Consonance and Dissonance

by applezombi

Chapter 10

“Ma’am, please get back in your vehicle,” they heard Shining say. Twilight felt herself tense up.

“Do you have a back door?” Sunset whispered. Sonata shook her head.

“That bitch is in there with my sister!” the first voice shrieked. “I saw her car last night! Get your preppy little ass out here, Sparkle bitch, so I can give you what you deserve!”

“Ma’am, I have to advise you to shut your mouth and get back into your vehicle. If you make threats in front of me…”

“I don’t give a fuck what you think, pig! Tell that Sparkle bitch to get out here so I can show her what happens to people who mess with Sirens!”

“Ma’am, you’ve just made a threat of physical violence in front of a police officer. Please turn around and put your hands on the hood of the car.”

“The fuck I’m going to do that, cop! Get out of my way!”

Twilight was standing between Sonata and the door. She was glancing between Sonata, Sunset, and Pinkie, her anxiety spiking. She needed to keep them all safe at the same time, but how?

“Ma’am, if you don’t turn around and put your hands on your car, I’m going to taze you.”

“You wouldn’t dare, bastard. You’re just a small dick cop who thinks…” she cut off with a scream of pain, and the girls inside heard a thud.

“Stay down, Miss Blaze,” Shining said, sounding shaken. “I’m going to cuff you now.”

“The fuck you are,” Aria shot back. There was a rasp of pain in her voice, but there was more than that. Something sinister, something terrifying. Twilight remembered the odd other worldly echo in Gloriosa Daisy’s voice, after she transformed. There was a loud thud and a male grunt of pain, and the front door of the trailer buckled under some sort of pressure. It was dented inwardly, and all four of the girls turned to stare in horror.

“The stupid pig’s out of the way now,” Aria called towards the door. Her voice was wrong. It cracked and broke, screeching through octaves and skipping like a needle on a DJ’s turntable. It grated on Twilight’s ears. “You can come out, Sonata. You don’t need that Sparkle slut any more. I found a way to get our magic back.” Her voice reminded Twilight of a small, angry child taking a hammer to the keys of a piano. Dissonant, discordant, ugly, and terrifying. Then she heard Sonata whimpering in fear.

Midnight Sparkle tore her way out of Twilight, and she launched towards the door on black wings.

* * * * *

About three weeks ago, Sunset had snuck through the portal for a quick Saturday picnic with Princess Twilight. It was the day that Sunset discovered that her Princess girlfriend was close friends with an aggravating but fun-loving chaos spirit. She also discovered how quickly a situation could go from obsessively organized and checklisted to complete and utter insanity. She remembered the date quite fondly, and had even afterwards expressed an interest in forming a closer friendship with said chaos spirit, including exchanging letters. She didn’t think she would remember this day quite as fondly, though once again, things had gone from organized and sane to complete mayhem in a matter of heartbeats.

Sunset managed to shove Pinkie onto the couch and cover her with her body right as the front door ripped completely off its hinges. At the same time, a bolt of pure magical force, blue in color, blasted through the open door. Something large and red was trying to enter. There was a blast of light as blue met red, and an explosion of sound and energy that pushed the couch against the wall of the trailer. Sunset heard howling of fury and rage.

When the dust cleared, the Dazzling’s kitchen and living room was completely destroyed. Bits of shattered electronics, broken glass, twisted metal, and even snack foods and spoiled vegetables from the spilled open fridge and cupboards. The roof of the trailer was intact, though broken; it looked like a can of food that had been half opened, then the still-attached metal lid was peeled back. A large gash, starting at the door, extended several feet on either side. Just outside the door floated Twilight Sparkle. She spoke to Sunset in a voice twisted by the magic that seeped from her.

“Keep them safe, Sunset,” Midnight Sparkle commanded her. “I’ll take care of this monster.”

“Twilight!” Sunset shouted, and the creature that was her friend hesitated. “What about your brother?”

“I said ‘keep them safe, Sunset’,” Midnight Sparkle sounded a bit annoyed. “He’s just outside the door.”

“Okay,” Sunset said, trying to sound more confident than she felt. Just last week, in her first aid class, she’d asked the instructor Swift Siren, a former EMT, how she dealt with panic.

