From within the great prison, The Vault, Onyx was walking past several cells. He bore a stone cold expression as he made his way over to Gojira Senior's cell. He stood before it, while Senior lied down on the bed in his cell.
"You certainly enjoy visiting me. I'm flattered," said Senior as he stared up at the ceiling.
"I'm here to interrogate you this time. Not make friendly chit chat," said Onyx as he drew out a tablet and played footage on the tablet and held it out to the cell.
"Does this place look familiar to you?" asked Onyx as the video played. Senior raised himself up and made his way over to the field that kept him within the cell. His eyes widened as he recognized the lair of the Guardians to have been filmed. Everything from his allies, the weapons, and even his son was present in the footage.
"One of my agents followed your son here. Normally he's assigned to watch over him to make sure no harm comes to him or that he does no harm, but now I'm growing concerned," said Onyx in a cold tone.
"Why is your son affiliated with your group?" questioned Onyx.
"He isn't," said Senior in a neutral tone.
"The fact that he is familiar with those inside of where you and your rogues were hidden contradicts that answer," said Onyx as he skipped to a scene where Junior was speaking to Manda.
"I better get some answers, Gojira Takeshi. If I gave the word, I can place your son on the watchlist for rogue Transmutants. I have the authority to bring him in and lock him in a cell right next to you," said Onyx. Senior growled as he slammed his hands on the field, which rippled.
"You stay away from him!" shouted Senior. Onyx was unfazed as he remained silent. A few guards came rushing by with their weapons drawn.
"Then convince me otherwise," said Onyx, coldly. Senior growled as his eyes bore a reptilian look to it. His blood was boiling. His own son was being threatened to be lumped up with him. He couldn't let Junior suffer for another one of his mistakes.
"I met my son and wife months ago. I couldn't stand to be away from them any longer, so I revealed myself to them and told them everything," said Senior in a neutral tone.
"So, they're involved in your group?" questioned Onyx.
"Of course not. I wouldn't risk my family being a part of this. But, I had to have my son meet my group. His inhibitor chip was gone, and he was struggling with his animal instincts and transformation. He needed guidance," said Senior.
"I wouldn't put it past you to brainwash your own son to join your cause of rogues," said Onyx with a scoff. Senior sent him a glare.
"My son is his own person. I only did what was needed to be a better father. I haven't been there for him for years, and he was getting worse. If I neglected to step in, I guarantee that you would have had to deal with him a long time ago," said Senior in a low tone. Onyx merely showed Senior the tablet.
"And what about the girl? We identified her as Sunset Shimmer. She's a 17 year human, and she apparently attends the same school as your son. How is she involved?" questioned Onyx as he showed footage of Junior walking along side Sunset, with a clear look at her face.
"I don't know anything about her. She must be a friend of my son's. I don't know why a human is there, when I had forbidden my son and my group from involving them," said Senior with a hard expression. Onyx hummed to himself as he skipped through the footage.
"Alright. But it seems that your group has something that has me interested, Gojira Takeshi," said Onyx as he held up the tablet and showed footage of a mobile curtain, where audio was the only thing of interest.
"I have to know what's going on. How is this Ark-" Sunset's voice garbled over the footage.
"The Ark is a very important object that has power that none of your scientists are capable of comprehending. Its power surpasses that of nuclear energy," said Amber from behind the curtain. "That's why Gojira Takeshi has rounded together these Transmutants, to protect the Ark."
Gojira's stomach tightened. Onyx bore a stern expression as he lowered the tablet. The Transmutant knew what this all meant now.
"The 'Ark' has been mentioned quite a bit. It seems to have a special importance as well. Now I want you to tell me, what is the Ark? And what is its function?" demanded Onyx. Senior bore a hard expression as the two locked eyes. There was no way out of this. The Ark's existence has been compromised, and now his comrades and family may suffer if he didn't give them an answer.
"The Ark isn't what you think it is. It's not a weapon," said Senior.
"Then what is it? Its power 'surpasses that of nuclear energy'? What the hell have you been hiding?" demanded Onyx. Senior gave a defeated sigh.
"The Ark is an ancient artifact that hails from another world," said Senior. Onyx bore a look of confusion, as well did the guards.
"Like outer space?" asked a guard.
"No, not exactly. I mean a world that's parallel to our own. Another dimension, if you will. Its content contains a powerful object that is beyond human understanding, and can be a dangerous tool in the wrong hands," said Senior.
"You expect me to believe that science fictional dribble?" deadpanned Onyx.
"I'm a prisoner, Onyx. My Transmutants' location is compromised, my family's fate lies in your hands, and the Ark's existence is known. I have nothing to gain by lying to you, Director," said Senior in a serious tone. The guards all glanced at each other, feeling that this man was loony in the head, though he seemed to be quite sincere about what he was saying. This only prompted them to think him more deranged.
"What does it do?" questioned Onyx.
"I can't answer that," answered Senior. Onyx glared at him.
"You would do well to answer, Takeshi. I just need to give a command, and my men will swarm your cave in the Everfree forest in seconds, wiping out every single one of your soldiers!" said Onyx. Senior growled at the threat.
"I can't answer that question because I'm not even sure myself," said Senior. Onyx bore a look of confusion.
"I only have a rough idea on what it does, which is to enhance individuals. There's more to it, but I don't know what exactly. What I do know is that Amber, the one who gave me knowledge about it in the first place knows all about the Ark's content," said Senior. Meanwhile, a man in uniform proceeded to make his way away from the area as everyone was distracted by Senior's tale. He quickly made his way away from the cell block and down to an elevator that took him to the surface. Then, he quickly made his way over to a room where a few computers were present and drew out a small object that lit up. It bore a speaker on the center and a button on the bottom.
