//------------------------------// // Chapter 55: Her Evil Deeds // Story: Equestria Girls - The Tale of Two Sunsets // by HumanSunset63 //------------------------------// Returning back to her native world, Human Sunset came out of the same spot from the CHS horse statute pedestal, and hoped those red beetles wouldn't follow her through the portal. After it seemed as though the beetles had given up looking for her, she felt her anxiety decrease, before noticing she was suddenly wearing her old clothes again, almost as if this portal had some kind of filter that removed them when she turned into a pony. This observation aside, it felt crucial to her in now going back to recap everything she had just learned in Equestria, as it seemingly explained quite a number of things she once believed were unexplainable. For starters, recalling that experience in which she had been engulfed in a void and left in a coma for literal years, it appeared to be something that this Clover pony saw for himself, but there seemed to be a much greater consequence that was hinted at back in entry 287. It was still rather dark, and likely past midnight by this point, so Human Sunset's first move was to return back to her home, processing everything she had to take in. She affirmed that the first 72 hour thing was exactly what had happened that day she faded out of existence and lost touch with her world, after the pony version of herself ended up here. At least, she would assume that the other Sunset was the Sunset Shimmer native to Equestria, based on the evidence she had already seen of her existence, as well as the contents of her diary from earlier. This meant that she was not only a pony version of herself from another world, but also that four-legged animal she saw in that dark area before getting engulfed and trapped. For the time being, Human Sunset knew that returning now appeared to bring everything back to normal, as she also had her previous knowledge and physical strength completely intact. Unfortunately, one crucial detail that kept on bothering her, was again, what Clover had written in that particular chilling journal entry. Just like Clover had claimed, the first 72 hour inbalance occurrence had taken effect, presumably with that other being whom he shared common interests with, who was likely the Clover native to this world. After not thinking much of it, he had only briefly returned to Equestria, which brought things back to normal, just like with Human Sunset now. But then the second time Clover let the effect take place, it was said that he'd never look at himself the same way ever again, making it so Human Sunset was scared for her life at what could've possibly happened. Whatever was the case, it almost sounded like a fate even worse than death itself, and presumably a permanent effect that could never be reversed. Although she had taken away the old journal that kept the portal open indefinitely, from what she had already read, she knew it wasn't enough. Human Sunset now knew of the portal opening every 30 moons, meaning that Pony Sunset would still eventually be able to return in the matter of just waiting it out. Although stealing her life, identity, and existence were all already bad enough, Human Sunset's main fear at the possibility of her pony self returning again, was the inbalance enigma taking effect for the second time. The fact it was horrible to the point where Clover made certain that no one else other than himself would ever know, that just solidified the extent of what Pony Sunset had done by coming into this world. Human Sunset would simply refuse to take any chances, wanting to ensure that this fake Sunset would never willingly set foot in this world ever again. The consequence of her coming back to upset the balance of the world a second time was just too much, never mind Human Sunset already having bitter resentment toward this fake imposter for not only taking away her existence, but in comparison, living the good life she always dreamed of having, but never got. Even without this warning of an extremely dangerous inbalance effect, Human Sunset was now adamant on also getting revenge on the imposter Sunset, just as much as her father. Pony Sunset's decision to come into this world from Equestria had already cost her dearly, and also during one of the most psychologically traumatizing periods of her entire life, what with the school bullies, Sunspot abandoning the family, and Solstice passing away. She had practically nothing and no one left, then this had happened to her. Regardless of what would happen with her own life from that point forward, Human Sunset didn't particularly care for the time being. If anything, starving to death or rotting in jail sounded much more pleasant compared to what would inevitably happen to her by letting the imposter return and stay for another 72 hours. She humorously believed that reporting this to the local news station could possibly make her rich and famous, but it'd likely also be digging her own grave, once human beings would face the same inbalance effect by staying in Equestria for too long. All in all, a whole other world supposedly ran by ponies which was connected to her own world thanks to magic, it definitely felt like something she'd never fully understand on her own, nor would science. Even astro scientists and anybody within the entire galaxy would be dumbfounded by how this could truly work. Moving past this, as she began to enter the