Kamen Rider Unicorn: Hyper Battle Special!

by PoisonClaw

S: Special Episode! / Case Closed!

“I… I… I don’t know what I’m seeing, folks. Unicorn and Nasca… they’ve… merged somehow!”

Windy Whistles and Bow Hothoof stared agasp at the tv, their jaws hanging open at the image displayed on the screen. Behind them, Rainbow Dash was still deep asleep, only now she was smiling.

***

“Incredible!” Twilight shouted as she pressed her face up against her laptop screen. “Combining the powers of the Unicorn and Nasca Memories together… I didn’t even know they could do that! Come on, Sunset! Show that Dopant who’s boss!”

Nearby, a napping Spike raised an ear at the noise, tilting his head up with a sleepy, “Huh?... What’s going…?” With a yawn, Spike went right back to sleep.

***

Power surged through Sunset’s body, power like nothing she had ever felt before. Arcs of blue and orange energy leapt across her form, energizing her previously fatigued body and filling her with renewed strength. Her fingers curled eagerly around the hilt of her sword, getting a feel for the new weapon. Yet, in the back of her mind, Sunset couldn’t shake the sudden feeling of deja vu, like she’d used this sword before.

You haven’t, but I have, Rainbow’s voice spoke in her head, an image of a grinning Rainbow popping into her head as well. You’ve got Nasca’s power now, so anything I can do, so can you! Now use it to show that turkey you don’t mess with a Kamen Rider!

Got it! Sunset replied back, staring up at the towering form of the Quetzalcoatlus Dopant. Somewhere inside this monster lay another monster in the form of Spoiled Milk, a greedy, self-centered woman who abused everyone around her and saw her daughter as little more than an object to obey her every whim. Spoiled’s desires had already been twisted from the start, the influence of the Quetzalcoatlus Memory had only succeeded in twisting them further, elevating them into a god complex.

No matter how much she believes herself to be a god, she’s still a criminal, which means... Pointing her sword at the Dopant, electric yellow wings burst from her shoulders as her and Rainbow shouted together, “Time to restore Harmony at sonic speeds! Kamen Rider Unicorn: Nasca Cross!”

“Change your armor all you want, it matters not!” Spoiled Milk countered, her massive talons digging craters across the highway. “I’ll still tear you to pieces with my own hands!” Screeching loudly, the Quetzalcoatlus Dopant beat her wings and blew a fierce gust of wind towards Unicorn, sending pieces of debris flying across the highway and toppling the abandoned cars still scattered across the tarmac.

Unicorn stood unflinching against the wind, her scarves fluttering behind her. “Yeesh, what a blowhard…” In a burst of speed, Unicorn blitzed down the highway, her wings creating a yellow trail in her wake.

In response, Spoiled grabbed a pair of abandoned cars in her talons and hurled them towards Unicorn, hoping to crush her beneath them. Sunset didn’t even blink as the hunks of metal hurtled towards her, leaping into the air. Arcs of vermillion energy flowed from her feet as she ran horizontally across the hood of the first car before leaping to the second one and using it as a springboard to shoot herself above the Quetzalcoatlus Dopant’s head.

Gripping the hilt of her sword with both hands, Unicorn raised it over her head as she plummeted towards the Dopant and slammed her sword into Spoiled’s head. Sparks flew in every direction as the steel blade met hardened scales, forcing Sunset to grit her teeth as she tightened her grip on her sword.

In a flash of light, the blade cut through the scales like a hot knife through butter, sending Unicorn falling to the ground as she sliced straight through the Quetzalcoatlus Dopant from head to talon, leaving a glowing slash down the length of the massive Dopant’s body. Spoiled barely had time to cry out before she became engulfed in a massive explosion, the fireball visible from clear across the city.

Silence hung in the air as Unicorn stood up, gazing into the wall of flames. “3…”

“2…”

“1…” As if on cue, a bladed tail sliced through the flames towards Unicorn, only for her to easily sidestep it and grab the writhing tail with her free hand. “Knew it!” As the tail struggled in her grip, Unicorn brought up her sword and sliced off a good two feet of tail, earning a shrill shriek in return from behind the flames.

