//------------------------------//
// Level 4: The Envoy 
// Story: Kamen Rider x Kamen Rider Unicorn & Ex-Aid: Tirek's Revenge 
// by Michael_Ravencroft 
//------------------------------//

Sunset sat at the center of a circle, it was drawn with arcane runes, and with various formulaic magic script on top of it. Sunset’s eyes were closed, but her awareness was high. All around her she could see the different magical auras of the Guardian Trainees, Midnight’s aura, Emu’s and his Bugster/Familiar Parado, and of course their teacher, Misteria. But they weren’t the main focus of this exercise, no, it was the three orbs that were positioned around her in a perfect triangle. It was a basic concentration and control test, Misteria had had many of the Trainees sit in the circle and levitate the orbs around in a circle, there was no limit to how fast they could spin around. The real exercise was controlling them while they were spinning in a rapid motion, and setting them down.

The trick to this was that the orbs had their own opposite magical charge, which meant the faster you spun them the more they resisted. However, for Sunset Shimmer, this was just her Tuesday morning practice back when she was a filly. And coupled with the magic system of this game world, it was even easier. At this time, Sunset had the orbs spinning so fast that they blurred into a single glowing circle overhead, she could hear the “Ooos” and “awes” of the crowd as they watched her feat of magical control, but she wasn’t done yet.

Sunset lowered the circle around herself, shrinking it until it hovered around her. She could tell that the teacher was worried a little, at the speed that they were spinning, a hit from them could turn her internal organs into mush. But Sunset wasn’t a fool, just as quickly as she brought them close she made them stop dead in the air. The spheres floated over to their designated spots, descending until they touched the ground without even a thud. The class started to clap as Sunset’s aura began to power down until it was no longer visible, the former unicorn mare stood up and gave a chaste bow to the other trainees.

Later, Sunset and Emu were out in the Academy center, which was a large open space where the trainees could relax, study, or practice. Sunset opened her game menu and saw that her magical aptitude had increased, which meant now her attack and tactical spells would get a damage and stat boost. While Emu’s aptitude was…

“Don’t worry about it, Emu, you’re still a great healer, you’ve been acing Sage Amber Glades’ healing classes,” said Sunset. “And we’re both getting high marks in Rock Fist’s training courses.”

Emu sighed, “Yeah, but I was kind of hoping to be able to cast cool spells like in any RPG game. But I guess I’m more of a tank than a magic knight.”

Parado appeared and patted Emu on the shoulder. “There, there. You can’t compare yourself to Sun-chan, she’s a natural! What with being a magical pony from another world.”

Sunset rubbed the back of her head. “Yeah…in some ways this is nostalgic. Learning different types of magic, the admiration of my peers as I perform near impossible feats of magical ability and skill, but…” A shadow was cast over Sunset as she continued to reminisce. “I also remember how much of an awful pony I was….”

“What do you mean?” Emu asked.

“I…”

“Ms. Shimmer! Mr. Hojo!”

Emu and Sunset looked ahead and watched as Midnight came strolling towards them. Sunset couldn’t help but keep comparing Midnight to Twilight, her mannerisms were almost the same, she acted confident at times, but was mostly reserved and did not engage much in a social aspect. Midnight did, however, open up to both herself and Emu.

“Hey Midnight, and you can call us by our first names, we’re friends after all,” said Sunset.

“Oh, sorry, it’s just a polite habit I have been raised with Mi – I mean, Sunset.”

The three shared a laugh and spoke about their training for the day. So far, it had been at least three days since they had entered the game world, the best thing they could do for the mean time was learn from the school and gain more EXP to level up for the trails ahead. The whole time, Emu and Sunset worried about what was happening in the real world, they weren’t even sure if the passage of time in this world was the same as it was in theirs.

The other beings in this world couldn’t see their menus whenever they brought them up, in some ways they acted like game sprite NPCs, but in other ways they acted just like normal people, and reacted as such.

“Ugh, around this time’s when something convenient pops out of nowhere and forces the heroes to embark on a crazy adventure!” Sunset exclaimed.

“Are you speaking about a book, Sunset?” Midnight asked.

Sunset blushed, wishing she hadn’t said that out loud. “Um…kind of.”