neighborhood area where Solstice's old home was, Human Sunset had absolutely no idea how she was going to deal with Pony Sunset returning and having her existence be the main cause for supposed irreversible damage to herself. As the possibilities flooded her mind, she personally believed that simply telling her of what she had learned and nicely asking her to never come back wasn't an option. There was simply no way Pony Sunset could be so understanding and cooperative, especially after seeing everything she had supposedly owned and accomplished while her human counterpart was in a deep sleep. And seeing how rich and successful she was, in contrast to her own miserable life, Human Sunset went on the assumption that Pony Sunset had the exact same mentality as the snobby, rich bullies she once had at Crystal Prep Academy. She'd be just like Sugarcoat and Indigo Zap, seeing how much more of a popular status and wealthy life Pony Sunset had compared to her human counterpart. Although Human Sunset's beliefs regarding her pony counterpart becoming upset and reluctant over permanently abandoning the human world were correct, she was completely unaware of two things. Pony Sunset was incredibly compassionate and empathetic toward everyone, to the point where she'd be willing to make any sacrifices for the well being of others, much like she did when she saved Lily Pad from Gilda that night. As such, she'd never be as stuck up and pompous like Indigo or Sugarcoat, despite having a past where she was a rather nasty bully. Secondly, Pony Sunset was already growing rather tired of the human world anyways, and mostly decided that after graduation, coming back was more of an afterthought, and it mostly just entailed keeping in touch with her human friends. This was due to her wanting to spend more time in Equestria, learning about her family, and returning to her former life of studying magic. Unfortunately, without this knowledge, Human Sunset stood by her belief that a girl as rich and respected as Pony Sunset would be just like her old rich bullies, and that a form of revenge felt justified, given how her existence had already done all this to her human counterpart, intentional or not. The harsh life she previously had was already depressing and traumatizing as it was, and this final act of removing her from existence simply pushed Human Sunset over the edge to feel vengeful, now that she was back. Her thought process came to a temporary halt, as she finally returned back to the home once owned by her mother, which was never bought or torn down, ever since the mortgage was paid off. Not even having the will to sit on her own bed, despite how comfortable it was, Human Sunset simply walked over to the living room's sofa, and laid there to rest for a bit. She didn't even take off her boots or clothes, nor change into her pajamas, which were still in her old bedroom upstairs. This look and arrangement of attire had basically defined her new self, and she was far too insecure to change into anything else, as she believed any other look would again, remind her of once being that weak and helpless Sunny S. student in school. On the subject of her old school life, Human Sunset continued to boil up in resentment toward Indigo, as she was the primary cause of her dropping out, whereas Sugarcoat only made her jealous, and Principal Cinch broke the camel's back after the bullying was finally reported. Had it not been for Indigo, it was most likely that Human Sunset could've made it all the way through high school, while only being #2. It was unknown to her for the time being, but the student who ended up taking her spot in the school after dropping out was none other than the human Twilight, who was almost just like her. The main difference was, Principal Cinch handed Indigo everything she needed to cheat her way through high school, to the point where Indigo didn't feel any need to continue bullying Twilight, like she once did with Sunny S. And unlike Human Sunset, once Twilight managed to even surpass Sugarcoat, Principal Cinch put Twilight on a pedestal to brag to her peers, and gave her that special treatment, while leaving Sugarcoat in the dust, after finally losing her #1 spot. This alone had always made Sugarcoat heavily resent Twilight, even when Twilight was polite enough to have casual conversations with her on the bus, despite not being much of a person who actively socialized. However, Twilight was never bullied or had her education hindered by other students, since Principal Cinch made certain of it. Having a student who could even beat the #1 student in a matter of weeks made Cinch see Twilight as her prized advantage for the school, and she had already known what had happened to Sunny S. shortly before. This was when Cinch made a public announcement that put Twilight in the spotlight, but also made it particularly clear that if anyone were to bully or harass her, they would get expelled, and that included Indigo. As a result of this, Twilight overall saw most Crystal Prep students avoiding or ignoring her, even if she was willing to socialize, as they were too afraid of Cinch's punishment. Although Twilight was never bullied or attacked for being the #1 student, she still felt like a lonely social outcast, and this in its entirety, would've represented what might've actually happened to Human Sunset, had she decided to stay. But unfortunately, Sunny S. just never had enough to satisfy Principal Cinch to give