Mini None Pizza With Left Plotby Dewdrops on the GrassChapters1. The Corpse is In Session by Dewdrops on the Grass2. Speedy Cheesy, Corpse Indeedy by Aklinstar3. SCP - Super Cheese Parameters by VoxAdam4. Into The Depths by EileenSaysHi5. Frankly, Sometimes It Feels Like We're in a Reality TV Show by iAmSiNnEr6. Do Quantum People Dream of Magic Sheep? by Sunlight Rays7. Electric Boogaloo by TheSleeplessBeholder8. The Corpse Has Left The Building by Dewdrops on the Grass1. The Corpse is In Session by Dewdrops on the GrassPizza Time “Sunset! Sunset! Heeeeeeelp!” Waves of heat washed over Sunset, accompanied by a thunderous shockwave that boomed, sending her flying into the base of the CHS horse statue. Debris pelted her even as her head cracked against the marble, filling her vision with stars. With a great effort she hauled herself up, leaning against the plinth for support, her ears ringing, everything in her vision doubled and blurred. “W-what?” she murmured, tasting copper on her tongue. “What happened?” A secondary explosion forced her to clap her hands to her ears as she screamed, the pain of the flash of light and sound momentarily overwhelming her. The instant it died down, she let her hands drop and looked up once again. CHS was gone. In its place, smoke billowed out from the crater in heavy black clouds of soot. Scattered onlookers, those who weren’t close enough to be bowled over by the explosion, pointed and gasped, many using their phones to record the event. A few, she could tell, were desperately dialing emergency services. “Sunset!” Wiping the blood off her mouth, Sunset looked around for the source of the voice, the one who’d been crying for help. “Pinkie?” she shouted. “Where’d you go?” “Down here!” Confused, Sunset glanced down, and spotted what she took for a mouse at first, darting around chunks of concrete and dirt, until she realized said ‘mouse’ possessed a shock of pink, curly hair. She reached down for Pinkie and plucked her up, cradling the shrunken girl in her hands. “What -- how did you…?” Pinkie flailed her arms like a pair of pinwheels. “I don’t know! I was baking in the home ec lab when all of a sudden this huge bottle of something fell off the fridge and broke at my feet. Next thing I know I’m an itsy bitsy teenie weenie running-for-her-life Pinkie!” Sunset looked up at the wreckage of CHS. Little to no real debris from the school itself remained; the chunks scattered everywhere came from the foundation and the dirt of the school grounds. She could see exposed pipes, cables, and a jet of flames where an open gas line was still burning. As the screaming wail of a fire truck’s klaxon and the accompanying shriek of an ambulance filled her ears, she looked back down at Pinkie and said, “But, running from what? What happened?” “Beats me! I was running from Principal Celestia’s cat.” “Her cat? What the heck was her cat -- nevermind.” She paused for a moment to blink away some of the dust in her eyes. “Was anyone else in the school?” “I don’t think so,” Pinkie answered. She’d resorted to bouncing in place, the impacts of her little feet tickling Sunset’s palms. “It’s a Sunday. I had the place to myself.” “Right, but, why were you in there all alone then?” Pinkie’s tiny eyes blinked rapidly. “I… I don’t know?” Groaning, Sunset fell back against the plinth of the statue. “Uuugh, this doesn’t make any sense!” She moved Pinkie to one hand and reached into her pocket with the other, pulling out her phone. “You’re not even the person I thought I was going to meet here.” Her fingers moved rapidly to pull up her messenger app. “Twilight texted me, asking me to come pick her up so we could go out for pizza.” “Uh oh,” Pinkie said, her eyes comically wide. “Oh nonononono, you don’t think Twilight--” “No! No, there’s no way,” Sunset interrupted her. She looked back up at what was left of the school. “Besides, it doesn’t make sense. What could she have been doing that made the school explode?” “That’s what I want to know, Sunset Shimmer.” Sunset jerked, nearly tossing Pinkie from her hands before she closed them to keep her safe. “Vice Principal Luna! You startled me.” Luna acknowledged that with a simple narrowing of her eyes. She wore an unusual outfit for her, something more like it belonged in Sunset’s closet, what with the leather jacket, the jeans, and the stained, half ripped shirt. “So, it seems magic is afoot once again.” She leaned in to examine the tiny Pinkie Pie. “Miss Pie, are you hurt?” “Nope! Just really energetic. And hungry. I could so go for some pizza right now.” “Indeed. As could I,” Luna murmured. She stared at them for a moment longer, then turned on her heel. “Follow me, Sunset.” “Wait, where are we going?” “To the pizza parlour. If that was where you were to meet Twilight Sparkle, then perhaps answers lay there.” Sunset glanced back at the wreckage as the first of several firetrucks pulled up, the firefighters immediately in a flurry dousing the flames with a jet of water from their hose. “But, what about the school?!” “There’s nothing we can do here. We’ll only get in the way,” Luna said. She pointed to her vehicle, parked nearby, right next to Sunset’s motorcycle. “Come. We must hurry.” “But… ugh, fine. Hang on, Pinkie.” “Wheee!” Sunset slipped Pinkie Pie into the breast pocket of her jacket, and hopped onto her motorcycle. She was going to get to the bottom of this, one way or another. Author's Note This story is an Exquisite Corpse, with each chapter between the start and the finish written by a different author. After each chapter was written, the story was passed to the next author, who was only allowed to read the chapter that came right before their own before writing. This is the unholy result. 2. Speedy Cheesy, Corpse Indeedy by AklinstarSpeedy Cheesy, Corpse Indeedy Revving up her motorcycle, Sunset prepared to take off. "Wait!" came a partially muffled cry from her breast pocket. Sunset, bewildered, took her helmet off. Reaching into her breast pocket she took out the teeny Pinkie. "What? What's wrong?" "I need a helmet too, silly." She pointed to her head and waved her arms around frantically. "Safety first!" Sunset rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Pinkie. How would I have a helmet your size when you jus—" A blaring sound startled them. A sleek, midnight-blue vehicle with tinted windows pulled up in front of them. The window rolled down, revealing Luna wearing an impatient scowl. "What's the hold up, Shimmer? We need to go. Now. There's no time." "Right, yes, I know. I'm just trying to convince Pinkie that there's no point wearing a helmet at her size," she said, pausing to slide Pinkie back into her pocket gently before she could protest. "Because if we got into an accident..." She grimaced and shook her head before continuing, "Besides, I don't even have one on me. Why would I?" Luna considered that for a moment, brows furrowed. She opened her mouth to respond before she was caught off by a perturbing jingle coming from her own car. Happy, childish, and... something about a shark? Luna blushed deeply as she fumbled with her phone before managing a click. "Yes? I know. We're on our way..." Another click, followed by some rummaging. "Here." She tossed out an object the size of a marble to Sunset. Sunset almost fell off her bike trying to grab it, but managed nonetheless. She peered down at her palm. Her eyes went wide as she stared in disbelief. "What? Why do you have a helmet in this size?" "Tiberius." Luna shrugged, her features becoming obscured once more behind the glass pane. "Who... never mind," Sunset muttered. "Guess it's your lucky day, Pinkie." She held out the helmet between her thumb and index and she brought it down to her level. "Yay!" Pinkie cheered as she took it. "Always got to come prepared, Shimmy!" "But, how would I... You know what? Whatever. We're going," she grunted. Both of them synced up as they put on their helmets. Sunset revved once more. Luna got the message as she took off ahead, her tires screeching in the parking lot as she drifted and left skid marks on the pavement. She narrowly avoided oncoming traffic as she made it onto the main street. Sunset, at first, struggled to keep up, not expecting such disregard for safety measures from the Vice Principal. Her mouth went dry as she continued to weave through traffic just to keep pace, her eyes widening as she glanced down at her speedometer. She saw she was already at 150 km/h and gaining, and that was just barely keeping up. This is ridiculous, she thought. Yes, the school blowing up for an unknown reason was concerning, but she didn't know why, and neither did Luna. Why were they racing to find answers at a pizza place—she didn't even know which pizza place! Her head spun, more questions piling up. A frisson slid from head to toe as she narrowly missed the red sedan in front of her, her thoughts dying out as she focused to keep up. Sweat poured from her face as she blanched at the fact she nearly gave the car a paint job. "Okay, screw this!" she yelled. "Call Luna." "Okie, dokie, lokie!" came the confirmation from her pocket at the exact moment her own helmet responded with, "Calling Vice Principal Luna." "Pinkie, not you!" Sunset retorted, not wanting to know how Pinkie's phone could still function. One ring, two rings... a few later, and she was met with voice mail: "Sorry, Luna is not available. At the tone, please—" "End call! Stupid..." Her voice tapered off upon seeing 200 km/h on the meter. "Why!?" "Why what?" squeaked a voice, a head popping up. "AHHHH!" Pinkie screeched as she almost flew out. "Pinkie, stay down!" Sunset screamed back, jabbing her thumb down to push Pinkie back in. She almost swerved off the road and into the walkway at the sudden distraction. They continued to whip past streetlights and the occasional vehicle, the roads becoming less populated the further they went, which Sunset found strange given they were heading into the heart of the city. A flash of light caught her attention, her eyes flicked to her mirrors. Two lights, to be exact, and they were gaining on them. Her heart sank at the thought of being apprehended by the police; she could kiss her license and beautiful bike goodbye. "Damn it, Luna..." She shook her head, knowing full well she was just at fault for deciding to stupidly follow her lead at ridiculous speeds. She glanced back to her mirrors and blinked. There were no red or blue flashing lights coming on, and they weren't that far behind now. She could distinguish two motorcycles hot on her tail and the sounds of increasingly loud engine noises. A chill overcame her as she had a sinking feeling they were in worse trouble than she first thought. "Pinkie." "Yes, Sunset? Oh! Are we there ye—" "Hang on tight." Not a moment sooner, the two bikers sidled up to her, one on each side. Her grip on the handlebars tightened, her knuckles turning white as she weighed her options. Her head pivoted to the left. The motorcyclist made a quick motion with two fingers shooting past their neck, their fingers ending up pointing past Sunset. Her head shot to the right; the other nodded. They were signaling one another. She made the first move. She jerked to the left, catching them off guard. She gave a solid kick into the frame of the other bike, causing them to fight for control as their bike wobbled. They fidgeted for a moment before swerving to the right, just barely missing a street sign. They slowed to a crawl as they stabilized, falling behind. Sunset paid them no mind as she turned her attention to the other, whom she couldn't find at first. However, she spotted the second light in her rear-view slowing, and then making a 180. She let out a breath, her sweaty hands giving the bike's bars a death strangle loosened. "What the hell was that about..." she wondered aloud. "Dunno, maybe they were just trying to get your autograph?" "...I somehow doubt that, but sure, let's go with that for now," Sunset laughed, jittery and forced, her body shaking from the excess adrenaline she no longer had an outlet for. The rest of the ride went without incident. They soon pulled into a large parking lot; it being in a shopping plaza, the prized pizza place came into view. Sunset's eyebrow raised to new heights as they pulled in and came to a halt. Buck-E Cheddars certainly wasn't her first choice, or her second... or her third. Hell, it wasn't even on her list of choices. Period. Twilight didn't specify in the text to her as to which place to meet, but apparently Luna knew. Strange. She wasn't sure what to make of it, but, pizza was pizza, and she was hungry. A gasp drew her attention back to reality. "I LOVE BUCK-E CHEESE!" Pinkie squeaked. She slid down her in a hurry and ran off before stopping a short distance. Sunset thought she heard her say "Come on!" but she wasn't quite sure; she could definitely make her out doing impromptu jumping jacks, though, before she dashed towards the building once more. Sunset chuckled. As she took her helmet off she heard, saw and felt the force of the nearby car door slam. She looked up, eyes wide as Luna turned towards her, hands clutched to her side; face red. Scowl wouldn't come close to describing her features, but she certainly was nothing short of livid. "Do you want to tell me what you were thinking when you almost killed one of my agents?" Luna accused, her arms now crossed as she glared down at her. Sunset's mouth flitted, not able to catch up with her racing thoughts, as all she could manage was a quiet gasp of a "W-what?" The sound of engines drew their attention. Two motorcycles parked across from them. One hopped off and took their helmet off. Sunset gaped as she stared at the figure stomped their—her way over. Her pale gold face full of rage; her magenta hair with an aquamarine streak appeared frazzled and unkempt as it obscured part of her face. "Hi. Sunset," Sour Sweet spoke through gritted teeth, her eyes wild and twitching. She giggled. "H-hey, look. I'm really, really sorry—" "Oh, no prob! It's all good!" Sour chortled once more as she gripped her palms together, her nails digging in and drawing blood. "After all, almost being fucking killed happens all the time!" she said as her voice fluctuated, her arms falling to her sides, her mouth deciding to stick with a sneer. Sunset took a step back and held out her hands. Sour Sweet closed the gap and grabbed her by the jacket and pulled her to eye level. "So, Shim, Shimmery, Shimsham, Sharoo... would you be so kind as to… TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK THAT WAS!?" She shook her vigorously. Sunset lost her balance and almost fell to her knees as her