//------------------------------// // Episode 90: Differences of Strength // Story: Equestria Girls: Friendship Souls // by thatguyvex //------------------------------// Episode 90: Difference of Strength Red as freshly spilled wine, the Cero’s glow enveloped Sunset Shimmer’s modest apartment. It all happened in the span of time no longer than a hummingbird’s wingflap, yet for Sunset the moment between realizing what was happening and the instant the ruby beam of destruction discharged from the Arrancar’s finger was slowed to a glacial crawl. She could sense everything around her, from the flaring, angry heat of the muscular girl’s reiatsu and that of her Cero, to the tiny and fragile pinpricks of spiritual energy given off by the other people living in her apartment complex. It was evening. Almost everyone was home, well over two dozen souls clustered inside a building that was about to be blown to bits. Perhaps it was the intensity of her experiences in Soul Society, or the honing of her skills through the exhausting training she’d been putting herself through afterward, but whatever the cause it seemed to Sunset that her ability to react let her take all the time in the world to respond to the threat in front of her. There wasn’t any real thought process, either. Her motions were on instinct combined with experience, leading to instantaneous action. The moment the Arrancar’s Cero fired, Sunset already had Hokori no Hikari in her hands, swinging the Zanpaktou, still in its sealed state, upwards in a curving arc. At the same instant, her spiritual pressure rushed out of her in a concentrated wave, roiling up the length of her arms and into her sword. Without thinking she pushed with that reiatsu, like a shell around her Zanpaktou, hardened and layered as she pushed up at an angle. The result was that the powerful beam of consuming, sanguine energy parted around Hokori no Hikari’s edge and Sunset’s reiatsu buffered her against the deluge while simultaneously directing the lion’s share of the Cero’s might at an upward angle. The split, distorted beam still annihilated the kitchen around Sunset, smashing through the walls into the hallway beyond and through her bathroom. The blowback shattered windows, crushed her couch and bed, and warped the ceiling and walls behind the Arrancar. Painfully, the tv and entertainment center sparked and exploded in the process. The curving upward, split beams bored holes through the ceiling as well, and thankfully Sunset’s apartment was on the top floor, so there were no further apartments above her getting destroyed, but Sunset feared that the beam could have easily torn the roof right off of her neighbor’s apartment across the hall. Her own body withstood the beam’s proximity without noticeable harm, her Zanpaktou diffusing most of the energy and the hard shell of her reiatsu guarding her against the rest. It was a lucky thing Chappy was out on the town with her human body, otherwise this whole situation would have played out quite less favorably. Still, Sunset was, in a word, pissed. A blindingly hot sensation of elemental rage was now boiling up inside her chest as the dust settled and she got a clear look at her now thoroughly trashed apartment. Her home. Her home. Perhaps it didn’t look like much, just a simple one bedroom apartment in the cheaper part of town. It wasn’t as if she’d lived her whole life here. But she’d made a life for herself here, and this apartment, with all its little quirks, was where she’d started to put her new life together. Now it was ruined. Violated, by some cocky intruder who’d just tried to murder her without so much as a fair fight. For her part the Arrancar girl looked surprised to see Sunset still standing there in the smoking ruins of ceiling and wall where the doorway had been, and blinked in mild shock. “Okay, that wasn’t how this was supposed to go dow-” The girl didn’t get to finish her sentence, as Sunset was in front of her with a blazingly quick Flash Step, and gripped the girls’ face with her free hand. Face snarling in a twisted sneer of utter fury, Sunset shoved with all of her might and ended up throwing the Arrancar into, then through the far wall of her apartment. The Arrancar exploded through the wall and out into the open air above the street in front of the apartment. She spun a few times in ungainly fashion before finally planting her feet in the air, reiatsu grinding against the air particles in a long skid across the sky. The Arrancar, grinding her teeth, rubbed at her sore face. “The hell is this!?” she said with her own ire coloring her voice, “That Cero should have dusted you!” Sunset walked out of the hole in her apartment wall with measured steps that belied the volcanic pulse of anger inside her, although her eyes were all but shining with the flames within. She walked across the air towards the Arrancar, Zanpaktou in her right hand, which at this point was coated in a aura of inferno red and orange even without being released to Shikai yet. “You destroyed my home,” Sunset said, voice level as a razor and twice as sharp. “I’m going to give you one chance to tell me who you are, apologize to me, and maybe I’ll let you crawl back to Hueco Mundo with one or two of your limbs still attached to your body.” “Tch, don’t get full of yourself because you caught me off guard,” the Arrancar replied and jabbed a thumb towards her well muscled chest, “I’m Gilda, the Tenth Espada, or did you not see the number? I came here to put you and your team of color-coded dorks in your place!” “I see...” Sunset said, her voice never losing its knife-edged calm, and she vanished. Gilda had half an instant to feel the shift in spiritual pressure and sense the attack coming from above, raising her own Zanpaktou even as Sunset’s shadow passed over her. She barely made it in time as Sunset descended from above like a careening meteor, her blade striking with titanic force that sent Gilda cartwheeling to the street below despite having technically blocked the attack. With not inconsiderable skill and fortitude of her own Gilda recovered enough to land on her feet, impacting with the street in a half-crouch. The concrete of the street buckled under the landing, crunching down and then breaking in an uneven crater that broke water lines and caused a nearby utility pole to snap. Electrical wires sparked and a transformer exploded, showering the area. Despite her rage, Sunset internally winced. While every part of her was screaming inside to crush this interloper into her city, she didn’t want to break the city to do it. Lesser Hollows were easy to dispatch without any trouble these days, but this was still an Espada she was dealing with. Even if Sunset could feel the advantage she had over Gilda in terms of reiatsu, Gilda clearly wasn’t going to go down without a fight, and given how