Take Your Stand

Light. It's so bright. Where am I? Who am I? Why can't I remember anything?

"Don't worry, I'm going to get you out of here. They won't get away with this."

Who's voice is that?

The sound of an explosion shook through the air. Dust and smoke blotted out the light as a pair of hands hurried the grab a glowing red sphere from its cold cylindrical container. The surface of the sphere, only just the size of a softball, pulsed and writhed as thousands of tiny threads glimmered brightly. Tiny stars of light flashed all over its surface as awareness slowly returned to the small entity.

Another explosion, this one much closer, clouded out all sight, and the mysterious rescuer made a break for some unseen destination. Sneakers squeaked on a smooth floor as he slid through an open doorway and into a hallway clear of the smog. It was then that the tiny orb could finally get a clear picture of the one that held it. Bolting down the hall like a bullet, clutching his prize tight, was a young man with deep green hair that parted down the middle and fell to his cheekbones with a slight wave and a more defined curl at the back of his neck. The runaway's stoney gray eyes were focused straight ahead with unwavering determination, his rather young, boyish facial features contorted in what seemed to be a mixture of fear and resolve. Perhaps most unusual, however, was how his skin matched his eyes. While a shade or two lighter, his skin was also a pale gray hue.

Why was that unusual? Were creatures like this supposed to look different? Couldn't remember. Best to focus on something else.

His blood. Even just through the skin of his hands, the little ball could feel the warm blood shooting through his veins like lightning. There was something else too. What was this feeling? This feeling of power flowing into his body from some outside source? It felt so familiar. Was it how he was able to run as fast as he was?

Whatever it was, the power felt wrong. There was a strange, almost sinister quality to it that felt so familiar, but it couldn't quite identify. Stranger still was the echo. As the power flowed into the boy, something flowed back. An unusual power that felt completely alien, laced with bio energy.

"That bastard! He took it! Don't let them get away!" a female voice bellowed from down other end of the hall.

"Shit," the boy cursed under his breath, "I thought I'd have at least half a minute more before they gathered their wits."

The hallway opened up into a large room. Stairs flanked either side and even more hallways seemed to stretch off in every direction. Banners hung from the ceiling, inscribed with the words "Crystal Prep Shadowbolts", and they framed two sets of glass doors that streamed in daylight from outside.

The boy didn't stop, charging the doors at full speed. He leaped towards them, and that strange, alien power inside him surged. An aura of green light, much like his hair, appeared on his forehead and strobed brightly.

... They were outside? The doors were behind them?

Did he just do that? How did he do that?

There was no time to analyze. Everything was moving too fast, and it was hard to remember anything with this barrage of familiar and foreign things.

The boy skidded to a halt, glancing back at the building they had just left. The elegant white structure almost seemed like it was covered in gemstone, befitting the banners within and the large embossed lettering over the entryway, which read "Crystal Prep Boarding School".

A school? Why does that feel so nostalgic?

"I swear I'll save it," the boy growled under breath before turning his eye down to the sphere. "With you, I know I can't lose. A Primordial Life Fiber that fights other Life Fibers."

A... Life Fiber? Yes, that's what I am.

They were running again, barrelling down sidewalks and through alleys. Cars on the streets seemed to be moving in slow motion at this pace, and other pedestrians were practically motionless, only feeling a gust of wind blow by them as the pair passed.

It was then that the spherical being took the chance to take in its rescuer's attire. He was wearing a jet black uniform with silver trimming that was studded with tiny, clear gems along the cuffs, hem, and lower pant legs. Most prominent, however, was the shimmering four-point star emblazoned across the chest.

The sight sparked a memory, and images flooded through the orb's consciousness. It saw hundreds, even thousands of humans wearing similar outfits, their fighting power enhanced beyond their limits. Garments of war, and they were called…

"Above you!" the sphere shouted.

As they had passed through another dark alley, the sky above was suddenly blotted out by thousands of tiny slivers soared overhead. The boy nearly stumbled over in surprise at the voice emanating from his cargo, but regained his composure quickly. He stopped running and looked up at the flurry as it began to rain down on them.

What is he doing? He can't outrun it, but just standing there won't help either.

The answer came as that power swelled in the boy again. He raised his hand, the light shining from his brow once more.

And was that a pair of ears on top of his head? When did those get there?

The power flowed out, condensing into a dome around them. The deadly cloud fell on them, and what turned out to be thousands of needles just splashed harmlessly over the translucent barrier. Once the last needle fell, the barrier vanished, and the ears atop the boy's head disappeared as well. He fell to one knee, gasping for breath. Making that simple dome must have taken a lot of strength. The flow of energy inside him had ebbed significantly after that little stunt.

Holding the sphere in front of him, the boy looked at it in disbelief. "You... Spoke?" he asked between ragged breaths.

It didn't answer. The situation was still unclear. All it knew was that it didn't want this boy to die. This boy felt like someone that could be trusted, but its memory was still too fuzzy for it to make a sound judgement call.

"I must say, I'm actually quite impressed," the female voice from before now rang out above them, turning the boy's head up to see a row of dark silhouettes. They lined the roof on one side of the alley, looking down on the pair. The one in the center stepped forward, but was still obscured in the shadows they cast. "Not many One Stars can manage the pony transformation, let alone using magic like that."

The flow of power in the boy picked back up again by a small margin. His blood was getting fired up, and it was feeding his strength. He leaped into the air, kicking off of the wall halfway up and landing on the opposite rooftop to stare down his enemies. "You know me, Suri Polomare, always trying to throw off the bell curve," he boasted, running his fingers through his hair.

From here, the shadows fell away from the row of enemies, revealing at least a dozen young humans wearing uniforms identical to the one on the boy. The four point stars on each of their chests gleamed as they stood ready to fight. The girl in the center, Suri Polomare, stood out from the rest. Her violet hair, bangs sweeping to one side over sharp brown eyes, was tied back into a bun with two big needles the size of chopsticks holding it up. Her skin was also a curiosity. It was a soft pink shade, completely different from the boy’s grey skin. She stood with a cocky smirk, hip popped to the side, and her hand resting on it.

She wore a slim, oriental style dress hugging her body. The black fabric was also studded with gems, these ones around the collar, arm straps, and the short hem of its skirt. Along the waistline was a sash with needles stitched vertically along the entire length. Unlike the others, however, this garment had two stars set over each breast, and these stars were an eerie dark red with a constant flow of brighter red threads over it.

Life Fibers. That garment had more of them than the others, making it far more dangerous. That's right, an outfit with a twenty percent Life Fiber composition. The ones with one star only had ten percent, including the one the boy was wearing. He was outmatched. There was no way his Goku Uniform could match a dozen One Stars and a Two Star.

Wait, Goku Uniforms? Yes, that was the name of the outfits. It was starting to come back. Memories of a long battle to protect a planet from the dangers of Life Fibers, and one foe in particular that was still very much alive.

That was my mission. I came to this world to stop her once and for all.

Suri lifted her hand from her hip, needles slowly appearing from behind her back as she reeled them out on a thread. "It's a shame to kill a student with so much talent with both magic and sewing," she mused, pulling another needle lined thread with her other hand. "If you hand over the Primordial Life Fiber and beg for your life, I might just be convinced to let you live. I'll just punish you for a few days and then force you to sew new Goku Uniforms for the rest of your life."

"Hah! That's never going to happen," the boy balked the offer. He widened his stance ever so slightly, his blood burning even more fiercely. "I'd never hear the end of it if I was forced to serve a second rate fake like you."

Suri's eyebrow twitched violently at the verbal jab. "What did you just call me?! I am Suri Polomare, President of Crystal Prep High School’s Fashion Club," she shrieked flinging her arms forward and sending a flurry of needles at him, "and I will not be mocked by a nobody like you!"

The boy's forehead lit with the green aura again, and the triangular ears also appeared on his head as he called on his power. Another barrier formed in front of him, and the thousands of needles pelted it relentlessly. The boy's eyes narrowed and his tone dropped as he replied, "And I won't be beaten by the likes of you. I won't let my plans be ruined." His brave show did well to hide to fact that defending against her attack was draining his strength to dangerous lows.

The assault stopped, and Suri scoffed, "You have big plans, do you? Hardly a worry when you can't even make a clean getaway. Did you even realize that every Goku Uniform that we've manufactured has a tracking device planted in it? You can't get away without that uniform, and you can't get away with it on. You were screwed from the start."

"Oh?" the boy said in mock surprise. He reached into his pocket with his free hand and pulled out a thin little microchip. "You mean this? I found this weeks ago. Been keeping it for just such an occasion."

Suri's eyes went wide when she saw the chip, reeling out three needle-covered threads from behind her back. "So you wanted us to follow you? What can you hope to do, anyway? Your puny little One Star Uniform can't hold a candle to my Sewing Spec Needlework Enhancing Two Star Goku Uniform!"

She was right. He was near the end of his rope, even if he didn't show it, and there were a dozen One Star Uniforms and the Two Star to contend with. Even so, his heart rate was only slightly elevated; not nearly the rapid thumping that would be normal for a losing situation. He had something planned, the Life Fiber sphere could tell.

The boy crushed the chip in his hand, smiling as he simply stated, "I think my big brothers would have to disagree with that, Suri. They call this sort of thing a trap for a reason."

Right on que, twelve shadows leaped into view behind the enemy. The landed on the heads of each One Star and kicked off of their faces, knocking them flat on their asses. With a showy flip in the air, each new arrival landed in a row beside the boy. They stood and turned to face the enemy, each wearing a uniform with a hood sewn on, keeping their faces hidden. These white outfits were also Goku Uniforms, with a dark gray star on their chests.

Most surprisingly, however, was how the boy's power grew exponentially in their presence. What was a pond was now a river, flowing through him even greater than before. The ears on his head even stayed this time, instead of vanishing as they had before.

It was Suri's turn to narrow her eyes, eying the new arrivals. "So you managed to cobble together some Goku Uniforms of your own, huh? Where the hell did you manage to find enough Life Fibers to make them?" she asked, teeth gritting together.

"Not to sound like a cliche, but none of your damn business," the boy retorted, eying the other side warily as the enemy One Stars got to their feet. All of them were sporting fresh shoe prints on their faces.

Suri sighed, placing a hand on her hip again while casually playing with her three lines of thread in the other. "Looks like you're more prepared than I thought, but exactly what do you hope to accomplish here? Even all of you combined can't match my Two Star Uniform, and you went to a lot of trouble to get me here. Do you think that if you can take me out, then it'll halt the use of Life Fibers for a while?"

"How cute. You think it's all about you," the boy chuckled. "No, my other objective, besides stealing the Primordial Life Fiber, was to recruit some real talent." The boy raised his hand, his glow surrounding it, and then the One Stars to Suri's right. With a flick of his wrist, the six of them were sent flying, revealing a young girl cowering in fear. "Coco Pommel, it's time to break free and fight this evil that's taking hold of our school. Are you going to be Suri's coffee girl forever, or are you going to weave the clothes that will lead us to victory over the Life Fibers?"

The girl glanced up from behind long bangs colored with alternating stripes of a gentle aqua and white, her sky blue eyes darting over to Suri and them back to the boy. She wore a different uniform from the rest, this one a blue-gray blouse with a maroon jacket that bore a mark of a silver shield with a black bolt. With it was a matching maroon skirt plaided with stripes of lilac and gold. Her hand subconsciously drifted up to touch a hairband adorned with I red false flower, and she stammered, "E-Emmy, I--"

She could barely get that much out before a huge needle the size of a dagger sunk into the concrete at her feet, thrown by Suri. She was cut short and let out a little yelp of surprise.

"You want that worthless little pipsqueak? You really are crazy," she said with a boastful laugh. "What good would someone like her be?"

"You would know, wouldn't you?" the boy smirked, raising his hand. Another pulse of power ran through his body, and his hair started to grow. From the back of his hairline, behind his neck, a distinct ponytail formed. His forehead and hand also glowed with the green aura again. Was he doing something with it? Nothing seemed to be happening.

"Don't think that I don't know what you've done to Coco, you bitch. You make her work her fingers to the bone sewing designs you steal from her or others. You take the credit for work you only have a small hand in at best, and use them to climb up while you do nothing but push her down into the dirt," he continued. More and more anger laced his voice, and his heated blood really started to boil. "I know for a fact that she even designed the very uniform that you're wearing. The one you've claimed to be your own masterpiece. You're a liar and a cheat that uses others to get ahead! I won't let you use her anymore!"

Coco's eyes filled with tears as she softly spoke, "Emmy."

"You hypocrite!" Suri shouted back, her nerves clearly fraying. "You won't let me use her? Well what about you? You just want her so that she can make uniforms for you instead of us!"

"I am not like you!" the boy roared back. "I am not forcing anything on her, nor will I exploit her like you have. I know that I need her, though. I want her as my comrade, not my servant!"

Suri moved faster than the boy could react. She stepped right behind Coco, grabbing her by her wrist and twisting it mercilessly behind her back. The meek girl gave a short scream of pain before she felt the tip of another large needle pressed against her throat, silencing her instantly.

"You need her so bad?" Suri asked, a distinct venom in her voice. "Maybe I should just kill her so that you can never have her? I have no need for her now that I have this Two Star Uniform." Her statement was punctuated by her own transformation. Triangular ears formed atop her head, and a ponytail extended out from the bottom of her hair bun.

The Life Fiber could feel the boy's heart quite literally skipped a beat in shock. He recovered and narrowed his eyes at Suri as he growled, "Don't even think you can bluff me. That uniform may enhance your physical abilities; your needlework and sewing, but even Life Fibers can't make you a better designer. You still need her to design new Goku Uniforms for you. You wouldn't dare get rid of your proverbial gravy train."

It was a bad situation, even if the boy was right. There was no way he could stop Suri from killing Coco if she really intended to, and even if she didn't, there was no way he could free Coco like this. His power may have increased somehow in the presence of his "brothers" but that wasn't enough to match Suri. It was obvious. But what could be done?

A voice echoed through the consciousness of the Primordial Life Fiber. A voice that screamed out with an infectious battle fury, stirring blood that lay sleeping in the depths of its being. Blood it had drank and made part of itself. The blood of the one who had worn him, just as he was worn by her.

That was right. He wasn't just an it. He was more than that. The memories were coming back, reignited by the voice in his mind and the fire this boy had displayed. He remembered who he was, and everything he was capable of.

Thank you, Ryuko.

Understanding what he could do; what he had to do, the Life Fiber spoke to the boy,"I can help you save her."

The boy turned his eye to the sphere in his hand, and found it staring back. A single eye opened on it, looking up at him. The eye had bright yellow sclera, and two iris, the outer red, and the inner orange, with a yellow pupil at its center. The Life fiber spoke again, saying, "Only you can hear me right now, so don't say anything. Don't show that I have awakened. If you want to save that girl, then you have to do exactly what I say. If you understand, then clench your teeth."

Just as instructed, the boy's teeth snapped together, and he returned his glaring gaze to Suri. It was his only option, really. If he wanted to save Coco, then he had no choice. Still, it was far from a safe, easy road.

"Do you really want to take that kind of gamble with little Coco's life?" Suri goaded, nicking Coco's neck with the tip of her needle and letting a small drop of blood run along its length. "Would you really risk her dying if you defy me?"

Her words were ignored as the Life Fiber spoke again, "You should know as well as I do that you can't beat her with your uniform, but together we can change that. You have to be willing to put everything on the line, though. Your life most importantly. There's no guarantee you can handle it."

There were twenty five One Star Uniforms present. A dozen on the side of this Crystal Prep place, and then the boy and his dozen supposed brothers that stood silent and at the ready on either side of him. Between all of them, there should just barely be enough Life Fibers to make this work. "I need you to use that strange power of yours to pull all of the enemy One Stars in close, and I will take case of the rest. I will give you my power, enough to take her on, but it won't hold long with so little material."

The boy hefted the orb up and down gently, a silent confirmation.

Suri took no notice, only seeing the boy staring her down wordlessly. "Pathetic. You show your hand like this and end up stuck. A fool like you is no threat to us."

Something strange happened after she said that. The boy relaxed completely. There was still fire in his blood, but all apprehension left his body. He smiled down at the orb and said, "She's already safe. Thanks for the offer anyway."

"What?"

She was safe? What was he talking about?

Suri looked doubly perplexed, looking at the boy like he was crazy. "Safe? Who are you even talking to?"

The meaning of his strange words was made clear as the very air began to waver and ripple all around. The truth of the situation changed as Coco Pommel began to evaporate into wisps of green fog, vanishing from Suri's grasp, much to her shock and outrage. Even as Coco vanished, however, she reappeared next to the boy, clutching his arm tight in apprehension as she took shape.

Suddenly without her leverage, Suri's eyes darted between Coco and the boy. She wasn't the only one, though, as the Life Fiber's eye did the same.

"What the hell is this trickery?" Suri demanded, her teeth gritting together

Coco clutched the boy's arm tighter as he raised up his glowing hand. A cocky grin spread across his face as he answered, "Did you really think that my talents were in sewing and fashion, Suri? It's a very handy skill, yes, but I honestly have no passion for stuff like that." He waved his hand, and two duplicates of himself took shape from the same foggy energy. Together, the three of their voices overlapped as they continued, "I am a guardian of lies. I create something from nothing, and nothing from something; bewildering my enemies to render truth intangible with visions of deceit. There are none that can match my powers of illusion, and I will use this magic to end the scourge of Life Fibers on our planet!" Another sweep of his hand, and the replicas vanished into a haze.

There was that word again; magic. Suri had said it before as well. So this world actually had something like that? Real magic for casting spells like in fantasy stories? It seemed like Life Fibers were the key to tapping into it too.

This world really was different from home.

It also explained what happened too. Before Suri had grabbed Coco, the boy had already started to work his magic, hiding her while creating a false image in her place. It was probably safe to assume that one of the "brothers" was cloaked and replaced in order to retrieve Coco from the other roof. It had all been an act; a show put on to keep Suri unawares.

The Life Fiber had to marvel at the execution. There wasn't even a word spoken to the subordinates, if one indeed did play a part in it. The magic on display was impressive as well. While there was no telling how difficult it actually was to perform, the boy had clearly created an illusion that not only fooled the eyes and ears, but had even felt tangible to Suri. A simple image, like a hologram, would not have fooled her once she tried to grab Coco by the wrist. It had to have taken incredible attention to detail to recreate the tactile sensations and have the illusion move in perfect time with the action. It was hard to imagine it not being an impressive feat, and he hardly seemed strained from it.

No wonder he seemed so confident and unworried, aside from when he had been putting on the act. With a power like this, even escaping would be a simple matter. A One Star Uniform still couldn't hurt a Two Star, but all the strength in the world wouldn't allow Suri to see through the boy's magic. He had all the cards from the start.

"An illusionist," Suri growled under her breath, bringing reality back into focus. "All that means is that you are a coward that hides behind tricks. That kind of power won't stop anything!"

The boy's eyes twinkled with mischief as he held up the sphere in his hand, making it no secret now as he spoke to it. "We could just run away now, but her voice is really pissing me off. How about you? Want to go ahead and help me kick her ass before we go? We'll be able to net some extra Life Fibers at the same time."

There was no reason to pretend to be dormant now. Everything was already guaranteed to work out, and this would just be icing on the cake. Plus, to be honest, Suri really had pissed the Life Fiber off, and he admired the honest resolve that the boy had displayed. He was reminded of another girl he had known back on his planet, one that also did everything she could to rebel against Life Fibers. Another girl whose blood he still felt in his core.

"Yes, it would be my honor to be worn by you," he answered loud and clear for all to hear. "Just don't blame me if the strain of my power is too much for you."

"I'd expect nothing less from a Kamui, even an incomplete one. I’ll be fine, though."

"Shit, it's awake already?" Suri gasped. She turned her glare to the One Stars that flanked her and screamed, "Get them now! Retrieve the Primordial Life Fiber and Coco Pommel! Kill the rest!"

Even as the enemies leaped forward, the boy kept his gaze on the sphere in his hand, meeting the unblinking gaze of the entity. He asked casually, "Well, since I'm going to be wearing you, I should probably ask your name, shouldn't I?"

His name. The name Ryuko gave him.

"I am Senketsu. What is yours?"

A surprisingly gleeful grin spread across the boy's face as he answered, "Pleasure to meet you, Senketsu. My name is Emerald Mist." When the enemy was right overhead, descending to strike, the magic in him pulsed out, wrapping them all in his aura and trapping them. "You can call me Emerl."

Perfect. They were all in range.

Senketsu floated up from Emerl's hand, every fiber beginning to glow and brilliant stars of light flashing all over his surface. He called upon his most important power as a weapon against other Life Fibers; the power of absorption. He found a hold in the frail One Star Uniforms and pulled with every ounce of his will. He yanked the Life Fibers free from them, even as the threads clung to the desire to hold their forms as clothing.

The bright red threads of Life Fibers shot out from the Uniforms and attached to Senketsu. Threads from the enemy uniforms, the twelve brothers, and from Emerl's uniform all fed into Senketsu, making him grow larger. In no time, the last bit of Life Fiber left the uniforms and all of them fell to tatters. Their wearers were stripped to nothing but their underwear, and the enemy students all fell into the alley with a scream and a painful crash.

Emerl's brothers moved in that instant as well. One of them grabbed Coco, and all of them retreated before their faces could even be seen. They ran to the next alley just behind them and leaped down to make their escape.

That was curious. They weren't even phased a bit, even though they hadn't known the plan. They'd even beat a strategic retreat with Coco that was perfectly timed. How had they known to do that without a word from Emerl?

No, that wasn't important right now. It was time to weave these Life Fibers. There weren't many, but it was enough to barely complete his basic foundation, even if he wouldn't have full strength, Senketsu would take on the form of a Kamui, a garment of pure Life Fibers, once more.

Suri's expression had slowly turned from one of anger to fear. She had no backup now, and she watched in horror as Senketsu slowly wrapped himself around Emerl's body. The glowing fibers writhed and flowed like living fluid over his skin, and on his shoulders, Senketsu's two eyes took shape. The luminous threads took no definite shape, however, only a small bit over his hand truly solidifying. They took the shape of a red, fingerless glove with decorative metal plates on the knuckles and a cuff with a sliding pin mechanism.

"Use the Seki Tekko to give me your blood and release our power!" Senketsu yelled.

"No, this can't be happening! I won't let you have that power! I won't let you beat me!" Suri screamed. She reached back to pull out a line of needled threads on each finger, a panicked, crazy look in her eyes. She threw the needles forward in the largest flurry yet, one that would have obliterated Emerl's barriers before.

He and Senketsu stood firm, and he lifted his hand to turn the glove's pin, slide it, and pull it free.

"Life Fiber Harmonize!"

Meet the Family

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"You let him get away with Senketsu?!"

A loud slap filled the smoking remains of the Crystal Prep Sewing Club's laboratory as Suri Polomare was knocked to the floor, wearing nothing but her undergarments. Standing over her was a girl with long, straight, dark red hair that fell to her shoulders and covered one of her dark green eyes as she glared down at the fallen girl. Her skin was a light green shade, complimented by the Crystal Prep uniform she wore, the maroon jacket and skirt over a blue-gray blouse.

The redhead placed a high heeled boot on Suri's stomach, pressing down hard as she growled, "There was still data that we could extract from him! We still haven't found the secret to how he is able to evolve! Do you realize how valuable he was to us? Not only that, you let that thief get away with a valuable member of the Sewing Club!" She pulled back for a vicious kick, sending Suri tumbling across the floor.

Tears rolled down Suri's face as she screamed out, "I know! I already told you what happened, Gladiola Nectar! I was tricked! He managed to reform the Kamui! How was I supposed to beat that?

"By neutralizing him from the start instead of running your mouth and giving him time to use his magic, and Senketsu time to awaken!" Gladiola shouted back. "Emerald Mist studied you and learned how to use you. He played you like a fool, Suri! Now, because of your idiocy, we have an obstacle to the spread of Life Fibers out there. There's no doubt that they will get in our way in the future, and it's all your fault!"

"I'm sor--!"

Strands of Life Fibers shot out from the darkness of the lab, weaving their way around Suri's arms and lifting her into the air until she was dangling with her feet just off the floor, arms spread wide to each side. She looked pitiful, her face leaking tears, drool, and snot as she trembled in terror. As she hung there, another girl stepped out from behind her, almost as if from thin air. She had long blonde hair that was tied into two enormous, poofy pigtails that widened out as they rose up, and tapered to elegant spirals as they fell to either side of her face. Resting on her head between those twintails was an obscenely large, pink bow. She wore a frilly pink short dress, and rested a matching umbrella on her shoulder. Her right eye, peering around Suri's hanging form, was a deep navy blue, and her left eye was covered in a patch that was shaped like a Neighponese kanji.

"Now now," the new arrival cooed, running her fingers along Suri's arm. A quick pinch to the neck, and the Fashion Club President's body went limp. "Let's not give her too hard of a time, Glady. I'm actually quite happy with the way things have turned out." She giggled before stepping behind Suri again and vanishing.

Gladiola's eyes darted left and right as she hissed, "What are you talking about, Nui Harime? They are our enemies, and you say you're happy that they're free to cause problems for us?"

"Of course!" Nui's voice echoed from every direction in that deceptively peppy tone. "I knew that mean old Senketsu would follow me to this planet. Heck, I practically gave him no other choice but to! I don't want him locked up and frozen while we destroy this puny planet, though." Her voice took a more manic, sadistic turn as she said, "After what he did to me and Lady Ragyo, I want nothing more than to face him in battle and shred him and any of his do-gooder friends to pieces. I'm going to gobble him up, just like he tried to do to me, and when we're done with this planet, I'm going to go back to my homeworld and finish what I started!"