legs turned to jelly. Sunset threw her hands up, exasperated. "I didn't know who you were! You just showed up out of nowhere—I haven't been told anything! I didn't even know Luna had agents for Celestia's sake!” "What does my sister have to do with this?" Luna stroked her chin, her brows furrowed. “Oh, cool… Cool. Yeah.” Sour Sweet let her go and dusted her off. “All good then.” She gave her a thumbs up, with a smile bordering on maniacal. “Sorry…” Sunset said. “I thought when you made those hand gestures you were communicating with one another to… take us out.” She winced at how poor that sounded, it being compounded further by the rapid eye twitching of Sour Sweet. "I was waving to you, you MORON!" Sour Sweet made the same gesture as before, this time it ending with one particular finger pointing straight up. "Didn't know saying 'Hey, what's up?' was punishable by death!" "Yeah, I… really thought you guys were communicating an attack…" "NO!" "Um, hey you guys—" "She," Sour Sweet started, waving her arms over to the mint colored girl with verdant green hair, who was rubbing an arm as she now stood next to Luna. "Wallflower, wasn't responding to me. She was just trying to be NICE. Unlike YOU." She jabbed a finger into Sunset's chest for emphasis. "Look, I'm sorry! Okay? I'm sorry!" "I don't want to hear your empty platitudes!” Sour screamed. “You know what?" She turned to the still pondering Vice Principal and ripped her own insignia off and tossed it to the ground in front of her. "I quit! I don't get paid enough to deal with this crap." She turned and paced away. "You were getting paid?" Wallflower asked, puzzled, scratching her head. "No," Luna sighed. "She was not. You both volunteered—which I am most grateful for, by the way," she spoke up a bit louder. Sour Sweet didn't turn around, making a waving gesture as she continued her trek to her bike. Luna cleared her throat. "Very well, 'tis a shame. I was going to let you pick the toppings, but I supp—" "I'll go make the order," Sour Sweet interrupted. She made a beeline for the door but then paused, jogged backwards and grabbed her insignia. She fiddled with it for a moment as she stood in place. "Uh, so... I'm not going to have to go through initiation again since I quit, am I?" She gave her temporary former boss a nervous grin. Luna facepalmed. “Just get in the cheesy mouse house…” 3. SCP - Super Cheese Parameters by VoxAdamSCP – Super Cheese Parameters One crucial tactic to muddling through a crazy situation, Sunset Shimmer knew well, is to start by running down a list of facts. This was already true when she first landed in this world, where the only sapients were bipedal primates and, stranger still, she’d found herself turned into one, thanks to some quirk of the Crystal Mirror. She’d had a few years to get used to the idea. Not sure how many, after signing up multiple times for a high school which never seemed to look too hard at her birth certificate, or kick up a fuss about her parents’ poor track record of attending PTC meetings. Of course, that is small potatoes compared to finding the person you ran away from – mentor, tutor, legal guardian and, dare she say it, mother-figure all in one – recast into the role of your high school’s principal. A role in which Principal Celestia had been flanked (‘Hah!’) by someone Sunset had never met, at least not before leaving Equestria. The same person who was currently sitting opposite her, here in one of those cheap-yet-slightly-overpriced theme restaurants, part-and-parcel for shopping plazas everywhere across the country. Luna hadn’t spoken a word since they’d entered Buck-E Cheddars, besides a curt affirmation to Wallflower Blush that of course she needn’t eat the olives if she didn’t want to. Sour Sweet hadn’t exactly taken five different people’s tastes into account when picking the topping, although it was a safe enough bet that Pinkie Pie would eat anything. Wallflower happened to be the one who’d picked the spot next to Sunset at the table. Even her chews were as quiet as a mouse’s, the thought of which briefly amused Sunset, in view of this restaurant’s mascot. She may not even have noticed the girl’s presence, hadn’t the recent excitement kicked all of her senses into high gear. ‘High gear… Yeah, that’s a good one,’ Sunset thought, trying to focus on her slice of paprika-and-artichoke pizza. ‘Still got to ask your Vice-Principal why she thrust us into an impromptu motorcycle chase, one where you might’ve nearly got your ‘teammates’ killed over a miscommunication.’ With Sour Sweet, whom Sunset saw biting at her slice in aggressively large chunks, it was hard to tell if she’d been forgiven yet for that. For that matter, what exactly was Luna up to with those two? A student from a rival school, possibly afflicted by a manic-depressive or bipolar disorder, and a bundle of social anxieties who couldn’t have been more aptly baptised if her name was ‘Shrinking Violet’. Odd pair to get enrolled by the Vice-Principal as special agents of some kind. Now was a slow hour at Buck-E’s, devoid of fellow clientele. Maybe this was why Twilight had texted that the others should come and wait for her there, knowing they’d enjoy some privacy. It made for an awkward silence, punctuated only by the occasional sound of munching. But after both the unexplained explosion at Canterlot High and the motorcycle chase, Sunset found this an improvement, if only for the time it gave her adrenaline rush to wear off. Luckily everyone was here in one piece. Including the three bikes and Luna’s midnight-blue car, now at rest in the plaza’s parking lot. Sunset felt slightly reassured to see them from the window. Should circumstance again force a getaway, their means were right outside and within range. The minutes wore on, however, and silence reigned. If not even Pinkie Pie, off eating in her own little spot (‘Little– hah again, aren’t you on a roll today, Sunny…’) was going to speak up, too busy tackling the challenge brought on to her infamously bottomless appetite by her recent affliction, then Sunset realised she’d be the one required to break the ice. At this table, she was easily the most socially-dominant personality. Luna, despite her status as a teacher and an adult, had a tendency to leave the talking to Celestia, outside the office. “So…” began Sunset. “Someone gonna tell me what’s going on here?” Vice-Principal Luna exchanged glances with Sour Sweet. “I dunno, boss,” said Sour Sweet, setting down the lemon smoothie she’d been sipping from. “Shouldn’t we wait until Twilight gets here? I mean, she–” this was said while gesturing towards Sunset, “hasn’t been properly initiated yet, and let’s not forget, she did almost run me down, ‘cause that’s what ignorance does to you–” “Hey!” Sunset cried, feeling her indignation return. “It’s not my fault if your idea of a friendly hand-gesture translates into most cultures as ‘Your days are numbered, I put a hit out on you’!” ‘And you’re the one here who was born with hands, so this just boggles the mind…’ “That’s quite enough,” said Luna, and Sunset immediately shut up. While not quite on par with her illustrious sister, Luna had a way of conveying a lot with a firm tone, even when it wasn’t enhanced over the loudspeaker. Surprisingly, Wallflower of all people took the brief lull as an invitation to speak, albeit in a characteristically faltering way. “Um, Sour’s got a point, Miss,” Wallflower said, clutching her smoothie. “A-actually, we rushed so fast to get here, I– I think we may have overshot Twilight.” Luna sighed, taking stock of the teenagers’ collective expressions. “That’s true,” Luna conceded. “But after all the trouble Miss Shimmer’s been through… Perhaps it’s only fair to start supplying some answers.” ‘Oh goodie,’ thought Sunset, ‘here it comes.’ Her expectations about getting explanations for why the growns-up in her life did what they did, hadn’t exactly got raised by her years of apprenticeship in Equestria. “Best if I get someone to help me out here,” said Luna, apparently having noticed the dubious expression on Sunset’s face. She waved, calling over the waiter who’d served them earlier. “Excuse me, if you’ll please fetch the manager? Tell him I’d like a word. Nothing bad, I assure you. Just… business from Canterlot High.” The waiter nodded and departed. Meanwhile, Wallflower was nervously eyeing a life-size automaton of the restaurant’s mascot. Buck-E himself stood on the nearby stage, idle, as it was too early in the day to entertain the children whom analysts in some corporate boardroom had decided would be delighted by a giant two-legged rat playing guitar. “I don’t like those things…” Wallflower murmured. “When I look at them, half of me’s convinced they’re gonna get up at night and bite a kid’s head off…” “That’s a morbid imagination you got, Wally,” Sour Sweet said indifferently. “Miss Bubblegum-and-Laughs looks happy enough, don’t you think?” Sunset peered at the stage. Rather than join them at the table, Pinkie Pie, still shrunk down to ten sizes smaller than her normal height, had chosen Buck-E’s snout as a perch, upon which she was busily gorging on tiny chunks of pizza. “M-maybe? I dunno,” mumbled Wallflower. “Just something spooky about them, is what I think.” Sour shrugged. “Eh, figures Miss Blue Moon here would pick a place that could moonlight as a Nightmare Night attraction for a meeting place.” “Call it a base of operations, rather,” said Luna. She was looking at Sunset as she said so. “Because that’s what this is, Miss Shimmer. If you’ll allow my associate to demonstrate…” Someone else had appeared onstage, Sunset saw then. A young guy, a little older than she or the other students, but who looked as though he couldn't have left school so very long ago. Three, maybe five years’ difference, with his innocent green eyes and boyish curls of brown hair. Judging by the white shirt, complete with the obligatory two pens – red and blue – in one pocket, Sunset assumed this had to be the manager. That was when a realisation struck Sunset. Amidst all the earlier madness, she’d failed to notice how the nameless waiter hadn’t batted an eye at serving a Lilliputian pink party planner, which even by Pinkie Pie standards ranked as ‘really fucking weird’. And nor did the manager, now, betray any sign of bewilderment at the sight of her. “Mister Sandwich,” spoke Luna. “If you’ll please?” Winking at her, the manager pulled a lever by the stage. Promptly, what else should happen, but for the wall behind Buck-E Rat and his equally colourful yet unsettling friends to pull away, revealing a darkened staircase leading down goodness knows where. While Sunset was processing this latest insanity, she heard Luna give a cough. “Sunset,” Luna told her, flicking back a little of her hair. “I’m sorry you had to find out about it this way. Twilight and I have been holding back, waiting for what seemed like the right moment– We, well, we figured you’ve had enough going on in the past year, without saddling you with this on top of it all– and I assure you, that pun wasn’t intended.” Sunset turned back to stare at her, gawping. “... What’s this? H-how do you build…” Luna smiled mirthlessly. “Sunset, although I wish it could be under better circumstances, allow me to welcome you into C.H.E.E.S.E. That’s to say, the Canterlot High Equestrian Educational Society for Enthusiasts. And if Twilight is right, that explosion at the school may trace back to an opponent of Equestria’s with a… stormy disposition. You must have a lot of questions.” Acting on instinct more than anything, of the sort of body language she’d learned in the undefinable time of her stay in this world, Sunset raised a finger. This got Luna to smile a bit, recognising it as a student’s query to a teacher, but Sunset wasn’t in a mood to see the joke. “I do have one question, actually,” Sunset said slowly. “If you’ve got that kind of money, to– to set up a place like this in a mall– what are you doing working as a teacher?” 4. Into The Depths by EileenSaysHiInto The Depths As had lately become the norm for Vice Principal Luna — with Sunset wondering if it even made sense to call her that anymore, and not some kind of secret spy codename — her answer was less of an actual answer and more of a slow foreshadowing of an eventual answer. “I think you’ll find that this little agency’s history did not start with me, Sunset. And with a bit of luck, it won’t end with me, either.” Sunset filed the unsatisfactory response away as she followed behind her new cohorts down the winding staircase, Luna and the manager (Mr. Sandwich, was it?) bringing up the rear. The staircase that was hidden inside a Buck-E Cheddars playplace that was apparently leading them to the headquarters of a secret organization whose primary membership was a random collection of teenagers… And to think people wondered why she didn’t find this world any less crazy than Equestria. Still, there was something on her mind she couldn’t shake. “So C.H.E.E.S.E. stands for… Canterlot High Equestrian Educational Society for Enthusiasts? What does that even mean? That’s like the definition of acronym for the sake of acronym. What are we enthusiastic about? Is Equestrian actually related to Equestria somehow, or did the founder just really like horses? How did we end up with non-CHS members? Where–” “Oh, trust me,” piped in a voice from above, causing Wallflower to grind to a halt in front of her – Sour Sweet walked right into her. “I’ve been saying the same thing ever since I joined, and they never listen.” Sunset looked up with everyone else, but she knew the voice as soon as she heard it. “Twilight!” “Thanks for waiting,” came the mildly snarking reply. “I’ll be right down!” “We’ll wait!” Sunset replied, just as Sour Sweet was trying to urge everyone onward. Sunset had spent too long with the gang of strangers – she was more than happy to have a friend back by her side, even if it was one who had a secret life that Sunset would definitely be interrogating as soon as this all blew over. Well, at least, a friend who wasn’t currently about 17 centimeters tall. As the distant footfalls from Twilight’s hurried walk down the steps echoed from above, Sunset looked back at Pinkie, who was still happily enjoying a last morsel of pizza atop Mr. Sandwich’s shoulder. Sunset was grateful for small consistencies. “So you were being chased? Who was chasing you?” “We’re not sure. But it seems almost certain they were connected to the explosion in the school.” As Twilight and Luna continued to catch each other up on the events of the present morning, Sunset sighed. She should have figured that she would’ve been