Equestria Girls: Friendship Souls

by thatguyvex

Episode 137: Declaration

Episode 137: Declaration

Several days after the battle of Everfree...

Sunset Shimmer’s hand shook with a tremor of unrest as she laid her hand upon the journal that connected her to its counterpart in Equestria. It had been inert since she last tried using it, and any writing she attempted lacked the warm buzz of magic that normally accompanied such an action. It was as if the magic that tied it to the other book in Equestria had simply ceased to function. The only thing she could think of that might cause that was if the spells forming that connection had been either somehow dispelled or outright removed. Or the counterpart journal itself could have been destroyed.

When she thought about this possibility, it only added fuel to the cold burn in her chest, for this wasn’t the only strange news tied to Equestria.

Not long after things had settled down in Canterlot City, and after a certain monumental discussion that still left Sunset lightheaded, things had been interrupted by the arrival of Kido Corps Chief Puddinghead. He had had quite the story to tell, concerning a certain Kraken and events that had transpired while Sunset and her friends had battled Gaia Everfree.

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”I just can’t believe how inconsiderate this foreign world spell flingers are!” Puddinghead declared, waving his hands with dramatic flourish. He’d plopped down right in the middle of the meeting table in Discord’s training area, sitting cross legged on the tables surface while slamming a strange, wooden casket down next to him.

Popping the top of the casket, he revealed that inside was sloshing sea water, and a miniaturized Kraken. The once massive creature was now no larger than a small dog, and it’s skin was covered in big bruises and lumps, as if it had been subjected to a severe beating. It’s eyes practically wept fearful tears as Puddinghead glared at it and the creature shrank down into the casket.

“Don’t give me that look, you sorry excuse for calamari! You cost me an entire afternoon’s worth of napping with your foolish resistance! If you’d surrendered like a good squid I wouldn’t have had to get rough with you!”

“How, um, did you make him so small?” Fluttershy asked, peering at the Kraken with a hint of sympathy as she peered into the casket.

“Hahah! My Kido is so mind numbingly advanced that shrinking the size of an object or creature is truly child’s play!” Puddinghead rubbed his chin with a pleased grin, “Of course the secrets of my power are not up for public display.”

“I don’t think anyone was asking for a detailed description,” Discord said, fanning himself with his hat, “I’m simply glad you disrupted whatever this creature was doing. What precisely happened, if you don’t mind sharing?”

“What do you think I’m here for!? A photo op!? Hmph, be amazed at my tale of heroics and woefully missed naps!” Puddinghead sprung to his feet, landing one foot atop the casket’s edge as he swept his arms out, “In the depths of the oceans I came across this dastardly cephalopod in the midst of enacting a ritual of the foreign realm’s magic! Magic that was pouring into the ritual from a great distance.”

“Camp Everfree,” Sunset said, turning a look towards Gaia Everfree, who was seated across the table, “You were sending magic to this ritual, right?”

“Yes,” Gaia confirmed, crossing her arms in a frank stare, “That was part of the deal I had struck with Charybdis. I provide magic for her ritual, and she’d provide me with spirit energy from Equestria to help empower my rebirth.”

“Gloriosa, what’s... who is Charybdis?” Timber asked. She turned eyes towards him that briefly flickered with shame, likely from Gloriosa’s personality.

“An entity from the world of magic that parallels our own. She’s used her own magical means to examine our realm from across the borders of reality for some time, and discovered me, Gaia, some time ago. She bargained with me. My rebirth in exchange for help with a ritual.”

“What was this ritual supposed to do, exactly?” asked Rarity with a pointed look, “Did you even ask?”

“Not extensively,” Gaia said with a nonchalant shrug, “To be frank, I didn’t care what Charybdis was after. She was offering me a chance to speed up my rebirth considerably through the providing of spirit energy. I wasn’t inclined to stare that gift horse in the mouth.”

“Where was she getting spirit energy from, though?” Sunset said, the possibilities generating a nervous sweat on her brow. There were very few forms of magic that dealt with anything resembling ‘spirit’ based concepts, Necromancy chief among the taboo dark magics of the world of Equestria. “Even if she had magic that could somehow manipulate spirit energy, there isn’t nearly the same amount of that kind of energy in Equestria as there is here.”

“No, there isn’t, but I got the impression that wasn’t an issue for Charbydis,” said Gaia, “We didn’t necessarily speak to each other like friends, and she kept her own cards close to the chest. My impression was that she’d been collecting her power for a very long time. She certainly showed a great deal of pride in her knowledge. Somewhat annoying, really. She reminded me of Grogar.”

“All of that aside,” Discord prompted, “What exactly was this ritual and did you manage to stop it, Puddinghead?”

“Yes, of course! Well, sort of.”

“Sorta?” said Applejack, “What do you mean ‘sorta’?”

Puddinghead gave her a sour look, “Well perhaps if I could be allowed to finish my story without any further interruptions, hm?”

“Yes, please don’t interrupt Master Puddinghead,” said Clover with enthusiasm, leaning forward with rapt attention towards her mentor. He did give her a flat look, and Clover blushed fiercely as she realized she’d just interrupted him too and she quickly held her hands up, “Apologies. Please, do continue.”

“I shall! With gusto! Now then,” he resumed his dramatic pose, “There I was, face to face with the eldritch squid! Magic poured into the space we occupied, and cracks formed in the very ground beneath us! Reality was being forcibly ripped open, joining our plane with that of another! Indeed, cold, arctic water entered our ocean, and beyond the opening I could see an abyss most dark and foreboding. Then, the Kraken attacked, and sent all manner of magic cascading towards your humble protagonist. Of course he did not know he faced the foremost master of Kido the Soul Society has ever known. The Kraken’s magic was no match for the onslaught of my own mightiful Kido spells!”

Pinkie Pie leaned over to Sunset Shimmer and whispered, “Is ‘mightiful’ a word?”

“I think so. If it isn’t I doubt this guy cares.”

“Did you have any cool sounding Kido to use for a finisher?” asked Rainbow Dash, who at Puddinghead’s irked glare she just laughed and said, “Whaaaat? I’m just curious. You’re like, the Kido Dude, right? You must have an awesome, epic finisher spell or two.”

“I, in fact, have many ‘epic’ Kido, any one of which would dazzle and sizzle your simple simian mind! None of them were necessary for an opponent of this Kraken’s mere level. Once I had it on the ropes, I simply bound it with a few well chosen Bakudo to prevent it from interfering with my examination of the ritual,” Puddinghead’s grandstanding temporarily flagged as he took on a more serious expression, “It had grown wider during my brief battle, and I could now see that beyond it law a massive underwater chasm, at the bottom of which was a temple of some sort. I saw within the columns of this temple was a enormous creature that pulsated with power, although the darkness of the depths obscured seeing the details. There were flashes of light, and the sensation of spiritual pressure, and an undulating roar that shook the waters. I could only assume a battle was taking place. I could not make out much, but I did see what I believe were colorful aquatic equines flinging magic at the massive, dark creature in the depths.”

“Wait, aquatic equines? You mean ponies!?” Sunset sat up, hands slamming the table, “What did they look like!? Did you see their colors?”

“Calm yourself. As I said, I could not see much, but colors... hmm... yes, I think one was blue, another yellow... one might have also been yellow or orange, rather hard to tell. One was very, very pink. Oh, and one was definitely purple! She was lit up rather well by a massive surge of magic, so I got a decent look, if only for a moment.”

Sunset’s breath caught in her throat, “Twilight! It had to be her! She and her friends must have been fighting Charbydis! What happened!? Did you see who won?”

“I hardly had time for a close examination,” Puddinghead said, “The portal was widening, and this creature, Charbydis or whatever, was rising towards it. Since I don’t appreciate uninvited guests trying to barge their way into our realm, I decided to place a powerful Kido barrier in front of the portal. I think that probably put a very significant wrench into that Charbydis’ plan, but I heard quite the screeching noise when she found the portal blocked from this end. From there things became rather chaotic. More flashing magical lights, explosions, what may or may not have been some odd singing numbers, then a surge of power that blew straight into my Kido barrier and the portal as a whole. It collapsed like a stack of cards, closing up in no time.”

“Wait, so... that’s a good thing right?” said Rainbow Dash, “That means the pony us’ won? Right?”

“That’s rather unclear,” Rarity said, “It sounds promising that the portal collapsed, but there’s no way to know what caused it. Our counterparts? This mysterious Charbydis?”

“Maybe Mister Kraken knows what happened?” suggested Pinkie Pie, snagging a flood lamp from thin air to click on and point towards the casket containing the miniaturized creature in question, “C’mon and spill the beans, buster!”

“Now Pinkie, there’s no need to try scaring the poor thing,” Fluttershy said, “Besides I don’t think he can tell us much. When Charbydis touched my mind during the beach attack, I got the impression the Kraken is really just a servant who isn’t told much.”

“Be that as it may, I’ve got my share of questions for our new guest,” said Discord, stroking his beard with a critical gleam in his eye that only seemed to make the Kraken shrink back even more, “We won’t spare any effort to find out what’s transpired in Equestria.”

----------

Not that it has done them much good. The Kraken truly didn’t know much, even after Fluttershy and Discord worked in tandem to question the creature. Even Fluttershy’s powers of persuasion, with the backing of her Fullbring, didn’t yield any significant information they couldn't have worked out on their own. Well, not entirely, but Sunset really only cared about knowing if Princess Twilight and her friends were okay.

The Kraken was a native of Equestria, but had spent some time in the Beast Realm, which was new information. Charbydis had access to the Beast Realm, and the Kraken was an agent who had acted as a go between for her and certain Beast Realm Clans that she offered help to through her own, strange magic. The soul manipulating magic she could use wasn’t exactly Necromancy. It affected things both living and dead, and involved direct control of spirit energy. Through it, she could share power, which was how the Kraken had gained much of its strength. It was a conduit for Charbydis’ power, and she apparently had a legion of servants who gained spell-like abilities through magical “contracts” with her. The Beast Realm Clans she aid used similar “contracts” from her to gain power, although their reasons remained unknown. The Kraken was just a mediary. Charbydis simply did all the negotiating through projecting spells.

As for why she’d been seeking to create a portal to the human world, that wasn’t clear, and the Kraken didn’t know for certain. It was possible it was simply to have a new world to plunder. Charbydis was restricted in how much she could do in Equestria with so many powerhouses like the Princesses being aware of her. The human world, however, lacked knowledge of her, despite having powerful entities of it’s own. She could have slipped into the human world’s oceans to start setting up a power base here, and if the portal remained intact, use any power gained here to further goals back in Equestria.

It sounded like Princess Twilight and her friends might have been able to interrupt the ritual meant to create that portal, but there just wasn’t any way to know, and that ate at Sunset. She picked up the inert journal, her one lifeline to the realm of her birth... and with a frustrated growl threw it onto her bed and plopped down next to it.

She was in the room Discord had given her at his shop. It was a comfortable, if not too spacious room. It was built in a Japanese style of woven tatami flooring, but with more solid walls, and a sliding wood door. Her bed was a western style, tucked up against a corner next to a desk and chair that held a plain reading lamp. Pretty bare bones, but at least Discord had given her a laptop to use, and apparently for all his warding of the shop, he still managed to get a good internet connection.

The laptop sat on the desk, open and turned on. A browser was open, showing a news report of the city recovering from the recent incident. Sunset glanced at it, her eyes squinting in a wince at the report. Too many people had gotten hurt. She laid on the bed and folded her hands behind her head, trying to shift and find a comfortable position to sleep. Sleep wasn’t coming, however. The past few days had been filled with just... too much for her mind to shut down easily.

“Yo, you’re still awake?”

The voice was Chappy’s, stemming from beneath the bed as the white rabbit plush doll poked her head out from underneath and looked up at Sunset.

“Mmmph,” Sunset replied.

Chappy clambered up onto the bed, walked over Sunset’s stomach and hopped onto the journal. She poked at it with her plush arm, “Still nothing outta this thing? Man, that bites. And just when we got a portal we might be able to kinda sorta use, too.”

“Chappy, I’m trying to sleep.”

“And from the looks of it, not succeeding. Heeeey, I know what’ll do you some good,” Chappy jumped onto Sunset’s chest and sat down, staring down at her, “You should go get some fresh air, and stab a few Hollows. Go for a Soul Reaper walk.”

Sunset found herself snorting, but almost cracking a tiny smile. Despite Chappy’s doll eyes lacking any human definition, she could still somehow see the glint in them. “You’re just looking to snag my body for an hour or two so you can hit up the kitchen. I’m onto your willy ways, you hedonistic rabbit! I’m not letting you destroy my digestive system like last night!”

“I only ate one block of cheese!”

“One was bad enough! Without Fluttershy’s help I would’ve been in the bathroom all night!”

Chappy crossed her plush arms and leaned over Sunset’s face, “That still doesn’t excuse you from ignoring me every time I bring up getting more body time.”

“It’s my body, not yours,” Sunset said, picking up Chappy by the head and gently setting her aside on the desk beside the bed, “I get that you like having the full flesh and blood deal, but part of the problem is you don’t have your own body to have all your fun with. And trust me, if you did, you’d understand why all that excess isn’t such a great thing all the time. Having to deal with the consequences of your choices might curb that hedonistic streak.”

“Well I guess I’ll never get to find out, because I’m stuck with cotton and cloth most of the time,” Chappy sighed, plopping down on the edge of the desk and kicking her tiny legs, “It’s so frustrating! Sunset, I know I’m a pain in the butt, but being in your body is always so much fun! Even when Discord makes me do chores with it while you’re busy training with your friends-”

“He does what?” Sunset asked, brow curling in consternation.