"Get me Scar. I found out something interesting," said the man with a smirk.
Junior was sitting down in the living room of his home with a troubled look. Fluttershy was sitting next to him on the couch as she held her hands on her lap.
"So... That's the problem right now," said Junior as he drew out his phone.
"Battra has texted me asking if I could somehow convince Mosura to talk to him. But I don't know how to go about it," said Junior with a sigh as Fluttershy looked at the text on the screen.
"Oh my," said Fluttershy. She bore an uncertain look.
"W-Well, I don't know if it's really my place to say anything. This is a complicated situation. After all, her brother is the Night Angel," said Fluttershy. Junior sighed.
"I know, and that’s why I don't know how to go about this. I could end up pissing Mosura off again if I try to push her to talk to him. But she's been living at my place for a couple of weeks now. She can't live her forever. Pretty soon my mom is gonna tell me to marry her just so she can continue living with us!" said Junior in exasperation. Fluttershy looked down at the ground. It must have been nice to live under the same roof as Junior, especially waking up every morning to greet him for breakfast and giggling at his bed head. Fluttershy's heart fluttered at the thought. She then shook her head, scolding herself for having such weird thoughts that were not addressing the issue. Her cheeks flushed.
"Is she a problem?" asked Fluttershy.
"Well... no. I don't mind her company. But it's just that... I sometimes hear her crying at night," said Junior with a light frown. Fluttershy's expression softened.
"I just know that this is bothering her. And living with me isn't going to solve anything," said Junior. Fluttershy nodded.
"Then, why don't you tell her that?" asked Fluttershy. Junior looked to her with a raised brow.
"Tell her how you know it's hurting her. If you just tell her that you're telling her this because you care, she might listen. Just tell her what's in your heart," said Fluttershy with a soft smile. Junior slightly nodded.
"Hmm. Well, if you say so. I'll trust your judgment. Thanks for the advice, Shy. Glad that I can count on you," said Junior with a smile. Fluttershy smiled with a look of flattery.
"Y-You can count on me anytime, Goji. Don't be afraid to ask," said Fluttershy as she brushed her hair away from her eyes. The front door opened, revealing Mosura and Miwa carrying grocery bags.
"Junior, we're home!" called Miwa. She then bore a look of surprise as she found Fluttershy.
"Oh. Good morning, Fluttershy," said Miwa with a smile. Fluttershy stood up with a smile.
"Oh, good morning Mrs. Takeshi! Mosura," said Fluttershy. She turned to Junior as she cleared her throat.
"Um... Thanks for the advice, Goji. I'll text you later to let you know how it goes," said Fluttershy with a wink. Junior nodded to her, catching her drift. As Fluttershy left the house, Miwa and Mosura began to place the groceries in the kitchen.
"Advice? What advice did you give her?" asked Mosura in curiosity.
"Uh... that it's OK to be nice, but never let people walk over you," lied Junior. Though it was good advice that he thought Fluttershy might benefit from. He made a mental note to give it to her should the time arrive for that.
"Oh well that's good advice. Junior, Mosura, could you two put the groceries away? I have to get to work early today. Weekend shifts, you know," said Miwa as she rushed out of the kitchen. Junior stood up and made his way over to where Mosura was placing contents away where they belonged.
"Um... Mosu, can we talk?" asked Junior.
"Sure. What's up?" asked Mosura in curiosity.
"I think that maybe... It's time that you faced your brother," said Junior. Mosura stopped in place as she bore a blank expression. She then went back to putting contents away.
"I'm serious," said Junior.
"I know. It's just that I'm not ready yet. I thought we agreed to not discuss this?" asked Mosura with a glare.
"We did. But Mosura, you can't avoid him forever. You have every right to be angry at him. But he's your brother. He loves you," said Junior.
"That's hypocritical of you! What about Twilight and the others, Gojira?" questioned Mosura.
"This isn't about them, Mosura Yasu!" said Junior in frustration.
"But it's a similar situation!" said Mosura with a scoff as she turned away. Junior sighed in frustration.
"Mosura, I could honestly care less about patching things up with them. It's not an issue for me. But I know that you're hurting a lot with the situation with your brother. I hear you cry at night," said Junior. Mosura gulped as she clenched her fist as she lowered her head.
"I know you don't like being angry with him. And I know that he never meant to hurt you," said Junior as he placed a hand on Mosura's shoulder and turned her to face him. She avoided eye contact with him as the Transmutant placed his hands on her shoulders. Mosura sniffled as she planted her forehead against Junior's chest.
"What should I do?" muttered Mosura.
"Ultimately, it's up to you to decide. But, I personally believe that facing him is the best course of action," said Junior as he gently caressed her upper back. He then smiled.
"As much I like having you around, I need you to get the hell out of my house," said Junior with a joking tone. Mosura softly chuckled as she lightly punched Junior's shoulder.
"You jerk," said Mosura. She raised her head as she wiped her eyes.
"But, I think you might be right," said Mosura.
Fluttershy was walking down the side walk with a hum. She bore a smile and a cheery look on her face as she skipped along her walk. She had felt accomplished for giving Junior some possible good advice. It pleased her to know that he was appreciative of her advice and that he was happy to count on her. This caused her heart to do flips in her chest to being such a helpful friend to someone so dear to her. She flushed to herself as she thought to Junior's soft expression as he thanked her.