“I take three deep, slow breaths. I count to ten, thee counts for each breath, then one extra. It slows down time, gives me a chance to prioritize. Once I’m done, the distractions and extraneous details kinda fade into the background, and I can focus on what I’m doing.”

Okay. One breath in, (one, two) then out (three). The trailer was destroyed, there was sharp glass and debris everywhere, and a mad siren who claimed to have magic was shrieking outside the trailer. Second breath in, (four, five) then out (six). Pinkie was on the couch, underneath her, panting with pain. Sonata was in the corner of what was left of the living room, shaking with fear. There was blood from a dozen cuts on her arms and face. Third breath in (seven, eight) and out (nine). Shining Armor was outside, injured and maybe unconscious, and the crazed magical nightmare that may or may not be her ally had sternly tasked her with protecting him. (Ten.) Okay.

“I’ve got this,” Sunset said out loud. Pinkie nodded, her face twisted with pain.

“Go see to Sonata first,” Pinkie whispered. “I’m hurt, but I’m fine.” Sunset picked through the wreckage the few feet over to where Sonata was crouching. She gently touched the girl on the shoulder.

“Sonata? Are you okay?” Sunset said, trying to make her voice as soothing as possible. Sonata flinched away from the contact, but then opened her eyes.

“Um, yeah,” Sonata whispered, wiping blood out of her eyes. “What do we do?”

“Stay close to Pinkie. Stay inside if you can. Pinkie? Call the girls, see how fast they can get here. Especially Dash. Don’t put yourself in harm’s way. I’m going to try and see how Officer Armor’s doing.” Sunset stood up, and stepped towards the door.

“Wait!” Pinkie called out. Sunset froze. “I need those.” She pointed at a pink and white bag full of frosted cookies, cut into the shapes of circus animals. It had spilled out of a cupboard and lay within the wreckage of the kitchen.

“Pinkie, this is absolutely the worst time to be snacking,” Sunset groaned.

“But… they have sprinkles!” Pinkie protested. Suddenly Sunset understood.

“Oh, right. You can use your magic to turn them into little explosives. Good thinking, Pinkie,” Sunset said, snagging the bag on the way and tossing it to Pinkie.

“Oh, yeah, that too,” Pinkie agreed, sounding surprised. Sunset nearly tripped. Really, she shouldn’t have been surprised. It was Pinkie Pie. Cautiously, she made her way through the debris towards the door to poke her head outside and see what was going on. The sheer volume of mayhem nearly sent her back inside the trailer.

Twilight’s car was on its side. The clean paint was scorched with black burn marks, and smoke rose from behind it. Officer Armor’s squad car was crushed, the hood smashed down and glass sprayed everywhere. There was a third car, presumably Aria’s. Sunset could see the third sister, Adagio, inside the car. Her eyes were closed, and her head was slumped to the side. The car was upright but there were gouges in the weed-covered ground where something powerful had slid the car sideways. She couldn’t see any wounds on the eldest Dazzling, so Sunset couldn’t worry too much about her just yet. She instead concerned herself with Aria and Twilight, or rather, Midnight. Sunset had been expecting an exchange of magical blasts, much like she’d shared herself with Midnight Sparkle when infused with an overdose of magic herself. What she saw was both surprising and gruesome. Midnight Sparkle was, indeed, blasting at Aria with her blue magic. Aria, however, was responding with her voice.

Aria was taller than Sunset remembered, but that wasn’t too surprising. Like Gloriosa Daisy and Juniper Montage before her, Aria was clearly suffering from corrupted Equestrian magic. She’d gained a foot in height. Her hair, once full and bouncy in her twin pigtails, was unbound, hanging limp and oily about her face. But the worst part was the shards of her amulet. Sunset remembered the bottle that contained Adagio’s that used to be sitting in the trailer. Aria was covered with the shards. They sprung from every part of her body, piercing through her skin in a frightening display. There were so many more than should have come from a single amulet. Long shards jutted from Aria’s fingertips and toe tips, piercing through her shoes and forming gruesome talons. Another giant shard jutted from her forehead in a grotesque parody of a unicorn’s horn. Sunset’s stomach churned as she realized the shards, piercing through Aria’s skin, were the same color as blood. Around Aria’s neck, on a thin leather cord, was a bottle just like the one inside. Crystal shards, growing from the back of the bottle, impaled into Aria’s chest through her shredded shirt.

