Gold sighed. It had only been a few weeks after the Fall Formal Incident, and yet pretty much everyone still avoided him like the plague. Not that he could blame them. Turning into a demonic creature fueled by out of control magic isn't the best way to make friends. But he was not completely alone. Beside him was the only fellow former resident from Equestria. Sunset Shimmer. "Let's face it Sunset. They could be treating us much worse than they are." Gold said as he surveyed the gym. Everyone was working hard on posters for the CHS's music showcase.
"Yeah. I guess we got off pretty easy." Sunset said with a weak smile. She then noticed the counterparts of Twilight's friends. "But no one said we had to take this road alone."
Gold then took Sunset's hand. "Hey. We both screwed up. But together we can make things right. No matter how others look at us."
"How can you say that so casually?" Sunset asked.
Gold's mind drifted to memories of his life back in Equestria. "Because hope's the one thing you can't afford to let go of. It's what keeps me going."
"At least you had something positive that kept you moving." Sunset said with a frown. "All I had in me was ambiton, an ego, and arrogance." Sunset then held herself. "When the magic hit me, it felt good. Like all of that was taken out of me. And at the same time, it hurt seeing how much of an idiot I was. And even before the magic, I felt so miserable inside." Sunset then felt Gold brushing the side of her face.
"Hey. You weren't the only one to tank a rainbow to the face. I was hit too. And I felt miserable too. But maybe this pain's part of the healing process." Gold gave Sunset a small smile. "A lot's changed since last year. Maybe the whole school does steer clear of us, but we both have at least a few friends. Ones who stick with us." Gold's smile then faded. "That gives us something to hold onto. Something we can hope to keep."
"Then try to sound more optimistic man." Burst said as he pat Gold on the back. "Smile more!"
Gold blinked. "You know, you're being awfully nice to me. Especially since I kinda ruined your life."
"Don't get me wrong. I'm still pretty mad about that. But at least things are back to normal now." Burst answered. "Besides. What you've been through is punishment enough. You don't need anyone giving you more grief. But since we're on the topic of the incident, there's something me and the guys would like to talk to you about. It concerns all of us." Burst led Gold to the rest of the guys. "The morning after the Fall Formal..." Burst pulled out a deck with a dragon symbol on the front of it. "Did you see something like this near you?" The rest of the guys pulled out decks similar to Burst's but their symbols were different.
Gold took a moment before slowly pulling out a golden deck. "You guys too?" Gold looked down at his deck. "What are these things? And just why did they show up with us?"
"I've got no idea." Burst said as he shook his head. "All we know is that keeping them on us feels right." Burst then pulled out one of the cards of his deck labelled Partner Card. "And apparently, these things are our partners." A white dragon was pictured on the card Burst had pulled out. The rest of the guys did the same. Inferno's card was a black dragon, Steel's was some sort of knight, Akage's looked like a ninja, North's looked like some sort of robot, and Tyrannus's looked like a dinosaur.
"Partner, huh?" Gold said as he pulled out his own partner card. On it was a red dragon with phoenix wings. "Just what are we gonna need these for?" Gold shook his head. "Moving on, is there anything else you guys wanted to talk about?"
"We were thinking we could use an extra singer in our band." Inferno said. "I'm on guitar, Ty's on bass, and Steel's on drums. Burst's already our lead. But we figured you could use a chance to hang around some good friends."
Gold blinked. "We're friends? What reason do any of you ha-OW!" Gold rubbed his head, and saw that Burst had bonked him.
"We don't need a reason." Burst answered. "Sometimes we just do. Now come on! I've got one heck of a plan for our performance! Tell me. Are you comfortable wearing a shirt based on the original Power Rangers?" And with that, Burst and the guys led Gold told them about the performance they were planning for the music showcase. At the same time, Sunset was showing a group of three new students around. But she felt something odd in their presence. Especially the necklaces they wore. Meanwhile, Burst and the guys had split up and went to their lockers to grab the shirts they were going to use for their performance. And as Burst placed his shirt into his back pack, he caught sight of someone he'd never noticed before. In fact, almost the whole hallway was fixed on her. The girl had on a pair of black boots, blue jeans, a navy blue top, and a black jacket. She had pitch black skin, but what caught Burst's eye was the brilliant teal of her eyes. However, Burst hadn't expected to catch the girl's attention. She shot him a glance before moving along. "Who are you?" Burst thought out loud.
"Her name is Nightmare Moon." A voice said. Burst turned around, and froze. In front of him was a young man who had grey skin, pitch black hair, and acid green eyes. A scowl plastered across his face. "You are fortunate she didn't find your gaze bothersome. Or I would have crushed you."
