare, she understood combat tactics. If she had stayed outside, she'd have to deal with Mirage attacking from different angles with almost no obstacles and moving faster than the earthbound mare could react. Plus she’d been able to anticipate Mirage’s flanking approach, which was damn impressive.

In her mind, there was no doubt that this had to be the Bulletproof Heart. No one else in this world so far had given her this hard of a time taking them down, and her current opponent was not only fast on her feet, but also one hell of a shot. She had already almost gotten her twice, and the last shot would have gone straight into her chest if not for a desperate, wing-assisted dodge and her armor deflecting it. She'd have had one nasty scar… for a few minutes anyway, assuming she was able to heal it. Her current body was resilient, but painful experience had taught her it was not really immortal.

She studied the situation, drawing parallels to her experience fighting in urban settings, and came to the conclusion that following her opponent straight through the same entry point was a bad idea.

The Bulletproof Heart had enough time for a variety of stunts, from simply waiting for her to step in to shoot her to possibly setting up a trap with explosives. Thankfully for Mirage, stepping right in or trying to shoot her from another angle weren't her only choices. Grinning, she pulled down her infrared glasses again, quickly spotting the silhouette of a person just around a bend, still and waiting behind that cover.

She didn't want to kill the mare, so she fished out one of her flash grenades, quickly planning in her mind. Toss in. Stun her, run in, knock her out. Ropes. Questioning later. Sounded legit.

Barely hiding a smirk, she flew down to land next to the point of entry, took out the grenade's pin, and let it cook for two seconds before tossing it in. She heard the grenade bounce once. Then it bounced again…

Two feet away from her. "Oh, come on!"

The flash was made much worse by the night vision glasses. She screamed as the light blinded her, ripping them off and throwing them to the side, but it was too late. She fought the pounding in her skull as she held her head in her hands, trying to stumble away from danger. A part of her told her that was a bad idea, but the burning glare and pain were too confusing.

She barely had the presence of mind to cast her shield again as she fell to her knees, forcing her brain to go through the barely-visible HUD to get the eyedrop item that would heal her eyes. She felt one, then two, then three impacts on her shield just as her browsing stopped on the right item.

The distraction cost her. The fourth shot flew where her shield should have been, leaving a burning sensation in her leg, while the fifth smashed against her shoulder guard, not piercing her but still hurting. Without looking, she dove to the side just as the sixth shot rang, missing her completely this time.

The Bulletproof Heart would not give her a second chance. She crushed the item in her hands, cursing in relief as vision quickly returned. She had no cover if her opponent ran out to finish her, so instead she reactivated her shield and flew up, turning in place, both guns out to shoot if the other mare made the mistake of running after her.

The cry was enough to know she’s scored a hit, and Rarity wasn’t one to let an opportunity go to waste. Readying her shield in case of ambush, she hurried out from around the corner of her little hallway and into the open, ready to— There was nopony around.

A few bullets pinged off her shield, prompting her to look up. She could easily make out the shape hovering up above and promptly opened fire. The Mirage danced in the air, shouting curses and struggling to avoid her shots. The mare kept returning fire, but Rarity had a lot of practice with shields, and none of those hits were near enough to bring hers down. Now if only the stupid pony would stop fluttering about!

Just as Rarity thought she had a bead on the Mirage’s movement patterns, she felt something odd. Her shield, specifically the magic holding it, was… twisting? The colors were going wild! She could see the mare’s horn burning bright through the smoke and redoubled her efforts. Whatever she was doing, she had to make sure that it was stopped.

Suddenly, Rarity felt something she could only think of as a static shock that rippled through her horn and into her skull. It didn’t hurt, but it was most certainly disorienting! She tumbled, last shot going wild, and realized with shock and horror that her shield was simply gone. “Oh, how is that even remotely fair?”

Then a bullet tore through her leg.

Crying out, Rarity threw herself backwards, landing hard on her rump as more bullets ripped up the area she'd just been in. This was bad, she was utterly defenseless! She turned around and attempted to dash back for the relative safety of the ship.

“Oh, no you don’t!”

Rarity let out a yelp as, with a loud beat of wings, a pair of arms wrapped under her shoulders and lifted her off the ground. Her first thought was to wonder why the Mirage hadn’t taken the easy shot while she’d had the opportunity. The second was that they were approaching the airship’s hull very quickly. Gritting her teeth, Rarity stuck her boots out and let them slam against the wall, fiery agony racing up the wounded leg. The Mirage kept ascending and pushing, forcing her to ‘run’ up the wall as they went.

If there was anything Rarity didn’t want to experience a second time, it was being carried into the sky like a sack of flour! To say nothing for the drop that would inevitably come after. Snarling, she tried to position her arms to get a shot over her shoulder, but the way she was being held prevented that option. No matter, Rarity still had a horn. It gleamed solid blue as a blast of energy shot out, hopefully aimed right at her opponent’s face.

The Mirage let out a curse and, just as they were above the hull of the ship, shoved Rarity away with so much force it sent her spinning through the air. Rarity cried out, tried to curl up, and slammed stomach-first into a rail on the other side of the deck. With a groan, she flopped onto her back, head banging against the wooden floor.

No time, no time, no time! She climbed to her hands and knees, shaking all over from the pain in her abdomen, and looked up. The Mirage was flying a lazy circle around the deck, coming around for a presumed attack. Using the rail for leverage, Rarity managed to get up to one knee, then removed the empty cylinder of Silver Lining. “Alright,” she wheezed through her teeth, carefully selecting the extra cylinder pre-loaded with magic bullets. She made absolutely sure to know which one was going to fire next. “This needs to end now.”

The Mirage was moving in fast. Rarity’s knees wobbled, but she managed to stand. Her shield came back up in time to block a few more bullets. Rarity took aim just as the alicorn was preparing a spell.

The bullet that emerged left behind a brilliant flash of light, a long line that illuminated the night sky like a beacon. The Mirage dodged, but the damage was done; she swerved, hands to her eyes and losing altitude in her disorientation. Rarity switched to Ruby Heart and started firing, hitting only shield. The alicorn was barreling right at her, unable to see where she was going.

Rarity made no attempt to move out of the way.

The Mirage slammed into her at speed, and the two tumbled together over the side of the airship. Rarity kicked and snarled and clawed, making damn sure those wings couldn’t do more than beat at her body. The two struck the ground hard, but it was Rarity who was on top. She’d lost her weapons, but so too had her opponent. Now all she needed was an effective grapple and then—

A booted leg struck Rarity in the chest so hard she was knocked into the air, landing with a gasp on her back. She tried to stand, stunned by the lack of air in her lungs. How had the mare taken that fall and still come out with so much strength? She was on her knees, trying to work up the drive to make another charge, when she was blasted right in the heart by a teal beam. Once again, she flew back, this time landing hard on her face.

The heart. They always went for the heart. Rarity lay there, breathing hard and aching all over, but very much alive. “Th-thanks again, Coco,” she muttered. She slowly lifted her head and saw, to her amazement, both her weapons just a few feet away. Her ears twitched to the sound of approaching boots, which spurred her into sluggish action, crawling on hands and knees for the guns.

“Holy cow. How the hell are you still conscious?”

Ignoring the query, Rarity redoubled her efforts. Her hands grasped the weapons… just as a gun was pressed against the back of her head. She froze, heart thundering, hands gripping both guns tight.

“Come on, raise it up where I can see it.”

She wasn’t going to shoot? She had Rarity dead if she’d just pull the trigger. Also, ‘it?’ In that case…

“Don’t make me do it. Please.”

Slowly, so very slowly, Rarity raised Silver Lining. She made sure the mare could see it clearly.

“Good. Now drop it.”

She did. And as it fell, she twisted her left arm behind her back and pulled Ruby Heart’s trigger.

The Mirage screamed, and Rarity leapt to her feet in an instant. She spun, aimed… and froze as a gun barrel was pointed between her eyes. That wasn’t what caught her attention, however.

“Sunset Shimmer?”

“Rarity?”

Author's Note

Neither Mirage nor Bulletproof are amateurs when it comes to gunfights, and the important thing was to make sure that we emphasized their style and strengths. Mirage isn't always an alicorn, but she is a gamer, so it makes sense that she'll adjust quickly to the 'bonuses' her wings and horn give her, so she merged them into her hit-and-run (fly) tactics, while Bulletproof is fearless but calculating… and she has her favorite toss-the-grenade-back trick aside from sheer, forceful experience.

Without the alicorn thing, this would have been a much closer fight, with Rarity ultimately coming on top, the moment Mirage made a single mistake (like throwing the flash grenade). I like to consider how the less she knows affects her chances of winning, and it makes a good parallel to Gunsmoke where accurate information on her enemies is what informs Mirage's tactics.

— Wanderer D

On another topic: magic bullets. This may make some fans of BPH pause, because they never made an appearance in the stories currently published. But they are a thing, one that I had been planning from the start, Rarity simply never got access to or went up against them. I thought this story would be a fun way to introduce them, but if/when I write more BPH stories they will make an appearance in them.

Also: hey! I thought this was already fairly close, thank you very much.

My Kingdom for a Dust Devil

Amidst the smoke and fire and carnage, Mirage stared at Rarity. And not just any Rarity, but a gunslinging anthro Rarity who, despite the bruises and spots of dirt and sweat, managed to be startlingly hot. Rarity stared right back, the two of them still pointing guns at one another. At this point, however, pulling the trigger was far from Mirage’s mind.

“Sunset Shimmer,” Rarity repeated, as if doing so would change who was in front of her.

“Uh… Rarity?” Mirage replied in equal bewilderment.

The unicorn’s eyes drifted for a moment. “You have wings.”

Said wings gave a weak flap, prompting her to dumbly remark, “So I do.”

A long, uncertain pause passed between them as they each tried to place their new circumstances into reality and still make sense of things.

Then Rarity’s eyes narrowed and her jaw tensed. Ignoring the gun aimed between her eyes, she stomped forward and pressed the barrel of her ruby-lined weapon under Mirage’s jaw. “After everything I did for you, this is the thanks I get? You sent thugs after me. You shot down an airship, just to get to me. I thought we were friends!”

"Me?!" Mirage countered, feeling a flare of anger within her. Even if this didn't make sense, there was no chance that she would betray such a fine spec—friend! She batted the gun under her chin to the side, leaning in to glare at Rarity herself. "I wouldn't have come here guns blazing and hurting ponies if you hadn't sent goons after me! What, are alicorns illegal here or something?! What did I ever do to you?

"I made sure I didn't hit anyone with my spells! Ponies weren't supposed to die today, alright?!" She huffed, leaning back and crossing her arms. "I wasn't trying to kill you, but— Damn it!" She turned away from the other mare, holding her stomach, which was starting to register the pain from Rarity's earlier backwards shot.

The adrenaline was fading and all that remained was the anger that had kept her going and the hole through her stomach. Had she been in her normal body, she'd probably be bleeding to death on the floor by now. She summoned a healing pack and pressed it against her wound, watching it dissolve alongside the pain.

Throwing caution to the wind she tossed her guns into the air, where they burnt into nothing. She sighed in relief as the healing completed and glanced over her shoulder at Rarity. "Do you need healing? Or would you rather I didn't get too close right now?"

Rarity didn’t stop glaring, but at least she wasn’t pointing the gun at her anymore. “‘Ponies weren’t supposed to die’, she says after shooting an airship out of the sky. As if that somehow wouldn’t lead to any fatalities.” She moved as if to holster her guns, then paused, looking around. “Wait. Your weapons. Where did they—?”

Feeling guilt build up again, Mirage turned halfway to point a finger at her. "Look, it's not my fault that the captain couldn't control the dive, alright? I waited until it wasn't that high! If he had kept steady, the small wings would have guided you to a rough, but relatively safe landing!"

Rubbing her forehead, Rarity heaved a sigh. “We’re getting off track. What is this about me sending some hit squad out on you? Because I can assure I would never do such a thing to my enemies, much less my friends.”

"Right," Mirage muttered, pulling out the note she had fished from one of the dead bodies. "I followed their trail here because they had agreed to meet here to be picked up. They came up to my camp really early this morning and went on about how justice did pay, since they were working for you. Since I didn't know who the hell the Bulletproof Heart was, and that was my only lead, I decided to confront you." She glanced at the wreckage. "Granted, I thought it would be less… spread."

“Didn’t know?” Rarity scowled at her. If Mirage didn’t know any better, she’d think the mare felt hurt by the statement. “Sunset, I’m the one who taught you how to shoot in the first place. I was in your hometown, fighting Bad Apples. Why are you acting like you don’t know me?”

Mirage grimaced. "Teach me? What are—? Oh. Of course. I'm such an idiot. Alright, this needs some explaining, but how about we clean up the area first? It's a long story, and I'm looking for a mare with a weird horn. She stole something from me."

The look she received would have scorched her to cinders were Rarity able to weaponize it. Mirage wondered if Rarity wasn’t considering shooting her anyway. Yet, after a few seconds of glaring, she finally put her weapon away under her vest. “When I helped you become an independent and free mare, I hadn’t expected anything like this. You disappoint me, Sunset. But I suppose if we can agree that you’re not going to try and shoot me anymore?” At the searching query, Mirage gave a weak nod. “Fine. Then we’ll talk when this is done. You do what you have to. I’ve got a lizard to—” Rarity let out a yelp as she began to turn around, nearly falling after putting weight on her injured leg.

"Rarity, you… Yeah, let's wait until this is done. Here, let me heal your wounds." She pulled a classic mid level potion out of her inventory, hefted it and threw it at Rarity's head.

"And how do you plan to do—?" Rarity managed to partially turn around with an icy glare just in time to get decked in the forehead by the potion. Which didn't break. Rarity fell on her rump from the impact, clutching her skull and letting out a hiss of pain. "What the hell?! Are you trying to bludgeon me to death now?"

Mirage quickly scrambled back, hands up. "No! No, I promise! That was supposed to burst! It will heal your wounds immediately!"

Rarity moved as though she intended to grab her gun yet again, but seemed to think better of it and grabbed the bottle instead. She sat up, blood running between her eyes, and looked at the blue liquid. “In what world do you think bottles full of liquid just magically break upon impact? I’m starting to wonder if you haven’t taken leave of your senses.”

“I’m sorry!” Mirage waved at the bottle. “Trust me, just… just drink the thing.”

“I’m not inclined to trust the word of a mare who thought shooting an airship’s hull and balloons wouldn’t lead to disaster, to say nothing for how she tried to kill me.” She tossed the bottle back at Mirage, who caught it in one hand. “Much less one I used to think was a trusted friend.”

"Oh, for Celestia's sake." Mirage sighed. "First, I was trying not to kill you, thank you very much. But, I suppose I did come in somewhat aggressively. Here, let me show you." She sat down across from Rarity then, using her teeth, pulled off the cork and spat it to the side. She then made a show of dropping a small but steady stream of the contents on the leg she had injured earlier. "See? Nothing bad happens if I pour it over a wound. Now, will you let me just splash your shoulder or something with it?" She offered the bottle. "Or you can do it yourself."

Rarity peered at the liquid on Mirage’s leg, sniffing in disdain. “I’m still not inclined to—”

“Oh, for Luna’s sake!” Mirage threw caution to the wind yet again and just poured the potion on the mare.

With a cry of alarm, Rarity tried to back away, an act that wasn’t made easier by her injured leg. “Y-you brute! You best hope that stuff washes out or so help me, I will feed you to a dragon! Don’t think I won’t, I happen to know one and he… He…” Her attention was grabbed by the wounds in her leg rapidly healing up. “It’s working.”

"Yeah, and no need to call on Spikey-wikey, the stuff fades away on its own," Mirage added with a smirk. "Now… where is that damned mare?" She scanned the area just as the bow-side the airship wreckage crumbled under its own weight and the damage from the fire. She cringed. "Say, Rarity, you didn't mention if you had seen the weird mare. Red mane, horn split in two at the top, sound familiar?"

“The color,” Rarity huffed, “is moderate tangelo. But yes, I did meet her. She’s the one who told me that you had infiltrated the ranks of the chancellor’s organization with the specific intent of using his resources to find and kill me.” She stood slowly, testing her leg as if expecting the wound to come back. Finding it stable and unhurt, she went to retrieve her other weapon from the dirt. “She was in the same room as me when the airship went down. Which was…” A pause. “Should I even be telling you this?”

"Look." Mirage bit her lip. "I don't have any idea who this chancellor is. The first time I heard of him, some priest in a town due southeast of here informed me that the mare that stole my stuff worked for him. I've been chasing her for two days. I didn't have time to send ponies after you, not that I even would."

Rarity stared at Mirage, and for once it wasn’t with anger or frustration. No, it was a long, quiet, considering look, with the face of a pony putting pieces together in her head. “Let me get this straight. A mare with a strange horn and moderate tangelo mane stole something from you. Presumably the same mare who told me that you’re out to kill me. Am I hearing this correctly?”

Mirage nodded. "Like I said. I had no reason to go after the Bulletproof Heart, except that apparently she sent ponies to murder me, and also happened to work for the chancellor, who is the boss of the mare that stole my things. Why else would I go through all this trouble?"

Rarity pursed her lips. Her fist clenched once, twice. Then, abruptly, she was marching past the wreckage, moving for the collapsed bow of the airship. “When I get my hands on that kirin, I swear to Discord… Come on, hopefully she hasn’t gotten very far.”

Rarity had been upset before, but this was something a touch more than that. It was by no means ‘taken advantage of in a bar’ levels of rage, but it was still enough to make her question whether Autumn Blaze would be coming out of this situation alive. She couldn’t believe she’d been manipulated so easily! Not that she’d had any reason to suspect after Sunset literally shot the airship down. Really, what had the mare been thinking? How was Rarity supposed to see that as anything but wanton, unprovoked aggression? Who knocks holes into a ship and doesn’t expect ponies to die?

She stomped into the area between two halves of the airship. The stern-side remained surprisingly intact, but the bow was little more than smoking rubble. The fires had died down a bit, though smoke still filled the area. “Do you think you can do anything about the air?” she asked in a short, tense tone.

"Sure!" The other mare gathered magic in her horn, then conjured a breeze through the area using several beats of her magic-empowered wings. As the smoke dispersed she dowsed the nearby fires with some water spells. "How's that?"

“Perfectly envy-inducing.” Rarity paused as the smoke cleared, getting a good look at both parts of the wreckage. Her heart abruptly began to ache. Somewhere in the stern of the ship was the stables. Her heart gave an agonizing twist, but… it was still standing. Maybe there was a chance.

Turning back to the bow of the ship, she pointed. "The mare you were hunting was having a meeting with me in that side of the ship. Good luck finding her.” She promptly started jogging to the gaping wreckage of the stern.

“And where are you going?” Sunset called after her.

“To make sure you didn’t kill my baby with your foolishness!”

“Baby?”

Ignoring the mare, Rarity hurried into the wreckage. Sunset’s spell might have removed the smoke from the exterior, but in here it was still thick. “I’m coming, Ophelia,” she muttered, squeezing between two fallen timbers. “Please be alright. Mommy’s coming.” If her lizard was dead, Celestia herself wouldn’t be able to stop Rarity from taking that blasted mare and her chancellor out. She’d make garters out of their insides and necklaces out of their horns.

She could hear hoofsteps behind. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Sunset pursuing. No time to think about that now. If the mare wanted to help, then she was welcome to try and keep up.

It took a lot of searching, and more than once Rarity came to a stop to listen for any signs of life. The wreck seemed abandoned save for the occasional shriek of breaking metal and rumble of falling wood. And crackling fire. That was all over the place. No flames were visible, but the heat of the hallway suggested it wasn’t far away.

At last, Rarity reached the door she knew led to the stables. Her heart sank at the sight of wooden wreckage blocking the entry. Whimpering, she tugged at the material, hoping to find a space big enough to squeeze through, but there was nothing of the sort. She tried peering through it all. “Ophelia? Can you hear me, Darling?”

"Rarity…" Sunset whispered. "I can try to levitate the wreckage around the door for long enough for you to get in and… um, take a look."

There was no time for second guessing. Rarity stepped back hurriedly. “Do what you have to, but please try to keep the roof from falling. That wreckage might be the only thing keeping the place stable.”

“Got it.” Focusing on the door, Sunset began to work her magic. Rarity watched with bated breath and teeth massaging her lip as, slowly, carefully, the timbers and bits of ceiling were shoved into the room and aside. It didn’t move too much, just enough to let Rarity squeeze through.

“Go,” Sunset instructed. “I’ll follow once I’ve got it big enough.”

Not wasting any time asking questions, Rarity pushed herself through the small space. The stable was half-collapsed, a fact that had Rarity’s blood running cold. “Ophelia! Ophelia, come on, make a sound.” Oh, why hadn’t she stayed behind to check which stall was hers?

There came a trill, the sound instantly vaporizing the ice in her blood to steam and sending her running. She found Ophelia stuck in a stall. Heaving a sigh of relief, Rarity tried to open it, but the gate had been warped by the destruction and wouldn’t budge. “Damn it, what is with this night? I am not losing my lizard, do you hear me, Celestia!?”

Sunset was finally in the room, and when she spotted Ophelia her wings went slack. “A lizard. That’s your ‘baby’?”

“Bite your tongue!” Rarity reached out to pet Ophelia’s muzzle through the gate. “Don’t listen to her, sweetie. You’re the most precious lizard in the world and she doesn’t know your worth.”

Ophelia let out a faint grunt and nuzzled Rarity’s hands. Her blue eyes shone with worry as she tried to push against the gate to no avail.

“Don’t worry, Big Girl,” Rarity cooed. “Mommy’s gonna get you out.” She stepped back and observed the scene. “Somehow.”

The room was already filled with a heavy amount of smoke, and that was becoming even denser by the second. Rarity scanned the area, hoping to find something useful, and her eyes landed on Sunset. “Can you help?”

Sunset examined the gate, then made a show of cracking her knuckles. “Compared to that wreckage earlier, this should be a piece of cake.”

“Enough boasting,” Rarity hissed. “More magicking.”

“Right.” Sunset lit her horn and, with an ease that made the little pony in Rarity’s head practically green, ripped the gate away and sent it crashing against the opposite wall. “There you go.”

Rarity immediately jumped into the stall and wrapped both arms around Ophelia’s neck, pressing her face against the lizard's frills with a grin. “Oh, Ophelia, I’m so sorry! I’ll never leave you alone like that in some airship again, mark my words. You deserve so much better.” The lizard cooed and nudged her, prompting her to giggle. “That’s right, Mommy loves you. Yes she does, you adorable thing, yes she does!”

"Huh, I usually just shoot lizards that size," Sunset noted. "Some of them are good eating."

Rarity gasped and slapped her hands around Ophelia’s head as if to cover her nonexistent ears. “You beast! Do not speak such things around my poor lizard, you’ll frighten her.”

Sunset chuckled and shook her head. “Why is it half the Rarities I meet have a thing for lizards?” She coughed as the smoke finally started to reach the level of their heads. She cast a quick spell with her horn and, with a flap of wings, sent the smoke away. “We need to get out of here.”

“Quite. Come along, Ophelia.” Rarity was mildly surprised, but not displeased, to find that the Dust Devil still had her saddle and panniers on. Either the stablehands were lazy oafs or they didn’t expect to keep her for long enough for it to make a difference. She guided Ophelia to the open area, looking around with a grim frown. “Now how are we going to do that?”

The door they came through was too small for the lizard even without the wreckage, and the double doors intended for lizards were hot upon approach. Now that she got a good look, Rarity realized that much of the smoke was coming from that direction. “Oh dear. This might be a problem.”

Sunset stood at her side, also examining their surroundings. Her fuzzy amber ears perked to the sound of something crashing in the distance. “This place is coming apart. We’re lucky this room is as intact as it is.”

“I am not leaving Ophelia here,” Rarity growled.

“I’m not saying you should.” Sunset peered at the walls. “Okay, I’ve got a crazy idea, but hear me out: What if we blow this joint?”

Rarity raised an eyebrow. “Is that some Little Longhorn slang I failed to catch while I was there?”

“Sure, let’s go with that.” Sunset approached the only undamaged wall, carefully placing her hand against it. “This direction seems cool. Maybe it’s more stable than the others. I say I blast it.”

“Blast it?” Rarity gave the reins a squeeze as the floor shook under her boots. Ophelia let out a faint whine and bumped her shoulder with her snout. “With what, dynamite?”

Sunset turned back to her. “Remember how I shot this thing down in the first place?”

“Of course,” Rarity growled. “The laser that practically blinded me as it went through the floor a foot away from my hooves.”

“It's plasma, not—” A beat. “Nevermind. Look, I’ve got enough juice in me to do that again. I make a hole, we run through it.”

“A brilliant plan,” Rarity acknowledged, cringing to the sound of another crash. Flames were beginning to appear against the back wall. “Except that it’ll probably bring the whole thing down on our heads.”

Sunset nodded, grim. “Yeah, but you’ve got a pretty tough shield. Tougher than mine. We get on your lizard and ride it through the hole. You keep your shield up.”

Rarity tried to envision the act. She swallowed to ease her dry throat. “I think you may be overestimating my abilities.”

The cabin rocked yet again, making both of them wobble. Sunset hurried to her side. “Maybe, but your shield is clearly better than mine, if how you handled that fight is any indication. If you’ve got a better idea, I’d love to hear it.”

Rarity wanted to have one, she really did. To trust their lives to her meager shield? It worked fine against bullets, could even take a shotgun blast at point blank range, but they were talking about having an entire airship falling on top of them! Still, there was no time left to argue. That wall was starting to be replaced entirely by fire. “Alright, if we’re going to do this, best not dawdle.” She deftly got on Ophelia, having to duck her head lest it hit the ceiling. “Climb on up.”

Sunset stepped beside the lizard and gripped the saddle. Then she hoisted herself up… a lot too quickly. With a yelp, she grasped Rarity’s shoulders, fighting not to fall off the opposite side. Her head whacked against the ceiling as she struggled to right herself.

Rarity might have laughed were the situation not so serious. Besides, Sunset probably wouldn’t appreciate it. Once the alicorn was properly in the saddle – as best she could be considering it was sized for only one pony – her larger size forced her to bend forward and place her chin on Rarity’s shoulder. The mare took a long, slow breath, her muzzle pressed deep in Rarity’s mane.

Rarity smirked at the relieved sound. “You alright back there?”

“Y-yeah. Just fine.” A beat. A cough. “So, uh, point us in the right direction and I’ll do my part.”

With a tug of the reins, Rarity got Ophelia facing that one undamaged wall. The smoke Sunset had pushed away was already making a comeback and the area behind them was getting a little too warm for comfort. “Okay, Ophelia,” she muttered, taking a moment to rub the lizard’s head. “I need you to be fast. I apologize in advance for putting you through this.”

Sunset’s arms squeezed a little more tightly around Rarity’s middle. “You ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

“Okay.” The alicorn’s horn, pointing ahead of Rarity, began to glow a bright teal. “You might want to close your eyes.”

Rarity did so, and a few seconds later she felt the intense, familiar, stinging heat of Sunset’s beam attack. Wood splintered and cracked, metal shrieked, the airship shook!

“It’s done, go, go, go!”

Opening her eyes, Rarity was presented with a perfectly circular hole to the outside, the wood and metal still smoking from the blast. She threw up a shield around them and whipped their ride into motion. “Fly, Ophelia!”

The lizard needed no extra urging, going straight into a gallop through the opening. The world trembled, and already Rarity could feel things slamming against the top of her barrier. For the second time that night, everything was noise and explosive crackling and shrieking metal! She grit her teeth and willed Ophelia to go faster, faster, faster! Something slammed into the shield, the impact like a sledgehammer against her skull. Eyes clenched, hands taut, she hissed her pain and forced herself to keep the shield going.

Cool air washed over her, and her eyes flew open when she realized they were weightless. Ophelia had leapt out the side of the airship, the ground more than a dozen feet below and rushing up to meet them. They hit the ground so hard that Rarity was nearly thrown off the saddle, recovering only because Ophelia was conscientious enough to twist and stay under her.

Sunset let out a whoop. “Alright! I knew it would work! I knew it! I should have recorded this, Luna will never believe me.”

Ophelia slid across the dirt to a rough stop, panting from the sudden effort. Rarity leaned forward to give the creature a hug around the neck. “Very good, Ophelia! Mommy’s so very proud of you. I’m getting you all the rabbits you can eat.”

Their celebration was barely disturbed by the sight and sounds of the airship stern collapsing completely behind them, reduced to nothing more than twisted metal and flaming wood.

Sunset smirked. "We should do it again. For posterity, and this time I'll be recording!"

"If you want to do that, you’ll have to do it on your own. I’ve had enough airships to last a lifetime." Rarity turned to eye the pony at her back. "Weren't you looking for that kirin?"

The alicorn blinked and turned to face the remains of the ship, then shook her head with a sigh. "There's no chance she's even in there, is there?"

“That’s not the part of the ship she was in,” Rarity reminded her, pointed to the other, equally collapsed part of the wreckage. “That being said, we’ve given her plenty of time to flee. Perhaps you could use those wings to search the area?”

Sunset shook her head. "I threw off the night vision glasses, and I'm fairly certain they broke. Without them, spotting her around here is going to be really hard, if not impossible. And if anything, that mare has proven that she's very good at hiding."

Rarity mouthed the phrase ‘nightvision glasses’, rather amazed at the very concept. Not that it mattered now. “Alright, then we’ll have to figure out what to do next. Tonight, however, we get some food and rest. After we move a bit away from the wreckage, that is. Something like that is going to draw attention, and I don’t want to be close by when ponies come looking.”

“It’s the middle of the night,” Sunset noted. “Who would even notice? And I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty tired.”

“In my experience, being ‘pretty tired’ is one of the things that prevents you from being ‘pretty dead’.” She flicked the reins, guiding Ophelia back east.

Sunset was silent for a moment. She gave Rarity a tight squeeze around her middle. “You’ve been through some shit, haven’t you?”

Rarity pursed her lips, fighting back a wave of unpleasant memories. “That’s certainly one way to put it.”

Sunset studied her for a moment, then nodded. "I'll follow your lead." She looked over at the remains of the airship once more. "Besides, I don't think there's anything else we can learn here."

Getting to Know You

At Rarity's insistence, they rode off into the night.

It wasn't like Mirage couldn't see the point. Her own experiences in battle in GGO had involved attacking areas where the action was heavy, and although she had put down most of the flames, there had been plenty of fire lighting up the night earlier. No one had come over yet, but it was only a matter of time before search parties arrived, or even scavengers. Not really trusting her senses right then, and fighting the mental exhaustion from the earlier efforts, she had not put much of a fight when the bombshell that was the Rarity of this world had dictated that they go camping somewhere less crowded.

Although decidedly less hostile, Rarity was nevertheless very reserved on the road, refusing to make small conversation and keeping her eyes forward up until they had both dismounted Ophelia. Mirage had attempted two more times to speak to her, but the curt responses convinced her that it was in everypony's best interest to let her seethe for now.

Instead, Mirage had somewhat guiltily enjoyed the ride, taking in the sights for the first time since arriving. There was something calming about the way Ophelia the Dust Devil moved across the plains, decidedly smoother in motion than that of a horse. Once they were far enough from the brightness of the flames, the night sky shone above them in all its starry glory.

The silence also gave her time to think and study the other mare, thinking a bit more strategically. While Gun Gale Online was very realistic – so much so that it was used by the military to train – it was still just a video game. It didn't cover everything a true wandering gunslinger in the Old West would know, and it took by her count another two hours of travel before Rarity deemed them far away enough to safely camp for the night.

Once they had stopped, Rarity had set up the campfire – with a big log she kept in one of the saddlebags, oddly enough – while Mirage had produced her two-person tent, and sat down to observe the other gunslinger, who had taken care of her lizard before also sitting on the other side of the fire.

"I'll be honest," Mirage said after gathering her thoughts for a moment, "I don't know how to even start this conversation. I guess…" She took a deep breath. "I should apologize. My being here was unplanned, and as you saw I'm not… fully in control of my temper. I really didn't intend for the airship to go down as it did, or to hurt you."

When Rarity didn't deign to answer, Mirage found herself trying to fill in the silence. She licked her lips and shook her head. "I just… I-I tried to, I mean, I made sure none of my plasma beams hit anypony, and I just… I don't think it's safe for me to be here. I'm afraid I'm going to keep hurting ponies or reacting with excessive force. It's just what I'm used to, you know?"