little the girl cared about firing off a Cero in a crowded apartment complex there was little reason to think Gilda would hold back from causing collateral damage in a populated suburban area. Dammit. I can’t afford to lose my temper. I have to lead her away from the populated areas, otherwise if I try going all out to defeat her fast, we’re just going to cause way more damage to the city. Such was much easier thought than accomplished, however. Despite a clear power difference, Sunset didn’t think she could easily force Gilda away from the residential area without risking damage to the houses around them. She also didn’t think she could just run and hope Gilda would chase her, because if Gilda knew where Sunset lived then it stood to reason the Espada knew where Sunset’s friends lived as well, so there’d be nothing stopping her from going after any of them if Sunset didn’t keep her occupied. I have to drive her off or kill her here, and do it without getting any innocent bystanders killed as well. It somewhat concerned her how readily the thought of cutting Gilda down came to her mind, but she didn’t try to overly analyze it. She would only do it if she couldn’t force Gilda to run, and if it came down to not having any other option, she’d deliver the final blow and worry about soul searching and morality after she’d ensured the threat to her home and friends was dealt with. It wasn’t like Gilda was giving her time to think things over much anyway, as the Espada immediately shot up into the air and came right at Sunset, letting out a piercing battle cry akin to that of an eagle swooping upon its prey. Sunset blocked the first hefty blow, and found that even with her reiatsu surging stronger than ever, Gilda wasn’t exactly a lightweight. No longer taken off guard, Gilda was pouring out her own power into her blows, and was hammering with her blade in a withering series of blows. Sunset stepped into swift, rhythmic motion, her Zanpaktou intercepting each strike with practiced precision. All those training sessions really were paying off. Gilda was strong, but Sunset was holding firm and wasn’t even being pushed back by the assault. They ended up with blades locked together, energy sparking between the pressed together swords as Gilda’s muscles strained to try and push Sunset back, with no apparent success. The woman’s golden eyes were filled with frustration and bitter anger, voice tight with disbelief. “This doesn't make sense! A month ago you barely took out some half-baked scrub like Grand Fisher! Grogar wiped the floor with you wimps! How did you get this strong!?” “Exercise and eating healthy,” Sunset replied in pure deadpan fashion, which only served to clearly enrage Gilda as her head popped with multiple veins and she let out a fierce, guttural roar before pulling back  fist and ramming it towards Sunset’s face. Sunset ducked the blow, vanishing with another swift Flash Step as she appeared on Gilda’s left. Her sword cleaved towards Gilda’s shoulder, looking to cut her arm off at the base, but Gilda surprised Sunset by leaning into the blow. This threw off the angle of Sunset’s strike enough that while it did leave a deep cut, it didn’t sever the arm, and Gilda’s shoulder slammed into Sunset with tremendous force. This time it was Sunset that went spinning to the ground, but she recovered even faster than Gilda had, easily landing atop a street light. She didn’t waste a second, throwing her free hand out, palm up, and focused on Gilda as she chanted. ”Hado Number Fifty Five: Yasei-o no Tsume!” (Talons of the Wild King) As she spoke she drew the fingers of her hand in a harsh, slicing motion, as if they were a claw, and lines of serrated, shifting blue energy formed in their wake. These lines then exploded into four swirling arcs of blade-like power that flew up with a sharp buzzing noise as they swarmed towards Gilda. This was about as potent a Kido as Sunset could handle at the moment, and it was one Clover had taught her only a few days ago while practicing her own Kido in preparation for Puddinghead’s arrival. The Kido's main strength wasn’t in its raw attack power, but rather in the fact that each of the four spinning claws of energy could be directed with just a little mental focus and a gesture. Sunset sent them towards Gilda, but at the last second had them split off and fly around the Espada until she had one coming from above, below, and both the front and back. Gilda’s response was as ferocious as it was immediate. Once more surprising Sunset with her willingness to just take bodily harm, Gilda severed one of the energy blades in half with her Zanpaktou, but used her bare fist and feet to smash the others, twisting in the air to backhand one while scissor-kicking the remaining two. The Kido spell’s spinning blades were still sharp enough to dig into Gilda’s hardened skin, drawing sprays of blood, but the power behind Gilda’s blows still shattered them before they could do more than shallow wounds. Still, this distracted Gilda more than long enough for Sunset to zip up to her opponent with another Flash Step, and deliver a swift overhand chop towards Gilda’s already injured arm. The Arrancar vanished with her own high-speed Sonido, but Sunset still felt her Zanpaktou bite flesh, and when Gilda appeared a few dozen feet away, standing on the air, her arm sported a fresh and long cut down from the shoulder to the elbow. The arm didn’t hang limply, but Gilda’s grip on her Zanpaktou was visibly weakened and shaking. “Give it up,” Sunset said in a flat tone, hard as granite, “The difference between us ought to be obvious by now. I haven’t even gone Shikai, and you’re bleeding from half a dozen places. Go back to Hueco Mundo. Tell Grogar or whoever you work for that this city is under my protection, and the next time I see one of you skulking around it, I’m not going to give a warning. I’m just going to end them.” The look on Gilda’s face ebbed and flowed rapidly between various forms of anger. Sunset wasn’t sure, but she saw a swift combination of acidic frustration, unguided fury, and a hint of self-loathing, all in the span of a few twisted expressions as Gilda ground her teeth together before speaking in a husky, low tone. “You think you’re so damned special, don’t you? Your just like that bitch Adagio! You’ve got all this power you don’t deserve and look down on me like I’m nothing! Well I’m not nothing! You hear me!? I’ve worked my ass for for decades to get to where I was at under Lord Guto, and finally I get my shot at the big leagues and what happens? A pair of orange, bacon-headed floozies keep screwing me over! And while I’m at it, I’m going to add that dumb four-eyed Quincy dweeb to the list! You got that!? I’m making a list!” “Uh...” Sunset blinked, “I’m starting to feel like you’re projecting a bit here, and that maybe there’s