Gladiola rolled her eyes, reaching a hand out into the shadows and grabbing Nui by the neck to pull her into the light. Her dark green eyes lit with disdain as she hissed, "That will be the death of you, Nui. You still have yet to grasp how different things are from your world because of our magic. That someone like Emerald Mist exists is a huge problem. Not only is he capable of weaving complex illusions with just the power of a One Star Goku Uniform, but he can withstand the power of an incomplete Kamui, and he seems to be able to erase memories too. Suri has no memory of anything after he harmonized with Senketsu, and with no signs of head trauma, that only leaves magic."

Nui's hand reached out to grab Gladiola by the wrist, squeezing tight until she was forced to let go. "I'm done with that name, Glady. I was consumed by the Primordial Life Fiber that I was born from. I'm not even the slightest bit human anymore, so I never want to hear my human name again," she said with a cheerful smile that, despite seeming genuine, did little to hide the malice beneath.

Rubbing her wrist, Gladiola turned away and grumbled, "And what, pray tell, would you have me call you?"

"That's simple, silly. I am Koketsu now," she declared proudly. "Just like Senketsu, I am both Kamui and Primordial Life Fiber. We are two halves, and in the end, I will take back my true power and devour him." She leaped back to sit on the shattered console of a smoking computer. "Besides, you know as well as I do that the more these puny humans fight and struggle, the more energy we will be able to harvest from them."

"You are too prideful, Koketsu," Gladiola scolded her. "You are a fool to risk the success of our plans just for the chance to fight against Senketsu again, and I will have no sympathy for you when he inevitably cuts you down." She walked to the doorway before glancing back at Koketsu and the charred remains of the lab. "Weave Suri another Two Star Uniform and get the club back to work. It will be a while yet before we are ready to move beyond just the Sewing Club and to the rest of the school. This year's Friendship Games against Canterlot High will be our first trial run."

Koketsu flourished her umbrella over her head and tapped the tip on the ground, letting Suri's unconscious body fall. "As you wish, Glady! Oh, and say hi to your mom for me."

Gladiola replied with only a curt grunt before leaving. Koketsu, on the other hand, shivered with delight and hugged her arms tight around her body as she mused, "It's a shame we're so incompatible. I would love to know how good it would feel to wear Glady as my host."

A chill crept up Gladiola's spine as she walked down the hall. Her boot heels clicked purposefully as she moved away from the Sewing Club lab as fast as she could.

Idiots. She was surrounded by idiots. It was no secret that Coco had been the true genius behind the progress that was being made, but Suri's control over her had been a far more effective method of using her than giving the meek girl a position of power. Now they had lost that spark, and would have to pool talent from elsewhere to make up for it.

What had her most worried, however, was this Emerald Mist guy. It was very concerning. He had been a member of the Sewing Club for only about three months. In that time, with only a One Star Uniform at his disposal, the boy had managed to reach the pony transformation state and had become adept in magic.

No, that couldn’t be right. It was unheard of for a unicorn type to learn spellcasting so quickly. He had to have had a purpose from the start. He had to have known about Senketsu, and known about magic even before his official "induction" into the Sewing Club and its secrets. A magnificent act, to be sure, but where did his foreknowledge come from? Life Fibers and magic were a secret long lost, and very few could be aware of their existence.

He even flaunted the cards that he held. He was feeding them information that he wanted them to have for intimidation. As much as Gladiola hated to admit it, the tactic was working too.

He could cast advanced magic. He could lay out and execute an effective plan of action. He had allies; the ones he called brothers. He had access to Life Fibers in order to make One Star Uniforms, and now he had Coco Pommel and Senketsu on top of that. He was capable of harmonizing with Senketsu in Kamui form. He was dangerous, and he wanted them to know it. He could have just as easily erased all of Suri's memories of the encounter, but instead he deliberately removed only the battle. That was worrisome as well. Just what had happened during that time that he didn't want them to know about?

Oh what use was it to worry like this? Even with Senketsu producing them, it would take a long time for them to gather a supply of Life Fibers capable of allowing them to put up a fight. By that time, the trials would be complete, and Life Fibers would be spreading all over the world. Once Emerald Mist and Senketsu showed themselves again, they would just have to strike the nuisances down hard and fast.

As Gladiola reached the entryway to the school, she stopped. Just off to her right, in the shadows of the stairs leading to the next floor, a pair of glowing eyes opened. "Lady Nectar, we have done as you asked," the hidden man announced.

"And? What have you found out about this Emerald Mist?" she asked, not even giving the messenger a glance.

"Nothing, I am afraid," he confirmed regretfully. "There is no information on an Emerald Mist in any database. Individual searches on first name, last name, and facial recognition haven't turned up anything either."

Of course.

A long sigh escaped Gladiola's lips as she resumed walking. "One of his allies no doubt tampered with all the files so we can't track down him or his family. Worry not, I suspected this might be the case. It seems Koketsu will be getting the war she wants after all. Return home for the day."

The eyes closed, and the presence vanished completely in darkness as Gladiola stepped through the front doors and into the open air. The beginnings of a winter chill rode on the wind today, prompting her to hug her jacket closer to her body. She hated the cold.

"It's your move, Mist," she said aloud to her foe, eyes focused ahead. "When you make it, I will be ready."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow! Sweet Sleipnir above, this hurts like a motherf--!" Emerald Mist cried out, only to have a sock unceremoniously stuffed in his maw. He was lain out on a bed, the upper part of his body naked and exposed, while his lower half was hidden beneath the blankets. For the most part, he looked fine, but his limbs were twitching frequently as pain lanced up and down his body.

Standing over him was a woman that glared down in disapproval at him before turning around in a huff. "That's what you get for being stupid and putting on a Kamui! You're, like, so lucky that muscle tears and mana overload is the worst it did to you. What would Mom and Dad think if they could see this?"

The blonde woman was a tall vision of beauty, with soft peach colored skin and vibrant pink eyes that were kindled with anger. Her attire, on the other hand, was quite plain. Just a simple beige trench coat with a pair of very out of place red heels on her feet.

Emerald coughed and gagged in reply, flailing his arms over his head frantically. The sock was lodged in too deep, and he couldn't work it out to speak. He cried out and banged his hand on the bed like crazy, but the woman was indifferent.

"You can be so stubborn, Emmy," she grumbled, fiddling with a locke of her hair. "I just don't want you, like, getting yourself killed all for the sake of this mission of yours."

A door on the other end of the room opened, and Coco entered, carrying the now basketball-sized Senketsu in her hands. The first sight to greet her eyes was Emerald laying in bed, pale as a ghost, with a sign in his hand reading "Farewell cruel world".

"Oh my gosh! Emmy!" she cried in shock.

"He's choking to death!" Senketsu shouted urgently.

The woman turned back in surprise, seeing her handiwork. Instead of being worried, however, she got angry. "Oh no you don't! You're not dying on me, you idiot!" she screamed, slamming her fist into his gut. The impact knocked the wind out of Emerald quite literally, shooting the sock out of his mouth and across the room.

Hacking and wheezing filled the air as Emerl sat up to suck in every breath he could, even though every inch of his body ached. Finally, when he caught his breath, he yelled, "God damn it, Honey! You almost killed me! Urgh--." He winced and laid back as the blow to his stomach throbbed painfully. "Son of a bitch. Aren't I in enough pain already?"

"Not nearly," Honey replied flatly.

Coco was more than a little distraught at the near-death ordeal, and the violent solution. She took deep breaths as she looked between the two in alarmed confusion. "You called her Hunny? Is she your--" she asked, her voice trailing off in uncertainty.

The question hung in the air for a second before understanding registered. The two burst into laughter, with Emerald barely managing to keep from coughing up a lung in the process.

"Me? And this old hag?" he wheezed. "Not in a million years. Ow!" His remarked earned him a smack to top of his head.

"Sorry for the confusion, Miss Coco, my name is Honey Sweet, and I'm Emerl's big sister," she explained with a cheerful smile.

"Some sister, nearly suffocating me, and then sucker-punching me in the gut like that," Emerald grumbled between spasms.

"I'm surprised you're doing so well," Senketsu commented. "Most humans would have had their bones snap, muscles tear completely free, and have a heart attack from the increased power flow you just experienced. That isn't even counting the incredible magic you all carry inside. It takes a rare person to withstand and control all that."

Emerald nodded and said, "Yeah, it wasn't easy, but it was worth it. I know that normally only a human infused with Life Fibers should ever wear a Kamui." He looked to his sister and added, "I spoke to big bro Tender Care a bit ago, and he says as long as I get rest I should be back on my feet in about three days."

Coco brightened up at the news. "Oh, that's really good to hear," she chimed in. "I feel really bad that you went to all that trouble just for me."

"Don't worry about it," he reassured her. "Me putting Senketsu on had nothing to do with you. We could have gotten away just fine, but I wanted to vent some built up frustrations."

"Yeah, well if you pull something like that again, then the after-effects will be the least of your worries," Honey scolded him.

"Okay okay, sis," he relented, raising a hand as though to shield him from her disapproving glare. "No more Kamuis for me. Message received. Still, we do need to find someone to wear him. We won't stand a chance without Senketsu on the field."

"That won't be possible for quite a long time," Senketsu pointed out.

Coco looked down him in her hands, confused. "What do you mean by that?" she asked. "Weren't you able to take form just before?"

"Only barely," he explained, his eyes sliding side to side along his spherical surface in what amounted to a shake of his head. "There was just enough Life Fibers present for me to recreate the most basic parts of my structure. I would need many many more to fully restore my power. On top of that, I can't start producing any significant number of Life Fibers on my own until I have even more still."

Emerald nodded in agreement. "Yes, when the Sewing Club had you in containment, they extracted almost all of your Life Fibers and fed them to this world's Primordial to convert them. They left you with just enough to keep you alive for retrieving the valuable data in your memories. In your current state, you'd probably only be able to create enough Life Fibers for a single One Star Uniform in about a week."

"That's about right. I'm pretty useless in my current state, and I'll need to be a lot stronger if we want to be able to even come close to mass production," Senketsu admitted.

"Oh, I wouldn't be too worried about that," Emerald grinned slyly. "You'll have more of a head start than you think before the day is through."

"What?"

Almost is if on que, the door opened again, and a man in a long white coat entered the room, pushing along a wheelchair. The man had skin as white as a sheet and a rats nest of curly brown hair. Everything from his thin glasses to the gloves on his hands screamed doctor.

Stitched onto the hem of his coat was a symbol of a stethoscope wrapped around a heart as though listening to itself beat. As the man pushed the chair around and next to the bed, Honey stepping aside. Senketsu noticed a black trenchcoat -- all of them sure seemed fond of long coats -- folded up on the seat. In plain view on the back of this garment was another symbol, this one a dark green shield with a crack running over halfway down its center, and lines of fog embossed on the shield's surface.

An emerald mist? Clearly something of meaning to Emerald himself. Senketsu silently wondered at the the purpose of these symbols could be. For that matter, what was with their names? Not that he was much better, really, since his name translated to Fresh Blood.

Emerald took the coat and wrapped it securely around him before pushing the blankets off. With surprising ease, Honey helped him out of bed, bearing most of his weight and moving him into the chair.

After a bit of pained adjustment to his new positioning, Emerald smiled up at the man and said, "Thanks a bunch, Tender. You're the best. I don't care what the rest of our brothers say about you."

Tender simply rolled his eyes with a smile and pushed the chair along to the door.

"Honey, could you please take Coco to her room before you go to work?" he asked as he was wheeled along. He looked to Coco and added, "I want you to take a little time and really think about whether you want to help us or not. If you do, you will eventually be in even more danger, but if you don't, we'll keep you hidden from Crystal Prep until this fight is over."

Coco nodded in understanding and passed Senketsu on to Emerald as he passed by. Honey joined her at her side, taking the girl's hand and beaming.

"Don't you worry, Emmy," she assured him. "I'll make sure she's all taken care of before I leave."

Emerald nodded gratefully, and just before leaving he added, "By the way, be sure to give Dandy Trapper and Quite Tidy my best, okay?"

"Will do!" she called after him before the door closed.

There was a moment of silence as Tender pushed Emerald and Senketsu along, making their way down the hall and to a large elevator. As their ride started down, Senketsu spoke up. "So what did you mean when you said that I'd have a head start?"

"Did you forget already?" Emerald asked back with a smile. "We had enough Life Fibers to create twelve One Star Uniforms, and there's a lot more where that came from."

Senketsu's eyes swivelled around on his surface to look up at Emerald. "Really? That has me rather curious too. How did you manage to get your hands on these Life Fibers?"

With a subtle stop and a soft chime, the Elevator doors opened, and the two of them were guided into a huge workspace filled with men and women running to and fro. They toted boxes, pushed around huge bins full of envelopes, and drove forklifts that carried huge crates full of who knew what. All of them moved about in a strangely clockwork chaos, each knowing their exact place in what at a glance seemed a total frenzy of activity. They seemed to be taking their various packages to conveyor belts that fed into the walls and vanished from sight, and at the far end of the room from the elevator was a single set of sliding steel doors. Any way you looked at it, this was a sorting room for mail.

"I inherited one of the largest shipping companies in the area from my father. Well, I guess technically Honey owns it until I'm old enough to officially take over," Emerald explained as they made their way forward. "It's a perfect cover, since we get a lot of the enemy's outgoing Life Fiber shipments passing through here. We just skim a bit off of the top, perfectly repackage them down to the last detail, and send them out none the wiser."

A perfect cover indeed. As long as Life Fibers needed to be moved from one place to another, this was the perfect place to be. So long as they didn't take too much, and repackaged perfectly every time.

Soon they reached the center of the room. People walked around them in a dizzying hurry in every direction as they went about their duties, and as they passed, Senketsu noted the gold uniforms, trimmed with dark blue, that all of them wore. Every uniform bore the words "Safe Skies Deliveries" on their backs.

The incessant racket of activity continued on until a piercing horn resounded through the hall. At the noise, all of the employees stopped what they were doing, turning to look at Emerald. Taking a deep, labored breath, Emerald looked around to all of the employees. He spoke as loud as he could manage as he announced, "My friends, and all of my brothers, the first step in our fight against the Life Fibers was a huge success. I have safely retrieved Kamui Senketsu from enemy hands, and in time he will be one of our strongest allies."

He took Senketsu in his hand and held him aloft for all to see. This got a deafening roar of approval from the crowd as they relished in a victory. His tone turned serious, however, as he continued, "I know it may be hard to believe that a Life Fiber would fight its own kind; to trust it with our fate. Many of us have already lost precious family and friends to the enemy in the last half year. All of it lost for their twisted goals for the Life Fibers. However, I can assure you all that it's true. I've seen the proof."

He set Senketsu back down on his lap and spoke with no shortage of fire and passion. "While undercover, I got to see the memories of him saving his own world from destruction. I saw his resolve to end the scourge of Life Fibers wherever he went, and that led him to this planet. Now that he is free, we can take back our world! We can restore Harmony!"

The last cheer was tame compared to the next. The building practically shook as feet stomped and voices rattled the air.

While the crowd carried on, Emerald gave Senketsu a little tap and said, "You should say something too. You're the one we're placing our hopes on."

"No pressure, right?" Senketsu chucked dryly.

"Not like it's a big change from your days with Ryuko," Emerald pointed out with a knowing grin. "You two thrived on pressure."

"Fair enough," Senketsu admitted. He hovered up into the air, drawing the attention of the crowd and silencing them before he spoke. "I want to thank you all, and especially Emerald Mist for rescuing me. I'm glad that now, instead of being used to destroy this world, I can fight back. I owe my life to you all, and I will die before I let this planet fall. I promise that to all of you!"

The cheers continued, and Senketsu lowered back onto Emerald's lap. "Well, now you've met everyone. It's time to really get to work," the boy grinned. “Next stop, the ‘All You Can Eat Life Fiber Buffet’....or basically, storage.”

Stake Your Claim

View Online

"You call this skimming?!" Senketsu gawked as he laid eyes on countless mounds of glowing red threads stacked well over ten feet high and stretching for what seemed like a full five acres of storage space. He hovered back and forth across the room, taking in the enormity of the resources at his disposal. "How the hell did you manage to get this many Life Fibers?"

"Hehe, that is a family secret, my friend," Emerald chucked as he leaned back in his wheelchair.

The feeding began in earnest, and thousands of Life Fibers shot from the mounds, latching themselves to Senketsu as he pulled them in. He turned a curious eye down to the boy and asked, "Does this family secret have anything to do with that strange transformation you underwent when you harmonized with me?"

"Heh, sharp as a whip there, aren't you, Senketsu?" Emerald said with a soft chuckle. He watched as Senketsu slowly grew larger and larger, then would suddenly shrink as he compressed the excess Life Fibers to a more manageable volume. This process repeated with Emerald in deep thought, and on the third compression he let out a sigh. His eyes closed as he relented, "I suppose I did promise before that I would explain myself, didn't I? It must have been quite the shock, seeing that side of me."

"Yes it was," Senketsu nodded as the absorption continued steadily. He thought back on the strange change that the boy had gone through. "Just what was that? For that matter, who was that?"

Another, slightly deeper chuckle passed the boy's lips before opening his left eye. However, instead of the normal slate gray, his iris was now glowing a brilliant green that matched his hair. The same voice left his mouth, but what civility he maintained utterly vanished, his demeanor changing completely as he slouched back in the wheelchair and said, "Hey there, Senketsu. Guess I can formally introduce myself now. The name's Jade Mist, Emerl's partner in crime."

"A split personality?" Senketsu blinked in surprise. "I see. So you were the one that took control when the battle began. I thought that it was strange when your fighting style became so uncharacteristically wild and vicious."

"Emerl's got a pretty crazy streak in him too," Jade pointed out with a smirk. "If you ever see him get really mad, you'll see a monster even worse than me."

Senketsu's gaze softened at those words, and he said, "Monster is a bit strong isn't it?"

His eye lost its glow, shifting back to gray, and Emerl said, "Would you have any other word for us after what you saw?"

Senketsu's eyes shifted from side to side on his body as he answered, "No, I would not. Ryuko and I once thought the very same thing about ourselves. In the end we learned that it it isn't what you are that makes you a monster, but who you are."

"Thank you for the kind words, but whether we are a monster or not isn't important," Emerald said with a grateful nod. His other eye opened, with this one now glowing from Jade's presence. When they spoke, a strange, haunting echo followed. "While you dine, we shall do as we promised. We will tell you everything we know: about this planet; about the war that has been waged against the Life Fibers; about our family; and most importantly, about the parallel world where all of our magic comes from. For the sake of this and all other worlds, we must not let it be taken."

~*~*~*~*~*~

Coco sighed softly as she followed Honey to her room. Her soft features were twisted into a frown as the weight of her situation started to sink in.

Honey took notice, glancing over to see her downtrodden expression. She pondered for a moment before giving Coco a gentle nudge with her elbow, saying, "There's no need to worry, hun. They'll be, like, totally safe."

"Huh?"

Honey beamed happily as she explained, "You were just thinking about your family, right? They've already been taken somewhere safe where Crystal Prep can't get to them. You can even see them whenever you want once things settle down a bit."

"O-oh, that's good to know, thank you," she stuttered out, her eyes flicking away in embarrassment. "That, um... That wasn't what I was worried about though."

Honey's gaze softened as she walked alongside the girl, waiting patiently until she spoke up again.

"It's just that, well, Emmy's put so much faith in me, and I don't know if I can meet his expectations," she answered hesitantly. Her emotions were a whirlwind inside her as she tried to make up her mind. "I love to design and sew clothes, but if I use Life Fibers, then those same clothes will be weapons to hurt others with. I want to help, but I don't know if I have it in me to keep making them, or if I can even make anything capable of standing up to them."

"Don't say that," Honey encouraged her with a firm pat on the shoulder. "Emmy says you're a mega genius at weaving Life Fibers. You're the one that figured out how to weave the Life Fibers so that they could unleash the magic inside of us, rather than suppress it. That's the super-hugest step ever! Nobody's been able to achieve something that amazing in over a thousand years."

Coco nodded, but her frown didn't lift in the slightest, "That may be true, but now they have the basic principle that allows that, and it's only a matter of time before they're manufacturing Three Star Uniforms and maybe even a Kamui of their own. Plus, no matter how many Life Fibers Emmy may have for Senketsu to absorb, we'll never be able to match the raw production volume they can achieve." Her shoulders slumped and her head tilted forward, masking her face in shadows as she trembled. "If they can make anything I'm able to, and make more of it, then what good am I?"

She let out a short gasp as Honey gripped her shoulder and spun her to look her in the eye. The woman's vibrant pink eyes gleamed with a surprising intensity as she spoke.

"Don't underestimate yourself. You can do anything you put your mind to," she told her. With a playful wink she added, "Beside, my little bro wouldn't trust just anyone to continue our mother's work. So put that cute little head of yours to work and weave a way around the problem. I know you can do it."

Coco blinked for a moment as the words sank in, then broke into a fit of giggles. "You know, when you talk like that I can actually tell that you're Emmy's sister. You sound just like him when he gives a dramatic speech," she blurted out between chuckles.

Honey broke out into another big grin, joining in on the laughter and saying, "Guess you caught me, but keep it a super-duper secret. Don't want my customers knowing I'm not just some silly blonde." She put a finger to her upturned lips and whispered, "Just between you and me, Emmy got so good at his speeches because he would always parrot mom and me. It was so cute when he was little."

"Hehe, I can only imagine," Coco smiled back. "Your mom must be a great woman."

"She really was," Honey sighed. "Oh, I'm so sorry," Coco immediately apologized, a hand lifting to her lips.

Honey started back down the hall, waving to encourage her forward. "Don't you worry your pretty little head. You couldn't have known."

Coco nodded and fell into step alongside Honey. She did feel as though she should have known from how she was apparently being trusted to continue their mother's work, but she appreciated the thought anyway. It was a lot to be expected to carry, but somehow Honey's words had put her a little bit at ease. The wheels in her head were already spinning up ideas for just how she could make Emerald proud.

~*~*~Two Days Later~*~*~

An automatic door slid open as Emerald stepped into what used to be the storage room. Now, the walls of the room were lined with dozens of enormous supercomputers, and several smaller stations littered the space within their circle. Each of the stations had a person typing away on it at breakneck speed. The race was on at this point; to find the ideal pool of talent with which to start their own army that would battle Crystal Prep.

At the center of the room were two chairs, a large one, and a small one, and in the latter sat Senketsu, fully restored and observing their progress. He now looked just like Emerald remembered from the videos he'd seen, having returned to his form as a black and red, Neighponese school sailor uniform. His collar spiked upward like brows for his eyes that emerged from the scarf tied beneath them. The point where the two ends of the scarf tied together even fashioned what looked like a mustache, and further down, the separation between his blouse and skirt was what formed his mouth.

"So we're absolutely certain, Digit?" Senketsu asked as a man in the Safe Skies Deliveries uniform stepped up beside him holding a tablet.

The man, who Emerald recognized as Digital Dexterous, was tall and wiry, with short black hair and light blue skin, sharp, angular features, and wire rimmed, circular glasses that glinted in the myriad lights of the room. He turned the tablet for Senketsu to see, and confirmed, "Yes, the readings we've been picking up have been coming from this location. It also seems that they have been causing an unprecedented growth in magical energy among those in the immediate vicinity."

"They're making magic grow stronger?" Senketsu asked as he took the tablet in his sleeves and began flicking across the screen.

"Well, not exactly," Digit explained, pushing up his glasses. "It would be more accurate to say that the magic is being pulled closer and closer to the surface."

"What's going on?" Emerald finally interjected. He walked up and took his chair next to Senketsu, spinning it around to face the two of them.

"You're back on your feet early," Senketsu noted as he passed the tablet over to him.

Emerald looked over the very familiar image of a school, flicking through one after another as he saw overhead views of a campus, a statue of a horse, and -- Wait, was that a girl stepping into the statue's pedestal?

"Is that what I think it is?" he gawked at the image.

"Indeed, sir," Digital confirmed with a nod, "It appears to be one of the ancient portals to Equestria you've spoken of. We were alerted to its location at Canterlot High School when an enormous magical signature was detected in its vicinity this morning. Check the next picture."

A swipe and the next image showed another girl standing in front of the pedestal, she was holding a bundle of fliers in one hand, and clutching the back of her head with the other as students walked up to the school. The source of her pain was lying right on the ground behind her; a golden crown with a brilliant violet gemstone placed at the forefront. Emerald's eyes went wide at the sight of the gem, which was in the shape of a six-point star.

"That's the source of magic you detected? I swear I've seen that symbol somewhere before. Do you think it could be someone's Mark?"

"Mark?" Senketsu echoed. "What is that?"

"Marks are pretty much the only form of magic from Equestria that still manifests for everyone in the human world without an outside stimulus like Life Fibers," answered, leaning forward and pointing to the shield emblem on the back of his coat. "At some point in everyone's childhood, we see our Mark vividly in our minds, and we have the Mark made into accessories or woven into all of our clothing. It's a symbol of our talents and personality, which in Equestria is known as a Cutie Mark. It's unconfirmed, but the few who know all this believe that we see our Marks when our Equestrian counterpart earns their own Cutie Mark."

"Interesting," Senketsu replied, a sleeve moving to touch at his collar between his eyes. "It seems the interplay between the two worlds is pretty complex."

"Ahem!" Digit cleared his throat to get their attention. "If you don't mind, I have a lot of work to do. Can we finish discussing the crown?"

