Chapter 27 - To Worry
I awoke on my favorite balcony in the Crystal Empire and looked over to my left. Like always, Spark was right beside me in his own chair. We stood up and stretched, our muscles aching even though this was a dream. I looked over at my brother and smiled.
“You were quiet today, Spark.”
“There wasn’t much that needed to be said. You had the date well in hoof.”
“Fair enough but you always have a right to speak your mind or ask me to focus my attention elsewhere if something catches your eye. Seriously, you just have to ask; I feel bad that you're always stuck in here.”
“Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind. Honestly, it'll be more bearable now that we're going to have company at night.”
“You ready for this?”
“I think so. It’s time to try and find our marefriend.”
We both stared at our memory of Crystal Empire one last time. The crystalline buildings were shimmering in the sunlight and the view was stupendous. I was going to miss this place, even if it was just a memory. I took a deep breath and let go of the illusion. The world shimmered like a mirage and then the empire faded out of view, leaving behind a blue expanse filled with a field of shimmering stars. This was the place where our lucid dreaming had started. The two chairs and the old crate remained behind but I didn’t give them much thought.
“So what now, Silver?”
“I have no idea,” I replied. “I suppose we try creating a doorway to Sunset’s dream. Hopefully, it will work now that our mind is clear.”
“I’m not sure it’s that simple,” Spark said as he flew up into the sky. “And yet I’m beginning to think this might be far easier than we could have imagined.”
“Ok, that was cryptic. You’re not going to go all ‘mysterious guide’ on me are you?”
Spark laughed. “Oh man, I wish I had been coherent enough to come up with that idea when this started. That could have been the greatest prank ever. Seriously, look at the stars.”
I looked up into the sky, trying to figure out what he was on about. This realm had always been a vast blue expanse populated with infinitely distant stars. Leaving it behind in favor of the empire had been a relief and at first, I didn’t see anything different. Then something shifted, like that moment you get one of those 3D illusions to work. Imagine you had only ever seen silhouettes your entire life. Just patterns of white and black without even a shade of gray in sight. Then one day you blink and suddenly you see color, shadow and a nuance of detail you weren’t even aware of a moment earlier. I collapsed to my knees as the new details overloaded my senses.
“You see it now, don’t you Silver?”
The whole realm had filled with depth and detail that threatened to overwhelm me. The blue background had subtly transformed into a medley of subtle auroras, swirling around the stars. The stars themselves looked like they had taken on individual hues. Some of them seemed closer than others though those massive spheres of energy were still infinitely far away.
“Yes, but I have no idea what it all means.”
“Sunset was right that we needed to come back here, even though she couldn't possibly know why. Watch this.”
Spark flew out into space and suddenly he looped and around behind one of the stars that I thought was light years away. He cupped his front hooves around it and carried it back to drop it between us. It was a fist-sized orb of light, glowing with a complex iridescence but this one was overwhelmingly dominated by shades of red and gold, almost like flames.
I stared at the glowing sphere as my interpretation of this realm completely shattered. I lifted my hand up and reached out to touch it. The instant it touched my hands I felt an overwhelming sense of familiarity. The ghostly memory of a kiss passed across my lips and I pulled my hand away like I had been burned.
“What the . . . is this Sunset Shimmer?”
“Eeyup. I’m not sure exactly what this thing is but I think it’s the key we were missing.”
“How do you know that? And how did you find this orb so quickly? You went straight to it.”
He stared off into space. “I don’t know but I could tell this was Sunset as soon as I saw it. It was like I already knew what to expect when we came back here. I think I can find our other friends easily if I set my mind to it. Should we try to find our way into her dream from here?”
I nodded and focused my attention on the star. Before I could consider the method we would try first, a doorway simply shimmered into existence behind Sunset’s orb. It was a plain wooden door with Sunset's red and gold cutie mark painted onto it. It was yet another door I had never laid eyes on in my live. Oddly, there was no door handle. Spark and I exchanged a glance.
“If that’s not an invitation, I don’t know what is,” Spark said cheerfully.
“She has us!” rang out a defiant voice on the other side of the door.
“I have a bad feeling about this, Spark. There's no handle!”
That last problem was solved when the orb of light floated down and intersected with the door. It shimmered for a moment and turned into a golden doorknob.
“The gang really is all back together,” a horrifyingly inhuman voice replied. “Now stand aside!”
I grabbed the knob, pushed the door open and ran through with Spark close on my heels. We walked straight out of the portal face of the statue in front of Canterlot High. It was nighttime and it took a moment for my eyes to adjust. When they did, I froze at the sight of a demonic Sunset Shimmer hovering above the shattered courtyard, gathering a fireball in her hands. Twilight and our friends were clustered below, staring up at her defiantly.
