The Siren's Remorse

by TheronSniper

Ch. 48 Amassing of Forces: The Fight to Return Part I

Author's Note:

I've been creating artwork for the story, and with nearing the end of the story the artwork will keep coming. I plan on giving some illustrations to key moments.

http://feroxultrus.deviantart.com/

Ch. 48 Amassing of Forces: The Fight to Return Part I

Condo Hallway

"So you see, I orchestrated this meeting as Sir Yellow has been under the weather as of late from having worked with the newest exhibit that recently opened. The poor man stressed himself out, but here he is willing to give the school and Twilight such prestige it’s hard to consider ruining this moment. Is there really any reason you came here demanding and acting as you were? Or shall I ensure that Principle Cinch knows of your behavior with a donor? You know how she covets them." Jade put her two hands on her hips and gave the look of a mother scolding their child.

Dean Cadence had bowed her head, hearing the theater professor talk so dominantly she couldn’t help but wonder where it all had gone south. How had Twilight gone from what she was, through a portal, and suddenly in the safe hands of a benefactor had her thoughts running everywhere just as much as the fear of Jade spreading any news of what she'd nearly done. Cinch would have none of it and likely her job could be on the line or least she’d have ammunition in the next budget session to come. Of course explaining things to the district board would be a very hard time nonetheless without the lingering threat of Cinch or Vine.

"Well child? You may be the Dean, but I have been at C.P. for many more years than you've been out of the crib." Vine trained her eyes on the younger woman who stood up and met her gaze.

Zap bent to her left to whisper to Zest next to her, "Man! And I thought Cinch was the one in charge?"

Lemon simply nodded slightly, sensing Indigo resuming her straight forward posture as they too were lost to what was right and what was confusing. She who listened to tunes nearly every day all day had found the sudden reveal of the professor to be too much of a coincidence. They had all seen that nightmarish version of their fellow student and there was no way she could have gone from that to a prized student once again overnight. Never one for comic books or junk TV, Lemon was on the ball with the obvious and the realistic which allowed her to keep good scores in her classes. Hence why she never lost those headphones in class, no teacher found the need to order them off her ears as she was at least a good AB student.

"I apologize for my behavior, I meant only for the health and safety of our student Twilight Sparkle. There... there was an incident the other day and she's a part of it, Principle Cinch and I were there along with the rest of the student body and the staff of Canterlot High as well as Crystal Prep... and perhaps the huge traffic pile up that occurred from it as well. The police are looking for her and I wanted to find her first, she needs all the help she can get with what happened. Professor Vine, please I only acted out of the circumstances presented before us, it all happened too fast for anyone to do something. You have to believe me!?" Cadence pleaded earnestly, though Vine seemed to not feel any compassion over the story and simply shook her head in disbelief.

"If I must add, young Sparkle was delivered here by taxi cab with Adagio Dazzle and her friends, she showed no signs of injury or otherwise and we proceeded to go over the grant itself shortly after we convened. She was given her own temporary housing for the night leaving her and the three girls by themselves under my supervision. Sir Yellow will also be donating to the school for use by the Theater department and I had to be here for the dinner. As far as I know there was no catastrophe that involved this student in question, but if the police are looking for her they can have her when she's done here. I will personally escort her to the department and help in any way I can. In fact, we even had one of the town's councilmen present during the grant for a photo op to showcase Equestria's booming educational wonders. I'm sure we will have no issues with the police in any respect." the elegant woman announced and placed a gentle palm on the Dean's shoulder to comfort her as she withdrew her stern attitude.

Cadence seemed to wavier slightly, again she was left dumbstruck without a way to respond other than to submit and be on her way before she dug the hole any deeper, "If she is in your hands then I will take my leave, I'll report to Principle Cinch about the news. I'm sure... she'll be happy to receive the good news. Girls? Let's go..."

"Take care Dean Cadence. Have a safe ride, I'll be sure not to mention this to anyone!" Jade called out as Cadence and tow disappeared around the hallway corner down way towards the elevator, the two students looking for answers to questions they wished they could have voiced. Of course before they vanished, Indigo gave a long inquisitive glance at the woman as if trying to see something that wasn’t there.

The short trip down had been Cadence calling the principle to inform her of the development and the attempt to bring Sparkle back. Of course the latter of which was received rather as an offense by the sounds of the arguing, it seemed as if Twilight left a fearful mark on the Principle whose iron mask had been shaken by the demoness. It left Indigo and Zest to talk to each other, both seeing inconsistencies that were as obvious as Sparkle amid the popular kid’s lunch table.

Whispering low enough to the rocker girl with her headset off, "So she blasts her way against Sunset, vanishes through some light thing, then suddenly takes a cab to this place and has dinner with a reward? All this stinks to high noon like the football teams dirty laundry hamper after the season's over." The remark of course had Zest roll her eyes at the disgusting simile.

Clipping her seatbelt on, "Ya, I think the Dean has the right idea, we need to get Twilight away from that place or at least whoever is in that room. I wouldn't be surprised if they were the ones who gave her those freaky powers in the first place. Besides, Professor Vine's never been one to leave the school other than to her home in the years I've been at C.P. What about you?" Lemon barely spoke loud enough for the noise of the mechanized transportation shaft and Cadence's conversation to allow detection.

Indigo nodded, "Same here, she's either training a class or at home relaxing to those old timey records, dusty records even you wouldn't like. We gotta convince the Dean to stay on Spark's tail, I bet there’s a cult or something involved trying to raise a hell spawn or something. After what she became, maybe they're trying to possess her body with a demon to bring about a world apocalypse!" the excitement in the sports addict was palpable and nearly caught the attention of the only adult in the metal coffin they descended in.

Lemon tapped her arm, "When we get to the car, we tell her everything and hope she'll side with us. All of this just feels wrong, and my gut has never been wrong."

With a thumbs up from Indigo the motion passed, and so the three would eventually reach the bottom floor and make their way out. A new plan waited to sprout from the ruins of the old, but they would have to act quick as everything in motion did not give them time to relax and burn any moment. Though what they missed the barnside of a shot was Serak exiting his cab with a cup of coffee and a package from a local restaurant as he hummed his way inside. Passing by the three with a curt nod and pleasant smile, a clue swept by them and the point in time was lost. The former griffon made his way up to Yellow's flat only to be received by Pandius in a strange form, one which meant there had been trouble prior to his arrival.

