//------------------------------// // Sunset's Awakening: 8/27 [1] // Story: Persona: Phantom Thieves of Canterlot // by KyleK12 //------------------------------// Mon. 8/27 (Early Morning) Cadence woke up Sunset bright and early for her first day at her new school. After a quick shower, Sunset changed into a light-blue top with jeans and her usual leather jacket. Her guardian had prepared a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs which Sunset dug into eagerly. The sky was cloudy when Sunset left the house for school. Cadence had offered her an umbrella, but she turned it down. With luck, she would be able to make it to Canterlot High before it began to rain. Unfortunately, she had no such luck. A sudden heavy downpour forced Sunset to use her backpack as a makeshift umbrella. Puddles splashed as she hurried to make it to school before she was soaked to the bone. The occasional raindrop landing near Sunset’s eye often forced her to close them sometimes, cutting of her vision for a little time. This momentary loss of vision was how she bumped into someone. She and her unwitting victim both fell onto the wet concrete. “I’m so sorry,” Sunset quickly apologized, getting herself back onto her feet. The girl she accidentally knocked down looked up at her with a terrified expression, her umbrella lying next to her. Rain began to wet her pink hair as Sunset offered her a hand. The girl looked at the hand hesitantly before grabbing the umbrella with one hand and taking Sunset’s offered one with the other. “Sorry about that,” Sunset said while pulling the other girl up. She retreated under her backpack when the girl was back on her feet. “I should’ve paid more attention to where I was going.” The other girl seemed to be trying to look at anything other than the person who bumped into her. Before leaving, Cadence had encouraged Sunset to try and find the opportunity to make friends; this seemed like as good a time as any. “My name is Sunset Shimmer,” she introduced herself. “What’s your name?” The girl looked down at her shuffling feet. “My…name is...Fluttershy.” “Sorry,” Sunset responded, “I didn’t catch that.” “Fluttershy.” “Maybe, one more time.” “Fluttershy!” A male voice interrupted before the girl could answer. They both looked to see a black muscle-car driven by a blue-haired boy pulling up next to them. “It’s raining hard, Flutters. You need a lift?” The girl, now known to Sunset as “Fluttershy”, quickly nodded. She began moving towards the car but stopped to look at the leather-clad girl. She quickly handed her the umbrella before entering the car. “Thanks!” Sunset said as the girl closed the passenger door. She was grateful for the coverage the umbrella provided. The last thing Sunset saw before the car window rolled up was Fluttershy’s green eyes filling with despair. Sunset’s phone pinged from her pocket. Taking it out, she saw that the smartphone was already unlocked and that an app was already running. The strange app—the same that Sunset thought she had deleted already—quickly changed from its eyeball logo to a map of the surrounding area. What the hell? Is this GPS? As the car began moving away, a shout could be heard. “WAIT!” Sunset turned to quickly to see another girl sprinting towards the car. “HOLD IT! I NEED A RIDE TOO!” The car had already zoomed ahead, leaving her behind. Sunset got a good look at the girl as she slowed to a stop. The blue-skinned girl wore a white shirt with a blue jacket and a white-and-purple skirt. The most eye-catching thing about her had to be the hair, which boldly showcased every color of the rainbow. The girl panted as she took on an angry expression. “Oh, is that how it is?” she shouted. “Well, screw you Flash Sentry!” “Flash Sentry?” Sunset asked herself, unaware that the app had picked up on her words. “Candidates found!” The synthesized voice drew a surprised gasp from the rainbow-haired girl, who quickly turned around. When she saw Sunset, her eyes narrowed. “What are you looking at?” the girl asked rudely. “You got some problem with me, Bacon Hair?” Bacon Hair? Seriously? She stormed up to Sunset. “You one of Sentry’s groupies or something? If you rat me out to him, you’re gonna regret it.” Sunset felt herself get angry. “One,” she began to count, “I’m new here; so, I don’t know who you, or this Flash Sentry guy is. And two, you should be very careful before you call someone names, Pride Parade.” At first, the rainbow girl looked like she wanted to punch her, but her angry expression dissolved into guffaws of laughter. “Oh, man,” she snickered. “Never heard ‘Pride Parade’ before. That’s a good one.” The girl clapped a hand on Sunset’s shoulder. “You’re alright, new kid. The name’s Rainbow Dash, what’s yours?” “Sunset Shimmer,” she answered. “I’m a sophomore. You?” “The same,” Rainbow answered. “So,” Sunset began, “what’s your beef with that ‘Flash’ guy. He seems real close to that girl; I think her name was ‘Fluttershy’?” Rainbow sighed. “I thought that was her. I just don’t know why she’s been hanging around with that asshole lately.” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “I’m guessing you don’t like him so much?” “Damn straight!” Rainbow said. “That guy thinks he’s the effing king of Canterlot High! I swear, he treats that place like it was his own castle.” “Result found! Beginning navigation.” Sunset’s eyes must have been playing tricks on her; she could have sworn everything was purple for a second or two. Rainbow must have thought the same. “What the heck was that?” Sunset was surprised that she saw it too. “What was what?” Rainbow seemed to think for a minute before shaking her head. “It’s probably nothing. Come on; we’d better get going, or we’ll be late.” Wanting to avoid being tardy, the two girls began to high-tail it to the school. As they ran, neither noticed that as they stepped into puddles, the droplets from the splashes froze in mid-air. It had seemed like time had decided to stop working. Eventually, the girls reached where the school should have been. What they saw, made them both stop dead in their tracks. In the place of the school was a large castle, the kind that Sunset thought would belong in medieval times. The Wondercolt statue was gone and, in its place, stood someone dressed in regal attire. “What the hell?” Rainbow said. “Where’s the school?” Sunset turned to see the sign for Canterlot High School not too far away from them. “According to that,” she said, “this is it.” Rainbow kept looking from the sign to the castle, her brain trying to process what her eyes were seeing. “Well,” she said, “only one way to find out. Let’s head inside.” Walking past the statue, the two entered the castle through its large doors. What they saw was a massive foyer with a grand staircase leading up to the second floor. “What the heck? This isn’t the main lobby,” Rainbow said confused. “This place looks like a set for a tv show.” It was silent for a moment, but then the air shimmered around them. The room seemed to change into the lobby Sunset saw yesterday, but it quickly dissolved back to the castle setting. Rainbow gasped. “You…you saw that, right?” she asked. “The school was right here, then it was gone.” Sunset took her phone out, hoping to call Cadence for help. When she unlocked her device, she saw zero bars on the top-left corner of the screen. “Damn,” she cursed, “no service.” “Seriously?” Rainbow looked at her incredulously. “How can this get any worse?” Clanking soon echoed throughout the room. Both girls turned to see someone dressed in knight’s armor walking towards them, sword and shield in hand. The knight also seemed to have some sort of mask over his face. Rainbow gave a sigh of relief. “Man, I freaked out over nothing. You’re a student, right? Or one of the teachers?” She approached the knight. “That costume is really awesome! Where’d you get it?” The knight continued to stare at them in silence. “Aren’t you gonna say something?” Rainbow asked. “Speak up already!” A second knight soon approached the two, his weapons drawn as well. Both Sunset and Rainbow began to worry. “Uh, what’s going on?” the blue girl asked, completely confused. Light reflected off the razor edge of both swords. “You know,” Sunset began, “I’m starting to think those are real.” Both knights began to approach them “Whoa, hold on,” Rainbow said, both hands in the air. “Let’s talk about this!” Sunset had a different idea in mind. “Run for it!” They only got a couple of steps before more knights showed up. One of them struck Rainbow Dash with its shield, while another grabbed ahold of her. Sunset felt a punch to her gut, knocking the wind out of her. As Sunset’s vision began to go black, she could hear a single distorted voice. “Take them away!” (Morning) “Hey! I really need you to wake up.” Sunset opened her eyes to see Rainbow Dash hovering above her. “Oh, good,” the blue girl sighed in relief. “I’m glad you’re up. I was worried you were never gonna wake up.” Sunset sat up and looked at her surroundings. Exposed brick walls surrounded her on three sides, with a set of iron bars on the far side. What is it with me and prison cells? First that dream, now this place. “Where are we?” Sunset asked. Rainbow shook her head. “Some kind of dungeon, maybe. I’ve been trying to find a way out since they locked us in here. Nothing yet.” WWWWWAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHH! Both girls jumped up in surprise. “What the hell?” Rainbow said surprised. “Are there other people down here too?” A familiar clanking noise was heard, and a trio of knights appeared in front of their cell. “Be glad that your punishment has already been decided upon,” the guard said with the same distorted voice. “Your charge is ‘unlawful entry’. Thus, you will both be sentenced to death.” Rainbow snarled. “That’s bullshit! What gives you the right?” A familiar voice spoke up behind him. “No one’s allowed to do as they please in my castle.” Walking up to the cell, Sunset could see a blue-haired teenager the same age as her and Rainbow. He was draped in a red cape that left his bare legs exposed and a gold crown adorned the top of his head. Rainbow’s eyes widened in recognition. “Flash? Is that you?” Flash…as in Flash Sentry? Sunset’s mind went back to a memory of the boy driving the car. “Flash” snickered. “I thought it was some petty thief, but I didn’t expect it to be you, Dash.” He shook his head. “Still trying to disobey me, huh? You still haven’t learned from what happened last time, haven’t you?” His eyes landed on Sunset. “And it seems you brought