“This turkey doesn’t know when to quit, does she?” As the flames died down, Unicorn looked across the highway at the Quetzalcoatlus Dopant, who was nursing her severed tail in her claws.

“Damn it…” Spoiled grunted, glaring at the Kamen Rider with hatred in her eyes. “You’ll pay for this!” Extending her wings, the Dopant shot into the air, clearly intent on fleeing to fight another day.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Running up onto the roof of a nearby vehicle, Unicorn extended her electric yellow wings as she took off after the fleeing Dopant, a mini sonic boom following in her wake as she streaked through the sky.

Glancing over her shoulder, Spoiled growled at the sight of the pursuing Unicorn. Whirling around, her gullet bulged to larger than ever before as she hurled a car-sized fireball at Unicorn.

As the fireball bore towards her, slapped her left hip port.

\ NASCA CHARGE! /

Holding her sword straight out in front of her, a swirling mix of turquoise and azure blue energy swirled around her body as she shot forward like a bullet, driving the point of her sword straight into the fireball and causing it pop like an overinflated balloon, obscuring her in a cloud of acrid smoke.

Hovering in mid-air, the Quetzalcoatlus Dopant squinted as she tried to see through the wall of smoke. After a moment, the smoke began to dissipate, revealing that Unicorn had vanished. As much as Spoiled wanted to believe she had finally rid herself of Unicorn once and for all, even she was suspicious of how remarkably easy that had been.

"Where— Squawk!” Spoiled was knocked from the air as something smashed into her from behind, slamming into her spine and sending her plummeting towards the ground. Desperately trying to steady herself, she extended her leather wings outward in an attempt to catch the wind and slow her descent.

A blue blur out the corner of her eye was her only warning before a silver blade sliced through her left wing, cutting clean through it and rendering it utterly useless. With only one wing, all Spoiled could hope to do was flail about wildly before she slammed into the ground, hard enough to send up a cloud of dust from the impact. As she struggled to pull herself free from the imprint she had carved into the ground, she looked up to see Unicorn drift down across from her, setting down gracefully as her electric wings vanished.

“No more running, Spoiled,” Unicorn said, looking down at the battered Dopant. “Surrender now and pay for your crimes.”

“Never!” Pounding her claws against the ground, she pulled herself and snarled as she snapped her claws and summoned a troop of her halberd wielding butlers. Pointed a claw at Unicorn, she commanded, “Destroy her!”

“I’m getting reeeaaalll sick of these guys…”Rainbow remarked as the four constructs ran towards them and quickly surrounded them. “Any ideas?”

“I think I have something in mind...” Holding out her left hand, a turquoise glow coalesced around her horn as a second silver sword materialized in her other hand, held reverse style with the blade pointing towards the ground. Gripping both swords, Sunset brought them up and slammed the hilts together at the base, causing them to become engulfed in a bright flash of light. When the light faded, the two swords had merged together at the hilt, the combined handle lengthening considerably to create a double-bladed staff, electricity crackling across the length of the weapon.

“Sweet!” Spinning the weapon above their head, the image of Rainbow in Sunset’s mind was grinning from ear to ear. “Come on, Unicorn…”

“... Let’s make this showy!”

At once, the four constructs charged the Kamen Rider, swinging their halberds with deadly intent. With ease, Unicorn sidestepped one, ducked under another, leapt over a third and finally kicked the fourth one in the chest as he came in for a swing, sending him reeling back. Spinning on her heel, she slashed the three nearby constructs across the chest with such speed that it appeared to the naked eye they had all been struck simultaneously.