her that same luxury, since just like Sunspot, Cinch didn't have much of a care for the student in the #2 spot, like she soon did with Sugarcoat, turning her into the bitter and blunt girl she had become in present day. Indigo was her ticket at getting good money for the school's funding, while Twilight was the driving force behind making Crystal Prep Academy the absolute #1 school in the city. Having a student like Twilight also made certain that Cinch would never have any problem boasting about how talented of a headmaster she was whenever she had the opportunity, much like during the Friendship Games. Though this didn't stop the awful and wicked principal from blackmailing Twilight to do her bidding, much like when she made it clear that her application to the Everton Independent Study program would be rejected if she refused to participate in the big event. All this aside, Human Sunset particularly had it out for Indigo, so much to where she couldn't stop thinking about her. Although she had smashed up her family's car and stolen her money, she didn't particularly think it was enough, especially since she would likely still be graduating, thanks to Principal Cinch handing her the easy grades like candy. Thinking that Indigo deserved a much more fitting punishment for everything she did to her, Human Sunset got up from the couch for a bit to check the date on her mother's old laptop. Turning it on, she looked at the digital calendar, and noticed it was actually a Monday at 1:17 AM, meaning that it was now a school day. Remembering that Crystal Prep Academy had a school website, Human Sunset searched it up, before looking at the calendar and information located there. It was here where she made several surprising discoveries. The first thing that caught her attention was that according to the staff list, the 'Principal' section now had Dean Cadance's face, meaning that Cinch was no longer the principal of her old school anymore. Human Sunset had no idea what this meant, but it was likely implying she had gotten fired and replaced with the old dean. Considering what the wicked old witch had put her through during her freshman year, it definitely left some room to truly imagine how awful of a deed Cinch had committed to warrant finally getting her comeuppance. Sidetracking for a bit, Human Sunset quickly opened up a new tab on her browser to search what had happened to Cinch, and eventually discovered an old article describing the events during the Friendship Games at CHS. She scrolled down to the bottom of the article and started reading a brief summary of the allegations put toward the former principal, which most likely contributed to her losing her job. Principal Abacus Cinch - Allegations and/or Criminal Charges -Child Abuse -Psychological Abuse -Manipulative Abuse -Terrorism -Blackmail -Sabotage -Thievery -Exploitation -Tyrannical Behavior -Making Illegal Profits Many locals had always wondered how Crystal Prep Academy always got such high marks, but after the events of the Friendship Games between Canterlot High School and Crystal Prep, students had started speaking out against their principal, Abacus Cinch, after Principal Celestia filed a civil lawsuit reporting numerous serious allegations. As it would turn out, students at Crystal Prep began presenting solid evidence of the principal using underhanded tactics to make the school look like the #1 ranked in the city, as exemplified by an anonymous source. This tip claimed that the principal snuck cheat sheets and sold advance copies of tests to students before actual examination, and it was proven true, thanks to audio recordings and video cameras from phones. For the time being, Abacus Cinch is now facing a $500,000 lawsuit for allowing her students to cheat, on top of making a profit from it, but the other charges regarding abusive behavior toward the students has since then been dropped, due to said allegations only presenting circumstantial evidence. The courtroom's jury has also unanimously decided that there appeared to be no actual evidence of her manipulation creating a demonic being possessing magic to the point of nearly destroying the world, on top of sounding farfetched. [UPDATE:] She was originally sentenced to 10 years in prison, but had recently been released on parole after serving her first year. "Are... you... KIDDING ME!?!" Human Sunset spat. Seeing this last statement in the article made Human Sunset's blood boil, despite hearing that Cinch did eventually get caught for one of her major felonies in making a profit through cheat sheets, like she once did for Indigo. Getting sent to prison only to get released so early despite everything else Cinch did, Human Sunset believed that the justice system was next to useless, seeing how they were incompetent to the point of never being able to prove Cinch's previous abusive behavior. Handing out cheat sheets was definitely the furthest thing from what she would've hoped Cinch had gotten convicted for, and this essentially meant that since Cinch was already released, she'd basically get no consequences for everything else she did, especially during the days Human Sunset was attending Crystal Prep Academy. Although Human Sunset believed she was somewhat of a hypocrite for thinking this after she had vandalized her enemies' cars and stolen a hefty wad of cash from her bully, she didn't care. This traced all the way back to that day when Cinch showed complacency toward the idea of Human