Somewhere within a suburban neighborhood was a simple single-story house. The house was neither fancy nor cheap, but Tempest is okay with it as long as she can use the house for basic needs. Eight months ago, her father, Commander Walters, provided this house as a means for her to stay in Canterlot City to “keep an eye” on the girls and the hedgehog. After that, her father hasn't contacted her again and has been “busy” with his work since.

Currently, Tempest Shadow was in a living room, wearing her workout outfit while doing an upside-down sit-up on a pull-up bar. Sweat was pouring down her face as she lifted her upper body for the hundredth time with a grunt. While her usual workout was way more than necessary, she was also doing this as a means to distract herself after her conversation with Grubber.

Unfortunately, no matter how often she pulled herself up, Grubber's words refused to leave her head.

"Just because he 'backed off', doesn't mean that he is done. Your father has more secrets and is sneakier than you and even your two sisters… especially when trying to accomplish a secret agenda only for his own benefit. Even if it means using anyone at his disposal to get what he wants… including you!”

Tempest narrowed her eyes at those words. While she and her father are not related by blood and don't always see eye to eye, they are always upfront with each other and respect each other's views. While her father has been busy, that doesn't mean he would do something behind her back for his own agenda.

“...would he?” Tempest whispered.

Before she could think further about this, she was interrupted by the sound of several knocks on her front door.

Tempest stopped what she was doing and stared at the door with a raised eyebrow. “Strange… I wasn't expecting any visitors tonight.”

Her eyes narrowed as she heard more knocks coming from the door. Whoever was knocking, didn't bother to announce who it was, which raised a huge red flag.

Tempest slowly touched the floor with her hands and then released her legs from the bar so she could flip herself right up again. She then quietly made her way towards the door while taking out her shock pistol from behind her pants. Tempest carefully grabbed the door handle and paused, silently counting to three in her mind before she threw the door open.

“Hey, I– WHOA!”

Tempest fired her weapon as soon as she saw this strange unfamiliar man wearing galactic armor in front of her. The man however dodged Tempest's shot and then quickly held his hands in front of her.

“Wait, hold on! I–”

Tempest brought her pistol in front of the man's face, ready to shoot him again. The man managed to quickly grab her hand and redirect her weapon away from him before Tempest fired again. The man then wrestled Tempest’s pistol out of her grip and then kicked it away as soon as the pistol landed on the floor. But Tempest kneed the man in the gut and then karate chopped on his back, causing the man to fall on the floor.

Tempest made her way toward her weapon, determined to retrieve it, but the man grabbed her ankle, causing Tempest to fall over as a result. Tempest tried kicking the man with the very leg he grabbed, but the man was able to pin her leg down due to his strength.

“Listen!” He grunted while struggling with Tempest's leg. “I'm not here to–”

Before he could finish, Tempest picked up a small vase on the table near her and smashed it against the side of the man's head. This made the man let her go and fell over, groaning in pain, and held his head in the process. Just as he was recovering, he felt someone roughly pinned him down and a pistol nearly pressed on his forehead by Tempest with an infuriated expression.

“Alright, who are you? Who sent you? Why did you come to my house!?” Tempest demanded with a growl, pressing her pistol against the man's head harder. “Answer me!”

“Whoa! Whoa! Calm down, Scar lady!”

“Don't shoot him!”

“Please stop!”

“It's us!”

Still holding the man at gunpoint, Tempest turned her head towards the sound of the voice. She was surprised to see more ‘guests’ coming into her living room and it was a certain group of guests that she did not expect to see showing up at her home.

“Sonic? Apple Bloom? Sweetie Belle?...and Scootaloo?” Tempest spoke in her confused tone.

“And don't forget about Spike and Tails!” Sweetie Belle added.

Tempest blinked. “Tails?”

Sweetie Belle pointed towards the front door which Tempest faced. While Tempest spotted the small purple dog sitting by the entrance of her door, she was more surprised at the yellow fox creature who was waving awkwardly at her behind Spike with a sheepish expression.

”What the– another creature!?” Tempest exclaimed.

She stared at Tails for a moment before facing Sonic, then the CMCs, then the man beneath her, then Tails again. Tempest spent another minute surveying her guests around her before finally letting out a huge growl of frustration and confusion.

“What the heck is going on?” Tempest screamed, startling everyone. Tempest pointed at the man and fox. “Why are you all here? And who are they?”

