//------------------------------// // Episode 21: Sacrifice // Story: Equestria Girls: Friendship Souls // by thatguyvex //------------------------------// Episode 21: Sacrifice The immediate silence following Grand Fisher’s defeat was rapidly broken by Sonata’s voice, high and shaking with fear. “Adagio, c’mon look at me. Open your eyes and look at me. No no no, please, you gotta open your eyes!” She was holding the older siren close to her chest, while Aria paced like a agitated pit-bull nearby, face a twitching mask of desperation, rage, and pale terror. “Hey, yellow chick! Get over here and start with the healing again already!” “Y-yes, I’m here, you don’t have to yell,” Fluttershy said, rushing back over to Adagio and kneeling next to the fallen siren, her third eye lighting up the area like a luminous blue torch. Everyone else slowly gathered around as well, though the girls gave the sirens and Fluttershy some breathing room, hanging back a few good paces. “Fluttershy, how is she?” Sunset asked gingerly, trying to keep down her own fears. She’d warned Adagio of the dangers they’d face here in Hueco Mundo, she’d known that facing Grand Fisher would be a potentially deadly encounter. Sunset knew it was nothing short of a small miracle they’d defeated Grand Fisher with so few injuries, but it was hard to feel good about that while looking at Adagio lying there, blood seeping from a gash in her stomach, and a broken soul chain dangling from her chest. “I think she’ll make it,” said Fluttershy, eyes gentle as they looked upon Adagio’s wound, “I wish we didn’t have to move her, but we really don’t have a choice, do we?” Sunset shook her head, “Not if we want to make the portal in time. Can she be moved?” “Let me bandage this first. Once the I’ve fully stopped the bleeding we can go, but we have to be careful. Too much jostling could make things worse.” Fluttershy went to work, pulling out a small medical pouch from a pocket in her skirt. She used medical gauze from the pouch to carefully wrap Adagio’s stomach. As she did so the siren moaned softly, eyes fluttering open. “Uggh...what...?” “Dagie!” Sonata almost hugged Adagio, but Fluttershy put a hand up, shaking her head. Sonata barely controlled herself, holding herself instead as she said, “Y-you’re gonna be okay. The nice yellow girl is gonna make you not bleed everywhere.” Adagio looked at her wound, and grimaced. Then the expression only got colder as she saw the broken chain dangling from her chest. She sucked in a deep breath, then winced at that pain as Fluttershy said, “Try not to move too much.” “Y-yeah, I’m getting that,” Adagio said, a quiet tremor in her voice, “This is bad.” “The wound, I think I’ve got the bleeding under control,” said Fluttershy, “You’ll be okay.” Adagio’s eyes didn’t express any relief, and she raised a hand to point weakly at the broken chain, “That is what I’m talking about. I... remember that old man telling me that,” she gulped, sweat breaking out on her forehead, “That if my soul got any more damaged he might not be able to put me back in my body.” “Well we’ll make him do it anyway,” growled Aria, “I’m not losing my sister in this stupid place!” Sunset shared Adagio’s worries, but also knew they didn’t have the time to dwell on it. She turned to her other friends, hand still clutching her Zanpaktou tightly. She had a feeling she may well still need it before the day was over. “We need to move. Dash, AJ, us three will take the lead. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, cover the rear. Fluttershy and anyone who can’t fight, stay in the middle. We’ll move as fast as we can without risking Adagio, but the clock’s ticking on our way out of here, so we need to go now” She didn’t find any argument to that, and in short order the girls were off, not quite at a full run, more a brisk jog. Aria and Sonata insisted on carrying their wounded sister between them, and Fluttershy stayed nearby to keep her power focused on healing Adagio, much as she’d done with Clover not long ago. It seemed that Fluttershy’s ability couldn’t truly heal wounds, so much as she could force a person’s body to remain stable and accelerate its own healing rate. However the real concern wasn’t the wound itself, but the broken soul chain. Sonata had gathered up the remains of the plush doll gigai, as it was possible it might still be needed. After all a bit of soul chain remained attached to the doll as well. Limestone ran alongside Pinkie Pie, face like hard hewn stone, at least until she was sure no one else was looking, then her face softened somewhat and she whispered to Pinkie Pie, “Hey... thanks for coming for me.” “Hey, like I was gonna let one of my family stay in the clutches of such a serious, major-league creepozoid. That’s not how the Twin Pinks roll!” “Twin Pinks?” Limestone blinked in bewilderment. “Duh,” Pinkie Pie said, nodding at Pinkamena, who gave a disturbing thumbs up in which the thumb turned into a slavering mouth for a moment. Limestone gulped, shivering slightly. “Right. Guess I got to get used to that.” The girls continued onward, backtracking their steps across the dunes. The lack of anything resembling weather in this strange, dark realm worked to their advantage, giving them easy view of their previous footprints in the sand. It was almost half an hour of a tense, quiet jog through the seemingly endless expanse of rolling white dunes before Sunset sensed something was wrong. There was so much residual Hollow energy in the air that she couldn’t hone in on it clearly until they were nearly on top of the Hollows, barely able to shout half a warning before a pack of over thirty assorted lesser Hollows, many of them quadrupeds scampering along on all fours or insectoids