“Yeah, he’ll have me clean things, or mind the shop front, or organize stuff, move boxes or whatever. Heck I think he just does it because he doesn’t want me sneaking off anywhere,” Chappy said with a shrug, “Doesn’t bother me. Like I said, it’s just fun having a real body to move around in.”

Sunset gazed at Chappy, thinking not for the first time that the artificial soul had grown into far more than the Soul Reapers had designed her for. Sunset’s assumption was that magic had something to do with that, but that was just her guessing. Regardless, Chappy wasn’t really just a tool of convenience anymore, and perhaps it was time to try and do something for her.

“I’ll talk to Discord,” Sunset said, “About getting you a more human gigai.”

“Whoawhoawhoa! Seriously!? You’d do that!?” Chappy exclaimed with a burst of raw excitement.

Sunset tried not to let her heart get too melted by the teary eyed look of hope in Chappy’s doll eyes. “Doesn’t cost me anything to ask. If he can make one for Rarity, I don’t see why you’d be off the table.”

Chappy leaped off the desk to land on Sunset’s head, hugging the girl’s face, “That’d be amazing. Do you think he’d let me pick my hair color? Height? Boob size?”

“Ugh, let me ask him if it’s doable first before you get too excited. If it is, I might need to figure out an alternative for getting into my spirit body to fight.”

“Hey hey, no rush, just happy to be thought about,” Chappy said, giving a merry humming sound as she rocked back and forth in a dreamy daze, clearly imagining a fully human body for herself. It did cause Sunset to smile a bit. She picked up Chappy again and sat up in her bed, giving the plush a brief hug.

“Thanks.”

“Huh? For what?”

“Taking my mind off things.”

“Heheh, I can tell when you’re down in the dumps. No worries, you just come to Big Sis Chappy anytime you need cheering up.”

Sunset stood up from the bed and set Chappy down on the floor, waving her hand over the doll’s head, “Big Sis, is it? Think you fall just a bit ‘short’ in that category.”

“Bah! I’m the more mature one between us! It’s inner height I have! Inner! Hey, where are you heading off to?”

The question was asked as Sunset had started to stride to the door, sliding it open. “Figure if I can’t sleep I might as well take that walk you were talking about. Not in Soul Reaper form, but I could use some fresh air to clear my head.”

Leaving Chappy to her own devices, she began to wander through Discord’s shop, her mind wandering even further afield. Her friends, along with their families, had agreed to stay at the shop for the time being, and in the mysterious manner of the shop’s inner space an abundance of rooms had been found for everyone to stay in. Sunset had gradually learned to navigate the shop’s hallways, discovering that it all worked off a central hub of rooms that didn’t really change; the shop front, storeroom, lounge, and kitchen. Then from there if you wanted to go somewhere, you just needed to passively think about what you wanted, and the hallway would sort of just ensure you ended up there. If you wandered with no destination in mind, the hallways could stretch for a long distance, and you could end up in any number of empty rooms.

But because Sunset’s desire was for fresh air, she found herself somewhere new. A door opened up and she found herself standing on a very short balcony on what looked like the second floor of the back of the shop. A plain wood railing ran along the balcony’s slim length, and there wasn’t much of a view to speak of save for a small back yard area and a stone wall leading to another alleyway.

Still, Sunset could look up to see the night sky and a bright moon, and felt a nice, warm summer breeze in the air. It was peaceful and quiet.

And she wasn’t alone.

“Rarity?”

The other girl was standing leaning against the balcony railing, wearing what looked to be a fashionable set of nightwear consisting of a pale blue sleeping dress and purple slippers. Before noticing Sunset, Rarity had been staring up at the sky with a distant, forlorn look in her eyes, one hand lightly touching the broken end of the soul chain dangling from her chest. Upon Sunset speaking, Rarity’s head turned swiftly, eyes showing a flash of startlement before recognition set in.

“Sunset, darling, whatever are you doing up at this hour?”

“I could ask you the same thing,” Sunset said, slowly walking up and turning to lean her back on the railing. She tried very pointedly to not look at Rarity’s soul chain, even as Rarity slowly and self-consciously tucked it into the neck of her night dress.

“I suppose I couldn’t sleep either,” Rarity said, “There’s quite a lot on my mind, and I was having trouble sorting it out while sleeping in the same room where I can hear my family crying in their sleep.”

Sunset softened her voice, “Do you want me to go? I can give you some privacy.”

“No, don’t,” Rarity said, “I... don’t actually want to be all that alone, right now. I just didn’t want to interrupt anyone’s sleep, either, but if you’re in the same boat I am, being unable to get some proper shut eye... I wouldn’t mind the company.”

To this Sunset nodded, and then leaned back a bit more on the balcony, getting comfortable. Her gaze was drawn back up to the sky, where stars glittered, distant and free. She envied them a bit. Shaking her head, she said, “So, what do you think of what Discord proposed?”

Rarity turned a contemplative look downward, resting her hands on the balcony railing, “I’d say it’s our best move, if a difficult one. It paints us as a bigger target, but may also serve as a deterrent for further incidents like what happened at Everfree. Then again, it may just blow up in our faces.”

“I’ve got concerns, that’s for sure,” Sunset admitted, “But it also feels right. I think that’s why everyone agreed to at least think it over for a few days instead of calling the whole thing crazy.”

“It’s a big decision, and involves more than just us,” Rarity said, then she sighed heavily, “And on a more personal note, it gives me time to think over my own situation.”

Sunset was silent to that, mostly because she’d already said just about everything she felt she could on Rarity’s circumstances. All she could really do at this point was be supportive, and in this case it meant listening to whatever was going through Rarity’s mind, if she felt like sharing.

Rarity understood as much, giving Sunset a ghost of a thankful look before her face stilled, “It is strange. This should be so simple. I should take Discord’s offer of a gigai, shouldn't I? There really isn’t much disadvantage to it, is there? So I couldn’t have children. I was always going to be focused on my career, so who knows if I’d even have time for becoming a mother. And so what if I won’t age normally? Say goodbye to needing to put so much work into looking young, right? And so what if the gigai will never feel quite right? I’ve had to wear clothes sometimes that felt a bit off. I could learn to live with it.”

Sunset didn’t say anything. She just let her friend get her words out, while she stayed close and kept eye contact, listening and absorbing all Rarity needed to let out. Rarity’s eyes had a shimmer of wetness in them as the confusion at her own feelings strained her voice.

“I shouldn’t even think twice about it. But, I am. Because it feels so... wrong, somehow. Why should I get to cheat death, when so many others don’t get that luxury? Plenty of people lost their lives during the attack on the city, and they aren’t getting second chances at life, are they? Thousands die every day, often unfairly, unjustly, torn from their loved ones and denied their futures, and they don’t get some convenient get-out-of-death-free card. So what right do I have to treat death like a minor inconvenience?”

She ended the pain, doubt tirade of words with a questioning look towards Sunset, which was all the prompting Sunset needed. It did take her a few seconds to get her thoughts together, which was time she used to slid a little closer to Rarity and send a comforting grasp to her friend’s hand.

“Rarity, I think I understand why this is bothering you so much. You’ve always given others consideration first, and yourself a distant second. It's not like you don’t do things for yourself, but it’s like you don’t feel right if you think you're taking something from others that you could have given, instead. But... this is your life we’re talking about. You only have one of those. You can’t give it more than once. Or rather, that’s how it normally is. You knew Twilight was in danger, and you didn’t hesitate for a second to give your life protecting her. In any other time or place, that’d be the end of your story. The generous, beautiful soul that fought and died to protect a friend. But you know what?”

Sunset gripped Rarity’s hand a little tighter and turned to look her friend in the eyes, “Screw that story. This is your life, and you deserve a second chance to keep living it. I don’t care if it’s unfair to anyone else. This isn’t about them. This isn’t even about your family. Rarity, for once in your life, put aside what others think of you and just ask yourself; what do you want? Do you want to keep living your life here, or do you want to cross over to whatever waits in Soul Society? As far as I’m concerned that’s the only thing that matters! What do you, and you alone want for yourself?”

“For myself,” Rarity said the words as if they hadn’t even truly occurred to her. For an astonished moment she mutely stared back at Sunset. Then her eyes slowly turned down towards where Sunset held her hand. With a gradual, trembling strength, Rarity squeezed that hand back tighter, and a choking hitch entered her voice.

“I want to stay. I really, truly want to stay with all of you. But-”

“No buts,” Sunset said, “You want to stay, that’s the end of it. There’s no need to think about it beyond that.”

“Is it really... okay? I’m not being a terrible person? I’m not being too selfish?”

“Not even close,” Sunset said with the confidence and assurance of a sunrise, showing her friend her brightest smile, “You’re one of the best people I know, Rarity, and I’ll give you a good hard smack upside the head if you ever doubt that fact.”

Rarity sniffed, wiping at her face, “Oh you, you’re going to utterly embarrass me. I... oh my I feel a bit lightheaded. I usually have a couch to lay on for situations like this. High emotions are just not good for me.”

“Take a breath, and try not to fall over the balcony, okay?”

Rarity gave a short laugh, and spent a few moments fanning herself with a hand, getting herself in order. Once she’d calmed down a bit, she took a long breath and let it out slowly. “I do feel better, Sunset. I’ll take Discord up on his offer. It’s... strange. I was so very close to convincing myself to go to Soul Society. I’m not even sure why, outside of guilt. Perhaps a part of me thought I’d be more useful to everyone over there. Perhaps become a Soul Reaper myself.”

“I always thought you looked good in black,” Sunset said.

“Really? I mean, perhaps with the right accents...” Rarity mused, then shook her head, “Those uniforms are just so drab, I’d go mad having to wear them. And I suppose it’d take months if not years to really get any good with a Zanpaktou.”

“Hey, only took me a few weeks.”

“I rather attribute that to your own talents, Sunset, and the excessive training regimen that Discord subjected all of us too. I suppose magic and extreme circumstances collaborated to aid in our growth. I wouldn’t have all those advantages in Soul Society. Although...”

“Although?” Sunset prompted, curious.

Rarity gave a light, self amused laugh, “The thought had crossed my mind I might enjoy working alongside Blueblood.”

Sunset wasn’t able to stop a wry smirk from forming, “Oh? Didn’t think he was your type, especially after the ‘trying to kill you’ incident.”

Rarity waved a dainty hand, “Oh pish, I’m well over that. And I’m not certain I actually consider him my ‘type’, but I am curious to see if he can make good on improving himself. Really, attitude aside, he is something of a looker.”

“If you say so,” Sunset said, still smirking, and Rarity gave her arm a playful swat.

“Let a girl dream a bit, Sunset. With all these life and death situations we keep finding ourselves in, it’s created quite a bit of tension, and some of us might enjoy a bit of romance for the stress relief.”

“Uh-huh, ‘stress relief’.”

“Stop making air quotes, Sunset, I’m trying to be serious!”

“Okay, okay, I’m putting them away,” Sunset said, hiding her hands behind her back. The two of them shared a brief laugh, and a comfortable silence fell over them for a minute or two. However Rarity soon regained her musing look.

“You know Sunset, it’s strange. Even if I stay here, and live my life out in a gigai, eventually all of us will still succumb to natural causes, will we not? Even if my gigai doesn't age, I might have an accident, or fall in battle again. I can’t avoid Soul Society forever. None of us can. Have you given any thought to what you might do in Soul Society, when that day comes?”

“Truthfully? Not a lot. I can’t afford to think much past our present circumstances. I’ll leave the future to sort itself out when I get to it.”

Rarity nodded, “A fair way to look at things. At any rate, truly Sunset, thank you. This talk... I really needed it.”

“What are friends for?”

“Deeply emotional balcony conversations, apparently,” Rarity said, then suddenly yawned, after which she gave a mortified blush, “My word, and such conversations apparently take their toll. I think I may return to bed and finally be able to get some sleep. I am, if you pardon the Pinkie-level pun, dead tired all of a sudden.”

Sunset nodded towards the door back into the shop, “Go and get some rest, Rarity. We’re all going to need it before long.”

“Don’t forget to get some sleep yourself, Sunset,” Rarity said as she walked to the door, pausing there and looking back with a warm note of friendly concern, “I know not being able to contact the Twilight from Equestria is bothering you. All I can say is trust in her. I’m certain whatever has happened on the other side, our pony counterparts are able to handle themselves.”

Sunset gave a nod, but it was a subdued one, “I know. Good night, Rarity.”

Rarity left after a brief return nod, leaving Sunset there to ponder.

It wasn’t that she didn’t have faith in Princess Twilight. But she’d already seen what could happen to one of her friends, and Equestria didn’t have gigais.

----------

Sunset wasn’t the only one burning the midnight oil, although in Fluttershy’s case it was hardly a matter of being unable to sleep. She just found she didn’t need sleep as much as she had before. As something of a side effect of her Fullbring, she found that only an hour or two of quiet meditation left her feeling fully rested as if she’d had a full night in a soft, luxurious bed. This proved fortunate, as it let her leave the shop to fulfill a promise. She was courteous enough to tell Discord what she was doing and why, and he had no objections. Indeed, given the plan he had proposed, what Fluttershy was now doing only added to it.

The city at night was quiet, save for the regular mechanical thrum of industrial machinery as reconstruction continued through the night hours.

Fluttershy found that no one bothered her as she moved down the streets, even the Soul Reapers on patrol only giving her partial attention. They were more on the lookout for further Hollows, despite there being not so much as a peep from a single lesser Hollow since the attack on the city ended.

Fortunately the Soul Reapers were easy for Fluttershy to sense coming and going, so she knew when it would be safe to meet her new friend. She just hoped he was as good at keeping his head down as he claimed. It would have been a little awkward to bring him on the initial ride over, and he had said he wanted to handle the walk himself. Fluttershy had simply given him directions to her house, where she agreed to meet him in a few days.

