//------------------------------// // Game Sunset Match // Story: Something Sour at Crystal Prep // by Stratocaster //------------------------------// Chapter 3: Game Sunset Match Under coat of moonlight, Sunset stalked the sidewalk with the hood of her coat pulled over her head. She walked without much of a sound from Twilight’s house toward the dorms of Crystal Prep. It felt naggingly guilty to her to leave her friends abruptly as they slept, but somehow she couldn’t sleep without thinking about Sour Sweet’s murder. Something about Twilight’s analysis just didn’t quite add up with Sunset, and she felt compelled to investigate further on her own. Every now and then, she considered turning back and waking Twilight so the two could go together. There was safety in numbers, after all. Yet Sunset felt she’d feel even more guilty, or even trapped, in a way, once Twilight was up and started asking her questions--or, even worse--her friends woke once Twilight started speaking. So, Sunset continued to trudge on, attempting to ignore the nagging feeling inside her, or the creepy feeling that she was being followed. Soon, she came upon the front door of the prep school. It suddenly occurred to her that she had no idea of how to break in, since it was most definitely closed at this untimely hour. Sunset wished she could use a bit of magic to manifest herself inside, but that was a road she did not want to go down again. Half-heartedly, she grabbed the door hand and gave it a turn, surprised that it was even open. Sunset questioned the level of security of the school as she discreetly entered. Her feet softly padded across the tile floor, reaching for the small flashlight she had tucked into her pocket before she left. She flicked it on, the area she had been facing suddenly illuminated by a small circle of light. It isn’t much, she thought as she slowly waved it around to get a better view of her surroundings, but it’ll do. Sunset tried to remember the path to the lounge where Sour’s body lay. She had deeply hoped that her living friends weren’t still there panicking over the crime seen; she was in no mood to take any more insults from the prep girls. Fortunately, she found the door to the lounge, and as she opened it, she found no one else inside. But her good luck so far was not enough to deter her from the grizzly sight of the bloodied corpse. The second she stepped inside, the door slammed behind her. She jumped and shone her flashlight to the door, wondering if the Shadowbolts were waiting behind it like the creeps they were. When she didn’t find anybody, a shiver ran up her spine instinctively, hoping no one awoke from the loud slam of the door. She turned back to the corpse, hoping the door was just one of those doors that closed automatically. For the next few minutes, Sunset scoured the area around Sour Sweet’s husk, searching for any missed clues. She shone her light underneath the chairs and couches hoping to find a murder weapon, but nothing was to be found, just more smatterings of blood across the carpet. Then, she lightly slapped herself over neglecting something. It occurred to Sunset that she could simply check the footage on the school’s security cameras. “Come on, Twi, why can’t you think of these things?” she shook her head. She stepped out of the room, making sure to gently close the door behind her. She headed down the hallway, towards the security room, when she heard murmuring and a small tapping sound. Sunset turned around to see if any of the Shadowbolts were trying to freak her out but, again, saw no one there. She attempted to shrug it off and continued her way to the security room. Thankfully, the trip wasn’t as long as she thought (a sign that said “Security room helped her a ton), but once her hand touched the doorknob, her flashlight began to flicker a few times then burnt out. Sunset shook the torch angrily. “Ugh, really?!” she whispered. She unscrewed the flashlight’s handle to inspect the battery, not sure what she would hope to accomplish with that. But as she stood there in the eerie dark, a rush of cold air breezed against her legs. She immediately looked around the best she could to see if a window was left open or if she was near an air vent. She sighed in annoyance--she thought this ‘mission’ would be a lot easier than this, and attempted to ignore the cold just as she had ignored the other strange and creepy stuff that had happened to her that night. Instead, she focused on getting into the security room. Jiggling the doorknob, she discovered it was locked. It was strange that they had kept the front door unlocked but locked this one. She was about to jiggle the doorknob again when the murmuring that had been following her grew louder. “I wouldn't do that…” it whispered, an icy breeze brushing against her face, “...if I were you…” “AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!” Without hesitation, Sunset bolted away from the security room and down the front hall again. But before she could reach the front door to freedom, she tripped and fell to the floor with a thud. She looked up and around with a grunt, but found no object that could have made her fumble like that. It seemed like she was losing her mind. The room turned freezing cold, and the same voice that had scared the stuffing out of her was as loud as ever. “Don’t worry, little one,” it said in a strangely soothing way. If it weren't for the situation she was currently in, Sunset could have honestly said it comforted her. “This won’t hurt a bit.” Something sharp and cool stabbed her chest. She screamed