Heartbreak
Rarity stumbled through the front door of her boutique, her hair frazzled and sticking out at all ends. This was the last time she would ever fight a Wolfpack agent during a spa trip. At least she could return to the quiet nature of her work. If there was one thing she needed after all these back and forth conflicts, it was some quality time with her sewing machine.
"Honestly, I don't know how many more monsters I need to put down before all this nonsense with the Wolfpack stops. If I never have to see another wolf in my entire life, it'll be much too soon." She moaned, her shoes dragging across the ground as her arms slumped. "I don't know how much of a backlog I have now, but I need to make up for lost time. The last thing I need is some client barking at me because I couldn't finish their dress in time. What am I supposed to say? Sorry, I couldn't finish your order, I was busy saving the planet from evil space invaders?!" She yelled, causing her cat, Opalescence, to lurch suddenly, toppling off of the nearby table she was laid on.
"Hey, sis? Are you alright?" Sweetie Belle spoke up from the corner of the room. "You've barely had any time to work on your outfits. And not just from school stuff, but... in general."
"In general? Sweetie, whatever do you mean by that?" Rarity lifted her head and turned towards her little sister, the muscles in her face loosening ever slightly.
"Well, you've been absent from class a lot, you're always running out of school with your friends, and I overheard my mom and dad say your grades are about to slip." Sweetie Belle propped herself off of the wall, trudging forward to Rarity. "This isn't one of your breakdowns, is it? The last time you had something like this, I couldn't get you off of your couch for days!"
"Sweetie Belle, whatever's going on, I don't want to make you worry. But I have a very important job to do, not just for dressmaking." She laid her hands on Sweetie's shoulders, a small breath running out of her mouth. "You see, there's this thi—"
"This isn't Equestrian Magic, sis. I know that it isn't. How do you explain those wolf-creatures growing to gigantic size, then these giant robots flying in from out of nowhere coming in to fight them?" Sweetie plucked Rarity's hands off effortlessly. "Whatever's going on, this is nothing to do with your friends and their little witchcraft hocus-pocus. This is space aliens fighting space robots in some kind of weird, twisted sci-fi fearmongering skit. So what do you have to worry about? Let the Power Rangers or whatever they're called deal with this kinda stuff."
"Sweetie Belle, what are—" Rarity wanted to continue, but a finger planted on her lips from her little sister was enough to silence her.
"Rarity. You're the big sister, your friend comes from a pony planet, you have magical powers and fight monsters. I know that. But that doesn't mean you can just slack off and run out of class whenever you feel like it." Sweetie folded her arms and gruffly turned away. "I don't want to sound like I hate you or anything, but you need to learn that you have school. You have a LIFE. Live it for once."
"But that's just it. We can't live normal lives. Not anymore." Awash with memories of her conflicts of the past, Rarity could only turn her own back on Sweetie Belle and stare towards the door. "No matter where we go, no matter what we do, no matter what comes our way, there will always be someone trying to kill us or cause unimaginable harm to the people we love. The Dazzlings, Midnight Sparkle, Gaia Everfree, and now... Captain Mar'Zek."
At the sound of the Wolfpack's captain being named, Sweetie couldn't help but widen her eyes, glimpsing back at Rarity. "Wait. Captain Mar'Zek?"
"What, you didn't know? He's the leader of the Wolfpack; the big bad wolf trying to beat down the Power Rangers so he can take away their crystals and add them to his horde of riches," Rarity said back. "I'm sure I recall at least one or two of his creatures saying that to the team."
"No, no, no. I know that much. It's pretty much been the talk of the town, given how many attacks there've been from him." Sweetie's body now fully rotated back to face Rarity, as did her sister's face her. "Why does this Captain want to hurt you and your friends? Is it because of the magic stuff you have or..." It was just then that Sweetie Belle took notice of the white gleam coming from Rarity's waistline. "Wait a second, what is this?" She leaned in and pulled the clothing out of the way, revealing a belt containing the Crystal that allowed Rarity to turn into the White Ranger. What followed was a big gasp, with Sweetie covering her mouth and tumbling backwards, crashing into a cluster of mannequins.
"Oh dear..." Rarity could only watch as Sweetie Belle struggled to stand back up, her mind blown with the discovery of the crystal on her.
"R-R-Rarity... Y-You're a... A..." She couldn't even get her words out, her speech fracturing between breaths.
"Yes. I am a Power Ranger. So, naturally, whenever the time comes for me to fight, I must. If I don't, then everything we know and love can and will be destroyed by the Wolfpack." Rarity stepped over the felled mannequins and took Sweetie Belle's hand, helping her stand back up. "So now you know. I'm losing grades and getting a backlog because I need to fight for our world even more. No rest for the good guys, as they say."
"I mean, whoa. You've no idea how big a deal this is. I mean, I get the whole Equestria stuff, but that only pops up every once in a while, but this? You're a full-fledged superhero now! Everyone in town's gonna want your autograph!" A bright smile plastered itself onto Sweetie's face, the previous stresses and concerns faded as if they had never existed.