She found him not inside the house, but rather in her family’s garage. A few tools from her father’s work bench were scattered about, and Fluttershy smelled the faint odor of metal welding still hanging in the air.

“Smooze?”

His form shifted in the back of the garage. He was taller now than the infantile form he had before. Now his body of thick, purplish ooze had a lanky, but solid shape, about the size of a thin teenager perhaps around the age of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. The bony protrusions of his skeletal frame stood out amid the slowly pulsating ooze-flesh. He’d make a makeshift cloak out of a blue tarp, and on his face was a welded mask of metal that covered his face, save for two drilled eye sockets.

Upon seeing her, Smooze visibly sagged with relief, and sank to one knee, “My lady Fluttershy. You came.”

“I promised I would,” Fluttershy said with a relieved smile, “I’m glad you made it unharmed. I was a bit worried with how many Soul Reapers are around.”

Smooze gurgled out a noise that might have been construed as a laugh, “My reiatsu remains low enough to be beneath notice, easy to conceal.”

He suddenly sputtered a cough, bending over as his body shook with a convulsion. Fluttershy reached out to him but he took a step back, warding her off with one, dripping hand. “No, my lady. Pure as you are, I’d hate to infect you with anything by accident. It’s dangerous enough just breathing the air near me. I will have to be careful when I leave your home, to ensure I’ve left no piece of myself behind.”

She looked at him with patient eyes and stepped nearer. With fine tuned control of her Fullbring she summoned a single golden hand from the halo she formed around her back and moved it over to Smooze, “I’m far from fragile, and can protect myself from the diseases that pain you. It must have been hard getting all the way here. Let me help you.”

Smooze shuddered as her power washed over him in a gentle coating of gold light. He all but sank to the ground, his feet turning into a conjoined puddle as he let out a gurgling sound of relief. He raised one hand to clasp at the golden spirit hand Fluttershy held to him, holding it like a lifeline in the middle of a storm. “You seem impossible to me, even as you stand before me. That you bestow such care to a creature like me. Does radiance such as yours belong in this world?”

“I don’t know about that. I’m just trying to ease some of the suffering you’re going through, like I would for anyone. I wish I could do more for you, but for now this is all I can do,” said Fluttershy, keeping the flow of her own spirit energy steadily seeping into Smooze. She couldn’t heal what he was, probably not without breaking down the very bonds that kept him intact, but she could beat back the tide of agony that assaulted his senses. At least for a time.

“What you can do is miraculous, my lady. That you do it expecting nothing, asking for nothing, is even more so.”

“Again, you’re giving me too much credit. I mean, I asked you to come meet me here for a reason, after all. I did want to ask you something, if it wasn’t too much trouble.”

Smooze bowed deeply to her, “My power is meager until I have more time to recover, but I have already decided to swear my service to you, and I shall affirm that now. I am yours, Lady Fluttershy, in whatever capacity this unworthy creature can serve.”

“Please, don’t phrase it like that. Let’s just be friends, okay, Mr. Smooze?”

She had come here to help him, not bind him to her in any way. While she did appreciate his gratitude, she wasn’t comfortable with being placed on some pedestal. She wasn’t after a servant, and certainly not a slave. If he was willing to not harm anyone and be at peace with her and her friends, then she was happy to welcome him as a friend. The reason she wanted to meet him was to make that offer, not take some oath of service from him.

For Smooze, however, it was as if every word from Fluttershy just further tightened the bond of fealty he’d already sworn with his soul. Her power flowing through his pain-wracked body was a panacea of purest joy to his savaged senses. Perhaps some might view his desires as simplistic, and hence his oath thinly bound, but to Smooze it was as elemental as breathing that he should aid the one who could ease his torment. Having spent so long in Las Noches where kindness like Fluttershy’s was all but an unknown dream, being here with her was like living that dream in the flesh. All he desired was to repay her kindness, so that he might continue to bask in this warmth he’d never dared imagine finding.

“If it is your wish I act solely as your ‘friend’, then I shall endeavor to do so, but understand my loyalty will always be yours. Although I may need to keep some distance to avoid causing you trouble.”

“Actually, that is another thing I wanted to ask you,” said Fluttershy, “I know a man named Discord. Are you familiar with him?”

Smooze tilted his masked head curiously, “It is a name that’s been spoken in the shadows of Las Noches on occasion. A former Captain of the Gotei 13. Twelfth Division.”

“He lives in town and has been helping me and my friends, along with our families,” Fluttershy explained, “I want you to come to his shop with me. You’ll be safe, there, and he might be able to help you even more than I can.”

“If that is your wish, I will not hesitate. If he has your trust, I shall do the same,” Smooze said, but read something on Fluttershy’s face. A sort of shamed hesitance, and he couldn’t stand seeing such a look, “There is more to this. Do not be ashamed to ask me, my lady.”

“It can wait,” Fluttershy said, “I mean it. I didn’t come here to make demands of you. I’ll take you to Discord’s, and see if he can help you with your condition. If, and only if, you truly want to, I might have a favor to ask of you afterward, but it might be dangerous, and you have no obligation-”

“It will be done,” Smooze said, “Whatever it may be, I’ll not balk at repaying the gift you’ve given to me. What is it you would have me do?”

“Not here,” Fluttershy said, her eyes looking outward from the garage as her senses stretched out to pick up on the movements of Soul Reaper patrols. “We’ll discuss it after I’ve gotten you back to Discord’s shop and introduced you. Hmm, now let’s see here, I’m pretty sure dad has a few plastic bins around here...”

It took a little doing, but in short order Fluttershy had acquired a decent sized plastic laundry bin that was just large enough for Smooze to curl up inside. With an additional tarp to cover the top of the bin, Fluttershy had little trouble carrying him outside, covered from any casual view. Sure, it was possible some Soul Reapers might find it odd to spot one of the well known human Fullbringers carrying a tarp-covered bin around town, but if any of them questioned her... well it wouldn’t be hard just to use her power to convince them that nothing was out of the ordinary.

----------

Despite the late hour, the energy of young teenagers was not easily curbed, and so it was that the Cutie Mark Crusaders found themselves doing some midnight training in the vast basement area of Discord’s shop.

“You sure it’s cool we use this place?” Scootaloo asked Screwloose, who’d been assigned by Discord to chaperone the girls.

“Oh, you cute little piglets can fight it out to your hearts’ content down here,” said Screwloose, lounging on a rock that overlooked the small quarry-like area the girls had chosen to train in, “If it can handle your big sisters going all out, believe me, it can handle your budding abilities.”

“So, uh, ya wanna be our sparrin’ partner?” Applebloom ventured, removing her ribbon and summoning forth the vambrace and red whip of her Fullbring, “I mean you n’ that Screwball gal can fight n’ stuff, right?”

A lyrical laugh of partially made chimes escaped Screwloose, “Oh we sure can, but not sure me or the bouncy ball of death that is my junior would make good sparring partners for you girls. We don’t have our Zanpaktou. Those got stolen a ways back. We’ve got some handy dandy weapons our boss mocked up for us, but that’s it. Besides, you already got a sparring partner.”

Screwloose pointed a spindly finger across the quarry, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders looked, and to their surprise found that someone else was already there, as if expecting them. She’d been examining the rock strata at one end of the quarry, but glanced over at the girls upon being mentioned. She raised a tiny rock in her hand and spoke in a deadpan tone.

“Boulder couldn’t sleep,” Maud Pie said, “I’m keeping him company. Discord also said I should train with him more.”

“I guess that’s fine,” said Sweetie Belle, following Applebloom’s example and bringing out her makeup compact to summon forth the staff that was her Fullbring, “But isn’t three on one kind of unfair?”

“Yeah,” said Scootaloo,“ Especially because I’ve got Alerion, who’s waaaaay tough.”

Screwloose laughed, although said nothing else as Maud Pie cocked her head slightly to one side and said, “I’ll try to keep up.”

With that, Maud closed her hand around her pet rock, Boulder. A burst of dark gray light shot up from her closed hand, and bands of similar light rolled out and up her arm. The light moved in tight strands around her other hand as well, forming together until they solidified. Abruptly Mau Pie’s hands and arms up to her elbow were covered in thick, dark gray granite. However her hands weren’t merely covered in a layer of stone armor, but rather formed into impressively large, blocky gauntlets bearing large, harsh spikes along their knuckles. It rather reminded the Cutie Mark Crusaders of huge, square-shaped, spiked boxing gloves. While the three girls were only starting to get a feel for sensing spiritual pressures, it wasn’t hard to sense the powerful rise of reiatsu from Maud as she cocked back her right arm, then brought it down like a piston upon the ground in front of her.

An earthquake like shockwave rolled out, upending all three girls as the ground beneath them shattered.

Screwloose laughter turned into an amused howl. The three Cutie Mark Crusaders picked themselves up in varying states of dizziness, Sweetie Belle’s eyes in particular swirling about before she plopped back down on the ground, “Maybe I shouldn’t have crawled out of bed in the first place.”

“Did I overdo it?” asked Maud, blinking once.

“Now what’s going on down here?”

The new voice belonged to Scootaloo’s Aunt Lofty, who showed up at the rim of the quarry area with her arms crossed and a firm look on her face. She leapt down into the quarry and walked over to where Scootaloo was dusting herself off and trying to steady her feet. “Scootaloo, you’re supposed to be in your room.”

“Aww, c’mon Auntie, I can’t sleep right now. And me and my friends need to get stronger so we can help all of you with the big plan, right?”

“Partially right,” said Lofty, shooting a sharp glance at Screwloose, “You’re supposed to be watching these kids.”

“I am,” said Screwloose, pointing at her eyeballs, “I watched them come down here. I’ll watch them train. I’m their escort, not their mom. If the piglets want to join the big girls club, I don’t see an issue with them getting to work on training their weak, anemic spiritual muscles. Besides, the rock-girl has some serious potential, and I like the cut of her jib.”

“Thank you,” Maud said. Lofty ran a hand through her hair.

“Not helping, Miss Pie. Look, training needs to happen in a bit more of a constructive manner than just having these girls beat each other up. Especially in Scootaloo’s case. Bount need to strengthen their bonds with their Dolls, and feed properly. If Scootaloo trains too hard without proper feeding, it can threaten the bond with her Doll and it might turn Alerion against her.”

“Huh, what’s she talking about, Scoots?” asked Applebloo, “Ya already ate a ton at dinner.”

Scootaloo’s face turned stiff, like a frozen lake, and there was a current of nervousness as she said, “Aunt Lofty, they don’t know yet. I haven’t told them.”

“I know,” said Lofty, “And there’s no way to keep it secret if we’re going to be part of this larger group. Your friends will learn sooner or later, so it might as well be sooner. Besides, I know you haven’t fed since Everfree. It’s fine to push it a few days, even a week, but you're still young and developing, dear. It’s time.”

“...Okay,” said Scootaloo, voice quiet with a sense of fear and shame. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom both exchanged worried looks before they both looked back at their friend.

“Scootaloo, is something wrong? You know you can tell us anything, right?” said Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo flinched as if stung.

“I-I know that! It’s just... this is kind of the least cool thing about me, and I really don’t like it, even if I’ve had my whole life to get used to it. Um, so like, you know how I’m not human, but a Bount, right?”

“Yeah,” said Applebloom, “Don’t really git just what that means, just that you n’ yer family got them nifty Dolls n’ don’t age normal.”

“There’s a lot more to it than that,” Scootaloo said, lowering her head so her eyes were hidden by the fall of her bangs, “Part of it is that we got to feed on a certain thing to keep ourselves alive. Soul energy.”

“Huh... that’s kinda weird, but why are you so worked up over that?” asked Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo let out an aggravated sigh.

“Where do you think we have to get ‘soul energy’, Sweetie Belle? It’s not like I can just go down to the convenience store and buy a ‘spirit cola’ or something. Bounts have to take the soul energy from somewhere, you know?”

Sweetie Belle’s face remained a scrunched up mask of confusion, but Applebloom rubbed her chin, thinking about it, and it started to click into place in her mind as her eyes widened. “You got to feed on souls, just like Hollows do!”

“No,” said Lofty, cutting in with a clear cut tone, “Not like Hollows. Hollows eat souls in their entirety. Bounts... we can go that far, but we don’t have to. It’s possible for us to basically ‘take a sip’ from a soul, consuming a little of its energy but not enough to really harm it. It takes practice to not consume too much, but a skilled Bount can feed on a few souls every week or so and maintain ourselves without doing any permanent damage.”

“It still sucks!” Scottaloo blurted out, “I’m not even that good at it. I’m always scared I’m going to take too much! It’s... not like normal food, guys. It feels too good, you know? There’s a rush that comes with it that just bites, because it makes you want to take more, and I’m always freaked out I’m going to end up hurting someone.”

“But you don’t,” Lofty said, “You’ve been doing very well, and you always have me or Aunt Holiday with you to make sure you don’t.”

“I know, but it still scares me. And I didn’t want my friends to have to know about this. It’s so freakin’... uncool.”

She sagged down, shoulders tense. Much as Lofty had said, Scootaloo had known her friends would learn this about her sooner or later, especially if they were going to train together more. She’d be expending more energy than normal to get stronger, which would mean needing to feed her Bount nature more often. It was probably for the best to just get it out now, even if it meant her friends wouldn’t look at her the same way anymore.

Scootaloo didn’t look at her friends, but she did hear both Sweetie Belle and Applebloom moving as the pair walked up to either side of her. She then felt a rough but encouraging pat on the back, Applebloom’s charming twang of a voice saying, “Aw shucks Scoots, will ya stop moppin’? It ain’t natural ta see ya gettin’ down on yourself.”