Running up to the first one as he regained his footing, she slashed him diagonally across the chest before spinning her staff around and slashing him again with the other end, carving an X shaped mark in his tailored suit. Before he could bring his weapon up, she braced one end of her staff against the ground as she used it like a pole vault to kick the construct in the chest, pushing against him and using the momentum to flip herself up and bring her staff up to slash him vertical across the chest…

… Before flipping over and bringing her blade down on the second construct, slicing clean through his halberd as he held it up to try and block her attack and slashing him vertical across the chest. As her feet touched the ground, both constructs fell back and dissipated in a flash of golden light, leaving the two remaining constructs as they stood ready to oppose her.

Removing her left hand from the weapon, Unicorn triggered the Nasca Memory in her left port once more.

\ NASCA CHARGE! /

Gripping the staff again with both hands, Unicorn held it at her side as turquoise and azure blue fields of energy wrapped around the bladed ends, creating blades of pure energy extending from both ends of the weapon.

“CROSS SLASH!”

With a swing of her staff, a crescent arc of energy shot from the first blade to cleave through the left construct before swinging her blade around a second time and slicing the right construct with a second crescent arc from the back blade. Turning her back to them, she turned her attention back towards the Quetzalcoatlus Dopant as the last two constructs faded away.

“Destroy my servants all you want, I’ll just make more!” Raising her hand, Spoiled snapped her claws again… only for nothing to happen. Glancing at her hand, she tried snapping again and again, receiving the same response each time. “Im-impossible…”

“Looks like you’re out of servants,” Unicorn said as she began walking towards the Dopant, gripping her staff tightly in her right hand.

“W-wait!” Spoiled pleaded, holding her hands out shakily in front of her as she took unsteady steps back from the advancing Rider. “We can work something out! I have powerful connections! I can get you anything you want! Power, fame, money, anything! Just name it and it’s yours!”

Unicorn suddenly stopped, lowering her head in seeming contemplation.Without raising her head, she coldly replied, “You attack my home, put countless people at risk, injure my partner, threaten and abuse your own daughter in a cruel attempt to lord over your husband… and after all that, you still have the nerve to try and bribe me with worthless platitudes!?” Her shoulders shook with barely repressed anger as she triggered the Nasca Memory twice in quick succession.

\\VERMILLION MODE!//

The Nasca symbol on Unicorn’s left breast glowed golden as vermillion energy began to flow along the lines running across her body, feeding the energy to her armor as the blue sections of armor transitioned to an identical orange color. An electric aura surrounded her body, letting off frequent bolts of vermillion lightning.

“There’s nothing you could possibly give me… because I already have everything I could ever ask for.”

Blitzing forward, Unicorn shortened the distance between them in an instant, slashing Spoiled at the waist as she passed her by before whirling around and slashing her across the back.

“You—!” Spinning around, Spoiled snarled as she brandished her claws and charged at the Unicorn. Throwing a punch, her fist was easily caught by Unicorn, who shoved it aside before punching the Dopant square in the jaw. As Spoiled stumbled back, Unicorn slashed twice diagonal across her chest, creating a shower of sparks as Spoiled flew back and flopped onto her back, struggling to get back on her feet.

“It’s over, Spoiled Milk.” Tossing her weapon aside, Unicorn reached for the Nasca Memory and transferred it to her right hip port, pressing on the trigger.

>} NASCA! MAXIMUM DRIVE! {<

A maelstrom of vermillion and turquoise energy wrapped around Unicorn, sparking outward from her body. As the energy channeled down her body to gather at her feet, Unicorn braced herself as she leapt into the air, her electric wings shooting from her shoulders as she dove towards the Dopant.

“VERMILLION CROSS BREAK!”

The Quetzalcoatlus Dopant got to her feet in time to witness as Unicorn dove towards her, kicking her hard in the chest. As the energy shot through her body, Spoiled had enough time to cry out, “Curse you… UNICORN!” before exploding in a massive ball of fire that consumed both her and Unicorn.

As the tower of flames touched the sky, the blare of police sirens filled the air as six or seven police cruisers came squealing to a halt at the scene, numerous officers running out and staring at the fire.