"Hello, so kind of you to join us? Do come in would you?" she flickered her eyelashes at him in a playful manner.

Sighing and taking a brief sip of his caffeine, "Madam? Yellow's the only one you can feed off of. Now... did I miss anything important?"

Taking the resistance as if it were a feather on her shoulder, "By all means go on inside, we just had a small... visitation issue for little Sparkle that I handled well. We should have no troubles from anyone now on, so go ahead and quench your insatiable appetite for the human sandwich shops you can't get enough of. The trip departs within the hour." she ran a hand across his smooth shaved face as she left to her room again, swaying her hips all the while though only earning ire from the griffon mage who had never found humans attractive in the slight.

Having lived with the royal for so long, he had gotten use to her antics and found it easy to keep off her hit list. Yet the news of the issue concerning the human girl was a bit of a bother, hopefully it was nothing with how close they were to the sum event. Problems for the future Serak to worry about as his stomach demanded one last parting gift of the prison world, how he became a habitual eater at the select gourmet sandwich shops nearby were a loss to him ever since they moved into the condos. His legs carried him to the living room where the Dazzlings sat together, to which he greeted as he guided his pathway to the dining room.

"Morning! Hope you all slept well. Can't believe it’s finally here right? Cor! Home... just a few clicks of the clock away and good ole magic right at the talons. Hmmmmm..." he lavished the thought as he set the bag down and sipped again from the covered Styrofoam cup.

Adagio ignored him as she went on explaining the new ability she had for Twilight's magic to the other sirens, leaving Sparkle herself to carry out her needed mission. She swiftly left the black leather sofa and walked up to Serak who had unpacked the portable lunch in a wrapper with a slice of a deli pickle and napkins for cleanup. The instant smell of fish became evident, he had gotten a tuna meal loaded with hot peppers and olives minus the chips and soda. As he worked to make it available to his salivating maw, she tapped his back and awaited him to look at her as soon as he took one huge mouthful.

"Can I ask you a favor? It's important to me, and I don’t know if I’ll ever forgive myself if I did not carry it out." she held her hands behind her back and awaited his response appearing as innocent as possible to which as true as it were she had little exertion to do so.

Raising an eyebrow, "Uh? Sure? What is it you'd like, not a piece of my food right?" he chuckled at the jest even though he was the only one laughing.

Sparkle looked about as she forced the words from her mouth in hopes she'd get to fulfill the objective deemed as the utmost importance, "I have a puppy I've had for a year now and he means the world to me, I want to bring him with me but he's at my house. Can you take me there so I can bring him with me? He's valuable to my mental well being as well as morale, I can't just leave him here and expect him to be okay with it."

Her eyes were a shocker, in the way that they glimmered with tears that were not enough to shed. They spoke volumes to the man who had his mind set on eating, only to then feel a touch of sympathy poke through his need to consume the warm morsel in his hands. With what would likely be the final human meal he'd taste that his taste buds would savor for as long as he’d live. The succulent flavor that plain bread and meat of his kingdom lacked in its simplicity of diet, flavor was often a high bit to pay and the basics were the most affordable. Thus, Serak contemplated the time they had left and figured a short drive would not hamper the portal cascade. So he mulled over the idea, letting the chewed conglomeration of tastes explode all over his tongue and send his mind to euphoria.

Crunching down on the spear of pickle to the salty dill flavored delight, "Sure love, not far from here anyways so there's no harm in doing so. Let me just finish this first and we'll be off. I'll let Yellow know."

With astoundment and overflowing happiness, Twilight gave a half bow in earnest, "Thankyou! It means a lot to me, he's my number one assistant after all."

With a thumbs up from the man, Sparkle left back to the couch where the others awaited to hear about what happened that drew her away from them. As they discussed, Serak took the drink and meal over to the room where his lord had finished packing. A curt knock on the wood door came with a beckon to enter, inside was a nearly clean area with refuse and old equipment stacked neatly in one corner with unused containers. Yellow himself stood at the center with two cases filled and clammed shut for travel appearing stuffed to the brim with whatever was inside. He had his back turned to the doorway as he stared at the former laboratory now broken down into a ready to furnish bedroom that still needed some renovation either way.

"My lord, Twilight requires some private things from her dwelling a ways away. Mind if I drive her over to reclaim them and meet you at the portal location?" he asked.

A wave of the hand was all he saw as any sign of life, "Be on site by two o'clock then, no later no sooner. Guard her with your life."

Use to his straight forwardness after the years of being under his wing, Serak lightly slammed a fist to his chest to acknowledge and left right back out. Knowing that Yellow was preparing for the trip in his own way, he was in no condition nor position to interrupt any further of his lord's methods. Just as he had to have a final bread encased meaty meal to ease his shaky nerves of going back to his kingdom he felt was still there after so long, everyone else would be buffering the anxiety. They may have been labeled as criminals by the Equestrian secret military, but it did not make them villains without a heart or soul which couldn't bond to a new life. Truth be told even he had grown fond of human life through its trying times from the pre-industrial age to the present with nuclear weapons and space exploration all for their exploits. It came down to the little things, the places, and people were the easiest to fit into and soon enough love like any new home. Of course the dark storm looming over their homeworld was more than enough to pry themselves off what they'd anchored to like barnacles for the many cycles spent in prison. It was a new segment of their lives that was not to be ignored, and for Serak he was partial to seeing how Equis had come along. As well as to see if it was still there with the spirit of chaos now free to do as he pleased.

Closing the door quietly, he took another bite of his lunch and made his way to the Dazzlings where upon he took the closest seat to finish the portable meal. The four would chat for a time until the Twilight had to leave, awaiting her driver to conclude his final act of entertaining the human sensations of his body. Though not without Adagio holding Sparkle for a moment to speak to her in front of the others.