sidelined in favor of Official C.H.E.E.S.E. Business. And with Wallflower not being the chatty type, Sour Sweet not being the type anyone would want to chat with, and Pinkie busy humming a new song she’d invented at around the halfway mark down the steps, Sunset was left without anyone to chat with. She considered interrupting with the information that Luna was conveniently excluding, like the fact that Sour’s incompetent use of motorcycle hand gestures had nearly been more effective at getting them all killed than their pursuers, but there seemed to be little point. She was the outsider. She was basically there by accident. Sunset jolted at the feeling of a tap on her shoulder, nearly stumbling on the steps. She looked around to find Twilight just behind her, and, after a moment, beside her. “This must be strange, isn’t it?” she asked. “You could say that, yeah,” Sunset said with a nod. “I’m really sorry that this is how you found out about, well, C.H.E.E.S.E.,” Twilight said with a frown. “I’ve been pushing for you to be inducted for a while, but people were hesitant. You’re from Equestria, after all.” Sunset tilted her head. “Shouldn’t that have made me more of an asset, if this whole thing is about Equestria?” “I thought so. I still think so. But some of the others were concerned that that would compromise your opinion about the kinds of decisions we make.” There was grumbling all around her, and Luna gently spoke. “Twilight–” “She deserves to know,” Twilight interrupted her. “It’s too late to not be transparent now.” After a moment’s thought, Sunset asked another question. “What… what kinds of decisions?” “You’ll see when we reach the bottom.” She smiled. “I’m glad you’re here, Sunset. I’m really glad.” Sunset smiled back. “Well, if I’m gonna be forcibly inducted into a secret society of secret agents, I’m grateful it’s one with you.” She slipped her arm past Twilight’s and interlocked fingers with her, and watched as, even in the ever-dimmer light, Twilight’s face grew bright red. “Thanks for being there for me.” “A-a-anything for a friend.” From ahead, there was a loud scoff from Sour Sweet. “Ugh, will you two weirdos get a damn room?” Sunset smirked, and began to extend her foot. “Why? You’re the one about to go on a trip.” “Sunset, no!” Twilight hissed. “These are stone steps!” Disappointedly, Sunset retracted her leg. “Fiiine…” Sour Sweet looked back with disgust, then pushed her way in front of Wallflower. Twilight giggled. And kept holding Sunset’s hand. It wasn’t until they reached the bottom of the staircase, after what seemed like half an hour’s worth of descending, that they untangled their fingers, Sunset needing to catch her breath. “Please tell me there’s an elevator back to the top.” “Not exactly,” Luna replied, “but we have a different means of exiting than we do of entering.” “I’ll take it,” Sunset replied. She took a look around. The space was a lot less… exciting than she was anticipating. Sour must have noticed the bewilderment on her face. “Were you expecting a movie set? This isn’t a Mare-Do-Well movie. Welcome to real life.” Sunset rolled her eyes. “Sure, everything about this so far screams ‘real life.’” All around was a large, rather barren cavern, with only a few lights to speak of. Little droplets of water could be heard plink-ing onto the ground in the dimness, and the walls were visibly slick. There were three doors carved into them, each bearing an inscription that Sunset couldn’t make out from this distance. The floor, however, was paved, almost in the manner of a school hallway, creating a bizarre visual contrast. It took Sunset a moment to notice that the group had begun to concentrate around the leftmost door, which Luna opened with a special-looking key. It opened wide before them – Wallflower had to take a step back – before they all filed inside. Twilight, at the back, motioned to Sunset. “Come on!” Hurriedly, Sunset caught up with the group, only to notice one person hadn’t entered – Mr. Sandwich. He stood calmly and quietly beside the staircase, only briefly making eye contact with Sunset before resuming his watch of the cavern. This was undoubtedly odd, but Sunset only had a moment to consider that fact before being ushered inside the room. It occurred to her that Pinkie had not been on Mr. Sandwich’s shoulder, but a small Pinkie giggle made it evident she’d merely hopped to someone else’s shoulder. That brought Sunset’s attention to the inside of the room, which… also failed to look particularly notable. It was certainly a dramatic difference from the cave, in that this looked like an actual room — however, it was still a fairly uninspiring place, looking more like a low-level corporate boardroom than anything. An extremely plain one, to boot. There was a large rectangular table in the center, and Sunset followed Twilight to a seat. Internally, she was amused. The agents around her might have thought of themselves as knights, but there was no pretense of equality, as Luna sat firmly at the head. Sour and Wallflower sat opposite Sunset and Twilight, while Pinkie had merrily jaunted over to the center of the table. Just as everyone was seated, Mr. Sandwich entered, whispering something in Luna’s ear. Sunset couldn’t make it out, but Luna nodded, and Mr. Sandwich closed the door. He took a seat at the other end of the table, facing her. “Now,” Luna began, “all of you know how we got here, and why, for the first time in many months, we’ve had to assemble in the Blue Room.” (Sunset noted that there was nothing in the room that could be considered blue, besides a few pairs of jeans.) “But there remains the question of why. And for that, I will turn things over to Agent Sparkle.” Sunset looked over as Twilight stood from her seat. Thank you, Vice-Principal.” (It appeared they really were just gonna keep calling her that.) “Now, I’ve been able to compare some of the damage done at the sight of the explosion, and the reports from other students about what happened to Pinkie. And one thing that keeps coming up is the appearance of a very distinctive sigil. The same one that appeared on the cruise last spring break, and that my princess pony counterpart informed me belonged to an enemy of hers – one that is known to have died, yet, to risk sounding like the corpse of a science fiction film franchise, has somehow reappeared. Or, at least, someone or something is trying to carry on his legacy.” Memories of the encounter flashed through Sunset’s mind. “You don’t mean–” “Yes, Sunset. The Storm K–” Twilight was interrupted when a bright glow started to appear at the center of the table, all around Pinkie Pie. There was a sizzling sound, and the smell of baked goods mixed with electricity. Suddenly, there was a bright flash, followed by the sound of something crashing. Sunset yelped as something heavy brushed past her knees, and there were a few other screams of fright. Once Sunset’s eyesight had recovered, she, as everyone else finished rubbing their own eyes, found the table had snapped like a twig. Sat in the middle was Pinkie Pie, suddenly restored to full height. She looked around at the sight, bewildered, before letting out a giggle. “Wow. You all really need to get a stronger table.” 5. Frankly, Sometimes It Feels Like We're in a Reality TV Show by iAmSiNnErWhat in the World? I’m a Title Now? Logically speaking, Pinkie Pie returning to her usual size was unusual. Unless, of course, you factored in that it was Pinkie Pie. “Pinkie!” Twilight exclaimed, rushing to examine the bewildered girl on top of the destroyed table and check her out. “Oh, I’m glad you’re back to normal size. I have to figure out how that happened - it might help us find a way to turn everyone else back to normal!” With all her fussing over their friend, Sunset gave a small grin, glad that something was back to normal amongst all the chaos of the past few days. “Agent Sparkle,” The Vice Principal’s words interrupted Twilight’s fussing, her expression serious. “I understand that this is a big situation, and that you are happy your friend is back to normal. So am I. However, this will have to take a backseat for now, and I suggest you finish your report on your…otherworld counterpart’s information.” Twilight sheepishly stepped back from Pinkie Pie, her hands clasped in front of her. “Of course, Vice Principal. But, um…” she glanced at the destroyed table. “Shall we get another room?” Twilight had somehow acquired a whiteboard. And markers. Markers that had ink. Truly a mystery as to how she managed to siphon those from the logistics department, especially when they always distributed almost empty markers. “So, according to the pony princess version of me,” Twilight drew two circles on the whiteboard as she spoke, writing the words ‘Pony World’ and ‘Our World’ on top of each circle. “A villain named Storm King has recently resurfaced in their world. However, she attests that their original Storm King was defeated, turned into stone, and then that said stone statue was broken later soon after. This would mean…” Everyone in the room winced, including the usually stoic Vice Principal Luna. “It is exactly what your imaginations are telling you,” Twilight adjusted her glasses as she drew the symbol they had grown used to on the circle that represented Equestria and drew an X over it. “Their Storm King is dead. Which means, unlike other villains in their world who have been banished or sealed away, he cannot return. Which begs the question.” “Who is the Storm King who seems to have returned?” The Vice Principal was out of her seat, her eyes widened. “If his symbol is being spread around both our worlds, that means one of the two is real, and the other is an imposter carrying out his will.” “Or, the more dangerous reason— our world’s Storm King has figured out portal travel between the two worlds.” Twilight Sparkle finished, drawing the symbol on the second circle and etching a question mark beside it. She then gave a pause and stared at the whiteboard. “Why did I even get a whiteboard when all I was going to do is draw two circles and write a few words and symbols?” “Ooh, ooh, I know!” Pinkie Pie raised her hand, having returned to her usual bubbly self. “It’s because we needed filler!” “Filler?” Sunset stared at her, tilting her head. “Pinkie, you say the strangest things.” “That’s besides the point,” The Vice Principal sighed. “We’ll need to investigate. Agent Sparkle, you’re with Sunset.” Sunset spouted. “I’m part of you guys too,” she complained. “Can’t you call me Agent Shimmer?” “Newly inducted, might I remind you. And not even by my sister.” The Vice Principal pursed her lips. “If you prove yourself on this particular mission, I’ll put in a good word with Celestia, and she might give you the honor of being called a proper Agent. But carrying on. Agent Sparkle, you and Shimmer will check out the cruise ship. Again. Agent Pie and Agent Sandwich, you will visit the Research Department and find out how Agent Pie was able to return to her usual size.” The two of them nodded, Pinkie Pie unusually serious. “We gotta turn our friends back to their normal sizes,” she said. “I’ll let them check anything.” “Good. The rest of you, with me. Blue Room, move us to the Red Room.” Once she finished her sentence, the world turned blue, and everyone but the four of them disappeared. “Oh, so that’s why they called it the Blue Room.” 6. Do Quantum People Dream of Magic Sheep? by Sunlight Rays“So… What’s the plan here?” Sunset asked as she and Twilight walked down the streets. “Get on the cruise ship, look for any trace of the Storm King of our world. I don’t know what to expect, but hopefully we get leads pointing us in the right direction,” Twilight replied with a shrug. They walked down the bustling streets, full of people going to and fro. The pair brushed past the figures, heading towards the docks. The two girls walked across the wooden boarding deck and onto the ship. The interior was eerily quiet. Not a sound could be heard. Not the usual ambient noise of the ship’s internal systems running, not the muffled sounds of people walking around. Just… silence. “Where is everyone?” Twilight asked. Sunset shrugged. “Come on, let’s take a look around. See what we can find.” She turned to walk down a hallway. “Wait!” Twilight called out. “Hm?” “Don’t you think it would be better if we… split up? Cover more area in the same amount of time?” Sunset stared at Twilight intently, an unreadable expression on her face. Just as Twilight began to squirm under the weight of the stare and the silence, Sunset nodded. “Sure, let’s do that.” Then she turned and walked down the hallway. Twilight gave a quizzical look after her, then turned to head down a different corridor. “So!” Pinkie exclaimed as she bounced around the Research Department. “Find anything?” “Not here,” Cheese Sandwich replied as he closed the log records for the Size Manipulation Operation Laser device, logged onto the computer. “What about you?” “I found a slice of bread on a plate here! We could eat it!” Pinkie held up a slice of bread. “Sure thing! Do you know whose it was?” “No, but it looks tasty!” Pinkie Pie tore the bread in half and handed a piece to Cheese Sandwich. She took hers to her mouth and swallowed all of it in one go. “Mmm! It’s good!” Cheese Sandwich gulped down his piece then turned to Pinkie. “Okay, now let’s figure out how to get our friends back to their normal size! How did you get back to your normal size?” “Hmmmmm…” Pinkie Pie stuck out a tongue as she put a finger to her chin. She was thinking hard. “I don’t know! I just thought, ‘It would be reeeeeeally nice if I could go back to my normal size,’ then, poof! I came back!” “That’s nice. Can our friends do that too?” “Mmm… I don’t think so! If they could, why didn’t they do it already?” “Good point,” Cheese Sandwich replied. “By the way, how small are our friends, again?” “Well, somewhere between the size of an electron and the size of an atomic nucleus, I would say!” “Oh, okay. So how do we know where they are?” “Oh, uh, good question! I’m not entirely sure, to be honest,” Pinkie replied with a shrug. “Well, I guess we’ll have to find our friends before we figure out how to restore them back to their normal size, then!” Pinkie nodded. “Okie-dokie-lokie!” Then she blinked. “How do we find our friends if they’re smaller than an atom?” Cheese Sandwich blinked in response. “That’s a good question! I’m not entirely sure!” “Oh well, guess I’ll just try to do it with my Pinkie Sense!” “Good idea!” With that, the pair began wandering around the room. In the corner, a small groan said: “This is going to take a long time.” 7. Electric Boogaloo