again, wasting her last breath of life; her vision was speckled with black dots and she fought to keep her eyes open, but it proved to be impossible. The last thing she saw was Lemon Zest running down the stairs, pure shock etched on her face. ... Twilight sat on the front steps of her house the next day, reading under the sunlight. The previous morning had been one of confusion when she and her friends had awoken to find Sunset missing with her sleeping bag and clothes left behind. She had been wondering if Sunset suddenly rushed home for some reason and was simply waiting to hear anything from her. Her phone began to buzz in her pocket. She became hopeful, thinking it was Sunset, but when she looked to see who was calling, she groaned in disappointment. It was her prep friends; the one’s she wasn’t to eager to talk to based on how they acted last night. She slid the screen to the left, choosing the “ignore” option and went back to her book. “Howdy, Twi!” came a familiar voice. “Still a little peeved about Sunset takin’ off?” asked Applejack as she sat next to her. “A little,” Twilight sighed, “it would have been nice if she left a note so we knew where she was.” “I’m sure she had a good reason.” Applejack shrugged. “It’s not like she went and turned back into a demon thing or somethin’.” She tried to joke to get Twilight into a better mood. Twilight offered a smile, knowing what AJ was trying to do. “I guess…” she mumbled, “I’m mostly worried nothing bad happened to her.” “I know what’ll make ya feel better.” Applejack stood up. “Why don’t we head on down to the Shake Shack? Pinkie says their mixer’s on the fritz so they’re givin’ away as much as they can.” She sighed, quickly placing a bookmark in her story, closed it, and held it against her chest. “I suppose,” she said, pushing her glasses up her nose, “it has been awhile since I’ve been there….i-it would be nice to visit again.” As Twilight stood up to leave, her phone rang once again in her pocket. She checked the caller I.D. and was right to assume that it was Lemon Zest again. Without hesitation, she ignored the call and walked off with Applejack. “Did Sunset call?” Applejack asked, hoping the reply was a ‘yes’. “No,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “Just Lemon Zest, probably trying to make fun of us again.” “Ah, forget those harpies.” Applejack said. “What could they possibly want now?" ... Lemon Zest stared at her phone with a mix of shock and rage. The only thing going through her head at the moment was Why won’t she pick up? “Don’t get so mad, Lemon,” said Sunny Flare, meekly. “Maybe she’s just busy with schoolwork.” Lemon raised her eyebrow, putting her phone away. “I guess that’s possible,” she muttered, “that still doesn't mean she can’t shoot us a text or something that says ‘I’m busy; TTYL’.” “Agh! Brain freeze!” cried an erratic voice. “Pinkie what did I just warn you about?!” came a more familiar voice in the same direction. “I know…” Pinkie mumbled, “but it’s just so good! How can I not slurp it fast?” Lemon Zest spun around in her seat, almost snapping her head in a one-eighty. “What the frick?!” She blurted as she spotted Twilight, Applejack and Pinkie sitting at a table nearby, also at the Shake Shack. She turned back to Sunny Flare, who looked at the Canterlot High students the second Lemon Zest blurted. “Homework, huh?” Lemon asked her with a sarcastic tone, her eyebrow raised once more. Sunny Flare shrugged innocently, went back to her Blueberry Blitz smoothie. With an enraged sneer, Lemon approached the three Wondercolts and slammed her hands down on the table. Twilight and Applejack looked up at her awkwardly. Pinkie continued to stuff her face. “Oh….hi…..Lemon…” Twilight muttered awkwardly as she pushed her glasses up her nose, trying to pretend that she hadn’t ignored the Shadowbolt’s calls all day. “How’ve you been…?” “About ready to smack a b-” “Lemon take it easy!” Sunny joined next to her, taking her arm. “Shut up, Sunny!” she continued. “I know you’ve been ignoring me, Twilight!” Twilight sighed. “Look, Lemon, I know you want me to help solve Sour Sweet’s murder, but so far you’ve just seemed to reject it. Help me help you, Lemon.” “It’s more than just that, Sparkle!” seethed Lemon. “Have you seriously not listened to any of my messages today?!” “I admit it was pretty rude of me, but-” “Sunset Shimmer is uh-dead!” she spat. Twilight and Applejack froze--even Pinkie stopped on her slurpee to pay attention to the conversation. “What?!” Twilight asked, not caring if the customers nearby were starting to stare. She’s dead?! How is this possible? Do you know what happened?” “We have no idea!” said Sunny. “We were just walking to class when we found her lying dead in the front hallway. It looked like she was stabbed, just like Sour!” she cringed. Lemon seemed hesitant to agree, rising Twilight’s suspicions a little more. “Lemon, what did you see? Something tells me there's...something more…” Lemon scoffed, folded her arms. “Not that it’s important,” she scowled, “I heard her scream twice in the middle of the night; one that woke me up and the other lead to me heading down the stairs to see what was wrong. I saw a knife by her side and literally saw the life leave her eyes.” She shuddered, recalling the gruesome event. “It was something no one should never needed to see, yet I was the ‘lucky soul’ who saw it.” “She must’ve been heading off to Crystal Prep to look more into Sour’s murder!” pondered AJ. Twilight looked down in disbelief at the loss of her newest friend. “How could this happen?” “Why do you think I was