Clearing her throat, "We were supposed to test your seal before everything started to move. But I can sense you need to do whatever it is you have to do, just remember you won't have your magic if someone tries to catch you. So be on your guard until we regroup again.” The golden siren turned to the taxi driver with a sudden altered glaze that harbored restrained malice, “Serak I hope you will defend her as we would, or so help me you'll learn why no one ever makes a siren hold a grudge!" she growled a little, leading him to grin nervously as the room started to get a little warmer.

Straightening the tie of his uniform anxiously, "I wouldn't dream of it, besides that I'd also fail my lord and earning two vengeful beings is not on my to do list. I'm no bellend. If you’re ready Mrs. Sparkle I believe we are on schedule!" he said with a chipper tune and began to leave in a bit of a rush to get away from the viper pit.

Twilight followed him with her eyes before speaking to the girls, "I just have to get Spike and say goodbye to my parents, I can't leave them like this and Spike's my number one assistant. If I'm going to another world I'll need him with me... even if I'm not human anymore if my hypothesis with the mirror is correct. My parents too, they deserve a farewell even if it will be a lie... it's for the greater good right?" her initial hopeful tone fell into questioning uncertainty to which had been detected like a sweet note of negativity.

Sonata leapt at the chance to provide help of some kind, "At least you'll still have folks to go back to? Right?"

"Ya, folks you care about." Blaze quipped with a lack of luster though she meant well.

While their words were of little consolation, Adagio huffed lightly before waiting for the right moment to say something. Sparkle had been too quick for her and she was yet to be too dominate to stop the girl from feeding into her worries.

"Yes, time should move faster in the E-Universe compared to the H-Universe. I may even only be gone a month or two, so I've created a story to tell them that I've gotten into a prestigious university and that I will be back after I spend a shadow semester there. I don't think there will be any issues from it, assuming everything goes according to the plan. Of course with the portal to be destroyed, I'd have to hope my magic will still be able to tear open portals to both worlds and I can return that way? Or what if I don't find the solution and that voice is still there for the rest of my life and I can't use magic without hurting someone?! I might even have to give up magic all together! Oh no.... no I'd lose everything I've worked for up till now!" she gasped at the realization that the many inventions that night after night she created for testing would be useless as would be the future that she sought to repair.

Sonata desired to ice over what her bestie exuded from her very aura, but the fear of making things worse stifled any attempt further. Aria wanted to slap her lightly to jar her out of it only to notice Adagio stand up and walk to Sparkle to be in her face. The temptation to take a bite out of the wreck she was becoming had been high for the sirens, an easy feeding their gems wanted to partake in if only the willpower had not suppressed them. It took the Matriarch’s fair custard yellow skinned hands to stop the jumbling mess before her and to prevent Aria from doing what she was inclined to do naturally. As Twilight's anxiety kicked in and she gripped her head in vain to stop torrent of imagined failures that could happen along the way to learning magic and helping the Dazzlings. Adagio wrapped her arms around the frail girl and brought her close into her chest. Being slightly taller than her it was easy to exert her status as well as her size and harness the freaked out girl easily, her heart beat became the world around them as it pulsed at a rhythmic pace.

The lavender girl soon lost all that buzzed through her skull, close physical contact from others always did that to her. Just like how her brother used to quell her crying after a bad day at school or when Cadence took over that role when the middle school years arrived. She genuinely was the kind of person who did not like being touched, skin to skin contact was comfortable only from family and even then it was still an act that affected her. If she could acquaint it with anything, the way a mother cat lifts their kitten by the tuft of their neck. She remembered the research of how the reflex reaction in the kitten caused them to go limp yet curl into itself to allow proper movement by the transporting mother. Back when she nearly gotten a cat instead of a dog as a companion, she read up on both species and learned as much as she could for caring and maintenance of such animals. Now it seemed funny how that knowledge was applicable to this point in time, she may have been no furry animal yet the comparison was somewhat close.

Adagio’s breath graced her skin as she spoke, "I want you to focus on going to see your family. I want you to bring your little puppy with you. Think only of them and nothing else, let me do the worrying as that is why I am here. You helped me... now I'm helping you." Adagio told her softly almost as if it were bordering on motherly.

Sensing the dissolved dower mood, she squeezed her human Dazzling lightly and let her go to head on out. Though she only aided in soothing the turmoil that plagued Twilight, the rest was up to her to figure out and hopefully her words would do their job. After all, she was the second smartest one of the pod even if she was still an ape.

"I...I uh… thank you, I'll be sure to do so." Sparkle portrayed her gratitude awkwardly before waving to them all as she started to follow Serak. Sonata waving both her arms in the air and Aria giving her half a grin with that tough girl look of hers.

Once the door closed and locked, Adagio sighed and flopped down onto the sofa leaving the rest to their own privy. At this point, all they had to do now was give their magic to the spell Paradox would soon caste and then cross time and space. With no enemies to fight or be wary of they were now at ease while the fourth member closed off loose ends.

"I hope she'll be okay." Dusk muttered unbeknownst to her that not a few minutes later as her friend embarked on the taxi cab that they'd be followed close behind by a third party.

Aria checked her fingernails out of habit, "She's a tough one, gotta give her credit when the whale carcass explodes she's definitely got an umbrella for it."

Adagio let her head relax into the cushions and let her body go limp, "No Rainbooms means she's got nothing to worry about, the Changeling took care of those meddlesome three so I doubt they'll attempt anything with that leverage she has. I heard a little of it in Monet's room."

The cerulean siren still held reservations as if something in the back of her head scratched at the attempt to feel okay with not going with the girl. She hated not offering the option to accompany, but it only came after Sparkle was perhaps halfway down the hi-rise. She could call her and ask, but the gears of the machine were grinding and she'd only get in the way as it felt. It was not on her daily duties to make Adagio angry anyways, so she would bear with it for the rest of the time that was left. Though it did not remove her ability to simple text like usual to the girl, like she always did six times a day sending funny photos or asking silly questions that popped into her skull throughout the day. At least she had that to know that Sparkle was in good health by responding back.