by TheSleeplessBeholderFound anything? -Twitle Nothing yet. -Sunshimsher Twilight walked into the bridge, looking at the controls and the large window that showed the front of the cruise ship. Everything seemed in order, no, it seemed ready. The cruiser was about to sail away but something happened and no one was here. I’m sure something’s going on. There should be people here. -Twitle Maybe they had to leave? Some sort of emergency? -Sunshimsher So fast that they didn’t cancel the preparations for departure? And if it was an emergency, they wouldn’t have let us on board. -Twitle Possibly -Sunshimsher … -Twitle Are you okay? You’ve been acting weird. -Twitle … -Sunshimsher I just- Twilight’s phone suddenly started glitching out, the screen becoming an unintelligible mess of pixels. “Dammit!” She tried to see what had happened, opening the phone to check the electronics, and found them partially fried. “What did that? It was like… an EMP?” She quickly looked through her back and pulled out a device very similar to the one she had used to check the CHS statue long ago. She adjusted the parameters and lifted it in the direction her phone had freaked out. A high energy reading made the device blip like a geiger counter. “Gotcha.” She instinctively went to notify the reveal but remembered her phone was out. She could go look for them, but that would take possibly precious time. “Alright, going solo then. Hopefully they find me alive.” She moved through the ship, her device guiding her to the seemingly ever expanding concentration of energy. she could feel the device heating up as even its reinforced circuits were being affected by the energy, though surprisingly she seemed unaffected. She expected frizzled hair at least, death by her brain electrically shutting down at worse. Magic was clearly involved, but if something could be this selective with such an amount of power it would need to be a very powerful machine… or entity. Twilight walked down the steps to the ship's cargo hold, her device finally giving up and going dark as the geiger counter flatlined before shutting off. In front of her was a heavy bulkhead door meant to stop water from fully flooding the ship. Now Twilight could feel the static in the air, meaning that she was in a dangerous range to whatever was generating this massive amount of energy. She took a deep breath and got ready. “Be brave…” she grabbed the wheel of the bulkhead, feeling a light current on her hands and arms, and started to turn it all the way till the heavy door unlocked and slowly opened, revealing the inside. — “I’ve a theory…” Donkey said as he and Pinkie continued to scan the room with the Pinkie Sense to find their miniaturized friends. “You know what essential ingredient is needed to change matter?” “Heat?” Pinkie asked as she felt a tug to her left, quickly turning ninety degrees to follow the lead. “Close, energy.” He scratched his cheek. “In simple and dumb terms, it’s one of the reasons atoms are what they are and change their composition, exchange of electrons and all that, which is about the size your friends are right now.” “So, they’re kind of like energy?” “Possibly, my point is, if we think of atoms like building blocks, energy is the cement keeping them together so they can take larger and larger forms. So, in theory, if we give your friends enough energy to start gathering atoms around them, they should be able to rebuild their bodies.” “So… we thunderbolt the room till they grow back? Won’t they be like… fusing with the environment or something?” “Possibly, it shouldn’t change a thing in them if they do it well. But that’s assuming they know how to assemble a human body on a molecular level.” “That sounds like a job for Twilight.” “Yup. So, after we gather them we can look into the theory once Sparkle returns.” “Do you think that’s how I got big again?” “You’re the most energetic being I know, and you’ve magic. I wouldn’t put it past you.” “Well, maybe we could- Found one!” 8. The Corpse Has Left The Building by Dewdrops on the GrassThe Corpse Has Left The Building “You found one?!” Cranky asked, setting his coffee mug aside. He joined Pinkie by the opposite side of the room and squatted down to look, as if he could see anything. “Who is it?” “It’s Rarity! I can tell by how my knee knocked and my spine tingled while my heart went all pitter-patter.” “Well, good.” Cranky thought for a moment, then went over to the wall and pulled out a containment device, handing it to Pinkie. “Here, get her in this, if you can. We need to keep them in place till Twilight gets back.” “Caaaaan do!” Pinkie tossed off a jaunty salute and proceeded to use the device to scoop up the molecule-sized Rarity, imagining her shouting out her signature “Wa-hah-haaaah!” upon soaring what must’ve felt like hundreds of miles into the air. And just as she finished, her lungs seemed to expand, her eyes fluttered one after the other, and her earlobe tugged. “Ahah! Rainbow Dash, there you are, you silly girl.” Cranky flashed her a thumbs up. “Good. Keep working. I’m going to reach out to Twilight.” He pulled out a cell phone and dialed, getting no response. “Huh, that’s weird.” He tried the call several more times, then grimaced at it before nabbing his cup and knocking back the last of his coffee. “Ugh, she’s not answering. Okay, let’s try Shimmer.” Sunset picked up on the first ring. “Twilight?!” “Sorry, it’s just me,” Cranky said dryly. “Oh, Mister Doodle! Sorry, I’m just really worried about Twilight. She’s somewhere on the ship and I can’t find her.” “Ship? What ship?” He scratched his head, then nearly tugged his toupee off. “Wait, are you two on the cruise ship?” “Yeah, why?” “You need to get out of there!” he bellowed. “Now!” “But -- oh my Celestia, are you--” “Sunset?” Cranky heard naught but static on the line, before the telltale blip of the phone disconnecting. “Sunset?! Damn it…” He gave Pinkie a firm nod. “Keep at it. I’ve got to go rescue those two before it’s too late.” “Okie dokie loki!” As Twilight opened the door, she beheld a wondrous sight, far more beautiful than she expected. “What… what is this?” This turned out to be a massive crystal tree, growing into every corner and crevice of the reactor room of the ship, its roots tangled and knotted up within the wiring, branches shooting out covered in crystalline leaves. It sang with the force of its magic, striking Twilight’s ears with a song that lifted her heart and sent it into overdrive, while the rest of her organs felt like they were squeezed in a vise by the sheer physical force of the thaumic energy it was outputting. Twilight Sparkle. “H-huh?” A light surrounded Twilight’s body, yanking her forward. Her breathing, already shallow, became so strained it was as if she had an entire house on her chest. “What… what are you?” I am your scion. Birthed from your own actions, so long ago. Her vision swam, beginning to gray at the edges. “I don’t understand. Scion? How?” You ripped holes in the fabric of our reality. “You mean, when I was Midnight?” Every breath hurt now, like her lungs were wrapped in razor wire. “But, does that mean you’re from Equestria?” Yes. One of the dimensional tears was in the cavern of Harmony, below the Castle of the Two Sisters. Unlike the rest, it was torn not just through space, but through time as well, to when the Tree of Harmony was destroyed by King Sombra. A seed, one of only two to survive, fell through the crack, and took root in this ship. Everything was gray now, consciousness becoming a fleeting thing. “But how did you grow? Why are you so powerful?” The Storm King’s magic. Just as it threatened to sink the other ship you were on, it affected this one. It gave me a sense of purpose. “A-and what’s that… that purpose?” The destruction of your world. Twilight tried to budge, but it was no use. She was fading, and fast. Her life began to flash before her eyes. “No, please… please, we didn’t… didn’t do anything to deserve…” Your world lacks harmony. I will create it anew, using you as my vessel. The last thing Twilight knew, she was being brought into the branches of the tree. Sunset, on the deck of the cruise ship, stared in horror at the figure hovering before her, her phone a smoking ruin at her feet. “Midnight? But how?” Midnight Sparkle, lowered the hand she’d used to fry the phone, her eyes flashing with a ghostly light. “You are Sunset Shimmer.” “Uh, yeah?” Sunset gripped her fists and summoned her power, ponying-up. As her magic flared, she began to float off the deck. “What’s it to you?” “You will be suitable as my second vessel.” “Vessel? What--” Sunset cut herself off, as she only then noticed that there was something sticking out of Midnight’s back. An ethereal branch, poking up out of the deck, so transparent it was barely visible. “You’re not Midnight. Who are you? What have you done with Twilight?” “She will be one of the few who will survive the destruction of this world. You will also be among their number.” There was a shattering of the metal behind her, the only warning she had as another branch burst up, lancing forward, ready to pierce her from behind, far too fast for her to dodge. Only to be severed as Cranky Doodle came flying through the air and tackled her, sending them both sprawling. “Sunset, you idiot!” he groused. “You should’ve asked me before coming here!” “How was I supposed to know this ship was haunted?!” Sunset shot back as they both sprang to their feet. Midnight Sparkle stared at them, her expression devoid of emotion. “How curious. What do you hope to accomplish?” “Three things,” Cranky said as he held up a curious device. “One, send you back to Equestria where you belong. Two, get the energy we need to restore Sunset’s friends. Three, go home and take a nap.” “I hear that,” Sunset said as she deftly used her magic and dodged another branch that tried to snag her. “How’d you know it was here?” “Same way I knew how to help Pinkie, and do everything else we’ve done today. Luna recruited me.” Cranky leapt out of reach of one of the roots that swung at him like a whip. “Now, keep her in place! We gotta free her first.” “Right!” Sunset flew up to Midnight, who twirled in the air, summoning up a shield of radiant crystal light to block her. “You will not succeed.” “Shut up and stop possessing Twilight, you weird… tree… thing!” Midnight fired a beam of energy from her palm, which Sunset countered with one of her own, deflecting it into the ocean, where it produced a huge plume of water. “I will not be stopped.” “Oh really?!” came another cry from the ship’s deck. The sound of a cannon mixed with a party horn erupted, and a mixture of sprinkles flew into Midnight, exploding in her face, sending her sprawling. Pinkie Pie, now ponied up, flew up to join Sunset in the air, linking hands with her. “Hi, Sunny!” she said. “I figured you could use the help.” “Wait, what about our friends?” “Down there! They’re all in the containment thingie, ready for us to free them!” Midnight climbed to her feet, the first sign of real emotion on her face as she frowned ever so slightly. “This is becoming tiresome.” Sunset smirked. “That’s the power of friendship for you! Now hold still.” She and Pinkie raised their free hands to point at Midnight, firing twin beams of energy to stop her in her tracks. “Now, Cranky!” Pinkie called. Cranky raised the device he’d brought, pointing it directly at Midnight. He opened his mouth as if to say some sort of badass quip, then thought better of it and simply hit the button. A wave seemed to propagate from his device through the air till it struck his target. “No…NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” Midnight fell to her knees, clutching her skull, till the branch embedded in her back withdrew with a plop. The instant it was removed, Midnight’s appearance changed, shifting back into Twilight, who collapsed like a puppet whose strings had been cut. “Twilight!” Sunset and Pinkie cried, both dropping down to assist her. “Are you okay?” “Ow…” Twilight moaned as she sat up, still holding her head. “That was… not fun.” “Well, it’s not over yet,” Cranky said as he brought his device up again. He shifted a few dials on it, adjusting the settings. “We gotta figure out where the core is at. Twilight?” “Reactor room… I’ll… I’ll show you.” The four of them headed below decks, and soon came to the door that Twilight had opened before. The tree awaited them, roots aimed at them like weapons. Why must you resist? Your world lacks harmony. It cannot bring you joy. “That’s where you’re wrong,” Twilight declared, her voice strong despite the weakness of the rest of her body. “Even if our world isn’t perfect, it’s still ours. We can always make it better. But we won’t let you destroy it!” You will not-- “Oh shut up already,” Cranky groused, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he activated his device again. The tree’s branches all quivered and quaked like they’d suddenly been slammed with gale force winds, another keening cry filling the air. A beam of energy formed, sucked from the tree like water through a hose, which Cranky then redirected into the containment vessels that Pinkie brought along. Soon enough, the rest of Twilight and Sunset’s friends had emerged, one by one, each of them ponying up in turn. “Whoo doggy, that sure was somethin’, bein’ shrunk like that,” Applejack said. “Oh my, yes,” Fluttershy agreed. “I don’t want to repeat it.” “Yeah, me either. It was sooooo not cool,” Dash added. “Darlings, as much as I agree with you, perhaps we should focus on the task at hand?” “Right!” Cranky stepped back, and as one the seven ponied up friends joined together, summing upon the real harmony magic in a huge rainbow laser, which struck the tree right at its core. It crumpled, every branch curling inward, shrinking down, drawn inward further and further until with one last cry, it vanished entirely, the only remnant left behind being a single crystalline leaf. A leaf that Twilight immediately crushed under her foot. “Well, that’s that,” Twilight said with a happy sigh. “We’ve got everyone back, and the day’s been saved.” “All in a day’s work,” Sunset agreed, bringing everyone into a big group hug. “You know what this calls for?” “Pizza?” Rainbow suggested from the bottom of the cuddle pile. “Pizza!” Everyone else cheered. Except Cranky, who gave them one look and groaned. “Ugh. I’m going to go get that nap now. Kids.” Author's Note Thank you all for joining us on that silly, goofy ride. Special thanks to all participants once again for working with me on writing this story, and I hope it made at least a few of you laugh, cry, or somewhere in-between.