“Seriously,” said Sweetie Belle, “It’s weird hearing you call yourself uncool when you’ve got ‘cool’ on lockdown way better than me and Applebloom.”

“Hey, I’m cool!” Applebloom said, holding up her whip, “Do not cool people have amazin’ whips?”

“Guys,” Scootaloo looked back and forth between the two, “Are you really trying to act like you’re not bothered about learning Bounts literally feed on souls?”

“Eeeeh, it’s a little on the creepy side,” Sweetie Belle admitted, but then she just shrugged her dainty shoulders and smiled, “But it’s you, Scootaloo. I guess it’s kind of like how our big sisters are kinda still friends with that Adagio lady, or how they made nice with Gaia, or Gloriosa, or whoever she is now. It takes all types. You’re our friend, no matter what.”

“Couldn’t o’ said it better myself,” Appleboom confirmed, “I mean, ain’t like ya got a choice n’ diet if you Bount types really do gotta do that. Just s’ long as ya don’t do no real harm, what reason do we got ta judge ya fer it?”

“You guys...” Scootaloo stood silent for a moment, then let out a shuddering breath as relife flooded her, “I really thought you guys might not want to hang out with me after learning that.”

“Pfft, yeah right, we’re a team. A little soul sipping doesn’t change that,” said Sweetie Belle, who then blinked and added, “Man, my life has gotten weird.”

Maud, looking stoic as ever but maintaining a faintly confused head tilt, approached Screwloose and said, “Are we still training?”

Screwloose shrugged, “Give ‘em a sec to sort themselves out first.”

“I still object to letting you oversee training,” said Lofty, “It’s clear a real adult needs to be present for this. So, that being the case, I’ll volunteer myself. First, however, Scootaloo does need to feed, and nighttime is better for finding souls and avoiding detection by Soul Reapers.”

Screwloose lazily stood form her rock and hopped off it, waving at Lofty, “No need to go yanking the kid along on some soul hunt. If you Bounts are serious about joining up with us, the boss is going to provide for your needs like anyone else. And in case you haven’t noticed, there’s an abundance of soul energy right here in the shop.”

“What do you mean, precisely?” asked Lofty, and Screwloose pointed at herself.

“Me and Screwball are both officer-grade Soul Reapers, and we’ve got reiryoku to spare. Any time you Bounts need a sip, come to us. And if that doesn’t work for you, the boss is whipping up something we can pour spirit energy into. That ‘spirit cola’ might’ve sounded like a joke when Scootaloo said it, but give Discord some time and you might find yourselves with a whole menu of spiritually charged goodies to satisfy even the most picky soul-vampire in the crowd.”

There was a glint of genuine surprise on Lofty’s face, some of her stand-offish stance loosening up as she uncrossed her arms and nodded, “Well then... looks like Holiday and I made the right call aligning ourselves with you.”

“So I won’t have to take energy from unwilling souls anymore?” Scootaloo asked, a spark of hope lighting up her eyes.

“Nah, little one, at least not as long as you’re under our roof,” Screwloose said, “So if you want a bite, you just come to big sis Screwloose, or my pint-sized partner.”

The relief was palpable from Scootaloo, and even Lofty wasn’t able to fully hide some of her own satisfaction. The girls gave Scootaloo some privacy to get herself fed, although both Sweetie Belle and Applebloom remained curious about the details of how Bounts fed. Scootaloo was still far too embarrassed to actually let them watch, however. Lofty remained to oversee the training session, although she insisted that the girls only do so for an hour, since young teenagers still needed to sleep whether they thought so or not.

Sunset, amid her late night wanderings, only briefly poked her head into the training area. Watching her friends’ family training together in the same place she and those same friends trained in not so long ago brought a relaxed smile to Sunset’s face. She spent a little longer watching the training bout, chuckling as she noticed Maud was handling the three Cutie Mark Crusaders rather impressively, even as she demonstrated a distinct reluctance to strike at Scootaloo’s Doll, Alerion. Must be a rock related thing.

Maybe it really will turn out okay, Sunset thought to herself as she left the training area without saying a word or interrupting the next generation’s training.

----------

One of the perks of being among the upper echelon of the world’s spiritual entities was that swift travel across the world was readily available. Super speed alone made exploring the physical world a breeze, and combine that with something like the Garganta portals that allowed instant travel to places one had already been, and no place in the world was off limits. Assuming one could avoid being detected by the enemy, of course. For Thorax, that had always been just about anyone who wasn’t a part of his family. Not just Soul Reapers and Quincy, but even his fellow Hollows were effectively enemies he had to be on the lookout for.

But he’d always been a free spirit. Even when his mother had impressed upon him that enemies always lurked on all sides he had still shunned the danger to go exploring. It was how, when he’d still been relatively young, he’d run into his first Soul Reaper. And he’d run into her while exploring, of all places, a cemetery.

Human cemeteries had fascinated him. Just the odd idea that they buried the bodies the souls of their loved ones occupied in the ground had just seemed so odd to someone like him, who was born in a place where ‘death’ generally meant you were eaten or vanished.

This cemetery in particular was a war memorial, and was rather large. He’d never learned the name of it, but it was located outside of one of the larger human cities. The name had never meant anything to him, but it had become a special place to him because it was where he’d met Luna, the first Soul Reaper he’d ever known. She’d made an awkward attempt to kill him that day, and he’d made a game of it. He always came back to the same cemetery, and every time she’d tried to kill him, at least for the first few months. One day he’d asked her out of the blue why she never brought help, and she’d replied by telling him that she wanted to deal with him herself.

After that, their ‘fights’ became more like sparring matches, where they ended up talking more than fighting. He’d learned she had a sister she felt inferior to and was always trying to catch up to. She’d learned that he had siblings he loved and a mother he cherished, but was also a little scared of.

For a while nothing changed about this routine. They were still ‘enemies’ who fought, but their ‘fights’ were just an excuse to be around each other. They didn’t share secrets to harm each other's factions, but they shared personal stories about their lives, hidden joys and fears they both felt. Before they knew it, they weren’t even fighting anymore, even in jest. They’d just meet in the cemetery, talk, laugh, cry, then part ways again until the next time.

She wasn’t his first kiss, but he suspected he might have been hers. By the time that happened, his mother had found out about where he’d been going off to and who he’d been seeing.

That was when everything had started to go wrong. He should have known better. This was before he’d learned just how... different his mother was from others. Even among Hollowkind. It couldn’t even really be described as ‘madness’, because it was too focused and organized for that. ‘Evil’ didn’t sit with him either, because he knew her love for her children was the genuine article and not some affected or forced emotion.

But she was dangerous, and it was that fact that he’d failed to realize when Luna had become drawn into her web. That mad or not, evil or not, his mother Chrysalis was a danger to those around her by simple virtue of being herself, and because of that someone he cared for deeply had been wounded.

Now... now he had to own up to it all. He didn’t know if he could make any kind of restitution. Perhaps Luna didn’t want that. Regardless, he’d been wanting to see her again, to at least try and set things right. Even if it cost him his head to do so.

He didn’t have to wait long for her. Thorax had perched himself atop one of the small, grassy hills overlooking the largest portion of the graves. Shade from a group of trees with low hanging branches had provided a pool of shadows for Luna to rise from, and there was no telling if she’d been waiting there for him, or had just arrived. Either way, in one eye blink Thorax was alone, and the next, she was there behind him, her reiatsu suppressed to erase any sense of her presence. The only reason he did feel her arrival was because he knew to pay attention to scents in the air, and he was more than familiar enough with hers.

“If you’re going to strike, my back does make for a well shaped and tempting target,” he said after several seconds of silence in which Luna hadn’t said anything.

He heard the heated edge in her voice covering a wealth of other feelings as she stepped up next to him, “You wanted this, so don’t. Just don’t. If you have something to say, I’ll give you a few minutes to say it. That’s about all I feel I owe you, and you’re fortunate I even feel that much.”

“That’s fair,” he said, “You have every right to hate me. I lured you right into my mother’s grasp. I encouraged you to trust her. I helped her plant the seed of doubt and conflict that nearly had you at blows with your sister. If things had gone even a little differently, you’d have at best become a willing puppet to my mother. At worst...? I don’t even know.”

“You are not doing a very good job of convincing me I shouldn’t have stabbed you the second I arrived. In fact, you seem keen on reminding me of every reason I have to hate you, Thorax,” Luna said, voice raw with old wounds. Thorax closed his eyes painfully and nodded.

“Yes, because I’m not hiding from my part in things. Before anything else, I can’t afford to turn away from that. I hurt you. I might not have known everything, I might have been naïve, but none of that changes the results. Anything else I say has to come with that simple acknowledgment of reality.”

He turned to her. She didn’t meet his eyes, at least not initially. One hand was on the hilt of the larger of her two blades, but the tension coursing over her body had as much to do with the echoes of remembered pain as much as the anger that was born from it. And the ghost of affection that conflicted with it all. Thorax understood, given he felt about the same.

“When things started between us, I genuinely believed that what we had was something special,” he said, “A Soul Reaper and a Hollow, together. I thought it might bridge the gap between our peoples. When my mother found out about us, she used that to get at you. She used me to do it. I let her, because I trusted her when she told me she didn’t intend to harm you, but make you a part of our family. I should have known better. No, I already knew better, I just didn’t want to believe...”

He could so easily recall the way his mother had spoken to him, laying out the plan. To draw Luna into their fold, to have a Soul Reaper turn against Soul Society. Luna had confessed her inferiority complex towards Celestia to Thorax, and Chrysalis had preyed on that to try and convince Luna that she could do things her sister couldn’t by forming an alliance. Chrysalis had dangled the notion of even arranging an ambush on Tirek himself, opening the door for Luna to be Soul Society’s greatest hero, who forged a pact to take down the most powerful Hollow in history. And Thorax had encouraged it all, because his mother had asked him to, and because he had fooled himself into believing she’d been genuine.

It wasn’t as if he didn’t have reason to believe her. He knew she had been seeking a way to be rid of Tirek for a long time. Adding a Soul Reaper of Luna’s talent to their list of allies would have been a large boon in that regard. Sure, Luna had only been a Lieutenant at the time, but her talent had rivaled that of her older sister. Thorax had believed his mother had intended to take Luna under her wing once she was part of the family and sharpen those talents to their maximum extent for when the time came to overthrow Tirek.

In a way, perhaps Chrysalis had intended something along those lines. Just not in the way Thorax had expected. And certainly hadn’t approved of.

Maybe in his mother’s twisted mind, she had been truthful, just not in the way either Thorax or Luna had expected.

“When I brought you to our home, I thought mother was going to welcome you as an equal. I thought it was going to be the next big step towards dethroning Tirek. I thought...” he paused, shaking his head, “I thought that was the moment you and I would be able to show the whole world that a Hollow and a Soul Reaper could be together, and bring peace. I deceived myself, and in so doing, I nearly doomed you.”

Luna shook with a silent fury, “Chrysalis did worse than nearly kill me, Thorax. Before I was able to escape, she took a part of me. A part of my soul. She then infected me with a piece of hers.”

“I know,” he told her, solemn misery in his voice, “My mother could have taken control of you entirely, if she’d gotten more than just a small fragment inside you. Do you know the reason she couldn’t?”

“No,” Luna admitted, “The fight was too chaotic. I was so focused on just escaping. I’ve never spent a fight running more than trying to strike my enemy, but Chrysalis was...” she shook, eyes pinched shut at the memory, “She is the only enemy I’ve ever fought who left me feeling that afraid. When she struck me with that power, I could feel her spirit slipping into mine. I don’t know why she stopped short.”

“Because I stopped her,” Thorax said, remembering that moment with crystal clarity. It was the only time in his life he’d directly interfered with his mother. It wasn’t as if he had done much, truthfully. The soul infection power his mother possessed either required an infusion of her blood or a direct, focused link of spirit energy, usually via her Zanpaktou being stabbed directly into her target.

“I don’t remember you even being there,” Luna said, “Chrysalis had dismissed you so we could ‘talk’ in her chambers, before she revealed her true intentions.”

“I didn’t go far. I lingered close, Luna. I also followed both of you as you tried to flee, and mother chased you down like a damn fox hunting down a rabbit. I stayed hidden, Luna. I didn’t know what to do. Opposing my mother was a thought I could barely fathom at the time. It was only when she had her sword buried in you that I snapped, and acted.”

“I remember...” Luna’s voice turned quiet with haunted memory, “She’d pinned me to the wall as I tried to open a Senkaimon Gate. I felt her power seeping into me, right where she’d taken a bite out of my soul. I felt her inside me, Thorax, like poison. Then... then her sword was just yanked out of me suddenly. I didn’t question it, I just finished opening the Senkaimon and fell through.”

“Yes, because I fired a Bala right into mother’s sword and knocked it both out of you, and out of her hand,” Thorax said, “And you went through the gate, without seeing what had happened.”

“Am I supposed to believe that?” she asked, bitterness seeping heavily from her every twitch as she stepped back from him, “Can you prove that you did that? For all I know this is just another lie, Thorax. You told me so many.”

“I can’t prove anything to you, Luna. If you don’t believe me, I can’t do a thing about that. But I still owed you the truth, one way or the other. I don’t excuse the part I played in what happened. That said, I never lied to you about how I felt, and I never once intended for you to get hurt. I’ve been hoping for centuries now that one day I could just tell you how sorry I am. Not to be forgiven, but because you deserved to know. I didn’t betray you. I never stopped caring about you. And I’m sorry.”

A chilling breeze passed over the hill, stirring strands of Luna’s hair in front of her face as she stared at him with a searching look. It was like she was scouring his face for any trace of deceit to match the mistrust that still burned freely in her own eyes. Her hand never once left the hilt of her Zanpaktou. The silence became an uncomfortable weight bearing down on Thorax, but he didn’t buckle under it. He had set aside any hint of his normal, joking personality by now. All he had to offer Luna in recompense for the past was his sincerity in the present.