some misplaced anger issues at work-” “GRRAAAAAAAA!” Gilda promptly aimed a fist at Sunset, red arcs of energy spiking around her hand, then a stream of crimson Bala reishi bullets came fling out like someone had opened up a floodgate. “Ah crap!” Sunset blurted, immediately throwing herself into a series of rapid Flash Steps to try and avoid the machinegun-like hosing of reishi spheres. Sunset flinched as several stray spheres impacted with the ground, one of them smashing a parked car and causing it to explode. Double crap! Adagio, what did you do to piss this girl off so much!? Sunset wondered as she pushed off the air to send herself flying upwards, forcing Gilda’s aim to track her higher into the sky and away from the ground. Once she’d reached several hundred feet of height, Sunset realized she had a good distance from Gilda, and that it was probably high time to take off the kid gloves with this fight. She really didn’t want things to escalate further, which was why she’d held off on this, but if Gilda wasn’t going to run even after a clear difference in power was demonstrated, then Sunset was running out of options. ”Ignite, Hokori no Hikari.” Flames erupted from her Zanpaktou and swiftly transmuted into the broadsword and shield of her Shikai. The warm, familiar power flooded her and Sunset smiled a she flipped around in the air and just as the stream of Balas from Gilda caught up to her, Sunset interposed Hikari. The shield took the barrage of Hollow reishi bullets quite readily. Sunset felt each impact, but her shield held firm, and she could feel the rapid transfer of power as the kinetic energy of each impact flowed from Hikari to Hokori. The broadsword in Sunset’s right hand flared to fiery life as dense flames wrapped around the blade, and the red cloth flowing from the hilt glowed with orange intensity. The Balas charged up Hokori so much that Sunset was tempted to try that other technique she’d been working on. The green flame pillars and white fire clone were neat tricks, but Sunset felt like she needed something for dealing with enemies that had massive stamina and defense, like Captain Hurricane had. So she’d been testing out a few theories and developing a skill for such foes, but she’d hadn’t quite gotten it down yet. Perhaps now was a good time? No, not here. If the technique goes wrong, all that power is going to spill out randomly, and there’s too many people down there to risk it. I’ll just have to stick with the old standby, she thought as the Bala barrage slacked off, probably because Gilda was tiring out. Sunset used that moment to pull off the fastest Flash Step she could, reaching Gilda in the fraction of a heartbeat. Gilda looked shocked Sunset could move that fast, or withstand such a hefty salvo of Balas, and was slow to react as Sunset pulled back her blade and started to swing it forward. The fire around her sword turned a deep azure. ”Aoihi Senko!” The strike would have been near perfect, unleashing the powerful blast of blue flame at less than a meter away from Gilda, and at an angle that’d ensure none of the houses below would be touched by the fire. The only problem was that as Sunset struck, so did someone else. The water hit her from the side, utterly blindsiding Sunset with a powerful deluge that hit harder than a dozen riot hoses combined. Her Aoihi Senko still went off, but the flames were unfocused by Sunset’s surprise and went shooting off upwards, the pillar of azure fire piercing through a thick cloud and vaporizing it. Gilda was left standing in stunned shock while Sunset gradually regained her balance and got her blade to slice into the water cannon, parting the stream as her feet ground across the air until she managed to stop. The water slackened off and Sunset was left staring in silence as the perpetrator strode with confident steps across the air to stand beside Gilda. “...Adagio?” Sure, Twilight had told Sunset about Adagio already, but it was still a shock to see the siren girl once again, especially like this. It was surreal how similar Adagio looked like her former self, yet so radically different. And Sunset didn’t merely consider the differences in terms of the Hollow hole in Adagio’s chest, or the crown-like ridge of bone across her brow, nor the elegant white and ruby colored trident or massive Hollow reiatsu that flowed off of Adagio like a royal cloak. There was something infinitely harder and yet more refined in Adagio’s stance and expression. Adagio had always been arrogant, and acted like the queen of any patch of ground she stood upon, but in the past it had always felt a tad forced and puffed up, like a balloon. Now? Now Adagio wore power like a mantle she wasn’t merely born to, but had earned by her own hand. Confidence and assurance rippled from her in a near palpable aura. Sunset couldn’t imagine what Adagio had endured to change so much, but for the moment it left her speechless. Adagio’s smile dripped with satisfaction. “Sunset, how good to see you getting along with my new colleagues. Giving Gilda a workout, I see.” “W-what the hell do you think you’re doing, Adagio!?” growled Gilda, “I have this under control-” Adagio didn’t even look at Gilda, she merely slammed the back of one, balled fist into Gilda’s stomach with enough force to send the other Arrancar stumbling back, clutching her gut. Adagio’s voice turned into a smoothly chilled timbre, pointed as an icicle. “You have absolutely nothing under control. In case it escaped your realization, you were picking a fight with an opponent who outclasses you. If you’d been thinking, you’d have taken the time to observe your potential targets to gauge their strength before exposing your presence. Now...” Adagio snapped her fingers and a sizable Garganta portal opened up behind her and Gilda, “We’re leaving before the hornet’s nest you’ve stirred up arrives.” “Hey, I’m not someone you can just order around-” Gilda started to speak again, but Adagio just placed a hand on the woman’s shoulder and proceeded to shove her like a sack of grain through the open maw of the Garganta. As Adagio strode towards the portal, Sunset finally found her senses and called out, “Adagio, wait!” Adagio paused at the mouth of the Garganta, glancing back over her shoulder. Sunset’s mind swirled with questions, but a part of her realized she couldn’t really ask any of them right now. Adagio was right, Gilda’s attack had stirred up the city. Aside from the wail of sirens from emergency vehicles rushing to the scene of what would appear to be some kind of accident, Sunset could feel the spiking reiatsu from multiple incoming individuals. She could easily pick out her friends, but she sensed Clover and several Soul Reapers as well, including Celestia. They’d be here in mere moments. Adagio didn’t have time to answer any questions Sunset might want to