Rarity frowned. It was the kind of frown that hurt, because you knew it meant you’d messed up somehow. At last, the mare spoke. “You are a very mysterious pony, Sunset Shimmer. I’ve come to question many things, including whether you even are Sunset. Ignore the wings. You’re taller. And you look older. And I can’t imagine what would make you want to dress like… Well, whatever you’re dressed like. Doesn’t that armor get hot?”

Mirage blinked, then looked down at her armor, poking it with her finger. "It's space-grade ceramic-based armor, so it won't get too hot, and the clothes are less heavy than you might think. Then again, when I'm like this I don't feel as warm as I normally would, I suppose."

Rarity stared at her as if she’d just suggested the sky was green and water was actually oil. She worked her lips silently before finally asking, with strained confusion, “You wear… space… pottery… armor?”

Mirage stared her right in the eye. "Yes." She grinned.

With a heavy sigh, Rarity pressed her face in her hands and rubbed her eyes. “I am far too tired for this, yet I can’t just let it go or I’ll be awake all night anyway. Let’s forget the armor for now and focus on something that makes sense, please?”

Mirage gave her an apologetic look, then decided to drop her GGO persona, going back to regular Sunset Shimmer. Well. Anthro Sunset Shimmer. She needed to take a selfie for Luna. "Is this a bit better?"

The mare risked a glance at Sunset, then made a sound somewhere between a groan and a shout. “No, it’s not! Now you can change your looks at the drop of a fashionable hat? Being an alicorn is so unfair and I am officially envious. Why can’t I just magic away my age in a flash of a horn?”

Sunset scoffed. "Please, if you were any hotter you'd have your own— You know, let's forget that."

“If you think this is hot, you clearly have never been to the Scorched Plains.” Heaving yet another sigh – Rarity seemed to be doing that a lot – she said, “Alright. So I’m assuming you’re not the Sunset Shimmer I know. But you are a Sunset Shimmer, at the very least. I don’t suppose you’d be willing to try explaining this, or am I doomed to be confused forever?”

Sunset nodded, smiling and secretly glad that Rarity seemed to have glossed over her slip. "You sound so much like my Rarity, but yes, you are correct, I'm a Sunset Shimmer. I wasn't planning on being here and arrived in your world by accident." She clasped her hands together and stared at the fire for a moment, before leaning down to pick a branch and started poking at it. "At first it wasn't too bad, but when I realized that I was somewhere unintended, I started planning to go back home as soon as I could. I was at a saloon, and that reminded me of this other place where I could probably get a ride home if I asked nicely. But when I took out my card to make sure I had it, a brawl started and that, uh, kirin? Stole it when I was being attacked."

Rarity considered this for a while, long enough for Sunset to wonder if she intended to speak at all. At last, she did. “Might I ask, exactly what kind of ‘card’ are we talking about here?”

"You know." Sunset dropped the branch and made a small rectangle with her fingers. "Silver business card for a bar called Sunset's Isekai. It has my cutie mark on a cocktail glass on the top right corner. I don't suppose you saw it on her when you talked to her?"

Another one of those long stares. Sunset was starting to get really uncomfortable with them, because this Rarity was good at making her feel like she was being peeled apart. Then, abruptly, the unicorn started laughing. Sunset couldn’t help giggling a little herself, if only to release some of the pent up nerves.

“I never thought I’d live to see the day!” Rarity reached into her vest. “To think, I’m sitting here talking to somepony else who happens to know about the Isekai. The odds of that have to be… Well, I can’t say, but I’m sure they’d be astronomical. Fortunately for you, I—” A beat. Rarity blinked, began to dig through her assorted pockets. “Wait.” And again. And a third time. “Oh, by Celestia’s burning sun, you have got to be kidding me.”

"Wait." Sunset gasped. "Of course! I remember now, Sunset had a picture of you and her at the bar! You designed her cowgirl getup, right? This is awesome! I mean, she'll probably be annoyed that I lost my card, but I can go home!"

“Perhaps you could, if I could find my card.” Rarity had at this point gone through all her pockets a half-dozen times, even taking off her jacket to look at it in much the same way Sunset’s Rarity might look at someone who had betrayed her fashion sensibilities. “I can’t imagine where it could be. Maybe I… Hold on.” She peered at Sunset. “Did you say ‘the kirin’ stole your card?”

Sunset nodded with a dawning look of comprehension. "You can't seriously be telling me…" she trailed off, staring at Rarity. "She got you too?!"

“But when would she have gotten the opportunity?” Rarity tapped her chin and glared at the fire. “I never got near her. The only opportunity would have been—” Her expression turned cold. “When the ship was going down. That conniving, opportunistic cretin. I was trying to save her life and she took advantage.” Then the cold turned into something far hotter. Rarity’s horn even gave out a few threatening sparks. “I let a pony take advantage of me. Of me. What in Tartarus does a damn mare have to do to get ponies to keep their damn hands to their damn selves?!”

Sunset crossed her arms. "Yeah. Yeah, they should do that." She cleared her throat. "But, she's a thief, and apparently an experienced one. Both times it was her taking the opportunity when it presented itself, at moments where a lesser thief would not have dared attempt anything. Particularly in your case. I was in a brawl, not much of a risk to her when two stallions are trying to tackle me." She frowned. "But why the cards? It's not like she'd know what to do with them, right?"

Rarity had stood and begun pacing, her boots stomping in the grass. Her hand was rubbing at something under her shirt, just at the heart. The mare’s tail flicked with agitation and her nostrils flared. “I don’t know. I don’t care. I want that card back, and I want Autumn Blaze to pay for this insult. I didn’t wade through dark caves and blood and watch ponies I loved die to let little weasels like her do something so… so cheap to me.” She spun around to glare at Sunset. “Which means you and I are going to Manehattan.”

"Autumn Blaze? Huh. I wonder if they're related…" Sunset shook her head and turned to follow the pacing mare with her eyes. "I'm assuming you have a lead?"

Rarity nodded. She was still rubbing whatever was under her shirt. “Autumn Blaze works for the chancellor. The chancellor is a politician in Manehattan. We want answers, we go to the source. He won’t be given an option to refuse us, that much I can assure you.”

"Yeah, Father Feather mentioned the chancellor." Sunset smirked. "Paying him a visit sounds both fun and somehow gratifying." She cleared her throat. "Also, I apologize if I'm being insensitive here but, if you have, you know, a rash of some sort on your chest, I'm sure I have an ointment in my item bag for that."

“What?” Rarity looked down at her hand, then quickly removed it. “Oh, that. No, it’s just… a habit of mine. Helps to calm me down.” A smile slipped on her lips, one that looked predatory. “They don’t call me the Bulletproof Heart for nothing. Something I’ll be sure to remind our dear chancellor about when we see him.” After a moment’s consideration, she said, “I think we should get some food and some sleep. Tomorrow we’ll head out to deal with this problem.”

Sunset nodded, turning back into Mirage – and not noticing the twitch in Rarity’s eye – as she pulled down the menu in her HUD. Items scrolled by as she motioned with her hand until she found what she was looking for. Prepared food she had bought in Glocken. Usually they were items she'd used in raids and such to gain buffs, but she was in a real world… Shouldn't they taste good?

She pulled two dinners out, having them materialize in her hands. "Glocken Reuben with fries, or Veggie Chop Suey?" she asked, offering both to Rarity.

Rarity stared at the two meals as if they’d materialized out of thin air. Which, technically, they had. Only now did Mirage realize how that might have looked. After a moment of blankness, Rarity at last answered with an uncertain, “I… don’t know what ‘chop sue-E is’, so, uh, the reuben?” She accepted it from Mirage, but then only stared at it in her hands like she wasn’t sure what to do with it.

Mirage nodded, giving her a thumbs up. "Good choice, Glocken might be super advanced tech, but their corned beef sandwiches are legendary." She looked down at the chop suey. "Hm, I don't have chopsticks. I guess I'll commit an international crime and use a fork—"

She was interrupted by the sound of the reuben pack falling to the ground. Looking up revealed a thoroughly alarmed and somewhat green Rarity. “Beef? You mean somepony murdered a poor cow for food?”

"Well, murder is a strong word. These cows are grown in vats, they never see the light of day and are force-fed corn through a tube. That's why it's not murder. It's mercy."

“Sunset Shimmer,” Rarity huffed between deep breaths. “You are not helping.”

Mirage shook her head. "Sorry, sorry. They're not really grown like that, but… they're also not sentient there, which I now realize I took for granted here, and probably made me look like a maniac." She stood up and picked up the food pack, sending it away, and replacing it with another, which she offered to the other mare. "This is a tofu burger. Tofu is made of beans, contains no meat at all."

Rarity eyed the container carefully, looking as though she expected it to attack her. At last, she took it. “I will try this in the name of diplomacy. I’m half-tempted to just eat out of my own supplies, but I suppose free food is free food.” She went back to her side of the fire and sat… staring at the box. “Okay. So it’s a box. How do you prepare it?”

"Simple, you see the red spot on the side? Press it and wait until steam comes out after a minute or two, that means it's fully cooked." Sunset sat cross legged on the ground and followed her own instructions.

After a moment’s hesitation, Rarity did as told. Her perplexed frown didn’t change when nothing happened. “Shouldn’t it, I don’t know, make a sound? Give off a magical aura? Something?”

“Just wait,” Sunset told her with a patient smile.

Wait Rarity did, until at last steam did indeed begin to rise from the box. Rarity promptly lifted the box away from herself with her magic, as though expecting it to burn her. Then she saw Sunset open her meal and tentatively did the same. She appeared genuinely startled to find a fully cooked burger inside, complete with fries and ketchup. “My word. What kind of magic is this?”

"Not magic! Something much worse and esoteric: Video Game Technology," Sunset said, already poking her food with her fork. "The idea is based on MRE packs, but because it's 'the future', the food is supposedly freeze-dried into pellets that are then put in the container that has a device inside that uses steam to hydrate and cook the food at the same time, resulting in a fully realized meal out of the box."

Still eyeing her meal, Rarity replied with a dry, “I am an expert in two things: fashion and gunplay. All of that nonsense you just spoke? It is neither of those things.” She lifted the tofu burger in both hands as though worried she’d get crumbs or something on her fingers, then took a dainty bite. After a few seconds of chewing, she gave a small nod. “Curious. Nothing like the hayburgers I’ve had in the past. The flavor is so very queer.” A second, bigger bite. “I could get used to it.”

Mirage smiled. "Glad you like it!"

Rarity studied the burger, taking a firmer grip on it now that she seemed less uncertain of it. “I will admit that I didn’t understand anything about your explanation. It sounds like something beyond the fathoming of…” She paused, perhaps considering her word choice. “Of this world. That being said, I don’t suppose there is any chance you could teach me how to get these, could you? It would make keeping supplies for long journeys phenomenally easier.”

"Sorry, Rares," Mirage said. "Unfortunately these are items that exist in yet another world. I can use them due to really crazy circumstances. The actual storage and science behind it is plausible though, if you know a unicorn that's really good with magic, like say… Twilight Sparkle? Maybe they could figure out how to do it? Magic for me doesn't work exactly like it seems to work here, or I'd offer to try and teach you the basics of each part of it."

Rarity raised an eyebrow at the mention of Twilight, looking as if she wanted to say something. Then she apparently thought better of it, for she shook her head and said, “I only know of two ponies who would qualify as magically inclined. One is a very long ways away and the other isn’t well versed. Talented, but still learning.” She shrugged and took another bite, as always taking her time to swallow before continuing. “I suppose there would be some sort of cosmic rules against dimensions sharing technologies and magic anyway. I’m sure Sunset would say so.” A beat. “Isekai’s Sunset, I mean.”

"Maybe," Mirage said, then paused and yawned, barely managing to cover her mouth. "Sorry, I didn't realize I was this tired."

“Until you have spent several days straight without sleep while avoiding a band of murderous bounty hunters, do not speak to me of ‘tired’.” Rarity let out a yawn, herself. “Still, the point is made. I do wish I’d unpacked my tent already.”

Mirage kept her face straight. "If you don't mind sharing, my tent is big enough for the two of us."

“That’s quite generous, thank you. Just make sure to keep your hands to yourself. I’ve had enough of grabby ponies today.”

A long, awkward pause. Well, awkward for Sunset. Rarity hardly seemed to notice how hot she’d suddenly become.

“That was supposed to be a joke.”

"Good one!" Mirage chuckled somewhat nervously, then her smile became more honest. "I wouldn't try anything anyway, I'm already spoken for."

“Good to know.” Rarity opened her mouth for another bite, but paused, seeming to realize her tone. “Oh, I mean, that’s wonderful to hear, dear. I didn’t mean to sound disinterested. Lots on my mind, you see.” Then, after taking that bite, she added, “No need to keep watch. My sweet Ophelia has learned to handle that role all on her own. She’s got quite sensitive hearing for a creature with no ears.”

Mirage shrugged. "Don't worry about it. It's way too late for that conversation anyway, and ponies in this world seem to get anxious when I mention my girlfriend. Anyway, come on, let's sleep. We have a long day tomorrow." Putting words into action, she transformed back into Sunset Shimmer – twitch went the Rarity – so that they'd have enough space in the tent, and crawled in.

Rarity, still only half finished with her meal, called, “I’ll see you in the morning, then. Goodnight, Miss Shimmer.”

"Good night, Rarity."

Rarity found it mildly awkward, having Sunset ride at the back of the saddle as she was. It was mostly because Sunset was bigger than her. Logic would dictate they should reverse places. But to let somepony else hold Ophelia’s reins when she was still in perfectly good condition to do so? One must not be absurd.

“This saddle is not designed for two ponies,” Sunset muttered.

“My apologies,” Rarity sincerely offered over her shoulder. “When we get to the next town we can purchase you your own lizard.”

“I can fly.”

“We already discussed why that wasn’t feasible, I do believe. Come now, Sunset, no need to be stubborn.”

Sunset shuckled. “You’re one to talk.”

Rarity saw no need to respond to that. The uncomfortable saddle digging into the mare’s flanks would do the job well enough.

Things were quiet for a little while after. Sunset was leaning backwards, had been for much of the ride. It was almost as though she were wary of touching Rarity too much, though she couldn’t fathom why.

“Wish I’d come in winter,” Sunset noted sourly.

Rarity quirked an eyebrow, as was appropriate for quirky statements. “I’m not sure what this ‘winter’ is.”

“You don’t have winter here?” Sunset made it sound like a terrible concept. “You know. Winter. When it gets cold. When there’s snow. When the days grow shorter?”

Snow? Rarity had heard of it. Supposedly it was frozen water that fell from the sky. They said it was quite common in the far north. She shrugged and replied, “I’ve never experienced what might be deemed ‘cold’. As for the ‘shorter days’ thing, that sounds like a season. We call that period the Warm Season, since it’s not… you know, the Burning Season. We’re in the Rising Heat season now, so it’s only going to get hotter in the next few weeks.”

“It gets hotter?” Sunset groaned. “I don’t want to stay here any longer than I have to. But if it’s so hot, why isn’t it all, y’know, desert?”

If there was any sure sign that this Sunset was not from this world, there it was. “Most of it is. Consider yourself lucky you arrived in the Eastline, which is relatively cooler than most of Equestria.”

Sunset dragged a hand down her face. "This is just… insufferable. Maybe I'll just start casting snowstorms along our way." She glanced up, glaring at the sun. "I think I can still do that. I could do it back when I was a filly." She sighed. "Although considering we're riding a lizard, that might not be a great idea."

Rarity shrugged noncommittal. “You’ll get used to it, I’m sure. Although I must admit that experiencing a colder world might be… nice.” After a moment’s consideration, she added, “If you really want to end it, find the princesses. I think everypony in Equestria would consider you a hero. Not that you’d have any chance.”

"They're gone?" Sunset asked.

Right. Not from this world. Rarity wondered just how detailed she should get. Then again, they had plenty of time on their hands. Manehattan was still a couple weeks away at best. “Indeed, yes. Celestia got… Well, it’s not really clear. The Church claims that Discord teleported her without a destination in mind, so theoretically she could be anywhere. Wherever she is, it’s too far away to maintain the sun, so Luna tried to take it over before it could fall and turn the world into one giant fireball.”

"Wait, Discord did that? This place doesn't seem to be… well, magically versed enough for that kind of thing. How did he manage that? Didn't Celestia and Luna have the Elements of Harmony to stop him? No Fluttershy to keep him in place?"

Rarity wasn’t sure what she meant by ‘magically versed’, and decided not to press the topic. “Don’t ask me for details, this all happened a thousand years ago. As for the Elements of Harmony, they did make an attempt to use them. The first time they went, Discord teleported the sisters away and to separate places before they could. Celestia made it back first, and that’s when Discord sent her away from the world. Luna got there, realized what he did, and promptly tried to use the Elements all on her own. Since Discord didn’t believe she could, he let her have a go at it. It didn’t work out well for him.”

Sunset grimaced. "How bad? Is he trapped in stone? Or… did he die?"

With a shrug, Rarity replied, “If you believe the Church, which most ponies do, then he was sealed in stone and then buried in Tartarus for good measure. I’m not even sure Tartarus is a real place though, seeing as I’ve traveled the length and breadth of the continent and not seen any evidence it does.” She cast a glance towards the sun. “Afterwards, Princess Luna found it too difficult to control the sun and moon and run a government at the same time. She was giving it everything she had just to keep the sun from getting any closer. So she gave up her role as ruler and fled from public life, fearing what might transpire should something happen to her before her sister found a way back to Equestria. Neither of them have been seen since.”

"Well, there goes having tea with Discord again." Sunset sighed, glancing up at the sky and tilting her hat for some shade. "Figures things would get pretty bad if he did something so dumb. As for Tartarus… well, I guess it's better if you don't find out." She grinned. "That way, when you curse someone to Tartarus, you can rest easy in the illusion that it's made up and they're not truly suffering a fate worse than death."

A fate worse than death? Ponies in Sunset’s world must have a dark impression of what Tartarus was. Rarity had never delved on the subject, though the Church probably had described it at some point. “Yes, well, it’s all ancient history. Nopony speaks of the idea of the princesses coming back with any expectation that they’ll actually do so. So unless you have some special way of locating them with all that fancy alicorn magic of yours, you’ll just have to deal with the heat.”

"Like this one?"

An object was brought forward in Sunset’s magic, prompting Rarity to pluck it out of the air. Her first thought was to question what the odd metallic device was – something thin with a clear surface like a window – but then she saw the image. It was some sort of pony, white, but not quite right anatomically. The mane was… strange, and her muzzle was covered in what appeared to be crumbs and maybe some icing. Rarity stared at the image for some time, trying to make heads or tails of it. “Is… Is that supposed to be Celestia?”

"That's definitely her. You can't see her mane waving and the rest of her because it's a picture, but we recorded her during the celebration of Luna's return. Put your finger straight on the surface, and flick right. Luna should be there as well. Just a warning: she hadn't had coffee."

Flick? Rarity wasn’t sure what Sunset meant, but after a few experimental tries she got the image to change. She found a dark blue alicorn with a starry mane who looked as though she were prepared to murder the first pony who so much as squeaked in her general direction. This was supposed to be Princess Luna?

Rarity considered the image, switching between the two again and again. How should she feel about this? The little pony was hyperventilating at the very idea that the princesses were out there and readily meetable. On the other, these weren’t her princesses. They were… different. Anatomically. They couldn’t be her princesses. In which case… She offered the strange metal device back. “I strongly advise against showing that to ponies you don’t know. It’s liable to get you in a lot of trouble.”

"Heh, I know. But then again, I'm an alicorn. What are they going to say, that I'm not… divine?"

Pursing her lips, Rarity muttered, “You don’t have much respect for religion or culture, do you?”

Sunset’s voice grew quiet. “I’m overstepping, aren’t I?”

“You haven’t insulted me yet, but you are making things clear,” Rarity replied with grim firmness. “Your world must be so very pleasant. It’s not hot year-round. You can talk to the princesses whenever you want. Your supplies can be conjured out of thin air. Your meals practically make themselves. When you shoot somepony, it’s considered sport.” She grew a little more tense with every sentence.

“But in this world, it is always hot. There are no princesses to pose for pictures. Supplies have to be laboriously managed for space and weight. Food has to be carefully considered and cared for to ensure it doesn’t spoil over the course of a journey. When we shoot somepony, they die.” Then, with a final bit of bitterness, “And when you go galavanting around making light of the fact that you’re an alicorn in a place where they’re considered sacred, you risk a continent-wide social wildfire that might cost untold lives.

“You don’t intend to be here for very long, Sunset, but this is my home, and here there are consequences to your actions. I would appreciate it if you treated that fact with the seriousness it warrants.”

Sunset sighed. "I know, I'm sorry." She paused, seeming to organize her thoughts. "I'm nervous. And… a little scared. I'm not trying to make light of the situation, or mock your world or you, but I don't really know what I'm doing. Even when I left home so long ago and I was alone in a different world with nopony I knew to help me, I wasn't… I didn't have anything to lose. Or at least I thought that."

She let out a sigh. "I feel like I'm about to burst. That if I don't do something to keep myself together, I'll snap. I'm holding all of this power within me, and I have seen what I can do if I let loose and that… I could level a city. I could kill countless innocents if I let this get to my head. I love magic but I'm terrified of what I have done in the past with it, and what I could do in the future."

She gulped, looking down away. "I'm sorry if it's childish, and I promise I would never do that around ponies I don't know or trust. It's just… I'm not Isekai Sunset. I don't have thousands of years of knowledge and patience. And I feel like everything here is something I'll break unless I'm very careful."

Rarity’s ears folded back against her hat as she considered the mare’s tone. She certainly didn’t feel guilty for setting Sunset straight, but she did have to consider where she was coming from. She’d never thought about what the power an alicorn possessed might mean for a pony who seemed as normal as Sunset did. “Well, I can appreciate the desire for brevity to lighten the load. All I ask is that you keep your audience in mind in the future. It sounds like you know as well as I do how bad things can get just from a little tomfoolery.” She smiled as a thought struck her. “For what it’s worth, I was not intimidated when we… ‘met’.”

"Well, you're made of sterner stuff than others," Sunset responded with a smirk. "I can respect that."

Rarity scoffed, placing a hand to her collarbone in mock offense. “I should hope so! One would think facing off against an alicorn who just shot down an airship would earn a pony some respect at the very least.”

"Just let me know if crashing the moon on the camp of this Neighsay is enough to intimidate you when it happens." Sunset said, raising her arm and patting her biceps. "I might not be able to move them around the sky, but crashing them? Easy!"

Rarity chuckled at the very thought. “I’d ask you to prove it, but I have friends in Manehattan who might not approve of having the moon smashing their neighborhoods. We’ll have to go at Neighsay the old fashioned way, I’m afraid.”

"I have explosives."

“I was thinking more along the lines of bullets, but explosives can work, I suppose. Just make sure there’s enough of him left to answer questions afterwards.”

"Spoilsport."

Night two of their journey together, and Rarity was just finishing up the last touches of getting a tent up. Sunset had offered to use her big one again, but Rarity feared the idea of getting spoiled on such luxuries. She knew herself well enough not to take the risk.

As Sunset set her own hammer down, she wiped the sweat from her brow and examined the tent. “It’s, uh, smaller than mine.”

“I have others,” Rarity noted, already headed for Ophelia. She gave the lizard a pleasant muzzle-rub before approaching the panniers. “Or you can just use your own. There’s no reason not to.”

"Nah," Sunset said, "It's good practice. The less I pull out crazy stuff now, the less chance I do it later on again."

Nodding, Rarity opened one of the smaller bags and pulled out her chronometer, sextant, and map book. “I’ll let you get to that, then, while I mark our place.”

"Hold on!" Sunset said, abandoning her tent for the moment as she approached. "I haven't seen anypony use a sextant and a map together in years, mind if I watch?"

That wasn’t at all the response Rarity expected. She looked down at her map, then at Sunset. “I don’t see why not. Come, let’s get it done before the sun falls below the horizon.”

Sunset eagerly came over. "Thanks! I was a filly the last time I used one of these. I kinda miss it." She leaned over, obviously trying not to get in the way. "Wow. You've… really been all over the place. Where did you even start?"

Peering along the tool at the horizon, Rarity asked, “Do you mean when I started tracking my progress, or when I started traveling?” She set the sextant aside to make a note of her findings. “I suppose the story is the same either way. I left my hometown to become a clothier, only to lose everything in a bandit attack and get stuck in a small town called Spurhoof. After living there for many years, a certain group of blackhearts decided to target my assistant and myself. I retaliated, which put a bounty on my head. Been wandering ever since.” She took a moment to glance at the map and point out the tiny dot that was Spurhoof. “There. That’s the little place I made my home before things truly went crazy for me.” The sextant was back in her hands a moment later.

Sunset nodded along as she listened, her eyes eagerly studying the map. "Who knew such a small place would be the starting point of a legend?"

Rarity felt her eyelid twitch and did her level best to ignore the traitorous thing. “I’m not that big a deal.”

"Says the mare that, I quote, 'was not intimidated' by an alicorn destroying an airship."

Rarity sighed and jotted down her findings. “True enough. And to think, all I ever wanted to do was make clothes for appreciative ponies. Had that idiot horndog not shown up and tried to… Well. My life would have been much simpler had that little disaster not transpired.”

"Maybe," Sunset agreed, getting up to work on her tent. "And I guess if I hadn't left Celestia I would have grown up in a palace. But I wouldn't be a better person, and I'm willing to bet this world would be having a harder time without the Bulletproof Heart here."

Rarity flicked her mane and forced a smile. “Really, Sunset. I appreciate it when a pony tries to assist in my ego, really I do, but I can hardly boast to have changed the world. I’m on the run and every once in a while I help ponies who I feel need it. And maybe put down a pony or two. Or more…” This conversation was going bad places so very quickly. She grabbed her pencil and notebook and began doing the math. “I’m not that special. Special ponies don’t do the things I’ve done. But I promised to Papa’s grave not to dwell on such things, so I’d appreciate a change in topic.”

"Alright, it's getting late, but let me just tell you what someone very wise once said. He said: 'Some believe it is great power that can hold evil in check. But that is not what I have found. I have found that it is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love.'" She shrugged. "Maybe what little you do helps. Just a thought."

Rarity stared at the numbers, not really registering them. Her mind was casting back to dark days, days of fury and bloodshed and just wanting to make ponies hurt. She took a slow, shuddering breath. “It will take a great many acts of kindness and love to earn forgiveness for some ponies' sins. I am trying. But I don’t expect those scales to be balanced any time soon.” Her eyes closed. She took a deep breath. Then, with the aid of her little pony, she swept all those terrible images into a broom closet and shut the door. Not a slam, but certainly firmly. When her eyes opened again, she was able to focus on her work properly once more. “Let me finish this, and then we’ll set up your tent.”

"Nah, I got it. I think… Okay, I'll wait."

The second week of travel, roughly halfway to Manehattan, saw rain. To Sunset, this was not a big surprise, although she was glad that it started when she was already sleeping in her tent. What did shock her was when she took a look outside to find Rarity Belle, Miss Primadonna herself, entirely nude and giving Ophelia a bath, complete with soap.

“What are you doing?” she cried, only to duck right back into the tent with cheeks burning before the mare could turn to face her.

“Ah, good morning, Sunset,” Rarity answered, her voice slightly muffled by the tent fabric between them. “I recommend you come out and join me. Baths are hard to come by on the road, and I for one am tired of smelling like a corpse.”

“You smell fine,” Sunset shouted back, still not daring to look out the tent lest she once again see things that might make her second-guess her commitment to her marefriend. “What if somebody sees you?”

Rarity responded with an indignant scoff. “I’ve come to learn that the moment your nose stops detecting the rank is the moment you’ve been about a week too long without soap. We’re not near any of the usual trade routes. The odds of anypony seeing me like this are practically zero.”

Sunset’s mind was in a bit of a tizzy, as Fluttershy might have put it. Just the thought of Rarity – Rarity – being willing to go nude in an open, public space was enough to send her mind reeling. A particularly naughty part of her considered grabbing her phone for a quick and not-so-innocent photo. She tried to ignore the heat in her cheeks. “I think I’ll wait for Manehattan, if it’s alright by you.”

“Honestly, darling, I don’t know what you’re all upset about. It’s not like neither of us have seen a naked mare before.”

Sunset barely stopped herself from pointing out that seeing hot mares changed the equation drastically. The image of that perfect derriere, partially covered by a wet tail, left her cringing. When she got back to her own world, she was going to spend a whole weekend doing nothing but hanging onto Luna, which might be enough to shake the image away.

Rarity called once more. “You could at least give me your clothes for washing.”

Now she was asking Sunset to strip? Okay, so suggesting a ‘bath’ in the rain amounted to the same thing, but somehow this felt even worse. Sunset half feared the heat radiating off her cheeks would catch the tent on fire. “I’m fine.”

“You hardly sound fine. Are you worried I’ll judge your body?”

Sunset chuckled, a weak thing born of anxiety alone. “No, it’s definitely not that.” It wasn’t as though she could compare in the first place, no matter how much Luna tried to flatter her.

“I suppose even for an immortal alicorn, my radiance is just too much to gaze upon.”

“I’m not immortal!” A beat later, the exact nature of Rarity’s taunt hit her, and a real, proper laugh escaped her this time. “Now that’s more like the Rarity I know.”

Things went quiet for a while, save for the steady beating of the rain on the canvas over her head. Occasionally Rarity would coo to Ophelia, the sounds reminding her of how the Rarity she knew sometimes got all sweet on Opalescence. It made her wonder where Opal was in this world. It also made her miss her own Rarity a little.

When Rarity spoke again, it sounded like she was just outside the tent. “Am I really so different from the Rarity you know?”

What was with that tone? Glancing in the direction the voice had come from, she said, “My Rarity would never walk around in the nude. But then, my Rarity’s also never shown even the faintest interest in firing a gun.”

“Does she make clothes?”

The query came quickly. Too quickly to be mere idle conversation. Sunset sat close to the edge of the tent, staring towards where she thought the mare might be. “Dresses. She’s a fashion designer. Or at least, she wants to be. I’d say she’s well on her way; her designs are amazing.” A time passed without any response, prompting her to add an uncertain, “Rarity?”

“My apologies,” Rarity replied, quiet and subdued. “I’m merely reflecting on what could have been. A passing fancy, as it were.”

Biting her lip, wondering if she shouldn’t hold back, Sunset eventually ground out the nerve necessary. “I, uh, was wondering. About you and clothes. I know you made the other me, the one at the Isekai, an outfit. It looked amazing. But… You don’t do that anymore, do you?”

Rarity’s sigh was just audible through the fabric. Sunset had an image in her head of the mare sitting on a rock just beyond the tent. “I tried. Fate had other plans. But I must admit, if I thought I could go back to that, I would.”

Sunset cocked her head curiously. “So why don’t you?”

“Because if I stop moving, or even slow down, ponies will find me. Before it was because of a bounty on my head. Today it is because I’m the Bulletproof Heart. Being famous has perks, but it also has downsides, and one of those downsides is the many ponies who seek to kill you just for the recognition.”

To a certain degree, Sunset understood. When she played Gun Gale Online, people noticed, and challenges weren’t uncommon. But Gun Gale Online was a game. Even if the consequences were serious for Sunset, they weren’t for everyone else. Rarity didn’t even have that luxury. Upon realizing that, the comforting words died on Sunset’s lips. How could she even try to relate?

“You mentioned Fluttershy before.”

Caught off guard by the abrupt change in topic, Sunset offered an uncertain, “Yeah?”

“Is she happy?”

Where did this come from? “Yeah, I suppose so. I haven’t talked to her in a little while, but she seemed fine last time I did.”

Rarity’s tone was tense, dripping with concern. “Does she have friends?”

To that Sunset couldn’t help but smile. “You mean aside from all the animals? Yeah. She’s got friends. Good friends.”

“Good.” Sunset could feel the regret in Rarity’s voice like a physical blow. “That’s very good.”

“Rarity?”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to wash your clothes?” The attempt at a cheerful tone utterly failed to mask the strain hidden beneath. “If you insist, you can stay in the tent for the duration.”

Somehow, Sunset knew she’d never get the mare to open up about whatever that had been about.

In one week, they would be in Manehattan. For Rarity, this meant little. She was long accustomed to spending weeks on Ophelia’s back, days stretching on while absolutely nothing of interest happened. This was her life now.

Sunset, on the other hand, had become gradually more restless as the days melted together. Today she was flying amongst the scattered cloud cover, leaving her bright yellow Dust Devil, Ray Jr., to be led by Ophelia. Rarity couldn’t blame her. It was something different, and she claimed to not normally have wings in her own world. Rarity wasn’t even going to try to guess as to how that made sense.