Tails quickly ducked behind Spike in fear of the angry scarred woman, much to Spike's annoyance. Sonic, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo just stood in the room looking at Tempest with nervous expressions. Seeing everyone was too scared to speak up, it was Sonic who spoke for the group.

“It's… a long story,” Sonic answered. “But we'll try to explain everything! Hedgehog's honor!”

“And could you please get off of me and maybe get me an ice pack?” The man requested, earning a flat look from Tempest.

Some time has passed since their run-in at the beach, the Rainbooms, Dazzlings, and Spoiled Rich made their way into their hotel to talk with Rosette to clear up the “misunderstanding”. Their walk toward Rosette's office was tense and awkward, and neither group dared to say anything to the other. Occasionally, Rainbow Dash and Aria silently glared at one another but kept their mouths shut to avoid further conflict.

Even throughout their trip, Sunset noticed that neither Adagio nor Spoiled were worried. They both had calm, yet confidant expressions, as if whatever outcome may happen won’t matter to them. Their behaviors alone bothered Sunset. She knew they were up to something but couldn’t figure out what they were planning. As much as she doesn’t like this, the only thing she can do for now is to let things play out and figure out later.

After what it felt like hours, the two groups finally reached Rosette’s office which was at the end of the hotel’s hallway. Before Spoiled could reach the door, Rainbow Dash quickly cut her off and knocked on the door herself.

“Come in!” Rosette said from the other side of the door.

With a side smug glance towards Spoiled and the Dazzlings, Rainbow Dash opened the door and let herself and her friends in the room first. The other party rolled their eyes at Rainbow’s behavior before following the Rainbooms.

The inside of Rosette’s office looked professional, yet cozy. The office walls were white with a white carpet on the floor. There were a lot of pictures of the galaxy and planets on the walls, along with a window towards the beach, and a huge chart of the solar system chart on a wall behind Rosette’s desk. The desk was a black oak office desk with a flat-screen computer, a desk lamp, a pen holder, and a tiny rocket model, and there was even a large telescope sitting on the right side of the desk.

Rosette was sitting on her desk chair and looked up from her work just as she heard someone enter her office.

“Oh, hello, Twilight!” Rosette greeted. She raised her brow as she noticed that Twilight was not alone. “And I see that you brought in a crowd. Is there something you all need?”

Rosette was suddenly startled when Rainbow Dash zipped towards her and slammed her hands on the desk. “Please tell me it’s not true!” She then leaned a little too close to Rosette's face. “Please tell me that you didn't hire those creeps!”

“What?” Rosette asked with a perplexed face.

Twilight then quickly pushed Rainbow Dash to the side while giving Rosette her nervous smile. “Sorry, what my friend Rainbow Dash was trying to say is that we need you to confirm something for us.”

Sunset Shimmer then stepped in. “We were told by someone that you hired the Dazzlings, just to replace us. Was that true?”

Rosette was quiet for a moment before she sighed. “Yes… it's true.”

“What!?” The Equestria Girls shouted in shock.

“Why!?” Rainbow Dash demanded. “Why would you hire those no-good creeps? They're evil!”

“Yo! We're standing right here!” Aria remarked annoyedly while the other Dazzlings frowned at the insult.

Before a fight could break out, Rosette spoke up. “I apologize, girls. Before your arrival, Mrs. Rich called me over the phone that your graduation ceremony is canceled, but she invited the Dazzlings with her in your place so that I don’t have to cancel my event.” She then gave a side glance at Spoiled. “Of course, that was before I was informed that it wasn't the case.”

The Equestria Girls then glared at Spoiled Rich, who wasn’t at least a bit remorseful of her actions.

“Seriously!?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed angrily. “You lied to her that we wouldn't make it just to replace us?”

“I'm with Rainbow Dash on this one!” said Twilight who was just as infuriated with her “Principal”. “The fact that you left all of us in the dust without a word suggests you were planning this from the start!”

“Not to mention, you were also taking their funds on the run which was meant for their graduation!” Princess Twilight added with a glare.

“Sounds to me like you were embezzling our graduation event just for your own benefit!” Rarity accused.

“I call foul play!” Pinkie cried with a frown.

“Yeah, that wasn’t very nice!” Fluttershy glowered.