“Even if I believe you,” Luna said at last, “I’m not sure I can forgive it all so easily. How much you did or didn’t know about Chrysalis’ plan back then doesn’t change that you still went along with it, and only turned on her when she literally had me pinned to a wall.”

She paused, then asked, “What exactly did she do after that, anyway? I can’t imagine she was pleased with you.”

Thorax gulped, “She wasn’t, but in a way I think she was more surprised than anything else. I had expected her to punish me severely for ruining her plan, but she was rather lenient with me. No food for a month.”

“She starved you?” Luna said, lips twisting, “For a month!?”

“As I said, lenient, all things considered. From the way she spoke to me afterward, I almost got the impression she was impressed I stood up to her. I believe her exact words were, ‘Good boy, you’ve learned to desire something other than my approval.’ Since then I’ve been careful about pushing my boundaries with her, but I have never made the mistake of completely trusting what she tells me,” Thorax said, thinking back to the way she’d had Pharynx test Grogar’s prototype siren gem, “I still wonder just why she created me and my siblings. Why we’re different from her other children. What was the point of making myself, Pharynx, and Ocellus with so much more independent personality and power?”

Luna looked at him for a moment, then pursed her lips in consternation, “I sometimes wonder who has it worse. You, with a mother like that, or I, who has never gotten to meet my mother in the first place.”

“Your parentage is one thing you never did speak of much with me, even back then,” Thorax said, and Luna snorted, taking a step back from him.

“Nor am I about to. I didn’t come here to rekindle anything, Thorax. I just wanted to... have closure on this matter. For both of us. You’ve said your piece. For my part, I still can’t fully forgive you, but-”

She took her hand off her Zanpaktou, and with a reluctant sigh she met his eyes, “-I accept your apology. As far as I’m concerned, that ends matters between us.”

“It doesn’t have to,” he said, not daring to try and move any closer to her, but unable to keep some of the hope out of his voice, “Things are happening, Luna, and now more than ever there’s a real possibility of the war between all of us, Hollow, Quincy, and Soul Reaper coming to a head. And an end. With your help-”

“Thorax, don’t push this,” she warned, “You haven’t even come close to earning my trust again.”

“I know that, but please hear me out. I’m not asking you for any favors, or even trust, yet. All I’m asking is that you leave an open line of communication with me. Give me a way to get in contact with you. I don’t expect you to obligate yourself to me in any way. All I ask is that, if and when the time comes that there’s a way we can help one another, that I have that means to contact you. Even if I do, you can always just tell me to piss off, right?”

She eyed him, and the nervous if still charming smile that crossed his face. After a moment she grunted under her breath and reached into her robes. She withdrew a small token, a wooden slip with kanji writing on it. “This is something Stealth Corps members use to send direct signals to one another. This one is tied to my reiatsu signature. Break it, and it sends a signal only I can sense. It only has range from the living world, so it won’t work if you’re in Hueco Mundo. But if you do ever need to speak to me again, come here and use it. I might decide to come. If I’m in a good mood. Or maybe I’ll just kill you. Fifty fifty odds.”

An immense flood of relief left Thorax momentarily speechless as he clasped the token. Soon enough he managed to get his voice under control, “For you, Luna, I’ll gladly take those odds.”

----------

“You’re a genius. You know that, right?”

Twilight couldn’t help but give a startled blush at Sugarcoat’s words. The two girls were sitting in Twilight’s room, with Twilight at her desk which was covered in mechanical equipment and her computer. Next to the desk Sugarcoat was sitting on a chair with several cables running to Twilight’s computer from a new visor she wore. It was physically very similar to her old visor, but somewhat slimmer and painted in colors that matched Sugarcoat’s eyes before she lost them. Several new crystal nodes had been added to the design, part of the magical research that Twilight had been conducting and now bore fruit.

“You don’t have to exaggerate,” Twilight said, “I’m smart, sure, but genius?”

“Not long ago all I could see with the visor you made was reishi particles in a dull black and white. That was miraculous enough. Now this new model? I can discern color, textures. Heck I can read, Twilight.” Sugarcoat held up a magazine she’d been using for the test run of the new visor, “I mean, things are still splotchy in places, and the colors blur a bunch, but if this doesn’t count as you being a literal miracle worker, I’ll punch whoever made that assessment.”

“Okay, I guess it is a little impressive,” Twilight admitted, letting herself feel a bit pleased with Sugarcoat’s results. She really hadn’t been sure the new magical nodes would be able to fully synch with Sugarcoat’s nervous system, but after all the trial and error they’d done at the field lab in Everfree, Twilight had been able to make good on several of her theories.

“And with these refined and smaller M-Cells, the visor’s magic should last for several days before needing a recharge,” she said, holding up a small cylindrical object about the size of a normal electrical battery. The smaller M-Cells didn’t pack the punch of the bigger ones, but they’d be ideal for powering smaller magic devices like the visor or Indigo Zap’s new legs that Twilight was designing. If all went according to plan with those, Indigo would be able to move around just as well as with her natural legs. Possibly even better, once Twilight implemented some extra features.

“Have I made mention of how grateful I am to have a technical and literal wizard like you as a friend?” Sugarcoat said with a light laugh, “Anyway, I’d say the test is a success. We done here, or do you need more data?”

“We’re done for now,” Twilight said, standing up and stretching. On her bed, Spike wagged his tail and turned the page of a magazine he’d been reading as well.

“Sounds like things are looking up,” the canine said, “No more assassins. The magic research stuff is going swell. Oh, and somebody’s getting a big promotion.”

He winked at Sugarcoat, who stared back at him flatly from behind her new visor.

“Don’t remind me,” Sugarcoat said, “I’m still not sure this is a good idea.”

“Why not?” said Spike, “I think you’re perfect for the job. Twilight sure could use the backup, and after all you guys went through at that crazy forest camp, you’ve earned a few perks. Kinda wish I’d been there to help.”

“All things considered, I’m glad you weren’t, Spike,” said Twilight, “It was not a fun adventure.”

He nodded, his tail ceasing to wag, “None of this has been. Just wish I could be there for you more, is all.”

“He’s got a point,” Sugarcoat said, tapping her visor, “You can’t expect a loyal dog like Spike to be happy sitting at home while you’re in danger. You made this visor for me, and you made that Hexenfaust. Couldn’t you whip up something for him?”

Spike’s ears perked up and he grinned, “Twilight, you could totally build me a mech-suit! Or a tank! A dog sized tank that shoots magic missiles!”

“Spike, it’s not that simple. Sugarcoat, don’t give him ideas,” Twilight said admonishingly, but then she took a second to think about it as her mind started to conjure up designs, “Although I suppose it wouldn’t be impossible to engineer a suit fo canine proportions with ablative armor, enhanced muscle servos, and multi-targeting capability... ugh! No, Spike! No mech suits or power armor!”

He waggled his eyebrows at her, “Are you suuuure? It’d be so fun to design and build, wouldn’t it? The technical challenge, the expression of pure scientific prowess. The sleek combination of technology and magic.”

Twilight stood up and went over to the bed to pick him up, giving him a rueful smile as she scratched his head, “Stop tempting me, you little devil. Maybe if you’re a good boy I’ll think about making something you could use to help me out in the field, but just don’t push it, buster. You’re my best friend, and I know you worry about me, but I really don’t ever want you getting hurt. Especially not like last time.”

“All the more reason to give him a means to protect himself,” Sugarcoat said, and Twilight shot her a look.

“Not helping.”

“Not trying to,” Sugarcoat said back with a smile, “I’d say the little guy has earned himself a reward for always being there for you.”

“Thank you,” Spike said, raising a paw, which Sugarcoat gave a fist tap to. Twilight let out a burst of exasperated air; colloquially known as a ‘sigh’.

“You two are impossible. Fine, I’ll see what I can do, but it might take some time, Spike.”

“I know, I know, you guys are busy. Yeesh, even when you take care of the people trying to kill you, you don’t get any rest,” Spike nuzzled her neck as she pet him, “You really could use a break.”

“No rest for the weary,” Twilight said, setting him back down on her bed, “On that note, it’s about time for Sugarcoat and I to go see Sombra. Our other guest just flew in and should be here any minute.”

“I still can’t believe you recommended her. Or me, for that matter,” Sugarcoat said, shaking her head, “Are you really sure about this, Twilight? Me I get, but her? After what she did to you?”

Twilight took a deep breath. It wasn’t as if she didn’t understand Sugarcoat’s concern. A part of her was still sore over the past, but given everything she’d experienced over the past few months her idea of what constituted a worthy grudge had changed considerably. It still bored into her in a way she hadn’t let out to anyone that the man who killed her mother had been at Everfree. She had kept her anger under control for the sake of the task of saving Ember, and it was in a way almost fortunate that Sapphire Shores and Hoity Toity had shown up, as they’d certainly been a worthy distraction from Lament’s presence.

And given what she’d learned from her latest communication with Sunset, things were even more complicated than Twilight could have guessed. And Applejack didn’t know, yet. Not about what her father had done to Twilight’s mother, at least. Twilight had asked Sunset not to say anything, and trusted her friend to keep that part secret. Chances were that secret wouldn’t last, but Twilight didn’t want Applejack worry about it for at long as possible.

It wasn’t as if Twilight could do anything to strike at Lament, anyway. Even if she could...

She didn’t want to jump down that rabbit hole. She doubted she’d be able to climb back out if she did.

And if nothing else it gave her perspective on other matters, such as the one Sugarcoat had just brought up.

“It’s fine,” she told Sugarcoat, “I’m over what happened. She has experience, which makes her a suitable candidate on it’s own. Furthermore, she saved my life during the attack on Las Noches. I’d say that’s worth some trust. As for you, you’re the strongest member of our group besides myself.”

“That’s not saying a lot, Twilight,” Sugarcoat said, “Sure we’re all talented, but at this point you’re leagues ahead of the rest of us. I’m not exactly special.”

“Sugarcoat, you kept everyone together and focused during the chaos at Everfree, and between all of you I trained with you are the strongest. This isn’t about favoritism. Sombra himself was having trouble finding decent candidates from the ranks of the older soldats. Each generation of new Quincy are stronger than the last, so it stands to reason you and the girls surpass older soldats who might have more field experience, but not the raw power. So stop doubting. Keep in mind, Sombra approved my recommendations; including yours.”

“Still feels weird. Feels like yesterday I was just a cadet. Now you want me to be a Sternritter?” Sugarcoat said, and Twilight laughed.

“How do you think I feel? I didn’t even know what a Quincy was all that long ago, now look at me.”

“Yeah, I’m looking,” Sugarcoat said, staring at Twilight until the other girl felt the need to cough politely, heat on her face.

“S-so, anyway, we’d best get going.”

“Good luck,” Spike said, waving a paw as the pair exited Twilight’s room and headed out into the hallways of her vast manor home.

Along the way towards the main entry hall, Sugarcoat said, “Out of curiosity, have you had a chance to talk with that Gloriosa lady and her brother since things settled down?”

“Huh? Oh, a little,” Twilight said, “Sunset and Discord set me up with a direct video call to the shop, so I could talk to everyone. I still feel horrible about what Gloriosa and Timber have gone through. I’m partially at fault, because I encouraged Gloriosa to keep experimenting with the geodes.”

“Uh-huh, but it was still her choice. I wouldn’t beat yourself up too much about it. Does she seem, you know, more like Gloriosa or more like that Arrancar she fused with?”

Twilight slowed her walk, her voice gaining a hint of scientific curiosity in it’s excited tenor, “It’s actually extraordinary. I’ve never seen two personalities so completely blended together. It’s not like with me and Midnight where we’re so distinct from each other. Gaia is Gloriosa, Gloriosa is Gaia. You can talk to her, and see both the camp owner and ancient Hollow, all in one. One second she’ll talk with the age of ancient memory, the next she’ll talk about wanting to fix up her camp and one day have campers return.”

“Hell, would that even be possible right now?” Sugarcoat said, “The Soul Reapers have a small army pitching tents out there. I don’t see them letting an Arrancar just run a forest camp like it’s nothing.”

“You never know,” Twilight said, “Things can change. I have to believe we can find a path to peace. Maybe it isn’t crazy that one day Gloriosa can have her home and life back. The Gaia part of her also seems to truly love Everfree.”

“Hmm, and how’s the brother holding up?”

“Timber? I... I don’t know. I spoke to him a little on the call, but he seemed really nervous and out of his depth.”

“Noooo, really? Normal dude surrounded by super-powered humans, spiritual entities, and his sister becoming a weird Hollow demi-god? I’m impressed he hasn’t freaked out more.”

By now they’d reached the wide main stairs on the second floor that led down to the first floor’s entry hall, and Twilight paused there, frowning at Sugarcoat’s words. “When you put it like that, it just makes me more worried about him. Maybe I should try to get over to the shop, just to check in on them.”

“Couldn’t hurt,” Sugarcoat said, “And speaking of people to check in on, have you heard about Sour Sweet.”

Twilight flinched, although it was with a slightly humored smile, “I did. When the girls went to meet her at the airport I hear she gave them an earful.”

“We’ll probably hear the same when they get here. I can only imagine how pissed off she must have been, trussed up in some room for days on end while all the action was going down.”

At Sugarcoat’s words the doorbell rang out in an echoing clamor through the hall, and Twilight and Sugarcoat both headed down the stairs to the front door. It opened just as they arrived, the tall frame of the family butler Robert entering through to hold they doors open.

“My lady Twilight, your guests have arrived,” Robert said, standing aside to let a group of people enter.