Serak and Twilight arrived at the taxi cab sparkling clean from the early morning drive which came with a car wash, the Equis denizen still preferred to keep his mechanical carriage in top condition. The black painted parts of the chassis shone like the shell of a tiger beetle, the yellow portions almost as blinding as the sun in radiance. As the two embarked and began to drive off, not several spots away Cadence held a firm grip on the steering wheel while chewing her bottom lip. Her eyes tracked the target vehicle through the mirrors while the words of the two students were jostling the iron hold of Professor Jade off the woman's back. Once they were set to head back to the Prepatory school, they went on a tiff about how the theater teacher seemed off her game and rather abruptly acted for another student not out of the will of her department.

"So ya get it now? The grant is for Twilight, but somehow the museum of Science and History is going to give more money for her classes?! Really?" Zap exclaimed.

"It makes about as much sense if only he were donating the funding to the science department as well. Why Professor Jade is there mediating that deal seems too fishy. I mean she has hooks everywhere apparently, but this steps beyond her normal spiel." Lemon gave her an affixed eye, with her music off she meant everything being explained was serious.

Cadence groaned at the doubt forming, she'd been so afraid of the older woman to even think. How she missed the obvious details were her own fault, and now she was given a choice as to believe the girls or trust the order in place that made everything easy to avoid pitfalls. With Twilight and her powers, her inner protective sister role started to assert itself knowing that the young woman needed help after all that had occurred. That sweet bookish little girl she use to take care of had been hurting for some time now, and she failed to offer help when it was needed. Of course was of no one’s particular fault when one beat the facts into place, life just became busier and busier to the point where she had a job to uphold. Deep down, Cadence had wished that Twilight had begun to bloom into her own and gain self confidence, not the other way around and isolate herself to her studies. She’d never let herself live it down to miss this opportunity to guide the young scientist to the safety of welcoming arms and friendship she hoped the two behind her would at least give a chance. Crystal Prep was full of bravado which only hid the problems the school’s psychologist dealt with on a good daily basis.

This was it, the moment she realized there were enough issues that something had to budge at the school. There were things that would begin with Twilight and end somewhere later on with reforms and revelations in the school staffing to the Board of Education, so she shook her head and took a deep breath.

"Seriously! There goes Twilight now to who knows where?! We have to follow them and see where she's going! Now before it's too late!" Indigo pleaded as their window of opportunity started to vanish down the main road to the town.

The Dean had already turned on the ignition, the stick just needed to come off of parked and her answer would be clear. Cadence felt empowered by the coming changes she’d try to bring for the good of the school and mostly for little Sparkle. Even as the hounds of regret and apprehension were barking in the recesses of her mind, her love for her former charge was far more stronger than her reputation and employment.

"Dean Cadence... you can blame it on me if this doesn't go well. Just say I forced you follow her because I made up a stupid story that she got kidnapped or something." Lemon proposed with her headset on her laps and her eyes stuck to the ones peering at her through the rear view mirror from the back seat.

"And if I do that you will need a good story then... I suggest you make one up and fill me in as we go." to which the car instantly lurched forward, forcing the students to bend and then snap back up as the brakes were hit.

Before even Indigo could say anything the car swerved sharply to the right and began to pull out into the light traffic, Cadence wore a rather unwomanely scowl at what she was about to do. There was no way getting around this, someone she cared about was being hidden from her and there was a much bigger picture at stake. She just hoped that wherever they were taking Twilight had cameras and easy access for the police to get through if she called them in. Grant or no grant, nothing would justify this strangeness at all and her questions would get answered.

"Alright!! Back in action!" Zap fist pumped the air as she noticed the yellow cab ten cars ahead.

Twilight's House twenty minutes later…

The lavender girl stood before the front door having rung the doorbell, she stood alone and with her pack and school uniform she’d had on since yesterday. Her mind was ablaze with potential scenarios for how things would follow through and ways to avoid a disaster. All she needed to do was simply explain things to her parents and they'd likely buy it, she never lied before and her book smarts always had her going places to showcase her latest work. Yet the unknown was her enemy, it always was and would be in the future since she had to deal with living entities and not equations. Variables at best were anything breathing and possessing a beating heart, though at least Serak was by the road waiting for her so she had him as a last ditch backup plan. He even told her he’d keep the taxi running just in case everything went south.

The sound of chirping birds filled the front yard, a large wide open area with a couple ornamental pear trees offering shade and a wonderful smelling floral scent in the air. The grass was always neatly trimmed by a gardening company of a father and son her family knew, they were always the kindest folks who helped out those who needed money. The sidewalks were always edged perfectly even by her own standards of proportion from concrete to yard surface. The cedar planked fence which blocked off sight to the neighbors on their flanks were somewhat aged and had a lining of a small hedgerow carefully trimmed into square forms. She always admired the son who could keep the shape so well aligned without a laser alignment bar, his eye just seemed to have a natural tendency for perfection and she admired that every day or when she could leaving the house. The landscaping complimented the two story home with a light gray blue exterior and dark olive green shingles, white framed windows and a nice redwood front door to piece it all together.

She would miss this place for who knew how long she’d be gone, how much different Equis would be and dangerous as well. This place would still be her home no matter what, that she was sure of as her brain burned every sensation into memory for good keeping at a later use.

The locking mechanism turned and popped, and no sooner had she been worrying over the reception of the fake news did the very blue skinned man answer the door. Her father, an astrologist by profession as well as a loving father who did all he could to give her every known bit of wisdom in the circle that he had joined in on which shared the latest discoveries long before the media had gotten hold of it. New planets, new stars, new galaxies amid the data and photographs from different readings were her favorite reasons for seeing him. It quenched her hunger for knowledge like a much needed meal and she always relished in those moments. Night Light stood there in his sweater vest and kaki pants holding a cup of fresh coffee as the steam wafted into the afternoon breeze. Always the coffee drinker, at every hour of the day she remembered it was his life blood being the night owl that he was and that he’d likely only now just woke up.

"Twilight?!” he nearly sputtered a choke with the black liquid in his throat, “Where have you been? We got a call from Canterlot High saying that you disappeared and the police needed to see you. In fact, there is a detective here talking to your mother about some kind of incident at that school?" he turned his head to look behind him as if to see for any eavesdroppers, "There are cops here, what happened?" he whispered as he bent down as if curiosity had gotten the better of him, though knowing his bright little star never knew how to get into trouble as what had been brought to their doorstep.