Every time Aria opened her mouth, a screech of sound shot out that tore through Sunset’s ears and stabbed at her brain. It was like the dissonant, broken singing the Sirens had done after their amulets had broken, but a billion times worse, and much louder. Like a harpy, Aria shrieked her voice at Midnight Sparkle like a physical attack; indeed, Sunset could actually see the sound waves like a physical presence, ripping through the air and pushing at dirt, dust, and debris like a wind. Midnight Sparkle couldn’t even dodge; the sound was unavoidable. With every shriek, the dark avatar of Twilight’s inner demons cringed and shuddered with pain. That didn’t mean that Midnight was on the ropes, however. She gave as good as she got, firing back with blasts of magic from her clenched fists. Aria was trying to dodge the blasts, because she had no counter for them except to get out of the way.

Sunset was lucky that she heard a small moan of pain coming from right next to the door of the trailer. Watching the two mystical combatants almost made her forget why she’d come outside. She glanced over at Shining Armor, slumped against the side of the trailer. His eyes were closed, and his face was clenched with pain. There was a small smear of blood on the side of the trailer next to a dent where his head had impacted.

“Okay, Sunset,” she said to herself. “Number one rule of head injury. Don’t move the person unless there’s a risk of more injury.” Aria shrieked again, and a spike of pain shot through Sunset’s head as she was pushed to the side. “There is a risk of more injury. If you have to move the person, stabilize the head and neck as much as possible. Sorry, Officer Armor. I’m gonna do my best here.”

“I trust you,” Shining Armor whispered, and Sunset jumped. “If it helps, I don’t think my neck is broken.”

“I thought you were unconscious,” Sunset accused, and Shining let out a shaky laugh.

“Sorry to disappoint,” he said. “How’s my sister doing?”

“Scary. Let’s get you inside. Can you stand up?” Sunset asked.

“I’ll try.”

Sunset steadied Shining Armor’s head and neck as best she could as she struggled to get him inside the trailer. He did his best to help, but it was clear he was badly injured. The back of his head was matted with blood, and he limped badly as Sunset helped him up the stairs and through the broken door. Pinkie gasped when she saw them, but Sonata was quick to leap to her feet to help them to the couch.

“Keep his head and neck straight,” Sunset ordered, and Sonata nodded. Pinkie vacated the couch, and between the two girls they were able to maneuver Shining Armor onto the couch.

“Radio at my belt,” he whispered. “Have to call for help, backup.”

“No offence, Officer Armor, but we have backup on the way. Our kind of backup,” Pinkie said. Shining tried to shake his head but winced in pain.

“Going to need EMT. And you can’t handle everything with magic.” Silently Sunset agreed with him. She found the radio at his belt and pressed it into his hand.

“Try convincing your sister of that,” she muttered. Shining barely lifted the radio to his mouth.

“Dispatch, this is Officer Armor. Code Wondercolt, grade three. Multiple injuries, one officer down. Um…”

“Officer Armor, what is your location?” the radio called back. Officer Armor groaned in pain. Frantically Sunset picked up the radio, and pushed down the button she’d seen him push.

“Hello? Officer Armor is injured. The location is a trailer park. Um, White Pine Woods trailer park.”

“Ma’am? We need a house number.”

“Um, I don’t know, and I don’t want to go outside and check,” Sunset said.

“Is Officer Armor able to communicate?”

“Uh, no. Negative,” Sunset felt terrified and completely awkward. She glanced at Shining Armor. “He’s had a head injury. Some bleeding, maybe a skull fracture. He’s probably concussed; he’s fading in and out of consciousness.”

“Are you medically trained?”

“No ma’am,” Sunset said. “Just taking a first aid class in my free time. I’m just a high school kid.” Never before had she felt more out of her depth. Sure, there was a magic fight going on outside. But Sunset bore the magic of friendship; a magic that relied on the close presence of her friends. She was sure they were on their way, but it would take time.