“Oh Twilight, I’m so glad to see you!” Sour Sweet said, rushing in with a smile that didn’t match the veins and eye twitching on her face. Twilight gulped as Sour Sweet stopped short in front of her, “Did it have to take you that frirggin’ long to notice I was missing!?”

“H-hey, there was no way we could have known,” Twilight said, holding up her hands, “Hoity Toity’s Schrift made it impossible to tell you apart.”

“Oh sure, let some grotty old man impersonate me for weeks! Ugh! To think that gross bastard was wearing my clothes, and using my bed, and who knows what else! Gag! City! When I get home I’m burning all my stuff and replacing it ASAP!”

“And as you can see, Sour Sweet is fine,” said Sunny Flare as she, Lemon Zest, and Indigo Zap all walked in behind the irate final member of their party. “She got to hang out and take it easy while we were busy nearly getting killed. Not sure why she isn’t more grateful.”

“Screw you, Sunny,” Sour Sweet said, flipping the other girl a half-hearted middle finger. “Do you have any idea how bored I was locked up in a literal dungeon? A dungeon!? Who the hell keeps actual dungeons in this day and age!?”

“Uh, we do?” Lemon Zest said, “Pretty sure there’s dungeons at the Silburn, you know? ‘Sup Twi, Sugar. You won’t believe who we met at the airport.”

“I imagine I will, given I’m the one who invited her here,” Twilight said, moving past her friends to meet with the last person coming through the door. “Welcome to my home. I trust your flight over was smooth?”

“Yes, and thank you, Miss Twilight. Or should I say, my lady Sternritter?” said former Principal Cinch, now member of the Strafbattalion, as she entered into Twilight’s family manor. She removed the short billed, white military cap of her Quincy uniform and performed a smart salute to Twilight, her posture stiff, but a discerning and pleased look in her eyes. “I’m honored you have requested my presence. Although I confess I don’t yet know what a mere soldat of the Strafbattalion could have done to earn the honor of visiting such an esteemed up and comer among our ranks.”

“Good question,” said Indigo Zap, jabbing a thumb behind her at the girls’ former school principal, “Just what is she doing here, Twilight?”

“Well, the long and short of it is that I’ve recommended her for reinstatement into the Sternritter,” said Twilight, which seemed to catch all but Sugarcoat off guard.

“Seriously?” said Indigo, “After the crap she pulled?”

“That’s long past. The Sternritter need replacements for our losses, it’s as simple as that,” Twilight said, and looked at the stunned Cinch, who herself clearly hadn’t known just why she’d been brought to Canterlot City, “I hope you don’t object?”

“Object?” Cinch licked her lips, “No. Not in the least.”

“Good, then if you’ll come with me, Sombra is awaiting us,” Twilight said, but as she turned, Robert cleared his throat.

“Pardon my lady, but before you go, I was also given something to pass along to you,” he said, reaching into the breast pocket of his butler jacket to withdraw a small envelope. “I’ve already examined it to ensure it contains no dangers. It is addressed to you, and comes from... a source I believe you trust.”

Twilight took the note, which was indeed addressed to her. She recognized Sunset’s handwriting immediately, and without hesitation opened the envelope. Inside was a simple letter, and the contents of it she more or less had expected. Discord and Sunset both had gone over the idea with her, and the letter laid it all out more formally. It would now be Twilight’s job to pass this along to Sombra and see if he’d go along with it.

“I see. Thank you Robert.”

As Twilight tucked the note away, Sugarcoat asked, “Just what is that?”

“A declaration,” Twilight said, leaving it at that.

----------

Scorpan had left the chambers of Central 46 in a less than ideal mood. A low, stoked fire of long patience finally wearing thin was stirring inside the old Captain Commander, like the last strands of pressure before a volcanic event.

Central 46 was been meeting to decide what to do concerning the most recent developments in the living world, specifically in Canterlot City. The emergence of a stable portal into the Beast Realm, which in turn likely lead to another portal to Equestria, was of great interest to Central 46, who determined that the likelihood of a full scale assault by the Hollows or Quincy to be a high one. As a result, there was a growing desire to deploy more forces to Canterlot City, even establish a permanent base for either the Eleventh Divisions combat forces or the Sixth Divisions expeditionary forces. There was even talk of deploying elements of the Seventh and Fourth Divisions to further solidify Soul Society’s grasp on the city.

Scorpan had stonewalled this notion as thoroughly as he could, reminding the members of Central 46 that it was not Soul Society’s policy to maintain more than the base level of required presence in any given population area that was needed to control the Hollows that naturally emerged. Even in the case of extraordinary circumstances like with the events in Canterlot City and the neighboring Everfree Forest, it was not Soul Society’s place to try and turn any part of the living world into a fortress.

Having the Divisions on emergency standby to respond to an attack on the new portal was sensible, but Scorpan was not about to allow Central 46 to try and fundamentally alter the Gotei 13’s purpose simply because they smelled opportunity in the air.

“You’re glowering, sir,” Smart Cookie told him, and Scorpan stirred, blinking as he sat behind his desk. His Lieutenant was offering him kind, understanding eyes of sympathy, despite her chiding tone.

“Was I?” he said, raising a hand to rub at his aged face, “Talking with the stubborn will do that to me.”

“It’s been an interesting few days, to say the least,” Smart Cookie said, riffling through the sheets of paper at her own desk situated not far from Scorpan’s own, “Those young ladies can’t see to go long without shaking the pillars, so to speak.”

“Hmph, I don’t recall making you my Lieutenant due to your amazing gift for understatement, Smart Cookie, but it is appreciated, regardless,” Scorpan said with a laugh that came out more like a tired gust of air as he leaned back in his chair, gazing to his right where the window looked out onto the vastness of the Seireitei. His charge, his home, his duty for so long since that fateful day at the Soul Palace.

“A storm approaches,” he said.

Smart Cookie said nothing for a moment, but there was a hint of fear behind her eyes. Not of him, but of the knowledge that what her Captain Commander said was the absolute truth.

“Yes,” she said, “I guess it just comes down to when it will break, and if we can weather it.”

He didn’t so much nod as just give the smallest impression of inclining his head. Turning to her, he said, “Has Starswirl given you the report on restoring soul sleeps?”

His Lieutenant gave a swift nod, her mood brightening somewhat, “He did. I’ve already read it. You have as well?”

“I have. And I’m glad beyond words,” Scorpan said, “If his new treatment works, some of our fallen will be able to regain what they lost.”

“It will be good to get Captain Amore and Lieutenant Moon Dancer back to full strength,” she said, but Scorpan gave her a very poignant look.

“And you,” he said, “I know it’s been hard, losing your soul sleep.”

“I...yes, sir,” she said quietly, keeping her face calm, despite the twitches of emotion at the corner of her eyes, “Captain Starswirl’s research is very promising. I hope it works. It’s of note that he mentioned it might not have been possible without the shared data he was given by Miss Twilight Sparkle.”

Scorpan flinched, slightly. Starswirl certainly didn’t hesitate to pursue any avenue to better his work in the Twelfth Division. Even Scorpan had never imagined he might seek to work together with a Quincy, even one as unorthodox as Twilight Sparkle. If Starswirl’s research notes were to be believed, Miss Sparkle’s own studies on magic had numerous applications to the spiritual fields, including that of healing.

“Hm?” Smart Cookie made a surprised noise as she got to the bottom of the pile of papers she’d been going through, mostly message and missives for the day. Underneath it all was a gray envelope with a print of a cat’s paw on it. “What in the world is this?”

Scorpan, noticing the cat’s paw, instantly knew who this was from. He stood, holding out a hand, “It seems we’ve had a feline guest pass through.”

“Ah,” said Smart Cookie in understanding, handing the envelope over, “I suppose I won’t blame our security detail, then, since I doubt any other than Captain Luna could match Miss Ditzy Doo in stealth.”

“Indeed. Now, let’s see what message she’s passed along. No doubt from Discord,” Scorpan sighed as he sat down to open up the envelope and peruse the letter within. His eyes scanned it, and Smart Cookie felt the shift in Scorpan’s reiatsu almost immediately.

“Sir?” she asked, and he was silent for several long seconds before handing the letter over to her as he stood and took in a sharp breath.

“This... changes things.”

Smart Cookie looked over the letter’s words, taking a few moments to understand them and their full implications herself, and she shared her Captain Commander’s sentiments.

Dear Captain Commander Scorpan of the Gotei 13 of Seireitei,

By now you are no doubt aware of all that’s happened in Canterlot City, and the role a certain group of young ladies has played in once again quelling what could have escalated into a disastrous situation for the living world and spirit realms alike. Given that it is likely things will continue to escalate, with both the existence of the portal to Equestria, and the fact that the Zero Division has taken a personal interest in these affairs, I found myself in need of making a decision. Either remain a bystander, or make my, our, stance official.

I’m not one to mince words, unless I find it amusing, but this is as serious as it gets for me, so I’ll use plain language.

As of this day, I, Discord, and my allies consisting of Lady Ditzy Doo of the House of Doo, Substitute Soul Reaper Sunset Shimmer, the Fullbringers Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy, along with the reborn Arrancar Gaia Everfree, several free Bount, and a growing number of other forces, declare ourselves the Canterlot Spirit Coalition.

Canterlot City and an area encompassing a roughly one hundred and fifty mile radius around the city, including the Everfree Forest, shall now be considered our territory. Furthermore this territory will be a neutral ground. No Quincy, Hollow, or Soul Reaper forces will be allowed to engage in combat with one another within the Coalition’s territory unless it is expressly for the purpose of self defense. We will defend our territory and enforce the peace here by whatever means required of us, and while any and all are welcome here, leave your conflicts at the door, so to speak.

Now, with that out of the way, Captain Commander Scorpan, allow me to formally invite you, as Chief/Chairman/President/WhateverIDecidetoCallMyself of the Coalition, to come visit us for the purpose of a formal peace summit between the Soul Society and the Quincy Vandenreich. Let us act as a neutral ground and buffer, as well as hosts to hold what I hope will be the first real steps towards peace and reconciliation between yourselves and the Quincy.

Awaiting your response, ChairPresidentChiefHeadDude Discord

P.S - There will be snacks.

Author's Note:

Bigger chapter than normal, but then we had a lot to go over given this was the last episode before we make the big switch to the perspective of our pony friends in Equestria. That's right folks, next up is the tale of what occurred during Princess Twilight and her friend's adventure to face Charybdis. And of course beyond that there's quite a few other events to cover, as Starlight Glimmer and Princess Celestia both have plans of their own that come to a head. Here's hoping you folks will enjoy what I got in store.

At any rate, thank you all for reading, and as always I deeply appreciate any and all comments, questions, or critiques. 'Till next time.

Comments

[Thought Prism]

Lots of great character interactions in this chapter. Sunset and Rarity, the CMCs, Luna and Thorax, basically all the dialog. I especially got a kick out of the idea of Mech Pilot Spike. Who doesn't like a good giant robot?

[Follower of Chaos]

Rainbow: "You don't know us, HA, then we'll tell you."
Rarity: "We are the Canterlot Spirit Coalition darlings."
Fluttershy: "A band of kind hearts with fierce souls."
Pinkie: "Who will make this world a happier place where everyone smiles."
Applejack: "And if any y'all varmints have a problem with that."
Twilight: "Then you'll have us to answer to."
Sunset: "So bring it on, IF you think you can!"

Great chapter, don't really have much else to say but I can't wait to find out what happened in Equestria.

[Spellflame]

and in the mysterious manner of the shop’s inner space an abundance of rooms had been found for everyone to stay in. Sunset had gradually learned to navigate the shop’s hallways, discovering that it all worked off a central hub of rooms that didn’t really change; the shop front, storeroom, lounge, and kitchen. Then from there if you wanted to go somewhere, you just needed to passively think about what you wanted, and the hallway would sort of just ensure you ended up there. If you wandered with no destination in mind, the hallways could stretch for a long distance, and you could end up in any number of empty rooms.

W
He has a tardis?

[thatguyvex]

10775217
Discord's shop has always been bigger on the inside.

[MSie95]

10775217
He is a close friend with the wife(?) of Doctor's expy so it's not far-fetched.

[Spellflame]

10775246
...oh, right... wonder what place he takes... oh wait, we met him already.

[Time Code]

Oh my spirt queen, its happening. A really solid, quieter chapter. A brilliant calm before the s**tshow. So hyped for the next chapter.

[Aemon Targaryen]

She eyed him, and the nervous if still charming smile that crossed his face. After a moment she grunted under her breath and reached into her robes. She withdrew a small token, a wooden slip with kanji writing on it. “This is something Stealth Corps members use to send direct signals to one another. This one is tied to my reiatsu signature. Break it, and it sends a signal only I can sense. It only has range from the living world, so it won’t work if you’re in Hueco Mundo. But if you do ever need to speak to me again, come here and use it. I might decide to come. If I’m in a good mood. Or maybe I’ll just kill you. Fifty fifty odds.”

Thorax and luna, sitting on a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g !

i really want them together again

“Yeah, I’m looking,” Sugarcoat said, staring at Twilight until the other girl felt the need to cough politely, heat on her face.

Not what i had in mind, but eh, you cannot stop the gay.

I imagine Sunset with Clover now

As of this day, I, Discord, and my allies consisting of Lady Ditzy Doo of the House of Doo, Substitute Soul Reaper Sunset Shimmer, the Fullbringers Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy, along with the reborn Arrancar Gaia Everfree, several free Bount, and a growing number of other forces, declare ourselves the Canterlot Spirit Coalition.