So accustomed was she to Sunset’s growing anxiety that she paid the sound of approaching wingbeats no mind. She turned just in time to see the mare land hard in Ray Jr.’s saddle, grunting with eyes popping wide open and hands clenching. Repressing a wince, Rarity offered a sympathetic, “Still haven’t quite figured out the landing?”

After a couple sharp hisses through her teeth and some careful repositioning, Sunset took hold of the reins while Rarity untied Ray Jr. from Ophelia’s saddle. “At least I managed to stay on this time.”

True, she was definitely getting better at it. She’d been practicing for the past three days. Rarity could only encourage her; rapidly getting in and out of the saddle was a valuable skill even without the wings. “Will you be trying again?”

“Not today,” the mare grunted, using the stirrups to stiffly stand above the saddle. “Give my thighs some time to recover. That last one really stung.”

Things grew quiet, and Rarity was intent to leave things that way. She was so used to long, quiet journeys and she wasn’t sure what to talk about anyway. Even so, she kept casting glances at Sunset – or Mirage, she supposed – who was now riding alongside her. The armored mare was simply horrendous when it came to hiding her emotions. She kept drifting through repeated stages of melancholy, worry, frustration, and fear. There was no need to press yet. They had a week. Hopefully Mirage would open up about whatever had been tormenting her thoughts.

Rarity’s patience was rewarded when, just as the sun was hovering over the distant Eerie Cliffs in the west, Mirage spoke up. “Can I ask you a personal question?”

Not missing a beat, Rarity replied, “Of course, although I feel obligated to point out that you’ve already admitted to being in a relationship.”

Fire bloomed across her partner’s cheeks. “I-I wasn’t going to ask anything like that!”

“No?” Feigning hurt, Rarity pressed a hand to her necklace and gave her best pout. “Am I not pretty enough? Do you prefer dirty girls? Is that why you wouldn’t join me in the rain?”

The glow in her cheeks unabated, Sunset shot her a sour look. “You’re screwing with me.”

“Hmmph. You wish.” Then Rarity grinned and batted her eyelashes. “But yes, I am.”

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re evil?”

“Evil? Moi?” Rarity giggled at Sunset’s scowl. “Hasn’t anypony told you, dear? The Bulletproof Heart is the paragon of virtue.”

“And humble, too,” Sunset grumbled.

“Yes, that as well.” Deciding she’d had her fun, Rarity turned her attention forward once more. The grin wouldn’t go away, though. “Well, if you’re not hopelessly infatuated by my ravishing beauty – for which not a soul would blame you – what did you intend to ask me?”

It took the alicorn a moment to reply. Either she was trying to recover from Rarity’s impeccable wit or the attempt to make it easier for her via teasing had failed. Eventually, Sunset asked, “Have you killed many ponies?”

Closing her eyes brought visions. Memories. A stallion falling off his saddle in a splash of red. Braeburn sitting against a bloodstained wall. Sitting atop a struggling stallion and punching until her fist was raw. She didn’t shiver. Somehow. “More than I could possibly recount.”

Her eyes opened just in time to catch Sunset’s subdued nod. “And that’s just the way of things in this world. Right? No alternatives.”

“I am always open to alternatives,” Rarity admitted, watching her partner’s downcast expression carefully. “But I’ve learned that sometimes the only thing you can do is open fire before the other pony does.”

Another thoughtful nod. Sunset’s eyes met hers for just an instant, uncertain and wary. “What if they weren’t reaching for their gun? What if they weren’t going to shoot?”

To that Rarity could only shrug. “You’re asking for logical, careful consideration in a situation where a blink can be lethal. That’s not reasonable. If you feel a pony is going to attack, your first responsibility is to protect yourself.”

At last, the alicorn looked directly at Rarity, her expression pained. “You sound like you don’t care.”

Something cold ran through Rarity. She pursed her lips and looked down her muzzle at her accuser. “Were it up to me, not a single pony would die in their encounters with me, but in many situations the luxury of choice doesn’t exist. I don’t like killing, Sunset Shimmer, but I am not going to apologize for doing what is necessary to live.”

Sunset seemed to shrink on herself, hunched over in the saddle and unable to look at Rarity anymore. “S-sorry,” she muttered. “Forget I said anything.”

The feeble posture irked Rarity. It reminded her far too much of the Sunset she knew from Little Longhorn. Even so, she held her tongue for long enough to get her emotions under control. This wasn’t the same situation, and she would have to mind how she approached this if she wanted to be of any help. Once she felt a little more sure of herself, she carefully asked, “What brought this up?”

If anything, Sunset seemed even more anxious now. “I said forget it.”

“No.” Nudging Ophelia a little closer to Ray Jr., Rarity tried to mix firm and kind into her words. “In one week we’re supposed to enter a potentially dangerous situation. If you don’t want to go, we should establish that now.”

“I need that card back,” Sunset replied, a little of her usual confidence coming back at the assertion. “And I can’t let you face the chancellor alone.”

“And I can't let you go in there without being prepared.” Reaching out, Rarity placed a hand on her companion’s shoulder. “Was the airship crash the first time you killed anypony?”

Sunset recoiled as if Rarity’s hand were made of flame. “I told you, I didn’t intend for that to happen!”

Ah, so that was it. Rarity sighed and moved Ophelia a touch further away to give the mare some space. She thought back to another time more than a year ago, when she was lost in so many ways. More than anything, she recalled laying in a cramped tent, sobbing in the warm arms of a kindly mare who knew exactly what she needed when the nightmares became too much. Perhaps it was her turn to take on that role.

“Sunset,” she replied, putting as much seriousness and sincerity in her words as she could muster, “you need to face this.”

The alicorn’s hands tightened around the reins as she glared straight ahead. “It can wait until I’m home.”

Oh, how familiar that sounded. “Yes, I remember that attitude. I remembered telling myself I’d be fine for a while. I remember shoving the guilt and anger and frustration aside again and again, because I could always deal with it tomorrow, later, after the job was done.” Rarity leaned a little closer, but Sunset wouldn’t meet her gaze. “And you know how that ended?”

Sunset responded with a growl. “I get the feeling you’re going to tell me.”

Oh, no, she wasn’t going to play the childish one this time. Using her magic, Rarity grabbed the mare’s head and forcefully turned it to face her. Sunset was so surprised by the act that she didn’t even try to fight as Rarity thrust her face directly into hers. “It ended with three days and nights without sleep, actively hunting down and murdering ponies.”

The air was still as those wide, teal eyes gawked at her. Rarity didn’t let up in her glare, wanting to ensure the mare knew just how serious she was.

At last, Sunset blinked out of her stupor. “You’re exaggerating.” Yet the words were stiff, highlighting her doubt.

“It’s no exaggeration,” Rarity fired back, at last pulling Ophelia away. “All it took was one bad night and I went insane. Some ponies say my legend was born when I flew with griffons. Others when I helped a small town solve a mystery. The few in the know think it was when I defended my virginity that first night. But for me, personally, I believe that the Bulletproof Heart’s true legacy began the night she snapped and went on a killing spree outside of Hoofington. That was when Equestria learned how dangerous I can be when at my wits’ end.” She held her fist before her face, so tight it stung. “I killed one stallion with my bare hands. It wasn’t quick. It wasn’t simple. I was desperate, I was furious, and I wanted to lash out. To hurt the world in the same way it had hurt me.”

The fist gradually lowered. She stared at Ophelia’s frills, folded back as though the lizard could sense her rider’s mood, and began to rub the necklace beneath her shirt. “I still have nightmares about that pony. Sometimes.” Whether she meant Tom Tom or that vengeful, violent version of herself, she couldn’t say for sure.

Everything was quiet for a while. Eventually, Rarity realized that they’d stopped moving. Sucking in a slow breath, she urged Ophelia on. Sunset didn’t follow at first. Rarity couldn’t blame her. But now that she knew the story, perhaps…

Ray Jr. appeared at Ophelia’s side yet again. “I wouldn’t do that,” Sunset declared, though the statement lacked conviction.

With a sigh, Rarity replied, “Everypony thinks they’re a saint until they realize they’re a devil.”

That one made Sunset wince, her face contorting in shame. For whatever reason, Rarity had hit a mark. “You’re not a devil.”

“I was. Once.” Glancing out the corner of her eye, Rarity finished up with, “You will be too, if you don’t figure this out. I know how painful it is when you first kill somepony. Facing it is… difficult. Take it from a mare who has made the worst decisions already; if you can’t find a way to make peace with the act, you probably should stop doing it.”

Sunset pointedly asked, “And have you made peace with it?”

“Yes.” Then, as an afterthought, “Or as much as a pony can, I suppose.”

To this, Sunset offered no answer. Rarity was willing to let the alicorn brood on the topic for a while.

She’d be there for her when the time came.

Author's Note

More than any other chapter, I think this one best represents the differences between WD's and my own approaches. I was very insistent that we have a chapter in which Mirage and Rarity could get to know one another better, and I also didn't want to skip the entire journey from the airship crash to Manehattan. All of the scenes in this chapter were us writing our own character's dialogue, and thus it was also something of a dialogue between ourselves.

For example, Rarity chastising Mirage for being so flippant about Celestia and Luna. That was a great moment to showcase the very different aspects of our characters and our styles of writing for them, plus our different perspectives on how to treat this story as a whole. Neither of us stopped having fun with it, but it was still a lesson in compromise.

This chapter is probably the most "Bulletproof Heart" of the lot.

Another Day, Another Airship

“I can’t believe he agreed to this.”

Rarity was paler than usual, though her face otherwise betrayed nothing about her growing anxiety. “I can’t believe I’m going to get on another one of these things.”

They were leading Ophelia and Ray Jr. into a hangar bay on the edge of Manehattan, wherein there hovered four small airships. They were sleek things, designed for speed and maneuverability. ‘Produce Runners’, the chancellor had called them, apparently owned and operated by some Manehattan agricultural family for the purpose of delivering fruits and vegetables to far off places swiftly. Highly specialized and only intended to be used by the uber-wealthy, but Neighsay was a pony who could pull strings.

Rarity hadn’t asked for these specifically, only for something that could catch up with Autumn’s ship. Mirage was pretty sure the only reason he agreed so readily and gave them one of these was so as to get them out of his house and city as quickly as equinely possible.

The idea of flying ahead had come to mind, but she didn’t bother to voice the idea. She might be an alicorn, but she was new to Sunburnt Equestria. What good was speed when you didn’t know where you were going?

They approached the nearest airship, which bore the name Highwind in gold lettering across its wooden bow. The ship couldn’t have been more than forty-five feet in length and perhaps fifteen in width. It was held a dozen feet above the dirt by an envelope that was at least a third longer than the ship itself. A pair of ‘wings’ held two propellers each to a side. The wood on the hull was painted an unflattering pale green. A rope ladder was already extended to the ground on the ship’s side, but there was also a rear cargo hatch that was opened to a ramp in the back of the hangar.

By unspoken consensus, they made for the cargo hatch. The space there was wide enough for their two lizards to stand side by side with room for their riders beside them. It had to have been twenty feet long, which meant there couldn’t be a lot of room for pony habitation in the front half of the ship. Mirage wondered how cramped things would be in there.

Sitting at the front of the cargo deck on a large bag was an earth pony with a coat so dark red it was almost black and a mane and tail that was a much lighter shade. She was adorned in sleeveless blue overalls and a black shirt, and stood promptly when the two mares approached. “Ladies,” the mare said in the kind of gruff tone that reminded Mirage of Applejack on a bad day. She even had the accent. “Y’all must be the special guests what shoehorned us into this venture.” Scratch that, her accent was actually a little stronger than AJ’s.

“Rarity Belle and Sunset Shimmer.” Rarity pulled some papers from Ophelia’s pack and set them in the mare’s expectant hand. “I believe you’ll find everything in order.”

The mare studied the paper for all of three seconds before shrugging and tossing them aside. “Seems legit. Name’s Bosun Berry, boatswain. Captain’s up top getting things ready. Should be almost done by now.” She shook Rarity’s hand and, judging by how tense the unicorn’s face grew, had an iron grip. “It’ll just be the four of us. We usually have a crew of four, but you got us on short notice and two of our boys are astray. Young stallions, a week’s shore leave, just got paid. Luna knows where they are.”

She went to shake Mirage’s hand, and yeah, she had an strong grip. Luckily, in this world she could match it. Something flashed across Bosun Berry’s eyes – respect, perhaps – as they released the shake, and Mirage couldn’t help feeling a measure of pride.

“We’re eager to get going,” she said, then gestured behind her with her thumb. “Just need to get these two situated.”

Eyeing Ophelia and Ray Jr., Bosun Berry said, “This boat’s meant to haul produce, not lizards. Ain’t got any stables. Still, I betcha we can make do. Y’all head upstairs now, I’ll see to our scaly cargo.”

Ophelia shuffled from claw to claw and let out a quiet trill, prompting Rarity to rub at her scales and give her a nuzzle on the cheek. “I know, sweetie, I don’t like it either. I promise, it won’t be like last time.” The big lizard made a rumbling noise that sounded almost like a purr and rested her head on Rarity’s shoulder.

Mirage watched the scene with casual amusement. She tried to imagine her own Rarity cooing over a giant lizard like that. The idea was… entertaining. That said, she somewhat envied the bond between those two. It was no wonder the mare had been so determined to rescue her before. She cast a look at Ray Jr., who returned the look with a bored expression. “You good?”

He continued to stare as if to say ‘Don’t coddle me.’ then, with a heavy thump, dropped to his belly and began cleaning his frills with a lone claw.

“Fair enough.” Grinning, Mirage made for the door at the front of the hold. “I’m going to go talk to the captain.”

Not looking back, Rarity waved her off. “Yes, you do that. I’m going to stay with Ophelia and make sure we’re— She’s going to be alright during liftoff.”

That. That right there. That’s what made Mirage just a little jealous. Rarity could take comfort in Ophelia and vice versa. She wondered how long they’d been riding together. Mirage was tempted to try and call Twilight again, but she knew by now that it was a useless endeavor. What she wouldn’t give for just a taste of home right now…

Pushing such depressing thoughts away, she pressed on into the ship’s interior. There was a cramped hallway that she barely fit in, with sliding doors on either side. All were open, and revealed living quarters. Surprisingly, each room was designed for only one occupant, although it was every bit as small as she’d expected; a bunk set high over a work desk, both beside a locker, a narrow bookshelf over a viewing port, and a bare wall opposite the bed and desk. Mirage had seen closets with more space, but at least there was the illusion of privacy. Also, she was now glad that the other two crewmembers weren’t joining them.

At the end of the hallway was a larger room that was clearly intended as a kitchen and common area, with one corner taken up by a closet-like space that a sign told her was the restroom. Going by its small size, Mirage seriously questioned if a pegasus’s wings would fit in there, much less her own. She couldn’t help wondering if she’d have to fly to the ground or a nearby cloud to do her business on this trip. Then again, her mortal form probably would be fine. Maybe she should sleep like that tonight.

Poor Rarity. Not a single shower or bathtub to be seen.

A set of stairs so steep they might as well be a ladder led to the deck, coming out at the fore right beside a small cabin. Mirage stepped aside to peer through the door and found an earth pony in what she could best think of as a brown navy uniform. His coat was a yellow that reminded her a lot of Fluttershy. He looked up from the console he’d been staring at and, upon seeing her, flashed a smile that was missing a tooth. “Ah, you must be my passengers. Welcome aboard the Highwind. Captain Birchleaf Pear, at your service.” He wasted no time shaking Mirage’s hand, all smiles and bubbly energy.

She couldn’t help but return the expression. “Sunset Shimmer, or Mirage if you prefer. Sorry for interrupting your shoreleave.”

“Bah! Shoreleave. Who needs shoreleave? Madame, I live for this job.” He brushed his wavy red bangs from his face and gestured for her to join him in the cabin. “Where would I be on shoreleave? Back at home with those pompous seed counters at the Pear Estate. Nothing but ‘crop yields’ this and ‘annual surplus’ that and a bunch of rot about beating the Apples again this year. Bunch of phooey. This—” he slapped the hard wood of the ship’s wheel “–is where I belong.”

Mirage was outright grinning by now. She was going to enjoy this guy’s company, she could already tell. “You must be the life of the family reunions.” She settled on the stool he gestured to, careful to keep her wings from hitting any of the instruments.

“Eh, they put up with me,” he said, running his hand lovingly along the wheel. His expression turned soft, perhaps even adoring. Mirage was hard pressed to guess whether it was intended for his family or the ship. “I ain’t the farming type, but they love me anyway. Mostly because I’m the one they trust most to haul their urgent cargo wherever they need it at a moment’s notice.” He looked towards the door as if expecting something. “Wasn’t there meant to be two of you?”

“Rarity’s in the hold with the dust devils,” Sunset explained. “The last airship she flew on came to a, er... abrupt landing. And fiery. Very aggressive, if you get my drift.” She awkwardly avoided mentioning exactly why that was the case. “She wanted to make sure her lizard stayed calm on liftoff.”

“Fair enough.” Captain Birchleaf perked up, ears and all. “What are we waiting around for? We got the food to last us a week’s worth of travel, and Bosun’s a fine ship’s cook.”

“I thought she was the boatswain?”

He laughed and reached for a blue gem embedded in the console by the wheel. “Miss Shimmer, we’re a crew of four. We all got to learn to be multi-talented.” He pressing two fingers to the gem, which shifted to a green color. “Bosun. You got things secure down there?”

A moment later Bosun’s voice rose from the gem itself, a slight echo making her a little hard for Mirage to understand. “Ready as we’ll ever be. We can cast off at any time.”

“Then tell our passenger down there to get ready, because I’m starting the engines.” Captain Birchleaf flicked a few switches and touched the gem again. “Chuck Wagon, this is Highwind. We’re launching. Guide us out.”

“Yes, sir. Starspeed, Highwind.”

“You ever fly an airship, missy?” The captain set one hand on the wheel and another on a lever to his right. Out ahead of the ship walked a pegasus carrying a pair of triangular flags.

“First time ever being on one,” she admitted, hoping he wasn’t about to suggest what she thought he was.

“That’s fine, that’s fine.” He pointed to the console she was sitting at. “See those two gauges side by side, in the same window? Got red meters.”

Yep, it was going where she feared. But then, they were down two crewmen. She examined the console, quickly finding what she thought he was talking about. “Does it read ‘free space’ on bottom?”

“That’s the one.” He pushed the lever forward lightly and the four propellers hummed to life. They were loud, but not near as much as she had expected. With a light rocking motion, the airship moved forward. “Just keep an eye on them. If either one falls below fifteen, let me know which one.”

The pegasus out front began waving their flags, gradually guiding the Highwind out of the hangar. Mirage did as instructed and kept watch, soon realizing that the two gauges were intended to let them know if they were getting too close to something on either side. She didn’t have to say a word, save to reassure the captain they were fine whenever he asked, and soon they were out in the open. The glaring sunlight was less so in the cabin, the windows tinted to block the worst of its rays.

The communication gem flashed green. “Chuck Wagon to Highwind, you’re in the clear for altitude. Make heading one-sixty until clear of the city, then you’re on your way.”

A quick press of the gem. “Highwind confirms. Until next time, Chuck Wagon.”

Mirage eyeballed the gem. “Is that his actual name or just a callsign?”

He shrugged. “Actual name.” He fiddled with a knob on the side of the lever he was using to determine velocity, and the airship began to ascend. “It’ll take about twenty minutes for us to clear the city airspace, then we’re off. Which reminds me: where exactly are we taking this dingy?”

Mirage blinked at the query. Shouldn’t he already know that? What kind of pilot lifts off without a destination in mind? Maybe this was a matter of ‘different world, different rules’. That or this whole ride was so last minute that there had been no time. Shaking off her uncertainty, she answered, “Rarity would know the details better than me, but she did give me a name.

“Does ‘Little Longhorn’ mean anything to you?”

Mirage lay on her back, watching the sky and few clouds above pass by as the Highwind made its way to Little Longhorn. She felt the air on her mane, ruffling around her horn.

She wasn't technically supposed to be on the roof of the cabin. There were no handrails, no security fences to keep people safe in case of an accident up there, unlike at the deck level. But she wasn't too worried. When she had been transported to this world, just like crossing the magical mirror, she had emerged as an alicorn, making her even stronger, more resilient, more powerful.

"And more of an idiot," she muttered, feeling a cold grip in her heart. She sighed, her thoughts shying away from the issue at hand until she forced herself to admit that she was scared. Not of this world, but of herself.

Playing a video game, people seldom got hurt. Unless there were some extreme circumstances. Like some megalomaniac frying the player's brains with microwaves, or a twisted genius using her as a battery for his own mad schemes, or idiots like her who could physically become part of certain worlds. But, outside of crazy stuff like that, a stray bullet or grenade fragments were nothing to worry about.

Entire raids could take place with fire, explosions, blunt force trauma, and other kinds of body harm and everyone else would shake it off. Either a quick infusion of healing items or, worst case, respawning in perfect condition back in Glocken. Before here, the only one she really needed to worry about was herself, as the one person in there that could really get killed (and sort of had been, once).

But the latest encounter had shoved in her face just how frail people… ponies… were here. Rarity was the toughest cookie she had ever met, so good at all of this that Mirage had been tempted more than once to ask for her RL contact before reminding herself that this was not a game. And yet, it was obvious now that hadn't really taken in as she had hoped.

Tempest had been the type of personality that brought back her gamer instincts. Brash, fearless, kind of oblivious, and wanting to test her strength against an obviously superior opponent. It was the kind of gamer she'd always have fun fighting. At that moment – with things having gone so well so far – she had dropped her already questionable guard and embraced the chaos, never giving a second thought of how she was putting Rarity in danger by doing so.

Of course she had felt the shots, and of course she had been aware that she herself could've died. But she was used to worrying only about herself. She had, for a solid moment, forgotten that Rarity was relying on her. She hadn't tossed the grenades, but provoking Tempest had carried with it all the weight of provoking a n00b into messing up in her mind.

The mental image of Rarity in such a sorry state made her wince and close her eyes.

It was her fault. There was no misplaced blame there. She had been baited, and willingly taken the bait because she had wanted to let loose and fuck the consequences. And then the consequences had been more than she had been expecting to deal with. Her loss of control and almost brutal murder of Tempest as a result was a reminder that she was out of place here, and that she could cause much more damage than she had even been aware of.

What really struck her was the… savagery of her actions. The guilt-fueled transformation into a murder machine.

If Rarity had died because of her actions, who would have stopped her from ripping apart the entire estate to hunt down the chancellor? Who would have stopped her from sowing through the police like a grim reaper after his grim harvest? Each unknown face attacking her would have just pushed her more and more and more into a frenzy. It hadn't been calculated at all. She had no control. She had allowed the magic to blaze through her, the exact thing she had been terrified of happening in her world outside of the game.

She took a deep breath. "We're finding a way for me to go home. It'll be alright. I'll talk to Isekai and she'll… she'll know what to do."

Sure, Sunset. Make it another mare's problem.

The truth was that she couldn't trust herself here. Not really. A single mistake now could doom Rarity and anyone else around her. It was like being stuck back in that short period of time between Gun Gale and Canterlot High where she couldn't trust her magic to not burst out and corrupt her.

She ran her hands down her face and then just let her arms fall, extended, to her sides as she returned to staring at the sky as if it held the answers. "I can't risk it. I can't."

She'd have to second-guess all of her decisions now. But that was better than losing Rarity.

“You look like your best friend just died.”

Mirage stiffened for a second before realizing that the voice belonged to Rarity. She tried to relax her posture a bit before sitting up and turning to the voice. The mare in question looked up at her from near the ship’s cabin. Very near, her back pressed to the wall and one hand on a rail. Though she was trying to make it look like a casual wall-lean, the way her widened eyes kept shifting over to the rail-less edge of the ship was a dead giveaway.

Mirage eyed the clearly fearful mare from her spot atop the cabin. “What are you doing up here?”

Rarity’s smile was strained. “Bosun suggested I, um, ‘get some air’.”

With a slight smile, Mirage asked, “You got enough yet?”

“Yes. Yes, I think I have.” Without another word, the gunslinger moved back below decks. By the way she moved, she couldn’t get there fast enough. It seemed even the great Bulletproof Heart had things she wasn’t prepared to face.

Mirage chuckled even as she felt guilty. She had wings. She’d be fine. Come to think of it, none of the rest of the crew did. She supposed they were just used to it.

You look like your best friend just died.

Was that how she looked? It must have been a pitiable appearance for the tactful Rarity to say so despite being up here. She’d probably wanted to talk about it. Which meant that if she went down that stair… ladder… thing the mare would likely be waiting for her. No, she’d definitely be there, hoping to be a friend to her. Mirage wasn’t sure she wanted or needed a friend right now. Then again, avoiding Rarity would make things look worse. And if she was half as stubborn as the other Rarities she knew, there’d be no escaping her. Especially on a ship this small.

To talk or not to talk? That was the question.

She almost flew off. The option was staring her in the face. Just flap her wings and go for a fly, keeping just far enough away she couldn’t see or hear anypony on the Highwind. Come back at night when everypony was asleep. Such a tempting thought. Such a cowardly one, too. And really, did she expect it to work against Rarity? So, heaving a sigh, she climbed down the ladder and into the ship’s mess.

Rarity was at the small table carefully making repairs to her jacket. She spared Mirage only a glance, her needle and thread not pausing for an instant. Not a word was offered. Even so, Mirage tucked her wings in tight and settled on the bolted-down chair to the unicorn’s left.

Seconds turned to minutes. Minutes felt like hours. She tried not to fidget as she waited for her companion to start the conversation. And yet Rarity just kept stitching up that old, beat-up jacket. Was this some kind of mental torture? A trick to lull her into a sense of ease? If she tried to leave, would Rarity choose that exact moment to speak? Mirage needed an icebreaker.

Luckily, one was right in front of her. “Why are you repairing that?”

Rarity gave her a look as if she’d just asked if the sun was hot. “Because it has holes.” She switched to a fresh rip and selected a different thread.

Frowning, Mirage eyed the jacket. It didn’t seem to be special in any way. It was just a jacket. “Why not get a new one?”

“Many reasons,” the former seamstress replied, her tone ever-patient. “Sentimental value, primarily. It was a gift, its previous owner is dead, it’s seen me through some of my worst fights. Take your pick.”

“Oh.” What was she supposed to say to that? “Okay.” Probably not that.

Probably not what came next, either. “Best friend just died, huh?”

Rarity didn’t look up. She hardly reacted at all. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No.”

“Alright, then.”

She said that, and yet when Rarity looked at her from the corner of her eye there was a clear expectation. It said, with shocking clarity, that she knew better. Mirage felt played, because once those eyes moved away she knew for certain that she was going to talk and that Rarity had, somehow, made it happen. Not that she begrudged the mare that fact. If anything, she felt relieved.

“I don’t know if I should keep fighting.”

The needle stopped. “Ah.” Still staring at the jacket, her lips turned in a sad smile, Rarity muttered, “We’re at that point, then.”

Mirage blinked. “That point?”

Rarity nodded, setting down her needle and thread and offering her full attention. “That point where you question if fighting has been a big mistake. Where you wonder if it wouldn’t be safer for everypony involved if you just quit.”

Wow, aiming right for the heart. Mirage folded her hands on the table and asked, “Isn’t it, though?”

With prim confidence, Rarity replied, “Not even remotely.”

Was the mare trying to give her whiplash from all the unexpected answers? “How could you say that? You saw what I did back there.” She closed her eyes and saw the bloody and broken face of Tempest. She held onto the sight, wanting to keep it firmly in place as a reminder. “I can’t go uncorked like that again.”

Rarity hummed and went back to her sewing. “Yes, I remember. It was rather painful.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not.”

The haughty primness came back in a flash. “I was the one who got hurt, I am the one who decides if it is fine. And I say it is.”

She didn’t understand. How could she? Mirage looked away with a scowl. “Try telling that to Tempest and Neighsay.”

To this Rarity shrugged. “Whether they forgive you is entirely on them.”

Oh, how logical and pleasant it sounded. Mirage sighed and considered going on that flight after all. Just a quick climb up the stairs and then she’d be free from this conversation that clearly wasn’t going anywhere.

Just as she was about to commit, however, Rarity spoke once more. “There were times when I considered not being the Bulletproof Heart. In truth, the first few seasons were filled with little more than an utter hatred for this life.” She paused as if considering something, but soon went back to her repair work. “And, to be fair, I still would rather be a clothier. But then what would have happened?”

She seemed to be waiting for Mirage to respond. The alicorn had no idea where Rarity was going with this though. “You’d be making clothes?”

“Well,” Rarity continued casually, “I’d be dead for starters, clearly not an improvement to my current situation. I would not have met Ophelia, or A.K. Yearling, or Fluttershy, or any of a number of ponies. A corrupt banker would have gotten away with land fraud. A sheriff would be dead. My sister and best friend would be slaves. I’d have lost both my parents instead of j-just one.” A beat. Rarity’s eyes grew moist, but she shook whatever emotion she was feeling away and continued. “The Flaming Vermilion would still be out there, murdering scores of innocents to feed her fury. Several ponies would still be imprisoned at Ponyville. Really, I could keep going.”

Mirage rolled her eyes. She could act calm and serene all she wanted, gloating was gloating. Even across dimensions, there were some things that never changed. “I get it, you’re amazing.”

Rarity’s fist banged the top of the table, not hard, but forceful enough to make her jump. Azure eyes pierced Mirage, making her shrink in her chair. “I don’t want to be amazing. I want to make ponies beautiful through my tools of preference, those being needle and thread.” She sucked down a long, slow breath and turned back to her work. “But no matter what I think about it, I have a gift. It may not be fashion, but it helps ponies regardless. The most selfish thing a pony can do is keep their gifts to themselves.”

Mirage kept her back pressed against her chair, still recovering from the sudden aggression. Seeing that Rarity was apparently done, she slowly relaxed. How odd that a simple, mortal pony could instill fear in an alicorn with such ease. Not that Mirage thought she was immortal, but still… “So, what? You’re saying I have a gift?”

Never taking her eyes off her jacket, Rarity cocked her head and asked, “Are you suggesting you don’t?”

“Well, no.” Funny, Mirage would have been boasting if this were GGO. Now she just felt lost. “But things are different. I have to control myself in this world, and… I’m not sure if I can.” Admitting that felt like she were kicking herself. She was tempted to grab her phone and look at Luna’s picture, but resisted. It had run out of power anyway.

Things got quiet after that. Rarity kept sewing, and Mirage kept watching. It wasn’t the most interesting scene, but she didn’t want to leave. It somehow felt like the conversation wasn’t over, even as the silence between them lingered for several minutes. Mirage let her ears rotate about her head, picking up the sounds of the airship’s engines, the rattling of plates in the cabinet, the barely audible ruffle of fabric.

Rarity finished her work and began putting away her sewing kit. Once the jacket was back on her shoulders, she met Mirage’s curious gaze. “There’s you to consider as well.”

Mirage blinked, not sure what that was supposed to mean. She chose not to answer, preferring to let her confusion show in her expression.

“The things this world’s Sunset went through are…” Rarity pursed her lips, a moment of revulsion passing through her features. “Traumatic. When I found her, she was a shell of a pony. Just talking to her could be a little heartbreaking, because I knew that there was something stronger trapped inside that meek form. I wanted to see the real Sunset Shimmer break free. I thought, for a brief time, that she wouldn’t.”

She reached out to grasp Mirage’s arm. A warm smile decorated her face. “But then she did. She broke free, she acted out, and it was one of the most wonderful things I’ve ever seen.”

Mirage shivered at the mare’s touch, recalling for just a moment that this version of Rarity was nothing short of a bombshell. “I’m not her.”

“No. But I see similarities.” With that, Rarity stood and stepped to the hall. “More than enough of them to have faith that when the time comes, you will command yourself with dignity, skill, and good will.” And then she left, presumably off to spend more time with the lizards.

In a way, Mirage appreciated what Rarity had been trying to do. That didn’t change facts. She wasn’t Isekai Sunset. She wasn’t this local Sunset who had somehow impressed the mare. She was a powerful but fallible young woman being led around on some adventure she’d never wanted any part of. The excitement she often craved didn’t come with real world consequences, and she couldn’t back away from this with the press of a few buttons. Twilight wasn’t around to monitor her and make sure she could get out safely. She shouldn’t even be this overpowered in a real world.

Mirage had already saved her world. Why did she have to be a hero in this one?