“Look!” One of the officers shouted, pointing to a silhouette visible in the flames.

The flames parted like water as Unicorn stepped forward, carrying an unconscious Spoiled Milk in her arms. Behind her, the shattered remains of the Quetzalcoatlus Memory melted into slag in the flames. As several officers ran up to her, Unicorn knelt down and laid Spoiled gently on the ground before stepping back as the head officer reached down and placed his finger against Spoiled’s neck in search of a pulse.

Finding a steady pulse, he glanced back towards a nearby officer and shouted, “Call an ambulance!” As the officer ran to do just that, the head officer stood up and regarded the Kamen Rider. “Thanks for the assistance, Kamen Rider… err…” He scratched his head as he tried to figure which of the two he was speaking to. “Unicorn? Nasca?”

“Yes.”

Blinking, he shook his head. “Anyway, while we appreciate the help…” Signalling to his men, almost a dozen pistols were pointed in Unicorn’s direction. “...we’re going to need you to come down to the station and answer some questions.”

Time to bale? Rainbow asked.

Yep. In a blink, Unicorn spread her electric wings and shot off into the sky, knocking the officer’s caps from their heads from the burst of wind generated from the takeoff. By the time the officers looked up, she was already a speck in the distance.

From the roof of a nearby building, Kamen Rider Equal observed the scene with disinterest. “So… it took them combining their powers to take down that weakling? Pathetic.” Scoffing, she turned her back to the scene and began to walk away. “Seems I was right in letting them hold onto the Memories for me. Once I’ve located the remaining Memories, retrieving the rest will be child’s play.

“Now, all that’s left is for Double Diamond to finish tying up our little ‘loose end’...”

***

Hours later, Shining Armor cruised down the road in his police cruiser, passing through the industrial sector of the city. He never liked coming here, the fumes expelled from the numerous manufacturing plants in the area made him sick to his stomach. Still, he had been called here specifically to inspect a crime scene, so all he could do was suck it up and get on with his duties.

Soon, Shining spotted the banner of yellow police tape sectioning off the scene, a pair of officers stationed at the edge of the scene. Pulling to a stop nearby, Shining Armor exited his cruiser and walked over to the two officers, who eyed him as she approached.

“Shining Armor, Special Crimes Unit,” Shining Armor introduced himself, flashing his badge. The two officers nodded their heads before stepping aside to let him step under the police tape. As he walked onto the scene, he gauged the area around him.

Forensic investigators paced back and forth, marking potential evidence around them before taking photos for review. Shining Armor made sure to watch his step as he walked by, not wanting to accidentally destroy critical evidence. In the centre of the scene stood one of his fellow officers, standing next to a still body covered with a white sheet. The man had short blue hair similar to Shining’s and light brown skin. In addition to his regular uniform, he was also wearing a red scarf around his neck.

“Spearhead?”

The other officer turned at the sound of his name, smiling at the sight of Shining Armor. “About time you got here. I said I needed you down here asap.”

“Yeah, well I was stuck dealing with the paperwork from the last monster attack, so I got here as fast as I could.” Standing next to Spearhead, Shining glanced down at the white sheet at his feet. “Is this…”

Spearhead sighed, his smile disappearing. “Wish I had some good news for you, buddy, but…” The two men crouched down next to the body as Spearhead pulled back the sheet covering the face.

Staring back at them were the lifeless eyes of a man in his late forties, his face literally frozen in a look of sheer terror as a thick layer of ice clung to his body.

Shining recognized him instantly. “Open Skies… damn it,” Shining said, sighing as he hung his head. “He was our only lead in tracking down whoever’s distributing these monster making devices.” Looking over at Spearhead, he asked, “Who found him?”

“Garbage man. Guy nearly tripped over the body as he was collecting the trash. Spooked him real good.”

“Time of death?”

“Don’t know, Forensics can’t get a clear TOD considering he’s frozen straight through. It’s as if whoever killed him dunked him in a vat of liquid nitrogen afterwards.”