"Right, sorry," Emerald apologized. He bowed his head sincerely before flipping to the next picture, which showed the girl with the fliers walking away with the crown while the same girl that had been walking into the portal before was now stepping out of it, looking quite frustrated.

Digit leaned in over the top of the screen and swiped to the next picture, saying, "You were right on the nose, sir. The crown is related to a Mark, one belonging to this next girl."

The next image showed another girl being flung out of the portal, along with a dog. The one after that showed her screaming, and another one of her attempting to run on all fours. Most notable, however, was the violet, six pointed star that was sewn into her skirt, just like the gem on the crown.

"So it belongs to her?" Senketsu chimed in. "A powerful magical artifact from this Equestria place is now in a world that usually has only the barest scraps of magic. She's likely here to retrieve the crown before it can do any damage."

"I shudder to think what would happen if our enemies managed to get ahold of it," Digit worried. "If that kind of power were added onto a Kamui, then we'd never be able to beat them." Emerald remained silent, staring intently at the girl.

"Emerl? What is it?" Senketsu asked, shaking his shoulder with a sleeve. "This girl. I know her," He answered without taking his eyes from the screen. "Her name is Twilight Sparkle, and she's a student at Crystal Prep. This must be her Equestrian counterpart. I wonder… could she be Equestrian royalty? Maybe even an alicorn?"

"We can think about that later, right?" Senketsu asked, taking the tablet and handing it back to Digit. "Perhaps we should approach this Twilight Sparkle and inform her of the trouble this world is in? It could be dangerous in the enemy's hands, but if we were the ones to use it--"

"No, we won't," Emerald shut him down right away. "Life Fibers are dangerous enough. We don't need to risk exposing ourselves and others to dark magic. Just like we don't want Life Fibers getting into Equestria, we need to make sure that any Equestrian artifacts stay where they belong."

Senketsu was quiet for a moment before he gave the point to Emerald with a shrug. "Then what will we do?"

"We'll observe for now. If this Twilight Sparkle needs any help getting the crown back to Equestria, then we'll step in to lend a hand, but otherwise we'll keep to the shadows until the portal closes. After that, Coco and I will infiltrate the school and blend in."

"Infiltrate? So this is where we'll build our army?" Senketsu asked. Emerald nodded, leaning back in his chair.

His eyes flashed green as Jade took over and said, "Teenagers have the highest affinity for Life Fibers, after all. Besides, you guys said earlier that the crown is bringing everyone's magic closer to the surface, right? That makes them all perfect candidates."

"But even so, would they be willing to fight alongside us?" Senketsu wondered aloud. He spun his chair around to look over the rest of the room as the people worked diligently at the computers. "It's a lot to ask of anyone."

"I don't think that'll be a problem," Jade said with a laugh. A vicious smile spread across his face, the look in his eyes turning as cold as ice as he stared off at some unseen imagining. "Canterlot High and Crystal Prep are bitter rivals, so I'm sure they'll be lining up to put every last elitist ponce in their place." He suddenly stood and threw his coat onto the chair, beckoning to Senketsu with a finger. "Come on, we're going to go keep an eye on things. Even if Emerl and I won't activate you, just wearing you should give us a little extra magic to work with."

With a nod, Senketsu's body began to flow like water, and he leaped onto the boy's arm. Life Fibers slid along his body, taking shape as a new coat. This one was black as well, with his shield emblem still on the back, but now each shoulder had one of Senketsu's eyes on them.

Emerald took control once more, turning to face his men. "Alright people! I want intel!" he barked to the room, sweeping his hand out in a dramatic gesture. "I want backgrounds; family; friends; associates; everything you can dig up on all the students and faculty at Canterlot High! Monitor all of their magical signatures as well, and figure out what pony transformation types they are. We'll need to start weaving outfits as soon as possible. Now hop to it so we can kick some ass!"

"Sir!" Digit and all present shouted, standing at attention for only a moment before getting back to work.

~*~*~The Next Night~*~*~

Emerald and Senketsu stood atop the roof of Canterlot High, watching as a column of teal flame erupted from the school's front courtyard. Within the spire, a girl named Sunset Shimmer let out a cry as her heart turned the magic in the crown black and twisted her form. When the flames dissipated, what hovered in the air before them was nothing short of a demon. With skin of bloody red, hair that flickered and swayed like flame, and jagged black wings that flapped menacingly.

"See what I told you?" Emerald said as they watched the demonic girl transform two young lackeys of hers into similar sinister forms. "We have no business using that crown. It needs to be taken back to Equestria before the portal closes."

"Yes, I can't argue that," Senketsu agreed, glancing up at him. "The magic in the air is so thick that it's suffocating. Do you think they need our help?"

Their presence went unnoticed, even as Sunset turned back to the school and shattered the entryway with a simple telekinetic clutch. Emerald smiled and shook his head, saying, "No. Let the Equestrian deal with the Equestrian problem. I have faith that Harmony will win in the end. It needs to if they have any hope of beating Crystal Prep."

"Harmony... I've heard you say that a couple of times now. Twilight even called that crown an Element of Harmony," Senketsu pointed out curiously. "Is it really so important?"

"Just watch and you'll see," he assured his companion, patting a hand on his own arm, Senketsu's sleeve.

His faith was well placed. Things looked to be at their worst, with a crowd of mind-controlled students marching on the portal with Sunset leading them. Twilight Sparkle and her friends stood in her path, refusing to let her attack Equestria. The response was predictable, as the demonic girl summoned up a ball of magical flame and launched it at Twilight, attempting to obliterate her obstacle.

However, it was in that moment that something changed. A flicker of powerful, pure magic followed the fireball as Twilight's friends threw themselves over her. This selfless act got a reaction from the tainted crown on Sunset's head, producing a magical barrier over the girls as they stood unscathed.

"I'd only heard my mother speak of this magic," Emerald said with a smile, his eyes closing shut. "The magic that brings all together, that binds everything, including the two worlds. The magic of Harmony, forged by the bonds of friendship. This is the most powerful magic of all."

They watched on as the six girls, without the aid of Life Fibers, underwent the pony transformation. They each floated into the air, hand in hand, and unleashed a dazzling rainbow of light upon Sunset Shimmer, who shrieked as the brilliance overtook her. In the end, after the blinding lights faded, Twilight and her friends stood over a smoking crater, where Sunset lay at its center, returned to her normal human form.

"That was incredible!" Senketsu exclaimed. "Do you think that with these girls we could use the magic of Harmony to stop the Life Fibers?"

Emerald shook his head, eyes opening again to point down at Sunset in the crater. "Harmony magic is the most powerful because it is capable of neutralizing all other magic, and can strip all but the blackest darkness from someone's heart," he explained. "If there is light, it can help it shine. However, the energy that Life Fibers use is completely different from magic, so they are unaffected. Since Harmony magic has no use for fighting either, we can't use it."

"Guess I can't hope for a simple solution, can I?" Senketsu chuckled dryly. "So then..."

Emerald was about to ask why he trailed off, when a sudden chill shot up his spine. This dreadful foreboding was echoed when Senketsu have a sudden shudder. The dreadful sensation pressed down on their shoulders as they slowly turned to look behind them.

"Nui Harime," Senketsu hissed, confirming Emerald's suspicions before he too laid eyes on the pig-tailed girl. Fear kicked him into overdrive, and with a wave of his hand, the air all around began to ripple before settling down again. It was an illusion to mask all trace of activity on the roof from the students and faculty still below.

"Hehehe, oh that's right, you haven't heard yet. I go by the name Koketsu now," she giggled, holding a deceptively dainty hand to her lips. Her dark sapphire eye locked onto the pair, causing Emerald to take a reflexive step backward. "So you're that Emerald Mist guy that's got my boss in a huff, huh? I hear you have some pretty neat tricks."

This was nothing like watching the videos from Senketsu's memories. Nui, or rather, Koketsu, was a terrifying enemy back on their home planet, but nothing could convey the utter blackness her presence brought with it. An enemy this powerful... He stood no chance against her, even if he did activate Senketsu again.

Koketsu tilted her head to look past the pair, spying the activity on the ground far below. With a peppy smile, she asked, "So what're ya up to? Checking out that doozy of a magic surge, like little old me?"

Don't provoke her.

In the name of all that is holy, don't say a damn thing to provoke her.

Koketsu took another step forward, and Emerald teleported behind her on reflex. The girl didn't seem the least bit perturbed, turning back to face him once more. Even though there was a good twenty yards between them right now, it felt like she was staring at them from mere inches away. In truth, the distance between them meant nothing with her speed. She could be staring him eye to eye in a split second if she so chose.

Koketsu twirled a finger through one of her pigtails, musing, "You guys are gonna have to work really super fast if you want to get this place ready to fight us, you know."

So she saw through their plans for this school, that was to be expected. Her choice of words was interesting though. "You have no intention of stopping us? You're not here to fight?" Emerald asked.

The smile Koketsu answered with sent a another chill through the pair, and she shook her head. "Nope, I already have the information that I needed. You can do whatever you want with this place."

"That's awfully generous of you," Senketsu grumbled. "Are you really that arrogant? You could finish this right now if you wanted too."

Was... was that an aura flowing off Koketsu's body? Not magic, but pure, unbridled power literally taking form around her. The blackness of her presence turned to pitch, and a terrifying murderous intent electrified the air.

Violet Life Fibers spindled out of her hand, binding together to form a pair of giant purple scissors. She hefted the weapon, testing its weight and spinning it in a flourish before pointing it right at Emerald.

The boy took another step backwards, easing into a wary stance.

"I'll tell you the same thing that I told Miss Nectar, dummy Senketsu," Koketsu said in a sickeningly sweet tone. "I will fight you, and I will kill you. I'll shred you to pieces, devour you, and use your power to destroy everything, leaving only Life Fibers, just as Lady Ragyo dreamed. It'll be on my terms, though. I want you to struggle and suffer before you die."

Emerald and Senketsu stood their ground, glaring helplessly at Koketsu as she shrunk down her scissors and tucked them in her pocket. Her eyes scanned over them before she turned away and said, "You'd better hurry up and find a better host than Mister Mist if you want to stand a chance, Senketsu. You'd better not disappoint me."With that she leaped away and vanished from sight.

Emerald sank down to the floor, sitting there as his heart slammed in his ears. "We're still alive," he muttered in relief. "Oh man, I've never been so terrified in my life."

Jade surfaced, eyes flashing green as he growled, "Damn it, Emerl! Why did you lock me out? I wanted to give that bitch a piece of my mind."

Their eyes went gray again as Emerald answered, "Because your big idiot mouth would have gotten us killed."

"Pfft, details," Jade dismissed the argument before fading away again.

"You two sure have an interesting relationship," Senketsu noted in wry amusement. He was still a bit stiff and on edge from the encounter.

"He's like an annoying, snarky brother," Emerald agreed with an equally wry chuckle. "Still, we keep each other in line, even if I'm the one holding his leash most of the time." Pushing himself to his feet, Emerald pat his own shoulder to reassure Senketsu, feeling his stiff fabric slowly start to loosen up. "How about we go home and I see about having Coco iron you out? We have a lot of work ahead of us."

Just at the mention of getting ironed, a pleasant shudder passed through Senketsu's every fiber. "That sounds wonderful," he agreed. "As much as I hate to say it, Koketsu was right. We need to find a host for me as soon as possible."

Emerald nodded, charging up his magic for a long range teleportation spell and vanishing in a chartreuse flash. He already had plans for that. If he was right, then they'd already found the perfect candidate.

My Soul is the Mighty Phoenix...

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"Are you sure you're ready, Sunny?"

"Yes mom. For the hundredth time, I'll be fine. I've got this. There's no way I can fail."

A young, orange-coated filly sat grumbling as her mother fidgeted with her yellow and red-streaked mane anxiously. Hooves smoothed out the back while a comb was repeatedly sifted through the front with a telekinetic push. Her bright green eyes turned up irritably to her mother as she grumbled, "Mooooom. Cut it out already. My mane's just fine."

A soft sigh of relief left her lips as the comb and hooves left her mane. However, even the welcome return of her personal space wasn't enough to stop the anxious tapping of her own hoof on the stiff, uncomfortable chair she sat in.

What was taking so long?

Looking around, she and her mother were alone in the waiting area. Not long ago, parents and children had crowded this space, all of them eagerly waiting their turn to take the exam that would determine if the young filly or colt would be admitted to the most prestigious magic school in all of Equestria; Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. Success would mean opportunity. A whole library of magical knowledge at one's hooftips, along with materials and other support in research. Failure meant a long, hard road, fighting and scraping for every last bit of growth that would be fully nourished otherwise.

It's not like there was anything to worry about, though. The filly knew everything there was to know about this test. It was infamous in its difficulty, but after extensive research and information gathering, she had figured out the secret.

For the test, young unicorns were all asked to use their magic to hatch a dragon's egg. Such a feat, however, was impossible. It was likely that the great Starswirl the Bearded, or even Princess Celestia herself, wouldn't be able to achieve such a feat. Obviously, with an impossible task set before them, the children weren't judged on their ability to make the egg hatch. Instead, the power and complexity of the spells used in their attempt, as well as how they handled their inevitable failure were the determining factors of acceptance.

It was a guaranteed thing. She knew the secret of the test, and she knew she had the magical talent to back it up. She glanced down at her flank and smiled as she looked at the gold and crimson sun upon it. Her cutie mark was a magnificent sun, so much like the mark of Princess Celestia. Whenever she looked at it, she knew she was destined for great things, and this was just another step on that path.

This was really strange, though. The last filly had left the testing room at least ten minutes ago. What was taking them so long to call her in? Was she somehow not on the list? Growing impatient, the little filly was just about to trot over to the door and knock until she got some answers. Her impending outburst was canceled, however, as the door swung open and three ponies in posh, stuffy, intellectual clothing stepped out. They were two mares and one stallion, each looking over clipboards and speaking to each other in hushed voices.

This was really odd. Why were all three of them out here? Every other time just one of them had come out to call a candidate in.

Looking up from the conversation, one of the mares stepped forward and said, "Miss Dawn Treader? Your daughter's exam is ready now. If you and Sunset Shimmer would please enter." She gestured a hoof to the open door.

"Yes! Finally!" Sunset cheered, leaping down from the chair and bounding excitedly over to the door, her mother not far behind. When they were both inside, the door was closed behind them.

"Hold on a minute," Sunset whipped around. "Why are they staying out there? How am I supposed to take the test?" She looked to her mother, who was wide-eyed with wonder as she looked past her daughter.

"I will be the one overseeing your test, Sunset," a voice, calm, warm, and gentle, spoke up from behind her. That voice... It was unmistakable. Anypony who even heard it once had that voice engraved in their minds.

Sunset turned around, eyes going wide as she beheld none other than Princess Celestia. Her presence was almost overwhelming. Towering at almost twice the height of the average full grown pony, she looked down on the pair with look of profound serenity in her violet eyes. Her white coat was like that of an angel from Elysium, with a long spiraling horn and broad, powerful wings to match. Her mane and tail, a colorful rainbow of cerulean, turquoise, cobalt, and lilac, flowed behind her like a glorious ether. The princess was clad in her stunning golden regalia, with ornate shoes and a mantle set with a large, gleaming amethyst at its center. The crown on her head completed the look, arching just behind her horn with a smaller amethyst set at its crest.

"Princess! Why are you--" Sunset started to say, but cut herself short. What place did she have to question the princess? Besides, she would likely explain herself soon.

Something about it didn't feel right though. The princess administering the test herself was unheard of, at least not since the founding of the school centuries ago. Why would she be the exception? Unless…

Celestia bowed her head to Sunset and Dawn, and looked to Dawn before motioning for her to take a seat at one of the desks. The awestruck mother simply nodded and took a seat as Celestia returned her attention to the little filly before her. "So you are Sunset Shimmer?" she asked bluntly. Her expression was unreadable, and it made the filly anxious.

"Um, yes!" she answered hesitantly.

"I hear you've been doing quite a bit of snooping around, Miss Shimmer. I was quite surprised to learn that a filly of your age actually managed to discover the trick behind my impossible test."

Horseapples. She was busted big time. What was Celestia going to do about her worming her way around the entire purpose of the test? A knot started to form it Sunset's stomach as she imagined the possibilities. Was Celestia mad? Was she impressed? She couldn't tell!

Keeping that mysterious, unreadable calm about her, Celestia turned and walked over to a pedestal set at the front of the classroom. A red cloth was draped over the top of it, and the distinct, ovular shape of an egg poked up from the center. But this egg... Her heart sank as she realized that this one was way too small to be a dragon's egg.

"As impressive as your investigative ability is, Sunset Shimmer, I can't just let you be accepted when you're holding the cheat sheet," Celestia explained, lighting up her horn and pulling the cloth from the pedestal. Underneath was a small egg, no bigger than that of a hawk. Unlike other eggs, this one was a brilliant gold with amber flames patterned across its surface. "As such, I have prepared a different test just for you. If you want to be accepted into my school, then you must hatch this phoenix egg. It must actually hatch for you to pass. There is no trick; only your ability as a sorceress."

Sunset swallowed a lump in her throat. She seriously had to hatch a phoenix egg? Sure, that was far more possible than a dragon egg, but it was still something that eluded some of the greatest unicorns. How was she supposed to do this? Was this her punishment? A test well beyond her ability, but still possible? Couldn't Celestia have just failed her outright and gotten it over with?

Calm down. Calm down. Deep breaths.

She had to keep a level head. Her future was riding on this. Even if Celestia was setting her up to fail, she just had to pass anyway, and the doors to greatness would open!

Sunset looked back at her cutie mark and mustered up her nerve. This was her destiny. She was meant to be a great sorceress, and maybe even change the face of Equestria itself one day. She was the morning star, the brightest of all lights, cresting the horizon in a dazzling glow, ever moving forwards, day by day. She wouldn't let anything stop her from being the greatest she could be.

She took a step forward, approaching the egg as Celestia moved aside to observe. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see her mother nervously gnawing on the nail of her hoof. A worry wart like always.

Sunset stared at the egg in silent pondering, and when she came to her first idea, she zapped a line of green magic out to the egg.

First she'd try a growth spell. The flash of light cleared... and nothing. Not even so much as a wiggle or crack on the shell. That one had been a long shot anyway. Sure, she could hatch a chicken egg that way or even cause a seed to sprout, but a phoenix egg would have actually been a shock. As a magical creature they had a strong resistance to spells.

Another green flash, and fire wrapped around the egg's resting place. Another spell directed a bright, concentrated ray of light from her horn to the egg. A phoenix was a bird of flame and light, so perhaps this kind of thermal stimulation would get results?

A few moments pass, and nothing happens. Another failed try.

Extinguishing the light and flames, Sunset glared at the egg in mild irritation. Just what would it take to hatch this thing?

The flashes of magic from her horn kept coming one after another. She tried everything she could think of, from different variations on the growth and heat approaches, to healing and magic boosting spells. She tried every way she could think of to stimulate the tiny life inside the egg failed again and again, all while Celestia watched on, stoic and unreadable.

Sunset started to grow frantic, stepping closer to the pedestal and casting spell after spell on the egg. Something had to work. It just had to. She had to pass. She had to get into this school. She was meant for greatness, and she would not let this egg keep her from that!

Her hoof swung out in frustration before she could even think about what she was doing. She struck the pedestal and caused it to sway violently back and forth. Her blood froze as she saw the egg tip from the edge and tumble down. Time slowed as she watched her future fall away, only to to be caught mere centimeters from the floor in the golden glow of Celestia's magic.

No-no-no. What had she done? Stupid! She was so stupid! How could she have let her temper flare like that?

Her frustration grew to the breaking point as tears streamed down Sunset's muzzle. She turned her leaky eyes to Celestia as the regal mare approached her, bringing the precious egg safely aloft beside her. Her previously unreadable expression was all too clear now. The disappointment in her eyes crushed Sunset's spirit, causing her to fall to her knees as she sobbed.

"I see you understand that I cannot pass you after that little display," Celestia sighed, shaking her head. "If this is how you behave, then you would have also failed the dragon egg test had you not known what you do. I honestly expected better from you, Sunset." She turned and started towards the door as Dawn ran up to hug her daughter tight, lovingly running a hoof through her mane while she cried.

Those words were like a lance through the heart. All of that hard work, and all of Sunset's hopes and dreams, had just gone up in smoke. She had no one to blame but herself. She'd let her anger get the better of her and almost destroyed a phoenix egg, a rare miracle of life.

Why hadn't anything worked? If there was any magic that facilitated hatching, she had tried it. She'd put all of her heart and soul into it.

A bright glow wrapped her cutie mark for a brief moment as realization struck. That was it! That was what she needed to do!

Sunset vanished in a flash of green, appearing in the doorway just as Celestia was about to leave, much to her surprise. She held up a hoof to bar the princess' path and pleaded, "Princess, please listen to me! I can't apologize enough for the shameful display I just made, but I'm begging you, please let me try just one more time!" Her eyes welled with earnest tears as she kept going. "Attending your school would be a dream come true for me, but if I fail this last time, I'll leave. I promise."

"Teleportation at such a young age?" Celestia whispered, just barely loud enough for Sunset to hear as she looked the filly over. After an agonizingly long silence, Celestia dipped her head and relented, "Just one more try, Sunset. If you fail, then you'll have to pursue your magical education on your own."

"I understand," Sunset nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes.

A moment later she was standing in front of the pedestal again, staring intently at the egg as Celestia and her mother watched. It was all or nothing now.

She moved right up to the egg, tilted her head, and touched her horn to the delicate shell. The glow of her magic wrapped around her and the egg as she focused everything she could into her horn. Every last bit of magic and emotion she had swirling inside of her. She was going to nurture the egg with every bit of her heart and soul. Every bit of warmth, hope, and aspiration she held for the future; a future that this egg depended on, and was thus a part of. This egg was her future now, and she had to put everything into it that she would put into being the greatest pony she could be. Every bit of love and life in her flowing freely back and forth between her and the egg.

It was so simple, really. Why couldn't she have realized it just moments ago? It was one of the most basic principles of magic ever taught. Magic was the projection of one's will to affect the world in some way. As such, the heart and soul of a pony affected the shape that magic took. Plus, the phoenix wasn't just a bird of flame and light, but an icon of the soul and rebirth in its many forms. Wouldn't it make sense that a phoenix egg would hatch in response to the love, warmth, and hope a parent has for its child? She just needed to be all of that to the little life in this egg.

Her magic lifted the egg from its perch, bringing it down to her as she sat on her haunches and took it into her hooves. She held the egg close to her as she channeled her magic as a medium of her heart, eyes clenched tightly shut.

She didn't know how long she stayed like that. It could have been seconds, minutes, or even hours, but the next thing she knew she felt a stirring inside the egg. A tap from within the shell caused her eyes to snap open, discovering a crack across the gold and amber surface. Another tap, and the crack expanded. Yet another sent a chip flying off. Finally, the opened up as a beak poked through it. It was a beautiful sight to see as more of the egg fell away from her hooves to reveal a tiny little chick chirping excitedly. It was a beautiful bird covered in the red and gold of its soft, fluffy down feathers.

The little chick looked around at the bright new world it had been born into, and eventually turned its beady little eye to look at Sunset. It chirped and tweet happily, bringing a smile to her face.

Grinning from ear to ear, Sunset leaned forward and grazed her nose along the chick's tiny beak, giggling all the while. "I did it," she said, tears almost on the verge of falling again. "I actually did it! I hatched her!"

"Her?" Celestia asked, perplexed but still graced with a small smile for the filly's achievement. "How do you know that?"

How did she know that? Strange. She couldn't exactly identify avian gender at a glance. "I don't know," Sunset answered honestly. "I just... felt it."

"Oh Sunny, I'm so proud of you!" Dawn cheered, running up to her daughter for a tight hug. She was careful to avoid disturbing the chick, but still managed a spine-poppingly tight squeeze that left her daughter grimacing.

"Yes, congratulations Sunset Shimmer," Celestia said, smiling down on the filly. "You've accomplished something incredible today; something that most ponies could never accomplish, and at such a tender age. You truly have the makings of a magnificent sorceress."

Sunset's eyes lit up at the praise, her dreams of greatness all the more affirmed. "Thank you, Princess. Thank you!" Sunset beamed, looking down to see the chick crawl up along her forearm until it perched on her shoulder. It nuzzled against her cheek and gave another chirp. "I'll study hard and be the best student ever once I graduate from your school."

Celestia shook her head, saying, "You misunderstand. I won't be accepting you into the school."

Both Sunset and the chick's heads swivelled to Celestia in surprise. What did she mean? The test was complete. She'd passed the test, right?

Celestia approached them, her smile growing wider as she announced, "Sunset Shimmer, I want to make you my protege so that I may overlook you education personally. You will further your studies in the ways of magic, and any other subject you pursue."

The smile on Sunset's face was matched in size only by her mother's. The two whinnied ecstatically, and Sunset returned an equally spine-popping hug to Dawn. Sleipnir above! This was incredible! Beyond her wildest dreams! She was going to study directly under Princess Celestia herself? There was no greater honor that she could think of.

Celestia chuckled at their enthusiasm and continued, "Your first task as my pupil will be one of your most important. I want you to raise this phoenix chick. You have forged a powerful bond with her already, and she is sure to be an important part of your life from now on. I trust you'll take good care of her?"

Sunset nodded so hard her head seemed likely to come right off. "Yes, Princess. I promise that I won't let you down."

The princess bowed her head ever so slightly, accepting her promise before asking, "Do you have a name for your new friend?"