scuttling forward on too many legs to count, came swarming over one of the larger dunes ahead. “Break through!” Sunset shouted, brandishing her sword and increasing her pace from a jog to a full run. Rainbow Dash took to the air, flying low to the sands as lightning danced around her wings and fists. Applejack’s face turned hard, barreling ahead with long strides. Behind them Rarity and Pinkamena pulled ahead of those carrying Adagio, ready to take on any stragglers that’d get past the vanguard. The distance between the girls and the Hollows closed swiftly, like a wave converging on a small boat at sea. Only in this case the small boat was actually a high speed wrecking ball and the wave turned out to be a bunch of pinatas. Sunset, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack hit the front of the pack of Hollows like a trio of ballistic missiles. Hollows were scattered like flies from the cobalt electrical punches of Rainbow Dash as she swept through the front ranks, scythe-like in her curving motions, wings blurring. Applejack was a practical bull in a bowling alley, kicking aside lesser Hollows like stacked up pins. Each golden burst of her metallic boots sent bits of broken Hollow flying. Sunset tore into the Hollows in front of her with near feral abandon. She abandoned almost anything resembling defense, using her shield as a weapon as much as her sword. Both swung about in a deadly tornado of strikes, the shield crunching in Hollow masks while the hefty broadsword cleaved entire bodies in half, sometimes two in a row. The pack of Hollows fought back with the ferocious will of dedicated predators, talons, fangs, and claws flashing in at the girls. Yet they met ferocity with ferocity, ignoring minor cuts and flesh wounds to rend into the Hollows like determined farmers reaping a harvest of torn, dissipating Hollow bodies. Several Hollows got around the center of the carnage to come at the seemingly weaker prey of the other girls, Sonata and Aria flinching at the oncoming monsters as they continued to carry their injured sister, and Limestone setting her jaw with determined anger. Pinkie Pie just nodded to Pinkamena and the doppelganger grinned with unnatural fervor, so wide it was like her smile stretched her face like taffy; if taffy had a mouth filled with sharp, monstrous fangs. The first Hollow to even get close had its head bitten clean from its body in one gulp. Pinkamena’s hands morphed into what looked like giant claws, each digit ending in a saw toothed mouth, and she tore into more Hollows like a starving wolf among sheep; or at least much less vicious wolves. When Rarity engaged the Hollows coming in from the other side she did so with significantly more grace and controlled movement, if no less fierce in her own way. When Rarity struck it was with lethal precision, working her rapier like a sewing needle through cloth, each movement filled with smooth purpose, no wasted motion. Each thrust sent the deadly crystalline blade through the eye socket or throat of a Hollow leaping for her, and Rarity spun and danced through their slashing claws and gnashing fangs with the deadly motions of a swooping bird of prey. She complemented her sword strikes with piercing rises of sharp crystal spikes, erupting upwards each time she let her rapier dip to touch the sands. The crystals still had an erratic, jagged pattern, however, and Rarity frowned at them, even as she killed the Hollows around her. Rarity’s wasn’t the only oddity appearing among the girl’s powers. As Rainbow Dash spun upon a wolf Hollow that was springing to strike at her back, she backhanded it with a fist of lightning, but the normally azure blue arcs of electricity suddenly turned bright red, and blasted through the Hollow to twitch and crackle uncontrolled into the dunes off to the side. “Bwuh?” Rainbow Dash glanced at her fist for a moment, confused at the red energy in her hand, but it vanished in a moment and soon her lightning was back to normal. When Applejack jumped into the air, pulling back a leg to heel kick a crocodile shaped Hollow beneath her, one of the skulls on her leg had its eyes turn red, and for a moment strange, vein-like red patterns appeared across the surface of her armored leg. While strange, she ignored it and smashed down hard with her heel, crushing the Hollow that’d been her target, and creating a shock-wave of force that sent other Hollows flying back like kicked up leaves. Then there was Pinkamena, who once she was down slaughtering the Hollows around her, she looked around like a rabid animal, covered in Hollow blood, and growling with deep hunger. Pinkie Pie gulped, visibly shaken, “Uh, Pinkamena? You feeling okay over there girl?” Pinkamena turned her eyes on Pinkie Pie, and they were nearly black, with her normally blue pupils now glowing yellow, almost like a Hollow’s. If what Pinkamena had said before about her eye color changing with her mood, this probably didn't mean anything good. The fierce yellow gleam in them now was particularly bright, intense, and unnerving as drool dripped from her fangs and she crouched on all fours, moving toward Pinkie Pie with the sinuous movements of a stalking mountain lion, growling a deep, predatory rumble the entire time. “Uh-oh,” Pinkie Pie said, motioning with her hands in a placating gesture, “Easy other me. Down. Sit. Heel. Hooo boy, you’re not listening, are you? Guys! Help!” Before Sunset or any of the others could respond, Pinkamena pounced, jumping at Pinkie Pie, but Limestone quickly tackled her sister out of the way. Both just narrowly avoided Pinkamena’s feral charge, and the doppelganger set her sights on the bleeding Adagio and encumbered Sonata and Aria. Pinkie Pie, seeing this, grit