“We’ve just been a bit restless lately,” said Emu. “We were attacked by goblins on the way to the kingdom, and then there was that unicorn thing as well. We’re just used to being a little more active.”

Midnight nodded her head in understanding. “Oh, well that does make since. You two have mentioned you traveled far to come here, I can only imagine the beasts and perils you faced on your journey. I was lucky in my family letting me use our Gate Magic to transport me here. Maybe I should have done some foot traveling, I could’ve picked up a good amount of experience in the field of magic application in combat and in survival.”

Sunset couldn’t help but smile at Midnight, it really was uncanny how alike Midnight was to Twilight. So much so that it was making Sunset’s face heat up a bit. UGH, stupid brain! She’s a game character, not Twilight! No matter how much she acts like her…wait a minute…this is a game, and the characters are designed by real people then…

Suddenly, thunder roared in the sky above, catching the attention of every Guardian Trainees. Dark clouds hovered over the open area, and soon, black thunderbolts came crashing down on the outer perimeter of the courtyard. The black lightning connected into a chain that created a cage of dark lightning energy, many of the teachers came out and threw one spell after the other to try and breach the cage, even some of the Trainees from inside attacked the cage. But nothing worked, every spell thrown at the cage merely fizzled out into nothingness.

The center of the clouds parted, and from it descended a beast. It had four huge, muscly arms, strong thick legs that caused the ground to shake once he set foot upon the earth. In his two lower arms he wielded spears in the shape of lightning bolts, made of an enchanted obsidian stone. In his upper arms he held two clubs, made of black metal, and studded with rows of gray spikes, not only would it crush you, but it would also mince whoever was caught in a swing. The monster had a shaggy black mane that covered everything from his neck and collarbone, all the way up to the top of his head. The beast had a canine-like muzzle, yellow eyes, and dark gray horns that curved forward.

“Hear me, so called ‘Guardian Academy’, I come on behalf of one who would seek to rule this world! I am Vorg, Envoy of Lord Tirek!” the beast announced. “I come bearing a message, soon my Master will arise, and have his revenge one those who imprisoned him. But he is offering you all a chance. Join his army, swear your allegiance, or die a slow death upon the day of your reckoning!” 

Parado looked to Sunset and said, “You just had to jinx it, didn’t you Sun-chan?”

“How the hell was I supposed to know that was the quest flag trigger!” Sunset argued. Sunset looked to Midnight, her eyes were wide with fear, and rightfully so, this monster was powerful and scary. “Midnight!”

Midnight tore her eyes away from the monster and looked at Sunset’s turquoise colored eyes.

“It’s going to be alright, get all the Trainees to cover,” said Sunset. “Emu, let’s go!”

“Right!” Emu responded.

Without another word, Sunset and Emu walked up until they were at least ten feet away from Vorg, causing the behemoth to look down at them. “Oh, have you come to offer your allegiance to Lord Tirek?”

“No, we’ve come to kick his ass!” Sunset announced. “FIRE SHOOT!”

Sunset raised her right hand, and from it she loosed a blazing stream of flames that struck Vorg, making the behemoth back away. Sunset cut off her spell and drew her emerald sword, Emu took up his hammer and prepared for battle, with Parado appearing behind him, arms crossed and with a look of determination.

Above the monster appeared “Vorg the Storm Bringer” and next to him were three health bars. After leveling up in the game, Parado was able to act as a support, allowing him to analyze attack patterns and determine how much health an enemy had.

“Accelero!” Sunset cast. Her body shimmered in blue light for a moment before she zipped away. Vorg tried to watch her movements, but she was too fast for the monster. Sunset ran her hand over the emerald blade, causing it catch fire. “Blaze Blade!”

Sunset headed straight towards Vorg and slashed him across his side. The gash she created blazed with orange-red flames until it exploded and sent Vorg to one knee. Sunset rolled away and recovered into a defensive stance. Vorg’s HP bar began to decline, and Sunset hissed when she saw that only a small chunk of his health had been taken.

Vorg recovered and raised his two spears, the obsidian blades began to spark with black and violet electricity. Vorg raised the spears to the sky, the clouds rumbled, but then a black lightning bolt shot down from the sky. Sunset dodged it, but soon after another came down, but yet again she dodged it. The former Equestrian was now being made to dance on the battlefield as she tried to avoid a hit, but it was no use. One lightning bolt came down in front of her, making Sunset jump back straight into the path of another.