Burst frowned. "Geez. What's your deal? All I did was look at her. Is she your girlfriend? I wasn't hitting on her, so no need to freak out!" Burst then scratched his head. "Plus, that name sounds so scary for someone pretty like that."
"Know this." The young man said as he got in Burst's face. "I am Night Terror. And those who upset Nightmare deal with me."
"Aren't you a real knight in shining armor." Burst spat as he left. "What's his deal?" Burst rejoined his friends back in the cafeteria. At the same time, the Dazzlings enacted their plan.
"Ready girls?" Adagio asked with a smirk. And with that, the Dazzlings began to sing. Suddenly, almost everyone began to look dazed and entranced. However, Burst, the guys, and the girls noticed that they themselves weren't affected. Burst and the guys then pulled out their decks, and noticed the monster symbols glowing. However, as soon as the Dazzlings finished, Burst saw Nightmare Moon and her entourage take the stage.
"Well teach them to up-stage us. Won't we my beautiful Nightmare?" Night Terror asked as he put an arm around Nightmare Moon.
Nightmare Moon sighed, and pried Night Terror's arm off of her. "Let's just get this over with." And so, her band began to play. However, their music was so dark, so sad. And Burst couldn't help but notice that out of the band, Nightmare was the only one who seemed to not enjoy what she was performing. As soon as they were finished, the whole cafetria looked like they were in a gloomy mood. The Dazzlings also took notice of the talent of Nightmare's band.
"Okay guys. Change of plans." Burst said. "We're performing now. Someone's gotta bring back the smiles!" Burst, Inferno, Tyrannus, Steel, and Gold changed into their ranger shirts. Burst wore red, Inferno wore black, Steel wore blue, Tyrannus wore yellow, and Gold wore green. Burst and the guys got on stage. "It's morphin time!" And they began to play.
Song Burst and the guys play:
However, as Burst and his band performed, he wasn't aware that Nightmare was watching him. And as she gazed upon him, she saw how much fun he was having. But what really caught her eye was how happy everyone was made by their performance. "Interesting..." And with that, she walked off. Lunch period soon ended, and Burst and his friends went about the rest of the day. As per usual, Burst was humming whatever song popped into his head as he put away some of his books. However, he soon had an unexpected visitor. "Hello there." Burst nearly fell to the ground when he found Nightmare Moon not but a foot away from him! Burst recoiled a bit. "Oh, sorry for scaring you a bit."
"Well, you know how to surprise someone. That's a plus." Burst said with a small smile. "I'd have said hello to you earlier, but this guy called Night Terror said he'd deck me if I upset you. And he got in my face just for looking at you. What's his deal?"
Nightmare Moon sighed, and shook her head. "Sometimes I wonder why I'm even dating him." She then looked into Burst's eyes. "I'm sorry about that. He thinks of me as his queen and that no one else can even get close to me." Moon then frowned. "He thinks he knows me so well."
"Well, maybe he only knows the you he wants to." Burst said with a smile. "You seem so nice for someone with a name like Nightmare."
Nightmare Moon smiled. "That's one of the nicest things anyone's ever said to me." She then got a look at Burst's appearance. "I saw you perform earlier in the cafeteria. You seemed to be enjoying yourself up there."
"Gee...thanks." Burst said with a smile. "You were good too. I'm not a fan of that type of music, but you're good at what you like to do!"
Nightmare's smile fell. "...I don't like it. Not one bit." Burst was surprised by this, but continued to listen. "I'm just sick of it. All of it." Nightmare then leaned with her back against the lockers. A sad look in her eyes. "The darkness. The sadness. The anger. I hate it." Nightmare's fist then began quaking. "I hate it all!" Nightmare gripped her head in agony as a groan escaped her lungs. "When I met Night Terror, I was in a pretty dark place. I was angry and full of sorrow. He introduced me to his friends, and the songs we performed vented it all out. I got to get how I was feeling off my chest. At first, I was happy because I was able to vent my emotions. And I was also happy because I had someone who I thought understood me. But when I told him I was starting to feel happy, he said something I didn't expect. He told me it was just a phase I was going through." A bitter chuckle escaped Nightmare's lips. "And...I saw how sad our music was starting to make people." A sigh flowed out of her lungs. "I want people to smile when they hear me." Nightmare Moon then looked at Burst. "Kind of like how you made everyone smile when you and your band performed up there. I wish, I could have people smile at me like that."
"Well, I think I can help with that." Burst said with a smile. "If you don't feel like you belong with them, then don't stay with them. And find something to make you smile! It's as easy as that!" Burst was then surprised when Nightmare Moon pulled him into a tight hug. "Hey...where's this coming from?"
