//------------------------------// // 2. Nightfall // Story: Never Setting Sun // by Brony Parasite //------------------------------// Sunset groaned, she was shaking violently. She felt wrong. Her body felt… Bigger… Longer. There were parts of her body missing, and new parts added. This was shocking to her, fear turning her gut upside down. It felt like she was dying, that she’d come close more than once. Seconds turned to minutes turned to hours, and Sunset didn’t move. The pain, though, wasn’t the reason for her fear. What was, was magic. She didn’t feel any magic around her. Her special talent was useless. She was dead weight now. Nothing. The reason her mother- Celestia saved her from that damned orphanage wasn’t around her. She was lost. After an unknown amount of time passed, she felt someone tap her back. She was terrified. Uncurling from her fetal position, she looked up at whoever has tapped her only to come face to face with somepony that looked familiar… It was another Sunset Shimmer. Sunset Shimmer, protege of Princess Celestia, formerly all powerful Unicorn and scientific genius was beyond confused. This was impossible. It was beyond impossible. Nothing could’ve prepared her for any of it. “You couldn’t save me, sister…” The other Sunset said, and a wave of sorrow surged through the former Unicorn. “Celestia was right about you… You’re not ready.” The world around them morphed and altered to a point where nothing was recognisable. And the other Sunset, the former unicorn could only watch as her double’s chest exploded outward with blood, with an arm forced through her chest. The protege looked on in horror as the other fell to the ground, revealing another human looming over the two Sunset’s. Her eyes green and slitted like a dragon, hair an oxford blue, and her skin an ash grey where it wasn’t painted crimson. Sunset jerked awake when her chin hit the cold wood of her desk as the bell rang. The fiend who had so rudely awoken her was none other than Cirrus Cloud, one hand still above Sunset’s desk, where she had knocked the hand she was leaning on to wake her up. “Hey demon, class is over.” Cirrus said, glaring at the tired girl. This was another thing Sunset had to deal with, beyond her nightmares and the rather cruel whispers directed at her. The students of a few of her classes were jealous that she was able to “skip” through her classes. She only suffered in a few areas, as she’d already learned about things like science, math, a few languages that were used by Zebras, griffons and Minotaurs back in Equestria, and advanced thaumatic manipulation as Celestia’s student. She could understand their jealousy, quite thoroughly actually. What escaped her was why that jealousy came to form as hostility towards her. She accepted the beatings, of course. Hitting them back would do nothing except further cement her position as the outcast, if that was possible at this point. As her oppressors weren’t past the confusing days of puberty, and thus she knew that anything they might learn wouldn’t stick… Most of the time. Cirrus, meanwhile, snickered at Sunset’s emotionless gaze. The girl was wearing all black, a pair of spiked bracelets and collar. She had a green and blue mohawk with black ends, as well as a triplicate of earrings in her left ear, two studs and a small gold hoop that matched the one in her nose. “Demon’s a new one…” Sunset said dryly, and in a way Cirrus couldn’t understand as sarcasm or just plain boredom. This annoyed Cirrus to the point that she just left the room, leaving only Sunset and the teacher, Mr. Donkey, who went out of his way to ignore any student’s he came across outside of class hours. The groggy teenager looked at the palm of her hand for a bit as she absentmindedly packed her bag with the other. She couldn’t help but remember her first day on Earth. It started bad, having just run away from from the only pony to show her love, but gradually got better after she was… Sunset cleared her head before that line of thought went any further, standing up and walking out of the classroom. She’d put on her hoodie after the encounter with Fluttershy earlier, and so already had her hood up for the trek out of the school. The day of torture was over, leaving Sunset mentally worrying about the upcoming weekend. ‘Should I cancel? I really shouldn’t have said yes… What am I going to do!? I can’t socialize, I’ll be tired for my raid on the new nightclub run by that changeling guy... Kevin? Yeah, Kevin…’ As Sunset mulled over the possible ways she could horribly screw herself over with her schedule and plans, overbooking herself with the new additions to it, she hadn’t noticed the two girls stealthily following her. Rainbow and Pinkie Pie, decked