“You’ve interfered with my plans one too many times, Twilight Sparkle! This ends now!”
The fireball flew through the air, casting an angry red light over the scene. I saw a familiar figure run in from the side, make a jump at the fireball but he landed on the ground near the girls. A moment later, the fireball engulfed the seven figures. They simply evaporated in the intense fire and Sunset hovered overhead, laughing manically.
“Well that just happened,” Spark muttered.
My reaction was a bit less restrained. Wings exploded from my back as I jumped into the air.
“NO!” I screamed out loud as I soared over to confront Sunset’s demonic form. Her black and teal eyes narrowed when she recognized me. Those eyes would have haunted my nightmares after the fall formal if I dreamed like a normal human being. I shuddered involuntarily at the memory of that awful night but I faced that fear.
“Silver Spark! You're supposed to be dead,” she snarled viciously. “I thought I killed you along with Twilight and her interfering lackeys! Out of my way, Equestria will be MINE!”
“This isn’t who you are Sunset,” I said sternly.
“I’ll just have to kill you again!” she screeched, showing no signs of understanding my words. “Nobody can stop me now!”
She flexed the sharp claws that had replaced her fingers and shot towards me.
I kept calm even though my girlfriend was getting ready to kill me with her bare hands. At the last moment, I blocked the strike and used my wings to flip over her head. In spite of my effort to dodge, the claws on her other hand grazed my shoulder, leaving three painful cuts. I just ignored it as best I could and finished ducking in behind her. I reached around her to grapple her wrists, pinning them across her stomach while I held her from behind. She began struggling to get free but I had a solid grip on her.
“Unhand me!” she roared. “I will not be denied my revenge!!”
“You already have something better, Sunset,” I whispered in her ear before kissing her on the cheek. “You don’t have to live in this nightmare anymore.”
Sunset froze; her dreaming mind unprepared for the affectionate touch. I felt her start shaking violently in my arms.
“No,” She whispered in a horrified voice while renewing her attempts to escape. The demonic overtone in her voice was fading away as she spoke but her body didn’t change. “No, please. I’m a monster, a murderous demon that deserves to be locked away forever. Let me go, you can't be real! You can't possibly want me.”
She was becoming so distressed, I was concerned she would wake up. I released one wrist and used my grip on the other to force her to spin around to face me. There were tears pouring down her demonic face as she stared at me but it was clear she didn’t recognize what was going on. Her eyes were still not normal but the black void around her iris had faded back to a more normal white. I cupped her face with my hand and she leaned into it involuntarily. At least she had stopped struggling.
“You don’t have to face this fear alone anymore. This is just a dream.”
“I killed them Silver, I killed our friends. I killed you.”
“Our friends are alive and well as am I. Don’t be afraid.”
While I spoke to her, I was gently pulling her down to the ground. We landed and I looked up at her sorrow filled demon face towering over me. I hadn't realized how much taller she had gotten in her demon form. I reached up and put my hand behind her neck and gazed into her eyes. They were alien, demonic eyes but I could see they were still Sunset's. So, I pulled her face down to mine just like she had at the end of our date.
“We’re here, Sunset,” I whispered. “This moment does not define you.”
The expression of fear and confusion on her face faded away and awareness flooded her expression. It was exactly like the moment Twilight had transitioned into lucidity. She leaned in to close the gap and our lips met. It was just a brief peck and it felt a bit strange between her jagged teeth and my fangs. She held up her hands to look at them and then over her shoulder at her ragged wings. Her face was aghast and she shied away from me.
“How could you even touch me when I look like this?” she asked in a sorrow filled voice. “I’m horrifying.”
I took her clawed hand and kissed the back of it. “The same way you look past my scars,” I replied honestly. “Who you are inside is all that matters to me Sunset. This isn't nearly as disconcerting as our first trip to Equestria is going to be. This might be taking the sexy bad girl act a bit further than I'm comfortable with, though.”
Sunset actually laughed weakly. “Thank you for stopping that dream before it got worse. It always gets worse from here.”
I frowned. “You have nightmares like this often?”
“I get a night off every few weeks,” she said sadly. “Nothing I do seems to stop them. They just keep happening.”
“We'll figure it out. Now that I know how to get here, I can help.”
“Thank you. Do you know if I can change my appearance?”
“I don’t see any reason why not, but I have no idea how to make that happen,” I said, letting my wings fade away. “I haven't tried changing my body shape during my dreams. That’s actually the first time I’ve even ponied up while dreaming.”
