"Stand up for what is right, even if you stand alone."
- Suzy Kassem
Fluttershy smiled as she felt the sunlight from her bedroom window shine on her face. Her eyes opened when she felt tiny paws on her side. Turning her head, she saw Angel hopping on top of her, his nose twitching adorably.
"Good morning, Angel," Fluttershy said, giggling as she took the bunny in her hooves. "Did you sleep well?"
He squeaked in response.
"I did too." Climbing out of bed, she went towards the window. "I don't know about you, but I've never felt so well-rested in my life!" Her cheeks flushed. "Might have to do with that dream I had."
She opened the window and looked out at the cityscape. What she loved most about her apartment was the view she got of the Maretropolis Park. The sun was shining, birds were chirping, the squirrels were scattering about down below.
"Oh, it's such a beautiful morning!" she said, inhaling the fresh air. "I feel like singing!"
She twirled her rabbit around as she filled the room with "la da dee das." She continued singing absentmindedly as she showered, changed clothes, and went into the kitchen for breakfast. She fed Angel his food pellets before getting out the pancake mix.
"There's music in the treetops," she sang as she flipped the pancakes.
"And there's music in the vale,
And all around me music fills the sky."
Angel tilted his head from side to side, feeling the beat of her beautiful song.
"There's music by the river,
And there's music in the grass,
And the music makes your heart soar in re—"
She froze when she heard a bark, causing her to flip one pancake so high that it stuck to the ceiling. Turning, she saw Wynona on a leash, wagging her tail excitedly. Holding that leash was Applejack. Pinkie Pie, in her ridiculous glasses, stood by her. Both their mouths were open wide.
"Oh, um," Fluttershy said, biting her lip. "A-Applejack, I thought…I thought you would've gone to your apple cart by now."
Applejack blinked. "W-Well, yeah, but…I was just takin' Wynona for a walk when I ran into Pinkie and we were gonna look at some properties for our bakery and…"
"Are we gonna ignore the fact that Fluttershy was just SINGING IN THE MOST BEAUTIFUL VOICE EVER?!" Pinkie shouted excitedly.
Blushing, Fluttershy returned to her pancakes. "Oh, I was just…it was nothing."
Pinkie scoffed. "You kidding?! When we stepped in here, we thought this place had been invaded by an angel or something!"
"I've never heard ya sing before, Sugar Cube," Applejack said in awe. "That was…heavenly."
Fluttershy's mane drooped over her face. "Let's just…forget about it."
"Forget about it?!" Pinkie yelled. "How can you forget something like that?! You might as well forget sparkles falling from the sky!"
"That actually reminds me," Applejack said. "Rarity called this mornin'. It's Karaoke Night over at the La Comida restaurant. I'm not much for karaoke, but…maybe if you're not busy tonight?"
"Yeah!"
Fluttershy squeaked as Pinkie suddenly wrapped her hoof around her neck.
"You should totally sing something tonight!" Pinkie exclaimed. "With all those ponies watching you, listening to your amazing voice, you could bring the house down on them so hard they'll all have to go to the hospital because your voice is that amazing!"
Yelping, Fluttershy buried her face in her hooves.
"Think ya overdid it, Pinkie," Applejack said, pushing the pink mare aside so she could talk to her roommate. "You alright, Sugar?"
Fluttershy shook her head. "I just…I've never performed in front of other ponies before and…" She looked at Applejack with pleading eyes. "Please, please, don't tell any pony you heard me sing. I…I won't be able to handle it if I had to sing in front of other ponies."
"Hey, hey," Applejack said, patting her on the back. "Ya don't have to sing karaoke if ya don't wanna, but you should still come tonight. We could get a bite, hang with the girls, might be fun." She sighed. "Besides, with all the Power Ponies stuff plus Pinkie and I tryin' to get this bakery started, we could really use the break."
"Yeah!" Pinkie piped. "I mean I've been running to and fro from here and there to the rock farm and back, trying to find a place to crash, trying to find a place for the bakery, ya gonna eat those pancakes?"