Nightmare Moon loosened her hold on Burst, and looked into his eyes. A genuine smile on her face. "Can't a girl say 'thank you'?" Nightmare Moon walked away. Smiling on the outside for what seemed like the first time. As she left, Nightmare Moon caught sight of the sound stage and spotted one of Burst's friends working. However, she frowned when she saw some students picking on him. She would have intervened, but stopped when she saw Sunset Shimmer come in and stick up for him. Seeing such a display brought forth memoris she'd long since left behind. 'My name's always been the source of my sorrow. Everyone would always tease me. Saying 'who would be friends with a nightmare'?' Then I met Night Terro. Things got better. For a while. And now it's happening again. And I was to scared to say anything.' She then looked at Gold and Sunset comforting each other. "Not anymore." Nightmare Moon walked away.
"Thanks for sticking up for me back there." Gold said with a smile. "But is it me, or is everyone acting on-edge ever since those three girls showed up? Especially after they started singing?"
Sunset nodded. "You and the guys noticed too Gold? Tell me. Did you feel something about them? Something odd?"
"Come to think of it...I did. I sensed magic from Equestria emanating from them." Gold's eyes widened in shock. "That must be why their singing is affecting everyone. But me and the guys were protected by these." Gold pulled out his deck. "I don't know why we have them or what they're for, but I'm not gonna ditch what's shielding us. But why weren't you and the girls affected?"
"I guess it's because the magic of friendship is inside us." Sunset replied. "Although, I don't know why I'm among that lot. I feel like everywhere I walk, I'm treading on thin ice."
Gold pulled Sunset into a tight hug. "You're not walking alone on this road." Gold then released his hold on Sunset. "Something tells me that things are just getting started. And we're gonna need as much help as we can get. There's gotta be someway we can contact Twilight."
"Wait. I think I've got a way!" Sunset said with a smile. Sunset took off, and returned a few minutes later with a journal in her hands. "Princess Celestia gave me this journal as a way to stay in contact with her. I just hope the counterpart is back in Equestria." Sunset opened the journal and started writing. "Here goes nothing...."
Meanwhile, Nightmare Moon had just arrived at Night Terror's place. Her band was assembled there. And as per usual, Night Terror slithered his way up to her. "Ah. It appears you grace me with your presence once again." Night Terror was about to wrap his arms around her, but she swatted him away! "What upsets you my queen? Tell me. And I shall rectify it swiftly."
"I'm done." Nightmare Moon said flatly. "I'm done with this band. I'm done with this sort of music. I'm done with you."
Night Terror recoiled in shock. "You must be out of sorts. Not thinking clearly." Night Terror put one of his hands on Nightmare Moon's shoulder. "Please. Let me hold you. Clear your head in my arms."
"No!" Nightmare screamed as she pried Night Terror's hand off of her! "I'm sick of it! You keep saying that! That I'm not thinking right! You're wrong! I AM sick of the sadness and rage you seem to enjoy so much! I don't have that in me anymore! I thought you wanted to stay with me because you wanted to help me move past it! But all you want is for me to stay there!" Nightmare then steeled her gaze. "Well I'm not staying there anymore. Or with you for that matter." Nightmare then began to walk out. "Farewell." Nightmare Moon headed back to CHS, and breathed a sigh of relief. "I've never felt this free before." However, her moment of relief was cut short by a realization. "Wait. Now I've got no place to stay." Nightmare Moon then looked at the ceiling in thought. "I've not had a home in forever..." Nightmare Moon closed her eyes.
"Hey there! Didn't expect to see you again so soon!"
Nightmare snapped her eyes open, and saw Burst in front of her. "Weird. Anytime I seem to be down, you tend to show up." A small smile crept across her face. "Forgive me, but I didn't get your name earlier."
"Burst Stream." Burst answered with a smile. However, his expression soon switched to a concerned one when he noticed Nightmare's mood. "Hey, did things not go as planned with dealing with Night Terror?"
Nightmare sighed. "No. I left him all right. But I realized that I'd been living with him for the past couple of years. And now I've got no place to stay."
"Well...maybe I can help." Burst said nervously. "My house has an extra room, and we really don't use it that much. That is, if you don't find something that works out. You don't have to-" Burst was cut short when Nightmare wrapped him in a tight hug. He smiled slowly as he returned the hug. "You're welcome. C'mon. I'll walk you home." And with that, Burst led Nightmare to his home. And for the first time in a long time, a pleasant smile overtook Nightmare Moon. Burst lay on his own bed. Thinking about all the craziness that had happened. "Something tells me things are only gonna get crazier. Well, whatever happens, those are worries for tomorrow." And with that, Burst fell asleep.