her teeth and focused all of her willpower upon her other self. “Pinkamena, go back, now!” The growling doppelganger locked eyes with Pinkie Pie, and for a few seconds the two stayed that way, shoving their wills against each other. Then, slowly, Pinkamena seemed to calm, eyes returning to a more normal color. She only had a look of confusion on her face by the time she turned to pink mist and returned to Pinkie Pie. Limestone helped her stand, “Damn it Pinkie Pie, what’s with that crazy other you anyway? It nearly took your throat out!” “She’s not an ‘it’ Limestone, she’s just, uh, different,” Pinkie Pie said, wincing, and looking around with worried eyes at the surrounding landscape, “I think its this spooky wrong dimension. It’s messing with Pinkamena’s mood or something. Me too. I’m feeling all funny, and not in my normal ‘ha ha balloons’ kinda way.” By this point the last of the Hollows had been finished off or sent running, and the girls paused to take a quick breather. Rarity looked at Pinkie Pie with a hesitant expression, holding her rapier up to examine it, “I feel something as well. Its not just post fight adrenaline fatigue, it's like something is agitating me, yet it's feels so... so...” “Familiar,” said Applejack, crossing her arms over her chest and tapping one of her metal clad feet, “I ain’t understandn’ this none, but fer some reason I’m feelin’ like my power is... echoin’ with somethin’ ‘round here.” “Yeah, I get what you mean,” said Rainbow Dash, “Its a seriously weird feeling. Like I’ve been here before or whatever. I don’t get it.” Sunset, casting concerned looks at her friends, turned to regard Fluttershy questioningly, “What about you Fluttershy? Anything strange on your end?” Her face was bent over Adagio, but when Fluttershy looked up, all the girls could see strange red, vein-like patterns swirling around the flesh surrounding her eyes, almost like tattoos. She was frowning deeply, but her voice was steady, “Just a bit. I, uh, I’m trying not to let it distract me.” “Speaking of distractions are we gonna stand around all day talking about this or are we getting out of here?” asked Aria with understandable impatience, given the condition of her sister. Sunset nodded, resting her sword on her shoulder. “You’re right, let’s get moving. Whatever’s going on with your powers, we’ll figure it out later.” “You’re not affected Sunset?” asked Rarity, “Not feeling at all out of sorts? Not that that’s a bad thing, of course, but isn’t that odd?” Sunset frowned, then just shrugged, “It must be something to do with the unique powers the rest of you developed and its origins. My Soul Reaper abilities don’t seem to be affected, so maybe it’s just something that’s connected to what you guys can do.” “Talk later, move now!” Aria shouted, and with that the girls were off once more. Sunset wasn’t sure how long the fight with that pack of Hollows had slowed them down. In battle it was hard to really pay attention to time. Seconds could feel like hours. Still, she didn’t think it had cost them that much time. Discord had said they had three hours, and between going out to find Grand Fisher, defeating him, and now this long slog back and the slight delay with the lesser Hollows... they had time still, right? Uncertainty started to gnaw at her, and she wanted to run faster, push the group to pick up its pace. Fluttershy was adamant that they couldn’t go too fast, otherwise risk making Adagio’s wound worse, but what good would that do if they missed the portal entirely? At her insistence, the group started to run faster. Adagio gave a few pained groans, but didn’t complain, and stayed conscious with a fiery determination in her eyes even as her face started to get pale. No more Hollows barred their path, and the girls crossed one dune after another, the pale crescent moon above them seeming to gaze down balefully. They created one final dune, and Sunset let out a bursting sigh of pure relief as she saw the Garganta portal, right where they left it. Wiping sweat from her face, she said, “Adagio and the sirens go through first with Limestone. Then the rest of you go in one at a time. I’ll bring up the rear.” With shuffling footsteps they started down one dune, heading for the small ravine where the portal was waiting at the foot of the dune opposite their position. Before they got halfway down, however, Sunset stopped cold in her tracks as a massive and cold spiritual pressure washed over her, nearly making her choke. It was clear everyone else felt it too, the faces of the other girls screwing up in confusion and even fear as the overwhelming spirit pressure pressed down on them. Then a green glow filled the air and Sunset looked up just in time to see an emerald beam of energy, clearly a Cero but of a different color than the crimson one’s she’d seen up until then, crash down from above. The beam struck the ground of the ravine between the girls and the portal, and exploded with enough force to knock them all off their feet. By the time they started picking themselves back up there was a smoldering, glass coated crater in the ravine, and the elderly man with the ram horns and jawbones was standing between them and their path to freedom. He was slowly clapping, an echoing sound that somehow managed to sound incredibly condescending. “An excellent performance. I commend all of you. A part of me wasn’t certain you’d defeat my little... experiment.” Applejack snarled, “So you was wachin’ us the whole time!? Didn’t seem ta wanna help yer friend, back there.” The old man threw back his head and cackled, a sound like dry bones snapping, “Friend? Do not presume to lump me in with a piece of free floating trash. Grand Fisher was a pawn, an experimental pawn, just