Fluttershy smiled slightly as she stacked half of the pancakes onto a plate for Pinkie. She gobbled them up right away.
"I'll go out with you girls tonight," Fluttershy said. "But I'm not singing."
Applejack returned her smile. "No pony's forcin' ya to."
Fluttershy was about to flip the next pancake when she realized her frying pan was bare. She and Applejack turned to Pinkie, who had stuffed cheeks and batter on her hooves.
"What?" she said with her mouth full.
That night at La Comida, Rarity, Coco Pommel, Applejack and Fluttershy were sitting in a booth, munching on the nachos they'd been given as an appetizer. Pinkie was singing a rock ballad onstage, very loud and sending ear-piercing feedback through the mic every few notes.
"You sure you won't be able to make it, Twilight?" Rarity asked on her cellphone.
"Sorry, girls," Twilight said on the other end. "But I'm at the Maretropolis Stadium setting up for the New Voices Singing Competition. It'll raise a lot of money for the new children's hospital."
"Oh, but you're always working, darling! Whether it's as Twilight Sparkle or…" She glanced around the restaurant. "You know. We've been working together for months now, and not once have we ever gotten together socially!"
"Maybe it's for the best. If the entire team hung out together all the time, we'd be at risk of exposing ourselves. I mean six mares and a young dragon all together at once? Ponies are sure to notice."
Rarity sighed. "Alright. But you should still take the time to…"
She winced as Pinkie wailed into her mic.
"What was that? Trouble?!"
"No," Rarity said with a groan. "Just Pinkie Pie 'rocking out,' as it were."
When Rarity hung up, Rainbow Dash approached their table.
"Sorry I'm late," she said, sitting next to Fluttershy on the end. "My wallet was stolen and I had to get it back."
Applejack scoffed. "Some pony tried to pick your pocket?"
"Yeah," Dash said, running her hoof over the pendant tucked into her shirt. "Let's just say the weather got unexpectedly rough."
"Are you going to give it a whirl?" Rarity asked, tilting her head towards the stage.
Rainbow put up her hooves. "I don't do karaoke. I just came for the nachos."
She grabbed a hoofful from the bowl in the center of the table and stuffed it in her mouth. Rarity cringed at the cheese dripping from her mouth.
"What about you guys?" Rainbow asked, her mouth still full.
"My slot is the fifth one after Pinkie," Rarity said. "I'm going to sing a song by Sapphire Shores."
"I don't really sing," Coco said, rubbing her foreleg awkwardly.
"Me neither," Fluttershy murmured.
Rainbow huffed. "That's rich! You should've heard this girl at the Flight Camp Talent Show! I mean she sang like a—YOW!"
Applejack had kicked her from across the table, sending her a warning glare.
When Pinkie Pie was finished, the restaurant host hastened her off the stage.
"How'd I do?" Pinkie asked as she scooted into the booth with her friends.
They all forced smiles and said, "Greeeeaaaaaat."
"Okay," the host said into the mic, clearing his throat. "That certainly was…interesting!" He checked his clipboard with the karaoke sign-up sheet. "Our next performer is Applejack, who will be singing a song by Trotter Swift. And she's asked to provide her own accompaniment."
Applejack's friends watched her curiously as she made her way to the stage with an acoustic guitar in hoof.
"Huh," Rainbow said, glancing at the brown guitar case leaning against the side of the booth. "I wondered what that was doing there."
Pulling up a stool, Applejack sat in front of the mic. She sent Fluttershy a wink before strumming softly on her guitar. After a short instrumental, Applejack sang in a low, rich, country voice.
"Seems the only one who doesn't see your beauty
Is the face in the mirror lookin' back at you.
You walk around here thinkin' you're not pretty.
But that's not truuuuuue."
As she held the last note, she made eye contact with Fluttershy. "Cuz I know yooooooou."
"Wow," Coco said. "She's pretty good."
"Eh," Rainbow said, waving her hoof. "Country ponies always get the best voices."