Come to think of it, that was a wholly selfish and arrogant assertion. Maybe she could justify it back home, but she wasn’t a hero here. Not like Rarity. She had skills and an unnatural biology, but she lacked Rarity’s… maturity.

With a heavy sigh, Mirage realized that her thoughts were going in circles. She questioned a lot of what Rarity had just told her, but she understood one thing: all this thinking? Not helping. What really mattered now, above and beyond her ever-present sense of unease, was getting home. Then she could wrap herself around Luna until the guilt was only a background noise. And maybe put a grenade in Twilight’s computer for good measure.

Mind made up, she climbed back up the ladder and opened the door to the Highwind’s cockpit. “Hey, Captain. How long before we hit Little Longhorn?”

Comfortable in his chair, Captain Birchleaf didn’t look up from the book he was reading save to glance at some indicators on the panel before him. “Should get there around tomorrow evening.”

Far too long. With her mercurial emotions, Mirage expected she’d explode before they got there. Time to take that flight after all. “This thing got an airhorn?”

“Thing?” He shot her a disdainful look, but didn’t let it linger. “Yes.”

“Good. I’m going for a fly. Sound off if you need me.” She’d leapt off the airship before he had a chance to respond, wings opening wide to catch air and send her gliding over the plains. The exhilaration of flight would make for a fine distraction from the urge to go hunting for kirin.

Author's Note

I don't think there's a single chapter in this story that better showcases the difference between my own and WD's writing than this one.

Confrontation

The sun hadn’t quite touched the horizon when the town of Little Longhorn became more than an indecipherable dot in the distance. It stood out in a world of green, surrounded by fields of crops. Mirage could see it was a tiny place, perhaps with no more than a hundred or so inhabitants. A sleepy farming community, about as backwater as backwater could be. So this was the place that this world’s Sunset was born in? A far cry from her own origins.

The town was important, but not so much as the other airship that circled above it. Bosun Berry stood at her side, legs braced and eyeing the ship through a telescope. “Can’t make out much,” she declared over the wind, which was much stronger than it had been the day before. “It looks like the Dancing Bunting. Fast boat, smaller than ours. She runs, we won’t catch her.”

“I’m pretty sure I could,” Mirage replied, flexing her wings in preparation for the flight that was sure to come. She closed them quick when the wind tried to tug on them.

Rarity, standing anxiously near the cabin door with a hand on her hat, called out, “Is there any sign that they landed?”

Bosun promptly aimed her scope to the ground. Seconds passed as she scanned in silence, expression grim. “Couldn’t say. Might have, might not.”

Take the ship directly or check on the town? Mirage figured taking out the ship should be the first priority, but she hesitated. Too many times had she taken the ‘obvious’ way through her problems, and too many times that resulted in disaster. Now was not the time to be reckless. She walked to Rarity so that she wouldn’t have to shout over the wind and asked, “How do you want to do this?”

Rarity led her into the cabin, joining Captain Birchleaf. Once they were safely inside – emphasis on ‘safe’ in Rarity’s case – the unicorn answered, “I think we should split up.”

Oh, no. If there was anything Mirage didn’t want to hear, it was that. “You trust me to be on my own.”

“I trust you, period.” Rarity offered a brief but encouraging smile. “You can handle this, Sunset.”

Could she? Sure, if this was GGO, she would have no trouble handling the whole situation. But here? Mirage licked her lips, recalling all the times since arriving that she had not, in fact, ‘handled it’. But it was hard to refuse Rarity right now, and she did want to try and prove to herself that she could be better. She wasn't going to be in a game forever once she returned home, after all. “Fine, but how? One of us hit the ship and the other the town?”

“That’s the idea.” Rarity started checking her guns, ensuring they were loaded and in working order. Mirage lamented that she didn’t have to do any such thing with her own weapons. “We can’t ignore the ship, Sunset might already be onboard. But if Autumn is on the ground already, the priority would be getting to Sunset before she does.”

Mirage turned to glare out the window. They were coming up on the town quickly. Another ten minutes at most and it would be go time. Yet she couldn’t work up any excitement at the prospect. “In that case, I’m checking the town.”

Rarity froze, Silver Lining halfway in its holster. She might have paled just a little. “What? No, that’s absurd. At least you have wings.”

Mirage didn’t stop staring at Little Longhorn. Better than looking at Rarity. Better than the ship, for certain. “The last time I went to investigate an airship, I shot it down.” She tried hard not to recall all the bodies. “Sunset might be on it. I can’t take that risk.”

“Sunset... Mirage. I’m sure you can—”

“Please, Rarity.” Mirage wrapped her wings around herself, trying to stop the shivers. Sure, that one time they had been only bad guys. No... they weren't. They were just ponies doing their jobs. What if the other Sunset was inside? Or townspeople? Could she risk it? “Don’t.”

A few tense heartbeats passed. Mirage silently begged the mare not to press the issue.

“Alright.” Rarity heaved a sigh. “It’s not ideal, but we’ll have to make do. I’ll get onboard the ship and try to find Autumn, while you head to the town to protect Sunset.”

Captain Birchleaf, settled as usual in his captain’s chair, finally deigned to speak up. “Assuming the Dancing Bunting doesn’t try to flee, the Highwind can get up alongside her for boarding. This ain’t some warship though, so don’t expect us to be able to help beyond that.”

“No.” Rarity turned to him, once more the professional giving out orders. It reminded her in some ways of her own Rarity, and was no less impressive for it. Perhaps it was just a ‘Rarity’ thing. “I don’t want the Highwind anywhere near the fighting. You’ve done more than enough. Just place the Dancing Bunting between us and the town. Mirage can drop me off then continue with her part.”

“I can?” Mirage was about to object to this idea. Then she remembered when the two of them had their little fight. She had picked Rarity off the ground then, hadn’t she? “Huh. I guess I can.” She wasn’t sure how long she’d be able to carry Rarity like that, and she was smart enough not to inquire about such things as weight. Another look at the closing distance between the two airships gave her a boost of confidence. It didn’t look all that far, and Rarity was a pretty small pony compared to her.

Captain Birchleaf frowned, eyeing Mirage as though having doubts of his own. “If you’re sure. We’ll hover nearby though, just in case.”

“Please do,” Rarity declared in a tone that rejected the idea of a suggestion. “You still have our lizards in your hold.”

“Quite right,” the captain agreed with a chuckle. He began to turn the wheel and adjust some levers. “Coming about. We should be lined up in just a few minutes.”

Rarity was already out the door. Mirage, caught off guard by her companion’s swiftness, hurried to catch up. She was surprised to find Rarity standing not near the cabin or clinging to the stairs, but standing in the open and facing the side of the ship. There was not a tremble in her small frame as her tail and mane lashed in the strong winds. Where had that little unicorn so afraid of heights gone?

Mirage watched in quiet awe, taking in the confidence and focus presented before her. As she did, she recalled the fight against the chancellor’s ponies. All the stories she’d overheard before she met this mare. And, yet again, the fight. Their fight. A mare, a mere mortal unicorn, going up against an alicorn without fear, without hesitation, and holding her own against all odds.

She wasn’t seeing Rarity Belle right now. This was the Bulletproof Heart.

The Dancing Bunting flew only a few thousand yards away. Rarity’s eyes, narrow and sharp and promising pain, never left it. “Let’s get this done.”

In spite of the beautiful show of certainty before her, Mirage couldn’t help but ask. “Are you sure? I know how you feel about flying.”

Rarity snapped her fingers and pointed at the deck. The message couldn’t be more clear. Chuckling under her breath, Mirage took a moment to call up her HUD and go through her inventory. A few seconds passed as she sorted and itemized, and then a satchel appeared in her hands. She stepped up to Rarity and offered it to her, earning a questioning look. “Some potions. Just in case.”

Rarity accepted them without preamble. As she slung the satchel over her shoulder, she asked, “How many of those things do you have?”

“You can be amazed how quickly they accumulate,” she replied, knowing her stock wouldn’t be depleted anytime soon. Mirage stood behind the unicorn, carefully wrapping her hands around Rarity’s waist. Her wings extended, their great size forcing her to fight against the buffeting winds. For all her silence, Rarity couldn’t hide the way she stiffened at the stumble.

Trying not to smile too much, Mirage leaned forward to whisper in Rarity’s ear. “Just in case things go south, I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me.”

“I appreciate the appreciation,” Rarity hissed back, “but that is less than encouraging. Please, get me over there before I lose my rapidly dwindling nerve.”

“As you wish, princess.” Using her magic to press Rarity tightly against her, Mirage bent at the knees. “Hold on.” A hop, a skip, and a jump found them in the open skies, and Rarity’s hands promptly latched on to Mirage’s arms as though her life depended on their grip.

To her credit, she didn’t scream. That didn’t stop her from squeaking out a steady chorus of “I regret this, I regret this, I regret this!” under her breath.

The winds were a lot harsher away from the ship, which made flying a bit trickier. Luckily, all that time practicing since she arrived in this world proved its worth as she made a wobbling but direct flight for the nearby airship. A lone crewpony stood amidship, waving and looking noticeably worried, though whether it was from their approach or something else was impossible to discern.

Rarity’s clawed fingers stung against Mirage’s arms. She wondered if they weren’t bleeding. “Almost there,” she called over the wind. She flapped against a particular strong gust and aimed for a few feet to the side of the crewpony. “Get ready!” She counted down from three out loud, fighting to be as close to the deck as possible. A gust pushed her sideways just as she released, but she was relieved to hear the distinct sound of something landing on wood. Free of her burden, Mirage’s speed spiked. She angled herself to get a quick look at the Dancing Bunting and, upon seeing Rarity safely on board and aiming Silver Lining at the crewpony, began her dive.

The airship hadn’t been too high above the town, and it was only a couple seconds before Mirage was amongst the rooftops. Ponies pointed and cried out as she zipped past, fanning her wings in slow beats to kill speed. Eventually she came to a hover and wasted no time turning to the nearest pon… No, thestral. “I’m looking for a unicorn! She looks just like me, but without the wings.”

The thestral stepped back, clearly alarmed at having been singled out. His head swiveled in search of assistance, but his neighbors all were keeping their distance. He looked to Mirage and offered a very hesitant, “M-miss Shimmer?”

Mirage reminded herself that patience was a virtue. “That’s her name, yes.”

“W-well, I don’t… I mean—”

“Don’t tell her anything.” An elderly stallion stepped out of one of the buildings, peering unpleasantly at Mirage. “We’ve done enough damage to Sunset. We don’t need to go outing her to some stranger without knowing what she intends.”

“We’re trying to save her!” Mirage pointed to the Dancing Bunting just visible over the rooftops. “They’re hunting for her! The Bulletproof Heart is trying to stop them, but I’ve got to—”

“You’re with the Bulletproof Heart?”

“Why do you look like Sunset?”

“Anyone can claim to be working with the Bulletproof Heart.”

“We’re not giving you Sunset!”

“Who do you really work for?”

“I really like her mane.”

“Quiet!” Mirage raised her hand, summoned Luna and her Desert Eagle, and fired a round into the air with the latter.

A second later, two dozen guns were pointed at her face. “Oh,” she muttered, very slowly lowering her own weapons. “That is not the reaction I normally get from doing that.” She hadn’t even set hoof on the ground and she was already screwing this up.

The old stallion, one of the few not sporting a firearm, scowled up at her hovering form. “We’re not letting anypony walk all over this town or Sunset Shimmer ever again.”

The dedication in his words struck something within Mirage. Maybe this wasn’t a total loss after all. She was going about this aggressively, but that had never gotten her anywhere in this world. These ponies were clearly protective of this world’s Sunset. She could use that. It was time to tap into the old bag of tricks. It was alright if it was for a good cause… she hoped.

Mirage let her guns fade away and landed amongst them. Though intensely aware of all the barrels aimed her way, she did her best to ignore them and focus on the old codger. “I don’t know what your history is, but if you really care that much then you need to find her and get her into hiding.” She took a step forward, fighting back a wince when a few of the ponies cocked their weapons. “Rarity is trusting me to keep her safe. I can’t leave until I know she is.”

Nopony moved. The stallion met Mirage glare for glare. She tried to channel as much of her good intentions into her gaze as she could and hoped it didn’t come out wrong. The whole time, her worries were less about the lead death aimed at her vulnerable body and more for Rarity probably fighting for her life on that airship.

“You stay right there,” the stallion abruptly growled. Turning from her, he called out, “Jenny! Head to the school, make sure Sunset’s there. We’ll get this sorted.”

The crowd parted to reveal a trembling thestral mare cowering between two of the houses. She shrank back from all the eyes on her. “Oh. Oh, um, Sunset’s not at the school. She’s… Uh…” Timidly, she pointed up.

At the Dancing Bunting.

The old stallion paled. “What? Why didn’t you say so?”

Moving back as if the shadows might hide her, the mare hastily replied, “Th-they looked scary, okay?”

Sunset was already on the ship? Swearing under her breath, Mirage spun about and spread her wings—

And that was when a black hole appeared where the Dancing Bunting was.

Rarity landed in a roll, bleeding off her momentum from Mirage’s speed, and came up with Ruby Heart pointed at the face of a very frightened unicorn deckhand. She was sure it would have looked amazing, but she was also sure that her entire face was green. Her free hand went to her stomach as she fought to keep her lunch down. Stupid wind.

The deckhand, a pale brown stallion, slowly raised his hands in surrender. “I j-just work for the company.”

Managing to clear her throat, Rarity answered, “As long as you don’t get in my way, I won’t hurt you.” Slowly, shifting her legs to account for a sharp gust, she stood up straight. This ship had a rail running along its middle, which she thankfully grabbed. “Now, your ship was commandeered by a kirin. Where is she?”

The stallion heaved out a relieved breath. “Oh, thank Mother Night, you’re here for her. That mare is crazy! She forced us to come here and had us grab some unicorn from the town. We’re merchantmen, not pirates!”

Sunset was already here? That might make things more difficult, but it was nothing she hadn’t been expecting. A pity Mirage was already long gone. She asked again, a bit more forcefully, “Where?”

“Below decks. This way!” He wasted no time moving to a small structure towards the bow. Rarity followed, keeping her gun ready in case this was some trick. The structure was little more than covering for a set of narrow stairs leading below. The stallion continued to lead, and when he reached the bottom he put a finger to his lips and made some calming motions. The gesture clearly wasn’t intended for her. She moved warily, poking her head down and pulling out Silver Lining as an extra precaution.

They were in a small room, clearly a combination dining room and lounge like the one on the Highwind. Four ponies were there, three sitting at a nearby table and one cooking some hayfries on the stove. All stared at Rarity as if she’d just dropped out of the sky. Not a one was armed or made any aggressive moves. They didn’t even flinch at the sight of her weapons.

The deckhand leading her said, quietly, “She’s here for the crazy lady.”

Sighs of relief filled the room, every single pony instantly relaxing. “Oh, yes, please,” moaned a mare at the table. Only now did Rarity notice the sling her arm was in. “Get rid of her. I don’t care what she’s paying, this isn’t worth it.” The others nodded or voiced their quiet agreements.

The one at the stove pointed at a nearby doorway. “Door at the end of the hall. She’s got that unicorn with her. Don’t know what she wants with her.”

Rarity had to wonder just what Autumn Blaze had put these ponies through that they were so vehemently eager to be rid of her. As she made for the door, she called, “I suggest heading upstairs. This may get messy.”

Not checking to see if they obeyed, she headed for the closed door. At first she tried moving slow to mask her steps. Her boots on the wooden floor made that outright impossible, even with the humming of the ship’s engine. There was no way Autumn wouldn’t hear her coming.

A familiar voice reached her ears. “What? It’s just a card. I don’t know what you want from me.”

She froze. If she could move while Sunset was speaking, maybe…

“I don’t know sign language, lady.” Rarity moved forward. “Don’t look at me like that! It’s not my fault you’re mute.”

A pause. Rarity abruptly wondered why she was sneaking when Autumn would likely assume it was a member of the crew. Nevertheless, she kept still as seconds passed in silence.

“‘Use my magic on it.’ Is it supposed to do something? Ow, okay, okay! What the hay is your problem, anyway?”

Rarity turned the door handle with her magic and burst through, weapons at the ready. She was in a small bedroom with the stern wall made up almost entirely of windows. Sunset Shimmer – this world’s Sunset – stood near them, a familiar card in hand and her horn lit up. It winked out at Rarity’s arrival, surprise flashing across her features.

Autumn Blaze whipped around to stare at the intrusion. A flash of shock swept across her face as well when she recognized the newcomer, but it was barely a dent in her calm, collected demeanor.

“Rarity?” Sunset asked, still holding the card before her face. “Not that I’m complaining, but what are you doing here?”

“Sunset,” Rarity greeted stiffly, her guns aimed at Autumn. “I strongly encourage you not to use magic on that card.”

The kirin looked between Rarity and Sunset. Her expression was as cool as ever, but there was a smoldering anger in those eyes. She started to move—

“Don’t!” Rarity shifted Ruby Heart so it was aimed at Autumn’s face. “You’ve caused enough trouble this past season. I’m taking you back to Manehattan, where you can face punishment for your misbehavior. I’m sure Neighsay will be wanting a proper explanation after how you tricked him into a fight with us.”

Autumn’s eye twitched. The thin line of her frown grew more pronounced. Once again, she accessed the two ponies in the room.

Then she raised a lone finger. Very slowly, her free hand reached into a pocket. Rarity stiffened, ready to open fire, but all the kirin pulled out was a card. Autumn gestured with it to her, then to Sunset and herself.

“I do want that back,” Rarity admitted. “But I’m not leaving Sunset with you.”

Sunset, still appearing flummoxed, tapped the card she was holding against her palm. “My hero, I guess?”

Autumn’s stare was like a flame all its own threatening to burn Rarity to a crisp. Her fingers clenched around the card, bending it slightly. Still, her face was the definition of serenity. But then she closed her eyes, let out a faint sigh, and nodded. She offered the card to Rarity once more. Not trusting the mare, Rarity reached out to grasp it with her magic.

She only realized how stupid that was a second too late.

The instant her blue aura was wrapped around the card, Autumn’s horn sprang to life! The card levitated between the two of them in a maelstrom of orange and blue magic, the two auras twisting and shifting around one another. Rarity yelped and tried to snatch the card away, but Autumn’s hold was significantly more powerful. She tried to let go, but something was pulling her magic and preventing it. “W-what are you doing?”

Autumn’s eyes were white, her mouth set in a grimace. Rarity could feel it, feel the magic probing at the card. But more than that, she could feel… power. Incredible, alien power.

Sunset danced back from the blazing magics as the room was bathed in warring oranges and cyans. “What’s going on?” Pressing her back to the wall, she gaped at the spectacle between the pony and the kirin. “Rarity, talk to me!”

“I don’t know,” Rarity hissed, straining to control her magic. She tried to take a step back, but it was as if some hidden giant had a hold of her horn. “I think she’s trying to access the card’s magic!”

“The cards are magic?” Sunset glanced at the one in her hand with intense curiosity, but shook it off and refocused on the matter at hand. “So stop her!”

Rarity shook with an effort that felt at once involuntary and invasive. She glared at Autumn, regretting that she hadn’t opened fire the moment she stepped into the room. “I’m open to suggestions!”

“Shoot her!”

An intense, almost painful surge of magic made her horn throb. The auras around the cards intensified. “I don’t know what will happen if the magic stops!”

“Oh, for the love of—” Sunset raised a hand in front of her face and, with a flash of her horn, set it on fire. This was not a surprise to Rarity, having seen that particular trick before. What did surprise her was when Sunset stepped forward, reached up with her flaming hand…

And casually plucked the card out of the swirling magical aura. For a tense second, nothing changed.

Then the space the card had once taken up turned black. Not like the black of night or the black of coal or any of those other common blacks. This was an emptiness, a sucking, gaping maw that Rarity felt tug at something deep inside her. She wasn’t alone; Autumn let out a sharp gasp and tried to pull back, and Sunset let out a pained cry and fell to her knees. Just when Rarity thought she’d pass out, the pull stopped. Even more shocking than anything so far was how perfectly normal she felt after all that, as though nothing had been happening at all.

Then the little black hole grew, bursting in size like a two-dimensional drawing hit with some sort of growth spell. Rarity fell sideways just in time to avoid the sharp-looking edge as the oddly flat blackness cleaved right through solid wood. As alarming as this was, it wasn’t the only thing to draw her attention.

Autumn Blaze had fallen into a kneeling position. Her entire body trembled as she let out heaving breaths. When she met Rarity’s stare, it was with very big eyes and very small pupils. Her expression was twisted in a fierce snarl made all the more ominous by how silent it was. Flames licked at the kirin’s cheeks, flicked out of her lips, danced on the tip of her fingers. She breathed out once, twice, a third time, each time working her jaw in wide motions. It dawned upon Rarity that she was attempting to scream.

On the fourth try, she did, an animal howl that filled the air with its fury as blue and harsh red flames erupted from her body. “I had it! I almost had it!” She charged, and Rarity instinctively opened fire, forgetting all about the big black nothing just to their right in favor of the more immediate threat. Autumn’s body turned black and her eyes glowed white as the bullets burnt in bright red flashes before they could do any damage.

Rarity gasped, tried to dodge, and found herself caught in the kirin’s blazing hands. “What in the—!”

Pale white fangs spat sizzling, stinging phlegm in her face. “You are not taking this away from me!” With a mighty toss, she flung Rarity crashing out the stern windows.

Falling was a novel experience. Rarity didn’t get many of those. Certainly, it wasn’t one of the ways she ever expected to die. The wind buffeted her as the Dancing Bunting and the black hole now bisecting it moved farther and farther away, sending her mane and tail trailing along. That would certainly cause some tangles. Rarity twisted to look over her shoulder, observing the rapidly approaching ground. “Oh dear. This is going to hurt.”

Her first instinct was to look around for Mirage, hoping for a quick rescue. She did see somepony flying up from the town, but they were headed for the ship and didn’t seem to notice her. Probably not enough time to reach her anyway.

Think, Rarity, think! She closed her eyes, the better to not recognize how close she was to the hard earth below, and sought out options. Magic? No, she had nothing in her repertoire to deal with this. Cry out? No time to be caught. If only she had wings like Mirage, she could—

Her eyes snapped open as an insane idea struck. She holstered her weapons and clawed at the pack Mirage had given her, opening it to reveal a half-dozen bottles of potion.

No! No, I promise! That was supposed to burst! It will heal your wounds immediately!

“Dearest Luna and Sweet Celestia, please let this work.” She grabbed two bottles in each hand and two in her magic. Looking over her shoulder again and yelping at how big the world was at her back, she lit her horn and created a conical shield aimed right at the ground and threw together a sloppy link between itself and her body. With no time to think, she threw all six bottles at the air above her and prayed.

Two seconds later, her shield shattered, sending a bolt of lightning through her skull. She felt the jolt of the shield robbing her momentum, and then she smashed back-first into the grass. Bones snapped and the world became white-hot pain. She couldn’t scream, only lay there, motionless and howling in her mind. For a forever that could have only lasted seconds, Rarity felt like her entire body was on fire.

Through the ringing in her ears, she heard several crashing cracks. Her body grew wet. Her screaming mind could only think it was blood.

Then the pain faded like it never was. There came the hideous feeling of bones snapping back into place and wounds closing. With a shocked gasp, she drew air into lungs no longer crushed. She lay perfectly still aside from her heaving breaths in a perfect Rarity-shaped indentation. Finally, she lifted her head to look down at herself, groaning at the soreness of the motion.

Four of the glass bottles had landed and shattered on her chest, the healing fluid within coating every inch of her torso. The other two were near-misses that had still managed to splatter some of the potion on her.

With a faint sigh, she let her head fall back. “Thank you, Mirage.”

The ground rumbled. Her ears were assaulting by a resounding crash. Only now did Rarity remember the black hole in the sky, now grown to several times the height of the Dancing Bunting. She stared up dumbly, watching as strange and hideous creatures began to pour out of it like a flood of horrors.

She closed her eyes and groaned. “Is it really too much to ask that ponies stop trying to kill me?”

Distant shrieks and gunshots were her only answer.

Adding to the Bestiary

Mirage flew as fast as her wings could carry her, and yet it still felt like it was taking forever. She watched, helpless as that big black hole cut the still-moving Dancing Bunting neatly in two. The portal itself – for Mirage’s magical senses clarified what it was quite clearly – was still growing and immobile. She didn’t need to think about what was going on, she could guess easily enough; an Isekai card’s magic had been activated in a way it wasn’t meant to, and now a door to who knew where had been opened.

But she’d deal with that later. Rarity. The two halves of the airship were beginning their plunge. She couldn’t get to both of them, so she made for the closest one and prayed.

Aiming for the interior, she took stock of the situation. There were three ponies, two clinging to rails on the top deck and one in the remains of a large room in the lower deck. That last one had colors she was intimately familiar with, which was all she needed to make her decision. She darted in, landing on a wall that was rapidly making the transition to being a floor. “Sunset Shimmer?”

Sunset, hanging on to a bolted-in desk like her life depended on it, let out a shout of surprise at her abrupt arrival. “What the fuck is going on?” she screamed over the howling winds.

Well, there were worse questions to ask. “No time! Come on, I’ll fly you out.” Mirage’s less feathery doppleganger offered no arguments, readily allowing herself to be picked up and carried into the open air. “Where’s Rarity?”

Arms wrapped tight around Mirage’s shoulders, the wide-eyed woman looked at the ground that wasn’t all that far below them. “She was on the other side of that black wall! On the—” Shrieks of twisting metal and cracks of splintering wood drew their faces to the remains of the airship as it impacted in the middle of a cotton field. Dust and dirt and debris flew high and wide. “Rarity was still on that thing!”

A hideous pit opened in Mirage’s gut. Her first instinct was to scan the wreckage, but the impact cloud soon obscured her view. She told herself that Rarity was too strong a mare to die from a simple airship crash. She’d survived one already, after all. Even so, she resolved to head down there right away and—

Something rushed through her. No, not her. It was a wave of magic, or at least something related to it. Mirage felt Sunset flinch and knew then it wasn’t just her imagination. On instinct, she turned to face the portal. She was just in time to witness something emerge from the darkness.

They were small, no larger than an above-average dog. They were also hideous. Brown monstrosities made of claws and teeth and carapace, many of them smacked the ground and promptly stopped moving, but the majority of their number got back up and shook off the fall. Mirage could only stare at the creatures, realizing how familiar they were from her past excursions in video games. “Oh, Celestia, no.”

Sunset squirmed and wrapped her legs around Mirage’s waist as if to keep them as far away from the creatures as possible. “W-what are those things?”

Nearly a hundred of the menaces swarmed beneath the portal by the time the flow ended, and as soon as their initial confusion passed they began to spread out, moving in lightning quick leaps for nearby Little Longhorn. Those townsfolk who had come to witness the ongoing events began to scream and open fire.

Mirage let out a hiss and started flying towards the fray. As much as she hated to admit it, Rarity was going to have to take care of herself. “Zerglings.”

“Whoa, wait!” Sunset squirmed as if to climb higher. It was making her really hard to hold. “Don’t bring me over there, I’m unarmed!”

Shit, she was right. Mirage swooped over the swarm, igniting her horn to send a rending laser across the unexpected battlefield and slicing into at least a dozen monsters. “You know how to fire a gun?”

“I’m only any good with rifles,” Sunset admitted, sighing with relief when Mirage landed well past the fighting. She stepped back, brushed herself off, then gaped when the alicorn produced from thin air a rifle almost as big as she was. “Whoa.”

“BOSUN FN92,” Mirage declared, thrusting the weapon into Sunset’s hands. “A bit overkill for what we’re fighting, but thematically appropriate.” She materialized a satchel and dropped it at Sunset’s hooves. “Ammo. Figure it out and help or get somewhere safe.” A single sharp flap of the wings and Mirage was headed back to the fight.

The villagers were reacting quickly, forming a line of defenders along the street. Their weapons were wildly mismatched and they weren’t acting with any sort of discipline, but at least they were fighting back. Against a mere hundred Zerglings, that was more than enough. Mirage lit up her horn for another strafing run—

—then winced as another pulse of magic sent her reeling. A few hard flaps allowed her to pull up and out of danger, and her attention went back to the portal just as something new popped out. It was a trio of big, white, ape-like things. Cursing under her breath, Mirage flew closer and quickly recognized them for their three beady black eyes. “Trolls. Skyrim trolls. How’d we go from sci-fi to fantasy so quickly?” She aimed and fired, filling one of the monstrosities with lead.

Another pulse as she flew under the portal. She flipped to face upwards just in time for a swarm of big, orange balls to fly out, each sporting tiny, flailing arms and hideously grinning faces. One went straight for her, prompting her to blast it with a fireball. It emerged from the flames even bigger.

“Oh, right.” She threw up a shield just in time for the monster to detonate in her face.

Rarity had been indescribably lucky that none of the initial wave of creatures noticed her among the cotton plants. She had intended to stay low and get away from the portal over her head, up until she spotted Mirage flying past and spraying bullets into one of the ape-like white things. She’d stood up, preparing to call out, but the words died on her lips as the alicorn came face to face with an orange ball of flame that literally exploded in response to her magic.

Gritting her teeth and trying not to think of the soreness in her limbs and back, Rarity started for where Mirage had landed in another field. She got two steps before a guttural roar and fighting instincts sent her rolling sideways through a crop of unripe cotton. She felt the wind of ape-thing’s arm sailing by her shoulder. So much for a stealthy egress!

She came to her hooves with both guns at the ready, flinching as the creature’s howl sent spit flying at her face. “Forgive me if this is uncouth,” she answered back, “but dear Luna your breath stinks!” Two rounds from each gun sent the thing staggering backwards, but didn’t put it down. She watched in horrid fascination as the bullet holes slowly began to heal themselves. “Now however is that supposed to be fair?”

The thing answered by stepping forward and reaching its meaty arm back for a punch. She took aim, prepared to shoot it in its middle eye. She didn’t get the chance as a familiar pulse sent her reeling and ruining her aim. With a yelp, she danced backwards and just barely out of reach, the hair on the brute’s knuckles brushing the tip of her muzzle.

And then something landed on the creature’s back, a horrid monstrosity of muscles and exposed bone and snarling groans. One of those exposed bones came down like a knife, piercing through the white ape’s shoulder. It howled and spun, attempting to dislodge its assailant as more of the mutated abominations landed in the area. They shrieked and approached on shambling, misshapen limbs, eyes wild and unspeakable forms twitching.

“Merciful Luna in the Exalted Stars!” Rarity backtracked, sending bullet after bullet into the creatures’ bodies. She staggered them at best, and soon her guns were empty. “What Discord-blighted realm could spawn something so hideous?” One of the monstrosities stood on gangly legs and raised its scythe-like arms to strike.

A thin beam amputated the arms just above the shoulders, along with the freak’s head. It fell back, shrieking and gurgling, then Mirage was there to send it flying with a two-legged kick. “Don’t aim for the bodies,” she cried. “Their limbs, hit their limbs!”

“Mirage!” Relief flooded through Rarity’s every vein as she finished reloading. “I thought that explosion might have killed you.”

“Says the pony who just survived another airship crash.” Mirage was a blur of magic and bullets, taking down the foul things with shocking speed. She came to an abrupt stop, and all the monsters around her collapsed in lifeless heaps. “I got Sunset out. She’s back in the town.”

“That’s wonderful, darling, but it doesn’t help our current circumstances.” Rarity punctuated the statement by putting a few more rounds in one of the white ape things as it was trying to get up.

Another pulse, this one sharper than before. The two ponies grimaced as their horns throbbed, then looked up. The portal promptly spat out a dozen flying, reptilian creatures with long beaks and leathery wings. The creatures emitted long, low-pitched calls and started for the town, from which arose more screams, smoke and gunshots.

“Pterosaurs.” Mirage facepalmed. “It’s sending out pterosaurs. We need to close that thing. Like, now.”

“I’m all ears regarding a method,” Rarity replied, taking a moment to breathe now that nothing seemed to be coming for them. “Also, we should probably get out from under that thing before it drops something else on our—” Another pulse, quick and acute.

A massive lizard creature landed before them with such force that it shook the earth from under their boots. It stood at least three times Mirage’s height, all muscle and thick scales, with narrow eyes of menace and a mouth full of teeth that looked the epitome of sharp. It reared up on its hind legs, let out an earsplitting roar—

—then exploded in a gory spectacle of blue and red flames. Rarity and Sunset both covered their faces as blood rained down. When they lowered their arms, they were greeted by the furious, white-eyed glare of a black kirin coated in flames, her path from the Dancing Bunting’s wreckage marked by a line of charred field. “There you are!”