"Sweetie Belle, I know it's a harsh life but I'm doing the best I—wait, what?" Rarity's train of thought had been skewered by her delayed reaction. "You're... okay with this? With the fact that I'm cutting class to fight the Wolfpack?"
"Well, not the class-cutting, but definitely the fighting off evil. I feel so jealous right now. What's it like on the battlefield? What are the other Rangers like in person? Do you think Scootaloo and the Blue Ranger are ever gonna meet and be super-best friends? You don't have to answer the first two, but she really wanted me to get an answer from at least one of the team."
"I... I don't really know what to say, Sweetie Belle. You've caught me off-guard with this whole adoration for the Power Rangers thing." Rarity's eye slightly twitched, her breath sliced as thin as a luxurious cheese.
"You know, I'm tempted to tell everyone at Canterlot High about this, considering how many of them are talking about who the Power Rangers are and how they seem to defy death itself. Like, seriously, you cannot fight those things and survive all the time unless you were some kind of superhuman." Sweetie whipped her phone out, about to have it swiped away from her by Rarity, if not for a quick slip of her own arm. "Then again, I've seen way too many of these movies and shows to know that, if I do, then that's going to put everyone there at risk. It's rule number 1 of being a superhero, after all."
"Still, whatever happens, you cannot tell anyone about it. Those Wolfpack ruffians are always fighting to bring out the worst in us." Rarity tightened her hand into a fist so much that she almost ended up scratching herself in the process "If any of them were to find out that we have friends and family, they'd surely attack them in a bid to defeat us."
"Mmm. It's like they don't know when to quit, right?" She could only muster up a small chuckle. "Don't worry, sis. I gotcha."
"Thank you, Sweetie Belle. Good to know that there's someone out there watching my back about my secret." Rarity pulled Sweetie Belle into a light hug, which she immediately followed suit.
"So, you gonna make a start on those dresses? I'm sure you've got the strength to handle that kind of challenge." Sweetie laughed.
“Of course. After all I’ve been through these past few weeks, pretty much all of my business here’s more like pleasure than anything.” And with not another word, Rarity waltzed off to the next room, wherein laid her faithful equipment and the finest fabrics she could find. “I’ll be out in about an hour or two, Sweetie. I hope you don’t mind.”
“It’s fine, sis,” Sweetie sighed, opening up her Switch and playing the case known as ‘Rise from the Ashes’. She sighed to herself, nothing like Ace Attorney to keep her mind off of… other things. Truth be told, she was more than a bit concerned about Rarity. Here her sister was, putting on a brave face even while she fought off quite possibly the vilest monster to ever threaten Canterlot, a known killer with no sense of remorse and so far she hadn’t cracked. ...At least not that Sweetie knew of. Which was more concerning really. After all, if Rarity hadn’t cracked already, even if she had come close to it several times, what would finally make her completely lose it? She shuddered to think.
Taking a few deep breaths, Sweetie sighed to herself. “It’s okay Sweetie, your sister is going to be fine. She’s a strong woman… I just hope Mar’Zek is going to finally call it quits soon, and learn he can’t beat the Power Rangers… Otherwise, I’m not sure what’ll happen.”
She fought back a sob, how much longer did this have to go on? This cycle of violence, and her sister putting herself in danger? First, it was Sunset Shimmer turning into a sort of she-demon, and now… Now this. Taking a shuddering breath, Sweetie walked to the kitchen and took a sip of water before sliding down into the floor. “...Please… Please end this soon.” she whispered in faint hope.
On the other side of the door, Rarity’s thoughts were very similar. All of this endless conflict, the messages of how they enjoyed killing ruthlessly clashing with their ideals of saving the world, all woven in with the fact that the Wolfpack were choking them out and always breathing down their necks every step of the way. Even the inevitable rematch against Mar’Zek himself, which she had always tried to forget was coming was still lurking within the darkest recesses of her mind, forever stapled into her brain as the needle of her sewing machine rhythmically jabbed at the dress she was working on. All that it would take was one deadly or calculated strike and that was it. The Wolfpack demanded nothing but perfection out of her. If any part of her was lacking, she could kiss her world and life goodbye.
“I have to do this. I need to keep fighting. If not for my life then for everyone else’s,” she said to herself. “If we give the Wolfpack any quarter, then Earth might as well be a floating house of cards drifting in the cosmos. Even with Elaris’s brilliant technology, we’re going to need more and more power to even stand a chance with Captain Mar’Zek and his crew…”
In the midst of her ramble, the needle came to the end of the fabric. She had barely even noticed until now, and even when it finally came to her, she hesitated to pick it up and take it to the next part of her workshop. Even now, when she was in her home, her sanctuary with her sister, she felt like everything she was doing was being judged. And not in a good way. In fact, it was the sort of way that she dreaded most of all, with no indication of where the outcome will lead or the fact that she constantly felt put on the spot by another. It was beginning to chew away at her so much more than Sweetie Belle, the Rainbooms, or even herself noticed.