“What is your name, young lady?” the dispatch woman asked.

“Um, Sunset Shimmer.”

“You’re doing just fine, Sunset Shimmer. Keep Officer Armor as still as possible, and try not to move his head. What can you tell me about what’s happening? Officer Armor said Code Wondercolt, so there’s some sort of magical disturbance?” It was oddly reassuring that the Canterlot PD had a code word for magical disturbance.

“Yes, ma’am,” Sunset said.

“What can you tell me about what’s going on?”

“One of my friends is fighting against a monster,” Sunset summed up. “The monster was my other friend’s abusive sister. She and my friend are exchanging magical blasts, and generally trying to kill each other, though it looks like my friend is trying to keep things localized.”

“Officers are on their way to establish a perimeter and evacuate civilians,” the dispatch woman said. “As well as EMT. Sunset, your job is to stay out of harm’s way. This isn’t your fight,”

“Sorry, ma’am, but it kinda is,” Sunset said. Something slammed into the side of the trailer, making the entire thing rock. “Sorry, I gotta go.” She jumped to her feet. “Pinkie, you can talk to the dispatch lady if you like,” Sunset said, while the woman on the other end of the radio shouted for Sunset to come back. “Stay safe.” Before she could think better of it, she ran outside.

Midnight Sparkle was struggling. Blood was leaking out of one ear, and she had a nosebleed. One arm hung limp, the flesh near her shoulder shredded into strips like claws. Midnight was panting, standing on the ground instead of floating, and leaning against a new dent in the trailer. Several of her feathers were bent or broken.

“Help’s on the way,” Sunset said to her friend. She hoped it was her friend. “EMTs for your brother and Sonata. They’re fine, but this needs to end so they can get help.” Midnight nodded.

“I will end it then, Sunset,” the demonic avatar snarled.

“You make it sound so easy,” Aria snarled. She was floating herself, hovering above the street with her clawed arms outstretched.

“Maybe I’ve just been toying with you, monster,” Midnight shot back with clear false bravado.

“I’m the monster? Look in a mirror, you hypocritical bitch,” Aria said, cackling. “I’m gonna end you, Sparkle slut.” She raised her voice, calling into the trailer. “Hey, Sonata! Come out here and watch me kick your girlfriend’s ass!”

Sunset didn’t hear if there was a reaction from inside the trailer, but Midnight Sparkle clearly heard and reacted. With a snarl, she launched off the trailer into the air, her wings pounding behind her and her hand clutched forward like talons. Orbs of blue magic crackled and swirled, and Midnight Sparkle hurled them like grenades. Aria swiped at them with her clawed hands, but they exploded on impact, tossing her down and into the dirt. Midnight Sparkle gave her no time to get up, sending blast after blast of violent magic at the downed creature.

Aria cried out in pain and fury with each impact, but from what Sunset could see, Midnight was making no headway in defeating the giant rage monster. Aria lunged too her feet, looking furious but not terribly injured. She jumped at Midnight, slashing with her claws like a cat. Midnight fended her off with magical shields, but her reflexes were not as quick as Aria’s. It became apparent that Midnight was losing the fight when small scratches, tears in Midnight’s ethereal gown, began to appear, seeping blood. Sunset watched with her heart pounding. Midnight seemed to realize as well that she couldn’t keep fending off Aria forever. With a grunt of effort, she unleashed a blast of spherical magic that extended around her body, pushing the monster away and leaving Midnight to stumble to the ground, panting with exertion.

“Any time you want to grow wings and help out, Shimmer, would be rather convenient,” Midnight snarled at her, out of breath.

“I want to,” Sunset said, reaching for as much of her magic as she could. “Before, it was because of all the magic you’d gathered, or because all of us were there. I can’t just…”

“That’s super convenient,” Midnight snarked, cutting her off. “Do try to come up with something useful, though?”

“I’m working on it!” Sunset said desperately. Aria rose to her feet again, looking completely uninjured. Sunset was beginning to seriously consider going inside for Officer Armor’s sidearm, even though she realized conventional weaponry was probably pointless against a monster like Aria. “Aria, please, calm down! You don’t need to do this!” Sunset pleaded. Aria laughed, and even Midnight looked at her askance.