Spark trotted over to join us. He sat back on his haunches and looked up at her. “Hello, Sunset! It’s nice to finally see you with my own eyes.”
“You must be Spark,” she said, staring down at Spark. “I see what Twilight was talking about now. I've never seen a Thestral close-up, this is amazing. My goodness, you're a tall pony.”
As she examined my brother, Sunset's body slowly morphed back to her normal human appearance. Once the change was done, I was surprised to see Spark was only a head shorter than her. She held out her hand to shake his hoof, but Spark reared up to wrap his hooves and wings around her shoulders. He bumped his muzzle against her cheek, making her giggle. It was a sweet moment and I couldn't help but laugh.
“What’s so funny?” asked Sunset, looking over at me.
“If it was anypony else doing that to you, I’d probably be feeling jealous,” I replied, making her blush. “Mostly, I’m just happy we found you. Let's ditch this bad memory and go somewhere nicer.”
At my words, the school faded away and the beach we had just visited in the morning shimmered into existence around us. The air was warm and comfortable. The three of us settled down on the sand and watched the ocean. My shoulder was still aching a bit from Sunset’s attack but I pushed the pain aside. It was all just an illusion after all so I just flopped back on the sand and let out a big sigh.
"Silver, why is your coffee table sitting on that dune over there?"
I sighed. "No idea. It seems to show up everywhere lately. I keep meaning to have a closer look at it when I wake up."
“Weird. It wasn't this warm at the beach today,” Sunset murmured. “You can manipulate the environment?”
“It looks like it,” I replied. “I thought this place would be nicer if it was warm and I guess our subconscious did the rest. Honestly, this is the farthest I’ve pushed a memory away from the real version. Spark and I have been playing it pretty safe.”
Sunset nodded. “So what do you actually do all night then?”
“The line between this place and reality is surprisingly thin,” Spark commented as he got up and flew into the sky. His voice was still clear like he was sitting right next to us. “It’s all in our heads after all. The most interesting side effect seems to be that we can actually hone our physical abilities by practicing here.”
“I think it’s similar to rehearsing a performance in your head before going out on stage,” I added.
“Nice,” she said before flopping back into the sand like I had. “I wonder if that will work for visitors as well.”
“No idea,” I replied. “I’m not even sure how I would confirm it's anything but an imagined effect. It’s just a feeling like the physical actions are easier.”
Spark landed behind Sunset and leaned down to nuzzle her cheek. “You’re the science and magic expert in this relationship,” he said. “If we’re going to test anything about how this dream realm works, we’ll need your guidance.”
Sunset smiled at that and kicked off her shoes. “I appreciate the vote of confidence and I've got some ideas we can discuss tomorrow.”
Monday, November 21, 2016
The blaring of my alarm clock pulled me out of my dreams and back to reality. Spark, Sunset and I had spent an unknown amount of time relaxing on the beach. It would be nice if we could nail down time in our dreamscape but that was a distant wish. Having just barely figured out how to access another person's dream, I had a long way to go. At least I wasn't going to be facing it alone. I rolled over to turn off my phone and was overwhelmed by an excruciating burst of pain in my left shoulder.
“SONOVA CRAP!” I yelled in surprise.
I pushed myself up to a sitting position as quickly as I could and looked over at my bare shoulder. Three six inch long swollen red streaks marred my shoulder; streaks that hadn’t been there the night before. I felt a chill of fear when I realized it was exactly where Sunset had clawed me. I ran my finger down one of the lines, noting that while the skin hadn't broken, it was painful to touch.
Spark? Are you seeing what I’m seeing?
I don’t like the implications of this injury.
Neither do I.
I just about jumped out of my skin when my door was abruptly pushed opened. Sunset hurried in wrapped in a blanket from the guest bed. “Silver? Are you ok?”
“Honestly? I’m not entirely sure,” I responded, gesturing at my shoulder.
Sunset put her hand over her mouth. “Wait, is that where I hit you in the dream? Sweet Celestia, I am so sorry.”
I beckoned her over to me, keeping a strong face in spite of my fear. She reluctantly came over and sat down beside me. “You weren’t even aware of what you were doing at that moment,” I said. “There was no reason for us to suspect this would be a danger of shared dreams.”
Sunset still looked horrified and wrapped her arms around herself. “I was trying to kill you. What would have happened if I had actually succeeded?”
“Your nightmare was trying, not you,” I countered. I sighed when her face became even sadder and she moved to stand back up and leave. “For goodness sake, come here Sunset.”