trying to get a hold of you, genius?” Lemon asked, “so I can ask you what shade of red looks good in Sunset’s hair?” “There’s already red in her hair!” Pinkie exclaimed. “That’s not the point!” Lemon took a deep breath, trying to recollect herself. “The point is that we still need Twilight’s help now more than ever. Who knows what could happen if we don’t do something?” “Now wait a minute,” objected Applejack. “Why do you care so much about Sunset anyway? You were just as mean to her as to the rest of us!” Sunny intervened again, pulling up a chair to sit down. “We may not have cared about her,” she said as she absently mindedly played on her phone, “but we aren't heartless.” “Yeah,” sneered Lemon. “One of our friends croaks and now one of yours too. So it looks like we’re all obligated, aren’t we?” Applejack sighed, managing to roll her eyes without them noticing. She decided to try and change the topic just slightly so she wasn’t the center of focus.“Sunny Flare, did you hear the screamin’? Or was Lemon Zest the only one that heard it?” “We didn’t hear anything from her.” Sunny said. “I was walking into school because I forgot a book the other night, when I just found her there! She must have been killed overnight.” “She was.” Lemon sighed, “weren't you paying attention?” It was Sunny’s turn to raise an eyebrow and cross her arms. “I was over there,” she said, pointing at the table the two had been sitting at minutes before. “How do you expect me to hear a conversation that’s three feet away?” Twilight stood up. “I’ve heard enough.” She said sternly. “I want to see Sunset for myself. Just going by your word alone isn’t enough. If my friends can’t trust you then why should I?” The Shadowbolts exchanged a glance of annoyance before Sunny stuffed her phone in her pocket and headed towards the door, Lemon following. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight all stared at them curiously, wondering what they were doing. Sunny looked over her shoulder to see the three standing there, clueless. “You coming or not?” She asked them. ... Twilight, along with Applejack, Pinkie, Lemon and Sunny, hurried over to Crystal Prep, anxious to get a look at Sunset’s allegedly murdered body. But their path to the front door was immediately interrupted by the sight of police cars lined up in front of the building. A mixed crowd of officers, teachers and students scattered around the entrance, especially by the back of an ambulance. Twilight raised up on her tip-toes, trying to see what was happening. After failing twice, she turned towards Pinkie, who was still slurping on her drink. “Pinkie, could you give me a boost?” she asked her. “Sure!” Pinkie approached behind Twilight, grabbed her in a tight hold and tossed her friend over the dense crowd. Twilight yelped as she was hurled and landed in front of a police officer, who noticed her immediately. “Uh, Miss, I’m gonna need you to step back.” The cop spoke unenthused. She nodded, obviously intimidated by the officer’s size and weaponry attached to his belt. Twilight attempted to take a step back, as he instructed, but the crowd pushed her forward, nearly knocking her off balance. It was then that she noticed a clear view of the parked ambulance. Her body became chilled for a moment at the sight of two black body bags being hauled into the vehicle. Lemon’s words were true. Another victim had been claimed, and one that was even closer to her heart than the first. Twilight knew she had to overcome the dread and press on. She approached the cop trying to think of the right question. “Miss, I believe I asked you to step back,” Officer James said the moment he saw her take a step forward towards him. His fingers twitched, a small yet sure sign he was starting to get irritated. “Please, Officer, I’m a friend of both of the victims.” Twilight said innocently. She tried not to give away any indication that she had known about the murders the night before. “Is there anything you may have found that might’ve led up to what happened to them? Is somebody really out murdering students?” “I doubt there’s a murderer going around and killing students, young lady,” James explained, “My boss checked the security footage and found that pink haired girl breakin’ into the school lounge room of yours last night. Before he could figure out what she was up to, there was some kind of power surge that made the camera show nothing but static. He spent a full minute trying to get the image to show again and, when he finally did, the girl was dead.” He shrugged, as if he didn’t know what else to do. “We rewinded that tape to try an get the static out so many times, I’ve memorized the whole thing.” Twilight took a small step forward, more interested to know about Sunset’s death than Sour’s. “What about Sunset?” She asked nervously, “what happened to the red and yellow haired girl?” “Huh? Oh yeah.” Officer James said almost absent-mindedly. “It’s the strangest thing. We couldn’t find any evidence of her murder, even though we found her in bad shape. The security footage just showed her falling and dying for no real reason. Basically we got two girls who were killed the same way, but no substantial evidence of either murder. I’m sorry, Miss, but we can’t seem to do much more.” Twilight nodded, a little disappointed from the lack of evidence--and footage. She mumbled a thank you as she turned away and pushed her way back to her friends. “Well now what?” asked a concerned Applejack, Lemon skulking besider her. Twilight looked up at her with a stoic look. “I think it’s time we got some outside help.”