“Really? You’re going to try magic of friendship crap right now?” Midnight asked.

“It worked on you,” Sunset said, Midnight rolled her eyes as she sent another barrage of blasts at her opponent.

“Only because you’d fought me to a stalemate first!” Midnight said. “If you hadn’t noticed…”

“We done here?” Aria interrupted. “Cuz I’m getting pissed that you’re still breathing.” Aria reached over to Twilight’s car, her claws sinking into the metal with a screech. Aria’s magically enhanced body bulged with muscle as she lifted the vehicle. “This your car, Sparkle bitch? I hope your premiums are paid up. I don’t think you’ll be driving it away from here.” Her muscles tensed to throw, and Midnight’s hands glowed with magic, preparing a shield spell that would blast the car away. But then, with a victorious smirk, Aria threw the car not at Midnight, but at Sunset Shimmer and the trailer.

“No!” Midnight shrieked in rage and surprise. She managed just the beginnings of a shield spell as she plowed her entire body sideways into the car, stopping the deadly missile with her own body a mere split second before it smashed lethally into Sunset’s fragile human body. There was a loud crash and an ear-stabbing screech of metal and breaking glass, and Midnight Sparkle was down, slumped on the ground, twitching with a pained moan. Her wings quivered as she tried to rise. Sunset stepped in front of her, arms outspread wide.

“Oh, man, this is so fun,” Aria crowed. “I get to tear apart the Sparkle bitch, then I get to tear you apart bit by bit.” The monster advanced slowly across the scarred and smoking battlefield. Sunset’s heart pounded as she stood between Aria and Midnight. She heard motion at the door behind her, but she couldn’t turn to look.

“Take that!” Pinkie squeaked, and a small, pink something lobbed out and struck Aria in the face with a small explosion of pink smoke and color. Sunset took a second to glance behind her. Pinkie was leaning against the twisted door frame, her face clenched with pain. One hand clutched the wrinkled plastic bag of cookies, while the other snatched handfuls of cookies and hurled them at Aria. “And those! Those too! And also some of this!” The explosions weren’t hurting Aria, but they were distracting her; the monster was slowing down, swatting at the cookies with an annoyed expression on her face. “How dare you make me waste perfectly good sweets!”

“You’re just… delaying… the inevitable,” Aria growled. Pinkie reached into her bag and came up empty handed. “Besides… those are my cookies!” With a yelp of terror, Pinkie magically energized the crumbs and sprinkles in the bottom of the bag and hurled the whole thing at Aria. This explosion was the biggest by far, and it occupied Aria for a whole four seconds as she coughed and sputtered, waving a clawed hand to clear the smoke. “It’s over, little Rainbooms. Give up and die. Her clawed hand lashed out, and Sunset clenched her eyes shut. Instead of the pain of laceration, however, Sunset found herself being lifted up as powerful claws wrapped around her neck.

“I never guessed, before, how much fun it could be to choke somebody,” Aria hissed right in Sunset’s face. Sunset’s hands clawed at Aria’s as the latter cut off the former’s breath. Sunset gurgled, desperately trying to squeeze in the tiniest bit of air as she desperately pulled at Aria’s clawed hand. Her feet were nearly a foot off the ground. As she touched Aria’s hand, her magic activated involuntarily, showing her glimpses of the tortured life before her.

Aria, furious and heartbroken at the loss of her magic.

Aria, terrified and confused and adrift when Adagio failed to lead.

Aria, angry and frustrated when nothing she did seemed to help.

Aria, jealous and confused when her little sister looked outside the family for help.

Aria, enraged and betrayed as she watched Sonata kissing Twilight.

“Aria,” Sunset heard a gentle voice. She barely managed to open her eyes. Her head was pounding, her lungs screaming for air. “Aria,” the voice repeated again. It was Sonata. Sonata had come out of the trailer. Smears of dried blood covered her face and arms. She was standing next to Aria and Sunset, looking up at both of them.