"Oh~. What is this feeling?~ My heart races, whenever I'm around you.~ So many emotions!~ Ever since I met you, my heart would flutter~. I feel like I can soar to the great blue sky!~" sang Fluttershy as she walked along the sidewalk. She began to hum, though she stopped as she found several squirrels to be heading towards her. She tilted her head in confusion at the critters approaching and then noticed a few cats and a couple of dogs to be approaching. Fluttershy slightly backed away as the animals approached. She then gasped in surprise as several birds landed on her shoulders, her head and index fingers. She stood still as stone as she glanced at all the animals approaching as they chittered, meowed, barked, and tweeted. Fluttershy bore a blank expression.
"Um... Hi," said Fluttershy with a forced laugh. A bird began to tweet from her finger.
"Oh? You liked my singing? W-Well, I'm not that good," said Fluttershy with a bashful smile. Then, her eyes suddenly widened. She looked at the bird.
"D-Did you..." Fluttershy stared at the bird with wide eyes. The bird tweeted again.
"N-No. No, I didn't know that I spoke bird. Wait, I-I don't think I'm even speaking bird," said Fluttershy with an unnerved look. A dog began to bark at her.
"Nope. Not dog either," said Fluttershy. A squirrel chittered as a cat meowed.
"Neither cat or squirrel," said Fluttershy. She then giggled.
"Oh! I must be dreaming! That's it," said Fluttershy as she closed her eyes for a few seconds. She then opened them, but found the animals still around her, all staring at her curiously.
"This isn't a dream, is it?" asked Fluttershy. All of the animals made a simultaneous call. Fluttershy bore a blank expression. She didn't know whether to be amazed or frightened.
The local library in Ponyville was filled with dozens of people. They searched shelves for books they desired, sat at the desktop computers, browsing the internet for their own purposes, and others sat at tables studying or reading through the books that they picked out, as was the case for Twilight Sparkle. The girl sat down at a table, with a couple of books stacked by her as she read through one of the books that were present with her. The covers read, "Patching Things Up", "So, You Screwed Over Your Friend?", and "Owning Up". These books were centered around the issue of losing a good friend due to an argument, making mistakes, etc. Twilight bore a sad expression on her face as she continued to read. While there were some helpful tips in this book, she was discouraged when they reached a point where an author states that sometimes it could be better if individuals end their friendship and never pick up the pieces due to either creating more stress or pushing the other away. This was something that Twilight could not accept as what she did to Junior was wrong and unfair. She not only refused to give Junior, the one she considered a friend, the benefit of the doubt over the X issue, but she also denied his innocence when he was acquitted. Twilight thought that she might as well have denied that she even knew his name. She sighed sadly as she closed the book and propped her cheek onto the cold table.
"God, I'm such an idiot," said Twilight as buried her face into her arms. When Junior denied her and the others' apology with such disdain and coldness in his eyes, it made Twilight realized just how badly that she had hurt him. That memory has been seared into her very mind, mocking her, damning her for her mistake. Twilight raised herself up as she sniffled, rubbing her eyes.
"I can't let it end like this," said Twilight with furrowed brows. Sure, she did screw up and there was a chance that Junior may never forgive her and the others, but that didn't mean that she was going to leave everything as it was. She just had to let her friend know how sorry that she was and that she wanted to start over, even if it took a million years for that to happen.
The petite girl got out of her seat and quickly made her way over to an aisle of book shelves. She began to quickly scan through the spines of the books that were exposed.
"No. No. No. Ugh! There must be another book that I can study to fix things. As she continued to scan, her eyes found a sight that made her crack a smile. She found another book that seemed to have been related to mending damaged relationships. However, this book was up high. Twilight took a breath bore stretching her arm out to the book. She stood up on the tip of her toes, straining as she attempted to reach the book. However, she was just too short. After several seconds of trying, Twilight groaned as she dropped down to the soles of her feet. Her cheeks were flushing hot as she recalled the times that Junior would bring up her height.
"Ugh! Why must I be vertically challenged?" moaned Twilight in misery as waved a hand. As she did this, her hand glowed with a raspberry aura, while the book suddenly levitated out of the shelf. Twilight's eyes widened as the book was suspended in the air with only a sparkling aura around it. Twilight fearfully backed away from this unnatural event.
"Uh..." Twilight whimpered as she bumped into another shelf. Suddenly, more books began to fall all around her. Twilight braced herself, but did not feel or hear the books colliding to the ground. She raised her head and gasped in shock as she found all the fallen books to have been levitating all around her.
"Aahh!" yelped Twilight as she frantically stumbled away from the floating books as she found her hand glowing. Suddenly, the books all fell to the ground.
"Shh!" hushed a woman from another aisle. Twilight gulped as she stared at the books that lied on the ground. She then stared at her hand, which shook with fear.
"What was that?" asked Twilight.
Rainbow Dash bore beads of sweat over her brows as she stretched. She wore a cyan jogging suit and was currently at the school's track, along with several other students. She cleared her throat as she stood before the students.
"Alright, guys. You know the drill. We need to get into top shape before our next game," said Rainbow as she popped the joints in her bones while letting out sighs of relief. The other students all gave verbal responses of understanding. Rainbow began to stretch her body as she stood at the track in the field of the school.
"OK. Three laps around the field, guys. And I better not catch any of you slacking," said Rainbow with a stern look. Again, verbal confirmation came from the students. Rainbow took a breath as she and her teammates crouched close to the ground as they prepared to start running. A girl blew a whistle, prompting the teens to break off running. They rounded the field to wrap up the first lap, while Rainbow Dash took the lead. She had yet to feel exhausted during her first lap, which was excellent for her. Having low stamina in the field was a recipe for failure, something that the girl was not intending to do.