She did. Just as surely as she had known the chick was a girl, she knew what her name would be. She smiled, tickling the tip of her hoof under the bird's little beak as she said, "Her name is Philomena."

~*~*~*~*~*~

Sunset deftly twisted her head to the side as a fist flew past it. She reflexively grabbed it by the wrist, leveraged it, flipped Rainbow Dash down onto the floor mat, and sat on her back. "And that's how I became Princess Celestia's pupil," she finished her tale with a mischievous smile as she slowly twisted the girl's arm further and further back.

"Ow-ow-ow! Mercy! Uncle!" Rainbow yelped out until Sunset finally released her.

The pair got to their feet and dusted themselves off as a little smattering of applause came from off to the side. The rest of their friends were standing at the edge of the room, watching as they were sparring. With the match concluded, they came closer to cheer and pat them on the back.

"Man, guess there's some sports I'm not the best at," Rainbow pouted, rubbing her sore shoulder. "But I'd still cream you at soccer, basketball, baseball, volleyball, and-- Oof!" She was cut short as Applejack gave her a playful elbow to the gut.

"Oh quit yer belly'achin," she laughed. "No need to lord yer athletics over her just cause ya lost at martial arts."

Sunset smiled wide, more than a little happy to get one over Rainbow Dash and get under her skin a bit. The girl could be quite obnoxiously proud of her natural abilities, and it was fun to see her in a huff over being bested. Still smiling, she held her hand out to Rainbow and said, "You're really good, though; it's just that you were too aggressive. Not only did you completely ignore defense, but you went so overboard into offense that it was easy to put you off balance. If you practice on more control and protection, you'll beat me out in no time."

Rainbow continued to pout as she stared down at Sunset's hand, but after a moment she sighed and took her hand. She laughed wryly as she squeezed it tight and said, "Thanks for the advice. I'll put it to use next time and totally wipe the floor with you."

Sunset winced at the tight grip on her hand, but joined in laughter with Rainbow as the heat of the match started to wind down. She looked around the gymnasium where they had decided to spar, eyeing a few banners that still hung from the walls. They were what remained of the latest big event at school, a musical showcase turned Battle of the Bands where they had stopped a trio of sirens that had tried to steal the magic at this school. It had only been two weeks since then, but it still felt like she had been there just hours ago. She had helped her friends stop the sirens' plan, and since then her life at Canterlot High had been so much better. Most of the animosity she'd earned when she had been at her lowest, darkest point and become a demon had been swept clean, and she'd earned the forgiveness she'd wanted for so many months. She couldn't even begin to describe how happy she was to be free of the twisted darkness that had been clawing at her heels since that day.

"I'm quite curious, wherever did you learn to fight like that, darling?" Rarity asked.

A slight flush tinted Sunset's cheeks as she recalled the memories. "Actually, it was Flash Sentry that taught me all that. Him teaching me that, and how to play guitar, are how I got used to moving in my human body," she explained. She hid her embarrassment by picking up the mats and lugging them over to the storage closet. "It's just another way that I used him. I'm beyond grateful for everything he did, but I feel terrible for how I took advantage of him when I knew how he was."

Fluttershy struggled to lift up another mat, smiling meekly as Applejack took care of it for her, hefting one onto each shoulder and following after Sunset. "What do you mean you knew how he was?" she asked.

Sunset sighed as she dumped the mat back in its place in the closet. "The Flash Sentry in Equestria is one of the Royal Guard," she recalled with more than a little regret. "For about three or four years, up until I left for this world, he was also my personal escort and guardian whenever I went out into the field for research. I even had him teach me to fight back then too. I was a bit stubborn about not wanting to rely on others more than I had to."

"That's Flash for you!" Pinkie cheered, bouncing along to deposit another mat on the pile. "Always willing to lend a hand, or hoof, to anyone that needs help!"

"Yeah, he's been like that since before I even met him," Sunset chuckled, this time recalling some fond memories. "He always used to help me bounce theories and just listen to me talk while I was working. He's a smart guy, and was able to keep up with most of what I rambled on about. I guess it helped that his father's a scientist." Her hands drifted up to clutch at the sleeves of her jacket, frowning as she said, "I feel terrible for how I treated that Flash during the last year I was in Equestria, and how I treated this one as nothing more than a tool."

"Chin up, darling," Rarity said, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder as Rainbow Dash struggled with three mats just behind her. "We may not know a lot about how magic works, but I think everyone in this school understands that you couldn't have helped us stop those awful sirens like you did unless you'd completely changed."

"I still have a lot to learn, though," Sunset admitted. Once all of the mats were stowed away, she shut the closet behind them. "I think my next big lesson on friendship is going to have to be how to make a real apology. I may have done a lot of horrible things to everyone, but Flash is the one I really want forgiveness from. It's hard, though; because every time I see him I feel too ashamed to say anything."

The six friends left the gymnasium and started towards the front doors of the school, talking all the while.

Part way into one conversation, Pinkie Pie suddenly chimed in, "Oh! Oh! I have a question. If the pony Flash is a Royal Guard, then why is he a guitarist in a band on this side?"

"There's actually not as big of a difference as you might think," Sunset explained. "Human Flash always told me that he wants to be a police officer once he graduates. Heck, his best friend Strike Wing has already started training as a cadet since he graduated last year, and Flash plans to follow when he graduates."

"Guess that don't surprise me one bit," Applejack mused, fiddling with the brim of her stetson. "That's just how folks like him are. People that have a shield mark live to protect others."

The six of them nodded together, continuing their way through the empty halls. It was already well after class, and they had just stayed behind to use the gym and floor mats for the sparring match. By now pretty much everyone else had either gone home, holed away in the library or club rooms, or outside in the fields practicing for sports. So it was quite a surprise to Sunset when she heard a voices coming from a branching hall down the way. She held an arm out to stop her friends, holding a finger to her lips as she listened.

"So they're doing better now?" the familiar voice of Flash Sentry came from around the corner. "They were in pretty rough shape before."

"Thanks to you, they've already made a full recovery," another, unknown voice answered. "We've managed to reverse the Pale Death, and they've been back on their feet for the last week."

The Pale Death? The fatal illness caused by an imbalance in the elemental spectrum of mana in the body? Seriously? That actually existed in this world?

More curious than ever, Sunset creeped up to the corner and peeked around. The rest of the girls followed suit, crowding the edge with their heads poking around at different heights. She saw Flash with his back to her, speaking to a boy she only vaguely recognized. He was definitely a Canterlot High student, but he had to be fairly new since she knew almost everyone's name around here.

The boy had a messy mop of dark green hair and pale pale gray skin. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of thick, round glasses, and he wore an unevenly buttoned dress shirt and too-loose jeans under a black jacket. A green shield emblem could be seen stitched to his chest pocket, and around his neck hung a necklace of a longsword with a silver hilt and a green blade. The jacket was probably the oddest thing about him. With the rest of his disheveled attire, the punkish jacket seemed out of place on such a nerdy looking guy.

"I'm glad they're okay," Flash said, relieved. "I've been thinking about what you said before, and I still haven't made up my mind yet. I still have a lot to think about before I accept your offer."

The boy broke into a big grin and gave Flash a playful nudge, saying, "That's okay. Take the time you need, but until then I want you to have something." He reached into his pants pocket and handed something off to Flash. "Things are going to get really dangerous around here really fast. We're still in the progress of creating a Three Star for you, but you can use this if trouble comes knocking. It'll weave the fibers into the outfit you're wearing, and the design has already been tweaked to match your abilities."

Sunset couldn't make heads or tails of what they were talking about. The only clear part was that the boy had mentioned things getting dangerous. What did he mean by that? Flash took the mysterious item, thanked him, and the pair turned to head further down the hall, their conversation fading into the distance.

Once they turned down another hall and out of earshot, Rarity spoke up, "I wonder what's gotten into Emerl? I've never seen him act like that."

Sunset turned to Rarity, surprised. "You know that boy?"

"Well, yes," she explained, brushing her long coif of hair out of her face. "Emerald Mist came to Canterlot High a little bit after the Fall Formal. He and a darling sweetheart named Coco Pommel joined my fashion club together. You wouldn't know it from looking at him, but he can sew a mean outfit. Poor dear doesn't have the slightest bit of design sense, though. Such a shame."

"The fellah doesn't really look like much, does he?" Applejack commented. "I've seen him here and there around the school. Coulda sworn one time I heard him talking to his jacket, of all things. Called it Sam Ketchup, or something like that."

"Hehe, sounds like a fun guy! I'll bet Maud and him would get along great!" Pinkie giggled. "They could have a play-date for Boulder and Sam Ketchup. Oh, I'll even bring Gummy along!"

Pinkie's tangent might have normally gotten a smile out of Sunset, but her mind was far too occupied with Emerald. Something dangerous was coming, and he seemed to know what it was. Even more peculiar was that he was talking with Flash about it. Flash was a great guy and all, but after witnessing the Battle of the Bands, wouldn't he think that the six of them should know? Heck, he was even part of Rarity's club. For that matter, shouldn't he be talking to Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna?

Her thoughts were interrupted as Emerald's voice came shouting back down the hall. "Are you shitting me?! How could you let them escape with the uniforms?!"

Fluttershy looked around the corner to see what was going on and gasped, "Oh my! He's coming back, and really fa-- Eek!"She didn't even have time to finish as a gust of wind knocked her back and Emerald came to a skidding stop at the intersection, his back to them.

In that moment, he looked like a completely different person from before. His glasses were gone, and his messy rats-nest of hair was now neatly parted to frame his face. His entire disheveled and lazy look was replaced with control and conviction.

His sharp gray eyes flicked over to Sunset for a split second, and a tiny smile appeared. He'd known they were there all along! Still that wasn't nearly as surprising as the second set of eyes on his jacket that glanced at her. What the hell was that thing?

Holding a hand to his ear, Emerald said, "Coco, I want you to stay far away. I'll take care of this problem myself." He took his hand away, lowered his stance, and slammed his palm to the floor, looking straight ahead. "Are you ready, Senketsu?" As he shouted, a green aura surrounded him. A pair of pony ears appeared atop his head, and a ponytail grew from the back of his hair.

"Yes, we have to protect the school," his jacket spoke, its own eyes turning forward too. "Let's go, Emerl!"

The collective jaws of the girls dropped, and were summarily knocked onto their backside as, in another rush of wind, Emerald shot down the hall like a rocket. They girls were left gaping at what they'd just seen and heard.

After a few seconds, Rainbow leaped to her feet and shouted, "Come on, girls! Let's follow him!" She broke into a sprint, hopping over her dazed friends, and the rest of them followed right after.

"What in tarnation is going on 'round here?" Applejack asked between puffs of breath.

"I have no idea, darling," Rarity called up, lagging at the back of the pack. "Emerl's normally such a sweet, awkward, and mousey boy. I never thought he had such a fierce side to him."

Sunset shook her head, saying, "I think she was referring to the insane speed, the magic, and the freaking talking jacket!"

"Oh yay! I wasn't the only one that heard that! I thought I was going crazy, hearing clothing with eyes talk. Guess I'll have to cancel that appointment with the funny farm," Pinkie giggled, typing away on her phone as she bounced along with them.

"I hope he doesn't get hurt," Fluttershy whispered softly.

Rainbow had already gotten to the school's entryway ahead of the group, and after looking out the doors, turned to call back, "Hurry up, slow-pokes! We've got big trouble!" She was about to say more, but she was interrupted by a loud crash and the shattering of glass.

Just behind her, Emerald came tumbling into view along with a shower of broken glass. His face and body had gashes all over, but the rips on his jacket quickly mended themselves.

"Damn it!" Emerald shouted, pushing himself back to his feet and ripping his necklace off. As the girls reached the chaos, there was a rapid, mechanical clicking sound, and the tiny sword pendant in his hand folded out, expanding into a full-sized, gleaming blade. The green blade flourished through the air, and Emerald's eyes flashed with the same color as he shouted, "You'll pay for that, you bitch!" With another leap, he shot back through the destroyed front doors, charging at his enemy.

Beyond the doors several crashes shook the air, but were overwhelmed by the ominous melody of three voices singing in unison. Three voices that the girls remembered all too well.

"Oh no," Sunset gasped, running to get a good look at the ones attacking their school. It really was them, the three sirens that had tried before to steal all the magic at Canterlot High; Aria Blaze, Sonata Dusk, and their leader, Adagio Dazzle. "They're able to sing again? How? We destroyed their amulets!" It shouldn't have been possible for them to use their musical magic anymore, let alone sound as hauntingly beautiful as they did once more.

"This is nothing like they were before," Rainbow said, pointing to them. "They never had this kind of power, and there are there weird glowing stars on their clothes."

Emerald came in to slash at Adagio, only for her to duck under his blade and deliver a kick that sent him sprawling again. The other two sirens stood behind Adagio, singing their low, dark tune in time with her as she continued to evade strikes and pummel Emerald in retaliation. The beating the boy was taking was brutal, but he got up every time and kept fighting with that green light in his eyes burning fiercely.

They were never like this before. The sirens weren't fighters like this at all. They'd used musical magic to manipulate the school into conflict and fed off of the negative magical energy that was produced. With the gems that gave them that singing magic broken, they had been left completely powerless. Yet now Adagio was pounding Emerald into the dirt, and he clearly wasn't lacking in power or technique from the way he welded his blade.

How were they this strong? It shouldn't even be possible.

Wait, Emerald had said something about them stealing some uniforms. Did those clothes have something to do with it? They didn't look that different from what they'd always worn, but each of them had a single silver, four-point star emblazoned on the fronts of their shirts and glowing bright. That had to be it. There was no other explanation that made sense. The question then was where they got those clothes and what it had to do with Emerald.

That would have to wait, because with a painful punch to the gut, Emerald was flung into the wall of the school. The brick surface crumbled like dust at the impact, and chunks of stone fell on the boy's collapsed body. With him taken care of, Adagio and the other sirens turned their eyes to Sunset and Rainbow, as well as the rest of their friends as they joined them at the school entrance

The sirens’ melody grew louder and louder as they marched forward, a familiar song leaving their lips, but with a much darker twist.

We heard you thought that it was over.

We heard you thought you saved the school.

Well we're back and even better,

And now you'll see that you were fools.

Why pretend our thoughts are tame,

When they've gone much darker?

You're the ones that are to blame,

And now it's time to pay the Reaper.

Me and you,

You and me,

Why don't we see who is stronger?

We don't have to play your little safe game.

Oh what's so wrong with a little confrontation?

Are you afraid of a swift decapitation?

If you're strong, then time to show it.

We will put you to the test!

But don't forget that you'll get hurt

If you don't give your very best!

Battle;

This time we mean it!

Let's have a battle,

Battle to the Death!

Let's have a battle,

This one will end it!

Let's have a battle, battle, battle!

Battle to the Death!

... I Burn Myself to Ash...

View Online

Celestia let out a long sigh, levitating a scroll before her as she paced her throne room. Ponies around her moved tirelessly, cleaning up shattered pieces of flooring, splinters of wood, and shattered glass. Others entered the hall carrying new floor tiles, a new carpet, stained glass windows, and finally a set of huge double doors.

It was nice to finally get around to fixing the throne room after the mess Tirek had caused. Between repairing the damage done to the rest of Equestria, and still having to hold major events like the Grand Galloping Gala, it had taken a while to get to this. Plus getting all of the stained glass windows recreated, and getting the door wood from a particularly rare and strong Everfree tree had taken longer than expected. With so much done to return things to normal everywhere else, finishing it all here felt like the perfect punctuation at end of the road.

"Princess," a pegasus guard cleared his throat as he approached her through the empty doorway, "is there something ahoof in Ponyville?"

Celestia turned a curious eye to the stallion, "Why do you ask?"

The stallion trotted over to one of the empty spaces for the windows and pointed out to the sky. "Our sentries on the wall just reported that they saw Philomena flying in that direction. It seems quite urgent, considering how easy it is to spot."

Celestia felt a gnawing uneasiness as she approached the window to see. How had Philomena gotten out? She knew she'd left the bird in the cage in her bed chambers while she was seeing to the repairs. She'd even left a silence bubble around the room so the sounds of construction would not disturb Philomena, as she wasn't overly fond of loud noises.

What Celestia saw as she looked to the sky was quite a shock. A trail of flames, burning almost as bright as the sun, stretched from the upper heights of the castle and out beyond sight. With such intense fire she must have melted the bars of her cage to escape, but what could prompt such an unusual outburst? She was a bit of a troublemaker and prankster for a bird, to be sure, but the guard had been quite right to say that her flight seemed very urgent.

"I fear that it's not Ponyville we have to worry about," Celestia said calmly, keeping herself collected so as not to alarm those around that had started to stare. She looked to the guard again, giving him the scroll she'd been holding on to for overseeing the repairs. "I want you to keep things running for me. I need to take a moment to get in touch with Princess Twilight."

Before the guard could even answer her command, she turned to leave the throne room, summoning up a blank scroll and quill to scrawl down a letter. There was only one reason she could think of for Philomena to go to Ponyville on her own. The portal to the human world was there, in Twilight's castle, and beyond that portal was the one whom Philomena cared most for, Sunset Shimmer. The bond between the two had always been as mysterious as it was powerful. When Philomena had entered her rebirth cycle many decades earlier than she should have, shortly after Sunset had fled through the portal, Celestia had believed it was in response to a change in the mare's heart. Their lives were undeniably entwined, and for Philomena to choose to act like this now, even after all the other dangers that Sunset had encountered in the other world, had to mean that a far more terrible danger was looming.

She just hoped it wasn't what she thought it was.

~*~*~*~*~*~

The dark song of the sirens came to an end as they reached the foot of the stairs leading up to the school's destroyed doors. Adagio stood at the front of the trio, with Aria and Sonata flanking her on either side. She placed a hand on her hip and smirked up at the girls watching them.

"I thought we were done with you," Sunset called down to them, stepping forward from the group. "How did you even get your magic back?”

Adagio's malicious smirk only grew wider as she replied, "You'll have to thank your cute little ex-boyfriend, and that green sneak, Sunset. Those idiots took us in and thanks to Emerald we're stronger than ever now." She held up a fist and clenched it tight. The force of that simple gesture was so strong that it made an audible thump. "Thanks to the Life Fibers woven into our outfits, we don't just have our magic back; we have power beyond anything you could imagine."

"Life Fibers?" Sunset echoed. If the name was any indication... A living fabric? Did that have something to do with Emerald's talking jacket? And just what were he and Flash thinking, helping the sirens?

"You Rainbooms aren't going to be able to sing your way out of this," Adagio cackled.

"Whatever, let's just get this over with, Adagio," Aria grumbled grouchily. "Once we kill them we can trick Twilight into opening the portal and take over Equestria."

"Horseapples," Sunset whispered. They were after her journal. How did they know that it could be used to contact Twilight?

Adagio turned a fierce glare back to Aria, who just huffed indifferently. She was about to speak again when Sonata leaped between the two, wearing an oblivious smile.

"Aw come on, do we have to kill them? They aren't so bad," she laughed.

Out of the corner of her eyes, Sunset saw her friends grow more tense at every mention of the word kill. Fluttershy hugged tight to the arm of Pinkie, who if at all possible was looking just as uncomfortable as the meek girl. Unsurprisingly, Rainbow Dash looked primed and ready to leap at the trio, and Applejack was squeezing her shoulder to hold her back. Rarity somehow looked even more pale, as though ready to fall back onto an absent fainting couch at a moment's notice.

"Zip it, both of you!" Adagio barked. "We went through Hades because of them, and I'll be damned if we don't do this exactly as planned. I will have my moment!"

The two recoiled at the outburst and nodded reluctantly.

Adagio turned back to face Sunset and the girls and crossed her arms over her chest. A pale blue aura, completely different from the sinister red they once had, silhouetted her body. In response to the surge, a pair of pony ears appeared atop her head, and piscene fins grew from her back like wings.

"Well, Rainbooms? Any last words?" Adagio asked, her voice low and laced with hatred. The danger became very much apparent as multiple spots of magic started to appear around her. These points began to expand, and water in the air began to condense into razor thin disks swirling at high speed. It wasn't hard to imagine this spell's purpose.

It was very clear to Sunset that their situation was beyond just bad. Whatever these Life Fiber things were, they had put the sirens on a completely different level than before. She and her friends couldn't use musical magic to counter this. There was no matching the physical strength they'd gained either. She'd never felt so completely and utterly helpless.

"Emmy! Oh no, Emmy!" a sudden shout turned all attention to the side as Coco Pommel came running out of the school entryway, past the girls, headed right for the pile of rubble Emerald lay in.

"No you don't," Aria said, her expression flat and unchanging. She aimed a hand at Coco, glowing with the same blue light as she transformed, and shot a gout of steam from her palm. The hot stream struck Coco full on, scalding her and flinging her limp body against the brick wall.

"Coco! Oh, the poor dear. What did she ever do to you, you ruffians?!" Rarity shouted, stepping forward in a sudden swell of bravery.

"Ah ah ah," Sonata said with a smile, "don't get any funny ideas." She raised her hand and followed the other's lead, transforming and unleashing her magic. For her, a chilly beam shot forward and struck Rarity's feet, encasing them in ice and rooting her where she stood.

"Eek!" Rarity shrieked in panic. "Do you have any idea how hard these boots were to make? The materials were very expensive! I expect you to pay for these if you ruined them! And as for what you did to poor Coco, you should be asha-- mmph!" A smaller beam shot out, and a band of ice wrapped over her lips, silencing her.

Rainbow and Applejack snorted in a futile attempt to not laugh.

Sunset's eyes flicked back and forth between the sirens, taking in information. It seemed like they not only had musical magic, but were each capable of controlling one of the three stages of water. That made sense. Sirens were aquatic creatures. What use was this information though? Her panic was getting the better of her, making her scrutinize details that weren't even useful to her. She had to get it together and think of a way to save herself and her friends.

"Can't say I think those were very good last words," Adagio commented. "Now, time to die, Rainbooms."

Tseeeeeeer!

That sound. Could it be?

Adagio's arms whipped forward, and the water disks shot at them. In the same instant, a bright light flew out of the statue in the center of the courtyard, moving through the air with a wake of searing flame as it intercepted the attack.

A loud hiss and a cloud of steam filled the air, the disks burning away under a wave of intense heat. The steam billowed out, enveloping the whole courtyard, the white fog masking everything but a golden light that shined brilliantly before Sunset.

"... Philomena?" she asked hesitantly. As the steam began to clear, the familiar form of her old friend started to come into focus. The sight had her on the verge of tears. "Philomena! You saved us!"

"She's beautiful," Fluttershy commented in awe of the radiant bird.

"So shiny!" Pinkie exclaimed.

Sunset's elation was short lived, as she felt a terrible dread suddenly flood into her heart unbidden. A moment later, the light from Philomena started to fade fast, and with a dull, wet thud, she fell to the floor.

"Philomena!" Sunset cried. She rushed over to her fallen friend's side, seeing a small puddle of blood starting to form under her, matting her beautiful feathers. She gingerly, ever so carefully pulled Philomena's wing aside, and broke into sobs. There was a deep gash across the bird's stomach. It probably didn't seem too bad, but a phoenix was a very slender bird; even a seemingly shallow cut only an inch deep could slice into vital organs or arteries.

Philomena was dying. Worst of all was the fact that Sunset could feel every little bit of life leaving, like pieces of her own heart crumbling away.

"This is horrible," Fluttershy gasped, tears welling in her eyes. She knelt down beside Sunset and gently stroked the creature’s head. "Won't she be reborn when she dies? Isn't that what a phoenix does?"

Sunset shook her head, lifting her wounded friend and holding her tight to her chest. "No, a phoenix can only revive itself when it reaches the end of its lifespan and enters a natural cycle," she explained, fighting the tears even as they streamed down her face. "If they die from injury, they never come back." The warm blood covering her hands and staining her clothes was the least of her worries. All she cared about right now was holding Philomena tight. She would show her that the one that loved her most was here for her.

As the steam completely cleared, the sirens got to see their handiwork. Adagio looked strangely taken aback, and Sonata was beyond alarmed. She grabbed Adagio by her arm and shook her furiously.

"Adagio, this wasn't part of the--"

"Zip it!" Adagio cut her off in a panic. She closed her eyes for a second and looked back to Sunset with a fierce glare. "Your little bird shouldn't have gotten in the way. Now things are going to get very ugly for you."

"How..." Sunset's body shook as an entirely different feeling flooded her being. They'd attacked this school. They'd hurt her fellow students and her friends. Because of them, her best friend she'd had since fillyhood was about to die. They didn't care. They were evil. All of these thoughts swirled inside her, stirring a part of her that she'd tried to get away from for months now. A black aura started to lift off of her, growing larger and larger.

She wanted to make them pay.

"How--"

"How dare you!"

Sunset's head snapped over to see Flash Sentry stepping up next to her, the black aura vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. His eyes were lit with an intensity that she hadn't seen since she last saw pony Flash. In his hand he tossed and caught what looked like a small spool wrapped in glowing red thread.

"Oh? The pretty boy steps forward? Don't you have a guitar to go tune, hun?" Adagio scoffed, waving a hand dismissively at him.

"Adagio, why are you doing this?" he shouted. "I didn't save your lives so that you could come back and hurt all my friends! Do you see what you've done?!"

"So what?" she snapped back. "It's because of the Rainbooms that we almost died in the first place. I'm going to return the favor."

Flash started down the steps, clasping the spool of thread tight in his hand. "I'm not going to let this continue."

What did he think he could do? It didn't seem like he had those Life Fiber things in his own clothes, and Emerald had been defeated easily by Adagio single-handedly.