The next day, the sun washed over Canterlot, with Rarity and Sweetie Belle out in the sunshine together. The weekend had come for the two of them, and Sweetie had the brilliant idea to take her out for a family-bonding day. At least that would help her feel like she still had something to serve as a catalyst for her hope and happiness to return.
“I still don’t understand, Sweetie Belle. Whatever made you think about something like this?” Rarity questioned as her sister lead her across the road towards the nearby park.
“I… I… Just thought with what’s been going on lately, I think you -no, we deserve a bit of a break. That’s all.” Sweetie answered with more than a tinge of nervous, her eyes looking left or right every so often as if she was looking for someone. Or perhaps rather something.
“Well, it’s very kind of you to think about that.” She tousled Sweetie’s hair gently. “I suppose that after a few dozen fights with the Wolfpack I could use a little R&R. Maybe even a stop at the spa would be a welcome addition to this little day out.”
The two of them walked deeper and deeper to the center of the park, where a pair of figures sat at the fountain. To most others, they were ordinary passersby, but to Rarity and Sweetie Belle, they knew exactly who they were. A man in a straw hat with what looked like a Hawaiian shirt and a lady with a hairstyle that looked like it came from centuries long past. These were Cookie and Hondo Crumbles, Rarity and Sweetie Belle’s parents.
As soon as Rarity’s eyes locked with her mom and dad’s, she couldn’t form a cohesive word as her fingers splayed out, detaching themselves from Sweetie’s hold. Her gibberish went on for a few seconds before tears filled her eyes and she rushed for her parents’ embrace, pulling them into as big a hug as she could muster.
“Mom! Dad! It’s been so long since I’ve seen you!” She bawled, the mascara beginning to run from her tear-ridden eyes. “Wh-what are you doing here?”
“Honey, are you okay?” Cookie asked, embracing her daughter tightly.
“I… Well, I am now. Thanks to you.” She sniffled, trying to wipe away the surviving tears and liquified make-up. “You couldn’t have come at a better time.”
“Sweetie, what’s wrong? Did you suffer from a bad breakup?” Hondo asked. “Come on, you can tell your dear old dad anything…”
“Well, I’ve been overworked to the bone, in more ways than one. It’s getting to the point where I’m going to collapse from all the stress. Sweetie Belle’s feeling that way too, I’ll bet. Mostly because of how I’m feeling,” she said. “But now that you’re here, I feel that all of my troubles are beginning to fade.”
“Surprise,” Sweetie said with a slight smile. “I thought you could use a visit from a couple of friendly faces after all the hassle you’ve been through.”
“Oh, Sweetie Belle, come over here…” Rarity reached out for her sister, and as soon as she was in distance, she pulled her into a big family hug with her parents. “Thank you. Thank you so much…”
“No problem, sis.” Sweetie Belle just closed her eyes and sunk into the hug. “I knew you needed this, just a day off from… everything,” she said with a wink and Rarity just hugged her tighter.
Rarity, Sweetie Belle and her parents were all gathered at the spa together, dressed in fluffy white robes that might as well have been patches of clouds as they were laid on four parallel beds, with massage workers giving them treatment. This had always been one of her favourite pastimes, made even better with the fact that she was sharing it with her little sister and her distant parents.
“You know, I’ve never been one to shy away from a deep-tissue. It’s just such a magical experience that you can’t get from any other kind of establishment.” Rarity moaned blissfully as the spa staff did their job. “After all that time travelling and working, it feels just heavenly to take a load off, right?”
“Oh, absolutely, honey. I haven’t had a treatment like this since our time in the Galapagos,” said Cookie. “I think you know us much better than you think, Rarity.”
“...Yeah, I suppose…” Rarity muttered with a trace of bitterness. Her parents were almost always away on some trip -explained where she got the money to sew and why her dad was always in some awful shirt- and that meant she was almost always alone nowadays, watching Sweetie. For a brief moment, Rarity whimpered. What if there came a time when she was forced to look after Sweetie completely. She wasn’t cut out to be a parent, not by a long shot! Especially since she knew how… temperamental she could be. Especially during the Battle of the Bands fiasco. “Do you think you’ll ever come home and just… stay home, mum and dad?”
“Rarity…” Cookie whispered. “...I… I thought you wanted us to be happy. You never said anything about our trips, so we just assumed that…”
“That I was happy to be left alone? That I could handle the responsibility of paying bills, getting shopping, managing a dress store, going to Canterlot High and raising Sweetie Belle all in one? Yes, the money our family has, it’s always been good to each of us, but it never buys happiness!” Rarity shouted, Lotus and Aloe backing away from her in fright and they began murmuring amongst themselves in their native languages.
“Sollten wir uns einmischen?” Lotus remarked.
“Scheint wie eine Familienangelegenheit. Wir sollten uns raushalten.” Aloe replied.