She soon rounded her second lap, still in the lead while her teammates were steadily losing distance with her. Rainbow felt her adrenaline pushing her at great lengths, allowing her to endure. But suddenly, she felt her body beginning to sting and winced as her arms, legs, and chest sparked with rainbow colored electricity. Rainbow's eyes widened as she saw this, but then abruptly felt herself moving faster across the field. She didn't have enough time to process what was happening as she found herself leaving the track and then the school grounds.
Everything around her turned into a blur, including light. Rainbow Dash felt intense wind in her face as her muscles felt like they were pulling back from her face. Rainbow stopped running to see what the hell was happening to the world around her. As she stopped, everything around her became coherent. However, she noticed that her surroundings were completely different. Instead of day, it was evening. Rainbow stood before a Neighsian monastery in the middle of a valley with rolling green hills and tall mountains. Rainbow looked around incredulously and found a little village, just a couple miles away. Rainbow stared blankly from where she came from, where an ocean view was present.
"What the f-"
Applejack was humming to herself as she stood beside a tractor. Her eyes scanned through the engine as she raised one of her tools up. She was currently in the large backyard of her home, where several apple trees were present. Today, she was doing one of her chores on the weekend, which was the fix the tractor while her older brother delivered some of Granny's homemade apple pies to some customers down town. Right now, AJ was covered in sweat and grime, along with fluid from the vehicle.
"Let's see... Ah. No wait, that ain't right," said Applejack as she scratched the side of her head, getting grime in her hair, though she personally didn't mind as she lived her life getting dirty through a hard day's work. Though right now, she was struggling to figure out the problem with the tractor.
"Hey, Applejack!" called a young girl's voice, with a southern accent. AJ turned and found a girl with red hair, a pink bow, and overalls on. It was Applejack's little sister. She bounced a ball in the grass.
"Hey, ya wanna play some basketball?" asked the girl.
"Maybe later, Applebloom. I still got some work to do on this darn tractor," said Applejack as she reached for her tool box. She then groaned in annoyance as she looked around herself.
"Dabnabbit! Where the hay is that wrench?" asked Applejack in annoyance. Applebloom knelt down in the grass and looked under the tractor.
"Ain't that it down there?" asked Applebloom. Applejack looked under the tractor and found the wrench to be under it.
"Unbelievable," said Applejack as she shook her head. She didn't know how on Earth she had left it under the tractor. She was beginning to feel like she was losing her marbles these days. As if seeing a talking bug wasn't enough to make her question her sanity. Applejack got on her knees and held one hand beneath the tractor as she reached for the wrench on the ground underneath. She began to lift up the hanging loose metal on the tractor so that her free hand could grab the wrench. With ease, she lifted the metal and grabbed the wrench. But then she noticed that the tractor was raised up from its front just a foot off the ground. Applejack's eyes widened as she found herself holding the front half up.
"Wuah!" Applejack yelped with a start as she quickly flailed her hand away, but the tractor suddenly flipped up and fell backwards onto the ground. Applejack gasped in shock, while she glanced at her sister.
"D-Did you do that?!" exclaimed Applebloom. Applejack slowly looked back at the tractor as it lied on the ground. She then looked to her hand. She had to be sure what she did was real. Applejack made her way over to the tractor in a curious but also reluctant pace. She bent her knees down as she latched her hands under the tractor. After taking a breath, Applejack lifted with her knees and slowly lifted the tractor off its side and into the air. Applejack gasped as she found herself holding the tractor over her head with ease. Applebloom stared in awe, with her jaw dropping. The tractor creaked as AJ held it in the air, but she felt like she was holding a pillow rather than a heavy metal vehicle. She then gently lowered the tractor down to the ground on its wheels. She stared at her hands and toned arms. What she just did was not normal.
"Whoa." Applejack was only able to get one word out from her mind that swirled with many other thoughts.
"You're like a super hero!" exclaimed Applebloom with a grin. Applejack merely glanced at her, still in shock what she just did.
The air in the kitchen was filled with sweets and dough. Pinkie Pie was covered from cheek to cheek with powder from the cookie dough, as she carefully looked over the cookies that were on the pan. They all were cold and doughy and bore chocolate chips in them. Pinkie hummed to herself as she made her fingers into a camera frame shape as she stuck her tongue out, looking at the pan of cookies from different angles. So far, the process for baking these cookies was working out well, but there was still something missing. She hummed to herself as she held a hand under her chin. She then gasped.
"Needs sprinkles!" said Pinkie as she rushed towards the pantry and began to toss out items that were unnecessary for her gift. She muttered to herself as she searched high and low.
"Aha!" Pinkie pulled out a container filled with colorful sprinkles. She grinned as she ran back to the pan of cookies. She shook the container, hearing the sprinkles rattle against each other and then poured and spread them on the cookies. After she was done, she looked over the cookies again before adopting an unsatisfied look.
"Hmm. Something is still missing," said Pinkie. She then hummed as she squinted at one cookie on the pan.
"You. You need a little more sprinkles, mister!" said Pinkie as she poured a bit of sprinkles into her hand. She then dropped the sprinkles from her hand. However, the sprinkles began to glow pink and gave a high-pitched sound as they fell. Pinkie's eyes widened as the glowing sprinkles fell onto the cookie. Suddenly, a pink explosion blinded Pinkie's sight. Her hearing rang as she stood in place, seeing everything pure white.
Pinkie stumbled as she waved her arms everywhere in almost a panic. Her sight began to clear up, seeing the world around her as a blur, and then her hearing return. Pinkie rubbed her eyes and shook her head. She then stared with wide eyes at her surroundings. The kitchen bore scorch marks on the walls, while the counter was partially destroyed, with tile and wood scattered on the ground, and the cookie dough had spread everywhere in the kitchen. Pinkie slowly looked down around herself and the kitchen that was partially destroyed and made into a mess. She heard feet rushing over to the living room and found Maud coming into the kitchen. Maud’s eyes widened in shock as she found the kitchen in its messy state while Pinkie's hair was blown back and exposed her forehead. It looked as though she was caught in a storm.