"And what are you going to do?" Adagio asked, echoing Sunset's concerns. "You can't beat our Goku Uniforms." Flash twirled the spool in his fingers then opened it on a hinge to reveal blinking lights and circuitry hidden within. "I can if I have a Goku Uniform of my own," he explained. When he held the device over his jacket sleeve, red threads shot out, latched themselves to the garment and wove the device on tight. "Fiber Interweave Terminal, activate."

Bright light shined from the device, and the red threads started to spiderweb throughout his clothes. They lit up brilliantly, pinpoints of light flashing along their length as energy flowed into them. Eventually his entire outfit was covered with those glowing red lines, like a second network of blood vessels. The threads around his jacket sleeves started to twist and stitch together, forming a pair of crimson four point stars on each arm. Lastly, the threads flowed out of the cuffs of his jacket and condensed into silver bracelets on his wrists.

Flash took a ready posture, holding his fists up and widening his stance, just as he had taught Sunset to do. "Lightning Spec, Augmentation Enhancing Two Star Goku Uniform! Guardian Flash Sentry, ready to fight!" he shouted, the change completed. His clothes didn't look any different than they had before, aside from the red stars on his jacket and the bracelets, but a feeling of strength came off of him as he stood his ground.

"Heh, interesting. I didn't know that the organization had toys like that," Adagio looked him over with smug confidence. "So what is lightning spec, augmentation enhancing supposed to mean? You think just because we use water that you'll have the advantage with lightning?

Flash didn't answer, but Sunset had a feeling she knew what was coming. If these Goku Uniforms were able to unleash the magic buried deep in a person, then she knew exactly what that meant for Flash. His pony self had a talent unlike any pegasus she had ever known. A talent that the sirens would never see coming.

Flash lifted one of his arms over his head, and the bracelets on his wrists started to expand, wrapping up and down his arms until they took shape as a pair of gleaming gauntlets. The weapons were so much like the ones his pony self used, with a particularly thick, heavy plate covering the back of his forearm and hand, and the rounded end wrapping around his knuckles, almost hiding his hands. A gauntlet weapon as thick and durable as a shield, capable of delivering fast, powerful strikes while also providing incredible defense if used correctly; the Barrier Cestus.

With his arm raised high, Flash called out, "Thunder set." A soft orange glow spread across his body, pony ears replaced his human ones, and the feathered wings of a pegasus pony sprouted from his back just as several bolts of electricity arced out and struck the cestus, sending their current coursing through his body. Looking up, Sunset could see that the "lightning" came from power lines that ran from the street to the school. Electrical energy danced through the air between his wings and crept along his skin as that power was drawn into and contained within his body.

"Impressive light show," Adagio smirked. She pointed a hand at Flash, calling forth more water disks around her. "Since you saved our lives, just this once I'll do you the favor of sparing you and only shredding your Goku Uniform."

With a snap of his wings and a deafening crack of thunder, Flash was behind Adagio, his body coursing with power and his arm pulled back to strike. The sirens started to turn, stunned at the sudden burst of speed.

"What the--"

Before Adagio could finish, Flash's fist struck her jaw with another thunderous snap of power. A moment later, a secondary shockwave cracked from his gauntlets, sending Adagio flying into the stairs. Electricity danced painfully across her body as the wave rocked through her, and Aria and Sonata immediately leaped back to distance themselves from Flash.

"It's just like in Equestria," Sunset said in awe. She'd forgotten how incredible this ability was. It had been so long since she'd seen it. A weak call from Philomena returned her attention to the bird, and she tenderly stroked her head.

"Whatever he's doing, it's totally awesome! What do you mean it's just like in Equestria?" Rainbow asked, her eyes riveted on Flash and an excited grin plastered on her face. In her excitement, she was instinctively shadowboxing, bobbing back and forth with her fists raised to fight.

"The Flash Sentry from Equestria had this unique ability too. He was able to take the power of lightning and electricity into his body like a battery," Sunset explained, watching on as Flash readied himself to fight. "Then, he directs the electricity, along with the mana inside it, to different parts of his body. From there, he can release a pulse of force or use it to reinforce himself. When he does, his speed and reflexes are enhanced, as well as the strength of his body to withstand the strain. The attribute that gets the biggest boost, however, is his acceleration. He isn't the fastest, but he can hit top speed and stop again in less than half a second without any negative effects from the g-force."

"Wow, that really is something right there," Applejack commented. "I guess that magic stuff has even more uses than what we've seen before."

Flash approached Adagio's fallen form, glaring down at her as he said, "You can't win, Adagio. You're wearing a One Star Uniform, and mine is a Two Star. You three should leave right now, while you still can."

Adagio just laughed, pushing herself back to her feet as the last bits of electricity lanced along her body. Surprisingly, she didn't look worse for wear after the hit she'd taken. There was barely even a scuff on her cheek. Faster than Sunset could follow, she leaped forward and threw a punch at Flash, who blocked with one arm. The sound of metal ringing from the impact was deafening, and the force of the blow made Flash's feet sink into the concrete beneath him as it crumbled away.

"You've got it backwards, Flash," Adagio said smugly. "Our Goku Uniforms are special. They are linked together, and because of that they have all the power of a Three Star Uniform!"

"What?!" Flash gasped. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sonata charge him, and barely lifted his other arm in time to block her fist.

Both arms now occupied, Aria moved in next, leaping up and spinning in the air to deliver a brutal kick right to Flash's exposed shoulder. Adagio and Sonata moved aside as Flash was sent tumbling across the courtyard, and the three sirens charged him once more.

Flash recovered quickly, righting himself mid-tumble and flinging an arm out to call, "Thunder set!" Another bolt of electricity was called to strike his cestus, filling him with power. With a supercharged flap of his wings he shot forward to meet the trio.

Shockwaves rocked through the air as the fight moved at sonic speed. The lightning streak of Flash and the blue glows of the sirens took to the skies in a flurry of clashes that were almost too fast to follow. Flash ducked, jabbed, swerved, and blocked, but every strike he managed to land was shrugged off, even with his secondary impact waves hitting them full on. Meanwhile, he had to contend with blasts of steam, ice, and water that threatened to knock him right out of the sky on top of the coordinated strikes of the sirens. For every two blows he managed to land, the sirens dealt a much more painful one in return.

He was holding his own, but Sunset could see that he was wearing down fast. It couldn't be easy for him to keep the currents in his body under control while fighting, and he was still new to using the technique. The pony Flash had even said it took him years to master containing lightning without it hurting his body. It had to be agony just using this ability, and yet he wasn't letting a bit of it show. That was just like him.

Suddenly, yet another new voice spoke up from off to her side, "This is bad. His ability is allowing him to keep up with the speed of all three of them, but his offensive and defensive power isn't enough. He's going to lose."

Sunset looked beside her, and if she hadn't already seen enough shocking things today, what she saw might have actually surprised her. Standing at her side, staring up at the battle in the sky, was a black and red school sailor uniform with a pair of eyes under its scarf. It may not have had much of in the way of a face, but she could tell that it was very worried.

The rest of the group recoiled in surprise at his sudden appearance, but Pinkie waved excitedly at the garment. "Oh look, it's Sam Ketchup!" Pinkie said. "Why aren't you on Emerald? Looked like he got hurt pretty bad."

The uniform violently shuddered and replied, "Please don't call me that. My name is Senketsu, and Emerald told me to leave him to come and get help from you.”

Help? How could they help? Even though they wanted to, there was no way they could match the power the sirens had. Sunset could feel that not even the magic of friendship could stop the trio.

"It's hopeless," Sunset said bluntly, cradling Philomena in her arms and stroking her head. "The sirens have won. We're no match for them now."

"What are you talking about, Sunset?!" Rainbow shouted. "You can't just give up now. If we had those Geki Uniforms too, we could totally whup their butts and send them packing!"

"They're called Goku Uniforms," Senketsu corrected her, "and that's exactly why I'm here. Sunset, I have something for you." He reached into his chest pocket and held out a spool of glowing red thread to her just like the one Flash had used, only this one had Sunset's mark on top, the crimson and gold sun. "Unfortunately, we don't have the ones that we made for the rest of you, but this FIT is designed just for you. With the Three Star configuration programmed into it, you will be able to match or even beat Adagio and the others."

Sunset's face went pale. He wanted her to wear one of those things? Yet another source of awesome power? Her mind flashed back to when she had placed the Element of Magic on her head, and the darkness in her heart transformed her into a terrible demon. That darkness wasn't gone. She felt it bubbling beneath the surface as she wrestled with her fury that she was about to lose her oldest friend.

"No, I don't want a power like that ever again," Sunset hissed through clenched teeth. "I won't let myself become a monster!"

Uuuwoh.

Sunset looked down to Philomena, who was staring at her with a tender gaze. A smile crept unbidden to Sunset's lips, and she leaned in to nuzzle nose to beak. "You idiot. You're the one that's hurt. Why are you the one cheering me up?" she muttered.

Senketsu hopped closer and placed a sleeve on her shoulder. "I know this is a lot to take in. Still, I'm begging you to believe me when I say that I know you can do this. We wouldn't have prepared a uniform for you if we thought you were still the demon we saw when we first started watching over you all. You've changed."

Senketsu's attempted kindness lit a fuse in Sunset, and she smacked the spool of thread out of his sleeve before turning a smoldering glare on him. "So let me get this straight; you and that Emerald guy have been spying on me and my friends ever since the Fall Formal," she barked, her voice rising as she kept going. "You came into our school and started working in the shadows, not even talking to us about this Life Fiber business. You just sat and watched on the sidelines as the sirens almost succeeded in tearing our school apart, and then decided for whatever reason to make these dangerous clothes for them to give them their powers back and then some. Then last but not least, you started making these clothes for us too, and are expecting us to start fighting for you now that the shit has hit the fan. Where the hell do you guys get off pulling this crap?"

“Uh, Sunset, normally I’d agree with ya, but I reckon we’ve got bigger problems right now,” Applejack pointed out, still watching the thunderous fight in the skies.

Senketsu's eyes shifted away and clenched shut as he answered, "We didn't have a choice. One of our most dangerous enemies already knows we are, and we couldn't risk letting Crystal Prep find us before we were ready."

"Crystal Prep?" Rainbow Dash butted in. "They're involved in this whole mess?"

Senketsu nodded. "There's no time to explain though. Sunset, I know you're mad, but--"

Before he could finish, Flash was sent crashing into the stairway with a loud crash. The force of the impact shattered the concrete and sent debris flying in every direction. When the dust cleared, he could be seen trying to get up on his feet, only to fall forward with a painful groan.

"Flash!" all of them shouted. Pinkie, Rainbow, and Applejack even started to step out to help him.

"Stay back!" he shouted as Adagio, Aria, and Sonata landed in front of his beaten form. His body was completely devoid of strength and hung limp as Adagio lifted him by his collar.

A dark smile spread across the girl's face as she held Flash up like some sort of trophy. "You put up a good fight, pretty boy. Better than Emerald did, anyway. Congrats on getting a few clean hits in," she commended him.

"Yeah, I was, like totally surprised," Sonata giggled. "Wouldn't it have been scary if he'd had a Three Star? He would have totally kicked our butts!"

Aria rolled her eyes and groaned, "Could you shut your big mouth for once? Talking about us losing isn't exactly going to make them terrified of us."

Sonata turned her nose up and huffed, "Meanie. If you're going to be like that, I won't share any of my candy with you when we get back."

In an unusual display of emotion, Aria's cold indifference suddenly melted into surprising concern. "Whoa now, let's not go saying things we'll regret later," she said cautiously.

Pretending she hadn't heard, Sonata tapped her chin and wondered aloud, "I think I'll start with the Nerds."

Concern turned to panic and anger as Aria shouted, "You know those are my favorite!"

"Oh for the love of Sleipnir, would the two of you stop?" Adagio groaned in disgust. She looked at Flash's ragdoll body in her hand and just threw him aside. "Great, now because of you idiots, I don't even feel like dealing with him anymore." She looked up to Sunset and swept her arm out, summoning her water discs again. "I'm far from finished with you, though."

"Damn, this isn't good," Senketsu grimaced. "You knocked the FIT too far away for me to get to. She'll kill you before you have the chance to use it."

"I already told you, I don't want that kind of power," Sunset said, her gaze fixed on Adagio. It was tough talk, though. She didn't want to trust this creepy talking outfit, but at the same time she was starting to wish she hadn't smacked that device away. Her pride and regret are the last things she wanted to get her and her friends killed. Philomena was dying, and they were next. If she had just taken the stupid device from Senketsu in the first place she would be able to protect her friends.

Philomena's head lunged to the side, pecking at Senketsu's sleeve out of nowhere, making him jump back. "Ow! What was that for? Wait... What?"

Sunset looked down to see that Philomena was holding a blood red glove in her beak, and the bird's eyes slowly started to close as a fresh flow of blood stained her hands. Her breath caught in her throat. "Philomena! No, please don't die! Don't leave me after I just got you back!" she screamed. "Why did you do that? You're just going to die faster!"

Senketsu watched Philomena in a frustrated mix of curiosity and concern. When she lunged at him like that she had irritated her wound. Surely she understood that? Why would she hasten her own death just to get ahold of the Seki Tekko? He had a feeling he was about to find out.

Philomena's weak, half-lidded gaze met Sunset's and she let out a soft coo.

I'm never leaving your side again, Mom.

The words Sunset felt in that instant were like a knife through her heart, and Philomena burst into flame in her arms. The soft orange and gold tongues consumed the bird's body, as well as all the blood that soaked Sunset's skin, clothes, and even the Seki Tekko. The dreadful, yet beautiful, funeral pyre wreathed around Sunset and completely enveloped her as she let out a heart-wrenching scream. Brilliant light radiated from the center of the flame, bathing all around in a tender warmth as Sunset's sobs sent chills through their spines. Even the sirens gave a noticeable shudder at the sound.

"Whoa, look what's happening to Senketsu!" Pinkie shouted, pointing to him on the other side of the flames. Just as she spoke up, Senketsu felt a rush through every last one of his fibers. Two bursts of immense magic flooded him to the point that he felt he would overflow, and the black of his fabric began to shift to a shimmering gold color, starting from the hem of his skirt and traveling all the way up to his collar. Whatever Philomena was doing to the Seki Tekko, it was affecting him too; he could feel it. He was evolving in response to this overwhelming power.

From within the roaring flames, Sunset felt the warmth of Philomena's soul enveloping her and melting away each tear before it could even fall. She felt a push, as though a hand were upon her back, urging her to her feet, and she followed it. She stood in the inferno with only the red, fingerless glove clutched tightly in her hand, and her shoulders shaking as her grief pressed down on her.

Philomena was dead. Her first and oldest friend was gone in an instant, and as that cruel fact continued to churn inside her, Sunset could also feel the blackness in her heart screaming and clawing its way to the forefront. A sinister aura started to pulse off of her body, only to be driven away as the flames leaped upon the shadows in an instant, purging it and filling her heart with a consoling warmth. Beneath that warmth, however, she discovered a burning wrath that made the darkness seem tame in comparison.

It was Philomena's heart speaking to her, and she understood what was being said.

I don't have to be afraid of myself. It's okay to have feel rage and fury. I don't have to let it control me. I can control it .That is the burning star that is our hearts, right, Philomena?

The world around her seemed to fade as clarity filled her, giving way to endless whiteness. In that moment, all that existed was Sunset, the warm flames of Philomena, and…

The hand on her back that suddenly shoved her forward.

Sunset failed desperately to keep her balance, barely managing to keep herself upright. She whipped around, immediately ready to blame Rainbow Dash, but her voice caught in her throat when she laid eyes on someone entirely different. It was a punkish looking girl with messy, medium length black hair accentuated by a single locke that was a bright crimson. She stared back at Sunset with feisty dark grey eyes that had a strange pattern inside them, somewhere between a flower and a clockwork gear. She was also wearing what looked like Senketsu, but the sailor uniform's distinct eyes were nowhere to be seen.

"Who are you?" Sunset asked cautiously.

The girl just put on a fierce smile, her form becoming translucent as she started to fade. "Good luck out there," she said. "This fight isn't going to be an easy one."

Sunset had the distinct, foreboding feeling that the girl wasn't just talking about the sirens, but she slowly nodded. "Thanks."

The girl's smile softened, and she held out a hand, asking, "And please take good care of Senketsu, would ya? That blubbering rag can be such a crybaby, and he's totally hopeless without me."

Sunset hesitated for a moment, staring at the girl's hand. Why did this feel so... right? She didn't even know this girl, but she felt a strong kinship with her at first sight. Before she even realized it, she was clasping the girl's in her own, giving a firm shake.

The girl's smile broke into a huge grin, and she faded away completely with one last cheer.

"Thanks, Sunset. Now go give those bitches hell!"

The parting words got an amused chuckle out of Sunset, and the world snapped back into focus. The glove she held writhed with life and wrapping itself around her hand before another whole glove split off from it and put itself on her other hand. At the same time, the inferno that enveloped her body started to recede, all of the flames converging on a single point at her right hand. When the last tongue was pulled away, what remained on her finger was a golden ring in the shape of a phoenix, with its wings cradled around a glowing, perfectly round ruby.

The girls watched in wonder as Sunset raised her hand, amber flames erupting around the ring. This was her anger and hatred, freed from the fear and darkness she'd held in her heart and turned into a pure righteousness. It was a harmonious flame, the fury of which was fueled by her love for her friends and this world she called home. This was their power; hers and Philomena's.

The sirens all took a considerable step back in the face of such intensity. A nervous grimace even shadowed Adagio's face for just a moment, but she held firm, raising a hand over her head to summon more deadly discs.

"You're going to pay for what you've done!" Sunset shouted at the trio. Light and flame poured out of her ring and encircled her in a burning spiral. She poured every last bit of her heart into the ring, just like that day so many years ago when she hatched Philomena.

"As if I'd just stand and watch!" Adagio shouted back. She swung her hand down and the water discs shot at Sunset all at once.

"Shippu Senjin!"

In a burst of fire, Senketsu rocketed into the path of the discs. His body hardened like steel, and scorching hot razor spines sprouted along his body. The jets that formed from his skirt sent him into a dizzying spin to slice right through the discs, which fell to harmless puddles on the ground, and he arced through the air before landing squarely in front of the tornado of flame.

The blaze dispersed, revealing Sunset in her pony transformation, but with her once green eyes now glowed with the same amber hue as the flaming aura that lit upon her forehead. She stood ready to fight, her hands raised to brandish her weapons. "Phoenix Gloves," she called their name, flourishing the transformed Seki Tekkos. The once fingerless gloves now covered her hands entirely, with amber colored metal plates wrapping over the knuckles and finger joints, and a razor metal nail extending from each fingertip like talons. The backs of each glove were embedded with identical hemispheres of a ruby sphere like on the ring, and both were wreathed by the image of Sunset's sun mark. Golden pinions decorated the cuffs of the gloves to finish the motif, making the weaponized gloves look truly avian in nature.

"Whoa! That is so awesome!" Rainbow cheered.

"Looks like we'll make it through this afterall," Applejack agreed.

"Yeah! Kick some butt, Sunset!" Pinkie whooped.

"Be careful," Fluttershy whispered softly.

"Hmph," Rarity huffed, pouting through the ice still keeping her silent.

With her friends supporting her, Sunset's full attention zeroed in on the sirens. Her eyes narrowed and her fists clenched tight.

"Let's go, Philomena."

... And Am Born Again Anew

View Online

It was incredible. There was no other word to describe it. With just two gloves and a ring, Sunset had reached an amazing new level that Senketsu could never have predicted. Since the Phoenix Gloves were part of his body, he didn't need to imagine what was happening inside her. He could see it clearly, and it was like nothing he'd ever seen before.

Sunset walked past Senketsu and down the stairs with deliberate, purposeful steps. Her eyes were fixed upon the sirens with a fury that was somehow quiet, tempered, and serene. When she reached the foot of the stairs she just stood there, staring at them.

"You think we're scared of a pair of gloves?" Adagio scoffed, stepping forward to meet her. The two stood a mere arm's reach apart, glaring at each other, and the air around them seemed to almost crackle with clash of their wills. "I'm going to thoroughly enjoy grinding you into the dirt, Sunset Shimmer."

Sunset's expression didn't change, the boast not getting even the slightest rise out of her.

The punch came in the blink of an eye. Adagio's fist sending a ripple of force through the air, only to have Sunset tilt her head to the side and catch the blow in her hand. The air pressure whipped her hair back and nearly knocked down Senketsu and her friends with its force.

"Wha-- aargh!" Adagio yelled as the talons of the Phoenix Glove gripped down and sank into her hand. She yanked her hand free, the claws leaving fresh, bloody tears on the back of her hand as she took a few cautious steps back.

"I would advise against underestimating Sunset now," Senketsu explained. "Those gloves are made of one hundred percent Life Fibers, and are tapping into the combined power of Sunset and her ring. Like any Life Fiber would, they have unlocked the physical limitations of her body beyond normal human ability, but thanks to the transformation brought on by her ring they don't simply draw out and radiate her magic like they normally would. Instead, that powerful magic is being redirected back into her body and spirit, heightening her awareness and unlocking the psychological limitations on her power."

With a wave of her hand and a flash of her magic, Adagio pulled more moisture from the air, directing the water to her wound and healing it. "So what?" she spat. "They're just a pair of fancy gloves. Even if they're pure Life Fibers, they can't possibly match us."

Senketsu shook his body from side to side, looking to Sunset as he said, "With so many different energies flowing in so many different ways, I can't even tell how strong she's become, but I can see that she's at least as powerful as you are."

"That's right," Sunset confirmed. "Don't even bother running, because there's no way I'm going to let you get away after what you've done." She pointed an accusing, clawed finger at the trio. "You've hurt my friends and killed Philomena. I won't ever forgive you."

"Pretty high and mighty coming from a demon that tried to mind control her entire school into an army to invade Equestria," Aria sniped icily.

"Wow, that's pretty evil," Sonata gasped. "And she calls us the bad guys?"

Sunset only smirked at the barbs.

"Face it, Sunset, you're no better than us," Adagio said. Her hand healed, she directed her own accusing finger at Sunset. "You wanted absolute power, and did anything you felt you had to to get it. No matter how hard you try, something like that doesn't go away."

"This isn't getting us anywhere. Are you just stalling for time?" Sunset shot back, starting to break into a cocky grin. "What's the matter? Are you afraid to find out just how strong I am now?"

"Heh," Adagio sneered, "Are you kidding? I'm excited that we finally get to test the limits of our Goku Uniforms." She slammed her fist into her open palm.

"Good," Sunset said, raising her fists to fight, "and since the three of you love music so much, I even have a special song to share with you." The aura on her head swayed back and forth as a gust of wind blew past, and she started to sing.

Power was all I desired,

Aria and Sonata leaped forward on either side to attack with mirrored aerial kicks. They moved in sync, and without any warning. Sunset caught them effortlessly by their feet, the force causing the ground beneath her to crack and buckle, only for Adagio to charge down the middle, aiming a punch right at her chest.

But all that grew inside me was a darkness I acquired.

Sunset waited until Adagio was just inches away before she made her move. She hopped up and delivered two swift kicks to Adagio's chest and face, twisting through the air with Sonata and Aria still in her grip. As she spun, her arms whipped out to mercilessly smash the two helpless sirens against the pavement before landing and throwing them into a heap on top of Adagio.

When I began to fall, and I lost the path ahead,

Sunset turned back for a moment to look up at her friends as they watched from the top of the stairs, cheering her on. She smiled gently, and the aura on her forehead seemed to thrash more fiercely.

That's when your friendship found me, and it lifted me instead!

Adagio heaved the other two off of her, standing up and gathering a dense magical aura all around her. A vein throbbed on her forehead and her teeth gnashed together as she summoned up more of the same water discs, but this time she didn't stop at just a few. Soon the air around her was filled with dozens of razor blades of water. "Rrraah! Aqua Edge!" she screamed, flinging her arms forward to direct every last shot right at Sunset.

Sunset whipped her head back to face the assault, and struck back with incredible speed. Every last disc that approached her was struck or sliced through by her gloves, reduced to nothing more than harmless splashes across her body and the pavement.

Adagio broke into a manic smirk and shouted, "Now!"

On queue, Aria surged with mana and slammed her hand to the ground, yelling, "Geyser!"

Sunset realized her mistake a moment too late, and screamed in pain as the water drenching her clothes and splattered across the ground violently exploded into hot steam. The force of the blast sent her flying skyward, only for Sonata to fly up alongside her and strike her back down, far across the courtyard, cratering the ground beneath her and kicking up a huge cloud of dust.

Her body aching all over, Sunset pushed herself back to her feet despite the protests of her scalded skin. Just as she was starting to worry she'd have to fight in this condition, a golden light radiated from the core of the rubies on her gloves. When that light touched her skin, she saw the already blistering scalds evaporate away, leaving her skin pristine and unscarred. She was a little more winded after that emergency healing, but at least she could keep fighting.

"Thanks, Philomena," she whispered, and received a twinkle of light within the ruby in answer.

She knew what she had to do next. Even if she was a match for them in combat, she wouldn't win if she didn't answer their magic in kind. It was time to see just what these gloves could do.

Adagio approached the dust cloud as the light that shined within it started to fade. "I thought you had more fight in you than that, Sunset," she jeered. "We're still just warming up here."

"Good, because I still have more to show too."

A sudden wave of heat rippled out, washing over Adagio's face and pushing the dust aside. With the view clear she could see Sunset standing in the center of the crater, completely unharmed, and holding her hands up into the aura on her forehead. When she pulled them away, that amber aura clung to her gloves, flickering violently as she flourished them.