“So you’re certain it was murder?”

“Yep. Signs of a struggle, clear defensive wounds on the victim, not to mention if he did fall into a vat of LN, he sure as hell didn’t climb out of it himself.” Standing up, Spearhead stuck his hands in his pockets as he gazed down at the body. “I don’t know, Shining. Something doesn’t sit right with me about all this.”

“How?” Shining inquired, standing up as well.

“For starters, whoever did this didn’t even attempt to hide the body, just leaving it out in the open for anyone to stumble across. Almost like he was trying to send a message.”

“Or a warning,” Shining surmised, glancing around the area. “We’ve suspected Open Skies might have had ties to the organization distributing these devices, so it’s possible he mistakenly crossed the wrong person and ended up paying the ultimate price as an example to others.”

“I was thinking the same thing, but that’s not the scariest part of all this.” Glancing down at the body, a glimmer of fear passed across Spearhead’s face. “The method in which he was… ‘dealt with’, leads me to a, if you’ll pardon the pun, chilling conclusion that they might very well not just be distributing these things… but using them as well.”

“Based on some of the reports I’ve read, you might not be too far off.” Sighing, Shining ran a hand through his hair. “Course, that doesn’t exactly make me feel better about this whole situation.”

“I don’t know, Shining… I think we might be in over our heads in all this. We’re police officers, not monster hunters! Maybe we should call in some help on this.”

“Like who? S.W.A.T? FBI?”

“Actually…” Spearhead seemed nervous, sweat dripping down his forehead as he said, “I was thinking about calling in some more… ‘local’ help.”

Whipping around, Shining’s gaze bore into Spearhead, making him sweat even more. “Are you suggesting we call those two ‘Kamen Riders’ to help?” Shining’s tone was even, but there was no mistaking the simmering anger behind his words.

“Well, I… it’s just…” Using his scarf to dab at his sweating forehead, he cowered beneath Shining’s gaze. “You’ve seen what they can do, right? Besides, Gotham always has Batman to call upon in these kinds of situations, so I was just—”

“This isn’t a comic book!” Shining Armor barked, drawing the attention of nearby investigators. “We are the Canterlot Police Department and we are not about to call in a pair of vigilantes to do our jobs for us! For all we know, they could very well be in league with the organization behind these things, or did you not stop to consider that?”

Spearhead gulped loudly. “But—”

“But nothing! I don’t want to hear another word about ‘Kamen Riders’ unless it’s to tell me you have them both in cuffs! Understand?”

Reluctantly, Spearhead nodded his head, gripping his scarf tightly like a security blanket. Nearby forensic investigators went right back to work, lest they find themselves on the receiving end of Shining’s anger. Without another word, Shining Armor stomped off back to his cruiser to report to headquarters.

***

“Freedom!” Scootaloo shouted as she blitzed down the front steps of Canterlot High on her scooter. “First one to the field is a rotten egg!” she shouted over her shoulder as she took off, leaving her fellow Crusaders in the dust.

“Scootaloo!” Sweetie Belle huffed as she took chase after the daredevil.

Apple Bloom was about to chase after her as well but stopped when she noticed a figure sitting solemnly against the side of the school. Sparing one more glance at her friends, Apple Bloom turned and walked towards the figure. “Hey, Diamond Tiara...”

Diamond Tiara glanced up, scowling at Apple Bloom. “What do you want? Come to gloat?”

“I… I just wanted to see if you were alright.” Apple Bloom muttered, sitting down next to Diamond Tiara. “I… I heard what happened to your parents…”

“I’m not surprised,” Diamond Tiara muttered dismissively, refusing to even glance at Apple Bloom. “I’m sure the whole school knows by now how awful my mother was and what she did to Father and me…” She drew her legs up to her chest as she buried her face in her knees.

An awkward silence began to settle over them. Coughing, Apple Bloom asked, “How’s your dad? I heard he was in the hospital.”