Mirage spat a curse and spread her wings. “She’s gone nirik?!”

“I have no idea what that means,” Rarity admitted, moving to circle Autumn Blaze, “but I can tell you she’s really powerful!”

“She just blew up a deathclaw with one shot, I think I got that!”

Ignoring Mirage for the moment, Autumn Blaze turned to snarl at Rarity. With a thrust of her palm, she sent blue flame roaring! Rarity leapt aside, rolled, and came up running as the stream of searing heat scorched her tail. “A bit of that fire you’re so good at would be nice right about now!”

“You don’t fight fire with fire!” Mirage let loose with her weapons, a stream of bullets headed right for the rampaging nirik. This proved pointless when a wave of heat swept between them. “Damn it, how is she doing that? It’s like the flames are solid or something.”

Rarity used the distraction to slide to a stop and remove the sliding magazine from Ruby Heart. While the bullets levitated out one at a time as quickly as she could magic it, she got ready to fire on her latest and most important opponent. “Just keep her busy! I’ll—” Another pulse made her magic falter, the bullets she’d been levitating dropping to the ground. For a split second, Autumn’s blaze winked out, but it came back before either Rarity or Mirage could capitalize on the opportunity. “What now?”

The answer came in the form of a resounding thud as a giant, green, tentacled monstrosity landed right behind Autumn. That its every inch was covered in slimy, squirming appendages was bad enough, but what really made Rarity feel weak in the knees was a gargantuan mouth filled with row after row of serrated teeth that stretched across the plant-like menace’s entire body. With a sickening squelch, the bulky entity lifted itself up and back on powerful tentacles and sucked in a long, heavy breath.

“Fuck!” Mirage flew right past Autumn, avoiding her renewed stream of fire, and dove for Rarity. “Don’t let it breathe on you!”

Rarity watched in wide-eyed horror as a green and purple miasma flooded out of the creature’s mouth. It spread across the cotton field like a flood, the plants instantly wilting and shriveling wherever it touched. Before she could respond, Mirage had caught her and carried her safely away.

Autumn Blaze responded very differently, her entire body becoming coated in a thick layer of flames as she dove straight into the beast’s open maw. It let out a hideous groan, tentacles thrashing as smoke billowed from between its many teeth. The tentacles at its back twisted, curled, blackened, then finally exploded outwards. Autumn stumbled out, still covered in fire but otherwise appearing none the worse for her act of seeming suicide. She looked up at Mirage and Rarity and let out a roar of challenge even as the beast collapsed behind her.

“I hope you’ve got some ideas,” Mirage called over the noise of battle all around them, “because I’m more than a little intimidated right now.” She corkscrewed sideways to dodge a blast of fire, unheeding of Rarity’s yelped protest.

“I appreciate the rescue, but I’d recommend you put me down first!” Another pulse accommodate her request, the force of the prolonged sensation making even Mirage’s flight hard to maintain. They landed, stumbling, in the cotton field, Rarity pulling Mirage down so that they were covered by the remaining plants. “Let’s try to stay out of her sight for a moment so we can think.”

Mirage followed her, wings tucked tight and body kept low, as above them passed a flock of white, birdlike creatures carrying spears and possessing what might have been halos. “Thinking is all well and good, but if we don’t stop this soon the town’s going to be wiped out, to say nothing of what’s going to happen to the rest of this world.” She winced as a gout of blue fire seared the land a few feet behind them. “And I don’t think Autumn’s going to let us go without a fight.”

Rarity peeked over the fields. Autumn Blaze let out another cry of frustration, stomping around and spitting out flames every which way. Ducking back down, she led Mirage away from the rampaging nirik. She knew the alicorn was right, yet she also knew they had to focus on one thing at a time. But what to do first? Protect the town? Fight the monsters? Deal with Autumn? She swore under her breath and finished changing out Ruby Heart’s ammunition, then switched Silver Lining to a cylinder with enchanted bullets. “We need… We need… There’s too much going on. I don’t know what to prioritize.”

The little pony in her head was running circles now, stuck in a full-on panic. Rarity rubbed at her necklace and struggled to keep calm, but the more she thought the less confident she felt. Little Longhorn was about to be inundated in a wave of monsters and flames and she had no idea what to do about it!

Mirage saw the dawning despair gradually taking over Rarity’s features. The sight brought about a certain, distinct clarity. In this world, the Bulletproof Heart was Queen. She knew what needed to be done, when to do it and how. She could fight bandits and politicians and whatever else this world could throw her way.

But the things they were facing weren’t of Rarity’s world. They were alien, with strange abilities and unknown intentions. Beings of menace and horror and nightmares. Rarity didn’t leap from world to world for fun, she was a creature of this one.

That meant that, in this situation, Mirage was the expert. She would have to take the lead. Nopony else could.

Countless strategy sessions in countless games came to mind, a quick but thorough review of all the seemingly insurmountable odds she’d taken on in countless video game worlds. Wincing at another pulse of magic, she grabbed Rarity by the shoulders. “Look at me. Look. Our first priority is Autumn Blaze. We take her down.”

Rarity blinked at her forceful tone. “B-but what about the town? We need to help them.”

A stream of blue fire came far too close for comfort. Gunshots and screams filled the air. More monsters were spat out of the portal. Mirage ignored all of it in favor of keeping her voice even and Rarity’s attention on her. “The town will never be safe so long as that portal is open, and we’ll never close the portal so long as Autumn is going nirik. We take her down, we figure out how to close the portal, and then we mop up whatever monsters are left. It’s the only way.”

The alarm in Rarity’s face steadily faded now that a solid course had been offered to her. The worry wasn’t gone entirely, but at least now it was back under control. “Okay. Autumn, the portal, then the town.” Her gaze hardened. “Any ideas for step number one?”

Another pulse made them both wince. Somewhere nearby came the twisted shriek of a nirik. “Come out here and take what’s coming to you, you cowards!”

Mirage glanced warily in the voice’s direction, a chip forming in her certainty. “Not really. If nirik in this world operate like nirik from my old one, then fire will only make her stronger, wind can’t blow her out, and she’ll just melt ice.”

Rarity frowned in thought, raising up slightly to get a look over the cotton plants. Ducking back down, she grimaced. “She’s running out of field to burn. We’ve got seconds. You need to go all out.”

Go all out? Mirage cocked her head even as she set up a shield between them and the direction of Autumn’s voice. “How do you mean?”

The look Rarity gave her was one of grim displeasure. “Remember that beam you used to down the chancellor’s airship?

Oh, that. Yeah, it was powerful. Pure, unfiltered magic tended to be that way, and Autumn certainly wouldn’t be able to defend against plasma like she could the more common elemental stuff. Even so… “That’s potent magic. I don’t know how much damage it will do.”

“You’ll have to control it,” Rarity told her, flinching at another pulse and the sound of some fresh abomination roaring its arrival. “We need Autumn alive.”

Alive? Mirage was just about to question that when a searing heat swept over them. She whipped around to see flames licking at her shield. They faded after only a second, leaving nothing between them and the black, fiery-eyed nirik. Her lips twisted into a wicked sneer. “Found you!”

“Do what you have to, Mirage!” Rarity bolted sideways, already opening fire. Autumn’s flames shot up between them, one shot bursting into a mass of ice and the other sending crackling lightning every which way. The nirik returned fire with small fireballs that spat and blue and red sparks and exploded wherever they landed, some splashing violently against Rarity’s hastily raised shield.

Okay. Mirage took stock of their position. All out, but keep her alive. You can do this, Sunset. Wings spread, she flew in the opposite direction Rarity did, circling to ensure with absolute certainty that the town was not in her line of fire. She risked a glance towards Little Longhorn and cringed at the sight of smoke and the sounds of pained, furious, and vicious cries. Was all of that her fault?

No time to think about that. Autumn Blaze. She was what mattered right now. She landed amongst the bodies of zerglings and necromorphs and turned to face Autumn dead on. Though the nirik hadn’t moved, she was not inactive, shrieking as she fired twin streams of flame from her black hands. Rarity was now entirely on defense, putting everything she had into a shield and visibly sweating from the effort. Now or never.

Control it, Sunset. Wings billowing out, pale light emanating from her body, Mirage called upon the powers her alicorn form possessed and focused it all into a single point between her hands. This won’t be like the airship. The magic built and built, making her mane flutter in the wrestling winds. This won’t be like Tempest. “Hey, you!”

Autumn, not letting up her attacks on Rarity, looked over her shoulder. Pupil-less white eyes widened at whatever she saw, and she promptly turned to face the new threat.

Mirage gained a wicked smile as a line she’d always wanted to try came to mind. “Taste the sun.”

The beam was as big as Autumn was, threatening to engulf her entire body in red and white plasma. The nirik threw up her flames and fired back, the two forces meeting only a few short feet from her outstretched hands. To Mirage’s shock, the nirik was able to hold the beam back, if only just. But Rarity had said Autumn needed to live, and this steady blast of magic wasn’t all Mirage could do. She poured more energy into the beam, and soon the convergence of plasma and flame began to drift Autumn’s way.

Autumn grit her teeth and braced her legs, as if to physically push back against the barrage. “I am not losing to you! I won’t let you stand in the way!”

Then Rarity was there, Ruby Heart aimed at Autumn’s head from just outside the pulsing heat of the combatant’s magic. Yet she didn’t fire. Instead, in that firm and commanding voice that Mirage had become oh-so familiar with, she declared, “You can’t defend against her and me at the same time. Stop this, Autumn. We don’t have to be your enemies.”

“No! I won’t stop now! I’ve already sacrificed too much!”

Abruptly, Sunset felt it. Another pulse was coming, but the wind-up was slow. Steady. It pulled back on her like the waters before an approaching tsunami. Something was about to come through the portal, and whatever it was, it would be big. “Rarity!” She cried over the sound of her ongoing beam. “We don’t have time for this!”

Still, Rarity didn’t shoot. Even as a powerful wind began to pick up, even as the heat of the fires and plasma slicked her forehead with sweat, she held back. “What’s so important?” she called to Autumn. “Why are you fighting so hard? You’re causing nothing but pain for everypony involved!”

“I know!” Tears sizzled on Autumn’s cheeks. She lowered her head and pushed more flames against Mirage’s beam, even as her arms and legs shook with the effort. “I know that, but I had to do something. I had to try. There’s no going back now!”

Mirage could feel the pulse coming. She looked up at the portal, saw it ripple. If the pulse came while she was still casting this beam, who knew what would happen? “Rarity!”

“I just wanted to get my voice back!” Autumn shook her head and snarled even as Mirage’s beam edged closer. “Why did you have to stand in my way?”

Rarity blinked. She lowered her weapon and stared at the nirik as if seeing her for the first time.

“But aren’t you speaking to me right now?”

White eyes widened. Autumn’s jaw dropped.

Then she twisted and fell, cutting off her flames. Mirage’s beam screamed past, just barely missing her and cutting a long trench through the field before being frantically cut off. Autumn hit the ground as a kirin, orange and smoking and staring at nothing. Mirage almost collapsed from the sudden end of the contest.

“I can speak.” Autumn clutched at her throat for a moment, gaping up at the sky. “I can speak.” Joy washed across her features and tears built in her eyes. “I can speak!”

The tsunami struck, the sheer force of the pulse knocking every creature in the vicinity to the ground. Mirage looked up and gasped at the sight of a massive claw stretching out to grasp at the air from the darkness. It was covered in sharp black scales, the four talons ended in wicked, golden claws. She raked her brain in search of a name, but her long experience with exploring the worlds of video games failed her.

Whatever this thing was, it was beyond her knowledge.

“Oh.” Autumn’s words were faint amidst the chaos, but somehow perfectly audible. “What have I done?”

Rarity was at her side and pulling her up in an instant. “Something you better be able to fix! I don’t know what you did with my card, but you have to reverse it.”

Autumn stood on wobbly knees and stared at Rarity as Rarity had towards her mere seconds ago. “I… I don’t… I-I was only…”

Rushing up to them, eyes on the arm grasping through the portal, Mirage said, “Whatever you’re going to do, do it fast!” She gripped her guns tight, somehow certain that they would provide little aid against whatever was coming.

“I’m sorry! I was j-just…” Autumn pressed her hands to her ears and trembled, all the fury and fight she’d had long gone.

“Autumn Blaze!” Rarity dropped her guns and shook the kirin by the shoulders. “Get a grip on yourself! You are the chancellor’s right-hand mare, a kirin he put absolute faith in for doing the things he needed. You were the brains of his outfit! Use those brains to calm down and think about how that portal was opened. You’re the only one who knows what you were doing!”

A jaw so massive it could have eaten the Highwind as a snack emerged from the portal, but it came to a jarring stop. Mirage felt weak; whatever it was, it was too big for the portal. Maybe that would be enough to keep them safe.

The jaw retreated, only to be replaced by a second black claw. It joined the other in gripping opposite sides of the portal and pushing. Unable to take her eyes away, Mirage shouted over her shoulder, “Now would be a good time!”

Autumn looked up at the portal, orange face a few shades lighter. Her eyes shifted back and forth in a rapid dance as she thought. The portal inched wider.

“The card!” Autumn whipped around to face the two of them, fear plain in her features. “The card was the focus of the magic, and Sunset took it away. If we can throw the card into the portal, things might stabilize and it’ll close.”

Rarity looked up at the portal. Its expansion was agonizingly slow and horrendously fast at the same time. “Are you sure?”

“No,” Autumn admitted, shoulders sagging. “But I can’t think of anything else.”

With a nod, Rarity turned to Mirage. “You’ve got the wings. Go find Sunset and pray to whoever will listen that she still has my card.”

Tearing her gaze from the horror above them, Mirage asked, “What about you?”

Grabbing Autumn’s hand, Rarity tugged her towards Little Longhorn. “We’ll help fight the monsters. Go!”

With a nod, Mirage opened her wings and launched, headed straight for the town. She only hoped Sunset was still alive.

Author's Note

I finished an achievement run of Final Fantasy VIII right before writing this, and not too long ago did the same for Final Fantasy VI. So yeah, I had the franchise on the brain when I wrote this chapter.

Angels and Dragons

Mirage was off doing her thing, which left Rarity with a notably shaken Autumn Blaze. Seeing as the kirin was in something akin to shock, she took Autumn’s hand and half-led, half-dragged her towards Little Longhorn. “Autumn. Autumn! Come now, I could use your assistance.”

Contrary to her literally fiery demeanor from before, Autumn was dazedly looking around at the monstrous corpses, ruined field, and the great beast attempting to force its way through the portal. “I-I didn’t want this.” Were Rarity not paying extra close attention, she might not have heard it. “I was just trying to get my voice back. I never imagined—”

Perhaps a bit of sympathy was in order. Alas, that was hard to come by when a town was under attack from hideous monstrosities with more sure to come, to say nothing for how this mare had until recently been trying to commit murder. Rarity kept a firm hold on Autumn’s wrist and didn’t slow down. “What you imagined doesn’t matter. What matters now is whether you can help or not.” She looked over her shoulder when Autumn stumbled over the body of one of the small insectoid creatures. Zerg-something, Mirage had called it. “Can I trust you not to try and kill me again? Can I trust you at all?”

The question finally pulled Autumn’s attention forward. The guilt was plain across her features. “I got what I was after,” she replied. “Now I need to m-make up for my methods. I swear—”

“Good, because right now we need all the help we can get.” Rarity looked to Little Longhorn. They were leaving the fields and would be among the buildings soon. From here she could see the streets filled with corpses, more than a few of which belonged to ponies and thestrals. Creatures of all kinds of description were still rampaging, kicking up massive clouds of dust to obscure the battle. Only the ongoing cries and gunshots served as evidence that ponies were still fighting.

So much damage, so much death. All over a stupid card. She looked back to Autumn, who was now running entirely on her own power and didn’t need Rarity’s handhold. “We could really use that fire of yours.”

But the kirin shook her head. “I can’t do that unless I’m angry. Even if I did, I used up most of my strength fighting you and Mirage.” They were just beginning to run past the first bodies. Tears welled in her eyes. “I-I don’t know how much help I’ll be in a fight at the moment.”

“That is not what I want to hear right now.” She guided the kirin into an open door as more gunshots rang out, the pings making it clear that they were now in range. It would be a shame to be killed by friendly fire after everything they’d been through. “We need to help these ponies.” Looking back into the street, Rarity used her magic to snatch up a hunting rifle. It was being gripped in a hand attached to an arm attached to nothing. Grimacing at the macabre work, she pried the fingers off and levitated the weapon towards Autumn. “Are you any good at using one of these?”

Autumn hesitated, much to Rarity’s frustration, but took the rifle in a firm grip. “I’m not the best shot,” she admitted.

“Just do what you can.” The gunfire stopped. The roars did not. “Let’s go!”

Rarity moved as quickly as she could into the dust that obscured her vision. She heard the faint chime of magic as a gust of wind pushed the visual obstruction away. Autumn was right by her side, not looking any more confident. But she was there, she was using her magic to help, and both meant a lot in Rarity’s book.

Then something white came out of the dust cloud. It was one of those three-eyed ape things, striding along with a pony’s leg in its mouth. Spotting Rarity and Autumn, it tugged a chunk of meat from the leg, swallowed, then let out a challenging growl. Autumn let out a startled cry and fired her rifle, striking the beast in the shoulder. It stumbled back from the impact, then touched at the wound as if not sure why it was there.

Then the wound began to heal. It bared its teeth in a snarl. Autumn let out a faint whimper.

Rarity, meanwhile, had just finished ensuring the red bullet in Silver Lining would fire next. “Let’s see you shrug this one off.” A lone shot struck the beast’s chest. It promptly lit on fire, its thick white fur catching near instantly. Within seconds the beast was a roaring inferno, shrieking and running aimlessly. Rarity raised Ruby Heart and casually put a ruby-tipped bullet in its head as it passed. It collapsed immediately, and this time there was no sign of any healing.

More roars and gunshots came from somewhere ahead. Rarity listened to see if any of the shots were coming close, concluded they were not, and stalked onward. Autumn, now trembling, hurried to follow. “I c-can’t believe I held you off.”

Dust clouded the streets of Little Longhorn, making it impossible for Mirage to see what was happening. Did that make it worse? The shrieks and animal cries and gunshots all conjured hideous images in her mind, making her wish she could witness what was happening. At least then she’d know whether imagination really was worse than reality. She dearly hoped it was.

Was this her fault? It felt like her fault. But she told herself, again and again, that it was not. She didn’t mean to come to this world. It was never her intention to bring this death with her. Her every thought was geared towards fighting the urge to claim the villain's role in this piece. And all along, she sought out Sunset Shimmer.

For five minutes she’d been flying circles around the town. Five agonizing minutes of trying not to feel guilty and especially not looking at the giant black portal with two massive talons trying to make said portal bigger. But she couldn’t resist, and yes, she was certain the portal was expanding. How did that even work? Was the giant magic in some way? Was the portal reacting to its intentions? Was it getting bigger naturally? She needed to find that stupid pony, now.

A sharp gunshot, far louder than all the others, made her ears swivel. She’d be lying if she said the sound was familiar – being an expert at GGO did not make one able to identify the type of gun being fired by the sound of its shot. But the sheer loudness of it? She had no doubt that such a sound in this world would probably come from only one gun. With a tuck of the wings, she rolled into a new direction and made for the source.

Or would have had she not suddenly gotten a face-full of leathery wing. The appendage slapped her sideways, not doing much in the way of damage but earning a yelp of surprise nonetheless. A few frantic flaps later, Mirage had righted herself and was turning wildly to avoid a stabbing beak. One of those stupid pterosaurs! Why was it after her? Did they even eat meat?

The creature, which she offhand reminded herself was not a dinosaur to appease her inner Twilight Sparkle, wasn’t able to fly with the same ability she did. Its leather wings worked better for sharp, quick motions but had trouble keeping up with her in a level flight. Mirage took advantage of this to get some distance between the two of them, then twisted to fly backwards and fire at the same time. The bird’s erratic motions let it avoid some of the shots, but not all; it began a steady spiral down to the town.

Oh, great. There were more of them. Not many though, and most were focused on the fight below, opportunistically picking off creatures and ponies with dive bomb tactics. And then there was— “Ah, nuts!”

A flight of white-feathered, bird-like humanoids. Mirage remembered well the game they were part of. They were called angels. They wore golden armor and wielded swords and spears, and a squadron of the things veered away from downing a pterosaur to come at her. She turned and flew away, once again questioning if their appearance and name offended anybody.

Alas, these creatures were not like the pterosaurs. They were fast, they were coordinated, and they knew to scatter when she tried to take aim. She fired a few shots anyway, managing to down one but still having half a dozen chasing her red and gold tail. “Damn it,” she growled, diving to avoid the swing of a sword. “I don’t have time for you guys!” The angels responded with strange, echoing calls that were both like and unlike birdsong in equal measure.

She dodged a spear, twirled past a sword, fired a shot into the stomach of one before it could bring its weapon to bear, then folded her wings and dropped to avoid three attacks at once. The avians pursued, keeping above her and gradually forcing her down. If only she hadn’t used up so much magic fighting Autumn, she’d be able to waste all of them with a single well-placed blast! She spun, fired at close range to hit one angel’s shoulder, then lashed out with her leg to knock away a spear’s thrust. She saw a sword aimed for her throat, desperately tried to get her gun up in time—

An explosive shot rang through the air, and the angel that had nearly decapitated her had a hole instead of a face. Its swing went wild, cutting deep into Mirage’s upper arm. She shrieked and toppled from the sky.

Focus! Gritting her teeth, she opened her wings and arrested her fall, shifting into a shallow glide. One hand on her wound, she looked around and spotted, with no small amount of relief, Sunset Shimmer in the door of a house, armed with the BOSUN FN92. She took aim and fired past Mirage, a squawk of pain signifying her successful hit. Mirage glanced behind and saw that there were only four of the angels left and they were still on her tail.

She needed to get them on even footing, and that meant not in the air. Hissing at the pain in her arm, she changed course and went straight for the door. Sunset, eyes wide, barely had time to leap out of the way.

The house was not near as wide as Mirage thought it would be. An attempt to flare her wings led to one slamming half-open against a wall, then getting caught in an open doorway. She tumbled, twisted, and shrieked as she felt something snap. Then she slammed side-first into the back of the house, hard wood pressing against the deep cut of her arm. She hit the floor in a pain-fueled daze.

“Hey. Hey!” Sunset was kneeling over her, wide-eyed and pale. There was blood on her shirt. Hers? Hard to say. “You okay? Stay with me!”

Trying not to think about how the world was spinning, Mirage looked at her arm. The blood was bad, but it was the exposed, chipped bone that really made her stomach flip. She didn’t even want to risk looking at her wing. Potion. She needed a potion.

The chirping, strange birdsong made it clear that she wouldn’t have time for that. Sunset whipped around, aimed her rifle, and fired. The angel in the door failed to dodge in time. Even as it collapsed, two more were rushing to get in. Sunset tried to fire again. All she got was a click. “Discord’s burning piss!”

Mirage tried to sit up, pushing with her good arm. The wounded one took up a gun, but she couldn’t lift it. With nothing better, she fell back to her side, materialized a gun in her good hand, and fired from the ground. She got the first angel. The second one dodged and went for Sunset. Mirage was going to fire on it, but another angel barreled into the room and went straight for her. She fired, got it in the chest, and again, and again.

Then its spear went through her good arm and the wooden floor.

She grunted through her teeth and tried to hold on to her gun, only for the now-dead bird-thing to collapse on top of her. Pinned, unable to move either arm, she could only watch as Sunset blocked swing after swing of the last angel's sword. Grimacing, she tried to light up her horn with what little magic she had left, but the angel saw the beam coming and blocked with its shield. She got the distinct impression this one was better than its deceased compatriots. She tried again, but the room spun and her beam was far off the mark.

Two more swings, two more clashes, and the BOSUN FN92 was sent flying out of Sunset’s grasp. She jumped back once, twice, danced sideways to avoid a stab, but then her back was against the wall. Mirage tried to move, tried to stop the world from turning, tried to do anything. The angel readied its arm for a mighty swing—

Ruby Heart pressed against the side of its head. “Flock off, featherface.” The shot tore right through, splattering blood and brain matter on the wall. Rarity set the gun to her shoulder and frowned in bemusement. “I have no idea why that line felt so appropriate.”

“Rarity!” Sunset practically threw herself at the mare, hugging her so tight Rarity let out a choke. “Am I glad to see you!”

Autumn Blaze appeared in Mirage’s ever-swirling vision, horror plain on her face. “Are you alright?” She knelt down to pull the angel’s body off her arm, only then realizing that there was a spear pinning said arm to the ground. Her ears flopped back at the sight. “Ow. I guess not.”

“Might have a concussion,” Mirage replied, her words coming out slow and slurred. “Gimme potion.”

“A what?”

“I’ve got it.” Rarity knelt beside Autumn and reached into one of her pockets. What she pulled out was some sort of retro recording device. She blinked at it. “I was expecting something else.” She, Autumn and Mirage all jumped at once as it gave off a click and a male voice began talking about having to kill a ‘mate’ and stopping a war.

Mirage was going through her inventory during their moment of confusion. This proved tricky, as she kept moving things to perfectly reasonable locations only to realize two seconds later that the placement made no sense at all and why did she pick that item anyway? After several silly mistakes and at least one moment where she’d forgotten what she was doing entirely, she finally got something called an ‘X-Potion’ at the very top of her inventory list. She was tempted to tug at Rarity’s arm, only to remember that she couldn’t exactly use either of her own right now.

Even so, her whimper didn’t go unnoticed, and Rarity tossed the audio tape aside to pay close attention. Mirage slurred out, “Try now.”

Rarity did, promptly pulling a large, red bottle out of Mirage’s pocket. “Thank you, darling.”

“How the hay did that even fit in there?” Sunset asked.

“You learn not to question it,” Rarity replied with a shrug. “We should remove the spear first.”

Sunset and Autumn both stood aghast. “B-but we don’t have anything to treat it,” Sunset argued, raising her hands as if to stop Rarity from making a mistake. “She’ll bleed out.”

“You say that because you don’t know what these potions of hers can do.” Rarity handed the bottle to Autumn. She then pressed her boot to Mirage’s arm just above the wound, grabbed the spear in both hands, and jerked it out of the floor with a single sharp tug. She made it look easy.

Mirage shouted at the fiery explosion of pain and promptly cradled the blood-soaked arm against her chest. It gave her a moment of lucidity, just enough to cry out, “Warn me next time!”

“Stop whining and drink.” Rarity was already tipping the bottle forward, gently pouring its contents into Mirage’s mouth. She needed no further prompting, sucking down the liquid like a fish might water.

Seconds later, she was standing up and stretching, feeling remarkably refreshed. “Ah, much better. Thank you, Rarity.” Then she added with a smirk, “And I was not whining. I was complaining.”

“You presume to lecture moi on the difference?”

The argument was cut short by a rumbling, grumbling growl of a sound that rocked the floorboards under their hooves and had them all stumbling. The pleasure of being fully healed disappeared in an instant and Mirage was back to sorting through the inventory in her HUD. “Crap, forgot about that.” Only now did she notice the bloody cut on Rarity’s neck, distressingly close to the jugular.

“Right,” Rarity said, accepting the small potion Mirage offered her. She turned to Sunset, who was leaning out the door and looking at the sky. “What’s it look like?”

“That thing’s head is almost through,” Sunset reported, fear tainting her words. “The portal has definitely gotten bigger.”

“And the fighting?” Mirage pulled out a bottle filled with blue liquid and drank it down greedily. Why hadn’t she used one of these ethers before she went hunting for Sunset?

The pony in question’s ears twisted around like little radars hunting out sounds. “I think it’s dying down. It doesn’t look like anymore monsters have come out of the portal since that big one started trying to get through.”

“It might be acting as a bottleneck,” Mirage theorized, wiping her lips and tossing the bottle aside. Already she could feel her magic coming back. Nowhere near to its full strength, but she suspected that would be fine. She turned to Sunset. “Now, about you.”

Sunset blinked back at her. “What about me?” Then her features hardened. “Wait, no, who even are you?” Then she turned on Autumn, who flinched back at her glare. “And I thought you were the enemy.”

Before she could go any further, Rarity stepped in her way. “I apologize, but there’s no time to explain. Suffice to say we’re all on the same side right now. Sunset, that card you took right before the portal opened. What happened to it?”

A moment of tension ran through Mirage. This was it. If Sunset didn’t have what they needed, then the card could be anywhere. Anywhere. Finding it in time to stop that giant beast from coming through might be impossible. As another roar filled the air and shook their bones, she took a page from Rarity’s book and offered a prayer to this world’s Luna and Celestia.

Sunset looked at each of them, still clearly puzzled and frustrated. But then she reached into her pants pocket and pulled out not one, but both the purloined Isekai cards. Relief washed over every pony and kirin in the room. “I figured it was at the center of the mess so it wouldn’t be good to lose it. Not sure which of these two is the one, though.”

“This one,” Rarity declared, taking one of the two cards between her fingers. “It’s mine, and the one that made the portal. Thank you, Sunset. Your practical thinking might have just saved Little Longhorn.”

A blush overtook the red-headed unicorn, who shuffled and fidgeted and smiled sheepishly. “If you say so. It wasn’t much. I mean, they’re just cards.”

“Learn to take the praise, darling.” Rarity’s charming smile vanished, replaced by a grim seriousness as she spun to Mirage and held out the card. “You’ve got the wings. You know what to do.”

Pocketing it, Mirage nodded. “Be ready in case this doesn’t work.” She started for the door, but was stopped by a hand to her arm. She looked back to find Rarity’s serious, concerned face. Though nothing was said, Mirage somehow knew exactly what message was being offered. So she smiled, grasped the mare’s arm in turn, and said, “I know. It’s not my fault and I can do this, right?”

Rarity allowed a frail smile to slip through. “Alicorn powers make you psychic now?”

Mirage shrugged. “Just going by past experience. Don’t worry. I’m in control.” She stepped back, looking at the visibly confused Sunset and Autumn. “If we all survive this, then we’ll talk about it. For now, you girls try to stay safe.” With one final nod at Rarity, she went outside and launched, headed straight for the portal.

She was just in time to witness the great creature’s head pushing out and into the world. She had to take a moment to slow down and appreciate the sheer size of the thing. The beast’s scaly face was big enough to have devoured an airship four times the Highwind’s size! It glared into the world with sharp red eyes, a lone black horn poking forward and four more golden ones curving back and up at its forehead. It was a dragon, but one of colossal proportions.

Mirage had seen giant monsters before. She’d even slain a few. Normally they wouldn’t worry her too much. After all, she was Mirage; if the going got tough, she could always get going. But, as she had been reminded time and time again on this little adventure, this wasn’t a game, and ‘going’ would mean the deaths of every pony and thestral in Little Longhorn. So, swallowing her fears back, she flapped her wings and pressed onwards.

The dragon’s head kept going, revealing a long neck coated in spikes and partially hidden by what appeared to be a red mane. It could only emerge so far, however, before it was stopped once more, this time by its shoulders being too wide for the portal. Even then, what had been exposed was so large as to blot out the sun over Little Longhorn. It turned its head to glare at the portal keeping it contained, then pulled back to once more get a firm grip on the edges and push.

It dawned upon Mirage that if she was going to get the card into the portal, she was going have to get up close to that thing. Perhaps she could sneak by? Keeping a firm grip on the card, she started to make a wide turn— The dragon’s head spun around, its vicious red eyes aimed directly at her.

And then it spoke, its angry voice making the very air tremble. “I sense your power, mortal. It will not avail you. Come closer if you desire death.”

Crap, sneaking was out. Mirage brought herself to a stop and stared back at the creature. If only she knew where he was from! But if it could talk, then perhaps… Using a spell to project her voice, she called out, “I do not seek a fight! But I must ask you, for the sake of the citizens of this town, that you return from wherever it is you come from.”

The dragon’s eyes, each as big as she was at the very least, peered at her. There could be no disguising their malicious intent. “You threaten me.”

“I have made no threats!”

“You threaten me,” it repeated, electricity crackling along its fangs. “And in so doing you spell your doom. I am Kaiser, and your time is at an end.” Its maw opened wide, unleashing a fierce storm of electrical energy. Mirage barely managed to raise her shield in time, and the sheer power behind it was enough to send her reeling.

And she still didn’t know where this thing was from! She even had a name for the accursed thing. She grimaced and considered her options. One very quickly made itself known to her, and she promptly began flying in a circle around the portal.