When Applejack's song was finished, the audience erupted in applause. She softly thanked them as she made her way offstage and back to the table.
"That was amazing!" Fluttershy exclaimed. "I had no idea you could sing."
"Neither did I," Applejack said.
But from the way she looked at Fluttershy, it was obvious Applejack was not talking about her own voice.
"I don't know how I'll be able to top that!" Rarity said, taking Applejack's hoof. "Well done, darling!"
"Next up," the host announced, "we have a group act from three talented, lovely young mares who are going places! Give it up for…the Dazzlings!"
As every pony applauded, three earth mares in glittering sequin dresses sauntered onstage.
"Ooh," Rarity said. "Love their gowns!"
"A bit overdressed for a karaoke night though, don't ya think?" Applejack asked.
"Oh, pish posh! There's no such thing as overdressed!"
The three mares circled around the microphone. The yellow mare in the center had an enormous, poofed up orange mane. The blue one on her right wore her mane in a sweeping blue ponytail with purple streaks, while the purple one on her left had two purple ponytails streaked with blue.
"This song is all about," the yellow one in the center said in a sultry voice, "pop."
The music started and on the second beat, all three mares shouted, "Pop!"
"It's all about the pop," sang the yellow one.
"Pop!" said the blue.
"It's what will take us to the top."
"It's what's new, it's what's hot, and it can't be stopped," sang the purple.
"Pop!" they said together.
"Oh my," Fluttershy said, scrunching her nose in discomfort. "Um, they're…well…"
"They sound like screaming banshees!" Rainbow exclaimed, covering her ears. "They should've used that for their group name!"
"That's not a very nice thing to say," Applejack said with a wince. "No matter how true it is."
Funnily enough, no pony was booing them off the stage, so the Dazzlings kept going.
"Pop is the word!" the yellow mare sang. "It can't be captured, only heard!"
"Pop burns!" sang the blue.
"It's what makes the world turn!" sang the purple.
"They got that right," Rainbow said, lowering her head. "It certainly pops and burns my ears and makes my head turn! Make it stop!"
"Oh, you stop, Rainbow Dash!" Rarity said, waving her hoof. "You clearly have no taste in music!"
Applejack, Rainbow and Fluttershy looked at her in surprise.
"Uh…what?" Applejack said.
"They're like angels singing," Coco said with a sigh.
"Forget angels!" Pinkie cried, slamming her hooves on the table. "They're like goddesses!"
The three mares that were still unimpressed with the Dazzlings' singing glanced between their friends and the mares onstage in confusion. Then Applejack looked around the room. None of the other restaurant patrons were eating, as their focus was on the Dazzlings. Their expressions did not hold any disgust for their "singing," but awe and admiration.
The Dazzlings sang their last line together. "It's the pop!"
There was a moment of silence. Then every pony stood and clapped harder than they had all night. Every pony, that is, except Applejack, Rainbow and Fluttershy.
"Fabulous!" Rarity exclaimed.
"Astounding!" Coco said.
"Absatively wowza!" Pinkie cheered.
"Ooh!" Rarity said. "I wonder if they're entering that New Voices Singing Competition Twilight is hosting. They're sure to help her raise a lot of money for the new children's hospital!"
Applejack raised an eyebrow. "You want them to sing at a charity event?"
"Of course!"
"So much for that children's hospital," Rainbow mumbled.
Rarity rolled her eyes. "No taste! No taste whatsoever!"
Ponies were flocking to the stage, asking the Dazzlings for their autographs…and a few other things.
"You're beautiful!" a stallion said excitedly. "Can I have all your numbers?!"
"No fair!" said another stallion, pushing him out of the way. "I want their numbers!"
"No, I want their numbers!" shouted a mare.
"I want them to sing at my birthday party!" said a young filly.
"I want them to sing at my cute-ceañera!" said a colt.
"Oh dear," Rarity said. "I better get up there if I'm going to refer them to Twilight." Narrowing her eyes, she charged through the crowd. "Let me through, you ruffians!"