out in Pinkie’s patented ‘ultra sneaky ninja disguises of awesome’ were following Sunset in the hopes of finding out the girl’s master plan towards their friend. Sunset had no idea the terror they’d unleash should she take one misstep, or mumble the wrong thing as she pondered her situation. Sunset’s walk home was simple for her. She stopped by a lemonade stand and bought a cup of said refreshment for a quarter, from a kid she’d come to expect to be there every day as she was on her way home. She helped a lady with her groceries, spending quite a while picking up and carrying an array of canned and fresh foods, getting $15 she’d spent a good ten minutes trying to refuse, before going to a nearby park and sitting at a bench to listen to music in peace, in an attempt to relax after spending that much time being in contact with another being. But before she pressed play, she heard the familiar voice of Pinkie Pie scream out at her. “Hurry up!” This caused Sunset to turn in the direction, but saw no one there. She narrowed her eyes before putting her MP3 player away, any thought of relaxing thoroughly banished to the back of her mind for the time being. She stood up and started to make her way home. On her way, she picked up the sound of footsteps on the pavement behind her, always around a corner or behind an obstacle, and always behind her no matter how many ‘wrong’ turns she made. She was being followed, and she didn’t like it. Pretending to continue her walk home to make time to come up with a plan to lose her pursuers, an idea came to her as she passed an alley. Continuing on her way until she came across another, this one ending in a 20 foot brick wall and was populated by a few stereotypical green painted dumpsters and some trash cans. Passing the entrance to the alley, and stopping at the other corner of the opening she looked around, her head swiveling in an attempt to look as suspicious as possible before she ducked into the alley and broke into a sprint, quickly ducking behind a dumpster Sunset began weaving a spell significantly more complicated than her usual fireballs or levitation, having finished it just as the pair of stalkers crossed the threshold of the alley. In an instant, Sunset Shimmer vanished in a colorless transportation spell. She opened her eyes to find herself in her bedroom, sitting on her bed. Once she affirmed that she wasn’t hallucinating because of a misfire Sunset went through the house, making sure that neither her parents or stalkers were there before she took off her hoodie to get herself into her usual casual clothes. One look at the pile she’d left them in however, had Sunset groaning. ‘Thank Celestia I decided to try a new look today and not just wear these to school, there’s blood all over them... With how late I stayed out last night, I would have too.’ Sunset applied a quick cleaning spell to the pile before sighing and getting herself dressed in her usual clothing. She needed something to cover her face, like a balaclava or a hockey mask. She couldn’t keep relying on shadows and the element of surprise to keep her face off the changeling’s, or authorities, radar. As well, she needed to stop leaving her ‘slip ups’ around the house, on the off chance her parents come home before school lets out and she has a chance to clean up. ‘Even with as little they’re here, they care. And I’m not sure how I’d explain a pile of bloodstained clothes to them without landing myself in a heap of trouble.’ Putting that thought out of her mind for now and deciding to get on with solving at least one of her issues tonight, Sunset pulled out her Android and opened the browser, before typing ‘Amazon’ in the search bar’. Coming to the site, she browsed the masks section until she saw something that interested her. She found a silver mask, smooth, shiny, and featureless beyond its reflective qualities, it still allowed the wearer to see without giving away a single detail of their face, it was perfect. It was also very cheap $5 plus shipping and handling. It was simple, light, and effective. She decided to purchase it. After her shopping was complete, Sunset sat on the floor of her room cross legged. On the blue carpet were symbols that were invisible to the untrained eye. They were stained oh so carefully into the carpet by magic. The runes glowed as Sunset closed her eyes, concentrating on pulling mana out of the circle surrounding her as fast as possible, without burning it out or hurting herself. In this world, magic was almost nonexistent. Unlike in Equestria, the magic on Earth wasn’t seeped into everything. Instead, it came from key points that could replenish magic. Sunset came to referring to these as Outlets. Her magic could restore itself