But Kaiser was by no means finished with her. The dragon sucked down and released breath after breath, each one sending out something new in an effort to take her down. A white orb of intense magic that blew a long path in the earth, then a stream of condensed water that steamed and boiled at her tail, then a blast of wind that became a tornado she barely managed to escape from. She looked over her shoulder, horrified as the twister churned the landscape and tore apart houses along the edge of Little Longhorn. What kind of beast was this?

There came a blinding flash accompanied by a roar, and suddenly it was raining. Mirage yelped and quickly threw up a shield as the rain bit into her skin like acid. Worse, her vision was now impaired. She could still make out the massive form of Kaiser in the distance, but seeing details was impossible. She was close to the other side of the portal, if she could just—

A green mist engulfed her, and Mirage was abruptly hacking and struggling to breathe. Realizing too late that she was caught in a cloud of poison, wings already weakened by acid, she tried to create some distance between herself and Kaiser even as she went fishing through her inventory—

The world became cold. She became cold. Mirage’s body grew heavy and sluggish as the hideous freeze flashed across her body even as what appeared to be giant balls of ice flew through the air, barely missing her. The attacks were coming too fast, the poison was bringing pain to every inch of her form, her wings were starting to seize. “Shit,” she hissed through chattering teeth. “Shit, shit, shit!” She tried casting some sort of heating spell on herself. It helped, but she was still falling. At least she was out of the miasma cloud, and the acid rain had stopped. But she still couldn’t fly properly. Her wings were literally coated in solid ice!

She looked to Kaiser. Its attacks had ceased, and it had gone back to focusing on the portal. Clearly, it considered her to have been dealt with. And it was right, because she could barely move, much less get out of this dive. Clenching her eyes closed, Mirage fought to increase her heating spell, but the ice was melting so slowly, and the ground was coming so quickly.

She slammed into something solid far faster than she expected to, the impact jarring her. Her ice-coated form slid across solid wood, moving straight for a ledge.

“Gotcha!” Bosun Berry fell before her, halting Mirage’s momentum with her body.

“Nice save,” Captain Birchleaf shouted from the cabin. “Now unfreeze her so she can get back in there!”

Mirage didn’t know whether to kiss them both or blast them for ignoring orders and coming back into the fray. Luckily, she was a popsicle right now and could act on neither impulse. She kept her heating spell going, the ice steadily trickling away. She didn’t know what kind of ice would take so long to melt like this, but she never wanted to be hit by it again.

“Take your time,” Bosun told her, no-nonsense and confident. “I won’t let you slide off.”

It took a while, perhaps a couple minutes, but at last Mirage was free enough to move her limbs again. She accepted help from Bosun and stood, shaking herself off. Chunks of ice clattered to the deck while she pulled out yet another potion. Oh, how grateful she was for gamer hoarding instincts!

Sucking in a sharp breath and tossing the bottle away, Mirage nodded to the mare. “Thanks, I owe you guys one. Think you can keep out of range this time?”

“That depends,” Bosun replied smartly. “You think you can keep in the air this time?”

“No promises.” They were moving away from Kaiser, but still circling towards the back. They were almost in a good enough position for what Mirage had in mind. “I don’t know what he’ll do next, so be careful.”

“Worry about yourself first.” Bosom slapped her on the back hard enough to make her stumble. “Go on, get that overgrown lizard!”

Wasting no more time, Mirage leapt off the deck of the Highwind, flying at an angle so that she’d come at the portal from slightly behind it. For a while, nothing happened in response. She wasn’t going to assume Kaiser didn’t know she was on the way, pumping her wings to get as much speed as possible. She pulled the card from her coat pocket, ready to throw it as soon as she was close enough.

“Stubborn, I see.” Kaiser's growly, deep voice made her bones shake. He turned his head to glare at her once more, but only for a moment. “Enough games.” He went back to his work even as all five of his horns began to glow a fierce red. Grimacing, Mirage readied a shield and reaffirmed her grip on the card. Whatever he planned to do this time, she’d be ready.

Or so she thought. The sky roiling with black clouds certainly wasn’t making her feel too optimistic. She kept trying to fly faster, even knowing she was already at her limit. If only she had Rainbow Dash with her! She looked up and sucked in a sharp breath as a new portal appeared in the sky, this one revealing a vast array of stars. Stars that were moving, because they weren’t stars. “Oh, boy.”

Mirage knew this spell. She’d seen it before in several different games of a very particular franchise. At the very least, now she had an idea of where Kaiser came from.

The meteors came flying through the portal one after another, forcing her to dodge and dance and dive. The rocks blazed with the heat that comes from going from the vacuum of space to a planet’s lower atmosphere in an instant, and some exploded as soon as they passed through the overhead portal. The sheer pressure of their proximity was enough to strain the air and force Mirage to veer in unexpected directions.

But she kept going, even as the barrage blasted craters in the earth and sent dust and debris high into the air. Even as the heat threatened to melt her feathers. Even as a close pass nearly shattered her shield. She held the card close to her chest and concentrating hard on maintaining a weaving, winding, chaotic course.

And then she was behind the portal, close enough to almost touch it. She flapped to a stop and, with a final prayer that this would work, tossed the card in. The portal rippled with rings like waves on a disturbed pond.

And then it began to close. Very quickly. Kaiser barely had a chance to let out a cry of surprise before its head and neck were falling to earth, severed entirely from the rest of its body. It smashed into the orchards just outside of Little Longhorn, the sheer force of the impact alone enough to topple the nearest houses.

The meteors stopped, the portal overhead closing with an audible snap. Dust rose into the air as the last impacts came to an end and the rumbling of the world ceased. Sunset hovered above it all, stunned by how quiet everything had suddenly become.

Far out in a place close to tomorrow and adjacent to nowhere was a simple little bar. Its owner, who appeared younger than she had been in a great many generations, sat at one of the wooden tables going over a selection of books that would be given to some of her students both before and after this moment. At this time the business was closed, insomuch as it allowed for such petty concepts as ‘time’, to say nothing of ‘schedules’.

The proprietor of this bar raised her head, becoming acutely aware that something was coming. As she stared and pondered, a card appeared in the air. There was no flash of light, no sound accompanying its arrival. In one instant graciously permitted by the bar, it was not there, and in another instant supplied oh-so generously, it was. The card fluttered down to land, neatly, in the crease between the pages of the book, as if it were a bookmark awaiting its proper use.

The woman, ageless and youthful in equal measure, plucked the card between two fingers and studied it. Observed it. Analyzed it. And, soon enough, recognized it.

“Well,” she announced to nobody at all. “This is new.”

Then she grinned. “This could be fun.”

Author's Note

WD, who claims to have little talent for fight scenes (ignore the origin story of Desert Mirage), left the finale battle largely in my hands. And, like I said, I had Final Fantasy on the mind. I pondered for a long time what the final threat would be, from a boss in Bayonetta to Godzilla himself. Ultimately I decided to stick to the Final Fantasy route, but using a "superboss" that might not be as familiar to newer players of the franchise.

Since all of this started because of Mirage's arrival, it only felt natural for her to also be the one to end it.

As a side note, we extensively brainstormed what creatures would be making an appearance. I was heavily geared towards avoiding sentient/sapient invaders, although I broke that rule for both Kaiser and the angels. I also wanted to stick to video game creatures, since Mirage's whole thing is going inside games. I also only wanted to use creatures that would be readily recognizable to most gamers and discarded several possibilities out of a suspicion that their origin games weren't "mainstream" enough. Not sure how I did on that.

Riding Off with the Sunsets

Back at the shack with Bulletproof Heart and Autumn Blaze, Sunset Shimmer fell to her knees. She found herself staring at the surprisingly still-alive alicorn hovering where the hole in the air used to be, then lowered her eyes down to the massive dragon head that had crashed to the ground with catastrophic damage to the fields below and around it. It had landed tilted, and Sunset could only wonder how long it would stay like that.

It almost felt like a fever dream: meeting herself as an alicorn, then having monsters out of nightmares invade her home, then attack it, one after the other, not even working in tandem as each new monster was more than eager to not only try killing ponies, but also each other. Meteors had rained on the fields and grasslands around Little Longhorn, as if the end of the world itself had been ordained by Celestia and Luna. Airships had exploded, a kirin was set on fire, she had been loaned a beautifully deadly rifle completely different from anything she had seen before.

It had been madness, and she had found herself borderline hysterical more than once. If it hadn't been for Rarity… well, the old Sunset Shimmer would have melted into a puddle of blabbering, snotty, horrified stupor.

But she had endured and fought, and at least now the monsters lay dead. The starry portal in the sky had faded, bringing back the daylight. After how crazy the last few minutes had been, it was almost surreal how quickly it was over.

Still trying to figure out what happened, Sunset turned her attention to Little Longhorn. Smoke rose from some of the houses, but she could still somewhat see the barricades and the ponies milling about. She could hear them cheering in the distance, but she also heard the sobbing.

Too much had happened too fast. Their enemy, Autumn, was now curled up and weeping in the corner, muttering over and over how this was not what she had wanted. Rarity had made a dignified effort to walk over and sit down on one of the remaining chairs in the house, although the mare was obviously exhausted and almost didn't make it before she had quite literally dropped onto the chair. It creaked alarmingly at the sudden impact, but thankfully held.

They gazed at each other with almost incredulous eyes. As experienced as Rarity was, it was also clear that this had not been her usual type of adventure.

"It's over," Rarity whispered, shaking her head in disbelief as she exhaled a long, long breath. Her shoulders slumped, and her hand went up to brush her mane away from her face. Sunset could literally see the stress slowly fade from her body. She was so clearly tired.

She felt her own exhaustion building up, but she shook her head, trying to keep herself in the game.

There were many things Sunset wanted to ask the Bulletproof Heart. Who was the kirin, really? And incidentally, why in the name of Tartarus was she still alive after all of that? Why had Sunset herself been involved in all of this? Why was there an alicorn version of herself with crazy equipment stashed somewhere unexplainable? How could all of this have been caused by business cards? How had just tossing one of said cards into a hole in the air decapitated a dragon the size of a mountain? What were all the creatures they had fought?

How many ponies were dead?

"Huh. This place is a mess," she heard herself say.

Wait. That hadn't been her! She twirled around, the heavy, powerful rifle Mirage had given her aiming at the creature that had suddenly appeared behind them. She heard Rarity shout something, but it was too late. As her eyes took in the mane of the creature and the green of her eyes… as recognition dawned on her… she realized she had already pulled the trigger.

"No!" Rarity roared, tackling her and the rifle out of the way, but there was nothing to be done. The pair of mares crashed onto the floor, the rifle sliding away from Sunset's hands. The thought that she had just shot another person in cold blood stole her breath away even more efficiently than Rarity's tackle. "What have you—?"

"I'm sorry!" Sunset kept her eyes shut tight. "I thought it was another monster!"

"Hey," her own voice said gently. "It's okay, no harm done."

Slowly she opened her eyes, then blinked in surprise at a creature so similar to her, and yet so different. She looked around the room. Rarity had an entirely unamused look of relief in her face, while Autumn stared in utter, horrified bewilderment at the tail-less creature that so resembled Sunset.

"B-but… I shot you," Sunset stammered, staring wide-eyed at her strange counterpart. There was no way she had dodged that. No way in Tartarus.

In response, the creature grinned and shrugged, patting Sunset's shoulder. "It was a nice try." She offered both hands to Rarity and Sunset, then helped them stand.

"You really need to work on your entrances, darling," Rarity groaned, rolling her arm in an attempt to loosen her muscles.

Before the creature had a chance to answer, Sunset own voice came again. "I heard a shot!" the alicorn version of herself called as she landed, guns out and ready to begin fighting anew. The amount of energy this one had was insane. Sunset was about to speak up, but stopped when she saw that, instead of shooting, the alicorn broke into a smile and dove forward to hug the latest visitor. "Isekai!"

Because of course they all knew each other. The more things were happening, the more lost Sunset was feeling.

"Hi, Desert Mirage! I did not expect to see you here," the recently-identified 'Isekai' remarked, returning the hug.

'Isekai?' Sunset frowned. That name sounded very familiar.

"Well, I didn't expect to be here either," Mirage responded, wings ruffling a little as she stepped back, grinning.

"It is one surprise after another whenever a Sunset Shimmer is involved," Bulletproof sighed, brushing her mane out of the way to reveal a warm smile gracing her face. "But it is good to see you, Sunset." It took Sunset a second to realize the name was directed at 'Isekai'.

"Well, it's not only us Sunsets that are full of surprises," the newly-identified Isekai said with a mischievous grin. "Imagine my surprise when this made it back to my bar." She extended her hand and passed Rarity the card Sunset was sure was identical to the one that had been used to seal the portal. "I believe this is yours."

"Wha—?" Sunset couldn't even finish the exclamation.

Instead, she opened and closed her mouth as Rarity simply took it with a, “Why, thank you, darling!” and stuffed it in her pocket.

"What's going on?! I thought that thing was thrown into a portal?" Sunset finally managed to ask.

"That's what I'd like to know!" Isekai said, completely missing the look of incredulity from Sunset and Autumn. The visitor turned to Mirage. "The last time I saw you, you were not an alicorn, and definitely not in this world."

"Hey. I told you I was one." Mirage huffed, crossed her arms and looked away with slight annoyance. "You just didn't believe me."

"And the last time I saw you," Isekai turned to look at Rarity, "there was never any mention of zerg around your world, to say nothing of shadow-realm dragons."

"That, my dear, is easily explained," Rarity stated. She paused to consider her words, then cleared her throat. "To an extent."

Isekai raised an eyebrow, not even flinching as the massive dragon head outside finally tilted fully and crashed down, shaking the ground under them. "Do tell."

"Long story short," Mirage said, "this kirin here stole the cards from us, hunted down this world's Sunset Shimmer, and somehow managed to use the link between cards and you to open a portal that got enemies from several video ga— worlds… to appear here."

"I-I… I could sense the magic in them," Autumn said meekly from her corner of the shack, flinching at the sudden attention this brought on her. "I thought… if I could use that magic, f-figure out how it worked, maybe it'd help me get my voice back. I didn't expect any of this."

Isekai crossed her arms. "I'm impressed you managed to somehow detect the magic in the card, but then you stole another?"

Autumn bit her lip. "I knew Mirage would come after me, and she’s an alicorn so I didn’t want to take chances. I tracked down the Bulletproof Heart with a plan to get her to fight the Mirage, but then I detected the same kind of magic on her person. I used the fight as my chance to take Bulletproof’s card and escape."

Isekai glanced at the two mares. "Who won?"

"Her," both mares replied, pointing at each other before breaking into a grin.

Sunset grimaced. That must have been a gunfight to remember.

When all attention turned back to her, Autumn reluctantly continued. "Th-then I got a mage to examine the cards in a way I was untrained to. She cast a detection spell, which I hoped would let me avoid both Bulletproof and Mirage, but then it pointed to a third pony, so I came to investigate. When I realized there was another Sunset Shimmer living here…" She had the self-awareness to look guilty when she glanced at Sunset. “I figured maybe she could tap into the magic of Mirage's card.”

Isekai hummed. "There's an indisputable link between my cards and their owners. It's not too much of a surprise that they would guide you to a local version of one of those owners. But how did finding this Sunset end up in an invasion from other dimensions?"

"Well, I didn't get here by normal means." Mirage said. "I was experimenting with Twilight and suddenly found myself here."

That got a raised eyebrow from Isekai. "The same Twilight Sparkle that can open interdimensional doors?"

Mirage chuckled uncomfortably. "Yeah."

Isekai sighed, rubbing her temples. "I'm starting to see the picture. I suspect that your magic, which carried Twilight's residual influence, resonated with the card’s interdimensional properties, which then coalesced into a magical pulse that, due to Twilight's and Mirage's original point of entry being virtual reality, connected to worlds that echoed the virtual aspects of the game you were going to play, likely with influences from past games you’ve played as Mirage."

Mirage snapped her fingers, eyes wide. "Oh! I see! No wonder all we saw came from games!"

"Okay, hold on," Sunset snapped, "Games? What type of messed up games have creatures like that lurking around?!" She started pacing, turning to glare from Isekai, to Mirage, to a cringing Autumn, then back to Isekai. "I have no idea what you are all talking about! How does foalnapping me fix Autumn's voice, why didn't you just shoot the one responsible for all of this—" She pointed over her shoulder with her thumb at the cringing kirin, then opened her arms to encompass both Mirage and Isekai. "—and how come there's more than one me?!"

"It is a lot to take in," Isekai said soothingly, although her absolutely calm demeanor wasn't helping much. In fact, had it been Bulletproof or Mirage that were calm, she'd not minded that much, but this creature had just appeared out of nowhere. As if sensing her growing distress, Isekai smiled.

Autumn wrapped her arms around herself and studied the floor when everyone turned to look at her. "I didn't want things to get so much out of control, but when I felt the magic in them, I just couldn't help myself. I’ve been searching all over the continent for this for nearly a decade, and this was the first time I saw something that might finally do it." She looked up at the group, eyes wavering. "I betrayed the chancellor, got ponies killed… I-I have my voice back but until Bulletproof pointed it out to me I was ready to continue rampaging." She shivered. "I'm a monster."

Bulletproof sighed. "You may feel guilty about your actions, Autumn, but you will have to pay for your crimes."

"I know," the kirin said, unable to meet their eyes.

It was odd for Sunset to see the previously stoic kirin showing actual regret. After all, Autumn had been so cold, calculating, and vicious less than an hour ago and that was all she had to go with. Yet Mirage, Bulletproof, and Isekai were looking at the kirin with understanding in their eyes.

"I can't just accept this." Sunset said, glaring at the others. "There's a giant, decapitated dragon's head in the fields. Ponies – some of whom I was actually starting to think of as friends – died. There's monsters on the streets rotting in the sun. How is a small town like Little Longhorn going to deal with this kind of damage?!"

"Time and effort," Isekai said, "and a little bit of magic and elbow grease from all of us to speed it up." She glanced out of the house. "See? Already the elements from other worlds are dissipating."

Sunset glared at them, then her shoulders slumped as she looked out the window. It was true: the dragon's head was halfway gone already, seemingly turning into dust that would disperse into the air. "There's still a lot of damage." And dead friends.

"Well, darling," Bulletproof said, "between all of us and the townsfolk, I think we can get the place cleaned up relatively quickly."

Sunset crossed her arms. Sure, between all of them they could clean up a lot, if not most of the damage to the town. And if the invaders were already disappearing at least there wouldn't be concerns of plagues or how to get rid of the bodies. "Elbow grease won't bring my friends back."

Rarity stepped back, visibly chagrined. "I didn't mean to belittle it."

Sunset groaned and nodded the unicorn's way. "I know. I'm stressed, and I get snippy when I'm stressed."

"I just wanted my voice…" Autumn sighed, hands fisting up as she struggled to find what to say after everything that had happened. "I don't know how or even when exactly I lost control."

"So you've said," Bulletproof replied after a moment of consideration. She put her hand on the kirin's shoulder, grasping it firmly. "And you have your voice now. But being sorry is not enough to make up for what you did, even if you lost control of yourself. If you're intent on finding some modicum of redemption, then a good place to start is to help clean up."

Autumn looked uncertain, but instead of pushing her away, eventually nodded, prompting Rarity to give her an encouraging smile. "And then what?"

"And then…" Isekai motioned to a door that had not been there a few minutes ago. "All of you can come with me for a drink and to talk thoroughly about what happened since Mirage arrived, and maybe how to prevent it from happening in the future."

"A drink? How about four?" Mirage muttered.

"Four drinks is good too," Isekai agreed. "But more importantly, we can get Luna and Twilight to explain what went wrong from their side as well." She pulled out a card, showing it to the others and unintentionally making both Sunset and Autumn flinch. "I'm very interested in hearing the theory that prompted Mirage's trip—" She looked at Autumn. "—and the theory behind what you expected from the cards."

"Well," Sunset said, pushing away from the wall and rolling her shoulders as she walked out of the building, "I for one could really use a drink, but that's not happening until we clean up the town." She glanced over her shoulders at the others. "You're all helping with the graves."

Mirage and Rarity stood outside of town, watching the sun kiss the horizon. There was a mass funeral service going on at the cemetery, and Mirage didn't feel like she deserved to be there. Rarity, not being a local and uncomfortable with the amount of positive attention she'd been getting from the townsfolk, had joined her.

There was a certain melancholy in the air, and Mirage loathed it. Helping move the bodies had produced a low mood in the unicorn. Mirage didn't blame her, but she did want to try and ease things a little. And so she elbowed Rarity. "This was one hell of a crossover, Bulletproof."

Rarity blinked, coming out of her self-reflective stupor. "I'm sorry? A what?"

Mirage's smiled sheepishly. "Um… How to explain it? It's like… when two heroes from different worlds somehow find each other and fight evil together."

Rarity's laugh was weak, but it at least let Mirage know she understood what the alicorn was trying to do. "Well, darling, I don't know if 'heroes' is the right word to describe us."

Mirage shrugged. "I guess that's true. But it really was a great adventure. I learned a lot about myself thanks to you." She hesitated, giving Rarity a quick glance out of the corner of her eye. "Thank you."

Rarity smiled as they went back to staring at the horizon. "Nothing to thank me for, dear," she said. "I'm sure you'd do everything in your power to help me if I had ended up in your world."

"Hay, yeah," Mirage responded, channeling her inner Rainbow Dash. "Maybe one day you can come over and join me for a bit of VR fun." She grinned. "I don't think anyone in Gun Gale is prepared to face the Bulletproof Heart. Plus, I'd like to introduce you to my girlfriend."

Rarity chuckled, wrapping her arm around Mirage's shoulder for a quick, friendly hug. "Given you claim ponies don't actually die in these 'games', I'd be willing. Just make sure we all stay in one world this time."

Blushing, Mirage nodded. "Let's head back, then. The quicker we're done here, the quicker we can go to the bar."

They headed into town, arriving just in time to see everypony walking out of the local and oversized cemetery. They could see Sunset Shimmer and Isekai talking with the still confused and uncertain locals. Autumn was standing near the hastily-built graves, personally helping to bury the dead. Her face was a kaleidoscope of anxiety, fear, and some self-loathing. Isekai had said she'd be taking her to the bar for some one-on-one time tonight. It would probably do her a lot of good.

Rarity took a deep breath, pausing to perhaps examine the living proof that there was a multiverse out there. A massive, unknowable number of possibilities and worlds and people and monsters… The world had just faced a horrible fate, and yet by tomorrow the only thing that would remain in this world would be in the memory of the citizens of Little Longhorn, Autumn's, and her own.

"It's probably for the best," she declared with a shrug as she started for Isekai and Sunset.

Mirage couldn't help but agree. This world didn't need to know about all of that. As for herself? Despite all the struggles and emotions and sometimes outright pain...

She was glad to have met the Bulletproof Heart.

Author's Note

I had a set, thorough plan for how to end this story. But then I realized that I'd written most of the last four chapters, and this is supposed to be a collaboration. So I offered WD the chance to write the final chapter. It turned out entirely different from my own plans. This put yet another spotlight on how differently our minds work.

I did a little tweaking. Not much; 90% of this chapter is still WD's.

Anyway, that's it for this crossover. I rather enjoyed it, and I hope you all did too despite the fact that we were totally winging it. My thanks to Wanderer D for proposing the idea and helping to make it a reality.

Welcome to Sunburnt Equestria

"So, how is this different from logging into Gun Gale Online?" Sunset Shimmer asked, pushing her chair over to study the screen where Twilight Sparkle was currently editing several dozens of mods.

"Well, for one, while Red Dead Redemption VII is a multiplayer of sorts, it's not exactly VR technology of the level you can interact with in GGO." Twilight frowned, looking from her notes to the body-slide on the screen, back to her notes. "For another, this is a private server, so you'll be playing the campaign mode with some mods from yours truly. I think you'll enjoy it."

Sunset tilted her head as Twilight made adjustments. "That lady is going to have lower back problems."

"Shaddup." Twilight cleared her throat. "As I was saying, this is a private server and I can do whatever I want. Also, it will help us test the limits of your abilities to jump into video games."

"Yoshi's Island wasn't enough?"

"As amusing as that was, no. No it was not." Twilight compiled the body modifications and turned her chair to face Sunset. "Since this will take several hours, I want to try something where your full Desert Mirage mode can interact with some immersiveness."

"Hey, I thought God of War was a fun thing to jump into with guns."

"Fun? Yes, I suppose." Twilight leaned in. "But was it… immersive?"

"I think you're taking that a bit far," Sunset said, patting Twilight's head. "The graphics look cool, and it seems um, immersive enough? I read some reviews online of the game and they said that if it was more realistic, the horse-travel time in-game would basically match real life."

"Oh, they tried that in the fifth one, but apparently people couldn't handle it. Too much time and taking care of horses." She huffed. "Did you know that horses need a rubdown after a really long run? Or they die?"

"Yes?" Sunset asked. "I'm a pony."

"Right. Did you ever run so much you needed to be rubbed down or you'd die?"

"Ask Luna."

Twilight blinked, then, as Sunset watched with a small smirk, comprehension dawned in her face and she covered her face. "I walked myself into that one, didn't I?"

"More like a full gallop, but yes."

"Right." Twilight slid her hands down her face and glared at her friend. "I'll get you back sometime."

"Promises, promises." Sunset grinned and pushed her chair closer to the screen. "So… how are we going to do this? The last few times I was sort of a tagalong for the player, but if I'm taking quests then I need to be the MC."

"That's where the mods come in," Twilight said. "I've replaced the flags so that when you jump in, it simply accepts you as the new input for a pre-designed PC. As far as the game knows, you're it."

"Anything I should be careful of?"

Twilight shrugged. "No magic? At least at the beginning. We need to know how the program will handle your presence there, and magic might break it too much. If that happens, it'll be like I unplugged it."

"Great. Make sure you have some ice packs ready in case I land somewhere painful," Sunset muttered.

"Will do." Twilight reached over to click a couple of icons on the screen, without even looking. She smirked as the game started loading. "Have fun, cowgirl."

Sunset snorted, her body transforming into an older version of herself in full GGO equipment. "See you on the flip side."

She turned towards the screen and jumped in. Twilight followed the swan dive into the computer screen.

And then said screen vanished. Along with the monitor itself.

"Oh, crap."

She quickly opened her copy of the magic diary and scribbled a note for Princess Twilight, hoping that Equestrian help would reach her before Vice Principal Luna found out Sunset was gone.

Desert Mirage spat some dirt and grass. "Well," she coughed, pushing herself up from the dry ground where she had landed, "Twilight got the taste of grass right. Brings back memories."

She pushed up and sat back, studying her surroundings as she dusted herself off to the best of her ability. She had landed, rather heavily, in the middle of some lush, green plains that stretched as far as she could see. She kept scanning around until she spotted something that looked like a road.

"Funny," she muttered, pushing herself up to study the landscape with her hands on her hips. "I don't remember the game description featuring so much green." She shook her head, rustled her wings, and started walking down towards the road, hoping it'd give her a hint of where to go. Her HUD only displayed her own equipment, and her map view was impeded by fog of war.

"I wonder if this is one of Twilight's mods? Wasn't this supposed to take place in the Old West or something? I was imagining more arid lands, the occasional cactus, and ramshackle towns with tumbleweeds." She glanced up at the sky, shading her eyes with her wing as she took in just how close the sun was. "Could use a little tweaking with the sky mod, the sun is a little too close for comfort."

She stopped at the road and frowned, then slowly glanced over her shoulder at the pair of golden-red wings that were peeking over them. "What. The. Hell."

She extended her wing, then touched her face, blinking in surprise. "Wait, I'm anthro? Twilight! You didn't tell me you had a mod for this!"

After a moment, she looked up in confusion, tapping her ear a couple of times. "Twilight?"

Mirage checked her HUD, but there were no messages or replies. "Maybe she's busy with Lemon Zest?" She shrugged. If Twilight saw any problems, she'd contact her. Taking a moment to follow the road with her eyes, she decided to head south, and soon enough had reached a fork in the path with a wooden sign that pointed in the direction of "Barren Wood".

With no better plan, she followed the road down to what turned out to be the type of town she had very much expected: a few dozen buildings, one saloon, main road, and a bunch of anthro NPCs walking around. She strode in, taking note of the pegasi, unicorns and earth ponies. She had to give it to Twilight; the details on the anthro ponies were spot on. Pox marks, scars, burns, frayed manes, unkempt tails, she had gone all out.

Mirage smirked, crossing her arms as she took it in. "Not bad."

"Thank you," a gnarled old earth pony said, adjusting the saddle on a giant lizard. He spat. "But she ain't for sale."

Mirage blinked. "Uh… Right. Sorry. Moving on."

"Goddamned boneheads," the pony muttered, barely giving her a second glance before he completely stopped and stared. "A-a-"

Mirage tilted her head. "Are you having a stroke?"

"Alicorn!" the earth pony gasped. "Are you Celestia coming back for us?!"

Mirage reached up to touch her horn. "Um. No, no no. Haven't seen her in like a month, she's been busy, you know?" She grinned. "So uh, go on, and keep up the good work, sir. I'll, uh… just keep walking."

She did as she said, slowly heading into the town proper. It started with some stares. Then mutters. Then groups of ponies dropping what they were doing to follow her. She could hear the whispers.

"Is she real?"

"An Alicorn! Could she be Princess Celestia?"

Grimacing, Mirage opened her HUD again, then turned on the radio. "Twilight? This is not funny. Come on." When nothing came back she grimaced and looked around. The ponies were starting to really crowd around her, and she needed a place to— Ah-ha! She made her way to the saloon and turned to face the veritable crowd that had followed her.

"Ahem. I need a drink, and I'd really like to not be bothered."

"Have you come to give us words from the divine?" an old earth pony mare called.

"Ugh, geeze, I'm not really good at those," Mirage said, raising her hands placatingly. "Really. You don't want my divine grace. I'm as graceful as an anvil on a trajectory to the Louvre."

“The Louver? What’s that? Is it some holy site?”

“It’s called the ‘Louver’! It’s gotta be— Oh, Luna, I just committed blasphemy in front of a princess, didn’t I?”

“Tell us, princess, why have you come?”

“Somepony get Father Feather!”

“I’ve never heard of a Louver.”

“You’ve never seen an alicorn before, either.”

“True.”

“Please, are Celestia and Luna returning?”

“Is the sun finally going to be put back on track?”

“Can I touch your wings?”

“I really like her mane.”

"Alright!" Mirage said, horn aglow as she levitated the small child that had been tugging at her wings over to who was hopefully her mother. "Um, I need to consult… I need to— A lot of unexpected things have just occurred, everpony, so please give me some time. I want to answer your questions, but I really need to think about it, so, please disperse and, and I'll be in here if something super urgent happens, okay? Alright."

Without giving them a chance to retort, she made her way into the saloon, scanning the room and spotting the bartender. "Whiskey. Also, a hat."

To her immense relief, the bartender didn’t bother to look up as he poured her drink into a solid looking mug and set it before her. “May have a hat around here somewhere. Ponies forget their stuff all the time,” he mumbled, marching into a back room. Sunset sighed in relief, knowing the pause would be temporary.

Only then did she notice how… quiet it had become. She dared to glance around and cursed under her breath; no less than eight patrons. All staring right at her. “This isn’t going to go well. Twilight, what the heck were you thinking?”

The forty-five seconds it took the barkeep to return with a worn out, black cowboy hat to offer were some of the longest of her life. She snatched the thing up and stuffed it on her head. It was a little big for her, but that at least made it easier to hide the horn protruding from her skull. Now she was a pegasus… except for the entire street full of ponies and one saloon that all saw her already.

“Oookay,” she muttered. “Best to get out of here sooner rather than later. Find a quest, move on to someplace that won’t recognize me.”

“Four bits for the drink,” the barkeep said, finally deigning to look at her. “Hat’s free. Not like it cost me nothing to get.”

The double negative made Mirage’s eye twitch. Reaching into one of her pockets, she dropped a small gold bar on the table. Only when it made a dull thunk and the barkeep’s eyes shot wide open did she realize that such a currency might not be appropriate in this game. “Uh… Keep the change?”

He snatched the bar away as if she might change her mind. “S-sure. Of course. Right!” Then, with a bit more eagerness, “Anything else I can help you with, miss?”

She took a moment to check over everything. Still static. Still no Twilight. Even her map wasn’t functioning, continuing to show an endless fog of war even in the places she’d already walked through. Something was very wrong, and she was no longer confident that she was in a game. “M-maybe. Is there anything to do around here?”