I meant, they are a group of persons in the same category of strenght as captains, while they are definitly not equals of any of the big Factions, they are strong enough to essentially give them a bloody nose, and they still have enough ties with soul society for then any massive attacks from the others party would be a bad idea, and a attack on them by soul society, if they decided to destroy what is essentially a rogue faction from their own (minus Gaia) , it would not only be really impopular (making at best the idea of bringing the full force a no-go, and so victory far less likely, at worse, outright civil war) but it would create a alliance with the quincy which would give them a advantage.

[Aemon Targaryen]

I still think than the war with the Hollows cannot be ended realistically speaking, because again, while we love Thorax, Adagio's crew and Lament family, the Hollows are still soul eating monsters, so it's still a no-no, and it should stay that way.

So unless the Hollows can be cure of this need, then the best option for most persons is still a Quincy/Soul Reapers alliance to exterminate them.

[Noctis Prism]

Well, if Discord is going full hog, bring the GOOD fried chicken for snacks.

[Aemon Targaryen]

what did made you go on this route for Diamond Tiara, Gladmane and Filthy rich ?

Also, is Sugarcoat serious or is she just messing with Twilight ?

what do you (there i speak to everyone) think of what i had said about the Hollow problem ?

[random reader]

10779595
There is nothing to be said about the "hollow problem" as you put it, since it's up to the author, not the readers. That being said, try not to forget which universe this story actually takes place in.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10779633
doesn't meant than it's cannot be discussed about.

this is the beauty of good stories and theories, there is always something to talk of.

[thatguyvex]

10779595

what did made you go on this route for Diamond Tiara, Gladmane and Filthy rich ?

I had the idea for this sort of screwed up family situation as a way to explore some of the downsides to the way Quincy society places such a huge emphasis on family status and producing children. It created this scenario where one Quincy doesn't even think twice about cheating with his best friend's wife, and can even justify to himself going after another family's prodigal daughter because he thinks it'll help his own family standing. It creates a situation where Spoiled Rich, in desperation for a child, would go behind her husband's back to get one and ultimately think what she was doing was both good and necessary, even convince herself it was for Filthy Rich's sake. This particular situation isn't without consequences, as while things like this may have happened before, Sombra hasn't been quite slapped so hard and directly by it. One major theme of the Quincy, indeed of this whole story, is that societal change is both difficult but necessary, and this applies equally to the Quincy, Soul Reapers, and Hollows alike. This segment with Diamond Tiara, Gladmane, and Filthy Rich is just part of that theme playing out on the Quincy side of things.

Also, is Sugarcoat serious or is she just messing with Twilight ?

A little of column A, a little of column B. I'd say at this point that Sugarcoat is starting to realize she's interested, but for now is just testing the waters, unsure if Twilight has any interest herself. A little light flirting that she can easily back off from if it turns out Twilight has no interest. Normally Sugarcoat is a lot more straightforward, but for once she's got a friend who's feelings she actually cares about, so being purely blunt isn't as much of an option.

what do you (there i speak to everyone) think of what i had said about the Hollow problem ?

All I can say without entering spoiler territory I don't wish to enter is that the nature of Hollows and their place in the cycle will be addressed in due time. You guys can feel free to speculate on just how that will pan out, but personally I'll say no more on the matter.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10780142
Well, that's interesting, thank you for the answer.

Also, how old is Sunset actually ? I was confused about Fenice age because I knew then Sunset is many years older then her friends (even thought her human form is in their section of age), but since you are definitly sure then Fenice is older, it's confuse me even more.

Also, are Gloriosa Fullbring abilities boosted in a similar way as the "ponied up" boost due to the magic for the rainbooms, or is it a boost but still weaker, or her Fullbring powers aren't affected ?

I ask this because this might push Gloriosa at the end of the story as a Division zero level of strength, since she would have Fullbring abilities as comparable as the girls, while having the powers of a Arrancar stronger than Catrina.

As for how I see it, the characters who at the end of the story would be at the same tier of strength Tirek-Scorpan-Sombra (so division Zero as well) would definitly be Sunset (who I think haven't taken back the powers of her magic and "merely" had gotten her potential boosted by it, and could become a Alicorn) Twilight, Gloriosa/Gaia, Adagio and Rarity (because Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie are strong and have a lot of room to expand, but Gloriosa have both her fullbrings powers who are yet non develop and the power of one of the strongest Hollows to ever be, Twilight have both Quincy powers and Midnight magic, Sunset have still due to the rules of shonen the unicorn magic abilities to get back and maybe Alicorn magic to be boosted by, Adagio have her siren magic which allow her to absorb powers, and Rarity might become a Soul Reaper, although I don't know if it is not cheap to do this since it's kinda destroy the "unique" side of Sunset and Clover as the rogue and official Soul reapers of the group).

Also, as far as I understood, Sunset, with all of her shonen protagonist developpement, had met all the requirements to be a Alicorn, so why hadn't she ? She had been more then selfless, she had been a true leader, she had unlock a secret power who was obtain throught the revelation of her true self (Shikai was a bit, but the big one was Bankai) so why ? Is it because she isn't on equestria and those actions needed to be performed in her original form ? Please, tell as much as you can without entering the spoiler zone (since obviously, you wouldn't want to enter in the spoiler zone).

However (I talk to the others readers) who put a dislike on my post ? Could you have the minimum of self decency to tell me why you disagree so much then you put a dislike on my comment ? I truly despise the kind of persons who do those things without explaining why, they are nothing but disgusting cowards.

[MSie95]

Slower chapter but with a bit of interesting info, like Chrysalis' soul corruption. Explains how she did that thing in Equestria or what have happened to Captain Amore.

“I’ll talk to Discord,” Sunset said, “About getting you a more human gigai.”

“Whoawhoawhoa! Seriously!? You’d do that!?” Chappy exclaimed with a burst of raw excitement.

I would totally read Chappy's adventures spin-off. Lovely hedonistic artificial Soul in her everyday life, eating cheese, playing sexy dress-up and fighting rough Hollows along her sidekick Mecha-Spike! And more than probably with CMCs because good luck with keeping them away from troubles. Dood thing Scoot got that off her chest.

He’d make a makeshift cloak out of a blue tarp, and on his face was a welded mask of metal that covered his face, save for two drilled eye sockets.

Wow, I've got chills. I really like this take on Smooze. Interesting character. Dangerous and full of pain Eldritch abomination that's quite nice once you get to know him.

We don’t have our Zanpaktou. Those got stolen a ways back.

And presumably Hollow mask if they can control it. Becyause as they are now, they seem barely in control at all.

“She starved you?” Luna said, lips twisting, “For a month!?”

Wait, regular food or the hollow/soul food? The later adds to the pain of the punishment. Adagio managet to hold only for 10 hours.

10780142
Ohh, that's cool. So far there has been a tiny ship-tease of Twi and Sugarcoat, Sunset and Clover, Rarity and Blueblood (congratulation on making quite sympathetic, btw). Wonder if Fleur and Fancy will hit it off at some point.

Still, Rarijack and ScitwiShimmer for life!

[thatguyvex]

10780767

Also, how old is Sunset actually ? I was confused about Fenice age because I knew then Sunset is many years older then her friends (even thought her human form is in their section of age), but since you are definitly sure then Fenice is older, it's confuse me even more.

Fenice is older than Sunset's human form, but they share a much closer age by Sunset's pony-self. It's a tad wonky, but basically Sunset's phyiscal age regressed from early 20s in pony form to a teenaged body when she first went through the portal (basically going from twenty to sixteen, give or take). I'd say she's been in the human world about two years, so physically she's currently eighteen, but in pony years she'd be around twenty two, which is more in line with Fenice's age (can't quite remember what number I gave her)

Also, are Gloriosa Fullbring abilities boosted in a similar way as the "ponied up" boost due to the magic for the rainbooms, or is it a boost but still weaker, or her Fullbring powers aren't affected ?

She's logically getting a similar boost that the rest of the girls are, but she hasn't trained as much as the girls have so in terms of Fullbring power she's still behind them in that department.

Also, as far as I understood, Sunset, with all of her shonen protagonist developpement, had met all the requirements to be a Alicorn, so why hadn't she ?

Best answer I can give for that right now is that Equestria itself plays a role in that evolution, due to the strength of that world's magical field. While magic is present in the human world due to the bleed over from Equestria, it's nowhere near the same level as what one would experience while being in that world. The best way to think about it is, imagine "alicorn" as a model kit. Sunset has all the pieces of the model kit, but the glue to fit them all together is absent, at least in sufficient quantities to make the model complete. Make sense?

[Aemon Targaryen]

10781589
so what i had said about being at equestria to pull it off was actually true ?

and honestly, i don't see Gaia/Gloriosa not taking the fullbring training, simply because she know she is no match for Chrysalis.

honestly, i can see sunset turn into a Alicorn when in equestria precisely because it would be necessary.

let's be real, the girls are no match, so, Sunset getting her alicorn magic would be necessary to not only get the strength to go toe to toe with Starlight (and not being instantly killed by Chrysalis) and having a ace which wouldn't result in losing her Zanpakuto in case of problems.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10781476
wait, there was ship-tease for Sunset and clover ? in which chapter ?

[MSie95]

10781622
Right after the Battle with Starlight, somewhere at the end of the Soul Society arc. It was just a sentence or two, so I might read into it too much. But I keep on my case.

[MightyAlpaca]

Maybe it really will turn out okay, Sunset thought to herself as she left the training area without saying a word or interrupting the next generation’s training.

Feeling old yet Sunset? What, with talking about the ‘next generation’ like that

[Aemon Targaryen]

10784436
i think than the events of this story gave her a solid 10 years of hard labor in terms of physical, mental et emotional exhaustion.

[Aemon Targaryen]

Is Sunset the only one of the group (beside twilight who wasn't with them for a long time) who doesn't know then Fluttershy is the reincarnation of Posey's mother ?

[MightyAlpaca]

10784879
Oh most certainly; give it another arc or two and she’ll be finding grey hairs next

[Follower of Chaos]

10785700
Pretty sure Sunset does know about Fluttershy and Posey, I mean Posey hung around Fluttershy a lot after they came back from Soul Society. At some point she almost certainly would have asked about it and been told, assuming Fluttershy didn't just straight up tell her either while they were in Soul Society or after coming back.

Twilight's the only one who definitely doesn't know about Fluttershy being Pansy's reincarnation.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10785859
Many times, Sunset was wondering about the why of the way Posey was acting around fluttershy in the last arc.

She hoped that whatever was going on between the two, they’d be able to sort it out.

It was a quote of chapter 95.

This as well as the previous phrase and others moments imply than she don't know.

[lordelliott]

I googled dog mech suit and saw this. That face.
earthporm.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/pet-halloween-costume-361__605.jpg

[lordelliott]

Hey, do Bounts get a power-up if they go to either Soul Society or Hueco Mundo, like the Quincy do? If they just need to eat some soul energy, does the atmosphere of those places count when they breathe it in?

[Follower of Chaos]

10785941
They do, in fact they can even eat the ambient reishi in the air of Soul Society or Hueco Mundo to heal any wounds they sustain. And obviously the more spirit energy they devour the stronger they get.

Though it should be noted in the anime, there was a limit to how much they could do this as Kariya eventually just couldn't do it anymore during his final fight with Ichigo.

[thatguyvex]

10785859
10785906
I think I did have it that Sunset hadn't quite put two and two together by the time of the beach trip, but that's because Posey and Fluttershy have both been trying to avoid making a big deal of their past connection while around the others. Admittedly it'll be sort of a moot point by the time the Equestria catch-up arc is finished.

10785941
Can confirm, Bounts get a lot harder to kill once they're in a spirit realm like Soul Society or Hueco Mundo, due to all the free reishi that's around for them to absorb.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10786394
Thank you, I didn't wanted to look like a fool, hence why I asked because I was seeing than she didn't seemed to know.

[Aemon Targaryen]

i recently thought about how Sunset would do against princess Twilight, and i think than she could definitly beat her if she wanted to.

i don't know how powerful princess Twillight is, but overall, she is not a fighter, and fighting alone isn't her style, while Sunset had learned to be a warrior, someone who can fight to kill and is ready to do so.

and even in raw powers, i think then Twilight and Sunset are in the same category without Sunset magic, but with it, sunset definitly win.

if i am wrong, tell me.

[Follower of Chaos]

10787136
We've seen Princess Twilight struggle to defeat a "NEAR Captain level opponent". One whom even a Lieutenant (who remember is only a Lieutenant due to the previous one being sickly) can survive against momentarily.

So right now (until she gets better feats) Sunset Shimmer would be much stronger than this story's version of Princess Twilight even without magic, due to being straight up Captain level herself and being able to fight even stronger opponents than that.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787197
Thank you.

And also, Sunset being a warrior meant than unless Twilight became like three times as powerful, Sunset would still have a good shot at it, and even there, she would give her a bloody nose.

I really want to see Sunset challenge her Celestia, this would really be a proof of how much she had grown than she can go toe-to-toe with her mother-figure/sovereign/goddess of her world, and don't care much about it beside being proud and being surprised with her growth of power, when once, she would have take this as a reason to try to rule Equestria.

[Follower of Chaos]

10787285
TBF with Twilight learning High Magic, and apparently being powerful enough to fight with Charybdis (who remember had enough spiritual power to restore Gaia to her peak power level pretty much just without a zanpaktou), it's entirely possible that by the end of the upcoming mini-arc Twilight will be back on Sunset's level or close to it.

Being a warrior by nature or not really only makes a difference in a "fight to kill" scenario, in that the one with the warrior mentality is more likely to do so. If two beings are about equal in power or the peaceful one is more powerful, then that's the case. Mind-set wont make that much difference, but it's doubly irrelevant because right now Sunset is straight up stronger anyway.