Sunset let out a surprised gasp when I grabbed her and pulled her closer so she was sitting with her back to me. I gently began to massage her tense shoulders through the blanket and she relaxed. A sigh immediately slipped out of her lips and the blanket slid partly off her, revealing her bare shoulders. I continued speaking to her while rubbing her shoulders, trying to take her mind off what had happened.
“Sunset, nobody can hold you accountable for what you say or do when you are bound to your dream. Until you become lucid, your actions are practically scripted. You taught me a valuable lesson about dream walking last night and the only price I have to pay is an aching shoulder.”
“Mmmmkay,” Sunset replied absently.
I was surprised Sunset had relaxed so quickly from my inexpert shoulder massage. She had let go of her blanket and she was humming happily as I ran my hands over her tense muscles. Her arms had settled onto her lap and she had stopped holding her blanket. Gravity took over and it slipped completely off, revealing her completely bare back. I was simultaneously grateful and disappointed she had her back to me but mostly I was happy she had finally relaxed.
I ran my hands along the muscles on her upper back. “Don't you wear pajamas to bed?”
“Not if I can avoid it,” she murmured, sounding half asleep. “I feel much happier sleeping nude; it reminds me of being a pony. I only got the ones I own for when I’m at sleepovers.”
A moment later, she realized why I was asking the question. She looked down at herself and pulled up the blanket back up over her front. “Oops!” she giggled nervously. Her cheeks were turning bright red.
“I didn’t see anything!” I said quickly.
She looked over her shoulder at me and raised an eyebrow. “Oh really? That response sounded awfully defensive.”
In response, I moved my hands up through her hair to the base of her head. I carefully pulled my fingers along the muscles there. She sighed and closed her eyes.
“I can always stop so you can go get dressed my dear,” I whispered, letting my hands drift back to her shoulders.
“Noooo,” she replied, in a relaxed voice. “I think I’m fine, as long as your hands keep doing what they’re doing. When did you learn to do this?”
I continued working on her shoulders and neck. “Mom taught me the basics a long time ago but I haven’t had much opportunity to practice. I should probably learn some more since you seem to be enjoying this. Have you ever had a professional massage?”
“Not since I came through the portal,” she replied quietly. “It's a luxury that I really can't afford. Rarity has gushed about a spa she visits at the hot springs just outside of town. She keeps inviting me but I haven't gone with her yet.”
“Any particular reason why?”
“It's only been six weeks since we became friends,” she replied, her tone slightly morose. "I'm starting to feel more comfortable with the girls, especially after our latest adventure but Rarity’s generosity still feels out of place. What I did to her should have been unforgivable.”
“Rarity did mention something about the Spring Fling."
“Ugh,” she groaned. “What I did to her to win that title was horrible. She was humiliated in front of most of the school. Please don't ask.”
“Shhhh, I’m sorry I brought it up,” I replied reassuringly, beginning to wrap up her massage, running my open palms across her back. “What’s done is done, and I'm she has forgiven you. If you're not sure, you should probably sit down and talk with her about the incident privately."
"That might be a good idea," she replied quietly.
"Anyhow, I need to go do my morning exercises and you probably want to rest some more or shower before we head into school. I’ll cook something up for breakfast before we head out to school.”
“Deal,” Sunset replied. She wrapped the blanket around her more securely and got off the bed. When she was at the door she stopped and looked over her shoulder at me. Her eyes were half shut and the smile on her face was relaxed and almost seductive.
“So much for taking this relationship slowly,” she said with a grin. “It's been quite the weekend.”
“It certainly has been, “ I replied with a smile. “Whatever you're comfortable with, Sunset. No regrets I hope.”
“Not a single one, Silver. See you soon.”
She walked out and pulled my door closed behind her. A grin spread across my face and I flopped back down on the bed. Then I choked back another yelp of pain as my shoulder flared again from the impact. It was a reminder that magic had a price and apparently one that was potentially much higher than I anticipated. At least I had taken Sunset's mind off the injury.
Sunset and I had a slow start to the day in spite of our best efforts and as a result, we didn’t arrive at school until five minutes before the bell. Hand in hand we made our way to her locker. We’d been together nearly twenty-four hours in one way or another and we were reluctant to let it end.
“Sunset! Wait up!”
We turned around and found Applebloom standing behind us, closely followed by Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Applebloom was holding the message book which was actually glowing and buzzing like a phone that had just received a message.
“This book fell outta your backpack,” Applebloom said, holding it up to her. “Why is it glowin'?”
“It’s magic,” Sunset replied with a serious look on her face. She paused a moment and then grinned at Applebloom. “Honest! I'm not just being flippant for once.”