"I want their numbers too!" Pinkie cried, pulling out her phone. "That blue one's especially cute!" She noticed the weird looks from Applejack, Rainbow and Fluttershy. "What? Didn't I tell you girls I'm gender-blind?" She used her a little of her super speed to rush ahead. "HEY, I REALLY LIKE YOU!"
"I'm not gay," Coco said as she jumped out of her seat, "but I want their numbers too!"
Applejack, Rainbow and Fluttershy watched in puzzlement as their friends fought through the mob.
"Is it just me?" Applejack murmured. "Or did this entire restaurant suddenly become tone deaf?"
"Or we've become tone deaf," Rainbow said, inserting her hoof in her ear. "Can that happen?"
"Oh good," Fluttershy said with a relieved sigh. "So I wasn't the only one who thought they were awful."
"So wait a minute. If you," Rainbow said, pointing to Fluttershy, "thought they were awful, and you," then to Applejack, "thought they were awful, and I," then to herself, "thought they were awful," and finally to the mob, "what's up with them?"
"Probably has to do with their fancy dresses," Applejack said shaking her head. "Typical. Ponies see a few pretty faces and don't care how talented they really are."
"Oh my," Fluttershy said. "You don't think Twilight would really let them compete, would you? I worry about those poor sick foals who might not get their hospital."
"I don't think we have to worry about it. Twilight has better judgment than all these ponies. She would see through their pretty faces and fancy dresses lickety-split."
"They're amazing!"
Applejack dropped the soufflé she'd been making. She pressed down on her commlink to be sure she heard Twilight right.
"Say that again?"
"The Dazzlings!" Twilight said excitedly through the commlink. "They're phenomenal! But I'll tell you, when Rarity brought them in this morning, insisting they enter the competition, I nearly turned them down as the entry deadline had already passed. But when they started singing, I just couldn't say no! I've never seen such talent! And believe me, I've heard a lot of talent from the entries so far."
Applejack blinked. "Really?"
"I don't wanna get ahead of myself, but they're sure to get the winning record deal! These girls are going places!"
She shook her head. "Any pony else gettin' this?"
"I hear it," Rainbow's voice said, "but I don't believe it."
"Ignore them, Twilight!" Rarity said. "They're just jealous!"
"Jealous?!" Applejack shouted.
"Of course. After all, the Dazzlings received much more applause last night than you did."
"Listen here! This isn't about…"
She took a deep breath. Clearly, something weird was going on with these Dazzlings, and half her team wasn't going to be of much help. She needed to find out more about the Dazzlings, but she wasn't going to do that by insisting how terrible they were.
She needed to get into that competition.
"Um, Twilight?" she said into the commlink. "Ya think ya can do me a favor?"
"Sure, AJ," Twilight said. "What is it?"
"This singing competition. It's at the stadium, right?"
"Right."
"So ya must need food vendors."
"Oh, yes. We've got carrot dog vendors, popcorn vendors. Ponies will be donating their profits of the night to the fundraiser."
"Great! Well, I wanna help with the hospital too, so…ya think it would be much trouble if I…?"
"Hey!" Pinkie's voice said. "No business negotiations without your new partner!" Her tone changed to a chipper one. "Can we sell our baked goods at the competition please, Twilight?"
Twilight laughed. "We'd love it if you two would help out."
"Yay! This'll be great! We'll get to help the hospital, and we'll get into see the Dazzlings! You think that blue one Sonata will call me?"
"Come to the rehearsal this afternoon. That's when all the vendors are setting up their booths."
"Thanks, Twi," Applejack said. "We'll be there." She glanced down at what was left of her soufflé. "After I clean this up."
While the stage was being set on the field of the stadium, vendors were setting their booths up in the walkways behind the stands. Pinkie had a paintbrush in her hoof as she looked up at the blank sign above their booth.
"Maybe we should combine our names somehow to make one catchy name," she said, tapping her chin with the tip of her brush. "Apple Pie? Pinkie Jack? For some reason, Pinkie Jack Daniels sounds pretty catchy!"