“Care to explain it, Spoiled Rich?” Sunset crossed her arms with narrowed eyes. “We're all ears!”

Spoiled just stood there, surveying most of the angry faces in the room. The girls expected Spoiled to make another excuse or haughty remark to get herself out of it like she always does. But to their surprise, Spoiled’s face suddenly changed to a sullen expression and slightly bowed towards them.

“I… want to apologize to you Miss Nebula and to you girls,” Spoiled said in a humble tone. “This whole thing was a giant misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding mah foot!” Applejack remarked with a frown, not believing Spoiled in the slightest. “You ran off with our trip funds and used them on your private jet without informing any of us!”

“Yes, I did… but you see I received an error on the message about the trip and assumed it was canceled,” Spoiled explained before glancing at her daughter. “Isn’t that right, Diamond Tiara?”

Diamond’s whole body stiffened from being put on the spot by her mother. She glanced between the Equestria Girls' stares and her mother’s expecting look for a moment before sighing.

“Yes… it’s true,” Diamond confirmed quietly while looking at the floor.

“See?” Spoiled nodded in satisfaction before continuing. “And I also felt bad for Nebula for going out of her way for us, only for the event to be canceled. So I went out of my way to hire these lovely girls to take your place to make up for everything.”

All of a sudden, Rainbow Dash let out a loud, yet exaggerated sneeze. “Oh, excuse me… I'm allergic to bullcrap!”

Spoiled glared at Rainbow Dash with a deep frown.

Rosette cleared her throat, staring sternly at Spoiled. “Be that as it may, you shouldn’t have done that to cause inconvenience to everyone at CHS! You will have to take part in this event as penance for your actions!”

Spoiled bowed. “Yes, of course. I fully intended to make up for my mistake by insisting on the graduation event as intended.”

“Hang on!” Sunset interrupted. “Isn’t Vice Principal Luna supposed to be the one who is running the graduation event alongside Rosette?”

Spoiled clicked her tongue. “Well, unfortunately, your beloved Vice Principal's flight has been delayed due to a bad weather storm and is postponed until tomorrow.”

“What!?” the Equestria Girls exclaimed again.

“It’s true girls,” said Rosette. “A hurricane suddenly arrived outside of our island, and Luna’s plane had to land in a different state until the storm blew over.”

“You see?” Spoiled held her head high. “You can even check your phones if you don’t believe me!”

Pinkie Pie did exactly that as she typed in her phone. Sure enough, she found an online weather report that a storm was happening near Hoovaii.

“Wow! She’s right!” Pinkie exclaimed. “The weather’s pretty bad across the ocean! It’s a good thing we used the ring!”

Rosette tilted her head. “Ring?”

“Never mind that!” Twilight quickly cut in. “Have you reached Luna?”

Rosette shook her head. “I tried calling her, but the reception over where she lands is pretty bad. But I received a message from her that she’s fine and will try to get here posthaste first thing tomorrow.”

“Until then,” Spoiled interrupted with a smirk. “I will be leading the arrangements until Luna arrives… assuming she will be here before we finish our ceremony!”

“Like heck you are!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “You tried to run the pre-graduation party a couple of nights ago and look where that brought you!”

“Technically, it wasn’t my fault that event became a disaster!” Spoiled sneered. “Those troublemaking little sisters of yours are the ones to blame. If I had my way, they should be in juvenile by now!”

“Well if you haven’t been kissing those higher-ups’ butts, you should’ve been in jail!” Rainbow Dash screamed as she was about to charge in on Spoiled.

“Rainbow Dash, stop!” Sunset quickly held her friend back. “She’s trying to rile you up!”

“Your friend’s right, young lady!” said Rosette with a frown. “While Spoiled’s words were uncalled for, I appreciate you don’t start a fistfight in my office! And I advised you to keep a cool head!” She then turned her attention to Spoiled. “And you… I’m very disappointed in you, Spoiled! You are an adult and should act like one! Apologize to the young lady at once!”

Spoiled winced at Rosette’s tone before reluctantly facing Rainbow Dash.

“I… apologize. I stepped out of line,” Spoiled grumbled.

“I don’t!” Rainbow Dash replied.

“Rainbow Dash–”

“No!” Rainbow Dash growled, turning to Sunset. “I won’t apologize to someone who clearly has an agenda against us, so my previous statement stands!”