1. The Corpse is In Session by Dewdrops on the GrassPizza Time “Sunset! Sunset! Heeeeeeelp!” Waves of heat washed over Sunset, accompanied by a thunderous shockwave that boomed, sending her flying into the base of the CHS horse statue. Debris pelted her even as her head cracked against the marble, filling her vision with stars. With a great effort she hauled herself up, leaning against the plinth for support, her ears ringing, everything in her vision doubled and blurred. “W-what?” she murmured, tasting copper on her tongue. “What happened?” A secondary explosion forced her to clap her hands to her ears as she screamed, the pain of the flash of light and sound momentarily overwhelming her. The instant it died down, she let her hands drop and looked up once again. CHS was gone. In its place, smoke billowed out from the crater in heavy black clouds of soot. Scattered onlookers, those who weren’t close enough to be bowled over by the explosion, pointed and gasped, many using their phones to record the event. A few, she could tell, were desperately dialing emergency services. “Sunset!” Wiping the blood off her mouth, Sunset looked around for the source of the voice, the one who’d been crying for help. “Pinkie?” she shouted. “Where’d you go?” “Down here!” Confused, Sunset glanced down, and spotted what she took for a mouse at first, darting around chunks of concrete and dirt, until she realized said ‘mouse’ possessed a shock of pink, curly hair. She reached down for Pinkie and plucked her up, cradling the shrunken girl in her hands. “What -- how did you…?” Pinkie flailed her arms like a pair of pinwheels. “I don’t know! I was baking in the home ec lab when all of a sudden this huge bottle of something fell off the fridge and broke at my feet. Next thing I know I’m an itsy bitsy teenie weenie running-for-her-life Pinkie!” Sunset looked up at the wreckage of CHS. Little to no real debris from the school itself remained; the chunks scattered everywhere came from the foundation and the dirt of the school grounds. She could see exposed pipes, cables, and a jet of flames where an open gas line was still burning. As the screaming wail of a fire truck’s klaxon and the accompanying shriek of an ambulance filled her ears, she looked back down at Pinkie and said, “But, running from what? What happened?” “Beats me! I was running from Principal Celestia’s cat.” “Her cat? What the heck was her cat -- nevermind.” She paused for a moment to blink away some of the dust in her eyes. “Was anyone else in the school?” “I don’t think so,” Pinkie answered. She’d resorted to bouncing in place, the impacts of her little feet tickling Sunset’s palms. “It’s a Sunday. I had the place to myself.” “Right, but, why were you in there all alone then?” Pinkie’s tiny eyes blinked rapidly. “I… I don’t know?” Groaning, Sunset fell back against the plinth of the statue. “Uuugh, this doesn’t make any sense!” She moved Pinkie to one hand and reached into her pocket with the other, pulling out her phone. “You’re not even the person I thought I was going to meet here.” Her fingers moved rapidly to pull up her messenger app. “Twilight texted me, asking me to come pick her up so we could go out for pizza.” “Uh oh,” Pinkie said, her eyes comically wide. “Oh nonononono, you don’t think Twilight--” “No! No, there’s no way,” Sunset interrupted her. She looked back up at what was left of the school. “Besides, it doesn’t make sense. What could she have been doing that made the school explode?” “That’s what I want to know, Sunset Shimmer.” Sunset jerked, nearly tossing Pinkie from her hands before she closed them to keep her safe. “Vice Principal Luna! You startled me.” Luna acknowledged that with a simple narrowing of her eyes. She wore an unusual outfit for her, something more like it belonged in Sunset’s closet, what with the leather jacket, the jeans, and the stained, half ripped shirt. “So, it seems magic is afoot once again.” She leaned in to examine the tiny Pinkie Pie. “Miss Pie, are you hurt?” “Nope! Just really energetic. And hungry. I could so go for some pizza right now.” “Indeed. As could I,” Luna murmured. She stared at them for a moment longer, then turned on her heel. “Follow me, Sunset.” “Wait, where are we going?” “To the pizza parlour. If that was where you were to meet Twilight Sparkle, then perhaps answers lay there.” Sunset glanced back at the wreckage as the first of several firetrucks pulled up, the firefighters immediately in a flurry dousing the flames with a jet of water from their hose. “But, what about the school?!” “There’s nothing we can do here. We’ll only get in the way,” Luna said. She pointed to her vehicle, parked nearby, right next to Sunset’s motorcycle. “Come. We must hurry.” “But… ugh, fine. Hang on, Pinkie.” “Wheee!” Sunset slipped Pinkie Pie into the breast pocket of her jacket, and hopped onto her motorcycle. She was going to get to the bottom of this, one way or another. Author's Note This story is an Exquisite Corpse, with each chapter between the start and the finish written by a different author. After each chapter was written, the story was passed to the next author, who was only allowed to read the chapter that came right before their own before writing. This is the unholy result.
2. Speedy Cheesy, Corpse Indeedy by AklinstarSpeedy Cheesy, Corpse Indeedy Revving up her motorcycle, Sunset prepared to take off. "Wait!" came a partially muffled cry from her breast pocket. Sunset, bewildered, took her helmet off. Reaching into her breast pocket she took out the teeny Pinkie. "What? What's wrong?" "I need a helmet too, silly." She pointed to her head and waved her arms around frantically. "Safety first!" Sunset rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Pinkie. How would I have a helmet your size when you jus—" A blaring sound startled them. A sleek, midnight-blue vehicle with tinted windows pulled up in front of them. The window rolled down, revealing Luna wearing an impatient scowl. "What's the hold up, Shimmer? We need to go. Now. There's no time." "Right, yes, I know. I'm just trying to convince Pinkie that there's no point wearing a helmet at her size," she said, pausing to slide Pinkie back into her pocket gently before she could protest. "Because if we got into an accident..." She grimaced and shook her head before continuing, "Besides, I don't even have one on me. Why would I?" Luna considered that for a moment, brows furrowed. She opened her mouth to respond before she was caught off by a perturbing jingle coming from her own car. Happy, childish, and... something about a shark? Luna blushed deeply as she fumbled with her phone before managing a click. "Yes? I know. We're on our way..." Another click, followed by some rummaging. "Here." She tossed out an object the size of a marble to Sunset. Sunset almost fell off her bike trying to grab it, but managed nonetheless. She peered down at her palm. Her eyes went wide as she stared in disbelief. "What? Why do you have a helmet in this size?" "Tiberius." Luna shrugged, her features becoming obscured once more behind the glass pane. "Who... never mind," Sunset muttered. "Guess it's your lucky day, Pinkie." She held out the helmet between her thumb and index and she brought it down to her level. "Yay!" Pinkie cheered as she took it. "Always got to come prepared, Shimmy!" "But, how would I... You know what? Whatever. We're going," she grunted. Both of them synced up as they put on their helmets. Sunset revved once more. Luna got the message as she took off ahead, her tires screeching in the parking lot as she drifted and left skid marks on the pavement. She narrowly avoided oncoming traffic as she made it onto the main street. Sunset, at first, struggled to keep up, not expecting such disregard for safety measures from the Vice Principal. Her mouth went dry as she continued to weave through traffic just to keep pace, her eyes widening as she glanced down at her speedometer. She saw she was already at 150 km/h and gaining, and that was just barely keeping up. This is ridiculous, she thought. Yes, the school blowing up for an unknown reason was concerning, but she didn't know why, and neither did Luna. Why were they racing to find answers at a pizza place—she didn't even know which pizza place! Her head spun, more questions piling up. A frisson slid from head to toe as she narrowly missed the red sedan in front of her, her thoughts dying out as she focused to keep up. Sweat poured from her face as she blanched at the fact she nearly gave the car a paint job. "Okay, screw this!" she yelled. "Call Luna." "Okie, dokie, lokie!" came the confirmation from her pocket at the exact moment her own helmet responded with, "Calling Vice Principal Luna." "Pinkie, not you!" Sunset retorted, not wanting to know how Pinkie's phone could still function. One ring, two rings... a few later, and she was met with voice mail: "Sorry, Luna is not available. At the tone, please—" "End call! Stupid..." Her voice tapered off upon seeing 200 km/h on the meter. "Why!?" "Why what?" squeaked a voice, a head popping up. "AHHHH!" Pinkie screeched as she almost flew out. "Pinkie, stay down!" Sunset screamed back, jabbing her thumb down to push Pinkie back in. She almost swerved off the road and into the walkway at the sudden distraction. They continued to whip past streetlights and the occasional vehicle, the roads becoming less populated the further they went, which Sunset found strange given they were heading into the heart of the city. A flash of light caught her attention, her eyes flicked to her mirrors. Two lights, to be exact, and they were gaining on them. Her heart sank at the thought of being apprehended by the police; she could kiss her license and beautiful bike goodbye. "Damn it, Luna..." She shook her head, knowing full well she was just at fault for deciding to stupidly follow her lead at ridiculous speeds. She glanced back to her mirrors and blinked. There were no red or blue flashing lights coming on, and they weren't that far behind now. She could distinguish two motorcycles hot on her tail and the sounds of increasingly loud engine noises. A chill overcame her as she had a sinking feeling they were in worse trouble than she first thought. "Pinkie." "Yes, Sunset? Oh! Are we there ye—" "Hang on tight." Not a moment sooner, the two bikers sidled up to her, one on each side. Her grip on the handlebars tightened, her knuckles turning white as she weighed her options. Her head pivoted to the left. The motorcyclist made a quick motion with two fingers shooting past their neck, their fingers ending up pointing past Sunset. Her head shot to the right; the other nodded. They were signaling one another. She made the first move. She jerked to the left, catching them off guard. She gave a solid kick into the frame of the other bike, causing them to fight for control as their bike wobbled. They fidgeted for a moment before swerving to the right, just barely missing a street sign. They slowed to a crawl as they stabilized, falling behind. Sunset paid them no mind as she turned her attention to the other, whom she couldn't find at first. However, she spotted the second light in her rear-view slowing, and then making a 180. She let out a breath, her sweaty hands giving the bike's bars a death strangle loosened. "What the hell was that about..." she wondered aloud. "Dunno, maybe they were just trying to get your autograph?" "...I somehow doubt that, but sure, let's go with that for now," Sunset laughed, jittery and forced, her body shaking from the excess adrenaline she no longer had an outlet for. The rest of the ride went without incident. They soon pulled into a large parking lot; it being in a shopping plaza, the prized pizza place came into view. Sunset's eyebrow raised to new heights as they pulled in and came to a halt. Buck-E Cheddars certainly wasn't her first choice, or her second... or her third. Hell, it wasn't even on her list of choices. Period. Twilight didn't specify in the text to her as to which place to meet, but apparently Luna knew. Strange. She wasn't sure what to make of it, but, pizza was pizza, and she was hungry. A gasp drew her attention back to reality. "I LOVE BUCK-E CHEESE!" Pinkie squeaked. She slid down her in a hurry and ran off before stopping a short distance. Sunset thought she heard her say "Come on!" but she wasn't quite sure; she could definitely make her out doing impromptu jumping jacks, though, before she dashed towards the building once more. Sunset chuckled. As she took her helmet off she heard, saw and felt the force of the nearby car door slam. She looked up, eyes wide as Luna turned towards her, hands clutched to her side; face red. Scowl wouldn't come close to describing her features, but she certainly was nothing short of livid. "Do you want to tell me what you were thinking when you almost killed one of my agents?" Luna accused, her arms now crossed as she glared down at her. Sunset's mouth flitted, not able to catch up with her racing thoughts, as all she could manage was a quiet gasp of a "W-what?" The sound of engines drew