like his small cadre of comrades, which you lot have thoroughly decimated since getting involved in these affairs.” “Yeah, well if you’re not looking to get ‘decimated’ yourself, pops, you’d better get out of our way!” said Rainbow Dash, spreading her wings and letting them buzz with electricity for emphasis. Sunset clutched Hokori’s shield and broadsword tightly, perhaps having sharper spiritual senses than her friends and knowing fully from what she was sensing in this old man, Grogar, that he was in a league apart from the likes of Grand Fisher. Already her mind was turning towards how to keep him distracted so everyone else could escape, while the old man turned bored eyes over the group, resting briefly on Rainbow Dash as he clasped his hands behind his back. “A bold claim for a bold young lady. Do you even have the faintest notion of whom you face? No, I suppose not. You lot seem woefully uninformed of the players already performing upon the stage you have so blindly blundered onto. Even if I formally introduced myself, I doubt neither my name nor title would clue you into the sheer dire weight of the circumstances in which you find yourself.” “Enlighten us, then,” Sunset said, playing for time. Every second she could keep him talking was a second she could plan. She’d built up a lot of energy in her blade from smashing those Hollows with her shield earlier. If she could just catch him by surprise... Gorgar regarded her, and a thin smile stretched upon his aged, wrinkled features, “Ah, I suppose you would want to delay me. Concoct a scheme to purchase your friend’s freedom? Oh, don’t look so forlorn, child, I encourage you, cordially, to try anything that comes to your mind. I seek to test you girls thoroughly. Lord Tirek would drain you like a cup of wine, before you’ve had time to properly ferment. Shortsighted, for all of his unearned power.” There was deep bitterness in the old man’s nasally, dry voice, and a sneer crossed his features, making his face seem like a leering skull. “I am Grogar Tambelon, the Eighth Espada, and I, unlike the one I am currently trapped serving, am quite capable of seeing the long term potential you young ladies possess. As experiments, of course. Don’t entertain any delusions of escape. I have no intention of allowing any of you to slip away from my grasp now that you’ve all stepped into the snake’s den of your own volition, with no Quincy or Soul Reapers around to interfere.” As he’d been talking, monologuing really, Sunset had glanced back at the other girls, and whispered, “Get ready to run. I’ll keep him busy, then follow after you’re all through.” Applejack grunted, also whispering, “Horseapples. Ya think yer takin’ this guy alone?” I don’t think I’m taking him at all. I’ll be lucky if I can keep him busy for even a minute, Sunset thought, but just shot Applejack a glare, “There’s no time to argue this!” “Now, what could you all be whispering about I wonder?” asked Grogar, “Do take your time. As I understand it this fake Garganta is degrading quite quickly. I estimate it has minutes left, at best. So yes, do keep planning how you’ll get past me. I don’t wish to cause any of you undue damage, so a simple surrender would be preferable to having to drag you back to my laboratory with missing limbs and the like. Quite a burdensome task, that would be.” All the girls exchanged nervous glances, Sunset giving Applejack a pleading look, “Please, just let me do this, AJ. I’m counting on you to make sure everyone makes it through that portal.” She could practically hear Applejack’s teeth grinding together, and it seemed to Sunset like her friend was about to cut her own palms with how hard she was clenching her fists, but after a moment Applejack just looked away. “Ya’d better be right behind us, ya hear me Sunset? Ya git yer fool self killed here an’ I’m never forgivin’ ya!” Grogar called up to them, “Well, I’m waiting for you to make a move, young ladies. This is starting to get dull. Shall I come to you? I do ever hate having to get my own hands dirty with this kind of plebeian labor.” Sunset just nodded once to her friends, saying merely one word, “Go!” before she launched into her attack. She pushed as much of her reishi as she could into empowering her Flash Step, focusing all of her concentration on controlling the incredibly high speed movement as accurately as possible. In the fraction of an eyeblink she vanished from the dune and appeared in the air above Grogar, already in mid-flip so that she was facing downward vertically, Hokori’s blade drawn back to thrust. When she did thrust downward, she only saw Grogar had casually glanced up to follow her movement, then her vision was temporarily blinded by the sheer intensity and brightness of the flames she unleashed, a concentrated blast straight down at the Arrancar. She completed her flip, and didn’t wait for the fire to dissipate. She knew that wasn’t going to be enough to do more than maybe superficial damage. Sunset charged right into the swirling ball of fire before it fully vanished, leading with her shield in a bashing move. She almost stumbled when she found Grogar wasn’t in the flames, and she felt his spiritual pressure only a moment before he struck. He appeared from thin air with insane speed, easily faster than Fancy Pant’s Flash Step, and the noise of the high speed move had a distinctly different sound to it than that maneuver, as if he was using a slightly different energy for his technique. Sunset didn’t have enough time to react as the old man lashed out with a contemptuous kick that caught her in the back. The force of it knocked the air clean out of her lungs and sent her sprawling across the sands for a good two or three dozen yards. Her friends