He blinked at her. “Do?”

Damn. That sentence was a surefire code for getting quests. Either she needed to say something different or… The alternative had her swallowing a lump in her throat. No need to panic. “Yeah. You know, for money? Or, err, other things?”

The barkeep stared at her blankly for several seconds. He pulled out the gold bar, studied it as if trying to gauge how real it was, then asked incredulously, “You’re looking for a job?”

Okay. Definitely not like a normal game. Or like a game at all. “You know what? N-nevermind. I think I’m good.”

He shrugged, pocketing the bar once more. “Suit yourself. If you need any refills or some food, just holler. Heck, I’ll let you have a room.”

A room? A private place to think, away from all the staring eyes? That might be worth her while. “I’ll think on it. Thanks.”

He left. She sat. Her mug stared up at her, oddly enticing. She wasn’t even sure what to do with it. “Okay. So… Normal questing not working. None of my usual tools available. Weird reactions from the NPCs. I hate to think I gave Twilight too much credit, but this is really starting to feel less and less like a game.”

As Mirage sat there pondering the nature of her situation, the doors to the saloon opened. Through them passed a mare that was not like the others, for she was not a pony at all. She wore a plain green dress, the low back displaying a collection of light green scales, and above her curly orange mane rose a single arched, antlered horn. Golden eyes, dull and lifeless, scanned the bar before landing upon the alicorn.

“Okay,” Mirage muttered for the millionth time, finally taking a long drag from her whiskey. “Let’s assume that I’m not in a game. In that case, where am I? Can Twilight even see me?” Another glance at her windows led her to assume the answer to that one was a distinct 'no'. “If this is a real anthro world, then the stakes are a lot higher. I’ll have to find my own way home.” She dared a glance over her shoulder. All the ponies made a crummy attempt to appear as though they hadn’t been staring at her half a second ago. All save for one odd mare with a weird horn and dull eyes. Mirage gulped and turned forward once more, wings shivering.

What should she do in an emergency situation? Looking back to her regular fights, one thought struck her: evaluate her resources. She checked her inventory, which miraculously seemed to be working properly. Weapons. A few pens and a notepad (clearly Twilight was rubbing off on her). A large bullet for something other than her guns (a little odd for a keepsake, but it was Luna’s idea). Her wallet formed in her hands, and she took a moment to examine its contents. Credit cards would be useless. Cash? Laughable. GGO money even more so. Medical insurance card, utterly useless. Membership card to—

Mirage’s eyes widened. It was the Isekai card. If she understood anything about that place – and she was by no means an expert – then it might be the perfect solution. Not that she could use it here. First she needed to find a discreet place. Maybe that room offered earlier would do the job.

Just as Sunset was preparing to get up, that weird mare with the antlered horn sat next to her. Mirage stared at her. The mare stared back. There was no expression on that face, only a dull, uncomfortable stare. Blinking at the mare’s attention, Sunset pocketed the wallet and Isekai card. “Uh, can I help you?”

The mare’s eyes flicked to where the wallet had disappeared to. Then back to Mirage. She reached over and tapped the half-empty mug with her finger.

Mirage watched the motion, utterly perplexed. “You… want a drink?” Not a peep in response. Creepy. “You want to buy me a drink?”

The mare raised a hand and snapped her fingers. The barkeep was back in a flash, looking oddly anxious. She pointed at the mug, then raised two fingers.

“R-right away, ma’am.” The stallion was sweating bullets as he hurried to refill Mirage’s mug and fill another.

“Now, hold on,” Mirage sputtered as the mare took her own drink. “It was a question, not permission.” The only response was a slow, utterly silent sip. Mirage sighed and shook her head. “Not much of a talker, are you?” She didn’t notice how much attention she was gathering again, the clients of the bar now paying just as much attention to the newcomer as to her.

The strange figure raised two fingers to her lips, miming a zipping motion. Mirage cocked her head. “You’re a mute?” At the affirming nod, she blushed. “Sorry. I didn’t realize.”

In a motion that was slow and graceful and yet somehow seemed abrupt, the mare leaned in close, one arm on the countertop and muzzle an inch from hers. Mirage leaned back a little, gripping her mug a little more tightly. “Uh, look, I don’t know what this is, but I’m not interested.”

Little waves of light rippled up the mare’s back scales, rising up to flow along her neck and into her horn. As the appendage gave off a faint glow, Mirage’s newly acquired hat rose just enough to reveal her horn. Her eyes crossed as she took it in. Clearly, Twilight’s warning about not using magic held little sway here. The stranger studied the horn impassively for a few seconds, not a twitch to her expression. The sheer unreadability was really starting to bother her. It was like a full dose of Pinkie’s sister, except with Maud you at least knew that her emotions ran deep and you could read them if you spent enough time around her.

Those golden eyes flicked once more to Mirage’s pocket. Where the wallet had gone. That fact suddenly felt important, and Mirage felt an urgent need to get away.

“She’s in here, Father!”

Mirage let out a groan as a group of ponies burst through the bar door, led by a tall but thin pony dressed in midnight blue and purple robes. One of the stallions from before was right at his heels. “That one, the orange one!”

“It’s amber, you dolt,” Mirage growled under her breath, ignoring how her companion’s ears perked. She shoved the hat back down over her horn, but it was too late.

“By Luna’s Exalted Stars,” muttered the – priest? He kinda looked like one. Very stiff. Mirage shot the mare an apologetic glance and stood, knowing she couldn’t just ignore or dodge them this time. By the time she’d turned around, the new stallion was standing before her. “An alicorn. Here, in Barren Wood?”

“Look,” she started before he could say anything else, “I get it. I’m a rare sight. But I have no intention of becoming one of or interfering with your religious figures. You leave me alone and I’ll be gone before nightfall.”

“Gone?” One stallion was hurrying to her side, wide eyed and alarmed. “You can’t leave! You have to tell us about the princesses.”

The priest – Mirage would continue to assume such a status until proven otherwise – looked to the ponies around him. And there were a lot. Sunset gulped upon realizing that she was truly surrounded. “Calm yourselves, everypony. You’re crowding her.”

Says the guy standing in my personal space.

He turned to smile at her. He seemed affable enough, at least. “Do forgive their excitement, your highness. I am Father Feather, Cleric of the Church of the Night Mother. Might I have your name?”

‘Your highness’, was it? Well, at least he wasn’t prostrate on his knees or anything. “It’s Mirage.” Then, just to clarify, “I’m not a princess.”

“No?” After a moment’s hesitation, he raised his hand towards her, palm down. She stared at it, not sure what the motion was meant to indicate. After a few awkward seconds, he lowered his hand once more. “No, I suppose you’re not. But you have to forgive us; there’s not been an alicorn sighting in Equestria since the Day of Burning.”

Not sure she wanted to hear the answer, Mirage ventured, “And how long has that been?”

“Why, a thousand years.”

Because of course it was a thousand years. Everything was a thousand years ago.

Father Feather leaned a little closer, wonder and uncertainty in his gaze. “How could you not know this?”

Crap, she’d given away too much! “I’m, uh…” The phrase ‘not from around here’ sounded about as bad as saying nothing, but her mind was drawing a blank.

The stallion from earlier shoved his way forward. “If you’re not with the princesses, then who are you with?”

Crap again, now they were trying to pin her to some faction! “I’m not with anypony,” she insisted, trying to back away. That was proving a little difficult given how many ponies there were. She glanced at the strange mare from earlier, but the – pony? – merely watched her with that same inscrutable gaze. No help there.

Father Feather frowned. “That’s not possible. There are only two directions a divine being can go.”

Mirage winced. “W-well, uh, what exactly are my options?” The ponies were already talking, and she didn’t like what she was hearing.

“She’s not part of the Church?”

“Princesses Celestia and Luna are the only alicorns. Maybe she’s an imposter.”

“If she’s not with the princesses…”

“Is she on Discord’s side?”

“Maybe she’s trying to free him.”

“Whoa, whoa!” She waved a hand in the direction she’d heard that infamous D-name from. “I ain’t in cahoots with Discord, alright?” She was mildly surprised there even was a Discord here. “Look, I made a wrong turn, okay? I didn’t even mean to come here. If you let me head out, I promise, all this will blow over.” The number of darkening faces was not boding well on her internal trouble-meter. She began considering means of escape, which she should have been doing from the get-go.

At least Father Feather seemed to have a good head on his shoulders. Recognizing the dangerous turn things had taken, he turned and raised his arms in an attempt to silence the crowd. “Please, everypony! Let us not jump to conclusions. Mayhap her highness is only confused. Is it not unlike the Night Mother to confound us to test our faith?”

“She said she’s not with the princesses,” one mare shouted.

“If she’s not with the princesses, then she has to be with Discord!”

“You’re talking out your tail. She’s an alicorn! Alicorns don’t join forces with chaos.”

“But what if she did?”

“She’s a goddess! She could unleash Discord on all of us!”

The room was rapidly dividing in two, the ponies unable to come to a consensus on Mirage’s place amongst them. Mirage considered just lying and saying she was with the princesses after all, but something told her it was too late for that. If only she’d been a little faster on the ball. Father Feather was struggling to control the situation, but even he was starting to get swept into picking a side. At least it appeared to be hers. Mirage eyed the back door. If she could get her card out fast enough while everyone was fighting here—

She felt it. Just barely. The slightest movement, something touching her and withdrawing as quickly as it had come. Mirage imagined that had she been any less conscious of her surroundings she might have missed it. Her hand whipped down to her pocket. Her wallet was intact. Good, then maybe it was just her imagination and oh her Isekai card was in her wallet, wasn't it? She snatched the leather up and opened it, staring in shock at the lack of a familiar card. Her hand dug back into the pocket, then another, and another. No card. When she looked up again, the ponies appeared on the very edge of a brawl.

And there, moving through the crowd with all the ease of water flowing through cracks, was the mute mare.

“Hey!” Sunset attempted to give chase. “Give that back!” She was promptly pushed against the counter by the mass of ponies. One stallion fell into another. He got shoved back. A fist flew.

Chaos erupted.

She dodged to the side, catching Father Feather as someone shoved him at her, and with a twist, she lifted him up and over the bar to set him down next to the bartender. "Sorry, Reverend, but you might want to sit this one out."

She turned straight into a punch that connected directly with her cheek,snapping her face to the side with the impact. On her HUD, her HP went down… by two.

The lack of reaction gave her attacker a moment's pause before Sunset snarled and kicked him straight in the chest, sending him sprawling back, where he curled into a ball and rocked between the legs of the other unawares fighters.

Another pony tried to tackle her, but she grabbed a barstool and smashed it to pieces against his shoulder. The pony fell, groaning, with pieces of wood sticking to his forearms and slowly tinging his coat red.

The third pony to attack her crashed a bottle on her shoulder, showering pieces of glass around them. Shards cut through her cloak and scratched her cheek, but her armor prevented further damage. She grabbed the hand with the bottle by the wrist, back-slapping its owner so hard across the chin that he crumpled in place.

And then she realized what she was doing, and how bad it could get. These ponies were bleeding, while she was just losing a couple of HP that slowly refilled anyway. She took a step back, raising both her hands to chest level, palms open. "Okay, everypony, calm down! I'm not against the princesses!"

Her shout was ineffective as a mare hugged her waist in an attempted tackle while a brave soul jumped from behind and tried to put her in a choke hold, the combination making her stagger forward as she grasped his arms.

"For the love of—" She snapped her head back, catching the stallion in the snout with a loud crack. The arms around her throat and arm loosened up and she twisted in place, pivoting so his own weight sent him tumbling over her shoulder. Channeling the momentum of his fall, she grabbed the mare at her waist by the shoulders and, with a turning back-step, slammed her face-first into the bar counter. "I said calm down!"

Another stallion, distracted by a punch, was caught under the arms by two ponies who took a running start and threw him across a table to knock down another stallion, who was in the process of repeatedly slapping what looked to be the local constable. All three ponies went down in a tumble of legs, arms and swearing.

Mirage glanced over at Father Feather, who was shouting at everypony yet being totally ignored. As she turned to face the crowd, she could only see them getting worse. This needed to end before somepony got hurt for real. So, when a particularly large stallion tried to deck her, she dodged under his arm, twisted behind him and kicked the back of his knee so he fell down in front of her.

"Enough!" she roared. "Either you stop this senseless brawl right now or Chuckles here will have his brains splattered all over the place!" As she said that, flames danced down her arm to her hand, melting into her gun. "I'm not bluffing! As Celestia is my witness, this will stop, or else!"

She studied the faces of the locals, hoping against hope that they’d buy her bluff. She had brought a gun to a fist fight. By all rights she was in the wrong using this level of violence, but her one ticket out of this place had run out while these fanatics chose to riot rather than back down. Now she had to figure out who the hell that mute mare was and where she could find her.

When the other ponies slowly gave her some space, and even went over to help the ponies she had injured earlier, she kept her cool, thankful that her gambit was working. "I need information. Who was that mute mare? Where can I find her?"

"S-she's not from here, your highness!" Father Feather spoke up quickly, climbing over the bar despite the protests of the bartender. "Please, put your weapon away, we all have had enough violence for today."

He turned to look at the others, nodding and shaking his hands placatingly at them. The ponies grumbled, but looked slightly ashamed at their actions, even making small attempts to clean up the place as Father Feather slowly but surely herded them out.

Mirage released the stallion she had been holding hostage, who whimpered and scampered out of the bar much faster than the others. She shook her head, leaning back on the counter and breathing deeply. She grimaced at the damage the place had suffered, and it was only the return of Father Feather into the building that stopped her from apologizing to the owner.

The old preacher shook his head and sat down on one of the few standing chairs, sighing deeply as he looked up at her. "I never expected divine intervention to be so exciting."

Mirage's lips twitched.

"I apologize for the behavior of the Shade, highness. You must understand, it is… difficult to disassociate a living, breathing alicorn from our faith. Your appearance will be seen as a miracle to many.”

Sunset grimaced. The last thing she needed was ponies associating miracles with her. “Yeah, let’s try not to spread that news around?”

Father Feather chuckled, a feeble sound, and sent an apologetic look her way. “I can safely say that, barring actual divine intervention, it’s far too late for that. It will be impossible to prevent ponies from spreading rumors of what was seen here today.”

Which just made getting the hell out of this wherever she was all the more urgent. Letting her gun dissipate, she righted another barstool and sat, leaning heavily against the counter as she did. “Great. Alright then, what about that mare? Pretty sure she stole something from me right when the fighting started, and I need it back as soon as humanly possible.”

The priest’s brow furrowed as he mouthed ‘humanly?’, but seemed to think better of asking questions. “That mare is not a local. She recently arrived in town with some of the chancellor's men. Appeared to be in charge. I'd say they got here a couple of days ago at most." He hesitated, then rested his elbows on his knees as he rubbed his face tiredly. "Word is that they are after the Bulletproof Heart."

Mirage narrowed her eyes. That name was oddly familiar. Maybe she had heard somepony mention it in town. "So… find the Heart and I find my mare?"

"I suppose. Or you may find a bullet." Father Feather gave her a tired glance. "That anypony would pursue the Bulletproof Heart is concerning. She has a good reputation, but ponies that go looking for her frequently don't come back."

How could a pony who killed those who sought her out have a ‘good’ reputation? Mirage set that conundrum aside for the time being. "So you're saying I'd better be ready for a firefight?"

He shook his head. "I'm saying be careful… highness."

Mirage sighed. "I'm not a princess. Luna is a Princess. Celestia is a Princess. Tw—there are other princesses, I suppose, but I don't… I don't deserve the title just because I have wings and a horn."

Averting his eyes, Father Feather muttered a quiet, “My apologies. It just feels appropriate.”

She grimaced. "It’s fine. Now, how do I find this Bulletproof Heart?"

Author's Note

One night last year, Wanderer D pinged me with the silly idea of a crossover meeting of Mirage and BPH Rarity. I don't know if he expected me to jump on it, but I couldn't resist. And so, on a whim, we started brainstorming potential plotlines.

One of the things we agreed about early on was that this was not going to be some deep thematic piece with greater meaning. While we certainly wanted the story to be enjoyable, our top priority was having fun. That being the case, I'm honestly a little surprised this ended up as coherent as it is.

For those of you wondering about continuity, this is set after Bulletproof Heart: Sunset at Little Longhorn, although I still consider Isekai-related BPH stories to be an AU from the canon BPH stories.

The Chancellor and His Tempest

The chancellor’s home was parked in a convenient spot for the two mares, on the southwestern edge of Manehattan in an area that, while not wealthy, was certainly not poor. This meant that Mirage and Rarity didn’t have to go all the way around or through the massive city. It also meant they could approach it from outside the usual trade lanes. As they rode their lizards through the stone roads, they were surrounded by the simple one-story homes of a quiet neighborhood.

The bad part about this was that there would be no going incognito here. The pleasant region was sorely lacking in secretive routes and the lack of a crowd made them stand out like… well, like two dusty, gun-toting drifters in a clean neighborhood, one of whom happened to be an alicorn. Rarity had no doubt that the chancellor’s ponies would see them coming from blocks away. With this in mind, they concluded that the only thing they could do was be direct and make no attempt to hide themselves.

It wasn’t the chancellor that worried Rarity. No, that honor belonged to Mirage. The mare was a bundle of nerves, constantly shifting and fidgeting in her saddle. What bothered her most about this situation? Mayhap it was that they were exposed and on the enemy’s ground. Or perhaps it was knowing that she may have to kill again today. Given Mirage’s previous statements about her own magical strength, it was also entirely possible she feared letting loose in a populated area. Worst case scenario: all of the above.

Was she prepared for this? Rarity hadn’t touched on the topic since their discussion nearly a week ago. That may have been a mistake, but it was done. Time to be sure. She opened her mouth—

“I know it’s way too late to be asking this,” Mirage said, seemingly unaware of the conversation she’d just prevented, “but who exactly is this ‘chancellor’ guy, anyway?”

Holding back a sigh, Rarity gave the only answer she could. “I don’t know.”

Mirage shot her an incredulous look. “What do you mean, ‘you don’t know’? Coming here was your idea.”

Rarity shrugged. “I know of the chancellor only from a member of his crew, and that was barely a mention. I know he’s involved with Autumn Blaze somehow because she outright told me so.” Assuming that wasn’t another trick, but Rarity was skeptical. “Going by what little I know of Manehattan's government, I would guess he’s a part of the city’s judicial system. The odds of him being in the pocket of the Bad Apples or at least one of the elite agricultural families that run the city is extremely high. Beyond that?” Another shrug. “I don’t know.”

Contemplating this revelation, Mirage eventually asked, “And what if he really is just another pawn in Autumn’s schemes?”

Rarity eyed the road ahead, particularly a house that was larger than its neighbors. If the directions she got from that little colt a few blocks back were accurate, then that would be the chancellor’s abode. “Then we’ll just have to hope that becomes clear before anypony starts shooting.”

“Right.” Following Rarity’s gaze to the house, she grimaced. “So, how are we doing this? I know we agreed to take the direct route – which I’m still really nervous about, by the way – but do you actually intend to just walk through the front door?”

“More or less.” Rarity waved a hand at their surroundings. “What are they going to do, shoot us out in the open? This place isn’t exactly loud. If a firefight starts, everypony in a few miles will know it. Pretty hard to cover something like that up. No, they’ll talk at the start, or at least try to, and if things do go south we’ll already be inside.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Mirage muttered, her eyes on the second story. “Every single one of those windows would make for good sniping positions. I keep having to remind myself that this isn’t a game or a warzone.”

Rarity eyed her warily. Now was as good an opportunity to slip the question in as ever. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

Mirage’s nod was firm. “Absolutely. I can’t let you go it alone. You wouldn’t even be involved in this mess if not for me.”

Deny it, or agree? Rarity couldn’t be sure which was better for Mirage. Seeing as they were coming upon the manor faster than she’d expected, she decided to let the matter drop for now.

If Rarity were to pick a single term to describe the chancellor’s home, it would be ‘austere’. While its size was remarkably modest for belonging to somepony in a presumably high government position, the solid, dark brown walls and black iron fencing on the balconies spoke of a certain aggressive authority. The entrance of the building was precluded by a set of wide cement stairs, oddly requiring visitors to enter through the second story.

But what really had her attention were the two guards standing on either side of the front door, looking directly at them and anxiously gripping their rifles as though wondering if they would do any good. A legitimate concern, all things considered.

The two mares dismounted from across the street. Mirage moved to tie Ray Jr. up to a nearby fence post, but Rarity made no move to do the same for Ophelia. She could trust the lizard not to wander off on her own unless necessary. What she couldn’t trust was in the chancellor’s goons not trying to attack or kill the dear creature. No, best to let Ophelia have the options of fight or flight.

She led the way, ready to cast her shield spell with but a thought. The guards watched them coming like a pair of foals facing an oncoming carriage. One of them made an attempt to raise his rifle in a proper ‘ready’ pose, but the poor thing’s hands were shaking terribly.

The mare of the two had a little more control, and thus managed to squeak out, “Y-you don’t have permission to enter, miss.”

Rarity walked right past. “You are free to try and stop us.”

They didn’t. A second later saw Mirage and Rarity in a modest entry hall. The interior of the house wasn’t so grim in appearance. One might even call it tasteful, although the bust statue of some stallion with a monocle called that assessment into question.

“I can’t believe they just let us walk in,” Mirage noted with quiet wonder. “I mean, I know ponies talk about you, but they looked like they were gonna crap their pants.”

“Tales of my exploits are often exaggerated,” Rarity calmly replied, eyeing the different exits. There were three, not counting the one they’d just come through. No stairs. She wondered about the purpose of the second story entry. Just some architect being flamboyant, or was there some practical purpose she’d have to account for?

Abruptly, the door on the other side of the room opened. In ducked a mare of impressive, intimidating stature. Opal eyes locked on Rarity’s with all the piercing firmness of a predator. Her rose-red mane was set in a back-swept mohawk that kept her long, sharp horn cleanly exposed. The outfit covering most of her dark orchid body was a blue-black and had clear defensive padding. None of that was quite so intimidating as the massive gun mounted to her shoulder. Rarity wasn’t sure what it was even for.

Mirage, ever so helpful, filled in the knowledge gap after a long whistle. “Holy crap, that’s a grenade launcher. That is at once awesome and overkill.”

“Especially from inside this fancy house,” Rarity added under her breath. There was no way this mare intended to fire that thing in here. The collateral cost to her employer would be enormous.

The big mare closed the door behind her, never taking her eyes off her visitors. Now standing at her full height, she towered over the both of them. She didn’t so much scowl as radiate disdain and boredom in a near-physical aura. “Bulletproof Heart.” She had the kind of deep voice that would have made a much younger Rarity swoon. Despite the unfriendly undertone, she kept it polite. “And the Mirage, I take it?”

“That would be correct,” Rarity answered, hands on hips. “And you are?”

The big mare’s eyes flicked to Rarity’s hands, or perhaps to Silver Lining. “Call me Tempest. I take it you’re here to see the chancellor?”

“Yeah.” Mirage leaned forward, curiosity plain in her stare. “How’d you know we were here so quickly?”

“Saw you coming from blocks away.” Tempest folded her arms before her chest, presumably to appear all the more intimidating. “You make an appointment, like everypony else. I can schedule one for you.”

Rarity scoffed, completely unmoved by the display. “I think not. We’re here now, and he will see us.”

“That’s not for you to decide.”

“Hey!” Mirage took a step closer, her wings opening wide in what Rarity recognized from pegasi as a threatening display. “Do you know who we are? We don’t take ‘no’ for an answer.”

Tempest raised a thick eyebrow, then reached into her pocket. From it she produced an emerald that just fit in the palm of her hand. She pressed her thumb to it, and there came a quiet chime. A couple seconds later it chimed again, the sound accompanied by a bright red glow. With a sniff, she pocketed the emerald. “Looks like you’re taking ‘no’ for an answer today.”

A means of communicating with the chancellor, perhaps? Rarity wondered if he weren’t listening to every word they were saying. If that were the case, maybe a less threatening tone was in order. “Forgive us, Miss Tempest, but you have to understand our urgency. The chancellor’s ponies attacked the both of us, so we’d appreciate settling this matter as soon as possible.”

“I don’t care.” The big mare’s attention was now on Mirage. “And I’m not intimidated by the fake alicorn. Now make an appointment or get out.”

A jolt of red-orange electricity shot up Mirage’s horn, her teeth bared and her feet spread. “Fake, am I? I’d like to see if you have the same structural integrity as an airship.”

“Now, now.” Rarity raised an arm in front of Mirage. “There’s no need to get rough. We’ll just call her bluff and keep moving.”

Tempest’s lips, already set in a frown, tightened. She sucked in a slow breath and seemed just a touch bigger than before. She was flexing a bit, Rarity realized. The clothing dampened the effect, but that didn’t stymie the awareness that this was a big pony. “Who says I’m bluffing?”

“You did,” Rarity patiently replied. “By coming in here with a giant gun that is guaranteed to cause significant property damage even when fired perfectly. Or am I to believe the chancellor is okay with you destroying this room?”

With a snort, Tempest unfolded her arms, hands gripped into tight fists. “I don’t need a gun.”

Mirage opened her hand wide, and one of her weapons appeared in it. “So if we shoot you before you get to us, you won’t die? That’s a neat trick, I think I’d like to see it.”

No answer came. The three mares stared at one another, caught in a tense standoff. Mirage’s gun was lowered, but only so much; she’d have it aimed and the trigger pulled in an instant. Tempest looked like a minotaur ready to charge, her eyes making Rarity glad that looks could not actually kill. For her part, Rarity was no longer confident that this wouldn’t turn into a proper fight. She was perhaps the least prepared of the three of them. Her weapons’ safety straps weren’t even unbuttoned. But she was already planning her first moves.

Just when it seemed the tension could grow no more, a faint chime interrupted the silence. Tempest’s expression softened just a touch as she pulled out that emerald once again. This time it was glowing a faint yellow. Tapping it with her thumb dismissed the aura. “Well,” she said, all aggression lost, “looks like the situation’s changed. You can pass through.”

Mirage and Rarity shared incredulous looks. “Just like that?” the former asked.

“Just like that.” Tempest pocketed the emerald and turned to the door. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”

The alicorn leaned towards Rarity to whisper a very confused, “Is this a trick?”

She could only shrug and respond with, “One way to find out.” The expression on Mirage’s face said she didn’t like that response at all. Nevertheless, she led the way in following Tempest.

The chancellor’s home might have been large by the standards of the average pony, but for somepony in a major government position it appeared downright modest. The decorations were sparse, and most that did appear were paintings of families or portraits. Going by the similar features shared by many of the ponies shown, Rarity suspected they were all relatives. Every now and then there would be a vase with some potted plant in a window. All told, Rarity got the impression the house’s overarching design and decor were intended to give off more an air of family legacy than power or wealth. It was oddly reassuring.

Tempest led them down some stairs and through the back of the house. It wasn’t a long walk, and soon they were all standing before a simple door at the end of a hall. Tempest stood aside, arms crossed with a surly frown, and nodded at the door. “Through there.”

Mirage shot her a narrow-eyed glance. “Aren’t you coming?”

“I’m his Head of Security,” Tempest snorted, “not his butler.” She promptly turned around and left them to their business.

“It’s alright,” Rarity offered, seeing no reason to protest. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.”

“I guess.” Mirage watched the burly mare disappear around the corner as if expecting an attack to come at any moment. “I just feel like something’s not right.”

“You’ll have to be more specific than that, dear.”

At last relaxing a touch, Mirage turned to the door and gripped the knob. “Sorry. I just feel like this is a really weird place for the chancellor’s office. I mean, it’s almost like we got sent to the—”

The door opened, and two dozen ponies wearing the red uniforms of the Manehattan Guard were pointing guns at them from a street devoid of pedestrians.

“...back door.”

“Bulletproof Heart, Mirage!” An enthusiastic middle-aged stallion with some impressive lungs shouted at them from behind the many, many gun barrels. “You are under arrest for attempted murder and threatening a city official, among other things. Drop your weapons and come quietly and nopony has to get hurt.”

For Rarity, there was only one proper answer.

Mirage summoning her guns out of thin air and aiming them through the door was not it. “I can take them! You—”

A splash of telekinesis knocked her aim low. “I’m sure you could, darling.” Rarity shoved Mirage aside and slammed the door. “But let’s not kill a bunch of Manehattan’s finest for merely doing their jobs.”

“Right.” The alicorn flushed, guilt written across her face. “Not a game. No indiscriminate killing. Right.” Her horn flashed for an instant and the door’s hinges and knob deformed as if touched by an intense heat. “That ought to hold them for at least a little bit. Plan B?”

Rarity brought out Silver Lining and Ruby Heart, turning back to the hallway. “Plan B.” Not that they had one. She would just assume ‘Plan B’ was to search the house. “If the chancellor is here, they’ll try to get him out of the house and away from us.”

“I gotcha.” Mirage stalked through the hall at a fast walk, her movements surprisingly silent despite the hardwood floors. “Secure the exit, keep the target in play. Let’s move.” Well, somepony really wanted to take the lead. Not that Rarity minded, Mirage had already proven herself a capable combatant.

Rarity mapped the house in her head, what little she’d seen of it. The hallway would take on a rough S shape to a lounge where the stairs were. From there they’d pass through a library – easily the most expensive room in the house – to another hallway that would lead to the front door. She was already puzzling over good defensive positions as Mirage set her back to the wall of the first corner and peeked around. Apparently finding no threats, she pressed onward.

“We should check these doors,” Rarity noted, already moving for the closest one. “Don’t want to pass him by in our hurry.”

Mirage let out a faint grunt of acknowledgement and went for another door. Rarity acted first, shoving the door open and aiming her weapons. She found an empty closet.

Mirage’s door was not so barren, at least in terms of ponies. Rarity didn’t get a chance to reach her before the bullets started flying. The alicorn pirouetted out of the doorway just in time. Back to the wall, guns raised, she shot Rarity a pointed look. “Can I shoot them now?”

“Oh, for Luna’s sake.” Rarity reached into the room with her magic, caught the door handle, and slammed it closed. She counted them both lucky the walls were sturdy enough to resist small arms fire. “Do the hinge trick again, if you please.”

“All I’m saying is self defense seems like a legitimate reason,” Mirage grumbled, doing as she was told. “Say, how strong are your earth ponies?”

“If they have any skill at all, strong enough to break through that door.” Rarity’s response was punctuated by something banging hard against the house’s back door. She hurried to the next one. “But we’ve bought ourselves time.”

“Hardly!” Mirage followed, scowling and aiming her weapon at the hall behind them. “If they didn’t know we’d slipped out of their trap before, they sure do now. I think one of us should hurry to the front before they really do get the chancellor out.”

“We stay together!” Rarity hurriedly checked the last door in this part of the hall. A study of some sort. No ponies. Closing it sharply, she moved to the corner. “Our odds of getting out of this alive and unarrested are better this way.”

“And if the chancellor escapes?”

“Then he escapes,” Rarity stiffly replied, checking out the windows. The Manehattan Guard were clearly visible moving around the front of the house. “Then again, we’re about to need our own escape plan. They’re trying to surround the building.”

“Wonderful.” Mirage bounded up the stairs three at a time. It was the most noise her movements made since the back door. “It’s clear up here. For now—” A beat. “Get up here.”

Rarity had almost opened the last door in the lounge, but the firm urgency of Mirage’s order brought her around. The banging from the previous door was getting louder, and the sounds from the back suggested the Manehattan officers were almost inside. Celestia forbid she be forced to kill any of those ponies to save her own skin, but if it became necessary…

Oh, right. Library. Libraries meant bookshelves. Rarity stood at the top of the stairs and spotted Mirage pressed against one, both guns out and looking like she was stalking somepony. Hurrying to the opposite bookshelf and pulling her own weapons out, Rarity kept her voice low. “If you would, please use that prodigious horn of yours to block the stairs.”

Mirage raised an eyebrow at her. “How?” Rarity responded by tapping Silver Lining lightly against her bookshelf. The alicorn cocked her head, brow furrowing, but then the light came on behind her eyes. A second later, no less than three bookshelves were laid on top of the stairs, book-side up for the extra weight. Rarity ignored her mild jealousy. “Let’s see those earth ponies break through that.”

She then pointed through the bookshelves between them with one of her guns. “See that door?” Indeed, it was impossible to miss. “Tempest just went in there.”

And Tempest, head of the chancellor’s security, would probably make herself the personal defense of the stallion himself. Rarity nodded firmly. “Block the door to the hall so we won’t get flanked, then we hit them.”