"Pinkie Pie, what happened?!" asked Maud as she made her way over to her sister. Pinkie slumped her shoulders.
"I just... I just added sprinkles..." Pinkie bore a dumbfounded look. She then looked around the kitchen, finding the mess. Her eyes welled up with tears as she sniffled. Maud placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"It's alright. We can clean this up, no problem," said Maud. Pinkie wiped her nose with a sniffle.
"No, it's the cookies. I was making them for Goji," said Pinkie with her voice breaking. Maud's expression softened.
"He didn't eat the last apology cookie that I made. I was hoping that he would like these ones. I know that h-he likes chocolate," sniffled Pinkie. Maud brought her sister's head onto her shoulder as she patted her back.
It was the late noon. Rodan was strolling down the sidewalk alongside Eliza, who held her arms behind her back with a shy smile.
"I uh... I appreciate you accepting my invite, 'Liza," said Rodan with a chuckle and a nervous smile. Eliza smiled warmly at him.
"And I appreciate that you invited me. You're pretty fun," said Eliza. Rodan lightly flushed as he scratched the back of his head with a chuckle.
"You think so?" asked Rodan. Eliza nodded.
"I do! I spend a lot of times with my cousins. I never really had the opportunity to make friends. My cousins are pretty boring and always focused on studying. It's just so refreshing to be around someone who is carefree as you," said Eliza.
"Really? Why is it that someone as pretty as you couldn't get many friends?" asked Rodan in surprise.
"Ah. It's complicated. I guess you can say... I'm a little sheltered," said Eliza with an embarrassed laugh. She cleared her throat as she avoided eye contact.
"I've rarely interacted with those outside my family circle. So, I'm sorry if I'm a bit socially awkward," said Eliza.
"Nah. What makes you say that?" asked Rodan.
"I hear that your friend Gojira is a little unnerved by my presence," said Eliza with a whisper. Rodan gave a forced chuckle as he looked away, but his expression briefly hardened. He couldn't believe how insensitive Junior seemed to girls. From making Twilight cry, and acting rudely around Eliza.
"Don't worry about Gojira. He's like that with everyone," said Rodan with a forced smile. Eliza shook her head.
"No, it's alright. I may have come on a little strongly. I'm not offended," said Eliza.
"But still, his social skills suck. At least you're polite and nice. He's kinda a douche with everyone he doesn't know or like. He acts like the world is out to get him," said Rodan with a shrug. Eliza looked at him curiously.
"But isn't it technically? With you being Transmutants?" asked Eliza.
"Meh. It's not as bad as it was twenty years ago. I mean, there are still some places that won't serve us, and the government might be stricter on us, but aside from Purists, I say we're fine," said Rodan as he held his hands in his pockets. Eliza smiled.
"Hmm. I admire your optimism, Rodan," said Eliza. The two made their way down through the town. Eliza sighed in disappointment.
"I wish I was able to see you and your friends play, Rodan. Unfortunately, I was busy that day," said Eliza.
"Yeah, It’s cool. But hey, we can take this opportunity to hang out and have a good time," said Rodan as he pointed towards a small building in town, where the two entered. Eliza's eyes widened in surprise as she found the inside to have been dark, but dimly lit by arcade consoles that filled the entire place.
"Oh wow," said Eliza in fascination.
"I take it you never been to an arcade before?" asked Rodan with a smile. Eliza merely shook her head as she stared in awe.
"No, never. I don't even play video games," said Eliza. Rodan's eyes widened.
"Oh, you're missing out! Come on! Let's get some tokens and get to playing," said Rodan as he led Eliza further inside. Soon, the two were walking along several arcade consoles, where customers were currently occupying them.
"Ah man, this place is great, 'Liza. It's got old school consoles, even some of the modern stuff, they serve food and drinks, and you can win prizes by playing certain games with tickets you earn," said Rodan. Eliza looked around with wide eyes filled with wonder. It was like seeing color for the first time. The sound of arcade beeps and boops and other jingles from the games filled her hearing. Soon, Eliza found herself currently standing at a console where an image of Pac-Man was depicted on the side. Rodan was leaning against it as he began to point to the controls.
"OK, since you aren't savvy with games, I'll walk you through them. These things work by inserting these tokens into the machine. How many you insert depends on the machine, which is depicted on screen," said Rodan as he placed a couple of tokens in the console. A jingle filled the air as the game showed off the developer names and the titles of multiple games on a selection screen. Rodan then pointed to the control.
"OK, Pac-Man is limited to direction. You don't have to worry about these buttons, just surviving," said Rodan.
"Surviving?" asked Eliza with a raised brow.
"Yeah, watch," said Rodan as he pressed a blue button, selecting 'Pac-Man'. The game came on screen, where a pixel circle appeared in a maze, where colorful pixel ghosts began to escape from the center.
"OK, just move the stick around to move Pac-Man and get the dots. Try to not let those ghosts touch you or else you'll lose a life," said Rodan. Eliza smiled.
"Sounds easy enough," said Eliza as she moved the yellow character on screen. 'Waka-waka', the sounds that Pac-Man made as Eliza made him eat the dots as he navigated through the maze. Eliza began to quickly navigate the character, devouring every white dot in sight. She then gasped as she found a red ghost moving its way towards her character. She quickly backtracked and navigated through the maze with the ghost tailing her. As she attempted to simultaneously avoid the ghost and eat the dots, more ghosts began to leave the center and enter the maze. Eliza found herself rounding corners and moving in different directions to escape the ghosts until she found herself cornered. As the ghosts made contact with her, everything stopped. Pac-Man remained as a still yellow dot, slowly being consumed by darkness as a failure beeping jingle came from the console until Pac-Man finally shrunk into nothing. Eliza sighed in disappointment.