The reminder of who her father usually was in times such as these had came to her like a fan during a heat wave blowing dry ice cooled air onto her face. She had been so anxious to tell them the coverup and all those nights studying the books on magic that she'd forgotten how much of a 'Need to know Joe' he was and rarely acted on the initial information given to him. Whenever she had problems at school, Night Light seemed to know how to play the curious cat treading on ice begging for information from other sources. This was a much needed quirk for her and hopefully she'd be able to talk to them with less stress upon her. A little thing he picked up from his occupation when something new was discovered, the network of other astrologists had a good habit of asking all the others to check the data and coordinates to verify new findings.

Looking at him dead in the eye and quivering for a few seconds as the truth fell to his trustworthy spirit, the beans were, "Dad? I have magic..." she breathed in deeply and braced herself, "I can perform magic in a way that is akin to the folk tales and things of dreams. I drained the magic from Canterlot High... the place that's been on the news twice now for strange lights and images in the sky? You remember that right? A group of girls had magic themselves and I took it to help a bunch of exiles go back home for mostly being wrongfully sent to our world. We've been a prison world also can you believe that?! I got into a fight with one of the magic wielders, I let my magic mutate in a sense, and then blasted their leader through the school before taking all the magic for myself... now I'm here... I'm telling the truth."

She suddenly regretted having the blood seal in place as this would have been a perfect moment to show him what she was talking about. The spike of frustration at having no viable data to prove herself began to simmer under the hawkish gaze trying to understand the short summary she gave him. His coffee arm dipped a little, he even stepped out and gently closed the door behind him before taking a kneel to look his little star eye to eye.

‘Please believe me… please… please… I’m not lying!’ she thought loudly.

The arrival of a little cardinal swooping before the two as it acted to protect its territory from another bird frightened the mentally occupied young woman who tumbled back. The shock of the red blur sent her falling onto her rump which tossed out the medallion device as it clattered on the walkway, popping open to reveal the gemstone inside as it flickered with a little magic. Her father of course realized too late and went to help her when Twilight’s instinctive reaction was to shield herself from the long gone red avian. She may have not had access to her mana, but she knew how to use ambient magic and the device gave it to her in the form of a translucent barrier that her dad collided into.

Though it was gentle, Night Light spilled his coffee as the cup clanked off the shimmering shell, the caffeine running down like it were on glass. He felt his nose for anything damaged, and only after that did he realize what occurred in just a flash of a few seconds. His little star was encased in something that was not there a blink of an eye ago, standing stock after recollecting himself this new development threw him for a loop even after the barrier fell.

Twilight sat on the ground as she too opened her eyes and brought her arms down just as the shield spell died away. At the time she had not realized the scanner had given her the capability to perform the spell, so all in all she was in her father’s position in kind.

Yellow's Condo

All was quiet on the lonely front high up in the air, the original occupants had left to confirm with the other exiles which left the sirens to themselves. The mild hum of the air ducts which sent in cooled air into the clean carpet smelling living room offered a peaceful moment before the big event. A low flying jet liner flew by as the sound of its roaring air wake barely pierced the condo’s vanilla white walls. A few of the hanging pictures which were left long after the place had been taken rattled from the aerial vehicle’s passing, even the new wood surface to the glass dining table jittered. They were on the precipice of their lives, making the silence an even more jubilating mood for Adagio to think over everything that became mere pawns and pieces in the great game before her.

Sonata had kept herself busy texting the human Dazzling, which freed the patience of Aria and Adagio who eagerly enjoyed the peace so long as their thoughts were clear. Unfortunately that would not be the case with the twin pig tailed singer, something had her anxious and usually that was a bad sign.

Having sat on the left side of the sofa with Adagio in the center and the ditzy one on the other end, Blaze noticed a creeping sensation in her skin the likes which came at the edge of failure. As with much of her glorious leader's previously failed plans to the Battle of the Bands that she willingly kept quiet over because of the equestrian magic and its tantalizing draw. She could not be blinded by anything now as they were free of supposed threats, but she still felt in danger which never lied to her sense of being. A little nice quirk of her home pod in that the pack had a fore sense which often predicted trouble before it neared. Deciding it would be best to bring it up, Aria studied the lead siren to make sure she was not interrupting the great thought process which brought them so much success over their stay in the magicless world.

Noticing a bored and uninterested expression she took the chance, "So, what do ya think about them? The criminals and loonies?"

Adagio did not seem to even twitch a muscle as she responded with a plain tone staring at the other wide of the room, "I don't trust them, but if they have the goods then we will need their assets once we return. That Rainboom Twilight Sparkle had strong magic, strong enough to infuse the humans of this world with it which places her on a high rung. If she came back during the process she could easily resurrected the losers in our little battle and our gems may be at risk before the spell is caste. Then again… if she doesn’t appear we will still need their protection until our replacements are brought back. There is no telling how long it will take, we’ve just been given nothing but promises and no time frames.”

Sonata giggled to herself as her phone received a message as Aria continued, "You think their sad little stories are even true? Yellow seemed to recruit them just so easily, but they're glass cannons more than anything. Like that wraith woman… Pitiful..." she twirled a strand of teal hair in her fingers absentmindedly.

Dazzle scoffed, "Words are just words until proven otherwise, which means whatever they want us to believe we will make them think we believe until the last moment. If they plan on using us for their own ends, they will regret it!" hissing at the end.

"How's the leash? Think they might have snuck something into it to use against us?" Aria asked as she peered at the hand which had the seal even though it was visibly nonexistent, "If I were them I'd have placed a beacon or somethin."

The golden siren silently responded by looking at the affected appendage, slowly and meticulously turning it every which way as if looking for a blemish to scorn. She had given it some thought, but out of care for Twilight and the scheme for control there was no other way around things. There was no telling if even the power to unleash Sparkle's magic wasn't without dangers, but she figured she'd cross that bridge when they arrived at it. There were too many variables and only so much to go on for trust, in essence they had to trust the prisoners for the time being even if it all seemed too good to be true.