But Applejack wasn't thinking about business names right now. She was too busy looking down at the field, eyeing the three beautiful mares standing idly by the stage.
"I feel if we include "Applejack" in the name it'll sound like we're selling cereal! But of course I wanna share the credit so I won't just call it Pinkie Pie's. Maybe something sweet that'll make 'em think of sweets, like Sugar something or Applejack are you listening to me?"
"Huh?" Applejack said, snapping her head around. "Uh, sorry, Pinkie, I was, uh…"
Pinkie huffed. "Don't think I didn't notice you eyeing the Dazzlings!" She narrowed her eyes. "I know your game."
Applejack blinked. "You do?"
"It's so obvious." Pinkie grinned brightly. "You're smitten with them too! Can't blame ya, they're gorgeous!" She dashed to Applejack's side to whisper, "But stay away from the blue one. She's mine!"
Sighing, Applejack shook her head. "I'm not smitten with any pony." She noticed some of the stagehooves and other vendors ogling the Dazzlings. "I'm about the only one in this entire stadium who isn't smitten with those…those…sirens. How'd they even get into this competition? They're not even that good!"
"Oh, AJ, AJ, AJ," Pinkie said with a pitiful shake of her head. "You really should come to terms this whole jealousy thing here. Of course it's perfectly understandable. After all no pony can compare to how beautiful, talented, and downright delicious those Dazzlings are!"
"I'm tellin' ya, Pinkie! They're up to somethin'! Am I the only one who sees that?"
"Probably." Pinkie looked back at the blank wooden sign. "What do you think of Dunkin' Donuts? Can you make donuts? Then again we should make the name generally apply to all treats…"
As Pinkie rambled on, the Dazzlings were going onstage to rehearse. Applejack rolled her eyes as every pony in the stadium dropped everything they were doing so they could watch, including Pinkie, who dropped her paintbrush.
"Woo hoo!" Pinkie cheered. "Go Sonata! You rock, girl!"
Ripping open her pink raincoat, she revealed a t-shirt with the blue Dazzling's face on it. Applejack stared at it strangely.
"Where'd ya get that there shirt?"
"What?" Pinkie said with a shrug. "I make t-shirts of every pony I meet! I even have one of you!"
She ripped off her shirt to reveal another one with Applejack's face, putting a blush on the real face. As the music started to play, Pinkie tore the Applejack shirt to show another Sonata one. Then, much to Applejack's dismay, the Dazzlings started singing.
"Oh-whoa-oh, oh-whoa-oh,
You didn't know that you fell,
Oh-whoa-oh, oh-whoa-oh…"
Then the yellow mare in the middle spoke in a low voice into her microphone, "Now that you're under our spell."
It took all of Applejack's willpower not to cover her poor, aching ears. To find out what was going on with these sirens, as she was now calling them, she needed to keep all her senses open and alert. She just hoped her ears could last through the whole song.
"Listen to the sound of my voice," the yellow mare sang.
I'd rather not, Applejack thought.
"Soon you'll find you don't have a choice."
"I can think of quite a few choices," Applejack murmured.
Then she caught a glimmer of red. Three glimmers, to be precise. Squinting, Applejack saw that each of the Dazzlings wore a round red jewel around their necks. And they were glowing.
What's more, they seemed to be absorbing something. A green mist. Applejack took a step back and looked around, realizing that practically the whole stadium was flooded with green mist.
"Did some pony turn on a fog machine or something?"
Slowly, the cheers for the Dazzlings began to change into a cacophony of angry shouts. Applejack looked back down at the field and saw several ponies that seemed to be arguing with each other.
"Pinkie, do ya see…?"
"Why aren't you watching the Dazzlings?!" Pinkie shouted, shaking her fiercely. "Can't you see they're amazing?!" She brought Applejack's face to hers. "Why aren't you watching?!"
"Pinkie, get ahold of yourself!" Applejack exclaimed, pushing her back.