"Oh, forgot to mention. If you eat those blinking dots, the ghosts will turn blue and you have a temporary ability that lets you eat them to send them back to the center for a while," said Rodan. Eliza sent him a scowl.
"It would have been nice if you shared that information with me sooner," deadpanned Eliza. Rodan smiled sheepishly as he shrugged.
Soon, Eliza found herself playing on her next life. She began to become overrun, forcing her to make her way to a flashing dot and gained the invincibility.
"OK, try to use those dots sparingly. They don't come back after eating them," said Rodan as Eliza ate a couple of the closest ghosts. She yelped in panic as she lost the ability and began to retreat to the remaining dots. However, they were across the maze, and the ghosts that were already eaten had just returned to the maze, getting in her path.
"No, no, no!" said Eliza in a panic as the ghosts touched Pac-Man.
"Ah." Eliza groaned in frustration.
"It's all good, 'Liza." Rodan looked at the girl reassuringly. Eliza merely smiled.
"it's kinda frustrating, but also very fun! I... I think I like video games!" said Eliza as she went back to playing. Rodan grinned as he pumped his fist. This experience had to be every video game fan's dream.
Soon, the two teens were moving about every video game console that brought their interest. Well, mainly Eliza's interest. Rodan could come back anytime and play the games that he enjoyed the most on his own time, but he wanted to make sure that Eliza was having fun. Fortunately, this seemed to be the case. Eliza's smile and her immersion in the games caused him to smile himself and allowed him to have a good time. Hell, she even asked to try out some games that Rodan never really thought of trying here or being interested in and he was still having fun. Right now, the two teens were standing before a console with plastic rifles attached to a large console via black cords. They were shooting at xenomorph aliens from the film, 'Alien' that appeared on screen. It was here that Rodan realized that while not having played video games before, Eliza had some impressive hand-eye coordination. Here, she was displaying it well as she quickly spotted the aliens on screen and went for the kill. She was getting a higher score than he was! Rodan merely smiled to himself as he continued to game on with Eliza.
Later, the two were sitting at a table away from the games, with a pan of pizza in front of them and their own cups of soda. The two ate their food as they took their break from gaming. Eliza wiped her lips with a sigh.
"This has been a lot of fun, Rodan. Again, thank you for inviting me," said Eliza. Rodan nodded to her.
"Hey, I'm glad I did! You are amazing at these games! Are you sure that you're not a gamer?" asked Rodan. Eliza chuckled as she shook her head.
"No, I'm not," said Eliza.
"You could've fooled me. You got some of these button based games and that 'Alien' game down pretty well. You got some good hand-eye coordination," said Rodan. Eliza smiled with a blush on her face.
"W-Well, I do use a computer a lot. For my research," said Eliza. Rodan looked at her curiously.
"Hey, you keep mentioning this 'research'. What is it exactly that you're researching?" asked Rodan. Eliza briefly went silent. She cleared her throat.
"Well, I'm researching biology," said Eliza.
"Oh. You wanna be a biologist when you grow up?" asked Rodan.
"Something like that. I want to learn as much as possible about the biology of all life. With that knowledge, I believe that one day, we can find benefits to life if we better understand it and its functions. I guess you can say that I want to find the miracle cure," said Eliza as she stared at her cup. Rodan smiled.
"Hey, I'm no genius when it comes to stuff like science and stuff. But, I think it's awesome that you have some noble goal in mind," said Rodan with a look of admiration. He then rubbed his head.
"Me? I just want to be guy that people think is cool and would want to hang out with. I don't know, I guess I want to make people feel good. Maybe some kind of entertainer like an actor or a comedian. But that's nothing compared to your goal," said Rodan. Eliza placed her hand over his own, causing Rodan's heart to jump as he looked at her. Eliza had a warm smile on her face as she held Rodan's hand.
"You be who you want to be, Rodan. If you want to make people feel good through entertainment and laughter, then go for it. It's what you want to do. Sometimes, the world needs people who are there to bring smiles onto others' faces. Besides, it's what you did for me today," said Eliza. Rodan lightly flushed as he looked away.
"Wow. I... I never thought of it like that," said Rodan. He then looked to Eliza's hand as it was over his own. He then slowly began to move it and held Eliza's own, locking fingers. He then looked to Eliza, who stared at him with a flushing cheeks. The two bore hearts that raced in their chests as they locked eyes with each other. Rodan couldn't help but find himself slightly leaning close to Eliza over the table. Suddenly, a buzzing and jingle sound filled the air, prompting Eliza to tear her eyes away from Rodan and to reach into her pocket and drew out a phone.
"Oh. Hold on," said Eliza. Rodan groaned as he slumped his head on the table in disappointment as Eliza answered her phone.
"Hello? Yes. No. No," said Eliza as she bore an annoyed look. She then groaned.
"No, I'm... OK. Alright, I'll be there," said Eliza as she hung up. She sighed as she released Rodan's hand.
"I apologize, but I have to go. My cousins need some help with something at home. But again, thank you very much for this. I hope that we can do this again soon," said Eliza as she smiled at him. Rodan raised his head up with a smile.