along a friend. Not surprised, you’re not smart enough to do this on your own.” Rainbow banged on the bars. “This isn’t funny, Flash. Let us out asshole!” “How dare you speak to a king like that,” “Flash” barked. “It seems you still have no idea of the situation you’re in. Not only did you break into my castle, you have also insulted me—the king.” He gave a cruel sneer. “The punishment for that is death.” “Flash” swung his arm forward; his cape parted to reveal the black trunks underneath, leaving his torso bare. “Enough of this! Let the execution begin!” At his signal, the knights opened the cell and stormed in. Both girls were forced to the back of the space. “Damn it,” Rainbow said. “This can’t be real.” She suddenly shouted as she tackles one of the guards, knocking the knight to the ground. “C’mon, let’s make a break for it.” Before she could run though, Rainbow was punched in the gut by another knight. She soon found herself surrounded by the other guards. “Get away from her,” Sunset shouted, pounding her fists on one of the guards. “Just go!” Rainbow managed to shout at the other girl. “Get out of here!” “Flash” laughed cruelly. “Running away, are we? What a heartless friend you are.” “She’s not my friend,” Rainbow retorted, before looking to Sunset. “Hurry up and go already.” “Flash” just laughed again. “Too scared to run away?” He chuckled. “Pathetic scum like you isn’t worth my time. I’ll focus on this one instead.” Sunset soon found herself against the wall, a sword pointed at her throat by one of the guards. The other two held Rainbow up by her elbows while Flash slapped her, the slaps soon becoming punches. “Lowly scum,” “Flash” mocked. “Pathetic vermin.” He then had the guards throw her against the opposing wall. “A peasant like you isn’t worth beating. Right now, it seems like the perfect moment for you to die.” Despite the sword, Sunset had to speak. “Stop this! Have you lost your mind?” Flash looked back to glance at the speaker. “Don’t tell me you don’t know who I am.” The guard moved aside as “Flash” approached Sunset. “That look in your eyes irritates me.” A sudden kick knocked Sunset flat on her back. “Hold her there,” he commanded, “I need to deal with this one first. Once she’s dead, it her turn to die.” Two guards held Sunset up to the wall, while a laughing “Flash” approached Rainbow. For some reason, Sunset’s mind kept flashing back to that night. “What’s the matter? Are you simply going to watch?” Sunset found herself looking around, trying to find the source of the voice. “Would you really forsake her to save yourself? She will die if you do nothing. Was your previous decision a mistake then? What is it you told Cadence? ‘Keep your head down, and keep your mouth shut.’ Do you really believe that?” Sunset remembered back at that police station, sitting cuffed to a bench. The woman had just finished giving her statement to the police. On the way out, she had discreetly dropped a scrap of paper in front of Sunset. The girl managed to reach over and grab it from the floor. She unfurled it to see the message written. Thank you for saving me. Despite everything she went through, that one note was worth it. “No…no I don’t.” Rainbow was being lifted by her neck, while the guard prepared to lunge the sword forward into her chest. “Very well…I have heeded your resolve.” Sunset felt a sharp pain in her head, her mouth open in a silent scream. “Vow to me. I am thou, thou art I…If thou art willing to commit sacrilege for thine justice, call upon me and release thy wrath! Show the strength of thy own will and show your enemies Hell itself!” “Flash” pointed toward Rainbow. “Execute her!” “THAT’S ENOUGH!” “Flash’s” eyes widened as he and his guard turned their attention to the other girl, Rainbow dropping to the floor. “What did you just say?” the king asked. “You want to be killed that much? Fine!” The two guards at her side pressed her flat against the wall, as the third guard positioned himself in front of her. The knight raised his sword, a glint reflecting off the blade’s metal. Sunset gasped as a gale of wind pushed the guards away with a powerful force. When the wind died down, “Flash” looked to the girl and his eyes widened. Sunset lifted her hands to feel a white mask around her eyes. With a sudden resolve, Sunset began to pull at the mask; the sound of flesh tearing could be heard as the mask came off. Blood formed around Sunset’s eyes as she opened them. The eyes that were once teal were now gold. She opened her mouth and said a single word. “Persona!” Blue flames over took the girl, covering her in azure fire. The flames soon floated into the air, revealing Sunset to be now dressed in an all-black outfit; her shoes, pants, shirt, vest, and leather duster were all black. The only color to her ensemble was the white mask that had magically reappeared and the red gloves on both her hands. The blue flames themselves took on a form before disappearing. A red winged demon now floated above Sunset; her hair like fire that burned above her horns. A single flap of its leathery wings sent the guards flying forward, causing them to collide with the wall. “Flash” screamed in terror as he ducked out of the way. Rainbow Dash couldn’t believe what she was seeing. “What…what the hell is going on?”