"So you've concentrated some of your magic aura at your hands? Big deal!" Adagio scoffed. She held up her hands and concentrated the sapphire blue glow of her magic around them too. "In case you hadn't noticed, we've been doing that this whole time."

"This isn't just an aura," Sunset corrected her before belting out into her song once more.

Like the Phoenix burning bright in the sky,

In the blink of an eye Sunset was in front of Adagio, swinging a strong right hook. The blow barely grazed past her nose, but as the fist flew past, one overriding sensation hit her. It was hot. That wasn't just magic, it was pure flame!

She was too distracted to see the next hit coming, a knee to the gut that doubled her over and sent her flying back. It didn't end there, as Sunset rushed to intercept her target, cutting her off midflight and uppercutting her in the back, sending her soaring up.

Such an incredible increase in speed, and just from lighting her gloves in that strange flame. It made no sense to Adagio. Had Sunset somehow further increased the flow of energy in her body just by igniting the gloves?

She flared the fins on her back, righting herself to catch her breath for a moment. She was safe up here for now. Sunset was a unicorn type, unable to fly, so she had a little time to plan her next attack.

"Surround her" Adagio shouted to Aria and Sonata, pointing down to... nothing? She'd vanished again!

I'll show there's another side to me you can't deny!

Behind her, but how could that--

"Aaahh!" Adagio screamed, pain and scorching heat exploding in her back as she was sent careening back down to earth. As she fell, she managed to look up to see Sunset far above, starting to fall after her. Had she seriously just jumped that high? Even with power supposedly comparable to a Three Star Uniform, that was just insane!

"Adagio!" Sonata yelled, leaping out to catch her fall, but ending up flat on the ground as the impact knocked her right off her feet.

Aria made her move after Adagio was caught, flying straight at Sunset and crashing into her full force, knocking the wind out of the girl. "If you keep focusing on Adagio, you'll never beat us," she growled, slugging her hard in the gut.

Sunset winced, the hit even causing her back to pop like a visit to the chiropractor. "I understand better than you might think," she said through a broad smirk. "Your Goku Uniforms are linked, so if I take one of you out your power will plummet, and her face is the most punchable of the three of you."

Concern registered on Aria's face for a brief second before turning to anger. "Well just try to avoid this!" she shouted. She grabbed Sunset by her wrist and spun her around to fling her headlong down at Sonata and Adagio.

In response, Sonata started casting her own spell. Her magic glowed brightly and swirled around her and Adagio as she shouted, "Frigid Iron Maiden!" The spell took form as hundreds of razor sharp spires of ice, each at least spine was two feet long and formed along two deadly sheets ready to clap shut once Sunset fell inside.

Adagio watched gleefully as Sunset fell closer and closer. "It's over."

"Not likely," Senketsu spoke up, crossing his sleeves over his torso. "It's time to show them the true power of the Phoenix Gloves, Sunset."

I may not know what the future holds, but hear me when I say,

Though his words didn't reach her, Sunset was already prepared to do just that. As she fell headlong to certain death, she flung her hands forward, against the fierce wind. It was then that the flames on her gloves reacted. They moved to her palms and flared more fiercely than ever, the force of the jets halting her just as the icicle trap slammed shut before her.

"No way!" Aria growled.

"She can fly by using the flames as thrust?" Adagio gawked in disbelief. "How can her magic be that strong?"

The pair panicked as Sunset rocketed around the hunk of ice, the flames on her gloves propelling her right at Adagio and Sonata. They tried to shoot her down with blasts of water and ice, but Sunset evaded effortlessly with mere twists of her hands and bursts of flame. She reached them in seconds, and moved right past Sonata to tackle Adagio at full speed. The two of them rolled across the ground for several feet before Sunset knocked her across the pavement and into a the brick wall of the school, just a few yards from the rubble-filled hole Emerald was still buried in.

That the past does not define me, because my past is not today!

"It's all really quite simple," Senketsu commented as he watched the fight unfold. "When Sunset's heavily fire and light inclined magic flows back into her body through the Phoenix Gloves, it is concentrated into a pure form, stripped of all other wavelengths. It then emerges from the only place it can, and since Sunset is a unicorn type, that would be her forehead. Once her gloves connect to that flow, the Life Fibers along the surface direct and control these extremely dense, pure flames in any way she wishes. The downside is that she can't cast anything but fire and light based magic, but the tradeoff is explosive."

"It sounds marvelously intricate, dear, but I'm afraid most of it was over my head," Rarity shrugged, having freed herself from the oppressive ice on her mouth.

"The sirens can't exactly hear you, you know," Rainbow replied dryly. "Why are you even answering their rhetorical questions anyway?"

"Never question the laws of exposition!" Pinkie exclaimed, looking absurdly serious. "CED (Compulsive Exposition Disorder) is how the audience understands what's going on!"

"But I still don't understand what Senketsu meant," Fluttershy pointed out.

"Oh you silly, I wasn't talking about us," Pinkie giggled, her momentary serious facade shattering after mere seconds.

"Then who did ya mean, Pinkie?" Applejack asked.

"That's a super-duper secret, right Senketsu?" she deflected to him with an innocent smile.

"Umm... Sure," he answered, pretending he had any idea what the girl was talking about. Her behavior was as hard to understand as the beyond abnormal magic wavelength they'd been monitoring from her for the last few months.

Back at the fight, Sunset hovered. On her flames as she watched Adagio claw her way out of the wall. The siren leader was covered in dust and looking more and more frazzled as she threw chunks of brick aside.

"That's it! I've had enough of this!" she screamed. "Aria! Sonata! It's time for Serenade!" The star on Adagio's chest flashed brightly, and a second flash as Aria landed far off to Sunset's side.

…

"..." Sunset just hovered in place, waiting for something to happen, but not a thing did.

"What the hell?! Are these stupid things broken?" Adagio growled in frustration, pulling at the fabric on her arm.

Aria rolled her eyes and grumbled, "I think I know what the problem is." She directed a pointed, irritated glare at Sonata.

The girl hadn't moved an inch, standing with her nose up and her arms crossed over her chest. "I don't want to do Serenade," she whined and pouted. "I want Nocturne!"

"Seriously? You're going to argue about this now? In the middle of a battle?!" Adagio yelled, motioning toward Sunset.

"Oh, don't mind me," Sunset said with a chuckle. "I want to see where this is going." She didn't even bother masking her grin over how entertaining this little turn was.

"You can't do it if I don't want you to," Sonata said, sticking her tongue out at Adagio. "We either do it my way or not at all."

"Why do you even care?" Aria asked. "You didn't even want to fight in the first place, so why do you want Nocturne?"

"I'll give you the Nerds."

"Deal."

"Hey! You can't just decide that! This was supposed to be my fight!" Adagio argued. She seemed about ready to snap with how her teeth were gnashing and her fists clenched, but something strange happened. Much to Sunset's surprise, she just deflated. Her shoulders slumped and her anger melted into irritated submission. "Fine. Whatever. Do what you want. Stupid linked uniform design. I miss the amulets."

Sonata jumped up and down, clapping giddily as she cheered, "Yes! This is going to be so cool! Literally!"

The stars on each of the sirens' outfits flashed brightly in succession, starting from Sonata's. The light enveloped Adagio and Aria, leaving nothing but two large stars of pure light and energy. An identical star was formed in front of Sonata as her uniform stripped away from her body. Those three stars linked together by red threads and spun around Sonata as she twirled gracefully, singing out in a soft, dulcet tone. That ominous melody went on, even as she stopped her twirl and flung her left arm out to her side. At her queue, the stars lined up on that side and pulled in towards her, overlapping her one by one and bathing her in a blinding light.

Sunset shielded her eyes against the glare, trying to figure out what she was seeing. Had Adagio and Aria just merged with Sonata? Was this some sort of transformation?

She got her answer as the light faded, leaving behind a figure clad in gleaming armor as dark and blue as the dusk sky. The armor was decorated with an array of piscene fins from the forearms to the shins, and even flaring out from the hips and shoulders. Most prominent of all was the single dorsal fin that crested the helm, running down the back and all the way to the tailbone. The membranes of these fins glittered like stars on the dark armament. The helmet completely obscured the girl's face behind its armor plates, but as the transformation completed, an azure glow came from the eyeholes with the unmistakable mirth of the wearer behind them.

"Three Star Goku Uniform. Trinity Regalia Nocturne!" Sonata called out giddily, twirling around once more and pointing a hand to the sky.

Sunset's eyes went wide as she took in this new form of the Goku Uniform. Adagio and Aria were nowhere to be seen, apparently having been absorbed into this regalia. There was no mistaking that the perky girl had become a lot more powerful too. Something like this couldn't just be for show. She'd expected a power up, though; she wanted it this way. She would beat them at their best and utterly crush them for what happened to Philomena. She only wished that it was Adagio's face she could smash in. Still, she couldn't exactly complain when she'd let it turn out like this.

"Wowsers! I feel super duper stronger than when we were training with these things," Sonata cooed in wonder, examining the armor that clad her arm. "I wonder if it's because I'm feeling so excited? My heart's totally pounding so fast right now."

Interesting. Aria had mentioned that Sonata had been reluctant to fight at all, so why was she excited now? Something wasn't fitting right. Now that she thought about it, there was something off about the sirens' behavior from the very beginning. What was going on?

"So are you going to keep singing?" Sonata asked. She held a hand out, and Life Fibers stretched out of her armor to stitch together into a long black pole. At the top of that pole mana started to gather and condensed into a deadly looking sickle of pure ice. She spun the large scythe around with a giggle before sinking the blade into the ground. "If you don't keep it going, this fight might end before you can finish your beautiful song."

Sunset was a bit taken aback by how casual Sonata was being. "Um, okay," she answered. She was getting a very weird feeling. Even with how dangerous the Trinity Regalia Nocturne and its scythe looked, there wasn't any feeling of hostility coming from her. It was nothing like the anger and maliciousness Adagio had given off. Well, answers could come after this fight.

Ambition is what I believed

The real battle finally began. Sonata's dorsal fin began to glow, lifting her off the ground just as Sunset tilted forward to rocket at her. The fiery girl landed an immediate and strong blow to her gut, followed by a swift hook to the jaw and a kick to the chest.

It was too easy. There was no attempt to defend, and that had to mean--

Sunset panicked, her flames bursting violently from her gloves to send her flying back just in time to avoid the frozen blade of the scythe. If she'd kept going, she could have lost a limb, or worse.

Ow," Sonata hissed as she rubbed at her stomach. "Wow, you really are fast with those gloves. You hit like a truck too." Despite her complaints, she sounded strangely happy. "Emerald was right, you really are incredible. I can't wait to see what else you've got!"

What was with this girl? She was happy with this? She wanted to see the limits of the Phoenix Gloves? Wasn't their whole goal revenge? It didn't add up at all!

Would be the only way to set me free.

"Don't hold back now! Show us everything!" Sonata yelled in excitement, flying at Sunset and swinging her scythe in a wide arc.

But when it disappeared, and I found myself alone,

A quick thrust backward, and the blade cut through nothing but air, leaving a wide opening for Sunset to advance once more and throw every ounce of strength she had into a fierce jab that hit Sonata squarely in the chest. As the force of the blow started to rock the armored siren backwards, Sunset activated her follow-up. She snapped her fingers, creating a violent spark of energy. In the next instant, the air before Sonata ignited in a concentrated explosion, completely enveloping her as she tried to guard against the blast.

That had to do some major damage, right?

As the blast cleared, Sonata was revealed floating with her arms crossed defensively in front of her. Her breathing was labored, and her armor, while blackened in a few places, was still very much intact. The regalia dripped with moisture, and a few patches of ice still remained across the plating, all signs that she had used a chilly layer to guard against the inferno.

That's when you came and got me, and it felt like I was home!

Sonata panted for breath as she laughed, "Wow, that was incredible! I didn't think you could create explosions from a distance like that! Hehe, come on! More! Let's go!"

Like a phoenix burning aright in the sky!

The battle took to the skies as the pair clashed violently back and forth. Waves of heat and cold rippled out one after another as spell after spell was cast. Sunset got knocked down by a blow from the staff of Sonata's scythe, only to fly back up and land a hit in return. Neither came out of a clash unscathed, and both started to wear down as the fight dragged on.

It just didn't feel right, though; and that feeling continued to gnaw at Sunset as she fought. No matter how hard she came at Sonata, the girl always had a smile in her eyes and a laugh in her voice. She wasn't fighting for revenge. She was eager to see everything her enemy could do, and each assault brought more excitement out of her.

There wasn't even even an intent to kill behind her attacks. Every strike with the scythe blade was easy to avoid, but was followed up with blows from the staff. More than a few bruises were already forming on Sunset's body, but not so much as a single cut.

If Sonata wasn't trying to kill her, then what was she even fighting for? Why would Adagio, so determined to have her revenge, let Sonata take over like this?

I'll show there's another side to me you can't deny!

Sonata moved in close to Sunset, startling her into an attempt to shoot her flames directly from her gloves, but the thrust sent her crashing down into the pavement below.

"Gee, that really didn't work did it?" Sonata noted as she looked down into the new crater. "You'll have to try hard-- aaaah!"

I may not know what the future holds, but hear me when I say,

Sonata screamed as a burning whip shot up to wrap around her ankle, yanking her down for a painful landing of her own.

"If I can't shoot because of the thrust," Sunset growled as she pulled herself upright, her mind running a mile a minute to figure a workaround to the newly discovered problem, "then I just need a counter-balance." The infernal whip retracted back into the palm of her glove, and she strained to step out of the shallow crater, battered all over and barely able to stand. Still, she made ready to keep fighting, and held one glove facing behind her, the other aiming forward. "Phoenix Gloves; Incineration Mode!"

Sonata shakily got to her feet just as a huge wave of gentle flames started to emit from Sunset's back glove. The glove itself started to shift too; the pinions along the wrist flipping the over way and growing exponentially in size. The glowing golden feathers fanned out in a manner that evoked the image of a bird's tail, with the soft waves of flame pulsing from it in a steady flow. The front glove started to change soon after, the metal plating shifting and merging together in the shape of a phoenix's eyes and beak, just above the ruby which started to glow more brilliantly than ever, its sister half responding in kind.

That the past does not define me, cause my past is not today!

The song reached its end with a final transformation. As Sunset's emotions reached their peak, she felt her magic spike with a last desperate second wind. Scorching wings of pure flame sprouted from her back, flaring out to their full length as she pointed her front glove directly at Sonata and shouted, "Phoenix Cry!"

"I'd say we've seen enough now, haven't we, Senketsu?"

The girls who were watching the fight were already wound tight as a tripwire, and the sudden interjection caused them all to jump in unison and scream. Standing on the other side of Senketsu from them, they saw Emerald, casually watching the action. When he'd gotten there, they couldn't begin to guess, but he was covered in dust and was supporting quite a nasty looking bruise on his cheek. His weapon hung around his neck as a pendant once more, and blood stained one of his sleeves from the inside, running down the length to drip from his fingertips.

"Yes, I think that it's time to end this," Senketsu nodded in agreement, raising a sleeve.

Suddenly the Nocturne and the Phoenix Gloves began to glitter with tiny red stars, and just like that, the regalia vanished, leaving three exhausted sirens in a heap. The Phoenix Gloves reacted similarly, their power suddenly vanishing completely as they reverted back to the form of twin Seki Tekkos.

Sunset's flames were extinguished, and all of her strength fled her body. She fell to her knees, and her pony ears and phoenix wings vanished as well. "Nngh! What's going on?" she gasped between haggard breaths.

"Aww! No fair! I really wanted to see the Phoenix Cry!" Sonata whined weakly, flailing her arms.

"Idiot," Aria puffed, squinting up at the bright sun as she lay on her back. "That attack would have definitely killed us."

"Both of you are idiots," Adagio complained, wincing as her body ached all over. "Can't you just shut up for five minutes? I've got a mother of a migraine thanks to you."

The four battered and beaten combatants looked up as Emerald and Senketsu approached them.

"I hope you're satisfied now, Adagio," Emerald said as he stopped before the sirens. "You wanted to fight Sunset Shimmer, and you got your wish. I trust we can expect your full cooperation moving forward."

What?!

"Yeah, yeah," Adagio groaned as she sat upright. "A deal is a deal. Besides, it's not like it's the last time we'll fight. All of us need a lot more training."

A deal? All of this? It was... staged?

"Just what in tarnation is going on here?" Applejack fumed. She ran over to Sunset and helped her to her feet, the rest of the girls trailing behind. "How did ya'll stop the fight so easily? And why didn't ya'll do that from the beginning?"

Senketsu was silent for a moment before answering, "I have the power to deactivate any Life Fibers that I have created, the power of Absolute Submission. The truth is that from the very beginning no one was in any danger."

"But Emerald is terribly hurt!" Rarity exclaimed. "Flash was beaten till he collapsed, and poor Coco took a nasty hit from the sirens too, the poor dear."

"Even Sunset isn't looking too hot," Rainbow added indignantly. "Why did so many people get hurt if there was no danger?"

"Oh please," Adagio grumbled, "If we had really planned to kill you, we wouldn't have given you any time at all to react. You would have been dead in seconds."

All of it... it was just a ploy. A means to some end. Was this...?

"Was this what Philomena died for?!" Sunset screamed. "She died to protect me when I wasn't in any danger in the first place? That's just--"

"It's not like I wanted to kill it," Adagio interrupted, making a point of looking the other way. "That Aqua Edge spell was only going to cut you up a bit, then I'd gloat over how scared or angry you were, and the script would continue from there. How was I supposed to guess your stupid bird would fly out of the portal and take the hit?"

"You goddamn bitch! I'll wring your neck!" Sunset bellowed. She tried to get at Adagio, but her weak body was barely able to put up a fight against Applejack holding her back. "How dare you call her some stupid bird! Philomena was my oldest friend! A piece of me! I hatched her myself with every ounce of my being, and you took her away from me forever!"

Adagio didn't so much as look in her direction. She pulled her knees into her chest, resting her chin on top as she struggled to say, "I'm... sorry."

The words gave Sunset pause, and she stopped her futile struggle to murder her. An apology was the last thing she ever expected to hear, and it put her off guard. She didn't even know what to say to something like that.

"None of us wanted something like this to happen," Senketsu explained. "This whole act was created to show the six of you that the coming threat is far more dangerous than anything you faced before. It's no exaggeration to say that the survival of the entire human race is at stake. The same rings true for Equestria and worlds beyond."

Emerald's brow furrowed as he stepped forward, continuing off of Senketsu as he said, "It may be cruel, but I believe that Philomena's death was ultimately for the best. Thanks to her, you were given a power we couldn't even dream of before, Sunset."

"For the best?!" Sunset sobbed, tears forming in her eyes. "Who are you to put a value on her life? What gave you the right to do all of this?"

"Would you rather we had just stood aside and let Crystal Prep test their own Goku Uniforms on you at the upcoming Friendship Games?" Emerald asked bluntly, unphased by her hysterics. Whatever retort Sunset had got caught in her throat, giving him a chance to continue, "I won't try to apologize for how my plan turned out. I know that it will never be enough, and I will make no excuses for my choices. If you must hate me, then go right ahead, but I will do whatever it takes to protect this world and everyone I care for. Even if I have to pave the way with lies and deceptions, you can count on that singular truth." As he spoke, magic swelled around him, bringing out his pony transformation, much to everyone's surprise, even his own. "Interesting. I'm not even wearing any Life Fibers. This will require some research."

"Seems I never did know the real you, did I, Emerl?" Rarity asked, moving to console Sunset.

"Yes and no," he replied, looking to his left as Coco came up beside him. "The me you've known is the carefree me; the me that doesn't lead the fight against Life Fibers."

"You don't get much time these days to just be a kid, Emmy," Coco said, placing a hand on his shoulder. She met Sunset's angry, tear-stained gaze with a tender expression as she added, "We really do care dearly about this school. The people here are so kind and friendly; nothing like our old classmates at Crystal Prep. Emmy saved me from that awful place and helped me find somewhere I could belong, so no matter what I'll always stand by his side."

"Well that's great for you," Rainbow Dash fumed, "but how do you expect us to be trusting after how our friends have been hurt? I don't see why we should believe a thing you all say."

"Land's sake! Emerald even said for himself that he's willing to lie to us all, and I'm sure that includes you, Coco!" Applejack shouted, leering at the young man.

"Um, but he did have the best of intentions, didn't he?" Fluttershy squeaked out from the back of the group, drawing everyone's attention.

"How can you defend him, Fluttershy?" Rainbow argued, pointing an accusing finger at Emerald. "Doesn't it make you mad that what he did got an innocent animal killed?"

"Yes, it does," Fluttershy nodded softly. "I'm so sad, I feel I could just scream, but I know he's not lying about his intentions. He really does lie only to protect what he loves."

"Fluttershy's right," a voice confirmed, flipping all eyes in the other direction to see Flash stumbling to his feet. "It's his Mark. We all know that people with a shield Mark live to protect others, and the fog on his shield shows his nature to conceal and deceive in order to protect. A guardian of lies, as he puts it."

Emerald nodded and returned his attention to Sunset as he said, "I never wanted anyone to die, but it was agreed that this was the best way to show you just how deadly the threat we face is. It gave us a controlled environment within which to reveal the danger while also giving you and Flash a head start with adapting to Life Fibers. By allowing Adagio a vent for her grudge we also secured her as an ally." He turned a playful grin on the lead siren and teased, "She was the hardest to convince, but Aria and Sonata have done a good job keeping her in line."

Sunset spat a bit of blood from her mouth and directed a glare at a nearby chunk of concrete that seemed as though it would make the stone combust. She didn't want to hear any of this crap right now. Philomena had died for no good reason, and no attempt to justify it could make her feel better. In a fit of rage she yanked her arms away from Applejack and Rarity, turning to storm off down the street.

"Sunset! Wait up!" Pinkie called out, bounding after the girl.

The rest of the girls turned cautious glares on Emerald before following, with Fluttershy staying behind a second longer to give a timid wave and barely audible, "Sorry."

"Well this is a fine mess," Senketsu commented dryly.

"I know you were against lying to them from the start," Emerald said with a deep sigh. "Still, we've dealt our hand, and for better or worse, this is the rath that fate took my choice down. I have a good feeling about those Phoenix Gloves. If they are combined with the rest of your power, it may just be the key to winning this war."

Adagio stood, patting the dust off of her skirt as she added, "Good feeling or not, that power won't do anyone any good if she refuses to work with us. You're resting a lot of hope on some really big 'if's, like if she's even compatible enough to become a hybrid so she can wear Senketsu, let alone if she would even try." Skepticism oozed from her voice, making no attempt to hide her own lack of faith in him.

"I think she'll do great!" Sonata said, leaping up from the ground. "It's just like Starswirl always said back in Equestria, 'Harmony will prevail'."

"I don't want to hear another word about him!" Adagio snapped, making Sonata flinch back.

Emerald's shoulders went slack as he looked up at the clear blue sky ponderously. "Whatever the case may be, I will accept the repercussions for my actions," he repeated.

His thoughts were violently interested as with a crack of thunder, Flash moved in front of him to deliver a bone jarring punch right to his chest. Emerald was sent tumbling back across the ground, letting out a sharp scream as his injured arm struck pavement. When he finally stopped, his arm was bleeding even more profusely, and a new bloodstain started to grow on his chest.

"That's for making Sunset cry," Flash said, a furious edge to his otherwise calm voice, "but I'm sure you accept that as a consequence of your little plan you sprung on all of us. I'll agree to fight and help you, but I won't be forgiving you for this anytime soon." His peace said, he left as well, leaving a panicked Coco and Senketsu to tend to the battered Emerald.

"This is bad," Senketsu said as strands of Life Fiber extended from his sleeve to examine the wound beneath his shirt. "You've got seven broken ribs on each side, a cracked sternum, and three ribs on the left have punctured your lung."

Emerald got up onto all fours, coughing up blood before wheezing out, "I'll be fine. Coco, please take Adagio and the others back to base to have their injuries tended. I'll follow soon."

"Are you crazy? You're hurt way worse!" Coco objected.

"Please do as he says," Senketsu pleaded, waving her away. "I can take care of him, so don't worry."

Coco stood there looking conflicted for a moment before she finally gave in. She took Adagio, Sonata, and Aria, and lead them away from the school.

With them gone, Emerald and Senketsu were left alone. The boy sat himself upright, coughing up a bit more blood between weak breaths. Slowly, however, his breaths became more steady. Stomach churning snaps and pops came from his chest, and the skin on the left side of his neck started to harden from soft grey flesh to a lustrous silver shell. The strange hardening spread up along his jawline and halfway up his cheek, while on the over end it traveled down and below his collar, moving further unseen beneath his shirt. The spread halted after a few seconds, and his breathing evened out.

"So it's happening like you said it would," Senketsu said as he watched. "Those cells in your body are responding to your injuries and awakening."

Emerald nodded, lifting a hand to his cheek. With a swipe of his fingers over the hardened flesh, foggy green mana spread, and an illusion of his normal soft skin took its place. "We told you, didn't we? We're a monster."

The pair looked to the school in time to see Principal Celestia and Vice-Principal Luna being led out the destroyed front door of school by an escort of four uniformed Safe Skies employees. The two school administrators looked understandably vexed as they were guided out of the school and into the ravaged courtyard.

At the same time, a motorcycle roared up the street and came to a stop in front of the school. The driver of chopper was Honey Sweet, pulling off her helmet in a cascade of golden lockes. She was wearing a rather interesting outfit today; a brown leather jacket over a black corset top and a pencil skirt that looked a little too short for the typical office setting.