their attention. Two motorcycles parked across from them. One hopped off and took their helmet off. Sunset gaped as she stared at the figure stomped their—her way over. Her pale gold face full of rage; her magenta hair with an aquamarine streak appeared frazzled and unkempt as it obscured part of her face. "Hi. Sunset," Sour Sweet spoke through gritted teeth, her eyes wild and twitching. She giggled. "H-hey, look. I'm really, really sorry—" "Oh, no prob! It's all good!" Sour chortled once more as she gripped her palms together, her nails digging in and drawing blood. "After all, almost being fucking killed happens all the time!" she said as her voice fluctuated, her arms falling to her sides, her mouth deciding to stick with a sneer. Sunset took a step back and held out her hands. Sour Sweet closed the gap and grabbed her by the jacket and pulled her to eye level. "So, Shim, Shimmery, Shimsham, Sharoo... would you be so kind as to… TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK THAT WAS!?" She shook her vigorously. Sunset lost her balance and almost fell to her knees as her legs turned to jelly. Sunset threw her hands up, exasperated. "I didn't know who you were! You just showed up out of nowhere—I haven't been told anything! I didn't even know Luna had agents for Celestia's sake!” "What does my sister have to do with this?" Luna stroked her chin, her brows furrowed. “Oh, cool… Cool. Yeah.” Sour Sweet let her go and dusted her off. “All good then.” She gave her a thumbs up, with a smile bordering on maniacal. “Sorry…” Sunset said. “I thought when you made those hand gestures you were communicating with one another to… take us out.” She winced at how poor that sounded, it being compounded further by the rapid eye twitching of Sour Sweet. "I was waving to you, you MORON!" Sour Sweet made the same gesture as before, this time it ending with one particular finger pointing straight up. "Didn't know saying 'Hey, what's up?' was punishable by death!" "Yeah, I… really thought you guys were communicating an attack…" "NO!" "Um, hey you guys—" "She," Sour Sweet started, waving her arms over to the mint colored girl with verdant green hair, who was rubbing an arm as she now stood next to Luna. "Wallflower, wasn't responding to me. She was just trying to be NICE. Unlike YOU." She jabbed a finger into Sunset's chest for emphasis. "Look, I'm sorry! Okay? I'm sorry!" "I don't want to hear your empty platitudes!” Sour screamed. “You know what?" She turned to the still pondering Vice Principal and ripped her own insignia off and tossed it to the ground in front of her. "I quit! I don't get paid enough to deal with this crap." She turned and paced away. "You were getting paid?" Wallflower asked, puzzled, scratching her head. "No," Luna sighed. "She was not. You both volunteered—which I am most grateful for, by the way," she spoke up a bit louder. Sour Sweet didn't turn around, making a waving gesture as she continued her trek to her bike. Luna cleared her throat. "Very well, 'tis a shame. I was going to let you pick the toppings, but I supp—" "I'll go make the order," Sour Sweet interrupted. She made a beeline for the door but then paused, jogged backwards and grabbed her insignia. She fiddled with it for a moment as she stood in place. "Uh, so... I'm not going to have to go through initiation again since I quit, am I?" She gave her temporary former boss a nervous grin. Luna facepalmed. “Just get in the cheesy mouse house…”
3. SCP - Super Cheese Parameters by VoxAdamSCP – Super Cheese Parameters One crucial tactic to muddling through a crazy situation, Sunset Shimmer knew well, is to start by running down a list of facts. This was already true when she first landed in this world, where the only sapients were bipedal primates and, stranger still, she’d found herself turned into one, thanks to some quirk of the Crystal Mirror. She’d had a few years to get used to the idea. Not sure how many, after signing up multiple times for a high school which never seemed to look too hard at her birth certificate, or kick up a fuss about her parents’ poor track record of attending PTC meetings. Of course, that is small potatoes compared to finding the person you ran away from – mentor, tutor, legal guardian and, dare she say it, mother-figure all in one – recast into the role of your high school’s principal. A role in which Principal Celestia had been flanked (‘Hah!’) by someone Sunset had never met, at least not before leaving Equestria. The same person who was currently sitting opposite her, here in one of those cheap-yet-slightly-overpriced theme restaurants, part-and-parcel for shopping plazas everywhere across the country. Luna hadn’t spoken a word since they’d entered Buck-E Cheddars, besides a curt affirmation to Wallflower Blush that of course she needn’t eat the olives if she didn’t want to. Sour Sweet hadn’t exactly taken five different people’s tastes into account when picking the topping, although it was a safe enough bet that Pinkie Pie would eat anything. Wallflower happened to be the one who’d picked the spot next to Sunset at the table. Even her chews were as quiet as a mouse’s, the thought of which briefly amused Sunset, in view of this restaurant’s mascot. She may not even have noticed the girl’s presence, hadn’t the recent excitement kicked all of her senses into high gear. ‘High gear… Yeah, that’s a good one,’ Sunset thought, trying to focus on her slice of paprika-and-artichoke pizza. ‘Still got to ask your Vice-Principal why she thrust us into an impromptu motorcycle chase, one where you might’ve nearly got your ‘teammates’ killed over a miscommunication.’ With Sour Sweet, whom Sunset saw biting at her slice in aggressively large chunks, it was hard to tell if she’d been forgiven yet for that. For that matter, what exactly was Luna up to with those two? A student from a rival school, possibly afflicted by a manic-depressive or bipolar disorder, and a bundle of social anxieties who couldn’t have been more aptly baptised if her name was ‘Shrinking Violet’. Odd pair to get enrolled by the Vice-Principal as special agents of some kind. Now was a slow hour at Buck-E’s, devoid of fellow clientele. Maybe this was why Twilight had texted that the others should come and wait for her there, knowing they’d enjoy some privacy. It made for an awkward silence, punctuated only by the occasional sound of munching. But after both the unexplained explosion at Canterlot High and the motorcycle chase, Sunset found this an improvement, if only for the time it gave her adrenaline rush to wear off. Luckily everyone was here in one piece. Including the three bikes and Luna’s midnight-blue car, now at rest in the plaza’s parking lot. Sunset felt slightly reassured to see them from the window. Should circumstance again force a getaway, their means were right outside and within range. The minutes wore on, however, and silence reigned. If not even Pinkie Pie, off eating in her own little spot (‘Little– hah again, aren’t you on a roll today, Sunny…’) was going to speak up, too busy tackling the challenge brought on to her infamously bottomless appetite by her recent affliction, then Sunset realised she’d be the one required to break the ice. At this table, she was easily the most socially-dominant personality. Luna, despite her status as a teacher and an adult, had a tendency to leave the talking to Celestia, outside the office. “So…” began Sunset. “Someone gonna tell me what’s going on here?” Vice-Principal Luna exchanged glances with Sour Sweet. “I dunno, boss,” said Sour Sweet, setting down the lemon smoothie she’d been sipping from. “Shouldn’t we wait until Twilight gets here? I mean, she–” this was said while gesturing towards Sunset, “hasn’t been properly initiated yet, and let’s not forget, she did almost run me down, ‘cause that’s what ignorance does to you–” “Hey!” Sunset cried, feeling her indignation return. “It’s not my fault if your idea of a friendly hand-gesture translates into most cultures as ‘Your days are numbered, I put a hit out on you’!” ‘And you’re the one here who was born with hands, so this just boggles the mind…’ “That’s quite enough,” said Luna, and Sunset immediately shut up. While not quite on par with her illustrious sister, Luna had a way of conveying a lot with a firm tone, even when it wasn’t enhanced over the loudspeaker. Surprisingly, Wallflower of all people took the brief lull as an invitation to speak, albeit in a characteristically faltering way. “Um, Sour’s got a point, Miss,” Wallflower said, clutching her smoothie. “A-actually, we rushed so fast to get here, I– I think we may have overshot Twilight.” Luna sighed, taking stock of the teenagers’ collective expressions. “That’s true,” Luna conceded. “But after all the trouble Miss Shimmer’s been through… Perhaps it’s only fair to start supplying some answers.” ‘Oh goodie,’ thought Sunset, ‘here it comes.’ Her expectations about getting explanations for why the growns-up in her life did what they did, hadn’t exactly got raised by her years of apprenticeship in Equestria. “Best if I get someone to help me out here,” said Luna, apparently having noticed the dubious expression on Sunset’s face. She waved, calling over the waiter who’d served them earlier. “Excuse me, if you’ll please fetch the manager? Tell him I’d like a word. Nothing bad, I assure you. Just… business from Canterlot High.” The waiter nodded and departed. Meanwhile, Wallflower was nervously eyeing a life-size automaton of the restaurant’s mascot. Buck-E himself stood on the nearby stage, idle, as it was too early in the day to entertain the children whom analysts in some corporate boardroom had decided would be delighted by a giant two-legged rat playing guitar. “I don’t like those things…” Wallflower murmured. “When I look at them, half of me’s convinced they’re gonna get up at night and bite a kid’s head off…” “That’s a morbid imagination you got, Wally,” Sour Sweet said indifferently. “Miss Bubblegum-and-Laughs looks happy enough, don’t you think?” Sunset peered at the stage. Rather than join them at the table, Pinkie Pie, still shrunk down to ten sizes smaller than her normal height, had chosen Buck-E’s snout as a perch, upon which she was busily gorging on tiny chunks of pizza. “M-maybe? I dunno,” mumbled Wallflower. “Just something spooky about them, is what I think.” Sour shrugged. “Eh, figures Miss Blue Moon here would pick a place that could moonlight as a Nightmare Night attraction for a meeting place.” “Call it a base of operations, rather,” said Luna. She was looking at Sunset as she said so. “Because that’s what this is, Miss Shimmer. If you’ll allow my associate to demonstrate…” Someone else had appeared onstage, Sunset saw then. A young guy, a little older than she or the other students, but who looked as though he couldn't have left school so very long ago. Three, maybe five years’ difference, with his innocent green eyes and boyish curls of brown hair. Judging by the white shirt, complete with the obligatory two pens – red and blue – in one pocket, Sunset assumed this had to be the manager. That was when a realisation struck Sunset. Amidst all the earlier madness, she’d failed to notice how the nameless waiter hadn’t batted an eye at serving a Lilliputian pink party planner, which even by Pinkie Pie standards ranked as ‘really fucking weird’. And nor did the manager, now, betray any sign of bewilderment at the sight of her. “Mister Sandwich,” spoke Luna. “If you’ll please?” Winking at her, the manager pulled a lever by the stage. Promptly, what else should happen, but for the wall behind Buck-E Rat and his equally colourful yet unsettling friends to pull away, revealing a darkened staircase leading down goodness knows where. While Sunset was processing this latest insanity, she heard Luna give a cough. “Sunset,” Luna told her, flicking back a little of her hair. “I’m sorry you had to find out about it this way. Twilight and I have been holding back, waiting for what seemed like the right moment– We, well, we figured you’ve had enough going on in the past year, without saddling you with this on top of it all– and I assure you, that pun wasn’t intended.” Sunset turned back to stare at her, gawping. “... What’s this? H-how do you build…” Luna smiled mirthlessly. “Sunset, although I wish it could be under better circumstances, allow me to welcome you into C.H.E.E.S.E. That’s to say, the Canterlot High Equestrian Educational Society for Enthusiasts. And if Twilight is right, that explosion at the school may trace back to an opponent of Equestria’s with a… stormy disposition. You must have a lot of questions.” Acting on instinct more than anything, of the sort of body language she’d learned in the undefinable time of her stay in this world, Sunset raised a finger. This got Luna to smile a bit, recognising it as a student’s query to a teacher, but Sunset wasn’t in a mood to see the joke. “I do have one question, actually,” Sunset said slowly. “If you’ve got that kind of money, to– to set up a place like this in a mall– what are you doing working as a teacher?”