Sunset suing her, since she never got any actual evidence for her legitimately abusive behavior. Every allegation listed toward Cinch on that article earlier, Human Sunset knew it was absolutely accurate, given her own personal experience with the former principal. Even long before that final confrontation with her and Indigo, she always believed something was off about Cinch, especially with the way she ran the school. It was even noticeable when Human Sunset recalled that being #2 never brought any praise or attention from Cinch, as she only cared about the #1 student at the time, that being Sugarcoat. She could've been #200 for all she cared, and it wouldn't have made a difference. Regardless of all this, it was infuriating to believe that Cinch practically got off scot-free for everything that had happened when Human Sunset first came to that awful school. Cinch's former statement in that office shortly before Human Sunset decided to drop out had unfortunately come true, in the sense that nobody was ever able to convict her of all her other felonies from being a corrupt and abusive principal, and that the only thing ever proven was her handing out cheat sheets. And even then, she only ended up serving one year in prison, whereas Human Sunset lost practically three years of her life, thanks to her pony counterpart's presence in the world itself. On top of that, Human Sunset also had to worry about her pony counterpart returning to create the enigma effect a second time, while presumably nobody else had this concern, especially Cinch. Unknown to Human Sunset, Cinch would definitely lack this kind of problem, given how her Madame pony counterpart was currently in Manehattan prison, and that Cinch wasn't as lucky after her abusive behavior was revealed publicly, thanks to Pony Sunset. By this point, Human Sunset decided to purely focus on positives, as Cinch at least got some kind of punishment, even if there was now seemingly no way to ever prove and reconvict her for all the other awful things she did as principal. Her initial intention was focusing on how to get back at Indigo, so Human Sunset continued doing some digging on the Crystal Prep Academy website, trying to find anything that could be useful information. According to the events schedule, graduation was coming up rather soon for that school as well, and it was planned to be on the same day as Canterlot High. Knowing this, it gave Human Sunset the idea to perhaps do something involving sabotaging the graduation, and notably for Sugarcoat and Indigo. However, while thinking of ways to pull this off, this exact thought began to make her brainstorm a way she could potentially kill two birds with one stone. Being told that graduation was going to take place during the same day as Canterlot High's, the same school that Pony Sunset attended, Human Sunset hypothetically asked herself what would happen if she were to sabotage both events. More specifically, people in her world were confusing her for Pony Sunset one way or another, whether it'd be her friends like Pinkie, or vengeful enemies like Gilda. But then, there was seemingly a way Human Sunset could use this to her advantage. What if she were to commit crimes under Pony Sunset's name, making it so everyone would suddenly turn on her to the point that she'd never want to come back from Equestria? After all, what that pony mentioned to her back in the Equestrian library absolutely confirmed that Pony Sunset was still around, and had intentions to return after her revisit to Equestria was finished. Even if Human Sunset herself was likely to face the music herself once Pony Sunset decided to depart for good, so be it. She already believed her own life was absolutely terrible, to where getting scorned and shunned by society would only be a light papercut, compared to the inbalance effect issue. Unfortunately, last time when Human Sunset had planned revenge, she wasn't as careful in planning things out, notably when Indigo's family had installed video cameras after seeing their car wrecked. Adding on, it wasn't likely for her to pull everything off on her own, let alone with two graduation events. She was going to need help in order to sabotage and ruin the graduations under Pony Sunset's name, and she would have no idea where to even start, given how she wasn't much of a criminal, outside of vandalizing cars and stealing money. It also didn't help that she didn't really have any friends prior to reinventing herself, other than her mother, who was still long gone. Pony Sunset was presumably friends with a lot of people in the city, but it didn't seem likely that any of them would follow Human Sunset with her intentions on committing crimes that could potentially get them in trouble too. But then it suddenly hit her, if she didn't have any friends in this world, what if she were to enlist the help of her enemies, who seemingly had just as big of a vendetta toward Pony Sunset? It seemed like genius, given how Human Sunset already proved she was more than capable of beating Gilda and her gang to a pulp, solidifying how tough she truly was. But more importantly, they had held a personal grudge toward Pony Sunset, since in their words, Pony Sunset had intervened when Gilda was attempting to demand cash from some girl by using her phone as collateral. Would it not be reasonable to surmise that Gilda's gang would have no problem whatsoever in teaming up with her, as an attempt in tarnishing Pony Sunset's