had already reached the bottom of the dune, but Grogar remained in their way, and he turned to them casually, eyes drawn down in a narrow frown, “I am seriously going to have to amputate legs and arms to make you young folk realize the gravity your situation?” He began to draw the brown hilted blade at his side, but Sunset had already recovered and Flash Stepped straight into him, not even trying to use any precision to control her movement, instead just smashing into him with her shield at full speed. Powerful as he was, he didn’t weight any more than a normal person, and physics is a bitch. The blow managed to knock him backwards, Sunset pushing on her shield to shove him out of her friend’s path, even as the force of the blow sent a shock-wave up her arm that cracked bones in her spirit body. Pain shot through her, but Sunset growled past it, lashing out with her broadsword, fire engulfing the blade. Rather than explode outward, she kept the flames wrapping the blade, making it a scorching edge that she hoped might add to its striking power. If it did, however, Grogar didn’t seem to care. He caught the blade with his bare hand. The flames burned him, blackening his skin somewhat, but he didn’t appear to mind the pain and just looked at Sunset with faint irritation. Well, irritating him was better than boring him. “Really, while your courage is remarkable, you’ll shatter both your body and your sword before you do any lasting damage to me, young lady. Now please, have a seat.” He twisted, and brought his knee up straight into Sunset’s gut. The blow caused her to slid back, but she kept on her feet, struggling for breath, but she refused to drop. Her friends were almost to the Garganta! If she could just keep Grogar distracted for a few more seconds they’d be in the clear! Grogar just cracked a sickeningly mix between a grin and a glower. “Such hope in your eyes. Allow me to extinguish it.” He vanished again, with a buzz of noise that seemed distinct to an Arrancar’s high speed movement. Sunset couldn’t sense where he’d gone, couldn’t react at all to the strike that cut its way up her shoulder in a wash of blood. She almost lost her grip on Hokori’s shield, but even so her left arm now hung useless, barely able to do more than keep hold of the shield as blood dripped down from the crimson gash. Meanwhile Gorgar appeared all the way back at the Garganta portal, standing once more between Sunset’s friends and freedom. He’d drawn his sword, which now that it was free of its sheath she could see looked like it was forged not from metal but some kind of sharpened stone, with a hilt shaped like... a bell? He slashed with the blade, and a wave of raw concussive force hit Sunset’s friends, bowling them all over and sending them sprawling backwards. As they slowly started to regain their feet, Grogar held out a hand as if he were a Shakespearean actor pontificating. “Alas, despite such noble efforts, it would seem your time has run out.” Sunset saw what he meant immediately. The Garganta, it was closing. Not swiftly. In fact it was closing in very slow, jerky motions, as if Discord was struggling to keep it open even a few seconds longer. Yet it was undeniably closing and would be shut entirely in a matter of seconds. While Sunset struggled to get moving, Applejack struck first, bursting forward with her metal boots flaring like rockets. She aimed a powerful kick at Grogar’s head, but he raised his free hand to block it like he was absorbing the blow of a child. He then struck with the pommel of his sword, hitting Applejack cleanly in the stomach, blasting the air out of her and knocking her backwards towards the three sirens. Only Rainbow Dash’s quick thinking let her catch Applejack before she bowled over the sirens. By then Sunset reached Grogar, sword red hot with fresh fire, and she slashed down to unleash a rolling wave of bright orange flame. Grogar responded by raising a gnarled finger, from which a potent green glow emanated for a moment before a large pale green Cero beam exploded out to smash into the wave of flame, just enough to cancel it out in an explosion of sand and cinders. “And... I’d say that’s, as you young folk of this generation like to put it, ‘game over’,” Grogar said with deep satisfaction as the Garganta gave one last, shuddering attempt to remain open... ...then slammed shut entirely. ---------- Adagio had been mostly just focusing on staying conscious. The pain in her stomach was horrendous, but somehow the strange, empty feeling her chest where the broken chain resided felt worse. She knew exactly how bad that was. How effectively screwed she was. She’d been paying attention to everything Discord had told her over the weeks since she’d been torn from her human body and put into the plush doll gigai. He’d been very explicit in the danger of being damaged again while still in that doll, before he could get her old body repaired and her soul placed back into it. While she wasn’t going to argue with her sisters wanting to carry her out of this place, Adagio knew it was pointless. With her soul chain broken... she was already effectively dead. Discord had told her as much. With that chain broken, there was no way for him to return her soul to her body, at least he’d certainly made it sound that way. She was willing to beg him to try anyway, since what did she have to lose at this point? However it looked like she wasn’t going to even get that much of a chance... nor were her sisters or any of the girls from Canterlot High that’d come to this damned dimension. Grogar laughed as the Garganta closed and they all became trapped in Hueco Mundo. She could see the desperation on Sunset’s face, the horror dawning on the young pony from Equestria who’d