Sunset Shimmer's Saga: Call of the Force

by Kenobiiii

Chapter 6: Answering the Call

Later,
Everfree Forest

It was late, that's all Sunset knows as she trekked through the pitch dark Everfree forest to find whatever ancient structure that is supposedly out there in the woods. The brightly lighted stars of the night sky did help shed some light, but was still not enough to keep Sunset Shimmer from getting lost. “ Great, Just Great,” She scoffed at her predicament. The Equestrian counterpart of the forest was known for being mysterious and free from any pony intervention which was not so different to the one she’s gotten herself lost in. Every direction looked the same to her and to make matters worse, she had lost track of the way she came from in the first place. She just stood in the middle, surrounded by tall intimidating trees with insect noises being heard from all places. “I should’ve done this in the morning.” She muttered to herself. Indeed, if she had done it during the day, she wouldn't have to worry about insect bites or getting lost. She could’ve even enlisted Timber Spruce’s help in navigating her way through the forest. Being raised in a camp[1] which is by far the closest settlement there is to the woods, Timber would be more knowledgeable on how to go about through Everfree forest.

But going during the day would have its own complications. For starters, her friends would have insisted on tagging along with her for the journey. The whole point of heading into the forest during the cover of night was to avoid this complication. In fact, Sunset had even taken a bus out of the city instead of asking for a lift from people she knew to steer clear of suspicions. Even if she did manage to sneak out of the city during the day without her friends knowing, enlisting Timber, being Twilight’s boyfriend and terrible at keeping secrets, would have alerted them. That left the night option the only available option. Back to the situation at hand, Sunset was starting to think that this ancient place she’s looking for doesn't even exist. Maybe these visions were be nothing more than a stupid illusion created by her own head and she was a fool enough to believe it. But she could feel it calling out to her soul. It was out there, it has to be,Sunset thought. But where ? That was the million dollar question. One wrong direction and she could end up deeper into the forest and more lost than she is now. Her gut was telling her to focus her mind on the call. It had to be coming from a certain direction and it would reveal itself if the mind is focused on it. It might be superstitious or outright stupid for her to rely that the right way would just present itself but she was out of any other viable options. It wouldn’t hurt to try, she thought.

“Alright Sunset, Just focus.” She said to herself as she raised her hand, pointing at a direction her gut was telling her to, hoping to reach out to whatever it is that’s calling her. She closed her eyes, trying her best she could to focus her mind on it. In a way, it felt like she was reaching out to it, and it answered her. Sunset could feel it, it was coming from the direction she’s pointed her hand to. “That must be the way.” She said as she headed in the direction where the call was coming from, which got stronger and stronger as she headed deeper and deeper. “I must be getting closer to it,” She remarked. Just then, she heard a weird sound coming from above. It was like the sound of an engine propulsion commonly heard in airplanes. She looked up to see what was causing this noise. It was a ship of some kind cutting across the night skies, descending before the sight of it was covered by the tall trees. She couldn’t make out the exact shape of this supposed ship as it was dark but could tell it wasn’t something of this world. Sunset had other matters in her head to worry about some UFO in the sky right now. Just then, Sunset stumbled upon a large Temple-like structure. The structure, not like anything she had ever seen before, appeared very ancient, with there being statues of masked figures standing facing each other across what appeared to be a pathway covered with vine, heading towards the entrance of the Temple. “This has to be it.” She said to herself, awed by her discovery.

There was only one thing Sunset was sure of, that this Temple wasn’t from Equestria, or related to it in any way. It also didn’t seem like it was built during the medieval times she had learnt during history class. Whoever or whatever it was that built this place, it was calling out to her and the answers she sought were in there, so the foreign nature of this place wasn’t going to stop her. Mother Nature had already claimed the surroundings as its own, with tree wines covering most of the statues and its dome. There were also trees, having taken up the surroundings of the temple, shrouding it from the bright night sky above. As she walked on the pathway, Sunset turned on the built-in flash light on her phone to brighten up her way. When she came upon the entrance, it appeared sealed shut with no visible way of opening it. “Is there a lever to open this thing ?” She said as she looked around to see if there’s anything that remotely resembles a lever. On the door, she notices paintings on it which make almost no sense to her. Even as an artistic person, she could not tell what the paintings were trying to say. She could only identify one, a painting of a hand within a circle that had smaller lines branching out of it, connecting the other paintings on the door. This meant that this particular painting is of great significance compared to the others, or so she thought. She placed her hand onto the painting. Just then, as if her hand had given life into it, the circle surrounding it glows, and the glow extends to the other branches, reaching every other painting before dissipating at the other end of the door. Mere seconds later, the door rumbled a bit before opening sideways, revealing the pitch darkness inside mystifying her, who has had experience with all sorts of magic in her life. “ Well that’s not something that happens every day.” Sunset remarked as she entered the Temple, having no clue what she's about to face inside.