name? Since she had already managed to take on a group of vicious and vengeful girls on her own, it'd also be likely to surmise they wouldn't even dare try to retaliate against Human Sunset, especially after taking down two members and their group leader without much of a sweat. Given how by this very point, although Human Sunset couldn't imagine any of Pony Sunset's actual friends willing to go through with her sinister plans, perhaps her enemies would, since they'd be getting something out of it as well. Keeping this in mind, Human Sunset decided that she'd head back to Gilda and her gang's hideout, shortly after doing some further research. The last thing on her mind was the whereabouts of her father, and what she could potentially do as far as revenge for how he had treated her when he was part of the family. Sunspot's treatment toward Solstice wasn't that much better, as Human Sunset often saw her parents arguing, Sunspot acting lazy after getting laid off, and signs that he was actually leeching off of his wife's income, even long before their divorce. Getting back at Cinch was also not really something at the top of Human Sunset's priority list, since at the moment, three particular people stood out in her mind, as enemies that she would love to teach a personal lesson toward, which they would never forget. Indigo Zap for tormenting her during school, Sunspot for being an awful and selfish father, and Pony Sunset for coming into this world and erasing her from existence. Getting further revenge on Cinch was still something Human Sunset was planning, but believed that she already had enough on her plate for the time being. Whilst searching up Sunspot's name on the laptop, Human Sunset made yet another horrifying discovery, this time regarding something that was apparently discovered sometime after her parents divorced. The title of the news article brought to perspective at how much of a scumbag Sunspot truly was, even ignoring how he had already treated Human Sunset as a daughter. She read it, trying to understand what had happened to her father following his separation from Solstice. The Sunspot Cheating Scandal: Be Careful Who You Trust Recently, a young high school student by the name of Sunburst had come forward to the news station about his father being an opportunistic person, after finding evidence of him having an affair with his wife of over 10 years, Stellar Flare. He had been constantly keeping his relationship with an unnamed actress (For privacy reasons), whom he also had a daughter with, a complete secret. As it would turn out, this cheating scandal had shook the entire community over how severe it was, and what Sunspot had to say after his true colors were revealed. Once he admitted to the affair, he only had this to say, and by quote: "I feel ashamed, after realizing how dumb of a decision I made. I loved these two women since I felt that they both gave me solid advantages that made my life better, especially after how much I had been living in poverty during my former life. Both of these women gave me a life that I felt couldn't be matched, and I merely toyed with the idea that I could keep them both, since each had their own benefits. My first wife, Stellar Flare, had understood my deep complexities, and even helped me do my taxes, something I could never do by myself. Meanwhile, the rich actress had money and success, something that I've craved for the longest time, since my previous poor life had me wanting some of the finer things in life. I had also kept my son and daughter with these women a secret from their respective moms, out of fear that it would jeopardize either relationship. Despite this, I still went after other women behind both of their backs, and even attempted to impress them with expensive gifts. I admit that I had genuinely selfish motives by being with these women, hoping that I could keep them both, only to now have neither, once they've found out and divorced me. Now that the truth is out, I'm terribly sorry it had to come to this, and I completely understand if no woman ever wants to come near me ever again." -Sunspot Outside of the fact that Sunspot supposedly remarried later down the line... some woman named Stellar Flare was apparently his FIRST wife? Processing this, it would've meant that her father had even been cheating on Solstice during his marriage, which made Human Sunset even more livid than she already was. She recalled that on some nights, her father would occasionally come home at around midnight, even on days when he wasn't working, which would perfectly explain where he was during those late nights. His motivations being so cold and calculated for being with those women sounded just like him as well, if his previous behavior in wanting Human Sunset to become rich and successful by being the #1 student was anything to go by. The thing that threw off Human Sunset was, this article didn't seem to mention anything regarding Solstice or herself, as it was mostly elaborating Sunspot's affair with this actress and Stellar Flare lady. Although it was said that the actress had a daughter, Human Sunset knew that the actress couldn't have been Solstice, given how poor her family was growing up, and she recalled that her mother originally worked in finance, not in the acting industry. Assuming that this was all taking place simultaneously, it would've meant that Sunspot was cheating on three separate women, along with having a child with each of