ask, so instead she just kept it simple. “It’s good to see you, too.” Adagio’s expression remained supremely confident, even arrogant, but there was the barest hint of a real smile tugging at the side of her lips. Adagio silently mouthed something, nodding to Sunset, before her voice spoke in a haughty tone of smug superiority. “No doubt, but don’t forget that we’re no longer allies, Sunset Shimmer. The next time we meet, we’ll be enemies. And as powerful a you’ve become-” Adagio turned and strode through the Garganta, but a stiff and oddly well timed breeze billowed out the white cape she wore, exposing her back. “-I’ve become stronger.” And frankly Sunset couldn’t tell if Adagio was boasting or being truthful in that regard, for it was impossible to miss the large, prominent number ‘6’ tattooed on Adagio’s back. The Garganta closed, and Sunset was left standing there, catching her breath and mulling over what she’d just seen. She’d already know about Adagio becoming an Espada, but it was hard to believe that she’d reached a rank even higher than Grogar’s among that elite group. Sunset remembered all too clearly how overpowering Grogar had seemed when she and the girls had fought him, or rather tried to fight him after they’d dealt with Grand Fisher. Now Adagio stood on a level even higher than that. But she wasn’t an enemy, whatever words she’d just spoken, likely just to keep Gilda from suspecting anything. Indeed right before that Adagio had mouthed something, and Sunset thought the words had been ‘Talk later’. Adagio was working her own angle with Twilight, seeking to rescue Ember. Chances were Gilda showing up now had been a surprise to Adagio as well, although Sunset wondered if Adagio interfered because she wanted Gilda for another purpose, or if it was just because it might reflect poorly on Adagio if she let her supposed partner on her mission for the Espada get defeated so soon? I’m... too tired to think about this... Sunset thought, her earlier anger draining out of her as she restored Hokori no Hikari to its Shikai state and sheathed the Zanpaktou. Looking down she saw fire trucks and ambulances had arrived, as well as several police vehicles. Parts of her apartment complex were smoldering, but Sunset was at least somewhat relieved to see the majority of the damage had been restricted to her own personal apartment. Hopefully no one had been hurt. With a thunderous flash, Rainbow Dash bolted up right next to Sunset, her Fullbring materialized around her and her lightning spear already drawn as she looked around with eager eyes. “Got here fast as I could Sunset! Where’re the bad guys!?” Sunset managed a small smile, shaking her head, “Already skedaddled. I’ll tell you and the girls all about it in a sec, but you need to get to the ground and hidden before somebody sees you. You’re not invisible like me right now, remember?” Rainbow Dash had the presence of mind to briefly blush as she spotted the crowds of people gathering below, though thankfully none of them were looking her way yet. “Riiiight, eheh, guess I just kinda rushed here without figuring for that. Meet you on the ground!” Rainbow Dash zipped off once more, a cobalt streak of speed that even Sunset had a hard time following. Rainbow Dash’s speed had certainly always been top notch, but with her Fullbring completed, she had the whole group beat in that department. Sunset followed her friend’s reiatsu more than her form and followed Dash to a spot behind the apartment where there weren’t any people yet. Dash powered down to her regular civilian form, and as Sunset landed, she asked, “So I felt, like, two pretty strong Hollows here. Who did this? And did you beat their faces in appropriately for trashing your place?” Sunset sighed, gradually realizing the numerous problems having her apartment destroyed caused her. She’d need a new place to stay, for one. Discord would no doubt lend her a room, but it wouldn’t be the same as having a home of her own. She’d need to track down Chappy and make sure the Mod Soul knew what had happened. “It was an Espada. She was waiting for me when I got home, and shot a Cero practically the second I walked in the door.” Rainbow’s ruby eyes shone with fury as she smacked her fist into a palm, “That’s a dirty way to start a fight. She ambushed you! Tell me you kicked her butt!” “More or less,” Sunset said, “I think she didn’t expect me to be as strong as I was. She had information on us, but it was pretty outdated. Guess this means the Espada don’t really know what happened in Soul Society.” “And the fact that we got two thousand percent more awesome while we were there,” Rainbow Dash said with a grin, “So which Espada was it? I felt two of them. Did you thrash the other one too? “Not exactly. The one who ambushed me was the Tenth Espada, and said her name was Gilda.” With a curious tilt of her head, Rainbow Dash scratched her head, face taking on a look as if something was tickling at her brain. “Gilda? Huh...Gilda... Gilda... why does that name sound familiar?” “Someone you know?” Sunset asked. “I don’t know, it just kinda sticks out in my head,” Rainbow Dash said, then shrugged, “Meh, probably not important. Anyway, who was the other Espada that showed up?” “Oh, no one special, just Adagio.” “Whahuh!?” “That was about my thoughts on it. She basically gave Gilda a dressing down, then proceeded to boot her through a Garganta before heading through herself, pretty much half a minute before you got here,” Sunset said, somewhat glad she wasn’t the only one to be surprised by the siren’s sudden arrival. “Oh, and she’s the Sixth Espada now.” Rainbow Dash just stared at her for a moment with a look that slowly went from flabbergasted, to mildly put out as she crossed her arms and nearly pouted, “Sixth!? Seriously!? What cheat code has she been using? Or maybe the Espada are just wimpier than we thought?” “I don’t think so. I felt Adagio’s reiatsu up close. She’s the real deal. Honestly Gilda wasn’t exactly what I’d have called weak either. If we’d fought her before going to Soul Society she’d have mopped the floor with us. I’m not even sure how well the other girls would stand up to her. Me and you might be the only ones able to stand up to her right now, the Captains notwithstanding.” Rainbow Dash nodded, then glanced behind Sunset and perked up, pointing over Sunset’s shoulder, “Speaking of Captains.” “Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, are you both alright?” Sunset turned to see Captain Celestia had arrived, with Clover right beside her, along with Posey and half a dozen other Soul Reapers from the Eleventh Division garrison stationed in town. All of them except Celestia had Zanpaktou drawn and looked wary, as if expecting an attack to come out of nowhere, but Celestia appeared calm and soon held up a hand. “Stand down, I no longer