“That’s fine if you don’t like her, Rainbow Dash,” said Rosette with a frown. “But like it or not, Spoiled Rich is your superior until Luna arrives. So I ask you to please at least try to get along with each other until then.”

“She’s right!” Sunset spoke up before Rainbow Dash could argue. “I don’t like this as much as you do, but due to circumstances, we have no choice but to play by her rules. So please keep yourself in check until then.” She then added in a whisper, “At least for the sake of our friends?”

Rainbow Dash held her tongue with a frustrated expression. She glared at Spoiled briefly and then at her friends who were staring at her with pleading expressions. After a tense moment of silence, Rainbow Dash let out a huff.

“Alright, fine! I’ll play nice!” Rainbow Dash crossed her arms. “But just so we’re clear, the only reason I’m agreeing to this, is for my friends!”

Rosette nodded in approval. “That’s all I asked.”

“There’s still one thing,” Applejack spoke up as she glanced at the Dazzlings. “What about them?”

“Well, isn’t it obvious?” Adagio smirked as she gestured to herself and her group. “Since we’re the best, we’ll be the ones to perform during the event!”

“Oh, hay no!” Rainbow Dash yelled as she marched over to Adagio. “You’re not the ones to perform! We are!”

“Yeah! Rosette asked us first!” Pinkie Pie added.

“That’s before she realizes that we’re the better choice!” Aria taunted.

“Oh, pa-lease!” Rarity exclaimed, rolling her eyes. “Unlike your lazy songwriting, we have the better songs!”

“And you also tried to break us up… which isn’t very nice by the way!” Fluttershy frowned.

Not to mention, you three were feeding off of our magic to your advantage! Princess Twilight recalled in thought, narrowing her eyes at them.

“Yeah, well… we made better tacos!” Sonata countered, earning annoyed looks from the other Dazzlings.

“Shut it, Sonata!” Adagio hissed.

“My tacos are so good that it even rivaled Taco Barn!” Sonata added, not hearing Adagio’s warning.

“Shut it, Sonata!” Adagio repeated while gritting her teeth.

“Seriously, you should try them sometime! They’re out of this world!”

“ENOUGH, SONATA!” Adagio roared.

Everyone, including Sonata, flinched back at Adagio’s angry tone. Adagio quickly realized what she had done, she breathed through her nose to calm herself before speaking again with a false smile. “Sorry, please excuse us. We were all still tired from our travel getting here.”

“More like, tired of making excuses!” Rainbow Dash muttered, earning a glare from Adagio.

“Listen, girls!” Rosette spoke up, getting everyone’s attention. “I’m aware that I was hasty with my decision to invite the Dazzlings here before getting the facts, but what’s done is done. Now that both parties are here for the same job, I would hate to kick any of you out and send you all the way back to Canterlot City after your long travel here.”

The Rainbooms and the Dazzlings glared at one another, neither was happy due to the impasse of the situation, but Rosette continued.

“And since this is all about who will be performing for the ceremony, I know of a perfect way to solve this!”

This sudden proposal got the attention of the two groups as they all turned towards Rosette in interest.

“What's that, Rosette?” Twilight asked on the behalf of everyone in the room.

“We will be settling this…” Rosette paused for a moment as a dramatic effect until she smiled. “With a Luau Musical Competition!”

The Rainbooms and the Dazzlings were taken aback in surprise.

“A… Luau Musical Competition?” Applejack inquired with a raised brow.

“Yes!” Rosette nodded. “You see, one of the biggest cultures here in Hoovaii is music. For many generations, the people who live here have loved to use music to express their love for Hoovaii. But other times, they would also use their music as friendly competition as means to avoid conflicts with one another.”

“It's true.”

The Rainbooms turned their heads at Autumn Blaze who shrugged. “The Luau Musical Competition has been used in Hoovaii many times as a means to settle differences between rivals when it comes to who's getting the spot for festivals or any event when it comes to music.”

“...so it's essentially Hoovaii's take on the Battle of the Bands?” Rainbow Dash clarified before smirking. “Heh, I can get behind that if it means to give us an excuse to kick their sorry butts again!”

“Again, we're right here!” Aria remarked with an annoyed look, as well as the other Dazzlings.

“Hang on, are there rules for this competition? Like what type of music or the number of songs to perform?” Sunset asked.