"Whether or not he put something in this binding rune... he had control over her and not us. I cannot allow someone else to have that kind of magic over one of my Dazzlings. For now just remain alert for anything they might let slip of the lips, or if I should act differently in some way. Do what you can and find out how to stop it, this involves magic and even if I'm unable to sense it I'm sure you two can. With Twilight learning magic as it is, try and get her to learn about blood seals using dragon’s blood before confronting me. Use your voices to slave mages if you have to and use them to fix me. That is all I have to say on this." Adagio closed her eyes as her hand went back to her lap, feeling the mounting worry over the many pieces she had to keep track of lest the plan fail again.

Sonata had overheard and the chuckles ceased at the seriousness of the air around them. Not even the silly conversation and emotes Twilight and her were sharing could make the realization any better. Having not thought of it herself, her leader may have just unintentionally given her own free choice away for the sake of the human among them. The thought occurred to her that if Adagio had truly cared for her bestie, or was she just ace in the hole to be used as seen fit. Her being her, Sonata simply enjoyed being around Twilight as they too did not have the same rough relationship as she shares with the other sirens. Even if she possessed some kind of amazing, powerful, and cursed magic it mattered not to her not in the slightest. It bothered her and would continue from then on out, was Sparkle really valued as a Dazzling?

A dark cloud formed over her head as a sense of regret, she had woken up in the middle of the night and the girl was not there next to her. She felt cold, alone, and driven to find out where her buddy had gone, as it was evident that she had not gone to the restroom nor to the outside balcony. Her curiosity and caring motives had forced Dusk to track the human down to Yellow's room, and there she witnessed what had transpired which would stain her soul like that hot sauce years ago in the southern states which ruined her performance dress; the anger from Adagio was mighty.

It overwhelmed her mind at how Twilight seemed to really feel throughout their entire time from the start. She was under a spell and they were to blame for blocking out any resistance, which meant to her that they could not have become friends most likely. That sense of hurt jumbled around her, they were at fault for basically forcing Twilight to join them through and through. She had wanted to back off and say no at times, how that must of felt had to have been agony like a siren unable to sing. The hurt needed to be fixed as soon as possible, there would be no telling what would happen to their relationship as a whole if she harbored resentment towards them.

As quickly as she could, Sonata located the small pouch that was removed from Twilight's belt after she'd been laid down and given the seal. Knowing a little of what was used to gain magic, she searched for the medallion thing lodged under a couple notebooks and a phone before she could open it up. A tear drop shaped gem laid in the mechanism, but she had no idea how it worked as it did not react to her own magic as was explained. She understood that anyone could use it or so she thought, turning it around and finding the latch to the internals Sonata popped it open without waking the others. Inside there was one thing loose and unconnected which she quickly corrected, not knowing a single thing about it she hoped she was making it work so she could give some of her power to Sparkle.

A dull glow emanated from the gemstone of the under facing anterior, before she could look at it herself she could feel her pendant activate on its own. In the span of a few seconds the young siren had a portion of her power drained away from her stone, she acted quick enough to disconnect what she messed with and stop the extraction once the process begun to affect her physically. It had burned through the act like a hot probe pushing into her heart and felt extreme relief when the machine was stopped. Though before any relishing could be taken in, she heard the sound of footsteps coming from the exile's room during of which she fumbled and slipped trying to return everything back to normal. Whatever she did she hoped she had done correctly for what was quickly planned as, to give her powers to the strangle circular mana vacuum and hope that would be her reparations on behalf of the sirens. How much she'd given was unknown, but she did feel a little heavy like a child sat on her shoulders. It was easy enough to make it as if she never woke up and return to the sofa like she never left it.

"Guess we're riding the currents to where ever the rip tide takes us, huh?" Aria sighed in defeat.

Adagio breathed in slowly, "Times have changed, we can't keep doing what we use to do. Just like this world’s politics... there is more out there that we cannot ignore. Poseidon help us..." she closed her eyes for a moment of silence, her prayer sent out to the father of all creatures born of the water realm.

Canterlot High Front Entrance

By now, the Dazzlings and the Exiles had arrived a block away from the portal location as they sat in their vehicles. As expected, there were police on the scene still evaluating the damage of the other day which to them was amazingly unexplainable even by the very testimonies of the students present during the magical battle. Foolish monkeys that were flabbergasted at the destruction which looked more like a war zone than anything never even once thought to see if they were being watched by the very perpetrators who allowed it to happen.

The sirens had taken to riding with Yellow and Paradox, while the others had their own mode of transportation and Twilight nearby in Serak's cabbie. With the entire crew together all that was left was to put a sleep spell on the human authorities to which would be the first test of Adagio's seal control. She had been briefed again of what to do, now all that needed to be done was to act.

The gentle flow of cooled air from the vehicles air conditioning brushed past the golden matriarch as the car lurched in movement, "Once I stop, be prepared to release twenty percent of her limiter. She's been told which spell to use so all you need to do is say the right words. Are you ready?" Yellow asked as they passed through the intersection and made a left turn to pull along the parking zone for afterschool drop off and pick up.

Adagio's heart had sped up a little as she prepared to exercise the new right she had been given, feeling a strange tingle at the ends of her limbs from the anticipation. They were about to go back home just being a couple hundred feet away from the portal and the excitement was almost overwhelming enough to bypass her mental barriers that maintained her ego. She just stared forward out the front windshield as the moment came, as if she was looking down the ravenous maw of those Boar Crocs that could swallow a carriage easily in one bite.

"Adagio?" he asked again having placed the car in park and turned in his seat to look directly at her.

Realizing she was being addressed she shook her head, "Right!" she quickly answered and began to recite the spell while holding her hand in the air before her.

Paradox nodded to his lord and began to remove the papers from his satchel pack as the incantation was spoken, they would have little time to perform the necessary magic before more humans arrived to stop them. No blood would be spilled even so, they would ensure of that even if it required the sacrifice of which Yellow had prepared for just in case. With hope however, they would not have to resort to that measure and progress forward least they become no better than the Arcana. They just had to hope the seal did its work and kept the other danger among them from escaping.

Serak in the meantime had driven behind Yellow's vehicle and followed closely up to the sidewalk of the former battleground. Parking in place he checked his phone as he had received the green light, now marked the coming moment they had all been waiting for so long. Clever as ever, he had the sacred magical papyrus sheets on his person should he need to help, though with Twilight the item should not be needed of.