sense Hollow reiatsu. Or should I say, Arrancar reiatsu?” Celestia asked Sunset, who returned a shallow nod. “That’s right. I’m fine, Celestia. One of the Espada tried to... well, basically assassinate me, but as you can see, I’m still here.” Sunset hung her head slightly, a tired note entering her tone, “Same can’t be said for my apartment.” “An Espada?” Clover’s concern was palpable as she approached Sunset, “And you’re okay? You weren’t injured?” “Still got all my body parts intact,” Sunset replied, showing Clover a brief, reassuring smile. “I’m sorry we didn’t arrive sooner,” Celestia said with a deeply apologetic tone, “I was overseeing a delicate matter well outside of the city limits when I sensed the disturbance. I would have arrived faster, but I had more ground to cover than if I’d been at the school.” “She overtook us just as we were arriving,” said Posey, sounding embarrassed, “And we’re so much closer. Truly Captain Celestia is nearly as fast a her sister.” Posey bowed towards Sunset and Rainbow Dash, face colored nearly pink, “I can’t apologize enough for how slowly we reacted. I can’t believe an Espada was able to slip into town without our notice.” “Hey, it's not like you guys have wards set up the way you do in Soul Society,” said Sunset, holding up a forestalling hand, “It's not like an enemy can’t just suppress their reiatsu while skulking around. I didn’t even sense her until I walked into my apartment and found her in my kitchen. No reason any of you should’ve sensed her from across town.” “True,” admitted Celestia, her eyes narrowing in thought, “But if the Espada have grown this bold, we can’t afford to take any further chances. The safety of you young ladies is of paramount importance, and right now the same Espada could strike at any of your homes. I’m going to have to recommend having Lieutenant Posey delegate members of the garrison force to guard your residences. I may even suggest you girls start living together for the time being, at either one of your homes or at Discord’s shop.” The suggestion made sense, but it wouldn’t exactly be easy to explain to those parents of Sunset’s friends who were still clueless as to what had been happening over the course of the last month or so. Pinkie Pie’s family was in the know, and Applejack’s was at least somewhat clued in, but for Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash, as far as their families knew (minus Firefly of course), nothing was out of the ordinary with their daughter’s lives. “It’s going to look kind of odd to a few my friend’s families if we suddenly start living together under one roof,” Sunset said, “We’d need to come up with a pretty plausible excuse.” Celestia nodded in agreement, her alabaster features turning pensive, “A fair point. I don’t suppose we can just inform them of what’s actually happening, either. Not without consulting with Fluttershy, Rarity, and you Rainbow Dash on how well your parents would handle the truth.” “My dad would, in a word, freak the hell out,” Rainbow Dash said, gulping, “I really don’t want to make him worry about me any more than he already does. Can’t speak for Rarity, but I know Fluttershy’s parents pretty well. They’d probably have simultaneous strokes if they learned what Fluttershy’s been doing with us during our ‘after school activities’.” After a second, Posey cleared her throat, “Um, excuse me, Captain Celestia? I have an idea.” “Yes, Lieutenant?” “W-well, we’ve appropriated that campsite for the school to act as a summer activity center for the students, so that Miss Shimmer and her allies could be close by and assist the research teams efforts at the new testing location. Could we, um, just move them there early and make an excuse that they’re... I don’t know, ‘camp counselors’ in training or something?” Sunset hadn’t the faintest notion what Posey was talking about, but Celestia’s eyes lit up as she stroke her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm, yes... that’s actually an excellent idea, Lieutenant Posey. Good thinking.” Just as Celestia spoke, a voice called from around the corner of the apartment. “Oh thank goodness! Sunset! Girls, she’s over here!” It was Fluttershy, looking quite relieved, and with a swift motion she came running along, the rest of Sunset’s friends only a step behind her. All of them were tense, and Applejack in particular was looking at the remains of Sunset’s apartment with a shocked, and then furious expression filling up her features with hot outrage. “Who dun it? Who’s the low-down dirty rotten scumbag that’s got a date with my fists!” “Applejack, simmer it down,” Sunset said, although she felt a bit awkward saying so, given she was still struggling with a kernel of residual anger and pain over the loss herself, “I’ve already driven them off. You’ll have to wait until next time.” Fluttershy was already wordlessly checking her over for wounds, and nearby Posey watched Fluttershy with not so well disguised interest, which Fluttershy either didn’t notice or was intentionally trying not to react to. Meanwhile Celestia glanced towards the street, where one of the police officers cordoning off the area had finally taken notice of the visible human girls and was coming their way. “We’ll have to reconvene later after you’ve given statements to the human authorities,” Celestia said, “But once you’re finished, come to the school. We’ll discuss matters there.” ---------- The Garganta opened up within the Everfree Forest, not far from the cave Adagio and her team had chosen as their hideout. Gilda stumbled out, shortly followed by Adagio, and as the Garganta closed, Gilda roared and rounded on Adagio. Her fist flew straight for Adagio’s face, but she caught the blow before it got close. There was a concussive burst of air from the blow that stirred the leaves of the trees, and sent several birds squawking into the sky from their disturbed perches, but otherwise Adagio was unharmed and just held Gilda’s fist as the other Espada glared at her. “What is wrong with you!? I could have taken that half-assed Soul Reaper!” “No, you couldn’t,” Adagio stated in a tone dry and harsh as sand, “Not without taking too much time. Even if you did manage to kill her, which I sincerely doubt you could have, by the time you did you’d be surrounded by her friends, the local Soul Reapers, likely including at least one Captain, not to mention possibly drawn the attention of any Quincy forces in the area.” “So what!?” Gilda said in a snarl, “That’s our job, isn’t it? To figure out how many enemy forces are in the city.” Adagio wanted to smack herself. Or Gilda. Possibly both. She rolled her eyes and spoke slowly, pointedly, as if addressing a child. “Yes. Covertly. At least at first. The idea being that you survive long enough to report back to Lord Tirek what we discover of the city’s