The three of them laughed and walked up beside us. “We wanted to apologize to you, Sunset,” said Sweetie Belle.
“I should have listened to Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo added. “She said you were cool but I didn't really believe her.”
“Honestly, ah don’t know why we still didn't trust ya after Halloween,” Applebloom finished. "You were right there with our friends."
Sunset smiled gently and flipped the book open. “Habits like that are hard to break so I wouldn't dream of holding it against you three. After everything I’ve done to hurt people in this school, you had every right to doubt me. Thank you for the apology. So to answer your question more honestly, this book lets me send messages to Twilight. This one is actually from Spike.”
Hey friends, hope you’re doing well. Still no word from Twilight and the gang yet but I’m sure they’ll be fine and back soon. I just wanted to check if there is anything Twilight and I can bring to dinner on Thursday. We never actually talked about what humans can or can’t eat when compared with ponies. Sunset, you’ll know what I’m talking about so fill me in and I’ll put something together to bring.
Spike
PS: I promise I’ll have those comics with me this time Silver. Looking forward to seeing what yours look like.
The expression on their faces was one of awe and wonder. “Thanks for sharin’ this with us,” Applebloom said. “This is so cool!”
“You know, we could use your help,” I said. “There’s no obligation but your involvement could make a big difference.”
The three of them exchanged a look. “What can we do to help?” Scootaloo asked.
"Ugh, nothing obviously!" interjected a rude voice. "They're just useless peons."
I looked over and saw a girl with pink skin and purple hair wearing an honest to goodness crown on her head. There was a grey-skinned girl next to her with an equally arrogant smirk on her face.
"Diamond Tiara," Scootaloo said with an angry snort.
"Excuse me," I said in an irritated voice. "I don't believe this is any of your business."
"That's rich coming from the demon's familiar," Diamond Tiara said haughtily. "But then I guess these three are desperate enough to associate with such slime."
I rolled my eyes and turned to walk away, gesturing at the Crusaders to follow me. "Come on girls, let's finish this conversation in private away from these two twits."
"Well, I never!" she said. "You don't walk away from me you monster!"
What the hell is with this one?
I don't know but she's got issues.
I turned around and glared at her, fighting to control the trickle of magic that was threatening to escape. "I've faced down death an irritating number of times in the past six weeks, CHILD," I snarled. "I'm done with tolerating bullies and you do NOT want to be on my list. This school does not have any need for more troublemakers so I suggest you turn around and walk away. Now."
I guess my eyes must have shifted because the two girls turned pale as they gazed at me and scurried away. I looked back at the three Crusaders and Sunset who looked slightly worried. Sunset took my hand and gave it a squeeze. After taking a couple deep breaths, I smiled at them weakly.
"Sorry about that. I didn't mean to loose my temper."
"Naw, it was nice seeing those two actually scared for once," Applebloom said with a grin. "I wish I could do that with my eyes. So what did you want help with?
“After the Battle of the Bands, I left to track down the Sirens before they could skip town,” I said. “I tried to convince them to come back to CHS to make amends rather than leaving town. I expect they’ll get similar treatment to Sunset, if not worse if they come back.”
Sweetie Belle looked worried. “What can we possibly do? We’re just freshmen and they’re . . . umm, different.”
I gave them a reassuring smile and got down on one knee so I was at their level. “Far more helpful than you or those two bullies give you credit for. You didn't hesitate to step up and help on Halloween and that earned you my respect. You can be a few more polite voices, rather than joining the inevitable jeering mob when they arrive. You could also act as eyes on both them and our classmates to help prevent incidents like what happened to Sunset after the formal.”
Sunset looked quite pleased as she looked down at the three girls. “Silver is right. The three of you are quite creative and the bond of friendship between the three of you is rock solid. If the Dazzlings come back, your help would be invaluable.”
The three Crusaders were now sporting wide grins of excitement. “Ah think we can help!” said Applebloom in an excited voice. “Thanks!”
The first bell rang at that moment and the three Crusaders waved as they ran off towards class. I stood up and looked at Sunset who was watching me with a gentle smile.
“That was a great idea, Silver,” she said. "You realize their sisters are going to string you up when they find out, right?"
I shrugged. “Our friends will live. Those three are the next most knowledgeable about the magic in this world after the seven of us and I think they'd get involved no matter what. I doubt the Dazzlings feel any remorse like you did after the Formal which could cause trouble. More eyes on our side will always help.”
She stood up on her toes and gave me a kiss on the cheek. "You realize you made their day, right? They looked up to you after what happened on Halloween. Asking for their help with the Dazzlings probably just cemented that admiration.”