4. Into The Depths by EileenSaysHiInto The Depths As had lately become the norm for Vice Principal Luna — with Sunset wondering if it even made sense to call her that anymore, and not some kind of secret spy codename — her answer was less of an actual answer and more of a slow foreshadowing of an eventual answer. “I think you’ll find that this little agency’s history did not start with me, Sunset. And with a bit of luck, it won’t end with me, either.” Sunset filed the unsatisfactory response away as she followed behind her new cohorts down the winding staircase, Luna and the manager (Mr. Sandwich, was it?) bringing up the rear. The staircase that was hidden inside a Buck-E Cheddars playplace that was apparently leading them to the headquarters of a secret organization whose primary membership was a random collection of teenagers… And to think people wondered why she didn’t find this world any less crazy than Equestria. Still, there was something on her mind she couldn’t shake. “So C.H.E.E.S.E. stands for… Canterlot High Equestrian Educational Society for Enthusiasts? What does that even mean? That’s like the definition of acronym for the sake of acronym. What are we enthusiastic about? Is Equestrian actually related to Equestria somehow, or did the founder just really like horses? How did we end up with non-CHS members? Where–” “Oh, trust me,” piped in a voice from above, causing Wallflower to grind to a halt in front of her – Sour Sweet walked right into her. “I’ve been saying the same thing ever since I joined, and they never listen.” Sunset looked up with everyone else, but she knew the voice as soon as she heard it. “Twilight!” “Thanks for waiting,” came the mildly snarking reply. “I’ll be right down!” “We’ll wait!” Sunset replied, just as Sour Sweet was trying to urge everyone onward. Sunset had spent too long with the gang of strangers – she was more than happy to have a friend back by her side, even if it was one who had a secret life that Sunset would definitely be interrogating as soon as this all blew over. Well, at least, a friend who wasn’t currently about 17 centimeters tall. As the distant footfalls from Twilight’s hurried walk down the steps echoed from above, Sunset looked back at Pinkie, who was still happily enjoying a last morsel of pizza atop Mr. Sandwich’s shoulder. Sunset was grateful for small consistencies. “So you were being chased? Who was chasing you?” “We’re not sure. But it seems almost certain they were connected to the explosion in the school.” As Twilight and Luna continued to catch each other up on the events of the present morning, Sunset sighed. She should have figured that she would’ve been sidelined in favor of Official C.H.E.E.S.E. Business. And with Wallflower not being the chatty type, Sour Sweet not being the type anyone would want to chat with, and Pinkie busy humming a new song she’d invented at around the halfway mark down the steps, Sunset was left without anyone to chat with. She considered interrupting with the information that Luna was conveniently excluding, like the fact that Sour’s incompetent use of motorcycle hand gestures had nearly been more effective at getting them all killed than their pursuers, but there seemed to be little point. She was the outsider. She was basically there by accident. Sunset jolted at the feeling of a tap on her shoulder, nearly stumbling on the steps. She looked around to find Twilight just behind her, and, after a moment, beside her. “This must be strange, isn’t it?” she asked. “You could say that, yeah,” Sunset said with a nod. “I’m really sorry that this is how you found out about, well, C.H.E.E.S.E.,” Twilight said with a frown. “I’ve been pushing for you to be inducted for a while, but people were hesitant. You’re from Equestria, after all.” Sunset tilted her head. “Shouldn’t that have made me more of an asset, if this whole thing is about Equestria?” “I thought so. I still think so. But some of the others were concerned that that would compromise your opinion about the kinds of decisions we make.” There was grumbling all around her, and Luna gently spoke. “Twilight–” “She deserves to know,” Twilight interrupted her. “It’s too late to not be transparent now.” After a moment’s thought, Sunset asked another question. “What… what kinds of decisions?” “You’ll see when we reach the bottom.” She smiled. “I’m glad you’re here, Sunset. I’m really glad.” Sunset smiled back. “Well, if I’m gonna be forcibly inducted into a secret society of secret agents, I’m grateful it’s one with you.” She slipped her arm past Twilight’s and interlocked fingers with her, and watched as, even in the ever-dimmer light, Twilight’s face grew bright red. “Thanks for being there for me.” “A-a-anything for a friend.” From ahead, there was a loud scoff from Sour Sweet. “Ugh, will you two weirdos get a damn room?” Sunset smirked, and began to extend her foot. “Why? You’re the one about to go on a trip.” “Sunset, no!” Twilight hissed. “These are stone steps!” Disappointedly, Sunset retracted her leg. “Fiiine…” Sour Sweet looked back with disgust, then pushed her way in front of Wallflower. Twilight giggled. And kept holding Sunset’s hand. It wasn’t until they reached the bottom of the staircase, after what seemed like half an hour’s worth of descending, that they untangled their fingers, Sunset needing to catch her breath. “Please tell me there’s an elevator back to the top.” “Not exactly,” Luna replied, “but we have a different means of exiting than we do of entering.” “I’ll take it,” Sunset replied. She took a look around. The space was a lot less… exciting than she was anticipating. Sour must have noticed the bewilderment on her face. “Were you expecting a movie set? This isn’t a Mare-Do-Well movie. Welcome to real life.” Sunset rolled her eyes. “Sure, everything about this so far screams ‘real life.’” All around was a large, rather barren cavern, with only a few lights to speak of. Little droplets of water could be heard plink-ing onto the ground in the dimness, and the walls were visibly slick. There were three doors carved into them, each bearing an inscription that Sunset couldn’t make out from this distance. The floor, however, was paved, almost in the manner of a school hallway, creating a bizarre visual contrast. It took Sunset a moment to notice that the group had begun to concentrate around the leftmost door, which Luna opened with a special-looking key. It opened wide before them – Wallflower had to take a step back – before they all filed inside. Twilight, at the back, motioned to Sunset. “Come on!” Hurriedly, Sunset caught up with the group, only to notice one person hadn’t entered – Mr. Sandwich. He stood calmly and quietly beside the staircase, only briefly making eye contact with Sunset before resuming his watch of the cavern. This was undoubtedly odd, but Sunset only had a moment to consider that fact before being ushered inside the room. It occurred to her that Pinkie had not been on Mr. Sandwich’s shoulder, but a small Pinkie giggle made it evident she’d merely hopped to someone else’s shoulder. That brought Sunset’s attention to the inside of the room, which… also failed to look particularly notable. It was certainly a dramatic difference from the cave, in that this looked like an actual room — however, it was still a fairly uninspiring place, looking more like a low-level corporate boardroom than anything. An extremely plain one, to boot. There was a large rectangular table in the center, and Sunset followed Twilight to a seat. Internally, she was amused. The agents around her might have thought of themselves as knights, but there was no pretense of equality, as Luna sat firmly at the head. Sour and Wallflower sat opposite Sunset and Twilight, while Pinkie had merrily jaunted over to the center of the table. Just as everyone was seated, Mr. Sandwich entered, whispering something in Luna’s ear. Sunset couldn’t make it out, but Luna nodded, and Mr. Sandwich closed the door. He took a seat at the other end of the table, facing her. “Now,” Luna began, “all of you know how we got here, and why, for the first time in many months, we’ve had to assemble in the Blue Room.” (Sunset noted that there was nothing in the room that could be considered blue, besides a few pairs of jeans.) “But there remains the question of why. And for that, I will turn things over to Agent Sparkle.” Sunset looked over as Twilight stood from her seat. Thank you, Vice-Principal.” (It appeared they really were just gonna keep calling her that.) “Now, I’ve been able to compare some of the damage done at the sight of the explosion, and the reports from other students about what happened to Pinkie. And one thing that keeps coming up is the appearance of a very distinctive sigil. The same one that appeared on the cruise last spring break, and that my princess pony counterpart informed me belonged to an enemy of hers – one that is known to have died, yet, to risk sounding like the corpse of a science fiction film franchise, has somehow reappeared. Or, at least, someone or something is trying to carry on his legacy.” Memories of the encounter flashed through Sunset’s mind. “You don’t mean–” “Yes, Sunset. The Storm K–” Twilight was interrupted when a bright glow started to appear at the center of the table, all around Pinkie Pie. There was a sizzling sound, and the smell of baked goods mixed with electricity. Suddenly, there was a bright flash, followed by the sound of something crashing. Sunset yelped as something heavy brushed past her knees, and there were a few other screams of fright. Once Sunset’s eyesight had recovered, she, as everyone else finished rubbing their own eyes, found the table had snapped like a twig. Sat in the middle was Pinkie Pie, suddenly restored to full height. She looked around at the sight, bewildered, before letting out a giggle. “Wow. You all really need to get a stronger table.”
5. Frankly, Sometimes It Feels Like We're in a Reality TV Show by iAmSiNnErWhat in the World? I’m a Title Now? Logically speaking, Pinkie Pie returning to her usual size was unusual. Unless, of course, you factored in that it was Pinkie Pie. “Pinkie!” Twilight exclaimed, rushing to examine the bewildered girl on top of the destroyed table and check her out. “Oh, I’m glad you’re back to normal size. I have to figure out how that happened - it might help us find a way to turn everyone else back to normal!” With all her fussing over their friend, Sunset gave a small grin, glad that something was back to normal amongst all the chaos of the past few days. “Agent Sparkle,” The Vice Principal’s words interrupted Twilight’s fussing, her expression serious. “I understand that this is a big situation, and that you are happy your friend is back to normal. So am I. However, this will have to take a backseat for now, and I suggest you finish your report on your…otherworld counterpart’s information.” Twilight sheepishly stepped back from Pinkie Pie, her hands clasped in front of her. “Of course, Vice Principal. But, um…” she glanced at the destroyed table. “Shall we get another room?” Twilight had somehow acquired a whiteboard. And markers. Markers that had ink. Truly a mystery as to how she managed to siphon those from the logistics department, especially when they always distributed almost empty markers. “So, according to the pony princess version of me,” Twilight drew two circles on the whiteboard as she spoke, writing the words ‘Pony World’ and ‘Our World’ on top of each circle. “A villain named Storm King has recently resurfaced in their world. However, she attests that their original Storm King was defeated, turned into stone, and then that said stone statue was broken later soon after. This would mean…” Everyone in the room winced, including the usually stoic Vice Principal Luna. “It is exactly what your imaginations are telling you,” Twilight adjusted her glasses as she drew the symbol they had grown used to on the circle that represented Equestria and drew an X over it. “Their Storm King is dead. Which means, unlike other villains in their world who have been banished or sealed away, he cannot return. Which begs the question.” “Who is the Storm King who seems to have returned?” The Vice Principal was out of her seat, her eyes widened. “If his symbol is being spread around both our worlds, that means one of the two is real, and the other is an imposter carrying out his will.” “Or, the more dangerous reason— our world’s Storm King has figured out portal travel between the two worlds.” Twilight Sparkle finished, drawing the symbol on the second circle and etching a question mark beside it. She then gave a pause and stared at the whiteboard. “Why did I even get a whiteboard when all I was going to do is draw two circles and write a few words and symbols?” “Ooh, ooh, I know!” Pinkie Pie raised her hand, having returned to her usual bubbly self. “It’s because we needed filler!” “Filler?” Sunset stared at her, tilting her head. “Pinkie, you say the strangest things.” “That’s besides the point,” The Vice Principal sighed. “We’ll need to investigate. Agent Sparkle, you’re with Sunset.” Sunset spouted. “I’m part of you guys too,” she complained. “Can’t you call me Agent Shimmer?” “Newly inducted, might I remind you. And not even by my sister.” The Vice Principal pursed her lips. “If you prove yourself on this particular mission, I’ll put in a good word with Celestia, and she might give you the honor of being called a proper Agent. But carrying on. Agent Sparkle, you and Shimmer will check out the cruise ship. Again. Agent Pie and Agent Sandwich, you will visit the Research Department and find out how Agent Pie was able to return to her usual size.” The two of them nodded, Pinkie Pie unusually serious. “We gotta turn our friends back to their normal sizes,” she said. “I’ll let them check anything.” “Good. The rest of you, with me. Blue Room, move us to the Red Room.” Once she finished her sentence, the world turned blue, and everyone but the four of them disappeared. “Oh, so that’s why they called it the Blue Room.”
6. Do Quantum People Dream of Magic Sheep? by Sunlight Rays“So… What’s the plan here?” Sunset asked as she and Twilight walked down the streets. “Get on the cruise ship, look for any trace of the Storm King of our world. I don’t know what to expect, but hopefully we get leads pointing us in the right direction,” Twilight replied with a shrug. They walked down the bustling streets, full of people going to and fro. The pair brushed past the figures, heading towards the docks. The two girls walked across the wooden boarding deck and onto the ship. The interior was eerily quiet. Not a sound could be heard. Not the usual ambient noise of the ship’s internal systems running, not the muffled sounds of people walking around. Just… silence. “Where is everyone?” Twilight asked. Sunset shrugged. “Come on, let’s take a look around. See what we can find.” She turned to walk down a hallway. “Wait!” Twilight called out. “Hm?” “Don’t you think it would be better if we… split up? Cover more area in the same amount of time?” Sunset stared at Twilight intently, an unreadable expression on her face. Just as Twilight began to squirm under the weight of the stare and the silence, Sunset nodded. “Sure, let’s do that.” Then she turned and walked down the hallway. Twilight gave a quizzical look after her, then turned to head down a different corridor. “So!” Pinkie exclaimed as she bounced around the Research Department. “Find anything?” “Not here,” Cheese Sandwich replied as he closed the log records for the Size Manipulation Operation Laser device, logged onto the computer. “What about you?” “I found a slice of bread on a plate here! We could eat it!” Pinkie held up a slice of bread. “Sure thing! Do you know whose it was?” “No, but it looks tasty!” Pinkie Pie tore the bread in half and handed a piece to Cheese Sandwich. She took hers to her mouth and swallowed all of it in one go. “Mmm! It’s good!” Cheese Sandwich gulped down his piece then turned to Pinkie. “Okay, now let’s figure out how to get our friends back to their normal size! How did you get back to your normal size?” “Hmmmmm…” Pinkie Pie stuck out a tongue as she put a finger to her chin. She was thinking hard. “I don’t know! I just thought, ‘It would be reeeeeeally nice if I could go back to my normal size,’ then, poof! I came back!” “That’s nice. Can our friends do that too?” “Mmm… I don’t think so! If they could, why didn’t they do it already?” “Good point,” Cheese Sandwich replied. “By the way, how small are our friends, again?” “Well, somewhere between the size of an electron and the size of an atomic nucleus, I would say!” “Oh, okay. So how do we know where they are?” “Oh, uh, good question! I’m not entirely sure, to be honest,” Pinkie replied with a shrug. “Well, I guess we’ll have to find our friends before we figure out how to restore them back to their normal size, then!” Pinkie nodded. “Okie-dokie-lokie!” Then she blinked. “How do we find our friends if they’re smaller than an atom?” Cheese Sandwich blinked in response. “That’s a good question! I’m not entirely sure!” “Oh well, guess I’ll just try to do it with my Pinkie Sense!” “Good idea!” With that, the pair began wandering around the room. In the corner, a small groan said: “This is going to take a long time.”