defenses. Which I’m not certain how you intended to accomplish that after the entire city’s defensive force annihilated you.” The look on Gilda’s face, making her features jittery and twitch like a caged animal, was easy enough for Adagio to read. Utter, bitter frustration that spilled off of Gilda in waves. Gilda knew she’d screwed up and was desperately trying to save face, but the fact was she couldn’t argue against Adagio’s plain logic and she knew it. More than that, there was a deep seated, anger fueled pain in the Espada that Adagio could see she was striving to hide. There was even the barest hint of wetness in Gilda’s eyes as she tore her hand away from Adagio with a pent up growl and turned away from her. “Then why didn’t you kill that bacon headed dork yourself, oh Mighty Miss Number Six!? You could have, but you just let her walk!” Yes, because she and her gang are going to be instrumental in helping me rescue Ember, and perhaps in the future toppling Tirek, but you don’t need to know that, Adagio thought with a mental snort. She hadn’t intended to meet Sunset again this way, saving Gilda. Indeed she’d only been in the area because she’d intended to do exactly what Gilda had done, which was sneak into Sunset’s apartment. Only to meet and talk with her rather than toss a Cero in the girl’s face. Adagio had wanted to avoid exposing herself, but had also been interested to see how much stronger Sunset had become since they’d last met, so she’d remained hidden and observed the battle until it became clear Gilda had gotten well in over her head. She'd have to find another time to speak with Sunset, which could prove difficult now that Gilda had tossed a proverbial rock into the beehive, but Adagio would worry about that later. “Perhaps I could have, but not instantly, and not before reinforcements arrived,” Adagio said calmly, shouldering her trident and starring at Gilda’s half-turned back with a frank look, “Our mission isn’t to eliminate any specific targets. It’s information gathering. Get that through your thick skull.” “Or what, you’ll kill me? Then damn well do it, or am I not even worth killing to you!?” “Oh for the love of... stop acting like such a child!” Adagio said, this time actually smacking a palm to her forehead in pure exasperation, “Are you that bothered by my being stronger than you that you’d rather get your idiot-self killed than just accept your position for what it is? You’re still an Espada. Get over yourself and start acting like one!” “What would you know about it?” Gilda shot back, voice laced with a caustic edge, “You’ve been an Arrancar for barely a fraction as long as I have! Do you have any idea what I’ve been through to get where I am? How long I’ve fought, and bitten, and clawed my way through Guto’s army to earn their respect and a shot at reaching the top! How many years I’ve done nothing but train, and fight, and train, and fight just to get this far... then you show up and like a damn golden child you steal not just my glory, but Lord Guto's too!?” The pain was less disguised now, more raw, along with the rank, rancid anger in Gilda’s tone, like long spoiled meat. She was shaking, hands clenched, eyes almost wild as she sucked in hard breaths, not even paying any mind to the wounds from her fight with Sunset that still bled. “Lord Guto gave me everything I have, and you stole his position away from him, and shamed me at the same time. And you did it without even trying. No effort. You just walked into Las Noches like you owned the place... I’d have preferred it if Tirek had made us fight for the position and you’d killed me. At least then I wouldn’t feel so... so damn worthless!” At last she seemed spent, and let out a bitter grunt of a laugh as she looked at Adagio, “Go ahead, laugh.” “Do I look like I’m in a laughing mood?” Adagio replied, neither cold nor warm, just maintaining a cool, neutral expression. “Hmph, no, you look just as arrogant and full of yourself as ever. Damn I wish I could just wipe that smug look off of your face. Crush your damn pretty little mouth in. But I can’t, because I’m the Tenth, and you're the Sixth, and it’d be impossible for me to beat you.” For a moment Gilda was silent, then seemed to shake herself, “I don’t even... this is dumb. Why’d I even spill my guts to you on this? I never talk about this crap with people.” “Frustration breaks down a lot of walls,” Adagio said, “And it’s pretty obvious I’ve been frustrating you since we met. You really hate that I’ve risen to power this quickly, don’t you?” “Of course I do. You didn’t earn it. I’ve spent decades earning it.” “I suppose from the outside looking in that’s how it’d seem,” Adagio said, her voice thoughtful, considering. She’d prevented Sunset from continuing her attack because Gilda was still useful for Adagio’s plans. She wasn’t certain if Sunset’s next attack would have actually killed Gilda, but it certainly would have wounded the Tenth Espada and made her role in the days to come more difficult to perform. Mostly Adagio just wanted to avoid an all out brawl in the city and the likely event of Gilda getting destroyed by the Soul Reapers. At least not this early. Once Gilda fulfilled the role Adagio wanted her for, then whatever happened after that was none of her concern. Or at least it hadn’t been. It wasn’t precisely sympathy for Gilda that got Adagio thinking so much as it was a basic empathy for Gilda’s frustrations. Feeling powerless was a sensation Adagio knew all too well, due to Grogar. She still fully intended to make use of Gilda, but perhaps she could find uses that extended beyond the well timed distraction she originally intended? Gilda was clearly not used to dealing with her own emotions. At least not outside of punching things to express anger. The emotionally distressed were usually easier to manipulate, and Adagio was fairly certain she knew how to bait the hook in this instance. “I know I’ve grown in power at a rate far beyond what most Arrancar are capable of,” Adagio went on, “But do you know about any of the things Grogar did to me in his laboratory?” Gilda made a disgusted face, “No, and I don’t really wanna know. That sick goat-faced bastard creeps me right the hell out and I don’t wanna even think about the twisted crap he must get into.” “I understand you’ve fought hard for your position. Now try to imagine what I had to endure under Grogar’s ‘care’. I am no stranger to pain, Gilda. I might not have your long years of experience, but believe me, Grogar can fit a year’s worth of pain inside of a single day of his experimentation. You really don’t want to know all the things I've been through.” A small grunt of agreement escaped Gilda, her words quiet and reluctantly spoken, “Fine, so it sucked for you. Doesn’t mean you deserve the power you’ve managed to get your hands on, or that I can accept