Turning in his seat as well to address the young woman, "Your magic is about to be activated. Do you remember the spell to put those police officers to sleep lov?"

Having immediately looked over her person and then the device she had in her backpack, she hesitated to answer right away until she felt the sensation she was all too familiar with and the whispers.

"Yes I think so? I remember the runes for a knockout spell... yes... I remember now I'm sure of it. How will I know I can use it though?" she looked to him feeling helpless and nervous as a small puppy like the one currently panting up at her from the very pack itself.

Serak appeared as if knowing how it felt to be on the spot before extending a hand to pat her on the head, he wore no gloves this time and his suit still as pristine and wrinkle-free as ever, "The magic will tell you when it has reached its restriction, just learn to feel it when it stops flowing. Like rising out of the water of a hot bath or a cool lake in the summer time?"

He barely ruffled her bun and bangs, but it did help a little to slow the shakiness and nausea attempting to form. This would be her real first test at offensive magic, used only against unaware foes or the dim witted. The spell itself simply activated a part of the brain which commenced sleep, with an effect lasting up to four hours. It was a low tier spell which unlike its more powerful version for true combat magic that could remove memories and mainly used for infiltration. She had her work cut out for her nonetheless as the range of affect needed to be large and fast. If she judged the distance from the farthest officers to create a diameter of the investigation in progress, it would take a good part of her mana reserves with her being so ill tuned. Those books all mentioned starting off with simpler spells and charms, to work the so called 'magic muscles' or the network within the user to adjust to input and output. They still had no idea what was wrong with her magic to begin with so she could not help but feel she may be a different case altogether and defied the standard laws and mechanisms of the art.

Serak left his seat to open her door for her, holding his hand out to help her disembark. Spike barked once and then whined to see his owner leave once again, but as soon as she stood up on the side of the road she bent back in to scratch the back of his green furry little ears.

"Don't worry little guy, I'm just going to do something real quick. We're not separating ever again... I promise you." she smiled at him just as he leaned into his master’s warm palm, the thin coat of fur silky soft to her touch.

She could hear the wagging of his tail beating the inside of the backpack, indicating his state of mirth. He still had much to grow up into, and if the breeder they got him from was true to their word he would become a very large Great Dane. At least now she’d be able to see him grow up, alongside her and the sirens to which she hoped he liked them. Things would get troublesome if he was the kind of dog to not be a people person, as he really only knew her and her parents for the most part. Thinking on it, the little puppy would be getting some good out of her universe hopping trip and see more than just her room or the lab.

“Be quiet for me okay?” she whispered before leaving the panting dog who seemed rejuvenated by the loving care.

Serak closed the door just enough to not scare the animal, “I’ll be right here watching over him, once those officers are down you can grab everything and take it to the portal site.”

Sparkle nodded her head, “Okay, well… let’s do this then?” she chuckled nervously as the two paced to the main walkway to the school’s front entrance.

There spread about on the front lawn where devastation still remained evident. Ten policemen and women were scattered about taking photos or talking to repair crews inspecting the damage to the school. All in all, the spell would need to cover at best one hundred feet in a perfect wave of magic, but that made her question where the magic was to perform. She waited for some kind of physical sensation of any kind or even some kind of aura to flicker visibly, but she felt nothing like what Serak said was suppose to occur.

As it turned out, Adagio had been trying to get the seal to loosen up but it was a type of magic she was unaccustomed too. She managed to repeat the line perfectly in sync with her mana on the eighth try, though by which then Twilight had been spotted just standing out in the open when a cop recognized her.

“How in the world am I supposed to make this work? She could very well be in trouble because of this malarkey of a seal!” Adagio fumed.

“Until it glows, it means you are not putting your heart into the spell. The blood seal will only react on intent, just like a dragon guarding its hoard of gold so use that metaphor and apply.” Yellow told her as Paradox seemed a little unsure of the plan to use Twilight in her state.

It took the matriarch to realize what he meant by the notion, so she reconfigured her emotions to adapt and tried again. The same runes were spoken and the magic of her gem impressed upon the seal which finally reacted. Her soft yellow hand bore the black lines of the drawn symbols and iconography, the spell loosened the grip on Twilight’s mana well to let it pour a little out. The accomplishment was received well enough as Aria fist pumped the air and Sonata quietly chewed on her fingernails nervously.

Outside before the school, “Hey, ma’am I’m going to need you to stay where you are okay?” the policeman nearby cautiously asked her to do with one hand on his radio and another on his belt of gear and accessories.

So far he’d been the only one to notice, but the use of his communication device gave the others the call to alarm. Twilight could hear him speak of her as a missing person and a person of interest, to which three more officers walked casually to join him and attain the young woman into custody.

“Okay… you can release the seal now… anytime Adagio?!” she muttered to herself under her breath as she began to quiver in vulnerability.

The officers were already calling for her to remain calm and that all they wanted to do was talk, of course by then another portion of the school collapsed from the unstable section she scarred with that magical blast. The loud ruckus stopped them in their tracks as they looked behind them to the sounds of people running and yelling.

‘… feel… feel… feel..’ a voice echoed in her thoughts.

A bright orange mobile crane had backed away with the two contractors in the basket shielding themselves from the debris and dust cascading below. The blaring beeping of the backing alarm sounding out among the clashing of concrete crumbling, it spooked Twilight as she saw the destructive potential of her powers and was somewhat comforted by the blood seal. She really hoped the anomaly that she was would not overwhelm the bindings in place.

“Go help Jerrymore and Petunia, I’ll handle the girl!” one teal skinned officer said as the group of officers broke apart, one man staying behind to handle her capture.

A slow creeping icy chill became evident rising from the depths of her heart as he cautiously approached her, but she was too afraid to move much. The sensation too ponderous to be truly realized and soon enough the cop was just several steps away from her, one hand on a pair of handcuffs and the other held out for her to grab onto. Here she was suppose to put them down for a few hours and now she had nothing to act with and the potential of being taken in. The plan was falling apart and she was the cornerstone to the entire scheme, a scheme she had great stakes in for her own value.