“Aber trotzdem, Aloe!” Lotus whispered back.
“Familienangelegenheiten sind Familienangelegenheiten, liebe Schwester. Wenn es unsere Familie wäre, möchten Sie gestört werden?” Aloe replied.
“Point taken…” Lotus agreed.
“Look. I know that you have faith in me, but I can only do so much as one person. Sooner or later, everything’s going to come crashing down around me and… well, I need your help. Without you, it’s like our family’s beginning to wither away.” Rarity pleaded, cupping her hands together. “If you must go on more extravagant travels, at least don’t forget that you have a family. And the family’s nothing if not unified...”
“Alright, we’ll postpone our trips for a while…” Cookie replied. “Oh Rarity, if only you’d told us how you felt earlier…” she whispered. “I… I never knew…”
“Just for you, honey-bun, we’ll stay.” Hondo gave her a tender grin. “For you, and for Sweetie’s sake.”
“Thank… Thank you…” Rarity whispered even while thinking how a lady should never cry in public. “...That’s… That’s all I can ask.”
“Now, how’s about we take a dip in one of those mineral baths?” Cookie suggested, her eyes already locked with one of the tubs just in the corner of her view. “I heard that they do wonders for your complexion.”
“That sounds absolutely wonderful…” Rarity sighed, dabbing away at her tears with a handed handkerchief. Lotus had kindly pretended not to see her cry.
The next stop on everyone’s little day out was the local shopping mall. Rarity had been thinking to herself about a little trinket she could buy for her parents to commemorate their return home. But she had been away from them for so long that all thoughts about what she could get them were very vague and fuzzy. After all, her parents had seen everything, so she would have to get them something really special.
“How long has it been since you’ve seen Canterlot Mall, Mom and Dad?” Rarity asked, walking them inside of the complex.
“Oh, I’d say that it’s been at least ten years now. My, the place does look pretty different from when I remember it.” Cookie said, her eyes darting around all of the new shops, stands, and food counters. “That store wasn’t there before, and I’m sure I remember there being a lot more juice bars from my time.
“Oh, you always were a juicy girl, weren’t you, Cookie?” Hondo remarked. “You would pound down drink after drink in those juice bars when you were a teenager yourself. Either you were very, very thirsty back then, or you just loved the taste of it all, right?”
“Well, can you blame me? I was young, and very very dry back in those days.” Cookie giggled, placing a hand close to her mouth. “And, well, yes, I was in love with the taste.”
“Rarity, Sweetie? Do you have favourite flavours of your own?” Cookie asked, looking into the eyes of her kids.
“W-Well, I’ve always been a fan of orange myself, but a dash of melon every now and then doesn’t hurt. Not to mention, it goes down a treat with some pretzels,” said Rarity almost awkwardly. She’d never thought, out of everything, her parents would have asked her opinions on juice bar flavours.
“And I’m more of a pineapple girl myself. Just the tang of it is enough to give me a smile,” Sweetie said, much more naturally than her sister could have done so. “I didn’t think that you were going to talk about, well that.”
“Well, sometimes, people have some of the kookiest things to say, but that’s why it’s so fun to talk with them,” said Cookie. “Trust me, some of the stuff I had to talk about on my travels was just nutty.”
“Remember the time that we were in Tahiti and you couldn’t stop yourself at the buffet? Your tray always came back with some of the biggest piles of food I’d seen in a while. How you ate it all too is always gonna be a mystery to me.” Hondo lifted his finger.
All three women glared at him. “Never ask a woman about her weight…” Cookie said in an almost demonic voice.
“Whoa! Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Didn’t mean for it to slip out that way.” He pushed his arms out of his body. “Still, didn’t you meet a lovely lady during all of your runs? A miss… oh, now what was her name again?”
“I think it was a Ms. Peachbottom or something like that. She was a sweetheart, even if she had a few… screws loose.” Cookie twisted her wrist in a circular motion. “We could have talked all night about where we came from and what we liked doing back home. That’s the thing, though. Conversations are so enrapturing. You start talking and you just can’t stop yourself if the topic is hot enough.” She sat down at a nearby table, with Hondo and Sweetie sitting next to her. “So. What kind of hot topics are there going around at Canterlot High?”
“Topics? As in gossip or just general goings on?” Rarity really wasn’t prepared for small talk, not even when it came to her family. It wasn’t hard for her to hide the fact that she wasn’t prepared for this both in tone and in body language, as her body couldn’t stay straight for a second. “As much as I do keep up with trends, I’m afraid that the talking is… more hit or miss when it comes to me. But Sweetie Belle and her friends are always so chatty with themselves and others, isn’t that right, sister?”
“Yeah, we are…” Sweetie said and together she and her mother descended into a barrage of gossip. Rarity smiled, let this never change she told herself. Let this never change.