that you’ve knocked Lord Guto down in the ranks without properly challenging him first. Lord Tirek should’ve made you two fight it out. It would’ve been the proper way to do things.” “I’m pretty sure I’ve got that fight coming sooner rather than later,” Adagio said with her own bitter snort, “Guto won’t let me retain the number on my back for long without doing something about it. And I’m well aware he’s likely told you to keep an eye on me and report to him about any unique powers I’ve developed, or on my fighting style.” Gilda wasn’t very good at hiding her thoughts, especially not while still trying to get herself back together after her emotional outburst. The lie was easy to see in her eyes and hear in her voice as she said, “I, um, don’t know what you’re talking about.” Adagio laughed, shaking her head, “I don’t actually care, Gilda. Guto and I will fight one day soon, and I fully intend to win. Tell him whatever you wish before that happens, it won’t change my own plans.” “Hmph, that confident, huh?” “I never aim to lose, that’s for certain. But just because your former Lord and I are at odds, that doesn’t mean we have to be.” Gilda’s face walled itself up, her voice guarded, “Yeah right. I’m not that much of a fool, Adagio. I’m the Tenth. Without Lord Guto’s support I’d just be fresh meat and easy pickings for any upstart looking to get a shot at one of the thrones. And I’m loyal to him. I’m not about to turn on him, especially not for you.” “Who said anything about turning on Guto?” Adagio said, offering a polite shrug, “Understand, Gilda, I don’t have a personal grudge against Guto like I have with Grogar. My ascension to the position of Sixth Espada was not my choice, but that of Lord Tirek’s. I’d have easily settled for the Seventh.” That much was very true. She’d have infinitely preferred it if Tirek had given her Hydia’s former position instead of Guto’s. While she didn’t know Hydia very well, she had far more confidence she could deal with Hydia as an enemy than Guto. The power difference between her and the former Sixth Espada was still too narrow for her to feel comfortable she could beat him in a fair fight. Which of course meant she had no intention at all of fighting fair, but that was a problem for another day. “Of course I won’t be giving up my position without a fight, but that doesn’t necessitate I destroy Guto if I emerge victorious.” “I wouldn’t rely on mercy to make Lord Guto any less determined to kill your ass and take back his seat,” Gilda promised darkly, but Adagio shrugged it off. “Obviously not, but perhaps if someone were to express the value of alliance over the pursuit of a grudge, everyone involved would benefit from it. Someone Lord Guto trusted.” Gilda’s golden eyes narrowed in shrewd, predatory fashion, “And why should I do that? Why not just let Guto off you? I’d go up in rank that way.” “The same would happen if I destroyed Guto, but that would only change your ranking number, it wouldn’t actually increase your power, would it?” Adagio said, and she’d added a hinting lilt to the question in her voice that she hoped Gilda would pick up on. She saw the spark in Gilda’s eyes and knew she’d gotten the girl’s interest. “On the other hand,” Adagio went on, “Let us say that Guto and I came to an understanding with one another instead of a wasteful duel to the death. The one who helped facilitate that alliance would be well rewarded I would think, both by Guto and myself. Her position would be secure, and she’d have time and allies to rely upon through which to gain more power, perhaps even rise in the ranks past a certain goat-faced bastard that none of us truly like, and I happen to have a very real and vested interest in disposing of.” Even before she could see the gears turning in Gilda’s head Adagio knew she had her, hook, line, and sinker. Gilda might have hated Adagio, but it was hate based on feelings of frustration at seeing all her hard work getting tread upon by a newcomer. If that newcomer, instead of stepping all over Gilda’s pride, could instead open a door towards getting her desired power and respect, then what reason did Gilda have to refuse? The fact that Adagio mostly just needed Gilda’s cooperation to rescue Ember was a complete side factor at the moment. If Gilda survived, she’d be a potentially useful ally. If not, no real skin off of Adagio’s back, she’d still be in the same boat as she was now where Guto was concerned and she’d have one less angry Espada looking to put a blade in her back. For Adagio, everything was win-win. Or at least win-break even. “Huh...” Gilda made a small face, as if she didn’t like having to think this much, “You talk a good game, I’ll give you that. I’ll... think about it. Ugh, all this talking is making me tired.” “Well, my people are set up nearby. Why not come rest with us, and we’ll work out a plan for actually observing the city without exposing ourselves further or getting ourselves killed by the Soul Reapers or Quincy?” “Yeah, sure, whatever. Just don’t go acting all friendly and stuff. It’s weirding me out.” “Not friendly, just courteous. If it makes you feel better I can go back to smiling smugly and making jabs at you.” “That’d be good... skank.” “Of course... muscled headed moron.” As the two Arrancar strode off through the brush, heading for the cavern that was about half a kilometer further into the woods, none of them took any particular note of the deep purple rose jutting from a nearby set of bushes. The rose hadn’t moved during the entire conversation, but now it twitched slightly, turning towards the direction that Adagio and Gilda had gone, as if watching. A flicker of bright, verdant magic spilled through the flower like a pulse, and went into its thorn-covered stem, flowing down into its roots. There the magic connected to a vast network of vines that spread through the ground for numerous square miles around the Everfree Forest. This network flowed around the area in a spider-web of interconnected vines, some of which were so large that they were practically subway tunnels. Apt, given several were hollowed out and had pathways that humans could walk through without having to bend over. The roots themselves sported large thorns that dug into the earth, some as large as five to six feet long. The heart of the network lay deep underground, beneath the very bottom of the lake upon the banks of which Camp Everfree was built. Here, a the very center of the network of natural vines, they came together into one giant, bulbous shape. Within this cocoon of plant life, something stirred. It sensed the magic being used, but it wasn’t her power. It was connected to her power, however, and she continued to sleep, while feeling the disturbed, hungry and frantic thoughts of the one whose soul she had reached out to. The vessel was using her power. Both