“The rules are simple actually,” Rosette explained. “You can pick up to three songs, and any type of genre you want. It can be an existing song, or an original song if you wish, just as long the lyrics are appropriate. And while you and your band are performing, you will all be judged by the locals of Hoovaii, including students from your school, of course. Whichever group received the most approval from the audience wins the spot to perform for your graduation event.”

Sunset tilted her head to the side. “That’s it?”

“That’s it,” Rosette confirmed.

“Sweet!” Rainbow Dash cheered with a full tooth grin. “We totally got this thing in the bag!”

“Ex-cuse us?” Adagio scowled as if she was insulted.

Rainbow Dash turned to Adagio with narrowed eyes. “The only reason you went far at the battle of the bands was because of your–” Rainbow Dash paused for a moment. “...underhanded tactics! But this time it's different! Now that you no longer have the same singing voices, I guarantee that you'll be out before the end of round one!”

To Rainbow’s confusion, instead of feeling angry, Adagio suddenly gave her a devious smirk. “Wanna bet?”

Before Rainbow Dash could retort, Adagio began to sing.

“Ah-ah-ah, ah-ah~”

The Equestria Girls’ eyes widened at the sound of Adagio’s melodic voice. Then, Aria and Sonata joined in with their leader.

“Ah-ah-ah, ah-ah~”

Sunset couldn't believe what she was hearing. No that's… that's impossible!

Their pendants were destroyed! Princess Twilight thought in horror as she watched the Sirens singing. Just how were they able to sing again!?

“Ah-ah-ah, ah-ah~”
“Ah-ah-ah, ah-ah~”

The two Equestrians’ ears are not fooling them. The Dazzling’s voices no longer sounded off or scratchy. While their voices weren't as strong, it was nearly identical as it was back during the Battle of the Bands. The only slight comfort was they couldn't sense any dark magic in their voices this time, but even then, they were disturbed that they sounded fine as if the event after their battle was nothing.

The Dazzlings continued to sing their tune a moment longer before they finished, giving the perplexed Rainbooms their vicious smirks.

“How!?” Sunset demanded, trying to keep her emotions in check. “I thought you lost your voices!”

Adagio crossed their arms. “Just because our voices aren’t the same as before, doesn’t mean that we can’t sing at all!”

“Yeah! We spend our time training our voices until we are back in our tip-top shape.” Aria boasted.

“So I would watch your backs if I were you, Lame-booms!” Sonata mocked before she and the other two Dazzlings snickered.

Rainbow Dash frowned. “Oh yeah? You're the ones who should be watching your backs!”

Applejack gently grasped Rainbow’s shoulder. “Easy, Rainbow Dash!” she said before glaring at the Dazzlings. “Just save it for the contest!”

“I would heed your friend's advice if I were you!” Adagio said with an amused expression as she and her entourage swayed their way towards the door.

Before the Dazzlings left Rosette's office, Adagio faced the Rainbooms. “Hope you girls brought your A-game because the Dazzlings are back! And this time…” She then pointed at them with a toothy smirk. “It will be you girls who will run off the stage! Hope you all look forward to that!”

With that, Adagio and the two Dazzlings turned and exited the office and shut the door behind them.

“Well, now that's settled,” Spoiled announced loudly as soon as the Dazzlings left. “I can return to my duty to run this graduation ceremony!”

“Hey, hold on! No one’s said we're done with you!” Sunset protested while her friends voiced their agreement.

“Sorry ladies, but I have a busy schedule to keep!” said Spoiled with a condescending sneer. “Instead of whining, you should all prepare for the competition against the Dazzlings… not that's gonna help you win!”

Spoiled then headed towards the door. “Come, Diamond!”

With a quick apologetic expression towards the Rainbooms, Diamond Tiara reluctantly followed her mother. Just as Spoiled grabbed the doorknob, she faced the Rainbooms again.

“Oh, and Miss Shimmer, I do hope you have your speech ready for the graduation ceremony. We don't want your performance to reflect badly on our school's reputation!” She paused for a moment before shrugging. “Though, then again, considering your history with our school in the past… our rep is probably doomed from the start.”

Sunset felt a huge jab in her heart as if Spoiled just stabbed her with a knife.

With her head high and an arrogant smirk, Spoiled left the room along with Diamond and shut the door behind her.