---

Meanwhile, the Gauntlet touched down on the ground not far from the Temple. Kara and the rest disembarked the ship using the boarding ramp. “That’s one small step for me, one giant leap for Galactic Travel.”[2] Zeko added as he stepped onto the earth covered ground. “Seems like an ordinary planet to me.” Karl muttered, indifferent to the surrounding environment which was similar to other temperate worlds. “Maybe that’s because we haven’t seen the local town over the plains West of our current location . Why is it that we landed here instead of the settlement instead.I mean, they could help us find whatever it is we’re looking for.” Zeko explained and at the same time posed a question. “That’s because we’re trying to keep a low profile here. Besides, I doubt they even know whatever it is we’re here for even exists.” Kara answered him. “And you do ?”Karl posed. Kara continued acknowledging Karl’s query, “It’s close, I can feel it.” Although it was unspoken, Zeko and Karl understood that she would lead the way. R5, who was on the ship’s side of the boarding ramp asked in binary whether he should come along with them. “ That won’t be necessary, buddy. Stay back on the ship and watch the scanners for anything suspicious.” Kara said to the droid. “You heard her, back onboard you go.” Zeko mocked R5, who beeps in frustration but complied with Kara’s instructions, heading back in the ship and pulling back up the boarding ramps. “This way” She said as she showed the way forward to the others.

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Sunset walked through the dark corridors with only her phone flash light illuminating the path. As if it already wasn’t before, this strange place she's in was starting to freak her out. She had run into at least a dozen spider webs while walking through the corridor and this was starting to get on her nerves. Looking forward, there seemed to be no end in sight, but a void of darkness. ‘Who knows how long she has been walking for?’ She thought to herself. Ahead, she found herself in the center of some sort of labyrinth with four passageways ahead of her, each of them diverting off with its own path deeper into the Temple, each of them potentially vastly different from the other. “A labyrinth, just what I need right now.” Sunset sighed as she furrowed her brow. Her temper was almost reaching his limit, and a labyrinth was certainly helping it touch its breaking point. She took a deep breath before letting it out to cool down her frustration. She was already so close and this wasn’t the time to let her temper go loose. There were four pathways for her to choose, but which is the correct one? She wondered. “I’ll go with this one.” She said, pointing to the third passageway on the right which she chose following her instincts. After all, they're the ones that led her here in the first place.

As Sunset walks through the passageway she had chosen which seemed to go deeper and deeper, she notices hieroglyphics crafted onto the walls of the passageways. She shined her phone flash light on it, hoping to make out what it meant. During her time as Princess Celestia’s student, Sunset Shimmer had learned of many ancient languages of cultures long forgotten, but all of them paled in comparison to this. Even with her vast knowledge of ancient history of both worlds, she couldn’t make out what the writings on the wall meant. “I’ve never seen a language like this before, this place must be more ancient than I thought.” She muttered in amazement. This place could be as old as time, she thought to herself. As she walked, Sunset could hear a soft humming noise coming from ahead. “What is that faint singing noise ?” She wondered. She also noticed a bright light coming from ahead. Without giving a second thought, Sunset sprinted towards the light at full speed. She came across what appeared to be a central atrium.