of her powers. The one born from her empty soul, and the one born from the gems she’d discovered long ago. The vessel was worried. She didn’t know by what, she was still too deep in her dreamless state to truly know all that was happening to the vessel. But she had sensed the use of the power known as ‘magic’, and knew the flower had been recently planted. The energy was relaying something to the vessel. Hmm, still too weak to properly awaken. Both her and the vessel. But she tasted a hint of the old, familiar power nearby. Others of her kind had come. So long since she’d tasted their souls as empty as her own. Soon. More power needed to gather, and the vessel properly prepared. But soon, she’d awaken. The one who’d put her here had thought her broken, had thought her beyond recovery, but patience was a virtue, and she’d been very, very patient. She could wait just a little longer. She laughed as she drifted back into slumber. ---------- Gloriosa woke up hearing the sound of distant, sharp laughter, and looked around the dimly lit counselor's room in the camp’s central building. The shadows gathered around the window told her that the sun had gone down, and the pile of papers on the desk in front of her showed she must have drifted off while going over the camp’s expenses. The docks needed a massive refurbishing, the third bunkhouse had a leaky roof (again), and she wasn’t sure how but some forest critter or another had broken into the storerooms and made off with a week’s worth of canned beans. Camp Everfree’s budget was dancing dangerously around the red line. It really was a godsend that Canterlot High had been willing to rent out the camp for such a long period, throwing in a suspiciously large bonus for the camp’s exclusive use. If Gloriosa wasn’t so desperate, she’d have really wondered where a high school principal like Celestia had gotten such funding, or why she was so insistent on establishing this summer long camp program for her students. Checking her cell phone, Gloriosa frowned. She had a notification for an email from Filthy Rich, and she instinctively sneered at the screen even as she opened the message to read it. He’d been making overtures to buying Camp Everfree on and off since before Gloriosa’s parents has passed. The man really didn’t seem to understand the notion of giving up, or that no might actually mean no. Her face creased in a frown as she read the words on her phone’s screen. It was politely worded, Filthy Rich was nothing if not consistently courteous, but this message was different than his other usual politely worded attempts to convince her of the “wisdom” in selling her family’s legacy for a pittance. This time he was inviting her to dinner. She’d have found that vaguely insulting, only this also mentioned it’d be a mutual business dinner to discuss potential dealings with a third party. Twilight Sparkle? The name didn’t sound familiar to Gloriosa Daisy, but it did tickle something in the back of her mind. Her head hurt and she massaged her temples for a moment, sighing. Before she could reply to the message, not sure yet whether to just flat out tell Filthy Rich no, or just let the man buy her dinner and see what this Sparkle person might have to say, she felt warm pulse of energy from the necklace of geodes she wore. Still learning the nuances of this strange magical power she’d discovered, Gloriosa still recognized the pulse of magic as a signal. A very specific signal she’d set up earlier that day while planting seeds around the camp’s perimeter. Something had triggered one of her specially crafted spy flowers. It seemed every day she practiced with the magic of the geodes she was learning new tricks, and this one allowed her to set up flowers connected to the roots running through the forest that would detect unusual sounds or movements and relay that information back to her. With a moment of concentration she took hold of the geodes and held her hand over the table, willing the magic forth. Green wisps of energy curled from the geodes to her fingers, sparkling along the edge of the table then into the ground. There, roots beneath the earth responded to her call, and the pulse of magic that had traveled through those roots to her from the spy flower in the forest rose upward. Vines pushed through the floor, then curled up to stand before Gloriosa, uncurling to form a purple rose that opened its petals to emit a sheet of green light. This light turned into a projected image, showing Gloriosa the picture of two of those strange people with the holes in their bodies talking. She recognized one from before, but the other, exceedingly muscular girl was a new one. As she listened to the conversation, Gloriosa’s face grew ever more confused. Espada? Soul Reapers? Quincy? What were this two talking about? It was hard to follow the conversation, but it was clear these two didn’t exactly get along, despite seeming to come to some sort of agreement with one another before they walked off. There was also a mention of a cave nearby that they were hiding out in. With a start, Gloriosa realized it was very likely the same cave she’d found the geodes in. “What are you people, and what are you doing around my camp?” she wondered aloud, but shook her head. She had a more pressing concern at the moment, that being that it was nightfall, but Timber Spruce still hadn’t returned. If he had, she would have heard the station wagon arrive, and a quick look out the window confirmed the car wasn’t in the camp parking area. Under normal circumstances Gloriosa might have been a tad worried and annoyed that her little brother wasn’t home yet, but it wasn’t like she was his mother and he was old enough to do what he wanted, including staying out to any hour of the night. But that was before all these strange events had started occurring, and Gloriosa became aware of the fact that there were monsters out there, prowling the streets, that nobody else could seem to see. Nobody else normal anyway. Fortunately Gloriosa had anticipated that something might happen to her brother, and unbeknownst to him, just as she’d planted the spy flowers around the camp, she’d planted a little something else on him. A small seed, infused with just enough magic for her to sense and follow, even at a distance. Going outside, Gloriosa threw on a jacket and went to a shed near the parking lot. Inside was her old motorbike. She hadn’t ridden much lately, but it had a full tank of gas, and as she mounted up she touched the geodes once more, activating the magic within to link herself to the seed she’d placed on Timber’s own jacket. In an instant she saw the faint traces of emerald magic swirling out into the night, pointing her in the right direction. With a worried look, hoping her brother was alright, Gloriosa started the motorcycle and drove out into the night.