Sunset looked down in shame and sadness. She admitted that her early years in CHS weren’t her best moments and would try to make up to be a better person since then. But whenever things go up, someone always keeps bringing up her past and rubbing it in her face. Did she deserve to be happy with her life or is she doomed by her past forever?

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt comforting hands from her friends while Rainbow Dash let out an infuriated growl.

“Those creeps!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “Just who do they think they are telling us off like that?”

“Yeah, and especially Mrs. Rich!” Rarity added in disgust. “She has the nerve to insult Sunset! Saying that our school's reputation falls to her validation speech!”

“Reminds me of someone I know,” Twilight muttered in a bitter tone before turning to Sunset with a gentle look. “Anyway, don't let her get to you Sunset! I'm sure that your speech will turn out to be amazing!”

Princess Twilight nodded with a smile. “She’s right! No matter what she or anyone else says, you’re amazing too, Sunset!

“And we got your back!” Applejack added. “Right, girls?”

Sunset was touched as the rest of her friends nodded in agreement with assuring grins. No matter how tough her life can get, she can always count on her friends to bring her back up.

“Thanks… girls,” Sunset said gratefully with a smile.

“Well… this is awkward,” Rosette sighed, getting the attention of the Rainbooms and Autumn Blaze.

“I'm sorry about all of this, girls,” Rosette apologized with a look of remorse. “I know this isn't what you all wanted, but with everything going on right now with this event and your Vice Principal not being here due to canceled flights, my hands are tied.”

“That's quite alright, Rosette,” said Rarity.

“Yeah. None of this is your fault,” Fluttershy added.

The Rainbooms nodded in agreement.

“I appreciate your kind words, but I should've confirmed with Luna before I invited them, but what’s done is done,” Rosette sighed. “While Spoiled claimed to be in charge, she can't control everything. The least I can do is to do my best to keep her from straying from the original arrangement. But in the meantime…” Rosette turned her head pointedly at Autumn. “Autumn, if it's not too much trouble, will you take these girls to their rooms?”

“No trouble at all, Rosette!” Autumn responded before facing the Rainbooms. “This way, ladies!”

Before Autumn led the girls out of the office, Rosette spoke up. “Oh, and Twilight! Will you stay for a moment? There's something we need to discuss.”

“It's probably about the job she mentioned,” Twilight reasoned. “You go along girls, I'll catch up!”

“Alright, we'll meet you back in our rooms, Twilight!” said Sunset. “And please let us know any updates on Vice Principal Luna.”

Twilight grinned. “You'll be the first to know!”

With a smile, Sunset and the rest of the Rainbooms left the office, leaving Twilight and Rosette alone in the office.

“Thank you for sticking around, Twilight,” said Rosette. “Sorry that we couldn't talk earlier. I got a lot filling up my plate as is, so I hope you understand.”

“Of course. I understand completely!” Twilight assured before frowning. “Before we get into this, are you sure you want to settle this over a musical competition? The Dazzlings caused trouble for my friends the last time they met.”

“I'm sure, Twilight,” Rosette nodded. “In fact… having the Dazzlings here is perfect for my secret project.”

Twilight blinked in confusion. “Secret project?”

“Yes,” Rosette responded before her expression became serious. “Now Twilight… what I'm about to tell you is very important and I want you to promise me that this stays between us. Understand?”

Perturbed by Rosette’s sudden seriousness, but also intrigued by what she had to say, Twilight decided to hear her out.

“You have my word, Rosette!” Twilight assured.

With a grateful nod, Rosette went down to business. “You see, many years ago, my team and I discovered this hidden temple, buried in an island miles away from here and it was the most amazing discovery of my lifetime! At first, we thought it was from an ancient civilization years before our time, but on close inspection…” Rosette leaned forward a bit and whispered. “This temple was not from our world, but from another world!”

Twilight’s eyes widened in shock. “Another world? H-how’d you figure that?”

Rosette opened a side drawer from her desk and then took out a photo to present to Twilight. “Look closely at the door of the temple in this picture!”

Twilight obeyed as she took Rosette’s photograph and stared at it. In the photograph was an ancient temple just as Rosette described, or at least part of it. Most of the temple is still buried beneath the sand at the very corner of the beach. The only part of the temple exposed to the sand was a huge door made of stone. And on the door itself were some images of various species of animals and an ancient language that Twilight had never seen before written at the center of the door. There were even ten small images around the arch of the door with one of them looking suspiciously looked like her personal emblem on the door.