“He’s alright,” Diamond Tiara replied after a moment, raising her head slightly. “The doctor’s said his injuries weren’t that serious, so they released him. Right now he’s busy doing damage control after everything that’s happened.”

“That’s good,” Apple Bloom replied, her smile disappearing when Diamond Tiara didn’t respond back. After a moment, Apple Bloom stood back up, holding her hands behind her back. “So… me and the other Crusaders were thinkin’ about headin’ out to the field for a game.”

“And this concerns me how?” Diamond Tiara bitterly replied.

“And I was wonderin’g if ya’ll wouldn’t mind joinin’ us?” Turning back around, Apple Bloom smiled. “We could always use another player.”

Diamond Tiara felt her heart leap into her throat, a horde of butterflies fluttering around in her stomach as she glanced away. “You… you really let me join? No joking?”

“Yep!” Still grinning, Apple Bloom extended her hand out to Diamond Tiara. “Come on, it’ll be fun!”

Diamond Tiara sat petrified as she stared wide-eyed at Apple Bloom’s outstretched hand. Glancing up, she studied Apple Bloom’s face for even a glimmer of deceit or dishonesty, only to find none. A sliver of a smile poked at the edge of her lips as she reached up and grabbed Apple Bloom’s hand with her own. “I… I’d like that…”

***

Case Report: Quetzalcoatlus Dopant

Looking back over previous cases, I don’t think I’ve ever been more relieved to see it finally come to an end than I was with this one. This Dopant was a league above anything we’ve faced before, and yet I can’t help but feel that this won’t be last time we encounter something like this. Knowing that though, I know for certain we’ll be much better prepared next time one shows up.

After everything she’s done, Spoiled Milk will undoubtedly face heavy charges, but that might not be for some time as she’s been unconscious ever since her fight against Unicorn, possibly due to feedback from the destruction of the Quetzalcoatlus Memory. Despite everything, though, I can’t help but wish that when she does wake up she receives the proper medical help she deserves.

Moving on to good news, the Judge, unsurprisingly, ruled overwhelmingly in Filthy Rich’s favour, granting him full custody of his daughter. From what Applejack has told me, Diamond Tiara seems to be doing much better now that she’s been freed from her mother’s influence, even making friends with Apple Bloom and her friends. So happy endings all around!

I’ve witnessed first hand how Gaia Memories can twist even the noblest of people into something dark, but Spoiled Milk proves yet again that they’re the most dangerous when in the hands of someone who has no qualms about abusing such power for their own ends.

A sharp whistle reached Twilight’s ears, making her blink as a can of pop was held between her and her laptop screen. Glancing up, she smiled as she took the can from Sunset. “Thanks.”

“No problem.” Popping the tab on her own can, Sunset flopped down onto her couch and took a quick sip. The two of them were relaxing in Sunset’s loft, which was a much-needed reprieve after the chaotic madness of the last few days. “Almost done your report?”

“Almost. Actually…” Closing her laptop, Twilight set it aside as she looked over at Sunset. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask. It’s about that form you achieved by combining the powers of the Unicorn and Nasca Memories together.”

“You mean Nasca Cross?”

“Yeah. I didn’t even know you could perform a Mimetic Drive with the Nasca Memory, though in hindsight it does make a certain kind of sense.” Sparing a moment to take a sip of pop, she added, “However, I seem to recall you mentioning how it was different from your previous forms?”

“That’s because I wasn’t alone this time. I had Dash with me in spirit the whole time, quite literally in fact.” Setting her pop can on the coffee table, Sunset leaned back against the couch. “Thinking about it, I guess it’s similar to how you access the Infinite Library, though Dash’s consciousness didn’t just leave her body, it went into the Nasca Memory and then transferred to me when I activated it.”

“Really? What was that like?” Twilight eagerly asked, her eyes taking on an analytical look. “Having two people sharing a body like that?”