on its own, but it takes hours or even days depending on how much magic she used. Thankfully for Sunset, she’d read up on an enchantment that could absorb and store ambient magic to replenish a pony whose magic had been severed from the world of Equestria. This wasn’t what they meant it for. The purpose originally was in case of an event like Tirek happened again. It acted as a way to turn up the water, metaphorically speaking, or in the event that Tirek were to return, it’d allow ponies to regain their magic. It worked wonders in a world without magic, however, and it even could be used as an amplifier, though it’d be useless for anything but enchanting as it wasn’t mobile. Something she’d found out the hard way as simply compressing the runes doesn’t work, the storage capacity of the circle being relative to the size of it.Meaning any circles small enough to carry with her would be about the magical equivalent of AAA batteries and while they would recharge, it’d take two just to provide the amount of magic needed to cast one spell, and a weak one at that. Getting to her feet when she felt her magic had been completely recharged Sunset let a smile come across her face when she realized her magic had grown a marginal amount. Even at this rate her power would continue to grow, and as soon as she was able, she would destroy the Changelings in one fell swoop. They would fear the Blacksun, no matter what Fluttershy did to her schedule. “Drats!” Rainbow snapped her fingers in aggravation. “Sunset’s a slippery one, ain’t she?” Pinkie looked dejected. “Aww, I’ve been waiting to make friends with Sunset for five-ever!” Rainbow gave her friend a confused stare, before realizing what she meant. “Oh… Well, she doesn’t make that easy. Wonder how Fluttershy did it and not me and you.” “It’s ‘you and I, Rainbow Dash.” Pinkie said, a laugh escaping her when she saw Rainbow giving her a deadpanned glare. “Like I give a crap about grammar.” Dash replied, almost venomously. Pinkie rolled her eyes, amused at Dash’s statement. “So this is why you failed english~” Pinkie Pie teased, causing Rainbow Dash’s face to light up pink. “Shut up!” Rainbow snapped at the energetic girl, who skipped her way out of the alley. “That teacher was so boring he put me to sleep, it’s almost like he was trying to fail me.” “Whatever you say Dashie~” Pinkie said in a teasing tone. Rainbow Dash just sighed at that. “You have something we can do?” Pinkie tapped her chin. “Well, I told Vinyl I’d help her with a party at her place. And stalking Sunset up till now is cutting it pretty close to when I said I’d be there.” “We weren’t stalking Sunset, we were finding out where she lives so we could grab her before she gets to Fluttershy next weekend.” Rainbow then pointed out. “Oh! I know where she lives! We were heading the wrong way.” Pinkie said, grinning. Rainbow’s eye twitched. “What…?” “Yeah, you just kinda grabbed me from out of the blue- er, cyan, and I thought you were playing ‘find the ninjas’ with Sunset!” At that, Rainbow felt a wave of anger wash over her. She wanted oh so much to knock Pinkie’s teeth in, but knew better than to hurt her friends. It wasn’t even her fault. The head of the sports club sighed. “Let’s just… Head to Vinyl’s place…” With that, the two made their way to Vinyl’s house. “This is Vinyl’s place!?” Rainbow gasped, jaw dropping. Pinkie and Rainbow Dash were inside a luxurious apartment that was bigger than both of their houses… Combined. It was clean, and white to a shiny degree, the furniture didn’t look a day old, and everything had a gold tint. “Yeah, Vinyl’s parents are super rich, something about being descended from old nobility that managed to keep their money..” Pinkie replied with a shrug. “She’s also super good with machines. She told me that she’s trying to make a transforming car!” Rainbow was at a loss for what to say. “We have the most bizarre student body ever…” “I dunno, Crystal Prep’s pretty weird.” Pinkie shot back slyly, only for Rainbow to shake her head. “No, I mean we have a wide array of weirdos. All of their weirdos are the same.” Pinkie nodded to that, agreeing. “Anyways, where’s Vinyl?” “Probably at her job.” “Job?” Rainbow asked, picking up a box at the door that Pinkie and her had brought up. “Isn’t she already super rich?” “She is.” Pinkie didn’t elaborate, which only confused Rainbow even more. Though she wanted to she didn’t press any further, she knew better than to push when Pinkie wasn’t completely open about something. “So… Why have I never heard of any parties going on here before?” Dash asked, changing the subject as she moved the box in her hands over to place on a seat. “Because Vinyl’s parents are always home, silly!” Pinkie giggled. “I’m