"Hey, just hit me up and we'll hang out again. Next time, you get to choose what to do," said Rodan. Eliza nodded as she was about to take off. She then glanced back at Rodan with a thoughtful look on her face. Rodan raised a brow at her as Eliza made her way over to him. She placed her hands on his cheeks and turned his head and brought him close to herself. She planted a kiss on his forehead, causing Rodan's eyes to widen as his flush intensified. Eliza smiled as she waved to him.
"Until we meet again!" said Eliza as she began to rush out of the arcade, leaving Rodan alone. He sighed to himself as he slumped in his seat.
"Rodan, you are one smooth dude," said Rodan as he took his cup and drank his soda.
Rarity was currently standing in the doorway to the establishment, 'Carousel Boutique', waving.
"Alright, I'll be in tomorrow morning! Thank you!" said Rarity as she left the building. Right now, she had to just gotten off work. And best of all, she had just received her paycheck today. She hummed to herself as she walked home, looking forward to cashing her check. This would give her some more funding to buy materials to work on her own sewing. As Rarity walked, she heard rumbling in the air. She shot her head up in the air, finding that the blue sky had become covered by storm clouds above. Rarity's shoulders slumped.
"The forecast said that it was going to be sunny..." muttered Rarity. She hadn't brought her umbrella with her to work today, meaning that it was out home and she herself was miles away, without an umbrella. Suddenly, rain drops began to fall from the sky, landing on the ground all around Rarity. The girl gave a panicked cry as she hid her check in her coat and held her hands over her hair.
"Oh! Oh! Oh! No!" cried Rarity in misery as the rain drops fell over her.
"No, I can't get soaked! My check! My clothes! My hair!!" wailed Rarity in misery as she held her hands over her head. Suddenly, her hands glowed a light blue, where a diamond shaped object appeared above her head. Rarity's eyes widened in shock as she found the transparent, flat object floating over her head. It softly glowed as it shielded her from the rain above.
"What on Earth?" Rarity stared in awe as she dazzled by the sight above her. She lowered her hands and the diamond shield suddenly began to flicker and disappeared, allowing for the rain to fall back on her.
"Ahhhh! No! No, come back!" cried Rarity as she frantically waved her hands in the air as she was getting soaked. Suddenly, the shield reappeared again, but this time in threes. Three diamond shapes were stuck together, creating a larger space shade over her. Rarity sighed in relief but then stared at her hands, which softly glowed as the diamonds did.
"Am... Am I doing this?" asked Rarity in shock. She slowly began to move her hands from side to side, allowing the shields to hum as they followed the motion of her hands. She gasped as they did this.
"Incredible," said Rarity in awe. Though she couldn't explain what was happening and how she was doing this, it was incredibly fascinating to her. Not to mention that it was keeping her dry. Suddenly, she heard a great whoosh passing by her, blowing strong wind over her.
"Ah! My hair!" cried Rarity as her hair was blown through the wind. She then noticed a rainbow streak covered in sparks to be moving through the road, which then crashed into a brick wall ahead down the street. Rarity quickly ran to investigate, all the while making sure that her shield remained over her. Rarity came to the end of where the rainbow stopped, finding Rainbow Dash to be on the ground on her rear, rubbing her bruised head.
"Ouch! Ow! Ow! Ow!" whined Rainbow as she held her throbbing head. Rarity's eyes widened.
"Rainbow Dash?!" exclaimed Rarity. Rainbow shook off her pain and looked to Rarity with wide eyes.
"Rarity? What the heck is that?!" exclaimed Rainbow as she pointed above Rarity.
"I-I don't know! It just appeared out of thin air! I think I made it, somehow. But never mind me, what happened to you?" asked Rarity. Rainbow shakily stood up as she was soaked in the rain, while still rubbing her forehead.
"Mm. All I remember is that I was running laps with my soccer team. Suddenly, I felt like my body was stinging, kinda like those static shocks when you go down the slide or rub your feet on carpet with footie pajamas," said Rainbow as she winced.
"Then all the sudden, I found myself running through some weird colorful tunnel or something. Next thing I knew, I was in Chin-nai!" said Rainbow. Rarity's eyes widened.
"Wait, what?" asked Rarity.
"I... I think it was Chin-nai. Nobody spoke Equish and everything looked like it was from Neighsia. I tried to run to find someone to help me, but I ended up in like two other different countries! I ended up in Mexicolt, then I ended up Zebrica, almost gotten eaten by some lions, then I finally managed to get back here by sheer luck!" said Rainbow.
"You... You ran?" asked Rarity with an incredulous look. Rainbow nodded.
"I did! Rarity, something is wrong and it’s kinda freaking me out. I think it has something to do with that Ark the bug was talking about," said Rainbow. Rarity looked down as she bit her lip. She couldn't think of any other explanation as to why this was happening to them. The moth that talked about the Ark did say that they would be experiencing changes. Rarity felt that it was safe to assume that these were the changes that she was referring to.
"If that's the case, we should consult with the others. Maybe we should talk to Gojira about this," said Rarity.
"Gojira? Are you kidding? He hates our guts!" said Rainbow. Rarity sighed heavily.
"I know. But we must talk to somebody about this. This might get worse!" said Rarity. Rainbow sighed as she rubbed her head.
"OK, let's go meet the others and talked to them about this. Maybe we'll be able to figure something out," said Rainbow as she was about to run. She looked down at her feet with a grimace as she slowly put on foot down. She then began to cautiously walk on the side walk, taking nervous breathes as she slowly made her way down the sidewalk. Rarity bore a raised brow as she watched her.
"What are you doing?" asked Rarity.
"I-I don't wanna end up in another country again!" said Rainbow in a nervous tone. Rarity sighed as she walked alongside Rainbow Dash.
"Walk with me, darling. At least you can keep dry," said Rarity as she and Rainbow walked through the rain with the diamond shields above them.