“And about time,” Mirage growled as the last two available bookshelves slid up against the door in her magic’s opal aura. “That mare rubs me the wrong way.”

“Part of the job description, I imagine.” Rarity stepped out from behind her bookshelf and made for the door. She’d intended to breach the entrance together, being careful to avoid any shots fired prematurely from the other side. Once again, Mirage had her own ideas, slamming shoulder-first into the door. It burst open, a large crack running right up the middle, and she was inside. Rarity bit back a curse, made a mental note to talk about their teamwork after this, and followed.

“Come back here, we just want to talk!” Because slamming shoulder-first through a door like some bandit was the best way to show peaceful intentions.

Rarity was just in time to see a dark tail slip through a closing door. They were in some sort of office, the walls lined with filing cabinets and a wide desk at the back. Windows on their right illuminated stacks of papers, used up inkwells, and a worn wicker chair in the corner. Between the two mares and the desk – and thus between them and the door the presumed chancellor had slipped through – was Tempest, one hand raised to steady her grenade launcher and her teeth bared in a menacing snarl.

“Ponies who want to talk,” she seethed, “don’t barge through doors.”

Rarity barely resisted a cry of 'That's what I as thinking!' Barely.

“Don’t give us that bullshit,” Mirage spat right back, both weapons aimed and ready. “What were we supposed to do? You lied to us and sicced the cops!”

“I’m many things,” Tempest fired back, “but I’m no liar.”

“That’s crap and you—!”

“Actually…” Rarity kept her focus on that grenade launcher rather than the mare holding it. “I think she’s right. She never said we could see the chancellor, only that we could pass through the house.”

Mirage’s face went red as she shot Rarity a wide-eyed look. “Who’s side are you on?”

“The losing side,” Tempest growled. Her attention was entirely on Mirage. Perhaps she saw her as the greater threat? Rarity was more than prepared to capitalize on that. “I didn’t want to do this, but if you keep coming I will fire this thing.”

Rarity believed it. If she had the layout of this house right at all, that room the chancellor has slipped through would be a dead end. Assuming that was the chancellor at all, but if so, then this would be the ‘last stand’, so to speak. Tempest couldn’t back down, not if she was intent on doing her job. Maybe if she could talk her down—

Mirage stomped closer and took on an aggressive stance. “Bring it, bitch!”

Bullets flew. At the same time, a loud 'thunk' sound signaled the grenade launcher firing not one, but multiple rounds at once like some kind of shotgun.

Rarity moved 'talk to Sunset about teamwork' much higher on her mental checklist. Right at the tippy top, in fact.

The good news was that she’d dealt with explosives before. Her response was practically muscle memory at this point – or perhaps that would be ‘magic’ memory? Her horn lit up, caught all six of the miniature grenades before they could reach Mirage, and sent them flying back. One of them even landed right in the big barrel of Tempest’s launcher. The giant of a mare had just enough time to show her shock and ignite her horn.

A wave of heat and shrapnel slammed Rarity into the wall, sending a spike of pain up her arm. The world spun, but only for a second or two, and she managed to stay on her hooves. Stumbling forward, she tried moving her arm. Sore, but definitely not broken. Her other arm was bleeding profusely. No time to check it. Her attention went to the other side of the room, still obscured by smoke.

“Rarity, are you—?”

Rarity took Silver Lining in her magic, freeing her hand to point at Mirage. “You be quiet and let me try to diffuse the situation.” Mirage – no, Sunset Shimmer – looked hurt. She opened her mouth as if to retort, but Rarity was already stalking away. She looked fine, a few cuts notwithstanding, and Rarity wasn’t going to give her aggression a chance to make things worse.

Against all odds, Tempest was still alive. The burly mare was on her knees, curled and clutching at her face. No moans or cries of pain, but her breaths were quick and sharp. Blood seeped between her taut fingers, and her shoulder was a burned mess with bits of metal embedded in the now-exposed flesh. Rarity steeled herself, worried about what might have become of the mare’s face.

“Miss Tempest?” Warily, she stepped close. The mare didn’t move from her vulnerable, shivering position on the floor. “Oh, dear. Listen, we’ll try to find you some help, okay?” Dropping to one knee, Rarity holstered Ruby Heart and reached a tentative hand for the mare’s back. “I just need you to—”

The air left her. It took her a second to realize that a fist was pressed against her gut. She blinked as a truly gruesome sight appeared in her vision. That hideous mess of blood and burnt skin was Tempest’s face. The shattered mess of her horn sent a tingling ghost of pain through Rarity’s own. The wound over her clenched right eye would have made her gasp had she any oxygen with which to do so. And the other eye?

Only one pony had ever looked at her like that before. A pony who nearly killed her. Her name was Stormy Flare, and just the thought of facing a pony like that again was enough to make Rarity’s heart freeze. That was all the snarling Tempest needed; she grabbed Rarity’s head and slammed it hard into the floor.

Mirage was too busy being angry at herself for being so aggressive to realize what was happening until it was too late. She heard the thunk and looked up to find her friend lifted off the ground by the throat. A bloody and burnt Tempest was snarling in the mare’s face, her shattered horn giving off frightening streaks of electricity. Mirage raised Luna and her Desert Eagle, but she’d have to shoot through Rarity to hit Tempest!

Just as panic started to threaten, Tempest’s horn released a radiating blast of energy. Mirage covered her eyes, the force of the shockwave making her drop her weapons and take a bracing backstep. She cried out as the heat of it washed over her. Under the sharp buzz of magical residue came the sound of shattering glass, wood cracking, and a surprised cry that, oddly, sounded like Tempest herself.

Her eyes blinking away the sudden flash, Mirage took in a disaster area. The floor was burnt black, papers halfway reduced to ash fluttered about, the windows were shattered, and the desk had been overturned. Tempest lay behind it, only her legs visible where they dangled over the blackened furniture. The mare groaned and started to stand, rubbing at her head, but Mirage had other things on the mind.

Rarity. Where’s Rarity? She needed only turn around.

The wood of the wall was splintered and cracked. Below the impact spot sat her friend, eyes closed and blood dripping from beneath her frazzled mane. She was limp against the wall, hands splayed to her sides and head bowed. Mirage took in the sight and felt the ice creeping through her veins. That looked like a lot of blood.

“Rarity?” She knelt next to the mare, shaking her gently by the shoulder. There was no reaction whatsoever. “Rarity!” The beautiful pony’s chest rose and fell, so she was alive at the very least. How bad was the head wound? What if there was some internal damage? “Shit. Shit, shit, shit.” Mirage’s mind swirled with chaotic thoughts; how to help Rarity, how did this happen, what could she have done to prevent it? Her only friend in this world was about to die and she couldn’t hold onto a thought for long enough to do anything about it!

“Luna damn it, that hurt!” Mirage tensed at the sound of Tempest’s voice. “Stupid bitch. What kind of gunfighter breaks off a mare’s horn then tries to render aid? I thought the Bulletproof Heart was supposed to be smarter than that.”

Mirage whirled to face the pony, who was rubbing her soot-stained forehead over a pained cringe. “You! She was trying to help you, and you… You—!”

“And now she’s down for the count,” Tempest growled back. She straightened up, face still contorted in pain, and cracked her knuckles. “I’m crippled, I’m pissed, and now it’s your turn. You two owe me a horn!”

The ice in Mirage’s veins sublimated to steam as her world turned white. “Oh, I’ll give you a horn!”

A sharp sting across the cheek welcomed Rarity back to the waking world. She groaned and raised her hand to block whatever was striking her. She felt like she’d gone a few rounds with a minotaur and dearly hoped she had won the fight so that all this soreness would be worth it. Her skull throbbed with her pulse, and when she felt at it her pearly hand came away smeared in blood. “Wah… W-what?” Over the drum beat in her skull was the sound of something cracking and a pained cry.

“Wake up. Wake up! Please, snap out of it.”

The desperate, deep voice jarred her from unsteady thoughts, most of which were related to trying to figure out what was going on. With effort, she cracked her eyes open. On his knees before her was a goateed unicorn with a black mane and a pale gray complexion.

The fact that her little pony made no attempt to correct her color terms was refreshing and worrying in equal measure.

“Oh, thank the Night Mother!” The stallion tugged on her shoulders, his eyes wild and teary. “Please, you have to stop this. She’s going to kill her!”

Kill her? Who was her? Where was she? Rarity tried to speak, coughed, sucked in a few breaths, then managed a, “What?”

He held her cheeks in his hands and stared into her eyes. Now that things were starting to clear, she could see panic clearly in his turquoise irises. “No, you can’t have a concussion. Not now! You’ve got to do something!”

Her bearings mostly reclaimed, Rarity pushed his hands away. “I have had a concussion before, sir. I’m pretty sure this isn’t one.” Sitting up from her place against the wall, she started to scan her surroundings. “Now what’s—?” Her heart shot into her throat.

In the middle of the scorched room floated an… an apparition. Sunset Shimmer, living up to her name by giving off a pale orange glow. Her wings were stretched wide and literally ablaze, the flames licking the ceiling and leaving black streaks in the wood. Her horn was a white torch that was painful to look at and her face was contorted in rage. Fire even burned from her eyes, pure white things that sizzled and popped and sent sparks flying through the hot air.

All this would have been alarming enough without the sight of Tempest floating in the mare’s overwhelming aura. She was beaten black and blue, and one of her arms was clearly broken. She appeared barely conscious, her lips trying to move, but before any sound could come out she was slammed back-first against the wall. And again. And again. And again, the wood warping and her head whipping like that of a doll.

“Please!” The stallion tugged on Rarity’s arm, more like a child than an adult in his terror. “Please, stop her!”

“My guns.” Rarity looked around, but everything was a mess of scattered papers and books and broken wood. “Where are my guns?!”

The stallion turned from her and, with a flash of his horn, pulled Ruby Heart out of the pile and levitated it towards her. She snatched it out of the air, but hesitated. If she was going to stop this, she needed something better. “The other one.” Tempest’s body slammed into the overturned desk, cracking it in two. “I need the other one!”

“Discord damn it!” The stallion turned and, with another flash, sent the papers and books flying. Amidst all the debris was a spot of silver and blue, which Rarity caught with her magic. Silver Lining came flying into her waiting palm while her other hand dug into her ammo pouch. She discarded one cylinder, then another as her magic removed the gun’s current one.

The stallion’s shook her by the shoulder. “Come on, come on…” Another crack of breaking bone, another weak cry. “Please hurry.”

Ignoring his panic as best she could, Rarity found the cylinder she was after, swiftly slotting it into Silver Lining. She turned it until certain that one of the pale, blue-tinted bullets would fire next, then took aim. Mirage, still hovering, now held Tempest in the air by her throat. Her other hand, clenched in a fist and reared back, was covered in orange flames.

Just before the potentially lethal blow could come, the hammer landed and Silver Lining released the bullet. Blood splashed from Mirage’s leg above the knee… and then flash-froze in place. The upper leg gained a thin coating of ice in under a second and the literally flaming alicorn let out a horrifying shriek. Tempest fell to the floor in an undignified lump.

Mirage spun around to face her attacker with a snarl, only to pause at the sight of her partner. “Rarity?” Her voice had an odd, echoing quality to it as the flames of her wings and horn calmed slightly. “You’re alright.”

Heaving a deep, relieved breath, Rarity nodded and lowered her weapon. “My apologies, darling.”

Mirage’s pure white eyes, still crackling, stared at her for a couple seconds before abruptly narrowing. The ice on her leg began to sizzle and melt. “You shot me.”

As the stallion rushed to Tempest’s side, Rarity stumbled her way to a standing position. “Oh, don’t give me that. I’ve seen what your potions can do.”

The flames swirled and danced as Mirage let out a growl. “You shot me!”

Rarity gestured with both hands at the body of Tempest. When Mirage failed to follow the gesture, she did it again with greater emphasis. At last the levitating, fiery mare took a look at her handiwork. What she found was the stallion, tears in his eyes as he held Tempest close.

Mirage fell back from the sight, comprehension dawning upon her features. “I… I did that?” She looked at her hand, still blazing, as if not sure what it was. She shook it and the flame sputtered out, as did the rest of her. Wings and horn back to normal, she hit the floor like a marionette with the strings cut. A second later, her wings disappeared too and she was the younger Sunset again. “Oh, god, what did I just do?”

A banging sound could be heard nearby. Seemed the chancellor’s ponies were trying to get into the library. Ignoring that, Rarity went to stand next to her companion, stretching tender muscles as she did. “Remember what I told you about going on a murderous rampage?”

“But that’s not me!” Sunset looked up at her with the face of a kicked puppy, lost and hurt and oh-so desperate for understanding. “I-is it?”

“I don’t know,” Rarity admitted tiredly, but not without sympathy. “All I know is that you took this one much too far.”

Sunset whimpered but said nothing, seeming lost in her own worries. As much as Rarity wanted to help, they had more immediate concerns. She turned to the stallion. “Chancellor?”

He looked up at her, appearing just as broken as Sunset did. He stood up swiftly, interposing himself between her and the unconscious Tempest. “Why are you doing this? What did we ever do to you? I demand to know!”

“We’re here to ask the same thing of you.” The chancellor didn’t seem much of a threat, especially considering how he hid throughout most of the fight. With a sigh, Rarity holstered her weapons. “If you promise not to sic them on us, I’ll go out there and let your ponies in so they can get Tempest the treatment she needs. I swear, sir, we only came here to talk.”

His glare only intensified, made all the worse by the tear stains on his cheeks. “You can’t expect me to believe that!”

“We never intended to attack like this,” Rarity reassured him, working to keep her tone as calm and placating as possible. “Things just… got out of control.” Sunset whimpered from her spot on the floor. “The one we’re really after is a kirin named Autumn Blaze.”

“I don’t care what your excuse is! Look at what you did to my Tempest!” He stood aside and flung a hand at the mare’s limp form. “You’ve crippled her. Crippled! Her horn, her b-beautiful horn…” He failed to choke back a sob, taking a moment to rub at his eyes with his purple robes. “I told her not to fight you, damn her pride.”

There came a crashing sound from behind. Rarity considered blocking the door, but decided against it. She didn’t want to cause any more trouble. She turned to Sunset. The mare appeared lost in her own thoughts. Depressing, self-critical thoughts, from the dour look on her face. “Sunset, darling? Miss Tempest could use your assistance.”

The distraught redhead shifted out of her trance-like state to look up at Rarity. “She what?”

Hoofsteps outside. Rarity chose not to rush. Neither Sunset nor the chancellor needed that. “A healing potion, Sunset. Tempest needs one. And so do you.”

Sunset blinked, then followed Rarity’s pointing finger to the bleeding wound in her leg. With a dazed “oh”, she reverted once more to her Mirage form and pulled three of the bottles out of thin air. Movements slow and mechanical, she handed two to Rarity and began drinking the other.

“Thank you.” Rarity turned back to the chancellor just as the door burst open.

Guns were pointed in several directions… but mostly at Rarity. “Chancellor Neighsay,” one of the guards shouted from behind his rifle. “Stand back!”

Ignoring the guns and the barked orders, Rarity offered Neighsay the healing potion in her hand. He stared at her, chest heaving with his heavy breaths, hands trembling. Still seeing his understandable doubt, she tried for a smile. “Tempest aside, we have not harmed a single one of your ponies, and her only because she refused to back down. I swear, all we want is Autumn Blaze, and then only so that she’ll return what she stole from us. You can give us what we want and we’ll be out of your life, or you can refuse and we have to defend ourselves.” She shook the potion gently before him, drawing his eye to it. “It’s your move, Chancellor. How this goes is entirely up to you.”

With weapons aimed at them, the room in disarray, Tempest bleeding out on the floor, and Mirage cradling her empty bottle as one might a teddy bear… Neighsay hesitated. His eyes drifted to Rarity’s partner, perhaps taking note of her healed leg. He glanced at his guards crowding the door, every one of them awaiting his order with bated breath. His ears perked to Tempest’s hacking cough.

That last one was the deciding factor; he took the bottle. “Stand down.”

“But sir—!”

“I said stand down!” He turned to kneel next to Tempest. “Go back into the library and wait for my order. And shut the door!” He carefully poured the liquid down Tempest’s throat. “These mares and I have things to discuss.”

Only now that the situation was de-escalated did Rarity drink her own potion.

Night had fallen upon Manehattan before things calmed down at the chancellor’s estate. The stallion reluctantly let them stay while he cleaned up the mess that had been made. It may have been that he didn’t think he could get rid of them anyway. Rarity was determined that they not leave until they had the answers they sought, and it looked like he’d resigned himself to their presence.

Even so, the waiting was torture for Sunset.

She could still vividly recall her actions, the way she tore into Tempest like a… She wasn't even sure what word was appropriate. ‘Monster’ seemed too tame.

Should she talk to somepony about this? She felt like she should. Rarity would have been the best choice. She’d alluded to these kinds of terrible reactions in the past, but the thought of speaking about it always stilled her tongue. She didn’t even understand why beyond a heart-wrenching dread that made her body tremble and her blood run cold.

Worse, Rarity made no attempt to bring it up herself. The unicorn busied herself with helping fix the damage and being, for lack of a better description, Rarity. She spoke to ponies. Not in the way an average pony might, but in the way only a pony gifted in social graces could. The sheer level of charm unleashed was enough to endear everypony she set her sights on. Ponies who not an hour ago had been trying to shoot her were all smiles and acceptance and ‘let bygones be bygones’, and all the mare had to offer them was a little bit of her time.

Sunset knew what she was witnessing. Back when she’d been the terror of Canterlot High, she wielded words like a knife; in one minute she could be cutting bread and spreading butter, and the next she’d be carving out hearts. A pony who understood language recognized words were tools and could use them effectively. Rarity understood words, but she wielded them with a finesse that put Sunset to shame. Not because she was better at it. There was no appropriate way to compare Rarity’s method to Old Sunset’s. Apples to oranges and all that.

The thing that made Rarity so much better was honesty. She never offered a compliment she didn’t mean. When she tried to help, it was because she genuinely wanted to. When she asked a question, not even the most cynical pony could detect false interest. Her every interaction was positive, and she made it look so easy. Even New Sunset found it enviable.

She received a little of that positivity. The occasional query or checkup, a brief conversation here or there. But Rarity spent most of the time with others. Sunset understood. It was diplomacy. Strategy. Get on everyone’s good side to make up for what just happened, assuage hurt feelings, avoid anymore fighting in the near future. It made sense, and she was far better equipped to do it.

Still, that didn’t stop Sunset from moping when the mare wasn’t around. She couldn’t help it. After what had happened, her brain couldn’t get away from the sheer guilt. It kept circling around the same topics, seeking answers, trying to understand her behavior, grasping at what-ifs and could-have-beens. The absolute worst part was the memory of Tempest’s eyes – eye – when she first realized what she was up against. It was a fleeting moment, only a second and ended prematurely by the superhot blast of magic Mirage had smashed her face with. It was the wild-eyed comprehension that she was facing something far beyond the scope of her abilities. It was the expression a pony gained when faced with an abomination.

Oh, look. Sunset had found a good word for herself after all.

These thoughts consumed her so thoroughly that she couldn’t bring herself to do anything but marinate in them. In her 'mortal' form, she sat in a simple dining chair in a hallway next to a door behind which Tempest and Chancellor Neighsay had sequestered themselves. Plenty of ponies went through that door. Doctors, guards, hired guns, workers, whoever needed guidance through the ongoing mayhem. If any of them paid her any mind, she couldn’t say. She wasn’t paying them any attention.

That was given exclusively to her phone. More specifically, the pictures she had of Luna. Here, of the woman doing paperwork for CHS and nursing a mug of coffee with 'Blame my sister.' emblazoned on the side. There, sporting a GGO shirt and focused intensely on her computer screen, lost in some game. The one at a local fair, trying to feed one another cotton candy and making a sticky mess of things. That one always made her smile, even when she felt on the verge of crying.

She knew it was a stupid, pointless idea. That didn’t stop her from trying to give Luna a call. Not that there was a signal. She couldn’t even get to the woman’s voicemail. The most mundane means of hearing her voice, and even that was taken from her.

A lesser mare would have broken at that point. Sunset seriously considered letting herself break. She was one wrong word away from bringing up her hud and futilely begging an unawares Twilight for an escape from this world. She wanted to go home. To eat bad takeout and fight traffic and chat with her friends and Luna, oh Celestia but she wanted to see Luna right now.

“Sunset?”

Snapped out of her borderline panic, Sunset blinked up at the pony standing before her. It was Rarity, her expression a master class in concern. “Y-yeah?”

“I’m sorry, darling.” The unicorn knelt down and reached out to touch her shoulder. “You look a fright. How are you feeling?”

Sunset sniffed and rubbed her nose. “Like a fright.”

Her attempt at being cheeky only made Rarity’s concerned frown deepen. She imagined her smile wasn’t helping. It probably looked more like a grimace. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

Sunset’s entire body tensed in an effort to hold back the tears. She pulled it off, but there was no preventing Rarity from noticing the moisture in her eyes, especially with how they burned. Rubbing them clean, she muttered a miserable, “I just want to go home.”

No hollow platitudes were offered. Only that reassuring smile. For all Sunset’s worries and anxieties, a little voice noted that such a smile could probably melt through stallions like butter. Was her Rarity this good at simply being ‘good’, or was this one unique in that regard?

“What do you say we finally have that talk with Neighsay?” Rarity suggested as she stood up.

Following the motion, Sunset gladly replied, “I’d like nothing better.” She led the way into the nearby room, pausing only to knock. Rarity had taken great strides to ease the tension these ponies felt for them, it would be a pity to ruin that by not being polite.

They entered a bedroom, much to Sunset’s surprise. She’d been thinking maybe an office or a study. Instead they found a four-post bed, two tall windows with heavy red curtains opened to let in the fading sunlight, and Tempest lying unconscious under the sheets. Chancellor Neighsay was in a chair beside her, one hand gripping the big mare’s tightly and his eyes on the ground. Upon hearing the door open, he gave them both a foul look. “Do keep it down,” he growled. “She only just fell asleep.”

This was the first chance Sunset had to see the damage Mirage had wrought. Not that she could see much, as Tempest was well-covered, but her head alone was enough. It was wrapped in bandages, only one eye visible. There was something like a cone set upon her horn, hiding the worst of the damage. Even so, Sunset remembered the jagged, shattered shape. Seemed there were some things even one of her potions couldn't heal. It made her own horn sore and brought back the whip of guilt. Swallowing to moisten her suddenly dry throat, she asked, “Will she be okay?”

Neighsay’s glare didn’t ease up. “As long as you consider losing an eye and half your horn ‘okay’, then yes, the doctors claim she should recover.”

The venom in his words might have stung, but they finally gave Sunset something to relax over. “Good. I’m—”

“Save it.” He turned his face towards Tempest, his hold on her hand firming. “I don’t believe you, and I won’t have you insulting her with your insincerity.”

An ice pick lodged its way into Sunset’s heart, but she bit down on the desire to defend herself. He had every right to be furious with her, even given that it was technically Rarity who did that particular bit of damage. Then there was how he stared at the bedridden mare. There was no way she was ‘just’ his head of security. She looked to Rarity, helpless and hoping for some assistance.

The mare was up to the task. She went to stand beside the chancellor, her hands folded neatly as she followed his gaze. “We understand that you want us gone. We’ll be more than happy to leave you in peace. But not until we get what we came here for.”

For a time, the chancellor said nothing. Then, with a heavy sigh, he kissed the unawares Tempest’s hand, laid it reverently on the bed, and stood to face them. “Let’s have this conversation elsewhere.” Neither mare argued.

Five minutes later, they were in a lounge, the walls a dark green. There was a large coffee table in the corner surrounded by five plush chairs, and each of them settled in one. Neighsay had one of his servants deliver to him a flute of wine, a pleasure he didn’t bother offering them. Not that Sunset was going to complain, of course.

“So,” he said after taking a fortifying sip. “You want Autumn Blaze.” Peering over his glass, he finally asked the one thing that might have let them all avoid the day’s excitement. “Why?”

Sunset started to speak, but caught herself. Talking out of turn hadn’t helped them in the past twenty-four hours. She glanced at Rarity, who took that as her cue to represent them in this little meeting. “She sent your ponies to attack me, and at the same time convinced bounty hunters to attack Sunset here in both my name and yours.” Crossing her legs and folding her hands in her lap, she was the epitome of prim and proper. “I’m sure you can understand why we’d both be rather… incensed.”

She wasn’t going to mention the stolen cards? On second thought, maybe that made sense. It wasn’t like they could outright tell the chancellor that they were seeking magical cards that could transport ponies through time and space.

Chancellor Neighsay let out a throaty hum that spoke of his displeasure. “So the stories of the Bulletproof Heart being a mare of vengeance have a bit of truth to them.”

Rarity may have maintained her cool calm, but there was no mistaking the way she bristled at the accusation. “This is about clearing the air, Chancellor. Autumn Blaze is trying to have us killed. Surely you can understand that we want to know why and, if at all possible, do something about it.”

“Yes,” he grumbled, setting his wine flute down on the coffee table. “I suppose I do. I would like to say I find your accusations towards her ridiculous, but…” He paused, lips pursed and eyes gazing at something between and beyond them.

“I found Autumn Blaze eight years ago. She had my interest for no other reason than being a kirin. The idea of them leaving their island sanctuaries is all but unheard of. Curiosity led to friendship, and I ended up giving her a job. She’s tenacious, patient, and loyal. Where Tempest is my firm right fist, Autumn is my confidential left hand. In all these years, I’ve had little reason to question her.”

Sensing the shift in tone, Sunset leaned closer. “Something changed.”

He nodded grimly. “Did you know Autumn is mute?”

Sunset cast a curious look Rarity’s way.

“She informed me herself,” the unicorn admitted, her focus remaining steadfast upon the chancellor. She looked every bit the leader discussing matters of state. “When she invited me on her – apologies, your airship in order to try and convince me to fight Sunset myself.”

“Which you did,” Sunset noted grimly.

“Indeed. After you shot down said airship.”

The chancellor’s hands gripped the armrests of his seat and he glared at Sunset once more. “That was my private airship.”

Sunset sniffed her disdain at his manner. “The fact that you even had a ‘private’ airship says a lot, and none of it good.”

Neighsay appeared as though he might throw them both out right then, but Rarity’s prim and confident words slipped between them. “Now, Sunset, owning an airship has its uses. I for one think you may owe the chancellor an apology.” Now it was Sunset glaring at Rarity, who met it with a patient-yet-neutral expression. “For lives lost if nothing else.”

That line was like a needle in the balloon of Sunset’s anger, popping it instantly. Right. Lives lost. That had been a rather stupid move on her part. Heaving a sigh, she returned her attention to the ever-glowering Neighsay. “For what it’s worth, I am sorry about the harm I caused all those ponies on the airship.”

He continued to stare at her in the same way one did when deciding what gun class would be most effective, but eventually he sighed and shook his head. “We’re getting off topic. Autumn Blaze.”

“Indeed.” Rarity nodded, leaning back in her chair like she owned the building. “So she’s a mute. I assume that is relevant to our search.”

He nodded in turn, taking a moment only to reclaim his wine flute and take another sip. “According to what she told me, Autumn’s tribe came to the conclusion that communication is the cause of all conflict. She declined to explain how, but they discovered a way to curse one another into muteness. Autumn rebelled against this, but they forced the curse upon her anyway. Disgusted by their actions, she left her island and went in search of a cure.”

The flute rotated lazily in Neighsay’s magic, his eyes observing the steadily swaying liquid inside. “That search consumes her. She hates her curse, and she hates those who gave it to her. As loyal and capable as she is, I have seen her abandon her position for weeks at a time in pursuit of whispers of a solution, only to come back empty handed and more bitter than before.”

Another sip. The flute glass, now empty, was once more set on the coffee table. Neighsay waved off a servant’s offer to refill it. “Autumn did issue orders to my men, which I didn’t hear about until weeks after it happened. She was already using the Berrytwist, but that was for her current assignment and entirely legitimate. Then she went and changed its flight plan without going through the proper channels. She came here afterwards, tells me I’m about to be personally attacked, and heads to the Arcaenum. Before I know it, she’s disappeared again.”

Sunset clasped her hands together, elbows on her chair’s armrests, and considered this news. She shared a long, thoughtful look with Rarity. “You think she’s going after another one of those ‘whispers’?”

When he met her gaze, it was without the anger he normally sent her way. This time he just looked tired. “It’s the only excuse I can think of for her behavior. Autumn is remarkably dependable and even predictable so long as she’s not pursuing that blasted cure, and what’s been going on this season is far from normal for her.”

So they had a smart and powerful kirin driven to potential madness by a curse and willing to kill over it. Wonderful. A small part of Sunset wondered if losing the ability to speak was really worth so much trouble. Another part pointed out that mommy issues were no excuse to brainwash a school, become a she-demon and attempt to murder people with magical hellfire. Quietly conceding the point, she pivoted to another important topic: why the cards? There was no way Autumn Blaze knew about the Isekai.

Then again, if Rarity and Sunset could have one each…

That still wouldn’t explain why Autumn would want a pair of cards she couldn’t use.

Rarity interrupted her pondering to ask, “Do you know why she went to the Arcaenum?”

Arcaenum. Sunset wasn’t sure what that was, so she put aside her thoughts in favor of paying more attention.

Neighsay nodded, standing from his seat and moving away from them. He clasped his hands behind his back and stared at one of the larger pictures on the wall. Going by the facial similarities, perhaps a close relative. A father? Grandfather? “I took the liberty of sending somepony to poke around. Autumn paid a mage to cast a tracking spell on something. It must have worked, for she left immediately after.”

Rarity, clearly knowing what answer she would receive, nonetheless asked, “I don’t suppose you know where she went?”

“I’m afraid that, as usual in these bouts of adventuring, she did not bother to inform me. I can tell you that she commandeered an airship from a local merchant to get there, and her heading was south.”

Rarity’s lips pursed as she thought on this. “So she cast tracking spells on our items. Perhaps she is using them to keep away from us.”

Neighsay’s ear flicked her way. “It’s not like Autumn to avoid a fight.”

But what other reason could there be? If she intended to use a tracking spell to plan an ambush, she was doing it wrong. It could have been done well before they got to Manehattan. Or heck, Autumn could have just attacked them here, in the midst of all the chaos. She wouldn’t still be in the city, else why ‘commandeer’ an airship?

Rarity heaved a sigh and rubbed at her forehead. “I miss the days when I was just a clothier.”

Of course, Rarity would find comfort in the idea of sewing. If there was anything all Rarities had in common it was—

Wait. All the Rarities. They were hunting for cards to the Isekai, which was run by a different Sunset Shimmer, who was originally bankrolled by a different Rarity. There were multiple Rarities out there. There were multiple Sunset Shimmers out there. And that meant…

Sunset sat up with a start, one hand reaching out to grasp her companion’s arm. “Rarity. There’s another me.”

“Well, I—” Rarity paused, glancing between Neighsay still studying that painting and Sunset. “I’m not sure this is the right place to discuss such matters.”

“No, you don’t get it.” Sunset leaned a little closer, looking the mare in the eyes to better get her point across. “Autumn is using a tracking spell. It’s going to be detecting the location of Rarity Belle and Sunset Shimmer.” She slapped a hand to her chest. “But there’s more than one, isn’t there? You said there was.”

A heartbeat. Two. Three.

Horrified comprehension dawned in those blue eyes. “Oh, dear. Um, Chancellor Neighsay, I don’t suppose we could bother you for one small, itty bitty little favor?”

Author's Note

There was a significant time gap between writing this chapter and the previous one. We both got busy with real life things, neither were willing to keep going without the other's input, and there were times when we actually forgot about it in the midst of what was going on.

Then one day I noticed the files sitting in my Drive account and was like "You know what? Screw it, I'm finishing this thing." I started writing this chapter on my own, then WD noticed my work a few days later and the project was abruptly back on in earnest.

Although I did most of the writing here, we had already planned a lot of this fight back before the project went on hiatus. We were both aware that Sunset/Mirage was a more aggressive person in general than Rarity, and that the stress she was under would only make that worse. In many ways, there's just as much a clash between our two protagonists in this chapter as there had been in the actual fight. Mirage going Beast Mode on Tempest was WD's idea.

Tempest and Neighsay being a thing was mine. It was largely influenced by the large amount of images and stories I'd noticed shipping them at that time. I thought it was a fascinating ship. I see no reason not to consider that element canon to BPH's main stories. Although I never had any plans to include them in the stories before, it's always possible they could make an appearance in the future.