so brashly attempted to befriend Adagio. It somehow broke something further in Adagio to see that look on Sunset’s face. Strangely, as much as she’d hated Sunset for all the problems she thought Sunset had caused her, she’d started to really respect the girl, even... even consider the possibility that she might actually be able to call the girl a friend. It was unbearable to see Sunset looking so defeated. It wasn’t a natural look for her. Worse, the other girls didn’t look much better off. “O-okay, so, uh, do we got a Plan B?” asked Rainbow Dash. Applejack blew out a hard breath, still clutching her stomach from the hit Grogar had given her, “I... I ain’t thinkn’ we do Dash. But we can still go down swingin’!” Rarity, biting her lower lip, held her rapier up, “Speak for yourself. I intend fully to defeat this charlatan and return home! There must be a way!” “Yeah!” Rainbow Dash clenched her hands into lightning charged fists, “We ain’t done yet!” Pinkie Pie looked nervous as she said, “I don’t know if I can bring out Pinkamena with her being so cranky right now, but you know what, this meanie is getting on my nerves, so maybe I’ll do it anyway!” Grogar’s laughter died off into a light chuckle, “Oh my, you will all make for incredible test subjects with spirit like that. You do realize, even in the exceedingly low possibility that you defeat me, you still would not have a way to return to your realm?” Sunset, taking a deep breath and steadying herself, said, “Maybe not, but we’d rather try than just surrender to you!” “Indeed? Well, its no skin off my back I suppose. Come then, let us be on with it,” said Grogar, “I tire of this game and would much rather get to researching your unusual capabilities and how I can bend that power to increase my own.” The girls charged in, all save Fluttershy, who stayed with Adagio and her sisters, along with Limestone. Adagio could feel the girl’s power working inside her, keeping the wound from getting worse, but she wasn’t sure there was much point to that. She didn’t watch the battle unfold. She heard it, but she couldn’t really bring herself to watch those girls throwing themselves repeatedly and seemingly uselessly against an opponent who was several stages beyond their power. And they came here to rescue my sisters, she thought with growing anger, For all the trouble I want to lay at their feet, the only one I have to blame for all of this is myself. She heard explosions, could see out of the corner of her eye Rainbow Dash throwing bolts of lighting, and Applejack laying out blasts of gold energy from her feet. She heard clashes of blades as Sunset attacked furiously, her sword strokes countered point for point by Grogar’s, while Rarity lashed out with her rapier turning into a crystalline whip. Even Pinkie Pie sent out the feral Pinkamena, who for all her feral biting and clawing was swept aside by Grogar with a single punch. He seemed unstoppable, yet Adagio noticed he wasn't entirely unwounded by the barrage of attacks the girls were unleashing on him. They were just scratches, but it almost seemed like he was getting worn down, if even just slightly. But what was the point? Grogar had been right. Even if he was defeated, which didn’t at all seem likely, what could they do after? The Garganta was gone, and Discord wouldn’t be able to create another for half a day at least. Even if the Canterlot High girls could survive Hueco Mundo for that long, there was no way Sonata and Aria could. Or Limestone, though Adagio didn’t particularly feel anything for the Pie sibling one way or another. But the idea of her sisters’ souls being slowly absorbed into Hueco Mundo, that chilled Adagio to her core. She’d give anything to be able to do something about it. ...Maybe there was. “Sonata...Aria...” she said slowly, looking up at her sisters. They looked back at her, and Adagio couldn’t stop a lump from forming in her throat. Sonata’s eyes were filled with fear, but at the same time there was a tenderness to the blue siren’s grip that Adagio realized had always been there. Sonata, for all her foolishness, all of her wacky tendency towards being an airhead, never stopped loving her sisters. No matter how demanding or demeaning Adagio had treated her, she’d stuck with Adagio faithfully through it all with a smile on her face and a silly comment not far from her lips. Aria’s expression was always so angry, and now was no exception, but the anger was purely directed at Grogar, the one who was causing them such pain. Aria’s anger had always been with her, something of a defining trait, but Adagio remembered a time when her second youngest sibling was as passionate about the music they sang together as she was enraged by the constant obstacles in their way. For all her combative nature, Aria had never abandoned Adagio, and even now was holding tightly to her as if she’d protect Adagio from anything that might come their way. “I’ve been terrible to both of you, haven’t I?” Adagio said, fear welling up in her, but wishing for all the world she’d said these words sooner, “I’m... I’m sorry. I’m sorry for ever dragging you two down into the dark with me. You both deserved better than me as a sister.” Sonata blinked, confused, “What are you saying Dagie? C’mon, like, what do you got to apologize for?” Aria just rolled her eyes, “Ignore her Sonata, she’s just being melodramatic.” Adagio laughed bitterly, shaking her head, “You two, never listening to me, right up until the end...” “It’s not the end!” said Sonata, though there was a quaver of fear in her voice as her eyes glanced towards the fight. Applejack was sporting several deep cuts, and Rainbow Dash was nursing a broken arm, while Pinkamena had one of her tentacle morphed arms chopped