“Oh, by the way, I need to use the little girl’s room. I’ll be right back.” Rarity said, giving herself the chance to start searching for the right gift to give to her parents. The nearest toilets in the mall were quite a walk from the table, so she had plenty of time to peruse and purchase before anyone noticed she was taking a while.
“Now then, what would mom and dad like more than anything in the world?” Rarity asked as she scanned the nearest row of shops that she could find. “Well, given that they’ve been around the world, that does narrow the search a tad. But I can’t just give them a simple map. I need to think bigger.”
Eventually, Rarity’s eyes were laid on one store in particular, with a giant globe sticking out like a sore thumb within the letters of the establishment. “Captivating Curios. Now that could be worth a look. I’m sure they've got something my parents would like.”
Truth be told, despite Rarity’s hopes being high for the store, most of the stuff seemed like products that her parents would have seen somewhere around on their journeys. Some objects did stand out, such as swords and masks, but they were either too high a price to stomach, didn’t fit with what her parents were in to, or seemed entirely out of the ordinary.
“Okay, Rarity. Think about this. You’ve barely seen your parents, but you know that they like travelling. What would a travelling person like?” She gave the smaller objects a frisk. “Swiss knives? Well, they’re practical in every sense, but would mom and dad use them? ...Goodness knows Sweetie inherited her horrible cooking ability from Mom…”
Then she spotted something out of the corner of her eye. A glowing gem, with the display stand saying it was supposedly imbedded in the shield of Sir Lancelot himself and later used as part of his wedding ring towards the Lady Guinevere. It seemed to call out to her, Rarity didn’t know why.
“I really shouldn’t… But how could I not?” Rarity took the gem from the display, took one look at the price tag and almost felt like shrieking at the sight of it. Swallowing the urge, she covered the tag, almost ashamed to show the price before walking up to the counter. “Hello, sir. I’d like to purchase this gemstone. It’s a… bit of a present for someone.”
“Oh, who?” the shopkeeper, a orange-skinned woman that Rarity could have sworn to be a relative of Trixie’s asked.
“My parents. They just got back from some amazing world-travelling and now, I think it’s time we welcome them back with something extra extravagant,” Rarity grinned. “And yes, I’m well aware that this costs an arm and a leg, but I’m sure that I can provide you with the funds.” As she whipped out her credit card, she whispered under her breath, “So much for that phone upgrade. Oh well, a few more months with the old girl won’t hurt, I suppose...” she sighed before going for her wallet.
As Rarity made the transaction, she watched as the clerk put the gem into packing paper, before wrapping it up with a little ribbon. As soon as that was done, she placed it into a bag and gave it to Rarity along with the receipt.
“Thank you so much, miss. Have a wonderful day. And I hope your parents enjoy the gift.” The woman said as Rarity left the building. She then winked, as if she knew something Rarity didn’t before vanishing into thin air.
Rarity, with a smile on her face went back to the table where Sweetie and Cookie were coming out of their sea of gossip to notice that she was returning. The first thing that they took notice of was the gift bag in her hands.
“Hey, Rarity? What is that?” Cookie pointed out the bag in her daughter’s hands. “Did you find something you wanted on your way back from the toilet?”
“Well, not something for me, but something that I think would be the perfect gift… for you and dad.” She reached into the bag, shredding the short-lived wrapping paper in front of them to show the gem hiding within the box. “For you, mom. This gem comes from Arthurian legend, said to have been used by Lancelot himself.”
“Arthurian? How’d you know that I adore the stories of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table?” Cookie asked, lifting a brow at Rarity, while also forming another smile underneath. “Did Sweetie Belle tell you while we were away?”
“No, I just… Well, I just figured you would adore such a thing. Put it on our mantle. It’s called the Dragon’s Eye, said to radiate warmth and light to anyone who holds it.” Rarity explained. “And… And I thought it would make a beautiful gift.”
“Well, I love it, sweetpea.” She clasped her hands together. “What about you, Hondo? What do you think of the gem Rarity got for us?”
“I love it,” Hondo said hugging his daughter. “Thank you.”
Just let this never end, Rarity thought. Just let this never end.
“Are you sure that you won’t be missing anything by staying here?” asked Rarity as they all made their way home. “I just want to make sure, so that I don’t make you two feel upset or uncomfortable.”
“Trust me dearie,” Cookie said. “You need us here more than anything else, and I must admit traveling around the world does get rather tiresome at times… Nothing like the comfort of one’s own bed I say…”
“That, and by now, I’d say that we’ve seen near everything the world has to offer. There’s only really a couple of stops left before we’ll have seen everything,” Hondo added. “Let’s just say that you won’t have to be alone for much longer, Rarity.”
“Mom, Dad, thank you again. I never would’ve been able to make Rarity happy without your help.” Sweetie Belle stepped forward, her hands overlapping each other on her chest. “I hope that this could be the start of a whole new chapter for the family.”
“Oh. How so? Considering you ally yourselves with that of the Power Rangers?”