“Look, we just want answers is all? You will not be harmed, we’re the good guys. It’s such a silly story the kids spun up, but your one of the ones who was there. Just come on down to the station with me, we can have your parents there during the questioning if you want?” his honeyed words meant little to her, the objective had to be completed or else worse would befall them.

‘… feel… feel… feel…’ she could hear the voice ever more clearly.

Serak who stood by the cab appearing as if inspecting the tires kept a lone eye on the scene, “Come on! What are you doing?!” he whispered.

If he had to he’d intervene, Yellow was strict about doing such a thing unless it was absolutely necessary. The use of what magic he had interwoven into the tomb’s pages were weak and were a single use pistol if anything, and there was no telling if they’d regain their mana in this world even if they were returned to that book.

The officer nearly reached the girl, wearing a very kind smile that was as fake as a lie from a kid with chocolate smears along their lips from a missing cookie, ‘… feel… feel… feel…’ the voice kept saying like a broken record to which Sparkles addled nerves could take no more.

“It’s not working!” Adagio yelled back at the leader of the prisoners who took the brunt words like a boulder to a storm.

Suddenly, Aria and Sonata witnessed the seal glow red hot as Adagio doubled over gripping the wrist of the hand. She seized as if wracked with pain unimaginable and hissed through her teeth to breath as her jaw clenched shut. The fluffy orange hair flowed over her and hid her facial features that displayed pain and agony to which only Yellow knew what was going on.

“The limiter… it’s being fought against!?” he asked himself.

“Possible that the controller must be magically powerful to hold onto the untamed beast?” Paradox questioned.

Yellow turned from the man back to the siren, “Put all your willpower into it, and tell her how much she can use even if she is not here with us. The spell is very interactive, but it needs power to bolster any action.”

Adagio could literally feel what he meant as her mana started to leak away from her, so she poured more into the ritual to gain control again. Something was battling her and it was not the machinations of the exiles, it felt and seemed like the spell itself needed more power. Whether this was a trap or not became irrelevant as something eerie formed before her trying vision. It was Sparkle only altered to an extent that she appeared hostile in nature and very self confident in her power. This vision flickered in and out before Dazzle as it tried to rise through the void only to be pulled back down by glowing red vines. That monstrous version of her little Dazzling was disturbing enough, but the act of exerting her will upon it and putting more power into the seal seemed to affect it and send it further away from her vision.

A chill within Twilight blossomed into the same sensation she felt back when before the Rainbooms trapped her in the girl’s restroom. Unable to bare the accosting nerves flaring up beyond tolerable levels, the girl clenched her jaw tightly with her arms went up to shield her face as something within her met an unmovable wall letting only a little light pour through. As if then that had caused her to feel the refreshing cool amorphous body of liquid like a jump into a swimming pool, then and there the magic finally achieved twenty percent needed to act on.

Like a well oiled machine, Twilight quickly enacted what she had to try the spell and hoped for the best with what little cognitive ability she still possessed not tethered to her current state. In her mind she visualized the runes and symbols for the knockout spell, bursting her arms out from protecting her face and released the magic at point blank range. The highly charged spell hit with unexpected force as the officer was projected from his feet and lifted off the ground by the rolling wave of ethereal energy, no one heard a thing as there was no sound. The rest of the humans in the vicinity were slammed by the spell, but those farther away had been spared the brunt of the wash. Only Twilight could see or at least feel the magic go out like water that had broken a levee by seeing every person before her fall to the ground in a deep slumber. Though once the spell had finished, she soon found herself instantly exhausted and woozy which lead to her feet barely being able to keep her up. Blood rushed to her head, her own body feeling light and feather weight which was some kind of high if she guessed right.

‘Wow… that was… amazing!’ she thought as she finally lost her bearings and fell backwards.

As her vision went black with muted glittering colors on the voided canvas, something soft had caught her before she met the concrete pathway underneath her. Of course she could barely even think of anything much less see, her own skin only registered dull sensory input as her brain tried to reset itself. She started laughing, a little at first like Sonata tickling her which caused short giggles. Chuckles soon developed as she failed to form any kind of an idea or action other than the abdominal contractions and shallow short breathing spasms. All of the sudden they became boisterous bellows of influenced joy escaping her just as the feel of hands and arms came around her body as if to support her upwards.

Rising out of the water she soon regained vision albeit with spots from the rush of blood, she could see the blue sky with little condensation balled into formless bodies of vapor. Her laughing started to give as the need to breath properly set in out of need, what occurred next faintly surprised her out of the moment. She still had no inkling of what was going on with her, even though she should have felt afraid and terrified at being out of control of her own flesh. The colorful heads phased into her affected sight, a purple and teal striped pony tail wearing girl, a sky blue pulled back haired one, and behind above or behind her was the fluffy poofed hairstyle of another with variations of yellow and orange.

Like a bugged computer having a hard restart, the situation came back with clarity as the sirens had caught her and now huddled around the laying form of their human ally and Dazzling. Aria showed both worry and irritation worming over her face that seemed so out of place other than that night she opened up to her about herself. Sonata on the right appeared to be forcing a couple tears back from falling as she grinned at her, but why she seemed to be either sad or very happy was something Twilight could not connect at the moment. Then there was Adagio above her, those magenta eyes gazing longingly into her own as her mother once did when she had lost her at a book store. It happened during her childhood as an attempt to distract her from missing Shining Armor as much as she did, and the store itself was the largest one in town. That was when the stroking of thumbs along her cheeks were apparent and a little disconcerting, if only for a passing moment before seeing the matriarch’s face coming ever closer to hers.

Twilight froze in place as Adagio touched her forehead to hers for a few seconds, holding in place as she said nothing and did nothing. The long curly bangs titillating the lavender skin as they graced the flesh like a feather wand, warmth connected and shared between them before Adagio pulled away. It felt as if the entire world was Adagio just for a few mere seconds, but then it happened that the genius girl regained all of her mental faculties and blared back into full life that was Twilight Sparkle.

Not even thinking for a second of why she was about to say what came from her lips, “Thanks for catching me.” Sparkle gave her gratitude to the three hovering over her after such an experience.