//------------------------------// // Castlevania: Concerto of Harmony // Story: The Many Destinies of Sunset Shimmer // by ratedoni //------------------------------// The full moon in the sky bathed the whole land in a tenuous light that made it impossible for people to see beyond the gates that they had made long ago. The walls had been used constantly in the small town as the only tool they had in which they could defend themselves against the endless amount of bandits and wild game that inundated the forest known only as Everfree. They were once the things people were afraid of, now they were only minor pests at worst. The real danger appeared when the sun came down and creatures as foul as their master came prowling for mortal flesh and souls. Applejack still remembered the first time the monsters appeared out of the town. It was the night she had almost become an orphan, but thanks to the rest of the town’s quick action no one had died that day, maybe some injuries, but both her parents were alive and well. What many thought as only a small occurrence -dark magic was not unheard in the world after all- ended up being something that continued attacking their small town almost every night and it was clear the kind of long term damage it left the people of Ponyville -strange name, but after all, the town had been known for their use of small equines to help their everyday work- slowly being broken by the constant appearance of monsters and the mental stress of never knowing if that would their last day alive. Applejack may be one of the best workers in the town, someone who helped everyone when they needed it, but she wasn’t a genius. She wasn’t one of those super smart people from the city who could not only write, but also find the answers for every problem. She was just a simple farmer, but even she could see how much the stress was beating the spirit out of her people. The blonde girl wished at that moment that for once in her life she would have the answer for a problem beyond hitting it with a hammer or stay stubbornly in front of it until it left. For once she wished she was smart or powerful, but instead she could do nothing but wait every night in the house with Apple Bloom and her mother as her brother and father helped defend the town. She was so deep in her thoughts that she almost missed the sound of the door and the answer for her prayers, well, almost. Applejack heard it anyways and was startled out of her ruminations and for a second hoped that there were no more monsters and it was Mac and her father coming back home, but she was realistic and knew that there was no way that it could happen. Shaking her head to get those ideas out of her head she opened the door, but instead of a familiar face, there were two rather unique individuals standing in front of her. While Applejack dressed like the farmer she was with simple clothes designed for work more than for fashion, the two girls in front of her showed a style that left Applejack completely flabbergasted. It was not only because the clothes were eye-catching, but it was the combination of beauty and absolute confidence that they exuded like an aura. She had never met people like them before. Of the two, the shorter of the two had luxurious flowing hair that felt behind her shoulders with a few curls framing her aristocratic pale face. The woman seemed to almost shine under the moon alongside her silver and purple long dress with tight waist. In contrast with her companion, the other woman was as fiery as her red and golden hair that seemed to move slightly as if it were made out of flames. Her sharp teal eyes and high cheekbones made her as aristocratic as the other girl, but there was discipline and even some arrogance on those eyes which made Applejack think on a commander or a conqueror more than a princess. She was also wearing a tight leather vest over a white shirt with a long red and black coat of intricate designs alongside fingerless gauntlets, boots and pants. “Ah, can Ah help you?” Applejack was open and straight forward, but looking at those two beautiful and commanding women simply left her as speechless as her brother. Instead of telling her something rude or worse yet, disappear as if they were mirages, the elegant woman simply smiled before answering. “Well, I hope we are not much of a bother; my friend and I are just passing through your very lovable town,” even the voice was elegant and with such a cadence on it that almost hypnotized Applejack before the other girl simply snorted. “Geez, that’s not what you were saying when we got into this place, something about dirty roads or something similar? Look girl, the only thing we need is some info. Have you seen a girl of pastel pink hair coming through your town?” The redhead asked with a voice clearly having very little control on her anger. “What? Sorry, but the only gal Ah know with pink hair is Pinkamena and she ain’t on this town, she lives on a quarry a couple of miles from here,” apparently this was not the answer they were looking for since the elegant woman almost deflated showing deep concern about the spoken about girl. Meanwhile, the redheaded woman simply gnarled showing a very scary glare; thankfully it wasn’t directed at Applejack. “Great, just great.” “Is okay Sunset dear, we will find her, we just need to keep on looking.” “Rarity, we cleaned up a bunch of those skeletons and zombies outside of the town, if that isn’t a clear sign that they are close, I don’t know what will be,” The redhead one said making Applejack’s mouth fall in surprise at the nonchalant in which they declared that they had destroyed the monster that had been constantly tormenting the town. Before she could say something a scream was heard and howl torn through the night making Applejack shiver. Next thing she knew there was a monster as big as a horse running in the direction of the gates. It was hairy and with muscles rippling as it ran in the direction of the trio. Applejack recognized it from the old tales, it was a werewolf. Instead of screaming or running away, the two women simply smirked as Rarity raised a hand at the moment the werewolf pounced on them; instead, the monster remained afloat as a two magical circles levitated the monster in the air. For her part, Sunset put her hand inside her coat and with a flick of her hand a long object was pulled. It was a weird feeling, almost as if the soft glow of the sun was bathing Applejack’s body , but what Sunset had in her hands was a long whip made out of chains and leather that seemed to vibrate with magical energy. “You idiots never learn, there is only one way in which this always ends!” With a movement of her hand the long chain flew through the air and ripped the werewolf in two. As the whip touched the werewolf, the magical circles disappeared letting the two pieces fall to the ground as they quickly burned away “pathetic as usual.” “Well yes, but it seems you were right after all, since our adversaries had never let out a werewolf unless they had a hideout close to it.” “Yeah, you are right Rarity. Hey you, girl… what’s your name?” “Ah, Applejack?” “Okay Applejack, do you know of any place that had been abandoned that could be big enough to hide monsters on it?” “Well… now that you mention it, there are several places like that inside Everfree, the closest would be an abandoned fort,” Applejack was sure that saying that would bring trouble to her and she was right by the way Sunset was smirking at her. “Well, hope you know where that place is because an innocent life depends on it, so welcome aboard miss guide girl,” Wait, what? Well, it seemed that the adventure had just started for Applejack now.