I smiled and shook my head. “I hope I don’t disappoint them when they realize I’m not that special. Thank you for backing me up on this.”
“Silly boy,” she replied, giving me a smirk and a sultry wink. “I'll always have your back, especially if you're willing to keep taking care of mine. I’ll see you at lunch.”
I watched my girlfriend walk away and couldn't help admiring her figure as she swayed up the hall. Then I turned around and walked to my first class of the day.
She's quite the woman Silver.
No kidding.
She's got us wrapped around her pinky already, doesn't she?
Yup. I think I can live with that.
It was about ten minutes into lunch break when I finally reached the music room. I could hear the girls inside, enjoying their lunches and laughing at something. I pushed the door open and the room went quiet. Six pairs of eyes followed me as I walked into the room but I only had eyes for Sunset. She was blushing profusely and looked a bit worried so I walked straight to her. I sat down, put my arm around her and gave her a hug before looking at the rest of my friends.
What did we interrupt?
No idea. I guess we're going to find out.
"So how was everyone's weekend?" I asked.
The room was silent for a moment as the girls exchanged glances.
"Ah was doin' some prep for winter and ah' came by your place to talk 'bout the access road but you were gone," Applejack finally said, rubbing the back of her head nervously. "I staked out the preferred route; ah' hope that wasn't presumptuous."
I nodded. "Perfect. I'll look tonight but I doubt there will be any issues."
There was another uncomfortable silence. I looked at my friends and crossed my arms. "Ok, what's going on?"
"They want to know where we were this weekend," Sunset said quietly. "I wasn't sure what you wanted to say."
"It's really not a secret is it Sunset?" I asked before looking at the others while beginning to blush again. "We went out on our first date. Though I think you probably already guessed that."
Rarity looked like she was ready to explode. “Come on, you can't just leave it at that! Where did you go, what did you do? Did you kiss?” Sunset and I both flushed as Rarity’s grin got even bigger. “oh . . . OH, MY GOODNESS! You did! Tell Me Everything!”
The others began laughing hysterically at Rarity's reaction, even Fluttershy looked amused. I was just about prepared to scoop Sunset up and run before this got any crazier. Fortunately, we were given a temporary reprieve from the interrogation by a knock on the music room door. Before we could answer, the door was pushed open, revealing Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna.
“I apologize for the interruption,” Celestia said politely. “We were hoping to have a private chat with the seven of you.”
There wasn't really anything we could say. Applejack was the first to nod and gestured for them to come in. The two of them walked in and pulled out a couple of chairs so they could sit and face us.
“Please relax,” Vice Principal Luna added. “Nobody is in trouble here and this is off the record. Please sit down.”
We sat back down and looked at the administrators expectantly. Principal Celestia let out a tired sigh.
“First of all, thank you all for your efforts to get everyone back to normal during the Battle of the Bands. It was an unpleasant experience but all the students now seem happier.”
Luna's face was clearly concerned. “We did our best to simply brush the Fall Formal incident under the rug after it was clear nobody in attendance understood what had happened. We chose not to pry since at the time we assumed it was an isolated incident. Unfortunately, may no longer have that luxury after to what happened with the Dazzlings. Can you help us understand what has been going on around her the past two months?”
We all exchanged looks, but it was Applejack who spoke up first. “Ah hate to put her on the spot, but nobody here understands what's going on better than Sunset Shimmer.”
Sunset froze and I could her hear breathing quicken. I grabbed her hand to give it a reassuring squeeze. She took another deep breath and gave me a grateful smile before turning to look at the two administrators.
“Before I answer anything, I need to know why you are asking,” Sunset said in a firm voice. “Why should we trust you?”
The girls looked at Sunset with horror on their faces. I actually wasn’t entirely surprised by her reaction due to her history with Princess Celestia. I think she was also a bit irritated she had been put on the spot. Fortunately, Celestia and Luna didn’t look offended in the slightest.
“We simply want to keep all our students safe, including you Sunset,” Celestia replied in a serious voice. “It is fortunate none of these incidents have attracted attention from the government yet. My hope is that knowing what is going on will let the staff here at CHS help contain or even prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future.”
“You have nothing to fear from us Sunset Shimmer,” Luna added. “We only wish to help but doing so blindly might cause more harm than good.”
Sunset pinched the bridge of her nose as she considered. I honestly wasn’t sure if she was going to actually share anything until she actually looked at the two administrators and spoke.
“Very well, then you're going to have to accept one simple truth: Magic is real,” she said bluntly. “If you can't accept that, there is no point in continuing this conversation.”