Twilight stared at the photo with wide eyes as she slowly looked up at Rosette. “Is… is that–”

Rosette nodded. “Yes. Not only does it have alien language, but also descriptions and images of creatures. Specifically, Owls, Echidnas, and…”

Twilight glanced at the creature images on the door again and her eyes widened in shock. “Sirens?”

“Precisely!” Rosette grinned. “While there are theories that humans have evolved from monkeys, various creatures like the ones I mention are a stretch at best. And the languages we picked up are literally from out of this world. Even archeologists were baffled by these texts. And as an astrophysicist, as well as an archeologist and a scientist, this fascinates me and I wanted to learn more from within the temple and make a discovery!” Rosette frowned with furrowed brows. “But the problem is… the door is sealed shut.”

Twilight blinked. “What do you mean? Can’t you and your team open up with tools and resources?”

“It’s not that simple,” Rosette shook her head. “We tried to open that door many times, even the most powerful drill in the world, but we couldn’t get through no matter what we tried! That door… is unlike any doors we ever seen. It was protected by this strange… barrier of sorts, surrounding the door. Like it’s made from…”

“Magic?” Twilight finished while feeling more shocked and fascinated at the revelation.

Rosette nodded again. “While I usually don’t believe in magic, considering the stories you told me with your friends and my own experiences with that door… there is no other explanation.” Rosette pointed at a certain section of the door in the photograph. “The only clue we found on that door, were those descriptions I mentioned earlier which we managed to translate.”

“What’s that?” Twilight inquired, very eager to know.

“Only the magic of music between the three sirens and the seven heroes can unlock one of our entrances to our temples,” Rosette quoted as she leaned back into her chair. “At first, I had no idea what that meant. I thought we mistranslated a few words of the message or perhaps their words from years back had different meanings. But after we spoke at that party about the magic you girls used to battle against strange phenomena in your town, a new possibility emerged.”

She then pointed at Twilight’s emblem within the photograph. “Specifically, these symbols on the door… including yours.”

Twilight’s jaw dropped. “You… you knew that's my emblem?”

Rosette nodded. “Yes, Twilight… and I also knew that those three girls your friends ran into turned out to be sirens from another world… as so is that Sunset girl.”

Twilight’s pupils shrunk, beginning to panic that Rosette was on to her and her best friend’s most guarded secret.

“Relax, Twilight,” Rosette reassured with a smile. “Your friend's secret is safe with me, so don’t worry.”

Twilight calmed down somewhat as she tilted her head in confusion. “How… how did you know?”

“I’m friends with Luna, remember?” Rosette pointed out. “I talked to Luna shortly after you and I first met at the social event and she confirmed to me about the Dazzlings and your friend from another world.” She gave Twilight her amused smile. “Quite frankly, I'm fascinated that she was from another world and I would love to know more about her and her world… but I digress.”

Rosette’s expression became serious again. “Anyway, based on the information I gathered, I believe you girls, along with the Dazzlings are the very keys to finally unlocking that tomb. Having you girls here for the graduation was perfect enough, and those Dazzlings, while hired because of Spoiled underhanded tactics, was a blessing in disguise! With all of you here in one place, we can use all your magic to finally achieve my goal… and I need your help to make it happen.”

Twilight was surprised by Rosette’s request. “Me? You want my help?”

“Yes, Twilight. With your help, we’ll finally open that tomb and make our discovery from another world which I’m sure will be revolutionary! And in return, I’ll use my connections to get you into the best universities in the world, like Everton.” Rosette smiled. “Or maybe even becoming my apprentice.”

Twilight felt her jaw drop in shock, wondering if she misheard Rosette’s offer. “A-a-a-a-a-apprentice!? Me!?”

Rosette chuckled at Twilight’s reaction. “Oh, yes. You have quite the reputation of being a genius at CHS and I would be honored to have you by my side as my partner!” Rosette stretched her hand out towards Twilight, ready to shake on the deal. “So what do you say? Will you help me out on this project and join me after your graduation?”

Twilight just stood there, staring at Rosette’s hand in shock. Ever since she was small, she always looked up to Rosette as her role model, which led her to her love for science. If anyone asked her in the past if she would like to work for Rosette and do research together, this would’ve been a dream come true for her.