Everyone turned to where the new voice came from. Sure enough, Siel’Viz stepped out into the path of Rarity and her family, armoured from toe to neck, sword hanging from her side along with a few of her other war weapons, and a sinister smile forged on her face.
“Ah, yes. Family. I remember when I used to have one. All my brothers and sisters, children, teenagers and other such relatives,” she said as she paced back and forth. “But when I was called into war, they were all stripped from me. And by the time I came back, they were long gone. Either cut all ties with me or murdered by outside means. The loss of family is the greatest wound any soldier can ever hope to face, isn’t it?”
“Mom! Dad! Sweetie Belle! Stay back!” Rarity ran in front of the whole group and threw her arms out. “This wolf is evil! She’s been in cahoots with the aliens that have been invading us for the past few weeks! You need to run while you still can!”
“Aliens? Whatever do you mean, sweetheart?” Hondo asked, tilting his head to the side.
“We haven’t heard news of aliens invading Canterlot before…” Cookie added, a shaky finger being lifted. “Are they going to take us away and do some kind of experiments on us? Like in those freaky movies we used to watch when we were kids?”
Siel’Viz just chuckled. “Oh, no. Nothing like that Mr and Mrs. White Ranger. I simply wish to test the strength of your daughter and the rest of her rag-tag bunch of heroes. See, Captain Mar’Zek wants to break them down in every way possible, so that they can rebuild themselves much stronger. We’ve tried through various physical means and they’ve all been successful, but now it’s time we focus on some more… heartbreaking trials.” She held her sword out, edge gleaming in the sunlight.
“If you lay a finger on my family, you’ll have hell to pay for it!” Rarity barked, her hand instinctively reaching for her crystal. “I just got my parents back today. A few hours ago even! You’re not about to break up this little family reunion!”
“You have no need for family, Rarity of the Power Rangers. You are a soldier of war now. You’ve been a soldier from the day you dared to stand against our regime. And now, I think it’s time you experience your first taste of real anguish!” Siel’Viz cracked the knuckles in her claws as she stared down Cookie and Hondo. “I’ve been doing just fine without my family breathing down my neck, so naturally, you and your friends will too!”
“We’ll have to see about that, won’t we?” Rarity murmured bringing out her morpher before whispering: “I’m sorry. Mum, Dad. White Ranger Power.” In a burst of light, she was morphed, her twin diamond blades forming in her hands. “Even without my friends, I can still take you on!”
“Is that so?!” Siel’Viz rushed at Rarity, prompting her to dash in response. As she got close, she vaulted over Rarity’s neck, wrapping her neck with the sword, throwing her over her body and smashing her into the ground. She stood on top of her afterward. “The captain always told me you and the others versus me would be a mismatch. After all, you’re nothing more than a mere private, while I’m much higher up the military food chain than you’ll ever be!”
Rarity just breakdance-launched herself off of Siel’Viz, twirling her swords before accompanying them with her geode’s powers. Now, a string of diamond edges followed her swords, with every single one of them attacking in time with them whenever she landed a blow.
“What are you still doing here? Go! Quickly!” Rarity frantically cried back to her family as she pushed back hard against a series of retaliation strikes from Siel’Viz. Her family, perhaps frozen with shock that their darling daughter was one of the Power Rangers who had been fighting day in and day out to save the city couldn’t move. All except Sweetie Belle, on the other hand, who only just stood there to support Cookie and Hondo.
Rarity backflipped and then rebounded off a nearby pillar before using both of her swords to score a powerful downward slash on Siel’Viz, too fast for her to react. Dragging both of her swords along the ground, creating some sparks, more quick flashes that drew wolfpack blood stained her sword. Now normally, Rarity hated being this violent -and she knew from the stunned looks on her family’s faces, they were probably wondering what had happened to her- but this was her family in danger. Her family. Raising both of her swords skywards, she drew a rune circle and lobbed a ball of energy towards Siel’Viz, who caught it in her claws and actually absorbed it.
“I’ve seen more powerful orb attacks from the Spheroids, White Ranger. Not to mention, I’ve killed a few of them myself.” Siel’Viz thrust her arm out, sending the energy ball back at Rarity, knocking her back into her parents and Sweetie Belle, causing them all to fall into a pile. “Get up. A soldier who cannot stand is a soldier who should not breathe.”
“...I will get up as many times as I have, just to defend my family from you… you brute.” Rarity stated gripping her swords tightly. “Because that is what a Power Ranger does.”
“Then stand. Stand for your beliefs and fight for your twisted vision of victory!” Siel’Viz pounded her chestplate. “Prove to me that you are not weak, so that I may prove to my captain that I am not weak!”
“Very… Very well then.” Rarity stated slowly before raising one of her swords and drawing a rune circle in the air launching a dragon made of pure white flame -or was that ice?- towards Siel’Viz. The beast crashed into the Wolfpack Wolf, hurling her backwards into a nearby car, which sounded its’ built in alarm in response to the impact.