“It was—” Sunset was interrupted by an abrupt knock on her door. “Hmm? Now who could that be?” Getting up, Sunset walked over to the door and peered through the peephole. Gasping, she threw the door open, staring wide-eyed at the person standing on the other side. “Rainbow Dash?!”

“What, were you expecting Daring Do?” Rainbow Dash replied with a cheeky grin.

“Shouldn’t you still be in the hospital?” Sunset asked as she looked Rainbow up and down. The rainbow-haired girl still looked like she’d been put through the ringer, with gauze still wrapped around both her forearms and a few bandages stuck to her face, all while balancing on a pair of crutches due to the protective brace on her right leg and foot.

“Hey, give me some credit!” Rainbow replied, jabbing a finger against Sunset’s chest. “I may not be some kind of magical otherworldly pony like you, but I’ve got my own ‘Friendship Magic’ too! Sides, I’ve been through worse. The docs said as long as I don’t do anything too strenuous, I should be back on my feet in a couple of weeks.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“So… ya gonna let me in or not?”

“Oh! Sorry!” Blushing slightly, Sunset stepped aside to let Rainbow hobble inside before closing the door behind her and walking back to the couch.

“Rainbow!” Twilight’s eyes seemed to sparkle at the sight of the rainbow-haired girl. “You’re just in time!”

“Uh… hi, Twilight,” Rainbow greeted, looking almost worried as she asked, “In time for what?”

“Well, I was asking Sunset about the nature of the form you used to defeat Spoiled Rich, and your input could prove very useful.”

“Sure!” Making her way around the couch to the other side, Rainbow sat down next to Twilight. Setting her crutches aside, she asked, “What ya want to know?”

“Well, Sunset was just about to tell me what it was like, having two people sharing the same body.”

“It was weird,” Rainbow and Sunset both replied in unison, sharing a quick glance before Rainbow shouted, “Jinx! I’ll be taking that!” Snagging Sunset’s abandoned can of pop, she quickly chugged it down, ignoring Sunset’s pointed glare. Smacking her lips, Rainbow held up a finger for a moment before letting loose a loud belch. “Ah, that hit the spot. But seriously, it was pretty surreal sharing a body like that. I didn’t think about it much since we were a little busy at the time, but it certainly felt like I wasn’t in my own body at the time. What’s that thing where people feel like their soul leaves their body for a bit?”

“Out of body experience?” Twilight replied.

“Yeah, that’s it. Gotta say, as sweet as it was to kick that turkey’s butt together like that, I kinda hope we don’t have to do that again if we can help it.”

“That makes two of us, then,” Sunset interjected, flopping back onto the couch after going to grab another can of pop from the fridge. “No offense, Rainbow, but having you in my head like that was creepy. Just the way I could hear your voice like you were standing right next to me, or how I just knew how to use your sword and all of Nasca’s abilities…” Shaking her head, Sunset held her can up as she met Rainbow’s eyes. “Here’s to not having to do that again?”

“Here, here!” Knocking her own can against Sunset’s, the pair took a long sip. In perfect unison, the pair loudly belched before breaking out into shared laughter.

Twilight sighed, looking a touch disappointed. “Are you sure you two couldn’t do it again? Just once? Just think about the data I could get if you let me—” Pausing, Twilight glanced down. “I’ll… be right back.” Shooting to her feet, Twilight bolted for the bathroom.

Rainbow chuckled as the door to the bathroom slammed shut. Scooting closer to Sunset, Rainbow threw her arm over Sunset’s shoulders, a devilish grin slowly spreading across her lips. “Sooo…”

“So…?” Sunset echoed, eying Rainbow suspiciously out of the corner of her eye as she took a drink from her can of pop.

“When are you going to ask Twilight out already?”

Sunset sputtered, gagging as pop went down her windpipe and up her nose. After taking a moment to clear her airways, she whipped around to glare at Rainbow. “Wh—What!? I don’t—”

“Oh, no!” Rainbow cut her off, her grin only widening. “You ain’t fooling me anymore. See, while I was in that head of yours, I couldn’t help but pick up on a few things. Most of them weren’t anything new, but one thing I did see loud and clear was your little crush on a certain egghead. It’s the glasses, isn’t it? You’ve got a thing for girls with glasses, don’t you?”