“Love the new look, Senketsu,” the peppy woman winked playfully before joining them. “Gold is really your color.”

Senketsu simply nodded in reply, somewhat distracted by Celestia and Luna.

Emerald stood to meet the new arrivals, hands clasped behind his back, and Senketsu at his side. Once everyone was together, Emerald waved his employees away gratefully and broke the ice by saying, "I suppose this would have been the part where I explain things to you, but I get the feeling that you already know quite a bit about Life Fibers. Isn't that right, Princess Celeste and Princess Moonlight?"

"Princesses?" Senketsu echoed in surprise.

Celestia and Luna stiffened noticeably at the names. Luna was the first to go on the defensive, eying them all suspiciously as she asked, "How did you come to learn those names? They have been lost to history. We made sure of it."

Honey giggled, not bothered in the slightest by the suspicion as she said, "You two really haven't changed a bit in almost two thousand years. I recognized you both right away."

Celestia looked over Honey intently for a moment before her eyes went wide in wonder. "Rosalia? Is that you?"

Honey shook her head, her smile fading ever so slightly as she replied, "No, I'm her daughter, Honey Sweet. She would have been very happy to know that you remembered her though."

Her wording was not lost on the women, as their faces immediately went pale. "Rosalia is dead?" Celestia asked solemnly. "Then does that mean that the Primordial Life Fiber is in their hands again?"

Emerald nodded in confirmation of her suspicions. "Unfortunately, that is exactly the case," he replied. "Which is why I think this reunion is quite fortunate. It's time the heroes of the first war and the infamous family of traitors fought together again."

~*~*~*~*~*~

Far beneath Crystal Prep, in a special, underground structure, explosions rang out in rapid succession. The enormous blasts went unheard to all above ground, completely isolated from the outside world. They continued for several minutes, until they came to an abrupt stop just as quickly as they began.

The result was an enormous empty room littered with battered and broken bodies. Shreds of fabric floated down like snowfall, and all the Life Fibers therein were pulled to the center of the room, where a lone figure stood. Alone amidst the devastation, the female figure glowed an ominous violet hue as the Life Fibers flowed into the garment she wore. Silhouetted by the magic light, she stood hunched over, hands hanging with pistols gripped tight in each. Her shoulders rose and sank as she gasped for breath, only for an arm to whip out and fire a beam of light at a nearby combatant attempting to rise. The unlucky target let out an agonizing scream, and another thread of Life Fibers was sucked in.

Looking over the scene, in an adjacent room filled with monitors, Suri Polomare scribbled on a clipboard, taking frequent notes. Beside her stood Koketsu, or rather, a copy of Koketsu. The genuine article was currently being worn by their test subject, with seriously impressive results. The humanoid Kamui was grinning from ear to ear in childish glee as she took in the show.

A door behind the pair slid opened with a soft rush of air, and Suri immediately bowed as Gladiola Nectar entered the room.

"How is the test subject doing?" Gladiola asked, brushing a strand of her dark red hair out of her eye.

"Physical prowess and magical energies are off the charts, Lady Nectar. She took to the hybridization process magnificently," Suri replied, pointing the end of her pen at the largest screen, which showed an extensive view of the entire testing chamber. The damage hadn't just been limited to the combatants. The structure had been built from the toughest materials possible, and yet scorching craters could be seen all over the walls, floor, and ceiling. The metal was blackened and warped, and the metal was bowed a good three feet outward at each point of impact; a testament to the power on display.

"I told you she would be perfect," Koketsu's copy hummed happily, an inappropriately suggestive shudder traveling down her spine. "Still, even I'm surprised. I never would have thought that the power of an alicorn type would be so amazing! The dark magic feels so incredible flowing through me!"

Gladiola moved to the computer console and read all of the measurements, then examined the camera feeds as she asked, "What of her mental state?"

Suri flipped a few pages up on her clipboard and answered, "The subject's behavior experiences a drastic shift once she undergoes Life Fiber Subjugation. Her personality becomes far more severe, with an insatiable thirst to push the limits of her newfound power. She wants to know everything her magic can do."

"It's a shame that she's not like that when I deactivate," Koketsu sighed in disappointment. "It will still take some time to mold her into the perfect host. I won't be able to unleash all my power until she completely gives in to that dark hunger she has inside her."

Satisfied with the report, Gladiola turned to leave. "Try to fix that problem as soon as possible, Koketsu. Twilight Sparkle may be useful when transformed, but she's a liability in her normal state," she added.

"As you wish, Lady Nectar," Koketsu said with a curtsy.

Gladiola stopped as the door opened for her once more, turning a venomous glare on Koketsu as she mentioned, "Oh right, I almost forgot. It would seem that Emerald Mist and Senketsu have finally shown their faces again. Our satellites spotted them fighting just outside of Canterlot High, the location where you were sent to investigate the abnormal magical fluctuations. I hope that this is a recent development, and that you have not been withholding the location of our enemies intentionally."

Koketsu burst into a paper thin facade of laughter, waving dismissively at Gladiola's claim. "As if! What possible reason could I have to do that?" she lied, though it could barely be called one.

Leaving it at that, Gladiola left the room. She had better things to concern her with at this point than Koketsu’s misbehavior.

The second war was coming.

How We Got Here

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The loud crack of shattering glass and other fragile items broke the silence of the night as a man screamThe loud crack of shattering glass and other fragile items broke the silence of the night as a man screamed, "Get out of here, you freeloading monsters! If I ever see your faces again, I'm calling the cops!"

The place; Sleep Easy Inn.

The one shouting; the innkeeper, Mr. Sleep Easy.

The three hurried escapees, running for their lives as vases, plates, cups, and everything else in reach was flung at them; the sirens Adagio, Aria, and Sonata.

Well, to call it running might have been a bit generous. The trio of singers were stumbling out of the front door as fast as their weakened limbs could carry them, ducking as tableware flew over their heads.

The fury of the innkeeper had been brought to bear on them after the spell they had cast on him had worn off. Unsurprisingly, he hadn't been too happy that a strange group of girls had manipulated his mind in order to get free room and board for the last week. With their amulets destroyed and their magic all but gone with them, the sirens had been too distraught upon their return to inn to realize that the spell they had placed here would have been broken too.

Unfortunately, Sleep Easy remembered all too well the humiliation the girls had put him through; free room and board, penthouse no less; a near constant demand for room service and expensive TV channels whenever they were there; and exclusive use of pool, hot tub, and sauna. Any customers that dared complain had merely been sent into an enchanted tirade with the manager that fed the girls negative energy and kept the cycle going. They had even taken all the complimentary chocolate mints that were supposed to be left on a customer's pillow. The savages.

"Ow!" Sonata yelped as a stray ladle struck the back of her head and sent her stumbling into a nearby car. The alarm was triggered, trilling an ear-piercing medley of whistles and honks.

"Sonata!" Aria gasped, shuffling over to help the girl get balanced again, turning an angry but helpless glare back on the man. She threw herself in the path of another object, this one a vase that shattered on her back as she shielded Sonata.

Fury bubbled up in Adagio, and she moved her heavy body over to grab at a rolling pin that had been thrown at them. The protests of her tired arm were nothing before the rage she felt as she yelled, "Don't you dare hurt them!" She screamed at the top of her lungs and hurled the rolling pin with all of her might. The impromptu weapon soared true, striking Sleep Easy square in the face and knocking him down with all the grace of a tipped cow.

Adagio's limbs turned to lead as the exertion hit her like a truck. She fell to her knees, just barely catching herself on her hands and wheezing for breath. She just stared at her hands for a few moments as she tried to get her strength back, and her blood went cold at what she saw; her fingertips were going white. She knew what the spread of the ghostly hue meant. Her mana was falling out of balance, and eventually there wouldn't be enough to sustain her life anymore.

Without their amulets they were worse than just helpless. It was a death sentence. The dark magic of the jewels had been the only thing sustaining their existences, and they had to constantly feed them negative energy, the body's natural mana release created from conflict. They'd had so much of it at their fingertips too. Almost as much power as they'd once wielded in Equestria over a thousand years ago. All of it was gone in an instant, and the lynchpin of their lives had been shattered in the same fell swoop.

"Curse those Rainbooms," Adagio growled, her fingernails scratching at the pavement. For the first time in what felt like centuries, she felt a wet droplet fall on the back of her hand. A tear. She couldn't remember the last time she'd cried, but she couldn't stop as still more streamed down her cheeks, and a black pit of helplessness gnawed at her chest and stomach. All three of them were going to die.

What could she do?

Aria and Sonata placed a hand on her back, and Adagio felt a second wind rush into her body. Meager as it was, she found the strength to get back to her feet, and the white on her fingers gave way to their normal yellow hue before she wiped the tears from her eyes. "You idiots, I'm the one in charge," she grumbled, catching the two of them before they could teeter over from exhaustion. "If anyone's going to die first, it's going to be me."

"Oh quit it with that leader crap," Aria puffed weakly, leaning into Adagio as the trio started to make their way down the side of the road under the starry night sky, the trill of the car alarm fading into the background. "How do you think we'd feel if you went and croaked, leaving us all alone?"

"Prolonging a dying woman's suffering, huh? You sure have a warm and fuzzy way of showing you care," Adagio quipped grimly.

"Now who's being an idiot?" Aria asked, delivering a vicious, exhausted flick to Adagio's nose. "Don't you even dare think of dying without us. We were born together, and we'll die together. Nobody is going to be left alone."

A faint sniffling turned the attention of the two towards Sonata, who had been silent up until that point, her bangs shadowing her face. The girl's shoulders shook violently, and she clung to Adagio as though she never intended to let go. "I--" she sobbed, burying her face in Adagio's shoulder, "-- I don't want to die. I'm scared, Dagi. I don't want to disappear forever."

Adagio wanted to say something to comfort her. She wanted to be able to say that everything would be alright; that she would find some way for them to survive. The words wouldn't come, though. All she could do was stroke through the sobbing girl's hair as they kept their slow pace down the sidewalk. She couldn't bring herself to even hope to be saved. Why would anyone even want to? It wasn't like they belonged in this world anyway, and they had caused nothing but trouble for everyone they came across. Plus, the Equestria they knew was nothing but a distant, painful memory now. Not a soul from there was left to miss them. Not even Starswirl.

Adagio's slow descent into the blackness of her mind was stopped as Aria suddenly slumped all of her weight into her, nearly knocking the whole trio over. "Hey, watch it!" she protested, struggling to push back against Aria's weight. "I can't carry y--"

She was cut off as Sonata's weight pressed against her from the other side, nearly causing her legs to buckle under her. She frantically looked down at their hands, seeing the color start to drain from them, and their eyes were starting to lose their life. "No. No-no-no," Adagio panicked, shaking her head. "I'm not going to let you die."

She spotted an alley just a few yards ahead and started to heave her ragdoll sisters to it, using every last ounce of strength she could muster to barely drag them into the shadows between the buildings. Laying them down on the rough pavement, she sat with their heads in her lap, stroking through their hair as she helplessly watched the whiteness spread.

It was her fault that they were like this. They had given her a bit of their energy to keep her alive, and now they were dying sooner. Besides that, she wished she had never decided that they should attack Canterlot High to steal the magic there. If they had just kept wandering and stealing energy as they went, things wouldn't be like this.

"I'm sorry. It's all my fault," she sobbed, choking back the tears that yelled in her eyes as she placed a hand on their cheeks. "Even I know it's impossible, if you two live even a little longer, maybe someone can save you. You don't deserve to die because of me."

The alleyway was bathed in a sickly red glow as Adagio tapped into the barest dregs of magic she had left in her. Without the amulets, it was more difficult than she had imagined, but her will grasped hold of that energy and drew it out, pouring it through her hands and into Aria and Sonata. As the crimson glow spread across their bodies, their fingers began to get their color back, but the same whiteness began to spread up Adagio's hands twice as fast.

In no time at all it was already working its way up her forearms, and she started to feel her mind clouding. It was getting hard to focus, and there was less and less power to grab ahold of and give. Still, she had to keep going. Every last bit she could give them was that much more time they'd have for some miracle to come along and save them.

It may have been ridiculous to hope for something like that after all that had happened, but even that sliver of hope for them was worth it. They didn't deserve to die in a place like this, surrounded by trash cans, dumpsters, and the odd stray cat. If they survived, then she had no regrets. If they didn't? Well, she could apologize all she needed to when she saw them in Hades.

"It's you..."

Adagio's head snapped to spy a familiar face glaring at them from the end of the alley. The young man had swept up, two-toned blue hair that was as unmistakable as the shield and lightning bolt on his shirt. It was Flash Sentry, one of the students of Canterlot High that they had controlled, and Sunset Shimmer's ex boyfriend. The boy's eyes darted from Adagio to the unconscious Aria and Sonata, then to the white that was spreading up her arms. His eyes went wide at the sight, and he turned a panicked glare down the street, out of Adagio's view as he yelled, "What the hell is this, Emerl? The Dazzlings are who you need help with? They have the Pale Death?"

At the questions, another boy stepped into view, this one a young man with messy dark green hair and thick aviator glasses. He wore a black coat that somehow made the otherwise dorky looking boy seem somehow sinister.

"Heh, yeah, you've got me," the boy named Emerl raised his hands apologetically. His glasses flashed ominously as his voice dropped ever so slightly to say, "You are the only one that can keep them stable long enough for me to save them. With your help, I can stop the Pale Death."

Stop the Pale Death? How could he even do that? While it had always been an unusual fact that the magical affliction even existed in this world, there was far less chance of this world being able to stop it. The amulets had been the only safeguard to exist, even in Equestria.

"Me? Why do you need me?" Flash demanded. He pointed an accusing finger at Adagio. "And why do you want to save them? They attacked our school and took control of us, making us bicker, argue, and turn on each other!"

And there it was, every reason that screamed to Adagio that they didn't deserve to be saved. The words stung more than she had expected, and what little concentration she'd maintained was shattered, the crimson glow fading from her body. She couldn't move. She could barely breath. She didn't have any strength left to give to Aria and Sonata, and the Pale Death was starting to spread to her shoulders.

Why did it hurt so bad? She'd always been like iron; the backbone of their little group. No regrets. All that mattered was surviving and taking care of each other. If that meant hurting others? So be it.

So why? Why did Flash's words hurt so much?

"I know exactly what they did," Emerl replied calmly, a decisive air coming about him as he turned to enter the alley. He cast the darkness aside suddenly with a glow of chartreuse magic in his palm. "My organization was watching over the situation carefully, and if the Rainbooms had failed, we were ready to step in."

"Organization?" Flash repeated cautiously, his eyes riveted with shock on the glow in Emerl's hand. "Who are you?"

Adagio was just as stunned, her muddled head echoing Flash's questions. What the boy was claiming was beyond belief, and yet the display of magic showed that there had to be some truth to his claims. Emerl stepped just in front of the sirens, looking down on Adagio's whitened skin for a moment before turning to look back at Flash.

"I know that the things they did can't be excused, but as the only one to ever survive the Pale Death, do you really think they deserve to die this way?" he asked.

Flash... had survived the Pale Death? How? It was impossible. Once the balance of mana in the body faltered, there was no way to restore it. The mana could be supplemented, like the amulets did, but in the end the affliction still existed. There was no cure. There shouldn't be a cure.

"Guess I shouldn't be surprised that you've done your homework, should I?" Flash grumbled irritably, his eyes turning to the ground in thought. He glanced at Adagio, meeting her eyes and seeing the emptiness inside. That once fierce gaze, filled with contempt and ambition, was now completely absent of hope or life. It was not a pleasant sight.

Letting out a sigh, Flash replied, "You're right. I'm just being spiteful because I'm upset. There's no way I would really wish this on them, but what can I do?"

"Place your hand on Adagio's shoulder, please," Emerl instructed. A tiny glimmer danced in Adagio's eyes at Flash's words, even as the Pale Death started to spread up her neck and the tips of her curly hair. They may not have been forgiveness, but they were kinder than anything she ever expected to hear. If what Emerl claimed was possible... then they could be saved.

Aria and Sonata didn't have to die.

She didn't have to die.

The feeling of unbridled joy and relief she felt was so overwhelming that she began to sob. She hunched over Aria and Sonata and stroked their hair as every last pent-up emotion inside of her burst free in a great flood. She couldn't stop the tears anymore if she wanted to, and she kept sobbing hysterically as she felt Flash's hand on her shoulder.

The instant he touched her, she felt strength flowing back into her body, and her breath caught in her throat. The feeling that traveled through her from his hand was unlike anything she’d ever experienced. She could feel his mana, but it wasn’t flowing into her. Rather, it was resonating with what few scraps remained inside of her, and somehow her own strength was starting to seep back into her body. The red glow of magic started to encompass her again, spreading down to Aria and Sonata while Flash was wrapped in a dark blue light.

“Looks like I was right,” Emerl whispered in awe.

Adagio sniffled uncontrollably as relief continued to overwhelm her. They were saved! They were being fixed!

“What’s happening?” Flash asked with concern. “This feels really strange.”

“You survived the Pale Death, Flash. It’s a magical affliction with no known cure,” the boy answered plainly. “Because you survived, the spectrum of mna in your body knows how to rebalance itself intuitively, and once it came in contact with the warped and damaged magic inside of Adagio, it began to resonate. Think of it like when you share antibodies with someone; your body is teaching hers how to restore itself while providing a support, and hers is passin it on to the other two.” He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. “It won’t be enough, though.”

Flash’s eyes narrowed at Emerl. “What do you mean? Didn’t you just say their bodies were learning how to fix themselves?”

Emerl nodded. “Yes, but it’s not that simple. Thanks to the readings we’ve gotten of their magic, we’ve learned that they are in fact incomplete, fragmented beings. Because of that, while their magic may be able to repair itself now, they can never reach a state of completion, and without a constant support their spectrums will fall out of balance all over again. You let go, and they start dying again.”

And just like that, hope sank down like a rock in Adagio’s stomach. No matter what they did, the’d always be broken? She’d been able to accept that for centuries, but right now, when hope had been so bright, the cruel truth hit harder than it ever had before.

Emerl removed his glasses to meet Adagio’s tearful, questioning gaze without blinking. An unwavering conviction lay behind those stony gray eyes as he said, “I can fix you. I will fix you. We have something superior to your old amulets that can allow you to live without the need to absorb negative energy.” He reached for an inside chest pocket of his coat and pulled out a small item that sparkled in the glow Flash and the sirens gave off. It was a spool of luminous red thread that seemed to shine with its own light. “Before I give it to you, though…”

“Of course there’s a catch,” Adagio muttered dryly.

A mischievous smirk appeared on Emerl’s face for the briefest of seconds at her remark, and he continue, “I need to tell you all that there is a terrible danger coming. A threat that could destroy the human race, our planet, and even spread its terror to Equestria, if it isn’t stopped.”

Adagio and Flash blinked in unison, the sheer magnitude of what he’d said not sinking in for moment. When it finally did, Adagio was the first to speak, “Destroy the world, and even Equestria? What kind of nonsense are you spouting? You expect me to believe that garbage?”

Flash looked Emerl over for a moment before agreeing, “I’m with her. That’s a lot to claim. If it’s true, then why not go to the government or something?”

Emerl shook his head, “Suffice it to say that the government is powerless to stop it. They are no more able to fight this than any magical threat from beyond the portal,” he told them, giving a pointed look to the sirens. “Besides, this has been a tightly guarded secret for centuries, and it is a danger that only my organization can face.”

“What the hell is this organization of yours?” Adagio asked, feeling a bit of her nerve come back with her strength. Concerns bubbled up in the back of her mind, but were quickly forgotten as she felt a gentle squeeze around her hands. She looked down to see Sonata and Aria’s hands wrapping over her own, their eyes starting to flit open. They both looked up to her and gave a wordless nod that she instinctively understood. They were trusting her to decide what to do.

“We are Second Skin,” Emerl explained, “A group dedicated to eradicating the threat of the parasitic lifeforms known as Life Fibers.” He swept a hand across his coat in a grand gesture as he announced, “And this is our ultimate weapon, the symbiotic Life Fiber, Kamui Senketsu.”

Now makin himself known, Senketsu’s eyes opened upon Emerl’s shoulders and he greeted the teens, “Hello.”

Three panicked screams cut through the cold night air, along with a single exclamation of “Cool!”

~*~*~*~*~*~

Adagio opened her eyes to the sterile glow of a fluorescent ceiling light. Her mind was running a mile a minute, keeping her from getting any sleep.

Had that all really happened only three weeks ago? From that night onward, their lives had changed more drastically than she could have ever imagined. She didn’t know whether to thank or blame that bastard Emerald for it either.

He was a clever one. He had to have known that once he showed her the threat of the Life Fibers, along with the power they offered, that she wouldn’t be able to refuse him. She simply wasn’t the type to accept feeling powerless, and if there was a danger to her and her sisters, then there was no way she wouldn’t try to fight it. Once she knew what was coming, she agreed to join Second Skin along with Sonata and Aria.

Not that she was particularly pleased with the situation. She hated taking orders from someone else, even if Emerald was considerate enough to not ask too much of them yet. Still, the tradeoff was close to being worth the damage to her pride. She had a rather nice cozy bedroom all to herself; something she hadn’t often had the pleasure of when wandering the world for the last several centuries. She had power; her Three Star Goku Uniform stabilizing her magic and making her body stronger than it had ever been. She had safety; no more desperately trying to gather enough negative energy to survive, and she had a stable roof over her head.

Okay, so being safe was only partly true. In due time she would have to do as she promised and fight for her life. Even then, the training and last week’s battle against Sunset Shimmer aside, she’d never been able to just… relax like this. Maybe that was why she’d started having problems sleeping. She hardly knew what to do with herself anymore, and it was starting to get on her nerves. Not having to worry about survival left her with very little to do now, especially since she didn’t feel like she needed to be constantly watching over Sonata and Aria every second. They were well taken care of here, and while she was happy for that, it left her with little to do but stew in her own thoughts.

And where else would her mind decide to wander than to the past, and all the choices she ever made. With her callin the shots, she and her sisters had ruined a lot of people’s lives over the centuries. She didn’t regret any of it. She’d done what she had to for them to survive, and she would do it all again. She did, however, now have time to think about just how horrible some of the things they’d done were, and how the people they affected must have felt. She may not have been sorry for her actions, but a pang of sympathy was starting to claw at the back of her mind, and it frustrated her all the more.

She growled in mounting irritation and pulled her pillow over her face, using a flick of her magic to flip the light switch and sink herself into the dark. The only light now came from the red glow of the numbers on her digital clock. She was tempted to smash it into little pieces and leave herself in total blackness, but begrudgingly let the appliance live. It may have been old fashioned, but she sometimes still prefered to listen to music on the radio instead of her phone. She also didn’t want to get another lecture from one of Emerald’s brothers, a man named Dirty Nickel who was in charge of finances. So what if they broke a few expensive toys when they first got here? Sonata was a clutz that should never be trusted around a toaster, and Aria could find a way to burn water just trying to make Kool Aid. PLus, that video game deserved what it got for having a cheating bitch AI.

There she went again, being all considerate and crap. The old her would have just broken the stupid clock. The old her wouldn’t have even cared how she hurt others. The old her wouldn’t be sorry for something for the first time in her life; sorry that she had killed Sunset Shimmer’s beloved phoenix.

She had already told herself countless times that it was just a stupid bird, but no matter how many times she repeated it she was no more convinced. That ‘stupid bird’ had meant a great deal to Sunset, and her screams as she held the dying animal in her arms still rang in Adagio’s ears.

She could have blamed Emerald. It was his genius plan that went off script and got the phoenix killed. She could try to justify that it was an unfortunate but unavoidable casualty of the coming war. It wouldn’t make her feel any better, though. It was her spell that had taken it’s life, and she could never take that back. It wasn’t something she could just apologize for either. Her one little apology right after the fight with Sunset was all she could muster, and it would never be enough.

This was the endless spiral of ever greater and greater irritation that Adagio found herself in. No matter what she tried to do to distract herself, these thoughts always looped back around to her eventually. There was only one remedy, temporary as it was, and she could really use the therapy.

Throwing her pillow across the room, Adagio got up in a huff and stormed towards the door. It opened with a soft, mechanical hiss as soon as she got close, and the silence she had isolated herself in was abruptly shattered with a racket of gunfire, explosions, and shouting.

“Take that, alien scum!” Sonata yelled enthusiastically at a television screen. “Feel my energy blade fury!”

“Yeah!” Aria cheered in agreement. “How about a nice hot meal of fifty caliber, hollow-point tungsten to your freaking face?!”

It was a rare moment of unity for the pair, playing a co-op game together. Of course, a round of a cart racing game could just as easily have them at each other’s throats. If she wasn’t in such a bad mood, Adagio might have found their outbursts amusing.

Aria was the first to notice the open door, and paused the game to turn around. “Uh oh, the creature from the bedroom lagoon awakens,” she commented ominously. “You done pouting in there?”

“Bite me,” Adagio groaned.

“Love you too,” Aria shot back snarkily.

“Hey, wanna play with us?” Sonata asked with a cheery grin. “We could use a third to get through this level. Come on, what do you say? You could use a shotgun to blow some brains out!”

“Mind if I try it out on myself first?” Was Adagio’s morbid reply, causing Sonata’s smile to wilt away.

“Wow, way to kill the fun,” Aria snapped back, her eyes tracking Adagio as she went into the kitchen to rummage through the fridge.

“Put the fun in camps why don’t you?” Sonata added, puffing her cheeks brattily.