As for Sunset Shimmer vs Princess Celestia. Well Platinum CLAIMED Sunset was more powerful, but you have to remember that Celestia cut her magic in half to create a clone to charge magic for a big spell (which greatly damaged Platinum's Bankai), which would have severely weakened her. Firefly basically says the Princesses should be as powerful as their Captain counterparts, so Sunset's not beating Princess Celestia as of right now.

Though yes at some point, (likely after Sunset becomes an Alicorn) I'd like to see her at least give Princess Celestia a run for her money and to see the two fight together as equals, rather than as teacher and student.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787339
I had forgot about Platinum saying that honestly.

And platinum saying that might be because she look down on the ponies (and I could see Platinum, with her old fashioned pride and her ruthlessness looking down on a people like this) but respect Sunset as a fellow soul reaper (of replacement, but still) and warrior who had being able to hurt her more than anyone else in her life.

Also, being a true warrior also help against someone who is not used to fight in a really intense way, like twilight who's thing was pretty much her equivalent of talk-no jutsu and Harmony magic.

To be fair, I hadn't really watched that much most of mlp episodes since I didn't liked the whole vibe of most of the show, so I am not sure.

[Follower of Chaos]

10787362
It was a combination of her pride AND Celestia having weakened herself by splitting her magic in half to create a clone.

In the show we actually see that the more magic someone has, the stronger they get physically. The reverse is also true, when they are drained of magic entirely, they are very weak, probably weaker than even regular Ponies. Magic is the source of their strength, very much in the same way reiatsu is for the spiritual cast.

Therefore when Celestia cut her magic in half, her physical and magical attributes were severely gimped (to the point they were below Sunset's). Although the fact that Celestia and Luna's combined attack at half magic still messed up Platinum's Bankai, and made Firefly acknowledge that it would take Starlight and Chrysalis to defeat them, goes to show how strong the Princesses are at full power.

Twilight is inexperienced in combat sure, but she's not incompetant. Here we see she's able to use her magic effectively and fend off waves of opponents weaker than her. Though they were eventually overwhelmed by sheer numbers (though we have no idea how long that took to subdue them).

She even matched a centuries old Tirek who was as strong as she was at the time.

She's struggling to control her magic here because she was given all the magic from all four Alicorns and she STILL matches Tirek, despite him being much more experienced than her, to the point he HAD to use her friends against her because he couldn't beat her straight up.

Here she is at her standard level matching Starlight Glimmer (her equal in both magical technique and power) to the point where neither of them could even land a solid hit.

People kind of overstate how bad the Ponies are at fighting. They aren't used to it but they are absolutely capable of effectively defending themselves when the occasion calls for it, and Twilight is A LOT MORE than "talk no jutsu" and "harmony magic".
Twilight: Damn right I am.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787408
Thank you.

But as I said, due to the fact than a lot of the content didn't interested me even when I had tried, I was not sure if what I was saying was accurate.

Also, thatguyvex, I had saw then a lot of the music in the chapters associated to the text send toward videos who were taken out, in those case, could you put the name of the music in the author note of the chapters were the music was taken out ? Because I really want to experiment reading while having those musics (especially since on my first read, I was doing it on my Phone and so not with the music and the reading at the same time).

[Aemon Targaryen]

Also, what does Celestia think of Sunset recent struggles and accomplishments ? Had it been said in a chapter ?

[Follower of Chaos]

10787440
You're welcome.

The show definitely isn't for everyone, and I wouldn't have watched myself if not for fanfiction as I read some good ones which convinced me to give the show itself a shot. I found myself enjoying it because the themes and characters were reminiscent of shows I grew up loving (and still do love) like Digimon, Power Rangers, Yu-Gi-Oh etc.

Honestly Season 1 is one of the weaker seasons (while it had has some good episodes, it also had a few "worst episode in the show" contenders) and doesn't really sell the show too well. Season 2 is where things really picked up, Seasons 2 and 4 are easily the best in the show that I've seen.

But yeah if it just straight up doesn't interest you then that's fine, like I said it's not for everyone.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787463
I liked some parts, just not all.

And I was always disapointed about how little Luna was there, I am pretty sure than she never appear in season 1 after Nightmare moon despite the fact than she was purified in the first episodes.

However, I really like this moment of fighting against Tirek.

So I guess then equestria Tirek, while not as strong as his Hollow equivalent, is still in the same weight class as Chrysalis (even if less strong) since he is as strong as that twilight who had fought him who is I suppose as strong as current twilight in this story, combine to the powers of Princess Celestia and Luna (who are even with their human equivalents apparently) and her Cadence who is probably as strong as the Sternritter one.

It's really weird how Queen Chrysalis is so weak compared to her Hollow equivalent, when so much of the equestrian equivalent of the abomination in human form (I refer more to the Hollows, but it could technically describe the Quincy and Soul Reapers too) of the human world are close to them.

Although I guess than a lot of equestrian are clearly far away in terms of strength comparate to their human equivalent with powers.

[Follower of Chaos]

10787490

I liked some parts, just not all.

And I was always disapointed about how little Luna was there, I am pretty sure than she never appear in season 1 after Nightmare moon despite the fact than she was purified in the first episodes.

This is true, Luna never appears again, but I imagine that was because she was recuperating after the elements drained her magic from her (that's why she was so small). She also might have been nervous about coming out in public after having tried to cast Equestria into eternal night. That's probably why she didn't show up again until Season 2 (restored to her true size) but that is speculation on my part.

So I guess then equestria Tirek, while not as strong as his Hollow equivalent, is still in the same weight class as Chrysalis (even if less strong) since he is as strong as that twilight who had fought him

It's not as simple as that. Equestrian Tirek gains power by draining the magic of others (making it hard to determine what his base level is).

By the time he fought Twilight, he had drained the entire population of Equestria AND Discord. This is why Twilight needed to have the combined magic of all four Alicorns to defeat him. In these states, these two should be stronger than ANYTHING we've seen in this story outside of the Elements of Harmony and possibly the Soul Queen.

Although in Season 9 we see that Base Queen Chrysalis (she gains power by draining the love of others) can resist his magic drain so his base level is comparable to hers. Bear in mind Queen Chrysalis is outright weaker than Princess Twilight's base (overpowered by a clone of her in Season 8).

Without draining magic from others, Equestrian Tirek is barely Captain level if he even reaches that point.

who is I suppose as strong as current twilight in this story,

Like I said, that version of Twilight had all the alicorn magic (from Celestia, Luna and Cadence) and would be much stronger than her current state in this story.

and her Cadence who is probably as strong as the Sternritter one.

Hm that's an iffy claim to make, Equestrian Cadence is rather underwhelming in all honesty. Alone she was overpowered and kidnapped by BASE Changeling Chrysalis in Season 2 (who was weaker than even Unicorn Twilight at the time based on the comics).

Her one claim to fame being that her love magic was the direct counter to Equestrian Sombra (hence her being able to keep him out of the Crystal Empire despite being MUCH weaker than him) and being able to amplify the magic of others with it (such as when she boosted Shining Armour enough to knock the Changelings out of Canterlot).

Unless the story gives us some indication otherwise, I don't think Princess Cadence quite measures up to her Sternritter counterpart.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787512
Since the Princess are as strong as their human equivalent (except Princess Cadence from what you said apparently) yes, I consider than since twilight after getting their powers and tirek after getting all of this magic are even, he is less strong than Hollow Chrysalis.

After all, while strong, Captains Celestia and Luna, even at two to one, are less strong then their Chrysalis (although they can hold their ground and the fact than Chrysalis could take so much hits without be seriously weakened came from her absurd healing powers), I even think than if the human equivalents of the princesses were fighting their Chrysalis, they would lost, and Hollow Chrysalis, while absolutely monstrous, is still under Tirek in terms of power, not far enough to not be able to seriously wound him apparently if they were to fight to the death, but not close enough for then he wouldn't be sure of his chances.

So on this basic, yes I put Equestria Tirek (seriously boosted, yes, but still) at the same category as Hollow Chrysalis, although weaker, but definitly not stronger than his Hollow equivalent.

Also, on a other note, I recently read stories with Wallflower, and I love this character, is she going to be used ?

[Follower of Chaos]

10787531

Since the Princess are as strong as their human equivalent (except Princess Cadence from what you said apparently) yes, I consider than since twilight after getting their powers and tirek after getting all of this magic is less strong than Hollow Chrysalis.

I think you're pushing it in all honesty. We know that Espada Chrysalis has seen Captain Celestia's Bankai (which she wont use with Luna present, so it was a 1 v 1 fight) and yet BOTH survived the fight. Chrysalis considers Celestia alone to be a worthy opponent. Her regeneration (and Celestia's unwillingness to use her full power in the presence of others) was the only reason she could toy with them both like that.

It should also be said that in THIS chapter, we just learned Captain Luna has been missing a piece of her own soul (which would significantly weaken her) for centuries since her own encounter with Chrysalis. Seeing as this chapter also states her potential rivalled Celestia, we can assume they will be equals when that piece of her soul is restored to her. Whereas Princess Luna would likely be more comparable to this hypothetical full power Captain Luna.

After all, while strong, Captains Celestia and Luna, even at two to one, are less strong then their Chrysalis (although they can hold their ground and the fact than Chrysalis could take so much hits without be seriously weakened came from her absurd healing powers),

There is a similar power gap that exists between Princess Celestia and Luna, to Equestrian Discord (who is the strongest individual being in Equestria). Hell the gap is arguably bigger than what exists between the Captains and Chrysalis, since they straight up need the Elements of Harmony to deal with Discord at all.

Yet Tirek (with just the magic of the general Equestrian population) EASILY overpowered Discord and drained his magic.

So he was already much stronger than a being strong enough to defeat both Celestia and Luna at once, THEN he added said being's magic on top of that. And Twilight with the magic of all FOUR ALICORNS (her own and Cadence's, on top of Celestia and Luna's magic) was able to match even that.

I even think than if the human equivalents of the princesses were fighting their Chrysalis, they would lost, and Hollow Chrysalis, while absolutely monstrous, is still under Tirek in terms of power, not far enough to not be able to seriously wound him apparently if they were to fight to the death, but not close enough for then he wouldn't be sure of his chances.

Nah dude, there's no way Espada Chrysalis is beating Captains Celestia and Luna, as well as Sternritter Twilight and Cadence all at once. Especially given the latter two actually have the means to incapacitate her without needing to kill her (petrification, mind hax etc.) and the indicators that Celestia alone is in her tier.

So on this basic, yes I put Equestria Tirek (seriously boosted, yes, but still) at the same category as Hollow Chrysalis, although weaker.

Again I think you're selling him short. BEFORE absorbing Discord's magic maybe but AFTER it, he's crushing anyone who isn't Soul Queen level.

Also, on a other note, I recently read stories with Wallflower, and I love this character, is she going to be used ?

She's appeared already, she was the green skinned and haired student who got injured during the battle at Camp Everfree. No one could remember who she was because (presumably) she already has an Equestrian artefact called the memory stone that (as the name suggests) effects the memories of others.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787564
i hope thatguyvex will answer for Equestrian Tirek strength, because i want to know, especially sin e one of the cause of headache (figure of speech) of the author for the story is defining how strong the Equestrian characters are compared to the powerful humans.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787564
also, since i like wallflower, i hope she will be developped, although it is really not likely.

[Follower of Chaos]

10787578
Vex did say once that Equestrian top tiers would lag behind the spiritual top tiers SLIGHTLY meaning they would be generally weaker but still close enough to pose a serious threat once they adapted to the more serious battles going on in this story.

I'll flat out say that one one one the Equestrian top tier folk are still at a disadvantage versus the one's from the Bleach end of the specturm, but it isn't an insurmountable disadvantage. Working together the Alicorns could present a decent enough challenge to a Soul Reaper Captain, and with time to develop more combat focused magic and artifacts they could even the odds. That isn't to say that characters like the human Starlight Glimmer aren't serious and legimate threats, but I won't go on record saying she could solo all of Equestria either. Not that she'd want to. Her objectives are a little different than that, but I'll leave that for the story to reveal.

So if the individual top tiers are already operating at a comparable level to their spiritual counterparts. Then massively amplified versions borne from combining the power of multiple top tiers into one should put them well above pretty much everything we've seen so far.

The Soul Queen would still be stronger because it's already been hinted at that she's this world's equivalent of the Elements of Harmony, which were stronger than Tirek even AFTER he got all the Alicorn magic from Twilight on top of what he already had.

But yeah ultimately it's up to Vex where everything sits power wise, all we can do is speculate based on the evidence we have from the show, the comics and the story so far.

[Follower of Chaos]

10787584
I mean that depends.

Vex kind of has to address the Memory Stone at some point given people being unable to recognise her strongly suggests she does have it already, and he's already alluded to other characters (that haven't appeared yet like Vinyl and Octavia) who have roles to fill later.

Don't give up hope, Wallflower may yet have a role to play in this story.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787615
i hope than she will become the pupil-Kuhai of Sunset.

Wallflower recieving Soul reapers powers but unlike her senpai and ichigo, it is not so quick for her to got all of the powers.

also, if Wallflower either have a fullbring or became a soul reaper, having her poweer being related to the same powers as of the memory stone, it could be so good, either by being able to vanish into the air as long as se can distract her ennemy long enough from her (yes, it's seem like the shrodinger cat, but this does not cancel her wounds and cannot go anywhere she went and the deplacement take energy) or having abilities affecting directly the reishi of her opponents, but since unlike the protagonists, she doesn't have the bonus of being a genius and magic, she is dangerous, but she cannot take the hits from the monsters they are going to face.

[Aemon Targaryen]

10787615
do you think than clover becoming a Vizar would bring too much Vizar in the story, kind of like what apparently was with Ichigo and his hollow powers, kinda cheap ?

Because i don't want to see Clover gaining powers throught cheap ways.

i also want her to kill human starlight, but it's a other thing.