“So you’re going to join me? Good! I know how to get your magic back, Sonata! We can be Sirens again. It can all go back to the way it was before, no trailer parks, no getting fired, no job hunts, no alcohol! We can be a family again!” Aria’s voice was heartbreaking, and even Sunset felt a wave of pity at the very monster that was strangling her.

“Of course, Aria,” Sonata said gently, reaching up at her sister. It looked like she was reaching for a caress. Sunset wanted to scream. Then Sonata’s fingers found the amulet around Aria’s neck, the amulet made of broken shards and broken dreams. She wrapped her hand around it, wincing as the razor sharp shards of glass cut into her hand. Sunset thought she saw one shard long enough to impale all the way through Sonata’s hand. Then, with a mighty pull, Sonata leaned away from her sister and yanked on the amulet. There was a sound of tinkling, breaking glass, and the monstrous jewelry broke away from where it had fused with Aria’s chest. It was still connected by the leather strap around Aria’s neck. “Now, Twilight!” Sonata pleaded, and from the corner of Sunset’s fading eyesight she saw Midnight Sparkle, raising a shaky hand for one last stuttering blast. Aria shrieked with rage, sending them all clutching their ears in pain, but it was too late. The blue magic severed the cord and Sonata pulled the amulet free, tossing it to the ground with a mighty hurl. It shattered into a billion tiny shards, leaving behind only one long, narrow splinter that pierced Sonata’s palm. Aria dropped Sunset to the ground, and Sunset gasped, filling her lungs with precious air even as she ignored the pain of impact in her knees and palms from where they’d hit the debris-strewn ground. Idly she thought she could hear something different in the distance, something that sounded like a Siren wailing…

No, wait.

It wasn’t a Siren. It was a siren. An ambulance siren.

It was Sunset’s last thought as she blacked out.

* * * * *

Sunset awoke to a gaggle of voices, most of them concerned and familiar. Her eyelids weren’t open yet, but she could see the flashes of light that meant dozens of police cars, or perhaps ambulances. Her head hurt, her neck hurt, even her knees and hands hurt. With a groan, she tried to rub her head.

“Woah there, young lady. You’re going to want to not move as much as possible, okay?” said an unfamiliar voice.

“Who…”

“We’re getting you strapped into an ambulance bed, okay? You’re completely safe now. All your friends are safe. Everything’s fine, okay?” Sunset found herself irrationally annoyed that whoever this was speaking with her seemed to end every sentence in an interrogative. That might have been the possible concussion talking, though.

“Hey, is Sunset awake?” she heard Rainbow Dash call out. Sunset tried to open her eyes, winced in pain, and closed them again.

“Dash?” she called out weakly, and felt somebody holding her hand very suddenly.

“Yup, I’m here. Didn’t make it fast enough, though,” Dash said, sounding cranky. Sunset laughed, then stopped herself with a painful cough. “You guys had the whole thing wrapped up before I could finish rounding everybody up. What gives, Sunset? We’re supposed to be a team!” She could hear the teasing in Rainbow Dash’s voice, but decided to answer the jibe anyways.

“Didn’t… have time. Too busy getting choked out, I guess.” Sunset said. “How is everypony?” She realized her mistake as soon as she said it, but didn’t care. She supposed she would still sometimes lapse into ponyisms when under extreme stress.

“Aria’s cuffed in the back of a police car. Officer Armor’s already being rushed to the emergency room. The other siren, Adagio, is on her way to the hospital too. Alcohol poisoning. The EMTs want to take Twilight and Sonata to the emergency room as well, but Twilight’s being a little Midnighty and irrational and won’t let go of her girlfriend.” There was a reluctant sort of approval in Dash’s voice. “Pinkie, oddly enough, is the least injured of all of you. She told me the whole story.” Dash paused. “Did you really try to protect Twilight from that monster with nothing more than your body? Pretty dumb, Sunny. But awesome.”

“Thanks Dash,” Sunset said, trying not to laugh again. “Um, Mister EMT guy?”

“Yes, ma’am?” said the voice she didn’t recognize.

“My friend is giving you trouble about getting into the ambulance?”