However, Twilight hesitated to accept Rosette’s offer right then and there because of three main reasons. The first was obviously for the concerns of her friends. Equestrian Magic itself can be harnessed, but also unpredictable if not used correctly. She didn’t want to put her friends at risk or get hurt for some research project based on a hunch.

This leads to her second reason: Twilight already learned that lesson the hard way. She messed around with magic once before during the Friendship Games, unintentionally taking away her friends’ magic and portal as a result. On top of that, her actions led to the worst moment of her entire life, nearly putting both worlds at risk. While her friends have forgiven her, she is haunted by it to this day and doesn’t want to go through that again, even for a possible new world discovery.

And her third and final reason is she recently decided to move away from becoming a scientist, all because of one event eight months ago.

Or more specifically, because of that man.

After a moment of hesitation, Twilight finally made her decision. “I… I’m honored. I really am,” Twilight shook her head with a sigh. “As much as I would love to join you, I'm afraid I'll have to decline your offer… both the project and your apprenticeship.”

Rosette blinked in surprise as she lowered her hand, not expecting Twilight to turn down her life-changing offer. “You’re not? How come? Don’t you want to be a scientist?”

“Being a scientist was my dream, but eight months ago… I have decided to go on a different path,” Twilight responded, looking away somberly.

Rosette cocked an eyebrow in interest. “And what caused this sudden change to your path?”

“…I didn’t want to talk about that,” Twilight spoke softly before facing Rosette again. “Anyway, I appreciate you giving me the opportunity… but I think you need to ask someone else to help you… I’m sorry.”

“...Is there anything I can offer you to reconsider?” Rosette inquired with a worried frown. “I'll even compensate you and your friends for your services!”

Twilight shook her head. “I'm sorry, Rosette, but my decision is final! Now if you excuse me, my friends are waiting for me.”

With a bow, Twilight turned and made her way towards the door. Just as Twilight grabbed the doorknob, she was stopped by Rosette.

“Wait, Twilight!” Rosette cried out desperately as she stood up from her desk. “Please, wait! You don’t have to take my apprenticeship offer, but it is apparent that you assist me on this project!”

Twilight paused, surprised by Rosette’s desperate tone. She wondered why her idol was acting so desperately. And, more importantly, why does Rosette want her specifically? Curiosity got the better of Twilight as she slowly faced Rosette.

“I don't understand. Why me? Can’t you just ask someone else,” Twilight pressed.

Rosette shook her head. “It can’t be someone else! It has to be you!”

“But why?” Twilight demanded. “Why is it so important for me to join? Am I that important for your project?”

“You are mistaken,” Rosette sighed before giving Twilight her most serious expression. “It's not my project, it was your mother's… Twilight Velvet.”

Twilight widened her eyes in shock. “My… my mother!?”

Author's Note

Sorry again for the huge delay. Hope it was worth the wait!

Not much else to say about this chapter. Expect to see more of the Rainbooms and the Dazzlings (as well as Spoiled) clashing against each other during a singing competition in Hoovaii. Aloha!

So yes, I will be using songs in this story. More specifically, videos of a song I will choose while I describe what the characters were singing about to the best of my abilities without using the lyrics.

The songs I'll be picking for the competition event of this story will more likely only fit for this crossover. In other words: only songs from MLP, Sonic, and by extension, other Sega games. After all, Sonic is one of Sega's properties. I already came up with some song ideas for the event, but if anyone has any suggestions, then please let let me know in the comments. And if I use your suggestion, I will give you credit.

And Rosette knew Twilight's mom? All will be revealed... next time!

I only have two reference in this entire chapter this time (shocking, I know), but I'll list it anyway:

Rarity's remark about the Dazzling's "lazy songwriting" was a callback from Equestria Girls: Sunset's Backstage Pass special when Rarity said those same lines after the Rainbooms saw the Dazzlings again on stage.

Sunset and Twilight remembering Dazzling's pendants and Adagio's remark, "running off the stage" was a callback after the climax scene of EqG: Rainbow Rocks when the Dazzlings lost the battle against the Rainbooms, their magical pendants destroyed, losing their magical voices. When the Dazzlings attempted to sing again (off-key), the audience booed and then threw food at them, resulting the Dazzlings to flee off of the stage.

Anyway, hope you all looking forward to the next chapter. You do NOT want to miss this!