The result was harsh, Sunset felt every fiber of her body cry out in pain as the dark magic damaged her. Sunset fell to one knee, panting, but when she tried to move, her body seized up. “W-What’s happening?!” Sunset’s health bar appeared in the upper left-hand side of her vision, and now glowed yellow with a lightning bolt symbol next to it. “Paralysis debuff, are you getting me…?”

Vorg brought his two spike clubs up and slammed them together. The result was a powerful wave of sound that struck Sunset, sending her flying a few feet. Her health bar had gone done some, enough to make it glow red.

Emu quickly went to work. “Ars Heal!”

A green glow engulfed Sunset, and within seconds her health bar filled up quickly.

“Panacea!”

Another healing spell from Emu erased the paralysis, and Sunset was back on her feet. “Thanks, Emu.”

“Be careful, Sun-chan, we don’t want to get a game over in here, I don’t think we’ll get any continues,” said Emu.

Sunset shook her body and nodded. “Parado, you get anything?”

“Yeah, he’s a nasty piece of work. His lightning strikes are fast, but do only light damage. It’s the clubs that deal the heavy damage, but their slow. Hence the paralysis debuff upon getting hit with a bolt,” said Parado.

Should I transform…? No, it’s too early, he’s still got full health, I should use it when I’ve gotten him lower, at least to the third bar, though Sunset.

“Here comes another strike!” 

Vorg summoned his black lightning once again, causing an arc to fall from the sky right on their position. However, the bolt never reached them. A barrier of rosy light protected Emu and Sunset. When the barrier fell, they both turned around and saw Midnight with her hands glowing.

“I…I-I won’t let my friends fight alone!” Midnight declared. “I may not be able to do physical direct attacks, but I certainly support you from here! Reinforce! Armor of Voltare! Accelero!”

Several layers of different colored auras washed over all three of them. Emu and Sunset watched as their health bars showed different symbols, a sword, shield, and a foot with speed lines.

“Wow, Midnight, thanks! Let’s go!” Sunset ordered.

Emu dashed into the fray first, Vorg slashed at him with his spears, but Emu’s enhanced speed and agility allowed him to evade the blow. His hammer began to glow bright yellow as shouted, “POWER BOMBER!” The hammer struck Vorg’s right side, exploding on impact. Vorg stumbled for a moment, but managed to regain stability. However, Sunset jumped and shouted, “Swift Strike!”

Her emerald blade glowed green as a flurry of slashes rained down on Vorg, creating multiple red gashes. While Vorge was distracted from that, Emu raised his hammer and struck the ground, using his Earth Shatter skill to send shards of sharpened rock flying at Vorg. The moment the attacks hit, his HP took a nose dive from the multi hit attack.

“Emu, Sun-chan, it’s Earth! He’s weak against Earth based attacks!” Parado informed.

Midnight heard the familiar, clasping her hands together, a green magic circle appeared before Midnight as she cast another spell. “Terra Empower!”

Sunset felt another buff get added onto her, seeing that the rune symbol for Earth had been added to her. The former unicorn mare took this advantage and reignited her Blaze Blade, but this time the flames color changed to green, symbolizing its elemental change. Sunset dashed for Vorg, getting in close as she slashed upwards at his front, leaving a long green gash on his body. The gash exploded with green fire, causing his health bar to shatter and switch to the second bar.

It was then that Vorg’s eyes glowed as he released a loud roar that made Sunset and Emu stop. The behemoth took a runner’s stance and dashed for Sunset. The mage knight barely had time to react before she was tackled and sent flying into the lightning cage, once again treated to an electrocution. Emu readied to cast his healing spell, but Vorg slashed the air with his lightning bolt spear, and sent out a chain of lightning energy to wrap around him. Emu struggled against his electrical bindings, but it was in vain as the paralysis debuff had been activated.

Vorg raised his spear up and brought it overhead, taking Emu with it. The behemoth then came down, making Emu return with a heavy crash against the earth. Sunset managed to get up, her health bar was low now, and she could see Emu was as well. However, before Sunset could move to her ally, Vorg had dashed again, this time aiming for Emu.

“EMU!” Sunset shouted.