The light she was after turned out to be moonlight coming from a small opening above. The atrium was shrouded with thick mist, blurring the walls of the atrium. Sunset walked through the mist to the center of the atrium to get a clear perspective of her surroundings.Her thoughts rage as to how it is that an enclosed atrium covered by all sides except for a small opening for moonlight could be shrouded with mist, even so when the outside is clear. There was also something else that was more intriguing. When she entered the Temple, Sunset felt the presence of some magical element. This feeling grew stronger as she ventured deeper and deeper and peaked in the atrium. She could feel the magical presence around her, and it was strong, stronger than she had ever felt, like the mist itself was magical. “ I can feel a magical presence in this place and it’s stronger than I’ve felt before.”She said to herself. “Indeed it is,” came a chilling reply from the mist that rattled Sunset to her core. There was someone else with her, someone who’s voice she was all too familiar with. “Show Yourself !” She shouted out in the direction of the mist where the voice had come from. Deep down, she hoped that this was simply her stupid mind playing tricks with her. This wasn’t the case however, as a figure approached out of the mist towards her. Based on the figure’s posture, Sunset deduced that it was a female around her age more or less. The figure steps out of the mist, revealing her identity. Sunset Shimmer could not believe what her eyes were showing her. It was her own self !!

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“Urghh, how much more must we walk ?” Zeko groaned in frustration. “We haven’t been walking for that long, dude.” Karl said to Zeko. “That’s because these feet aren’t built for long walks.” Zeko further moaned. Kara paid little to no attention to Zeko’s moaning behind. She was more interested with the presence she was sensing, getting closer and closer, till they stumbled upon the vine covered Temple. “I guess this must be the place we’re here for.” Zeko intoned. “What is this place ?” Karl asked, awed by the ancient structure in front of him. Kara shines her flashlight towards the structure to get a better look at it. Upon a closer inspection,She recognised the architectural designs “ It’s an Ancient Jedi Temple,” She said. “ How is that possible ? This system is off most space charts. How'd the Jedi find it and build a temple ?” Zeko asked in a confused and surprised manner. This planet was shrouded from most of the galaxy till now. How was it possible for the Jedi to have found this planet and even built a temple on its grounds ? “ I’m dealing with the same scarcity of information as you are.” She said to him, in other words, she too has no idea how the Jedi had found this place[3]. “How Ancient are we talking about ?” Karl further asked. Kara placed her hand onto the vine covered walls of the Temple to connect with it through the Force. “It’s very Ancient from what I can tell. This Temple predates even the Old Republic itself.” She explained to them. “Damm, that’s old alright,” Karl said in an astonished manner. She also found the entrance to the temple open, intriguing her even further. Just then, She sensed a presence inside the Temple. ‘It was her, it had to be,’ she thought. She could also feel the temple rife with activity within. As if it had spiritually awakened after being dormant for centuries. “We’re not alone here.” She intoned, “ What do you mean ?” Zeko asked. “No time to explain, We need to get moving quick” Kara said, in dismissing Zeko’s queries. She ran into the temple entrance, closely followed by Zeko and Karl.

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It was very unsettling to Sunset to see her own self right in front of her with her own two eyes. It unnerved her even further when her counterpart wore the same clothing and had the same burning bright eyes from the vision she had earlier. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” the other Sunset said. She was taunting her and Sunset Shimmer wasn’t going to allow herself to be taunted by anyone, not even herself. She put on a brave face, “ You’re not real.” She said firmly. “Sunny, I’m as real as I’ll ever be.” her counterpart chuckled as she referred to Sunset with a nickname. “Your conscience serves you well. The Force is indeed strong in this place,” She further added. Sunset wasn’t going to play this game with her evil counterpart anymore. “What do you want from me ?” She snapped out loud at her. “On the contrary, I’m here to help you.” Her counterpart said much to Sunset’s shock. But she wasn’t going to trust this illusion of hers just because she offered to help her. “Help me ?” She intoned. “ Unlimited Power. We both desired that once upon a time, and still do.” The other Sunset said in a more wicked tone. “That isn’t me anymore.” Sunset firmly said, her rage fueling within her and her fist tightening. “ You can’t keep lying to yourself forever. What happened to the Sunset Shimmer who was ambitious and had a lust for power that can never be soothed ?” The other Sunset taunted her, as she sensed that her anger was building up, just as she had wanted to. “ My friends defeated her with the Magic of Friendship, the very way I’ll defeat you with it.” Sunset snarled back at her. “You pathetic fool ! Your Friendship magic will be your undoing.” Her counterpart snapped back at her. “ THAT’S NOT TRUE ! THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE !” [4] Sunset shouted out loud, more enraged than ever. At this point her eyes were boiling red with tears flowing out of it. Her counterpart had gotten into her head.