Eliza quickly rushed home as rain showered over her. She panted as she ran, while her hair and clothes were close being completely soaked. She soon ended up coming across a house that appeared to be dark. No lights were on, signaling that no one may have been home. Eliza rushed to the house and drew out a key and unlocked the door. She entered the house, getting out of the rain with a sigh of relief. She made her way into the dark, cold living room as she removed her sweater and began to make her way over to a hall way where she drew out a towel from a cabinet. As she dried herself, she lowered the towel. She gasped as she found Harold standing by her with a cold stare.
"You're late," said Harold. Eliza scoffed in annoyance as she walked passed Harold.
"It was raining! Plus, I was far from the house. I got here as soon as I could," said Eliza as she made her way over to the living room.
"You shouldn't even have been out there! We have work to do!" said Harold.
"Yeah, well maybe I just needed a break! Maybe I just wanted to have some fun to blow off steam before throwing myself back into work!" said Eliza in annoyance. Harold merely glared at her. Eliza gasped as she felt her shoulder pulled on and she was forced to face Chris, who bore a look of anger.
"You are expected to do your job! You cannot just abandon your duty because of some boy!" said Chris. Eliza pulled away from Chris.
"He is not just 'some boy'! He's sweet, kind, and he at least offers some positivity to my daily life! You two are just a bore to be around!" said Eliza.
"A bore?! We didn't come here to play!" said Harold. Eliza scowled as she crossed her arms as she looked away from the boys.
"He's not happy. In fact, he has something to say to you," said Harold as he drew out a phone. Eliza glanced at it and sent Harold a dirty look. She then snatched the phone from his hand and placed it against her ear.
"I have been told everything, my dear. This is unacceptable," said a masculine voice that sounded elderly over the phone. Eliza sighed.
"But I-"
"You are to be doing research! Not frolicking with boys! Now unless you want to be replaced by someone more competent, I suggest you get back to work. And just to make sure you do your job, you are forbidden from having contact with that boy. Is that clear?" asked the voice over the line in a stern tone. Eliza's eyes widened.
"But... I... Yes, sir," said Eliza. Her heart felt heavy as she felt herself tearing up.
"Good. Do not disappoint me, E'liza," said the voice over the line. Eliza handed Harold back the phone.
"Come. We must finish our research," said Harold as he and Chris began to make their way down the hall of the house. Eliza's eyes watered as she stared at the ground. She shook her head as she looked back at the two boys with a hard expression and clenched fists.
Sunset Shimmer was currently sitting down in Erika's living room. She looked down at her lap with a heavy sigh.
"So, that's all I know. I couldn't get any useful information out of her," said Sunset with a look of defeat. Erika hummed.
"That does sound frustrating," said Erika.
"I just can't believe that what she is saying is true. There's gotta be some logical explanation for what it is that they had and what is happening to us and the Dazzlings," said Sunset in frustration. She then shook her head.
"I'm beginning to wonder if this is even real. What's been happening could be my own imagination," said Sunset.
"But you said that you could see things, right? You could feel them too. Could it really be your imagination?" asked Erika in curiosity. Sunset looked down at her lap. Then, a memory returned to her. She remembered during the shooting at the school, she had touched Xenjira and ended up finding out that he was actually X. She saw things from his perspective and how he was the one that Flash had filmed. She was inside of his head and it felt so real, but the rational part of her denied it. But this thought was plaguing her to no end. She had to be sure. Maybe, this could have been a good excuse to see what was going on with Erika.
"If... If I can see things with just a touch..." Sunset scooted closer to Erika on the couch, who looked at her curiously.
"Maybe... It might be real after all," said Sunset as she looked at Erika's arm and reached for it. Erika did not resist as Sunset's hand made contact with her arm. Sunset gasped as her eyes became white.
Sunset found herself staring at Erika as she found her being constricted by green eye-less serpents. Erika screamed in terror as she was squeezed, attacked, and chased by shadowy figures and serpents. Sunset then saw that Erika was screaming at nothing in her own reflection as she dropped to the ground in a panicking ball, weeping to herself. Sunset gasped as she released Erika's arm, panting.
"Did it work?" asked Erika. Sunset slowly nodded in utter disbelief.
"It... It might be true. Oh gosh..." said Sunset. She then remembered what she saw.
"Erika..." said Sunset as she stared at her friend. Erika looked away.
"What?" asked Erika.
"You're having reoccurring nightmares," said Sunset. She placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Why didn't you just tell me?" asked Sunset. Erika scoffed.
"I thought they were nightmares. But even after I wake up, I keep seeing things from my nightmares. Something is wrong. Very wrong," said Erika with a fearful look.
"Hey, you're probably just very scared with these dreams and they're messing with your head. They're not real," said Sunset. Erika shook her head.
"No, no. You don't understand. Every time I see these things, it feels like there's evil with me," said Erika as she trembled as she brought her knees to her chin.
"I keep seeing them in my dreams, I keep hearing them and seeing them when I'm awake," said Erika as she shook. She then looked to Sunset as she was as pale as a ghost.
"They're demons. I think I'm possessed by demons," said Erika.
"Erika... No, you're not possessed by demons," said Sunset as she held her friend's shoulder.
"I must be! I keep seeing them everywhere in this house! Outside, I keep seeing those snakes! I keep seeing shadows!" said Erika in a panic as she held her head. She began to weep as she lowered her head to her knees.
"Lord, why is this happening?" asked Erika. Sunset wrapped her friend into a comforting hug. It was ludicrous to think that her friend was being haunted by evil spirits. It had to be just her being shaken up by the dream. Whatever it was, Sunset was determined to help her friend get through it.