"You know what I think, Applejack?" Pinkie said, crossing her hooves. "I don't think you're taking this whole baking business thing seriously! I mean I'm the one who's been trying to think of a name all afternoon while you keep ogling the Dazzlings and I swear if you try and ruin my chances with Sonata…"
Applejack gawked as the same green mist filling the stadium seemed to emit from Pinkie, who didn't appear to notice. Applejack watched as the mist floated down the stands, across the field and right over to the Dazzlings. She hadn't even realized their song had finished.
There was no applause, as every pony was too busy arguing with each other over…Applejack wasn't sure what. But she got a bit of an idea when Officer Flash Sentry, who was currently off-duty, stomped up the nearest aisle, pursued by Twilight.
"I was not checking them out!" Flash shouted over his shoulder.
"Oh, you so were!" Twilight yelled, pointing her hoof accusingly. "Your eyes were all over them, especially that Adagio!"
"They were singing! Why is it suddenly so wrong to watch a couple of mares perform?!"
"When all you can stare at is their flanks!"
"What about you, huh?" Flash said, spinning around. "You can't deny that you were ogling them too!"
Twilight scoffed. "How…wha…I don't even swing that way! What's your excuse?!"
Their voices drowned out as they walked higher up the stands and out of Applejack's hearing. It was strange. She hadn't taken Twilight to be the jealous type.
Ponies were arguing, Pinkie was still yelling at Applejack, there was mysterious mist everywhere and no pony else seemed to be aware of it. It was a terrible time for Applejack to receive nature's call.
"'Scuse me, Pinkie," Applejack said, pushing past her friend.
"I'm not finished with ya, Smith!" Pinkie shouted. "If you're not gonna invest fully into this partnership, we might have to cut your pay down to sixty-forty! Not to mention the costs that factor into…"
Applejack quickly shut the door to the ladies' room and let out a sigh of relief. Nobody else was in the bathroom, leaving Applejack to the serenity of a private toilet stall.
"Okay, AJ," she said as she shut the stall door. "Obviously there's some mysterious magic at work here, but what?"
She winced at admitting to herself that Twilight's magical knowledge would be very useful right about now. But Twilight was just as corrupted as the rest. Except for Applejack. Why hadn't she been affected by the Dazzlings' spell?
Applejack jumped when the bathroom door opened and she heard voices.
"Well done, girls!" a sultry voice said. "Marvelous performance! Though Aria, you were a little flat on the bridge."
Recognizing one of the Dazzlings' voices, Applejack quickly unlocked her stall door and lifted her hooves onto the toilet so they would assume they were alone.
"Not like it really mattered, Adagio," said a bored-sounding voice which Applejack assumed belonged to Aria. "They were still under our spell, weren't they?"
"And did you see all that negative energy that came from their fighting over us?" said a high-pitched, bubbly voice that reminded Applejack an awful lot of Pinkie Pie. "It was like an all-you-can-eat-buffet!"
"If you thought this was a feast," said the sultry one, Adagio, "imagine what tomorrow's competition will be like. All those seats will be filled with ponies with negative energy ripe for the picking."
"It's been so long since we've had this much attention," Aria said. "It's both endearing and overwhelming."
"Just look at all the numbers I've got!" said the bubbly one which Applejack figured to be Pinkie's favorite, Sonata. "We really should get cellphones so we call 'em!"
"No one said we had to actually call them, Sonata," Aria said. "We're not here to make friends. Besides, I can barely work one of those public phones with these thick hooves."
"You girls never let me meet anybody!" Applejack could imagine Sonata pouting. "Can't we have a little fun with some of these ponies while we're here? That pink mare who was wearing my face back there seemed like she'd be a good time."
Aria groaned. "Must you always play with your food before you eat it?"
"First, sisters," Adagio said, "we gain control of Maretropolis' citizens, then we win the record deal so we can take things on a…global scale. Then you morons can abuse that power however you want."
There was a slip, along with a yelp.
"I miss my fins!" Sonata whined.
"Agreed," Aria said with a moan. "I hate all this walking!"
"Now, now, girls," Adagio said. "You know it would've been impossible for us to walk on land in our true forms."