clean off. Rarity had a gash across her brow, seeping blood over her alabaster white face, and Sunset was limping, favoring a cut leg. Yet all the girls continued to attack relentlessly, pushing Grogar back, despite the fact that he hardly looked more than just a bit scuffed up, not even winded. But was there enough of a chance in that for Adagio’s mad plan to work? She sighed. She’d never wanted to die like this. She... wasn’t sure anymore what she’d wanted out of life. Power? Fame? Glory? Adoration? All of it seemed rather worthless now. All she wanted in this world or any other was for Sonata and Aria to live, and get back home to Equestria. She knew of only one thing she could do to make that happen. With more strength than she knew she had, she pushed her sisters away from her, taking several stumbling steps forward. “W-what are you doing?” Sonata babbled, while Aria grimaced, “Seriously Adagio, what the hell is up with you?” Adagio glanced back at them, her hands raising to the soul chain at her chest. “When I open the Garganta again... get everyone through it, no matter what. And promise me you’ll both go back home, one day.” She’d paid close attention to a lot of things Discord had said over the weeks of working for him. Including the fact that a soul whose soul chain was ripped free turned into a Hollow incredibly fast... and that all Hollows had the instinctual and natural ability for creating Garganta portals. With all of her might, she tore the chain free from her soul’s body. ---------- Grogar looked at the girls lined up in front of him with clear annoyance. “If I allow this to go on you do realize you’ll simply exhaust yourselves, yes? Surrender would be ideal for you at this point.” Sunset spat at him, breathing hard, but keeping her blade held up and ready, “Sorry, we’re just not the surrendering types.” “Oh please, I can see the desperation in your eyes. You know as well as I that this battle just has one outcome-” Grogar said, but was cut off as an unholy shriek of agony pierced the air. Even Grogar raised an eyebrow at that as everyone turned to see the source of the noise. Adagio. A hole of deep blackness appeared in her chest where the last fragments of her soul chain once resided, now falling to the white sands of Hueco Mundo. The siren fell to her knees, clutching at her chest, as she continued to scream. Her two sisters, panicked, rushed to her side, but Adagio threw them aside with shocking strength, and amid her screams she could be heard shouting “Get! Back! Aaaaarrgg!” Pinkie Pie gasped, hands cover her mouth, and Applejack just blinked in rapid confusion, “What n’ tarnation’s happenin’ ta her!?” “I don’t know,” Sunset breathed, fear and a gut wrenching feeling entering her as she watched the hole in Adagio’s chest expand, then white, viscous fluid began to erupt out of the hole, and out of the siren’s eyes and mouth. Grogar raised an eyebrow, “How odd. She destroyed her soul chain on purpose? Fascinating.” “What’s that supposed to mean!? What’s happening to her!?” shouted Rainbow Dash. “Why, she’s transforming into a Hollow. Have you never witnessed the process? It’s normally done when a pure soul gradually is corrupted through intense, negative emotions built up over time, but damage to the soul chain causes the transformation as well,” Grogar said, shrugging as if he hardly cared, “I don’t know what that young lady is planning to accomplish. Transforming herself into a lesser Hollow will not change anything, other than, perhaps give me a new pet to toy with.” As they spoke the white substance crawling out of Adagio’s body engulfed her like a cocoon, trailing up and down her form until it covered her in a hard white shell, like a smooth egg. Sonata tried to step towards it, but Aria held her back. “Aria!? Let go! I have to help Dagie!” “I don’t think you can,” said Aria, voice flat and filled with pain, face contorted, “I don’t think anything can.” Fluttershy grabbed Limestone and the two joined the two sirens, backing away from the cocoon shape. Then spider-line cracks began to appear all over it, and red, blood-like energy began to pour out, along with a green gas. Grogar stroked his chin, even as Sunset felt a built up of unusually strong spiritual pressure from the cocoon. “Strange, that reiatsu doesn’t feel like that of a lesser Hollow,” Grogar said, “This reminds me more of what an Adjuchas’ spiritual pressure feels like. Intriguing.” Sunset, not at all sure what to expect, waved a hand signal at her friends, motioning for them to back away from Grogar, and move closer gradually towards Fluttershy and the others. One by one the did so, but the movements caught Grogar’s eye. “Don’t go anywhere young ladies, I’m merely interested in this unusual development, but I’m hardly forgetting you lot. Stay put, or I’ll start cutting off legs to make you stay put.” He strode towards the cocoon, which continued to expel red fluid and green gas as more and more cracks splintered across it’s shell. Grogar’s eyes scanned the cocoon critically, his expression not alarmed, merely curious. When a white, clawed limb burst out of the shell to slash at him, Grogar jumped back out of range with casual ease, not taking his eyes off the cocoon. Sunset looked on, continuing to have her friends edge closer to Fluttershy, Limestone, and the other two sirens, as the cocoon continued to shatter. Piece by piece the white shell fell away, until it finally shattered entirely, revealing Adagio within... or what was now Adagio. The being was clearly a Hollow. Her body looked very much like that of the original Equestrian forms of the sirens. White scales covered her aquatic body, long and sinuous, with a powerful fish-like tail at the back with sharp