“Yeah, you Fun Nazi,” Aria kept it going without missing a beat.

Adagio pulled her head out of the fridge to stare blankly at the girls, clearly anything but amused as she asked, “Really?”

Aria bumped fists with Sonata as she replied, “Hey, we’ve been waiting for days now to use that bit. It’s not our fault you’ve become even more moody and grouchy than usual.”

Adagio didn’t dignify that with a reply, at least not with anything more than a low grumble as she grabbed a slice of pizza from a half-empty box and shut the fridge. “I’m going to the training room,” she announced as she headed to the front door of their little domicile. “I need to break a few things and not be yelled at for it.”

“Fine by me,” Aria waved her off dismissively. “Go be a bummer somewhere else.”

Sonata frowned and called after her, “Want us to some along to form Serenade?”

Aria facepalmed and rolled her eyes.

Adagio stopped in the doorway as it slid open. As stormy as she was feeling, she couldn’t bring herself to be anything but happy for Sonata’s offer. Still, she shook her head and looked back to show a faint, weak smile before saying, “Thank you, but I really just want to be alone a bit longer, okay? I promise I’ll play some video games with you later.”

“I’ll hold you to that!” Sonata whooped as Adagio left, the door hissing shut behind her.

Cluster

View Online

Sunset stood grumbling and glaring irately at her hand as she stood before the solitary door of a large postal service warehouse. The two story building's back area was fenced off with delivery trucks, forklifts, and employees milling about their busy work day. Off in the distance the sounds of planes taking off from the nearby airport ripped through the air almost deafeningly.

The door in front of her was the only public access to the building, and her hand was pointing to it earnestly, as though it had a mind of its own. Her friends stood behind her too; Pinkie, Rainbow, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack all stared together at her autonomous hand, then to the building and the large sign on it that read "Safe Skies Deliveries".

The undoubted culprit in this strange event was the Seki Tekko gloves on Sunset's hands. Ever since the big fight outside of Canterlot High, Sunset had rarely even removed them. The made her feel closer to Philomena, through the ring she also scarcely took off.

The whole thing started when Sunset had been talking with her friends after class that day. After a week of anger and frustration over the death of Philomena and Emerald's part in it, Sunset finally managed to calm herself down and make a decision. The moment she told her friends that she was going to talk to Emerald and hear what he had to say, her hand started to move on its own, practically yanking her arm. The girls had tagged along with her to make sure she was safe as the willful appendage took them on a winding adventure. They went all through town, traveling down streets and alleys, and even on a few buses before it had them where they stood now.

Finally wresting control of her hand from the glove, Sunset looked back at her friends and raised a questioning eyebrow. "I guess... this is where they are?"

"'Spose so," Applejack mused, glancing up the building. "Gotta admit, not what I was expecting."

"Seriously, I was thinking we'd be led to some top secret installation on the edge of town, or something else more exciting. What a let down," Rainbow complained.

“I do suppose that there's something to be said for hiding in plain sight, though," Rarity pointed out. "Like how he became a Canterlot High student," Sunset grumbled. Turning a glance back to Rarity, she asked, "So you haven't seen him at all for the last week?"

The fashionista shook her head and answered, "I don't think he's been in school at all. He hasn't shown up for the Fashion Club at all, even though Coco has."

"Didn't she say anything?" Fluttershy wondered.

Rarity merely shrugged, saying, "I tried to talk to her about it, but she'd only say that we'd be seeing him soon before changing the subject. I couldn't bring myself to press further, I'm afraid."

"Rrrgh!" Rainbow growled, scratching at her scalp. "I'm getting really sick of being in the dark about all this! Life Fibers? Geki Uniforms? Transforming clothes and gloves? A freaking talking coat, or sailor uniform, or whatever he is? I liked it better when all we were dealing with was magic!"

Applejack nodded, habitually running her fingers along the brim of her stetson. "I'm with ya there, Rainbow," she agreed before turning a questioning look to Sunset. "You sure none of this has to do with Equestria?"

Sunset let out a long, drawn out sigh before replying, "I don't think so, but I'm not one hundred percent sure." She held up her hand in front of her, staring at the crimson glove on it. "These Life Fiber things don't have any magic in them at all. When I used the Phoenix Gloves, I could feel it. They weren't giving me magical power; they were tapping into the magic in me and the ring; pushing it to the surface."

"I suppose that's why you decided to talk to Emerl?" Rarity asked. "You think he'll have answers about all this?"

"Who else would?" Sunset answered with a sarcastic question of her own. "That shifty bastard got us mixed up in whatever this is, so I think it's only fair that he tells us everything he knows."

Fluttershy chimed in, commenting, "I really want to know more about Senketsu. I've never seen any creature him."

"Well that goes without saying," Rainbow muttered.

Pinkie, as full of energy as usual, grabbed AJ and Rainbow by the shoulders, pulling them to her sides as she cheered, "Oh come on, look on the bright side. This is a brand new adventure for all of us. No doubt, when all's said and done, our bonds of friendship will be stronger than ever!"

"Pfffft!" Rainbow sputtered before bursting into laughter. She playfully pushed Pinkie away, saying, "Seriously, could you have picked a cornier line to say?"

"Don't like that one? I have others. How about 'This will certainly be a growing experience for all of us!'? Oh! Oh! Or even 'If we work together, we can face anything that's in our way!'?" Pinkie grinned from ear to ear.

The group laughed together as they approached the door, Sunset pulled open the door and led the way as they walked into a quiet reception room. It looked as ordinary as any other place would, with an assortment of chairs lining the walls and a small coffee table littered with magazines. The warm lighting made the few houseplants and paintings lining the wall pop out and grab the eye all the more. A gurgle from the corner of the room announced the presence of a water cooler, tiny paper cups included, and opposite from that was a tv playing some strange show with lots of yelling. At the farthest end of the room was a desk with a woman seated behind it, mindlessly clicking on a mouse as she stared at a computer screen.

Pinkie immediately bolted for the cooler and started downing tiny portions of water while watching the show. The rest of the group went to the desk, and Sunset cleared her throat to get the woman's attention. She wore a lovely but very professional black dress that was an off-yellow at its high collar and the midriff of its flattering hourglass waist. It even had a pin of what seemed to be her mark stuck to the breast, an uneven red circle very much like the wax seals on old envelopes. These, and the dark stockings she wore only seemed to make her bright blue eyes, pale cream skin, and crimson hair, tied in a tight bun, stand out all the more as she looked over the teens.

The woman tilted her thin, half-rim reading glasses down to appraise them with a critical, piercing gaze before asking, "How may I help you, ladies?"

"Is there an Emerald Mist here?" Sunset asked, straight to the point. "We've got a lot of questions we want to ask him."

The woman's eyes lingered on Sunset's gloves and ring for a moment before she nodded her head in understanding, her keen expression unchanging. "I see, you must be Sunset Shimmer. Yes, we've been expecting you," she replied. A few quick clicks of her mouse, and she stood to leave, gesturing back to the chairs lining the room. "If you would please give me a moment, I will go fetch Mr. Mist for you. Until then, please enjoy the show we have running."

More waiting. Just great. If they knew she was coming, then why wasn't he here already? He was doing this on purpose, she just knew it.

Still, not wanting to seem ungrateful to the woman, she bowed her head slightly. "Thank you very much, Miss..." she started to thank her, but stopped short when she realized she didn't even know the woman's name. There wasn't even a plate on the desk or a tag on her dress to help her out.

"It's Scarlet Seal, and please don't call of Miss, it makes me feel old," she offered her name with the faintest hint of a smile on her lips before slipping out of the room through a door behind her desk.

With nothing better to do, the girls joined Pinkie at the water cooler and took seats around it. As soon as she plopped down in the cushy seat, she tilted her head back, closed her eyes, and let out a long sigh, tuning out the sound of the television. As much as she wanted to punch Emerald's teeth out, she needed to keep her anger in check for now. She had too many unanswered questions to ask first.

"Mr. Mist?" Rainbow's voice came from the seat to her left, dripping with suspicion. "What's up with that? Are we supposed to believe he's some sort of big shot?"

"I haven't the faintest, dear," Rarity chimed in from the left. "Now that I think about it, Emerl never did talk about his home life. Frankly, I know more about Coco than I do him, and even that isn't much."

Sunset's quiet, and the musings of the girls, were interrupted as a strong female voice came from the television.

"The last time I saw you, you said we would, quote; 'finish this thing'."

Nothing too special about it. Just your typical action flick dialogue. However, it was the next voice that made Sunset's eyes snap open and rivet to the screen.

"Well aren't you the conscientious type. Hey Mako, you'd better get back."

The one speaking was the very same girl that Sunset had seen when Philomena died, and just like in that vision, she was wearing Senketsu in his sailor uniform form. However, unlike in the vision, one of Senketsu's eyes was open and glaring from beneath the scarf of the outfit. Beside her stood a girl with a simpler white and gray-blue uniform and brown, bowl-cut hair.

In full agreement with the order, the chipper girl, Mako, said, "Will do! I want to live a long and healthy life!"

"That girl!" Sunset gasped.

"Is that Senketsu she's wearing?" Rarity echoed her surprise. "He really looks rather fetching on her, don't you think?"

"That's your first thought? Really?" Rainbow asked.

"That's not it... I've seen her before, when I got the Phoenix Gloves," Sunset spoke up before another argument could break out. Memories of her promise to the mysterious girl flashed through her mind as she watched the show continue.

Across from the black-clad girl, descending a flight of blood red stairs to a barren field lined with uniformed students holding banners, was a woman with long black hair and prominent eyebrows. This girl wore a very decorated alabaster-white sailor uniform. Everything from the tasseled, yellow shoulder epaulets to the blue steel armband, and dark blue accents gave off the aura of a deadly military commander taking the field. Hammering that point home was the katana she held tight in its scabbard, and perhaps most ominous of all, however, was the matching set of eyes that peered out from her outfit's own scarf, just like Senketsu.
The heel of the young woman's thigh-high boot clicked ominously as she set foot on the battlefield. "Congratulations. You have the honor of being my first offering to Junketsu," she declared proudly.

All the while, the girls watched at rapt attention, unable to take their eyes off the tv.

"Junketsu? Purity? Didn't know there was anything pure about ya," the girl wearing Senketsu sassed cockily.
"Allow me to show you," the long haired girl replied, raising a hand to her armband and flipping three switches down on it.
The view on the screen zoomed in, and three syringes were shown piercing her flesh, drawing blood up to spread throughout the fabric of her uniform. The blood quickly spiderwebbed its way across the outfit, until the entire thing was stained crimson. Then, suddenly, the outfit unravelled, leaving its wearer naked before it began reconfiguring itself around her. Long, skin-tight sleeves that seamlessly transitioned to gloves extended out from a prominent chestpiece that exposed and even accentuated her cleavage. The lower half was even more daring, with only a few scant straps connecting her top to a skimpy, v-line bikini bottom, and to her boots, the tops of which fluttered out in a skirt-like fashion. Finally, the shoulders of her outfit shot up to form huge spines that dwarfed the height of her own head with each spine bearing one of the outfit’s eyes.
"Life Fiber Override! Kamui Junketsu!" she shouted, the transformation complete.

"Oh my!" Rarity gasped. "What a scandalous change!"

"What the hell is that?!" the girl wearing Senketsu asked furiously.
"You're not the only one with a Kamui," her foe replied, proudly displaying her new garb. "This is Junketsu!"

So Senketsu is one of there Kamui things? An outfit that drinks blood to change into a seemingly powerful but skimpy new form?

The camera then panned over to another character, one with a suspiciously familiar style of unruly hair and a sloppily buttoned white shirt, thick glasses only driving the image home more. "Uh-oh. Looks like little-miss Satsuki brought something dangerous to Show and Tell," he said, revealing the name of the white-clad woman.
The girl wearing Senketsu was shown again, holding up a glove on her left hand just like the Seki Tekkos that Sunset wore as she shouted, "Let's do this, Senketsu!" Pulling the pin on the wrist of the glove and eclipsing herself in thousands of tiny flashes of light as Life Fibers activated, revealing Senketsu transformed to an equally revealing state as Junketsu. She, however, lacked the enormous shoulder spikes of Junketsu. Senketsu's single left eye instead inhabited I small, wing-shaped crest in front of the girl's shoulder, the opposite crest having what looked like a scar across it, the eye shut tight.
Senketsu's armor-like top barely managed to cover the girl's breasts, leaving a considerable amount of the undersides free and exposed while garter belts strapped it to an absolutely tiny skirt that hardly covered anything. Black thigh-high boots completed the look, much like with Junketsu. In her hand she held half of a giant pair of crimson scissors. She brandished it like a blade while looking very uncomfortable with her new outfit.
The pair of combatants advanced on each other, both staring the other down as the girl spoke to Senketsu, "That why you were scared yesterday? Cause you sensed her outfit?"
The familiar voice of Senketsu replied, "I have to warn you, Ryuko; your opponent is much more powerful than you."
The girl, Ryuko, answered dryly, "Thanks a bunch for the pep talk."
As Ryuko and Satsuki got closer, the sheer intensity between them created a literal shockwave that sent the onlooking crowd around them flying.

"Whoa," Applejack muttered under her breath, her eyes wide as saucers, much like the rest of the girls watching the tv.

On the screen, another group was shown watching the fight, one of them shouting, "Incredible! Their willpower created a concussive blast!"
"Cool! Now let's see if you can back it up, or if you're just blowing hot air!" Ryuko jeered, charging Satsuki at full speed.
She was answered with a deft flick of Satsuki's blade. A visible razor line of force traveled from its edge, only to barely be blocked by Ryuko, shockwaves tearing up the terrain all around her. That single blow, and Ryuko was already at a disadvantage, a bad cut already bleeding across her cheek, and her breathing heavy.

"Awesome power!" Rainbow Dash gasped in awe, practically dangling from the edge of her seat.

What followed was a flurry of slashes from Satsuki's blade, turning the air into a deadly whirl of steel. It was all that Ryuko could do to guard against the onslaught, but she was getting lacerated despite her best efforts. Blood flew from fresh cuts on her body and left long streaks across the ground around her.
"Careful! Try not to lose too much of your blood," Senketsu warned her. "The more you lose, the faster you'll pass out."
"I know, I know! Jeez!" Ryuko snapped at him. She blocked one last strike before sliding around Satsuki's barrage. Coming to a stop behind her, Ryuko swung her scissor at her enemy's back, only to be effortlessly blocked without even looking. The power being wielded by the girls was hammered home as the excess force of that blocked strike caused the terrain to upheave all around them.
Satsuki clenched her fist in marvel of her new strength, not even turning to look at Ryuko. "Incredible. More than I ever imagined," she boasted proudly.
Bringing her attention back to bear, Satsuki jammed her sword arm downward, creating an instant of intense downward air pressure around Ryuko that smacked her with bone-shaking force into the ground. The impact bounced Ryuko right back into the air, and Senketsu's eye glanced up in time to see the hilt of Satsuki's sword slowly being thrust towards him in midair. Nothing more than a mere tap was delivered, directly upon Senketsu's eye, and he and Ryuko were sent careening into the building that surrounded their battlefield.
Then--

The screen froze, right in the middle of the fight. The abrupt stop got a frustrated reaction from the girls, until their attention was drawn to Scarlet's desk, where the door was ajar and Emerald stood, holding a remote with a playful smile. Behind him was Scarlet, who wasted no time in taking her seat again, clicking absently on the mouse.

"Enjoy the show?" Emerald asked casually.

How could he just stand there like that? Just looking at him pissed Sunset off, and she stormed right up to him, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, despite the protests of her friends. Still, he just stood there with a smile, and it made her want to deck him right then and there.

Instead, she asked through clenched teeth, "Why the hell are you jerking us around like this? What are you up to?" Questions began to fire off one after the other, her anger preventing her from closing the floodgate. "What was that video? Who were those girls? Why were the humans so strange looking? Who the hell are you? Wh--"

She was cut off as Emerald calmly grabbed hold of her wrist, pulling himself free. "That video was made to show you a small fraction of the threat we are facing," he explained, his smile fading somewhat and his demeanor growing more serious.

Sunset yanked her arm from his grasp; scowling at him. "A threat? What, are talking clothes going to destroy us all?" she mocked him.

"As if," Rainbow scoffed.

Emerald's eyes hardened far more drastically as he replied, "That's exactly what is coming."

The silence after his audacious declaration was deadening, only disrupted by the methodical clicks of Scarlet's mouse.

Emerald didn't wait for them to speak up. He turned around and walked through the door he had come in from. He called over his shoulder, "Follow me. You won't believe what I have to say, but there is someone you can't possibly ignore."

Stunned by his words, before the girls knew it, they were tailing after him.

The first thing that Sunset noticed as they followed him was that the hall they had entered was strangely barren, even for what she would have expected from a shipping warehouse like this. The walls were uniformly off-white, with fluorescent ceiling panels lighting their way. Farther down, she could see a set of double doors from which she could hear a clamorous racket, but that didn't seem to be their destination. They only traveled a few yards before he stopped in the middle of the hall. He turned to face the wall at a seemingly random spot and reached out to press his palm against it.

The wall lit up in a square around his palm, and opened on an invisible seam to reveal an elevator behind it. The inside was like most any other elevator, but there was a second set of doors in the back, and hand rails on either side.

"Ooooo! Secret door!" Pinkie cooed in excitement.

"Eh, it's cool and all, but I'm not very impressed," Rainbow sniped. Emerald didn't even acknowledge their words as he silently stepped into elevator and stood beside the console of buttons, hands clasped behind his back, the rest of them joining him. Satisfied that they were all aboard, he pressed the bottom-most button. "Might want to brace yourselves," he warned them.

His words of caution were just a tad late; the girl's feet lifting off of the ground as he spoke. They all screamed in surprise, well, all except Pinkie, and grabbed at the hand rails to pull themselves back down.

"What's the big idea you... you...?" Sunset tried to complain before trailing off. Her eyes were drawn past him, through the door they had boarded from, which was solid glass. She couldn't believe what she was seeing, as earth and rock gave way to an enormous cavern, easily two city blocks wide, four deep, and as high eight stories. Disc-shaped plateaus on the ceiling showed where what had to have been enormous stalactites had been completely shorn away and embedded with lighting, leaving it safe for what lay below. And damn, what lay below was a sight to behold.

One could practically call what they were seeing a village, with dozens of cone-shaped buildings carved out of the stalagmites jutting out of the ground. They were a variety of sizes, ranging from single story structures to about four stories. Some of the biggest ones even looked like they'd had their tips shorn off too, the spaces on top had clear domed structures filled with an indistinguishable green hue. Each stalagmite over one story had a spiral ramp leading to various entryways along their paths.

They weren't the only structures, though. There were a number of man-made structures, large and small, scattered all over too. None of them was higher than two stories, and looked strangely new and out of place compared to the jagged and unevenly populated stalagmites that surrounded them.

Sunset's eyes drifted farther and farther down as she took in this incredible sight. The rest of the girls, still clutching to the handrail for dear life, let out gasps of awe as they looked out.

"Okay, now I'm a little impressed," Rainbow admitted, dumbstruck. The rest of the group echoed her feeling of awe as with a violent jerk the elevator came to a stop.

"Welcome to Cluster, the home base of my organization," he said with obvious pride. "My family created this place as a safe haven from which to wage a silent war against Life Fibers." As the doors opened and he stepped out, numerous people could be seen walking an interwoven network of pathways that wound between the buildings. "Everyone here is a member doing their part."

Life Fibers, right, the stuff that those Goku Uniforms were made of. Senketsu and the Phoenix Gloves too.

Sunset's thoughts drifted back to the fight they had watched on the tv. That fight had been on another level entirely from her own fight with the Dazzlings. Not only was the strength that Ryuko wielded enormous, but that Satsuki girl shrugged her off like she was nothing. Sunset's own fight hadn't been nearly as devastating in collateral damage, and what damage there had been was fixed by the next day, likely by Emerald's group.

If what they'd watched was only a taste of what Life Fibers could do, then they definitely were something to be feared. It did, however, leave her with one nagging question.

"I get that Senketsu is alive and all," she began, following him off the elevator, "but from what I've seen it's the bozos that wear these outfits that are the real problem, aren't they?"

"Ah-ah-ah," Emerald tutted, not even looking over his shoulder as he waved a scolding finger in the air. "Please save all questions until class is in session. Your teachers are very eager to explain everything to you." He didn't stop, and started heading deeper into Cluster, already on one of the many winding paths.

Sunset frowned at his evasive answer. He was jerking them around again. Couldn't he give a freaking straight answer? And now they had teachers? Who? She wanted to ask, but he'd likely just shrug that question off too. Jerk.

"Oh, please wait up!" Fluttershy called out, her and the rest of the girls picking up the pace after recovering from their rapid descent.

Emerald led them all on a winding trek through the heart of the underground base, passing a surprisingly large number of people on the way. "Wow, there's Crafty Crate! Noteworthy is over there, talking to Peachy Pit. I even see Silver Script in that window over there!" Pinkie randomly pointed out many of the people she saw in turn.

"Wow, Pinkie," Rainbow snickered, bumping shoulders with her, "Is there anyone that you don't know?"

"Not that I know of," she answered cheerfully before wandering down another train of thought. "Hey, if I know so many of the members, then do you think I've been a member all along and never knew it?!" She bounced up alongside Emerald and directed her question at him, "Did I go through some sort of super secret initiation, and then you wiped my memory afterwards? Or are you all secretly out to get me?"

Her questions grew more frantic, and she stopped him in his tracks, grabbing him by his shoulders and turning him to face her barrage of queries. "Are you bugging my phones or copying my emails? Are you observing everything I love from the shadows to find my weaknesses? Are waiting for just the right time to infiltrate my life and take advantage? DO THE BROWN COWS MAKE THE CHOCOLATE MILK?!" By this point she was shaking him furiously, and came to an abrupt stop at the last question.

After a moment of baffled silence, Emerald shook her hands from his shoulders and replied, "Um, no, no-no, no, no, no, and... no."

"Wait, didn't you miss one?"

"No."

Pinkie's eyes narrowed at him for a few seconds, bringing a surprisingly uneasy and uncomfortable look to his face. "Your story checks out for now, but I've got my eye on you, buster." She pointed at her eyes then at him before stepping back next to her friends.

"Alright then, if that's over with, our destination is right around the corner here," Emerald announced, sounding a corner at a two story stalagmite building. Just beyond the top of it, I much larger structure could be seen, four stories high. With evenly placed glass windows, and exposed steel supports, it gave off a feeling of hasty construction. It looked as though it were ready to buckle under its own weight.

"What was all that about?" Sunset asked Pinkie as they dragged their feet after him.

"I can't explain it," Pinkie admitted. "I got this really weird feeling from him and I just ran with it."

"Please don't tell me it was a bad feeling," Fluttershy whispered nervously. "I don't think I could handle more bad things happening."

Pinkie shook her head. "Not bad, just weird. I can't put my finger on it," Pinkie mused with an interestingly serious expression before immediately perking up. "Oh well! I'm sure we'll figure it out eventually!"

There certainly was something strange about Emerald, but was there even more to it? Was Pinkie picking up on something the rest of them couldn't? Her barrage of questions had been peculiar, even for her.

As Emerald approached the entrance to the building ahead of them, the door slid right open with a soft hiss. He waved them along behind him, and soon they were taking a number of turns through still more hallways. Just how much farther was it, anyway?

"Oh my, look," Fluttershy spoke up, pointing past Emerald. The girls all looked over to see Adagio stepping into the hall, sighing deeply as a door hissed closed behind her, the faintest traces of a smile on her face.

"Good afternoon," Emerald greeted her as they approached. "Are you headed to the training room?"

Adagio gave a start as she whirled to see the group. It only took a moment for that surprise to turn to an indifferent glare as she gave a curt reply of, "Yes, sir."

Emerald didn't stop moving, passing right by her as he ordered, "On your way there, could you please stop by the sewing room? Ask Coco, Scrap Iron, and White Knight to bring the FITs to the training room."

The displeasure at being ordered about was more than apparent on Adagio's face. She grimaced and held her tongue, even though it she seemed to want to say something. For a second she even made eye contact with Sunset, but in the next moment she squeezed her eyes shut, her cheeks flushing an irritated red.

Calming herself, she opted to take a deep breath and answer with another frank "Yes, sir."

The awkward tension in the air was nearly suffocating as Sunset and her friends quietly passed by Adagio in the hall. It was so strange to see the proud siren so compliant, and Sunset couldn't help but wonder what was going through her head. She found her head turning to watch as Adagio stormed off, rounding another corner and disappearing from sight.

"This is all so very strange," Rarity whispered.

"Yer tellin' me," Applejack quietly agreed. "I can't get it around my head how one kid can be behind... all of this." She made a small gesture all around with her hand.

It really was a lot to take in, but that was why they were here. They needed answers, and Emerald could give them. It looked like they were about to get them too.

Emerald stopped at a door that really didn't look different from any of the others they had passed on their way through. As it opened, he smiled to whoever was inside and called out, "Alright! Looks like the presentation room is all ready. You two good to go?"

The warm, mature, and familiar voice of a woman grabbed Sunset's attention as it answered, "Yes, please bring them in. Senketsu and I have everything prepared."

That voice... Was that--?

After Emerald entered the room, Sunset rushed to the doorway. Who she saw inside was the last person she expected to, and her presence challenged everything Sunset thought she knew about this world. New questions swarmed through her mind like a cloud of gnats, as she stood tongue-tied in the doorway.

"Please take a seat, Sunset," Principal Celestia requested with a warm smile. "There is much we need to talk about."