“Ngah! Okay, that’s new. But it still barely tickles.” Siel’Viz pushed herself off of the vehicle, her claws puncturing the hood, along with the outer shell of the engine. “Now let me show you what I can do…” she smirked conjuring up that energy ball Rarity had previously lobbed towards her turning into something dark and twisted. The ball now pulsated with something pure evil, and that something was tossed towards Rarity’s parents.
Rarity let out a gasp and went for her geode, but by the time she got her diamond plates out, the orb collided with that of her parents, exploding in a violent detonation that blew everything around it away. A scream followed, as Rarity saw Cookie and Hondo tossed away like limp ragdolls towards the nearest buildings, their bodies falling just as ungracefully.
“Mom! Dad!” Sweetie Belle yelled so loudly that it pierced the heavens. She ran over to the felled parents, not spending a single second longer watching Rarity in her duel with Siel’Viz. “No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no! Not now!” She shook the bodies of the two even as the sounds of sirens were heard. Needless to say, this whole calamity had attracted attention and someone had called the cops.
Let’s put things into perspective shall we? Shining Armor was not having a great day, having to have been called to two domestic disturbances, break up one bar brawl and now a monster. So, needless to say he wasn’t happy. That anger only increased when he saw the -hopefully just unconscious- bodies of Hondo and Cookie. So when he saw this and Siel’Viz he pulled out his service revolver and fired a few shots into her.
She, in return, watched the shots bounce off of her armour. Bending her knees, she darted towards the police officer, tossed the revolver away, and threw him to the ground.
“Tell me, officer. Can the police fight the army? Can one man from your district fight a soldier who has fought such tougher odds?” She asked with a sadistic smirk on her face. “If you think the answer is yes, then you need to quit your job. It’s better to do that than to get hurt fighting someone who’s way out of your league.”
Shining Armor fired a shot into her eye, and as Siel’Viz screamed out in pain Shining ran over to Rarity who had ran over to Sweetie in shock upon seeing what happened. “Are they your parents?” Shining asked, not caring right now if he exposed the White Ranger’s identity. There were more important matters at hand.
“They… They…” Rarity’s lips quivered.
“They were. Broken before one of the Rangers to show that they need to become stronger.” Siel’Viz said, covering the hole where her eye one sat. “Now, you see, White Ranger. You oppose the Wolfpack, there will be consequences for your actions.
“And you! Filthy human. I think it’s time that you learn some respect!” She snapped her fingers, and a platoon of Hounds held Shining Armour by all of his limbs, including his head. “Take him back to the Alpha Slayer. I’m sure that the Captain would love to see the human who shot out my eye!”
Needless to say, Rarity wasn’t having it and cut down all the hounds and then gestured to Siel’Viz with her sword. “You… Leave. Now. I will not ask again.”
“You will not TALK AGAIN. MAGGOT!” Siel’Viz threw off Rarity’s helmet and glared into her eyes. “I am sick and tired of letting our Wolfpack be embarrassed by someone of your caliber! Honour or no honour, I will kill you and take your crystal back to the Captain, even if he throws me into the sun for violating his rules!”
Suddenly, shots breezed by her head and up ran the other Rainbooms in their morphed states.
“Leave her alone!” Sunset’s flame sword burned white-hot. “Don’t make us ask again!”
Siel’Viz stared down the team of Rangers, all of which had fiery stares hidden beneath their black vizors. She retreated from Rarity, before jabbing a finger towards Shining Armour. “If you know what is good for this man, you will evacuate him from this planet. He shot my eye. No-one has ever shot my eye before. And the next time he sees me, he’s either joining the Wolfpack, or going six feet underground!” She opened a portal back to the ship and darted through it.
Once Siel’Viz left, everyone demorphed. But Rarity still couldn’t take her eyes off of her parents, tears welling up in them as she spluttered, choking on thin air as she threw herself down to them. A small stream of tears came, then a waterfall, then a stream so powerful that it would’ve been counted as a lethal weapon, as Rarity wailed at the top of her lungs.
In the background, Shining pulled out his phone. He could deal with these revelations later. Right now, he had a job to do. “Yes, this is Officer Shining Armor. I need an airlift at the corner of Knight and Blossom…”
Back on the Alpha Slayer, Siel’Viz stumbled through the portal, back into the bridge, the blood pouring from her eye where Shining had shot it. Her breathing was heavy as she stood before her leader, still with the strength to kneel.
“Siel’Viz. Your eye, it’s….” Vi’Al was the first to take notice, before a small dagger was tossed passed his head. A small yelp came from him as he evaded just in time.
“I told you. One small strike. That’s all it takes.” Mar’Zek spoke, his voice cutting through the eerie silence like a knife through butter. “One strike from those humans and you are now a cyclops; a creature stripped of one of its’ eyes. This is your weakness.”
“Please, Captain. Give me another chance,” she said between pained groans. “Now that I know my weakness, I will stomp it out for you. And prove that I still deserve to stay on your crew!”