looking fins, almost like blades. In fact both her back and her arms also possessed wickedly sharp looking fins, with orange membranes between white spurs. Her arms ended in clawed hands instead of hooves, with membranes stretching between the large, curved talons. Her face was very much that of a true siren’s elegant yet somehow animalistic, with twin yellow eyes, not solid like a normal Hollows, but still containing Adagio’s sheen and pupils, filled with rage... all of it aimed at Grogar. Parts of her face had elements of thick bone, almost like a Hollow’s mask, but less prominent than on most Hollows, seeming to allow a range of facial expression. The last element that made her different was that the large Hollow hole in her chest was blazing with one prominent, immediately noticeable feature. That of a glowing red gem that pulsed with power, floating in the hole’s center. “Her siren gem... it regrew,” Sunset whispered in awe. Grogar, less awed, but more intrigued, said, “Very fascinating. I didn’t imagine I’d find a specimen more valuable than those girls. I wonder, just what are you, young lady?” “Death,” Adagio responded in a voice that resonated with unrestrained rage, and red energy flowed among the fines along her back and the crest of her head, then pooling into an orb of raw crimson power in front of her gleaming siren gem. She fired a Cero point blank into Grogar, engulfing him and the dune behind him into a wave of destructive ruby light. The sound of the explosion was deafening, and the blast wave nearly knocked Sunset off her feet, whipping her hair about as sand and dust went flying in a circular wave in all directions. Even before Sunset managed another blink, the Hollow Adagio turned towards them, and her eyes narrowed. “Sunset, get them out of here, now!” Before Sunset could even voice half a question, there was a wavering, tearing sound, and a hole opened up in the air; a Garganta! Adagio was forming a Garganta portal! Sunset could barely get her mind in gear to realize that that must have been Adagio’s plan when she’d torn her soul chain free. A tidal wave of emotions rose up in Sunset. Anguish at realizing what Adagio had just sacrificed to save them, and immense gratitude towards the courage such a choice must have taken, followed immediately but deep regret that it had been necessary in the first place. She could feel the tears wetting her eyes even as she nodded, and shouted, “Everyone, through the portal! Quickly!” It wasn’t easy for all of them. Sunset’s friends could move fast enough, but Sonata needed to be dragged, kicking and screaming, by both Aria and Applejack. Looking into the Garganta portal, Sunset saw that a thin spectral bridge of light was forming inside, allowing them to cross. She had to assume that was Discord’s doing. Adagio must have opened the portal right back to where Discord was, allowing him to establish his own connection to the portal. Sunset all but shoved her friends through, sending Rainbow Dash in first, then Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie along with Limestone. Rarity came next, all but leaping through the Garganta. Then it was Aria, Sonata, and Applejack’s turn, and Sonata was fighting like a wild beast to free herself from their grip, her voice screaming. “No! Let go! Dagie! NO! I won’t let this-! LET GO! Adagio!” despite her flailing, she was physically no match for a combination of Aria and Applejack’s strength. Tears flowed down the youngest siren’s face like twin rivers, and Aria’s face was no better, her own face filled with hard, bitter sadness even as she unrelentingly dragged Sonata into the portal. Sunset waited until they were through, and turned to Adagio, shouting, “Come on!” Adagio didn’t move, however, only glancing back at Sunset. “I can’t.” “Of course you can! Whatever you just did to yourself, we can figure out some way to fix it!” Sunset said. Even as she spoke, there was an explosion of sand, and Grogar appeared, dusting himself off. His white vest had been burned away, and his bare chest was slightly singed, but he seemed otherwise unharmed. “Impressive,” he commented dryly, looking at the Garganta portal with a sneer, “And effective.” He turned his eyes to Adagio, narrowing them to slits, “I commend you. What is your name, my fledgling Hollow? Surely not ‘Death’, but something less dramatic, perhaps?” Adagio’s nostrils flared and she growled, “I am Adagio Dazzle, and you’re never going to lay your filthy hands upon my sisters... or my friends.” “Indeed I suspect not this day, no. However you shall do fine as a replacement. I’m very curious to divine what that gem in your chest is.” “Dammit, Adagio, run!” Sunset said, taking a step to go help the siren turned Hollow escape, but Adagio turned to her with a feral growl. “I said, go you idiot!” Adagio shouted, and her gem glowed brightly for a second before a second, weaker Cero beam fired from it, straight at Sunset. She barely got her sword up in time, taken wholly off guard. The beam hit her, and the force of it drove her back through the Garganta portal, stumbling upon the bridge of light. She recovered just in time to see the Garganta closing. Adagio was watching her through the closing portal, the siren’s face showing immense relief, even as Grogar slowly and menacingly advanced behind her. Sunset made one last desperate dive for the portal, “Adagio, wait-!” She saw Adagio smile, and just shake her head, saying something that Sunset couldn’t hear. The last thing Sunset saw of Adagio Dazzle before the portal closed completely was her turning to face Grogar, talons raised to strike at the unconcerned looking Espada. Then the portal closed, and Sunset was left staring into the darkness of the Precipice Realm.