But it was no use, Emu was still under the paralysis debuff, he was wide open. Vorg came down with one of his spiked clubs, about to end Emu Hojo.

Just then, something struck against the lightning cage. The cage bent inwards as something forced its way in, and after a second it punched a hole in the cage. That same something zipped across the battlefield, bounding like a pinball until it reached Emu. The intruder struck upwards, hitting the spiked club away. Midnight took this chance and placed her hands against the ground.

“Rock Rush!”

Multiple earthen pillars jutted out of the ground, smashing into Vorg and forcing him a good two meters away. Emu was finally able to move and looked upon his savior. It was a little neon magenta creature. Its body was round, but had stubby legs and arms, with a black visor that had a white outline around the rim, and with two orange eyes looking at him.

It didn’t take Emu long to recognize this character. “Mighty?!”

Mighty nodded.

“Are you…have you come to help?” Emu asked.

Mighty raised his thumb and nodded vigorously.

“Then let’s go!” Emu held out his hand.

Mighty took his hand, and a bright flash of neon magenta light went off. The little creature was then morphed into the Mighty Action X Gashat, Emu took hold of the Gashat and his body was engulfed in that same light. When the light faded, Emu was donned in new armor. There was black armored mesh, and over that was neon magenta armor. A couple of hammers were sculpted into the chest plate, with some rounded shoulder pauldrons, and pixel-like patterns etched into the armor.

Vorg rose back up, Midnight’s attack had done enough damage to make his second bar break. The behemoth rose back up, glaring at all three warriors as he channeled black lightning from the sky and into his weapons and body.

“He’s getting ready to end this, if there was a time to transform, now would be the time!” Parado warned.

Sunset and Emu smirked and shouted, “LIMIT BREAK!”

Sunset’s Uni-Driver and Emu’s Gamer Driver appeared around their waists. Emu got into his ready stance, and so too did Sunset.

[+] MIGHTY ACTION X! [+]

< UNICORN! >

“Henshin!”

“Henshin! Transformation plus!”

> UNICORN! <

| CLICK AND LOAD! LET’S GAME! SUPER GAME! ULTRA GAME! WHATCHA NAME?! I’M A KAMEN RIDER! LEVEL UP! MIGHTY JUMP! MIGHTY KICK! MIGHTY MIGHTY ACTION X! |

Pillars of turquoise and neon magenta light shot into the sky, dispelling the dark clouds and eradicating the black lightning cage. The trainees and teachers all paused as they beheld the transformed state of their fellow Trainees, even Midnight couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

Unicorn’s armor had changed, her chest plate had the image of a unicorn head etched onto it, with shimmering lines that pushed away from the horse head. Her shoulder pauldrons were a bit bigger, and had a white cap on them, while the lower half was turquoise. A plated skirt hung underneath her belt, covering her back, sides, and front. Her leg armor had a wavy pattern to it, and was also outlined in white. Her helmet had not changed, but now Sunset sported her emerald sword on her back.

Ex-Aid’s armor was different as well, now clad in somewhat bulky neon magenta, armor. His arms were covered in silver armor, with a neon green outlining, his legs had silver armor, with some specks of the neon magenta and neon green. Upon his chest plate was the angry image of Mighty, dual wielding hammers. As with Unicorn, Ex-Aid’s helmet had not changed, but now he was already holding his Gashacon Breaker in his hands.

“Okay, newish armor?” Sunset asked.

“It must be because of the game, it’s altered our Rider forms a bit. Check your HUD,” said Emu.

Sunset glanced at her name in the upper left-hand corner, which now read “Unicorn (Fantasy Knight)”. She glanced over to Emu and saw his indicator as “Ex-Aid (Fantasy Knight)” as well. But she could also see their LB gauge slowly depleting. Unicorn decided to waste no time and drew the sword from her back, her helmet compound eyes glowed along with her emerald blade, and at the same time, Ex-Aid’s eyes glowed as he gripped his hammer tight.

In the blink of an eye, Ex-Aid dashed forward, raising his Gashacon Breaker high. Vorg brought both of his clubs up and used them as a shield as Ex-Aid brought down the hammer, resulting in a shockwave that roared through the courtyard. While Ex-Aid had him locked up, Unicorn dashed and jumped up from behind Ex-Aid, spinning around and slashing Vorg on the upper right shoulder. The strength in Vorg’s arm weakened enough that Ex-Aid struck both clubs away, leaving him wide open. Vorg tried to defend with the lightning spears, but Ex-Aid ducked under them and struck the open side of Vorg.