“ Search your feelings, you’ll know it to be true. Once your precious friends see me, they’ll abandon you like last time.” Her counterpart continued to taunt her. Sunset could feel the anger inside her reaching a limit. Whoever this was, she had managed to get into her head and was playing with her fears. “You Lie !” She said in anger, with her fist tightening. “ Do I ?” Her counterpart further taunted her, “I am who you thought to have defeated. I lurk in the deepest darkest parts of your mind, waiting for this facade you put up to end so I can return. The REAL Sunset Shimmer will rise once again !!” The mist then starts turning darker, as if a storm was brewing in it. Sunset could see visions of her past manipulative, greedy self through the mists. The visions greatly distressed her and she fell to the ground. Her counterpart, seeing that Sunset was on the verge of breaking, said, in a deep demonic unearthly voice, “ KNOW YOURSELF ! BECOME WHO YOU WERE MEANT TO BE !” That was the final straw for Sunset. She had been holding it all inside of her for too long now. She snapped, unleashing all the anger and hate within her. “ I HATE YOU !!!” She screamed, full of hate in her tone. In doing so, she lashes out an energy within her in all directions.

This energy, drawn from the Dark Side causes the mist to dissipate including her counterpart who appeared satisfied with breaking her. She dons a wicked grin on her face before she too dissipates. Sunset then realized that her counterpart was nothing more than a vision, finding herself alone in the now clear atrium. A sense of both fatigue and anguish overwhelmed Sunset. She collapsed onto the ground wailing. It had consumed her to the extent that she couldn’t be bothered to hear voices and footsteps getting louder from the passageway she had come from. “ It came from over there.” Said a male voice. For her, the fact that the monstrous counterpart was right about her brought her great agony. She had thought she had changed for the better, but it turned out that the old her was still a part of her, no matter how much she had reformed. She let the old Sunset take control of her, her heart filled with despair. Her anguish was then taken over by fatigue, as her eyelid got heavier and heavier. “Over there !” Another male voice, different from the first one. She was too tired to turn her head to see who it was. “ Who is this girl ?” came that voice. The last thing Sunset Shimmer saw before her eyelids before she passed out was a woman with tied up brown coloured hair with a fair skin. She donned a suit which she had never seen before. “ Don’t worry, you’ll be okay” she said to her as her vision faded off. In her mind, Sunset heard a clam voice from an elderly man. It was brief but yet soothing her despaired soul. “ These are your first steps Ms Shimmer.” [5] it said, before She entered her subconscious mind.

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“ A girl with yellow and red hair and orange skin, is this her ?” Karl asked. “It’s definitely her.” Kara answered him. Zeko was confused as to who the two of them were referring to. “I’m sorry but who the heck is she ?” “The reason why we’re here, Zeko.” Kara gave a short reply to the confused Ardennian.

Author's Note:

Heck of a chapter this was, am I right ? Not only did Sunset realise that her former self still existed within her and was well alive but she had seen her evil counterpart in the flesh. Was this counterpart of hers a mere illusion of her Dark Side or something more ? Let me know what you think below in the comments. This chapter also featured our main protagonists, Sunset Shimmer and Kara (and the rest of the Gauntlet crew) crossing into each others paths, though Sunset had already passed out by then. Kara knew this was the girl that she had been seeing in her visions, but why her ? It was more than coincidence to for their paths to cross into each others. Perhaps it was the will of the Force for their paths to meet. Too many questions but too little answers. One thing was clear though, the Force has awakened in Sunset Shimmer. Onto the easter eggs:
[1] A reference to Camp Everfree a central location for the fourth EQG movie The Legend of Everfree. Timber Spruce is also a central character in that movie. (Not that any of you guys don't know)
[2] A nice simple reference to the real world moon landing of 1969, where Neil Armstrong famously said "That's one small step for man, One giant leap for mankind,"
[3] How did the Jedi find and build a temple on a planet long thought to be lost ? A good question, for another time. All I can say is that this temple is much older than the Galactic Republic, which lasted for 25000 years according to canon.
[4] An infamous line from an infamous scene from Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. ( I won't spoil that scene for those has not seen the movie 🙂)
[5] Who do you think it is ? Any guesses ? (Hint: It's from a Jedi long thought to be dead)
That's all for now. Now that our characters have crossed paths, check out the next chapter to see what happens.