“What interests me the most about your little… loss is that it came not from one of the Power Rangers, but rather from that of a simple human. An APE shot out your eye. A creature of lesser intelligence and power got lucky.” He snarled, his fangs showing clearly. “For being my right hand, this was one of the biggest embarrassments of your life, Siel’Viz. However, you still might have a chance to show you can grow from this.”
“Anything for you, my captain.” She nodded.
“This human. This Shining Armour. The moment he laid a strike on you, the Alpha Slayer did some digging into his life, accessing every single attribute about him from DNA to favourite food. We cross-referenced it with the other information that backwater town has to offer, and we have reason to believe that he too is family to the Rangers.” Mar’Zek pointed to the screen on the windshield, showing a detailed biography of Shining Armour.
“Further digging proves that he is the older brother of Twilight Sparkle; one of the Rangers’ assistants,” Vi’Al added. “And from the way he fights, I’d say that he more than fits the criteria of being an attack on their hearts. Capture him, do to him however you see fit. Kill him, recruit him to the Wolfpack, whatever. It will make Twilight upset, that will make her angry, and it will cause the Rangers to feel sorrow.”
“And from their mourning, they will vow to grow in strength. The strength that we NEED for the perfect clash to determine who wields those gemstones in the first place,” Mar’Zek took back control of the briefing. “You have new rules of engagement, Siel’Viz. I’m pardoning any non-Wolfpack conduct for this one mission and this one mission only. Be as ruthless as you want, if so to prove a point to the Power Rangers.”
“Yes, Captain. I will do my best to please you.” She bowed, before being escorted out of the room and towards the Alpha Slayer’s med bay by Vi’Al.
Canterlot Royal Hope Hospital
Sunset watched anxiously, the clock’s ticking seeming like an eternity as she waited for any news on the fates of Rarity’s parents. Rainbow punched a wall, cracking it. “Goddammit!” she bellowed. “Just… Goddammit!”
“Rainbow, calm yourself!” Applejack yelled.
“Calm myself?” Rainbow shouted. “How the flying FUCK do you expect me to calm myself when…?”
“Look, I’m as angry as you are, but… But yelling and screaming will not do anything.”
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. But I keep seeing Rarity’s parents, just loaded into that helicopter and I keep thinking what if it was my parents? What if it was Scoots?”
“Same, I admit.” Applejack sighed. “What if it was Apple Bloom, what if it was Granny? What if it was Big Mac? But I also know that I would do everything in my power to stop the wolfpack. An eye for an eye. And if we can’t save our parents, we can be damn well sure we’ll avenge them.”
“So… How long?” Shining asked Twilight.
“For about a year now. Shining, listen-”
“I don’t have to. I’m so proud of you sis. Yes, what you’re doing is dangerous, and by God I want to pull you out, but your friends… they need all the help they can get. I’m signing up on this as well, and if I can manage to pull some strings you’ll have the help of the Canterlot Police. You look like you need it.”
“T-Thank you.” Twilight whispered hugging her brother. Just then, Rarity emerged.
“Your…” Sunset began before Rarity broke down sobbing and Sunset pulled her into a hug letting her sister cry.
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Glad to help. Trust me, as much as I love writing snarky, funny little things, I do love to help twist a knife in people's hearts at times. Layton, enjoy yourself.
Now we get to see more of Rarity. Hopefully her parents and Sweetie will be alright. Now I wonder if this is going to lead to Twilight gaining her powers? After all they plan on hurting her brother.
9557388
...You know that awkward moment of "Should he tell him or should I?" ...Yeeeeeeahhhhh, uh... About the Rarity's parents thing...
9557962
It has been heavily implied, but until they confirm they are dead I am holding out hope.
Wait, what? I thought she was a schoolgirl? How does she have a Boutique?
Yep, that is Rarity.
Well, someone slipped up
Busted.
Yeah, nothing can go wrong here.
Well, surprise german. But it's pretty good.
...
And so it begins...
Oh yes... Ahm, I mean, oh no, please don't!
Good one!
Ouch!
Things are just getting better and better.
Oh, this will be fun.
Yep, we went there.
This chapter was great! Loved it!
9633671
Well, here in America the minimum age to own a business is 18, so given her parents being probably loaded if they travel about and her seeming level of schooling it's not that implausible...
We should be amazed it didn't happen sooner with any of this lot.
Like saying it'll be the best Christmas Walford's ever had! Tempting fate!
Yeah, saw in quite a few fics Aloe and her sister being from somewhere in Europe, Germany or Sweden's pony counterparts being the most common so I decided... what the hell. Throw it in.
Okay, now that's tempting fate.
And me being the co-writer here, you know exactly what that's a reference to.
Still, credit where credit's due... Shooting out a Wolfpack General's eye, no mean feat especially for a regular human.
You know, somewhere in the back of my mind when Shadow and I were working on this one, I was just thinking about how much Layton was going to enjoy this one. Those were my exact thoughts, literally.
My heart broke!!!!