“Wha—No!” Sunset replied as she pulled away from Rainbow Dash. “That’s not it!”

“So you just have a thing for smart girls then, right?” Rainbow Dash said. “Or are you just a really big fan of purple?”

“No, I— You’ve got it all wrong!” Sunset sputtered, staring wide-eyed at the still grinning Rainbow. “Twilight and me are friends! Just friends!”

Rainbow raised an eyebrow, the grin still plastered across her face making it clear she wasn’t buying it one bit. “‘Just friends’, huh? Well then…” Grabbing her crutches and standing up, she waited for Sunset to raise her can to her lips before asking, “So you don’t mind if I ask Twilight out on a date then?”

Unsurprisingly, Sunset once more had to endure pop shooting up her nose. “What!?” She shouted, glowering at Rainbow Dash.

“What? It’s not my fault Twilight’s cute in that adorably nerdy way. And since you two are ‘Just friends’, that means you shouldn’t have a problem with me asking her out, right? Oh, won’t Twilight be surprised when I tell her all about your little crush on her!”

“Don’t. You. Dare.” Sunset hissed through clenched teeth, gripping her can of pop tight enough to risk crushing it.

“Calm down, I know when to keep my mouth shut. Course…” Glancing over her shoulder at Sunset, Rainbow’s grin seemed to only widen, if that was even possible. “... you’ll have to catch me first!” Laughing, Rainbow Dash took off.

“Rainbow Dash, get back here!” Sunset shouted, leaping to her feet and taking off after her friend.

“Sorry about that!” Twilight said as she exited the bathroom. “Now, where were—” Twilight stopped, blinking at the sight that greeted her. Sunset and Rainbow Dash were running around and around the room in a big circle like two characters out of a cartoon as Sunset desperately tried to catch a madly cackling Rainbow Dash. Even hobbling on crutches though, Rainbow was still managing to outpace Sunset at every turn.

“Run, run, as fast as you can! Can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread M—”

“Hold still so I can strangle you!”

Twilight blinked again, snapping her jaw shut. “Uhhh… did I miss something?”

Comments

[KR Chrome]

I have a question. How likely is it for Shining Armor to become a Kamen Rider to go after Nazca and Unicorn? Also, what would he do if he learns Twilight was involved?

[Ze1a7in]

From the roof of a nearby building, Kamen Rider Equal observed the scene with disinterest.“So… it took them combining their powers to take down that weakling?Pathetic.”Scoffing, she turned her back to the scene and began to walk away.“Seems I was right in letting them hold onto the Memories for me. Once I’ve located the remaining Memories, retrieving the rest will be child’s play.

Yeah, like you could do better. Didn't your people label the Quetzalcoatlus Memory "too unstable for use"?

I know this isn't canon to the main story, but Celestia damn-it, it should be!

[Ze1a7in]

8667068
You would have to ask this guy/girl about that, as they are the one writing the main story.

[DragonxFlutter]

THAT was fun. And I hope that at least this HBV is canon to the main fic, because it'd be AWESOME to see Nazca Cross again.

8667068
You'd have to ask the original fic author that question.

[Hopelight]

Regardless of how 'non-canon' you think this is, I am dead certain Michael_Ravencroft will make multiple callbacks to this, thus proving its true canonical nature.

[the other sans]

Time to bale?Rainbow asked

1. Bail.

Oh Sunset, if you thought sharing minds with Rainbow was hard for a moment you should meet your predecessor. Or rather, have Twilight look up Karen Rider Double if she can... To which I think it should be since canon Accel memory had a little shout out to the previous user.

[Shifter489]

8710554
A dopant.

[DavisSentoV5]

Took awhile to binge read, but it was worth it & just in time before the finale of the main story arc too.