"If we'd kept our act underwater…"
"But the food is up here! You remember what Madame Circe said."
Applejack gasped and then covered her mouth too late. There was silence from outside. Then the stall was thrown open by the purple one. All three Dazzlings were glaring down at her.
Applejack grinned awkwardly. "Uh…don't suppose y'all would want my number, eh?"
The yellow one must've been Adagio, for she seemed to send silent commands to her compadres with her eyes.
"'Welcome to the Show?'" the purple one, Aria, said.
"Let's do "Under Our Spell" again!" Sonata piped.
"No need, girls," Adagio said, smirking at Applejack. "A few simple arias should do it."
The three of them opened their mouths to sing some 'ahs." To Applejack, they sounded like a cloud of bats screeching after being awoken midday.
"Sorry I'm more into country than opera!" Applejack said rapidly.
Before the Dazzlings could respond, Applejack dove onto the floor and through Adagio's legs. Quickly picking herself up, she dashed out of the bathroom. The Dazzlings had their mouths agape in surprise.
"Well don't just stand there!" Adagio exclaimed, smacking them both upside the head. "Get her, you idiots!"
Aria and Sonata raced out the door, Adagio following after them. They searched the walkway for Applejack.
"She's vanished!" Sonata said.
"Impossible!" Adagio said. "She wasn't a unicorn!"
Suddenly, a glowing rope lassoed around the three of them. With a mighty tug, it bound them together. The Dazzlings shrieked as they fell to the floor. Sonata flailed her hooves about, but that only made the lasso pull tighter.
"Demeter's Lasso!" Adagio cried.
"That's right, gals." Mistress Mare-velous's smirking face peered over them. "Not only is Ole Bessie pretty tight with crooks, but she can choke the truth outta ya like a swallowed apple seed."
The Dazzlings gasped as the golden light emitting from the rope washed over them. When it faded away, they had transformed. Their bodies were now scaly and hairless. The upper-halves remained equine, though taller and thinner, but their backsides had been replaced by fish tails. There were murmurs as ponies started gathering round.
"Ha!" Mare-velous said, pointing at the three hippocampi. "What I tell ya? Can't hide anything from Ole Bessie here!" She brought her face closer. "Y'all thought ya could manipulate these ponies so y'all could feed on…whatever it was y'all were feedin' on!" She set her front hoof on them. "But ya didn't fool me! No, sir!"
"Mistress Mare-velous…"
The hero turned to see Twilight approaching. To Mare-velous' surprise, she was looking at her appallingly.
"What are you doing to the Dazzlings?" Twilight asked.
Mare-velous blinked. "Huh?"
"She's tied up the Dazzlings!" a pony said.
"Mare-velous has flipped!" said another.
"Tying up three poor innocent mares! The nerve!"
"W-What are y'all talkin' about?" Mare-velous asked in confusion. "Look at 'em! Can't y'all see they were playin' y'all?!"
"Let those poor girls go!"
"Sonata!" Pinkie shouted as she pushed through the crowd. "I'll save you, baby!"
Mare-velous glanced around anxiously as ponies brought out their cameras and phones. A chuckle came from Adagio, making the hero look down at her.
"It doesn't matter if they see our true forms," Adagio said, smiling tauntingly. "They're already under our spell."
"The way they see it," Aria said, "you just tied up three innocent mares for no reason."
"Ooh," Sonata said, cringing. "That's not gonna look so good for you, is it?"
The crowd was closing in on Mare-velous.
"I'd hightail it out of here, if I were you, Soldier of Demeter," Adagio said. "Something tells me you're not willing to fight fifty civilians."
"No matter how angry they are!" Sonata piped.
Taking one last look at the furious crowd, Mare-velous willed the rope to untie the Dazzlings, thus returning them to their pony disguises.
"This ain't over," Mare-velous said, lassoing her rope on one of the steel trusses in the ceiling.
Grabbing hold, she jumped and swung away from the crowd, trying to block out their angry shouts all the while.