setting up the party early!” “Early…?” Rainbow asked, confused. “Well… I’ll explain as we get everything ready.” Pinkie said, grinning from ear to ear. Dash never liked it when Pinkie had her devious grin on. Sunset sighed as she made her way out of her house, stopping to pet the blue husky laying on the livingroom couch. “I’ll be back, Ember.” Sunset stated as the red eyed dog looked away, as if she didn’t want to act sad that Sunset was leaving. Sunset knew she was a caring dog. She assumed that was why her parents had hired a dog sitter to take her in the weekdays. “Don’t worry girl, I won’t be long.” She assured, before exiting the house, turning left, and getting on her way down the sidewalk. Soon to be consumed in her thoughts again as she went. Ember hadn’t been staying there all that long. Her ‘brother’ had found the dog around a year ago and Ember had been living there ever since. Needless to say, she never liked him, but she was glad he brought Ember home. Even if he just dumped Ember on his folks and her before skipping the country to go to school in Germany. Exchange programs never made sense to Sunset, moving in general baffled her. Sunset had come to a decision concerning her wardrobe earlier that day, she was going to switch back into her normal clothing while at school. She supposed that the change in wardrobe might’ve eased Fluttershy into talking with her, which she’d scold herself for later when she was having dinner, but that was also a primary reason she was doing so, she wanted to change her look not get a social obligation the same day she was busy with… Things. Sunset grumbled to herself as she hid her face behind a black bandanna. Until her mask arrived she’d be stuck using one of her mother’s bandannas, specifically the one she’d never seen the woman wear… Thinking about that caused Sunset a bit of discomfort, knowing that she was using something of her mother’s to fight crime. It was beyond embarrassing too. What kind of vigilante has to borrow their mask from their mom? Minutes later, a thought occurred to Sunset. ‘I should get a voice synthesizer… I’ve seen them work in TV shows… I wonder if they’re usable in real life. Or if one would fit under a mask if they are. If not, I can always enchant this bandanna and wear it under the mask.’ She thought. However, in her deep thought, she hadn’t noticed she’d reached her destination. A Changeling hideout. It was a five story high hotel that had seen better days. It was of historic importance, as it was supposedly the second oldest building in Canterlot City besides the old Asylum a bit south, meaning it wouldn’t be torn down anytime soon. And the Changelings had defiled it ever since Mayor Mare announced that it would be a museum. Needless to say, it wouldn’t be for a long time. “Hey! Th’hell ya think you’re doin’? Ya should be on the east side with the other blac-” The Changeling guard began but was cut off by a loss of breath due to a teal ring of magic tightening around his neck, a matching glow surrounding Sunset’s hand. “Do I look like a changeling to you…?” Sunset asked in a distorted voice thanks to the spell she’d cast a little while before, in lieu of an enchanted bandana or a voice synthesizer. Her magic was really handy for that sort of thing on short notice. She then used a magically reinforced fist to collapse the grunt’s ribcage, puncturing his lungs and dropping him to the ground as he continued choking, this time on his own blood. Slightly curious how long the Grunt would last while simultaneously suffocating and losing blood, Sunset timed him. He didn’t last long. ‘Celestia damn it, how long is it going to take if I keep using my hands!? I’ll run out of magic long before I-’ Sunset’s train of thought halted when she noticed that the Changeling she had just killed was armed. ‘Hmm… I’m not trained in the use of guns, nor do I have the wrist strength to take the recoil.’ Sunset sighed. “Can’t be harder than laser tag if I use my magic to counter the kickback…” She then steeled herself as she took the gun. Judging by what her uncle had told her about such things, it was a 9mm pistol though she didn’t know enough to tell the exact model just by looking. It is an extremely common caliber of gun, making it just as common at crime scenes.‘I guess it helps to have a talkative uncle that works for the police department…’ The mage then cast a simple “seatbelt” enchantment. It was a spell of her own making based off of human seatbelts, which Sunset thought could come in handy if she ever fell from a far too high building, or something of the like. After a few simple adjustments, her enchantment was ready. “Here goes nothing…” Sunset remarked, before taking a deep breath and opening the door.