them, a son and two daughters, respectively. If that were the case, it would've meant she had two half siblings, though attempting to find them seemed to be impossible, given she had no real idea where they could possibly be nowadays. She also didn't know for certain if they also wanted revenge against their dad, which prompted Human Sunset to check for any hints regarding on her father's whereabouts. She continued reading the rest of the article, following Sunspot's statement. After these cases were brought to the attention of the press, only Stellar Flare has agreed to come forward in where they stand, following the divorce. Sunspot had recently gotten a new job at Tartarus Industries, and will now be obligated in paying her half of his paycheck every month, now that she has moved away from Canterlot City with their son, Sunburst, to a new and disclosed city. As for the unnamed actress, the case is still being settled in court, but we will not provide further updates, as she has made a statement that she would prefer to keep silent on the matter to the public. One thing that the general public has taken away from this shocking case however, is mostly the lesson learned when understanding that people like this exist, even if they appear as genuine and faithful in your marriages. Be careful who you trust, and always be wary of red flags. Finishing this read, Human Sunset couldn't agree more with how shocking this revelation was, furthering her desire to put her father in his place for all he did. Not only was Sunspot never really there for her as a dad, but he also cheated, supposedly before he and Solstice even separated. One thing that stood out from the article however, was the fact that it mentioned Stellar Flare and her son had moved away from Canterlot City, implying that following the divorce, Sunspot was still around town somewhere. More specifically, at Tartarus Industries, which Human Sunset vaguely remembered hearing about when she was younger. It still felt unusual how this article never made even a single mention of Solstice or Sunset Shimmer, but Human Sunset then theorized that they were both likely forgotten about. Solstice had passed away, and Human Sunset herself was trapped in a void for over three years. Moving past this, it was time to set her plans into motion, as Human Sunset believed her motives were finally clear enough. Now that her research was complete, it was time to enlist the help of those gang girls whom she had fought earlier. Human Sunset felt that if she somehow couldn't convince them to aide in her quest in fulfilling her vengeance against these three people, and possibly even Cinch, she'd use her brute strength to make them comply regardless. Human Sunset then closed her mother's old laptop, took the money she had taken from Gilda earlier, and began retracing her steps to make her way back to that abandoned building Gilda and her crew were likely still hiding at. Even if they'd refuse to help her regardless, it'd still be a good try, and something clearly had to be done. Human Sunset's hatred for Pony Sunset, Sunspot, and Indigo Zap were about the same, as each of them had contributed to what she had become now. However, she believed her first priority was seeing whether or not Gilda and those other girls would assist her in getting revenge against Pony Sunset, since from what she understood, they both shared a common enemy. Plus, since these girls were much more underhanded and seemingly capable of the most criminal motives out of anyone else she's ever met, having them as her allies would be quite useful. Before long, after a determined walk through the city at nearly 2 AM, Human Sunset eventually found her way back to that abandoned building, which was impossible to miss. She went through the basement's door, and began hearing a few voices in the distance. "Look, she had me pinned in a corner and took my crowbar!" Gilda said to her cronies. "I had no other choice." "Yeah, but why'd you give her the money you stole too!?" The beanie girl shouted in outrage. "Are you that much of a coward, that you decided to bribe her not to hurt you?" "Now we're going to starve for the night for sure!" The curly haired girl agreed. "Some leader you turned out to be!" "Thanks to you, we're probably going to have you for dinner now, Gilda!" The beanie girl spat. "You cowardly chicken nugget!" "Come on, get serious now, Lightning." Gilda replied. "If you're that hungry, I got some candy bars I stole from a few children at the park earlier." "I'm hungry for some vengeance, that's what's going on, now!" The beanie girl continued. "If that Sunset punk ever comes back, we'll show her who's boss, together!" The curly haired girl added. "Yeah, she was still a coward for running off from our hideout, regardless." Gilda agreed. "We could all take her on if we actually worked together as a team." Just as Gilda had said this, Human Sunset had just entered the basement room, as she overheard a brief bit of that last statement. "What were you all just saying about me?" Human Sunset said with an unamused expression, after opening the door. The room suddenly fell in silence, as each of the gang girls had realized they were likely now dead meat after running their mouths at the wrong time. They had merely only been bluffing, as a result of frustration from losing that battle earlier, now afraid for their lives at the unexpected return of this girl who had proven to be tougher than them all, combined.