The monster was sent sailing into the side wall of one of the buildings, his health bar dwindling drastically. Ex-Aid and Unicorn checked their LB gauges, and were now down to half power. They had to end it now before their gauges dropped and they’d lose their advantage against Vorg. Emu pressed the A button on the Gashacon Breaker, making a blade spring out from the top.

| SCHWING! |

Ex-Aid took out his Mighty Action X Gashat and put it into the Breaker.

| CLICK TO SAVE! |

| CLICK AND LOAD! |

At the same time, Unicorn took out her Unicorn Memory and placed it into the right hip port.

>} UNICORN! MAXIMUM DRIVE! {<

| FINAL ATTACK! |

| MIGHTY CRITICAL FINISH! |

Unicorn and Ex-Aid’s blades became charged with raging energy, and at the moment the two dashed for Vorg as he tore himself from the rubble and charged for them. The Riders zigzagged, crisscrossing in streaks of neon magenta and turquoise, making it hard for Vorg to keep up with them. Before the behemoth knew it, both Riders were upon him. In perfect sync, both Riders slashed upwards to form a large X pattern on Vorg. Unicorn and Ex-Aid recovered and thrust forward hitting the center of the X and releasing a burst of energy that erupted from behind Vorg. The Kamen Riders drew back on their swords as Vorg fell, turning their backs as the beast met a fiery, explosive end, their forms silhouetted in the light of the fire.

Unicorn and Ex-Aid walked back to Midnight, who looked upon her friends with a newfound respect, and awe. After a few seconds, both Riders released their forms. Emu and Sunset collapsed onto the ground, groaning from exhaustion from the battle. Thankfully their LB gauge wasn’t completely depleted, there was still enough for a short transformation, but agreed that it was best built back up.

“Oh my goodness, are you two alright?!” Midnight asked.

“Just sore, and tired, but other than that I’m good. How’re you doing, Sun-chan?” Emu asked.

“Same, and alive,” replied Sunset. “Think you have enough magic left to heal us, doc?”

“Yes, but give me minute, that was an intense fight.”

“I don’t think that’ll be a problem.” Suddenly, both Emu and Sunset were bathed in a green aura. Their fatigue and soreness had completely disappeared in a matter of seconds. When they sat up, they saw a woman walking up behind Midnight, her hair was red and wavy, and twirled up until it was over her head, held together by an off-white cloth wrapped around her forehead, and a green hair tie at the top. She wore a wavy green skirt, with a beige line circling it. She wore a beige cloth around her chest, and a brown necklace, her light-tanned skin gave a healthy glow in the rays of the sun, and her eyes were a gentle teal color. “Ya’ll should be feelin’ better ‘bout now.”

“Sage Amber Glade!” Midnight exclaimed. The elf girl bowed before the healing arts instructor. “Thank you!”

“Yes, thank you for your spell, Amber.” A new voice gained Midnight’s attention, and she almost fainted. Sunset and Emu turned around and witnessed an elderly man walking towards them. He was clad in a blue robe, adorned with stars, and traditional wide rimmed, long top, wizard’s hat. His hat and robe appeared as if the starry sky was sewn into it, with constellations shifting, and shooting stars moving about. He had a long gray beard, and long hair to match. His blue eyes were piercing, and full of power. “Otherwise, I would not be able to ascertain how our Trainees were able to best the beast.”

“Headmaster Aster, the Stargazer…” Midnight uttered.


***_____________<U> x [+]E[+]_____________***


Headmaster Aster had gathered Sunset and Emu to a special meeting room. I kind of rotunda, sequestered from outside interruption via a magical dimension. It was here that the other The Pillars gathered. To Sunset’s right sat Rock Fist, Misteria, and Sage Amber Glade. To Emu’s left, sat two members they hadn’t met yet.

The one closest to Emu was dressed in Romanesque armor, he carried with him a bronze colored shield, and despite its look, Emu could tell that it was a weapon of great power. His skin looked rough and scarred, some Emu recognized as scars from swords, knives, and some from beasts such as bite marks and claw marks. His name was Bellator Fortis.