“Yes, but we’re not upset about it, right? We completely understand. Your friend’s in shock, okay? Plus, there’s magic stuff going on that nobody really understands or wants to think about, and there’s some lady walking around with some scary looking government badge making everybody nervous, though she’s mostly staying out of things. If you know some way of convincing your friend to stop intimidating my EMTs and get on an ambulance, that might be helpful, okay?”

“Yeah. Dash, get Midnight’s attention, please?” Sunset asked. It was agony to sit up in the ambulance stretcher and open her eyes, but her friends needed medical attention. What she saw was a kind of organized chaos. There were a dozen EMT and police officers milling about. Sonata was curled up in Midnight Sparkle’s arms. Midnight, obviously, had not transformed back yet. She sat on the ground, one arm limp and bloody, the other curled protectively around Sonata, and she snarled demonically at everybody who dared approach. Three different EMTs were trying to approach with various bandages and first aid supplies, but there was a line of scorch marks in the dirt in front of the two girls that none of the EMTs seemed willing to cross.

“Yo, Twilight!” Dash called, and Midnight looked their way. Dash pointed at Sunset.

“It’s over, Twilight. She’s safe,” Sunset called, pain lancing through her skull. Every muscle in her back and arms hurt as well. “She needs medical attention now. Those cuts need to be looked at. Please. It’s what’s best for her.” For a brief moment, when Midnight’s eyes locked with Sunset, there was an unspoken message passed. A threat, and a promise. Then Midnight closed her eyes, and with a flash, it was an exhausted looking Twilight Sparkle cradling Sonata Dusk in her arms. With only a brief second of hesitation, the three brave EMTs closed in and began coaxing the two girls into the same ambulance. Sunset looked at the EMT she’d been talking to.

“It may help save you a lot of trouble if you make sure those two ride in the same ambulance,” Sunset suggested, and the EMT nodded, still staring at the magical transforming girl in shock and awe. Dash stayed by Sunset’s side, watching as the EMT went off to make sure Sonata and Twilight would be riding together.

“I totally lied and said I was your sister so I could ride in the ambulance with you,” Dash admitted casually, and Sunset snorted. “So, how useful were your first aid classes?”

“Honestly?” Sunset said. “Not much, I guess.” She thought about it a little more. “I guess what did help was the training for how to act when you’re helpless. I didn’t freeze up or freak out, even though my magic wasn’t any help at all.”

“Yeah, that’s pretty much how Pinkie tells it,” Dash said. “She thinks you’re pretty awesome, too.” Somebody was walking up to the two of them. A stunning young woman, probably early twenties, with long silvery hair, wearing a very businesslike black suit.

“Miss Sunset Shimmer? Hi. I’m Agent Lyrica Oracle, FBI,” she said. Her voice was confident and musical. Dash immediately jumped in between them.

“Oh, no. I’m not letting some suit go all ‘Men In Black’ on one of my best friends,” Rainbow demanded. Agent Oracle looked surprised, then laughed gently.

“So loyal, so quick to defend you. You have good friends, Miss Shimmer. But please, relax. I don’t want you to worry at all. I just want to know one thing, for now.” The agent looked back at where the police car with Aria in the back was just pulling away. “Is it over?”

“Is what over?” Sunset asked carefully.

“This particular incident, Miss Shimmer. My division has been content to remain as distant observers to the magical events that seem to surround you and your friends, if only because they always seem to resolve themselves with little collateral damage. This time…” the agent gestured expressively to the devastation and debris littered across the street, yard, and trailer.

“This incident is over, yes,” Sunset said. She had expected that the human government would get involved at some point in time, but the explicit admission that she and her friends were under FBI observation was disconcerting. “I hope it’s over, at least.” Agent Oracle nodded.

“Nice. I want you to know, Miss Shimmer, that you and your friends have nothing to fear from me or my coworkers. I would like to have a long sit down with you at your leisure, however. We have some unanswered questions I’d like cleared up.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a business card, trying to hand it to Sunset. Rainbow Dash blocked her way.

“I’ll take that,” Rainbow said, snatching away the card. “I’ll have to make sure it doesn’t have some sort of tracking bug or spy camera or…” The agent was laughing.

“Sure, you go ahead. Have a safe ride to the hospital, Sunset. I hope you get feeling better soon.”