7. Electric Boogaloo by TheSleeplessBeholderFound anything? -Twitle Nothing yet. -Sunshimsher Twilight walked into the bridge, looking at the controls and the large window that showed the front of the cruise ship. Everything seemed in order, no, it seemed ready. The cruiser was about to sail away but something happened and no one was here. I’m sure something’s going on. There should be people here. -Twitle Maybe they had to leave? Some sort of emergency? -Sunshimsher So fast that they didn’t cancel the preparations for departure? And if it was an emergency, they wouldn’t have let us on board. -Twitle Possibly -Sunshimsher … -Twitle Are you okay? You’ve been acting weird. -Twitle … -Sunshimsher I just- Twilight’s phone suddenly started glitching out, the screen becoming an unintelligible mess of pixels. “Dammit!” She tried to see what had happened, opening the phone to check the electronics, and found them partially fried. “What did that? It was like… an EMP?” She quickly looked through her back and pulled out a device very similar to the one she had used to check the CHS statue long ago. She adjusted the parameters and lifted it in the direction her phone had freaked out. A high energy reading made the device blip like a geiger counter. “Gotcha.” She instinctively went to notify the reveal but remembered her phone was out. She could go look for them, but that would take possibly precious time. “Alright, going solo then. Hopefully they find me alive.” She moved through the ship, her device guiding her to the seemingly ever expanding concentration of energy. she could feel the device heating up as even its reinforced circuits were being affected by the energy, though surprisingly she seemed unaffected. She expected frizzled hair at least, death by her brain electrically shutting down at worse. Magic was clearly involved, but if something could be this selective with such an amount of power it would need to be a very powerful machine… or entity. Twilight walked down the steps to the ship's cargo hold, her device finally giving up and going dark as the geiger counter flatlined before shutting off. In front of her was a heavy bulkhead door meant to stop water from fully flooding the ship. Now Twilight could feel the static in the air, meaning that she was in a dangerous range to whatever was generating this massive amount of energy. She took a deep breath and got ready. “Be brave…” she grabbed the wheel of the bulkhead, feeling a light current on her hands and arms, and started to turn it all the way till the heavy door unlocked and slowly opened, revealing the inside. — “I’ve a theory…” Donkey said as he and Pinkie continued to scan the room with the Pinkie Sense to find their miniaturized friends. “You know what essential ingredient is needed to change matter?” “Heat?” Pinkie asked as she felt a tug to her left, quickly turning ninety degrees to follow the lead. “Close, energy.” He scratched his cheek. “In simple and dumb terms, it’s one of the reasons atoms are what they are and change their composition, exchange of electrons and all that, which is about the size your friends are right now.” “So, they’re kind of like energy?” “Possibly, my point is, if we think of atoms like building blocks, energy is the cement keeping them together so they can take larger and larger forms. So, in theory, if we give your friends enough energy to start gathering atoms around them, they should be able to rebuild their bodies.” “So… we thunderbolt the room till they grow back? Won’t they be like… fusing with the environment or something?” “Possibly, it shouldn’t change a thing in them if they do it well. But that’s assuming they know how to assemble a human body on a molecular level.” “That sounds like a job for Twilight.” “Yup. So, after we gather them we can look into the theory once Sparkle returns.” “Do you think that’s how I got big again?” “You’re the most energetic being I know, and you’ve magic. I wouldn’t put it past you.” “Well, maybe we could- Found one!”
8. The Corpse Has Left The Building by Dewdrops on the GrassThe Corpse Has Left The Building “You found one?!” Cranky asked, setting his coffee mug aside. He joined Pinkie by the opposite side of the room and squatted down to look, as if he could see anything. “Who is it?” “It’s Rarity! I can tell by how my knee knocked and my spine tingled while my heart went all pitter-patter.” “Well, good.” Cranky thought for a moment, then went over to the wall and pulled out a containment device, handing it to Pinkie. “Here, get her in this, if you can. We need to keep them in place till Twilight gets back.” “Caaaaan do!” Pinkie tossed off a jaunty salute and proceeded to use the device to scoop up the molecule-sized Rarity, imagining her shouting out her signature “Wa-hah-haaaah!” upon soaring what must’ve felt like hundreds of miles into the air. And just as she finished, her lungs seemed to expand, her eyes fluttered one after the other, and her earlobe tugged. “Ahah! Rainbow Dash, there you are, you silly girl.” Cranky flashed her a thumbs up. “Good. Keep working. I’m going to reach out to Twilight.” He pulled out a cell phone and dialed, getting no response. “Huh, that’s weird.” He tried the call several more times, then grimaced at it before nabbing his cup and knocking back the last of his coffee. “Ugh, she’s not answering. Okay, let’s try Shimmer.” Sunset picked up on the first ring. “Twilight?!” “Sorry, it’s just me,” Cranky said dryly. “Oh, Mister Doodle! Sorry, I’m just really worried about Twilight. She’s somewhere on the ship and I can’t find her.” “Ship? What ship?” He scratched his head, then nearly tugged his toupee off. “Wait, are you two on the cruise ship?” “Yeah, why?” “You need to get out of there!” he bellowed. “Now!” “But -- oh my Celestia, are you--” “Sunset?” Cranky heard naught but static on the line, before the telltale blip of the phone disconnecting. “Sunset?! Damn it…” He gave Pinkie a firm nod. “Keep at it. I’ve got to go rescue those two before it’s too late.” “Okie dokie loki!” As Twilight opened the door, she beheld a wondrous sight, far more beautiful than she expected. “What… what is this?” This turned out to be a massive crystal tree, growing into every corner and crevice of the reactor room of the ship, its roots tangled and knotted up within the wiring, branches shooting out covered in crystalline leaves. It sang with the force of its magic, striking Twilight’s ears with a song that lifted her heart and sent it into overdrive, while the rest of her organs felt like they were squeezed in a vise by the sheer physical force of the thaumic energy it was outputting. Twilight Sparkle. “H-huh?” A light surrounded Twilight’s body, yanking her forward. Her breathing, already shallow, became so strained it was as if she had an entire house on her chest. “What… what are you?” I am your scion. Birthed from your own actions, so long ago. Her vision swam, beginning to gray at the edges. “I don’t understand. Scion? How?” You ripped holes in the fabric of our reality. “You mean, when I was Midnight?” Every breath hurt now, like her lungs were wrapped in razor wire. “But, does that mean you’re from Equestria?” Yes. One of the dimensional tears was in the cavern of Harmony, below the Castle of the Two Sisters. Unlike the rest, it was torn not just through space, but through time as well, to when the Tree of Harmony was destroyed by King Sombra. A seed, one of only two to survive, fell through the crack, and took root in this ship. Everything was gray now, consciousness becoming a fleeting thing. “But how did you grow? Why are you so powerful?” The Storm King’s magic. Just as it threatened to sink the other ship you were on, it affected this one. It gave me a sense of purpose. “A-and what’s that… that purpose?” The destruction of your world. Twilight tried to budge, but it was no use. She was fading, and fast. Her life began to flash before her eyes. “No, please… please, we didn’t… didn’t do anything to deserve…” Your world lacks harmony. I will create it anew, using you as my vessel. The last thing Twilight knew, she was being brought into the branches of the tree. Sunset, on the deck of the cruise ship, stared in horror at the figure hovering before her, her phone a smoking ruin at her feet. “Midnight? But how?” Midnight Sparkle, lowered the hand she’d used to fry the phone, her eyes flashing with a ghostly light. “You are Sunset Shimmer.” “Uh, yeah?” Sunset gripped her fists and summoned her power, ponying-up. As her magic flared, she began to float off the deck. “What’s it to you?” “You will be suitable as my second vessel.” “Vessel? What--” Sunset cut herself off, as she only then noticed that there was something sticking out of Midnight’s back. An ethereal branch, poking up out of the deck, so transparent it was barely visible. “You’re not Midnight. Who are you? What have you done with Twilight?” “She will be one of the few who will survive the destruction of this world. You will also be among their number.” There was a shattering of the metal behind her, the only warning she had as another branch burst up, lancing forward, ready to pierce her from behind, far too fast for her to dodge. Only to be severed as Cranky Doodle came flying through the air and tackled her, sending them both sprawling. “Sunset, you idiot!” he groused. “You should’ve asked me before coming here!” “How was I supposed to know this ship was haunted?!” Sunset shot back as they both sprang to their feet. Midnight Sparkle stared at them, her expression devoid of emotion. “How curious. What do you hope to accomplish?” “Three things,” Cranky said as he held up a curious device. “One, send you back to Equestria where you belong. Two, get the energy we need to restore Sunset’s friends. Three, go home and take a nap.” “I hear that,” Sunset said as she deftly used her magic and dodged another branch that tried to snag her. “How’d you know it was here?” “Same way I knew how to help Pinkie, and do everything else we’ve done today. Luna recruited me.” Cranky leapt out of reach of one of the roots that swung at him like a whip. “Now, keep her in place! We gotta free her first.” “Right!” Sunset flew up to Midnight, who twirled in the air, summoning up a shield of radiant crystal light to block her. “You will not succeed.” “Shut up and stop possessing Twilight, you weird… tree… thing!” Midnight fired a beam of energy from her palm, which Sunset countered with one of her own, deflecting it into the ocean, where it produced a huge plume of water. “I will not be stopped.” “Oh really?!” came another cry from the ship’s deck. The sound of a cannon mixed with a party horn erupted, and a mixture of sprinkles flew into Midnight, exploding in her face, sending her sprawling. Pinkie Pie, now ponied up, flew up to join Sunset in the air, linking hands with her. “Hi, Sunny!” she said. “I figured you could use the help.” “Wait, what about our friends?” “Down there! They’re all in the containment thingie, ready for us to free them!” Midnight climbed to her feet, the first sign of real emotion on her face as she frowned ever so slightly. “This is becoming tiresome.” Sunset smirked. “That’s the power of friendship for you! Now hold still.” She and Pinkie raised their free hands to point at Midnight, firing twin beams of energy to stop her in her tracks. “Now, Cranky!” Pinkie called. Cranky raised the device he’d brought, pointing it directly at Midnight. He opened his mouth as if to say some sort of badass quip, then thought better of it and simply hit the button. A wave seemed to propagate from his device through the air till it struck his target. “No…NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” Midnight fell to her knees, clutching her skull, till the branch embedded in her back withdrew with a plop. The instant it was removed, Midnight’s appearance changed, shifting back into Twilight, who collapsed like a puppet whose strings had been cut. “Twilight!” Sunset and Pinkie cried, both dropping down to assist her. “Are you okay?” “Ow…” Twilight moaned as she sat up, still holding her head. “That was… not fun.” “Well, it’s not over yet,” Cranky said as he brought his device up again. He shifted a few dials on it, adjusting the settings. “We gotta figure out where the core is at. Twilight?” “Reactor room… I’ll… I’ll show you.” The four of them headed below decks, and soon came to the door that Twilight had opened before. The tree awaited them, roots aimed at them like weapons. Why must you resist? Your world lacks harmony. It cannot bring you joy. “That’s where you’re wrong,” Twilight declared, her voice strong despite the weakness of the rest of her body. “Even if our world isn’t perfect, it’s still ours. We can always make it better. But we won’t let you destroy it!” You will not-- “Oh shut up already,” Cranky groused, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he activated his device again. The tree’s branches all quivered and quaked like they’d suddenly been slammed with gale force winds, another keening cry filling the air. A beam of energy formed, sucked from the tree like water through a hose, which Cranky then redirected into the containment vessels that Pinkie brought along. Soon enough, the rest of Twilight and Sunset’s friends had emerged, one by one, each of them ponying up in turn. “Whoo doggy, that sure was somethin’, bein’ shrunk like that,” Applejack said. “Oh my, yes,” Fluttershy agreed. “I don’t want to repeat it.” “Yeah, me either. It was sooooo not cool,” Dash added. “Darlings, as much as I agree with you, perhaps we should focus on the task at hand?” “Right!” Cranky stepped back, and as one the seven ponied up friends joined together, summing upon the real harmony magic in a huge rainbow laser, which struck the tree right at its core. It crumpled, every branch curling inward, shrinking down, drawn inward further and further until with one last cry, it vanished entirely, the only remnant left behind being a single crystalline leaf. A leaf that Twilight immediately crushed under her foot. “Well, that’s that,” Twilight said with a happy sigh. “We’ve got everyone back, and the day’s been saved.” “All in a day’s work,” Sunset agreed, bringing everyone into a big group hug. “You know what this calls for?” “Pizza?” Rainbow suggested from the bottom of the cuddle pile. “Pizza!” Everyone else cheered. Except Cranky, who gave them one look and groaned. “Ugh. I’m going to go get that nap now. Kids.” Author's Note Thank you all for joining us on that silly, goofy ride. Special thanks to all participants once again for working with me on writing this story, and I hope it made at least a few of you laugh, cry, or somewhere in-between.