Sitting to Fortis’ left was a woman, she was dressed in white garments, and golden jewelry, much like ancient Egyptian Pharaohs. Her olive skin had nary A mark upon it, but one only needed to look her in the eyes to see this woman has seen her fair share of battle. Her name Maat.

And of course, the one who led this group, Aster the Stargazer.

“It would seem, my fellow Pillars, the time we have feared is soon approaching. Tirek’s rise is upon his,” said Aster.

“Sooner than you think, my old friend. I have been scouting the regions, keeping my ear to the ground, and Tirek has been amassing dark forces for a bit. Those who act in his name have been skulking around, peddling influence on those easily swayed by the promise of fortune and power. To the west the tribes of the Orcs are uniting under his banner, even the goblins. To the east, mercenaries of various backgrounds and fighting capabilities,” said Fortis.

“To that,” spoke Maat, “I will add that there is movement in the dark covens. Warlocks and witches of the dark arts are also on the move, the agents of my country have provided intelligence that at least five to seven kingdoms are now under the control of Tirek via these covens. Although all seems well, those currently in power are little more than puppets on strings.”

“How fair you in your own queendom?” Misteria asked.

“No need to worry, my guard is strong in the mystic arts, and if any actually did make it to me…” Maat raised her hand, energy began to surge as an Ankh symbol formed over her hand, made of mystical energy. “They have my condolences.”

Rock Fist gave a hardy chuckle and said, “Indeed!”

Aster then turned his gaze to the two individuals before him. “Emu Hojo, Sage Amber Glade speaks of your great prowess in the healing arts. Sunset Shimmer, Misteria has spoken to me about your masterful use of magic, and even recommends you take a Master’s course. And Rock Fist here states that you’re fighting skills are something to behold, and after today, I would agree. You charged in without fear of the monster, and then used a power I have never seen used to defeat the monster.”

Sunset cleared her throat. “With all due respect, Headmaster, it was myself, Emu, and Midnight who fought the monster. We wouldn’t have gotten as far as we did without her help.”

Aster glanced about, and Misteria answered, “She speaks of Midnight Moonshadow, a new Trainee as well.”

“Ah, yes, the elven girl, I have seen her testing results, and of course her skills during today were impeccable. Credit is due to her, and will be given, but right now, this concerns you two.” Aster rose from his stone chair and walked towards them, keeping a five-foot distance between them. “Three days ago, an ethereal unicorn runs amok in the outside courtyard, and you tame it Ms. Shimmer. Three days later, you, Mr. Hojo, a strange dwarf like creature saves you and offers you its power. I have studied and witnessed many types of magic, but nothing comes close to what you both use. Tell me, who are you?”

Sunset looked to Emu, they very well couldn’t say that they were from another world and that his world wasn’t real, but a game someone created. There was also the added danger, because this was a game world, that Tirek may be in control of this world, and even though these characters before them were designed and programmed to be the good guys, it did not mean that Tirek couldn’t just as easily corrupt them and turn them bad.

“You’re right to be suspicious of us.” The other Pillars all regarded Sunset. “We’re not from this world, you see, I have fought Tirek once before.”

The Pillars bolted to their feet, giving Sunset a dubious look. Maat pointed her finger at Sunset and said, “Explain yourself young one!”

Sunset took a deep breath, “I come from a peaceful world not unlike this one, and there I am a hero who fights for the innocent. The form you saw me take was my true power, but being here in your world limits the amount of time I can use it. Emu is from another world as well, but shares similar powers to mine, and there he’s a renowned healer.”

“When did you encounter Tirek in your world?” Amber Glade asked.

“It was a fight that nearly ended my world. Back then, Tirek, along with an organization of evil beings, tried to destroy my world and take its magic. I was joined by otherworldly heroes, like Emu, who helped me to defend my world. At the darkest hour, Tirek and his allies were close to victory, but he betrayed them. I should say, he attempted to betray them. He underestimated his allies’ own cruelty, and in the end, he was killed by them.”

The Pillars glanced about the room, hearing that the dark lord was betrayed by other evil creatures, it made them weary of just how powerful those other monsters were.