“I would hope you have more than just words to back up your statement,” Luna said skeptically. “We have seen some unusual things, but our minds haven’t exactly been clear during those incidents.”
Sunset looked slightly irritated at Luna's words but I put my hand on her shoulder before she said something she would regret. “To be fair, we all had ample evidence when we were exposed to this new reality. Do you think I could be of assistance?”
I suppose the secret wasn't going to stay secret forever.
Not necessarily Spark. Celestia and Luna aren't our enemies on either side of the portal.
“That would make this conversation much easier,” she replied as a mischievous grin appeared on her face.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Pinkie had pulled out her phone and had the camera pointed at the two administrators. Celestia and Luna both looked confused as I stepped out into the middle of the room. Their confusion turned to absolute astonishment as my wings sprouted out of my back along with the usual changes to my hair, ears, and eyes. I flapped my wings a couple times and hovered a foot off the ground for a moment to demonstrate they were real.
“Thank you, dear,” Sunset said, gently brushing her hand along the top of my wing and making me shiver before turning back to Luna and Celestia. “The seven of us have a connection to magic brought here from another world. It's magic that I originally brought here with the intent to misuse as you witnessed at the Fall Formal.”
“The rest of you can do this too?” Luna asked. Her eyes had gone wide. “He’s not a vampire is he?”
I rolled my eyes at her question. “No, I’m not a vampire. The mirror world is populated by sentient ponies,” I replied on Sunset’s behalf. “When you cross the portal your body is changed into a pony form similar to your counterpart. The primary varieties are unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies. When I go through the portal, I become a rarer variety known as a Thestral, or Bat Pony. When we use magic in this world, our bodies adapt, hence the pony features.”
I let the magic go, returning to my normal appearance and gestured at Sunset to continue. Before she could, Celestia spoke.
“I can see there is more going on than can be covered in a single conversation,” she said. “Given that unexpected demonstration, I will accept magic as a given but I will have more questions in the future. The question I want to sort out now is this: are we going to have more incidents like this in the future?”
Sunset sighed. "It's not impossible, but Twilight's research on the Dazzlings suggested their banishment here was a desperate measure. It would be extraordinarily negligent to banish creatures to a populated world, even one that has no magic.”
“But there have already been three incidents that we know of!” Pinkie interjected in an excited voice. “Well, four if we include the formal but that technically wasn’t banishment so that might not count but you are from Equestria, right Sunset? Making the portal might not count either but why does it even exist in the first place? Making a portal to a place you banish things to is a silly idea right? So maybe it’s only two since the sirens are one and that Sacky-Tan knife thingy that was used on Silver is another one, right?”
We all stared at Pinkie Pie who was looking at us with an innocent expression. She had hit on something none of the rest of us had considered.
I looked over at Sunset, her face mirroring my concern. "We don't know how the Sakitan Daggers got here but they aren't the Siren's style. Does that mean somepony else was banished here?"
Luna’s face was grim. “If what you say is true, we will have to be vigilant about future enrollments. Once is a coincidence, two incidents represent a trend. We need to know if anything else dangerous has been dumped into our world."
"This is not ideal," Celestia added, pinching the bridge of her nose. "We are school administrators, not qualified negotiators or ambassadors. Yet here we are. I assume this mysterious Twilight Sparkle is from the other side of the portal. Are you able to contact her reliably?”
“Yes, and she can travel here if needed,” Sunset replied. “She's actually one of the four rulers of Equestria so don't worry too much about negotiations. She is traveling at the moment but we can contact her when she gets back.”
“Actually, Spike is pretty sharp and he’s Twilight’s assistant,” I replied. “He might be able to get the research started if we contact him.”
“Wait, are you talking about Miss Sparkle’s dog?” Vice Principal Luna said incredulously. “I know he could talk but you’re going to ask a dog for help?”
“Well, he’s a dragon on the other side of the portal, so yeah pretty much.”
That put a quick stop to any further debate. Sunset nodded and passed the message book to me. I tuned out the subsequent conversation while I wrote a message to my friend.
Hi Spike! Sunset’s going to send you a message later regarding the food question but in the meantime, a rather urgent question has come up. This world’s Celestia and Luna have expressed concern that there may be other exiles like the Sirens that could be attracted to Canterlot High. I know this isn’t a small request, but do you think you and Twilight can find out if other creatures or things like the Sakitan dagger might have been sent here? We might be able to head off a future crisis with your help.
Silver Spark[/
I closed the book and saw Luna watching me with keen interest while Celestia spoke with Sunset. She gave me a small smile.
