Twilight sighed, leaning on the railing of her treehouse's balcony. She reached up, lifting her element that now served as her official crown. Not a moment later, one of her wings flapped up, smacking into a nearby branch.
"Oh come on," she muttered, pulling the appendage down. It had been one day since her official coronation, and she was still getting used to everything. Her wings moved on their own. She had even pushed Wyatt out of bed with them after they suddenly snapped upright.
“Twilight?” Cinnamon’s voice chirped from her nightstand. “I have the results of those tests.”
Twilight perked up a bit, returning to her room and putting down her crown. Lighting up her horn, she grabbed the laptop. "Can you display it on the laptop screen, Cinnamon?"
Nodding, the cyber elf flitted over. "Of course, importing data now." Placing her hand on the laptop, a popup appeared that showed the appearance of new files. “I’ll run you through the results.”
Nodding, Twilight watched as the screen changed. A model appeared of two strands of DNA, each belonging to one of the creatures. While the alicorn, or kirincorn as Wyatt had taken to calling her given her other changes, was by no means a genetics expert, there was something off about what she was seeing. It was like the two creatures had been manufactured.
“Whatever those creatures were in the end, they started off as human,” Cinnamon began, hovering next to the screen. “They both show extensive genetic manipulation.”
Twilight recoiled at the news, staring in horror at the models. "How awful. How could someone turn people into those things?"
Cinnamon shook her head. “It’s more likely this happened in utero,” Cinnamon brought up another window. A representation of a cell popping on screen. “I’ve isolated what appears to be a mutagenic virus in their blood. I took it upon myself to start synthesizing a vaccine.”
"Excellent," Twilight replied, examining the zoomed in model of the virus. It didn't seem like much on first inspection, but the simulation of its behavior on healthy cells was the stuff of medical nightmares.
The screen changed again, one of the creature's DNA profile replaced by another. “There is, however, one more disturbing revelation.”
"More disturbing than making monsters with a super virus?" Twilight questioned, looking at the cyber elf.
A single gene was highlighted on both profiles. “When it involves Wyatt, I would say yes. I found a common gene between the naked creature and Wyatt. One the coated creature lacked.”
Her heart sinking, Twilight's eyes flitted between the two models. There had to be some sort of explanation. "Maybe it's still a human gene? Did the samples from Tsukiya and his brother have anything similar?"
Cinnamon shook her head. “Neither brother showed any signs of having it. I don’t think it’s naturally occurring. In fact, I think it’s artificial.”
Biting her lip, Twilight's focus zeroed in on the highlighted gene. "And do you have any projections on what it might do?" Unbidden images of Wyatt changing into one of those creatures came to her mind.
“That will take some time. I’ll need at least a few more days to run through the simulations.”
"Please do," Twilight requested, tearing her eyes from the screen. "It's incredibly important we find out what this is and what it can do." Sighing, she stood up. "I need to tell him about this. We can't hide it from him."
Cinnamon gave her a quick affirmation, returning to her work. Twilight picked up the laptop, looking over the DNA models one last time before heading downstairs. Wyatt needed to know, even if she had no idea how she was going to explain it.
Sunset Shimmer closed the door behind her, a scowl etched onto her features. Another day, another pointless stint in high school. Magic school had been bad enough, but humans were somehow even more annoying than Canterlot's so-called elite students. And to make matters worse, she had somehow become a student of Celestia again.
Tossing her jacket onto the coat rack, Sunset's thoughts drifted to her plans. With princesses and alicorns not a thing in this world, her original idea had taken a deathblow. Instead, she had put herself on a track for a career in politics.
Pulling her boots off, she placed them by the door. Her hands moved automatically, the mindless action of unlacing her boots giving her time to think. She was already top of her class, so that part would be easy for college. Plus, she had won the Fall Formal crown every year making her look good. Extra curriculars were the only real thing she was lacking.
Her train of thought was derailed by a sudden sound from deeper within her apartment. “Have you finally decided to grace me with your attention?”
Sunset's instincts went into high gear, flinging her untied boot at the source of the sound and dropped into a fighting stance. "I don't know how you got in here, but I know how you're getting out!"
Her boot was swatted to the ground, stamped down by an armored boot. “Ah, but if I were to leave, I would be condemning you to a life of pity and obscurity.”
Sunset almost burst out laughing at the man before her. The grey helmet on his head had a massive crest of red eagle wings on the front that went far up and above him. His armored form was like that of a traditional knight with a cape styled similarly to an old military officer's uniform.
"Wow, did a costume store kick your ass on the way here?" Sunset questioned, crossing her arms over her chest. “You look like an idiot.”
"My appearance is of little consequence," Zero said, ignoring the insults. "What does matter is what I can offer you, pony."
Her body tensed, eyes meeting with his with a glare. “What did you call me?”
"I called you pony," Zero replied, kicking her boot back over to her. "That is what you are, isn't it? Or rather, what you were before coming to this world."
Grabbing her other boot, she aimed it at his head. “How the fuck do you know that?” she demanded, inching towards the door.
"How I know is unimportant, but if it'll put you at ease," Zero started, taking a seat. "I am a former member of a group that travelled between worlds. And your former world was a target of ours. I also know that you wished to become a princess."
Sunset frowned, staying by the door. “And you came to my home, why?” A strange man in knight armor visiting her in the late hours wasn’t how she wanted to spend her evening. “To rub it in my face?”
"Oh no, not at all," Zero said, a chuckle escaping his lips. "I thought you might like to know you have a chance at your dream. A new princess has been coronated in Equestria, and her crown is the Element of Magic."
“That’s ridiculous.” Sunset moved closer, hardening her gaze. “The elements don’t exist, it’s just a fairy tail, like Nightmare Moon.”
"Then explain this," Zero retorted, tossing a photo at the girl's feet. "That might change your mind."
Snatching the photo off the ground, Sunset had to hide her shock. In the photo were six mares, each one wearing jewelry of some kind with a rainbow energy firing off of them. Hatred bubbled up through her mind, the picture falling to the floor in two halves. “What do you want?”
"What I want is to disrupt my former comrades' plans," Zero offered, smiling. "You can help me do that. You're a smart girl, Sunset, surely you know what happens when the Element of Magic is taken from its world."
Sunset stared for a moment, her own smile growing. “Oh I do. Just tell me what I need to know.”