“However, in the end, I was granted an even greater power by the magic of my world, and used it to defeat that greater evil, saving my home. Now it seems Tirek has come back for his revenge, and to limit my and Emu’s powers, he has brought us here to weaken us. But it seems our powers aren’t gone, they wished to be found, and that is why the unicorn and dwarf-like creatures appeared.”

Aster looked into Sunset’s eyes, trying to find a shred of proof that she was lying to them. He even took a moment to look into Emu’s eyes, but after a minute, Aster conceded to the explanation. “If that is indeed the case, then Tirek must truly fear your capabilities if he has brought you here to render you powerless.”

Sunset sighed internally, it was not a lie, not entirely. They were from other worlds, they were heroes, and they did lose some of their power upon coming to the game world. Selective truth telling, one could call it.

“Headmaster, is there any way to combat Tirek at this moment? Although he weakened us, I believe he may be weak, too. If we can defeat him here, before he awakes, we could prevent a disaster to both our worlds,” said Emu.

The Pillars nodded to each other.

“For now, young ones, please adjourn to your quarters and get some rest. Classes are cancelled for today as we need to reassess the Academy’s protective wards, and what course of action to take. Do not wander too far, we may need to call upon you both soon,” said Aster.

Emu and Sunset bowed to the old wizard. A portal opened behind them, revealing a waiting area, and beyond that a door. Emu and Sunset entered the portal and were brought into the waiting room, they continued on and opened the door, revealing Midnight pacing the floor as she nervously mumbled to herself.

“Midnight?” Sunset asked.

The girl in question yelped and finally took notice of the two people she was waiting for. “Emu, Sunset! Are…Are you alright?! What did the Pillars want? Are you going to get expelled?!”

Sunset shook her head and chuckled as she approached the elf girl and patted her on the head, which got Midnight to blush. “Calm down Twi – uh – Midnight. We’re not expelled or anything bad, The Pillars just wanted to talk to us about the fight. But we may be called back.”

Midnight released a tension filled breath. “Oh, thank the gods!”

“By the way, Midnight, do you know if the food hall is still open? I’m feeling a bit hungry, and you should get something too, Sun-chan,” said Emu.

“Thanks, but…” At that moment, Sunset’s stomach made a grumbling noise that stopped her midsentence. “…Actually, I’ll take you up on that offer.”

Midnight thought for a moment. “I do not think they are open at this time, not after that commotion. We can go to one of the local food taverns that’s close by, and it will be my treat!”

“You really don’t have to, Midnight,” said Sunset.

The elf girl took Sunset’s hand and held it tight, making Sunset blush a bit. “I insist, it would be dishonorable for me not to at least offer some form of gratitude for saving us all.”

For a moment, Sunset saw not Midnight, but Twilight in that smiling face and pleading look in her eyes. The warrior girl sighed and smiled as she said, “Sure, you can, but it doesn’t have to be anywhere fancy, I don’t want you using all your money on us.”

Midnight waved off the concern. “Not to worry, Sunset. I may not look it, but my family is quite wealthy, I have bits to spare and then some.”

Emu and Sunset looked each other and then to Midnight. The girl dressed quite modestly, she had white leggings on over a purple skirt that draped to about halfway down past her knees, a blouse that was purple, but also had a lighter shade purple running down the middle in a line. Her waist had a gold colored rope acting as a built, and her arms had lacy sleeves with the shoulders exposed.

Never would have guessed, they thought at the same time.

Sunset and Emu followed Midnight who seemed to have a pep in her step. Parado regarded Midnight for a minute and said to Sunset, “Check your menu right quick.”

The former Equestrian pushed on her heart and the menu appeared, she looked under “Party” and saw Emu, and now Midnight. Under her was a status bar with a heart next to it, which were totaling five. The first heart was filled which read “acquaintance”, the second was also filled which read, “friendship”. At first Sunset didn’t understand, but after a minute she figured out what this meant.

“Oh no…don’t tell me…this game also has dating sim aspect to it?!” Sunset exclaimed in a harsh whisper.

Emu glanced over her menu for a minute. “Well, maybe you triggered a kind of relationship event, one that’s based on your interactions with other characters…Which means, that Midnight may not be just an NPC, she could be an important character to the overall story of the game.”

Sunset looked back at the still smiling Midnight, now wondering what and how this could affect the game, and their chances of escaping this game world.