“Silver Spark, I see you continue to get tangled up in all sorts of trouble here at CHS.”
I rolled my eyes. “Seems to be the story of my life lately.”
“What is this dagger Miss Pie was speaking of?”
I sighed sadly as the memories flooded back. “The Sakitan Daggers are cursed daggers created over a thousand years ago in Equestria. All but three are secured in the vaults under Canterlot in the other world. Unfortunately, at least one is in this world and I was stabbed with it when my parents were killed. It implanted an entity in my mind that would have eventually killed me either by shredding my soul or driving me to suicide. I was lucky to be cured on the other side of the portal."
Luna’s expression became one of horror. “Who would have been so cruel and desperate to devise such a terrible weapon?”
Do not tell her it was Princess Luna. She doesn’t need to know.
Agreed.
“It was a terrible mistake that the creator has worked tirelessly to atone for,” I said, thinking back on my decision to try and attack the Dazzlings. “Fear, anger and desperation can drive us to do things we never imagined possible.”
“I know that all too well,” Luna replied, with a slightly haunted expression on her face. “If there is anything my sister and I can do to help, please let me know.”
“Ah don’t mean to interrupt, but actually there might be,” Applejack interjected. “Weren’t you, Twilight and Sunset talkin’ about getting’ death records for the local area?”
“Thank you for the reminder Applejack," I said gratefully. "We wanted to see if there is any relationship between the portal opening and unexplained deaths. We're worried the curse might draw people to sources of magic since there is no reliable explanation for why I choose to move here from Manhattan.”
“I can request that information,” Luna replied. "It would be far less suspicious if I obtained it as an educational tool."
“Thank you, Luna,” I replied sincerely. This whole conversation was going even better than I could have hoped. "Oh, there was one other thing. Do you know someone named Cadance by any chance?"
Vice Principal Luna froze and stared at me with surprise. "She's Celestia's adopted daughter and the Dean at Crystal Prep. How did you know her name?"
"I met a version of Cadance in the other world and she seemed well acquainted with your counterparts."
"Oooh, does that mean you know this worlds Twilight Sparkle as well?" Pinkie said in an excited voice. "Princess Twilight told me her foal-sitter was named Cadance at our sleepover last week! Foal-sitter is such a funny word isn't it?"
"Pinkie, how do you always come up with this stuff?" Rainbow Dash interjected from across the room. "It's kinda freaky."
She shrugged in response. "I just get hunches sometimes. Even I don't know what they mean but I'm glad I've got friends who take me seriously."
Vice Principal Luna shook her head. "I don't know anyone named Twilight Sparkle in this world, but I will ask Cadance. She worked as a babysitter when she was finishing college. In fact, I believe that is how she met her boyfriend."
I was about to ask her another question but my portable phone interrupted at that moment. I pulled it out and saw an unfamiliar number. I turned away from my friends to let them continue talking to Vice Principal Luna while I took the call.
“Hello?”
A faint, hoarse female voice greeted my ears. “Silver? That you?”
“Yes, it is. May I ask who is speaking?”
“Oh goody,” said the person replied in a completely exhausted voice. “Please, I need your help.”
My eyes widened when I recognized the voice. “Sonata? Are you ok?”
All conversation in the room stopped and everyone was suddenly staring at me.
“No. We’re not . . .” she trailed off to nothing and I thought I’d lost her for a moment. “We’re dying. I don't wanna die.”
My heart stopped. “Where are you? We'll be there as soon as we can.”
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I think they should of told Luna who made the knife, because i have a feeling who ever holds that cursed blade may know more about it's History and would use that Knowlegde to hurt others. Exepcailly Luna's human counter part as a tool or means to a end.
I really like where a lot of this is going.
And that ending: Aww snap! Can't wait for the next one.
8009823 - Disclosure is a difficult decision for them at this point. How much can they afford to share without overwhelming potential allies with the reality of the pony universe?
That is an intriguing theory about the dagger. 
Another mystery to be explored another day.
8009837 - Thank you very much! There are so many story bits on the move lately, it's kind of crazy. I try not to make cliffhangers a habit, but sometimes they just make sense.
Well that escalated quickly
Oooooooooh that ending though its got my spine all tingly
on another note Damn cliffhangers whyyyyyyy why must cliffhangers be a thing
anyway great chapter excited to see whats next
8011353 - Indeed it did. It's a crazy life.
8012376 - Sometimes cliffhangers just make sense.
I'll try not to abuse them too much!
8022643 Guess it's a good thing the next chapter is almost ready then.
8022814
NO NOT SONATA!!!!
she is by far my fav siren of the known three.